A knife carried by a Navy SEAL during the raid that killed Usama bin Laden sold for more than $35,000 at an auction to raise money for a friend's company that's seeking to help the Afghan economy.

Matt Bissonnette, whose pseudonym is Mark Owen, was given the knife by Emerson Knives prior to the bin Laden mission in Pakistan on May 2, 2011, and carried it on a variety of combat missions. He recently donated it for sale at an auction for Combat Flip Flops, a Washington state-based online store that sells high-end flip-flops it hopes to soon manufacture in Kabul. A winning bid of $35,400 by an unidentified buyer secured the knife, according to 24Fundraiser.com.

"I'm donating the knife because the owner of Combat Flip Flops is a friend and when he told me about this auction and all the good that the money raised was going to go towards, I wanted to help in any way that I could," Bissonnette said.

More than $76,000 was raised during the auction and will now go to Combat Flip Flops, which was started in 2010 by two Army Rangers and a musician from Montana. The company's website says it makes the footwear in Issaquah, Wash., and hopes to expand production to Afghanistan to help fill the economic void left as American troops pull out.

Bissonette, whose true identity was revealed in August, has also written a book about the historic raid, entitled "No Easy Day: The Firsthand Account of the Mission That Killed Osama Bin Laden."

Ernest Emerson of Emerson Knives will also give the winner bidder a letter of authenticity from Bissonnette.

"That is the real deal — Owen is the real guy and this is the real knife," Emerson said.

O.J. Simpson's former lawyer is in Las Vegas to defend his work before, during and after the 2008 trial that put the former football hero in a Nevada prison for nine to 33 years.

In an email to The Associated Press, Yale Galanter says he arrived Thursday, ahead of his scheduled Friday' testimony as a state's witness in Simpson's bid for a new trial.

He didn't say anything more.

Key among Simpson's claims of ineffective assistance of counsel is the allegation that Galanter knew beforehand about Simpson's plan to recover stolen property and should have stepped away from handling the trial so he could testify on Simpson's behalf.

Simpson testified Wednesday that the two talked about the plan over dinner the night before the ill-fated confrontation in September 2007.

Officials say one U.S. Navy sailor was killed and several others were hurt in a training exercise at Fort Knox in Kentucky.

Fort Knox spokesman Ryan Brus said Friday morning that the accident happened Wednesday night and involved members of a Naval branch at the post in central Kentucky.

Brus had no other details and referred calls to U.S. Navy Lt. David Lloyd. Lloyd did not immediately return a call to The Associated Press.

Fort Knox is about 50 miles southwest of Louisville and is home to about 14,000 military personnel, including active duty members and reserves.

The U.S. Navy has used Fort Knox as a training ground since World War II. Naval architects tested mock-ups of ships at the inland post before the actual vessels were used in combat.

A jury on Thursday convicted a Wahiawa man of second-degree murder and other charges in a 2011 shooting rampage through Honolulu that killed a mother of 10 and wounded two other people.

Jurors deliberated for about 13 hours over three days before delivering a verdict in the case of Toby Stangel, 30.

They also found him guilty of two of seven counts of attempted murder. But they found him not guilty of one count of first-degree attempted murder, which would have carried a mandatory life sentence without the possibility of parole.

Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Dwight Nadamoto said he was disappointed with that decision.

"We felt the evidence was sufficient for the attempted murders in the first degree," he said.

The jury convicted Stangel of reckless endangering for firing at two police officers, the daughter of the woman who died, and a man who was shot while trying to help a wounded motorist. He was found guilty as charged for second-degree attempted murder of a woman shot in the back while driving and the first man he shot at. It failed to reach a verdict on three drug charges.

Stangel's family, who had been in court throughout the trial, left after the verdict without commenting.

Stangel opened fire at an intersection in the early-morning hours of June 3, 2011, killing 54-year-old Tammy Nguyen of Honolulu, authorities said. He then shot and wounded two more people on a freeway and fired at two police officers who were ticketing racing drivers.

