Cheryl K. Chumley

Americans drowning in debt — and 18 percent say they’ll die that way

One in five U.S. adults are so depressed about debt — not to mention drowning in it — that they think they're going to die still owing their creditors.

December 11, 2014

Al Gore gets lyrical, recites Chinese poetry at U.N. climate conference

Former Vice President Al Gore pulled out all the stops Wednesday at the U.N. climate conference in Peru, reciting lines from poets from three different countries — Spain, China and the United States.

December 11, 2014

Dimitri Diatchenko, actor, charged with killing ex-girlfriend’s rabbit — and eating it

Los Angeles television and video game actor Dimitri Diatchenko, 46, was charged with killing his ex-girlfriend's pet rabbit, cooking it and eating half of it, and sending her photographs of the process with a threat to do the same to her.

December 11, 2014

Michael Steel, John Boehner’s spokesman, caught on hot mic cursing at reporters

House Speaker John Boehner's spokesman Michael Steel was captured on a hot mic slamming reporters for what he characterized as their "horse[expletive]" phrasing of questions.

December 11, 2014

Russell Simmons, hip-hop star, argues ‘sensitivity training’ of police is key to fight black crime

Hip-hop star Russell Simmons said to Fox News' Bill O'Reilly during a nationally televised segment that the best way to combat the crime rate in black communities around the nation was to mandate that police undergo "sensitivity training," he said.

December 11, 2014

Angela Merkel OKs rule to make big companies hire 30 percent women supervisors

German Chancellor Angela Merkel gave her stamp of approval to a Cabinet measure that orders leading companies in the country to reserve about a third of their supervisory board slots for women.

December 11, 2014

Islamic State puts James Foley’s body up for sale for $1M

Islamic State terrorists couldn't strike ransom deals with the United States to trade hostages for money — so their newest revenue drive has them attempting to sell the body of James Foley, one of their beheaded victims.

December 11, 2014

Daniel Pantaleo, officer who took down Eric Garner: I ‘never used a chokehold’

Daniel Pantaleo, the New York police officer who was captured on video wrapping his arms around Eric Garner's neck to subdue him in a street arrest, told internal investigators that he didn't actually use a chokehold — he used a "takedown" maneuver.

December 11, 2014

Teresa Sullivan, University of Virginia head, on petition hit list for firing

Teresa Sullivan, the president of the University of Virginia — the campus at the heart of the Rolling Stone magazine debacle over its since-debunked rape claim piece — has become the target of a Change.org petition that calls for her immediate firing.

December 11, 2014

Timothy Poole, sexual predator, wins $3M in Florida Lottery

A man listed as a sexual predator on the Florida Department of Law Enforcement website has won $3 million in the state's lottery.

December 11, 2014

Michigan police shock drivers with wrapped gifts, not tickets

Talk about a Christmas gift. Police in Lowell, Michigan, turned on their flashing lights, pulled over drivers — and offered wrapped presents.

December 10, 2014

Dennis Rodman on Vladimir Putin: ‘You know, he’s actually cool’

Former NBA great Dennis Rodman, who's frequently referred to North Korean despot Kim Jong-un as a personal friend, returned from a recent trip to Russia filled with praise for another leader with disreputable roots — the former KGB's Vladimir Putin.

December 10, 2014

Ellie Kaiser, Utah girl, booted from serving on charity because she wore pants

A Utah high-schooler who wanted to volunteer at a local Salt Lake City charity was told to go home — that she wasn't allowed to wear pants.

December 10, 2014

Kobe Bryant, L.A. Lakers teammates wear ‘I Can’t Breathe’ shirts for warmups

Kobe Bryant and several of his Los Angeles Lakers' teammates donned "I Can't Breathe" T-shirts for pregame warmups against the Sacramento Kings — the latest athletes to take public stances in the case of Eric Garner, a New York suspect who died an hour or so after a policeman put him in a chokehold.

December 10, 2014

Adam Everett Livix, Texan, arrested in Israel for bomb plot on Muslim holy sites

Adam Everett Livix, a 30-year-old Texas man, was arrested by Israeli authorities over allegations he plotted to bomb several Muslim holy sites.

December 10, 2014

Ben Edelman, Harvard business professor, goes berserk at $4 overcharge for Chinese food

An associate professor at Harvard Business School who teaches in the Negotiation, Organizations & Markets division kicked his arguing skills into overtime after a Chinese restaurant dared to overcharge him for his food — by $4.

December 10, 2014

Obama dodges Bill Cosby commentary: ‘Important to not focus on one case’

President Obama refused to weigh in on the assault and rape charges circling around comedian and Hollywood icon Bill Cosby, saying that he'd rather keep his discussions about sexual attacks non-specific.

December 10, 2014

Dallas senior living complex goes up in five-alarm flames

Fire tore through a senior living apartment complex in a northeastern corner of Dallas, Texas, early Wednesday morning, forcing residents to flee and firefighters to rush to save several at the same time they battled the five-alarm blaze.

December 10, 2014

Iran slams U.S. for ‘racism and inhumane behavior’ over police killings

Iran's government has issued a scathing commentary on the U.S. government's treatment of citizens, saying the Eric Garner and Michael Brown police killings prove one thing: America is racist.

December 10, 2014

Terrell Doss of Ferguson accused of firing gun at police helicopter

Terrell Doss, 28, of Ferguson, Missouri, was formally charged with two counts of assault on law enforcement after he allegedly fired a gun at a St. Louis County Police helicopter carrying a couple officers.

December 10, 2014