Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) has signed a bill decriminalizing marijuana possession in the state, following the passage of the measure in Maryland's General Assembly.
Senate Bill 364 reduces the penalty for possessing less than 10 grams of marijuana from a criminal to a civil offense. First-time offenders will face fines up to $100, while a second offense will be punishable with a fine up to $250 and subsequent offenses up to $500.
Maryland Decriminalizes Marijuana Possession
General denies clemency in Manning case
Turning aside calls for clemency, an Army general has approved the 35-year prison sentence imposed on Pfc. Chelsea Manning for a massive leak of military and diplomatic data to WikiLeaks, the Army announced Monday.
The Army statement said Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Buchanan, the commanding general of the military district of Washington, approved the convictions and the sentence on Thursday.
U.S. Revealed: USAID ‘Cuban Twitter’ contractor given secret level clearance
A firm contracted by the U.S. government to help set up a Twitter-like network in Cuba held secret level security clearance and was warned the operation could involve classified work, according to documents seen by Al Jazeera. And documents show that the program was managed by a section of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) tasked with helping manage regime change in countries where U.S. interests are at stake.
Details contained in the terms a $1.5 billion contract between USAID and Washington-based contractor Creative Associates International (CAI) outline the security clearance arrangements required by the U.S. government. Signed in 2008, the document had been obtained by researcher Jeremy Bigwood through a FOIA request, and shared with Al Jazeera.
Three Lebanese journalists for al-Manar TV killed in Syria
Three Lebanese journalists working for Hezbollah's al-Manar television were killed on Monday after coming under attack in the historic Christian town of Maaloula, north of Damascus.
Al-Manar said two other members of the team were wounded but were in a stable condition.
In a statement, it accused "terrorists" of killing reporter Hamza Haj Hassan, cameraman Mohamad Mantash and technician Halim Allaw who were in Maaloula to cover fighting between government forces, backed by Hezbollah fighters, and insurgents, mostly jihadis who took over the town in December.
Guardian and Washington Post win Pulitzer prize for NSA revelations
The Guardian and the Washington Post have been awarded the highest accolade in US journalism, winning the Pulitzer prize for public service for their groundbreaking articles on the National Security Agency’s surveillance activities based on the leaks of Edward Snowden.
The award, announced in New York on Monday, comes 10 months after the Guardian published the first report based on the leaks from Snowden, revealing the agency’s bulk collection of US citizens’ phone records.
Ohio to Accept Out-of-State Gay Marriages
A federal judge on Monday ordered Ohio to recognize the marriages of same-sex couples performed in other states, and civil rights attorneys and gay marriage supporters immediately began looking ahead to their next fight: a lawsuit seeking to force Ohio to allow gay couples to marry.
Judge Timothy Black's ruling was a partial but significant victory for gay rights supporters, who called it a stepping stone for full marriage equality in Ohio.
Suspect in Kansas Jewish center killings faces hate crime charges
The suspect in the Passover Eve killings of three people at two Jewish community facilities in a Kansas City suburb has a long history of racism and anti-Semitism, and faces both state and federal prosecution on hate crime charges, law enforcement officials said on Monday.
Frazier Glenn Cross, 73, was arrested Sunday after a shooting spree that killed a 14-year-old boy and his grandfather outside a popular Jewish community center, and woman visiting her mother at a nearby Jewish retirement home.
Blast rocks crowded bus station near Nigeria's capital
An explosion blasted through a busy commuter bus station on the outskirts of Nigeria's capital, Abuja, before 7 a.m. (0600 GMT) Monday as hundreds of people were traveling to work.
Many are feared dead. Reporters saw rescue workers and police gathering body parts.
The blast ripped a hole 4 feet deep (1.2 meters) in the ground of Nyanya Motor Park about 16 kilometers (10 miles) from the city center and destroyed more than 30 vehicles, causing secondary explosions as their fuel tanks ignited and burned.
A year later, West, Texas is still a long way from recovery
Two flags, tattered by an explosion blocks away, have flown at half-staff at the Emergency Medical Services station since shortly after a fertilizer mixing operation blew up April 17, 2013, devastating this quiet central Texas town and killing 15.
The dead included three out-of-town men attending a course at the EMS facility, who then joined local volunteer firefighters to fight the blaze.
Page 4 of 943
