The Lede: Reeva Steenkamp, Steve Biko and the Quest for Justice in South Africa

LONDON – The title of the presiding judge 35 years ago was the same, chief magistrate of Pretoria, and the venue for the hearing, a converted synagogue, was not far from the modern courthouse seen on television screens around the world in recent days as Oscar Pistorius, the gold medal-winning Paralympic athlete, fought for bail in the killing of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp.The case that unfolded...

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We Totally Agree With Your Pick for Best Dressed Star This Week

Stylewatch Style News Now 02/23/2013 at 12:00 PM ET Sara De Boer/StartraksFor a moment, it looked like Miranda Kerr was going to be crowned the best dressed star for a second week in a row. But one very stylish actress managed to...

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FDA approves new targeted breast cancer drug

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Food and Drug Administration has approved a first-of-a-kind breast cancer medication that targets tumor cells while sparing healthy ones.The drug Kadcyla from Roche combines the established drug Herceptin with a powerful chemotherapy drug and a third chemical linking the medicines together. The chemical keeps the cocktail intact until it binds to a cancer cell, delivering a potent...

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New toll lanes open on 10 Freeway

Los Angeles County's venture into toll roads advanced early Saturday with the opening of 14 miles of express lanes on the San...

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Chinese Passports Seen as Political Statement

Todd Heisler/The New York TimesHu Ping, the editor of a pro-democracy journal in New York, has not seen his aging parents in decades because of passport restrictions. BEIJING — Flush with cash and eager to see the world, millions of middle-class Chinese spent the 10-day Lunar New Year holiday that ended on Monday in places like Paris, Bangkok and New York. Last year, Chinese made a record 83 million...

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Nick Carter Engaged to Lauren Kitt

By Jennifer Garcia and Patrick Gomez 02/22/2013 at 04:30 PM EST Lauren Kitt and Nick Carter Angela Weiss/WireImage Nick Carter has found his fire, his one desire."I had the ring in my pocket for two weeks," the Backstreet Boy tells PEOPLE exclusively of his engagement...

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FDA approves new targeted breast cancer drug

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Food and Drug Administration has approved a first-of-a-kind breast cancer medication that targets tumor cells while sparing healthy ones.The drug Kadcyla from Roche combines the established drug Herceptin with a powerful chemotherapy drug and a third chemical linking the medicines together. The chemical keeps the cocktail intact until it binds to a cancer cell, delivering a potent...

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Eric Garcetti's role in L.A. budget fixes is in dispute

Pressed in the race for mayor of Los Angeles to say how he would fix a persistent budget gap that has led to the gutting of...

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3 Convicted in Britain Over Terrorist Plot

LONDON — Three men accused of plotting what prosecutors said would have been the most devastating terrorist attacks in Britain since the London transit system bombings of July 2005 were convicted Thursday after a 12-week trial. The judge hearing the case told the men to expect sentences of life imprisonment. Prosecutors said the three men — Irfan Naseer, 31, Irfan Khalid, 27, and Ashik Ali,...

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PHOTO: Seth MacFarlane Lets Popcorn Fly in New Oscar Promo

02/21/2013 at 04:45 PM EST Seth MacFarlane isn't crying over spilled popcorn.Before he gets down to the business of hosting on Sunday's 85th Annual Academy Awards, MacFarlane 39, posed in a lighthearted set of promotional photos, leading up to Hollywood's biggest night. In one of the shots, the Family Guy creator...

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Flu shot doing a poor job of protecting elderly

ATLANTA (AP) — It turns out this year's flu shot is doing a startlingly dismal job of protecting senior citizens, the most vulnerable age group.The vaccine is proving only 9 percent effective in people 65 and older against the harsh strain of the flu that is predominant this season, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday.Health officials are baffled as to why this is so. But...

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Doctor sexually assaulted unconscious patients, police say

An Orange County anesthesiologist convicted of sexually assaulting three unconscious female patients  has been sentenced to six months in jail and five years probation, despite the objections of prosecutors who wanted state prison time.Yashwant Balgiri Giri, 60, pleaded guilty to a court offer to multiple felony counts related to the sexual battery of patients, including a 16-year-old,...

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IHT Special: Lebanon Voting Plan Stirs Sectarian Fervor

BEIRUT — A controversial draft law to overhaul Lebanon’s electoral system gained traction Tuesday when a parliamentary joint committee supported it, raising the possibility that voters will in future be able to cast ballots only for candidates from their own sect. Proponents say the law would protect their communities and ensure fairer elections. Opponents say it would further entrench sectarianism...

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Can You Guess Which Star Was First To Wear Elizabeth Taylor's $6 Million Emerald Necklace?

