HACKENSACK, N.J. ? A South Carolina man accused of using a stun gun on other fans during a fight at a New York Jets-Dallas Cowboys game last year pleaded not guilty Monday to several criminal charges.
A lawyer for Leroy McKelvey of Moncks Corner, S.C., entered the plea in state court in Hackensack. McKelvey, who came to court dressed in a suit and tie and using a cane to walk, didn't speak during the brief proceeding or afterward except to tell reporters that Monday was his 60th birthday.
McKelvey faces eight counts including aggravated assault and unlawful possession of a weapon. He is scheduled to return to court March 5 for a status conference on the case.
McKelvey's attorney, Raymond Hamlin, said he had turned down a plea offer of three years in prison for his client. The aggravated assault charges are third-degree crimes and carry prison sentences of five to 10 years upon conviction.
"The plea offer includes jail time, and we don't feel that's appropriate for this case," Hamlin said outside court.
McKelvey was arrested at MetLife Stadium on Sept. 11. According to reports, he became involved in an altercation with other fans when he remained seated during the singing of the national anthem.
Stadium CEO Mark Lamping has said no one was seriously hurt in the incident during the Jets' 27-24 victory.
Security had been beefed up for the game because it was the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
ScienceDaily (Jan. 29, 2012) ? A study recently published in Nature Genetics has found new evidence for a link between the body clock hormone melatonin and type 2 diabetes. The study found that people who carry rare genetic mutations in the receptor for melatonin have a much higher risk of type 2 diabetes.
The findings should help scientists to more accurately assess personal diabetes risk and could lead to the development of personalised treatments.
Previous research has found that people who work night shifts have a higher risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Studies have also found that if volunteers have their sleep disrupted repeatedly for three days, they temporarily develop symptoms of diabetes.
The body's sleep-wake cycle is controlled by the hormone melatonin, which has effects including drowsiness and lowering body temperature. In 2008, a genetic study led by Imperial College London discovered that people with common variations in the gene for MT2, a receptor for melatonin, have a slightly higher risk of type 2 diabetes.
The new study reveals that carrying any of four rare mutations in the MT2 gene increases a person's risk of developing type 2 diabetes six times. The release of insulin, which regulates blood sugar levels, is known to be regulated by melatonin. The researchers suggest that mutations in the MT2 gene may disrupt the link between the body clock and insulin release, leading to abnormal control of blood sugar.
Professor Philippe Froguel, from the School of Public Health at Imperial College London, who led the study, said: "Blood sugar control is one of the many processes regulated by the body's biological clock. This study adds to our understanding of how the gene that carries the blueprint for a key component in the clock can influence people's risk of diabetes.
"We found very rare variants of the MT2 gene that have a much larger effect than more common variants discovered before. Although each mutation is rare, they are common in the sense that everyone has a lot of very rare mutations in their DNA. Cataloguing these mutations will enable us to much more accurately assess a person's risk of disease based on their genetics."
In the study, the Imperial team and their collaborators at several institutions in the UK and France examined the MT2 gene in 7,632 people to look for more unusual variants that have a bigger effect on disease risk. They found 40 variants associated with type 2 diabetes, four of which were very rare and rendered the receptor completely incapable of responding to melatonin. The scientists then confirmed the link with these four variants in an additional sample of 11,854 people.
Professor Froguel and his team analysed each mutation by testing what effect they have on the MT2 receptor in human cells in the lab. The mutations that completely prevented the receptor from working proved to have a very big effect on diabetes risk, suggesting that there is a direct link between MT2 and the disease.
The research was funded by the Wellcome Trust, the National Institute for Health Research and the Medical Research Council in the UK and the Agence National de la Recherche, the Contrat de Projets Etat-R?gion Nord-Pas-De-Calais, the Soci?t? Francophone du Diab?te, the Fondation Recherche M?dicale and the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique in France.
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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Imperial College London, via AlphaGalileo.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
Journal Reference:
Am?lie Bonnefond, Nathalie Cl?ment, Katherine Fawcett, Lo?c Yengo, Emmanuel Vaillant, Jean-Luc Guillaume, Aur?lie Dechaume, Felicity Payne, Ronan Roussel, S?bastien Czernichow, Serge Hercberg, Samy Hadjadj, Beverley Balkau, Michel Marre, Olivier Lantieri, Claudia Langenberg, Nabila Bouatia-Naji, Guillaume Charpentier, Martine Vaxillaire, Ghislain Rocheleau, Nicholas J Wareham, Robert Sladek, Mark I McCarthy, Christian Dina, In?s Barroso, Ralf Jockers, Philippe Froguel. Rare MTNR1B variants impairing melatonin receptor 1B function contribute to type 2 diabetes. Nature Genetics, 2012; DOI: 10.1038/ng.1053
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
Scientists have determined that Earth's "missing energy" isn't missing after all.
Earth's primary energy source is the sun, which bombards the planet with solar rays every day. This energy helps drive our weather system, makes the planet warm enough for life and drives photosynthesis in plants, among other things. But not all of this energy is retained by the Earth ? some of it is reflected or radiated back into space.
By studying the amount of solar energy absorbed by the atmosphere, and comparing it to the energy released back into space by the planet, a team of researchers has calculated how much energy is retained by the planet. Most of the energy is held within the oceans as heat; the influx causes a slow rise in temperature.
Missing or not?
A previous study, released by a different group in 2010, noted that the ocean heating from 2004 to 2008 seemed to slow. This led them to suggest that some of the planet's energy was missing.
But the new team, led by Norman Leob of NASA's Langley Research Center, re-examined the numbers measured over the course of the last decade and found them to be relatively stable.
Loeb's team maintained that the margin of error was larger than the original study took into account.
"One of the things we wanted to do was a more rigorous analysis of the uncertainties," Loeb said in a statement. "When we did that, we found the conclusion of missing energy in the system isn't really supported by the data."
Looking for what was lost
Using a decade's worth of data collected by the Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE), the team determined the amount of energy absorbed from the sun. They then subtracted the energy reflected back into space, as well as the energy emitted by the Earth, using the Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System (CERES).
The energy left over is trapped somewhere on Earth. Less than 10 percent of it heats the land and atmosphere, and melts snow and ice, while the rest heats the ocean.
The original study found that the Earth's temperature, which had been steadily rising, slowed its pace. But the new study notes that the methods for measuring characteristics of the ocean shifted in 2003.
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When accounting for the margin of error of both methods employed, the new study states that the apparent decline is "not statistically significant, nor is it observed by CERES."
Currently, data on the ocean is collected via the Argo program, which has dropped more than 3,000 floats in saltwater around the world. As the floats sink and rise, they measure the temperature and salt content of the water up to a depth of 1.25 miles (2,000 meters).
"Our data show that Earth has been accumulating heat in the ocean at a rate of half a watt per square meter (10.8 square feet), with no sign of a decline," Loeb said.
