• LA Archdiocese, still grappling with sex abuse scandal, may try $200 million fundraiser

    Kevork Djansezian / Getty Images

    Esther Millar, 54, talks about her abuser, while holding pictures of Vicki and Mary, who she says were victims of sexual abuse by a priest in the Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles. Millar was part of a news conference urging others with information about alleged abuse to come forward, held at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles on Feb. 1.

    By Kari Huus, Staff writer, NBC News

    Amid continuing anger over the poor handling of sexual abuse cases by Catholic Church officials over several decades — and still deeply in the red from settlements with victims — the Archdiocese of Los Angeles is considering the launch of a massive fundraising campaign, according to the website of a Catholic fundraising organization.


    The non-profit Guidance in Giving lists the Los Angeles-area Catholic Church among its "diocesan accounts" and says it is exploring a campaign to raise $200 million for the diocese to meet "a variety of needs," including "priests' retirement, seminarian education, Catholic schools, Catholic Charities and parish needs."

    The archdiocese did not respond to NBC queries in time for publication, but a church spokesman acknowledged the possible campaign to the Los Angeles Times, which first reported it.

    In 2007, the Archdiocese of Los Angeles agreed to a $660 million settlement with 562 victims of abuse by priests and other church personnel. According to the Times, financial reports show that the church remains $80 million in debt.

    The effort to shore up church finances is the initiative of Los Angeles Archbishop Jose Gomez, who was installed in 2011, and now seems keen to move the church away from its tarnished past.

    On Jan. 31, Gomez presided over the release of thousands of pages of priest personnel files that had been the subject of a legal tussle for six years. The 12,000 pages, made accessible through the archdiocese web site, reveal many communications among officials who appear to be concealing allegations of the priests' sexual abuses from police.

    The court ordered the documents be released in 2007 as part of the settlement, but the church lawyers fought to redact many of the names in the documents until earlier this month, when a judge ruled against them.

    In a letter written by Gomez  to congregants and read in many services on Sunday, the archbishop described the files as "brutal and painful reading," and went on to rebuke his predecessors for failing to protect the children from adult predators. He announced removal of his predecessor, Cardinal Roger M. Mahony, from administrative and public duties and said a high-ranking bishop, Thomas J. Curry, had been dismissed from his role as regional bishop of Santa Barbara.

    "I cannot undo the failings of the past that we find in these pages," Gomez said in his letter.

    "To every Catholic in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, I want you to know: We will continue, as we have for many years now, to immediately report every credible allegation of abuse to law enforcement authorities and to remove those credibly accused from ministry."

    In the introduction to the files, the archdiocese website says that the release "concludes a sad and shameful chapter" in the history of the archdiocese.

    But critics of the church may not let the matter rest.

    Just a few days after the documents were made public, The New York Times reported on watchdog allegations that many names in the files that should have been made public were redacted, and that parts of the personnel files were missing.

    According to the Times, lawyers for the abuse victims say they may file a motion next week to compel the church to release what they believe are missing or are erroneously redacted documents.

    The Los Angeles Archdiocese is the largest in the United States, comprising Los Angeles, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, with an estimated 4.6 million members.

    Related:

    Los Angeles Catholic officials shielded pedophile priests, report
    L.A. police pore over 12,000 pages of priest abuse records for leads
    Pedophile victims urge renewed probe Los Angeles Catholic leaders

     

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  • Trial begins for boy who admitted to shooting neo-Nazi father

    View more videos at: http://nbclosangeles.com.

    By Jacob Rascon, NBCLosAngeles.com

    In May 2011, a 10-year-old boy allegedly executed his father as he slept on the living room couch in their Southern California home. The victim, Jeff Hall, was a white supremacist leader and the West Coast director for the National Socialist Movement.


    On Tuesday, the trial began in what prosecutors call "a case that shocks the conscience."

    Attorneys for the now 12-year-old boy, who has admitted to the killing in his Riverside home, blame the murder on the neo-Nazi environment. They also say the boy’s stepmother encouraged him to pull the trigger.

    But prosecutors argue the "cold, calculated murder" was totally unrelated to neo-Nazism.

    Read the original report  |  More from NBCLosAngeles.com

    Before he was a white supremacist, Jeff Hall was a construction worker in the Inland Empire. Family members described him as "loving" and a "good father" at that time.

