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Italy court Amanda Knox to be retried for Meredith Kercher murder

Amanda Knox was ordered to stand trial again for the murder of her roommate by Italy's top criminal court on Tuesday, but there appeared to be little the country could do to force her to return for the new hearings.

The Court of Cassation, Italy's final court of appeal, overturned the acquittals of both Knox and her then-boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito over the 2007 killing of British student Meredith Kercher.

In a statement responding to the decision, Knox slammed prosecutors and vowed to fight on.

"It was painful to receive the news that the Italian Supreme Court decided to send my case back for revision when the prosecution's theory of my involvement in Meredith's murder has been repeatedly revealed to be completely unfounded and unfair,”said Knox, who is now aged 25 and living in the Seattle area.

“I believe that any questions as to my innocence must be examined by an objective investigation and a capable prosecution,” she added. “The prosecution responsible for the many discrepancies in their work must be made to answer for them, for Raffaele's sake, my sake, and most especially for the sake of Meredith's family. Our hearts go out to them.”

Theodore Simon, one of Amanda Knox's attorneys, discusses the Italian supreme court's stunning decision to overturn her acquittal saying "we fully expect she will be exonerated."

Knox said that she and her family would “face this continuing legal battle as we always have, confident in the truth and with our heads held high in the face of wrongful accusations and unreasonable adversity."

Kercher, 21, died from knife wounds in an apartment that she shared with Knox in Perugia, Italy.

Prosecutors argued that Knox and Sollecito killed her after a drug-fueled sexual assault in a case that drew worldwide attention.

Mathew Knowles Talks Beyonce Split 'It Would Be A Lie If I Did Not Say It Has Been Difficult'

Mathew Knowles says that it was "difficult" splitting from Beyonce's management team.

In an exclusive interview with the Sun, Mathew revealed his 2011 split from Beyonce was mutual but still painful. “Normally I hate to talk about anything personal, but it would be a lie if I did not say it has been difficult," he said. “It was hard for me to let her go — it was hard for both of us to let each other go. And let’s be clear on that. She didn’t let me go, we both let each other go. That’s a big difference.”

“This was not a normal ending of a business agreement," he told the Sun. "This was a dad and a daughter and it was incredibly painful and it had some difficulties. But I try to always have a positive mind about things and you got to do it the right way.”

Two years ago, Beyonce announced she and her father had decided to part ways. "He is my father for life and I love my dad dearly," the singer said in a statement. "I am grateful for everything he has taught me."

Mathew had managed his daughter since she launched her career as one-fourth of Destiny's Child in the late 1990s, the Los Angeles Times noted. Despite the success of the group, all members eventually severed professional ties with Mathew. He was also previously accused of stealing money from Beyonce, a claim he vehemently denied.

The "Bow Down" singer described the tense fallout in her HBO documentary, "Life Is But A Dream."

"I’m feeling very empty because of my relationship with my dad," she said in a candid, privately recorded video. "And I’m so fragile at this point and I feel like my soul has been tarnished. Life is unpredictable but I feel like I had to move on, and not work with my dad. And I don’t care if I don’t sell one record. It’s bigger than the record, it’s bigger than my career."

'The Wolverine' Teaser Spoils 'X-Men' Cameo -- Or Does It

Twentieth Century Fox is putting the tease in teaser this week, with a three-day long rollout planned for the new "The Wolverine" trailer. On Monday, the studio released a Vine clip of the trailer (Vine is a social networking site that allows users to share six-second videos to followers); Tuesday will bring a 20-second glimpse of the new clip, followed by the whole megillah hitting the Internet on Wednesday. That's a lot of "Wolverine," but did Fox reveal too much?

Potential "Wolverine" spoilers ahead. As many fans noted, the six-second Vine clip features a shot of Famke Janssen, best known as the dearly departed Jean Grey from the "X-Men" franchise. Jean and Hugh Jackman's Wolverine had quite an entangled relationship in the original "X-Men" films, but she "died" in "X2" and then, after being reborn as Dark Phoenix in "X-Men: The Last Stand," was killed by Wolverine's claws. Janssen's appearance in "The Wolverine" was rumored as far back as October of 2012, when she was reportedly seen shooting an appearance alongside Jackman.

What remains unclear at the moment is where Janssen's appearance happens on the "X-Men" timeline. "X-Men Origins: Wolverine," the previous Wolverine film, happened before "X-Men"; "The Wolverine," however, takes place after the "X-Men" series of films, meaning Grey could be alive and well or appear in the film via flashback or dream sequence.

Watch the "Wolverine" Vine teaser below. "The Wolverine" is out in theaters on July 26.