? 2012 OurAmazingPlanet. All rights reserved. More from OurAmazingPlanet.
BERLIN (Reuters) ? Greece must surrender control of its budget policy to outside institutions if it cannot implement reforms attached to euro zone rescue measures, the German economy minister was quoted as saying on Sunday.
Philipp Roesler became the first German cabinet member to openly endorse a proposal for Greece to surrender budget control after Reuters quoted a European source on Friday as saying Berlin wants Athens to give up budget control.
"We need more leadership and monitoring when it comes to implementing the reform course," Roesler, also vice chancellor, told Bild newspaper, according to an advance of an interview to be published on Monday.
"If the Greeks aren't able to succeed themselves with this, then there must be stronger leadership and monitoring from abroad, for example through the EU," added Roesler, chairman of the Free Democrats (FDP) who share power with Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Reuters reported on Friday that Germany wants Greece to give up control of budget policy to European institutions as part of discussions over a second rescue package.
Greece, which has repeatedly failed to meet the fiscal targets set out by its international lenders, is in talks to finalise a second 130 billion-euro ($172 billion) package.
With many Greeks blaming Germans for the austerity medicine their country has been forced to swallow, officials in Athens dismissed the idea of relinquishing budget control as out of the question.
Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos said on Sunday Greece was perfectly capable of making good on its promises.
"Anyone who puts a nation before the dilemma of 'economic assistance or national dignity' ignores some key historical lessons," he said in a statement before heading to Brussels for a European Union summit on Monday.
The Financial Times reported on Saturday that it had obtained a copy of the proposal showing Germany wants a new euro zone "budget commissioner" to have the power to veto budget decisions taken by the Greek government if they are not in line with targets set by international lenders.
"Given the disappointing compliance so far, Greece has to accept shifting budgetary sovereignty to the European level for a certain period of time," the document said.
Under the plan, Athens would only be allowed to carry out normal state spending after servicing its debt, the paper said.
Crushed by 350 billion euros ($462 billion) of debt and running out of cash quickly, Greece is scrambling to appease the "troika" of its official lenders - the European Commission, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund - and stitch up a deal with private creditors simultaneously.
Greece needs to strike a deal with creditors in the next couple of days to unlock its next aid package in order to avoid a chaotic default.
A government source in Berlin said Germany's proposal was aimed not just at Greece but also at other struggling euro zone members that receive aid and are unable to make good on their obligations.
The European Commission, the executive arm of the 27-country bloc, said it wanted the Greek government to maintain autonomy.
MIAMI ? Newt Gingrich slammed GOP rival Mitt Romney on Sunday for the steady stream of attacks he likened to "carpet-bombing," trying to cut into the resurgent front-runner's lead in Florida in the dwindling hours before Tuesday's pivotal presidential primary.
Surging ahead in polls, Romney kept the pressure on Gingrich with a dominant advertising presence that questioned the former House speaker's leadership and ethics. During campaign stops, Romney divided his focus between Gingrich and President Barack Obama.
In what has become a wildly unpredictable race, the momentum has swung back to Romney, staggered last weekend by Gingrich's victory in South Carolina. Romney has begun advertising in Nevada ahead of that state's caucuses next Saturday, illustrating the challenges ahead for Gingrich, who has pledged to push ahead no matter what happens in Florida.
Romney's campaign has dogged Gingrich at his own campaign stops, sending surrogates to remind reporters of Gingrich's House ethics probe in the 1990s and other episodes in his career.
Gingrich reacted defensively, accusing the former Massachusetts governor and a political committee that supports him of lying, and the GOP's establishment of allowing it.
"I don't know how you debate a person with civility if they're prepared to say things that are just plain factually false," Gingrich said during appearances on Sunday talk shows. "I think the Republican establishment believes it's OK to say and do virtually anything to stop a genuine insurgency from winning because they are very afraid of losing control of the old order."
Gingrich objected specifically to a Romney campaign ad that includes a 1997 NBC News report on the House's decision to discipline Gingrich, then speaker, for ethics charges.
After hounding Gingrich during two debates last week, Romney returned more of his attention to Obama, who had been Romney's chief target as he tried to make the case that he was the most worthy Republican to challenge the Democratic incumbent.
But Romney didn't relent in swiping at Gingrich, even as an NBC News/Marist poll published Sunday showed Romney with support from 42 percent of likely Florida primary voters, compared with 27 percent for Gingrich.
"He's now finding excuses ... complaining about what he thinks were the reasons he thinks he's had difficulty here in Florida. But you know, we've got a president who has a lot of excuses," Romney said at a rally in Naples. "And the excuses are over, it's time to produce."
Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, trailing in Florida by a wide margin, stayed in his home state, where his 3-year-old daughter, Bella, was hospitalized. She has a genetic condition caused by the presence of all or part of an extra 18th chromosome. Aides said he would resume campaigning as soon as possible.
Texas Rep. Ron Paul, who has invested little in Florida, looked ahead to Nevada. The libertarian-leaning Paul is focusing more on gathering delegates in caucus states, where it's less expensive to campaign. But securing the nomination only through caucus states is a hard task.
The race began moving toward a two-person fight in South Carolina, and has grown more bitter and personal in Florida.
The intense effort by Romney to slow Gingrich is comparable his strategy against Gingrich in the closing month before Iowa's leadoff caucuses Jan. 3.
Gingrich led in Iowa polls, lifted by what were hailed as strong performances in televised debates, only to drop in the face of withering attacks by Romney, aided immensely by ads sponsored by a political committee run by former Romney aides.
In Florida, senior Romney aides have popped up at Gingrich events to question Gingrich's conservative credentials. Led by Romney's top Iowa adviser, David Kochel, Romney's team cites Gingrich's criticism of House Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan's Medicare overhaul plan last year, and his appearance with then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., in an advertisement supporting climate-change legislation.
"That kind of language emboldens the critics of conservatism," Kochel said. "We're out pointing that out correcting the record."
Gingrich has responded by criticizing Romney's conservative credentials. Outside an evangelical Christian church in Lutz, Gingrich said he was the more loyal conservative on key social issues.
"This party is not going to nominate somebody who is a pro-abortion, pro-gun-control, pro-tax increase liberal," Gingrich said. "It isn't going to happen."
But Gingrich, in appearances on Sunday news programs, returned to complaining about Romney's tactics, rather than emphasizing his own message as that of a conservative with a record of action in Congress.
"When we get to a positive idea campaign, I consistently win," Gingrich said. "It's only when he can mass money to focus on carpet-bombing with negative ads that he gains any traction at all."
Romney and the political committee that supports him had combined to spend some $6.8 million in ads criticizing Gingrich in the Florida campaign's final week. Gingrich and a group that supports him were spending about one-third that amount.
Gingrich worked to portray himself as the insurgent outsider, collecting the endorsement of tea party favorite Herman Cain, whose own campaign for president foundered amid sexual harassment allegations.
