Judge Steps Down In Casey Anthony Trial • Do Women Like Grotesque Ads?

• Judge Stan Strickland has taken himself off the case in the trial of Casey Anthony. Anthony’s defense attorney had repeatedly accused Strickland of forming a “personal relationship” with members of the media and exhibiting bias against his client.

“At its core, defense counsel’s motion accuses the undersigned of being a ‘self-aggrandizing media hound.’ Indeed. The irony is rich,” responded Strickland. • I don’t often find myself really, truly jealous of billionaires (what’s the point?) but Andrey Melnichenko’s Motor Yacht A is my new dream home. The object of my boat-lust even has a separate “nookie room” with a round bed and a flat-screen television on the ceiling. It may be an old joke, but there are no other words: I want to go to there. • As we mentioned earlier, prosecutors have decided to appeal the Amanda Knox case and request that she spend life in prison. What does this really mean? Barbie Latza Nadeau explains that it is really a way for the prosecutors to continue arguing the case, especially since the defense has already planned an appeal. Knox is expected to go back to court in October, 2010. • Indian authorities have reported the discovery of more than a dozen human fetuses from a dumpster in Ahmedabad. They believe the fetuses may have been left there by abortion clinics; some have even questioned whether the fetuses were the victims of female feticide and aborted following sex determination tests. • Researchers have found a link between your grandmother’s diet and your risk of developing breast cancer. Doctors from Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center say pregnant women with a high fat diet increase the risk of cancer not only in their own offspring, but also in their grandchildren. • Judges in Texas have made life even more difficult for same-sex couples by refusing them the right to divorce on the grounds that they were never married in the first place. This puts couples who have been legally married in other states in an “unenviable position” where they must have their marriages “voided.” • Sarah Palin will take the stand today in the trial of David Kernell, the 22-year-old student accused of hacking into her email account. Kernell’s attorney, Wade Davies, is not looking forward to seeing Palin in court, partially because he fears her popularity may sway the jury. • The U.S. Department of Education is repealing a bill that weakened the Title IX gender equity law by allowing schools to just use a survey to prove lack of interest in starting a new women’s sport. Critics of the Bush-era policy say it offered colleges a way to get around providing sports teams for female athletes. “Discrimination continues to exist in college athletic programs – and we should be vigilant in enforcing the law and protecting this important civil right,” U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said in a prepared statement. • A former head of a Pennsylvania police department’s sex crime unit has been accused of sexually assaulting a woman inside the Bensalem Rescue Squad’s headquarters. He reportedly followed the woman into a restroom and attacked her. She was later found curled up and crying in a closet. • The U.S. Air Force has announced plans to discharge Lt. Robin R. Chaurasiya because of her sexual orientation. Chaurasiya came out earlier this year as a lesbian with the intention of confronting the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, but officers suspect she was just doing it to try to get out of service. • Researchers in Spain have released a report on sexual violence in war. They found that rape was used as a weapon of war in most armed conflicts in 2009 and that violence against women was a constant in all armed conflicts. While it has been particularly horrible in the Congo, countries such as Colombia, Myanmar and the U.S. have also used this tactic. • Women may be paid less than men, but we’re catching up in education. Actually, we’re caught up, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. 29% of American women have at least a bachelor’s degree, compared to 30% of men. And even though women lag in science and engineering, we’ve closed the gap in advanced degrees as well. • A woman convicted of murdering her husband will become the first female to be executed in the United Arab Emirates, a court official has said. The woman was sentenced to death seven ears ago. Her execution will take place as soon as a firing squad has been authorized. • A Massachusetts teen charged with harassing Phoebe Prince has pleaded guilty to drunk driving. 18-year-old Austin Renaud, arraigned today for his DUI, has plead not guilty in the statutory rape of Prince. His lawyer says he is living “day to day” with the new-found infamy his role in Prince’s death has caused. • A Detroit man has opened a strip club in his basement, which is open 24/7, by appointment only. His little scheme doesn’t require any of the usual licensing, because he serves neither food nor booze. He also has a “catalog” from which customers can choose their stripper and have her sent to the basement. Classy. • According to a recent survey, 75% of kids aged 12-17 own cell phones. They also found that girls typically send around 80 text messages a day, while boys send out only 30. “Texting is now the central hub of communication in the lives of teens today, and it has really skyrocketed in the last 18 months,” said Pew researcher Amanda Lenhart. • For a new study, researchers interviewed 18 women who frequently look at ads. They found that fashion ads with violent or disturbing imagery, juxtaposed with luxury items, are more interesting to viewers because they set a narrative in motion. They concluded: “The merely pretty was too easily passed over; grotesque juxtapositions were required to stop and hold the fashion consumer flipping through Vogue.” •