Source: Jackson family aware probe could be criminal case

The Jackson family knows that the probe into singer Michael Jackson’s death could turn into a criminal case, a source close to the family told CNN Thursday. “The family is aware of a potential criminal prosecution,” the source, who did not want to be identified, said.

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4 charged with digging up graves, reselling plots

Four people face felony charges after authorities discovered that hundreds of graves were dug up and allegedly resold at a historic African-American cemetery near Chicago, Illinois, authorities said Thursday. Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart said the four would resell the plots in Burr Oak Cemetery in Alsip, excavate the graves, dump the remains and pocket the cash.

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Police identify 7 slain women found in February

New Mexico authorities have identified seven of 11 slain women whose remains were discovered several months ago in shallow graves in west Albuquerque, but have yet to identify a suspect in their killings, police told CNN on Thursday. A dozen victims — 11 women and the unborn child of one of them — were found on a 92-acre parcel west of the city in February, police said

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Madoff won’t appeal 150-year sentence, attorney says

Bernard Madoff has decided not to appeal the 150-year prison sentence he received for operating the biggest investment fraud in history. “We are not going to appeal,” Madoff attorney Ira Lee Sorkin told CNN on Thursday. Sorkin said he met with Madoff this week at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Lower Manhattan.

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Actress: Michael Jackson’s glove was to hide skin problem

Michael Jackson’s single white glove was his trademark — an iconic image for a performer whose career constantly set, then redefined, pop culture trends. But it also was an early effort to mask a skin condition that he would struggle with for the rest of his life, say some who were close to him. Actress Cicely Tyson, a friend of Jackson’s, said the two shared a fashion designer in the 1980s.

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Fans brave torrential rain at ‘Harry Potter’ premiere

If Potions Professor Horace Slughorn had mixed a brew to conjure up torrential rain, the weather could not have been worse for the premiere of "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince." Dedicated fans braved thunder, lightning and Biblical downpours in London’s Leicester Square to catch a glimpse of the film’s stars arriving at the opening of the sixth film in the wildly popular “Harry Potter” franchise.

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Jews dismiss F1 boss’s apology for praising Hitler

Jewish groups on Wednesday rejected as inadequate an apology by Formula One chief Bernie Ecclestone for remarks in which he praised German Nazi leader Adolf Hitler. During an interview with The Times newspaper last week the billionaire spoke of the Nazi dictator’s ability to “get things done.” But after a storm of criticism, Ecclestone issued a statement on Tuesday in which he said: “I unreservedly apologize for the remarks I made regarding Hitler in a recent interview.

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