It was unclear how aggressively Gingrich would be able to compete in states beyond Florida. The next televised debate, a format Gingrich has used to his advantage, is not until Feb. 22, more than three weeks away.
Romney already has campaigned in Nevada more than Gingrich, is advertising there, and stresses his business background in a state hard-hit by the economy. His campaign welcomed the Sunday endorsement of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Nevada's largest newspaper.
Michigan and Maine, states where Romney is well-positioned also hold their contests in February. Arizona, a strong tea-party state where Gingrich could do well, has its primary Feb. 28.
___
Associated Press writers Steve Peoples in Naples and Shannon McCaffrey in Lutz contributed to this report.
WASHINGTON ? President Barack Obama told some jokes and poked a little fun at himself as he addressed the Alfalfa Club dinner, an exclusive annual black-tie get-together of some of the capital's movers and shakers.
The club's sole mission is to put on a steak-and-lobster feast while giving high-powered politicians and business leaders another opportunity to rub elbows and share some laughs. Saturday night's dinner was, as in years past, off limits to reporters.
"It is great to be here tonight, because I have about 45 more minutes on the State of the Union that I'd like to deliver tonight," the president told the gathering, according to excerpts released by the White House.
Among those attending were current and former senators, including John Kerry of Massachusetts and Pat Leahy of Vermont. Former President George H.W. Bush and his son Jeb, a former governor of Florida, were also on the guest list.
"You've heard it from the pundits: `Obama is cloistered in the White House.' `He's aloof.' `He's in the bubble.' `He's not connecting,'" the president said. "And that's why one of my big goals this year was to get out and be among everyday, ordinary Americans -- like the men and women of the Alfalfa Club."
His appearance at the dinner came at the end of a high profile week for the president, beginning with his address to a joint session of Congress and ending with a three-day tour of five states that included an exchange of words with Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer.
According to club history, the club is named after the alfalfa because the plant extends its roots far for a drink.
Obama was joined at the dinner, at a hotel near the White House, by his wife, Michelle.
It was the second club dinner the president addressed in four years. He last spoke at the dinner in 2009 but skipped the soiree last year and in 2010.
NEW YORK ? A different kind of F-word is stirring a linguistic and political debate as controversial as what it defines.
The word is "fracking" ? as in hydraulic fracturing, a technique long used by the oil and gas industry to free oil and gas from rock.
It's not in the dictionary, the industry hates it, and President Barack Obama didn't use it in his State of the Union speech ? even as he praised federal subsidies for it.
The word sounds nasty, and environmental advocates have been able to use it to generate opposition ? and revulsion ? to what they say is a nasty process that threatens water supplies.
"It obviously calls to mind other less socially polite terms, and folks have been able to take advantage of that," said Kate Sinding, a senior attorney at the Natural Resources Defense Council who works on drilling issues.
One of the chants at an anti-drilling rally in Albany earlier this month was "No fracking way!"
Industry executives argue that the word is deliberately misspelled by environmental activists and that it has become a slur that should not be used by media outlets that strive for objectivity.
"It's a co-opted word and a co-opted spelling used to make it look as offensive as people can try to make it look," said Michael Kehs, vice president for Strategic Affairs at Chesapeake Energy, the nation's second-largest natural gas producer.
To the surviving humans of the sci-fi TV series "Battlestar Galactica," it has nothing to do with oil and gas. It is used as a substitute for the very down-to-Earth curse word.
Michael Weiss, a professor of linguistics at Cornell University, says the word originated as simple industry jargon, but has taken on a negative meaning over time ? much like the word "silly" once meant "holy."
But "frack" also happens to sound like "smack" and "whack," with more violent connotations.
"When you hear the word `fracking,' what lights up your brain is the profanity," says Deborah Mitchell, who teaches marketing at the University of Wisconsin's School of Business. "Negative things come to mind."
Obama did not use the word in his State of the Union address Tuesday night, when he said his administration will help ensure natural gas will be developed safely, suggesting it would support 600,000 jobs by the end of the decade.
In hydraulic fracturing, millions of gallons of water, sand and chemicals are pumped into wells to break up underground rock formations and create escape routes for the oil and gas. In recent years, the industry has learned to combine the practice with the ability to drill horizontally into beds of shale, layers of fine-grained rock that in some cases have trapped ancient organic matter that has cooked into oil and gas.
By doing so, drillers have unlocked natural gas deposits across the East, South and Midwest that are large enough to supply the U.S. for decades. Natural gas prices have dipped to decade-low levels, reducing customer bills and prompting manufacturers who depend on the fuel to expand operations in the U.S.
Environmentalists worry that the fluid could leak into water supplies from cracked casings in wells. They are also concerned that wastewater from the process could contaminate water supplies if not properly treated or disposed of. And they worry the method allows too much methane, the main component of natural gas and an extraordinarily potent greenhouse gas, to escape.
Some want to ban the practice altogether, while others want tighter regulations.
The Environmental Protection Agency is studying the issue and may propose federal regulations. The industry prefers that states regulate the process.
Some states have banned it. A New York proposal to lift its ban drew about 40,000 public comments ? an unprecedented total ? inspired in part by slogans such as "Don't Frack With New York."
The drilling industry has generally spelled the word without a "K," using terms like "frac job" or "frac fluid."
Energy historian Daniel Yergin spells it "fraccing" in his book, "The Quest: Energy, Security and the Remaking of the Modern World." The glossary maintained by the oilfield services company Schlumberger includes only "frac" and "hydraulic fracturing."
The spelling of "fracking" began appearing in the media and in oil and gas company materials long before the process became controversial. It first was used in an Associated Press story in 1981. That same year, an oil and gas company called Velvet Exploration, based in British Columbia, issued a press release that detailed its plans to complete "fracking" a well.
The word was used in trade journals throughout the 1980s. In 1990, Commerce Secretary Robert Mosbacher announced U.S. oil engineers would travel to the Soviet Union to share drilling technology, including fracking.
The word does not appear in The Associated Press Stylebook, a guide for news organizations. David Minthorn, deputy standards editor at the AP, says there are tentative plans to include an entry in the 2012 edition.
He said the current standard is to avoid using the word except in direct quotes, and to instead use "hydraulic fracturing."
That won't stop activists ? sometimes called "fracktivists" ? from repeating the word as often as possible.
"It was created by the industry, and the industry is going to have to live with it," says the NRDC's Sinding.
Dave McCurdy, CEO of the American Gas Association, agrees, much to his dismay: "It's Madison Avenue hell," he says.
___
Jonathan Fahey can be reached at http://twitter.com/JonathanFahey.
We count down the best-reviewed work of the Man on a Ledge star.
A prolific character actor with leading-man chops and four Oscar nominations under his belt, Ed Harris has been entertaining audiences for decades -- so when we saw his name in the credits for Man on a Ledge, we knew exactly what we needed to do with this week's list. From supporting parts to leading roles, from action to comedy to drama, Harris has done just about everything -- and done it well. The Tomatometer agrees, giving us a top 10 that bottoms out at an impressive 87 percent. Which of your favorites made the cut? It's time to find out, Total Recall style!
