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Sunday, May 13, 2012
William Balfour Guilty In Jennifer Hudson Family Murder Case
Oscar winner was on hand when the jury read verdict convicting Balfour on all counts on Friday afternoon.
By Gil Kaufman
William Balfour in his booking photo
Photo: Cook County Sheriff's Department/ WireImage
After two-and-a-half days of deliberation, the jury in the murder trial of William Balfour returned a guilty verdict on all counts on Friday afternoon (May 11).
Balfour was on trial for the murders of Oscar-winner Jennifer Hudson's mother, brother and nephew. The jury returned guilty verdicts on three counts of murder, as well as one count each of home invasion, residential burglary, possession of a stolen vehicle, and aggravated kidnapping.
Because Illinois no longer has a death penalty, Balfour will spend the rest of his life in jail without the possibility of parole. According to the Chicago Tribune, an hour before reading the verdict, the jury sent a note to Judge Charles Burns informing him that they were split, but still working to reach a verdict. Around the same time, Burns received another note asking for all of the evidence about the cell-phone tower coverage in the area of the murder.
The judge sent back a transcript of the testimony of FBI Special Agent Nikki Skovran, who performed a forensic analysis on Balfour's cell phone on the day of the murders that placed him near the Hudson home around the time the victims were killed. Earlier, the jury of six men and six women had requested copies of two videos in evidence: one from an area high school that showed the time Balfour's car was parked on the street and another of the police interrogation of Balfour, in which he claimed he left it there around 8:30 a.m. on the morning of the murders.
During the trial, prosecutors had argued that the time stamp on the school surveillance video provided proof that Balfour, 31, was lying about his whereabouts that morning. Balfour is alleged to have shown up at the Hudson home on the morning of the killings appearing agitated, saying he'd been up all night drinking. He spotted balloons that Julia received from a new boyfriend for the holiday Sweetest Day, got angry and punched the balloons, according to police. When Julia left the house to go to work, Balfour remained behind outside.
The jury began their deliberation on Wednesday night and had been sequestered at a hotel for two nights.
As the verdict was read, Hudson, huddled close with her fiancé, David Otunga, and sister Julia, said "yes!" and broke into tears, according to CNN.
Lawyers for Balfour had argued that the state's case was based largely on circumstantial evidence and lacked any DNA or fingerprints tying Balfour to the crime scene. Furthermore, they insisted that Chicago police had hastily investigated the crime and rushed to apprehend their client because of the media attention on the case due to Hudson's fame. They proposed the alternate theory that some other unknown assailant in the crime-ridden Southside Chicago neighborhood had targeted the family because of the alleged crack-cocaine dealing activities of Hudson's brother, Jason.
During 11 days of testimony from 83 witnesses — only two of which were called by the defense for a total of 30 minutes — prosecutors rebutted that claim by presenting witness testimony, firearms evidence and cell-phone records that pointed toward Balfour's guilt.
Though prosecutors lacked hard physical evidence, they repeatedly alluded to threats Balfour had made in the past on the lives of Julia and her family, as well as the cell-phone records and the gun residue on Balfour's clothing in the vehicle he stole from the Hudson home.
Hudson took to the witness stand on the first day of the trial and tearfully recounted her family's disapproval of Balfour's relationship and marriage to the singer's sister, Julia. The "Dreamgirls" star choked back tears that morning as she told jurors that no one in her family wanted Balfour to marry her sister.
"We didn't like the way he treated her, and I didn't like the way he treated my nephew," she said of Balfour, who had pleaded not guilty to three counts of first-degree murder in the October 24, 2008 slayings of Hudson's mother, Darnell Donerson; brother Jason Hudson; and her 7-year-old nephew, Julian King.
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Saturday, May 12, 2012
Rihanna Leads 'Battleship' Premiere In Today's Twitter-Wood
This time next week "Battleship" will blast into theaters, but a few lucky people saw the film at the L.A. premiere last night! Rihanna brought her whole family along for the voyage as she hit the blue carpet in a revealing dress that made us question why she ever held boob envy for Brooklyn Decker. [...]