    His son, who would later kill him, apparently was not loving or good, according to prosecutors.

    They pointed out that officials kicked the boy out of as many as nine elementary schools for bad behavior. He allegedly stabbed a teacher with a pencil once and choked another with a telephone cord.

    Watch the most-viewed videos on NBCNews.com 

    Prosecutors say the boy told his younger sister he would shoot their father two days before he did. She will testify later in the trial.

    In a taped interview between the boy and a detective shown in court, the boy can be heard saying that he killed his father because he’d had enough of his father’s abusive behavior.

    Attorneys expect the trial to last two weeks.

    If convicted, the boy could be jailed until he is 23. He has pleaded not guilty by reasons of insanity.

  • US Commerce secretary in car crashes to take medical leave

    U.S. Commerce Secretary John Bryson, who suffered a seizure and was found unconscious at the wheel of his car, is back in Washington, D.C., recuperating. NBC's Brian Williams reports.

    By NBC, msnbc.com staff and news services

    Updated at 10:47 p.m. ET: U.S. Commerce Secretary John Bryson has announced he will take a medical leave after being hospitalized following a car accident Saturday afternoon. Deputy Secretary Rebecca Blank will assume his duties, according to a statement from Bryson's office.

    Bryson suffered a seizure Saturday afternoon, Commerce Department officials said Monday, but it wasn't clear whether the medical episode preceded or followed a hit-and-run collision. Bryson has not had a seizure before, said a department official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the secretary's medical history.

    Bryson has a "limited recall of the events," the official told The Associated Press.


    Medical records could determine whether Bryson will be charged in two weekend fender-benders that led to his hospitalization. Police found him slumped behind the wheel of his vehicle outside of Los Angeles.

    The crashes drew attention because of possible health concerns involving a member of President Barack Obama's Cabinet, as well as the challenge investigators face when trying to determine if someone should be held criminally responsible because of adverse health.

    Obama said Monday he has not yet spoken with Bryson about the crashes, but that he hopes “he’s doing all right.”

    Speaking to NBC’s Sioux Falls, Iowa, affiliate KTIV, Obama said that he was first told about the car crashes on Monday morning.

    “My hope is that he’s doing all right,” Obama told KTIV. “We’re still trying to find out, it sounds like it was health-related in some way but we’re going to make sure that obviously he gets the best care.”

    Bryson, 68, was driving alone in a Lexus in San Gabriel, a community of about 40,000 northeast of Los Angeles, when he struck the rear of a vehicle that had stopped for a passing train, authorities said.

    Click here for NBC Politics coverage

    He spoke briefly with the three occupants and then hit their car again as he departed, investigators said. They followed him while calling police.

    He was cited for felony hit-and-run, although he has not been charged.

    Bryson then struck a second car in the nearby city of Rosemead, where he was found unconscious in his car, authorities said.

    Bryson has returned to Washington, Commerce Department spokeswoman Jennifer Friedman said.

    White House press secretary Jay Carney said the administration was gathering information about the incidents.

    "We're obviously concerned about the incident, about the health-related issues that played a role in this incident," Carney said.

    Officials said Bryson was not on state business and did not have a security detail at the time of the accidents. He was driving a personal car and was given medication to treat the seizure.

    Bryson took a Breathalyzer test that didn't detect any alcohol, but investigators were awaiting the results from a blood test, said Los Angeles County sheriff's Capt. Mike Parker.

    Two people in the first collision were treated by paramedics, authorities said. A couple involved in the second crash declined medical aid.

    The case was being reviewed by sheriff's investigators and will likely be submitted to prosecutors in the coming days.

    "In most cases, it is presented to the DA's office to make a decision," sheriff's Lt. Margarito Robles said.

    Defense attorney Steve Meister said authorities will be examining why the crashes happened.

    "It's difficult to assign criminal liability when someone was medically unconscious," Meister said. "They have to be aware what was happening."

    Meister said he has represented people who have been involved in crashes while having seizures. He recalled how one woman struck another vehicle and didn't remember anything that transpired.

    No one was injured, but the woman was arrested for investigation of driving under the influence because she was acting disoriented, Meister said. The woman didn't have any drugs or alcohol in her system, but she pleaded to a misdemeanor crime.

