A May 5 trial date was set Tuesday for Justin Bieber in the Florida case charging him with driving under the influence, resisting arrest and possessing an invalid driver's license.

Prosecutor Daniel Diaz-Balart also said at a brief hearing that no plea offer has been made for the 20-year-old pop singer, who has pleaded not guilty. Bieber's attorney, Roy Black, also said there was no plea deal on the table and none had been rejected, even though first offenders in most similar cases are offered a plea to avoid potential jail time.

The initial March trial date was postponed while attorneys for news organizations and Bieber wrestled with release of police videos of him giving a urine sample for a drug test. Those videos were made public last week with sensitive segments blacked out.

Bieber and R&B singer Khalil Amir Sharieff were arrested Jan. 23 in Miami Beach after what police called an illegal drag race with high-end sports cars. Breath tests showed Bieber's blood-alcohol content was below the 0.02 limit for underage drivers. Other tests detected marijuana and Xanax.

Miami-Dade County Judge William Altfield said Sharieff has a separate April 7 trial date on a DUI charge. He too has pleaded not guilty.

Black was also asked about a deposition Bieber gave last week in a lawsuit filed by a photographer who claims he was roughed up and threatened by one of the singer's bodyguards. Video of that deposition quickly began appearing on Internet sites, which Black criticized Tuesday as an invasion of Bieber's privacy.

Among other things, Black said, Bieber was asked in the deposition about topics such as his relationships with singers Selena Gomez and Usher "that had nothing to do with the case." A judge previously denied motions to keep Bieber's deposition sealed, he added.

POOL

Miami - March 11, 2014

1. Wide Miami-Dade County Court Judge William Altfield enters and sits on bench

2. Mid lawyers approach the podium

3. Mid judge on bench

4. Mid lawyers as judge is speaking UPSOUND (English):

Judge: "Has there been an offer conveyed?"

Prosecutor: "Uh, no there has not."

Judge: "There has not been, ok. Let us go into May, May 5th."

Prosecutor: "Works for us."

Roy Black, Defense Attorney: "Yes, that's fine"

AP TELEVISION

Miami - March 11, 2014

5. Wide defense attorney Roy Black walking out of courtroom

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Roy Black, Bieber's defense attorney:

"No, this case has just been set for trial. And we will start preparing for a trial."

7. Mid reporters in hallway

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Roy Black, Bieber's defense attorney:

"He goes to a deposition which starts out asking questions, 'what do you think about Usher, how is your dating with Selena Gomez,' asking him all these questions that have nothing to with the case, and is only acting as a shill for TMZ, and then immediately turns around and either sells or gives the clips of the video to TMZ, after what they did to him. And you want to know what's wrong with what happens with celebrity in America today? What's wrong in being a success? Well, this is the best example. This kid who did nothing except but try to become a success in music has turned his life at times into a nightmare. And you wonder why he sometimes fights back against it."

9. Mid Black walking down courthouse hallway to exit

JOHANSSON TALKS TRUMP, MIRREN CALLS FOR ALL ROUND RESPECT, AT POWER OF WOMEN LUNCHEON

Donald Trump, and attidudes to women were hot topics of conversation at the Variety Power of Women luncheon, Friday (14 OCT. 2016), which this year honored stars including

Scarlett Johansson, Helen Mirren and director Ava DuVernay.

The annual luncheon celebrates women's leadership in charitable and humanitarian efforts.

Held at the Beverly Wilshire hotel, the event also recognized Miley Cyrus, Laverne Cox, fashion designer Georgina Chapman and Spanx founder Sara Blakely and the various nonprofits they support.

DuVernay, who works with 1000 Black Girl Books, said it's important to celebrate women, "especially in a society, in our culture right now, where at the highest levels of public discourse there's been such a degradation of women."

The event was held shortly after a 2005 video emerged featuring lewd comments about women by presidential candidate Donald Trump.

Scarlett Johansson said the good news about Trump's comments was that they sparked a wider conversation about sexual assault.

"You know I think these are conversations that we probably should've been having for a long time and sometimes it takes something kind of explosive to actually ease the stigma of these issues that people can actually feel comfortable talking about them and that helps - the media is shedding light on these issues is a part of that," she said.

Tran-actress Laverne Cox highlighted an enduring problem with the way claims of sexual assault are dealt with.

"Part of the way rape culture functions is that we set up a culture where we don't believe women when they say they've experienced sexual assault so we have to begin to change the narrative," she said. "What I'm so excited about being honored today is I get to highlight the work of the National Coalition Anti-violence Programs."

Helen Mirren thinks respect should be universal.

"I don't particularly like the word 'Respecting women' because it's a bit sort of, I don't know a bit puritanical or something," said Helen Mirren. "'Respecting people' is a better phrase, 'Respecting human beings'. Not calling other human beings 'it'. Look at 'it'. 'It's' got long legs. Look at 'its' – whatever. That is what is so horrific. And that goes for men or women, it's irrespective really so the whole idea of 'Oh we've got to respect women' is a bit, I think is far greater than that basically is what I'm saying."

Last month "Avengers" director creator Joss Whedon launched a 'Save the Day,' pro-Hillary Clinton video encouraging people to vote, which featured Robert Downey Jr., Mark Ruffalo, Martin Sheen, Don Cheadle, Julianne Moore, James Franco, Scarlett Johansson, and more.

Johansson agrees that this year, celebrities have banded together more than in other election years.

"The stakes are really high this election," said Johansson. "Obviously with the availability in the Supreme Court and how the senate affects that. This is a really important election. Not just right now but these are issues – this election has the potential to affect us for the next 20 years or more."

Party politics aside, Helen Mirren believes one positive effect of an election result that meant to the first women president of the United States would be the message it sent young women and girls around the world.

"I think what would be really powerful and I'm so hoping it's going to happen is that it's a definitive election and it's the women who define it," she said. "It's the women who come out and the women who say 'We've had enough of this. It's over. It's over,' and whether in a way we completely politically agree with Hillary (Clinton) we are saying 'No' to that. So that's what I'm hoping."

Los Angeles, 14 October 2016

1. Wide shot push into medium, director Ava DuVernay

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Ava DuVernay, director - on why events like this are good for little girls to know about:

"You know it's important to celebrate women especially in a society and a culture right now where we have in the highest levels of public discourse such a degradation of women and so an event like this serves as an anecdote to that - antidote to that. But also just taking away all the negativity. You know whenever women are gathered beauty happens."

3. Helen Mirren speaks to reporter

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Helen Mirren, actress - on whether or not Trump's negative video about women has started a positive conversation about sexual assault and respect for women:

"I don't particularly like the word 'respecting women' because it's a bit sort of, I don't know a bit puritanical or something. 'Respecting people' is a better phrase, 'respecting human beings'. Not calling other human beings 'it'. Look at 'it'. 'It's' got long legs. Look at 'its' – whatever. That is what is so horrific. And that goes for men or women, it's irrespective really so the whole idea of 'Oh we've got to respect women' is a bit, I think is far greater than that basically is what I'm saying."

5. Wide shot push in, Scarlett Johansson

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Scarlett Johansson, actress - on whether or not Trump's negative video about women has started a positive conversation about sexual assault and respect for women:

"You know I think these are conversations that we probably should've been having for a long time and sometimes it takes something kind of explosive to actually ease the stigma of these issues that people can actually feel comfortable talking about them and that helps – the media is shedding light on these issues is a part of that."

7. Wide shot Rachel Bloom speaks to reporter

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Rachel Bloom, actress - on whether or not Trump's negative video about women has started a positive conversation about sexual assault and respect for women:

"I mean the more progress there is on one hand, the more people on the other hand are anti-progress. You know its people digging their heels in the sand. They are afraid. It's why heterosexual males who are afraid of empathizing with other people and they feel like their reign of power or reign of terror in some cases is being superseded by women, people of color and trans-people and LGBT."

9. Medium Laverne Cox speaks to reporter

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Laverne Cox, actress - on whether or not Trump's negative video about women has started a positive conversation about sexual assault and respect for women:

"Part of the way rape culture functions is that we set up a culture where we don't believe women when they say they've experienced sexual assault, so we have to begin to change the narrative. What I'm so excited about, being honored today, is I get to highlight the work of the National Coalition Anti-violence Programs."

11. Scarlett Johansson speaks to reporter

12. SOUNDBITE (English) Scarlett Johansson, actress - on why celebrities have really banded together this election year:

"The stakes are really high this election. Obviously with the availability in the Supreme Court and how the senate affects that. This is a really important election. Not just right now but these are issues - this election has the potential to affect us for the next 20 years or more."

13. SOUNDBITE (English) Helen Mirren, actress - on what a woman president mean to women and young girls:

"But I, for me I think what would be really powerful and I'm so hoping it's going to happen is that it's a definitive election and it's the women who define it. It's the women who come out and the women who say 'We've had enough of this. It's over. It's over,' and whether in a way we completely politically agree with Hillary (Clinton) we are saying 'No' to that. So that's what I'm hoping."

