Corruption threatens "soul and fabric" of U.S.: FBI

BOCA RATON, Florida (Reuters) - Corruption, whether in the form of crooked officials, financial fraudsters or even philandering sports stars, is tearing at the fabric of U.S. society and is the country's No. 1 criminal threat, a senior FBI agent said on Tuesday. Addressing businessmen in Florida, where financial fraud cases jumped by 42 percent in the last year, FBI Miami Division Special Agent in Charge John Gillies said failures in personal ethics and integrity sowed the initial poisonous seeds of corruption in a society.

FBI orders independent review after Fort Hood shooting

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - FBI Director Robert Mueller ordered an independent review on Tuesday of how the agency handled information that the military psychiatrist charged in the Fort Hood shooting had communicated with an anti-American cleric in Yemen. Mueller asked William Webster, the former head of the FBI and CIA as well as a former judge, to conduct the review of the domestic law enforcement agency's actions and policies before the November 5 shooting that killed 13 people.

Congress closer to action in GM, Chrysler dealer dispute

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Congress moved closer on Tuesday to forcing a resolution on General Motors and Chrysler for handling complaints by terminated dealerships, a step lawmakers had previously sought to avoid. Negotiations continued on a proposal that would permit arbitration for settling disputes. The scope of potential cases would depend on how broadly the bill is written.

U.S. top court hears ex-media baron Conrad Black's appeal

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A lawyer for former media baron Conrad Black urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday to overturn his fraud conviction, and several justices asked whether the federal law at issue was too vague. The Canadian-born Black, a member of Britain's House of Lords, has been in prison since March 2008, when he began serving a 6 1/2-year sentence for fraud and obstruction of justice.

U.S. judge reduces Cuban spy's life jail sentence

MIAMI (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Tuesday reduced the prison term for a Cuban spy from a life sentence to 30 years in a high-profile espionage case that has strained already hostile ties between Havana and Washington. U.S. District Judge Joan Lenard cut the sentence of Ramon Labanino, also known as Luis Medina, from a life term to 30 years, an assistant to the judge told Reuters.

Tiger Woods' mother-in-law hospitalized in Florida