87%
Can a life of violence ever really be left behind? Does a person who has committed violent acts deserve the chance to move beyond them -- even if he's tried to atone for his past? In his tense, gory adaptation of John Wagner and Vince Locke's A History of Violence, David Cronenberg asks these questions and comes away with a handful of suitably ambiguous answers -- but not before pitting seemingly ordinary restaurant owner Tom Stall (Viggo Mortensen) against a mobster (Ed Harris) who claims he has arrived to collect a debt from Stall's surprisingly shady past. "It's rare to find a filmmaker who can deliver such a message and keep us riveted every minute of screen time," wrote Bill Muller of the Arizona Republic. "But Cronenberg manages it, making A History of Violence one of his best, and most realistic, films ever."
88%
1989's underwater epic The Abyss required the construction of the world's biggest tank of filtered fresh water, as well as newly designed watertight cameras and bleeding-edge special effects work from Industrial Light & Magic. It also required a lot of patience on the part of its cast (including Harris and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, both of whom suffered emotional breakdowns during the grueling six-month shoot) and crew (including director James Cameron, who spent hours at a time under 50 feet of water) -- and the studio had its own cross to bear, enduring millions of dollars in cost overruns and weeks of delays. In the end, The Abyss wasn't as profitable as Cameron's other epics, only bringing in around $90 million against a $70 million budget, but critics were generally kind, particularly to the longer version that eventually surfaced on home video (Widgett Walls of Needcoffee.com called the theatrical release "an abomination" and wrote, "For God's sake, make sure you have the director's cut").
92%
It endured an infamously bumpy production period -- during which stars Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell went over Jonathan Demme's head to arrange edits and reshoots with a different director -- but even if Swing Shift didn't end up fulfilling Demme's original vision, critics still felt it effectively told the story of a war bride (Hawn) who enters the workforce (and starts an affair) during WWII while her husband (Harris) is overseas. Although more than a few viewers have taken issue with its soft-focused treatment of adultery, the picture's rich detail and well-written script impressed writers like Filmcritic's Pete Croatto, who observed, "Sofia Coppola and Wes Anderson could learn a few things watching this. Or maybe they already have."
94%
Although it was roundly criticized for taking liberties with the facts of its subject's brief, fascinating life, the Patsy Cline biopic Sweet Dreams makes for a solidly compelling -- if at times frustratingly inaccurate -- film about the country star's (played by Jessica Lange) early years, short career, and tragic death, as well as her tumultuous marriage to the unfortunately named Charlie Dick (Harris). Earning Lange a Best Actress nomination for her work, Dreams won praise from critics like Time Out's Geoff Andrews, who wrote, "The two main performances are excellent: Lange plays the singer without a hint of condescension to her dreams of 'a big house with yellow roses', while Harris is persuasively menacing, with an inventively foul mouth."
94%
Ben Affleck made his directorial debut with this pitch-black thriller, adapted from the Dennis Lehane novel about a private investigator (Casey Affleck) who finds himself mixed up in the exceedingly shady case of a kidnapped girl. As he works with the cops (including Harris and Morgan Freeman) and his girlfriend/partner (Michelle Monaghan), it becomes clear that things are not what they seem. It's a basic framework that pretty much any filmgoer will be familiar with, but in Affleck's hands, Gone Baby Gone came alive; as Bruce Westbrook wrote for the Houston Chronicle, "A love-tolerate valentine to the city, it feels more real than the gangster-gorged mean streets of Martin Scorsese's The Departed, and just as tortured as Clint Eastwood's Mystic River."
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Sachin Tendulkar of India walks off after losing his wicket during the fourth day of their fourth test cricket... fb.me/LRFTsxQLIl y a environ 2 heuresvia Facebook
LOS ANGELES ? Lindsay Lohan's bad luck with cars continues after a woman who claims she was struck by the actress' sports car sued over her injuries Wednesday.
Nubia Del Carmen Preza claims she was struck by Lohan's Maserati while walking through a West Hollywood intersection in September 2010.
Preza's lawsuit states she has suffered "disabling and serious personal injuries, pain, suffering and anguish" and that she is seeking damages for all her medical expenses and lost time at work. A call to her attorney, Gregory Picco, seeking additional details was not immediately returned.
It is the second lawsuit filed against Lohan this month involving an automobile mishap. A paparazzo sued Lohan Jan. 10, claiming that he was struck in January 2010 by a vehicle in which Lohan was riding. Grigor Balyan claims he was trying to shoot pictures of the actress in Hollywowhen he was hit.
Preza's lawsuit states Lohan was driving when she was hit on the afternoon of Sept. 1, 2010, at an intersection just south of the Sunset Strip. At the time, Lohan lived near the intersection.
Lohan's spokesman Steve Honig said neither Lohan nor her attorneys had been served with the lawsuit and could not comment on it.
The model and actress remains on probation for a 2007 drunken driving case filed after she was arrested twice that year on suspicion of driving while impaired.
One of the incidents sparked two civil lawsuits after Lohan chased a vehicle she thought was carrying her former assistant on Pacific Coast Highway. One of the cases has settled. The other, filed by three men who were in the SUV Lohan was driving, may go to trial in March.
Lohan's attorney in that case, Ed McPherson, has said the men had plenty of chances to get out of the vehicle and called the case "absurd."
The "Mean Girls" star has received two positive probation reports since a judge ordered her to perform weekly morgue cleanup duties in November. the actress may be off supervised probation by the end of March.
___
Follow Anthony McCartney at http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP.
Producer Amy Ziering, left, and director Kirby Dick, from the film "The Invisible War," pose for a portrait during the 2012 Sundance Film Festival on Sunday, Jan. 22, 2012, in Park City, Utah. (AP Photo/Victoria Will)
Producer Amy Ziering, left, and director Kirby Dick, from the film "The Invisible War," pose for a portrait during the 2012 Sundance Film Festival on Sunday, Jan. 22, 2012, in Park City, Utah. (AP Photo/Victoria Will)
PARK CITY, Utah (AP) ? The Department of Defense estimates that more than 19,000 military men and women were sexually assaulted by fellow troops in 2010 while serving in the United States armed forces. At least 20 percent of servicewomen and 1 percent of men ? an estimated 500,000 troops ? have experienced sexual trauma while serving.
These troubling statistics motivated documentarian Kirby Dick and producer Amy Ziering to make "The Invisible War," a film that examines the epidemic of rape within the military, how it affects victims and why so few cases are prosecuted. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, where it is a contender in the U.S. documentary competition.
The statistics "were just so astonishing that at first we didn't believe it," said Dick, adding that he was equally surprised that no film had been made on the subject.
