USA
After two days of meetings with American business leaders such as Microsoft founder Bill Gates, Chinese President Hu Jintao made his first visit to Washington since taking office. President Bush extended his welcome to Hu at the White House while urging him to "move toward a flexible market exchange rate for its currency." The $202 billion US trade deficit with China was a main agenda item of their talks. Hu pledged to work diplomatically to help resolve international nuclear tensions, including those that involve Iran.
After weathering several days of cross-examination this week, former Enron chief executive Jeffrey Skilling may make his final appearance on the witness stand Friday in his Houston fraud and conspiracy trial. Co-defendant Kenneth Lay, Enron's founder, may begin testifying as early as Monday. The two are accused of lying to investors and employees about the company's deteriorating finances.
This week's conviction of former Illinois Gov. George Ryan (R) on racketeering and fraud charges could be clouded by documents unsealed Wednesday that indicate four jurors failed to report their involvement with the justice system. Three had arrest records. Analysts said defense attorneys are certain to make the integrity of the jurors an issue in the appeals process.
A recently suspended employee went on a shooting spree at a Tyson Foods poultry processing plant in Pine Bluff, Ark., that employs 500 people, authorities said Thursday. Police said one co-worker was wounded by the unidentified gunman, who was shot but not killed by the police.
By pleading guilty to a scheme to smuggle shoulder-fired missiles into the US, Chao Tung Wu, a naturalized citizen born in China, became the first person convicted under a 2004 anti- terrorism law that forbids such imports. Wu, a resident of La Puente, Calif., was arrested last August in an FBI sting operation. Sentencing occurs July 31.
Seeking to save convicted Al Qaeda conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui from a death sentence, defense attorneys called six family members of 9/11 terrorism victims to the stand Wednesday in the penalty phase of his trial. Dr. Marilynn Rosenthal, whose son died in the attack on the World Trade Center, said no one speaks for all the affected families. But she argued against taking revenge, saying she didn't want to "get caught up in a whirlpool of sadness and anger."
