National Roundup

 Connecticut

Fairfield man pleads not guilty to bomb charges 
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) — A Connecticut man who police say claimed he was making a bomb for Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards pleaded not guilty Tuesday to explosives charges.
The Connecticut Post reports 69-year-old Joseph Callahan of Fairfield pleaded not guilty in Bridgeport Superior Court to 112 counts of illegal possession of explosives and other charges.
“My client maintains his innocence,” Callahan’s attorney, Michael Meehan, said outside of court. “We are engaging in discussions with the state’s attorney in an effort to resolve these charges. But if that doesn’t succeed, we are preparing to move forward with the process.”
Callahan claimed to be making a bomb for Richards, according to an arrest warrant.
“A friend of Mr. Callahan nine years ago met Keith Richards, and he (Callahan) knew Keith Richards liked pyrotechnics so he built this device in the event he met Keith Richards,” Meehan said.
Meehan said Callahan received a permit in July from the U.S. Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms to possess explosives.
Police say Callahan also claimed to have detonation cords for rockets and chemicals used in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and the 1995 bombing of the federal office building in Oklahoma City.
Authorities told the Connecticut Post that they found more than 100 explosive devices in Callahan’s home. Police say Callahan told them he played with explosives as a hobby.
Callahan’s lawyer says Callahan never intended to hurt anyone.
 
California
Politician to plead guilty to bribery 
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A former California councilman has agreed to plead guilty to bribery after accepting $2.3 million in what is believed to be the largest bribe ever taken by a U.S. politician in an undercover sting, authorities said Tuesday.
Ex-Moreno Valley City Councilman Marcelo Co, 64, will plead guilty to one count each of bribery and filing a false tax return, according to court records. He could faces up to 13 years in prison and will make his first court appearance next month.
A message left for Co’s attorney, Brian Newman, was not immediately returned.
Authorities said Co promised an undercover FBI operative who posed as a real estate broker that he could control a voting majority of the council to sway land use decisions.
Records show that Co eventually agreed to sell a 30-acre parcel he owned to the operative for $5.3 million. The land was only appraised at $710,000, but Co said once zoning laws were changed by the council the parcel would increase in value 500 percent, court documents say.
“Mr. Co orchestrated an elaborate and brazen scheme to undermine the democratic process in Moreno Valley,” said U.S. Attorney André Birotte Jr. “Whether he was motivated by power or greed, these crimes constitute a wholesale violation of his oath to work for the citizens who elected him.”
Thom Mrozek, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office, said the bribe is believed to be the largest taken by a public official in an undercover operation.
At a meeting in January, Co and the operative met and agreed that publicly filed documents would reflect a $3 million sales price for Co’s land. Authorities said Co then took $2.3 million in cash
A grainy surveillance photo released by federal investigators shows a large stack of money on a table in front of Co.
Co was elected to the council in November 2010 and resigned from his seat in August after being charged in state court in an unrelated welfare fraud case.
Moreno Valley is about 60 miles east of Los Angeles.
 
California
Dad charged in baby’s attempted murder, torture 
SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) — Authorities have charged an Orange County man with the attempted murder and torture of his 2-month-old daughter.
Santa Ana police said Tuesday that 30-year-old Andres Tafoya is believed to have punched his infant daughter’s head multiple times while watching her last Friday when the baby’s mother was at work.
Police say Tafoya helped take the girl to the hospital but left before officers arrived. Authorities say the baby is in critical condition.
Tafoya was arrested Sunday. It was not immediately clear if he had retained an attorney.
Prosecutors have charged Tafoya with attempted murder, torture and child abuse. 
 
Iowa
Judge suspends ban on abortion pill system 
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A judge on Tuesday granted a request by Planned Parenthood of the Heartland to temporarily suspend a state ban on the organization’s use of a video conferencing system to distribute abortion-inducing pills in Iowa, a move that stops the rule from taking effect until a court decision on the matter.
If not for Judge Karen Romano’s ruling, the ban would have begun Wednesday.
The ban, approved in August by the Iowa Board of Medicine, requires a doctor to be physically present with a woman when an abortion-inducing drug is provided.
That’s a major change for the system, which has allowed Planned Parenthood to have a doctor meet with patients in rural areas via a secure Internet video system. The doctor, typically based in Des Moines, gives the drugs through a pill dispensing system to the patient.
Iowa Board of Medicine Executive Director Mark Bowden said Tuesday the decision perpetuates what the board believes is inadequate health care for Iowa women seeking abortions.
Planned Parenthood of the Heartland applauded the judge’s decision.
“Our No. 1 priority is the health and safety of our patients,” said Planned Parenthood of the Heartland President and CEO Jill June in a statement. “Allowing the rule to be ineffective during litigation will ensure that Iowa women can continue to receive safe health care, without delay, from the provider they trust.”
Planned Parenthood supporters have argued the ban reflected board members’ opposition to abortion.
Gov. Terry Branstad did not directly respond to the judge’s ruling, but spokesman Tim Albrecht said the governor commends the board for its “open and transparent process” in approving the ban.
“The governor shares the concerns brought forward by those in the medical community concerning webcam abortions, and believes a serious, thoughtful and open discussion needs to occur as to whether women are receiving an adequate standard of care when undergoing this procedure,” Albrecht said in a statement.