Through interviews with rape survivors and military officials, "The Invisible War" suggests that it's not just the violence and harassment that traumatizes victims but the absence of impartial justice and personal retaliation they often experience after reporting the incident. A rape survivor's only judicial recourse is to report the attack to her commander ? even if he was the attacker ? and it's his decision whether to investigate and prosecute, regardless of the evidence.
"If they investigate it, and the investigator comes back and says, 'I've got a slam-dunk case. I can put this serial perpetrator behind bars,' the commander can, on his or her own, decide, 'No, we're not going to send this case to court martial,'" Dick said.
A 2009 study shows that only 8 percent of military sex offenders are prosecuted.
"The Invisible War" introduces viewers to Kori Cioca, who left the Coast Guard after being beaten and raped by her supervisor. Five years later, she still suffers from post-traumatic stress and has yet to receive Veterans Administration approval for the surgery she needs to repair the injuries she suffered during the attack. The perpetrator, who continues to serve in the Coast Guard, hit her so hard that he permanently dislocated her jaw.
Viewers also meet Marine Corps 1st Lt. Ariana Klay, who served in Iraq before being gang-raped by a senior officer and his friend while stationed at the elite Marine Barracks in Washington, D.C. Klay's husband, also a Marine, cried as he described his concern and fear that his wife would commit suicide.
Other rape survivors shown in the film, including Cioca, said they also contemplated suicide.
Hannah Sewell, who comes from a military family, said she has trouble convincing herself that she is still a virgin after being raped while serving in the Navy. Her father, wearing his own military uniform, recounts the story through tears.
Dick and Ziering traveled the country to interview some 70 survivors of military rape.
"We weren't really ready for all the stories we heard," Ziering said. "Each one had a lot of similarities and all were equally horrific."
But the filmmakers said they remained optimistic throughout the project and have been gratified by the film's reception at Sundance, where politicians such as U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer of California; U.S. Rep. Jackie Speier, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom and U.S. Rep. Mike Turner of Ohio attended the premiere. Grammy winner Mary J. Blige has also pledged to write an original song for the film.
"Our great hope was and continues to be that capturing (survivors') experience and their trauma will help change things for hundreds of thousands of men and women who are in the armed forces," Dick said.
There's also "a history of hope," he said, because when the military set out to banish the segregation and racism that reigned among troops in the early 1960s, they made significant strides in just over a decade.
"They can do the same thing with this," he said.
So why don't they?
"They don't take it seriously enough," Ziering said. "They don't really see, and what we're hoping the film will show is the repercussions of it. They don't understand the amount of damage this is doing and how it really is a national security issue, and also costing taxpayers billions of dollars in just caring for people with this kind of trauma.
"Once that message gets through to them, they will be motivated to make a change, because it's a no brainer. They have to do something."
___
AP Entertainment Writer Sandy Cohen is on Twitter: www.twitter.com/APSandy .
BRUSSELS/ATHENS (Reuters) ? Euro zone finance ministers will decide on Monday what terms of a Greek debt restructuring they are ready to accept as part of a second bailout package for Athens after negotiators for private creditors said they could not improve their offer.
Resolving the issue of a Greek debt swap is key to putting Athens' debt on a sustainable path and avoiding a chaotic default that could threaten the whole currency bloc.
After several rounds of talks, Greece and its private creditors are converging on a deal in which private bondholders would take a real loss of 65 to 70 percent on their Greek bonds, officials close to the negotiations said.
But some details of the debt restructuring, which will involve swapping existing Greek bonds for new, longer-term bonds to bring Greek debt down to a more sustainable 120 percent of GDP in 2020 from 160 percent now, are unresolved.
"What I am confident of is that our offer, that was delivered to the prime minister, is the maximum offer consistent with a voluntary PSI deal," Institute of International Finance chief Charles Dallara, who is negotiating on behalf of banks and insurers holding Greek debt, told Antenna TV on Sunday.
"We are at a crossroads and I remain quite hopeful," said Dallara, who left Athens on Saturday without a deal in place.
"We will listen to the report on the negotiations, see how far they have gotten and have the ministers say what is acceptable and what is not in terms of outcome of the negotiations," one Eurogroup official said.
Once the guidance from the finance ministers, known as the Eurogroup, is clear, talks on the restructuring could be finalized later in the week.
Talks on the extent of Private Sector Involvement (PSI) in the Greek debt restructuring are a vital part of a second financing package for Athens that would keep it funded until 2014.
"We are working for a deal in time for the January 30 summit of EU leaders. The restructuring offer needs to be made in the course of February," the official said.
"Obviously there is a clear link between the PSI and the next programme and what we will be focusing on in the Eurogroup is making the next programme operational."
Without the second bailout from the euro zone and the International Monetary Fund, Greece will not be able to pay back 14.5 billion euros in maturing bonds in March, triggering a messy default that would hurt the whole euro zone economy.
There are doubts that even with a new bailout Greece's mountainous debt can be reduced to a still-painful 120 percent of GDP by 2020.
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said on Sunday the crucial factor was that Athens should have a level of debt that was sustainable by then. "This goal must be achieved," he told German public broadcaster ARD.
STICKING POINT
Euro zone leaders agreed in October that the second bailout would total 130 billion euros, if private bondholders forgave half of what Greece owes them in nominal terms.
But Greek economic prospects have deteriorated since then, which means either euro zone governments or investors will have to contribute more than thought.
The main sticking point is coupon, or interest rate, the new Greek bonds would carry. Officials said the new bonds are likely to be 30 years in maturity and carry a progressively higher coupon, which would average out at around 4 percent.
"The euro zone ministers will examine the proposal and say whether we have a deal. If they say we don't, we're back to the negotiating table," a banking source close to the talks said.
Progress will be presented to euro zone ministers by Greek Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos.
"We then expect a discussion about the coupon," a senior Greek banker close to the negotiations told Reuters.
"I believe that the private sector can accept a lower coupon than the 4 percent average, but the question then is: will the PSI still be on a voluntary basis?" he said.
The voluntary character of the debt restructuring is important to avoid triggering the pay-out of insurance against a Greek default.
While the sums of such insurance appear relatively small, euro zone officials said, such a "credit event" could trigger a chain reaction of events that would entail rapid and large scale contagion in euro zone debt markets, and is thus best avoided.
NEW RESCUE FUND
After dealing with Greece, euro zone ministers will choose a replacement for European Central Bank Board member Jose Manuel Gonzales Paramo, whose term ends in May.
The 17 ministers of the euro zone will then be joined by 10 ministers from the other European Union countries to finalise a treaty setting up the euro zone's permanent bailout fund - the 500 billion euro European Stability Mechanism (ESM). Its predecessor, the EFSF, is widely viewed as insufficient.
The ESM is another crucial element in the bloc's efforts to end the sovereign debt crisis that threatens to engulf Spain and Italy after claiming Greece, Ireland and Portugal.
The fund should boost market confidence in euro zone defences should Spain or Italy need emergency financing. Separately, the IMF has launched a proposal to boost its war chest by $600 billion.