Stylewatch Style News Now 02/20/2013 at 11:15 AM ET Nate Beckett/Splash News Online; Popperfoto/GettyOn Tuesday night, Julianne Moore did what few women would be able to: She did justice to one of Elizabeth Taylor‘s most prized pieces...

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Obama administration tackles colonoscopy confusion

WASHINGTON (AP) — It's one part of the new health care law that seemed clear: free coverage for preventive care under most insurance plans.Only it didn't turn out that way.So on Wednesday, the Obama administration had to straighten out the confusion.Have you gone for a colonoscopy thinking it was free, only to get a hefty bill because the doctor removed a polyp?No more.Taking out such precancerous...

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Tourist's body found stuffed in hotel water tank; guest horrified

There were few details Wednesday on how the body of a missing Canadian tourist ended up at the bottom of a water tank on the roof of a downtown hotel.For days, residents of the Cecil Hotel thought something was amiss. At least one said there was flooding in one of the fourth-floor rooms, while others complained about weak water pressure. One of those complaints led a hotel maintenance worker...

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At War Blog: General Allen's Tenure in Afghanistan

Most Americans probably know of him only as a secondary character in the sweeping drama of David H. Petraeus’s affair with his biographer, Paula Broadwell. But Gen. John R. Allen, who announced Tuesday that he would retire from the Marine Corps rather than become the top commander of NATO, was for more than a year and a half the commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan. And when he said farewell to...

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Mindy McCready 'Really Loved Her Dog'

People Pets 02/19/2013 at 03:45 PM EST When Mindy McCready was found dead on Sunday of an apparent suicide, the country singer was not alone: Her dog, who'd been fatally shot, was by her side.But a source close to the star tells Fox News that her decision to end the animal's life would "not have been an act...

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Costlier robotic surgery soars for hysterectomies

CHICAGO (AP) — Robotic surgery is increasingly being used for women's hysterectomies, adding at least $2,000 to the cost without offering much benefit over less high-tech methods, a study found.The technique was used in just 0.5 percent of operations studied in 2007, but that soared to almost 10 percent by early 2010. Columbia University researchers analyzed data on more than 260,000 women who had...

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Rapes may be tied to Christian dating website, officials say

Police in the San Diego suburb of La Mesa are investigating whether a 37-year-old man charged with raping a woman he met on the ChristianMingle website may have victimized other women he met on the dating website.Sean Banks of Del Mar is charged with rape, burglary and penetration by force involving a woman in La Mesa, according to court records. He was arrested Feb. 11 and...

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Mikhail Pakhomov’s Body Is Found Near Moscow in Cement-Filled Barrel

MOSCOW — The body of a missing city legislator and construction tycoon has been found in a private basement garage on the city’s outskirts, inside a rusted metal barrel filled with cement, the police said Monday. Russian television showed investigators removing the body of the man, Mikhail Pakhomov, 36, on Sunday evening from the garage, 20 miles east of Moscow, where the police said he had...

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The Bachelor: AshLee Dishes on Her Connection with Sean - and Tierra

TV Watch The Bachelor By Carrie Bell 02/18/2013 at 04:25 PM EST For The Bachelor's AshLee Frazier, 32, the week spent with Sean Lowe in St. Croix was a series of emotional highs and lows, from coming clean with the final skeleton in her closet to a super-charged confrontation with Tierra. The Houston-based professional...

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Study: Better TV might improve kids' behavior

SEATTLE (AP) — Teaching parents to switch channels from violent shows to educational TV can improve preschoolers' behavior, even without getting them to watch less, a study found.The results were modest and faded over time, but may hold promise for finding ways to help young children avoid aggressive, violent behavior, the study authors and other doctors said."It's not just about turning off the television....

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Attorney killed wife on Italian cruise for her money, police say

A former Orange County attorney allegedly killed his ex-wife for financial gain in 2006 by strangling her and throwing her overboard while on a cruise along the Italian coast, authorities said.Lonnie Kocontes, 55, a former Mission Viejo resident, was arrested Friday at his home in Safety Harbor, Fla., in connection with the death of his former wife, Micki Kanesaki, 52, of Ladera Ranch, authorities...

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IHT Rendezvous: Taming the Runaway U.S. Budget

WASHINGTON — If Democrats and Republicans can’t agree on a deficit reduction plan, in two weeks automatic budget cuts will kick in that could severely weaken the U.S. economy and the American military.As I write in my latest Letter From Washington, there are sensible ways to avoid this, though it is far from certain dysfunctional Washington can achieve them.One reason is that so much of spending is...

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