Richard Quest, Wesley Snipes, Tim Russert and the iPhone

Continuing with the 2008 review that begins here, some of the headlines from April through June are outlined below. Oh, but the stories told in hindsight!

April 2008

· The YFZ Ranch in Texas, ruled by Warren Jeffs, was raided on April 5^th. 183 women and children are taken into custody sparking a huge controversy and major burden on DHS throughout several counties within the state. Two weeks later, a judge rules the 418 children will remain in state custody. Although the children were returned, there remain problems that are being handled out of view of the media.

· Wesley Snipes is sentenced to three years in prison for tax evasion on April 25^th.

· British Lawyer turned journalist, Richard Quest, was arrested in New York’s Central Park for possession of crystal meth. The Habitat for Humanity volunteer and former news director entered rehab shortly after his arrest.

May 2008

· Oil hits $120 a barrel for the first time on May 19^th.

· On May 13, federal prosecutors indict Barry Bonds for lying to a grand jury and obstruction of justice after he lied about having used steroids.

· The Supreme Court upholds a current law that makes it a crime to send emails offering child pornography, even when the pornography doesn’t exist.

· Crude oil breaks yet another record when it hits $130 a barrel on May 21^st.

June 2008

· June 3 - General Motors closes four factories in Wisconsin, Ohio, Ontario and Mexico. Ten thousand jobs are eliminated.

· Hillary Clinton formally withdraws from the presidential campaign and endorses Barack Obama on June 7^th.

· The Apple iPhone is introduced, complete with GPS and 3G capabilities on June 9^th.

· The US Supreme Court rules the death penalty isn’t applicable for crimes that don’t result in the death of another.

· An ethics panel is put into place that will examine accusations of Christopher Dodd, a Democratic senator in Connecticut and Kent Conrad, a Democratic North Dakota senator, received “preferential” loans via Countrywide Financial. These two senators had sponsored a $300 billion bailout that would affect Countrywide and other lenders threatened by the sub prime mortgage crisis.

· Tim Russert dies on June 13^th after collapsing at NBC Studios in Washington DC where he moderated “Meet the Press” each Sunday.

As June wraps up, we couldn’t have anticipated what would await us in the next three months, including the Caylee Anthony disappearance, the outcome of the Presidential elections, the drastic, and long overdue drop in oil prices, the John Edwards scandal, the OJ Simpson verdict, the current “Big 3″ problems with American automakers and many other “breaking news” stories. And the year’s not even over!