Watercooler Stories

Juror fired after Facebook posts

BURNLEY, England, Nov. 24 (UPI) -- A Burnley, England, court has booted a juror who allegedly used Facebook to ask friends what they thought of the case.

Burnley Crown Court officials said the woman was removed from the jury after it was revealed that she had posted details of the child abduction and sex assault case against Nelson Claudino, 26, Farooq Ahmed, 27, and Hardeep Singh, 32, on the social networking Web site, The Sun reported Monday.

Officials decided to continue the trial with the remaining 11 jurors.

A legal expert said the woman could have faced contempt of court charges or caused the trial to be restarted.

"It defies belief. She obviously has no grasp of how the judicial process works in this country," the expert said. "She had been asking her mates what they thought -- and some people came back with guilty verdicts. Not discussing trials is one of the most important things jurors are told and is essential for a fair trial."

Party: Cash for Mussolini baby names

POTENZA, Italy, Nov. 25 (UPI) -- An Italian political party is offering $1,940 to parents in five cities who name children after World War II-era dictator Benito Mussolini or his wife Rachele.

The far-right Movimento Sociale-Fiamma Tricolore, or Italian Social Movement, said residents of five municipalities in the sparsely populated Potenza province will be eligible for the cash aid provided they name children born in 2009 either Benito or Rachele, ANSA reported.

The small political party said the parents must also promise to use the money on cribs, clothes, food or other necessary items for their infants.

Vicenzo Mancusi, the regional head of the party, said the new program "does not resolve the problem of the region's declining population, but it is a small attempt by a small party."

He said the choice of Benito and Rachele as the names for the program was "purely casual. They're nice names."

Poll: Britons prefer supernatural to God

LONDON, Nov. 25 (UPI) -- A British poll released to coincide with the DVD release of "The X-Files: I Want to Believe" suggests more Britons believe in "the supernatural" than God.

Researchers said the poll of 3,000 people found 54 percent of respondents believed in God while 58 percent expressed a belief in the supernatural, The Daily Telegraph reported.

The researchers said female respondents were more likely to have faith in the supernatural and were more likely to have visited a medium.

Nearly a quarter of those polled claimed a past encounter with paranormal forces while 37 percent of those polled said extraterrestrials and ghosts formed the basis of their belief system.

The poll was conducted by retailer Choice U.K.

Virginians motorcycling to build bridges

NEWPORT NEWS, Va., Nov. 25 (UPI) -- A Virginia man says he is taking his daughter and stepson with him on a 9,000-mile motorcycle journey to help build bridges in third-world countries.

Ken Hodge says the purpose of the trip is to raise money for a Rotary Club program in his home town of Newport News. The club previously collected money to build bridges in Zambia, Honduras and Peru and wants to build much-needed bridges in other countries.

Hodge said he needed permission from his wife to make the trip in Peru, the Newport News (Va.) Daily Press said.

"If you want your wife to let you go, you tell her you're taking the kids," Hodge said.

He'll be accompanied by his daughter, Katie, stepson, Ryan Anderson and alternate rider Jeff Dagenhart.

The riders said they hope to complete the journey from the Lima to the city of Cusco in less than six weeks.