A white former transit police officer in the western U.S. state of California has been convicted of involuntary manslaughter in the videotaped shooting death of an unarmed black man that triggered protests and rioting last year.

The defendant in the racially charged trial, Johannes Mehserle, 28, testified that he mistakenly drew a pistol instead of his electric Taser weapon and shot Oscar Grant, 22, while attempting to subdue him in Oakland, east of San Francisco. Several witnesses captured the January 2009 encounter on video.

Prosecutors had sought murder charges against Mehserle for shooting Grant while he was face down.

But the jury of four men and eight women believed Mehserle lacked the intent to kill.

The trial was moved to Los Angeles due to concerns that extensive media coverage of the case in the San Francisco area would inflame tensions caused by the killing.

Police in Oakland braced for the possibility of renewed violence following the verdict. Civic leaders have appealed for calm.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger urged state residents not to resort to violence.

At least five bystanders videotaped the New Year's Day incident.

Involuntary manslaughter is punishable by two to four years in prison. The San Francisco Chronicle reported Thursday that Mehserle could also receive three to ten years for using a gun, meaning his sentence could range from five to 14 years. Sentencing is set for August 6.

The racially polarizing case has drawn comparisons to the case of Rodney King, a black man whose vicious beating by a group of white Los Angeles police officers in 1991 was captured on video. In April 1992, four white officers were acquitted by an all-white jury, sparking three days of rioting in Los Angeles that left 53 people dead.

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A federal judge in Boston, Massachusetts, has ruled that the federal ban on gay marriage is unconstitutional, because it interferes with an individual state's right to define marriage.

The ruling gives same-sex married couples in Massachusetts the same right to federal benefits that heterosexual couples enjoy.

U.S. District Judge Joseph Tauro ruled that "as irrational prejudice plainly never constitutes a legitimate government interest," the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) violates the protection under the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution.

Tauro ruled simultaneously in favor on two separate lawsuits that were filed by the Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) on behalf of eight same-sex married couples and three widows, and by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, where same-sex marriage has been permitted for over six years.

Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley called the ruling "a victory for civil rights." Coakley, who attended court Thursday for the ruling, told reporters, "All citizens who are married in Massachusetts should be treated equally."

Tauro ruled that in DOMA it was "only sexual orientation that differentiates a married couple entitled to federal marriage-based benefits from one not so entitled."

He added that "the relevant distinction to be drawn is between married individuals and unmarried individuals. To further divide the class of married individuals into those with spouses of the same sex and those with spouses of the opposite sex is to create a distinction without meaning,"

Nancy Gell, one of the plaintiffs in the case said that she let out a huge "Yahoo!" when she heard the ruling on television as she was cooking dinner. "We are just absolutely thrilled, I am so happy I can't ever put it into words," she told reporters.

Coakley who said that she believed that DOMA statute had no purpose other than to discriminate, said that the ruling applied to all same-sex married couples in Massachusetts.

Gary Buseck, GLAD's legal director, said that Thursday's ruling "is for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, so it seems to be encompassing all of the same-sex married couples in Massachusetts." He added that it would be "highly unusual" if the ruling was not appealed.

Department of Justice spokeswoman Tracy Schmaler said of the ruling, "We are reviewing the decision."

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In a seeming flashback to the cold war, Russian and American officials traded prisoners in the bright sunlight on the tarmac of Vienna’s international airport on Friday, bringing to a quick end an episode that had threatened to disrupt relations between the two countries.

Planes carrying 10 convicted Russian sleeper agents and 4 men accused by Moscow of spying for the West swooped into the Austrian capital, once a hub of clandestine East-West maneuvering, and the men and women were transferred, according to an American official. The planes soon took off again, presumably heading back to Russia and the United States in a coda fitting of an espionage novel.

The first sign that the exchange — one of the biggest in over two decades — was under way came as an American Vision Airlines jet carrying the Russian agents deported from the United States touched down and taxied to park only a matter of yards from the Russian plane from Moscow’s Emergencies Ministry. For a while the only sound of movement was an unidentified emissary shuttling between the airplanes.

Then, more than an hour later, with little fanfare and no formal announcement from either side, the Russian-flagged plane took off into clear blue skies, closely followed by the American airplane.

The swap was among the biggest since the Soviet dissident Anatoly Shcharansky — who as Natan Sharansky became a political figure in Israel — was released along with eight imprisoned spies in a classic cold war exchange in 1986. But that exchange took place in a wintry Berlin across the snow-dusted Glienicke Bridge in Berlin at a time when the Iron Curtain cut Europe into rival ideological camps and this city provided one of few avowedly neutral havens.

