Free Republic

Hall of Fame gymnastics coach Bela Karolyi and his wife, Martha, face fresh allegations of physical and psychological abuse of young female athletes dating to the 1960s in a newly published book, according to the Daily Mail. Romanian author Stejarel Olaru wrote in “Nadia si Securitatea” that Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci — the first gymnast to score a perfect 10 at the Olympics, in 1976 — is among the victims who were starved to the point of developing eating disorders, slapped, and denied medical treatment, according to the report. Comaneci was Bela Karolyi’s first prodigy and his gateway to defecting...

The other day we told you that former state Treasurer Bill Lockyer, 74, and his 43-year-old wife, Nadia — who nearly divorced after a meth-fueled sex scandal ended her tenure on the Alameda County Board of Supervisors — are expecting another child. Well, as luck would have it, they’re actually expecting two.

(07-16) 17:08 PDT HAYWARD -- State Treasurer Bill Lockyer has filed for divorce from his wife of nine years, Nadia Lockyer, three months after she resigned from the Alameda County Board of Supervisors in the wake of a sex and drug scandal. Bill Lockyer cited irreconcilable differences in the filing Friday in Alameda County Superior Court. He is seeking joint custody of the couple's 9-year-old son. His spokesman declined Monday to discuss the reasons that led the 71-year-old state treasurer to seek to end his marriage to Nadia Lockyer, who is 41. "Bill's desire is that this matter be resolved...

Alameda County Supervisor Nadia Lockyer, who for two months has been embroiled in a sex and addiction scandal that riveted the Bay Area, told the Bay Area News Group today she is resigning from office. Lockyer, the wife of state Treasurer Bill Lockyer, will tell her colleagues and constituents in a letter that she wanted to focus on the well-being of her 8-year-old son and recovery from chemical dependency and her alleged beating by her ex-lover. "Today is a significant day for me personally and professionally," she told a reporter in the living room of their home in the Hayward...

"All governments lie," the late muckraker I.F. "Izzy" Stone used to preach. Let's add this: They also deny. Denial of access is a government lie in and of itself -- especially when a bureaucrat tells the public it has no right to view the writings of top officials, particularly when those officials are in trouble. A pair of recent controversies shows how quickly governments become recalcitrant for fear of embarrassment, denying access to information that may further public understanding and full accountability. In one, lawyers have denied access to records involving a California power couple, state Treasurer Bill Lockyer and...

To understand why state Treasurer Bill Lockyer is considered such a heavyweight in East Bay politics, look no further than the $1.7 million he pumped into his wife's 2010 campaign for the Alameda County Board of Supervisors. In a spending spree that shattered all records for the board, Nadia Lockyer - now embroiled in a sex and substance-abuse scandal - spent more than 40 times what her predecessor, Gail Steele, spent in any single campaign for the south county seat in nearly two decades in office.The $1.7 million from Bill Lockyer's campaign fund obliterated any chance his wife's election rival...

In the past week, producers for "Inside Edition" and the "Dr. Phil" show have reached out to state Treasurer Bill Lockyer. They were not asking about his $1.9 billion refinance of state bond debt. Lockyer, a 70-year-old elder statesman of Capitol politics, finds himself mired in personal controversy and the subject of media attention after his wife said she was injured in a violent assault and acknowledged undergoing treatment for chemical dependency. The latest twist: She also made a sex tape with the methamphetamine user she says attacked her, a development reported by the San Francisco Chronicle and confirmed by...

SNIPPET: "WASHINGTON — A US man has been charged after he compiled a hit list of 15 people he believed had harmed Muslim civilians and deserved to die, court documents showed Wednesday. Paul Rockwood and his wife Nadia were charged with lying to federal investigators about the compilation and content of the list, which Nadia Rockwood delivered to an unnamed individual in April at her husband's request." SNIPPET: "According to plea agreement documents obtained by AFP Wednesday, Paul Rockwood converted to Islam around late 2001 and soon "became a strict adherent to the violent jihad-promoting ideology of cleric Anwar al-Awlaki."...

Posted: 9:24 am EDT April 13, 2010 Updated: 9:49 am EDT April 13, 2010 SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. -- Missing 11-year-old Nadia Bloom was found alive Tuesday morning in woods by a church member volunteering with the search.

SNIPPET: "Two Pakistani students arrested over an alleged terror plot have returned to Pakistan after deciding to leave the UK voluntarily, the Home Office has said. Abdul Khan, 26, and Shoaib Khan, 27, were among 12 people held by police after raids in north-west England in April, but the pair were never charged. The Home Office tried to deport them, saying they remained a security threat. It is understood the men decided to leave after being denied bail while appealing against deportation." SNIPPET: "Twelve students were arrested in the terror raids in Manchester and Liverpool as part of Operation Pathway,...

Nadia Matar ‘Insult Trial’ Begins 19:19 Jun 15, '06 / 19 Sivan 5766 by Hana Levi Julian Women in Green activist Nadia Matar went on trial yesterday in what is expected to become a challenge to define the limitations on the right to freedom of speech in Israeli society. Matar is charged with insulting Disengagement Authority chief Yonatan Bassi after she likened his role in the expulsion of Jews from Gush Katif to that of the ”Judenrat” in Nazi Germany. The Judenrat is a German term for the local Jewish council formed in each of the ghettos by the Nazis...