Miami photographer sentenced to 10 years in child-porn case

A Miami-area photographer who secretly videotaped children while they changed clothes in his home studio was sentenced in federal court Friday to 10 years in prison. Diego Tobias Matrajt, 37, pleaded guilty in September to distribution and possession of child pornography.Last February, Matrajt distributed 10 images of child pornography to an undercover agent by using a peer-to-peer...

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Stars Tweet Over Gun Control Following Elementary School Shootings In Connecticut — Updated

Celebrities were outraged over the tragic elementary school shooting in Newtown, Conn. on Friday, and many immediately turned to Twitter, to share their sadness.And some even urged America’s leaders to address gun control.PLAY IT NOW: Edward Norton Discusses Tragic Colorado Shootings“Gun control is our only road to freedom. Freedom from the fear of senselessly losing children. I’m so saddened. WE...

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Riveting Details Emerge from CT School Rampage

As morning turned to afternoon on Friday, further details continued to emerge from Newtown, CT, a tight-knit community shaken by a massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School that took the lives of innocent students and teachers, in addition to the gunman, reportedly identified as Adam Lanza.RELATED: President Fights Tears as He Addresses NationAs President Barack Obama touched on in his tear-jerking...

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Foreign leaders shocked and saddened by Connecticut tragedy

LONDON — Images of a tearful President Barack Obama speaking after a shooting rampage in Connecticut resonated around the world, with many outside the United States expressing hope Saturday that America's latest school massacre would prompt the country to strengthen gun control.Shock and sympathy were the initial reactions to the rampage that left 28 people...

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Miami in spotlight at AVCC, other entrepreneurship events

Entrepreneurs from around the world took the stage during this packed week of entrepreneurship events in Miami: Florida International University’s Americas Venture Capital Conference (known as AVCC), HackDay, Wayra’s Global DemoDay and Endeavor’s International Selection Panel.The events, all part of the first Innovate MIA week, also put the spotlight on Miami as it continues...

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Miami-Dade elections group to discuss potential changes to state law

An advisory group poring over Miami-Dade elections problems will hold its second meeting Friday, this time to focus on what changes to request from state lawmakers.County Mayor Carlos Gimenez, who convened the group, and his appointed elections supervisor, Penelope Townsley, already asked Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner — the state’s chief elections officer — on Tuesday...

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Online gambling companies struggle to clear EU hurdles

LONDON (Reuters) – A partnership stuck on Friday between bwin.party Digital Entertainment and a Belgian casino group has defused one of many disputes pitting online gambling companies against governments across Europe.The agreement came a month after bwin.party’s co-CEO was questioned by Belgian authorities in an escalating license dispute the company said was costing it 700,000 euros ($ 916,000)...

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Robin Roberts Everything is Fantastic

Good Morning America had a special guest today when co-anchor Robin Roberts called in to help the gang send out 2012 in style! RELATED - Robin Decks The Halls With Her GMA FamilyThe Play of the Day has become a signature GMA segment and to honor the year's best, Roberts phoned in to help Josh Elliott announce their favorites. Coming in second was footage of a Walrus doing sit-ups while Eye of...

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British billionaire Eva Rausing died as a result of drug abuse: coroner

LONDON — Eva Rausing, one of Britain's richest women, died in a squalid corner of her luxury home as a result of her "dependent abuse" of drugs, a coroner ruled Friday.Rausing's decomposed body was found by police in July in the London house she shared with her husband Hans Kristian Rausing, whose family founded the Tetra Pak drinks carton empire.She had...

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Wynwood co-working center funded by Knight Foundation, angel investors

The LAB Miami announced Thursday it will open a 10,000-square-foot co-working center in Miami’s Wynwood neighborhood and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and local angel investors are investing $650,000.As Miami’s startup community continues to grow, The LAB Miami said its “work-learn campus” will offer an in-house mentor network that will include investors and...

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Miami city Commission considers hiring attorney to defend mayor against commissioner

The Miami City Commission will convene its final meeting of the year on Thursday.The agenda is long, but few of the proposals are expected to be controversial except for an item from Mayor Tomás Regalado.Regalado is asking the commission for an outside attorney to defend him in a lawsuit filed by Commissioner Michelle Spence-Jones. The suit accuses the mayor and Miami-Dade...