Thrill seeker dies at towering Corona Arch, made famous by YouTube videos

Southeastern Utah’s Corona Arch, a towering geological feature glorified last year on YouTube as the “World’s largest Rope Swing,” has claimed the life of a 22-year-old thrill seeker. Kyle Lee Stocking died Sunday while trying to swing from the 140-foot-high arch, which has experienced a surge in popularity during the past year because of YouTube videos and sharing of videos on social media.

Standing out is the “World’s Largest Rope Swing,” a video (posted above) that has garnered more than 17 million views since it was uploaded on Feb. 15, 2012. (A behind-the-scenes video from the same group garnered nearly 1 million views.)

Because of this popularity surge, the Salt Lake Tribune reports, the destination has come to be known as the “Granddaddy of All Cheap Thrills,” and that climbers recently adapted their gear specifically for swinging like a pendulum from the sandstone arch.

Lt. Kim Neil of the Grand County Sheriff’s Office told the Tribune that the length of rope used by Stocking was “miscalculated and when he swung under the arch, he struck the ground … receiving fatal injuries.”

Because of its popularity and the obvious danger factor, Corona Arch, which is located on state and federal land near Moab, has been made off-limits to commercial outfitters specializing in extreme rope-swinging.

However, it remains open to private individuals for hiking and climbing.

Samsung Galaxy S II Plus Goes On Sale In India For Rs.22,900

Samsung Smartphones Price Shopping.Indiatimes.Com - Upto 21% Off on Mobiles Today. Spl Clearance Sale. Don't Miss It!

Back in January, Samsung announced the Galaxy S II Plus smartphone. This handset packs almost same specs from the original Galaxy S II, except the fact that this device will be shipped with the newer Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) Operating System and Samsung’s latest Touchwiz Nature UX out-of-the-box. It also comes with a popup video feature which allows you to play a video anywhere on the screen in a resizable pop-up window while simultaneously running other tasks.

There are no changes in the design of this device, however the mesh like back cover is replaced with the glossy back cover. Samsung has also reduced the internal storage from 16 GB to 8 GB. Infibeam, a popular online retailer has already started selling this device in India. Even the price of this device is similar to the original Galaxy S II. Check out the specs below.

Samsung Galaxy S II Plus features a 4.3 inch Super AMOLED Plus display, sporting a resolution of 480 x 800 pixels, 1.2 GHz dual-core processor, Android 4.1.2 (Jelly Bean) OS, TouchWiz 4.0 UI, 8 megapixel rear-facing camera with autofocus and LED flash, full HD (1080p) video recording and playback, 2 megapixel front-facing camera for video calls, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, 3G Connectivity and more.

Other features include a 3.5 mm headset jack, Stereo FM Radio with RDS, 8 GB internal memory, microSD card slot, 64 GB expandable memory, Samsung Media Hub, Samsung Kies Air, Google Play Store, full HTML web browser, DLNA, HDMI out, Bluetooth 3.0 with EDR, 1 GB RAM, NFC (Near Field Communication), Wi-Fi Direct, up to 610 hrs of stand-by time, up to 8 hrs 40 mins of talk-time and a 1650 mAh battery.

Carol Vorderman suffers broken nose after tumbling down stairs in high heels

Loose Women presenter Carol Vorderman has been left battered and bruised after tumbling down the stairs in four-inch heels, breaking her nose against a wall.
Loose Women presenter Carol Vorderman has been left battered and bruised after tumbling down the stairs in four-inch heels, breaking her nose against a wall.
Presenter Carol Vorderman has been left battered and bruised after tumbling down the stairs in four-inch heels, breaking her nose against a wall Photo:

Vorderman was leaving a business meeting at an office block in central London and decided to take the stairs instead of waiting for a lift, but lost her footing and ended up crashing face first into a brick wall.

The former Countdown maths whiz has been forced to cancel TV appearances for the next few weeks after the fall that also left her with cuts to her forehead and left eyelid that needed stitches.

Although she fell down only four steps, the impact made worse because her hands were in her pockets.

The host of ITV’s Food Glorious Food was taken to hospital by her boyfriend, ex-Red Arrows stunt pilot Graham Duff, and she had an operation to reset her nose.

Vorderman, 52, who has been ordered to rest after the accident on Thursday, said: “I feel like a complete idiot – I really do look like I’ve done eight rounds with Muhammad Ali.

“Because I had my hands in my coat pockets while I was running, I had nothing to break my fall except my head.

“The bruising round my eye has reached its peak. I will have a plaster on my nose for a week and hope that the swelling starts to go down.”