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Friday, May 11, 2012
Thumbtack Revamp Makes It Even Easier To Find A Service Provider
Thumbtack.com, a site that helps people find local service providers (from house cleaners to DJs to math tutors, to use the three examples on the company homepage), unveiled a big redesign earlier this week. Co-founder Sander Daniels says the original version of Thumbtack tried to make finding a service provider easier by avoiding the standard search interface ? people posted what job they were looking for, then Thumbtack connected those posters with a professionals who were qualified to do the work. That's still the basic idea, but the new site is "significantly easier and more sophisticated," Daniels says. Now, when you type in the general category that you're looking for, Thumbtack helps you with the listing by asking questions about the basic information that you'll need to enter.super bowl 2012 kickoff time football score ron paul nevada buffalo chicken dip super bowl 2012 soul train nevada caucus
UK gets official Top 100 music streaming chart next week, Billboard seen crying in the corner
Used to be, musicians were judged (commercially speaking, of course) by how much radio play they got and how many albums and singles they sold. The UK's answer to Billboard, the Official Charts Company, has seen a future filled with streaming music from services like Spotify, Napster and Deezer and decided that it needed a streaming chart to truly judge the success or failure of today's, and tomorrow's, top tunes. Thus, a Top 100 streaming chart was created and is set to launch next Monday, May 14. So, who rules the web across the pod, sonically speaking? You'll have to wait for the full list, but a preview of the top ten artists awaits in the PR below.
UK gets official Top 100 music streaming chart next week, Billboard seen crying in the corner originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 09 May 2012 23:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Rihanna and Darren McFadden: New Couple Alert?
Are Rihanna and Darren McFadden of the NFL's Oakland Raiders dating?
The singer made no secret of their connection during a late-April trip to Honolulu, Hawaii, during which she also promoted her film, Battleship.
The question is whether it's a real relationship or just a typical fling.
In any case, it sounds like the two hit it off quite nicely there.
“Rihanna rushed into the ocean, but Darren had to be coaxed,” an onlooker reveals. “She kept calling his name, and at one point, she discreetly flashed him. That did the trick."
"He ran into the water, and they started kissing.”
While they’ve only been "dating" a few weeks, the couple was spotted holding hands in the lobby of their hotel, The Kahala Hotel & Resort.
Later, they were dancing at a club and cuddling in a lounge chair.
But a source also added that there could be other motivations ... like getting inside Chris Brown's head: “She’s using Darren to make him jealous.”
On May 2, she made a point of wearing a Raiders shirt to a strip club, then she tweeted numerous pictures in the hopes that Chris would see.
Maybe she just likes silver and black attire?
[Photo: WENN.com]
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Thursday, May 10, 2012
Nicole Kidman's baby is a magazine cover girl
Harper's Bazaar
By Gael Fashingbauer Cooper
Nicole Kidman's daughter Faith Margaret is just 18 months old, but she's already a cover girl. The actress appears holding her daughter on a moody and elegant cover of the June issue of Harper's Bazaar Australia. Photos inside the magazine include shots of Kidman with older daughter Sunday Rose.
The editor of the magazine defends Kidman?against those who may say the actress shouldn't be exposing her children in this way. Edwina McCann writes that Faith and Sunday Rose came to the photo shoot after waking from their naps, and the photographer took some photos of the family together, intending them solely for Kidman's own album.
"I was shown the versions of her with the children, but with their faces obscured," McCann writes in the magazine.?"I fell in love and I wanted our readers?-- in fact, everyone?-- to see the pictures because they say so much more about Kidman than I am attempting to do right now in words. They are magic, raw and full of intense love, and clearly show her devotion to her children. I went to work convincing her that they deserved to be published, so for those who would criticize, blame me."
Archive video: Kidman talks family and musical role
While it looks to us as if Kidman's hair, which matches her daughter's in color now,?is merely pulled back or hidden behind her coat, some reports say she's already cut it short for a starring role as Princess Grace in the planned movie, "Grace of Monaco."
That film will reportedly focus on the American-born princess' life between 1961 and 1962, and is expected to be released in 2014.
Do you think it's OK for Kidman's children to be in the magazine? Tell us on Facebook.