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Taylor Swift Turns 23!

23 On the Dot The 22 singer turns 23 today and if we know anything about Taylor Swift's style it's that she loves to rock the dots! Though the girly-girl has been known to wear lots of stripes and florals, her true affection seems to lie with polka dots. Click the pics to see a few of Swift's spotty style statements, and leave her a few birthday wishes! First up, some...

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US retail sales up 0.3 percent in November

WASHINGTON — Americans spent more online in November to the start of the holiday season and began to replace cars and rebuild in the Northeast after Superstorm Sandy.US retail sales rose 0.3 percent in November from October, the Commerce Department said Thursday. That offset a 0.3 percent decline in October from September.The figures were much stronger...

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Lennar to borrow $1.7 billion from Chinese bank

Miami-based Lennar Corp. has gotten approval on $1.7 billion in loans from China Development Bank to fund the development and construction of two major projects in San Francisco, according to a person familiar with the transaction.The contract, set to close by Dec. 31 subject to various conditions, would mark the first U.S. loan by the big state-owned Chinese bank. One condition...

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Fla. board to select education chief

One finalist for Florida education commissioner conceded Tuesday that he can be caustic at times, while another said he resigned as Illinois’ top school official because of the political climate under a governor who later went to prison.The remaining finalist acknowledged the federal No Child Left Behind Act that he helped draft and promote as a congressional staffer and...

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Here’s the Pope’s First Tweet

The long wait is over and we’ve finally got the first words of Twitter wisdom from Pope Benedict XVI. Dear friends, I am pleased to get in touch with you through Twitter. Thank you for your generous response. I bless all of you from my heart.— Benedict XVI (@Pontifex) December 12, 2012Ok, so not that funny, but it was all spelled right and we got blessed by a pope, so that’s a good start. And...

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Drew Barrymore's Baby Daughter Olive Lands First Cover

Drew Barrymore introduces her baby daughter, Olive, to the world on the latest People magazine cover.The nine-week old is seen in the arms of her actress mom who told the magazine that after giving birth, "I couldn't eat or sleep for two weeks, I was just so nervous!" She added, "You have the highest highs and yet you're facing the biggest fear of, 'How do I keep someone alive?' "Barrymore, 37, was...

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Officials bust 41 members of violent B'klyn street gang

Forty-one members of a violent, highly organized Brooklyn street gang have been busted for murder, conspiracy, robbery and a host of other crimes, prosecutors said today."They formed alliances with other gangs and used social media to brag about their crimes," a rep for Brooklyn DA Charles Hynes said."Leaders would collect money from their members at weekly...

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The first wave of Windows 8 PCs

We’ve been benchmarking and field-testing new Windows 8 systems, including all-in-one desktops, traditional clamshell laptops and convertible laptops with displays that flip or twist around to form tabletlike devices. Dell XPS One 27 Rating: 4 stars out of 5 (Excellent) The good: Boasts the highest-display resolution among Windows 8 all-in-ones, and...

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South Florida pols sticking to party lines on fiscal cliff

WASHINGTON -- Don’t expect South Florida’s congressional delegation to stray too far from party lines when it comes to dancing on the edge of the fiscal cliff, the end-of-the-year spending cuts and tax increases set to take effect if Congress and the president don’t address them.Democrats are firmly with President Barack Obama, whose proposal seeks to raise $600 billion over...

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BlackBerry Messenger 7 adds free Wi-Fi voice calling, split-screen multitasking and more

Research in Motion (RIMM) updated its BlackBerry Messenger to version 7 on Monday, adding a new key feature called “BBM Voice” that “will allow customers to make free voice calls to their BBM contacts around the world over a Wi-Fi connection.” BBM 7 also introduces multitasking with split-screen, which allows users to BBM, check email, or use other apps while on a BBM Voice call; new compatibility...

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AskMen's Most Desirable Women

AskMen asked its 20 million readers to nominate the celeb who most closely matches their ideal woman, so which Hollywood females are making their mark among men, and whose popularity is quickly dropping?According to the 2.4 million votes, Jennifer Lawrence comes out on top as the most desirable woman for 2013, though that's hardly a surprise -- the 22-year-old has had an amazing breakout year starring...