IMF head Christine Lagarde is to discuss this during a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sunday. She will make a speech on Monday in which she is expected to urge euro zone leaders to act quickly while acknowledging it is not merely Europe's problem because "innocent bystanders" will also be hit by a worsening debt crisis.
The 27 EU finance ministers will also prepare the final draft of another treaty to sharply tighten fiscal discipline in the euro zone, called the fiscal compact, that is designed to ensure another sovereign debt crisis cannot happen in future.
EU leaders are to sign off on both treaties on January 30, allowing the ESM to become operational in July.
To prepare for the January 30 summit, Merkel will meet European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and European Council President Herman Van Rompuy on Monday evening.
(Additional reporting by Lefteris Papadimas and Ingrid Melander in Athens; Reporting By Jan Strupczewski, editing by Mike Peacock)
Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovation Awards granted for pioneering ideas in cancer researchPublic release date: 23-Jan-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Yung S. Lie, Ph.D. yung.lie@damonrunyon.org 212-455-0521 Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation
Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation awards $2.25 million to 5 innovative young scientists
New York, NY (January 23, 2012) The Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation announced that five scientists with novel approaches to fighting cancer have been named 2012 recipients of the Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovation Award. The grant of $450,000 over three years is awarded each year to early career scientists whose projects have the potential to significantly impact the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer.
2012 Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovators:
Gregory L. Beatty, MD, PhD [Nadia's Gift Foundation Innovator]
University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Tumor-associated immune cells called macrophages are a key component of the tumor microenvironment and often portend a poor prognosis. Macrophages are critical regulators of tumor angiogenesis and metastasis. Interestingly, the function of macrophages is dependent on their surrounding microenvironment such that under certain conditions, macrophages can actually become tumor-suppressive. The central hypothesis of Dr. Beatty's work is that macrophages are an important yet pliable factor in tumor behavior, which can be therapeutically targeted and instructed to attack tumors and inhibit tumor growth.
Dr. Beatty will evaluate strategies to engineer macrophages to attack tumors and to resist signals produced within tumors that ordinarily prime macrophages with tumor-promoting properties. He aims to combine these macrophage-directed approaches with standard chemotherapy. The priority is to develop the necessary data to facilitate the rapid translation of this strategic approach to the clinic for treatment of patients with pancreatic cancer and other malignancies.
Jay R. Hesselberth, PhD
University of Colorado Denver, Aurora, Colorado
Most early detection strategies for cancer focus on identifying protein biomarkers or "molecular signatures" of disease. However, discovery of new biomarkers has lagged, due in large part to the inability to efficiently sift through complex cellular protein mixtures. As a result, the number of new FDA-approved biomarker tests has declined over the last decade, and the current rate of biomarker validation is only one per year.
As proteins can be very large, they are typically cleaved into smaller units called peptides for identification and analysis. The current technology for peptide identification is very slow and lacks the sensitivity and specificity required to quantify proteins in complex samples. Dr. Hesselberth proposes that a massive acceleration in the rate of peptide sequencing would significantly impact biomarker research. To accomplish this, he seeks to develop a highly parallel peptide sequencing platform with single molecule resolution that is orders of magnitude faster than existing technology. This new approach would transform our capability to identify protein and peptide biomarkers for use in the early detection of cancer.
Matthew R. Pratt, PhD
University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California
Cellular proteins are often modified with a "flag" that affects their function. One such modification is the monosaccharide N-acetyl-glucosamine (O-GlcNAc), which is required for normal development and proper regulation of many biological pathways. During metabolism, elevated glucose levels result in elevated O-GlcNAc modification of proteins.
One common feature of all cancers is an altered metabolism that helps to protect cancer cells from the challenging environments they encounter during tumorigenesis and metastasis. Dr. Pratt has uncovered a link between this change in metabolism and O-GlcNAc modification of proteins, which directly contributes to the proliferation and survival of cancer cells. He seeks to understand the details of this link and exactly how it contributes to disease. This approach will lead to a more complete understanding of how metabolism promotes cancer and may uncover new opportunities for treatment.
Eranthie Weerapana, PhD
Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts
Understanding proteins dysregulated in cancer is a vital step toward the discovery of effective targets for treatment. Many cellular enzymes demonstrate aberrant activity in cancer, and a significant subset of them contain cysteine amino acid residues required for their function.
Dr. Weerapana aims to use sophisticated chemical genetic approaches to develop novel small molecules that selectively target these cysteines, thus blocking protein function. Her goal is to create a "chemical library" of these small molecules and use this library to identify compounds that affect cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion in breast and ovarian cancer cell lines. The cellular protein targets of these molecules will be identified, followed by analysis of their roles in cancer development and progression. This multidisciplinary approach, encompassing aspects of synthetic chemistry, cell biology and proteomics, will identify new therapeutic targets and small molecule drug candidates for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer.
Feng Zhang, PhD
The Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, Massachusetts
Recent genome sequencing studies have identified a large set of candidate genetic mutations implicated in a diverse range of cancer types. However, in order to determine the causal role of each mutation in disease risk and pathology, researchers must be able to test each mutation individually in cellular or animal models. This is severely limited by the difficulty of manipulating the genome of cells and organisms with precise control so that a specific disease can be definitively linked to single changes in the genome.
To address this challenge, Dr. Zhang proposes to engineer a comprehensive set of novel molecular tools to enable targeted modification of the mammalian genome. He will demonstrate the power of these tools by testing genetic mutations associated with neuroblastoma and glioma brain tumors. The development and application of these tools will establish a powerful new platform for investigating the underlying genetic and molecular mechanisms of cancer and will inform drug development. To ensure maximal benefit and impact for the cancer community and beyond, he will also facilitate teaching and rapid open-source distribution of all tools developed.
Funding Daring Research
The Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovation Award funds cancer research by exceptionally creative thinkers with "high-risk/high-reward" ideas who lack sufficient preliminary data to obtain traditional funding. The awardees are selected through a highly competitive and rigorous process by a scientific committee comprised of leading cancer researchers who are innovators themselves. At the final stage of selection, candidates are screened by an in-person interview with committee members. Only those scientists with a strong vision and passion for curing cancer are selected to receive the prestigious award.
This program is possible through the generous support of Andy and Debbie Rachleff, the Island Outreach Foundation and Nadia's Gift Foundation.
###
DAMON RUNYON CANCER RESEARCH FOUNDATION
To accelerate breakthroughs, the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation provides today's best young scientists with funding to pursue innovative research. The Foundation has gained worldwide prominence in cancer research by identifying outstanding researchers and physician-scientists. Eleven scientists supported by the Foundation have received the Nobel Prize, and others are heads of cancer centers and leaders of renowned research programs. Each of its award programs is extremely competitive, with less than 10% of applications funded. Since its founding in 1946, the Foundation has invested over $240 million and funded more than 3,300 young scientists. This year, it will commit approximately $10.8 million in new awards to brilliant young investigators.
