Writer Charged in Murders He Reported

(NEWSER) - A mob hitman who used acid to melt his victims' bodies has been sentenced to life, reports the New York Daily News. Charles Carneglia smirked in a Brooklyn courtroom as he listened to statements from his four victims' relatives, including one who called him an "animal" with a "dark soul." Carneglia "led a profane life; his sole role in the Gambino family was to kill and dispose of bodies," said the prosecutor. "He relished the job." Carneglia claimed "liar after liar" testified against him. More»

Says she's trying to 'get on with my life'

(NEWSER) - Amanda Knox said in continuing testimony yesterday that she imagined her housemate’s murder as “shocking, yucky, disgusting,” the Times of London reports. Asked why she said Meredith Kercher must have died slowly, Knox said: “I heard that she had her throat slit, and from what I saw in CSI, these things are not quick or pleasant so I said, 'Gosh...bleargh...this brutality, this death.'” More»

Philip Markoff strapped into the latest anti-suicide jail fashion

(NEWSER) - Ever since he apparently tried to hang himself last week with his shoelaces, accused Craigslist killer Philip Markoff has been strapped into a padded restraint suit in jail designed to stop further attempts, reports Gawker. The "Ferguson Safety Smock" is aimed at keeping "problem inmates from hurting themselves and creating more headaches for you and your colleagues," the Ferguson company web site informs law enforcement and mental health authorities. More»

Attack occurred during sex arranged through teen's MySpace web page

(NEWSER) - A disturbed teenager stabbed an ABC radio newsman 50 times during $60 sex arranged through the boy's satanic MySpace web page, reports the New York Daily News. George Weber was found dead in his bed earlier this week after the knife-obsessed hustler attacked him, the 16-year-old confessed to police. The teen was nabbed by cops after a subway conductor spotted blood on his hand. He has been charged as an adult with second-degree murder. More»

Music producer could get lesser manslaughter charge

(NEWSER) - Attorneys begin closing arguments today in the second murder trial of music producer Phil Spector—proceedings which drew little attention after a media frenzy surrounding the first, which ended with a hung jury, the AP reports. Spector, 69, faces a second-degree charge in the 2003 death of actress Lana Clarkson, but Friday, a Los Angeles judge said Spector could also be convicted of the lesser charge of manslaughter. More»