13. Helen Mirren speaks to Gabrielle Carteris

SHOTLIST:

AP Entertainment

September 22, 2009

1. John Travolta and wife Kelly Preston arriving at Supreme Court Nassau to testify

September 29, 2009

2. Wide shot of Supreme Court building

3. Former Bahamas Senator Pleasant Bridgewater walking after court session

4. Media

5. Alysson Maynard-Gibson, Bahama lawyer for John Travolta

6. SOUNDBITE: (English) Murrio Ducille, Defence lawyer for Pleasant Bridgewater:

"No, no, absolutely not. You will see in a little while. That's just a storm in a teacup."

7. Wide of ambulance driver Tarino Lightbourne with lawyer

TRAVOLTA TESTIFIES IN BAHAMAS

John Travolta is expected to testify again at an extortion trial on Wednesday, just a week after he described on the stand the circumstances of his son's tragic death on Grand Bahamas Island in early January.

A local lawyer for Travolta took the stand on Tuesday (29 Sept. 2009) and described the circumstances in which ambulance driver Tarino Lightbourne, assisted by Grand Bahamas Senator Pleasant Bridgewater, allegedly approached representatives of Travolta to demand money for a release document signed by Travolta authorising the transfer of his son Jett to an airplane rather than the local hospital.

Allyson Maynard-Gibson took the stand on Tuesday and described the sequence of events leading up to the extortion demand.

Ms. Maynard-Gibson told the court Lightbourne, assisted by Bridgewater, approached representatives of Travolta offering to exchange the document for 25 (m) million US dollars, later reduced to 15 (m) million US dollars.

Bahamian police taped the demands in a sting operation, although the video has not yet been shown to the jury.

Murrio Ducille, a lawyer for defendant Bridgewater dismissed the taped evidence, saying it would have little effect on the case.

"That's just a storm in a teacup," Ducille said on Tuesday after emerging from the courtroom.

But at least one celebrity news organisation has reported on its web site that its reporter has seen the incriminating video, leaving little doubt Lightbourne and Bridgewater were recorded demanding money in conversation with one of Travolta's US-based lawyers.

The document, which Travolta signed, would have cleared the ambulance driver of liability if the family refused to send 16-year-old Jett Travolta to the hospital.

The actor testified last week that he initially wanted his son flown to Florida for treatment after a seizure on January 2 that resulted in Jett's death.

But Jett was treated in the Bahamas, and it is unclear why the defendants allegedly believed Travolta would pay to keep the document private.

The trial began September 21 and is expected to last several weeks.

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was remembered Saturday as a man who loved God, country and family at a funeral Mass capping two days of mourning for a jurist who left a long and sometimes provocative legacy on the nation.

Scalia's son Paul _ a Catholic priest _ led the service and mixed humor with reverence for the conservative icon and father of nine who died unexpectedly last weekend.

Scalia's sons and sons-in-law served as pallbearers, carrying his flag-draped casket up the steps of the basilica.

The service was a traditional Catholic funeral Mass filled with pageantry, celebrity and a little bit of humor. It was simple, with no formal eulogy, in keeping with the justice's philosophy that funerals should not be dominated by effusive praise.

Justice Clarence Thomas read a passage from the New Testament's Book of Romans.

The family departed for a private burial at an undisclosed site immediately after the Mass. A memorial service for Scalia has been set for March 1 at a Washington hotel.

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was remembered Saturday as a man who loved God, country and family at a funeral Mass capping two days of mourning for a jurist who left a long and sometimes provocative legacy on the nation.

Scalia's son Paul _ a Catholic priest _ led the service and mixed humor with reverence for the conservative icon and father of nine who died unexpectedly last weekend.

Scalia's sons and sons-in-law served as pallbearers, carrying his flag-draped casket up the steps of the basilica.

The service was a traditional Catholic funeral Mass filled with pageantry, celebrity and a little bit of humor. It was simple, with no formal eulogy, in keeping with the justice's philosophy that funerals should not be dominated by effusive praise.

Justice Clarence Thomas read a passage from the New Testament's Book of Romans.

The family departed for a private burial at an undisclosed site immediately after the Mass. A memorial service for Scalia has been set for March 1 at a Washington hotel.

POOL

Washington, DC - 20 February 2016

1. Tilt of inside of National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception

2. Wide, Rev. Paul Scalia, Son of Justice Antonin Scalia delivering prayer

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Justice Clarence Thomas, United States Supreme Court:

"Only with difficulty does one die for a just person, though perhaps for a good person one might even fond courage to die."

4. Pan, choir

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Rev. Paul Scalia, Son of Justice Antonin Scalia:

"We do not mourn as those who have no hope, but in confidence we commend Antonin Scalia to the mercy of God. God blessed dad, as is well know, with a love for his country. God blessed him with a desire to be the country's good servant because he was God's first."

6. Wide, Rev. Scalia preparing communion

7. Various, pall bearers holding Scalia's casket

8. Senator Ted Cruz

9. Pall bearers exiting church with Scalia's casket

FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: apus048972

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was remembered Saturday as a man who loved God, country and family at a funeral Mass capping two days of mourning for a jurist who left a long and sometimes provocative legacy on the nation.

Scalia's son Paul _ a Catholic priest _ led the service and mixed humor with reverence for the conservative icon and father of nine who died unexpectedly last weekend.

Scalia's sons and sons-in-law served as pallbearers, carrying his flag-draped casket up the steps of the basilica.

The service was a traditional Catholic funeral Mass filled with pageantry, celebrity and a little bit of humor. It was simple, with no formal eulogy, in keeping with the justice's philosophy that funerals should not be dominated by effusive praise.

Justice Clarence Thomas read a passage from the New Testament's Book of Romans.

The family departed for a private burial at an undisclosed site immediately after the Mass. A memorial service for Scalia has been set for March 1 at a Washington hotel.

FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: apus048972

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was remembered Saturday as a man who loved God, country and family at a funeral Mass capping two days of mourning for a jurist who left a long and sometimes provocative legacy on the nation.

Scalia's son Paul _ a Catholic priest _ led the service and mixed humor with reverence for the conservative icon and father of nine who died unexpectedly last weekend.

Scalia's sons and sons-in-law served as pallbearers, carrying his flag-draped casket up the steps of the basilica.

The service was a traditional Catholic funeral Mass filled with pageantry, celebrity and a little bit of humor. It was simple, with no formal eulogy, in keeping with the justice's philosophy that funerals should not be dominated by effusive praise.

Justice Clarence Thomas read a passage from the New Testament's Book of Romans.

The family departed for a private burial at an undisclosed site immediately after the Mass. A memorial service for Scalia has been set for March 1 at a Washington hotel.

POOL

Washington, DC - 20 February 2016

1. Tilt of inside of National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception

2. Wide, Rev. Paul Scalia, Son of Justice Antonin Scalia delivering prayer

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Justice Clarence Thomas, United States Supreme Court:

"Only with difficulty does one die for a just person, though perhaps for a good person one might even fond courage to die."

4. Pan, choir

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Rev. Paul Scalia, Son of Justice Antonin Scalia:

"We do not mourn as those who have no hope, but in confidence we commend Antonin Scalia to the mercy of God. God blessed dad, as is well know, with a love for his country. God blessed him with a desire to be the country's good servant because he was God's first."

6. Wide, Rev. Scalia preparing communion

7. Various, pall bearers holding Scalia's casket

SHOTLIST:

1. Pan across courthouse exterior (Building G)

2. Pan across media trucks

3. Mid shot reporter

4. Man moving engineering truck

5. Media setting up

6. Medium shot of Court TV reporter Diane Diamond

7. SOUNDBITE: (English) Diane Diamond, Court TV Reporter:

"It does, you know we haven't ever gotten a real answer about Michael Jackson and whether he is a child molester. I don't know if he is. You don't know if he is. In 1993 it never got to court and we know why, so this time around I'm anxious to find out the truth."

8. Cutaway Diamond

9. SOUNDBITE: (English) Diane Diamond, Court TV Reporter:

"He is in the criminal justice system now. We saw him handcuffed, we saw his mugshot and tomorrow he will march in here surrounded by whatever security and enter into the court system. I don't think that Mark Geragos, brilliant a criminal defence attorney as he is, thinks there's not going to be a trial. I think there will be a trial."

10. Cutaway Diamond

11. SOUNDBITE: (English) Diane Diamond, Court TV Reporter:

"And he stepped out of the car and I caught the glint of light on his handcuffs and I just had to stop. It hit me full force what had happened. This is a man who is idolised world wide and there he is like a common criminal being taken into jail."

12. Pan over media

13. Courthouse

14. Pan over media trucks

TENSION MOUNTS AHEAD OF JACKSON COURT APPEARANCE

Singer Michael Jackson returns to the world stage on Friday, not as an entertainer, but as a man accused of child sexual abuse.

