Raquel Carreras

Raquel Carreras

Raquel Carreras was a cheerleader at Northeast High School cheerleader. Mom Lesa Ledesma has pleaded to manslaughter for letting her son Shawn drive You see, Shawn was 15, too young to drive. Raquel was just 14 years old. Ledesma agreed to 30 days jail, 5 years probation with 2 years house arrest. Without that plea agreement on a trial set to start today, she would have faced upwards of 15 years in prison for Raquel Carreras ’s death.

Michelle Carreras’ mother, Raquel’s mom, asked for and got Ledesma to serve her jail sentence over Christmas, pay $5000 restitution for funeral services, and draft an apology. the Ledesma’s attorney said the following to the court: “This was a tragedy. She’s truly sorry for her part in it. If she could take back her actions of giving her keys to (her son) she would do it.” Shawn Ledesma has reportedly pleaded to vehicular homicide.

Whitney Houston On Good Morning America

Whitney Houston On Good Morning America

Whitney Houston has “140 million albums sold, more awards than any other female performer in history,” boasted Good Morning America today, touting her “first television performance in seven years” (watch it on their Website). The singer bounded out with a lot of energy and yelled “love you!” during first line of “Million Dollar Bill,” but she danced rather than sang the first chorus, confirming yesterday’s reports that her first major television appearance promoting her new I Look to You left the diva breathless. Houston filmed the short set in New York’s Central Park yesterday afternoon.

“I love you New York,” she announced at end of the song. “I love you Good Morning America. God bless you all. Thank you for coming, you’re making me feel so good.” She then ran upstage to hug host Diane Sawyer, who Houston called “one of my dearest friends.” Sawyer is the journalist who conducted the infamous “crack is wack” interview in 2002 during which Houston disclosed she had struggled with drug problems. “I’m overwhelmed with love and support, your prayers mean so much to me and I love you all for coming,” Houston told the crowd, adding defiantly, “I never left!”

“Seven years ago, looking in each others’ eyes, it was a very different world then. I was worried for you,” Sawyer told her. “Don’t be worried anymore. If you know God, then don’t be worried,” Houston replied, saying it was “my faith” that brought her here now. “The love and support of my family, which I do have. People who care about you in the good and bad times.” In 2002, Houston told Sawyer, “I partied a lot. Trust me: I partied my tail off. You get to a point where you know the party’s over.”

Hurricane Jimena Path

Hurricane Jimena Path

Hurricane Jimena closes in on Mexico's Baja peninsula An "extremely dangerous" Hurricane Jimena bore down Tuesday on the Mexican peninsula of Baja California, with the resort town of Cabo San Lucas lying in its path. The government of Mexico extended a hurricane warning northward along the west coast of the Baja peninsula to Puerto San Andresito and east to the city of Loreto, the U.S. National Weather Service said in an advisory at 5 a.m. ET Tuesday.

The hurricane warning means hurricane conditions are expected in the warning area within the next 24 hours, and forecasters predicted Jimena would strike Baja California by Tuesday evening. There were long lines in supermarkets in most cities on the peninsula as people hurriedly bought storm supplies. Early Tuesday, forecasters warned people in that area to act quickly "to protect life and property" because Jimena was packing winds close to 155 mph (250 kph). In addition to damaging winds, the storm could bring as much as 15 inches of rain, forecasters said. Early Tuesday, Jimena was centered about 185 miles (300 kilometers) south of Cabo San Lucas, according to the Hurricane Center. It was traveling northwest near 12 mph.

Jimena is the 10th named storm of the Pacific season and was dangerously close to becoming a Category 5 storm, the most powerful category of hurricane. A resident of Los Cabos, at the very tip of the peninsula, said Monday that people in his town were preparing for the storm and were getting a preview as winds and rain began to pick up. Cuauhtemoc Morgan, who sent videos to to CNN's iReport, said residents had protected every home in his neighborhood, fortifying windows with masking tape. Lines at supermarkets were long with worried residents preparing for the storms, Morgan said.