Simon Sousa, shell shocked and bleary eyed, stood on a grassy corner near the Kennedy compound in Hyannis Port. He clutched a 8"x10" framed and signed photo of himself with Senator Ted Kennedy, a memento from when Kennedy had helped his Brazilian house cleaner get a green card two years ago. He planted a few tiny American flags and he says he may drive to Boston for the funeral on Saturday. "I do not understand, he seemed okay ...

Dominick Dunne, the former Hollywood producer and best-selling author known for his Vanity Fair essays on the courtroom travails of the rich and famous, died Wednesday in New York city after a long battle with bladder cancer. Dunne, who described himself as "a high-class Zelig," was 83. Called "Nick" by his friends, Dunne was putting the finishing touches on his final novel, which he said he planned to call "Too Much Money," when his health took a turn for ...

Jesse Ray Beard said he was constantly in trouble, even when he behaved. It took being accused of the racially charged attempted murder of a white classmate in the Deep South to turn his life around. Beard, 18, now interns at a New York law firm as he prepares for his senior year next month at Canterbury School, a Connecticut prep academy where Beard is highly regarded among peers and teachers. "I didn't change the way I act. I didn't ...

They were there for the view -- spectators awed by a vista of massive waves smashing against the rocky shore. But then one wave struck violently, sweeping three people into the churning ocean, one of them a 7-year-old girl. What spectator Mary Ellen Martel saw next were bodies bobbing along in the frothy waters. And in a heartbeat, a day of spectacular surf turned tragic. Watch a dramatic rescue at sea » Thousands of people ...

California legislators plan to keep trying Tuesday to find consensus on a controversial proposal that would release at least 27,000 inmates from state prisons. The California Assembly on Monday delayed a possible vote on the plan. "When we arrive at a responsible plan that can earn the support of the majority of the Assembly and make sense to the people of California, we will take that bill up on the Assembly floor," Assembly Speaker Karen Bass said in a statement. ...

Last week's elections in Afghanistan have been marred "by widespread fraud and intimidation" which could cast doubt on the legitimacy of the vote, six presidential candidates declared Tuesday. The candidates issued a joint statement as Afghanistan's elections commission prepares to release preliminary voting results from the nation's contested presidential race later in the day. A cabinet minister in the government of incumbent Afghan president Hamid Karzai claimed Tuesday that preliminary results showed Karzai won the election with 68 percent of ...

They have dismissed him, attempted to silence him and threatened him with arrest. But Iran's Islamic hardliners so far have failed to stifle opposition leader Mehdi Karrubi's claims that post-election detainees have been abused -- some even raped -- behind bars. Actually, the 72-year-old cleric has grown increasingly defiant in recent weeks. His latest move: going public with a first-hand account from a detainee who says he was raped in a Tehran prison. "I was in prison, blindfolded ...

Incumbent President Hamid Karzai's chief rival, Abdullah Abdullah, repeated his charges of widespread ballot fraud Monday and declared that Karzai "single-handedly put Afghanistan at risk by trying to rig the elections." As Afghanistan's elections commission prepared to release preliminary voting results in the nation's presidential race on Tuesday, Abdullah told CNN in an interview that his campaign had received what he described as credible reports of fraud in the southern provinces, where security was poor and turnout less than 10 ...

Gentler winds Monday morning gave firefighters in Greece some room to breathe, but the respite was only temporary. Gale-force winds are expected to pick up later Monday, once again re-igniting flames and a race to contain them before they reach the capital, Athens. For a fourth day, a fleet of aircraft took off at daybreak to resume water drops as flames licked the northern outskirts of the capital. From above, the suburbs emitted an orange glow as at ...

Ramadan, the holy month of Islam, began Saturday with Iraqis hoping for tranquility but fearful after recent attacks that have shaken the country. Al-Iraqia state TV interrupted regular programming Saturday afternoon to broadcast Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's address to Iraqis on the occasion of the start of the holy month. The prime minister said that as he congratulates Iraqis, his "heart is full of sadness and sorrow." Four Iraqi soldiers and a government worker were killed Saturday in attacks in ...