New York
Beastie Boys rap artist testifies at licensing trial
NEW YORK (AP) — A Beastie Boys rapper says the legendary hip-hop group would never license songs to endorse commercial products.
Adam “Ad-Rock” Horovitz testified in federal court in Manhattan on Tuesday. He was called as the first witness in a lawsuit the group filed against Monster Energy Co., a beverage maker. The lawsuit claims copyright infringement and unfair competition and seeks more than $2 million in damages.
A lawyer for the Corona, California-based company told the jury that Monster Energy “technically did violate the copyright.” But the attorney, S. Reid Kahn, said the company should only owe the band between $93,000 and $125,000 for five weeks when the video was online. He said the video had fewer than 14,000 views.
Massachusetts
Counselor faces accusation of sex incident with girl
ATTLEBORO, Mass. (AP) — A middle school guidance counselor in Massachusetts has been charged with having sex with a 14-year-old student and ordered held on $30,000 bail.
Brian McBride of Attleboro pleaded not guilty Tuesday to charges including statutory rape during an arraignment at which the girl’s father was removed from the courtroom after an outburst.
Prosecutors allege the 31-year-old McBride, who is married and has a toddler, had sex with the girl at school, in his car and at his home over several months last year.
McBride allegedly told police his marriage was in trouble and he loved the girl. He was the girl’s chorus teacher and gave her private singing lessons before becoming a guidance counselor at North Attleborough Middle School.
The girl’s parents went to police last weekend.
McBride’s lawyer said his client was “well respected in the community up until these allegations.”
Florida
Court says ex-FBI agent’s murder conviction voided
MIAMI (AP) — A Florida appeals court has overturned the murder conviction for a former FBI agent linked to mobster Whitey Bulger.
The 3rd District Court of Appeal ruled Wednesday that former agent John Connolly was improperly convicted and sentenced to 40 years in prison for his role in the 1982 slaying of a gambling executive. A hit man testified that he killed World Jai-Alai President John Callahan after ex-agent Connolly tipped Bulger and others that the executive would implicate them in another death.
In the court’s new ruling, a panel of judges determined in a 2-1 vote that Connolly’s second-degree murder conviction was barred by the statute of limitations. His attorneys argued that prosecutors improperly used a firearms allegation to enhance the charge.
Connolly has long denied a role in Callahan’s slaying.
South Carolina
Prosecutor says mayor sought to intimidate judge
GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — Prosecutors say Simpsonville Mayor Perry Eichor has been indicted after he tried to influence a municipal judge to rule a certain way.
Solicitor Walt Wilkins didn’t give details about the case Wednesday, but said someone in power trying to undermine a judge’s impartiality affects the entire judicial system.
A grand jury indicted the 78-year-old mayor on charges of obstruction of justice, misconduct of a public official and intimidation of a court official. The intimidation charge is a felony, while the rest are misdemeanors.
Eichor was elected mayor of Simpsonville in December 2011. He spent decades in federal and local law enforcement before becoming a consultant 15 years ago.
His lawyer didn’t return a phone message Wednesday.
Wisconsin
Milwaukee man pleads guilty in $5M violin theft
MILWAUKEE (AP) — One of two Milwaukee men accused in the theft of a $5 million Stradivarius violin has pleaded guilty to robbery.
Online court records say 36-year-old Universal K. Allah was convicted Wednesday morning. His sentencing hearing is set for late July.
He and Salah Salahadyn were charged with felony robbery in the case. Salahadyn pleaded not guilty, and is scheduled for another plea hearing on June 30.
A criminal complaint says Allah provided the stun gun used to attack and rob a violin concertmaster in Milwaukee in January. The complaint says Salahadyn had been plotting to steal a Stradivarius.
The 300-year-old violin was missing for nine days before police recovered it in good condition.
Idaho
Judge sends case over sex-slavery to district court
TWIN FALLS, Idaho (AP) — A magistrate judge has ruled there is enough evidence against a south-central Idaho man charged with forcibly keeping a woman as a sex slave for 18 months to move the case to district court.
The Times-News reports in a story on Wednesday that Magistrate Judge Thomas Kershaw made the decision after hearing testimony from the woman.
The 27-year-old woman on Friday testified that 36-year-old Oscar Ayala-Arizmendi repeatedly raped her, beat her and held her against her will in a booby-trapped home.
Ayala-Arizmendi is charged with first-degree kidnapping, rape and possessing a controlled substance.
Under cross-examination by Ayala-Arizmendi’s attorney, the woman said she sometimes drove around Buhl and could have gone to the police but didn’t.
Ayala-Arizmendi is being held on $1 million bail.
Ohio
Supreme Court upholds curfew in Cleveland park
CLEVELAND (AP) — The Ohio Supreme Court says the city of Cleveland has the right to enforce a curfew law for a downtown park.
The court voted 6-1 Wednesday to uphold an ordinance that prohibits people from the park area of Public Square from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. without a permit. Two Occupy Cleveland protesters were arrested in October 2011 after refusing to leave the park. They appealed after pleading no contest to a curfew violation.
An appellate court in Cleveland ruled the women’s arrests violated their First Amendment right to free speech and assembly.
Attorneys for the city appealed, arguing the ordinance is about public safety. The Supreme Court ruling said the women could have moved from the grassy area of Public Square to an adjacent sidewalk to avoid arrest.