Jackson will be in Santa Maria California , about 150 miles (240 kilometres) north of the city of Los Angeles, facing charges of child molestation.

He's set to join lawyer Mark Geragos to enter a plea on the charges.

They'll be joined by a throng of media gathering once again from around the world, and by a caravan of Jackson fans said to be arranged by brother Jermaine Jackson.

Michael Jackson faces seven counts of performing lewd or lascivious acts on a child under 14 and two counts of administering an intoxicating agent, reportedly wine.

Jackson, his family and supporters all say the 45-year-old pop star is innocent of the acts that were said to have occurred at his sprawling Neverland Ranch, near Santa Barbara, in the state of California.

But legal experts say the charges are serious and Santa Barbara County officials say they have a strong case against Jackson.

And while it isn't yet the trial of the century, the spectre of scandal and the nature of the allegations are already a test of Jackson the man and the celebrity.

Court TV reporter Diane Diamond, who first broke the story of Jackson's arrest, like many, is eager to find out the truth.

It has been more than a year since the pop star dangled his shrouded baby boy from a hotel balcony in Berlin, Germany.

That incident, and a British T-V documentary focusing on Jackson's private life at his secluded estate, sparked new questions about Jackson's private life and personal behaviour.

And now there are more than questions about Jackson's personal behaviour with children who have been guests at the sprawling ranch.

Jackson was taken into custody last month on suspicion of molesting a 12-year-old boy and has denied the accusations.

The allegations mark the second time in a decade Jackson has been accused of molestation.

On Friday, Jackson will face a judge in this Santa Maria courtroom where he's expected to enter a not guilty plea.

SHOTLIST

TRUE DATE CREATED = 27/03/2009

AP Television

Atlanta, Georgia, 27 March 2009

1. Medium shot of T.I. (real name Clifford Harris) walking to podium for news conference after sentencing hearing

2. Wide shot, pan of cameras at news conference and Harris at podium

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Clifford Harris/Rapper:

"I have began to close this chapter in my life with, of course, the help and blessings of the US Attorneys and the courts of the US government. I would like to thank all that have helped me throughout my journey, along my journey, including my attorneys. All of the foundations and all of the organizations who have helped me align myself with people who can see to it that I carry out my wishes and my intentions to the best of my ability. Although I am not thrilled about my next year and day, I am pleased that I can begin the process of putting this all behind me."

4. Wide shot photographer taking picture of Harris

5. Close up Harris speaking

6. Medium shot Harris speaking from podium

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Clifford Harris/Rapper:

"I know for a fact that I've changed at least five lives, because these are the five or six people I keep in contact with. It's an honor for me to do so. I never looked at myself as a leader, or the leader of a generation. I just looked at myself as a celebrity or an entertainer. This experience has taught me that I have an ability to influence and impact millions of people. Young people, old people and people my age as well. So, I appreciate the opportunity."

8. Wide shot exterior of federal courthouse building

9. Close up sign on federal courthouse building

10. Close up, pan from Harris' hand resting on podium to face

11. Wide shot photographer taking picture of Harris

12. SOUNDBITE (English) Clifford Harris/Rapper:

"I think my judgement was altered due to a tragic situation and me living through a hostile attempt on my life. I lost sight of what was important. I had lost sight of the faith that I had in God and how far he'd brought me. I guess I resorted to taking matters into my own hands -- foolishly, to say the least."

13. Wide shot Harris and girlfriend walking from news conference and greeting supporters

STORYLINE

RAPPER T.I. SENTENCED

A judge sentenced Rapper T.I. to one year and a day behind bars on federal weapons charges on Friday (27MARCH09.)

The 28-year-old rapper, whose real name is Clifford Harris, entered court smiling as he greeted his lawyers and family members. He wore a dark gray suit and black dress shirt and tie for sentencing.

"Today I would like to say thank you to some, and apologize to all," the rapper told U.S. District Judge Charles Pannell Jr. at the one and a half hour session, which was closed to television cameras.

Harris pleaded guilty last March after he was arrested in 2007, attempting to buy unregistered machine guns and silencers.

The arrest on Oct. 13 of that year occurred blocks from where he was to headline the BET Hip-Hop Awards in Atlanta hours later.

He will have between 30 and 60 days to report to prison.

Harris already has completed about 1,000 hours of community service and has warned youths about the pitfalls of guns, drugs, violence.

He will need to complete 470 additional hours.

"I never looked at myself as a leader, or the leader of a generation. I just looked at myself as a celebrity or an entertainer. This experience has taught me that I have an ability to influence and impact millions of people," Harris said.

At Friday's hearing, former United Nations Ambassador Andrew Young spoke on Harris' behalf.

Harris had faced a maximum of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 (USD) fine for each count, until he cut a deal and pleaded guilty last March to the federal weapons charge and was sentenced to one year and a day in prison.

Ed Garland, one of his attorneys, said they are not sure where he will serve his sentence.

Upon his release, Harris is to be placed on three years of supervised release. He also will be credited for 305 days of home detention he already has served and must serve an additional 60 days, authorities said.

Harris agreed to community service to avoid a lengthy sentence. He already has made 262 public appearances as part of that deal.

Much of that work has been done with children.

Harris is one of the co-chief executives of Grand Hustle Records and one of Atlantic Records' most successful artists.

His sixth album, "Paper Trail," has sold nearly two million copies. It also charted two smash No. 1 songs, and a third with Justin Timberlake is near the top of the charts.

T.I. said fear was the reason he tried to buy the guns.

His best friend, Philant Johnson, was killed following a post-performance party in Cincinnati in 2006.

A man was found guilty last year in the murder case.

A double amputee whose mother died at an early age overcame incredible odds to represent his country at the Olympic games.

A beautiful fashion model is gunned down in his house on Valentine's Day.

It's an incredible story and could be poised to change the face of daytime television in South Africa.

Oscar Pistorius goes on trial for murder on Monday and the proceedings are expected to be witnessed by an audience of (m) millions.

In a landmark ruling, a South African judge has agreed parts of the trial can be broadcast live on television by three remote-controlled cameras in court, but testimony given by Pistorius can not be shown.

Judge Dunstan Mlambo, who made the decision to allow broadcasting, said he had weighed up arguments for a fair trial from the Pistorius camp with principles of open justice and freedom of expression.

Advocates for freedom of speech and more transparency in South African public life hope the decision to allow cameras into the Pistorius trail will lead to more high profile cases being covered live.

The ruling followed a petition by local broadcaster 'Multi Choice', a digital TV and radio service, who have added what they describe as a 'pop up channel' to their system.

Channel 199 will be dedicated to the Pistorius trial and bring viewers not only the live pictures from inside the court, but a steady stream of analysis and comment from legal experts.

The pop-up channel is being produced by George Mazarakis, a popular television personality who is executive producer of the highly rated 'Carte Blanche', a show which pioneered investigative journalism in South Africa when it first aired in 1988.

Mazarakis has been associated with the show since its launch.

The pop-up channel will carry advertising which the producers say is necessary to help offset the high costs involved.

A panel of executives from Multi Choice briefed the media about Channel 199 last Friday.

They were keen to point out that the content will be serious and responsible - "not just tabloid" - but acknowledge they have a gripping story to tell.

"It is all too real, it is all too tragic," says Mazarakis.

The area outside the North Gauteng High Court has become a campsite for international television channels who have descended on Pretoria to beam their own reports and analysis of the Pistorius trial around the world.

On Sunday technicians were busy setting up satellite dishes and camera positions.

Hundreds of reporters have applied for a limited number of seats in a separate room in the court complex where the proceedings will be relayed via closed circuit television.

South Africa's criminal justice system and gun culture will be under a global spotlight during the Pistorius trial, which has some parallels with the 1990s OJ Simpson case in the United States because of the celebrity factor, the sensational allegations and the fascination of people around the world.

Parts of the trial will be broadcast live on television, adding to the scrutiny.

Simpson's trial for the murder of his ex-wife and a man was televised in its entirety.

But in one glaring difference, Pistorius acknowledges he killed the victim.

The Olympian said he thought Reeva Steenkamp was a night-time intruder in his home in the early hours of 14 February last year; the prosecution maintains he intentionally shot her several times in the bathroom after an argument.

Criminal law experts believe that if the prosecution fails to prove premeditated murder, firing several shots through a closed door could bring a conviction for the lesser charge of culpable homicide, a South African equivalent of manslaughter covering unintentional deaths through negligence.

Mlambo had shown "an awareness of the competing considerations at play," said Justice Edwin Cameron of South Africa's Constitutional Court.

He declined to comment directly on the ruling, but said he favoured cameras in appellate courts.

South Africa abolished the jury system in 1969 following arguments that whites-only juries during apartheid would be unlikely to deliver fair verdicts involving, for example, a white perpetrator and a black victim.