    "It turns out she had a history (of seizures)," Meister said. "If I was (Bryson's) lawyer, I would try to find all the evidence there was to back up what he's already said."

    The episode is consistent with someone who has suffered a series of epileptic seizures, said Dr. Jerome Engel Jr., a neurologist at the University of California, Los Angeles, who is not involved in Bryson's care.

    After a seizure, a person is often confused, and that state of confusion can last for a while.

    "You may even seem to be alert and awake, but you're not really behaving normally," Engel said.

    Under California law, a doctor has to report a patient who complains of lapses of consciousness or whose epileptic seizures pose an impairment to driving. In those cases, a person can't drive unless he's been seizure-free for three months.

    Bryson had been in California last week to deliver the commencement address Thursday at Pasadena Polytechnic School, where his four children attended. The K-12 school said in a statement that he urged students to pursue their passions, to serve their country, and to value their education and friendships.

    Obama swore in the former utility executive as the head of the Commerce Department in October, after easily overcoming conservatives' objections that his pro-environmental views made him unsuited for the job.

    As secretary, Bryson is a member of the president's economic team and has worked to promote job creation. He has advised on energy issues, particularly in the clean energy sector.

    Bryson is the former head of Edison International, the holding company that owns Southern California Edison. Bryson has served on boards of major corporations, including the Boeing Co. and the Walt Disney Co.

    He helped oversee Edison's transformation into a leading wind and solar company and launched a plan to turn 65 million square feet of unused commercial rooftops into solar power stations with enough electricity for more than 160,000 homes.

    Meister believes the case will be sent to prosecutors for review.

    "It will ensure a full investigation because no one will want to be accused of sweeping this under the rug," he said. "If there is a reject (of charges), the sheriff will want the DA to share in the responsibility of that decision."

    NBC News' Ali Weinberg and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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  • In Calif. redistricting experiment, how much better off will Democrats be?

    By Tom Curry, msnbc.com National Affairs Writer

    In two weeks, California voters will take part in an intriguing electoral experiment –and while House Democrats are likely to emerge better off from it, the question is how much better off? Will they see a net gain of two or three House seats? Or perhaps a five, six, or seven seat score?

    When Californians cast their ballots in the June 5 primary, they’ll be in new congressional districts drawn not by political insiders, as was done in the past (and as is still done in most states), but by a citizen panel.

    Map of California's redrawn congressional districts.

    For decades, House members and their allies in the state legislature used gerrymandering to protect incumbents of both parties. That changed when voters adopted citizen redistricting in 2008.

    As governor, Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger “pushed redistricting reform for the purpose of creating competitive seats” and “Republicans had dreamed that the whole state would become competitive as a result of this process,” said Bruce Cain, professor of political science at the University of California, Berkeley, and an expert on redistricting in the state.

    Three other ingredients are being added to that redistricting experiment: the retirement of seven incumbents (four Republicans and three Democrats) from the California delegation, a 28 percent increase in the state’s Latino population since 2000 (although the increase in actual Latino voters doesn’t necessarily match the increase in the overall Latino population), and a new top-two balloting system under which only the leading vote-getters in each congressional primary advance to the November ballot.

    Decision 2012 and the myth of the 'Catholic vote'

    Only one seat in California changed hands in the last ten years, but according to the latest ratings from the non-partisan Cook Political Report, there are now four Democratic and five GOP House incumbents in competitive districts. At this same point after redistricting in 2001, Cook rated only two California House races as competitive.

    “The redistricting definitely favored the Democrats and nobody who has analyzed it thinks differently,” said Cain. “It would be shocking if the Democrats don’t pick up some congressional seats,” he said, but added, “I’d be surprised if the Democrats do better than (a net gain of) four or five.”

    “California has been a fairly stable market for congressional races over last decade,” said Dan Conston, the communications director for the Congressional Leadership Fund, a Republican Super PAC that had more than $5 million in cash as of April 15 to spend on House races.

    “Under the new maps, the entire field has been shaken up and California will now be one of the key battlegrounds for control of the House for the next decade,” he said.

    Roll Call's Nathan Gonzales and Cook Political Report's David Wasserman talk about redistricting and whether Democrats can win back the House.

    Conston added, “When you consider the national battlefields, it is clear that if we perform well in California, it is very difficult for Democrats to have any shot of reclaiming the majority.”

