President Mohamed Morsi of Egypt Said to Prepare Martial Law Decree

Tara Todras-Whitehill for The New York TimesEgyptian protesters stood next to a destroyed barricade near the presidential palace in Cairo on Saturday. More Photos »CAIRO — Struggling to quell street protests and political violence, President Mohamed Morsi is moving to impose a version of martial law by calling on the armed forces to keep order and authorizing soldiers to arrest civilians, Egyptian...

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Mario Lopez Is Spontaneous, Romantic, Says New Bride Courtney Mazza

By Dahvi Shira and Patrick Gomez 12/08/2012 at 03:30 PM EST Courtney Mazza, Mario Lopez and their daughter, Gia FameFlynet There's no lack of spice in the lives of newlyweds Mario and Courtney Lopez."The most romantic thing about Mario is his spontaneity," Courtney...

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Smokers celebrate as Wash. legalizes marijuana

SEATTLE (AP) — The crowds of happy people lighting joints under Seattle's Space Needle early Thursday morning with nary a police officer in sight bespoke the new reality: Marijuana is legal under Washington state law.Hundreds gathered at Seattle Center for a New Year's Eve-style countdown to 12 a.m., when the legalization measure passed by voters last month took effect. When the clock struck, they...

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Graphic details of Notorious B.I.G. murder revealed

The night rapper Notorious B.I.G. was gunned down in one of L.A.'s most famous unsolved homicides he had no drugs or alcohol in his system, according to a Los Angeles County coroner's report unsealed Friday.A coroner's medical examiner ran toxicology screens for alcohol, cocaine, codeine, morphine and methamphetamine with negative results for all.The autopsy report has been on a security...

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Cairo Protesters Take to Streets as Political Crisis Deepens

CAIRO — Supporters and opponents of the government of President Mohamed Morsi staged competing demonstrations on Friday after noon prayers, throwing Egypt deeper into political crisis. Thousands of pro-government Islamists attended the funeral of two men killed in clashes on Wednesday outside the presidential palace, the site of continuing demonstrations by the opposition. “With blood and...

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iPad mini fails to draw crowds for China launch

Either Apple’s (AAPL) reservation-only system works better than anyone could have expected, or consumers in China have little interest in the company’s new iPad mini. Apple’s tiny tablet launched on schedule on Friday but according to IDG News Service, the turnout for Apple’s new slate was minimal. At Apple’s new flagship store in the well-trafficked Wangfujing district in Beijing, for example,...

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Check Out Sophia Bush's New Bangs!

Stylewatch Style News Now 12/07/2012 at 12:30 PM ET Splash News Online; Inset: FilmMagicSophia Bush wants to end the year with a bang — literally!The actress showed off brand new fringe at the opening of a Joe’s Jeans store in Hollywood...

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Smokers celebrate as Wash. legalizes marijuana

SEATTLE (AP) — The crowds of happy people lighting joints under Seattle's Space Needle early Thursday morning with nary a police officer in sight bespoke the new reality: Marijuana is legal under Washington state law.Hundreds gathered at Seattle Center for a New Year's Eve-style countdown to 12 a.m., when the legalization measure passed by voters last month took effect. When the clock struck, they...

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Soccer coach who molested boys 'a vulture,' judge says

This post has been corrected. See note at bottom for details.An Anaheim man who worked as a soccer coach and martial arts instructor was sentenced to 298 years in prison Thursday for sexually assaulting 11 of his young students, according to the Orange County district attorney’s office. Luis Alberto Pineda, 31, was convicted last month of committing forcible sodomy and other lewd...

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3 Walmart Suppliers Made Goods in Bangladesh Factory

Khurshed Rinku/Associated PressBurials on Nov. 27 for some of the 112 victims of the garment factory fire in Bangladesh. Documents found at the Tazreen apparel factory in Bangladesh, where 112 workers died in a fire nearly two weeks ago, indicate that three American garment companies were using the factory during the past year to supply goods to Walmart and its Sam’s Club subsidiary. The...

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Randy Travis Has 'Given Up Alcohol,' Will Hit Awards Show Stage

12/06/2012 at 04:30 PM EST Randy Travis is easing back into the spotlight four months after he was arrested while nude and allegedly drunk and belligerent on a Texas highway.The country star, 53, is performing Friday night at the American Giving Awards in Pasadena for a show airing Saturday night on NBC. This...

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Celebrations planned as Wash. legalizes marijuana

SEATTLE (AP) — Legal marijuana possession becomes a reality under Washington state law on Thursday, and some people planned to celebrate the new law by breaking it.Voters in Washington and Colorado last month made those the first states to decriminalize and regulate the recreational use of marijuana. Washington's law takes effect Thursday and allows adults to have up to an ounce of pot — but it bans...

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Church volunteer had sex with kids he met at church school, police allege

A well-known Orange County church has been roiled by allegations that a volunteer sexually assaulted children.A Sunday school volunteer at Rock Harbor Church in Costa Mesa allegedly formed relationships with children in his church and went on to sexually abuse at least one of them multiple times between November 2009 and November 2011, according to church leaders and court documents.Two...

