iStockphoto/Thinkstock(WASHINGTON) -- The House of Representatives voted Tuesday evening to pass legislation to ban abortion after 20 weeks, except in what Democrats assailed as “narrow” cases of incest of a minor, rape, and health of the mother, prompting a partisan debate on the House floor as lawmakers grappled over the question of how soon a fetus is able to detect pain in the womb.

The bill, H.R. 1797 – Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, passed by a vote of 228-196. Six Republicans opposed the measure, while six Democrats crossed the aisle to support it.

Republicans contend that a fetus is capable of detecting pain well before the current cut-off for abortions, at 24 weeks.

“These aren’t just fetuses, science now tells us that they can feel pain. These babies are just like the ones we see in Neonatal Intensive Care Units in hospitals in our area struggling for life, needing love,” Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, said in support of the bill. “This law will protect children.”

“As a republic founded on the notion of the inherent right to life of every human being, we have an abiding responsibility to ensure that the innocent and most vulnerable are adequately protected from the gravest and most appalling of injustices, especially murder,” Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa., added. “That is what today’s legislation seeks to accomplish and I am proud to grant it my complete support.”

Democrats, on the other hand, called the legislation an assault on women’s reproductive rights and an attempt to override the Supreme Court’s 1973 ruling in Roe v. Wade.

“It is unconstitutional, and it is dangerous to the health and safety of American women,” Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., said. “It’s a direct challenge to Roe v. Wade when the Court held that prior to viability, abortions may be banned only if there are meaningful exceptions to protect a woman’s life and health.”

“Republicans have repeatedly demonstrated a lack of understanding about basic women’s healthcare, and this bill is just one more example of their continuing attack on women’s rights,” Rep. Dina Titus, D-Nev., added during debate on the bill. “It is a step backward for women’s health.”

The bill was tweaked after the committee markup to allow exceptions for rape and incest of a minor. Those changes led some of the most conservative Republicans to abandon support for the bill.

“As a medical doctor, I believe it is my duty to protect children at all stages of life,” Rep. Paul Broun, a Senate hopeful who removed himself as a cosponsor of the legislation after the changes were added to the bill, said in opposition to the legislation. “I am extremely disappointed that House Republican leadership chose to include language to subject some unborn children to needless pain and suffering. I will not support legislation that harms innocent children, and I will continue in my efforts to protect all unborn children by making abortion illegal at all stages of pregnancy.”

The legislation stands no chance to pass the Democratic-controlled Senate, and the White House had vowed that the president would veto the bill if it reached his desk.

“Women should be able to make their own choices about their bodies and their health care, and Government should not inject itself into decisions best made between a woman and her doctor,” read a statement of administration policy Monday. “The Administration is committed to the protection of women’s health and reproductive freedom and to supporting women and families in the choices they make.”

The six Democrats supporting this legislation are Reps. Henry Cuellar (Texas), Dan Lipinski (Illinois), Jim Matheson (Utah), Mike McIntyre (North Carolina), Collin Peterson (Minnesota) and Nick Rahall (West Virginia).

The six Republicans opposing the bill are Reps. Paul Broun (Georgia), Charles Dent (Pennsylvania), Rodney Frelinghuysen (New Jersey), Richard Hanna (New York), Jon Runyan (New Jersey) and Rob Woodall (Georgia).

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US Army Gen. Keith Alexander, director of the National Security Agency -- Mark Wilson/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- Most Americans in a new ABC News/Washington Post poll support telephone and Internet surveillance by the National Security Administration, but two-thirds also favor congressional hearings on the subject -- indicating broad interest in more information about these activities.
 
The public by 58-39 percent supports the NSA collecting “extensive records of phone calls, as well as Internet data related to specific investigations, to try to identify possible terrorist threats.”

Support for the program is far higher among Democrats and liberals than among Republicans and strong conservatives, reversing Bush-era political divisions on issues of privacy vs. security.

See a PDF with full results, charts and tables here.

At the same time, in a strikingly nonpartisan result, 65 percent of Americans favor congressional hearings on the subject -- a view expressed by more than six in 10 Democrats, Republicans and independents alike, as well as by virtually equal numbers across the ideological spectrum.
 
The survey, produced for ABC by Langer Research Associates, finds a close division in attitudes on whether or not to prosecute Edward Snowden, the former government contractor who disclosed the classified NSA program. Forty-three percent support charging him with a crime; 48 percent oppose such charges.
 
These results reflect attitudes on a developing story; views could shift based on more information about the government’s activities or the potential impact of Snowden’s disclosures. That highlights the competing values at stake -- the right to privacy from government intrusion vs. security from terrorism.
 
Attitudes on the NSA effort are similar to those measured in a Washington Post/Pew Research Center poll June 9, in which 56 percent called it acceptable for the agency to obtain “secret court orders to track telephone call records of millions of Americans in an effort to investigate terrorism.” Surveys asking other questions have had different results -- 48 percent approval for “the government's collection of telephone and internet data as part of anti-terrorism efforts” in a Pew/USA Today poll June 16; the same level of approval in a Time magazine poll June 11; and in a CBS News poll June 10, just 38 percent approval for “federal government agencies collecting phone records of ordinary Americans” in order to reduce the threat of terrorism.
 
A variety of factors could be at play, including exactly which records or data have been collected; how and why they were collected; as well as, speculatively, a distinction between asking about “support” vs. “approval” for a program that some may see as needed yet at the same time intrusive.
 
As noted, results of this survey turn Bush-era partisan divisions on their head. In ABC/Post polls during the presidency of George W. Bush, Republicans and conservatives put far more emphasis on anti-terrorism investigations, even at the cost of privacy, while Democrats and independents were more apt to prioritize privacy rights.
 
The divisions were closer in a 2010 survey; now with the NSA controversy arising on the Obama administration’s watch, the tables are turned: Seventy-three percent of Democrats and 67 percent of liberals in this survey support the NSA program; that declines to 49 percent of Republicans (and about as many independents, 51 percent) and just 46 percent of those who call themselves “very” conservative. (Support is much higher, 62 percent, among “somewhat” conservatives, similar to its level among political moderates.)
 
In line these results, the survey also finds substantially more support for the NSA program among nonwhites, who are more apt to be Democrats, than among whites, 68 vs. 53 percent. And whites are more apt than nonwhites to favor hearings, 70 vs. 57 percent.
 
Opposition to charging Snowden with a crime peaks among very conservatives, at 56 percent, and adults who (like Snowden himself) are younger than 30. Fifty-eight percent in this group prefer not to see him charged.

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Paul Warner/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- Singer and breast cancer survivor Melissa Etheridge is standing by her comments that actress Angelia Jolie was "fearful" and not "brave" for undergoing a double mastectomy to avoid breast cancer.

"I don't have any opinion of what she 'should have' done.  All are free to choose.  I only objected to the term 'brave' describing it," Etheridge said in a statement to ABC News.

Last week, Etheridge told the Washington Blade that Jolie "made the most fearful choice you can make when confronting anything with cancer."

"My belief is that cancer comes from inside you and so much of it has to do with the environment of your body," Etheridge told the newspaper.

Etheridge, who was diagnosed with the same high risk BRCA gene mutation as Jolie, goes on in the interview to say that Jolie's choice is "... way down the line on the spectrum of what you can do" and that those faced with the same set of facts should "really consider the advancements we've made in things like nutrition and stress levels."

Andrea Geduld, the director of the Breast Health Resource Center at Mt. Sinai Hospital said she believed that Etheridge's comments were out of line.

"Is she saying it's better to confront cancer?  We don't have clear prevention strategies for this type of cancer, we only have risk reducing strategies including mastectomy, oophorectomy and high risk surveillance," Geduld said.

She said she finds Etheridge's criticism of Jolie puzzling, given that Jolie's choice to have a double mastectomy couldn't have been an easy one and didn't appear to be a stunt or political act.

"A lot of people make this same decision to reduce the fear and anxiety that comes with having the high risk of cancer hanging over their heads," Geduld said.  "We wouldn't criticize someone for wearing a seatbelt to reduce the risk of dying in an accident, so I'm not sure why we would criticize someone for having a mastectomy when we know it cuts their risk of getting cancer."

Women who test positive for a BRCA gene mutation and who have a strong family history of cancer have an 85 percent of getting breast cancer and a 40 percent of getting ovarian cancer at some point in their lives.  Having a mastectomy and ovaries removed reduces the chances of developing the disease to around 5 percent.

Experts also caution that some of Etheridge's statements aren't accurate.

"We do know that diet and nutrition play an important role in cancer prevention and survival but they appear to be more helpful for people with non-genetic cancers rather than people who are at high risk for genetic cancers," said Dr. Julie Silver, an associate professor at Harvard Medical School who specializes in cancer rehabilitation and is a breast cancer survivor herself.

Silver said there is literally no scientific evidence that diet, exercise or stress reduction would help a woman fitting Jolie's genetic profile avoid the disease.

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Duncan Chard/Bloomberg via Getty Images(SEATTLE) -- A month after returning to the skies, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner had to be diverted on Tuesday for repairs.

United flight 139, which was en route to Tokyo from Denver, was forced to land in Seattle over "an indication of a problem with an oil filter," United Airlines said in a statement.  

The plane landed normally and without incident, the carrier added.

In a statement, Boeing said it was aware of the incident and "we are engaged with United to provide any support required.  We are aware that this is an engine issue and we are coordinating with GE."

Tuesday's mishap comes after Boeing's fleet of 787 Dreamliners resumed flying after being grounded in January due to problems with its lithium-ion battery system.

In one incident, a lithium ion battery caught fire on a Japan Airlines flight parked at Boston's Logan Airport.  In another, smoke from a battery system on an All Nippon Airways flight in Japan forced an emergency landing.  

U.S. and Japanese regulators responded by grounding all 50 Dreamliners while an investigation into the batteries took place and changes to the system were made.

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Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images(LOS ANGELES) -- It seems Charlie Sheen's reported feud with Selma Blair on the set of Anger Management has cost her her job.

Lionsgate, which produces the FX sitcom, announced on Tuesday, “We are confirming that Selma Blair will not be returning to Anger Management and we wish her the very best.”  

The announcement came after TMZ.com reported that Sheen had told producers he would quit unless they began the process of firing Blair as soon as possible.  TMZ reported earlier this week that Sheen was upset that she allegedly complained about his work habits to the show's executives.

To say that Sheen would have left a lot of money on the table had he quit the show would be a huge understatement.  TMZ notes that he stands to earn between $75 million and $200 million if he completes the network's 100-episode order for Anger Management.  He reportedly has taped approximately half that amount to date.

TMZ further reports that when Blair was approached by a photographer Tuesday morning regarding her job status, she answered, "I don't know anything."  Well, now she does.

Deadline.com reports Sheen informed Blair of her firing by text message, and even called her the "C" word.

Blair played Kate, the therapist of Sheen's character, on Anger Management.  According to Deadline, the role will not be recast.

As you'll recall, Sheen was fired from the CBS sitcom Two and a Half Men in 2011 after repeated rants against the show's creator, Chuck Lorre.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Michael DeHoog/Sports Imagery/ Getty Images(NORTH ATTLEBOROUGH, Mass.) -- Investigators searched the North Attleborough home of New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez on Tuesday following the killing of a man police call an "associate" of Hernandez, ABC News has learned.

Massachusetts State Police and prosecutors arrived at Hernandez's $1.3 million, 5,600-square-foot home, which is outfitted with a home gym and a swimming pool, just before 5 p.m. and spent hours with him inside the mansion.

Two Hernandez friends tried to leave house at the time of the search, but they were stopped by a state police car at the end of the driveway. Crime scene investigators later searched the car the men tried to leave in.

During the search, Hernandez received a hand-delivered package from the prominent law firm Ropes and Gray around 7:30 p.m., with the deliveryman telling reporters swarming the sidewalk outside that it was addressed to "Mr. Hernandez himself."

Hernandez was initially uncooperative with police after the body of a 27-year-old man was found in an industrial park not far from the Patriots player's home, two law enforcement sources said.

A rental vehicle with Rhode Island plates was recovered near the scene, which led investigators to Hernandez, sources told ABC News.

Bristol County District Attorney Sam Sutter confirmed in a media statement that a body was found around 5:30 p.m. Monday in a clearing near John Dietsch Boulevard. Sutter said that based on the "nature and circumstances" of the body that the investigation would be handed over to Massachusetts State Police detectives.

North Attleborough is home to many Patriots players because of its proximity to Gillette Stadium, where the Patriots play. In fact, Hernandez bought his home from a former Patriots player, Ty Warren.

Neighbors expressed concern outside of the house as it was searched.

One, Jill Cambridge, 43, wore a Patriots jersey as she defended the star tight end.

"I think the kids around here, especially, look up to the Patriots players," she said. "I just hope he's not involved in this."

Another neighbor, Susan Mayer, and her 14-year-old daughter, Rachel, described Hernandez as a very warm guy.

"There is a lot of action around here because of the Patriots,'' Susan Mayer said.

Rachel was more concerned about keeping Hernandez on the team.

"We need the Patriots to win," she said.

She added that Hernandez, along with Matt Light and other Patriots standouts, hosted a haunted house and scared dozens of kids while dressed up in costumes last Halloween.

Stacey James, a New England Patriots official, said on behalf of the team, "I am aware of the reports, but I do not anticipate that we will be commenting publicly during an ongoing police investigation."

Hernandez is spending the off-season recovering from a shoulder scope, though he was spotted at practice recently welcoming new Patriots quarterback Tim Tebow.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- The number of millionaires on the planet surged by 9.2 percent in 2012 to 12 million -- an increase of one million -- according to the 17th annual World Wealth Report

That overall figure also includes people who are billionaires, which last numbered around 1,426 back in May.

It means that the collective wealth of all these rich people is now $46.2 trillion in high net worth assets.  North America leads the way with $12.7 trillion, followed by Asia-Pacific with $12 trillion.

Much of their very good fortune has to do with increased GDP growth as well as the equity and real estate markets bouncing back after several years of decline.

The super rich -- those with at least $30 million to invest -- enjoyed the biggest gains with their assets rising 11 percent on average last year.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

George Doyle/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- Obesity is a disease, according to the American Medical Association.

The nation’s largest physician organization made the designation on Tuesday in an effort to get more doctors to recognize the health risks associated with obesity and so that insurance companies will be more inclined to help the one in three Americans who are severely overweight.

Insurers might make it easier for obese patients to obtain drugs and surgery if the condition is considered a disease despite the AMA having no legal authority.

The group made the decision even as its own Council on Science and Public Health determined that obesity shouldn’t be recognized as a disease because critics maintain that body mass index, the measure used to define obesity, can often be wrong.

For instance, people who aren't regarded as obese by body mass index can still have unhealthy levels of body fat and metabolic problems while those defined as obese might be free of health issues.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- The two-day G-8 Summit in Northern Ireland ended Tuesday with a whisper, not a bang.

In the final communiqué, the U.S. and its allies issued a general message on reviving the global economy saying, "Promoting growth and jobs is our top priority."

However, President Obama and his counterparts disagree on Europe's approach, which is through continued spending cuts, while the U.S. contends that stimulus measures are needed to get the continent out of its long recession.

There was also scant movement about how to handle the ongoing conflict in Syria, which turned out to be the dominant topic of discussion.

All agreed that a peace conference in Geneva being arranged by Washington and Moscow is the best course of action but the talks, which were supposed to have been underway by this time, might not occur until August or September.

Furthermore, the influence of Russian President Vladimir Putin was in evidence as there was nothing in the communiqué about getting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad out of the picture so that the country can move toward a transitional government.

Putin is at odds with the West and isn't ready to abandon al-Assad, who remains intent on achieving a military victory over rebel forces after 27 months of war and more than 80,000 deaths.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Mark Wilson/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Vice President Joe Biden spoke at the White House Tuesday about continued effort to address gun violence, pledging that he and President Obama have not given up the effort to pass legislation expanding background checks.
 
Biden, who was introduced by Steve Barton, a 22-year-old survivor of the Aurora movie theater shooting massacre, announced the release of new reports outlining steps the schools and places of worship could take to prevent and respond to gun violence.
 
“So I’m here to tell ya, that the most important message to take here today is the president and I and our team have not given up. Our friends in the Senate have not given up,” Biden said.
 
“Although we have yet to succeed in the House and Senate -- but we will -- he moved forward on what was within his power with executive actions he could take."
 
Biden said that of the 23 executive actions Obama announced to address gun control in the wake of the Sandy Hook shooting, 21 of them have been completed or are nearly complete.
 
“The set of guidelines we’re releasing today to give schools and communities the tools they need to protect their children,” the vice president said. “I bet you your police department got a call from about every school in your district saying, ‘What do I do if that happens in my school.’”
 
But he said that Congress must still act on legislation to expand the country’s background check system.
 
“We pushed Congress to pass common sense legislation to reduce gun violence and a majority of the Senate stepped up,” Biden said. “Because of the invocation of a perverted filibuster rule requiring 60 votes for everything in order to get a vote, we lost.”
 
He urged Congress to allow the federal government to collect information on gun violence that could aid with prevention.
 
“Why are we afraid of information? An informed society should not be afraid of the facts,” Biden said, adding,  “As proud as the president is, as proud as I am of the progress that we’ve made, we need Congress to act. The American people are demanding it. As I’ve said before we need to make sure that the voices of those we lost, are the loudest ones we here in this fight. We need to make sure that everyone in this country knows that this fight isn’t over. Far from it.”
 
Biden warned that the politics of gun legislation has changed and the country is prepared to punish lawmakers who don’t vote in support of gun control legislation.
 
“I would yield to my friends in the House and the Senate, but I assure you, the one thing that each of us have been hearing from our colleagues in the House and the Senate about these votes is the country has changed. You will play a price a political price for not getting engaged and playing with gun safety.”
 
“What changed in Sandy Hook is -- the straw that broke the camel’s back -- is those people who support rational measures say this will be a defining issue for me.”
 
“It will make a difference in who I vote for. That is a fundamental change in the political calculus.”
 
He added that members of Congress who voted against the first background check bill have contacted him asking how they can work on a revised version that can get more bipartisan support.
 
“I will not mention the names, but look at those who voted no and look at what their polling numbers are,” he said.  “The country has changed.”
 
“Nothing we’re asking for, nothing we continue to pursue is inconsistent with the constitutional rights Americans have.”
 
Biden said, “So far I am optimistic because I’ve gotten those phone calls from those members of Congress, many of whom voted no.”

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Douglas Graham/Roll Call/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Secretary of State John Kerry announced Tuesday that former Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., will be the Obama administration’s new special envoy to deal with conflict-ridden Central Africa, which covers the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Uganda and the rebel groups of M23 (operates in Democratic Republic of Congo) and the Lord's Resistance Army (Uganda and South Sudan).
 
Feingold was pleased to accept the appointment. He was very active concerning African issues during his years in the Senate, serving as chair of the Africa sub-committee on the Senate Foreign Relations committee.
 
"It is an honor to join my friend, Secretary of State John Kerry, at the Department of State to focus on an important region of the world we both care about so deeply.  Secretary Kerry and I worked well together for 18 years on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and I am so pleased to continue that productive working relationship," Feingold said Tuesday.

“It is a great responsibility to take on the role of United States Special Envoy to the Great Lakes Region of Africa, as the people in the region have arrived at a time of significant opportunity for peace.  The appointment of Mary Robinson as the UN Special Envoy to the Great Lakes, and the signing of the February 2013 Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework, have brought a renewed focus to the causes of instability in the region, and created an historic opportunity for this important, but challenged, region of Africa," he added.

Kerry is made the announcement about Feingold's appointment Tuesday as a sign of how seriously the Obama administration continues to take the ongoing conflict in Africa, which is responsible for the deaths of over 5 million people since 1998.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Trae Patton/NBC(LOS ANGELES) -- Danielle Bradbery was named the fourth-season winner of the NBC singing competition The Voice on Tuesday night.

The 16-year-old country artist from Texas, who was coached by Blake Shelton, received more votes than runner-up Michelle Chamuel, the eclectic, bespectacled pop contestant who was a member of Team Usher.

In a brief speech after host Carson Daly made the announcement, Danielle said she was "so thankful" for the experience.

With her victory, Danielle earns a recording contract. She'll also appear on NBC's The Tonight Show on Wednesday night.

This marks the third consecutive season of The Voice in which Blake coached the winning artist.

Danielle was a stand-out in the competition from the moment she auditioned for Blake, Usher, Adam Levine and Shakira. She shocked them all by telling them she'd never had a vocal lesson and had never performed publicly before.

Danielle wasn't the only success story for Blake on The Voice this season. Blake, who turned 37 on Tuesday, also guided Oklahoma country duo The Swon Brothers to a third-place finish.

Daly said at the start of the telecast that the results were determined via what he described as "unprecedented voting."

Michelle and The Swon Brothers did not leave the finals empty-handed. In a prerecorded segment, Daly surprised Danielle, Michelle, and the Swons with new cars from Kia Motors.

Each of the three remaining acts performed multiple times during the two-hour results show. Danielle joined young country star Hunter Hayes for a rendition of his song "I Want Crazy." She also invited eliminated contestants Amber Carrington, Caroline Glaser and Sarah Simmons onto the stage for a cover of Carrie Underwood's "All-American Girl."

After she was named the new champ, Danielle reprised her performance of Sara Evans' "Born To Fly" from Monday night.

Michelle teamed up with one of her favorite bands, OneRepublic, for a live version of the group's tune "Counting Stars." She also sang Stevie Wonder's version of the Beatles song "We Can Work It Out," alongside eliminated artists Cathia, Josiah Hawley, and Vedo.

The Swon Brothers shared the spotlight with Bob Seger for Seger's "Night Moves." You may recall the Swons played Seger's "Turn the Page" on the show earlier this month. The brothers were also joined by eliminated artists Amber Carrington, Holly Tucker and Justin Rivers on "Stars Tonight," by Lady Antebellum.

Aside from the aforementioned collaborations, the musical guests included Cher, who performed her new single, "Woman's World"; Bruno Mars, who sang "Treasure"; Pitbull and the soon-to-be-returning Voice coach Christina Aguilera, who duetted on their hit "Feel This Moment"; and Florida Georgia Line and Nelly, who performed "Cruise."

This season of The Voice marked the first for Usher and Shakira, who filled in for Christina Aguilera and Cee Lo Green. Christina and Cee Lo will return to The Voice this fall, though Shakira and Usher will be back for the spring 2014 season.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Getty Images/Hemera(NEW YORK) --NBA Finals Game 5:  Miami Heat 103 - San Antonio Spurs 100 (OT) (Series tied, 3-3)

MLB: Boston Red Sox 5 (43-29) – Tampa Bay Rays 1 (36-34) Game One

Boston Red Sox 3 (44-29) – Tampa Bay Rays 1 (36-35) Game Two

Cleveland Indians 4 (35-35) – Kansas City Royals 3 (34-35)

Baltimore Orioles 5 (41-31) – Detroit Tigers 2 (39-30)

Chicago Cubs 4 (29-40) – St. Louis Cardinals 2 (45-26)

Toronto Blue Jays 8 (34-36) – Colorado Rockies 3 (37-35)

Pittsburgh Pirates 4 (42-29) – Cincinnati Reds 0 (43-29)

Philadelphia Phillies 4 (35-37) – Washington Nationals 2 (34-36)

Arizona Diamondbacks 3 (38-33) - Miami Marlins 2 (22-48)

Houston Astros 10 (27-45) - Milwaukee Brewers 1 (28-41)

Oakland Athletics 6 (43-30) - Texas Rangers 2 (39-32)

Minnesota Twins 7 (31-36) - Chicago White Sox 5 (29-39)

San Francisco Giants 5 (36-34) - San Diego Padres 4 (36-35)

Seattle Mariners 3 (32-40) - Los Angeles Angels 2 (31-40) 10 Innings

New York Mets 4 (26-40) – Atlanta Braves 3 (42-29) Game One

New York Mets 6 (27-40) – Atlanta Braves 1 (42-30) Game Two

Los Angeles Dodgers (29-39) – New York Yankees (38-31) postponed due to rain

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

PRNewsFoto/Chrysler Group LLC(NEW YORK) -- Chrysler said Tuesday that due to customers’ “raised concerns” it would add or replace trailer hitches on some older-model Jeeps now at the center of a safety debate between the automaker and the U.S. government.

