• Doctor pleads not guilty to sexual assault - A physician whose father is the leader of the Bermudan government has pleaded not guilty to sexually abusing patients. Dr. Kevin Brown entered pleas to 23 felony counts at a hearing Thursday in Los Angeles. He remains in custody after being arrested last month and charged with molesting patients, including an undercover police officer and a 15-year-old. If convicted, Brown could face more than 25 years in prison
• Security guard kills man after alleged gang fight - Carson officials shut down the annual Samoan Flag Day celebration, because a security guard shot and killed a gunman Wednesday night. However, about 40 Samoans continued their festivities at the park this afternoon, but sheriff’s officials said no more people would be allowed in. Faletogo’s 46-year-old wife, Pulou, was one of three bystanders shot and wounded. Two boys, 12 and 13, were also hurt. They were taken to a local hospital, Carrillo said, with non-life-threatening injuries. Officials said the trouble started about 10 p.m. when two young women began fighting. What began as a verbal confrontation escalated into a fistfight that included a Tongan man and a Samoan man. The Tongan eventually pulled out a firearm and fired into the crowd. The guard returned fire, striking the man, who then collapsed just outside the park gate. He was later pronounced dead at the scene. The man’s name had not been release.

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It’s about damn time LA caught up to NY on this one. All around NY calories are posted in chain restaurants that let customers know that a Venti Mocha with Whole Milk actually has 508 calories and 27 grams of fat in it without whip cream and that even the ranch dipping sauce at Burger King has 170 calories and 17 grams of fat per ounce! Not to mention their Double Whopper with Cheese which has 1010 calories and 67 grams of fat.

In recent days, the state ordered restaurants to cook without artery-clogging trans fats. The Los Angeles City Council approved a ban on new fast-food restaurants in some parts of town. And on Thursday, Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky announced a proposal that would — hold on to your deep-fried Snickers — put calorie counts on some of your menus.

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The Chemical Brothers are giving their fans, filmmakers, and artists, a chance to participate in their new music video “Midnight Madness” via Google Earth. Fans, artists, filmmakers, and anyone else who wants to participate are being asked to create a 2-20 second video using the “Midnight Madness” theme. The video can be a picture, a movie, a conceptual piece, anything that you can film and send in within the time limit that has to do with “celebrating the insanity that goes on at the stroke of midnight… [and] the odd things that people get up to at the midnight hour.”

Selections of their favorite work will be featured in a new concept video to demonstrate the Brotherhood aspect of their new album. The completed video is scheduled to be completed and posted on September 1st and the due date for your video is August 25th, although they are recommending that you get it in as soon as possible.

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Mmm, coffee. Can’t function in normal society without it. Steaming hot and aromatic, it’s all good. Does your morning fix last throughout the afternoon? Do you long for the day that your upper of choice becomes intravenous (still talking coffee, here)?

In other words: do you wish you knew how to to quit it?

Starbucks wishes you wouldn’t, so much in fact that they’re offering a sweet nationwide deal for you java-jonesers. Having priced their almost-$4.00 grande iced beverages for a measly $2.00 every day after 2:00 pm means that you can start putting funds towards the more important things - like food, gas, and rent. Or more coffee. All you need is a same-day receipt verifying your morning purchase.

How thoughtful is that?

Story via CNN.com | AP Photo by miss karen

R.I.P. B.Y.O.P.

Sad news folks: Nashville’s Be Your Own Pet have announced that they have decided to go their separate ways. For those of you who had the privilege to catch the band live, you can understand why it is a true loss. Very few bands could match the four-pieces live intensity on stage. Led by their just-drinking-age lead singer Jemina Pearl, the band would blaze through a 30-minute set full of punk tinged indie-rock that always left you wanting more. While no definitive reason has been listed for their break up, the band released the following announcement on their MySpace:

“To all our fans, we are sad to bring you the news that our upcoming shows in the UK are going to be our last as a band. We thank you for all your love and support these past few years. It’s been a blast, but the time has come for the tour of us to go our separate ways.”

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• Britney Spears has been tapped to play a murdering lesbian in a Quentin Tarantino film. Yes! Every girl’s dream role. (Read: I’m not being sarcastic.) Brit Brit has been asked to play stripper Varla in a remake of the 1965 cult film Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill! Quentin must’ve seen her work on that Doogie Howser kid’s new show, (you know, ole’ what’s it called). A source said, “It is perfect Tarantino material. He wanted to get Britney first. She’s playing the most important character.” This is the best thing that’s ever happened to that girl. And I mean ever. I am not going to judge this. I am just going to trust in the genius casting instinct of Tarantino, sit back and wait for the magic. Because, you know it’ll either suck (awesome!) or be awesome (double-awesome!). Crossing my fingers for awesomeness squared.
• Paris Hilton fires back at John McCain with a video of her own. And, hers is much funnier. I’d be pretty embarrassed if I were a politician and I were being made fun of by Paris Hilton. And, worse, everyone is laughing with her, not at her. I think this is the first time I’ve been on her side of, well, anything. But, in this video, she’s funny, and dare I say, borderline lovable! John McCain is probably not sweatin’ it, though, because it’s on the internet and who knows how to use that thang anyway? If you haven’t watched her video yet, click here and watch it already! It’s short, I promise.

