Robert Durst is charged with a first-degree murder charge. It’s Election Day in Israel. And the death toll climbs after Cyclone Pam pummels Vanuatu.
It’s Tuesday (St. Patrick’s Day!) and here are the 5 things to know for your New Day.
ROBERT DURST
Murder charge: “Killed them all, of course.” That’s what Robert Durst said at the end of HBO’s “The Jinx” documentary. But did he really? That remains to be proven, but prosecutors in Los Angeles think he’s responsible for the December 2000 slaying of Susan Berman, a longtime friend. Yesterday they charged Durst with first-degree murder in her death, two days after FBI agents arrested him in New Orleans. Dick DeGuerin, Durst’s attorney, said Durst is ready to end the “rumor and speculation.”
ISRAEL ELECTIONS
Israel’s choice: Today is Election Day in Israel, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave voters one last thing to chew on yesterday when he declared he won’t let a Palestinian state form as long as he’s in office. Netanyahu is locked in a close race to keep his job and appealing to his nation’s more conservative voters for an electoral boost. He also bashed his opponents — Isaac Herzog and Tzipi Livni — saying they were “sticking their head in the sand, time and time again.”
CYCLONE PAM
‘Worst-case scenario’: Pam is gone, but her impact will be felt for years in Vanuatu. The tropical cyclone powered through the South Pacific island nation over the weekend. Many are dead, but as the scope of the devastation — described by a local journalist as “apocalyptic” — becomes more clear, the death toll is almost certain to rise. About 90% of the housing in Vanuatu’s capital is badly damaged, the hospital is flooded, radio and phone communications are still down and tens of thousands of children need help. But help is on the way: the Australian government is already there with personnel and supplies.
BOSTON MARATHON BOMBING TRIAL
Morning of terror: Gun battles. Bombs thrown. An SUV used as weapon. That’s what police from Watertown, Massachusetts, remembered yesterday about the morning of April 19, 2013, when they encountered the Boston Marathon bombing suspects. A patrolman spotted the stolen SUV Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev were in and called for backup, sparking the violence. Tamerlan would be killed; Dzhokhar would later be captured in a boat. Jurors got a chance to see that boat — and the words he wrote in it — when it was brought to a location about a mile from the courthouse.
MARCH MADNESS
More than basketball: You thought the hype around the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament was just about basketball? Ah, what a quaint notion. It’s also about money, college applications, money, vasectomies, money, fast food, money and reduced productivity. Did I also mention money? Anyway, the fun starts Tuesday in Dayton, Ohio, with the “First Four” round of games. Will the University of Kentucky complete a perfect season? We’ll know in a couple of weeks.
Those are your five biggies for the day. Here are a couple of other things that are brewing and have the Internet buzzing.
Puppy rescue: Watch and cheer as a four-man team frees a 2-month-old puppy stuck in a pipe.
Tiny treats: Everybody likes cake, right? Even if its an itty-bitty cake made with itty-bitty utensils.
Happy hamsters: It’s almost spring, which means it’s almost Easter. Check out how this adorable pair of hamsters celebrates the holiday.
Beatdown: Someone (who had a LOT of time on their hands) put all of boxer Mike Tyson’s knockouts in one video. You’re welcome.
Big hole: Can’t have buzzies without drones, right? Here’s what it looks like when you fly a drone through the world’s largest cave.