Mike Palese, a Chrysler spokesman, told ABC News Tuesday that the trailer hitch would “provide more ability to absorb some crash forces” in rear-impact accidents.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had been seeking a recall of the Jeep Grand Cherokee, model years 1993 to 2004, and Jeep Liberty, model years 2002 to 2007.

In its initial findings, the NHTSA said that at least 51 people had died in the vehicles involving rear-impact crashes and fires. The problem, according to the government, is the location of the fuel tank.

It is situated behind the rear axle, and slightly below the bumper. That makes it vulnerable to rupture when the vehicle is hit from behind.

Chrysler’s action covers fewer model years of the Grand Cherokee, only those from 1993 to 1998, leaving out some vehicles covered by the government’s initial recall request.  Chrysler told ABC News that owners of those vehicles do not need fixes, unless they have an after-market trailer hitch on the car. Then they should come to the dealer for an inspection and possible replacement of the hitch.

The company still insists that the government’s analysis is incomplete and the vehicles are safe and have no defect. The automaker called Tuesday’s move a “voluntary campaign,” not a recall.

Clarence Ditlow, executive director of the Center for Auto Safety, said his group was “skeptical.”

“It is a safety recall,” he said. “We’re no longer arguing over whether there is a recall but what the remedy is. [The] NHTSA has the ability to approve the remedy. What NHTSA needs to do is test the remedy.”

Ditlow said his group also wanted Chrysler to expand the recall to include Jeep Cherokees, model years 1993 to 2001. Those vehicles have the gas tank in the same location as the ones subject to the automaker’s voluntary campaign. The NHTSA had been investigating that model but had not asked Chrysler to recall it.

Ditlow’s group had wanted a shield over the fuel tank as well as a new check valve system to shut off the flow of gasoline if the filler hose is yanked out of the tank in a crash.

Chrysler said it would not be adding shields over the fuel tank or changing the fuel nozzle.

In a statement on Tuesday, the NHTSA said it was pleased with the actions taken by Chrysler.

“Consumers impacted by the safety recall and customer satisfaction campaign should have their vehicles serviced promptly....We will continue our investigation into this issue,” the group said.

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Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Kansas City Police Department(WASHINGTON) -- Top U.S. security officials have revealed that the government's recently exposed surveillance programs led them to an al Qaeda cell that plotted and scouted, but ultimately abandoned, a plan to bomb Wall Street in 2008.

"We found through electronic surveillance that they were actually in the initial stages of plotting to bomb the New York Stock Exchange," FBI Assistant Director Sean Joyce told the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.

Joyce was testifying alongside high-level U.S. officials, including National Security Agency head Gen. Keith Alexander, before the House Intelligence Committee to defend the NSA's practice of collecting vast amounts of telephone and Internet usage data – programs recently revealed by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden. Snowden, who is in hiding in Hong Kong after confessing to the leaks, called the reach of the programs "horrifying." The U.S. officials who testified Tuesday claimed they helped put a stop to more than 50 terror plots in 20 countries – four of which were discussed publicly.

The NYSE plot, which had until Tuesday been unknown to the public, was centered around an auto parts dealer in Kansas City, Mo., named Khalid Ouazzani, who pleaded guilty in 2010 for his role in a conspiracy to provide funding to al Qaeda. At the time of his plea, the complex case against Ouazzani seemed to have little to do with the famous NYSE headquarters on Wall Street in Lower Manhattan, except for a vague reference in his plea agreement that said, "Over a period of years, [Ouazzani] and others discussed various ways they could support al Qaeda."

The FBI now says Ouazzani was talking to an extremist in Yemen about a terror plot that would strike at the symbolic heart of America's capitalist system – an attack on Wall Street.

Ouazzani was never charged with planning any attacks, and a federal law enforcement official told ABC News it was Ouazzani's role as a cooperating witness, after he was identified with the help of NSA programs, that helped authorities uncover the plot in the first place.

A senior law enforcement official told ABC News that "overseas intel" connected Ouazzani to two U.S. citizen extremists, Sabirhan Hasanoff and Wesam el-Hanafi. Court documents unsealed on Tuesday showed that all three swore their allegiance to al Qaeda, but it was Hasanoff who traveled to New York in 2008 to conduct a scouting mission for a possible bombing attack on the Stock Exchange.

Hasanoff wrote a "rudimentary report" to a "senior terrorist leader" in an email about the security situation there, the court documents say. However, the leader decided that while the information "could be used by someone who wanted to do an operation, he was not satisfied with the report, and he accordingly disposed of it."

Ouazzani's crew and the plot never "went operational," a counter-terrorism official in New York said.

Hasanoff and el-Hanafi both later pleaded guilty to terrorism-related charges in June 2012, but again the Department of Justice omitted any mention of the Stock Exchange in their announcement at the time.

The plot was left out of the public record apparently because it was discovered in part from intelligence gathered through surveillance authorized by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA) in Washington, DC. Though there are ways to use such evidence at trial, the Justice Department tries to instead attempt to secure convictions on more typical varieties of crimes like fraud and money-laundering. That was the path chosen in case of the NYSE bomb plot that never was.

The Stock Exchange, at 11 Wall Street, is just a half-mile away from the site of the World Trade Center towers that were destroyed during the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks by al Qaeda. Nicknamed the "Big Board," the Exchange is the world's largest stock market with the total value of the companies it lists hovering at more than $16.6 trillion.

Though an attack on the building would be a colossal symbolic blow to the country, the market itself would remain largely intact because the vast majority of trading is now done online, and the market's computer network was relocated to off-site locations in the wake of the 2001 attacks.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Photodisc/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- Something as old as mankind itself is helping to keep preterm babies alive — the lullaby.

Research finds that music has become an important new ally for babies who are born too soon and struggle to breathe and eat.

The neonatal intensive care unit in a hospital is filled with technology that helps keep the hospital's tiniest, most fragile patients alive. At New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Weill Cornell – and others across the country – the relentless beeping of monitors fades when the music takes over. The effect on preemies is dramatic and physical.

Studies conducted by Dr. Jeffery Perlman, chief of newborn medicine at New York-Presbyterian, Komansky Center for Children's Health, find that gentle music therapy not only slows down the heart rate of preemies but also helps them feed and sleep better. This helps them gain weight and speeds their recovery.

A study published in May in the Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, under the aegis of the Beth Israel Medical Center in New York City, found that the type of music matters. Therapeutically designed "live" music -- and parent-preferred lullabies sung in person -- can influence cardiac and respiratory function. They also found that the melodies improved feeding behaviors and may increase prolonged periods of quiet-alert states among premature babies.

Another study published in February 2011 in the Arts in Psychotherapy by Jayne M. Standley of the National Institute for Infant and Child Medical Music Therapy at Florida State University suggests that babies who receive this kind of therapy leave the hospital sooner.

"When they hear something that is very soothing, they adapt to it," Perlman said.

For these tiny babies, music is medicine.

A pair of twins, Jessica and Joshua, were born three months premature. Their dad has been trained by a professional music therapist at the Komansky Center, and now sings to the babies in their NICU cribs in his native Turkish. And he says he has proof that it's working.

"I watched their heart rate," their father said. "You can really watch it go down, 165, 160, 155, 152. It's an amazing feeling."

Jessica Fernald's daughter Hazel was born eight weeks early. "You know babies like lullabies," Fernald said. "But you don't realize how important it is in their healing."

At Komansky, Rebecca Loveszy is the music therapist who sings to preemies such as Jadion, born with a heart defect.

The effects of the music therapy appear to last – lullabies echoing inside the intensive care unit often become the children's favorite songs and soothe them even after they leave the hospital.

Rachel Fitzsimons' son William – now a year old – spent 12 weeks in intensive care, and has taken a liking to the tune he listened to during his time there.

"I would sing 'Rock-a-Bye-Baby,'" said Fitzsimons. "It's the one he still responds to the most."

In an intensive care unit bristling with technology, this new field reminds us that medicine doesn't always come from a new drug or surgery – sometimes it's as simple as parents connecting to their children with an age-old source of comfort: a gentle tune.

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Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images(SAN JOSE, Calif.) -- The city of San Jose filed a lawsuit in federal court on Tuesday against Major League Baseball, accusing the league of taking part in an illegal conspiracy to limit competition by blocking the Oakland Athletics from moving to San Jose.

The San Francisco Giants own territorial rights to San Jose and have objected to the potential move. The A’s claim those territorial rights were temporarily given to the Giants when they were trying to build a ballpark in San Jose in the early '90s. The lawsuit claims that territorial rights reduce competition and harm consumers.

“The lawsuit is an unfounded attack on the fundamental structures of a professional sports league," MLB said in a statement. "It is regrettable that the city has resorted to litigation that has no basis in law or in fact.”

The A’s have been playing in Oakland since 1968, when they moved there from Kansas City.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Win McNamee/Getty Image(WASHINGTON) -- Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill got a more than three-year head start on the 2016 election, lending her support Tuesday to an effort to draw Hillary Clinton into the next presidential race.

McCaskill signed on with the group Ready for Hillary, a super PAC that has emerged as a kind of campaign-in-waiting for the former secretary of state and potential Democratic presidential contender.

“It’s important that we start early, building a grassroots army from the ground up, and effectively using the tools of the Internet — all things that President Obama did so successfully — so that if Hillary does decide to run, we’ll be ready to help her win,” she said in a statement.

Her announcement makes her the first current member of Congress to endorse the draft-Hillary effort, which has been accumulating an impressive list of backers, including Democratic strategist James Carville, longtime Clinton confidant Harold Ickes and former California Rep. Ellen Tauscher.

McCaskill’s early support of the group — and by extension, Clinton — also serves to put some distance between the Missouri senator and her decision to endorse Barack Obama during the 2008 presidential primary.

“I worked my heart out to elect him president,” she acknowledged in a statement posted on the Ready for Hillary website. “Now as I look at 2016 and think about who is best to lead this country forward, I’m proud to announce that I am Ready for Hillary.”

When she endorsed Obama in January 2008, McCaskill called Clinton a “smart woman and a strong leader,” but she said she decided to get behind her Democratic opponent “at the fierce urging of my 18-year-old daughter.”

Even before that, relations between McCaskill and the Clintons were strained after she said during an appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press in 2006 that she thought Bill Clinton had been “a great leader, but I don’t want my daughter near him.”

Seven years later, however, her support for Clinton is unmistakable.

“There is nobody better equipped to be our next President than Hillary Clinton,” she said in her statement.

The announcement also signaled a new chapter for the super PAC, which continues to build its team and brand. In late May, Ready for Hillary announced the formation of a National Finance Council and the addition of former White House political director Craig Smith, who served under Bill Clinton, as a senior adviser.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images(BOSTON) -- Massachusetts investigators plan to interview New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez in connection with the murder of a man police call an "associate" of player No. 81, ABC News has learned.

Hernandez's jersey number is 81.

Hernandez has been uncooperative with police since the body of a 27-year-old man was found in an industrial park not far from the Patriot player's North Attleboro home, two law enforcement sources told ABC News.

A rental vehicle with Rhode Island plates was recovered near the scene, which led investigators to Hernandez, sources told ABC News.

Bristol County District Attorney Sam Sutter confirmed in a press statement that a body was found around 5:30 p.m. Monday in a clearing near John Dietsch Boulevard. Sutter said that based on the "nature and circumstances" of the body that the investigation would be handed over to Massachusetts state police detectives.

Hernandez is spending the off-season recovering from a shoulder scope.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

(BOSTON) -- Massachusetts investigators plan to interview New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez in connection with the murder of a man police call an "associate" of player No. 81, ABC News has learned.

Hernandez's jersey number is 81.

Investigators are seeking a warrant to search Hernandez's home in connection with the death, sources told ABC News.

Hernandez has been uncooperative with police since the body of a 27-year-old man was found in an industrial park not far from the Patriot player's North Attleboro home, two law enforcement sources told ABC News.

A rental vehicle with Rhode Island plates was recovered near the scene, which led investigators to Hernandez, sources told ABC News.

Bristol County District Attorney Sam Sutter confirmed in a press statement that a body was found around 5:30 p.m. Monday in a clearing near John Dietsch Boulevard. Sutter said that based on the "nature and circumstances" of the body that the investigation would be handed over to Massachusetts state police detectives.

Hernandez is spending the off-season recovering from a shoulder scope.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

FBI(NEW YORK) -- Federal authorities announced Tuesday a new push to track down the man or woman who used a bicycle for their getaway when they tried to blow up a military recruiting station in New York's Times Square five years ago, fearing the suspect may be a serial bike bomber.

"Someone, somewhere, knows something about a bomber who's still on the run," said FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge George Venizelos.

The FBI said they believe the March 6, 2008 blast at the Armed Forces Career Center is likely linked to two earlier blasts at the consulates of foreign nations in New York -- the U.K.'s in 2005 and Mexico's in 2007. 

The bureau also announced a reward of $65,000 for information on the case, the first time there has been a reward associated with the case.

The device in Times Square was made from an ammunition can and described at the time as unsophisticated. The FBI now believes it was more powerful than the pair of bombs detonated at the Boston Marathon on April 15, killing three and injuring more than 260 others.

In the case of the bicycle bomber, the Times Square bomb exploded at 3:45 a.m., when few people were around.  The blast caused minor damage to the landmark military recruiting station.

"While published reports have repeatedly cited the early morning time of the attack and the lack of casualties, the fact is the bomber narrowly missed killing or injuring passers-by who can be seen clearly in the vicinity, moments before the blast," said New York City Police Department Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly.  "The distance between polemics by bombing and the murdering of innocents is short, indeed."

Ten minutes of newly-released surveillance images show the bomb detonating in Times Square and the bike bomber riding through the streets of New York.

"Today we're asking for the public's assistance in finding those responsible and encouraging the public to look closely at these photos and video, which could be the key to breaking the case," Venizelos said.

The suspect on the bicycle was last seen wearing a gray sweatshirt and pants of an unknown color.  The height, weight, age, sex and race of the suspect are unknown.

Anyone with information on any of the three bombings is encouraged to call the FBI at 212-384-1000.  Tipsters may remain anonymous.

The FBI and the NYPD will be using the hash tag #BikeBomber to disseminate information about the attacks and to solicit information. The photos and video are also being displayed on digital billboards throughout the northeast, including in Times Square.

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Scott Olson/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- The Senate on Tuesday rejected a proposal that would have withheld permanent legal status for most undocumented immigrants until the completion of 700 miles of double-layered border fence.

The amendment to the bipartisan immigration reform bill proposed by Republican Sen. John Thune (S.D.) failed by a vote of 39-54. Sixty "yes" votes were needed to pass.

The language also would have prevented most undocumented immigrants from seeking temporary legal status until 350 miles of that fencing was built.

The amendment's defeat represents another setback for conservative lawmakers who say that the Gang of Eight bill doesn't go far enough to secure the U.S.-Mexico border.

But it's a victory for sponsors of the bill in both parties. They say their bill contains the strongest border protection measures in American history.

Members of the Gang of Eight, which authored the bill, have said that several GOP amendments go too far in making the path to citizenship conditional on sweeping border security projects.

The Senate bill already contains so-called "triggers" that must be met before legalized immigrants can obtain green cards that grant them permanent status. Under the existing bill, $1.5 billion is allocated toward a fencing strategy for the Southern border that includes construction of double-layered fencing in some areas and monitoring technology elsewhere. The plan must be "substantially completed" before legalized immigrants can acquire green cards.

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), an author of the bill, urged senators to vote no on the Thune fence amendment.

"Fencing is important," he said on Tuesday. "Surveillance is more important."

Supporters of the border fence effort note that Congress required the completion of 700 miles of fencing in 2006. But Congress altered the law the next year to give the federal government discretion over what types of barriers were necessary to construct in different areas. Close to 350 miles of fencing currently stands along the U.S.-Mexico border, while 299 miles is covered by vehicle barriers.

Senators also voted down an amendment by Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) that would require a full biometric visa tracking system to be put in place at every land, sea and air port of entry in the U.S. before legalized immigrants could get green cards.

The Gang of Eight bill requires that all non-U.S. citizens be fingerprinted when leaving the country through the nation's 30 busiest airports. Sen. Lindsey Graham (S.C.), a Republican author of the bill, previously called a full biometric program too costly.

The Senate unanimously adopted a technical amendment related to international adoptees proposed by Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.). It also passed an amendment from Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) that would include Native American tribal officials on a border security advisory panel.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Facebook.com/LilWayne(NEW YORK) -- Lil Wayne is responding to outrage over a behind-the-scenes clip that shows him stepping on the American flag, during the making of his "God Bless Amerika" music video.

"I didn't step on the flag on purpose!" Wayne says in a tweet, about a behind-the-scenes clip captured during the film shoot.  "It's a scene in a video where the flag drops behind me and after it [drops] it's just there as I perform."

In a Facebook post, Wayne further explains, "It was never my intention to desecrate the flag of the United States of America... The clip that surfaced on the Internet was a camera trick clip that revealed behind the American Flag was the Hoods of America. In the final edit of the video you will see the flag fall to reveal whats behind it but will never see it on the ground," he wrote.  

That footage has since been removed from the Young Money website, but the debate over Wayne's actions continue on his Facebook page.  Many of the comments come from armed forces veterans, their families and friends, who say the rapper was disrespectful.

In his note, Wayne explains the message behind his song, which includes lyrics like "My country ‘tis of thee/sweet land of kill ‘em all and let ‘em die..."  He writes that for many people who were raised in "the Hood," including himself, it's "the only America they know..." 

Wayne adds that his talents allowed him to escape the environment that he grew up in, "and see the other beautiful places this country has to offer but most people who are born in that environment don't get that chance.  That's their view of their America.  That was Dwayne M Carter from Hollygrove New Orleans view of America.  That's who I'm speaking for in this song," he says, referring to his given name.

The "God Bless Amerika" video was shot in Wayne's hometown neighborhood of Hollygrove, in New Orleans.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

British author Virginia Woolf. (Hulton Archive/Getty Images)(NEW YORK) -- Vice, an online magazine known for its provocative take on the world, just unpublished a fashion photo spread called "Last Words," which had images of models reenacting some of literature's most famous suicides.

The portraits, which appeared online Monday, drew sharp condemnation from suicide prevention experts and feminists as "sick, sick stuff" for glorifying death scenes while attempting to sell designer clothing.

The magazine editors apologized "to anyone who was hurt or offended."

The edgy, youth-oriented site included the photo spread in its 2013 Fiction Issue, one devoted to female writers, photographers, illustrators, painters, and other contributors. It featured Virginia Woolf, Dorothy Parker (who only attempted suicide), Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Sylvia Plath, novelist Sanmao and beat poet Elise Cowen.

The model portraying Plath kneels before a gas oven; Woolf wades into the water; Sanmao uses her tights to hang herself.

The images include cause and date of death, as well as captions for what each model is wearing: "Issa dress, Morgenthal Frederics glasses, Jenni Kayne shoes."

Vice editors, in a statement given to ABC News on Tuesday, said that their fashion spreads are "always unconventional and approached with an art editorial point-of-view rather than a typical fashion photo-editorial one."

"Our main goal is to create artful images, with the fashion message following, rather than leading. 'Last Words' was created in this tradition and focused on the demise of a set of writers whose lives we very much wish weren't cut tragically short, especially at their own hands," they said.

Michael Peck, a forensic psychologist from Los Angeles who spent years working in suicide prevention, told ABC News that the glamorization of suicide can "make the vulnerable more vulnerable."

He suggested the photo spread was a "ludicrous depiction of a serious subject and what it does is dull the sensitivity of people to a serious subject."

"Kids see enough shooting movies so that eventually things like Columbine are like, 'Yeah, OK.' They see this horror on TV and in the movies for years and years and killing people is just another thing," he said. "The media tends to make suicide that way."

When a prominent celebrity takes his or her life, those who are "on the brink of struggling" can be pushed to suicidal behavior, according to Peck.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Ingram Publishing/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- The tiny airline that drew international attention for its pay-what-you-weigh policy is making accommodations for passengers of a larger size, introducing XL Class.

Samoa Air chief executive Chris Langton told Australia News Network’s Pacific Beat radio program the company has modified one of the rows in the aircraft and added a ramp for easier access for passengers who weigh more than 130 kilograms, or about 285 pounds.

“Once you’re up around that sort of [weight] … a traditional seat on any airline is going to be uncomfortable,” he said. The row has been extended 12 to 14 inches and will debut this week.

Langton said he expects more airlines to make modifications based on the size and weight of passengers.

“That’s where the XL has come in — we do it with shirts and clothing and other things where we have different standard sizes,” he said.

Samoa Air did not respond to ABC News’ request for comment.

Samoa Air introduced the idea of a pay-by-weight fare system in April.

“You are the master of your Air’fair’, you decide how much (or little) your ticket will cost,” the website read at the time.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

iStockPhoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- Many who oppose high levels of Latino immigration argue that they don't assimilate fast enough because they have failed to learn English like prior waves of immigrants did.

However, a new series of studies reveal a different picture. Latinos are doing pretty well at learning English, especially when compared to many German immigrants of the 19th century, who were considerably slower to acquire the language.

The research, conducted by Joseph Salmons of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Miranda E. Wilkerson of Columbia College, indicates that a significant portion of second and third-generation descendants of immigrants in Wisconsin did not learn English, and spoke only German. The difference doesn't quite have to do with geographical isolation or lack of educational resources. It seems in such communities there was not as much of a cultural emphasis or need placed on learning English.

Today, 92 percent of the Latino second generation (children of immigrants) speak English "very well," and by the third generation nearly one hundred percent of Latinos are either English dominant or fully bilingual, according to a Pew study from last year.

In the late nineteenth century, in contrast, more than a third of all residents of Wisconsin were native German speakers, and in some counties, like Hustisford, Wisconsin, 35 percent of American-born (second generation) immigrants spoke only German.

Salmons says there are no Latino communities in the U.S. that mimic these patterns.

"I challenge anybody to show me a third generation person in this country who speaks Spanish and no English, whereas we can find in the Census records, we can find those people in German speaking communities," said Joseph Salmons, who studies language acquisition in immigrant communities. "Find me a place where you have a third of the community speaking only Spanish, and over half of them are born in the U.S. I don't believe it, and I don't know of any evidence to suggest as much."

Their findings are based on an analysis of Census data from 1910 as well as more qualitative research of community records.