    Thanks to the Citizens United decision in the U.S. Supreme Court, and other federal court rulings, mega-donors in California and elsewhere can give unlimited money to Super PACs (both Democratic and Republican) bypassing donation caps to candidates or party committees.

    Conston said that the number of newly competitive seats in California has “piqued donor interest. That is why we set up a separate fund within the Congressional Leadership Fund where all resources raised go to our California efforts.”

    Among the Democrats at whom Republican groups will be aiming their ads are Rep. Lois Capps and Rep. John Garamendi, both of whom will now be competing on less Democratic-leaning turf than their present districts.

    Leaders of the Democratic Super PAC, which works on House races, are also making California their focus.

    In its fund raising pitch to donors, the House Majority PAC said, “Democrats have the opportunity to go from a 34-19 majority in California to a 41-12 majority – a net gain of seven seats, nearly a third of what we need to retake the majority in the U.S. House of Representatives ... This may well be a once-in-a-generation opportunity.”

    But without a competitive presidential or Senate race in California, there will be no pull for Democratic voters from the top of the ticket. “This is particularly important in the Hispanic community – the presidential election will not be focused on communicating with these voters in California,” the fund-raising pitch said.

    All the more enticing for Democratic mega-donors to give to the House Majority PAC, which had nearly $1.7 million in cash on hand as of March 31.

    Like its Republican rival, it too has a California-specific fund and appeals to home-state pride in its pitch: “For a long time, California donors have dutifully contributed to Democratic efforts and that money has been spent everywhere but California. In 2012, California donors have the opportunity to fund critically important races right here in the Golden State.”

    First Thoughts: Obama unloads on Romney

    Initially, some Democrats – including President Barack Obama – denounced Super PACs and non-profit groups called 501c4s, which were given a new birth of fundraising freedom under the Citizens United decision.

    But “I don’t hear that (objection) as much (from Democratic donors) anymore,” said Ali Lapp, executive director of the House Majority PAC. “More and more, there are a lot of Democratic donors out there that totally understand that if we try to fight this fight with one hand tied behind our back, the country is not going to get any better.”

    Lapp said, “The way I think about, there are nine competitive seats in California ... Of those nine, I think we will win five or six – if we’re really lucky, seven. If we won only two, it would not be a happy day; we would have had a horrible election if we won only two of those nine.”

    One place where House Majority PAC had been spending money in recent weeks is in the new 26th Congressional District in Ventura County, where four Democrats and one Republican, state Sen. Tony Strickland, are running. So far, Strickland has outraised all other contenders by a wide margin.

    Also on the June 5 ballot is a former-Republican-turned-independent, county supervisor Linda Parks, who won a glowing endorsement from The Los Angeles Times which sees her as exactly the type of centrist pragmatist that reformers had hoped citizen-driven redistricting would promote.

    If Parks and Strickland are the top two finishers on June 5, Democrats will start the November campaign already one seat behind.

    “This is a lean-Democratic district that in November has a better chance of going for a Democrat than for a Republican,” said Lapp.

    “But because of the dynamics of the top-two primary system where you have an independent with very high name ID and you have a bunch of Democrats on the ballot, there was a very real chance we could be squandering this opportunity if we didn’t get involved and make sure that voters knew who Julia Brownley is, what she stands for, and that she is the leading Democrat in the race.”

    But that race is only one of the places where the House Majority PAC is likely to invest money.  “On June 6, we’ll see what the match-ups are and – knock on wood – we’ll get the strong candidates we’re expecting to get from all these districts,” Lapp said.

  • Oakland assesses City Hall damage after Occupy break-in

    Beck Diefenbach / AP

    Occupy Oakland protestors burn an American flag found inside Oakland City Hall on Saturday.

    By NBC News, msnbc.com staff and news services

    Story updated 12:30 p.m. ET:

    Oakland officials on Sunday were inspecting damage inside City Hall that was caused by about 50 Occupy protesters who broke in and smashed glass display cases, spray-painted graffiti, and burned the U.S. and California flags.

    The break-in on Saturday was the culmination of a day of clashes between protesters and police. At least 300 people were arrested on charges ranging from vandalism and failure to disperse.

    At least three officers and one protester were injured.

    Mayor Jean Quan said Occupy protesters have caused an estimated $2 million in damages from vandalism since October. She said the cost to the city related to the Occupy Oakland protests is pegged at about $5 million.