Stangel's sentencing was set for July 31.

Prosecutors asked for a hearing on an extended term in hopes of eventually sending Stangel to prison without the possibility of parole. The jury will return to court on Monday for a hearing on that request.

"It's a very, very sad case," Nadamoto said. "Hopefully it'll send the message (that) you can't go around shooting at people."

Defense attorney John Schum didn't dispute that Stangel committed the shootings. He argued instead that his client lacked the "state of mind" to prove intent, a necessary factor for a conviction of murder or attempted murder.

Schum told jurors during closing arguments that Stangel's actions were more in line with reckless endangerment. Stangel didn't testify at trial.

"The challenge to them was to look at what was in Toby's mind," Schum said after the verdict. "I feel the verdict speaks for itself."

Schum said he doesn't know if Stangel will testify at Monday's hearing. "Toby is a not a danger to the community," he said.

Stangel is remorseful and doesn't want to cause more pain for the victims and their families, Schum said: "He feels horrible for what happened and we pray for them constantly."

Nadamoto argued in his closing that Stangel wasn't merely reckless, but intended to kill when he fired multiple shots.

Police have said the 17-minute shooting rampage started when Stangel got out of his car and walked up to vehicles stopped at an intersection. There, he shot and killed Nguyen, a mother of 10 who was in a minivan with her 16-year-old daughter.

He then proceeded to the H-1 freeway, where he shot Amie Lou Asuncion in the back, authorities said. Samson Naupoto was shot when he stopped to help Asuncion.

Authorities said Stangel also fired at others, including the two officers, but they were uninjured. None of the victims knew Stangel.

Prosecution witnesses included Asuncion, Naupoto and Tammy Nguyen's daughter Cindy Nguyen, who said she was in the passenger seat of her family's minivan when her mother was shot in the head.

Asuncion recalled running across the freeway after being shot in the back while driving, then hiding in some plants because she feared the shooter was following her. Naupoto testified that he was driving along the freeway when he saw Asuncion running across the lanes. He said he was shot in his right thigh.

Records show Stangel has five misdemeanor convictions dating to 2002, including criminal property damage and operating a vehicle under the influence of an intoxicant. He was sentenced to 100 hours of community service and one year of probation for criminal property damage in 2006.

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Follow Jennifer Sinco Kelleher at http://www.twitter.com/jenhapa .

A nuclear plant near North Carolina's capital city was shut down after operators reviewing ultrasonic tests from last year found the results showed tiny marks of corrosion and cracking that need repair, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission said.

Operators at the Shearon Harris plant on Wednesday found a quarter-inch flaw in the covering of the reactor vessel, which contains superheated steam produced by the nuclear reaction's energy.

The crack did not penetrate the vessel head and there is no evidence of radiation leakage, an NRC incident report said. The discovery did not affect the health and safety of employees or the public at the New Hill plant, federal regulators said.

NRC inspectors will want to ask plant owner Duke Energy Corp. — which acquired the 26-year-old plant through its buyout last year of Progress Energy — why the testing performed during a spring refueling outage last year didn't find the problem, agency spokesman Roger Hannah said Thursday.

"I think that's a question, from our perspective, that we'd like to have answered," Hannah said. "We'll follow up on that to see if it was something that should have been seen."

Spokesmen for Charlotte-based Duke Energy said it would evaluate why the problem was missed last year. Data from last year's test were being reviewed ahead of an upcoming planned refueling outage.

"During refueling outages, we collect and analyze a lot of plant data," spokeswoman Rita Sipe said in an email. "The reactor is shut down and our repair plans are in progress."

She said Duke has reserves that can meet customers' needs during the shutdown.

The company expects to have the unit back online within a matter of weeks, Duke Energy said Thursday in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The "minor repairs in a nozzle that penetrates the top of the reactor vessel" has been performed successfully at other nuclear reactors around the world, the company said.

