Jury recommends death penalty for Peterson
REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Dec. 13 (UPI) -- A California jury Monday recommended Scott Peterson be sentenced to death for the murders of his wife, Laci, and the couple's unborn child.
Formal sentencing will be Feb. 25, at which time the judge has the option of either following the jury's recommendation or sentencing Peterson to life in prison without parole. California judges, however, nearly always follow a jury's recommendation.
Peterson was convicted by the same jury of murdering eight months pregnant Laci, who disappeared from her Modesto home on Christmas Eve 2002. Her remains and those of the unborn baby were found several months later along the shore of San Francisco Bay.
Under California law, the same jury that hears a capital case hears evidence during a separate hearing to determine whether the defendant should be sentenced to death or life in prison.
A large crowd that had gathered outside the Redwood City courthouse Monday to hear the jury's decision reportedly cheered upon learning of the death sentence recommendation.
Cuba mobilizing its troops
HAVANNA, Cuba, Dec. 13 (UPI) -- Cuba is mobilizing hundreds of thousands of troops and reservists to conduct the communist nation's largest military exercise in two decades.
The island's official Granma newspaper reported online Monday that the operation dubbed Bastion 2004 is an effort to keep Cuba prepared in the event of a U.S. invasion.
The exercise is being led by Cuban Defense Minister Raul Castro, brother to Fidel Castro.
Tensions between the United States and Cuba were escalated earlier this year, when the Bush administration imposed tougher sanctions on the Caribbean nation, part of the U.S. ongoing policy that's lasted more than 40 years. Part of the policy limits the amount of money that Cuban-Americans can send to relatives in Cuba and the frequency of their visits to Cuba.
Cuba struck back by banning the U.S. dollar from circulation and imposing a lofty tax on changing dollars to Cuban pesos.
Pinochet faces human rights abuse trial
SANTIAGO, Chile, Dec. 13 (UPI) -- Former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet was placed under house arrest Monday and is facing charges of human rights abuses stemming from his 17-year reign.
Judge Juan Guzman ordered the 89-year-old Pinochet to remain in his home in Santiago while he awaits trial for his alleged role in the disappearance of nine political opposition activists and one who was killed during the 1973-1990 dictatorship.
Some 3,000 people were killed or disappeared during that time and thousands more tortured.
Earlier this year Pinochet was indicted on charges related to Operation Condor, the 1970-80's agreement between South American military regimes to pursue political opponents across borders. Pinochet is believed to be the architect of the operation.
Guzman also ruled Monday that the aging Pinochet was mentally fit to stand trial. For years, his lawyers maintained that the former military strongman was suffering from dementia.
Pinochet also faces charges that he ordered the death of a former general in 1974 and on tax evasion and money laundering counts.
NASA chief O'Keefe resigns
WASHINGTON, Dec. 13 (UPI) -- NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe Monday announced his resignation after three years on the job.
O'Keefe was appointed by President Bush as the 10th National Aeronautics and Space Administration administrator Dec. 21, 2001, following a stint as deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget. He has presided over an agency that has been full of controversy and promise.
O'Keefe is embattled over his decision not to send a shuttle mission to repair the aging Hubble Space Telescope. He has said he prefers to explore robotic options to attempt to extend the Hubble's mission while a report released last week by a panel of the National Academy of Sciences concluded a shuttle mission has the best chance of success.
Sources said the front runner to replace O'Keefe is retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Ron Kadish.
O'Keefe is under consideration for the position of chancellor of Louisiana State University.
White House spokesman Scott McClellan Monday said the resignation was not unexpected.
"Administrator O'Keefe has previously indicated to us that he is planning on leaving," McClellan said. "But he is someone the president believes has done a great job over at NASA, and we appreciate the work that he has done."
