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Professional sports and scantily-clad women go hand-in-hand, or so it might seem if you’ve ever seen a beer commerical or a pro cheerleader. Apparently, when it comes to pro sports fans, however, teams prefer their women in not-so-provocative attire. Case in point: Sondra Fortunato and the New York Giants. In Week 15 of NFL play, Sondra, the chesty self-proclaimed Miss Football, was ejected from the Giant’s loss to Dallas at the Meadowlands....

The United States Supreme Court ruled that almost $2 billion in assets seized from Bank Markazi, Iran’s central bank, can be used to pay victims of terror attacks and their families who won default judgments against the country in civil court. Over 1,300 victims and families of Iran-sponsored acts of terrorism have been seeking compensation since 2008, and they may be one step closer to receiving it. The ruling could have an enormous impact on U....

A Louisiana teen who used an iPhone app to simulate a school shooting faces criminal charges after posting his virtual-reality video online. From biting Pop-Tarts into gun shapes to clasping hands into gun shapes, it’s become commonplace for school zero-tolerance policies to treat every flight of gun fancy into a tangible threat. In this case, the 15-year-old student learned his lesson the hard way. The YouTube video he allegedly posted showed himself “shooting” his classmates at his high school in Gray, Louisiana....

Where are the cleanest beaches in America? What about the dirtiest? Just in time for summer beach season, the verdict is in when it comes to beach cleanliness. The National Resources Defense Council has rated 200 popular beaches from coast to coast. Among the NRDC’s ratings criteria: how frequently a beach is tested for contaminants, and how a beach handles unsafe bacterial levels, such as by notifying the public. In 2012, only 13 beaches received a full 5-star rating from the NRDC....

They may not seem like serious offenses, but even minor crimes can have major consequences. While misdemeanors are capped at one year in jail, any incarceration can have a serious impact on your life and even misdemeanor convictions can end up on your record. Here are a few minor criminal offenses, along with some tips on how to deal with them before they become major criminal problems: 1. Caught Shoplifting? You Should Get a Lawyer It’s just a candy bar or a soda, right?...

Toyota’s confidential settlement in a fatal sudden acceleration case is confidential no more. We now know the case settled for $10 million. The settlement involved a Toyota sudden acceleration case filed by the relatives of California Highway Patrol officer Mark Saylor and three other victims. Saylor was killed in a brutal crash that was captured on a 911 phone call. Legal experts had anticipated in the wake of Saylor’s death and the subsequent recall that settlement figures would be far higher than $10 million....

Some people, like Disney star Kelli Berglund, 20, seem to have it all, and when they are so young! But what Berglund doesn’t have, at least not now, is 21 years on the planet. Without that, no amount of fame or fortune entitles her to legally consume alcohol in California, not even at the festival of the year. The young actress Berglund had to find this out the hard way, getting arrested at Coachella last week, before the music festival even got started officially....

Vioxx manufacturer Merck & Co., Inc. announced today that it will pay $4.85 billion into a fund to settle most lawsuits filed over injuries or deaths allegedly caused by the once-popular painkiller medication. The agreement is not a class action settlement, as Merck will still consider claims individually before making any payments from the settlement fund. A Merck Press Release contains detailed information about the agreement and conditions for qualifying claims....

The governor of Vermont, who signed the bill into law in the state to decriminalize marijuana possession, has just issued 192 pardons to individuals convicted of marijuana crimes. The pardons, which were all for misdemeanor possession of marijuana, also required that the offenses not be in relation to a DUI charge or violent crime. However, the pro-pot governor decided that issuing pardons for these pot convictions would be one of the last things he did before leaving office....

State Street Bank and Trust was sued by California Attorney General Jerry Brown’s office today, accusing the Boston, Massachusetts bank of massive, “unconscionable” investment fraud by overcharging the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) and the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) pension funds tens of millions of dollars The lawsuit alleges that for eight years, starting in 2001, State Street “consistently ‘marked-up’” Interbank Rate trade prices for buying and selling currency, rather than honoring its contract with CalPERS and CalSTRS to give the pension funds “the most competitive rates available for all FX transactions....