Much like today, many in the 19th and early 20th centuries feared that immigrants would threaten the prosperity of the nation as a whole. Even founding father Benjamin Franklin wrote in 1753:

"Few of their children in the country learn English...The signs in our streets have inscriptions in both languages...Unless the stream of their importation could be turned they will soon so outnumber us that all the advantages we have will not be able to preserve our language, and even our government will become precarious."

But turns out, we were alright and today, more Americans say their ancestry traces back to Germany than to any other foreign nation.

Salmons believes looking at history is a good way to shape how we think about the present immigration debate.

"In a country like ours where immigration has been going on for hundreds of years, the rhetoric has remained almost the same for those hundreds of years," Salmons said.  "It's really useful for people to consider the history, even their own family's history, and their own community's history as they consider the current debate."

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

PRNewsFoto/Chrysler Group LLC, Lily Kesselman(NEW YORK) -- After initially refusing to issue a recall because it disagreed with the government, Chrysler Group now says it will recall older Jeep Grand Cherokee and Jeep Liberty SUVs that could be at risk of fuel tank fires.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had called on Chrysler Group LLC to recall approximately 2.7 million Jeep Grand Cherokee and Jeep Liberty model cars after reports of numerous fuel tank fires in rear-end collisions.

The vehicles in question include Jeep Grand Cherokees built between 1993 and 2004, and Jeep Liberty model years 2002 to 2007.

The problem, according to the government, is the location of the fuel tank. It is situated behind the rear axle, and slightly below the bumper. That makes it vulnerable to rupture when the vehicle is hit from behind.

The NHTSA has said gas tanks on the SUVs can rupture, causing fires, and that 51 people have died.

Chrysler says its dealers will inspect the vehicles and add upgrades if necessary, but maintains that its older SUVs are not defective.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

SHAH MARAI/AFP/Getty Images(KABUL, Afghanistan) -- Marking a major milestone in the 12-year war, Taliban officials announced on Tuesday that they are prepared to sit down for direct peace talks with Afghan and U.S. officials over the future of Afghanistan.
 
The news comes as Afghan President Hamid Karzai announced on Tuesday that Afghan security forces have taken over the security lead from the U.S.-led NATO coalition.
 
Taliban officials released a statement on Tuesday opposing the use of Afghan soil to threaten other countries, a critical step to breaking ties with al Qaeda, and supporting the Afghan peace process.

These statements fulfill the requirements for the Taliban to open a political office in Doha, Qatar, for the purpose of negotiating with the Afghan government.
 
“We welcome this.  These statements represent an important first step towards reconciliation -- a process that, after 30 years of armed conflict in Afghanistan, will certainly promise to be complex, long and messy, but nonetheless, this is an important first step,” according to a senior Obama administration official.
 
While the U.S. will have its first direct talks with the Taliban in the coming days, administration officials stressed that the peace negotiating process must be Afghan-led.
 
“The core of this process is not going to be the U.S. Taliban talks -- those can help advance the process, but the core of it is going to be negotiations among Afghans, and the level of trust on both sides is extremely low, as one would expect.  So it's going to be a long, hard process if indeed it advances significantly at all,” the official said.
 
In addition to encouraging the Taliban to sever ties with al Qaeda, detainee exchanges are also expected to be on the U.S-Taliban agenda, including the return of U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl.
 
Senior administration officials hailed Tuesday as a “milestone on the path toward peace” but also tried to temper expectations.
 
“We need to be realistic.  This is a new development, a potentially significant development.  But peace is not at hand,” an official said.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

John Moore/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- With transparency in the national spotlight, the Obama administration named the 46 Guantanamo detainees being held indefinitely and the detention status of all 166 prisoners.

Though the names of the Guantanamo detainees have been public for years, the Justice Department list released Monday identified for the first time the 46 prisoners deemed too dangerous to be released and unable to be prosecuted in court.

The detention status of all 166 prisoners also remained unclear until the release of the list.

In response to a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed by the Miami Herald, the document detailed which prisoners should be referred for prosecution, transferred outside the U.S., or held indefinitely without charge under the Authorization for Use of Military Force Act.

The recommendations come from the task force created by President Obama in 2009 to review the status of detainees within the controversial Cuba-based military detainment and interrogation facility.

Of those held indefinitely, the 15-page report showed 26 were from Yemen, 12 were from Afghanistan, three were from Saudi Arabia, two were from Kuwait, two were from Libya, and one each was from Kenya, Morocco and Somalia.

Activist groups cautiously welcomed the report, saying the list was illuminating but overdue.

“It is fundamental to democracy that the public know the identities of the people our nation is depriving of liberty and why they are being detained,” said Human Rights First’s Dixon Osburn in a statement. “Today’s revelation is welcome, though long overdue.”

The ability of the government to file charges against some of the inmates is complicated by factors such as congressionally imposed restrictions on using civilian courts, federal court-imposed restrictions on military commissions filing specific charges, and evidence being obtained by questionable means of interrogation such as waterboarding.

Transfers of lower level detainees out of the prison to other countries halted in 2011 when Congress amended the National Defense Authorization Act to include heavy restrictions on the transfers.

President Obama recently reiterated his commitment to pursue his unfulfilled promise of closing the prison, appointing Washington lawyer Cliff Sloan as a State Department special envoy to spearhead the effort to shutter the facility.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

ABC News(PORTER, Ind.) -- Officials remain baffled as to how a dark, slick substance that forced dozens of swimmers out of the water at a northwest Indiana beach mysteriously vanished.

"They checked the beach, and they can't find any evidence of it," Indiana Department of Environmental Management spokesman Barry Sneed told ABC News. "[Authorities] figure it may have sunk, or moved farther north. It's a strange phenomenon."

Swimmers notified law enforcement authorities that a dark-colored residue stretching nearly a mile long on Lake Michigan had appeared on the surface of the water at Porter Beach in Porter, Ind., Monday afternoon, Sneed said.

Porter Fire Department Deputy Chief Jay Craig told ABC News that when he arrived at the lake the water looked slick with what appeared to be oil. Upon further inspection, the substance was a gun-metal gray with metal flakes in it.

Craig said you could tell how deep someone had been in the water depending on where their bodies were stained with the dark residue.

"They were worried when they saw two kids come out of the water and the one was, his head and half his body was covered a bit in black," Porter resident Carl Dahlin told ABC's Chicago station WLS-TV.

"We are completely baffled as to what it truly is, whether it came from one of the steel mills or something out of the smokestacks or possibly washed off one of the big barges as they came into the harbor," Gene Davis, Indiana conservation officer, told WLS-TV.

Officials shut down the beach as the Coast Guard, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources and the National Park Service were called in to help identify the slime.

The appearance of the unidentifiable slick forced the closure of five northern Indiana beaches on Lake Michigan, Sneed said.

"In my eight years here, we've never had to close the water because of an unknown substance like this," said Indiana Dunes State Park Manager Brandt Baughman. "We're not going to open our beach until we know what it is."

Indiana Dunes State Park remains closed as a result of strong waves and rip tides, but other beaches in the area have issued a swim at your own risk advisory.

Meanwhile, officials work to determine what the mysterious substance was and where it could have gone.

While authorities worried that the sheen could spread east toward Michigan City, Ind., Sneed said the substance was nowhere to be found this morning.

Sneed said that while preliminary testing of water samples indicated the mystery sheen might have been a food additive that was also used in fertilizer, this morning's reading revealed it might have been a type of acid.

While the tests yield variable results, samples were sent to a lab for further analysis, Sneed said.

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Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Andrew Giammarco/Starbucks(SEATTLE) -- Do you know what's in that Cinnamon Dolce Latte you're drinking? Starbucks is about to tell you.

If you don't live in a place like New York or California where restaurant chains already have to show calorie counts on their menus, it may shock you that a blueberry scone at Starbucks has 460 calories or that 300 calories are in a small Frappuccino.   

Now Starbucks says it will begin posting calorie counts on its menu boards nationwide next week.

It's trying to get out ahead of federal regulations that would require it to do so.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Frontier Airlines(DENVER) -- Charges have been filed against a Colorado man accused of making threats onboard a Frontier Airlines flight last weekend.

Mark Bote, 23, of Thornton, Colo., is accused of claiming he had a bomb in his backpack when he was aboard Frontier Airlines flight 601 from Knoxville, Tenn., to Denver on June 14.

The plane was evacuated when it landed in Denver.

An investigation failed to turn up a bomb.

Bote faces a federal charge of false information and threats.  If he's found guilty, he could get five years in federal prison and up to a $250,000 fine.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- The last time you wanted to vent about your family or co-workers within the space of 140 characters, you didn’t “submit a post to the microblogging service known as Twitter.” You tweeted.

These days, pop culture associates the act of tweeting less with chirping birds and more with social networking. Now the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) will officially recognize the word “tweet” in its June 2013 update.

John Simpson, chief editor of the OED, made the announcement on the dictionary’s website. He says that including the new definition of tweet “breaks at least one OED rule, namely that a new word needs to be current for 10 years before consideration for inclusion.”

The OED attributes the first use of “tweeting” back to 2007. On March 15, 2007 on the now defunct blog NevOn, the blogger posted, “Not much chance to tweet on Twitter, especially since it seems that SMS posting from my mobile phone doesn’t work.” It was the land before smartphones, when Twitter users had to rely on text messaging to broadcast their thoughts.

This isn’t Twitter’s first appearance in the OED; “retweet” was added to the dictionary in 2011.

The OED is a bit behind competitor the Merriam-Webster dictionary, which added the word “tweet” in August 2011.

Other words that have made their way into the OED’s latest update? “Flash mob,” “geekery,” “live-blogging,” and “e-reader.”

Check out the full list of new words here.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

NBA via Dallas Mavericks(NEW YORK) -- Other than the actual games themselves, flopping is a major story line during the NBA playoffs once again. Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki doesn't think there is anything the NBA will be able to do about it.

Players selling contact to officials to draw penalties on the opposing team is nothing new, but this season the NBA instituted a system to fine players who flop during a game. Even though fines have occurred, the flopping has continued.

Nowitzki doesn't think there's anything the NBA can do about it.

"We're never going to get rid of it," Nowitzki said, according to the Dallas Morning News. "But you got to limit it. It's part of sports. It's part of winning. Some people are smart and do a little extra thing to kind of sell the call. To me, that's part of sports."

Nowitzki's head coach, Rick Carlisle, recently said that the NBA rules committee is in the process of reviewing the flopping policy to see if it can make it more effective.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Michael Lavine/FOX(LOS ANGELES) -- Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay has found himself in a kitchen nightmare. Former employees of his Los Angeles eatery are suing him for what they say are unpaid wages.

Four former employees of The Fat Cow restaurant filed a class-action lawsuit Thursday in Los Angeles Superior Court, claiming, among other things, that they were forced to work grueling eight-hour shifts without a meal break. They’re also alleging that hourly employees weren’t always paid their minimum wage of $8 an hour and denied overtime pay.

The plaintiffs say they were not provided with proper documentation for their hours worked and their compensation.

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“There were hand-written paychecks sometimes. There was … no accounting at all,” attorney Lauren Abrams, who is representing the group of former employees, said.

Ramsay, 46, has built an empire shouting expletives at aspiring chefs and struggling restaurant owners on reality-TV shows Kitchen Nightmares and Hell’s Kitchen. His fiery temper has contributed to his media appeal, but has also been the subject of much criticism.

A representative for Ramsay acknowledged the issue but pointed to previous management. “We are aware there was a problem with previous management, which has since been changed, but this is totally unacceptable if any truth to it,” the representative told ABC News.

Ramsay, who earned $38 million last year, does not run day-to-day operations at The Fat Cow, which opened in September.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

NELSON ALMEIDA/AFP/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- On Saturday, thousands of Brazilian fans at the Estadio Nacional Mane Garrincha booed and heckled FIFA president Sepp Blatter and Brazilian president Dilma Roussef during the opening ceremony of the Confederations Cup.

Although that response has become fairly common at events that involve Blatter, the jeering seemed unexpected in the case of Dilma Roussef, who has been a popular figure for years.

Few analysts found it odd, however. Indeed, even Roussef herself expected trouble.

That's because for more than a week now thousands of protestors in Brazil have fought violent battles against riot police. The demonstrations, started in Sao Paulo by a political group called the Movimento Passe Livre (Free Fare Movement), have spread across at least five cities. And the group's initial objective -- to revert a recent hike in public transportation prices -- has given leftist organizations and university students a reason to shine a light on larger social issues like corruption.

This broader movement has been alternately dubbed the Revolta da Salada (The Salad Revolution), the Revolta do Vinagre (The Vinegar Revolution), and V for Vinagre, after a Brazilian journalist who was arrested for carrying vinegar to ward off the effects of tear gas used during protests.

So what exactly was the final straw? There wasn't just one.  Here are five key reasons that led to the revolt:

1. Public Transportation Prices

The recent 10-cent increase in bus and subway fare has been cited in most news accounts as the leading motive behind the week's brutal clashes.

2. The Combined Costs of the World Cup and the Confederations Cup

Demonstrators have started targeting soccer stadiums in Brasilia and Rio de Janeiro as part of an effort to raise awareness about the extraordinary amounts of money the government has on 12 stadiums to host the World Cup and the Confederations Cup. Taxpayers are footing the bill in spite of promises that private enterprise would cover it.

The total cost of the buildings has tripled since the initial 2007 estimates. It currently stands at around $3.68 billion, nearly twice what Germany spent on their World Cup preparations.

Demonstrators point out that no one is quite sure about what will happen with the stadiums once the competitions are over.

3. Police Brutality

As most Latin Americans know, violence, or the threat of violence, hardly prevents further protests. In fact, police brutality is often viewed as a valid reason to protest more. Certainly, the Brazil demonstrations have been rife with the kind of incidents that encourage indignation.

Hundreds of protesters have been arrested, and more than 55 were wounded just last Thursday in Sao Paulo. Brazil's defense minister has acknowledged that the police have acted "arbitrarily and violently," and there are countless YouTube videos that show officers in riot gear using tear gas and rubber bullets against peaceful demonstrators. Protesters have vowed to increase rallies in response to this.

4. Corruption

Brazil is ranked 69 out of 176 in Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index. Though that is relatively good when compared with the rest of Latin America, Brazil still has significant corruption problems, as demonstrated by the recent shooting of a newspaper director in a town outside of Rio.

There have also been massive scandals involving prominent businessmen and influential government employees (Lula's chief of staff, for instance). More worrying is that politicians have considerable discretionary spending benefits when they are elected. Elected officials can spend thousands of dollars on airline tickets, housing expenses and several other perks.

5. The Economy

In effect, it all arguably boils down to Brazil's recent economic slowdown. In the past year, inflation has steadily climbed to 6.5 percent, affecting mostly poor families.

More than the slow growth in income, poor families also lack decent access to education and employment, according to the Brazilian government's Family Development Index.

Brazil's economy grew 1.9 percent in this year's first quarter, 0.5 percent below last year's predictions. The government raised the minimum wage by nearly 9 percent this year, but the price of transportation and other basic services remain disproportionately high.

All of these factors have contributed to Dilma Roussef's first popularity debacle. Her approval ratings have fallen for the first time since she took office, and the booing during her stadium visit stadium shows just how fed up people are.

Economic turmoil coupled with social unrest tends to breed more social disturbances, and Brazilian authorities will continue to be faced with a massive challenge as the World Cup puts a spotlight on more than this country's hosting efforts.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Win McNamee/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- The director of the National Security Administration on Tuesday told Congress that more than 50 potential terrorist attacks have been thwarted by two controversial programs tracking more than a billion phone calls and vast swaths of Internet data each day.

The attacks on would-be targets such as the New York Stock Exchange were prevented by caching telephone metadata and Internet information, including from millions of Americans since Sept. 11, 2001, Gen. Keith Alexander said during a hearing at the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.

Alexander had been less specific in testimony last week when he said "dozens" of possible attacks were foiled.

He testified Tuesday: "In recent years, these programs, together with other intelligence, have protected the U.S. and our allies from terrorist threats across the globe to include helping prevent the potential terrorist events over 50 times since 9/11."

He appeared in a rare public hearing of the House Intelligence Committee with officials from the FBI and Justice Department to discuss the phone and Internet programs that were disclosed in June by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden in the British Guardian newspaper and also The Washington Post.

Lawmakers had previously disclosed that about a dozen attacks were believed to have been thwarted as a result of the programs.

Alexander said the full list of thwarted attacks will be provided to members of the House Intelligence committee Wednesday, but the intelligence community has decided to release only two of those events publicly.

"If we give all those out, we give all the secrets of how we're tracking down the terrorists as a community," Alexander said. "And we can't do that."

But he and other intelligence officials have pointed specifically to the case of Najibullah Zazi, the Afghan-born man who pleaded guilty in 2012 to plotting a terror attack against the New York City subway system. He is awaiting sentencing.

FBI Deputy Director Sean Joyce testified Tuesday that "In the fall of 2009, NSA, using 702 authority [granted to intercept communication], intercepted an email from a terrorist located in Pakistan. That individual was talking with the individual located inside the United States talking about perfecting a recipe for explosives."

"Through legal process, that individual was identified as Najibullah Zazi. He was located in Denver, Colorado. The FBI followed him to New York City. Later, we executed search warrants with the New York Joint Terrorism Task Force and NYPD and found bomb- making components and backpacks. Zazi later confessed to a plot to bomb the New York subway system with backpacks," Joyce said.

The plot was previously disclosed.

It has been argued by Snowden and others that the coded email message that foiled Zazi's plot could have been uncovered without the controversial PRISM electronic surveillance program, which apparently collects data from everyone for later dissection and not just suspected terrorists.

Snowden, who has said he has more information to leak, accused administration officials and members of Congress in an online chat with The Guardian Monday of exaggerating claims about the success of the data collection programs in arresting terrorists, specifically Zazi.

Joyce also said the NSA was able to provide the FBI with a previously unknown telephone number of Adis Medunjanin [who was convicted along with Zazi], which helped disrupt "the first core al Qaida plot since 9/11, directed from Pakistan."

He said the NSA monitored a known extremist in Yemen, who was in contact with an individual in the United States, Khalid Ouazzan, which led to detection of "a nascent plot to bomb the New York Stock Exchange."

Joyce also cited the case of David Headley, a U.S. citizen living in Chicago later convicted for his involvement in the 2008 Mumbai attacks in which more than 160 people died. Joyce said the NSA, through 702 coverage of an al Qaida-affiliated terrorist, found that Headley was working on a plot to bomb a Danish newspaper office that had published cartoon depictions of the prophet Muhammad.

"Lastly, the FBI had opened an investigation shortly after 9/11," Joyce said, without further identifying specifics of the potential attack. "We did not have enough information nor did we find links to terrorism, so we shortly thereafter closed the investigation."

"However, the NSA, using the business record FISA [Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act], tipped us off that this individual had indirect contacts with a known terrorist overseas. We were able to reopen this investigation, identify additional individuals through a legal process and were able to disrupt this terrorist activity," he added.

The House Intelligence hearing is ongoing. Check back for updates.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

ABC News(NEW YORK) -- It’s the documentary that audiences and film critics are eating up.

In a covert six-month mission to expose the inside world of school lunches, 11-year-old Zachary Maxwell made Yuck: A 4th Grader’s Documentary About School Lunch when he was a fourth-grader at a New York City public school.

Armed with hidden cameras, the precocious filmmaker went undercover to document dozens of lunches he was served at school.

During Zachary’s investigation, he compared descriptions of lunch items on the school-provided menu with secretly recorded video of what he was actually being served.

“It sounded like it was coming from the finest restaurant, but what we were actually getting served, it wasn’t too good,” Zachary told ABC News.

His 19-minute movie has already been featured at film festivals this year, and will be shown in the Manhattan Film Festival June 21, something the now fifth-grader is quite proud of.

“I think it’s a lot cooler than just watching it on a little TV screen,” Zachary said on ABC’s Good Morning America  in response to how it feels having his documentary become so successful. “And also watching with an audience on a big screen is really cool. Because when they laugh when they’re supposed to laugh, it’s the best feeling ever.”

The New York City Department of Education visited Zachary’s school after his film began circulating and says officials, “Provide students with healthy and delicious school meals that are low in fat, sodium and calories and we currently have more than 1,000 salad bars in our schools to provide more healthful options to students.”

Zachary’s father, CJ Maxwell, who helped the budding filmmaker put this documentary together, says he couldn’t be prouder of his son, a student at Public School 130 in the Little Italy section of Manhattan.

“I think that he showed a lot of little spunk and spirit and we encouraged him to keep at it,” Maxwell  said.

Zachary admits while he was working on his undercover documentary, he was worried he’d get in trouble.

“Every day I was nervous I’d get in trouble, or worse, get suspended,” he said.

But that hasn’t stopped Zachary from continuing his behind-the-camera efforts. He’s now working on a personal project about his fifth-grade class, he says, “Because we’re all going to middle school our separate ways, so we have the memory of each other.”

After he gets to middle school, Zachary said, he also has future plans for a documentary about “adolescence, puberty, and what middle school girls think about guys with braces.”

“When I grow up,” he said, laughing, “I want to be a big-shot filmmaker.”

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Kevin Mazur/WireImage via ABC(LOS ANGELES) -- Justin Bieber has been cleared in a possible hit-and-run accident involving a paparazzo Monday night.

Bieber is no longer under investigation for the late-night possible hit-and-run in Hollywood, ABC News Los Angeles affiliate KABC-TV confirmed with the Los Angeles Police Department.

The incident happened near the Laugh Factory around 11:45 p.m. Monday, police told KABC.

One person was transported from that location to a local hospital, the Los Angeles City Fire Department told KABC. The person’s condition and injuries were unknown.

Bieber, 19, was leaving the Laugh Factory with his friend Lil Twist while several paparazzi photographed the pair, according to TMZ.

As Bieber drove off, one of the photographers was pinned between his Ferrari and a parked car, the website said.

This latest incident comes as Bieber is under fire for speeding through his gated California neighborhood. NFL star Keyshawn Johnson confronted him about that incident, but the Canadian singer has maintained that he was not behind the wheel.

The L.A. County Sheriff’s Department has referred the case to the district attorney’s office and Bieber faces possible misdemeanor reckless driving charges.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Netflix(NEW YORK) -- Video streaming service Netflix sees a 30 percent uptick in usage during the summer months, partly because kids are out of school and families go on road trips.

But the company is hoping to see an even bigger spike in family and children's video streaming this summer.  Starting on Tuesday, a new section of the website, called Netflix Families, will provide a breakdown of the Netflix basics for newbies and lists of family-friendly video content that's available through the service.

Available at www.netflix.com/families, the site will contain a series of video tutorials about what video streaming is, as well as different lists of content, including an "Are We There Yet" playlist, which includes shows like Scooby Doo for watching in an airport.

Another list called "TV for Curious Kids" contains shows like How It Is Made and The Planets, which are intended to provide educational programming for kids in the summer months when kids are out of school.

But the real intention of Netflix Families is to get more people using the service and streaming.

"We know families are really using Netflix more during the summer -- we see that going up," Netflix Director of Public Relations Jenny McCabe told ABC News.  "We want to make that easy for people who aren't using Netflix yet.  We are trying to appeal to those people who are still using DVDs and haven't gotten into streaming yet."

McCabe said Netflix's fastest growing area is kids and family content.

On Monday, Netflix announced it was partnering with DreamWorks Animation to provide original kids programming -- including new shows and movie releases -- through the service.  There will be more than 300 hours of video added to Netflix through the deal, which begins in 2014.

