All Blog Posts from Crimesider

LOS ANGELES - Samantha Geimer, the woman who Roman Polanski raped as a 13-year-old girl in 1977, is now fighting in a California court to set the embattled director free.

Geimer's attorney, Lawrence Silver, argued in front of California’s Second District Court of Appeal for an end to the 32-year-old case, Thursday Dec. 10, saying Geimer has repeatedly said she wants it dropped, and citing a recently adopted law allowing victims to have a say in cases.

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ROLLING HILLS ESTATES, Calif. - Jeffrey Tidus, a well-known Los Angeles attorney with a long list of high profile clients including a defunct subprime lender and Isuzo Motors, died Tuesday after he was shot in the head outside his California home.

Tidus was shot Monday around 8:30 p.m. as he was getting a laptop from his car.

His wife heard a single gunshot ring out and rushed outside to find him lying in the driveway behind his blue Toyota Prius, sheriff's homicide Lt. Dave Dolson said.

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RICHMOND, Calif. - Prosecutors say at least six young men, some not even old enough to drive, raped and beat a 15-year-old girl outside Richmond High School in California while others watched, laughed, and took cell phone pictures.

Now, the six defendants, ranging in age from 15 to 21, have pleaded not guilty to the charges against them. They entered their pleas to rape and other charges Tuesday morning in Contra Costa County Superior Court.

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SAN FERNANDO, Calif. - Authorities are searching for a man suspected of robbing a nun in the parking lot of a grocery store in San Fernando, Calif., and the heist was caught on surveillance tape.

A pair of nuns in full religious dress were putting their groceries into their vehicle in the parking lot of a Food 4 Less store on Glen Oaks Boulevard, when police say a man in a white t-shirt approached them and asked a question.

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NEW YORK - Meghan McCain, the daughter of 2008 Republican presidential nominee John McCain, has taken to task fallen beauty queen Carrie Prejean and opponents of same-sex marriage, in the wake of news that the former Miss California USA has filmed a sex tape.

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SACRAMENTO, Calif. - The man accused of kidnapping, raping and holding Jaycee Dugard captive for nearly two decades wrote a jailhouse apology letter that talks about "ending a sexual problem believed to be impossible."

But according to CNN, prosecutors believe Phillip Garrido is using this letter as an opportunity to manipulate the "public perceptions" of the kidnapping case.

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NEW YORK - Phillip Garrido, the alleged kidnapper of Jaycee Lee Dugard, apologized "to every human being for what has taken place," in a letter to NBC affiliate KCRA in Sacramento, Calif.

Garrido and his wife Nancy have been charged with kidnapping 11-year-old Dugard in 1991 and holding her hostage for 18 years. Phillip Garrido also allegedly raped Dugard, father two daughters with his victim.

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NEW YORK - In an awkward and confrontational interview with Larry King, fallen beauty queen Carrie Prejean compared herself to conservative icons Sarah Palin and Michele Bachmann and claims, like them, she is a victim of the liberal media.

"You have characterized yourself as being 'Palinized.' What do you mean," King asked on Wednesday night.

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NEW YORK - Former Miss California USA Carrie Prejean made a short but dramatic appearance on Larry King Live Wednesday, in which she refused to answer an openly gay caller and threatened to walk off the show, after King demanded to know why she and Miss California pageant organizers recently settled dueling lawsuits.

"You sued the pageant after they fired you, they countersued, and then you accused them of a number of things including religious discrimination, clearly an issue important to you," King asked. "Why did you settle? You don't have to tell me the terms of the settlement, but why settle since you had a fight to carry on?"

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NEW YORK - Miss Congeniality was nowhere to be found when dethroned beauty queen Carrie Prejean turned up on "The View" and talked about... the sex tape. Yes, that sex tape.

"But Miss Prejean, you made the tape, you have [topless] photos of yourself, you didn't go along with the morals clause which is in the pageant's rules, and yet you say you're a victim — I don't totally buy it!"

Those were the doubting words of Joy Behar to Prejean on the daytime talkfest's Tuesday episode.

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