The presenter, who is resting at her home in Bristol, said she had stitches in her forehead and left eyelid, but added that she was “just counting my blessings I didn’t damage my skull or the left eye itself”.

“I’m feeling OK but I have had to cancel work for a few weeks – so no more Loose Women for a while,” she said.

Christina Aguilera Shows Off Slimmer Figure

On Wednesday, Christina Aguilera showed up to "The Voice" season four premiere flaunting a new, toned-down look -- and a slimmer figure.

The 32-year-old mother of one, looked confident in a black and white dress, and sky high Louboutin heels that accentuated her toned legs.

The singer, who was stick thin when she first burst on to the scene in 1999, has struggled with her weight for years, but she's never let it -- or comments about her weight -- get her down.

"I've been on all spectrums [weight-wise], I've been in this [business] for a long time ... You can never be too much of anything," she told reporters at the Television Critics Association conference in January 2012. "You can never bee too perfect, too thin, too curvy, voluptuous this that. I've been all sides of the spectrum as far as any female in this business."

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Amanda Bynes' Family Concerned About Her Well-Being

Amanda Bynes' family is reportedly thinking about bringing her back to Los Angeles.

The troubled 26-year-old's bizarre behavior has her loved ones concerned and they're ready to intervene, according to E! News.

Since moving to New York from L.A., Bynes has been acting strangely, posting weird pictures on Twitter -- umm, that cheek piercing? -- as well as raunchy and inappropriate tweets. A source close to the star tells E! that her family is "concerned for her welfare" and want her to move closer to them so that they can keep an eye on her.

The source adds that Bynes family is hopeful that everything is going to be OK, but that they're ready to step in if needed. Well, considering her recent run-ins with police and out-of-control solo outings, it appears it's time to intervene.

Bloomberg, mayor group tout big gun control push

A new $12 million television ad campaign from Mayors Against Illegal Guns will push senators in key states to back gun control efforts, including comprehensive background checks.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced the ad buy Saturday — just days after Senate Democrats touted stronger background checks while acknowledging insufficient support to restore a ban on assault-style weapons to federal gun control legislation.

"These ads bring the voices of Americans — who overwhelmingly support comprehensive and enforceable background checks — into the discussion to move senators to immediately take action to prevent gun violence," Bloomberg said in a statement issued by the group he co-founded in 2006.

The two ads posted on the group's website, called "Responsible" and "Family," show a gun owner holding a rifle while sitting on the back of a pickup truck.

In one ad, the man says he'll defend the Second Amendment but adds "with rights come responsibilities." The ad then urges viewers to tell Congress to support background checks.

In the other ad, the man, a hunter, says "background checks have nothing to do with taking guns away from anyone." The man then says closing loopholes will stop criminals and the mentally ill from obtaining weapons.

The Senate is scheduled to debate federal gun control legislation next month. On March 28, the group plans for more than 100 events nationwide in support of passing gun control legislation that includes background checks.

Mayors Against Illegal Guns and other gun-control advocates frequently cite a mid-1990s study that suggests about 40 percent of U.S. gun transfers were conducted by private sellers not subject to federal background checks. Based on 2011 FBI data, the group estimates 6.6 million firearms transfers are made without a background check for the receiver.

A spokesman for Bloomberg could not immediately say if the $12 million was coming from Bloomberg or the mayor's political action committee, Independence USA. The New York Times, which first reported the ad campaign Saturday night, said Bloomberg was bankrolling the ad buy.

A spokesman for the National Rifle Association blasted Bloomberg and the new ads, saying NRA members and supporters would be calling senators directly and urging them to vote against proposed gun control legislation.

"What Michael Bloomberg is trying to do is ... intimidate senators into not listening to constituents and instead pledge their allegiance to him and his money," said spokesman Andrew Arulanandam.

Jailed 23 years, NY man is freed, has heart attack

A New York City man whose murder conviction was overturned after 23 years in prison has suffered a heart attack on his second day of freedom.

David Ranta's lawyer tells The New York Times (http://nyti.ms/102uUVo ) the former inmate had a serious heart attack Friday night and is being treated at a New York hospital.

Ranta walked out of jail Thursday after a judge threw out his conviction in the 1990 killing of a Brooklyn rabbi.

Brooklyn prosecutors had recently concluded Ranta's prosecution in the death of Rabbi Chaskel Werzberger was fatally flawed.

Werzberger was killed by a bandit fleeing a botched robbery. One witness said a police lineup that helped convict Ranta had been rigged.

Ranta is 58. He told reporters Thursday that his new freedom was emotionally overwhelming.

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Information from: The New York Times, http://www.nytimes.com

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