Pussy Riot members guilty of hooliganism
MOSCOW, Aug. 17 (UPI) -- A Moscow judge Friday found three members of Russian feminist band Pussy Riot guilty of hooliganism for performing a protest song in a church.
In announcing her verdict, Judge Marina Syrova said Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, 22, Maria Alyokhina, 24, and Yekaterina Samutsevich, 30, carefully planned the act, RIA Novosti reported.
"The defendants were aware of the offensive nature of their actions," Syrova said. "They sought to publicize their act and provoke a public reaction; they wanted to insult not only church clergy but also the broad sections of society."
"They have deeply hurt and insulted the faithful," the judge said.
The women maintained their "punk prayer" at Christ the Savior cathedral in February was a political act to protest the Russian Orthodox Church's support of President Vladimir Putin. The church's leader said the obscenity-filled performance was tantamount to blasphemy.
Before the verdict, some statues in the city were covered with colored balaclavas, the band's trademark look, to show support for the women, the BBC reported.
Support for the band members also spread across Russia and Ukraine, RIA Novosti reported.
Tolokonnikova said Thursday she wasn't bitter about being jailed, but declared in a Twitter post through her lawyer: "Politically, I am furious. Our imprisonment serves as a clear and unambiguous sign that freedom is being taken away from the entire country."
Her husband, Pyotr Verzilov, had told the BBC he didn't think the court would be impartial.
"No one in Russia, no one [elsewhere] has any doubt that it's Putin personally who will be choosing the sentence for the three members of Pussy Riot," Verzilov said.
Prince Philip to stay in hospital
LONDON, Aug. 17 (UPI) -- Prince Philip is responding well to treatment for a bladder infection but will remain hospitalized in Scotland, a Buckingham Palace statement said.
The 91-year-old duke of Edinburgh, husband of Queen Elizabeth II, was taken to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary Wednesday as a precautionary measure after a recurrence of the illness he contracted in June.
He became ill while staying at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, where the Queen traditionally spends part of her summer, CNN reported Thursday.
Barrowman to co-star on TV's 'Arrow'
LOS ANGELES, Aug. 17 (UPI) -- "Torchwood" star John Barrowman has joined the cast of the new U.S. action-drama, "Arrow," EW.com reported.
The show is to premiere Oct. 10 on The CW. It stars Stephen Amell as billionaire Oliver Queen and his superhero alter ego Green Arrow.
The entertainment news Web site said producers aren't giving much away other than to say Barrowman's recurring character will be a "well-dressed man" who is "as mysterious as he is wealthy ... he is an acquaintance of the Queen family and a prominent figure in Starling City."
'Lorax' leads DVD sales, rental charts
LOS ANGELES, Aug. 17 (UPI) -- The animated family flick "Dr. Seuss' The Lorax" is the top-selling DVD and Blu-ray and No. 1 rental in the United States, Rentrak said.
Coming in a No. 2 on the DVD and Blu-ray sales roster for the week ending Aug. 12 is "Hatfields & McCoys," followed by "The Three Stooges" at No. 3, "Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows" at No. 4 and "Mission: Impossible -- Ghost Protocol" at No. 5.
Rounding out the top tier are "21 Jump Street" at No. 6, "American Reunion" at No. 7, "Wrath of the Titans" at No. 8, "Grimm: Season One" at No. 9 and "Mirror Mirror" at No. 10
The No. 2 DVD and Blu-ray rental for the week ended Aug. 11 is "Lockout."
"American Reunion" is No. 3, "Silent House" is No. 4, "The Three Stooges" is No. 5, "21 Jump Street" is No. 6, "Get the Gringo" is No. 7, "Friends with Kids" is No. 8, "Wrath of the Titans" is No. 9 and "Casa De Mi Padre" is No. 10.
