Cheryl K. Chumley

Tennessee man indicted for extorting money from Mitt Romney

A Tennessee man was indicted for extortion, accused of trying to get $1 million from former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney as a condition of keeping his tax returns private.

June 27, 2013

Jesse Jackson to help Paula Deen: She’s worthy of redemption

The Rev. Jesse Jackson said he will help celebrity chef Paula Deen work past the public relations disaster from her admitted past use of a racial slur.

June 27, 2013

NYC moves to clamp down on cops, bolster citizen rights

New York City Council members voted early Thursday to create an independent watchdog group tasked with overseeing police activity and ensuring officers don't discriminate against minorities and Muslims.

June 27, 2013

Orwellian iPhone app records audio that happened 5 minutes ago

It's the stuff of George Orwell's 1984. A new iPhone app – aptly named Heard — allows users to "capture audio after you've heard it," up to five minutes later, company executives say.

June 27, 2013

Edward Snowden in 2009: Those who publish secrets ‘should be shot’

Edward Snowden, the Web-savvy National Security Agency information leaker who's now in hiding, didn't always believe in the right of the people to know their government's behind-the-scenes activities.

June 27, 2013

6 Americans, 1 Brit lost at sea, as concerns turn ‘grave’

New Zealand Maritime heads expressed "grave concerns" Thursday over the suspected fate of six Americans who mysteriously vanished at sea more than three weeks ago.

June 27, 2013

Angela Merkel warns against arms in Syria: ‘Incalculable’ risks

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday that arming Syrian rebels is a bad idea, and parliamentary leaders ought to think long and hard before acting.

June 27, 2013

Rep. Tammy Duckworth, double amputee, slams IRS worker on disability — ‘twisting your ankle’

Democratic Rep. Tammy Duckworth, a veteran of the Iraq conflict and a double amputee, blasted a corporate CEO who contracted with the IRS and claimed a veterans' disability from a minor injury he suffered during preparatory school.

June 27, 2013

Grampa Bloomberg: NYC mayor’s daughter expecting first child

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's daughter Georgina, a competitive equestrian, is pregnant and due to give birth this winter.

June 27, 2013

Nelson Mandela update: Critical, as South Africa’s President Zuma cancels trip

Nelson Mandela's medical condition is so poor that the president of South Africa, Jacob Zuma, felt compelled to cancel his trip to Mozambique.

June 27, 2013

Brits break electric car speed record, at 204 mph

A British racing team said it's broken world speed records for electric cars, test riding one at 204.2 miles per hour on Tuesday.

June 26, 2013

Prosecutors file gag order against W.Va. boy suspended for NRA T-shirt

Prosecutors on the case of an eighth-grade student who was suspended and arrested a couple weeks ago for refusing to take off his T-shirt with the NRA logo petitioned the court for an emergency gag order this week.

June 26, 2013

Marriage material: Study finds women with chiseled features favored to wed

When it comes to marriage, women with chiseled faces with more masculine undertones tend to fare better than those with soft, delicate feminine features, a new study finds.

June 26, 2013

End obesity: Tax calories, researchers say

A new report from the nonprofit National Bureau of Economic Research suggests that hiking prices on food could prove the nation's solution to fighting off obesity.

June 26, 2013

Dribbling for Jesus: Girl, 8, taking YouTube by storm says it’s all for God

An 8-year-old girl whose insane dribbling skills have taken the basketball world by storm says she's doing it all for God.

June 26, 2013

Texas set to carry out 500th execution

Texas will reach a dubious milestone Wednesday when convicted killer Kimberly McCarthy is put to death, as it will mark the state's 500th execution since 1982.

June 26, 2013

Islamic extremists slit throat of Christian for refusing to renounce faith

Radical Islamists in Nigeria have upped their fight for power in recent weeks, expanding their attacks on government forces to local citizens — one of the latest involving a Christian pastor who refused to renounce his faith.

June 26, 2013

Arrested: New Black Panther who sparked 2008 voter intimidation probe

The New Black Panther Party member who sparked national outrage and a federal investigation in 2008 after he was captured on video brandishing a billy club at a Philadelphia voting poll has been arrested in New York.

June 26, 2013

Paula Deen: I’m not a racist — ‘No, I’m not’

Celebrity cook Paula Deen took to the airwaves Wednesday to give emotional testimony on NBC's "Today" show and fight back against charges that she's racist.

June 26, 2013

Pope Francis tackles troubled Vatican bank, launches inquiry

Pope Francis on Wednesday named a special commission of inquiry to investigate the Vatican bank and the money-laundering accusations that have tainted the financial institution for months.

June 26, 2013