Iowa high court strikes down same-sex marriage ban

The Iowa Supreme Court struck down a state law Friday that banned same-sex marriage. Iowa becomes the third state in the nation to allow same-sex marriage, after Massachusetts and Connecticut. Friday’s decision upheld a 2007 ruling by a lower court that Iowa’s 1998 law limiting marriage to heterosexual couples went against the state’s constitution.

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Feds’ plan to poison banks of Rio Grande stalled

Federal officials postponed poisoning a mile-long stretch of the Rio Grande’s banks this week after residents complained that doing so posed health and environmental risks on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border. U.S. Customs and Border Protection said it wants to eradicate the invasive Carrizo cane infesting many portions of the Rio Grande’s banks between Texas and Mexico.

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Director sues Jackson over ‘Thriller’ profits

Movie director John Landis is suing Michael Jackson, accusing the reclusive entertainer of fraud in his handling of profits from the iconic "Thriller" video the two made together more than 25 years ago. Landis claimed his 1983 contract with Jackson gave him 50 percent of net profits from the 14-minute video and the documentary about the making of it, both works that he directed and co-wrote with Jackson, court documents say.

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Man says bogus conviction leaves him without wife, job

Tim Masters squarely blames Fort Collins, Colorado, police and prosecutors for his inability to land gainful employment and for his not having a wife and kids at this stage in his life. In 1987, Masters became the prime suspect in the slaying of Peggy Hettrick, a 37-year-old found in a field near his house. Among the reasons police said they focused on Masters was that he failed to report the body after he found it and his childhood drawings and stories suggested he was fixated on death

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Ex-girlfriend files suit, says Alomar exposed her to AIDS

A lawsuit filed January 30 by baseball great Roberto Alomar’s ex-girlfriend alleges he engaged in unprotected sex with her while suffering from HIV/AIDS. Ilya Dall, who is asking for $15 million for “personal injuries” suffered due to Alomar’s negligence, lived with the former New York Met slugger and her two children for three years.

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