Johannesburg - 28 February 2014

1. Off screen - promo of Channel 199

2. Executive producer George Mazarakis and unidentified people brief media about Channel 199

3. Media audience listening to Mazarakis

4. Wide of executives on panel

5. SOUNDBITE (English) George Mazarakis, Executive Producer of Channel 199:

"It's a challenge to tell the story correctly and to tell it in a legally responsible way and in an entertaining way at the same time. But it is after all the story of a tragedy, and it's the story of a tragedy in two people's lives, it's not something that is pure entertainment at all, and to having achieved this from the courts I think we have added responsibility to take it very, very seriously and deliver it authentically, correctly and responsibly."

Pretoria - 2 March 2014

6. View from media platform overlooking North Gauteng High Court

7. Tents for media and satellite dishes

8. Satellite trucks parked opposite court

9. Pan of media activity on platform

Johannesburg - 28 February 2014

10. SOUNDBITE (English) George Mazarakis, Executive Producer of Channel 199:

"This is a breakthrough judgement to be given the opportunity to film in court. It's something that's never, ever happened before. It speaks to open justice, it augers well for the future and the strength of the South African democracy."

FILE: Pretoria - 19 August 2013

11. Media scrum as Oscar Pistorius arrives at magistrate's court for remand hearing

12. Pistorius escorted by police through photographers

Johannesburg - 28 February 2014

13. SOUNDBITE (English) George Mazarakis, Executive Producer of Channel 199:

"We have to give the dignity and the respect to the victim. She's not a cardboard cut-out caricature of a beautiful woman. She's a real human being with feelings. But so is he, the accused. It is all too real and this is all too tragic."

Pretoria - 2 March 2014

14. Satellite dish and technicians on media platform

15. Media equipment in tents

16. More media equipment

17. Camera being walked through turnstile and metal detectors at the entrance to the court

HEADLINE:Blagojevich gets 14 yrs in prison for corruption

CAPTION: Rod Blagojevich who once challenged a prosecutor to face him like a man, the glad-handing politician who took to celebrity TV shows to claim innocence, was nowhere to be found Wednesday as he was sentenced to 14 years in prison for corruption. (Dec. 7)

[VOICE-OVER]

TRACK#1

[LOCATION: CHICAGO, IL--DECEMBER 7, 2011]

[SOURCE: AP]

[NAT-BREAK: CHICAGO, IL--DECEMBER 7, 2011]

[SOT: ROD BLAGOJEVICH / FORMER ILLINOIS GOVERNOR]

"THIS IS A TIME FOR ME AND PATTY TO GO HOME AND EXPLAIN TO OUR TWO GIRLS WHAT HAPPENED AND FIGURE OUT HOW TO MOVE ON."

[VOICE-OVER]

AN EMOTIONAL MOMENT FOR THE FORMER GOVERNOR OF ILLINOIS WHO WAS REACTING TO HIS HISTORIC JAIL SENTENCE

[NAT-BREAK: CHICAGO, IL--DECEMBER 7, 2011]

BUT THIS MORNING ON CHICAGO'S NORTH SIDE NEARLY THREE YEARS TO THE DATE AFTER HIS ARREST FOR CONSPIRING TO SELL PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA SENATE SEAT, THE DISGRACED FORMER ILLINOIS GOVERNOR ROD BLAGOJEVICH AND HIS WIFE PATTY STORMED OUT OF THEIR NORTH SIDE HOME

GREETED BY A FIELD OF MEDIA AND HEADED TO A FEDERAL COURTHOUSE TO FACE A TOUGH JUDGE AND A PROSECUTION LOOKING TO IMPRISON HIM FOR 15 TO 20 YEARS

[NAT-BREAK: CHICAGO, IL--DECEMBER 7, 2011]

[VOICE-OVER]

BLAGOJEVICH, A FATHER OF TWO YOUNG GIRLS

TOLD THE COURT THAT HE WAS "UNBELIEVABLY SORRY" FOR HIS "TERRIBLE MISTAKES," THIS WAS HIS LAST CHANCE TO CONVINCE THE FEDERAL JUDGE THAT HE DESERVED SOME MERCY, THEN

[STAND-UP: ROBERT RAY / ASSOCIATED PRESS]

"SHORTLY AFTER TWELVE O'CLOCK ON WEDNESDAY A FEDERAL JUDGE GAVE THE FORMER GOVERNOR 14 YEARS IN A FEDERAL PRISON. THE PROSECUTION WAS LOOKING FOR 15 TO 20, NONETHELESS, THAT SENTENCE VERY STIFF."

[VOICE-OVER]

AND IN A STATE LOADED WITH A HISTORY OF CROOKED POLITICIANS SOME BELIEVE A SERIOUS POINT WAS MADE TODAY

[SOT: ANDY SHAW / ILLINOIS BETTER GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION]

"I BELIEVE THAT A LOT OF PUBLIC OFFICIALS ARE GOING TO THINK 2 TIME, 3 TIMES MAYBE 10 TIMES BEFORE THEY ENGAGE IN ILLEGAL BEHAVIOR."

[VOICE-OVER]

MANY OF THE JURORS WHO CONVICTED THE FORMER GOVERNOR THIS PAST SUMMER WERE IN THE COURTROOM DURING THE SENTENCING

[SOT: AMY LAURES / JUROR]

" I DO FEEL BAD ESPECIALLY AT THIS TIME OF HIS LIFE WITH HIS DAUGHTERS. THEY ARE GOINF TO BE GROWING UP WITHOUT THEIR FATHER BEING AROUND AND I FEEL VERY SORRY FOR THEM."

[VOICE-OVER]

ON THE STREET, CHICAGOANS HAD STRONG OPINIONS

[NAT-BREAK: CHICAGO, IL: ROBERT RAY TALKING WITH A MAN ON THE STREET]

RAY: "FORMER GOVERNOR BLAGOJEVICH GOT 14 YEARS, TOO MUCH, TOO LITTLE?"

CHICAGOAN: "I THINK IT'S AN APPROPRIATE SENTENCE AND I THINK THE MESSAGE NEEDS TO BE SENTY THAT CORRUPTION WON'T BE TOLERATED ANY LONGER."

[VOICE-OVER]

EVEN AFTER THE SENTENCING PEOPLE STILL WERE DEMANDING AN APOLOGY

[NAT-BREAK: CHICAGO, IL--DECEMBER 7, 2011]

[VOICE-OVER]

MEANWHILE, THE FEDERAL PROSECUTORS WERE PLEASED

[SOT: PATRICK FITZGERALD / UNITED STATES ATTORNEY]

"THE PUBLIC HAS HAD ENOUGH, JUDGES HAVE HAD ENOUGH, THIS NEEDS TO STOP."

[VOICE-OVER]

AND FOR NOW, PERHAPS IT HAS

THE 54-YEAR-OLD WAS ORDERED TO BEGIN SERVING HIS SENTENCE ON FEB. 16 WHEN HE WILL SHARE A CELL WITH OTHER INMATES AND WORK A JOB-POSSIBLY SCRUBBING TOILETS OR MOPPING FLOORS AT THE PRISON WHILE HIS WIFE PATTY TRIES TO SELL THEIR HOME AND RAISE THEIR TWO DAUGHTERS.

ROBERT RAY, ASSOCIATED PRESS, CHICAGO.

STORYLINE:

CHICAGO (AP) _ The Rod Blagojevich who once challenged a prosecutor to face him like a man, the glad-handing politician who took to celebrity TV shows to profess his innocence, was nowhere to be found Wednesday as he was sentenced to 14 years in prison for corruption.

Frowning and pulling nervously at his tie, the disgraced former governor seemed like another person as he stepped up to address the sentencing judge. Bluster once as conspicuous as his famously lavish head of dark hair was wiped out, a victim of his June convictions on charges that included attempting to sell President Barack Obama's U.S. Senate seat.

In a low voice, the two-term Democrat apologized again and again, telling Judge James Zagel he had made "terrible mistakes."

"I caused it all. I'm not blaming anybody," Blagojevich said, trying with uncharacteristic humility to avert severe punishment. "I was the governor and I should have known better and I am just so incredibly sorry."

It was not enough for Zagel, who gave the 54-year-old a sentence close to the 15 to 20 years prosecutors had sought.

"The abuse of the office of governor is more damaging than the abuse of any other office, except the president's," he said.

"Whatever good things you did for people as governor, and you did some, I am more concerned with the occasions when you wanted to use your powers ... to do things that were only good for yourself," Zagel said.

Blagojevich slumped forward in his chair _ momentarily frozen as the judge pronounced the sentence. Moments later, his wife, Patti, fell into his arms; when he pulled back from their embrace, he brushed tears from her cheek.

"When it is the governor who goes bad," Zagel said, "the fabric of Illinois is torn and disfigured and not easily repaired."

Illinois governors have gone bad with stunning frequency. Four of the last nine have been sentenced to prison, including Blagojevich's predecessor, George Ryan, who remains behind bars.

