USA
A white California police officer caught on videotape striking a handcuffed black teen was indicted on assault charges. Inglewood officer Jeremy Morse was expected to surrender Thursday and plead innocent. A grand jury also indicted Morse's partner, Bijan Darvish, on charges of filing a false police report. A bystander taped Morse slamming Donovan Jackson onto the trunk of a police car July 6 and then punching him in the face.
Rep. James Traficant, (D) of Ohio, was found guilty of ethics violations by a House panel. Committee members were expected to recommend whether the House should seek expulsion or a lesser punishment. The nine-term congressman was convicted by a federal jury in April of bribery, tax evasion, and racketeering. In defiant testimony this week, Traficant said he'd rather die in jail than confess to something he didn't do. If expelled, he would become only the second member of Congress to be kicked out since the Civil War.
Army Secretary Thomas White told a Senate committee he never did anything unethical while an executive at Enron. White, who was vice-chairman of an Enron subsidiary before joining the Bush administration, said in prepared testimony that he had no knowledge of the company's questionable trading practices during the 2000-2001 California energy crisis. White also said no sensitive information was exchanged during dozens of conversations he had with Enron executives around the time of the company's massive collapse in December.
New jobless claims fell last week to their lowest levels in 17 months, the Labor Department reported. New claims for state unemployment insurance fell by 28,000 from a revised 407,000 during the previous week. Volatility in jobless figures at this time of year is not uncommon due to temporary plant shutdowns for design changes and vacations.
The body of a five-year-old California girl abducted Monday was identified by police. Samantha Runnion was found in a ravine 50 miles from her Stanton, Calif., home. Investigators warned the abductor may be a serial killer and rapist. Runnion's murder follows several recent high-profile child abductions, including Elizabeth Smart in San Lake City, who is still missing.
HBO's funeral home drama "Six Feet Under" received a leading 23 Emmy nominations. NBC's White House drama, "The West Wing" was a close second with 21 nominations. Cable channel HBO led in nominations overall, with 93. Last year's big winner, "The Sopranos," was out of the running since no new episodes were broadcast during the eligibility period. Winners will be announced Sept. 22 by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
