O.J. Simpson testifies in bid for new trial

Wearing a blue prison uniform, O.J. Simpson testified Wednesday that his former attorney advised he could use some force to reclaim personal items from sports memorabilia dealers as long as he didn't trespass.

Simpson took the witness stand in a Las Vegas courtroom in an effort to get a new trial on his armed robbery, assault and kidnapping convictions in 2008. He insists that his attorney in that case, Yale Galanter, didn't adequately represent him.

Simpson said he trusted Galanter's advice on how to get the items back. The items, he believed, were stolen, and he wanted to give them to his children someday.

U.S. safety board proposes tougher drunk-driving threshold

WASHINGTON – A decade-old benchmark for determining when a driver is legally drunk should be lowered in an effort to reduce alcohol-related car crashes that claim about 10,000 lives each year, U.S. safety investigators said on Tuesday.

The National Transportation Safety Board recommended that all 50 states lower the threshold from 0.08 blood-alcohol content (BAC) to 0.05.

The idea is part of a safety board initiative outlined in a staff report and approved by the panel to eliminate drunk driving, which accounts for about a third of all road deaths.

Man, 75, accused of running prostitution ring in senior housing complex

A 75-year-old resident of a New Jersey senior citizen housing complex is suspected of running a prostitution ring that employed some elderly residents as sex workers, NBC 4 New York has learned.

The suspect, James Parham, 75, was also accused, along with Cheryl Chaney, 66, of allowing residents and visitors to use crack in their apartments, police said.

Both are charged with possession of drug paraphernalia and maintaining a nuisance, and Chaney is also charged with possession of crack cocaine.

Five ways to maximize your doctor’s visit

How did your last doctor's appointment go? If you're like most patients, your answer might be "too quickly."

You've probably noticed how busy your doctor is as he or she zips in and out of exam rooms. As a result, your visit is getting shorter – the average time a doc has to spend with each patient has dwindled to a speedy seven minutes, research shows.

There are consequences to such short interactions. We all know the experience: We shake our head when the doc asks "any questions?" But at home, we start to remember. What was it you wanted to mention to the doctor last week? Should you have brought up that headache? Did your insurance cover that test she mentioned?

Two arrested in killing of grandson of Malcolm X

Two bartenders have been arrested in connection with the killing of the grandson of civil rights activist Malcolm X, according to the office of the Mexico City attorney general.

Prosecutor Rodolfo Fernando Rios Garza said the men work at a bar called The Palace Club where Malcolm Shabazz and three people had drinks early Thursday.

An argument ensued when the staff said the bill was $1,200. Shabazz was beaten while another man was threatened and stripped of his belongings, Rios said.

Meet the anti-violence blogger shot in New Orleans

Brentin Mock writes at Colorlines about journalist and documentarian Deborah "Big Red" Cotton, who has expressed her concern about New Orleans violence and also her compassion and love for black men in the city, who are too often the perpetrators and victims of that violence.

From Mock:

"Journalist and documentarian Deborah 'Big Red' Cotton was one of the 19 people wounded in the tragic shooting during a 'second line' Mother's Day parade yesterday. In total, ten men, seven women and two 10-year-old children were injured. Cotton had just launched her own website NewOrleansGoodGood.com, which highlights off-the-beaten path restaurants and attractions normally ignored by mainstream media.

Singing couple goes viral

For the past week, a conversation has been had over everyday black people going viral in the media – like Charles Ramsey, the Cleveland man who helped saved three women from their kidnappers and became an Internet meme after his live interview with his city's news station. But there was another black couple whose popularity on the Internet was undoubtedly more entertaining.

Pumpcast News is a regular skit on Jay Leno's "The Tonight Show". Actor Tim Stack plays a fake news anchor who appears on a television screen above a gas pump, where he tries to shock people filling up the tank. When he attempted to do the same to Will and Monifa Sims, Stack, Leno and "The Tonight Show" audience were the ones shocked instead.

O.J. Simpson says bad legal advice put him in prison

Disgraced football legend O.J. Simpson is scheduled to return to a Las Vegas courtroom Monday in a bid to get his robbery, assault and kidnapping convictions thrown out.

The onetime Heisman Trophy winner and Buffalo Bills halfback is more than four years into a 33-year prison term and is asking for a new trial. In court papers, he's arguing that bad legal advice led to his arrest and conviction in a 2007 confrontation with sports memorabilia dealers.

Simpson not only accuses his old lawyer, Yale Galanter, of having a conflict of interest and of failing to mount an effective defense in his trial. He also says Galanter told him before that confrontation that he was within his rights to take back property he believed had been stolen from him, "so long as there would be no trespass and no physical force used against the persons with the property."

All the lonely people: How we live alone past age 65

DURHAM, N.C. – Clydie Pugh-Myers, one of the state's first black licensed practical nurses, once drove a red Cadillac around Durham, sang in the choir at her church and generally stayed busy.

These days, living with two knee replacements, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and other ailments, she can no longer drive and sits at home alone a lot. She says even people from her church don't come to see her much.

"Since I've gotten 84, it's gotten tough," Pugh-Myers said in her South Durham home.

Blacks outvoted whites in 2012, the first time on record

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A new Census Bureau report provides more evidence that the changing demographics of the United States are having a deep impact at the voting booth.

The report on the 2012 election found that for the first time on record, black voters turned out to the presidential polls at a higher rate than whites. More than 66% of eligible blacks voted in the presidential contest that pit President Barack Obama against Republican nominee Mitt Romney. Only 64.1% of whites turned out to vote.

The report was released Wednesday.

Supreme Court: ganja-related deportation is raw deal

The United States Supreme Court has ruled in favor of a Jamaican national who was deported from the United States over possession of a small amount of marijuana.

The court, by a seven-two decision, ruled that Adrian Moncrieffe – a long-time U.S. resident should have had the opportunity to contest his deportation.

Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor said in her opinion that marijuana offences must involve either the sale of the drug or possession of more than a small amount to count as serious enough to warrant automatic deportation. Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas dissented.

Cleveland rescuer a viral sensation

"He likes to grill out, eat McDonald's and listen to salsa music. Charles Ramsey has also just become famous not only for his actions Monday in helping three Cleveland women escape from years of being held captive in a Cleveland house, but also for his interview he gave in detailing the events of the day," Mark Heim reported early Tuesday for al.com, an affiliate of Cleveland.com.

An Australian columnist called Ramsey "America's newest hero." Lacey Mason of Washington's WTOP-AM said, "Charles Ramsey just might be the Internet hero we've been waiting for."

Ramsey actually was interviewed by more than one reporter, including John Kosich of WEWS-TV, the Cleveland ABC affiliate, and Kevin Freeman of WJW-TV, the Fox affiliate.