The reactor vessel head is commonly checked because the metal is "subject to very high pressure and very high temperatures over a long period of time," Hannah said.

The shutdown comes days before the Harris plant's annual assessment meeting, at which NRC staffers discuss plant operations with the public. The meeting is Monday in nearby Holly Springs.

Progress Energy was cited last year for two safety violations considered to be of low to moderate significance, which Hannah said have since been corrected. Regulators found problems with ventilation systems that would be needed if there were a nuclear emergency.

Since the two North Carolina utilities merged to make Duke Energy the country's largest electric company, the Charlotte-based company has cut back on plans for Progress Energy nuclear plants.

Duke said earlier this month that it will not build two new reactors at Shearon Harris, reversing plans put in place by Progress Energy executives.

In February, Duke Energy said it will permanently close the Crystal River nuclear plant in Florida after botched repairs while it was operated by Progress Energy Florida. Estimates for repairing the nuclear plant shut down since 2009 were between $1.3 billion and $3.4 billion.

Duke Energy Chairman and Chief Executive Jim Rogers told North Carolina regulators last year that former Progress Energy CEO Bill Johnson was dumped within hours of becoming CEO of the merged company in part because of dissatisfaction over his handling of Crystal River's problems. Johnson is now CEO of the Tennessee Valley Authority.

Federal prosecutors in the upcoming racketeering trial of Massachusetts' reputed gangster Whitey Bulger (BUHL'-jur) want to do criminal background checks on potential jurors.

In a court filing Thursday, prosecutors cited the case of convicted killer Gary Sampson, who was sentenced to death for carjacking and killing two Massachusetts men and was also convicted of killing a New Hampshire man during a 2001 crime spree. Sampson's sentence was set aside by a judge who found that one juror repeatedly answered questions about her life dishonestly.

Prosecutors said conducting background checks will help determine whether potential jurors have truthfully answered questionnaires and minimize the chance of a mistrial.

The former leader of the Winter Hill Gang is scheduled to go on trial next month. An indictment accuses him of participating in 19 murders.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has announced plans to use $300 million in federal funding to buy out homeowners whose properties have flooded repeatedly, especially during Superstorm Sandy.

Christie announced the buyout plan Thursday, just before appearing in Sayreville, where about 270 homes were destroyed or severely damaged by a tidal surge during Sandy.

Some of those homeowners have expressed a willingness to sell.

The buyout program begins in July with about 300 eligible properties in Sayreville and neighboring South River. Eventually, 1,000 homes will be bought.

The state will raze homes that are bought and preserve the land as wetlands.

Sayreville is one of the communities frequently mentioned as a good candidate for the buyouts.

Prosecutors announced Thursday they won't file charges against loggers whose equipment apparently started a massive wildfire in northwestern Wisconsin, concluding there was no criminal intent or negligence.

The fire began Tuesday afternoon in the woods near Simms Lake in Douglas County, about 40 miles southeast of Duluth, Minn. It consumed 8,131 acres, destroyed 17 homes and forced dozens of people to evacuate before firefighters contained it late Wednesday evening. No injuries have been reported.

The state Department of Natural Resources released a statement Thursday saying logging equipment started the fire.

A logger was operating a large machine similar to an end loader with a circular saw that cuts groups of trees, DNR Fire Law Enforcement Specialist Gary Bibow said. The operator noticed smoke coming out from under the cutting head, jumped out of the cab and saw the grass under the machine was burning.

The operator nearly had extinguished the fire when it leaped 40 yards into the trees and raced out of control, Bibow said.

"He thought he had it out and it took off," Bibow said. "It climbed into the top of the trees."

Another member of the logger's crew immediately called 911, according to the DNR's statement.

It's still unclear whether the machine caught fire or created sparks as it was cutting, DNR spokeswoman Catherine Koele said. Neither she nor Bibow knew the name of the loggers' company.