100% of all donations to the Foundation are used to support scientific research. Its administrative and fundraising costs are paid from its Damon Runyon Broadway Tickets Service and endowment.
For more information visit www.damonrunyon.org
CONTACT
Yung S. Lie, PhD
Chief Scientific Officer
Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation
yung.lie@damonrunyon.org
212.455.0521
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovation Awards granted for pioneering ideas in cancer researchPublic release date: 23-Jan-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Yung S. Lie, Ph.D. yung.lie@damonrunyon.org 212-455-0521 Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation
Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation awards $2.25 million to 5 innovative young scientists
New York, NY (January 23, 2012) The Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation announced that five scientists with novel approaches to fighting cancer have been named 2012 recipients of the Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovation Award. The grant of $450,000 over three years is awarded each year to early career scientists whose projects have the potential to significantly impact the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer.
2012 Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovators:
Gregory L. Beatty, MD, PhD [Nadia's Gift Foundation Innovator]
University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Tumor-associated immune cells called macrophages are a key component of the tumor microenvironment and often portend a poor prognosis. Macrophages are critical regulators of tumor angiogenesis and metastasis. Interestingly, the function of macrophages is dependent on their surrounding microenvironment such that under certain conditions, macrophages can actually become tumor-suppressive. The central hypothesis of Dr. Beatty's work is that macrophages are an important yet pliable factor in tumor behavior, which can be therapeutically targeted and instructed to attack tumors and inhibit tumor growth.
Dr. Beatty will evaluate strategies to engineer macrophages to attack tumors and to resist signals produced within tumors that ordinarily prime macrophages with tumor-promoting properties. He aims to combine these macrophage-directed approaches with standard chemotherapy. The priority is to develop the necessary data to facilitate the rapid translation of this strategic approach to the clinic for treatment of patients with pancreatic cancer and other malignancies.
Jay R. Hesselberth, PhD
University of Colorado Denver, Aurora, Colorado
Most early detection strategies for cancer focus on identifying protein biomarkers or "molecular signatures" of disease. However, discovery of new biomarkers has lagged, due in large part to the inability to efficiently sift through complex cellular protein mixtures. As a result, the number of new FDA-approved biomarker tests has declined over the last decade, and the current rate of biomarker validation is only one per year.
As proteins can be very large, they are typically cleaved into smaller units called peptides for identification and analysis. The current technology for peptide identification is very slow and lacks the sensitivity and specificity required to quantify proteins in complex samples. Dr. Hesselberth proposes that a massive acceleration in the rate of peptide sequencing would significantly impact biomarker research. To accomplish this, he seeks to develop a highly parallel peptide sequencing platform with single molecule resolution that is orders of magnitude faster than existing technology. This new approach would transform our capability to identify protein and peptide biomarkers for use in the early detection of cancer.
Matthew R. Pratt, PhD
University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California
Cellular proteins are often modified with a "flag" that affects their function. One such modification is the monosaccharide N-acetyl-glucosamine (O-GlcNAc), which is required for normal development and proper regulation of many biological pathways. During metabolism, elevated glucose levels result in elevated O-GlcNAc modification of proteins.
One common feature of all cancers is an altered metabolism that helps to protect cancer cells from the challenging environments they encounter during tumorigenesis and metastasis. Dr. Pratt has uncovered a link between this change in metabolism and O-GlcNAc modification of proteins, which directly contributes to the proliferation and survival of cancer cells. He seeks to understand the details of this link and exactly how it contributes to disease. This approach will lead to a more complete understanding of how metabolism promotes cancer and may uncover new opportunities for treatment.
Eranthie Weerapana, PhD
Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts
Understanding proteins dysregulated in cancer is a vital step toward the discovery of effective targets for treatment. Many cellular enzymes demonstrate aberrant activity in cancer, and a significant subset of them contain cysteine amino acid residues required for their function.
Dr. Weerapana aims to use sophisticated chemical genetic approaches to develop novel small molecules that selectively target these cysteines, thus blocking protein function. Her goal is to create a "chemical library" of these small molecules and use this library to identify compounds that affect cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion in breast and ovarian cancer cell lines. The cellular protein targets of these molecules will be identified, followed by analysis of their roles in cancer development and progression. This multidisciplinary approach, encompassing aspects of synthetic chemistry, cell biology and proteomics, will identify new therapeutic targets and small molecule drug candidates for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer.
Feng Zhang, PhD
The Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, Massachusetts
Recent genome sequencing studies have identified a large set of candidate genetic mutations implicated in a diverse range of cancer types. However, in order to determine the causal role of each mutation in disease risk and pathology, researchers must be able to test each mutation individually in cellular or animal models. This is severely limited by the difficulty of manipulating the genome of cells and organisms with precise control so that a specific disease can be definitively linked to single changes in the genome.
To address this challenge, Dr. Zhang proposes to engineer a comprehensive set of novel molecular tools to enable targeted modification of the mammalian genome. He will demonstrate the power of these tools by testing genetic mutations associated with neuroblastoma and glioma brain tumors. The development and application of these tools will establish a powerful new platform for investigating the underlying genetic and molecular mechanisms of cancer and will inform drug development. To ensure maximal benefit and impact for the cancer community and beyond, he will also facilitate teaching and rapid open-source distribution of all tools developed.
Funding Daring Research
The Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovation Award funds cancer research by exceptionally creative thinkers with "high-risk/high-reward" ideas who lack sufficient preliminary data to obtain traditional funding. The awardees are selected through a highly competitive and rigorous process by a scientific committee comprised of leading cancer researchers who are innovators themselves. At the final stage of selection, candidates are screened by an in-person interview with committee members. Only those scientists with a strong vision and passion for curing cancer are selected to receive the prestigious award.
This program is possible through the generous support of Andy and Debbie Rachleff, the Island Outreach Foundation and Nadia's Gift Foundation.
###
DAMON RUNYON CANCER RESEARCH FOUNDATION
To accelerate breakthroughs, the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation provides today's best young scientists with funding to pursue innovative research. The Foundation has gained worldwide prominence in cancer research by identifying outstanding researchers and physician-scientists. Eleven scientists supported by the Foundation have received the Nobel Prize, and others are heads of cancer centers and leaders of renowned research programs. Each of its award programs is extremely competitive, with less than 10% of applications funded. Since its founding in 1946, the Foundation has invested over $240 million and funded more than 3,300 young scientists. This year, it will commit approximately $10.8 million in new awards to brilliant young investigators.
100% of all donations to the Foundation are used to support scientific research. Its administrative and fundraising costs are paid from its Damon Runyon Broadway Tickets Service and endowment.
