After years of costly litigation, Merck announces that it will pay about $4.85 billion to settle most claims over injuries linked to its Vioxx painkiller. The drug, which was pulled from the market in 2004 because of cardiovascular risks, has been the subject of tens of thousands of lawsuits against the drugmaker.
Quote: MRK | From BloggingStocks: Getting Off Cheap?

AP

Rudy Giuliani, left, and Bernard Kerik in December 2001

Bernard Kerik, a former New York police commissioner and failed homeland security secretary nominee, is expected to surrender Friday to face federal corruption charges, a source says. A criminal case involving Kerik, once a close friend and protege of Rudy Giuliani, could be politically damaging to the Republican presidential hopeful.

AP

The first day of a hearing to determine whether O.J. Simpson goes to trial on armed robbery charges is marked by dramatic audio recordings, including one of the confrontation in a Las Vegas hotel. "We were just robbed at gunpoint man," one man says on the tape. "We were just robbed at gunpoint by O.J. Simpson."

A new USA Today/Gallup Poll asks Americans who they would and wouldn't vote for in the 2008 presidential election. Flip through the results below, and then vote for your most and least favorite contender inside the story.

Photo Gallery: The Seven Leading Candidates

Eric Thayer, Getty Images

Candidate: Hillary Clinton, Democrat
Definitely would vote for: 32 percent
Might consider voting for: 23 percent
Definitely would not vote for: 44 percent

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