Recently in National News Category

A man is recovering after an attack by a suspected great white shark off Ballston Beach in Truro, Mass. Monday, the New York Daily News said.

Christopher Myers and his son were wading out to a sand bar when Myers was pulled under the water, the Daily said.

His son and several witnesses report seeing a fin at the time of the attack, the Daily said.

Myers was able to swim back to shore and paramedics rushed him to the hospital where he is recovering, the Daily said.

The great white shark population has increased significantly in the Cape Cod area in recent years due to the increased population of seals, Fox News said.

Gray seals were nearly extinct until the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, Fox News said.

James Holmes was formally charged with 24 counts of murder and 116 counts of attempted murder Monday for the shooting rampage in a Colorado movie theater, CBS News said.

Holmes did not enter a plea and did not react as the judge read the charges against him, the New York Times said.

Court papers revealed Holmes had been seeing a psychiatrist. His public defenders could avoid a trial by arguing that his is not mentally competent to stand trial, CBS News said.

Holmes sent a package to his psychiatrist prior to the shootings. She did not receive the package and police have taken it but are not saying what it contains, the New York Times said.

The gunman arrested for suspicion of the mass shooting in a Colorado movie theater killing 12 people and injuring 58 others made his first appearance in court Monday, ABC News said.

James Holmes, 24, remained silent through the court procedure and went from glassy bug-eyed to being unable to keeps his eyes open, ABC News said.

Holmes is being held in solitary confinement without bond. Formal charges are expected to be filed next week, ABC News said.

Despite his peculiar behavior, prosecutors said they could not say whether Holmes is being medicated, Newsday said.

Authorities said Holmes is not cooperating and it could take months to reveal his motive, Newsday said.

Prosecutors will consider pursuing the death penalty after consulting the victiums' families, Newsday said.

The National Collegiate Athletic Association announced Sunday that Penn State will receive "corrective and punitive measures," the Washington Post said.

The NCAA's announcement came on the same day Penn State removed a staue of Joe Paterno from the football stadium, the Washington Post said.

The penalties against Penn State are unique because the NCAA has not penalized an institutions without holding a Committee on Infractions hearing, the Washington Post said.

No specifics were released in Sunday's announcement, but punishments will likely include bowl bans and scholarship reductions for the football program, USA Today said.

An Oregon man will lose his fingers and toes but is expected to survive the black plague, ABC News said.

Paul Gaylord, 59, contracted the infection from his cat on July 2, ABC News said.

At first, doctors diagnosed him with cat scratch fever but as his symptoms worsened he returned to the hospital, ABC News said.

He was transfered from his local hospital to the intensive care unit at the St. Charles Medical Center in Bend, NBC News said.

The cat, which Gaylord shot and buried in his yard after it bit him, was exhumed and tested positive for the plague, ABC News said.

The black plague is very rare in the United State and is spread through flea bites or contact with infected animals, NBC News said.

The Food and Drug Administration approved a drug to prevent the transmission of HIV on Monday, the New York Daily News said.

The drug, called Truvada, is manufactured by Gilead Sciences of California, the New York Daily News said.

Truvada has been on the market since 2004 for teens and adults with HIV combined with other antiretroviral drugs, CBS News said.

The new approval from the FDA allows the drug to be used by healthy teens and adults, in combination with safe sex practices, to prevent HIV, CBS News said.

Studies have found Truvada to cut the risk of HIV in healthy gay and bisexual men by 42 percent and by 72 percent in heterosexual individuals who have an HIV infected partner, CBS News said.

NBC bought Microsoft's 50 percent share in MSNBC.com and began rebranding the webite Sunday, the Star Tribune said.

MSNBC, a partnership between NBC and Microsoft, began 16 years ago and is owned by Comcast Corp, the Star Tribune said.

Both NBC and Microsoft are seeking more control over content, which led to the split, the Star Tribune said.

Under their old contract, NBC supplied all the news content for MSN.com. Now, Microsoft is able to partner with other media organizations, Fox News said.

Microsoft wanted to provide a counter perspective to conservative views on Fox News by providing a more liberal viewpoint, but was restricted by the contract with NBC, the Star Tribune said.

Microsoft is planning on launching their own content this fall, the Star Tribune said.

A middle school principal in Texas was indicted Thursday after secretly videotaping inside a girls locker room, ABC news said.

The video, which was taken during the halftime of a basketball game, was anonymously mailed to the school board, who then turned it into police, ABC said.

No indecent images were on the video and it is believed that the purpose of the recording was to see the coach's interaction with the team, ABC said.

The principal of five years, Wendee Long, 46, was put on administrative leave after the charges were filed, the Denton Record-Chronicle said.

Long and her attorney, Daniel K. Peugh, both maintain that she did not violate any law, the Denton Record-Chronicle said.

If convicted of all charges, Long could face up to 20 year in prison, ABC said.

More than 2.5 million people across the mid-Atlantic are still with out power from a massive storm on Friday, MSNBC said.

The unique storm, called a derecho, doesn't give much a warning, sending straight-lined winds over a large area, MSNBC said.

The area is also under a heat advisory and temperatures are expected to reach 104 degrees, MSNBC said.

President Obama has authorized FEMA to coordinate relief efforts, the Chicago Tribune said.

Ohio, Virginia and Maryland are calling the damage to their utilities "catastrophic," the Chicago Tribune said.

Two major news networks mis-reported the Supreme Court's health care act verdict Thursday morning, causing confusion among their own anchors and members of Congress, USA Today reported.

On live television, websites and social media outlets, both CNN and Fox News reported that the health care act was deemed unconstitutional moments after the verdict was released by the Supreme Court, USA Today said.

Several other news outlets had reported the correct information before CNN and Fox sent their reports out, the New York Times said.

CNN released a statement apologizing for the mistake. Fox did not issue an apology, but stated that they "reported the facts as they came in," the New York Times said.