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This Is What A Feminist Looks Like: Anne ? The Mamafesto
Name: Anne G. Sabo
Age: 39
Occupation: Writer and Educator
Location: Northfield, Minnesota, a small college town just south of the Twin Cities
Any other relevant tidbits you?d care to share: I grew up in Norway, recognized for its level of gender equality and support for sex education. I moved to the United States in 1995 to study for a year in Seattle, and ended up staying.
Anne
How do you define feminism?
I define feminism as the understanding that women and men are worthy of equal rights, opportunities, choices, respect, and recognition for who they are and what they do, with the added understanding that there is still work to be done in order to achieve all of this, specifically on behalf of women.
When did you first identify as a feminist?
Growing up in Norway, a Scandinavian country well known for the work done there to ensure women?s rights on a broad scale ? from the right to abortion and comprehensive parental leave, to the right to equal job opportunities and pay ? I took feminism for granted.
During my second year of elementary school, Gro Harlem Brundtland became Norway?s first female prime minister. She served three terms between 1981 and 1996 before taking on other prestigious positions for the World Health Organization and the United Nations. Trained a medical doctor, she also raised four children.
Girls my generation thought we, like our prime minister, could do and have it all. I grew up in gender neutral clothes, with a gender neutral haircut and gender neutral LEGOs. Eventually, we learned about the lack of women?s rights and gender equality in faraway places, like the third world and even closer by in the Mediterranean region and Eastern Europe. Then I moved in with my first serious boyfriend and I realized there was still plenty to be done in Norway too. While to a lesser extent than in the US, traditional gender roles still affect how young women and men navigate their relationships and divide domestic responsibilities. Upon realizing this, I became a feminist. I was 18 or 19 years old at that time.
Has your (definition of) feminism changed over time? How?
I would say that my definition of feminism has changed over time to be concerned not only with the lingering discrimination and archaic expectations of the female sex, but also of the male sex. Now feminism is to me a cause to free women as well as men from stereotypical ideas about what it means to be male or female in terms of our responsibilities, opportunities, and expressions, be it in terms of work, relationship, parenting, or sexuality. Narrow, claustrophobic gender categories bother me; unfortunately, they are still all too rampant. In my book After Pornified: How Women Are Transforming Pornography & Why It Really Matters (forthcoming fall 2012), I look at new feminist porn by women whose films shine the light on how we can all ? women and men ? break free from traditional gender roles and shatter erotic conventions.
And speaking of porn, I never thought of it as feminist ? on the contrary ? until I came across feminist porn by women who?ve seized the means of representation to explore and define sexuality on their terms.
Have you ever experienced resistance to identifying as a feminist? If so, why do you think that is and how do you handle it?
Abovementioned boyfriend and many of his friends reacted with disbelief and mockery against my feminist advocacy, which only served to solidify my feminist beliefs. In their opinion, feminism was something of the past. Clearly, it was not.
Surrounded by progressive friends, the topic was more or less moot during my years in graduate school at the University of Washington, Seattle.
I began experiencing resistance to feminism again while teaching college students in the Midwest for ten years. Several of my students were unwilling to accept the need for feminism. Some would even deny that we still had to fight for equal pay for equal work, and the right not to be sexually harassed and discriminated against sexually. I faced resistance in particular from conservative male students, but also from what I would label traditionalist female students, for lack of a better term. These were female students who were not opposed to attending college to attain the MRS degree, or worry less about their post-graduation careers than getting married and having children. This was very unsettling to me, but I never stopped advocating feminism; if anything, I became more concerned with the importance of teaching issues that pertain to gender and sexuality. Also sensing the need and desire among students for more comprehensive sexuality information, and having myself grown up in a country where substantial human sexuality education has been promoted for decades (Norway was a world pioneer in introducing human sexuality education in the public school system in the 1930s, and in the 1950s became the first country to mandate human sexuality education), I took on the unofficial role as sex educator for students who had all sorts of questions and insecurities when it came to human sexuality and intimacy. ?Love, Sex, and Family in Nordic Film Today? was a course I developed and taught for a number of years with this in mind, using the popular medium of film to address cultural differences in attitudes toward sexuality.
