Michael Jackson Returns to the U.S.

Michael Jackson is back in the United States after living in Bahrain, France and Ireland. He emerged with his spokeswoman Friday to confirm to The Associated Press that he is back after more than a year in self-imposed exile following his acquittal in a high-profile child molestation trial that ended in June 2005.
They also said he is on the comeback trail planning a pair of "fan appreciation events" in Japan in March, one of which will charge $3,300 for the opportunity to meet the Gloved One.
"I can confirm that he is in the United States," spokeswoman Raymone K. Bain said. "We don't give out information regarding our client's whereabouts because of safety, and this is just an ongoing policy."
During the brief conference call, Jackson read a statement prepared for The Associated Press about his plans to visit Japan and allowed only one question: How are you?
"I'm fine, thank you," was his reply.
Jackson, one of the best-selling artists of all time, said he has chosen to come back to Japan because of the strong support he enjoys there. FULL STORY

Oprah's name found on Death List of 6 Teen Girls Charged With Homicide Plot

Six girls at a rural high school were charged with homicide conspiracy after their principal found a list of 300 names and officials discovered online postings suggesting they kill people, authorities said Thursday.
School officials said the list, discovered in a classroom trash can, mostly named students and faculty members but also included Tom Cruise, Oprah Winfrey and the Energizer bunny.
Sequatchie County High School Principal Tommy Layne said that he initially considered it a joke, but that authorities then found the ninth-graders' online MySpace pages and postings that included the word "kill."
"In general terms, it was like, 'Let's kill these people,'" Dunlap Police Chief Clint Huth said. He declined to provide the specific wording on the posting, which has been removed.
"I am not saying we thwarted a shooting incident or an act of violence," Huth said. "On the other hand, had this gone unchecked, down the road it could have grown into something a whole lot more serious than a list of names."
There was no evidence that the girls had weapons or that an attack had been imminent, Huth said.
The girls, ages 14 and 15, were charged with conspiracy to commit criminal homicide late Wednesday and taken to a juvenile facility. A juvenile court detention hearing was set Friday in Dunlap, about 40 miles northwest of Chattanooga.
Layne said he learned about the list Tuesday when a "young man came in with his grandmother and said his name was on the list."
No club or group was involved, said Layne, who described the girls as friends. The school has more than 600 students.
Sophomore Lakyn Ledford stayed home Thursday after learning that student-athletes were on the list.

Wife Battles A Lion To Save Her Husband

Wildlife officials credited a woman with saving her husband's life by clubbing a mountain lion that attacked him while the couple were hiking in a California state park.
Jim and Nell Hamm, who will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary next month, were hiking in Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park when the lion pounced, officials said Thursday.
"He didn't scream. It was a different, horrible plea for help, and I turned around, and by then the cat had wrestled Jim to the ground," Nell Hamm said in an interview from the hospital where her husband was recovering from a torn scalp, puncture wounds and other injuries. FULL STORY

Sex offender pretends to be 12 years old; enrolls into seventh grade

A man in Arizona is accused of pretending to be 12 years old, by using make-up to disguise his age, and then enrolling himself into 7th grade classes around the state, in at least two middle schools. The man is also being accused of assaulting a girl, but the name of the girl is not known. Police will not release details about the assault.
Neil Havens Rodreick II, 29, is a convicted sex-offender who is from Oklahoma and police arrested Rodreick when he attempted to enroll into Mingus Springs Charter School located in Chino Valley, Arizona using what school officials thought to be fake documents. Rodreick spent nearly the whole day at the school. Rodreick also attended another charter school from August 14 to November of 2006, Imagine School at Rosefield. Rodreick attended a total of 50 days at Imagine before he was dismissed from the school for not attending class enough. Rodreick is currently being held inside the Yavapai County jail.
"Our first priority is to help our students and our families establish a sense of security on our campus," said a spokeswoman for the Imagine school, Rhonda Cagle.
Cagle also describes Rodreick as being "quiet."
"He was quiet. He turned in his homework. By most accounts he was aloof and kept to himself," added Cagle.
Rodreick attempted to use fake admissions documents and a fake birth certificate to enroll into the charter school. Authorities are charging Rodreick with misdemeanor assault, failure to register as a sex offender in Arizona, possessing forgery devices, conspiracy to commit forgery, and conspiracy to commit fraud.
Rodreick also tried to enroll into the school using a false name, "Casey Price."
Police are also saying that Rodreick fooled two other men into believing he was 12 years old.
Lonnie Stiffler, 61 and Robert James Snow, 43, were Rodreick's housemates in Arizona and met Rodreick on the internet in Oklahoma. Both Stiffler and Snow were under the impression that Rodreick was a "preteen," according to police, and that all three men were in a continuing relationship that included sex.
Another man, Brian J. Nellis, 34, was also arrested by police at Rodreick's home. Police say Nellis followed the three other men from Oklahoma to Arizona. All men were arrested on January 18, 2007.
All four men are being charged with fraud and forgery, but Nellis, Snow and Rodreick will be charged with failure for registering as sex offenders.
Police also discovered a video at the home, that shows Rodreick having sex with what appears to be an underage child. Police do not know who the child is, or how old he is, but that he is a "juvenile."
Rodreick was convicted in 1996 for lewdly propositioning to a 6-year-old boy.

Nicole Kidman injured during movie stunt

Actress Nicole Kidman was injured in a car accident while filming the movie, The Invasion. The car reportedly went off course, and ran into a light pole on West Sixth Street in Los Angeles, California.
"The stunt driver apparently went off course and hit a light post," said Karen Smith, a officer with the Los Angeles Police Department.
"Nicole Kidman was in the vehicle at the time of the accident and was taken to the hospital for evaluation. She was released shortly thereafter," said a statement issued by Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc.
Kidman, along with eight other people were taken to the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles where all were released with minimal injuries just 2 hours later. All are reported to have returned to work. Paramedics also treated Kidman on scene before she was taken to the hospital.

