California execution try collapses after court setbacks

California's first execution attempt in nearly five years collapsed Wednesday amid two adverse court rulings in as many days and an impending shortage of drugs that made the lethal injection of a convicted rapist-murderer impossible....more

No Death Penalty For Cops Charged In Katrina Shootings

The Justice Department says it will not seek the death penalty against four current or former New Orleans police officers charged in deadly shootings on a bridge after Hurricane Katrina.

Prosecutors disclosed the decision in court documents Friday. They did not say why they were not seeking the death penalty.

Less than a week after the 2005 storm, two people were killed and four others were wounded by police on the Danziger Bridge. The shootings led to a widespread investigation of the police department.

Five former officers already have pleaded guilty to charges they helped cover up the shootings. Prosecutors have said police fabricated witnesses, falsified reports and plotted to plant a gun to make it appear that the shootings were justified.