National Roundup

South Carolina
More charges in killing of sex offender and wife
UNION, S.C. (AP) — More charges have been filed against a couple accused of targeting and killing a South Carolina sex offender.
Bond was denied Monday for Jeremy Moody, 30, and his wife, 36-year-old Christine, on charges of first-degree burglary and two counts each of kidnapping and possession of a firearm during the commission of a violent crime.
The Moodys were arrested last week and charged with murder in the deaths of Charles Parker, 59, and his wife, Gretchen, 51. Both Parkers were shot and stabbed at their home in Union County.
Union County Sheriff David Taylor has said Gretchen Parker wasn’t specifically targeted but was killed because she was in the house.
Taylor has also said that Jeremy Moody confessed to the crime after his arrest, telling investigators they had arrested him just in time before he killed another sex offender.
Taylor planned to hold another news conference this week to discuss the case. Taylor said Moody implied he has killed before.
During a news conference on Wednesday, Taylor said Moody told investigators, “This isn’t the first time something like this has happened.”
The Moodys have a court appearance scheduled for Oct. 8.
Charles Parker was required to register as a sex offender after he was convicted of third-degree criminal sexual conduct about a decade ago.

New Jersey
‘Real Housewives of NJ’ stars free on $500K bond
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Two stars of the “Real Housewives of New Jersey” have been freed on $500,000 bond each amid fraud charges.
Teresa Giudice and her husband, Giuseppe “Joe” Giudice, appeared in federal court Tuesday morning.
The Giudices are charged in a 39-count indictment with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, bank fraud, making false statements on loan applications and bankruptcy fraud.
They both had to surrender their passports and can’t travel outside of New Jersey and New York. The husband could be deported to Italy if convicted because he’s not a U.S. citizen.
Authorities say the couple submitted fraudulent mortgage and loan applications from 2001 to 2008, including fake tax returns and W-2s. Prosecutors allege Joe Giudice failed to file tax returns for the years 2004 through 2008.

Kentucky
Officials defend redacting child abuse records
FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky child safety officials have testified that their main reason for redacting information in files of children who have been severely abused or neglected is to protect the privacy of families involved.
Department of Community Based Services Teresa James said protecting the privacy of the families helps them to heal and rebuild.
The Courier-Journal and the Lexington Herald-Leader report the testimony came Monday during a hearing in Frankfort over whether the Cabinet for Health and Family Services is following the correct procedure for redacting information in the files that a judge has ordered turned over to the newspapers.
Lawyers for the newspapers argue that the agency is blacking out more information than the judge approved.
Testimony was to continue Tuesday in Franklin Circuit Court.

Idaho
Twice convicted of murder, prisoner wants third trial
LEWISTON, Idaho (AP) — A judge in north-central Idaho will decide if a man who has already been convicted twice of murder for the deaths of two people in 1983 should get a third trial.
The Lewiston Tribune reports 56 -year-old Mark Lankford is appealing his 2008 jury conviction for the beating deaths of U.S. Marine Capt. Robert Bravence and his wife, Cheryl, at an Idaho campsite.
Lankford was originally sentenced to death for the crime, but in 2007 an appellate court found there was an error in jury instructions and ordered a new trial. That trial resulted in a sentence of life in prison.
Now he contends he should get a third trial because he says he has new evidence. A hearing on the matter began Monday in Orofino’s 2nd District Court.

Oregon
10-year term for woman who ran down husband
SALEM, Ore. (AP) — A 47-year-old Salem woman who ran down her husband and threatened another woman with a gun was sentenced Monday to 10 years in prison.
Shirley Teresa Nunez pleaded no contest to charges of assault and unlawful use of a weapon, and the Marion County district attorney’s office dropped an attempted murder charge.
Court records say Nunez drove into Salem Officer Kenneth Nunez in December 2010, causing injuries that have prevented him from returning to work.
Earlier she went to the home of another woman she had confronted her husband about and tried to force her way inside while armed with a gun.

West Virginia
Jury selected for new trial in case on surgical mesh
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — A new trial on a lawsuit involving surgical mesh pelvic repair products is underway in U.S. District Court in Charleston
Donna Cisson of Georgia is suing C.R. Bard. Inc. Her case is the first of thousands of surgical mesh federal lawsuits filed nationwide to go to trial.
The lawsuits accuse the implants’ manufacturers of inadequate testing, failing to disclose potential risks and fraudulently promoting the mesh as a safe medical device.
The first trial of Cisson’s lawsuit ended in a mistrial earlier this month.
The Charleston Daily Mail reports that jurors for the new trial were selected Monday.
Cisson’s lawsuit is one of four bellwether cases that U.S. District Judge Joseph Goodwin will hear to determine the next step in litigation for the remaining lawsuits.

Ohio
Couple convicted of animal cruelty misdemeanors
OXFORD, Ohio (AP) — A southwest Ohio couple has been convicted of misdemeanor animal cruelty charges after the deaths of two horses.
The Cincinnati Enquirer reports that a Butler County jury in Oxford deliberated about an hour Monday evening before reaching the verdict.
Kenneth and Debora Morgan of the Hamilton area will be sentenced Thursday. They face a possible penalty of up to 180 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.
The Morgans don’t have a listed telephone number and no attorney name was available in court records.