NEW YORK, June 6 (Reuters) – Federal and state authorities
have charged 98 people in New York City and Long Island,
including two doctors and a nurse, with trafficking and abuse of
painkillers and other prescription drugs, they said on
Wednesday.

The charges follow a crackdown on traffickers who stole or
forged prescriptions to obtain large quantities of painkillers
that could be illegally resold to users, and on doctors and
nurses who knowingly helped traffic the drugs, according to
Loretta Lynch, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New
York.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Organizers of the Miss USA contest on Wednesday raised questions about the credibility of Miss Pennsylvania, a contestant who said this week she was resigning her crown because she believed the contest is rigged.

Sheena Monnin, who represented Pennsylvania in the pageant staged in Las Vegas on Sunday but did not place in the top 16, said on Facebook on Monday she could “no longer be affiliated in any way with an organization I consider to be fraudulent, lacking in morals, inconsistent, and in many ways trashy.”

NEW YORK (Reuters) – The former Rutgers University student convicted of bias crimes for spying on his roommate’s gay encounter plans to begin his 30-day jail sentence this week, he said on Tuesday, even though an appeal meant he could have delayed his surrender.

Dharun Ravi, 20, issued a statement apologizing for “the wrong choices and decisions” he made and said he had “decided to accept and hopefully complete the sentence as soon as possible.”

NEW YORK (Reuters) – The former Rutgers University student convicted of bias crimes for spying on his roommate’s gay encounter plans to begin his 30-day jail sentence this week, he said on Tuesday, even though an appeal meant he could have delayed his surrender.

Dharun Ravi, 20, issued a statement apologizing for “the wrong choices and decisions” he made and said he had “decided to accept and hopefully complete the sentence as soon as possible.”

NEW YORK (Reuters) – New York State will not enforce a controversial smoking ban in its state parks – at least for now – after a smokers’ rights group complained officials failed to follow proper procedures when introducing the rule.

The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation said on Tuesday it hopes smokers will nonetheless choose to voluntarily refrain from the habit even without the threat of a ticket or citation, and is leaving No Smoking signs in place while it seeks to get the ban formally recognized.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – A New York bride who faked having terminal cancer to swindle well-wishers into funding her dream wedding and honeymoon to the Caribbean on Wednesday was ordered to repay more than $13,000 to her victims, prosecutors said.

Jessica Vega, 25, pleaded guilty last month to fraud and forgery charges for deceiving people in the Hudson Valley area of New York into thinking she had only a few months to live, New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman said. Moved by her tale, individuals and businesses donated thousands of dollars to pay for her wedding in May 2010 and her honeymoon in Aruba.

NEW YORK, May 22 (Reuters) – The New York Racing Association
has been temporarily placed under state control following the
suspension last month of its president over allegations it had
short-changed gamblers, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced on
Tuesday.

Cuomo said he was dissolving the NYRA’s board and creating a
“reorganization board” to search for new leaders of the
association, which runs the three largest tracks in the state.

NEW BRUNSWICK, New Jersey (Reuters) – A former Rutgers University student was sentenced on Monday to 30 days in prison for bias crimes after he spied on his roommate’s gay encounter in a case that drew national attention to bullying.

Dharun Ravi, 20, had faced a maximum of 10 years behind bars for his conviction for using a webcam to invade the privacy of his roommate, Tyler Clementi, and another man in their college dorm room.

NEW BRUNSWICK, New Jersey (Reuters) – A former Rutgers University student was sentenced on Monday to 30 days in prison for bias crimes after he spied on his roommate’s gay encounter in a case that drew national attention to bullying.

Dharun Ravi, 20, had faced a maximum of 10 years behind bars for his conviction for using a webcam to invade the privacy of his roommate, Tyler Clementi, and another man in their college dorm room.

NEW BRUNSWICK, New Jersey (Reuters) – Dharun Ravi, a former Rutgers University student, faces up to 10 years in prison at his sentencing on Monday for hate crimes after spying on his roommate’s gay tryst, but many gay advocates are calling for no time behind bars.

Tyler Clementi, 18, committed suicide in 2010 after learning that Dharun Ravi used a computer-mounted camera to see him kissing an older man in their dorm room and used social media to encourage others to watch.