The swift conclusion to the case just 12 days after the arrest of the Russian agents evoked memories of that time, but it also underscored the new-era relationship between Washington and Moscow. President Obama has made the “reset” of Russian-American relations a top foreign policy priority, and the quiet collaboration over the spy scandal indicates that the Kremlin likewise values the warmer ties.

Rahm Emanuel, the chief of staff, told the PBS program “NewsHour” that the president was fully briefed on the decision and that the case showed that the United States was still watchful even as relations improved. The 10 sleeper agents had pleaded guilty to conspiracy before a federal judge in Manhattan after revealing their true identities. All 10 were sentenced to time served and ordered deported.

A lawyer for one of four prisoners freed by the Russian government called it “a historic moment” and said she believed her client, a former Russian intelligence agent named Aleksandr Zaporozhsky, would be reunited with members of his family, who live in the United States.

Within hours of the New York court hearing, the Kremlin announced that President Dmitri A. Medvedev had signed pardons for the four men Russia considered spies after each of them signed statements admitting guilt.

The Kremlin identified them as Igor V. Sutyagin, an arms control researcher held for 11 years; Sergei Skripal, a colonel in Russia’s military intelligence service sentenced in 2006 to 13 years for spying for Britain; Mr. Zaporozhsky, a former agent with Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service who has served 7 years of an 18-year sentence; and Gennadi Vasilenko, a former K.G.B. major who was arrested in 1998 for contacts with a C.I.A. officer but eventually released only to be arrested again in 2005 and later convicted on illegal weapons charges.

Yelena P. Lebedeva-Romanova, a lawyer for Mr. Skripal, 59, said she was very pleased that he had received an amnesty, in part because he suffers from diabetes and she worried about the effects of prison camp life on his health.

Mr. Zaporozhsky’s lawyer, Maria A. Veselova, said attorney-client privilege prevented her from revealing details of the negotiations that led to his release, but said she had long detected signs that he might be freed.

“For the last couple of years I was absolutely sure it was going to happen,” said Ms. Veselova, who represented him in the 2003 espionage trial where he was sentenced to 18 years. “It has to do with the relations between the two countries, and with political games going on at the top. It is always connected with these chess games.”

But for the second day, Mr. Sutyagin’s family, who live in the scientific community of Obninsk about 60 miles outside Moscow, were relying on media reports to track his whereabouts.

“I will only believe it when my son calls me,” said his mother, Svetlana Y. Sutyagina, a chemical engineer who spent most of the day working. “We are waiting and waiting for his call. That’s all we can do, is wait.”

She said they had no idea where he will live after his release, or even where his final destination is on Friday. She said she didn’t know whether his wife or daughters would ultimately join him there.

“We will only know his plans when we hear his voice,” she said. “Then we can think about what’s next. Now we have only one thought — when will he call. Nothing else matters.”

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As President Obama campaigned for Rory Reid's famous and powerful father in Nevada, the son was hundreds of miles away campaigning for governor.

While there's no animosity between Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and his son, the younger Reid's use of his first name on his campaign's website and television ads is telling, a veteran political observer in Nevada said.

"Obviously he's trying to downplay his last name," said Jon Ralston, a columnist for the Las Vegas Sun and publisher of the Ralston Report. "In so obviously downplaying it, he's called even more attention to it."

The reason, he said: Poll numbers showing high unfavorable ratings for both Reids.

In a Las Vegas Review-Journal poll from June, 52 percent had an unfavorable view of Harry Reid. Polls also indicate Rory Reid trails his Republican gubernatorial opponent, Brian Sandoval, by double digits.

"The reason he's [Rory] losing so badly is because his identity is inextricably linked to his father," he said. "So his father's negatives are attaching to him."

Ralston also suspects that a majority of Nevadans simply do not want two Reids on the ballot.

"What Harry Reid is doing in his campaign is going to end up hurting Rory Reid. Even if he can convince people to hold their noses and vote for him, they're not going to vote for two Reids. They might vote for Harry Reid ... they'll say 'one Reid is my limit.' "

Harry Reid has come to his son's defense, saying in an interview with the Review-Journal that while he "cares a great deal about him ... he has to run on his own."

For his part, Rory Reid told Fox's Las Vegas affiliate that he thinks "people know who I am and I like the way my first name sounds."

And it's evident. His campaign website's top banner reads, "Rory2010" -- and on the "Meet Rory" biography section, there is no mention of his last name. His first television ad drew criticism because his last name was not mentioned. A recent ad, however, briefly used his last name.