Netflix is accessible on computers through Netflix.com and various mobile devices through the Netflix apps.  The service is also available through Internet-connected set-top boxes, TVs and gaming consoles, like the Xbox or Wii U.  The subscription service costs $7.99 a month and includes unlimited streaming of movies and TV episodes.

But if all that sounds overwhelming, the new tutorials on Netflix Families will explain how to access the service and the whole idea of streaming vs. downloading videos.  Netflix has created videos with young mothers and fathers to demonstrate how to set up an account and get started.

Netflix plans to offer new features to make the service enticing to families and its more than 36 million users.  In August, it will add a new user profile feature, allowing parents to set up a profile for themselves for their personal adult content and another for their kids.  With that, Netflix's recommendation engine will be able to provide more tailored and appropriate recommendations to families that share one account.

But when it comes to streaming kids content, there might be a major reason from some parents to hold out: the lack of Dora the Explorer or Spongebob.  The company lost access to Nickelodeon programming earlier this year.  Amazon, its lead competitor in the space, continues to provide access to Viacom's popular kids programming.

Still, Netflix says it is well suited to appeal to both kids and adult users and is trying to capture both those key markets by just getting families in the door.  Unlike Netflix.com, which requires that you log in to see content and options, Netflix.com/families won't require users to log in to see titles or browse videos.

"This is for people who want to know more about Netflix," McCabe said.  "You don't have to be a member for the Families page -- we really want people to play around with this."

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Timur Emek/ Getty Images(DUBLIN) -- First lady Michelle Obama and her daughters are having a VIP lunch in Ireland Tuesday, reportedly dining with Irish rock superstar Bono at a pub outside Dublin.

The U2 frontman and his wife, Ali Hewson, were spotted shortly after 1 p.m. local time entering Finnegan’s of Dalkey, reportedly one of their favorite restaurant spots in their hometown just south of Dublin.

Moments later, the first family -- minus the president -- arrived to enjoy a final meal of traditional Irish fare before departing for Germany later on Tuesday.

Mrs. Obama and daughters Malia and Sasha have been taking in the sites while President Obama is busy in G8 Summit meetings.  The first family received a private tour earlier on Tuesday of Wicklow Mountains National Park and the famous monastic sites at Glendalough.

The White House has not commented on the first family’s luncheon.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- More Americans are kicking the smoking habit, a new government report finds.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says just 18 percent of U.S. adults called themselves smokers last year, a drop from the past decade.

"Back in 1997, 25 percent of adults smoked.  This year, in 2012, it's down to 18 percent; a pretty dramatic drop.  The exciting thing about that is that the rates for smoking had leveled off to about 20 percent.  And it held there through the mid-2000s," says ABC News' Chief Health and Medical Editor Dr. Richard Besser.

The decrease may be attributed to the growing number of smoking bans in restaurants, bars and parks, and the graphic ad campaign the CDC launched last year called "Tips from Former Smokers."

When broken down specifically, the figures show that men still smoke at a higher rate than women -- 20 percent versus 16 percent.

"If you break it down by race and ethnicity, there are differences as well," says Besser.  "Smoking among Hispanic adults is 12 percent.  Non-Hispanic white adults is at 20 and a-half percent.  And non-Hispanic blacks is at 18 percent."

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Johnny Nunez/WireImage(NEW YORK) -- Jay-Z and Beyonce held court Monday night at the 10th anniversary of Jay's 40/40 Club.  It's the same club he rapped about on the Black Album's "Dirt Off Your Shoulder," throwing in a line in the 2003 song that he was chilling "at the 40/40 Club, ESPN on the screen."

Little had changed Monday night in New York City. Taking a break from her Mrs. World Carter Tour, Beyonce -- wearing a white Roberto Cavalli dress and bone-straight hair -- sat next to her hubby while sipping champagne, laughing with friends and watching the oversized LED screens lighting the luxury sports bar.  

Instead of being isolated in Jay's VIP room, the couple sat in the heart of 40/40 as onlookers snapped photos.

Celebs and athletes alike filled the VIP sections surrounding hip-hop's royalty, including T.I., who came with wife Tiny, New York Knicks star Amare Stoudemire, Kylie Minogue, New York Jet Geno Smith, Bethenny Frankel, Busta Rhymes and Fabolous.

“My passion for sports led me to create an environment that was not only conducive to my lifestyle but would appeal to every sports fan that walked through the door,” Jay-Z said in a statement marking the club's anniversary.

He is set to release his new album, Magna Carta Holy Grail, on July 4.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- President Obama said that two National Security Agency programs recently revealed through leaked secret documents were “transparent” and, in an interview with PBS’s Charlie Rose on Sunday, he dismissed concerns that the programs were vulnerable to abuse by government officials.

“It is transparent,” Obama said in the interview, broadcast Monday night.

“What I’ve asked the intelligence community to do is see how much of this we can declassify without further compromising the program, No. 1,” Obama said. “And they are in that process of doing so now so that everything that I’m describing to you today, people, the public, newspapers, etc., can look at – because, frankly, if people are making judgments just based on these slides that have been leaked, they’re not getting the complete story.”

Obama said that he will meet with the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, a five-member independent agency that advises the president and Congress on privacy and civil liberties concerns, to “structure a national conversation” about the programs. That meeting will take place in the coming days, according to an administration official, and will be part of a broader outreach to national security, civil liberties and technology stakeholders.

When asked whether he believed admitted NSA leaker Edward Snowden should be prosecuted, Obama declined to comment, but he said that the case has been referred to the Department of Justice for a criminal investigation and “possible extradition.”

In response to criticism that he has adopted Bush administration policies wholesale, Obama dismissed a suggestion that as a U.S. senator he was opposed to intelligence gathering.

“Some people say, ‘Well, you know, Obama was this raving liberal before.  Now he’s, you know, Dick Cheney,’” Obama said. “My concern has always been not that we shouldn’t do intelligence gathering to prevent terrorism, but rather: Are we setting up a system of checks and balances?”

He offered a strenuous defense of the NSA programs, which he said guard the privacy of Americans through judicial and legislative review.

“What I can say unequivocally is that if you are a U.S. person, the NSA cannot listen to your telephone calls, and the NSA cannot target your emails…and have not,” he said.

The first program, called the 2015 program, authorizes the government to collect telephone metadata about phone numbers and lengths of telephone calls.

“There are no names.  There is no content in that database.  All it is, is the number pairs, when those calls took place, how long they took place – so that database is sitting there,” Obama said, adding that the FBI must seek legal authority through the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act court in order to search the database.

A second program used to gather information from Internet service providers, called the “702 program,” cannot be used against a “U.S. person,” Obama said.

“The one thing people should understand about all these programs, though, is they have disrupted plots, not just here in the United States but overseas, as well,” Obama said

He referenced a foiled plot to blow up the New York subway system that he said may have been uncovered with the help of the programs.

“We’re going to have to find ways where the public has an assurance that there are checks and balances in place, that they have enough information about how we operate that they know that their phone calls aren’t being listened into; their text messages aren’t being monitored, their emails are not being read by some big brother somewhere,” Obama said. “They’ve got to feel that confidence and that it is not potentially subject to abuse, because there are sufficient checks and balances on it while still preserving our capacity to act against folks who are trying to do us harm.”

Obama also declined to go into more detail about what additional assistance the U.S. government would provide to Syrian rebels after Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime was found to have crossed a “red line” by using chemical weapons against its people.

The president suggested that a no-fly zone would be ineffective.

“This argument that somehow, [if] we had gone in earlier or heavier, in some fashion, that the tragedy and chaos taking place in Syria wouldn’t be taking place, I think is wrong,” Obama said. “What I’m saying is that if you haven’t been in the Situation Room poring through intelligence and meeting directly with our military folks and asking, ‘What are all our options?’ and examining what are all the consequences, and understanding that, for example, if you set up a no-fly zone that you may not be actually solving the problem on the zone.”

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Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Alex Wong/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- President Obama is sending a strong signal that Ben Bernanke will step down as chairman of the Federal Reserve when his term ends early next year.

“He’s already stayed a lot longer than he wanted or he was supposed to,” the president told Charlie Rose in an interview on PBS.  “Ben Bernanke’s done an outstanding job.”

Bernanke, who has been trying to prop up the U.S. economy since the end of the recession and financial crisis, is widely expected to leave his job at the end of January. 

Fed Vice Chairman Janet Yellin appears to be the leading contender to replace him.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP/Getty Images(KABUL, Afghanistan) -- Tuesday marked a major milestone in the war in Afghanistan, as sovereign forces there have officially “taken the lead” in all security responsibilities from U.S. and NATO forces.

"This is truly a historic moment. Afghanistan's future is in your hands," NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said at a ceremony in Kabul.

What it means is that for the first time since the American-led invasion in October 2001, the Afghans will plan, execute and lead all missions against the Taliban and other enemies of the country, including making combat decisions.

"This is a day for Afghans to be proud.  And I'm proud to stand with you," Fogh Rasmussen said.

Americans and their allies will supply air support when necessary or provide assistance on the ground but only when either is requested by Afghan commanders.  The U.S. and NATO will mainly stay at bases that will eventually be turned over to national forces or else be dismantled if Afghans can’t maintain control of them.

It’s expected that the number of U.S. casualties, which has dropped over time anyway, will decline further although the potential for danger exists from so-called “insider attacks” and whenever Americans clear roadside bombs from highways.

This latest milestone in the 12-year-long war might also mean that the bulk of U.S. and NATO forces could be withdrawn in 2014 at a faster pace than originally forecast if Afghanistan’s soldiers and police show they’re up to the task of preventing the Taliban from making any significant territorial gains or unleashing terrorist strikes against them and civilians.

On a related note, as the transition ceremony was taking place on Tuesday, a large bomb exploded in Kabul, killing at least three people and injuring dozens more, according to the Ministry of Interior.  The blast was in the Pul-e-Surkh area of the western part of the city, miles away from the site of the ceremony.

The blast was the latest in a particularly fierce Taliban summer offensive this year.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

The Guardian via Getty Images(LONDON) -- Edward Snowden, the man who claims to be behind a stunning slew of top secret information leaks from the National Security Agency, mocked the idea that he was a spy for the Chinese government, saying Monday that if he had been, he'd be in Beijing "living in a palace petting a phoenix by now."

The 29-year-old former NSA contractor made the quip during an online question and answer session hosted by The Guardian and said the idea he could have sold or traded secrets to the Chinese in exchange for asylum was a "predictable smear" meant to distract from "the issue of U.S. government misconduct."

"I have had no contact with the Chinese government," Snowden said later.  "I only work with journalists."

Late last week, ABC News reported that U.S. officials were concerned Snowden could attempt to defect to China with a trove of America's most sensitive secrets as The Guardian had said he fled to Hong Kong from his Hawaii home late last month with four laptops -- and a head -- full of inside information on U.S. programs.

Snowden's online chat followed the latest in a string of alleged disclosures to media outlets, this time revealing through "top secret" slides that the United Kingdom's equivalent of the NSA had successfully spied on delegates during the 2009 G-20 summit by setting up rigged Internet cafes and hacking into their BlackBerry phones.  The U.K. agency, the Government Communications Headquarters, told ABC News on Monday it does not comment on intelligence matters.

Last week, The Guardian and The Washington Post reported that information from Snowden was the basis for their headline-grabbing reports on widespread NSA telephone and Internet surveillance programs, which Snowden called "horrifying."

Top U.S. officials acknowledged the programs after the reports and in an interview broadcast Monday night, President Obama said they were "transparent."

"What I've asked the intelligence community to do is see how much of this we can declassify without further compromising the program, No. 1," Obama told Charlie Rose on PBS.  "And they are in that process of doing so now so that everything that I'm describing to you today, people, the public, newspapers, etc., can look at -- because, frankly, if people are making judgments just based on these slides that have been leaked, they're not getting the complete story."

Obama declined to comment when asked if Snowden should be prosecuted for any alleged crimes, but in his online chat, Snowden said that wouldn't matter anyway.

"All I can say right now is the U.S. government is not going to be able to cover this up by jailing or murdering me," Snowden said.  "Truth is coming, and it cannot be stopped."

One person that wants it to stop, however, is Snowden's father, Lonnie.

The elder Snowden defended his son's integrity in an interview with Fox News on Monday, but pleaded with his son to not leak any more information, especially anything that could be considered treasonous.

Despite surfacing online for the more than 90-minute question and answer session Monday, Edward Snowden remains in hiding in Hong Kong.

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Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Sandra Schorken(OAKLAND, Calif.) -- Two men and a woman dove in to a California estuary on Sunday to rescue a family, including two children, trapped in a vehicle about to submerge.

Andy Goodwin, Erik Schorken and Schorken’s family were driving along the estuary in Oakland, Calif., on their way back from a Father’s Day lunch, when they noticed a woman frantically waving her hands and pointing towards the water.

“I said to my wife, ‘I think someone might have gone into the water,’” Schorken told ABC News.  “But no one was stopping.”

Then they saw an ambulance, so Schorken decided to pull over and see what was going on.

It turned out the ambulance was there for another matter, but the car’s occupants noticed people were trapped in the water, so Schorken, Goodwin and Tracey McCormick, who was also driving by the estuary at the time, jumped in and swam out to the scene.

“This car was 60 degrees up in the air; it was going nose down into the water,” Schorken said.  “I just kept swimming out there.”

The mission soon appeared hopeless.  Because the car’s doors were locked, the would-be rescuers had no way of accessing the victims.  Halfway towards the car, Goodwin swam back to the shore.

“I swam about halfway out and I realized I wasn’t going to be able to do much,” Goodwin told ABC News.

McCormick said that when she reached the vehicle, the victims’ hands “were on the windows screaming to get us out.”

One of the paramedics had an emergency pocket knife designed to break through glass.  She handed Goodwin the pocket knife.  Goodwin subsequently gave it to McCormick, who gave it to Schorken after she had trouble with it.  Schorken broke through the window, and he and McCormick took the family -- a mother, a father, and two kids Schorken guessed were between the ages of 7 and 10 -- 20 feet to shore.

As soon as they reached the land, the car completely submerged into the water.

“I looked behind me and the car was gone.  I couldn’t believe how fast it sunk,” said McCormick.

The family was fine and was not taken to the hospital, the Oakland Police Department told ABC News.

ABC News affiliate KGO-TV reported the rescue on Sunday, referring to Goodwin and Schorken as “good Samaritans.”

Although Schorken did not know the name of the family he rescued, he had their phone number and was planning on inviting them over for dinner.

Calls to the number Schorken provided went unanswered.

Johnna Watson of the Oakland Police Department said the family likely would not have survived without the help.

“Time is of the essence in a situation like this,” she told ABC News.  “By the time we arrived on scene the occupants were taken out.  This made the difference between life and death.”

Watson said there will be an investigation into the cause of the accident.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- At least nine million people a year in the U.S. suffer from a foodborne illness caused by a major pathogen, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"It's the worst during the warmer months, when there are more outdoor gatherings and people tend to leave food out and practice unsafe food handling techniques," said Scott Becker, the executive director of Association of Public Health Laboratories, a nonprofit organization that helps prevent and track foodborne illnesses.

There are ways to prevent getting sick from the foods you eat.  Read on to learn what you can do to protect you and your family from foodborne illnesses this summer.

EGGS

The Problem: The Food and Drug Administration reports that more than 140,000 Americans are infected each year with the salmonella bacteria from eating eggs.  Approximately 30 die.  Often the shell is contaminated by animal waste or some other environmental source.  Becker said that if the eggs aren't treated properly at the site where they are produced, the contamination is transferred to your kitchen.

Safety Tips: Becker advised consumers to avoid eating raw eggs and to cook all eggs thoroughly before eating.  It's also important to wash your hands with soap and warm water after handling either the shells or liquid parts of an egg, as well as all surfaces the egg has touched.

VEGGIES

The Problem: Leafy green vegetables are the number one source of food related illness, according to CDC statistics, and sprouts are another major culprit.  Vanessa Coffman, education manager for STOP Foodborne Illness, said vegetables are a major source of salmonella, E. coli and other bacterial infections because they are grown in fields, often directly in the soil, where they can be exposed to pollution, animal feces and countless other forms of contamination.  Also, since many vegetables are eaten raw, pathogens may survive even after a thorough washing.

Safety Tips: Coffman said the best way to protect yourself from dirty veggies is to wash them thoroughly and cook them whenever possible.  "Keep meat and vegetables separate from one another and use a separate cutting board for each," she advised.

FRUIT

The Problem: Last year, more than half a million cantaloupes were recalled by the FDA.  The agency said it was acting in "an abundance of caution" after it was discovered that some consumers had eaten fruit that had tested positive for salmonella.  Fruit of all kinds are generally high up on the agency's recall list.  Becker said that part of the problem is that one farm may send out contaminated produce all across the country, so outbreaks become widespread very quickly.  Consumers don't always wash fruit before eating and although cooking would render it safer to eat, most people eat it raw.

Safety Tips: Coffman said that even a fruit with an outer rind, such as a cantaloupe or an orange, should be washed before slicing to avoid dragging pathogens across the entire length of the fruit.  Even produce that comes with a "prewashed" sticker should be washed carefully anyway.

FISH

The Problem: As healthy a food as fish is, it's frequently pulled off grocery shelves due to safety concerns.  One common reason, said Coffman, is vibrio contamination, a pathogen related to the bacteria that cause cholera.  Vibrio is found in higher concentrations when water gets warmer, so outbreaks are more common in the summer months.  Fish can also be recalled due to high mercury concentrations.  Just last month, the Texas Department of State Health Services, warned against eating fish caught off the coast of the Lone Star State due to unusually high levels of mercury.  If consumed on a regular basis, mercury can cause harm to the central nervous system.

Safety Tips: Pregnant women, children and people with compromised immune systems should limit their consumption of fish suspected of high mercury levels and all raw fish, including what's found in sushi.  Coffman said that all fish and seafood should be cooked to an internal temperature of at least 145 degrees Fahrenheit.

MEAT

The Problem: In April of this year alone, nearly 500,000 pounds of adulterated meat was recalled by the United States Department of Agriculture.  The meat in question was thought to be contaminated with the listeria bacteria, a pathogen that kills one in five people it infects.  E. coli, salmonella and parasites are also routine meat and poultry contaminants, according to the USDA's own Inspector General reports, as are antibiotic resistant drugs and pesticides.

Safety Tips: Becker stressed how important it is to refrigerate meat to 40 degrees or below until right before cooking it. "That includes outdoor picnics and barbeques," he said.  "Bring a cooler and keep it chilled until ready for use." Coffman advised using separate cutting boards for meat and washing hands and surfaces with warm soapy water for at least 20 seconds after handling.  Proper cooking is also essential to kill as many bacteria as possible.  Burgers should be cooked to an internal temperature of 160 degrees; cuts of meat, poultry and all leftovers to 165 degrees.

NUTS AND SEEDS

The problem: This week, a Michigan company recalled its packaged sunflower seeds and all products containing the seeds that were distributed in nine states over a suspected listeria contamination.  More commonly, the culprit in nuts and seeds is salmonella.  If something goes amiss during the roasting process, the pathogen survives and infected nuts can find their way into grocery baskets.

Safety Tips: Whenever possible, eat roasted versus raw nuts.  The best way to protect yourself from accidentally consuming contaminated nuts, Becker advised, is to check for recall updates on the government's Food Safety website. You can also sign up for recall email alerts on the Stop Foodborne Illness website or Facebook page.

PET FOOD

The Problem: Dog food recalls for salmonella outbreaks are fairly common.  Ditto for cat food.  An animal that has eaten some bad food will usually experience diarrhea and dehydration.  Most will live through it, though youngsters, seniors and pets that are already ill may not. Contamination also poses a high a risk to owners who may be sickened after handling tainted food.

Safety Tips: Since your furry friend can't speak up to describe his symptoms, be sure to stay up to date on all recalls.  These are listed on the FDA website.  If you find your pet's food on the recall list, stop using it immediately.  Check with the company's website to learn about disposal methods and compensation.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Paul Morigi/WireImage(NEW YORK) -- Fans of The X-Files will be thrilled to hear the series is back -- this time, in comic book form. 

The New York Post reports IDW Publishing is introducing a new X-Files comic series this week entitled The X-Files: Season 10.  The newspaper says the venture has input from series creator Chris Carter and features former FBI agents Mulder and Scully living in anonymity under assumed identities. 

The X-Files starred David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson, and aired on Fox from 1993 to 2002.  The TV series spawned two feature films.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Hemera/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- The Emmy Awards will help CBS kick off its fall schedule this September.

Nearly all of CBS' most popular series will return in the days following its Sept. 22 telecast of the 65th Primetime Emmy Awards.  The major exception is Survivor, which will begin its 27th season on Sept. 18.

Sept. 23 marks the start of the final season of How I Met Your Mother, plus the premiere of two new series: the Anna Faris comedy Mom, and the Toni Collette drama Hostages.

TV's top-rated scripted series, NCIS, returns on Sept. 24.

The Robin Williams-Sarah Michelle Gellar comedy The Crazy Ones, as well as the Will Arnett comedy The Millers, will debut on Sept. 26.  That's the same day the hit sitcom The Big Bang Theory opens its seventh season.

Another comedy, We Are Men, will premiere four days later.

The Josh Holloway-Marg Helgenberger super-agent thriller Intelligence won't make its way onto CBS' schedule until February.

Here are CBS' premiere dates:

Wednesday, Sept. 18
Survivor

Sunday, Sept. 22
The 65th Primetime Emmy Awards

Monday, Sept. 23
How I Met Your Mother
2 Broke Girls
Mom
Hostages

Tuesday, Sept. 24
NCIS
NCIS: Los Angeles
Person Of Interest

Wednesday, Sept. 25
Criminal Minds
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation

Thursday, Sept. 26
The Big Bang Theory
The Millers
The Crazy Ones
Two And A Half Men
Elementary

Friday, Sept. 27
Undercover Boss
Hawaii Five-0
Blue Bloods

Sunday, Sept. 29
60 Minutes
The Amazing Race
The Good Wife
The Mentalist

Monday, Sept. 30
We Are Men

Monday, Feb. 24
Intelligence

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images(BOSTON) -- Tuukka Rask continued his hot play stopping all 28 shots the Chicago Blackhawks fired on him, as the Boston Bruins blank the Chicago Blackhawks in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals Monday night, 2-0.

The Bruins now lead the best-of-seven series, 2-1.

"He's been focused since day one of the playoffs," Bruins head coach Claude Julien said when talking about Rask's third shutout of the postseason. "You watch him on off days. ...You watch him quiet, focused, calm. ...Right now all his energy is put towards his game and how he needs to get his rest and relax so when the game starts he's a focused individual. I've never seen a guy so calm and confident with the way he's played."

Another development in this series is the Bruins' new line consisting of Daniel Paille, Tyler Seguin and Chris Kelly. Julien put the three together in the second period of Game 2, and the line has now scored three of the Bruins' last four goals. One of those goals occurred in the second period of the game when Daniel Paille scored the eventual game winner.

"We (Bruins) fed off their energy and the way they got the momentum for us with that huge goal," Patrice Bergeron told the NHL Network when talking about the new line. "Even before that they had some great shifts. It's obviously huge at this time of year to have that line going and we're feeding off of them."

