Malaysian Court Puts Caning of Woman on Hold
In Kuala Lumpur, in an act of mercy or perhaps bowing to international pressure, an Islamic court put on hold indefinitely the caning of a woman found guilty of drinking beer because the sentence was too harsh. The chief judge of Pahang state's Sharia court decided on Monday to defer the caning of 32-year old Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno (r.) pending a review, as it was deemed too extreme. Malaysia's Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein told reporters that the caning could not have been carried out anyway since the Prisons Department has no staff experienced to administer the caning in compliance with Shariah laws. "I have to admit we do not have experience in this case ... I cannot allow it if we do not have the expertise," said Hishammuddin. "Expertise!?" Do you really need to be that skilled to beat someone in the ass with a stick!? That wacky Sharia law, I tell ya...
Irish Cardinal Criticizes Same-Sex Bill
In Ireland, Cardinal Sean Brady (l.) criticized civil partnership legislation during a sermon, saying the measures would hugely change peoples' concepts of the family. Under the legislation, same-sex couples will be treated like married couples for tax and social welfare. Cardinal Brady also said those who refuse to officiate at a same sex wedding would be guilty of an offense and described this as "an alarming attack on the fundamental principle of freedom of religion and conscience".
Pastor Facing Sex Abuse Allegations Removed by Archdiocese
In Cumberland, MD, the pastor of a local church has been fired following allegations that he sexually abused a minor in the mid-1970s. Monsignor Thomas Bevan, 73, was removed from the ministry Aug. 19 and cannot function as a priest until an investigation is complete, the Archdiocese of Baltimore announced Sunday afternoon. In June, a former student at the parish school of St. John Catholic Church said he was abused on a number of separate occasions while Bevan was an associate pastor there from 1974 to 1979. Nevertheless, his congregation is blindly racing to his support; many of whom who prefer to have an accused child sex abuser presiding over Sunday service. “A lot of parishioners came away feeling very resentful that they’ve removed him before the accusations are proven,” said a lifelong member of the church. Bevan has denied the charges.
Rabbi Told Boy "Just Say Nothing Happened"
In Albany, NY, a rabbi was arraigned today on charges he not only sexually abused two 13-year-old boys in 2007, but repeatedly slapped and kicked one of them. Yaakov Weiss (r.) , 29, founder of the Chabad of Colonie and the Chabad Hebrew School, also allegedly tried to convince one of the two youngsters to lie about the sex abuse to his mother and police. "Just say nothing happened," Weiss told the child, according to a four-count indictment. The indictment alleged that, in both cases, Weiss had sexual contact "consisting of placing his penis in contact with said child's buttocks." Weiss, who has pleaded not guilty, faces up to one year behind bars on misdemeanor charges that include sexual abuse and child endangerment.
And finally...Reality TV Star Haunted by Murdered Wife's Ghost Says Mom
According to the mother of murdered bikini model Jasmine Fiore, the reality TV star accused of killing her hanged himself because she "was haunting him." Ryan Alexander Jenkins, a contestant on VH1's now-canceled dating show "Megan Wants a Millionaire" was found dead, apparently from a suicide, in a Vancouver motel room on Sunday. "I think the spirit of my daughter was on [him]," Lisa (Spirit) Lepore said. Police found Fiore's mutilated corpse in a Southern California Dumpster on Aug. 15, which lead to an international manhunt for Jenkins.
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