For more information visit www.damonrunyon.org
CONTACT
Yung S. Lie, PhD
Chief Scientific Officer
Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation
yung.lie@damonrunyon.org
212.455.0521
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
The US Supreme Court ruled today that police must first obtain a search warrant before using GPS devices to track a suspect's vehicle, agreeing with an earlier appeals court ruling but rejecting the Obama administration's position on the case. In delivering the decision, Justice Antonin Scalia wrote that the court holds "that the government's installation of a GPS device on a target's vehicle, and its use of that device to monitor the vehicle's movements, constitutes a 'search,'" and therefore violated the individual's Fourth Amendment rights. The case itself concerned a Washington DC nightclub owner and suspected drug dealer, Antoine Jones, who had his car's movements monitored for a month and was eventually sentenced to life in prison, only to see that conviction overturned by the aforementioned appeals court on the grounds that the police did not have a search warrant when they placed the GPS tracking device on his vehicle.
In this Feb. 5, 2009 photo, Research In Motion co-CEOs Jim Balsillie, left, and Mike Lazaridis talk to media after an Ontario Securities Commission hearing in Toronto. The company on Sunday, Jan. 22 2012 says Balsillie and Lazaridis are stepping down, and will be replaced by Thorsten Heins, a chief operating officer who joined RIM four years ago from Siemens AG. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Nathan Denette)
In this Feb. 5, 2009 photo, Research In Motion co-CEOs Jim Balsillie, left, and Mike Lazaridis talk to media after an Ontario Securities Commission hearing in Toronto. The company on Sunday, Jan. 22 2012 says Balsillie and Lazaridis are stepping down, and will be replaced by Thorsten Heins, a chief operating officer who joined RIM four years ago from Siemens AG. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Nathan Denette)
This undated photo provided by Research in Motion shows Thorsten Heins, who on Sunday, Jan. 22, 2012 was named President and Chief Executive Officer of Research In Motion. Heins succeeds co-CEOs Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis, who announced they are stepping down. (AP Photo/Research In Motion via The Canadian Press)
TORONTO (AP) ? The new chief executive of Research in Motion said Monday that drastic change is not needed, even as the once iconic maker of the BlackBerry smartphone confronts the most difficult period in its history.
The Canadian company turned the smartphone into a ubiquitous device that many couldn't live without. But following the departure of Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis, who stepped down as co-CEOs and co-chairmen on Monday, Thorsten Heins assumes the chief executive role at a time when Americans are abandoning their Blackberrys for flashier touch-screen phones such as Apple's iPhone and various competing models that run Google's Android software.
RIM's U.S. market share of smartphones dropped from 44 percent in 2009 to 10 percent in 2011, according to market researcher NPD Group. The company still has 75 million active subscribers, but many analysts believe the company will lose market share internationally, just as it has in the U.S.
Heins, a little known chief operating officer who joined RIM four years ago from Siemens AG, replaces RIM's founders after the company has lost tens of billions in market value. Balsillie acknowledged in December that the last few quarters have been among the most challenging times the company has seen.
Even so, Heins said on a conference call on Monday that he didn't think significant change was needed. He said the leadership change was not a "seismic" event. Heins said he's committed to switching the company's phones over to a new operating system, which is expected late this year. That's the same plan favored by Lazaridis and Balsillie, who announced Sunday they would step down from the top jobs, but serve in other roles.
Heins said RIM has to improve its U.S. marketing to go beyond the traditional corporate customer.
"I want us to have a bit more of an ear towards the consumer market, understand trends, and not just do what the Street is telling you," Heins said.
Shares of RIM fell 5.8 percent, or 99 cents to $16.01, following his remarks. The stock had initially moved up almost 4 percent in premarket trading.
Vic Alboini, president of Jaguar Financial Corp. in Toronto, which has been pushing for a change in leadership, said the drop in stock price on Monday meant the market saw the leadership adjustment as "more of the same."
Many shareholders and analysts have said a change or sale of the company has been needed, but the sudden departure of the two founders from their top jobs wasn't expected despite their promises that they would examine the co-CEO and co-chairmen structure.
Balsillie and Lazaridis have long been celebrated as Canadian heroes, even appearing in the country's citizenship guide for new immigrants as models of success. They headed Waterloo, Ontario-based RIM together for the past two decades.
"There comes a time in the growth of every successful company when the founders recognize the need to pass the baton to new leadership. Jim and I went to the board and told them that we thought that time was now," Lazaridis said in a statement.
Lazaridis will take on a new role as vice chairman of RIM's board and chairman of the board's new innovation committee. Balsillie remains a member of the board. The two remain two of RIM's biggest shareholders.
"I agree this is the right time to pass the baton to new leadership, and I have complete confidence in Thorsten, the management team and the company," Balsillie said in the statement. "I remain a significant shareholder and a director and, of course, they will have my full support."
Analysts have said RIM's future depends on its new software platform as RIM has tried and failed to reinvigorate the BlackBerry.
RIM said last month that new phones deemed critical to the company's future would be delayed until late this year. And its PlayBook tablet, RIM's answer to the Apple iPad, failed to gain consumer support, forcing the company to deeply discount it to move the devices off store shelves.
Apple co-founder Steve Jobs said in late 2010 that RIM would have a hard time catching up to Apple because RIM has been forced to move beyond its area of strength and into unfamiliar territory of trying to become a software platform company.
BlackBerrys made email mobile and were dominant in the North American smartphone market until the iPhone came along. Under Lazaridis and Balsillie, the company struggled to adjust to the times and match the iPhone's facility with Web browsing, third-party applications and multimedia.
Heins, 54, said Lazaridis and Balsillie took RIM in the right direction and they are "more confident than ever that was the right path."
Barbara Stymiest, a former chief operating officer of the Royal Bank of Canada who has been a member of RIM's board since 2007, has been named chair of the board of directors. RIM also announced that Prem Watsa, the chief executive of Fairfax Financial Holdings, is a new board member. Watsa has become a significant shareholder.
Lazaridis said he was so confident in the future direction of the company that he intends to purchase an additional $50 million of the company's shares on the open market.
RIM was worth more than $70 billion a few years ago but now has a market value of around $8.9 billion. Some industry analysts believe RIM is following the same trajectory as struggling Finish handset maker Nokia or former Canadian tech giant Nortel, which declared bankruptcy in 2009.
BGC Financial analyst Colin Gillis agrees that a change in marketing is needed, but it will take more than that to reverse the decline. Gillis said the move is two years late and said he'll get more excited when RIM announces positive news about their new software platform.
"It's just a shuffling of the deck," Gillis said. "He's got a pretty rough road to drive up. The other part is that Mike and Jim are still around. Think about Jerry Yang in Yahoo. When he finally stepped down people said he was still a really big influence on the company."
Stuart Jeffrey at Nomura Securities said the management switch could remove an obstacle toward selling the company, but still believes a buyer is unlikely to surface. The value of the company is uncertain, since the new operating system, BlackBerry 10, is unproven.
Private-equity buyers might be enticed to buy the company for its cash flow, he said, but the fair value for the company is about $15 per share on that basis, meaning private-equity firms are unlikely to pay much above $10.
___
Associated Press writer Peter Svensson in New York contributed to this report.
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