Bergeron also made his mark on this game. He scored just seconds after a Bruins' 5-on-3 advantage expired in the second period, when Jaromir Jagr slid a slick pass through the crease and between Brent Seabrook and Corey Crawford right to Bergeron for the goal.

Corey Crawford turned in another good performance, making 33 saves in the loss.

Game 4 is set for Wednesday in Boston. The puck is set to drop at 8 p.m. Eastern.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images(TEHRAN, Iran) -- In his first comments to the press since being elected Iran's new president, Hassan Rouhani promised on Monday that his government would institute a doctrine of moderation while promising to improve the economy and relations with the rest of the world.

While Rouhani's election last weekend could signal some shift in policy, the president-elect also hinted that the West shouldn't expect too much when it come to Iran's rogue nuclear program.

Rouhani told a press conference that there would be more transparency about the program but that Tehran has no intention of ending its uranium enrichment process, which the U.S. and its allies maintain is a key step to developing atomic weapons.

Speaking to that accusation, Rouhani stressed that Washington "must not interfere in Iran’s internal affairs, must recognize Iran’s right to enrich uranium and must abandon the policy of pressures," a reference to sanctions now in effect.

Regarding the conflict in Syria, Rouhani's remarks suggested no change of current policy was in the wind as he called on the international community not to intervene in Syria's affairs even as Tehran has shipped weapons to President Bashar al-Assad's military.

Rouhani repeated his country's support for al-Assad's attempts to remain in power, saying that the next Syrian presidential election in 2014 must go off as scheduled.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Justin K. Aller/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- The Philadelphia Flyers agreed to terms on a four-year, $21.5 million deal with newly acquired defenseman Mark Streit, ESPNNewYork.com reported Monday.

Streit's deal can't become official until Philadelphia clears some cap room according to the source.

The New York Islanders traded Streit to the Flyers last week for minor-league forward Shane Harper and a fourth-round pick in 2014.

The 35-year-old Streit played the last four seasons for the Islanders, and served as the team's captain the last two.

The former All-Star had 6 goals and 21 assists last season for the Islanders.

Streit just finished a five-year, $20.5 million contract.

The Switzerland native has 288 points in his seven-season NHL career.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Comstock/Thinkstock(ANNAPOLIS, Md.) -- The U.S. Naval Academy says it has plans to charge three football players in connection with the rape of a female midshipman that allegedly took place in April 2012.

After a lengthy investigation, the school's superintendent has referred the case for the military's equivalent of a grand jury, known as Article 32.

"The initial NCIS investigation has been completed and reviewed. The superintendent has decided to send this case to Article 32 proceedings," U.S. Naval Academy spokesman John Schofield said Monday.

The accuser, who has not been named, reported the sexual assault after attending an off-campus party at a location known as the "football house," according to Military.com.  She said she was informed by friends and though social media that she had been sexually assaulted while incapacitated at the party.

All three football players, who have also not been named, remain at the Naval Academy, where one senior was kept from graduating on May 24, the site reports.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Comstock/Thinkstock(DUBLIN) -- New research published in obstetrics and gynecology journal BJOG carries words of caution for the youngest and the oldest expectant moms.
 
Researchers at the University of Dublin studied almost 40,000 births among first-time mothers and found that babies born to teenagers have a higher risk of premature birth; babies born to women in their 40s have the highest risk of Cesarean sections and birth defects.
 
Additionally, the researchers found that Cesarean section delivery rates went up with age. About one in 10 first-time moms under age 18 delivered by Cesarean. But 54.4 percent of first-time mothers age 40 and older had C-sections.
 
The method of delivery had no effect on birth outcomes in first-time moms in their 20s and 30s, who make up about 75 percent of first-time births, despite the Cesarean rate being twice as high in older mothers. The study's authors say this suggests C-sections could be much reduced in that group without risking the mothers' health or that of their babies.
 
Today, one in three U.S. babies is delivered by Cesarean section, up 53 percent over the last 15 years. But the study authors say efforts to encourage more vaginal deliveries for women in their 20s and 30s could impact the figures dramatically.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Getty Images/Hemera(NEW YORK) -- NHL Stanley Cup Finals – Game 3: Boston Bruins 2 – Chicago Blackhawks 0 (Bruins lead series, 2-1)

MLB: Philadelphia Phillies 5 (34-37) – Washington Nationals 4 (34-35)

Cincinnati Reds 4 (43-28) – Pittsburgh Pirates 1 (41-29)

Kansas City Royals 2 (34-34) – Cleveland Indians 1 (34-35)

Toronto Blue Jays 2 (33-36) – Colorado Rockies 0 (37-34)

Detroit Tigers 5 (39-29) – Baltimore Orioles 1 (40-31)

Texas Rangers 8 (39-31) - Oakland Athletics 7 (42-30)

Chicago White Sox 4 (29-38) - Houston Astros 2 (26-45)

Los Angeles Angels 11 (31-39) - Seattle Mariners 3 (31-40)

St. Louis Cardinals 5 (45-25) - Chicago Cubs 2 (28-40)

Miami Marlins 3 (22-47) - Arizona Diamondbacks 2 (37-33)

Atlanta Braves 2 (42-38) - New York Mets 1 (25-40)

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Gary Miller/FilmMagic(LOS ANGELES) -- Kim Kardashian gave birth to a baby girl on Saturday and, according to her mother, Kris Jenner, the baby is following in her mom’s footsteps.

“She’s doing great and she’s beautiful,” the Kardashian matriarch, 57, told HLN on Sunday night at the Daytime Emmys. “We’re all fine. We’re all good and extremely happy and thrilled for the new baby.”

Kardashian, 33, and her boyfriend of more than a year, rapper Kanye West, 36, celebrated the impending birth with family and friends at a garden party shower on June 2 – the same day the baby’s gender was revealed on an episode of the reality show Keeping Up with the Kardashians.

“I’m so excited we’re having a girl. Who doesn’t want a girl?” Kardashian said on the show. “They are the best and I know that’s really what Kanye has always wanted. He wanted a little girl.”

Her family is equally excited.

“I can not even begin 2describe the miracle that is now apart of our family. Mommy/baby are healthy*resting. We appreciate all of the love,” Khloe Kardashian Odom tweeted on Sunday.

“More info will come when the time is right! Thank you all for understanding! We love you dearly! Overwhelmed with love right now ♥”

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Jared Marcum, 14, was arrested after a confrontation with the school's band teacher over his NRA T-shirt, which bears the organization's logo and a hunting rifle. (Cabelas.com)(LOGAN, W. Va.) -- A West Virginia judge has ruled that an eighth grader who was arrested after wearing an NRA T-shirt to school will stand trial for obstructing an officer, a crime that can carry up to a year in jail and $500 fine.

Jared Marcum, 14, was charged last week after wearing the shirt to school in April. The shirt included the logo of the National Rifle Association, an image of a rifle, and words “protect your right.”

Jared was asked to remove the shirt or turn it inside out by a secretary and then a teacher at Logan Middle School in Logan, W.Va. When he refused to do so he was brought to the principal, who called police.

The boy said that when police arrived at the school, they told him “sit down and shut up” and threatened to charge him with making terroristic threats when he tried to explain his side of the story.

Jared said he was detained in a room with the principal and two officers. He was unarmed and presented no threat to the officers or students, according to his lawyer.

He received just one day of suspension from school.

Jared’s attorney on Monday filed a motion to dismiss the case.  A hearing on that motion will take place on July 11.

The law allows persons under arrest to question police and tell their side of a story, said his lawyer, Ben White.

“Case law says you can question police and you can talk to police – you just can’t use foul language, or insult them,” said White.

Calls to the school district and Logan County prosecutor were not returned.  The police would not comment.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

John Foxx/Thinkstock(NEWARK, N.J.) -- Passengers aboard United flight 116 bound for the U.S. from Hong Kong were finally able to leave a Newark Liberty International Airport terminal late Monday afternoon after a flier was taken into custody and hospitalized after allegedly demanding that the plane be diverted to Canada.

An official with the New York Joint Terrorism Task Force said the man -- identified as Daniel Morgan Perry and reportedly in his 30s and American -- had been transported to Newark's University Hospital for observation.

During the flight, which landed around 1:40 p.m., the man was restrained by passengers. The official said there were no air marshals on the flight.

"It's apparently an unstable person who is controlled by his medication and maybe he didn't take it," the official said.

Jacques Roizen, who was one of the passengers who restrained Perry, said nearly 10 hours into the 16-hour flight, a man six rows in front of him started screaming out of nowhere. Roizen said that he had not seen the man drinking.

"[He was] screaming stuff about national security advisers, the CIA, saying names of people [he claimed were] working for the CIA," Roizen told ABC News. "[He was saying] that we couldn't land the plane, we had to divert the plane. He couldn't land in the U.S."

Roizen said Perry was afraid of being poisoned by one of the passengers.

"He saw everybody as a threat," Roizen said. "He thought everyone was working for the FBI, the CIA....He was drawing a parallel between [National Security Agency leaker] Edward Snowden and himself....He was convinced he was going to die before this flight landed."

Within minutes, about five passengers had restrained the man with plastic handcuffs from the flight crew.

Florida resident Paula Shea said the staff handled the situation "perfectly" and that she had not gotten scared.

"They did everything that you should do," she said. "It was a person that was trying to...divert to Canada."

Roizen said he and another passenger sat by Perry for the remaining six hours trying to calm him by talking about their families, Father's Day and their children.

He said the man started to cry after a passenger told him that his actions had scared the children aboard.

"He seemed to react to that," Roizen said. "At one point, he started crying because he said, 'I don't want to hurt the children.' He asked both of us to put him under arrest, asked us to read him his rights."

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Dave M. Benett/Getty Images(LONDON) -- The photographs of British television star and celebrity chef Nigella Lawson with what appears to be her husband, art and advertising magnate Charles Saatchi, clenching her throat in public were the result of a "playful tiff" between the couple, according to Saatchi.

"There was no grip, it was a playful tiff," Saatchi told London's Evening Standard newspaper, where he also works as a columnist, on Monday. "The pictures are horrific but give a far more drastic and violent impression of what took place. Nigella's tears were because we both hate arguing, not because she had been hurt."

The photos were taken Sunday, June 9, as Lawson, 53, and Saatchi, 70, dined at Scott's, a restaurant in London's affluent Mayfair district, according to U.K. newspaper The Mirror's Sunday paper, the Sunday People, which published the photos.

In the published photos, Lawson is seen at a table enshrouded in greenery outside a restaurant with a man who appears to be Saatchi. In the pictures, his hand is at her throat as she appears to be stunned by his grasp. In another picture, the man is grabbing at Lawson's nose as she shuts her eyes.

Other diners at Scott's who witnessed the couple's interaction told the Mirror it looked like a violent encounter and that the couple left separately.

"It was utterly shocking to watch," one onlooker told The Mirror. "I have no doubt she was scared. It was horrific, really. She was very tearful and was constantly dabbing her eyes."

Saatchi told the Evening Standard that he and Lawson, who has two children from a previous marriage, were discussing the children at the time.

"We were sitting outside a restaurant having an intense debate about the children, and I held Nigella's neck repeatedly while attempting to emphasize my point," he said, according to the paper.

He also sought to clarify British media reports that Lawson was seen leaving the couple's home with one of her children and a suitcase.

"We had made up by the time we were home. The paparazzi were congregated outside our house after the story broke yesterday morning, so I told Nigella to take the kids off till the dust settled," he told the paper.

Spokesmen for both Saatchi and Lawson declined to comment to ABC News.

The Mirror reports Saatchi has been cautioned by police -- a formal warning that doesn't carry a penalty.

Lawson has built an empire reportedly worth more than $23 million as the author of nine cookbooks, host of the TV program Nigella Bites, and, most recently, as the star of ABC's cooking competition show, The Taste.

The celebrity chef gave a revealing interview to Britain's Financial Times last year in which she discussed growing up with her "funny but depressed" mom and gave a glimpse into her life with Saatchi.

"She'd shout at all of us and say, 'I'm going to hit you till you cry,' and so I never would cry. I still don't … She just didn't like me," Lawson said of her mom, Vanessa Salmon, an heiress to J. Lyons & Co., once a restaurant and food-manufacturing conglomerate.

As for her husband, Lawson expressed disbelief that he did not find the same joy in food as she did.

"I say to Charles every morning, so would you like this or that to eat tonight, and he says 'Oh whatever's easiest for you', and I don't understand why it wouldn't matter whether this or that gives you pleasure to eat," she told the Financial Times.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

The Murnaghan Family(PHILADELPHIA) -- Sarah Murnaghan, the 10-year-old girl whose family successfully sued to make her more likely to get a pair of adult lungs, may have gotten a boost from public attention before her lung transplant last week, but now that it's over, some of that attention has turned negative.

On Friday, June 14, Sarah's mother, Janet Murnaghan, posted a list of "facts" about lung transplants to her Facebook page, explaining that she'd seen a lot of misinformation "out there" and wanted to clarify a few things.

Murnaghan then said her Facebook page was for supporters only, and she didn't want to be tagged in anything in which people might speak negatively about her in the comments section.

On Sunday night, the "Save Sarah Murnaghan" Facebook page moderator addressed even more negative comments. The Murnaghan family spokeswoman said she did not know who created the page.

"I CANT BELIEVE SOME OF THE NEG COMMENTS," the moderator wrote. "Rude !!! rude !! rude !!!...please don't make neg comments ... this page is to encourage!!"

Federal Judge Michael Baylson drew criticism from the medical and bioethics communities for his June 5 decision to grant a temporary restraining order against Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to prevent her from enforcing the so-called Under 12 Rule for Sarah.

"I think we can all sympathize with the plight of a young girl, but maybe a 13-year-old girl waiting for an adult organ is the one who didn't get a transplant," said Dr. Sander Florman, who directs the Mount Sinai Recanati/Miller Transplantation Institute in New York and hasn't treated Sarah. "I think it sets a very dangerous precedent to have a court deciding medical necessities and allocation even if the rules aren't right."

Some commenters on ABC News called for Sebelius to be "tarred and feathered" for initially refusing to make an exception for Sarah, while others passionately argued that Sarah's new lungs would have better served an adult.

The ruling -- and eventual transplant -- also prompted editorials in the Philly Post of Philadelphia Magazine, the Chicago Tribune and others in which writers argued that they hoped Sarah's court battle wouldn't encourage others to seek legal action to trump medical guidelines. The Philadelphia Magazine editorial was titled "Maybe Sarah Murnaghan Shouldn't Get a Lung Transplant."

Sarah's June 12 lung transplant from an adult donor was the 11th of its kind since 1987. The last transplant from a donor older than 18 to a child younger than 12 took place a few months ago, according to an Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network spokeswoman. The one before that happened in 2006, when the Under 12 Rule was new.

Murnaghan updated her Facebook page to say that Sarah's recovery was difficult but she was slowly improving. Sarah was still "fully sedated and critical" Sunday night but made positive "baby steps" by Monday morning.

As Murnaghan addressed negative commenters on Facebook Friday night, she wrote that the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network ultimately "agreed" with her family "and has changed their policy for ALL kids so that children like Sarah can get on the over-12 list if their doctors deem it appropriate medically."

OPTN actually voted to keep the Under 12 Rule but added a part that allows for occasional exceptions. These children have to be recommended by their doctors and then have their cases reviewed by a national board before they can actually be exempted from the Under 12 Rule.

Here's how the Under 12 Rule -- which is more like a series of rules -- actually works.

Lung transplant candidates older than 12 are assigned a lung allocation score, or LAS, based on a complex mathematical formula that includes the patient's age and size. For transplant patients younger than 12 -- of which there are 20 nationally compared with about 1,600 adults -- the LAS is not used. Instead, patients are broken into "priority 1" and "priority 2." It's this difference that has been called discriminatory in court.

"If you are under 12 it is the amount of time you have waited that matters," Murnaghan wrote in her clarification post. "So if you are dying and have been on the list one hour you will NOT get the lungs."

This is not 100-percent true. Although time on the list is considered, an OPTN spokeswoman told ABC News that it's not the only thing that matters. Instead, lungs are allocated to the 20 children under 12 on the list by medical urgency, blood type and time on the list.

Children get priority for lungs donated from children younger than 12, but they have to wait for children between 12 and 17 to decline lungs donated from 12- to 17-year-olds before they get a chance at them. Lungs donated by anyone older than 18 are offered to all candidates older than 12, depending on their LAS. Only if all local matching candidates 12 and older decline the adult lungs can they be offered to children within 500 miles of the hospital where the lungs were harvested.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images(MILWAUKEE) -- Milwaukee Bucks point guard Monta Ellis has informed the club that he intends to opt out of the last year of his contract, according to ESPN. The Atlanta Hawks, Dallas Mavericks, and Los Angeles Lakers reportedly have interest in acquiring Ellis.

The 27-year-old Ellis has one year remaining on his contract worth $11 million. He originally signed a six-year, $66 million deal with Golden State in 2008. The Warriors dealt him to the Bucks in March 2012 along with forward Epke Udoh and center Kwame Brown for center Andrew Bogut and guard Stephen Jackson.

In 82 games with Milwaukee this season, Ellis averaged 19.2 points, 3.9 rebounds and six assists per game.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- Chilean nanny Felicitas del Carmen Villanueva Garnica, 50, says she was forced into "involuntary servitude" by a Manhattan couple who denied her food, medicine and fair pay.

Villanueva, who told the New York Post she was residing in the country illegally, filed a lawsuit against the Upper East Side couple who are originally also from Chile, Malu Custer Edwards, 28, and Micky Hurley, 35. Villanueva claimed that she had been "trafficked," forced to work 12-hour days and paid only $2 an hour. She also says that she was locked in a room with the couple's three children who often hit her and once "slammed a refrigerator door on her head so hard she nearly lost consciousness." The couple's lawyer refuted the claims of the lawsuit in an interview with the New York Post, calling them "completely without merit."

Whether or not Villanueva's claims are substantiated will be decided by the courts. But, exploitation of undocumented laborers is common in the United States and many victims, often scared to come forward for fear of deportation, lack means and incentive to fight abusive employers.

Take Josue Melquisedec Diaz, for example. An undocumented construction worker in New Orleans, Diaz says that when he complained to his boss that he and fellow undocumented laborers weren't provided safety gear to handle toxic materials that other workers were provided, his wages were cut in half. And when he pushed further, organizing a strike, his boss called in the police and strikers were placed in deportation proceedings.

A study by the National Domestic Workers Alliance found that 25 percent of domestic workers in California such as maids and nannies are paid below the state's minimum wage, and 24 percent of the workers who had been fired were discharged for complaining about unsafe working conditions.

For many exploited workers who are undocumented, there is no clear path for justice. Some find some relief in the U Visa, a program which provides temporary status to those who have suffered "substantial physical or mental abuse as a result of having been a victim of a qualifying criminal activity." But many labor abuses don't fall squarely in the U visa category, typically used to provide relief to women of domestic abuse.

For that reason, there's a provision in the immigration bill currently in Congress that would expand U visa qualifying crimes to include labor crimes, including workplace abuse and exploitation, known as the POWER Act.

Senator Robert Menendez, D-N.J., who co-sponsored the POWER Act, says that such legislation would not only protect undocumented immigrants but also help cut down on exploitative labor practices generally.

"When some workers are easy to exploit," Menendez told the Los Angeles Times, "conditions for all workers suffer."

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/GettyImages(SLIGO, IRELAND) -- Emerging from a two-hour meeting at the G8 summit, President Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed that the bloodshed in Syria must stop and that there should be a renewed push for negotiations.

They also stated the obvious: their positions on Syria differ greatly.
 
“Our opinions do not coincide,” Putin said, in a tense photo-op with Obama following their first meeting in a year.
 
“All of us have the intention to stop the violence in Syria, to stop the growth of victims and to solve the situation peacefully, including by bringing the parties to the negotiating table in Geneva,” he said.
 
Russia continues to arm Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime and Putin does not agree that his longtime ally must step down from power for a political settlement to be successful.
 
After declaring that Assad had crossed the “red line” and used chemical weapons against his own people, the White House announced last week that the U.S. would ramp up support for the political and military opposition.
 
“We do have differing perspectives on the problem,” Obama said in a carefully-worded statement, “but we share an interest in reducing the violence, securing chemical weapons and ensuring that they're neither used nor are they subject to proliferation; and that we want to try to resolve the issue through political means, if possible.”
 
“We have instructed our teams to continue to work on the potential of a Geneva follow-up to the first meeting,” he said.

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Hemera/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- U.S. stock trading was volatile on Monday in anticipation of a two-day Federal Reserve policy meeting this week.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average, which had been up as much as 191 points earlier Monday, gained 110 points to close at 15,180. The Nasdaq Composite rose 29 points, closing at 3,452. The S&P 500 closed up 12 points to finish the session at 1,639.

Stocks picked up steam after a better-than-expected report on the health of the housing market. The National Association of Homebuilders reported that builder confidence soared to a seven-year high, while investors applauded the end of uncertainty over the Fed's next move on bond-buying.

Markets have been roiled by fears that a massive bond-buying program that has kept interest rates low and money flowing may be nearing an end.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

ABC News(ADAMS TOWNSHIP, Ind.) -- An Indiana woman who was sentenced to death by the electric chair at age 16 was released Monday after serving more than a quarter of a century in prison.

Now 43 years old, Paula Cooper left the Rockville Correctional Facility in Indiana on Monday a free woman after serving 27 years in prison for her role in the murder of Ruth Pelke, a 78-year-old Bible school teacher.

“Paula has worked hard to change her life in the decades since the crime,” Cooper’s sister, Rhonda Labroi, wrote in an email to ABC News. “She entered prison as a very troubled teenager and is leaving a reformed woman.”

Cooper walked out of prison with $75 and wearing donated street clothes, said Doug Garrison, a spokesman for the Indiana Department of Corrections. He said she was driven to an undisclosed location to begin the next chapter of her life, where she will be required to check in with a parole officer.

“The plan for her is to have her meet regularly with her parole officer to help her find a job and permanent housing,” Garrison told ABC News.

He declined to say where Cooper would be living.

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The teenager, who was 15 when she fatally stabbed Pelke during a robbery, was sentenced to death row in 1986, while her three friends received lighter prison sentences.

Because of Cooper’s age, the sentence sparked outrage and got the attention of Pope John Paul II, who called for clemency for the teen.

After the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that people under the age of 16 at the time they committed a crime could not be sentenced to death, the Indiana Supreme Court commuted Cooper’s sentence to 60 years in prison and she was taken off death row in 1989.

Garrison said Cooper’s release Monday included credit for good behavior in prison, where she earned a Bachelor’s degree.

Cooper’s sister, Labroi, asked for privacy as her sister begins the next phase of her life.

“We are proud of how much she’s grown and she has all of our support as she starts this second chance at life,” Labroi said. “As always, our sincerest thoughts and prayers go out to the Pelke family.”

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Ethan Miller/Getty Images(LAS VEGAS) -- A recent report shows that in 40 percent of families with children, women are the primary earners, yet they continue to earn less than men -- what does this say about society?

When the 21-year-old Miss Utah Marissa Powell was faced with this question Sunday night during the Miss USA pageant, she responded that it somehow says something about education and the need to make it better because men are leaders. But she did not seem to be sure exactly what.

“I think we can relate this back to education and how we are continuing to try to strive to … figure out how to create jobs right now and that is the biggest problem. Especially the men are um, seen as the leaders of this and so we need to figure out how to create education better so that we can solve this problem,” Powell said.

