The 23-year-old's publicist, Claire Mercuri, said Saturday that Joel is in stable condition and receiving treatment.

Police say Kisha Jones of Brooklyn used a doctor's prescription pad to order the medication, then phoned the victim pretending to be from her obstetrician's office and told her to pick up the drug at the pharmacy and take it.

The 53-41 vote Saturday came during a rare weekend session to debate President Barack Obama's health legislation.

Obama planned to visit Capitol Hill on Sunday to help Democrats resolve internal disputes that stand in the way of Majority Leader Harry Reid bringing the 10-year,...]]>Sat, 5 Dec 2009 00:00:00 http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Baucus%3a+Girlfriend+merits+US+attorney+nomination-a01612080915Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus defended recommending his girlfriend for appointment as Montana's U.S. attorney, saying Saturday his one-time staff member and former state prosecutor is "highly qualified" but eventually withdrew her nomination.

Wyoming Highway Patrol Sgt. Stephen Townsend said the crash involving the Arrow Stage Lines bus going from Denver to Billings, Mont., occurred about 1:40 a.m. Saturday.

But there was a deeper reason behind the move: an intensifying struggle between the moderate Islam championed by the state and a populace that is turning to a stricter version of the faith, whose most...]]>Sat, 5 Dec 2009 00:00:00 http://www.thefreelibrary.com/'Not+a+step+is+heard+...+The+President+sleeps'-a01612080785EDITOR'S NOTE — This story was first published in September 1999

By LAWRENCE L. KNUTSON

Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — The residence floor of the White House was heavy with sleep and "quiet as death." Through open windows the listener could hear the splash of a fountain, a distant barking dog.

With a 10 percent sales growth this year, Legacy has quickly forgotten the recession's low point in March, when weak order volumes forced the company to implement four-day work weeks.

There was absolute silence as the judge announced the lab results. The man, who called himself Ali, was deemed to be the sole surviving child of...]]>Sat, 5 Dec 2009 00:00:00 http://www.thefreelibrary.com/FACT+CHECK%3a+Unprovable+claims+stoke+health+debate-a01612080731EDITOR'S NOTE — An occasional look at assertions by government officials and how well they adhere to the facts.

By DAVID ESPO

AP Special Correspondent

WASHINGTON (AP) — When Republican Sen. Tom Coburn warned seniors, "you're going to die sooner" if Democrats pass health care legislation, it stood out as an memorable, unprovable moment in an opening-week debate over President...]]>Sat, 5 Dec 2009 00:00:00 http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Aide%3a+Baucus+nominated+girlfriend+for+US+attorney-a01612080666Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus was romantically involved with a former staffer when he recommended her earlier this year to become the next U.S. attorney for Montana, a spokesman said.

The Montana Democrat and his former state office director Melodee Hanes began their relationship in the summer of 2008 after Baucus separated from his wife, Ty Matsdorf told The Associated...]]>Sat, 5 Dec 2009 00:00:00 http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Russian+nightclub+fire+kills+103%3b+many+crushed-a01612080663Panicked clubgoers crushed each other to death in a popular Russian nightspot as they tried to flee a fast-moving fire that one eyewitness told The Associated Press was started by pyrotechnic fountains set up on the stage.

Officials said 103 people died when the fire tore through the popular Lame Horse nightclub in the city of Perm late Friday, filling the crowded barracks-like building...]]>Sat, 5 Dec 2009 00:00:00 http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Lawmakers+get+little+reaction+to+Obama's+war+plan-a01612080644The switchboards and e-mail inboxes of members of Congress are not seeing much of a surge from President Barack Obama's plan to send more U.S. troops into Afghanistan.

Health care and Wall Street bailouts? Those issues light up the phones and get the digital juices flowing.

Red flowers covered the silver hearse as it wended its way 40 blocks through a sea of admirers, some bearing pictures of Jara or waving red flags. His widow, Joan Jara, led the procession...]]>Sat, 5 Dec 2009 00:00:00 http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Somalia+blames+al-Qaida%2c+Somali+group+for+bombing-a01612078301The Somali government has blamed al-Qaida-linked Islamic militants for a suicide bombing that killed 22 people in the capital, as government officials buried three Cabinet ministers killed in the attack.

