| Brad Pitt quizzed about Angelina while serving jury duty
Brad Pitt was called for jury duty at a Los Angeles court last Thursday. The Fight Club star - who has postponed his civic duty several times, due to work commitments - took a 'red eye' flight from Chicago to be in court for the DUI (driving under the influence) case. Brad, 43, arrived at court in a chauffeured SUV wearing a white T-shirt, dark jeans, a black cap and a juror badge and brought a book to read. Us Magazine reported Pitt was quietly reading his book when he was interrupted by woman who confronted him with a magazine that declared his split from Angelina Jolie, asking, "Is this true?" When the jurors broke for lunch, the Hollywood heartthrob stayed in a private room and sent his assistant out to get him a Subway sandwich. Just before Brad and the jurors were due to be called into court, lawyers announced they might have a plea agreement.
Suit opposes MOHELA payouts
A class-action suit has been filed to stop the transfer of $350 million from the Missouri student loan agency to fund Gov. Matt Blunt's plan for college buildings. If successful, the effort could derail Blunt's much-disputed plan, which he announced in January 2006. The plan was revised many times, became the subject of a filibuster in the Legislature before it was approved and is finally due to take effect on Aug. 28. The suit could affect public universities around the state that are counting on the money for various building projects, some of which are already in the works. Projects in the St. Louis area include a $15.7 million early-childhood education center at Harris-Stowe State University and a $28.5 million renovation of a science building the University of Missouri-St.
West Coast Editor
Genzyme Corp.'s longstanding legal dispute with some shareholders over the buyback of Genzyme Biosurgery stock in 2003 will end not with a figurative bang but with a $64 million whimper, if a judge approves an agreement made between the parties. The news hardly touched the price of Cambridge, Mass.-based Genzyme's stock (NASDAQ:GENZ), which closed Friday at $59.55, down 93 cents. Four class-action lawsuits were filed in all, but they have been combined or dismissed. Word of the settlement showed up in Genzyme's second-quarter earnings report, where the company predicts the proposed $64 million payout "will, as a practical matter, resolve the consolidated case that remains pending" in Massachusetts Superior Court, and lay the whole matter to rest. "I don't think the Street will blink if [the settlement amount is] below $200 million," Jennifer Chao, analyst with Deutsche Bank, told BioWorld Today.
Our stupid state
Of all the alarming stats and reports regularly published about the economic future of our state, none is more sobering than the assessment by public school czar Paul Pastorek, who told a Rotary Club of Baton Rouge audience last week that Louisiana's public school system is an abysmal failure. What else can you conclude when Pastorek says the state's four best performing districts—including top-rated Zachary—are no better than average. As for the rest? They're either dismal (a D rating) or a failure (an F). It should come as little surprise that East Baton Rouge schools are firmly in the failure category. Never in the 25 years I've now lived here have I heard a more blunt and depressing view of the state we're in. Seriously, it's scary when the state's new superintendent of education admits our government is absolutely pathetic at its most important obligation—providing a quality public education for its residents.
Chris Rock Cleared in Paternity Case
A lawyer for Chris Rock said August 6 that a court-ordered DNA test proved Rock is not the father of a 13-year-old boy whose mother tried to sue the comedian for support earlier this year. Rock's attorney, John Mayoue of Atlanta, said a Bulloch County judge sent results of the paternity test to lawyers on both sides of the case. "The results of the test are that Chris Rock is not the father of this child," Mayoue said. "It is conclusive." The mother, however, disputed the test results. Kali Bowyer, who lives in Bulloch County west of Savannah, tried in March to file a paternity lawsuit against Rock seeking child support and medical coverage for her son, Jordan. She withdrew the lawsuit after court officials told her it was outside the southeast Georgia county's jurisdiction because Rock is a New Jersey resident.
The Libel Tourist Strikes Again
In late July, Cambridge University Press announced it was destroying all its remaining copies of Alms for Jihad, a 2006 book exploring the nexus of Islamic charities and Islamic radicalism. At the same time, Cambridge asked libraries around the world to stop carrying the book on their shelves. The reason? Fear of being sued in a British court by Sheikh Khalid bin Mahfouz, a Saudi billionaire who ranks as one of the world's richest men--and whose suspected links to terrorist financing earned him a mention in Alms for Jihad. .
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