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• 9-year-old killed by water born amoeba - Riverside County health officials are urging swimmers to use caution after a 9-year-old boy contracted the deadly Naegleria fowleri amoeba. He had gone swimming in Lake Elsinore several times this summer. The parasite lives in warm freshwater lakes, rivers and poorly maintained swimming pools, experts say. It enters the brain through the nose, where it can cause a severe and nearly always fatal infection. There were 33 reported cases of infection in the U.S. from 1998 to 2007. The amoeba can kill in three days, and symptoms include headache, fever, nausea, vomiting and a stiff neck.
• Man gets life in prison for murdering wife and step son - A man who fled California for nearly a decade after killing his estranged wife and stepson has been sentenced to life in prison. Fu Lin Wang, 61, pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree murder. He could have faced the death penalty if the case had gone to trial. He has no chance for parole. Prosecutors say Wang shot his wife, Carole Lee, and her 18-year-old son Michael Chu in December of 1998 at her Alhambra home.

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Last night on Fox, the Teen Choice Awards honored all things teen! Hosted by Miley Cyrus, the awards show featured an eco-friendly blue carpet leading to the Gibson Amphitheatre in Universal City. Miley Cyrus, Moschino sequined dress, kicked things off by performing her hit single, “7 things”. The Jonas Brothers and Mariah Carey also performed. Mariah even dusted off some yellow shorts from her teenage years in the 80’s just for the occasion

Gossip Girl and The Jonas Brothers tied for top surfboard honors, each taking home 6. Gossip Girl won for: Choice TV Show Drama, Choice TV Breakout Show, Choice TV Actress Drama (Blake Lively), Choice TV Breakout Star Female (Lively), Choice TV Breakout Star Male (Chace Crawford) and Choice TV Villain (Ed Westwick). The Jonas Brothers won for: Choice Breakout Group, Choice Male Hottie, Choice Red Carpet Fashion Icon Male, Choice Summer Song for “Burnin’ Up” and Choice Music Single and Choice Music Love Song for “When You Look Me in the Eyes.”

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• Two people critically burned in car accident - Two people are hospitalized with critical burn injuries after their rental truck overturned and caught fire. The accident shut down the 5 South and 10 East connector as rescue crews pulled them from the burning truck. Both have been taken to USC Medical Center and their condition is unknown.
• Husband/Wife murder suicide reported - Police say a 67-year-old man and his wife were both found dead in their Perris home Monday victims of an apparent murder-suicide. Beverly Lorraine Jakubowicz, also 67, and her husband, Stanley R. Jakubowicz, were found dead at their home at 21856 Lake Matthews Drive about 4:45 a.m., according to the Riverside County Coroner’s office. Franchville said Stanley Jakubowicz called a dispatcher and said “that his wife needed medical attention and when we got there, they were both dead.”

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Yes, it’s true, folks. You can see the chosen ones for a mere 4 bucks or however much a People Magazine costs these days. Yep, the kiddos are just 3 weeks old, but twins Knox Léon and Vivienne Marcheline are already sure to sell more magazines than Mary Kate and Ashley combined. Oh the excitement! These are no blurry shots of a baby in the back of a car with a blanket over its face. There are 19 pages of family photos to fulfill all of your sick voyeuristic needs.

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie sat down exclusively with People magazine to talk about their two new babies, life at Château Miraval in Provence, France and how the rest of the crew is coping. “It is chaos, but we are managing it and having a wonderful time,” Jolie told the magazine. “[Shiloh] and Z pick out [the twins'] clothes and help change and hold them,” she says. “It’s sweet – they are little mommies.” Pitt says the household is “still a cuckoo’s nest.”

The couple were reportedly paid $14 million for the exclusive photos, which they will donate to a foundation created by Pitt and Jolie that largely focuses on helping children around the world. The issue hit newsstands today. Better get a move on!

*photo courtesy people.

August 4th: Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama will celebrate his birthday today [August 4th, 1961]. No longer just a Hawaii-born, Kansas-raised Illinois Senator, Obama is now representing a large caucus of both Bush-bashers [both Republican and Democratic] and the Millennium generation. All he can hope to do now is continue to reach people, their votes and their pockets. Remember, it’s not over til every last vote in Florida is counted.

August 5th: Terri Clark [August 5th, 1968] is a Canadian country singer-songwriter. In 1995, “Better Things to Do,” her first single made Billboards’ Hot Country Singles and Tracks List. In 1996 her second album, “Just the Same” went platinum in both the United States and Canada. Over the past 12 years Clark has continued to put out albums and release hit singles, her next single is expected this fall.

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Bad news. Oscar-winning actor Morgan Freeman, 71, was seriously injured in a car accident late Sunday night. Freeman is currently in critical condition in a hospital in in Memphis, Tenn. Apparently he was conscious, talking, and even joking when rescue workers got him out of the vehicle after having to use the jaws of life.

Mississippi Highway Patrol spokesman Sgt. Ben Williams confirmed Freeman was in a wreck shortly before midnight Sunday, but said he was still gathering information and had few details Monday.

Clay McFerrin, editor of Sun Sentinel in Charleston, said he arrived at the accident scene on Mississippi Highway 32 soon after it happened about 4 miles west of Charleston, not far from where Freeman owns a home with his wife.

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