Singer Carly Simon has filed a second lawsuit against Starbucks over the decision by the coffee chain to get out of the music business just days before her album was set to be released in stores. The new suit filed by Carly Simon comes on the heels of her original suit which a judge shot down, saying she didn’t have a direct contract with Starbucks and that she failed to show how the company made any fraudulent misrepresentations, according to the Hollywood Reporter....

Not only did Chevron force a judge to resign when it produced recordings pointing to a bribery scheme, it has also acquired outtakes from a documentary showing a plaintiff’s lawyer discussing meetings he had with judges and government officials. The company also has evidence that shows collaboration between plaintiffs and a court-appointed expert who valued the lawsuit, reports Reuters. Despite all the evidence produced by Chevron, Ecuador Judge Nicolas Zambrano ruled against the company, ordering it to pay a $8....

Don’t drive and role-play. Actually, just keep the role-playing behind your bedroom doors. It’s for the good of all mankind. And your criminal record. Just take a look at Nikolas Harbar and Stephanie Pelzner, a Portland, Ore. couple arrested for role-playing on Valentine’s Day. Police carried out a citywide search for Harbar after a witness reported he was driving around town with a naked woman in his backseat. She was bound and gagged....

Mentorship and guidance programs for middle and high school students can be extremely valuable to a young person’s development, but programs that “guide” a student into the criminal justice system can have equally negative effects. One such program in Riverside, California, known as the Youth Accountability Team Program, is being accused of funneling children who haven’t committed a crime into criminal-like probation programs for poor grades, being tardy to school or “defiant,” using “inappropriate language,” being “easily persuaded by peers,” or “pulling the race card....

The summer heat has various effects on different people. Some become lazy and want to lie in the shade all day, and some get hot and bothered, all riled up, which may be why crime rates rise with the temperatures during the summer season. Scientists have found a connection between high temperatures and higher crime rates. But it’s not clear why crime rises in the summer. No one knows the reason for the phenomenon but there is evidence that it happens, as well as two competing theories circulating....

Getting away from the daily grind, dropping the regular routine, and just getting in some rest and relaxation is not just fantastic, it’s necessary. However, just because you’re on vacation, that doesn’t mean the law doesn’t apply. Get loose, get wild, but don’t forget, crime has consequences and can end a vacation. When you’re travelling to a different state, or city, or even a national park a few miles from home, it can be helpful to know if there are any major differences in the law....

An Illinois trucker convicted of killing a Maryland family in a 2012 crash has received the maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The truck driver had failed to heed federal regulations aimed at curbing truck driver fatigue. Josef Slezak, 37, of Rivergrove, Illinois, pleaded guilty to four counts of vehicular homicide and one count of vehicular homicide of an unborn fetus as part of a plea agreement. Slezak fell asleep behind the wheel shortly before the crash on Interstate 80 in western Nebraska....

They say that you should practice what you preach. So if you spend your time preaching the ills of drunk driving as part of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, you probably shouldn’t do it yourself. But that’s just what Debra Oberlin, is accused of, the Gainesville Sun reports. The former MADD presidents’ DUI has many people screaming hypocrisy. Oberlin was allegedly spotted driving all over the road in Gainesville, Florida at 1 a....

It’s not every day that a 12-year-old robs a store. Or at least tries to. But that’s just what happened at Country Lake Food Center in Highland, Michigan Friday night, when a young girl pointed a nine millimeter gun at employees and demanded cash. Apparently the 12-year-old suspect was a regular at the Highland, Michigan convenience store, which is why employees at first thought that she was joking, reports Fox News....

The Food and Drug Administration plans to investigate whether AeroShot, an inhalable caffeine sold in small canisters, is safe for consumer use. The agency will also decide whether the product is properly branded as a dietary supplement. Unlike medications, supplements are not subject to FDA review before being placed on the market. For the uninitiated, AeroShot allows consumers to breathe in a fine caffeine powder that then dissolves in the mouth....