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Today is Thursday, March 21, the 80th day of 2013. There are 285 days left in the year.
Highlight in History
On March 21, 1963, the Alcatraz federal prison island in San Francisco Bay was emptied of its last inmates and closed at the order of Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy.
On this date
In 1556, Thomas Cranmer, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, was burned at the stake for heresy.
In 1685, composer Johann Sebastian Bach was born in Eisenach, Germany.
In 1804, the French civil code, or the “Code Napoleon” as it was later called, was adopted.
In 1871, journalist Henry M. Stanley began his famous expedition in Africa to locate the missing Scottish missionary David Livingstone.
In 1907, U.S. Marines arrived in Honduras to protect American lives and interests in the wake of political violence.
In 1940, a new government was formed in France by Paul Reynaud (ray-NOH’), who became prime minister, succeeding Edouard Daladier (dah-lah-DYAY’).
In 1944, Charles Chaplin went on trial in Los Angeles, accused of transporting former protegee Joan Barry across state lines for immoral purposes. (Chaplin was acquitted, but later lost a paternity suit despite tests showing he wasn’t the father of Barry’s child.)
In 1960, about 70 people were killed in Sharpeville, South Africa, when police fired on black protesters.
In 1965, civil rights demonstrators led by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. began their third, successful march from Selma to Montgomery, Ala.
In 1972, the Supreme Court, in Dunn v. Blumstein, ruled that states may not require at least a year’s residency for voting eligibility.
In 1985, police in Langa, South Africa, opened fire on blacks marching to mark the 25th anniversary of Sharpeville; the reported death toll varied between 29 and 43.
In 1990, Namibia became an independent nation as the former colony marked the end of 75 years of South African rule.
Ten years ago
The United States launched a ferocious, around-the-clock aerial assault on military targets in Baghdad and other cities. The House approved a $2.2 trillion budget embracing President George W. Bush’s tax-cutting plan.
Five years ago
Officials admitted that at least four State Department workers had pried into the supposedly secure passport files of Hillary Rodham Clinton, Barack Obama and John McCain, prompting Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to personally apologize to the presidential contenders.
One year ago
A previously divided U.N. Security Council sent a strong and united message to the Syrian government and opposition to immediately implement proposals by international envoy Kofi Annan to end Syria’s yearlong bloodshed. Meting out unprecedented punishment for a bounty system that targeted key opposing players, the NFL suspended New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton without pay for the coming season and indefinitely banned the team’s former defensive coordinator; in addition to other sanctions, Commissioner Roger Goodell fined the Saints $500,000 and took away their second-round draft picks for the current year and the next.
Top News
Today in History for Thursday, March 21, 2013
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Official: Broken rail eyed in Conn. train crash
The commuter train derailment and collision that left dozens injured outside New York City was not the result of foul play, officials said Saturday, but a fractured section of rail is being studied to determine if it is connected to the accident.
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FBI searches apartment in ricin letter case
Authorities in hazardous materials suits searched a downtown Spokane apartment Saturday, investigating the recent discovery of a pair of letters containing the deadly poison ricin.
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Up to 60 injured after car drives into Va. parade
An elderly driver plowed into dozens of hikers marching in a Saturday parade in a small Virginia mountain town and investigators were looking into whether he suffered a medical emergency before the accident.
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Authorities: Hofstra student was killed by police
A Hofstra University student being held in a headlock at gunpoint by an intruder was accidently shot and killed by a police officer who had responded to the home invasion at an off-campus home, police said Saturday.
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Last-minute fortune seekers buy Powerball tickets
It’s all about the odds.
With four out of every five possible combinations of Powerball numbers in play, someone is almost sure to win the game’s highest jackpot, a windfall of hundreds of millions of dollars — and that’s after taxes. -
Today in History for Sunday, May 19, 2013
Today is Sunday, May 19, the 139th day of 2013. There are 226 days left in the year.
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Valdosta Brain/Spinal Injury meeting Tuesday
Valdosta Brain/Spinal Injury meeting Tuesday
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Bombs targeting Sunnis kill at least 76 in Iraq
Bombs ripped through Sunni areas in Baghdad and surrounding areas Friday, killing at least 76 people in the deadliest day in Iraq in more than eight months. The major spike in sectarian bloodshed heightened fears the country could again be veering toward civil war.
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Tornado-ravaged Texas town to start recovery
Residents whose homes were torn apart or blown away by a North Texas deadly tornado can soon return to retrieve what belongings may be left and start cleaning up, authorities said Friday.
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Conn. commuter trains collide; 60 go to hospitals
Two commuter trains serving New York City collided in Connecticut during Friday’s evening rush hour, sending 60 people to the hospital, including five with critical injuries, Gov. Dannel Malloy said.
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