Powell’s response, particularly the part about “create education better” immediately went viral on social media for its incoherence.

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The multitude of responses on Twitter included The Atlantic Wire classifying her answer the “Worst You’ve Ever Seen;” Business Insider claiming that “Miss Utah Completely Falls Apart While Answering An Easy Question About Women Earning Less Than Men;” and The New York Post calling it a “painfully awful pageant answer.”

Her comments immediately drew comparisons to Caitlin Upton, Miss South Carolina Teen USA in 2007. When Upton was asked why a fifth of Americans cannot locate the United States on a world map, she gave a similarly rambling answer, including an explanation that “some people out there in our nation don’t have maps.”

According to her profile on the Miss USA website, Powell, a Salt Lake City native, is a singer, model and actress. She has appeared on ABC’s What Would you Do? and is the ambassador for “Healing Hands for Haiti,” which aims to bring rehabilitation medicine to the country. She has attended Westminster College and Brigham Young University. Her profile explains that she wants to be an advocate for adoption. Her parents adopted her little brother, who was subsequently diagnosed with several medical issues, including an inoperable brain tumor.

Powell finished third in the contest. Erin Brady, Miss Connecticut, took home the crown.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

iStockphoto/Thinkstock(WASHINGTON) -- The Supreme Court on Monday struck down part of an Arizona law that requires proof of citizenship in order to register to vote in federal elections.

Arizona’s Proposition 200 was passed in 2004 and requires any registrant who does not have a driver’s license issued after 1996 or a non-operating license to provide documents such as a copy of a birth certificate or a passport. The law went further than a federal law that established a nationally uniform voter application form where the registrant is required to check a box indicating U.S. citizenship and to sign the form under penalty of perjury.

Justice Antonin Scalia, writing for a 7-2 majority, said Monday that the state law conflicted with the federal law, the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) which is sometimes referred to as the Motor Voter law. The NVRA was enacted in 1993 to establish uniform procedures to vote in federal elections.

Scalia said that a state imposed requirement of evidence of citizenship that is not required by the federal form is “inconsistent” with the NVRA’s mandate that States accept and use the federal form.

Scalia said, “No matter what procedural hurdles a State’s own form imposes, the federal form guarantees that a simple means of registering to vote in federal elections will be available.”

He said if Arizona were to prevail, the federal form would cease to perform “any meaningful function” and would be a “feeble means” of increasing the number of eligible citizens who register to vote in elections for Federal office.

“The Court affirmed Congress’ decision to use a single federal form to help streamline the voter registration process, and prevent states like Arizona from denying the right of citizens to register to vote in federal elections,” said David Gans of the Constitutional Accountability Center, a group opposed to the Arizona law. “At a time when states are engaged in voter suppression efforts, today’s opinion is an important reaffirmation that the text and history of the Elections Clause give the federal government broad power to preempt state law in order to protect the right to vote in federal elections.”

Arizona’s law had been challenged by groups such as the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF) who argued that Proposition 200 put additional burdens on voters.

At oral arguments, Patricia A. Millet, a lawyer for the challengers of the law said that Congress designed the federal form to confront a situation in which “40 percent of eligible voters were not registered, because State procedures and burdens were standing as an obstacle, a barrier in the direct line of accountability between individual citizens and their Federal Government.”

But Thomas C. Horne, Arizona’s Attorney General, argued in court that the state law complemented the federal law and is necessary to protect the integrity of the system. He said there is nothing in the NVRA that says the state can’t ask for additional information. “Congress could have said the form is exclusive and you can’t ask for anything else,” Horne told the justices.

Horne said the federal requirement to check a box is “extremely inadequate...It’s essentially an honor system. It does not do the job.”

A lower court struck down the law. “We recognize Arizona’s concern about fraudulent registration,” the majority wrote in 2011, “Nevertheless, the Elections Clause gives Congress the last word on how this concern will be addressed in the context of federal elections.”

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

File photo. iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- Against all medical odds, a 20-year-old man attempting to get into his locked apartment from a balcony above plunged from a 15-story apartment building in New Zealand and survived.

An American emergency room doctor said the chances of living through a fall from that height are about 100 to 1.

The man, identified by the New Zealand Herald as Tom Stilwell, a British man in Auckland on a "working holiday," returned home after a night out with friends and found he did not have a key to get into his locked apartment. Stilwell tried to jump down to his balcony from the balcony of the apartment above, but instead plummeted to the roof of a building below.

Stilwell's story astounded his doctors in New Zealand as well as in the United States.

"It made me wonder what the roof looked like that he fell on," said Dr. Nicholas Kman, associate professor of emergency medicine at The Ohio State University Medical Center.

"It's pretty abnormal for someone to fall that far and survive," Kman said. "For every fall like that, the odds of living are very rare."

Doctors use a formula called "lethal doses" to determine the likelihood of death in a fall. At four stories, or about 48 feet above the ground, half will survive. But at seven stories or 84 feet, only 10 percent are expected to live -- that is, 90 percent will die, according to Kman.

According to local reports, Stillwell fell 13 stories. At first, he was in critical condition at Auckland City Hospital, but was later upgraded to satisfactory with neck and back fractures, a broken wrist and suspected internal injuries.

ABC News reached out to the hospital, but its public affairs office was closed because of the time zone difference.

Stilwell's upstairs neighbor, Geraldine Bautista, 28, told the Herald that he knocked on her door on the 15th floor of the Volt Apartment building at about 2 a.m., asking if he could jump off her balcony onto his to get into his own apartment.

According to the Herald, he went straight to the balcony and Bautista grabbed his hand, but he fell.

"It happened so fast," she told the newspaper. "It happened within seconds. I couldn't even scream for help. He was like a paper falling from here."

Friends said that Stilwell had "a fair bit to drink" before the incident, according to the Herald.

Doctors say that although there is no evidence that alcohol softens the blow to the body, they have heard that anecdotally about car accident victims.

"There is no science behind that," Kman said. "Most doctors are reluctant to say it happens. But in my experience in trauma, it does seem to be something that happens. But that is likely from a fall."

A person's age, the height of the fall, the nature of the surface hit and the body part that first touches the ground are all factors in the severity of the injuries and the prognosis for recovery.

"If you fall out of a tree and hit a bunch of branches, it may slow the fall," he said. "Landing on grass is better than cement."

Head injuries have the lowest survival rate, according to Kman.

Other dangerous injuries occur when a person lands feet first.

"The heel hits and transmits the force up the back," he said. "When someone jumps off a parking garage or building they break their heel bones and then the lower spine. When they break the feet, we always X-ray the back, because that's a common injury."

Sometimes, paralysis can occur if there is a spinal cord injury.

Emergency room doctors see most fall victims during the summer months, and they are usually window cleaners working on scaffolding and roofers.

Falls are most common among the elderly, the second cause of unintended death for trauma behind motor vehicle accidents, according to Kman.

"Young healthy kids have better outcomes than the elderly," he said.

In the animal world, cats fare much better than humans.

Last year, Sugar the cat, fell out of a 19-story apartment building in Boston and survived, probably because she landed on a pile of mulch. The local animal rescue league reported that after the fall, the cat ran back into the apartment building.

The reason, say veterinary researchers is that cats have a larger surface area for their weight as they fall with legs extended, which gives them a lower terminal velocity -- about 60 mph, compared to an average-sized male at about 120 mph. When cats hit the ground, they have fewer injuries.

In physics, terminal velocity is the constant speed attained by a body while falling through a gas or liquid.

"Terminal velocity is something that plays into this," Kman said. "But people are not meant to fall off three-story buildings. And I have a feeling that you reach [terminal velocity] some point before 15 floors."

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Hemera/Thinkstock(BOSTON) -- Confessed hitman John Martorano, who has admitted killing 20 people, told a Boston court Monday that he was testifying against his alleged former mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger because "it broke my heart" to discover Bulger was an FBI informant.

Some of Martorano's victims were innocent bystanders. One man was mistakenly murdered because he shared the same name as a contracted hit victim.

Now he is a federal witness against Bulger, accused of being the head of the Winter Hill Gang and responsible for 19 murders.

The aging hitman, Martorano, 72, told the court that he was heartbroken when he found out that Bulger and Stephen "The Rifleman" Flemmi were working for the FBI at the same time they allegedly oversaw Boston's rackets. Martorano testified that he named his youngest son, James Stephen, after his two criminal cohorts.

"They were my partners in crime, my best friends, my children's godfathers," Martorano told the Boston court Monday.

"When I heard they were informants, it sort of broke my heart. They broke all trust that we had and loyalties," Martorano testified, facing Bulger for the first time since the accused Boston mob boss fled Massachusetts 18 years ago after being tipped off about a federal indictment by rogue FBI agent John Connolly.

Martorano also testified against Connolly, who is serving a life sentence.

Martorano's testimony comes more than a decade after he cut a deal with the government to testify against Bulger. He has been a free man since 2007 and Bulger's defense attorney J.W. Carney tried to delay the trial by arguing that the hitman has continued his life a crime, a claim that was denied by prosecutors and dismissed by a federal judge.

Still, Carney insists that Martorano -- and other government witnesses expected to testify against Bulger --  are not credible because they pointed fingers at one another to avoid lengthy prison sentences. Bulger sidekick, Kevin Weeks, and Flemmi are also on the witness list.

Carney had especially harsh words for Martorano calling him "criminal psychopath."

"He would kill people almost randomly. He would kill people as easily as we would order a cup of coffee... The federal government was so desperate to have John Martorano testify ... they basically put their hands up in the air and said take anything you want," Carney said.

Martorano testified after cross-examination of Boston bookmaker Dick O'Brien, 84, who was one of two bookies who testified that they paid "rent" to Bulger to stay in business. He recounted Bulger telling one bookmaking agent who got out of line that he liked to "kill a**holes like him." James Katz, 73, also testified that people who didn't pay Bulger could "wind up in the hospital."

O'Brien, 84, said he was trained in the business by his father, but when he brought his daughter into the mobbed-up enterprise she had a nervous breakdown and had to be hospitalized.

The breakdown came after Flemmi warned O'Brien what happened to turncoats.

Before he went to the meeting, O'Brien told his daughter to go to the FBI in Miami rather than in Boston because he didn't trust the agents working in that field office.

"It really upset her. We were very close," O'Brien said.

Carney asked if he came home after that meeting in Florida, whether he was harmed. O'Brien answered, "By the good graces of John Martorano I wasn't."

Bulger, 83, is charged with a 32-count indictment that includes accusations that he committed or ordered 19 murders, including the killings of two women who were romantically involved with his underlings. Bulger's trial comes 18 years after he disappeared ahead of a federal indictment.

He was arrested in June 2011 at a Santa Monica apartment complex where Bulger and his longtime companion Catherine Greig lived for 16 years as Charlie and Carol Gasko strolling the California coastline and shopping on the Third Avenue Promenade. Carney accused the FBI of "pretending to look for him" during opening arguments last week.

The government called those accusations absurd.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

The Guardian via Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- New documents revealed by alleged National Security Agency (NSA) leaker Edward Snowden reportedly show how British cyber spies regularly stole secrets from foreign diplomats during the 2009 G20 summit in London.

During an espionage campaign, which was reported Sunday by the U.K.'s The Guardian newspaper, England's Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) allegedly set up Internet cafes outfitted with email interception and key-logging software designed to track any delegates' computer use there.  The GCHQ also allegedly hacked into delegates' BlackBerry phones to read their emails and gather phone call information.

The documents also reportedly show that the GCHQ's sister organization in the U.S., the NSA, tried to eavesdrop on Russian leader Dmitry Medvedev as he telephoned back to Moscow via satellite.

One slide that appears to be from a "Top Secret" GCHQ presentation said, "Diplomatic targets from all nations have an MO [modus operandi] of using smart phones... Exploited this use at the G20 meetings last year."

According to The Guardian, another slide describes a method of email interception that can allow the spies to read people's email "before/as they do."

As The Guardian noted, the sophisticated espionage techniques appear "to have been organized for the more mundane purposes of securing an advantage in meetings."  One slide brags about "recent successes" including the ability to deliver "messages to analysts during the G20 in near real-time... [and] provide timely information to U.K. ministers."

The revelation on the G20 came just hours before the United Kingdom began the smaller G8 summit on Monday.  England's Prime Minister, David Cameron, and President Obama both spoke before reporters Monday at the G8 but did not address The Guardian's allegations or Edward Snowden.

Snowden, who first appeared publicly a week ago to claim he was the source of a series of startling articles on NSA spying that appeared in The Guardian and in The Washington Post, remains in hiding in Hong Kong, where on Monday, The Guardian said he will be answering questions from readers.

Top U.S. administration officials acknowledged and defended the previous surveillance programs revealed by Snowden.  Late last week, U.S. officials told ABC News they feared Snowden could defect to China with a head, and several computers, full of secrets.  The Chinese foreign ministry reportedly denied that Snowden was their spy on Monday.

A spokesperson for the GCHQ told ABC News of Sunday's report from The Guardian, "We do not comment on intelligence matters."

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Tim Boyle/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- The owners of 7-Eleven franchises in New York and Virginia created a "modern day plantation system" in which undocumented workers were furnished with stolen identities and forced to work 100 hours a week for a fraction of their wages, according to federal authorities.

Ten stores in New York and four in Virginia were seized Monday as part of the federal investigation, which found undocumented workers from Pakistan were given identities stolen from children and the deceased, according to federal prosecutor Loretta E. Lynch.

"The 7-11 franchises seized today will be better known for their big fraud than their Big Gulp," said James Hayes, special agent in charge of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement's office of investigations in New York.

Nine people, including store owners and managers, were charged Monday with conspiring to commit wire fraud, stealing identities and harboring undocumented immigrants, Lynch said.

The workers, who are said to be from Pakistan, were also forced to live in boarding houses and pay rent to their employers, according to federal authorities, who said at least 18 undocumented workers were found Monday and could be deported.

The investigation, which is one of the largest criminal immigrant employment investigations ever by the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security, began when several of the employees tipped off police, authorities said.

"These defendants ruthlessly exploited their immigrant employees, stealing their wages and requiring them to live in unregulated boarding houses, in effect creating a modern day plantation system," Lynch said.

The federal probe is expected to widen with at least 40 franchises in seven states being inspected Monday, authorities said.

A spokeswoman for Dallas-based 7-Eleven said it is cooperating with authorities.

"7-Eleven is aware of today's activity and has been cooperating with federal authorities during their investigation," said Margaret Chabris, director of Corporate Communications for 7-Eleven. "We will have no further comment until we learn more."

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Chris McKay/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- Rocker Joan Jett's label, Blackheart Records Group, is suing teen retailer Hot Topic for trademark infringement and false advertising over the chain's Blackheart Clothing Co. brand.

Joan Jett and performer and music writer Kenneth Laguna formed the band, "Joan Jett and the Blackhearts." The name was coined by the two for its symbol and its meaning, which is "loner" in "Jamaican nautical lingo," the complaint filed last week states. They started their own recording company and called it "Blackheart Records," and applied to register the label's name with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in 1984. The office granted the registration the next year. In 2005, Jett and Laguna registered "Blackheart Records Group" with the patent and trademark office.

The label is suing Hot Topic Inc., based in City of Industry, Calif., for trademark infringement, dilution, unfair competition, and false advertising in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

A spokeswoman for Hot Topic Inc. released a statement to ABC News saying it "takes the rights of artists very seriously, and has in fact compensated Ms. Jett over many years in keeping with mutually agreed-upon license agreements for the sale of tee shirts featuring her image."

"This lawsuit is a surprise to us, and we are confident in our rights to use the Blackheart brand name," Hot Topic said.

Hot Topic said it has 11 different registered trademarks with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office for the use of the Blackheart brand for "retail stores, apparel, lingerie, accessories, cosmetics and more, with some uses going back a decade to 2003."

"In contrast, Blackheart Records has for years abandoned trademark filings for the use of the Blackheart name on apparel and accessories, and when we contacted them a year ago about acquiring the Blackheart URL, they never indicated a problem with our use," Hot Topic said.

According to the complaint, Hot Topic distributed music and music-related apparel that it bought from Blackheart or its business partners throughout the 1990s.

Around February 2010, Hot Topic approached Black Heart to design and distribute merchandise featuring the "Blackheart Family of Marks."

These include "stylized marks, including certain design elements -- notably a heart, which is either solid black, black with a white outline, or white with a black outline," the complaint states.

"After experimenting with legitimate and illegitimate items that use and/or are sold under the Blackheart Family of Marks, [Hot Topic] commenced their own line of clothing under their own new 'Blackheart' brand," which the complaint describes as the "infringing brand."

Blackheart's complaint says Hot Topic's tagline, "Lingerie for Girls Who Rock & Roll," infringes on the Blackheart brand by invoking the image of Joan Jett, who they say is referred to as "The Queen of Rock N' Roll" and whose best known recording is "I Love Rock N' Roll."

The complaint states that the public has confused Hot Topic's brand with a company affiliated or sponsored by Jett or Blackheart Records.

The 26-page lawsuit details Jett's accomplishments, such as being one of two women guitarists on Rolling Stone's list of the top 100 guitarists of all time. The lawsuit points out "I Love Rock N' Roll" was ranked by Billboard as the 56th most popular song of all time.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

MPI/Getty Images(DETROIT) -- Authorities on Monday were searching a field in Michigan for the body of former Teamsters boss Jimmy Hoffa, the latest in a decades-long string of searches for the missing labor leader who disappeared nearly 38 years ago.

Investigators started digging in a field in Oakland Township after a search warrant was issued in the case. The search area, according to ABC News Detroit affiliate WXYZ, is near land that was once owned by suspected mobsters. Approximately 20 federal agents focused their search Monday morning on one spot in the center of the field.

In January, a reputed underboss of the Detroit mafia said he believed Hoffa was buried in the area. Tony Zerilli, who the FBI considers a key figure in the city’s mafia, told reporter Marc Santia of WNBC in New York that Hoffa was going to be put “in a shallow grave” there and later taken upstate for “final burial” before the plan “fell through.”

Zerilli, who was in jail at the time of Hoffa’s disappearance, should be taken seriously by authorities, according to Dan Moldea, author of The Hoffa Wars.

“Zerilli was the underboss of the Detroit mafia. His father, Joe, was the boss of the Detroit mafia at the time Hoffa disappeared,” Moldea said in a phone interview with ABC News in January. ”Therefore, anything that happened in Detroit at that time had to be checked by Joe -- so his father clearly knew about what happened with Hoffa. Now Tony was in jail at the time but did he receive some information? I’d say it was very likely, especially once he got out.”

Hoffa, who headed the powerful International Brotherhood of Teamsters Union at one point, vanished in July 1975. He was 62 at the time and had recently spent nearly five years behind bars.

In the past few decades, numerous tips have emerged about his whereabouts, only to lead to nothing. Last September, police in Roseville, Mich., about 20 miles north of Detroit, dug up a driveway. In 2009, FBI agents dug up a lumberyard in the city, prompting speculation that the excavation was a search for Hoffa. Three years earlier, in May 2006, a search for Hoffa at a farm in the town of Milford, Mich., was known as “The Big Dig.”

Zerilli released a book, Hoffa Found, earlier this year.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Ron Galella, Ltd./WireImage(NEW YORK) -- Cory and Topanga are headed back to television: the Boy Meets World spinoff series, Girl Meets World, has been picked up the by Disney Channel.

Ben Savage and Danielle Fishel will reprise their Boy Meets World roles for the highly anticipated series, which finds the childhood sweethearts grown up and raising their 12-year-old daughter, Riley. Rowan Blanchard, 11, of Spy Kids: All the Time in the World 4D and The Back-up Plan, has been cast to play Riley.

The new series, which is scheduled to premiere next year, will follow Riley and her best friend, Maya, played by Sofia the First actress Sabrina Carpenter, as they navigate middle school in New York City. They’ll do so under the watchful eyes of Riley’s parents: Cory is the girls’ new history teacher and Topanga owns an after-school hangout known for its pudding.

The popular coming-of-age sitcom Boy Meets World ran for seven seasons on ABC through 2000, showing the exploits of Cory, Topanga, Shawn and Will, and their families and friends, while helping countless teens deal with the awkwardness of their high school years.

“Boy Meets World and its story of adolescent self-discovery resonated with an entire generation of tweens,” Disney Channels Worldwide executive vice president Adam Bonnett said in a statement. “In the same way audiences fell in love with Cory Matthews and Topanga Lawrence, we look forward to introducing our viewers to their daughter, Riley Matthews...and building a memorable connection with a whole new generation of fans.”

Disney Channel is owned by the parent company of ABC News.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images(LONDON) -- An eight-months-pregnant Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton was glowing and sporting a baby bump at her last public appearance Friday before her maternity sequester begins.

The duchess, 31, stood out in a pale, baby-pink coat and hat alongside her husband, Prince William, and brother-in-law, Prince Harry, both dressed in formal military wear.

For close royal watchers who looked to the duchess’s clothing color as a cheeky nod, or slight hint, to the unannounced sex of the couple’s baby, her grandmother-in-law, the queen, was dressed in a blue coat and hat, leaving bettors still at odds over whether the royal heir would be a boy or girl when it arrives in mid-July.

The duchess and the princes joined the rest of Britain’s royal family Friday for Trooping the Color, the annual celebration held to mark the queen’s official birthday, which was April 21.

The celebration included more than 1,000 soldiers, horses and musicians participating in the parade for the 87-year-old queen, who just marked her 60th year on the throne.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry were joined at the event by their father, Prince Charles, and his wife, Camilla, as well as Prince Andrew and his daughters Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, and the Earl and Countess of Wessex with their 9-year-old daughter, Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor.

Noticeably absent from the festivities was the queen’s husband, Prince Philip, who was hospitalized June 6 for exploratory abdominal surgery and discharged Monday.   The queen’s cousin, the Duke of Kent, accompanied her in the royal glass coach in Philip’s absence.

Now the attention of royal watchers is back on Duchess Kate and her highly anticipated delivery.  The duchess made her last solo public engagement June 13 when she christened the 3,600-passenger Royal Princess cruise ship.

Now the duchess will be “playing the waiting game,” just like any other expectant mom, according to royal experts.

“She’s not going to be running around with a bump that size so I think she’ll be putting her feet up, relaxing, spending time with her family and spending time with William,” ABC News’ royal consultant Victoria Murphy said of the duchess after the cruise ship christening.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- Three more people have contracted the deadly MERS coronavirus in Saudi Arabia, including a 2-year-old child who is clinging to life at an intensive care unit in the coastal city of Jeddah, Saudi health officials said Monday.

News of the infected child came three weeks after a Saudi teenager developed symptoms of the virus, which include fever, cough and shortness of breath.

Saudi Arabia has been hit hardest by the virus, with 49 cases and 32 deaths, according to the Kingdom’s Ministry of Health. Four of the deaths occurred over the weekend, according to the Ministry’s website.

The latest cases raise the tally of infections to 64 people in eight countries.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images(SLIGO, Ireland) -- President Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron took some time out of their busy summit schedules to visit with local school children Monday afternoon.

“Hello, everybody,” Obama said as they walked into a classroom of nine-, 10- and 11-year-olds at Enniskillen Integrated Primary School.

“Good afternoon Mr. President and Mr. Prime Minister,” the children, dressed in navy blue uniforms, answered, in unison.