    Riot police fought running skirmishes with anti-Wall street protesters in Oakland. TODAY's Thomas Roberts reports.

    The scene around City Hall was mostly quiet Sunday morning. It was unclear whether protesters would mount another large-scale demonstration later in the day.

    Story updated 6:00 a.m. ET:

    A U.S. flag was burned by a group of protestors inside City Hall, according to City Council President Larry Reid. City officials also said three police officers and one protester were injured during Saturday's events.

    Story updated 3:15 a.m. ET:

    Sgt. Christopher Bolton of the Oakland Police Department told msnbc.com that the number arrested was likely between 200 and 300. "We are still processing the arrests," he said. He was speaking after the release of a statement on the Oakland City website that put the number of arrests at 200. "That figure is probably on the low side and we don't have a confirmed total yet," said. Sgt Bolton. In the statement, released in a PDF file format, Oakland Mayor Jean Quan said: "Once again, a violent splinter group of the Occupy Movement is engaging in violent actions against Oakland. The Bay Area Occupy Movement has got to stop using Oakland as their playground." The statement also said there were reports of damage to exhibits inside City Hall during the protest.

    Story published 1:30 a.m.:

    Police arrested about 300 people Saturday as Occupy Oakland protesters were thwarted trying to take over a vacant convention center and enter a YMCA. Protesters later broke into City Hall, where they burned a flag taken from inside.

    Police used tear gas and "flash" grenades in the afternoon against 2,000 protesters who tried to tear down fences around the vacant Henry Kaiser Convention Center, where they hoped to establish a new camp. Police said some demonstrators started throwing objects at officers. There were at least 19 arrests in the afternoon.

    After 6 p.m. (9 p.m. ET), police in riot gear declared a group of protesters gathered near the YMCA under mass arrest for failing to disperse, according to local media reports and livestreams. Police said about 100 demonstrators were arrested at the YMCA.

    Several protesters at  the YMCA appeared to be put hard to the ground as police moved in and at least one protester had blood on his face.

    Protesters chanted, "Let us disperse," but instead were taken one by one for police processing.

    Some protesters claimed they were trying to flee police by running through the YMCA rather than take over the building.

    Later in the evening, about 100 police officers surrounded City Hall while others swept the inside of the building.

    Police arrived after protesters had broken into City Hall, stole an American flag from the council chamber and set it ablaze, the Oakland Tribune reported. Officers stomped out the fire.

    Earlier, protesters met at Frank Ogawa Plaza around noon and marched toward the convention center in hopes of making it their new meeting place and social center, NBCBayArea.com reported.

    Read NBCBayArea.com coverage of the protest

    Oakland officials said about 250 people were in the group when the protest started but the crowd grew to about 2,000.

    Earlier during the rally one of the organizers, Shake Anderson, said, "We are here to protect each other and to be civil disobedient. ... We're doing it to change the world, not just today but every day."

    Stephen Lam / Reuters

    Police officers arrest an Occupy Oakland demonstrator during a clash Saturday in Oakland, Calif., where officers fired tear gas at hundreds of protesters who tried to take over a shuttered convention center.

    The protesters were walking through Laney College around 2:30 p.m. Some people were wearing bandanas over their mouths and others were holding signs saying, "We are the 99%." A marching band dressed in pink and black tutus and neon pick tights also was in the crowd.

    Officer Jeff Thomason said police started making arrests when some in the crowd started throwing objects at them during the afternoon rally. Three officers were injured, police said, but did not elaborate.

    @OaklandPoliceCA tweeted around 3 p.m., "Area of Oakland Museum and Kaiser Center severely impacted. Persons cutting and tearing fences for entry. Bottles and objects thrown at OPD."

    Once they reached the center, organizers planned to kick off a two-day "Oakland Rise-up Festival" to celebrate the establishment of the movement's new space.

    Occupy Oakland spokesman Leo Ritz-Bar said the action would signal "a new direction for the Occupy movement: putting vacant buildings at the service of the community."

    Stephen Lam / Reuters

    Occupy Oakland demonstrators shield themselves from an explosion Saturday during a confrontation with the police near the Oakland Museum of California in Oakland, Calif.

    He also warned that protesters could retaliate against any repressive police action by blocking the Oakland International Airport, occupying City Hall or shutting down the Port of Oakland.

