Ethics

Former Sen. Warren B. Rudman, who co-authored a ground-breaking budget-balancing law, championed ethics and led a commission that predicted the danger of terrorist attacks years before 9/11, died Monday at a Washington, D.C., hospital. He was 82. The cause was complications of lymphoma, said Bob Stevenson, a friend and spokesman. The feisty New Hampshire Republican arrived in the Senate in 1981 with a reputation as a tough prosecutor, and he was called upon by leaders of both parties to tackle tough assignments.

The NCAA was "malicious" in its investigation of former USC assistant football coach Todd McNair, who was linked in a report to a scandal surrounding Heisman Trophy-winning tailback Reggie Bush, a judge said Wednesday. The NCAA's report on ethics breaches by McNair was flawed, and the former coach has shown a probability he can win his defamation claims, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Frederick Shaller said. The NCAA had sought to have the case dismissed, but Shaller disagreed.

Dr. Ernest Zeringue was looking for a niche in the cutthroat industry of fertility treatments. He seized on price, a huge obstacle for many patients, and in late 2010 began advertising a deal at his Davis, Calif., clinic unheard of anywhere else: Pregnancy for $9,800 or your money back. That's about half the price for in vitro fertilization at many other clinics, which do not include money-back guarantees. Typically, insurance coverage is limited and patients pay again and again until they give birth - or give up. Those patients use their own eggs and sperm - or carefully select donors when necessary - and the two are combined in a petri dish to create a batch of embryos.

As the daughter of one of the five Fendi sisters of the famed Italian brand, Ilaria Venturini Fendi found herself designing in the family firm but not feeling fulfilled. After leaving haute fashion for a life on an organic, sustainable farm near Rome, she felt the pull back to fashion design after a couple of years - but with an unconventional twist. She still has the farm, and in fashion she now specializes in upcycling - the repurposing of old or discarded objects into new, higher-valued items.

Lockheed Martin Corp., the world's largest defense firm, announced its incoming chief executive resigned after an ethics investigation confirmed he'd had a "close personal relationship" with a subordinate. Christopher E. Kubasik, 51, was set to take the top job of the Bethesda, Md., aerospace giant Jan. 1. Now that role is to be filled by 58-year-old Marillyn A. Hewson, who would become Lockheed's first-ever female CEO. Lockheed's board of directors also named Hewson acting president and chief operating officer in order to fill the jobs that once belonged to Kubasik.

When Jarrod Musselwhite, a 27-year-old single dad from rural Georgia, was feeling confused about his relationship with a girl he'd met online, there was one person he thought could help: an appealingly goofy New York photographer named Nev Schulman. Though an unlikely companion for the high-school-educated rocker, Schulman was no stranger to what Musselwhite was feeling. A protagonist of the controversial 2010 documentary "Catfish," Schulman had himself gone through a virtual romance that didn't turn out as expected.

If, as seems possible, Mitt Romney is not elected U.S. president on Nov. 6, he will not be the first presidential candidate to run on the issue of competence and then lose because he ran an incompetent campaign. He will not even be the first governor of Massachusetts to do so. In 1988, Michael Dukakis, who was ahead in the polls just after the Democratic convention, declared in his acceptance speech: "This election isn't about ideology. It's about competence. " Then he proceeded to blow his large lead and lose to George H.W. Bush, who turned out to be a tougher old bird than anyone suspected.

WASHINGTON - The House Ethics Committee on Tuesday formally ended its investigation of Rep. Maxine Waters, concluding in a unanimous decision that the veteran Los Angeles lawmaker did not break any rules in her efforts to assist minority-owned banks during the financial crisis. The 10-member panel, evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans, said the lawmaker's actions did "not establish, to the standard of clear and convincing evidence, that Rep. Waters violated House rules.

Staring at an attentive audience, Lakers guard Darius Morris shared some insights and advice based on his journey. Morris had just set foot at Lafayette Park over the weekend where the Lakers and Time Warner Cable Sportsnet hosted a basketball clinic for about 75 children from Heart of L.A. , which provides after-school programs for disadvantaged youth. So Morris brought up his childhood in Los Angeles dreaming about playing for the hometown Lakers. He stressed how anyone can reach their goal through hard work.

WASHINGTON - The House Ethics Committee on Tuesday formally ended its investigation of U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters, announcing its unanimous decision to drop the case because the veteran Los Angeles lawmaker did not break any rules. The 10-member panel, evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans, determined that the evidence "does not establish, to the standard of clear and convincing evidence, that Rep. Waters violated House rules. "   There was no immediate response from Waters' office.