Blagojevich, who received more than twice as much time as any of the other governors, was also more of a national spectacle _ both because of the charges against him, and how he responded to them.

In the most notorious of the FBI wiretaps that sealed his fate, Blagojevich is heard crowing that his chance to name someone to Obama's Senate seat was "f---ing golden" and he wouldn't let it go "for f---ing nothing." His lawyers claimed the comments were simply "musings," but jurors and the judge agreed they were evidence of a crime.

The jury also found that Blagojevich demanded a $50,000 donation from the head of a children's hospital in return for increased state support, and extorted $100,000 in donations from two horse racing tracks and a racing executive in exchange for quick approval of legislation the tracks wanted.

Blagojevich responded to his Dec. 9, 2008, arrest with defiance, appointing Roland Burris to the Senate job he was accused of trying to sell and proclaiming his innocence with a media blitz.

The boyish-looking defendant continued pursuing the spotlight after he was removed from office, writing a book, appearing in reality TV shows such as "Celebrity Apprentice" and even appearing in a TV ad in which he opens a briefcase overflowing not with money but with pistachios. "Rod Blagojevich does it innocently," was the line.

"His behavior and conduct once he was charged was almost a template for what you don't want a defendant to do," said Joel Levin, a former federal prosecutor. "... He did everything possible to alienate the prosecutors and the judge and, ultimately, it came back to hurt him."

It took two trials for prosecutors to snare Blagojevich. His first ended deadlocked with jurors agreeing on just one of 24 counts _ that Blagojevich lied to the FBI. Jurors at his retrial convicted him on 17 of 20 counts, including bribery and attempted extortion.

On Wednesday, Blagojevich licked his lips nervously as he stepped up to address the judge _ mouthing the words, "I love you," to his wife as he passed her on a spectators' bench. Leaning into a hefty oak podium, tightly gripping its sides, the often fast-talking Blagojevich spoke slowly, sometimes pausing and searching for the right word.

"My life is ruined," he told Zagel. Accentuating each of the next five words, he added, "I have nobody to blame but myself."

He offered more than half a dozen apologies to, among others, his former colleagues and to his former constituents across Illinois. But he stopped, seemingly to gather his composure, when he said that he also owed an apology to his family _ including his two daughters, 15-year-old Amy and Annie, 8.

"I have ruined their innocence," he said quietly.

Sitting just a few feet to Blagojevich's left were the three federal prosecutors who devoted more than three years to his case. In his remarks, Blagojevich also apologized to them for itching to spar with them verbally, sometimes through the media.

Alluding to his teenage years as an amateur boxer, Blagojevich told Zagel, "I'm accustomed to fighting ... it was childish and not productive."

On his way out of the courthouse, Blagojevich cited author Rudyard Kipling and said it was a time to be strong, to fight through adversity and be strong for his children. He said he and wife were heading home to speak to their daughters, and then left without answering any questions.

Before sentencing, Blagojevich's attorneys had proposed a term of just a few years, saying he has already paid a price in public ridicule and financial ruin. They presented heartfelt appeals from Blagojevich's family, including letters from his wife and one of his two daughters that pleaded for mercy.

But the judge made it clear early in the hearing that he believed Blagojevich had lied on the witness stand when he tried to explain his scheming for the Senate seat, and that he did not believe defense suggestions that the former governor was duped by his advisers.

"The governor was not marched along this criminal path by his staff," Zagel said. "He marched them."

Going into the sentencing, many legal experts said the governor was likely to get around 10 years. A former Blagojevich fundraiser, Tony Rezko, recently was sentenced to 10 1/2 years, minus time served.

Prosecutors have said Blagojevich misused the power of his office "from the very moment he became governor." He was initially elected in 2002 on a platform of cleaning up Illinois politics in the midst of federal investigations that led to the prosecution and conviction of Ryan.

Blagojevich, who turns 55 Saturday, was ordered to begin serving his sentence on Feb. 16. In white-collar cases, convicted felons are usually given at least a few weeks to report to prison while federal authorities select a suitable facility. Blagojevich is expected to appeal his conviction, but it is unlikely to affect when he reports to prison.

Most of the prisons where Blagojevich could end up are outside Illinois. One is in Terre Haute, Ind., where Ryan is serving his own sentence. In prison, Blagojevich will largely be cut off from the outside world. Visits by family are strictly limited, Blagojevich will have to share a cell with other inmates and he must work an eight-hour-a-day menial job _ possibly scrubbing toilets or mopping floors _ at just 12 cents an hour.

According to federal rules, felons must serve at least 85 percent of the sentence a judge imposes _ meaning that Blagojevich wouldn't be eligible for early release until he serves nearly 12 years.

Blagojevich clearly dreaded the idea of prison time. Asked in an interview before his retrial about whether he dwelled on that prospect, he answered: "No. I don't let myself go there."

In the same interview, Blagojevich also explained that the family dog Skittles was bought after his arrest in to help his school-age daughters, Amy and Annie, cope with the stress of his legal troubles. He said he joked with them that, "If the worst happens (and I go to prison), you can get another dog and call him `Daddy."'

SHOTLIST

1. Wide of Superior Court spokesman, Allan Parachini, at microphone stand

2. SOUNDBITE: (English) Allan Parachini, Superior Court spokesman:

"We take our sentencing obligations very seriously in all cases. And in this matter an unequivocal order was issued by Judge Michael T. Sauer provided for the incarceration of Miss Hilton for 45 days and specifically precluded her release to electronic monitoring or house arrest."

3. Cutaway of photographers

4. SOUNDBITE: (English) Allan Parachini, Superior Court spokesman:

"On Wednesday afternoon June 6th an official of the Sheriff's department called Judge Sauer and advised him that Miss Hilton would be released and asked him to change his sentencing order. His response was that he stood by the sentencing order,and that in the absence of a written application supported by substantial facts he would not alter that order. And he did not do so."

5. Documents

6. Close-up of handwritten (English) Paris Hilton

7. Close-up of handwritten instructions reading: (English) "No work Furlough", "No work Release", "No Electronic Monitoring", "No weekends", "No City Jail"

8. SOUNDBITE: (English) Allan Parachini, Superior Court spokesman:

"We think that people have, as this has got spun out of control today that people in the general public have got the impression that this is how the average matter could be handled, that this is a widespread practice, that the court can be induced to modify sentencing. We want to make it clear that we follow the procedures that are supposed to be followed and to the extent that people have got any impression about how the court system in this county works based on this decision and this release alone, that is a mis-impression."

County of Los Angeles Sheriff's Department - AP Clients Only

FILE: Los Angeles County - No date available

9. STILL: photograph of Paris Hilton taken after arrival at Lynwood facility

STORYLINE:

The Judge who sentenced Los Angeles socialite, Paris Hilton to 45 days in jail has expressed his displeasure at the celebrity inmate's release.

Superior court spokesman Allan Parachini had told reporters that "an unequivocal order was issued by Judge Michael T. Sauer provided for the incarceration of Miss Hilton for 45 days and specifically precluded her release to electronic monitoring or house arrest."

"We think that people have, as this has got spun out of control today that people in the general public have got the impression that this is how the average matter could be handled, that this is a widespread practice, that the court can be induced to modify sentencing," he said. "We want to make it clear that we follow the procedures that are supposed to be followed and to the extent that people have got any impression about how the court system in this county works based on this decision and this release alone, that is a mis-impression."

Hilton's release from jail however may not last.

Hours after she was sent home under house arrest on Thursday for an undisclosed medical condition, Judge Sauer ordered her into court to decide if she should go back behind bars.

Hilton must report to court at 9 am Friday, Parachini told The Associated Press.

Hilton was sent home from the Los Angeles County jail's Lynwood lockup shortly after 2 am in a stunning reduction to her original 45-day sentence.

She had reported to jail Sunday night after attending the MTV Movie Awards.

She was ordered to finish her sentence under house arrest, meaning she could not leave her four-bedroom, three-bath home in the Hollywood Hills until next month.

Hilton was sentenced to 45 days for violating her probation in a reckless driving case, but had been expected to serve 23 days in jail because of state rules allowing shorter sentences for good behaviour.

SHOTLIST

AP Entertainment

FILE: New Delhi, April 15, 2007

1. Bollywood actor Shilpa Shetty holding hands with Hollywood actor Richard Gere on stage; thanking him in Hindi

2. Close of hands; zoom out to Gere kissing her hand and then bending her to give her kisses on the cheek (Shilpa saying- "This is a bit too much") followed by an elaborate bow

3. Cheering audience

4. Shilpa coming down the stage; received by Gere at the bottom of the steps

5. Cutaway cameras

6. Dancers dancing to a Bollywood number

7. Pan over audience

8. Man in audience dancing

9. Men in audience with their arms raised

SHETTY MAKES APPEARANCE AT SUPREME COURT

Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty asked the Supreme Court on Monday to shift an obscenity case against her and Hollywood star Richard Gere to a nearby court so she can fight the allegations, her lawyer said.

