news
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Fla. State University Settles With Jameis Winston’s Accuser for $950,000
A woman who accused footballer Jameis Winston of raping her in 2012 while they were both students at Florida State University has settled with the school for $950,000, the New York Times reports. The agreement, which was reached Monday, also calls for Florida State to commit to five years of sexual-assault-awareness programs and greater transparency,…
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Ind. City Councilman, Charged With Murder, Sworn In While in Jail
Normally, when someone is sworn in as a city councilman, he takes the oath of office in city hall. Re-elected East Chicago, Ind., Councilman Robert Battle, however, was sworn in for a second term from inside a county jail. The Washington Post reports that Battle is facing multiple felony charges, including murder, in the killing…
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US Capitol Police Officer Dies Shoveling Snow
A U.S. Capitol police officer died of a heart attack while shoveling snow at his Delaware home Saturday following the blizzard that blasted the eastern U.S., the (Wilmington, Del.) News Journal reports. Vernon J. Alston Jr., 44, a 20-year veteran, was a “fixture on the Capitol grounds,” Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid said Sunday, announcing…
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9-Year-Old Va. Girl Collects Dolls for Homeless Girls Her Age
Gianni Graham may be small, but the 9-year-old girl from Norfolk, Va., clearly has a big heart: She has made a New Year’s resolution to collect 1,000 Barbie dolls to give away to 1,000 girls in foster homes and shelters across Hampton Roads, Va., WTKR reports. Of course, Gianni knows that food and clothes are…
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Teen’s Impromptu Piano Performance at Mich. Mall Goes Viral
Monntel West was just trying to kill time on Friday while he waited for a friend at Lansing Mall in Michigan, when he started tinkering around with the piano at the east end of the mall. However, all it took was one impressed passerby and a quick cellphone video for the 18-year-old high school senior…
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Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, SC, Site of Massacre, Gets New Pastor
Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, the historic Charleston, S.C., church that was struck with tragedy last June after a gunman killed nine people during Bible study, has a new pastor, the Associated Press reports. The Rev. Betty Deas Clark was appointed pastor Saturday, making her the first female pastor to lead the church. On Sunday,…
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Pa. Mother Fatally Shot After Reportedly Rebuffing Man’s Advances
A mother of two was followed to her car, shot and killed after she reportedly rebuffed a man’s advances in a Pittsburgh bar. According to WTAE, Janese Talton-Jackson, 29, of Penn Hills, Pa., located just outside Pittsburgh, was leaving the bar around 1:50 a.m. when the suspect followed her to her car, where she was…
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Watch: Shaquille O’Neal Surprises Fla. Kids Whose Neighbor Called Police on Them for Shooting Hoops
Gainesville, Fla., Police Officer Bobby White was dispatched to a Gainesville neighborhood last week after a neighbor called to report that children were playing too loudly. When the officer arrived, he saw several children playing basketball. He joked with the kids about someone calling the police on them and then proceeded to shoot hoops with…
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Julie Delpy: Hollywood Treats Women Worse Than It Treats African Americans
Actress and writer Julie Delpy is raising eyebrows. She said Friday that Hollywood’s white- male-dominated film industry is much kinder to black protesters than feminists—making her wish sometimes that she were black, The Wrap reports. Speaking at the Sundance Film Festival, Delpy said she was “slashed to pieces by the media” two years ago for…
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Black Lives Matter Wants Cop Charged for Urging Drivers to Run Over Demonstrators
The St. Paul, Minn., chapter of Black Lives Matter on Friday called for authorities to criminally charge the police sergeant who posted the “Run them over” message on social media, the Pioneer Press reports. Sgt. Jeffrey Rothecker apologized Wednesday for his post, which appeared ahead of a planned demonstration that blocked traffic on Martin Luther…