The bombing Thursday ripped through a university graduation ceremony at an upscale hotel in Mogadishu, killing medical students, doctors, journalists and three government...]]>Sat, 5 Dec 2009 00:00:00 http://www.thefreelibrary.com/CDC%3a+Swine+flu+is+widespread+only+in+25+states-a01612075316Swine flu infections continue to wane, just as vaccine is becoming plentiful enough that some communities are allowing everyone to get it, not just those in priority groups.

Swine flu was widespread in only 25 states last week — mostly in the Northeast and Southwest, officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday.

Thousands of well-wishers waving Thai flags cheered, cried and chanted "Song Phra Charoen" or "Long Live the King" as the monarch's motorcade made its way...]]>Sat, 5 Dec 2009 00:00:00 http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Weekend+finds+senators+bickering+over+health+care-a01612074569Americans can't take weekends off from worrying about health care and the Senate shouldn't either, Majority Leader Harry Reid said as he opened a rare Saturday session to debate health care.

With Democrats preparing to vote on an amendment targeting tax breaks for insurance executives' pay, Reid lashed out at "greedy health insurance companies" that he said make profits by neglecting...]]>Fri, 4 Dec 2009 00:00:00 http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Mom+pleads+no+contest+in+quadriplegic+girl's+death-a01612080374
A Flint woman accused of starving her adopted quadriplegic daughter to death and stashing the body in a storage unit pleaded no contest Friday to involuntary manslaughter.

Lorrie Thomas' plea came four days before she was to go to trial on second-degree murder and other charges.

The body of 9-year-old Shylae Thomas was found inside a 33-gallon container in a storage...]]>Fri, 4 Dec 2009 00:00:00 http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Palin+says+nation+should+rededicate+itself+to+God-a01612080330
Sarah Palin says the United States should rededicate itself to seeking God's will, arguing that a humble spirit could help leaders get more answers on issues such as health care, energy and national security.

In a video released Friday by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, the 2008 Republican candidate for vice president said it's important for leaders to acknowledge...]]>Fri, 4 Dec 2009 00:00:00 http://www.thefreelibrary.com/NY+senator+sentenced+to+probation%2c+counseling-a01612080245
A state senator was sentenced Friday to probation and domestic abuse counseling, the resolution of a yearlong legal drama that began when he took his girlfriend to a hospital with a gaping, bleeding wound under her eye and ended with her begging a judge to let them be together.

State Sen. Hiram Monserrate, a freshman Democrat, could have been sent to jail for up to a year on...]]>Fri, 4 Dec 2009 00:00:00 http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Woman+gives+birth+on+flight+diverted+to+Denver-a01612080223
A woman gave birth to a baby boy on a Southwest Airlines flight from Chicago that had to be diverted to Denver International Airport.

Southwest spokesman Paul Flaningan says Flight 441 was about 100 miles north of Denver Friday when the unidentified woman started going into labor. Flaningan says the captain decided to divert to Denver but she started to deliver the baby en...]]>Fri, 4 Dec 2009 00:00:00 http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Neb.+abortion+doctor+plans+to+expand+his+operation-a01612080168
An abortion doctor said Friday that he will likely perform more late-term procedures at his Nebraska practice to meet the demand left when a Kansas physician was shot and killed earlier this year.

The move could solidify Nebraska's and Dr. LeRoy Carhart's place at the center of the fight over abortion because he's trying to offer the late-term procedures his friend Dr. George...]]>Fri, 4 Dec 2009 00:00:00 http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Initial+public+offerings+scheduled+to+debut+next+week-a01612080115
The following is a list of initial public offerings planned for the coming week. Sources include Renaissance Capital, Greenwich, CT (http://www.renaissancecapital.com) and SEC filings.

Week of Dec. 7

Chesapeake Lodging Trust - Fairfield, N.J., 12.5 million shares, priced at $20 each, managed by J.P. Morgan and Deutsche Bank. Proposed NYSE symbol CHSP. Business:...]]>