Free Republic

It was the moment Omar Alkhani believed he was about to secure the release of his girlfriend, the last American hostage held by Islamic State. Kayla Mueller stood before him in her dimly lit cell dressed in a traditional long black abaya cloak, her face covered. At great personal risk, Omar had ventured into the heart of the terror group's power base in Syria to try to bring her home. Naively, perhaps, he was convinced that all Kayla had to do was confirm their cover story that they were man and wife to the IS 'judge' standing between them.

The Buffalo branch of the nation's oldest civil rights organization has asked elected officials to deny any future requests to attach the 13th president's name to places or things, citing his signing of the 1850 Fugitive Slave Act that allowed for the capture and return of runaway slaves.

BOSTON (CBS) — Beverly Scott is resigning as MBTA general manager, the transportation agency said Wednesday afternoon. The MBTA had suspended rail service Monday night and Tuesday to clear snow from its tracks amid a record-setting period of snowfall in the Boston area. Gov. Charlie Baker and others had criticized the MBTA for its lackluster performance during the extreme snow and cold.

CHICAGO (AP) — Little League International has stripped Chicago's Jackie Robinson West of its national title after finding the team falsified its boundary map. The league made the announcement Wednesday morning, saying the Chicago team violated regulations by placing players on the team who didn't qualify because they lived outside the team's boundaries. Little League International also suspended Jackie Robinson West manager Darold Butler from league activity.

Fifty four years after a Douglas DC-3 crashed in Chile’s Andes – killing all 24 people aboard, including members of a Chilean soccer team and three referees – a team of mountaineers discovered the remains of the crash. The 1961 LAN 301 air crash was deemed at the time one of the world’s major air disasters involving athletes – surpassed maybe only by the 1972 Uruguayan plane crash that stranded members of a rugby in the high Andes. The plane’s whereabouts has been one of the great unsolved aerial mysteries.

MIAMI (WSVN) -- A 14-year-old boy is fighting for his life after he was gunned down in broad daylight, the third in a series of shootings taking place within blocks of each other in Miami Sunday that, police said, also claimed the lives of two men. According to Miami Police, 30-year-old Reginald Killings was fatally shot outside of his home on Northwest 56th Street and Fourth Avenue, around 10 a.m. "A black male was shot multiple times right outside of his house," said Miami Police Officer Rene Pimentel.

"I don't even know what (Beck) said. I just know that, the Grammys, if they want real artists to keep coming back, they need to stop playing with us, we aren't going to play with them no more," he told his sister-in-law Khloe Kardashian during an E! after-show interview. "Flawless.' Beyoncé's video. And Beck needs to respect artistry, he should have given his award to Beyoncé."

President Obama made an appearance at the Grammy Awards to share an important message about domestic violence. "Tonight we celebrate artists whose music and message helped shape our culture," the president said. "Together we can change our culture for the better by ending violence between women and girls."

North Miami Beach police believe there’s a link between a group that calls itself the NMB Stunnaz, which crafted a catchy Youtube rap video depicting guns, and the shooting of police officer Lino Diaz Friday morning.

President Obama's latest budget proposal, released Monday, would eliminate tax breaks associated with city-funded professional sports stadiums. Many cities, when faced with either losing their teams to different areas of the country or ponying up taxpayer dollars to help owners finance a new, better stadium, choose the latter option. Some cities even contribute money when they're not in danger of losing the team. Surely, the cities of New York and Dallas (well, Arlington) did not think the Yankees or Cowboys would move away when their lawmakers approved $1 billion and $325 million contributions of tax-free debt, respectively, to help build...

SPRINGFIELD — Police are investigating the death of a 1-year-old infant on Cass Street who suffocated over the weekend as her family administered a home remedy for head lice. Springfield Police spokesman John Delaney said no charges have been filed, but the matter is being investigating by Springfield police detectives. The name of the child was not disclosed to the press.

A “mommy blogger” accused of killing her 5-year-old son by poisoning him with lethal doses of salt — and documenting his demise online — was a monster who “seemed to relish in the attention and sympathy she got from having a sick little boy,” prosecutors charged Tuesday. Lacey Spears burst into tears as her murder trial got under way in Westchester County Court in White Plains and prosecutors accused of her being a “calculated child killer” in little Garnett-Paul’s 2014 death.

A Baltimore County grand jury indicted Terrence Cody on animal cruelty charges on the same day the Ravens officially terminated the contract of the veteran defensive lineman.. Cody, who faces 15 counts, including two felony charges, turned himself in after a warrant was issued. He was processed at Precinct 3 and released on $10,000 bail, according to Baltimore County police. His arraignment hadn’t been scheduled as of late Monday afternoon.

A Massachusetts man faces multiple charges after allegedly shooting cars left in parking spots that had been shoveled of snow, days after two feet of snow blanketed the town. Jose Osorio was arrested Friday after witnesses reported he fired multiple shots at two parked cars that were parked in shoveled spaces on a street in Fall River, Massachusetts.

SAN ANTONIO - Officials with Animal Care Services seized a juvenile Macaque Monkey Thursday morning after it reportedly bit a woman at a North Side bank. According to an ACS press release, the monkey's owner apparently brought the animal into the bank last week where the primate bit a female employee. The animal was also unrestrained. The owner reportedly fled with the monkey after the incident, ACS officials said.

KABUL, Afghanistan — A suicide bomber struck a funeral in Afghanistan for the victims of an earlier Taliban attack, killing 16 people and wounding 39, an Afghan official said. The attack took place in eastern Laghman province, according to the local governor's spokesman, Sarhadi Zwak. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the bombing but the blame is likely to fall on the Taliban who have staged similar attacks in the past.

Two women who went to visit a Washington Parish Jail inmate on the same day ended up facing their own legal troubles after authorities say they attacked each other during the visit.

A few years ago the NFL discovered female fans. Now, apparently, the league has discovered that gays also enjoy watching men in tight pants jump on top of one another. Because in what is believed to be a first, an LGBT publication has received a credential to cover the Super Bowl. Outsports writer Cyd Zeigler is headed to Arizona today to cover the big game — and he gets a seat in the press box. Unfortunately, Cyd missed yesterday’s Media Day circus and the chance to ask Tom Brady questions like, “Where is Gisele?” (Answer: “Home with the kids.”)

(STMW) — A mother and daughter upset that their teenage relative was disciplined at a South Side elementary school are charged with allegedly beating and stabbing two Chicago Public Schools employees and a teen boy at the school. Authorities say the attack took place on Tuesday at 4 p.m. at Bond Elementary School in the 7000 block of South May Street, the Chicago Sun-Times is reporting.

Three men were killed and at least 22 other people have been wounded in shootings across the city since Friday afternoon.