What do you see as the future of feminism?
At least here in the US, I see working for more comprehensive, paid parental leave as one of the most pressing items on the agenda for feminism. With only 6 to 12 weeks of maternity leave, many new moms opt to sacrifice their careers to stay home with their children, and for good reasons too, breastfeeding being one of them. This pattern will continue to reinforce traditional gender roles to the detriment of women and men. Cut to Norway, where political groups are now lobbing for an even more equal division of the one-year parental leave between the parents, lest the women lag behind in the workforce in terms of promotion and retirement plans.
But the future of feminism holds more than an empowered motherhood and gender equal parenting as a viable option, and includes working for equal rights, respect, and opportunities for all groups of our population, regardless of gender- and sexual orientation, age or race.
Anne G. Sabo, Ph.D., also known as Quizzical mama, is a former academic turned public educator, author, speaker, freelance writer, and mama- and sex blogger. As a college professor for ten years, she taught courses on literature, film- and women?s studies. Since leaving a tenured & promoted academic position, she has founded Love, Sex, and Family, a resource site devoted to progressive human sexuality information. In her New porn by women blog she writes about sexual politics and re-visioned feminist porn. Her Quizzical mama blog is an educated and personal approach to the politics and philosophies of parenting, often addressing controversial issues and reflecting on different cultural values and practices in the US and her native Norway. Her book After Pornified: How Women Are Transforming Pornography & Why It Really Matters is forthcoming this fall. She is also finishing a book on sleep parenting based on interviews with parents (The Sleep Question). You can follow her on Twitter @quizzicalmama. (Photo: Matt Spevack)
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The History of CM Punk and Daniel Bryan
The WWE Champion is not supposed to be here.
They said he was too small, a straight-edge scrapper who was about as far from the flamboyant WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels as can be, and far too much of an ?internet darling? to reach the lofty heights of the title he now holds.
The No. 1 contender is not supposed to be here, either. He is a 5-foot-10 vegan in a land of red-blooded, meaty hulks, a man who wins matches with submission holds instead of bone-crunching strikes. Not exactly Hulk Hogan reincarnate, in other words.
And yet, here CM Punk and Daniel Bryan are. The important thing to realize is that it is not a rivalry born of natural animosity, like Austin vs. McMahon. It is not born of betrayal, like Hart vs. Michaels, nor does it stem from self-destructive impulse, like Triple H vs. The Undertaker.
Instead, Punk vs. Bryan is a rivalry born of destiny, in an oddly roundabout way. The WWE Champion and his upstart, egomaniacal challenger are among a rare breed of WWE Superstar in that, from the very beginning, they were not supposed to reach WWE according to many . They do not come from the same kind of sports-entertainment pedigree as titans like Bret Hart and The Rock. They?re journeymen in the truest sense, hard workers who suffered and bled for their sport to reach for the top rather than be recruited by WWE?s developmental system, They are also the wiry, athletic type that is typically deemed too odd, too puny and too ?indie-looking ? to thrive in the land of giants.
But somehow, to the growing disbelief of even their most ardent fans, Punk and Bryan did succeed. One of them has held the WWE Championship for five months now. The other held the World Heavyweight Championship for four before losing it at WrestleMania XXVIII. And at WWE Over the Limit, The Second City Saint will put his prize on the line against the man who many believe to be his greatest foil, despite the fact they haven?t met all that often in the middle of the squared circle.
It?s as strange a WWE Championship rivalry as the WWE Universe is ever likely to see, and certainly one many thought they never would. And make no mistake: the road they took to get there was not an easy one ?
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Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Did LG's Optimus L5 handset sneak through the FCC?
Remember LG's Android L-style series of smartphones from back at Mobile World Conference? While we can't be totally certain this is the case, it appears that the Optimus L5 handset recently passed through the FCC's subterranean lair. Buried within the testing report is the diagram pictured, displaying measurements that fit in nicely with the mid-tier device's 4-inch screen size. For cellular connectivity, you'll find GSM (
Did LG's Optimus L5 handset sneak through the FCC? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 07 May 2012 07:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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