SPORT-ferdinand-fined-tweet-terry

Rio Ferdinand has been found guilty of improper conduct and fined £45,000 ($70,000) by the English Football Association (FA) for comments posted on Twitter relating to his England teammate and Chelsea star, Ashley Cole.

SPORT-williams-venus-serena-stosur-tennis

When Venus Williams was knocked off the top of the women's tennis world rankings by younger sister Serena in July 2002, she couldn't have imagined that over a decade later she would still be waiting for a return to the summit.

U.S.A.

Louisiana-Officers-Shot

Four men and three women have been arrested in connection with shootings that left two Louisiana sheriff's deputies dead and two others wounded, police said Friday.

Texas-Hasan-Trial

A military appeals court halted the murder case against Maj. Nidal Hasan indefinitely on Friday to sort out issues surrounding a judge's threat to shave the beard the Army psychiatrist grew while awaiting trial in the 2009 Fort Hood killings.

Michigan-Police-Shooting

Civil rights investigators for the Justice Department on Friday opened a federal probe into the controversial shooting death of a Saginaw, Michigan, man whose family says he had a history of mental illness.

Virginia-Hinckley-Treatment

A Virginia mental health facility has dropped out of a plan to allow presidential assailant John Hinckley Jr. to participate in social group sessions, according to a government court motion issued Friday.

New-York-Chapman-Parole-Hearing

Mark David Chapman, John Lennon's convicted killer, is up for parole for the seventh time and may be questioned as early as Tuesday, authorities said Friday.

US-Family-Research-Council-Profile (with US-Southern-Poverty-Law-Center-Profile)

It's an online gallery of hate. Here on the Southern Poverty Law Center website is Blood & Honour, a racist skinhead group with members who killed two homeless people they deemed inferior, according to police. A quick scroll away is the World Church of the Creator, which calls nonwhites "mud races" and preaches "racial holy war" that has, according to authorities, inspired some members to commit violent crimes. Then there's the Family Research Council. The SPLC says the conservative Washington policy group is listed as a hate group because "it has knowingly spread false and denigrating propaganda" about lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender people.

US-Southern-Poverty-Law-Center-Profile (with US-Family-Research-Council-Profile)

Founded on the heels of America's civil rights movement, the Southern Poverty Law Center burnished its name with legal wins over white-supremist groups and helped integrate institutions like the Alabama State Police.

US-Conservatives-Call-DC-Attack-War-on-Religion

For many conservative Christians, this week's Family Research Council shooting that wounded a security guard and that the FBI is investigating as a possible act of domestic terrorism was hardly a one-off attack. Rather, they say the incident is the latest evidence in what they allege is a growing war on religion from the left, an offensive they say extends from the Obama White House down to the liberal grass roots and even foreign governments.

MED-diana-nyad-swim

If the name Diana Nyad sounds familiar, it's probably because you've heard of her incredible feats of human performance -- before people like Lance Armstrong and Michael Phelps became household names. Meeting Nyad, it's instantly obvious there's something different about her. By spending just five minutes with her -- or better yet, watching the 62-year-old swim -- you'll know you're in the presence of an amazing athlete. On Sunday, more than 30 years after her last competitive swim, she will once again take to the waters of the Straits of Florida to attempt the 103-mile swim.

POLITICS

POL-Transportation-Program