"The story surrounding his first ad was how he didn't mention his last name," Ralston said. "They thought by putting his last name once in another ad, it wouldn't be talked about as much ... It's become such an issue now that it's very difficult for him to get away from it."

And it didn't take long for Republicans to jump on that. In an ad by the Republican Governors Association, two people appearing to be aides walk up to Rory Reid's dressing room. A gold star on the door reads "Rory," with his last name blacked out.

Political blogs and some residents are also poking fun at the name controversy.

The blog Wonkette, in a post titled "Rory Reid No Longer Related to Harry Reid," reads: "It's also funny how the Rory 2010 website refers to all other human beings with their last names, yet not him. Is Rory Reid better than other humans?"

In the letter to the editor section of the Review-Journal, Daniel Maxime of Las Vegas, wrote: "Elvis! Liza! Engelbert! Cher! Madonna! Rory! ... When did Clark County Commissioner and Democratic gubernatorial nominee Rory Reid become a one-name star? Of course, if my last name were Reid, I surely would be running from it this election year."

Ralston said Rory Reid's campaign is overthinking the name issue.

"Everything he does is Rory this, Rory that. How often do you see that in a campaign where someone's just using their first name?" he said. "It just doesn't happen."

So what can the gubernatorial candidate do to turn around his poll numbers?

"He should take a page out of his dad's book: His dad realizes the only way for him to win is to raise his opponent's negatives," Ralston said. "That's the only way that Rory Reid has a chance."

Dan Hart, a political consultant who appeared on Ralston's "Face to Face" television show, said give him time.

"He has to tell people about himself, what he's accomplished, what his goals for the state are," Hart said. "He will, and it will take a bit of time."

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When Sen. Robert C. Byrd's niece began to sing "On the Wings of a Snow White Dove" at his funeral Tuesday, she faltered.

Jassowyn Sale Hurd said she had never gotten the chance to sing with the late statesman, and now, as she stood before his polished brown casket in an Arlington church, she briefly forgot the tune.

She apologized. "Let me try this again," she said, and as she did, the congregation assembled to bid the lawmaker a last farewell on a broiling summer day began to softly sing along:

When troubles surround us, when evils come, the body grows weak, the spirit grows numb.

It was a moment that might have made the Democrat from West Virginia smile: the sweet melody, the evocative refrain:

On the wings of a snow-white dove, He sends His pure sweet love.

The longest-serving lawmaker in the history of Congress and proud son of Appalachian Bible country was borne to his rest Tuesday amid the strains of the music he loved and the words of the Scripture he revered.

Byrd, who died June 28 at age 92, was buried beside his wife, Erma, in an Arlington County cemetery after a simple but moving funeral at Arlington's Memorial Baptist Church.

It was the final goodbye in a week of heartfelt salutes to the child of the coal fields who grew up to become a lion of the U.S. Senate and a legend in West Virginia.

Byrd's flag-draped casket arrived a little after 9 a.m. and was carried by a military honor guard from the gleaming hearse into the red-carpeted sanctuary of the 60-year-old brick church on Glebe Road.

The casket, covered in a large bouquet of white roses with a single red rose in honor of Byrd's wife, was placed at the front of the church on a catafalque hung with black, as dignitaries and mourners paused outside in the shade to sign a guestbook.

On a table before the casket, a large Bible was opened to the 23rd Psalm: "The Lord is my shepherd . . . "

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A series of steps aimed at bolstering U.S. exports has so far brought a 17 percent increase in the first four months of 2010 over the same period last year, President Obama will announce Wednesday.

Obama's National Export Initiative, introduced during his State of the Union address in February, seeks to double exports over the next five years.

A White House statement said Obama, in a statement scheduled for later Wednesday, will show that the program is on schedule so far.

The program has made progress on its five main objectives, Obama will say, including the coordination of trade missions in 24 countries; increased loans to help American exporters; breaking down trade barriers; enforcing trade rules, and promoting international economic cooperation.

For example, the statement said, the United States has reached agreements in recent months to reopen exports of pork to China and poultry to Russia.

"Boosting America's exports strengthens our economic growth and supports millions of good, high-paying American jobs," Obama said in the statement that also named 18 additional members to the President's Export Council announced in March.

The panel is headed by W. James McNerney Jr., chairman, president and CEO of The Boeing Company, and Ursula Burns, chairman and CEO of Xerox Corporation.

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The Northeast faced a fourth day Wednesday of a record-breaking heat wave, after triple-digit temperatures tested power supplies throughout the region and tried the patience and resilience of anyone who dared to venture outside.