    City officials said that while they are "committed to facilitating peaceful forms of expression and free speech, police would be prepared to arrest those who break the law.

    "The city of Oakland will not be bullied by threats of violence or illegal activity," city administrator Deanna Santana said in a statement issued Friday.

    This article includes reporting from NBCBayArea.com, The Associated Press and msnbc.com's Miranda Leitsinger and Alastair Jamieson.

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  • Occupy LA, Philly prepare for evictions

    David Mcnew/Reuters

    A man packs his personal belongings next to his tent Saturday in anticipation of a police raid to evict the Occupy LA encampment outside City Hall in Los Angeles. The deadline to vacate is 12:01 a.m. PST Monday.

    By msnbc.com staff and wire reports

    Anti-Wall Street protesters appear to be taking few steps to vacate their Occupy encampments in Philadelphia and Los Angeles despite fast-approaching deadlines to move out.

    Few broke down tents at the Occupy LA spread Saturday on the City Hall lawn — and most said they didn't intend to.

    Protesters were abuzz with activity, but nearly all of it was aimed at how to deal with authorities come Monday's 12:01 a.m. PST deadline.

    Some handed out signs mocked up to look like the city's notices to vacate, advertising a Monday morning "eviction block party."

    Dozens attended a teach-in on resistance tactics, including how stay safe in the face of rubber bullets, tear gas canisters and pepper spray.

    Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced on Friday that despite his sympathy for the protesters' cause, it was time for the camp of nearly 500 tents to leave for the sake of public health and safety.

    The mayor said the movement is at a "crossroads," and it must "move from holding a particular patch of park to spreading the message of economic justice."

    Resist or move?
    Will Picard, who sat Saturday in a tent amid his artwork with a "notice of eviction" sign posted outside, said the main organizers and most occupiers he knows intend to stay.

    "Their plan is to resist the closure of this encampment and if that means getting arrested so be it," Picard said. "I think they just want to make the police tear it down rather than tear it down themselves."

    But some agreed with the mayor that the protest had run its course.

    "I'm going," said Luke Hagerman, who sat looking sad and resigned in the tent he's stayed in for a month. "I wish we could have got more done."

    Police gave few specifics about what tactics they would use for those who had no intention of leaving.

    Chief Charlie Beck said at Friday's news conference that officers would definitely not be sweeping through the camp and arresting everyone just after midnight.

    But in an interview with the Los Angeles Times on Sunday, Beck said that despite the lack of confrontations in the camp's two-month run, he was realistic about what must happen.

    "I have no illusions that everybody is going to leave," Beck told the Times. "We anticipate that we will have to make arrests."

    But he added, "We certainly will not be the first ones to apply force."

    New focus in Philly
    In Philadelphia, The New York Times reported, Saturday looked nothing like a moving day despite Mayor Michael A. Nutter’s notice that protesters must leave the steps of City Hall by 5 p.m. Sunday.

    The mayor said they could move across the street to Thomas Paine Plaza, but no more tents or overnight stays, NBC Philadelphia reported.

    “I'm not going to try to predict what’s going to happen on Sunday at 5 p.m,” Nutter said at a Friday interview.

    Protesters told the Times that the deadline had focused the local movement’s otherwise disorganized energies.

    “Having this kind of pressure is a good thing,” Michael Pierce, 50, a member of Occupy Philadelphia’s information working group, said. “Without some of the struggles that the other cities have had, we’ve been sitting around, drinking coffee,” Mr. Pierce said. “This is bringing us back together.”

    Police have swept tent cities in Portland, Ore., Oakland, Calif., New York City, Denver and Salt Lake City.

    In other developments Saturday:

    • Occupy Salem, Ore., organizers said they will take their protests to Marion Square Park for daytime demonstrations after being ordered to remove all tents, waste, portable toilets and other structures from Willson Park, near the state Capitol.
    • In New York, Occupy Wall Street organizers said they plan to outside the Egyptian Embassy on Tuesday in solidarity with protesters in Cairo’s Tahrir Square.
    • An 18-year-old University of South Dakota freshman reported missing earlier this week turned up in New York after authorities traced a credit card purchase for bus tickets to the Big Apple. Protester Aaron Schmidt met up with his father and uncle in New York after spending two nights on a cardboard in Zuccotti Park.