The DNR said in its statement that Douglas County prosecutors had decided there was no criminal intent or negligence and they had declined to issue any charges. A message left at the Douglas County district attorney's office late Thursday afternoon wasn't immediately returned.

"It was an act of God, if you will," Koele said.

The fire was one of the worst to strike northern Wisconsin in three decades.

Firefighters from nearly 40 departments battled the blaze. The National Guard sent two Black Hawk helicopters Wednesday to help, and two Canadian waterbombers, which are fixed-wing aircraft, also helped ground crews, according to the DNR. At least 60 people had to evacuate. About 20 spent Tuesday night in a Red Cross shelter in a high school.

Authorities told retired police officer Bob Gotelaere to evacuate on Tuesday, but he decided to return home to save antique guns from his grandfather and his daughter's needlepoint work. He and a friend threaded their way along the back roads to reach the house on Ellison Lake.

Then the wind shifted. The fire came roaring toward them in a soup of orange smoke.

"There were flames all around the house. The embers were coming down in the yard. You couldn't see because of the smoke. (His friend) was screaming at me, 'we've got to go, we've got to go,'" the 67-year-old Gotelaere said. "It was unreal."

They barely made it out, Gotelaere said by phone Thursday. He spent the night with his friend and made his way back to his property Wednesday, fully expecting to find his house reduced to ashes. He discovered the fire had taken his brother-in-law's seasonal mobile home across the street as well as his own outhouse.

Somehow, though, the fire spared the house.

"I expected to find nothing," he said. "I just looked and couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe it."

And he learned a lesson: Get out and stay out.

"You'd think I'd know better," he said. "It was really dumb. The good lord was watching me, I'll tell you that."

Firefighters had shifted into mop-up mode by Thursday morning, checking the blackened landscape for hot spots.

Gov. Scott Walker toured the area by air Thursday afternoon and later released a statement saying state agencies stand ready to help fire victims, including providing money for temporary housing and offering assistance filling out insurance claims. He also has declared a state of emergency in Douglas and Bayfield counties, which makes the Wisconsin National Guard available for recovery efforts.

"To the victims of this fire, I want you to know the state of Wisconsin stands with you," Walker said in the statement.

The DNR initially estimated the fire had consumed nearly 9,000 acres but revised the figures downward Thursday after completing more detailed mapping of the blaze.

The last major forest fire in northern Wisconsin happened on April 22, 1980, and consumed nearly 11,500 acres of forest. A central Wisconsin fire in May 2005 burned more than 3,400 acres.

U.S. authorities in Idaho said Thursday they have arrested an Uzbekistan national on federal terrorism charges.

Federal prosecutors said Fazliddin Kurbanov, 30, was arrested in Boise on Thursday after a grand jury issued a three-count indictment as part of a terrorism investigation.

The indictment charges Kurbanov with one count of conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization and one count of conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists. The indictment also alleges he possessed an unregistered explosive device.

A separate federal grand jury in Utah also returned an indictment charging Kurbanov with distributing information about explosives, bombs and weapons of mass destruction.

He is scheduled to appear in federal court in Boise at 9 a.m. Friday.

The Idaho indictment alleges that between August 2012 and May 2013, Kurbanov knowingly conspired with others to provide support and resources, including computer software and money, to the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, a designated terrorist organization.

The alleged co-conspirators were not named.

In count two, the indictment alleges Kurbanov provided material support to terrorists, knowing that the help was to be used in preparation for a plot involving the use of a weapon of mass destruction.

The indictment also alleges that on Nov. 15, 2012, Kurbanov possessed an explosive device, consisting of a series of parts intended to be converted into a bomb. Those parts included a hollow hand grenade, a hobby fuse, aluminum powder, potassium nitrate and sulfur.

A remote Alaska volcano continues to erupt, spewing lava and ash clouds.

The Alaska Volcano Observatory said Thursday a continuous cloud of ash, steam and gas from Pavlof Volcano has been seen 20,000 feet above sea level. The cloud was moving to the southeast Thursday.