Shetty asked the court to transfer jurisdiction over the case to Mumbai, where she lives, lawyer Anand Grover said.

A judge in the northwestern Indian city of Jaipur issued an arrest warrant last month for Gere and summoned Shetty to his court, saying that Gere's kissing of the actress at a public AIDS awareness event in New Delhi contravened India's strict public obscenity laws.

The judge has since been transferred from his post, and official charges have not yet been lodged.

The Supreme Court is set to rule on the issue on Tuesday, Grover said.

Both defendants would be affected by any shift of venue.

Grover, who is not representing Gere in the case said the court should stay proceedings against Shetty.

It was not immediately clear if Gere would be represented by an Indian attorney.

Public displays of affection are largely taboo in India, and the kiss drew an outcry among Hindu hard-liners, with rallies against the actors held in several cities.

But the judge's arrest order also drew harsh criticism in India, with some lawyers saying it had no legal merit and made the country look ridiculous.

Gere, 57, apologised for any offence he may have caused. But he also said the whole controversy was manufactured by a small hard-line political party.

Gere, who left shortly after the kiss, is a frequent visitor to India, promoting health issues and the cause of Tibetan exiles.

Shetty, a well-known actress in India, became an international star after her appearance on the British reality show "Celebrity Big Brother."

A fellow contestant, Jade Goody, sparked international headlines by allegedly making racist comments to Shetty, 31.

The comments sparked public outrage in Britain and India and Shetty went on to win the competition.

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SHOTLIST: Bloemfontein Supreme Court, Bloemfontein, South Africa. 3rd December, 2015.

1. 00:00 Wide of Bloemfontein Supreme Court.

2. 00:06 Mid shot of June Steenkamp arriving at court entrance with friends and supporters.

3. 00:27 Wide of June Steenkamp inside the court waiting for the start.

4. 00:36 Close-up of June Steenkamp.

5. 00:46 Pull-out as June Steenkamp leaves Bloemfontein Supreme Court.

SOURCE: SNTV.

DURATION: 01:11

STORYLINE:

The Steenkamp family leave after a South African Supreme Court appeal convicted Oscar Pistorius of murder on Thursday (3rd December), overturning a lower court's conviction of the double-amputee Olympian on the lesser charge of manslaughter for shooting girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp dead in February, 2013.

SCRIPTING INFORMATION TO FOLLOW:

The Olympic and Paralympic runner Oscar Pistorius was found guilty of murder on Thursday (3rd December) for killing girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in 2013.

Pistorius, 29, was originally convicted of manslaughter, or culpable homicide, after shooting Steenkamp through a toilet door in his home early on Valentine's Day.

He had been sentenced to five years in prison for manslaughter - but was placed under house arrest in October after serving one year in prison.

Last month, prosecutors argued at the Supreme Court of Appeal, which is in Bloemfontein, that the judge at Pistorius' murder trial in the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria made errors when she acquitted him of murder.

Pistorius faces going back to prison for 15 years, the minimum sentence for murder in South Africa, which no longer has the death penalty.

SHOTLIST:

ASSOCIATED PRESS - AP CLIENTS ONLY

Washington - 8 June 2018

++SOTS SEPARATED BY WHITE FLASH++

1. SOUNDBITE: (English) Donald Trump, US President:

"There will be more pardons. I thought Alice yesterday was beautiful. I thought Jack Johnson, which was recommended by Sylvester Stallone and some great boxers, I thought Jack Johnson was a great one. I'm thinking about somebody that you all know very well. And he went through a lot and he wasn't very popular then and he wasn't very popular then - no I'm not thinking about OJ ....  Look, he was but he was not very popular then. He's certainly, his memory is very popular now. I'm thinking about Muhammad Ali. I'm thinking about that very seriously and some others and some folks that have sentences that aren't fair. But I am thinking about Muhammad Ali."

2. SOUNDBITE: (English) Donald Trump, US President:

"I'm not above the law. I never want anybody to be above the law. But the pardons are a very positive thing for a president. I think you see the way I'm using them and, yes, I do have an absolute right to pardon myself, but I'll never have to do it because I didn't do anything wrong. And everybody knows it. There's been no collusion. There's been no obstruction. It's all a made up fantasy. It's a witch hunt. No collusion, no obstruction, no nothing. Now, the Democrats have had massive collusion, massive obstruction. And they should be investigated."

3. SOUNDBITE: (English) Donald Trump, US President:

"We have 3,000 names. We're looking at them. Of the 3000 names, many of those names really have been treated unfairly. You know, this is a group of 3000 that we've we've assembled. And I would get more thrill out of pardoning people that nobody knows like Alice (Johnson) yesterday. I thought Kim Kardashian was great because she brought Alice to my attention. Alice was so great and the way she left that jail and the tears and the love that she has with her family. I mean to me that was better than any celebrity that I could pardon."

STORYLINE:

President Donald Trump said he is thinking "very seriously" about pardoning Muhammad Ali, even though the Supreme Court vacated the deceased boxing champion's conviction in 1971.

Trump tells reporters he's looking at "thousands of names" of people who could be granted clemency.

Trump's already granted a posthumous pardon to boxing's first black heavyweight champion, Jack Johnson - convicted of violating a law that made it illegal to transport women across state lines for "immoral" purposes.

Ali refused to enter the military during the Vietnam War, declaring himself a conscientious objector. His decision resulted in a draft-evasion conviction, and he was stripped of his heavyweight boxing crown. Ali's legal fight ended in 1971, when the Supreme Court ruled in his favor.

It was not immediately clear why Ali would need a pardon because he has no criminal record. The Supreme Court overturned his conviction for resisting the draft in 1971. The White House did not immediately respond to questions about why the president feels one is warranted.

Earlier this week, Trump commuted the life sentence of a woman, Alice Marie Johnson, whose cause was championed by Kim Kardashian West.

Trump also asserted that he has "an absolute right to pardon myself," but added he'll "never have to do it, because I didn't do anything wrong."

===========================================================

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SHOTLIST

APTN - 10 June 2003

1. Exterior US Federal Court in Manhattan

2. Waksal approaching courthouse in the midst of media crews

3. Wideshot Waksal entering courthouse

FILE - 4 June, 2003

4. Martha Stewart leaving the same Federal courthouse after recent appearance.

10 JUNE, 2003

5. Artist sketch: scene in courtroom, showing (from left to right): judge, prosecutor (seated at table), Waksal, defense lawyer (standing), Waksal's father (seated in gallery)

6. Artist sketch: scene in courtroom, showing (from left to right): Waksal seated at defense table, Waksal's father seated in gallery, Waksal's daughter seated in gallery.

7. Waksal's father and sister leaving courthouse

8. Waksal leaving courthouse and into van.

9. Van leaving.

STORYLINE:

ImClone Systems founder Sam Waksal was sentenced to seven years and three months in prison on Tuesday for an insider-trading scandal that ensnared his family and threatens Martha Stewart and her home decorating empire.

He also was ordered to pay more than four (M) million US dollars in fines and back taxes.

US District Judge William H. Pauley rejected Waksal's plea for a lighter sentence based on ImClone's cancer research, Waksal's humanitarian work and the intense media interest surrounding the case.

Earlier, just before he was sentenced, the 55-year-old had apologised to his family and former employees.

The judge ordered Waksal to report to federal prison on July 2.

Until then, he must remain in his Manhattan apartment - except for appointments with his lawyers - and submit to electronic monitoring.

After being sentenced, Waksal hugged his brother and his 80-year-old father in the courtroom.

He did not make a statement.

Waksal pleaded guilty in October to six counts, including securities fraud, bank fraud, conspiracy to obstruct justice and perjury.

The charges cover insider trading and the evasion of one point two (M) million dollars in sales taxes on fine art.

Assistant US Attorney Michael Schachter asked for more than seven years, saying Waksal "told numerous, separate and distinct sets of lies" surrounding his family's sale of ImClone stock.

Waksal faced a maximum of up to 75 years in prison; federal sentencing guidelines call for six to seven years.

Waksal admitted to a scheme in which he tipped his daughter, Aliza, to dump ImClone stock just before it plunged in value on news that the Food and Drug Administration would not review his company's experimental cancer drug.

Stewart, a close friend of Waksal, was indicted last week on five federal counts - including obstruction of justice, conspiracy and lying to investigators - tied to her December 2001 sale of nearly four thousand ,000 shares of ImClone stock.

She pleaded innocent.

A week ago, ImClone stock surged after European researchers reported that the cancer drug, Erbitux, does appear to be effective, helping some of the sickest colon cancer patients live longer.

The son of former Peruvian President Francisco Morales Bermudez on Tuesday criticised a Rome court ruling that sentenced his father in absentia to life in prison for the forced disappearance of Italian-Latin Americans during his presidency.

Remigio Morales Bermudez said that Peru's former president asked to be investigated over the allegations and went before his country's Supreme Court, which ruled 5-1 that the Peruvian government wasn't involved in Operation Condor.