After learning the students had been studying the G8, Obama quizzed them briefly on the agenda.

The two leaders then joined a group of roughly 20 students for an art project in an outdoor courtyard.

“Do you trust me with this brush?” Obama joked, as he picked up some blue paint and joined the students in decorating a large canvass.

“I think I just went outside the lines,” he said.

Cameron, who was painting alongside Obama, finished his portion first and the students cheered him on with a “hip, hip, hooray!”

“Now I feel bad,” Obama quipped. “I didn’t realize that David was going to move so fast.”

The president later got his own cheer from the children when he finished his painting.

First lady Michelle Obama and daughters Malia and Sasha, meanwhile, were off exploring their family’s Irish roots. Visiting Trinity College in Dublin on Monday, the first family viewed archives documenting the president’s Irish family tree. President Obama’s great-great-great grandfather was born in the village of Moneygall, where some of his distant relatives still live today.

The president and first lady visited the village in 2011, where the president met his eighth cousin, Henry Healy, who has since become known as “Henry the Eighth.”

“We knew he was my cousin because his ears flapped out just like mine,” Obama joked earlier Monday, as he recalled their visit.

It appears Healy had another opportunity to bond with his famous relatives Monday. “Just met with @FLOTUS & Malia & Sasha,” Healy tweeted from Dublin. “I presented Malia & Sasha with a Cert of Irish Heritage earlier! Great reaction from Sasha ‘I can prove I'm more Irish than my friends now.’”

Healy has been embraced by the first family. He spent St. Patrick’s Day at the White House last year and accompanied the president for a pint at a popular local pub in Washington, D.C.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Discovery Channel(NEW YORK) -- Imagine being dropped into one of the most remote regions on earth with a complete stranger, forced to live off the land in brutal conditions totally naked.

That’s the premise of Discovery Channel’s new reality series called Naked and Afraid, which will pair stripped down male and female strangers and leave them stranded in a remote area with no food and no water.

The couple will be left in the wild for 21 days with nothing but their determination and survival skills.  Think Adam and Eve meets Survivor meets Castaway.

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“Survival of the fittest” takes on a whole new meaning with this new reality series where there’s no prize for the contestants. The show’s producers say the naked castaways are simply doing this for the experience.

“It’s pushing the boundaries of the survival genre. This is the most authentic survival show you’re going to see,” said Jay Renfroe, executive producer of Naked and Afraid.

Each pair is given a basic map and small cameras, which were rolling at all times. In addition to that footage, a four-person camera crew tracks each couple at all times.

Naked & Afraid premieres June 23 on Discovery.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Ronald C. Modra/Sports Imagery/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- After New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft came out and admitted Russian President Vladimir Putin stole his Super Bowl ring during a business trip back in 2005, Putin and his camp are now denying the theft ever happened.

While giving a speech last Thursday, Kraft claimed that during a trip to Russia, he let Putin put on the ring and instead of giving it back to him, Putin put it in his pocket and walked away with it.

Kraft wanted the ring back, but was apparently told by White House officials to let it go and give it as a gift in order to preserve relations between the two sides. Now, Putin and his staff are denying any kind of theft or deception.

Responding to Kraft's accusation, a Putin spokesman said, "What Mr. Kraft is saying now is weird.  I was standing 20 centimeters away from him and Mr. Putin and saw and heard how Mr. Kraft gave this ring as a gift."

The Super Bowl 39 ring currently sits in the Kremlin Library.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

ABC/Donna Svennevik(NEW YORK) -- Just over one month since Angelina Jolie announced to the world she had undergone a preventive double mastectomy, the actress and mother of six is back to “business as usual,” according to her fiance, Brad Pitt.

“She’s doing great,” Pitt, 49, said Monday on ABC's Good Morning America.  “When she wrote her piece we had already come out the other end and we’re feeling very good about it.”

Jolie’s essay in The New York Times explaining how she had both breasts removed after being diagnosed with a rare mutation of the BRCA gene that put her risk of developing breast cancer at nearly 90 percent sparked a global conversation on genetic screening and preemptive medical procedures.

Pitt called the reaction to Jolie’s decision to go public with her very private decision a “beautiful thing to watch.”

“We were really surprised and moved [at] how many other people were dealing with the same issue,” Pitt said.  “Her idea was that someone could learn from her story and she would love to share that.”

“I’ve been moved by it from every stage of this thing, especially now, and it seems to be a galvanizing moment for people dealing with this,” he said.  “She’s certainly shown that if you do your research that you can make a decision that’s the best for you.  It doesn’t have to be a scary thing.  It can be an empowering thing.”

Pitt was credited with standing by Jolie’s side during her procedure.  And Jolie, 38, stood by her fiance’s side at the June 2 world premiere of Pitt’s new thriller, World War Z, in London, her first public appearance since her op-ed.

“He’s such a wonderful man and a wonderful father and I’m very, very lucky,” she said at the premiere.

The couple and their six children have been traveling the world together for the release of World War Z, celebrating Jolie’s 38th birthday one night early in Paris on June 3 and then celebrating again the next night in Berlin.

Pitt says the movie, in which he plays a United Nations troubleshooter trying to defend the world against a global zombie invasion, struck a chord for him as a dad in real-life.

“That’s the only thing that keeps me up at night [as a dad],” he said.  “Is everyone safe?  We tried to make this thing as real as possible when we put in those fears, certainly.”

While Pitt thinks about keeping his kids safe, they -- specifically his sons, Knox, 4, Maddox, 11, and Pax, 8 -- inspired him to create the much-anticipated thriller, in theaters June 21.

“My boys love these things so they were the first impetus to start exploring,” Pitt said of the film, a project he has pursued for several years.

“If we were going to do it we want it to be authentic,” he said.  “We want to originate it in some way.  We worked really hard at it and that’s why it’s taken so many years to get it to the screen.”

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Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

LIONEL BONAVENTURE/AFP/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- General Motors is recalling close to 200,000 vehicles over an issue with the driver's door that could result in a fire.

In a letter to GM, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says fluid could get into the driver's door module, "causing corrosion that could result in a short in the circuit board."

"A short may cause the power door lock and power window switches to function intermittently or become inoperative.  The short may also cause overheating, which could melt components of the door module, producing odor, smoke, or a fire," the agency adds.

The recall expands on an earlier one from last year.

Vehicles affected include the 2006 Chevrolet Trailblazer EXT and GMC Envoy XL; and the 2006-2007 Chevrolet Trailblazer, GMC Envoy, Buick Rainier, SAAB 9-7x and Isuzu Ascender.

The NHTSA is advising owners of these SUVs to park their vehicles outside until the proper repairs have been made.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Wendy Maeda/The Boston Globe via Getty Images(BOSTON) -- Convicted assassin John Martorano confessed to killing 20 people -- including innocent bystanders -- but served just 12 years in prison in exchange for his testimony against accused Boston mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger.

On Monday, more than a decade after Martorano cut that deal with the government, he will face his one-time friend in court.  

Martorano, 72, has been a free man since 2007 and Bulger's defense attorney J.W. Carney tried to delay the trial by arguing that the hitman has continued a life of crime, a claim that was denied by prosecutors and dismissed by a federal judge.

Still, Carney insists that Martorano -- and other government witnesses expected to testify against Bulger -- are not credible because they pointed fingers at one another to avoid lengthy prison sentences.  Bulger's sidekick, Kevin Weeks, and right-hand-man, Stephen "The Rifleman" Flemmi, are also on the witness list.

Carney had especially harsh words for Martorano calling him "criminal psychopath."

"He would kill people almost randomly.  He would kill people as easily as we would order a cup of coffee... The federal government was so desperate to have John Martorano testify ... they basically put their hands up in the air and said take anything you want," Carney said.

Martorano will testify after cross-examination of Boston bookmaker Dick O'Brien, 84, who was one of two bookies who testified that they paid "rent" to Bulger to stay in business.  He recounted Bulger telling one bookmaking agent who got out of line that he liked to "kill a**holes like him."  James Katz, 73, also testified that people who didn't pay Bulger could "wind up in the hospital."

Bulger, 83, is charged with a 32-count indictment that includes accusations that he committed or ordered 19 murders, including the killings of two women who were romantically involved with his underlings.  Bulger's trial comes 18 years after an indictment naming him was unsealed, but he had been tipped off by rogue FBI agent John Connolly and disappeared.

He was arrested in June 2011 at a Santa Monica apartment complex where Bulger and his longtime companion Catherine Greig lived for 16 years as Charlie and Carol Gasko, strolling the California coastline and shopping on the Third Avenue Promenade.  

Carney accused the FBI of "pretending to look for him" during opening arguments last week.  The government called those accusations absurd.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- Eating healthy isn’t easy, even for people who think they’re doing the right thing.

Rachel Beller, a registered dietitian who has helped ABC's Good Morning America co-anchor Robin Roberts, appeared on GMA Monday to share the secrets to eating better.

Beller, the author of the new book, Eat to Lose, Eat to Win, said whether you’re thinking about losing weight or just improving your overall health, you may not be eating as lean and healthy as you think you are.

Her philosophy is that people should keep it simple.  She said there are many foods that people think are healthy because they appear that way -- either because of the color or because they’re sold in a certain store.

Take for instance a bran muffin and vanilla soy latte.

According to Beller, the bran muffin doesn’t have as much bran as you think.  Sure, the muffin looks brown, but that probably comes from added molasses and caramel coloring.  A check of the label showed the first ingredient was white flour.  That means it’s basically white bread that’s been colored to look brown, she said.  

She added that the word “soy” sounds healthy, but the drink has a lot of sugar.

Another diet pitfall is automatic grazing.  Beller said some people don’t realize exactly what they’re eating.  For example, a busy mother may eat some pita chips with hummus (sounds healthy), then taste some mac and cheese while she’s cooking.

Those bites amount to about half a turkey sandwich’s worth of calories, Beller said.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images(SLIGO, Ireland) -- After decades of violence, President Obama on Monday said peace in Northern Ireland serves as a “blueprint” for ending conflicts around the world, but cautioned “there’s still much work to do.”

“You set an example for those who seek a peace of their own,” the president told a gathering of young people at Belfast’s Waterfront Hall, shortly after arriving in Northern Ireland for the G8 Summit.  “You are their proof of what’s possible.  Hope is contagious.  And they are watching to see what you do next.”

“The terms of peace may be negotiated by leaders, but the fate of peace is up to you,” he said.

Obama urged the first generation to grow up in a time of peace to continue to break down barriers, telling them the work of peace “is as urgent now as it has ever been.”

“There is more to lose now than there has ever been.  In today’s hyperconnected world, what happens here has an impact on lives far from these green shores.  If you continue your courageous path towards a permanent peace, and all the social and economic benefits that come with it, that won’t just be good for you.  It will be good for this entire island, for the United Kingdom, for Europe; and it will be good for the world,” he said.

The president vowed that the U.S. “will always stand by” Northern Ireland. 

“We will keep working closely with leaders in Stormont, and Dublin, and Westminster to support your political progress,” he said.

The president now turns his attention to the G8 Summit, where the crisis in Syria is expected to top the agenda.

Just days after the White House confirmed the use of chemical weapons by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime, Obama will meet face-to-face on Monday with Assad’s ally, Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Russia has publicly questioned American evidence that Assad used chemical weapons and does not agree that Assad must step down from power for a political settlement to be successful.

Obama and Putin’s meeting on Monday -- their first in a year -- comes one day after Putin publicly defended Russian arms sales to Syria.

“I think you will not deny that one does not really need to back the people who not only kill their enemies, but open up their bodies and eat their intestines,” Putin said.  “Do you want to support these people?  Do you want to supply these people with arms?”

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

iStockphoto/Thinkstock(PYONGYANG, North Korea) -- After months of threats, North Korea is seemingly turning to diplomacy to end disputes with its neighbors and the West.

The latest instance of this supposedly new tact from Pyongyang came Sunday as a government agency suggested bilateral talks with Washington about possibly ending its nuclear ambitions in the future.

North Korea's National Defense Commission, which is run by leader Kim Jong-un, said as long as the U.S. sets no preconditions for talks, it could select the venue and date for a meeting.

Washington views such overtures with a cautious eye since Pyongyang has offered olive branches in the past, only to pull them away just as suddenly.

In talks with North Korea last year, the U.S. promised 240,000 tons of food aid if Pyongyang suspended its weapons programs.  However, the launch of a long-range missile just a few months later ended the agreement.

More recently, North Korea and Japan have instigated talks with China about rebooting discussions regarding its nuclear programs.  However, talks with South Korea fell apart when the two sides couldn't agree on the seniority of delegations.

What ultimately might kill off any meeting between Washington and Pyongyang before it begins is the National Defense Commission's insistence that any dismantling of its nuclear programs must be linked to a similar nuclear weapons reduction in the entire region.

Meanwhile, a National Security Council spokeswoman says that the U.S. hopes to have "credible negotiations" with North Korea.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

iStockphoto/Thinkstock(WASHINGTON) -- Before U.S. lawmakers decide whether they will address same-sex couples in a comprehensive immigration overhaul bill, the Supreme Court could make the decision for them.

The high court faces a choice this month to uphold or strike down all or parts of the federal Defense of Marriage Act's definition of marriage as being between a man and a woman.  If DOMA is struck down, gay marriage advocates will likely view it as an unambiguously positive outcome for their cause because, in part, it also resolves the question of whether the immigration law can apply to same-sex couples.

"For the first time in immigration equality's history, our legal team is now assisting couples in preparing their green card applications," said Steve Ralls, the communications director at the advocacy group Immigration Equality.  "We're definitely preparing couples.  The court ruling and the backup plan of congressional legislation make us confident more so than at any other time."

But a court decision has its downsides as well.  Although the Obama administration is likely to implement the court's decision in a way favorable to gay marriage advocates, a future administration might not.

If DOMA is upheld or if the court's ruling on the constitutionality of a federal definition of marriage is less clear, the result could be continued legal uncertainty for gay couples.  One way Democrats in the Senate and gay marriage advocates have hoped to resolve this is by attaching an amendment to the immigration bill that would give same-sex couples the same benefits as heterosexual couples under the immigration law.

But Democrats face an uphill struggle in Congress where Republicans have opposed the inclusion of a same-sex marriage amendment in the immigration bill.  A principal Republican sponsor of the legislation, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said last Thursday, he would walk away from his own immigration bill if a same-sex marriage amendment is included.

With the court's final decision fast approaching, here are some ways the issue could shake out:

The Supreme Court Upholds DOMA, Congress Does Nothing

If the Supreme Court upholds DOMA, there is only one way for same-sex couples to be recognized by immigration law: congressional action.

"Their status as spouses or as married is invisible for U.S. immigration law purposes because of DOMA," said Scott Titshaw, associate professor of law at Mercer University in Macon, Ga.

That means any benefits given to heterosexual couples couples in the immigration bill, like the ability to petition for a green card on behalf of a spouse, would not apply to same-sex couples.

The Supreme Court Upholds DOMA, Congress Addresses Gay Couples

Even if the Supreme Court keeps DOMA in place, Congress could pass legislation like the one sponsored (and immediately withdrawn) by Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., which would have recognized marriages that were entered into in states where same-sex marriage is legal.

That means that in any of the 12 states that recognize same-sex marriage, the federal government would defer to the states in determining whether that marriage is valid for immigration purposes.  And marriages entered into in other countries would also be recognized.

Advocates have also proposed a second option that would take marriage out of the equation altogether, by allowing the government to recognize couples in a "permanent partnership."  Such an amendment, based on the Uniting American Families Act, would allow couples who live in states where gay marriage is not recognized to be recognized under U.S. immigration law.

The Supreme Court Strikes Down DOMA, Congress Does Nothing

If DOMA's federal definition of marriage is struck down, the question of how immigration law is interpreted when it comes to gay couples falls to the Obama administration to decide.

That's a good thing for immigration advocates who view the administration's decision to stop defending DOMA in federal courts as a clear indication that they will interpret the immigration statutes in a way that favors gay couples.

But unlike a congressional amendment, which would put the issue on sound footing even if the Supreme Court does not rule in favor of gay marriage advocates, relying solely on the court to strike down DOMA could mean that a future administration could reverse Obama's actions when it comes to immigration law.

The Supreme Court Strikes Down DOMA, Congress Addresses Marriage

If Congress chooses to cover its bases even if the Supreme Court strikes down DOMA by explicitly stating in the law that same-sex couples are recognized by immigration legislation, it would take the issue out of a future administration's hands and would make court challenges more difficult.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- Companies are making shifts in the benefits they offer employees, from providing more contraception coverage and more services for new mothers, to being more flexible with paid time off, according to a new report from the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).

This is partly a response to new laws, including the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as well as an uncertain economy, the report said.

“Companies are looking at ways to provide benefits to employees in a way that’s cost effective,” Evren Esen, manager of SHRM’s survey research center, told ABC News.

According to the report, which surveyed 518 randomly selected human resource managers, 82 percent of employers offered contraceptive coverage this year, up from 66 percent in 2009.  (The Affordable Care Act requires that preventive services, including birth control, be included in new health insurance plans.)

Thirty four percent of employers offer a separate lactation or mother’s room that goes above and beyond a provision of the Affordable Care Act, which required employers with more than 50 employees to provide private space or lactation rooms for nursing mothers.

More employers are also providing workers with paid time off (or PTO) plans, jumping from 42 percent in 2009 to 52 percent this year.  Nine percent offered a paid vacation “cash-out” option, and 15 percent offered a donation program, which allows employees to either sell back their unused vacation or donate it to a communal pool.

“It's a win-win,” Esen said.  “Employees who aren’t using their time feel good about giving it to someone else who can use it.  It’s a creative strategy for an organization to make their employees happy.”

Five percent of employers reported offering a vacation purchase plan, which allows employees to “buy” or “sell” vacation days through a payroll deduction.

USG, a manufacturer and distributor of building materials headquartered in Chicago, allows most of its 9,000 employees worldwide to buy or sell up to a week of vacation time each year, which typically costs one week’s salary and is deducted from paychecks over the course of the year.  A little more than half of employees buy the additional week, and about 5 percent sell it, spokesman Robert Williams told ABC News.

Molly Galvin, a marketing communications manager at USG, has been with the company for 19 years and has always purchased an extra week’s vacation.

“When my sons were young I always used the extra week as a floating cushion day when they had a parent teacher conference or something,” Galvin told ABC News.  “You can use them half day or full day.  You have complete flexibility.”

But though these types of programs are relatively inexpensive to implement, they can be a little complicated.

“There are very strict rules via the IRS as far as some tax ramifications,” said Julie Stich, director of research at the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans, a non-profit education association for the employee benefit industry, in Brookfield, Milwaukee.  There are also administrative challenges.

“You have to keep track of various people’s benefits, whether they’re buying or selling,” Stich said.  “The value of these days depends on a person’s salary.  And what one person makes if they sell back two days or three days would be different for someone else.”

Still, most employees tend to appreciate and take advantage of these sorts of programs.

USAA, a financial services company for military families, has had a buy and sell vacation program in place since 2005 for its 25,000 employees.  About 41 percent of the company’s employees bought time in 2012; 11 percent sold it back, spokesman Roger Wildermuth told ABC News.

“We recognize that people value time off, and if we can give them the gift of time, it’s helpful to their state of mind and also helps them better service our members,” he said.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- “Mom, he’s picking on me!”

With summer here and family road trips underway, it’s a phrase that parents may be hearing more and more from the back seat.  More often than not, parents dismiss this kind of sibling bullying as harmless.  But recent research begs to differ.

Researchers at the University of New Hampshire conducted more than 3,500 telephone interviews with children and teenagers (an adult caregiver was interviewed if the child was younger than 10).  The researchers asked these kids whether they had experienced physical assault, property damage or “psychological aggression” -- in other words, name calling, meanness and ostracism.

Kids and teens on the receiving end of sibling bullying did, indeed, experience mental distress from teasing and aggression.

Interestingly, they found that even mild bullying -- a punch once in a while -- could be detrimental.  Victims still reported mental distress at a greater rate than their unbothered counterparts.  The youngest victims appeared to be at the highest risk of mental health effects from this less severe aggression; the study found that in the case of mild physical assault, children under the age of 9 reported greater mental health distress than kids aged 10 to 17.

Among all age groups, even those who didn’t suffer the whole gamut of aggressive acts from a sibling, were still affected.

“Even children who experienced just one type of sibling aggression had worse mental distress than with a child who experienced no sibling aggression,” said study author Corinna Tucker at the University of New Hampshire Family Studies and sociology department.  “There has been a lot of work to prevent or stop aggression for peers, but not much is seen for sibling aggression.”

Dr. Robin Mallett, a child and adolescent psychiatrist of the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, believes this study “shines light on a type of maltreatment that many believe to be a benign part of growing up.”

“The parental reaction to a child being bullied by non-family members may be quite different from that of a sibling aggressor, which may be particularly distressing for the bullied child,” she said.

Mallett advises parents that they “must provide developmentally appropriate supervision of children and to communicate that no bullying is acceptable, even by siblings, and that parents are available to help them with such serious matters.” 

Here’s how:

• Establish values and rules: Bullying is not tolerated;
• Don’t exhibit aggressive behavior yourself, particularly when your children are around;
• Reward positive behavior and kindness between siblings;
• Acknowledge and praise individual traits of each child;
• Do not “play favorites” among your children;
• Take time to build the self-esteem of each child;
• Give your children time apart during conflicts to defuse situations.

Mallett added that parents should not hesitate to seek advice from child and adolescent psychiatrists or pediatricians regarding the needs of the bullied child -- as well as that of the bully -- since both children may benefit from professional intervention.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Mathew Imaging/FilmMagic(BEVERLY HILLS, Calif.) -- Days of Our Lives earned a rare win at the Daytime Emmy Awards in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Sunday night.

For only the second time in the ceremony's history, the NBC soap opera received the top prize, outstanding drama series.  Its only other victory in the category came nearly four decades ago.

The Price Is Right was named top game show; The Dr. Oz Show took the informative talk show category; and The Ellen DeGeneres Show won the award for entertainment talk show.

The Daytime Emmys presented lifetime achievement awards to Let's Make a Deal host Monty Hall and the late game show creator Bob Stewart.

There were a couple of surprises during the HLN broadcast, aside from the announcement of the winners.  The presenters of the informative talk show category, the co-hosts of The Talk, were handed an envelope containing the winner of another category.  They were eventually given the correct envelope.

And Corbin Bernsen cursed on the air while saluting his late mother, The Young and the Restless star Jeanne Cooper, and introducing the "in memoriam" segment.

At the Daytime Emmys' creative arts ceremony on Friday, former Elmo puppeteer Kevin Clash won three awards.  He resigned from Sesame Street last fall amid underage sex allegations.

You can browse a full list of winners at EmmyOnline.org.  Here's a look at the major categories from Sunday's ceremony:

Drama Series
Days of Our Lives

Lead Actress In A Drama Series
Heather Tom, The Bold and the Beautiful

Lead Actor In A Drama Series
Doug Davidson, The Young and the Restless

Supporting Actress In A Drama Series
Julie Marie Berman, General Hospital

Supporting Actor In A Drama Series
(tie) Scott Clifton, The Bold and the Beautiful, and Billy Miller, The Young and the Restless

Game Show
The Price is Right

Informative Talk Show
The Dr. Oz Show

Entertainment Talk Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show

Culinary Program
(tie) Best Thing I Ever Made and Trisha's Southern Kitchen

Culinary Host
Linda Bastianich, Lidia's Italy

Morning Program
CBS Sunday Morning

Original Song
"Good Afternoon" from Good Morning America

Special Class Animated Program
Star Wars: The Clone Wars

Entertainment Talk Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show

Talk-Show Host
Ricki Lake, The Ricki Lake Show

Game-Show Host
Ben Bailey, Cash Cab

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Comstock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- The first trailer for Martin Scorsese's The Wolf of Wall Street has premiered online.