John Power, the U.S. Geological Survey scientist in charge at the observatory, estimates the lava fountain rose several hundred feet into the air.

Onsite seismic instruments are picking up constant tremors from the eruption at Pavlof, located about 625 miles southwest of Anchorage.

Residents of Cold Bay, 37 miles away, have reported seeing a glow from the summit.

Pavlof is among the most active volcanoes in the Aleutian arc, with nearly 40 known eruptions, according to the observatory.

Federal authorities in Idaho say they have arrested an Uzbekistan national on federal terrorism charges.

Prosecutors says 30-year-old Fazliddin Kurbanov was arrested in Boise on Wednesday, one day after a grand jury issued a three-count indictment as part of a terrorism investigation.

The indictment charges Kurbanov with one count of conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization and one count of conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists. The indictment also alleges he possessed an unregistered explosive device.

A separate federal grand jury in Utah also returned an indictment charging Kurbanov with distributing information about explosives, bombs and weapons of mass destruction.

He is scheduled to make an appearance in federal court in Boise on Friday.

A North Texas neighborhood torn apart by a tornado will remain closed to its residents until officials can account for everyone who lived there.

That's the word from Hood County Sheriff Roger Deeds who told reporters Thursday that the search and recovery effort is a "day to day" matter in the Rancho Brazos Estates neighborhood in Granbury.

Deeds said the search in the community about 40 miles southwest of Fort Worth will continue "until every piece of debris is turned over."

Deeds said four men and two women were killed Wednesday. One man and one woman were each in their 80s.

He said six or seven people are still missing, but he was confident they would be found "alive and well."

Average U.S. rates on fixed mortgages rose this week but stayed near their historic lows. Cheaper mortgages have helped the economy by spurring more home-buying and refinancing.

Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the average rate for the 30-year loan increased to 3.51 percent from 3.42 percent last week. That's still near the average of 3.31 percent reached in November, the lowest on records dating to 1971.

The average on the 15-year loan rose to 2.69 percent. That's up from 2.61 percent last week, which was the lowest on records going back to 1991.

Low mortgage rates have helped sustained the housing recovery that began last year. Home sales and construction are up from a year ago, and prices are rising in most U.S. markets.

Home prices are rising in part because more buyers are bidding on a limited supply of homes for sale.

On Thursday, the Commerce Department reported that U.S. builders started fewer homes in April than March. But most of the decline was in apartment construction, which tends to vary sharply from month to month.

And applications for new construction reached a five-year peak last month. That suggests the housing revival will be sustained.

To calculate average mortgage rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country on Monday through Wednesday each week. The average doesn't include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount.

The average fee for 30-year mortgages was unchanged from last week at 0.7 point. The fee for 15-year loans also was steady at 0.7.

The average rate on a one-year adjustable-rate mortgage rose to 2.55 percent from 2.53 percent last week. The fee for one-year adjustable-rate loans remained at 0.4 point.

The average rate on a five-year adjustable-rate mortgage increased to 2.62 percent from 2.58 percent. The fee was unchanged at 0.5 point.

Residents of a luxury Tribeca building are furious over a new photo exhibit in a Chelsea art gallery — because they had no idea they were the subjects on display.

From his second-floor apartment across the street, artist Arne Svenson secretly took photos of his neighbors through their oversized windows as they engaged in such personal things as bending over cleaning, taking naps and carrying sleeping kids to bed.

The shots — which don't show full faces — are now being sold for up to $7,500 each at the Julie Saul Gallery in an exhibition called "The Neighbors," which opened Saturday.

The largest print on display is 5 feet by 2 feet.

Residents of the Greenwich Street building — where penthouses fetch up to $6 million — soon caught wind of their involuntary modeling, and are fuming.

Click for the more from the New York Post.

 

Attorneys for Jodi Arias asked to step down from the case after their client was convicted of first-degree murder, but a judge denied the request.

