A Family Gathers to Say Farewell to Ted Kennedy

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.

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Attorney gives Jena 6 teen counsel, chance at new life

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

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In an instant, waves go from majestic to monstrous

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

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Inmate-release plan hits snag in California Assembly

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

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Afghan candidates allege widespread vote fraud

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 the vote.

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Karzai rival claims widespread fraud in Afghan vote

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 percent. Abdullah said ballot boxes were stuffed with additional votes, with 90 percent of them going to Karzai. “This is stealing the elections and it will not be accepted,” Abdullah said in the interview

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Iraqi violence overshadows start of Ramadan

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 Baghdad and Mosul, according to an official of the Interior Ministry.

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