Microsoft sales go higher than expected in last quarter

The sales of the Microsoft Corporation has increased considerably during the latest quarter, having brought more profit than predicted by Wall Street. However, the delay in arrival of the major new products resulted in spoiled financial results.
The quarter that finished in December marked the increase by 6 percent in the Microsoft sales, having reached the revenue of $12.5 billion. The delayed products - the latest versions of Windows Vista and Office 2007 - are to be launched next week.
Microsoft's video game business grew considerably in the quarter - its revenue increased by 75 percent, to the mark of $2.96 billion. The success of the business is explained by steady sales of its Xbox 360 console and highly demanded games like the critically acclaimed Gears of War at the end of 2006.
The noteworthy results have been gained by Microsoft in selling its server software applied in corporate data centers. It brought the revenue up 17 percent, to $2.85 billion. As for the operating profit, it increased by 35 percent, to over $1 billion. Following the most profitable Windows and Office, the server group, including databases, operating systems, and back-end programs used for e-mail systems, presently represents the third major product line of the Corporation.
Net income witnessed 28 percent decrease, to $2.63 billion to be compared to $3.65 billion dollars during the same period of time the previous year. To solve the problem of the product delay and support the personal computer industry, Microsoft provided free or discount coupons for upgraded versions of Windows Vista and Office 2007. Consequently, PC makers sold new computers during the last period of 2006 promising their customers that they would be able to acquire the new Microsoft products, thus preventing PC sales from standing at still point.
The coupon program was initiated by Microsoft in October with expectations of approximately 1.5 billion dollars in revenue to be deferred. However, with better PC sales Microsoft received the $1.64 billion. Microsoft pays attention towards development of the consumer electronics business. In the end of 2006 the company launched a digital media player called Zune, a product to compete with iPod produced by Apple. However, Microsoft's section of consumer entertainment and devices is not profitable yet.
As for Microsoft’s on-line business, it also leaves much to be desired, especially considering Internet searches. In the latest quarter there was a decline in the Microsoft's market share in searching. Still, the company continues to invest into this business segment. The revenue brought by on-line services, including web advertising and search-linked ads, increased by 5 percent in the quarter, to $624 million.

James Brown's children: Assets mismanaged

James Brown's six adult children believe the soul singer's valuable estate was mismanaged and want the trustees removed, according to court documents.

An emergency petition filed late Wednesday in Aiken County also claimed that some of Brown's assets are in danger of being "lost or dissipated or stolen."
The irrevocable trust, signed in 2000, is said to contain most of Brown's primary assets, including music rights and his 60-acre Beech Island home.
The trust is separate from Brown's will, which was filed separately last week and divided personal possessions such as clothes, jewelry and automobiles among the children.
Trustee Buddy Dallas, also an attorney for Brown, said everything in the trust was handled "appropriately and properly" when the 73-year-old entertainer died December 25.
"I've been Mr. Brown's trusted friend and counsel for 24 years -- a relationship that was built totally on our trust," Dallas said. "And I never violated that trust for 24 years."
A court hearing was scheduled for February 1.

Ex-students get 5 years for fatal Seton Hall fire

Two former roommates who set a dormitory fire that killed three students at Seton Hall University were sentenced Friday to five years in prison.

A plea bargain spared Joseph T. LePore and Sean Ryan, both 26, from facing more than 30 years in prison if they had been convicted in a trial. They could be eligible for parole in 16 months.
LePore and Ryan, who said the fire seven years ago resulted from "a prank that got out of hand," apologized to the victims' families.
"There's nothing I can really say to take away your pain," LePore said.
"I want you to know I am very, very sorry for your losses," Ryan said. "I hope you can move on."
Alvaro Llanos, a student horribly burned in the blaze, and Frank Caltabilota Sr., the father of one of those who died, said that at this point, no apology would be good enough.
"I can't see myself ever forgiving these two kids for starting this fire," Llanos wrote in a letter that was read in court. "They should have been man enough to bang on doors and save everyone's life. Instead, they ran away like the cowards they are."
In pleading guilty to arson in November, LePore and Ryan said they set a paper banner on fire in a third-floor lounge around 4:30 a.m. on January 19, 2000. The flames spread to a couch. The fire was largely confined to the lounge, but smoke spread throughout the six-story dorm, which lacked sprinklers.
Dozens were injured and 18-year-old freshmen Frank Caltabilota Jr., John Giunta and Aaron Karol were overcome by smoke and died.
The elder Caltabilota said his family could have forgiven the defendants had they quickly taken responsibility.
"Eventually, your judgment day will come from the highest court," he said. "You will see a jury consisting of Frankie, Aaron and John. On that day, justice will be done."
In addition to arson, LePore and Ryan pleaded guilty to witness tampering for telling some friends to lie to authorities. As part of the plea deal, prosecutors dropped charges against LePore's parents, sister and friend that included hindering apprehension.
Essex County Prosecutor Paula T. Dow has acknowledged her case depended on circumstantial evidence, noting in November, "We had no eyewitnesses, other than the defendants themselves, who could place the defendants at that location."
Defense lawyers have said the arson pleas, which take no responsibility for the deaths or injuries, were appropriate because the school did not have adequate systems to prevent the blaze from spreading.
The university, however, said it was in compliance with existing fire codes, and that it was not unusual for a building built in 1952 not to have sprinklers.
The fire led New Jersey to enact the nation's first law requiring sprinklers in dormitories at colleges and boarding schools.