Jessica Chasmar

Jesse Jackson blasts Florida as ‘apartheid state’

The Rev. Jesse Jackson has called to boycott the "apartheid state" of Florida if the Department of Justice does not lodge a civil rights case against George Zimmerman.

July 18, 2013

Pregnant ex-Olympic runner collapses at Chinese restaurant, dies; doctors save her baby

Just three weeks before her due date, former Olympic runner Meskerem Legesse collapsed at a Chinese restaurant in Connecticut and died, but doctors were able to save her baby.

July 18, 2013

Bill Cosby: TV dad says no way of proving George Zimmerman is racist

Bill Cosby decided to weigh in on the George Zimmerman verdict Tuesday, saying there's no way to prove Zimmerman is racist.

July 18, 2013

Detroit files for bankruptcy

Detroit has filed for federal bankruptcy in what could become the country's largest-ever municipal bankruptcy case, the Associated Press reported Thursday

July 18, 2013

Grandmother pummels hoodie-wearing home intruders with Guitar Hero console

A grandmother in Fort Wayne, Ind., warded off three home intruders on Sunday after she began pummeling one of them with a Guitar Hero gaming console.

July 18, 2013

Calif. Congresswoman changes Twitter, Facebook avatars to Trayvon Martin

In her latest act of support for slain teenager Trayvon Martin, Calif. Rep. Karen Bass changed both her Twitter and Facebook avatars to the heavily circulated picture of Martin as a child.

July 18, 2013

Woolwich killer of Lee Rigby attacked in Belmarsh prison in the U.K.: report

One of the two men accused of murdering British soldier Lee Rigby in London this summer is believed to have been injured in an attack in Belmarsh prison.

July 18, 2013

After Zimmerman verdict, Colorado Democrat bans ‘dark son’ from playing ‘cops and robbers’

The Colorado Democrat who once suggested that ballpoint pens and the buddy system were reasonable alternatives to carrying a firearm for self-defense took to Facebook on Sunday to explain why, in light of the George Zimmerman acquittal, he no longer is allowing his children to play "cops and robbers."

July 18, 2013

Trayvon Martin’s father: My son was racially profiled

Tracy Martin and Sybrina Fulton, the parents of slain 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, joined the "Today Show" to share their reaction to George Zimmerman's acquittal.

July 18, 2013

City commissioner cries racism at grocery store’s dried-out asparagus

As racial tensions continue to boil over nationwide in response to the George Zimmerman verdict, a dried out batch of asparagus is what was the last straw for one University City, Mo. resident.

July 18, 2013

Calif. Zimmerman protest unfolds with 17 arrests

A George Zimmerman protest in Victorville, Calif., turned rowdy Wednesday night, resulting in 17 arrests after a mob of youths reportedly looted a convenience store and tried to force their way into the mall.

July 18, 2013

Rachel Jeantel: Trayvon Martin threw the first punch

Florida's star witness in the George Zimmerman trial, Rachel Jeantel, said on Wednesday that she believes her deceased friend Trayvon Martin threw the first punch that ultimately lead to his death.

July 17, 2013

‘It was terrifying’: Zimmerman protester assaults woman driving daughter to the hospital

Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets in Houston on Monday to protest against the acquittal of George Zimmerman, but what started as a peaceful rally turned terrifying for one woman who claims she was assaulted while trying to get her daughter to the hospital.

July 17, 2013

Allen West slams Eric Holder and ‘faux leaders’ of Trayvon Martin case

Former Congressman Allen West blasted the "faux leaders" and "race baiters" of the George Zimmerman case on Wednesday, specifically calling out Rev. Al Sharpton and Attorney General Eric Holder for turning the trial into a race issue.

July 17, 2013

Bob Filner: Grabby San Diego mayor is keynote speaker for conference on sexual assault

San Diego's Mayor Bob Filner is scheduled to be the keynote speaker at a conference on sexual assault in the military next month.

July 17, 2013

Westboro Baptist Church to picket Glee star Cory Montieth’s funeral

The notorious Westboro Baptist Church has vowed to picket the funeral for Canadian actor Cory Monteith, the "Glee" star who passed away in a Vancouver hotel Saturday from a deadly mixture of heroin and alcohol.

July 17, 2013

NYC mayoral hopeful William Thompson: Trayvon Martin ‘was killed because he was black’

New York mayoral hopeful William Thompson on Monday defended his controversial tweet that George Zimmerman killed Trayvon Martin because of race, saying he was merely "stating the obvious."

July 17, 2013

Alveda King: MLK’s niece says stop the ‘race-baiting’ with Zimmerman verdict

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s niece expressed her dissatisfaction on Monday with the NAACP, saying it's "race baiting" by calling for a federal civil rights investigation into George Zimmerman.

July 17, 2013

Shark bites 15-year-old girl in half off Indian Ocean island of Reunion

A 15-year-old French girl was killed Monday afternoon after a shark bit her in half while swimming off the Indian Ocean island of Reunion, the fifth person to be killed by sharks on the island since 2011.

July 16, 2013

India police arrest eight in gang-rape of four schoolgirls

Police arrested eight suspects in the horrific gang rape of four schoolgirls abducted from their convent boarding house in east India, officials said Tuesday.

July 16, 2013