A TV meteorologist told police she concocted claims of being attacked because she was under personal and professional stress and wanted attention, a court document released Wednesday shows.

Heidi Jones said nothing as she appeared briefly in a Manhattan court Wednesday to answer misdemeanor charges of false reporting. Her lawyer, Paul F. Callan, said she would fight the charges and had been "unfairly characterized and vilified" in some press reports on her case.

Jones, who has been suspended from her job at New York's local ABC station, told police Dec. 1 that she'd been attacked in Central Park in September and then again outside her apartment in November, according to a court complaint prosecutors filed Wednesday.

Police have said she told them the same man targeted her both times — the first time while she ran in the park — and she provided a detailed description including the alleged attacker's race, height and clothing.

A detective unit that specializes in investigating sex crimes spoke to possible witnesses and canvassed the area to look for a suspect. Callan has said Jones never told police she was the victim of a rape but has declined to elaborate on what she did say to investigators.

A 21-year-old man admitted in court Monday that he hacked a mother to death and seriously wounded her young daughter during a 2009 home invasion but said he was insane when he did it.

Christopher Gribble of Brookline waived his right to a jury trial on whether he killed 42-year-old Kimberly Cates and seriously wounded her 11-year-old daughter, Jaimie.

The burden now shifts to Gribble's lawyers to prove he was insane during the Mont Vernon home invasion.

If the jury finds he was sane at the time, Gribble will be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

If jurors find him not guilty by reason of insanity, Superior Court Judge Gillian Abramson would hold a hearing on whether he is a danger to society. If she finds that he is a danger, she will commit him to the secure psychiatric unit of the New Hampshire State Prison. He would then be entitled to have a review of his threat to society every five years.

Gribble answered, "Yes, your honor" when asked if he committed murder, attempted murder, conspiracy to commit murder and burglary, and tampered with a witness. He then pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to each charge.

Gribble listened intently as Senior Assistant Attorney General Jeffery Strelzin detailed the evidence the state was prepared to present. It mirrored the evidence that was presented to the jury that convicted 19-year-old Steven Spader of first-degree murder last month.

A man who was convicted and fined for tweeting that he planned to blow up an airport will take his case to Britain's High Court in a test of the limits of free speech on the Internet, his lawyers said Monday

Attorneys for Paul Chambers said prominent human rights lawyer Ben Emmerson has been instructed to lead the legal challenge to Chambers' conviction.

Chambers, a 27-year-old trainee accountant, was arrested in January after he posted a message on Twitter saying he would blow Robin Hood Airport in northern England "sky high" if his flight, due to leave a week later, was delayed.

Chambers insisted it was a joke. But a judge found him guilty of sending a menacing message over a public telecommunications network and ordered him to pay a 385 pound ($615) fine plus legal costs.

Earlier this month another judge rejected Chambers' appeal.

The verdict caused a wave of outrage on Twitter, with thousands of supporters retweeting Chambers' message with the tag "I Am Spartacus" - a reference to the 1960 movie epic in which the titular hero's fellow rebels all assume his identity in a gesture of solidarity.

A state appeals court has overturned the conviction of a Los Angeles man found guilty of killing a 17-year-old girl and her 16-year-old brother, ruling that the judge in his trial admitted improper evidence.

City News Service says the 2nd District Court of Appeal ruled Monday that a judge wrongly allowed evidence that one of Williams' alibi witnesses was arrested in possession of a gun used in the killings.

The court said the evidence was prejudicial and the trial court abused its discretion.

A jury found Williams guilty of the 2004 killing of Shulma and Jason Ramos, and he was sentenced to life without parole.

Prosecutors said the teenagers were looking for a party with friends when a group of gang members that included Williams fired at their car.

An Ohio man has pleaded guilty to five counts of tampering with records after authorities say he tried to get homes he didn't own listed in his name.

The charges against David Halsell came after Hamilton County Auditor employees noticed several of Halsell's companies filing large amounts of ownership transfer requests.

Prosecutors looked into the properties and say some of the buildings were in foreclosure and others belonged to dead people.

A former state lawmaker who championed legislation fighting child pornography was sentenced Thursday to a five-year term for viewing nude images of underage girls.
Neil Cohen will serve the term either in prison or a mental hospital. The state Corrections Department will decide which venue. He could become eligible for release and be placed under intense supervision in several months.

Appearing pale and unsteady, Cohen did not speak during sentencing. His lawyer told the judge the former assemblyman has been suicidal and has several mental health issues, including chronic depression. He has been hospitalized for months, according to the lawyer, Mark Tuohey.

Judge Gerald Council imposed sentence in Mercer County Superior Court.

"This is a sad day," the judge said. "But for this incident, he had an unblemished record."

Cohen pleaded guilty in April.

He served 17 years in the state Legislature as a Democrat representing Union County. He resigned following his arrest in July 2008.

The former lawmaker admitted viewing images of underaged girls on computers in his legislative office and law office.

Anthony Picione, the deputy attorney general who prosecuted the case, said 34 images of girls in various stages of undress were found on the computers. He said authorities have been able to match some of the images to photos on the list of Missing and Exploited Children.