He also said that the family are "concerned because of his age" of 95 years.

Francisco Morales Bermudez was president of Peru from 1975 to 1980.

A total of eight former South American political and military leaders were sentenced for the disappearance and deaths of 23 people of Italian origin during the crackdown on leftists and intellectuals by the region's military dictatorships.

Among those convicted in absentia and sentenced to life in prison were former Bolivian President Luis Garcia Meza Tejada, two retired Chilean army officials and a Uruguayan politician.

Another 19 people were absolved in the Italian prosecution of "Operation Condor", the secret alliance of South American dictatorships during the 1970s and 1980s in which military leaders co-operated in persecuting and killing one another's dissidents.

Prosecutor Giancarlo Capaldo later said once all appeals were exhausted, Italy would seek to have any sentences served in the elderly defendants' home countries, where some already are jailed or under house arrest.

Operation Condor was launched in November 1975 by Chile's Pinochet, who ousted Marxist President Salvador Allende in a 1973 coup.

Lima - 17 January 2017

1. Remigio Morales Bermudez, son of the Peruvian dictator sentenced for Operation Condor and former president Francisco Morales Bermudez, entering for interview

2. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Remigio Morales Bermudez, Son of former Peruvian President Francisco Morales Bermudez:

"My father is calm, but the family is concerned because of his age - very unfair, don't you think?"

FILE: Lima - 3 February 2012

3. Various of former Peruvian President Francisco Morales Bermudez at news conference

Lima - 17 January 2017

4. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Remigio Morales Bermudez, Son of former Peruvian President Francisco Morales Bermudez:

"My father found out about this problem five to six years ago, he went to the Supreme Court of Peru. He presented himself, and found by an almost absolute majority of five to one that Operation Condor was not part of the Peruvian government at that time. And that secondly, my father did not do any action, and rather asked to be investigated, even though the Supreme Court by majority gave him an acquittal, he asked to be investigated."

FILE: Lima - 3 February 2012

5. Various of former Peruvian President Bermudez leaving after news conference

Lima - 17 January 2017

6. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Remigio Morales Bermudez, Son of former Peruvian President Francisco Morales Bermudez:

"The court in Italy, the same that is sentencing, never sent a word, a letter or a report. Never. That is to say, ignoring what was demanded by Peruvian justice and the Supreme Court, which requested the evidence, (and was) never answered (by) the judicial power of Italy.In that absence of communication required by the judicial power of Peru, they sentenced my father yesterday after two years without any communication about the accusation against my father."

7. Bermudez speaking

SHOTLIST:

1. Wide shot of families and activists holding news conference outside US Supreme Court

2. Cutaway of press

3. SOUNDBITE: (English) Azmat Begg, Father of Guantanamo Bay detainee:

"In one letter, he wrote 'I do not know what crime I am supposed to have committed for which not only I, but my wife and children continuously suffer. As a result, I'm in a state of depression and beginning to lose the fight against depression and hopelessness."

4. Wide shot of Azmat Begg speaking

AP Photos - No Access Canada

5. Still photo of detainee Moazzam Begg

6. SOUNDBITE: (English) Azmat Begg, Father of Guantanamo Bay detainee:

"He has been held captive for more than two years and in all this time he has never been charged and tried. I do not ask for mercy, I ask for justice. Before mercy comes justice and my son has been denied justice."

7. Cutaway of press at news conference

AP Photos - No Access Canada

8. Still photo of detainee Murat Kurnaz

9. SOUNDBITE: (German) Rabiye Kurnaz, Mother of Guantanamo Bay detainee:

"I want due process and justice for him and I want to see him. If it was possible, I'd want to bring him home, but I know that's not possible. I know he's not doing well. The way they're treating the detainees is against humanity."

10. Cutaway of cameras

11. Wide shot of Terry Waite speaking at podium in front of Supreme Court

12. SOUNDBITE: (English) Terry Waite, Former Hostage in Lebanon:

"We are here today because we believe there has been a major breech of human rights. Perhaps it was done with good intentions, but the consequences will be disastrous, disastrous for the United States and disastrous for all our freedoms."

13. Cutaway of cameras

14. SOUNDBITE: (English) Vanessa Redgrave, Actress, Founder of Guantanamo Human Rights Commission:

"You must have international human rights law and national law in which those international human rights are embodied. And that's why we're here, because this has been denied to the detainees, both in Guantanamo and other places that we've heard about like the British-American base of Diego Garcia. If there are no rights, then what do you have? Some call it an interrogation camp. I'm afraid I have to say I consider it to be a concentration camp."

15. Wide shot of families and press in front of the Supreme Court

16. Family members of detainees walking towards the White House

17. Shot of the White House

18. Azmat Begg standing with other family members outside the White House

19. Rabiye Kurnaz walking in front of the White House with religious leader

STORYLINE:

Family members of some of the detainees being held at US Naval Base in Guantanamo Bay were in Washington on Monday seeking what they say are the basic rights their relatives are being denied.

The European family members of three terror suspects held at the Navy base in Cuba urged President Bush to release the prisoners for trial in their home countries, saying the indefinite detainment is taking a toll on their mental health.

At a press conference in front of the US Supreme Court, Azmat Begg read a letter from his son, Moazzam Begg, one of the estimated 640 prisoners at Guantanamo Bay.

In the letter, Moazzam Begg says he has never been told of the crime for which he is being held. And he described his detention as being "kept like an animal in a cell" with little sleep and no information.

Azmat Begg, who came from England to pursue due process rights for his son, has written a letter to President Bush in which he pleads for justice, not for mercy.

Like Begg, Rabiye Kurnaz said she's also worried about the health and mental state of her son, who has been held at Guantanamo for more than two years.

Kurnaz, who lives in Germany, said she hasn't spoken with her son since he has been detained. But she fears, he is not doing well.

Human rights organizations have called on the United States to release the prisoners or at least say what is planned for them.

The groups say that the indefinite detentions have led to a deterioration in mental health and dozens of suicide attempts at the prison, set up shortly after the start of the war in Afghanistan in October 2001.

Terry Waite, a Briton who was held hostage in Lebanon for nearly five years in the 80's, said what the US government is doing in Cuba is similar to the injustice of his detention nearly two decades ago. And he called the situation "a major breech of human rights."

The delegation of families was led by the Guantanamo Human Rights Commission, founded by actors Corin and Vanessa Redgrave.

The group plans to hold a wide range of meetings with human right campaigners and faith leaders in Washington and New York.

The Supreme Court will hear arguments next month from lawyers representing foreign "enemy combatants" who are being held incommunicado at the military prison.

At issue is whether the prisoners may challenge their detention in US courts.

Administration officials have said they have wide legal latitude to interrogate the detainees for extended period since national security is at risk.

SHOTLIST:

1. Wide shot of families and activists holding news conference outside US Supreme Court

2. Cutaway of press

3. SOUNDBITE: (English) Azmat Begg, father of Guantanamo Bay detainee:

"In one letter, he wrote 'I do not know what crime I am supposed to have committed for which not only I, but my wife and children continuously suffer. As a result, I'm in a state of depression and beginning to lose the fight against depression and hopelessness."

4. Wide shot of Azmat Begg speaking

5. Cutaway of press

6. SOUNDBITE: (English) Azmat Begg, father of Guantanamo Bay detainee:

"He has been held captive for more than two years and in all this time he has never been charged and tried. I do not ask for mercy, I ask for justice. Before mercy comes justice and my son has been denied justice."

7. Cutaway of press at news conference

8. SOUNDBITE: (German) Rabiye Kurnaz, Mother of Guantanamo Bay detainee:

"I want due process and justice for him and I want to see him. If it was possible, I'd want to bring him home, but I know that's not possible. I know he's not doing well. The way they're treating the detainees is against humanity."

9. Cutaway of cameras

10. Wide shot of Terry Waite, former hostage in Lebanon, speaking at podium in front of Supreme Court

11. SOUNDBITE: (English) Terry Waite, former hostage in Lebanon:

"We are here today because we believe there has been a major breech of human rights. Perhaps it was done with good intentions, but the consequences will be disastrous - disastrous for the United States and disastrous for all our freedoms."

12. Cutaway of cameras

13. SOUNDBITE: (English) Vanessa Redgrave, Actress, Founder of Guantanamo Human Rights Commission:

"You must have international human rights law and national law in which those international human rights are embodied. And that's why we're here, because this has been denied to the detainees, both in Guantanamo and other places that we've heard about like the British-American base of Diego Garcia. If there are no rights, then what do you have? Some call it an interrogation camp. I'm afraid I have to say I consider it to be a concentration camp."

14. Wide shot of families and press in front of the Supreme Court

STORYLINE:

Family members of some of the detainees being held in Guantanamo Bay were in Washington, Monday, seeking what they say are the basic rights their relatives are being denied.