Arias returns to court Thursday for the final phase of her trial as the same jury that convicted her last week now weighs whether the former waitress should be sentenced to life in prison or death.

Her attorneys must convince jurors she shouldn't be executed. But just Tuesday, Kirk Nurmi and Jennifer Willmott asked a judge for permission to withdraw from the case. The detail was contained in court minutes and provides no information about why the two defense lawyers asked to withdraw.

Legal experts have said that Arias complicated efforts for her defense when she gave an interview to Fox affiliate KSAZ minutes after her conviction Wednesday, saying that she preferred death over life in prison.

"I believe death is the ultimate freedom, and I'd rather have my freedom as soon as I can get it," Arias said.

However, Arias cannot choose the death penalty. It's up to the jury to recommend a sentence.

On Wednesday, the panel took less than three hours to determine that Arias should be eligible for the death penalty in the killing of her one-time lover after prosecutors proved the murder was especially cruel and heinous.

Arias, 32, acknowledged killing Travis Alexander on June 4, 2008, at his suburban Phoenix home after a day of sex. She initially denied any involvement then later blamed the attack on masked intruders. Two years after her arrest, she settled on self-defense.

On Thursday, the penalty phase of her trial begins during which prosecutors will call Alexander's family and other witnesses in an effort to convince the panel Arias should face the ultimate punishment. Arias' defense lawyers will have her family members testify, and likely others who have known her over the years, in an attempt to gain sympathy from jurors to save her life. It's not yet known if Arias will testify.

Arias showed no emotion Wednesday after the jury returned a decision that was widely expected given the violent nature of the killing. She slashed Alexander's throat, stabbed him in the heart and shot him in the forehead. The victim suffered a total of nearly 30 knife wounds in what prosecutors described as an attack fueled by jealous rage after Alexander wanted to end his affair with Arias and prepared to take a trip to Mexico with another woman.

The jury simply had to determine the killing was committed in an especially cruel and heinous manner to complete the "aggravation phase" of the trial and move on to the penalty portion.

Alexander's family members sobbed in the front row as prosecutor Juan Martinez took the jury through the killing one more time earlier in the day. He described how blood gushed from Alexander's chest, hands and neck as the 30-year-old motivational speaker and businessman stood at the sink in his master bathroom and looked into the mirror with Arias behind him, a knife in her hand.

"The last thing he saw before he lapsed into unconsciousness ... was that blade coming to his throat," Martinez said. "And the last thing he felt before he left this earth was pain."

Wednesday's proceedings played out quickly, with only one prosecution witness and none for the defense.

The most dramatic moments occurred when Martinez displayed photos of Alexander's corpse and the bloody crime scene for the jury, then paused in silence for two minutes to describe how long he said it took for Alexander to die at Arias' hands.

Arias, wearing a silky, cream-colored blouse, appeared to fight back tears most of the morning, but didn't seem fazed by the verdict. Afterward she chatted with her attorneys. Arias spent the weekend on suicide watch before being transferred back to an all-female jail where she will remain until sentencing.

Arias' attorneys didn't put on much of a case during the aggravation phase, offering no witnesses and giving brief opening statements and closing arguments. They said Alexander would have had so much adrenaline rushing through his body that he might not have felt much pain.

The only witness was the medical examiner who performed the autopsy and explained to jurors how Alexander did not die calmly and fought for his life as evidenced by the numerous defensive wounds on his body.

Albuquerque police say a mother who saw her 5-year-old being abducted chased the suspect down and crashed her vehicle into his car, triggering a manhunt.

Police say the incident unfolded Wednesday evening when the woman saw her child being forced into a car in Albuquerque's North Valley. She jumped into her vehicle and gave chase for about seven miles, unaware the man had pushed the girl out of the car shortly after grabbing her. The girl was not injured.

The mother followed the suspect and finally rammed into his car near an intersection. He fled on foot.