Based on the Jordan Belfort memoir of the same name, the film stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Matthew McConaughey, Jonah Hill and Rob Reiner, among others, and has DiCaprio playing a high-rolling trader in the go-go 1980s.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Former Vice President Dick Cheney defended the National Security Agency’s surveillance programs on Sunday, saying that had they been in effect over a decade ago, the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, might have been prevented.

“Now, as everybody has been associated with the program said if we had this before 9/11, when there were two terrorists in San Diego, two hijackers, able to use that program, that capability against the target, we might have been able to prevent 9/11,” Cheney said on FOX News Sunday.  “If we had been able to read their mail and intercept those communications and pick up from the calls overseas the numbers here that they were using in the United States, we would then probably have been able to thwart that attack.”

Cheney’s defense of the programs, which he advocated for following the attacks on 9/11, come shortly after top U.S. intelligence officials said the information obtained from the NSA surveillance program thwarted potential terrorist plots in the U.S. and in over 20 other countries.

Cheney described Edward Snowden, the NSA contractor who leaked details about the agency’s surveillance programs, as a “traitor” and said this incident is one of the worst security breaches in U.S. history.

“I think he’s a traitor.  I think he has committed crimes in effect by violating agreements, given the position he had.  He was a contractor employee, but he obviously had been granted top secret clearance,” Cheney said.  “I think it’s one of the worst occasions in my memory of somebody with access to classified information doing enormous damage to the national security interests of the United States.”

Though he sided with the current administration’s execution of the electronic monitoring, Cheney still criticized President Obama.  He said the president is unable to defend the program because he lacks credibility due to his handling of the IRS scandal and the response to the attacks on the American diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya.

“We have got an important point where the president of the United States ought to be able to stand up and say, this is a righteous program, it is a good program, it is saving American lives, and I support it.  And the problem is the guy has failed to be forthright and honest and credible on things like Benghazi and the IRS.  So he’s got no credibility,” Cheney said.

White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough said on Sunday that the president does not believe the NSA program violates the privacy of Americans and said Obama will discuss the electronic surveillance “in the days ahead.”

“We find ourselves communicating in different ways, but that means the bad guys are doing that as well, so we have to find the right the balance between protecting our privacy, which is sacrosanct to the president, and protecting the country from the very real risks and threats that we face,” McDonough said on CBS’ Face the Nation.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy(WASHINGTON) -- The size of the U.S. arms shipment to Syrian rebels will depend on conditions on the ground, White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough told CBS' Face the Nation on Sunday.

Last week, the White House announced it would be begin arming certain factions of the Syrian opposition engaged in a do-or-die struggle with President Bashar al-Assad's forces.  The tipping point was confirmation that the Syrian government used deadly sarin nerve gas on at least two occasions this year that killed 100-150 people, many of whom were civilians.

However, the administration's response will neither be hurried nor haphazard, McDonough said, because of concerns of weaponry falling into the hands of Islamic militants with a different agenda than pro-democracy fighters in Syria.

President Obama's chief of staff did suggest the "the scope and scale" of the assistance could grow if there's evidence al-Assad's forces continue to make gains, as has happened recently.

Meanwhile, Congressman Mike Rogers, chair of the House Intelligence Committee, criticized the White House for failing to put forth a comprehensive proposal on Syria that would receive quick acceptance on Capitol Hill.

The Michigan Republican said lawmakers need to hear a plan of action, goals expected to be accomplished and an exit strategy before they'll sign off, asserting that while White House officials "have a great media strategy, they don't have a great Syrian strategy."

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Ron Vesely/MLB Photos via Getty Images(ST. PETERSBURG, Fla.) -- Outfielder Wil Myers is headed to the big leagues.

Myers, last year's Minor League Player of the Year, was called up by the Tampa Bay Rays Sunday.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Brian D. Kersey/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- MLB: Baltimore Orioles 6 (40-30) - Boston Red Sox 3 (42-29)

New York Mets 4 (25-39) - Chicago Cubs 3 (28-39)

Miami Marlins 7 (21-47) - St. Louis Cardinals 2 (44-25)

Cleveland Indians 2 (34-34) - Washington Nationals 0 (34-34)

Cincinnati Reds 5 (42-28) - Milwaukee Brewers 1 (28-40)

Kansas City Royals 5 (33-34) - Tampa Bay Rays 3 (36-33)

Detroit Tigers 5 (38-24) - Minnesota Twins 2 (30-36)

Houston Astros 5 (26-44) - Chicago White Sox 4 (28-38)

Toronto Blue Jays 7 (32-36) - Texas Rangers 2 (38-31)

Pittsburgh Pirates 6 (41-28) - Los Angeles Dodgers 3 (29-39)

San Diego Padres 4 (35-34) - Arizona Diamondbacks 1 (37-32)

Colorado Rockies 5 (37-33) - Philadelphia Phillies 2 (33-37)

New York Yankees 6 (38-31) - Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 5 (30-39)

Oakland Athletics 10 (42-29) - Seattle Mariners 2 (31-39)

Atlanta Braves 3 (41-28) - San Francisco Giants 0 (35-33)

NBA Finals - Game 5: San Antonio Spurs 114 - Miami Heat 104

NASCAR: Greg Biffle won the Sprint Cup race at Michigan International Speedway.

U.S. Open Golf Championship - Final Round:

1. Justin Rose E (F)

T2. Phil Mickelson 3 (F)

T2. Justin Day 3 (F)

T4. Jason Dufner 5 (F)

T4. Ernie Els 5 (F)

T4. Billy Horschel 5 (F)

T4. Hunter Mahan 5 (F)

T32. Tiger Woods 13 (F)

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

George Doyle/Thinkstock(PEBANI, Pakistan) -- Two health workers trying to eradicate polio were killed in a targeted attack in a remote Pakistani village Sudnay.

The two health workers, both Pakistani, were giving polio vaccinations to young children when they were fatally shot by gunmen in the village of Pebani, in northeastern Pakistan.

Health workers are a common target in Pakistan, particularly in areas dominated by militants. Many accuse them of secretly working for the CIA, saying the vaccination campaign is a cover for collecting intelligence.

Pakistan is one of only three countries in the world where polio still exists. The United Nations and philanthropist Bill Gates are spending billions to eradicate it. If their efforts are successful, Polio would be the third disease ever to be eradicated, following smallpox and rinderpest, a cattle virus.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

iStockphoto/Thinkstock(COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.) -- Firefighters have contained 65 percent of Colorado’s massive Black Forest Fire and hope to have it fully contained by next week, fire officials told reporters Sunday.

“The crews last night had a good night, nothing backwards, all forwards, so we're real happy with those guys,” said Incident Commander Rich Harvey, praising the efforts of the firefighters who are battling the flames.

There were no deaths or injuries, and no more homes were destroyed by the fire overnight. The people who were missing from the fire zone have now been found safe.

El Paso Sheriff Terry Maketa said that there are still police officers and other law enforcement personnel patrolling the area to protect evacuated homes from looters and to ensure that people heeded the evacuation. According to Maketa, there have been four burglaries.

According to Maketa, it may be days before thousands of evacuees can go home – Not necessairily because of the fire, but because of the debris left in its wake. The roads are clogged with fire trucks, and there are numerous downed trees and power lines. Maketa says it’s too dangerous to send people home just yet.

The sheriff also said he's formed a task of state and ATF agents to try and find the origin and the cause of this blaze.

The fire has destroyed 473 homes and killed two people. Maketa said that a top forensic doctor is working to identify the bodies, but he advised everyone to be patient.

“Don't forget, this isn't CSI,” he said. “It takes a lot of time. He is working with very little evidence to perform this identification.”

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SAUL LOEB/AFP/GettyImages(DALLAS) -- A plane carrying President George W. Bush was diverted from Philadelphia to Louisville, Ky.  Saturday night after the pilots reported smelling smoke on board, officials said.

“The flight President Bush was on was diverted to Louisville, and after a brief stop there we made it home safely to Dallas late last night,” Bush spokesman Freddy Ford said in a short statement.

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FACUNDO ARRIZABALAGA/AFP/Getty Images(LONDON) -- On the eve of the G8 summit in Northern Ireland, British Prime Minister David Cameron and Russian President Vladimir Putin met in London Sunday to discuss the Syrian crisis.

Though Cameron and Putin both readily admit that they have disagreements over Syria, the two leaders said they both want to see an end to the conflict.

“We have a common goal and a common desire to provide conditions for the settlement of that conflict,” Putin said. “I can agree with the prime minister that it can, it should be done as soon as possible.”

“We can overcome these differences if we recognize that we share some fundamental aims: to end the conflict, to stop Syria breaking apart, to let the Syrian people choose who governs them, and to take the fight to the extremists and defeat them,” said Cameron, speaking to reporters after the meeting.

The two discussed how best to use the G8 Summit to help bring an end to the bloodshed in the embattled Middle East country. Cameron said they agreed that the G8 must back the work of Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry.

“The challenge for the G8 and for this process,” Cameron said, “is to try and put aside some of the differences and to focus on the common ground, where we both want to see a peace process, a transition, take place.”

Though they agreed upon the need to work to overcome their differences, Putin did make a point to defend Russia’s support of the Assad Regime.

“Russia supplies to the legitimate government of Syria in full compliance with the norms of international law,” he said. “We're not breaching anything.”

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ABC News(BAYTOWN, Texas) -- A Texas mother's determination to keep her family out of danger drove her to battle an alleged carjacker until he fled from her minivan -- only to be struck by her vehicle as she tried to "stop him so he didn't hurt anybody else," the woman said.

While Dorothy Baker and her 2-year-old and 5-year-old sons were shopping Friday at a CVS in Baytown, Texas, a man identified as Ismael Martinez allegedly hid out in her unlocked van, police said.

When the family got back into the car, Baker said Martinez "popped up out of the backseat and said that if I didn't want my kids to get hurt, that I would do exactly what he said."

Martinez, 54, allegedly pulled a knife on Baker while she was driving and demanded she stop at an ATM for money, she said.

When she refused, Martinez allegedly became violent, she said.

Baker said she fought back, refusing to compromise the safety of her children.

"She's got a cut that goes across her chest, and she grabbed the knife and he bit her hand," Baker's husband, Charles Flugence said.

"I took my fist and I hit him in the face, and I told him to get out of my car," Baker said.

Baker intentionally drove her van into a telephone pole in hopes of sending Martinez through the front windshield, according to the Baytown Police Department crime report.

Police said she managed to dial 911 while she grappled with the suspect in hopes that a dispatcher might hear what was going on in the car and find a way to help, ABC station KTRK-TV in Houston reported.

"I thought, 'If you swerve and hit the pole, he's not wearing a seatbelt, he'll go through the windshield or at least hit his head, and you can stop him. You can do something to make sure that he doesn't hurt your kids,'" Baker told KTRK-TV. "That's all I was thinking of really, was just to get him away from my kids."

Police said Martinez eventually jumped out of the van and tried to flee. But before Baker knew it, she had run her car into him.

"I didn't mean to run him over," she said. "I was just trying to stop him so he didn't hurt anybody else."
Martinez was airlifted to Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston with serious injuries after the alleged attack. He is expected to face felony charges once he is discharged.

Meanwhile, Baytown residents have rallied around Baker's bravery.

"She was trying to protect herself and her kids. I would do the same thing," resident Joyce Sparks said.
But Baker said she is just glad her family is safe.

"You don't come after people with kids," she said. "I told him he messed with the wrong witch."

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Warner Bros. Pictures(NEW YORK) -- The new Superman movie Man of Steel set a June opening record this weekend, collecting more than $113 million for first place at the box office.

Man of Steel broke the old record for a June opening weekend, previously held by Toy Story 3, by a little less than $3 million. The record does not include an additional $12 million the film made in a corporate group sale screening program on Thursday.

The R-rated apocalypse comedy This is the End opened on Wednesday and earned $20.5 million over the weekend. This brings its five day total to $32.8 million, enough to cover the entire production budget.

Now You See Me dropped just 46 percent in its third weekend, good enough for third place, while Fast & Furious 6 managed to keep in the top five with a fourth place finish.

Here are the top five movies for the Friday through Sunday, according to Hollywood.com:

1.     Man of Steel     $113.08M     
2.     This is the End     $20.5M      
3.     Now You See Me     $10.32M      
4.     Fast & Furious 6     $9.4M      
5.     The Purge     $8.2M     

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Oscar Mayer/ABC News(NEW YORK) -- What's the best way to say happy Father’s Day to your dad? With bacon, of course.

Oscar Mayer is offering a luxury bacon box set as the ultimate expression of love. The gift set consists of raw bacon inside a velvet box along with a choice of a money clip, a pocket knife, or bacon shaped cufflinks.

The set is being advertised with commercials that parody Mother’s Day jewelry commercials, only instead of diamond earrings, the boxes contains delicious bacon.

Despite being somewhat of a joke, luxury bacon box sets are in high demand. They are currently all sold out.

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G Fiume/Getty Images(CHICAGO) -- Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin edged Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby and New York Islanders center John Tavares Saturday night to win his second consecutive Hart Trophy.  It’s the third time Ovechkin has won the league’s MVP award.

The 27-year old Ovechkin lead the league during the regular season with 32 goals while contributing 24 assists for 56 points in 48 games.

Ovechkin joins Gordie Howe, Mario Lemieux, Wayne Gretzky, Bobby Clarke, Eddie Shore, Howie Morenz and Bobby Orr as the only players to win the Hart Trophy three times or more.

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Joe Raedle/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- During an exclusive interview on ABC’s This Week, Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio criticized President Obama for not intervening sooner in Syria’s civil war, saying the inaction has led to the “worst possible scenario” in the war-torn country.

“It behooved us to kind of identify whether there was elements there within Syria fighting against Assad that we could work with, reasonable people that wouldn’t carry out human rights violations, and could be part of building a new Syria. We failed to do that. This president failed to do that,” Rubio told ABC News Chief White House Correspondent Jonathan Karl.

“The fact that it’s taken this White House and this president so long to get a clear and concise policy on Syria has left us with the worst possible scenario right now,” Rubio added.

“So now your options are quite limited. Now the strongest groups fighting against Assad, unfortunately, are al Qaeda-linked elements. That doesn’t mean that they all are, but it certainly — this group has become the most organized, the best armed, the best equipped. Our options are now really narrower than they were a few months ago,” he said.

The United States will provide arms to Syrian rebels after determining this week that the Syrian regime used chemical weapons. President Obama has said the use of such weapons would cross a “red line.

More than 90,000 people have died in Syria since March of 2011 according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, while the Obama administration estimates that 100 to 150 people have died from chemical weapons attacks in the country.

Rubio was also asked by Karl if he supported his own immigration bill, which he helped author with the “Gang of Eight” members in the Senate.

“Obviously I think it’s an excellent starting point and I think 95 — 96 percent of the bill is in perfect shape and ready to go,” Rubio said. “But there are elements that need to be improved,” citing the border security portion of the current bill.

The immigration bill currently in the Senate will need some Republican support in order to overcome a potential filibuster. Many in the GOP want to see the border security measures in the bill strengthened before they would consider supporting it.

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ABC News(WASHINGTON) -- In a special Father’s Day edition of the Sunday Spotlight on ABC’s This Week, former Florida governor Jeb Bush reflected on lessons learned from his father and hinted about his own political future.

In an exclusive interview with ABC News’ Jon Karl, Bush spoke about Father’s Days spent in the Bush household and called the 41st president “the best dad and the best man I’ve ever met.”

“He’s a humble guy,” Bush said. “Every day was Father’s Day as I’m concerned.”

Bush said his father’s lessons on humility have stayed with him. As Bush reflected on his loss in a 1994 Florida gubernatorial run, he recalled the resiliency his father taught him.

“I ended up learning that losing actually turns out to be pretty good,” Bush said. “It makes you better. You learn and grow.”

Bush said his father’s reaction to losing his 1992 presidential bid also inspired him.

“I think my dad’s post-presidency, he didn’t miss a beat,” Bush said. “He didn’t get into any kind of ‘woe is me.’ He dusted himself off and led an incredible life since 1993.”

Bush opened up about his father’s health challenges. President Bush celebrated his 89th birthday on June 12th and donned a signature pair of colorful Superman socks for the occasion.

“I think it was hard at first for my dad to transition to being immobile,” Bush said.

“I think he’s in a good place. He’s mentally alert,” he added. “He’s spiritually in a place that we should all envy.”

The former Florida governor is frequently mentioned as a potential 2016 presidential candidate -including by family members.

His father and brother, George W. Bush, have encouraged Jeb to enter the race in 2016, while his mother, Barbara, concluded that there have been “enough Bushes” in the White House.

“I think we’ve got a split ballot amongst the Bush senior family. Pretty sure that’s the case,” Bush said smiling.

For now, the Bush family is focused on their Father’s Day letter writing contest, recently launched to honor fathers and promote former First Lady Barbara Bush’s Foundation for Family Literacy.

Bush says the project honors his father’s love of writing letters and encourages families to get involved in the “process of teaching kids how to read and giving them the joy of reading.”

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Jared Wickerham/Getty Images(FOXBOROUGH, Mass.) -- Abby Wambach scored her 156th career international goal as the U.S. Women’s soccer team defeated South Korea Saturday night at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, 4-1.

Kiristie Mewis put the U.S. on the board first in the third minute with her first international score. Lauren Cheney followed up in the seventh minute, sending the ball pass South Korea goalkeeper Kim Jungmi for a 2-0 lead.

Carli Llyod gave the United States a 3-1 advantage when she scored from 30 yards out in the 57th minute. Wambach increased the lead for the Stars and Stripes when she connected on penalty kick in stoppage time after Alex Morgan was fouled.

The 33-year-old Wambach is now just two goals shy of Mia Hamm’s all-time U.S. record.

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Robert Binder/MLB Photos via Getty Images(ANAHEIM, Calif.) -- Second baseman Howie Kendrick had three hits while first baseman Albert Pujols drove in two runs as the Los Angeles Angels (30-38) topped the New York Yankees (37-31) Saturday night, 6-2.

The Halos scored the go-ahead run in the bottom of the sixth when Erick Aybar singled off Yankees starter David Phelps, allowing first baseman Mark Trumbo to score. The 29-year-old shortstop also hit a solo home run earlier in the game.

New York lost first baseman Mark Teixeira in the fourth inning when he aggravated his right wrist. He missed the first 53 games of the season due to an injured wrist.

The Yankees have now lost five straight and have dropped 27 of their last 39 games in Anaheim.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Stockbyte/Thinkstock(COUNTY FERMANAGH, Northern Ireland) -- The civil war in Syria is expected to dominate much of the discussion as President Obama sits down Monday with the Group of Eight leaders in Northern Ireland, just days after the White House confirmed the use of chemical weapons by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

“They’ll clearly discuss the situation in Syria, to include the most recent chemical weapons assessment that we’ve provided, the efforts that are underway to support both the opposition but also a political settlement in the country,” Deputy National Security Adviser for Strategic Communications Ben Rhodes told reporters Friday.

The Obama administration has said it will provide more “direct support” to the Syrian opposition now that the president’s “red line” has been crossed. The U.S., he added, has “steadily increased both the size and scope of our assistance” to the Supreme Military Council, the armed wing of the Syrian opposition.

“At the same time, you know, this is a fluid situation. So it’s necessary for [the president] to consult with all the leaders at the G-8 about both our chemical weapons assessment and the types of support we’re providing to the opposition,” he added.

The president will also, however, have to sway Assad’s allies, including Russian President Vladimir Putin. Obama and Putin will meet face-to-face at the G-8 summit for the first time in a year.

Russia has publicly questioned American evidence that Assad used chemical weapons and does not agree that Assad must step down from power for a political settlement to be successful.

“What Russia has articulated to us, and publicly, is that they don’t want to see a downward spiral,” Rhodes said. “They don’t want to see a chaotic and unstable situation in the region. They don’t want to see extremist elements gaining a foothold in Syria. And the point that we’ve made to Russia is that the current course in which Assad is not being appropriately pressured to step down from power by those who continue to support him in the international community is bringing about those very outcomes.”

“We still continue to discuss with the Russians whether there’s a way to bring together elements of the regime and the opposition to achieve a political settlement. We have no illusions that that’s going to be easy,” he added.

While the Syrian crisis will overshadow much of the summit agenda, there are many other topics up for discussion, including economic reform, trade and the fight against terrorism.

Obama is expected to defend his administration’s phone and internet surveillance programs as vital counterterrorism tools. “He’ll be able to discuss with the other leaders the importance of these programs in terms of our counterterrorism efforts in particular, the constraints and safeguards that we place on these programs so that they have oversight against potential abuses,” Rhodes said.

“And all of these countries at the G-8 are important counterterrorism partners. And together we’ve worked with them on an intelligence and security relationship to foil terrorist attacks in the United States and in Europe, and of course Russia shares a significant counterterrorism interest with us as well,” he said.

In addition to participating in a series of high-level meetings, the president will also deliver a major address in Northern Ireland at the Belfast Waterfront Convention Center. This will be the president’s first opportunity to address at length the support that the U.S. has provided to the peace process in Northern Ireland and to the development of its economy.

After two days of summit meetings, the president will travel to Berlin, where he will meet with Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Joachim Gauck, and deliver a major address at the historic Brandenburg Gate.

The short three-day trip to Europe will be also a family affair for the president. The first lady and daughters Sasha and Malia will be joining him.

Mrs. Obama and her daughters will attend the president’s speech in Belfast and then break off to travel to Dublin, while the president is busy with summit meetings. There, they will tour Trinity College, Ireland’s oldest university and “explore the archives that they’ve gathered to document the Obamas’ Irish ancestry,” Rhodes explained.

The first family will reunite in Berlin.

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Hemera/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- The National Football League is banning all purses in its stadiums this coming season. The decision is meant to increase safety at the games, but many fans, particularly women and families with young children are crying foul.

NFL Chief Security Officer Jeffrey Miller says the decision was made with fans in mind. “By taking this minor step per person we create a major improvement,” Miller said. “It really does dramatically increase our security posture at our stadiums.”

“Football is such a national past-time in the US. If you are a terrorist bad guy that would be a great target,” said former FBI special agent and ABC News consultant Brad Garrett. “I think it's a reasonable approach.”

The new policy limits the size and type of bags that may be brought into stadiums. Fans are now only allowed to bring in a hand-sized clutch and a clear, one-gallon Ziploc or freezer bag. Anything larger must be a clear tote. The NFL is selling acceptable totes online.

NFL officials said they'd make exceptions for people who had things like medical supplies that couldn't fit into a small bag.

Seat cushions are also banned, due to fears that they could contain an explosive device, according to the news release from the NFL.

“I have no problem saying what a huge issue I have with that,” one female fan told ABC’s Susan Saulny. “That's not appropriate.”

The fan said that she might have to root for her favorite team, the Steelers, from her couch instead of the stadium.

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