While temperatures were expected to moderate some from Tuesday’s peak — which saw a record set at 103 degrees for the day in New York City — utilities warned that the length and intensity of this heat wave was testing the limits of the power grid.

Con Edison said it was working to restore power to about 6,300 customers in New York City on Wednesday; in Washington nearly 2,000 customers were without power, while New Jersey’s Public Service Electric and Gas Company reported about 6,500 customers without electricity.

Transportation officials cut the speed of commuter trains on Tuesday in New York and suburban Washington when the tracks got too hot, and rail riders in New Jersey were advised to expect delays again Wednesday.

The heat broke several records in the Northeast, as Boston, Providence and Philadelphia all saw triple-digit temperatures Tuesday that eclipsed previous highs. In Philadelphia, a 92-year-old woman was found dead in her home on the second floor, where all but one window was shut. The medical examiner ruled that extreme heat was a factor in her death.

Forecasters predicted that Wednesday would offer only limited relief, with temperatures in the mid-90s in New York City. The National Weather Service blamed a high-pressure system along the East Coast that drew hot, humid air from the south and will probably stay put until late this week.

Con Edison officials used automated calls Tuesday night to appeal to customers in New York City to turn off “non-essential” appliances as power consumption reached record levels.

The heat’s effects on the five boroughs were unsparing: Some city pools were filled to capacity within an hour or so of opening, sending seekers of respite to libraries, cooling centers and other public havens from the heat. Hospitals set out jars of ice water as their waiting rooms filled with wheezing elderly patients and exhausted firefighters.

The city’s police commissioner, Raymond W. Kelly, said that the Police Department was mindful that more crime tended to occur in the extreme heat of night, and was also prepared to send extra officers to places that had lost power.

But even as Con Edison officials were optimistic that the city would survive the day without widespread power failures, they acknowledged that the intensity and duration of the heat wave could have a cumulative effect on the cables and transformers. In short, they said, the worst may be yet to come.

“It’s Round 1 in a prizefight,” said John Miksad, Con Edison’s senior vice president of electric operations. “Round 1 looks O.K., but the bell hasn’t rung yet.”

In Washington, commutes were longer after trains were ordered to operate at least 20 miles per hour under maximum speeds because of the heat. In Baltimore, officials planned to distribute bottled water to the homeless over the coming days.

In Rhode Island, some residents could not even savor a cool drink from their faucets. The Department of Public Health urged residents in parts of Narragansett and South Kingstown to boil their water before drinking it as a precaution after water pressure dropped below acceptable limits.

“I just turned on my outdoor shower and there’s no water,” said David Cunningham, 46, of South Kingstown. “It’s a trickle.”

But New York seemed most concerned about the prospect of brownouts or blackouts after having gone through three major blackouts over the last half century.

And it has been four years since the utility’s equipment in Long Island City failed in a cascade of blown feeder lines and left tens of thousands of Queens residents without power for more than a week. The power system’s ability to withstand a sustained surge in demand has not really been tested since that summer.

“We haven’t had a real New York heat wave in a while,” said Mr. Miksad, who admitted to having fretted through a “nervous weekend” knowing what was coming. Con Edison dispatched extra crews to Staten Island where a main feeder cable failed early in the day, and by late afternoon more than 4,000 customers were without power in the Fox Hills neighborhood.

By late Tuesday evening, Con Edison had reduced voltage in neighborhoods throughout Brooklyn and Queens because of problems with electrical cables. Mr. Miksad said that more people might have lost power if not for a set of demand-reduction programs that were used on Tuesday, including voluntary cutbacks by big corporate customers and the utility’s ability to control the thermostats in some residents’ homes. All told, those programs saved as much as 400 megawatts and kept total demand from surpassing the all-time high, he said.

Some office buildings, including Con Edison’s headquarters near Union Square, shut down banks of elevators, lowered the lights and turned up thermostats. Con Edison requested that all of its customers conserve electricity by turning off equipment not being used, keeping air-conditioners at 78 degrees and running washers, dryers and dishwashers late at night.

Robert Madden, 25, a waiter who lives in Astoria, said that his electronic equipment shut down in a specific order.

“First the PlayStation turns off, then the refrigerator, then the computer, the lights, then the pilot lights on the stove, then the fan,” he said.

He added that he had advised his wife, who is both pregnant and a student, to stay at school. “There is air-conditioning there,” he said. “You can’t have a pregnant wife at home baking.”

By late afternoon on Tuesday, New York-Presbyterian Hospital/ Weill-Cornell Medical Center had seen only scattered cases of heat-related illnesses, but doctors there said that the numbers would most likely increase.

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