Police are still searching for the man, who they say matches the description of a suspect who sexually assaulted and returned a girl in the same neighborhood last week.

A woman and 1-year-old boy were killed and a 3-year-old girl wounded in a triple stabbing on Wednesday near San Jose, authorities said.

The three were found at a home in an unincorporated area by a family member at around 3:30 p.m., Santa Clara County Deputy Kurtis Stenderup said. The girl survived the attack and was in stable condition at a hospital, he said.

The slain woman was the children's grandmother and was babysitting them, sheriff's officials told the San Jose Mercury News (http://bit.ly/12w5IL0 ). She has not been identified.

Authorities were interviewing a man described as a "person of interest." Ruben Ramirez, 27, a relative of the victims, was found at night in San Francisco with the help of U.S. Marshals and San Francisco police. He was being interviewed there, Stenderup said.

Sheriff's deputies and K-9 teams searched for several hours to try to locate Ramirez. Television helicopter live shots showed heavily armed deputies, some with dogs, going yard-to-yard, while cameras on the ground captured video of distraught family members arriving outside the home.

Ramirez suffers from mental health problems, and authorities have had prior contact with him, Stenderup said.

Police shot a teenager and arrested another suspect while investigating a car theft inside a rental car return area at Jacksonville International Airport in Florida.

The shooting happened Wednesday afternoon. Police tried to stop the vehicle after tracking it to the parking garage at the airport. When they tried to stop it, the driver rammed two police vehicles and another car.

The Florida Times-Union (http://bit.ly/17xj5Pi ) reports an officer shot at the car as it drove away. Police found the vehicle in an apartment complex and arrested a 27-year-old and the 17-year-old, who was shot in the ankle. Police didn't release their names and say they are still looking for a third suspect.

There were not many bystanders in the garage. But police say they fired shots because public safety was at risk.

___

Information from: The (Jacksonville) Florida Times-Union, http://www.jacksonville.com

Lying and fishing has been known to go hand-in-hand, so organizers of this weekend's salmon-fishing derby in New Hampshire's Lake Winnipesaukee decided to force the winner to undergo a Polygraph test to make sure the fish was actually caught in the correct lake.

"Due to the rumors and information on some of the fishing blogs, there has been a raised awareness that the possibility of some of the past entries for landlocked salmon entered were not fished from Lake Winnipesaukee," a statement on the the Winni Derby's website reads.

The Union Leader reported that there has been no cheaters caught, but these rumors "sounded pretty strong," according to Dianne LaBrie, who works with the derby.

"It's just something we're doing to make sure it's a fair competition for everyone," she said.

There are cash prizes. First place in the landlocked salmon division is $12,500, the report said.

A.J. Nute owns A.J.'s Bait & Tackle and says when there's money involved, there's a risk of cheating. He points out that there's a lake nearby where salmon tend to grow larger and can easily be smuggled onto an unscrupulous fisherman's boat.

"These aren't large fish to begin with," he said. "Pretty much a 5-pounder wins you the tournament."

For Nute, he said the largest landlocked salmon he ever caught was a "once in a lifetime" 10-pounder. When asked if he took a lie-detector test to support the claim, he laughed and said no.

Click for more from The Union Leader

Jurors began a third day of deliberations in a Cincinnati murder trial revolving around whether a dying, paralyzed man identified his shooter by blinking his eyes.

The jury in the trial of 35-year-old Ricardo Woods, of Cincinnati, began discussions Tuesday afternoon and didn't reach a verdict Wednesday. Jurors reconvened Thursday morning.

Woods is accused of shooting David Chandler in 2010. Chandler was left paralyzed from the neck down and unable to speak before his death about two weeks later.

Prosecutors told jurors that Chandler clearly identified Woods by blinking his eyes in a video interview with police. Officials said Chandler blinked three times for "yes" to identify Woods' photo.

The defense called Chandler's blinking unreliable due to his condition and medications.