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WATCH: Roof collapses during live TV interview after Ala. tornado

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — A man who survived a tornado with his family got a second shock when his roof caved in on live TV.Homeowner Clint Thornton told WBRC-TV that he was about to leave for work when he saw a funnel cloud. "I turned the key to go out the door. I could see the funnel and all kinds of debris. It was heading right toward our house," said...

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AutoNation: Back in the fast lane with expansion, higher sales

Despite an agonizingly slow economic recovery, the country’s largest auto retailer, Fort Lauderdale-based AutoNation, is thriving again as demand for vehicles expands. The company, one of Florida’s largest, is posting increasingly strong profits and revenues. Just last week, in a sign of confidence, Autonation announced a major acquisition — buying six large auto stores in...

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Tower Theater remains an asset for Little Havana

More than 20 years ago, when the city of Miami bought an historic but abandoned theater on Southwest Eighth Street, city leaders expressed their hope that the investment would help revitalize Little Havana.The troubled neighborhood that’s considered the symbolic heart of Miami’s Cuban exile community couldn’t afford to wait to see if “something will fall from the sky and...

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#OccupyCheerios: A Facebook Revolt

It wasn’t an obvious forum for an anti-GMO protest.A YouTube video posted on Cheerio’s Facebook page depicts an elderly woman leaning over the highchair of her infant grandchild, cooing about family and the holidays, drawing a map with pieces of cereal representing relative’s far-flung houses. “But don’t you worry,” the grandmother says, pushing two Cheerios together, “we’ll always be together for...

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Golden Globes Flashback: Bill Murray 2004

Bill Murray had been acting over a quarter of a century before he won his first Golden Globe, also receiving a coveted Oscar nomination that year. Nevertheless, as he fielded questions in the pressroom after winning the award, he took the spotlight off himself and turned it on the film.Beginning his Saturday Night Live days in 1975, the actor and comedian had received his first Golden Globes nomination...

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Iran: Data decoded from CIA drone captured in 2011

EPAGeneral Amir-Ali Hajizadeh, right, looks at the US RQ-170 drone which reportedly crashed in eastern Iran near the city of Kashmar on December 4, 2011.TEHRAN, Iran — Iran says the country's Revolutionary Guard has decoded all of the data from an advanced CIA spy drone captured last year.Tehran has previously said it recovered information from the RQ-170...

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AutoNation: Back in the fast lane with expansion, higher sales

• AutoNation’s announcement December 4 that it was acquiring six auto stores in Texas, its second most important market after Florida, forms part of the company’s national growth strategy.• AutoNation operates in 15 states and, according to CEO Mike Jackson, prefers to build its brand network in existing markets rather than expand to new markets. It grows either...

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State scraps plan to have private vendors make license tags

TALLAHASSEE -- Backing away from a possible court fight, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles announced Friday that it will halt its attempt to bid license tag services to private vendors.Tax collectors — who distribute state tags — and two manufacturing groups tried to block the change by lobbying elected officials and filing legal action against...

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Barnes and Noble Nook HD+ is a Big Screen, Good Value Tablet

Barnes and Noble Nook-HD+Click here to view this gallery.[More from Mashable: 7 Stylish iPad Cases With Notepads]The other night I handed the new Barnes and Noble HD+ to my son to see his reaction to one of the latest 9-inch tablets. He held it, played with the screen and said, “Which one is this?” I told him and he answered, “I can’t tell the difference anymore.” It’s true, with the sudden explosion...

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How They Pulled Off 'The Impossible'

The true story of the devastating 2004 tsunami that consumed the coast of Phuket, Thailand -- and how one family survived it -- is reenacted by Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor in The Impossible. Watch the video to go behind the scenes...Video: Tsunami Survivor Petra Nemcova Reacts to Latest Disaster in JapanIn theaters December 21, The Impossible finds Naomi as Maria and Ewan as her husband Henry, who...

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US drone kills senior al Qaeda leader in Pakistan

PESHAWAR, Pakistan — A US drone strike has killed a senior al Qaeda leader in Pakistan's tribal region near the Afghan border, Pakistani intelligence officials said, in the latest blow to the Islamic militant network.Sheik Khalid bin Abdel Rehman al-Hussainan, who was also known as Abu Zaid al-Kuwaiti, was killed when missiles slammed into a house Thursday...

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