The European family members of three terror suspects held at the US Navy base in Cuba urged President George W. Bush to release the prisoners for trial in their home countries, saying the indefinite detainment is taking a toll on their mental health.

At a press conference in front of the US Supreme Court, Azmat Begg read a letter from his son, Moazzam Begg, one of the estimated 640 prisoners at Guantanamo Bay.

In the letter, Moazzam Begg said that he has never been told of the crime for which he is being held.

Azmat Begg who came from England to pursue due process rights for his son, said that he was not asking for mercy for his son but simply justice, a sentiment reflected in a letter that he has written to Bush

Rabiye Kurnaz, the mother of another detainee, said that she is worried about the health and mental state of her son who has been held at Guantanamo for more than two years.

Kurnaz, who lives in Germany, said that she hasn't spoken with her son since he has been detained. But she fears, he is not doing well.

Human rights organisations have called on the United States to release the prisoners or at least say what is planned for them.

The groups say that the indefinite detentions have led to a deterioration in mental health and dozens of suicide attempts at the prison, set up shortly after the start of the war in Afghanistan in October 2001.

Terry Waite, a Briton who was held hostage in Lebanon for nearly five years in the 1980's, said that what the US government is doing in Cuba is similar to the injustice of his detention nearly two decades ago. He called the situation "a major breach of human rights."

The delegation of families was led by the Guantanamo Human Rights Commission, founded by actors Corin and Vanessa Redgrave.

The group has planned to hold a wide range of meetings with human right campaigners and faith leaders in Washington and New York.

The Supreme Court will hear arguments next month from lawyers representing foreign "enemy combatants" who are being held incommunicado at the military prison.

At issue is whether the prisoners may challenge their detention in US courts.

Administration officials have said they have wide legal latitude to interrogate the detainees for extended period, claiming that national security is at risk.

COSBY DROPS LITIGATION AGAINST ACCUSER IN SEX ASSAULT CASE

Bill Cosby has dropped a lawsuit that argued a confidential settlement agreement was violated by a woman accusing him of sexual assault.

Cosby's lawsuit also had accused the woman's two lawyers and the publisher of the National Enquirer. His lawyers filed a one-sentence document Thursday (28 JULY 2016) voluntarily dismissing the litigation.

A federal judge in the case ruled recently the defendants couldn't be sued for talking to law enforcement about the woman's allegations. The judge had left in place issues about the accuser's tweets in 2014 and 2015 and an interview she gave the Toronto Sun.

Cosby awaits an assault trial outside Philadelphia over a 2004 encounter he considers to have been consensual. Prosecutors say the woman was drugged and assaulted.

Cosby paid her an undisclosed amount of money two years later. His lawyers haven't responded to a phone message seeking comment.

COSBY DROPS LITIGATION AGAINST ACCUSER IN SEX ASSAULT CASE

Bill Cosby has dropped a lawsuit that argued a confidential settlement agreement was violated by a woman accusing him of sexual assault.

Cosby's lawsuit also had accused the woman's two lawyers and the publisher of the National Enquirer. His lawyers filed a one-sentence document Thursday (28 JULY 2016) voluntarily dismissing the litigation.

A federal judge in the case ruled recently the defendants couldn't be sued for talking to law enforcement about the woman's allegations. The judge had left in place issues about the accuser's tweets in 2014 and 2015 and an interview she gave the Toronto Sun.

Cosby awaits an assault trial outside Philadelphia over a 2004 encounter he considers to have been consensual. Prosecutors say the woman was drugged and assaulted.

Cosby paid her an undisclosed amount of money two years later. His lawyers haven't responded to a phone message seeking comment.

Pool

Norristown, Pennsylvania, 7 July 2016

1. Medium of Bill Cosby leaving court

AP Entertainment

Washington, D.C. 6 Nov. 2014

2. Wide of Bill Cosby, center, and wife Camille, right, at a Smithsonian event

3. Exchange between AP reporter Brett Zongker (off-camera) and comedian Bill Cosby:

Zongker: "On a separate note, I have to ask about your name coming up in the news recently regarding this comedian..."

Cosby: "No, No. We don't answer that."

Zongker: Okay, I just wanted to ask if you wanted to respond at all about whether any of that was true..."

Cosby: "There's no response."

Zongker: "Okay. Can I ask you if - with the persona that people know about Bill Cosby, should they believe anything differently than what..."

Cosby: "There is no comment about that. (okay) And I'll tell you why -- I think you were told, I don't want to compromise your integrity, but - I don't talk about it..."

JUDGE TOSSES PARTS OF COSBY'S LAWSUIT OVER SECRECY PROMISES

A federal judge is paring back a lawsuit in which Bill Cosby claims a woman accusing him of sexual assault, her mother, two lawyers and the publisher of the National Enquirer violated a confidential settlement agreement.

U.S. Judge Eduardo Robreno ruled Friday (15 JULY 2016) that the accuser and others couldn't be sued for talking to law enforcement about her allegations. But other aspects of the lawsuit were left intact and will proceed.

Cosby's lawsuit claims all five parties breached a 2006 secrecy deal and that the woman's actions have unjustly enriched her.

The judge is dismissing the accuser's mother from the lawsuit. He's letting the case continue regarding recent statements and actions by the accuser, her lawyers and American Media.

Cosby is awaiting trial for the alleged aggravated indecent assault of the woman in 2004.

JUDGE TOSSES PARTS OF COSBY'S LAWSUIT OVER SECRECY PROMISES

A federal judge is paring back a lawsuit in which Bill Cosby claims a woman accusing him of sexual assault, her mother, two lawyers and the publisher of the National Enquirer violated a confidential settlement agreement.

U.S. Judge Eduardo Robreno ruled Friday (15 JULY 2016) that the accuser and others couldn't be sued for talking to law enforcement about her allegations. But other aspects of the lawsuit were left intact and will proceed.

Cosby's lawsuit claims all five parties breached a 2006 secrecy deal and that the woman's actions have unjustly enriched her.

The judge is dismissing the accuser's mother from the lawsuit. He's letting the case continue regarding recent statements and actions by the accuser, her lawyers and American Media.

Cosby is awaiting trial for the alleged aggravated indecent assault of the woman in 2004.

Pool

Norristown, Pennsylvania, 7 July 2016

1. Medium of Bill Cosby leaving court

AP Entertainment

Washington, D.C. 6 Nov. 2014

2. Wide of Bill Cosby, center, and wife Camille, right, at a Smithsonian event

3. Exchange between AP reporter Brett Zongker (off-camera) and comedian Bill Cosby:

Zongker: "On a separate note, I have to ask about your name coming up in the news recently regarding this comedian..."

Cosby: "No, No. We don't answer that."

Zongker: Okay, I just wanted to ask if you wanted to respond at all about whether any of that was true..."

Cosby: "There's no response."

Zongker: "Okay. Can I ask you if - with the persona that people know about Bill Cosby, should they believe anything differently than what..."

Cosby: "There is no comment about that. (okay) And I'll tell you why -- I think you were told, I don't want to compromise your integrity, but - I don't talk about it..."

SHOTLIST:

AP Entertainment - FILE

New Delhi, India, 15 April 2007

1. Various of Shilpa Shetty and Richard Gere kiss

AP Entertainment - FILE

New York, 4 October 2007

2. Wide of Richard Gere

AP Entertainment - FILE

London, UK, 5 May 2007

3. Mid shot Shilpa Shetty

AP Entertainment - FILE

Sheffield, UK, 9 June 2007

4. Mid shot Shilpa Shetty

INDIA'S TOP COURT SUSPENDS ARREST WARRANT AGAINST RICHARD GERE

India's top court suspended an arrest warrant Friday against Hollywood star Richard Gere, who is wanted for allegedly breaking public obscenity laws by kissing Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty at a public AIDS awareness event last year, an attorney said.

"Gere is allowed to come and leave. He can't be arrested," said Anil Grover, attorney for Shetty, after attending the Supreme Court proceedings.

Chief Justice K. G. Balakrishnan and Justice R. V. Raveendran indefinitely stayed the arrest warrant issued against Gere last year by a court in the northwestern Indian city of Jaipur, Grover told The Associated Press.

Gere embraced and kissed Shetty on her cheek at the public AIDS awareness event in New Delhi on April 15 last year, prompting Hindu hard-liners to allege the pair had offended the sensibilities of India's traditionally conservative culture.

Hindu activists filed three cases against the pair last year, including one in Jaipur.

The allegations of obscenity against Gere and Shetty have failed to stir wider outrage among Indians, most of whom have responded with utter indifference.

Grover called the cases "frivolous" and "a total misuse of the legal process."

Shortly after the cases were filed by Hindu activists, Gere apologised for any offense he may have caused. But he also said the whole controversy was manufactured by a small hard-line political party.

Gere is a frequent visitor to India, promoting health issues and the cause of Tibetan exiles, tens of thousands of whom live in India.

Shetty, a well-known actress in India, became an international star after her appearance on the British reality show "Celebrity Big Brother."