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3 Walmart Suppliers Made Goods in Bangladeshi Factory Where 112 Died in Fire

Ashraful Alam Tito/Associated PressA Nov. 28 photo shows Walmart's Faded Glory label on a piece of clothing found after a fire at a garment factory in Bangladesh. Documents found at the Tazreen apparel factory in Bangladesh, where 112 workers died in a fire nearly two weeks ago, indicate that three separate apparel companies were using the factory during the past year to supply goods to Walmart and...

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Homeless Man Charged with Subway Killing

By Sarah Michaud 12/05/2012 at 04:30 PM EST Suspect in N.Y.C. subway killing A homeless man has been arrested and charged with murder for allegedly pushing a man in front of a New York subway train.Naeem Davis, 30, implicated himself in the crime after being...

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Longer tamoxifen use cuts breast cancer deaths

Breast cancer patients taking the drug tamoxifen can cut their chances of having the disease come back or kill them if they stay on the pills for 10 years instead of five years as doctors recommend now, a major study finds.The results could change treatment, especially for younger women. The findings are a surprise because earlier research suggested that taking the hormone-blocking drug for longer...

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Man lived with dead girlfriend for months, faced murder charges

A jury is being selected in Stockton to hear the murder case against a man accused of living for months with his girlfriend's dead body.Devon Epps was evicted from his apartment in December 2011. The next day, when the apartment manager stopped by, they found a dead body in the bathroom.The body had been there for some time, authorities said.Epps was arrested and then arraigned a few days...

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Nasrin Sotoudeh, Iranian Rights Advocate, Ends Hunger Strike

TEHRAN — An imprisoned human rights lawyer serving a sentence for “acting against national security” ended a 47-day hunger strike on Tuesday after judicial authorities acceded to her demand to lift a travel ban imposed on her 12-year-old daughter, her husband said. The lawyer, Nasrin Sotoudeh, 49, who until her imprisonment in 2010 was one of the last lawyers taking on high-profile human...

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Lisa Whelchel 'Hit Rock Bottom' on Survivor, Says Brother

TV Watch People Exclusive By Steve Helling 12/04/2012 at 04:45 PM EST Lisa Whelchel and brother Justice Coleman CBS They're hungry. They're tired. They're uncomfortable. But by day 31, Survivor contestants can often struggle with crippling homesickness. As one of...

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CDC says US flu season starts early, could be bad

NEW YORK (AP) — Flu season in the U.S. is off to its earliest start in nearly a decade — and it could be a bad one.Health officials on Monday said suspected flu cases have jumped in five Southern states, and the primary strain circulating tends to make people sicker than other types. It is particularly hard on the elderly."It looks like it's shaping up to be a bad flu season, but only time will tell,"...

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Decapitated body of man found at hospital

About L.A. NowL.A. Now is the Los Angeles Times’ breaking news section for Southern California. It is produced by more than 80 reporters and editors in The Times’ Metro section, reporting from the paper’s downtown Los Angeles headquarters as well as bureaus in Costa Mesa, Long Beach, San Diego, San Francisco, Sacramento, Riverside, Ventura and West Los Angeles.Have a story tip for L.A. Now?Can I call...

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5 Nations Summon Israeli Envoys to Protest Settlement Plans

JERUSALEM — Britain, France, Spain, Sweden and Denmark summoned the Israeli ambassadors to their countries on Monday to protest Israel’s plans for increased settlement construction, an unusually sharp diplomatic step that reflected the growing frustration abroad with Israel’s policies on the Palestinian issue. After the General Assembly voted overwhelmingly last week to upgrade the status...

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Ericsson seeks U.S. import ban on Samsung products

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Swedish telecoms gear maker Ericsson has filed a request with the U.S. International Trade Commission to ban U.S. imports of products made by South Korean group Samsung,The request from Ericsson, which said on Monday the products infringe on its patents, came after it sued Samsung for patent infringement in a U.S. court last week.“The request for an import ban is a part of the...

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Kristin Chenoweth Dating Jake Pavelka

By Patrick Gomez 12/03/2012 at 04:40 PM EST Kristin Chenoweth and Jake Pavelka FilmMagic (2) Everything appears to be rosy between Kristin Chenoweth and her new beau Jake Pavelka."We have been spending a little time together," Chenoweth tells PEOPLE of her dates...

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Girl, 12, held as sex slave, forced into prostitution by couple, police allege

An Oceanside couple are scheduled to be in court Monday to face accusations that they kept an underage Mexican immigrant as a sex slave, forcing her into prostitution and beating her severely.Marcial Garcia Hernandez, 45, and Inez Martinez Garcia, 43, were arrested Thursday on suspicion of 13 felony counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child under age 14.The girl had been smuggled...

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Egyptian Court Postpones Ruling on Charter

Wissam NassarEgyptian police officers stood guard outside Egypt's Supreme Constitutional Court on Sunday, while supporters of President Mohamed Morsi protested near the entrance of the building. CAIRO — Egypt’s highest court on Sunday postponed its much-awaited ruling on the legitimacy of the legislative assembly that drafted a new charter last week, accusing a crowd of Islamists of blocking...

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