Trial set to begin for 2 accused of killing Run-DMC’s Jam Master Jay over 20 years ago

Trial set to begin for 2 accused of killing Run-DMC’s Jam Master Jay over 20 years ago

NEW YORK — Two men accused of murder in the death of Run-DMC star Jam Master Jay are set to go on trial Monday, more than 20 years after the trailblazing DJ was shot in his New York City recording studio. Opening statements are scheduled in Brooklyn federal court for the murder trial of Karl … Read more

A trial in Jam Master Jay’s 2002 killing is starting, and testing his anti-drug image

A trial in Jam Master Jay’s 2002 killing is starting, and testing his anti-drug image

NEW YORK — For almost two decades, the 2002 killing of Run-DMC’s Jam Master Jay stood as one of the hip-hop world’s most infamous and elusive crimes, one of three long-unsolved slayings of major rap stars. Now Jay’s case is the first of those killings to go to trial. Opening statements are set for Monday … Read more

Man sentenced to death for arson attack at Japanese anime studio that killed 36

Man sentenced to death for arson attack at Japanese anime studio that killed 36

TOKYO — A Japanese court sentenced a man to death after finding him guilty of murder and other crimes Thursday for carrying out a shocking arson attack on an anime studio in Kyoto, Japan, that killed 36 people. The Kyoto District Court said it found the defendant, Shinji Aoba, mentally capable to face punishment for … Read more

Former gang leader charged with killing Tupac Shakur gets new lawyer who points to ‘historic’ trial

Former gang leader charged with killing Tupac Shakur gets new lawyer who points to ‘historic’ trial

LAS VEGAS — A former Los Angeles-area gang leader jailed in Las Vegas in the 1996 killing of hip-hop music icon Tupac Shakur has hired a private attorney who pointed Monday to what he expects will be a historic murder trial. Duane “Keffe D” Davis dismissed court-appointed lawyers and hired veteran criminal defense lawyer Carl … Read more

Former gang leader charged in killing of Tupac Shakur is allowed $750K bail and house arrest

Former gang leader charged in killing of Tupac Shakur is allowed 0K bail and house arrest

LAS VEGAS — A Nevada judge set bail Tuesday at $750,000 for a former Los Angeles-area gang leader charged with orchestrating the killing of hip-hop legend Tupac Shakur in 1996, saying he can serve house arrest with electronic monitoring ahead of trial on a murder charge. Court-appointed attorneys for Duane “Keffe D” Davis told The … Read more

Idris Elba calls for tougher action on knife crime after a spate of teen killings in Britain

Idris Elba calls for tougher action on knife crime after a spate of teen killings in Britain

LONDON — Actor Idris Elba on Monday urged the British government to ban machetes and serrated “zombie” knives to help stop young people falling victim to knife crime. The London-born star of “The Wire” and “Luther” joined protesters from the “Don’t Stop Your Future” campaign outside Parliament, posing with clothes and shoes representing people killed … Read more

New York governor commutes sentence of rapper G. Dep who had turned self in for cold case killing

New York governor commutes sentence of rapper G. Dep who had turned self in for cold case killing

NEW YORK — Rapper Travell “G. Dep” Coleman, who walked into a New York police precinct in 2010 and admitted to committing a nearly two-decade-old cold case murder to clear his conscience, has been granted clemency by Gov. Kathy Hochul. Now 49, Coleman has served 13 of a 15-year-to-life sentence. With his sentence being commuted … Read more

Two Rhode Island men charged with assault and battery in death of Patriots fan

Two Rhode Island men charged with assault and battery in death of Patriots fan

BOSTON — Two Rhode Island men have been charged with assault and battery and disorderly conduct by Foxborough Police in connection with the recent death of a fan at a New England Patriots game. John Vieira, 59, and Justin Mitchell, 39, both of Warwick, R.I., were charged with assault and battery and disorderly conduct earlier … Read more

Ex-gang leader seeking release from Las Vegas jail ahead of trial in 1996 killing of Tupac Shakur

New York governor commutes sentence of rapper G. Dep who had turned self in for cold case killing

LAS VEGAS — A former Los Angeles-area gang leader charged with murder in the killing of hip-hop music icon Tupac Shakur in Las Vegas is deriding the case against him as the product of speculation and second-hand testimony as he asks a judge to put him on house arrest ahead of his trial. A Jan. … Read more