It's unclear when the state's high court will rule.

But the federal court's Chief Judge Tena Campbell said Gardner failed to prove he could not get a "fair and impartial hearing" before Utah's Board of Pardons and Parole.

A two-day hearing before the board is set to begin on Thursday.

In court papers filed in U.S. District Court late Tuesday, attorney Andrew Parnes argued that the board's process was tainted because lawyers that represent the board work for the Utah attorney general's office — the same entity that sought Gardner's death warrant. Those state attorneys will also argue against the board commuting Gardner's death sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

A federal prosecutor has told an appeals court in Ohio that five jailed members of a Midwest militia are a threat to public safety. The prosecutor says they should stay in jail until they're tried on charges of plotting to overthrow the government.

But attorneys for the defendants told the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday that the government hasn't proven their clients are dangerous.

The defendants are among nine members of the Michigan-based Hutaree (hoo-TAH'-ray) accused of conspiracy to commit sedition. Two from Michigan and two from Ohio have been released as they await trial.

A federal judge has said the remaining five, from Michigan and Indiana, could go home with electronic monitors. The government is appealing that order.

The appeals court did not issue a ruling Tuesday.

Amera Akl's family says they're planning to post a $750,000 bond and that it's possible she could be released later this week.

The couple were taken into custody last week after prosecutors said an FBI informant provided them with $200,000 in cash.

The couple were alleged to be preparing to hide the money in a vehicle that prosecutors said was to be shipped to Lebanon.

State regulators and the New Mexico Environmental Law Center are asking the justices to order a District Court judge in Lovington to reverse an earlier decision that halted the effort by New Energy Economy to control greenhouse gas emissions.

Judge William Shoobridge granted a preliminary injunction in April that prohibited the state Environmental Improvement Board from continuing proceedings on New Energy Economy's petition.

Petition supporters argue that if allowed to stand, the judge's ruling would cripple state agencies' ability to carry out appointed responsibilities. They say the high court must hear the case because it raises questions about separation of powers and judicial interference in an administrative process.

New Mexico's largest utility, four state lawmakers and other industry groups sued in January to stop the Environmental Improvement Board from considering the petition. New Energy Economy and regulators countered with a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, a move that Shoobridge rejected.

Public Service Company of New Mexico, one of the plaintiffs, has argued that a state cap on greenhouse gas emissions would be costly for businesses and utility customers and that the emissions debate should be settled by the federal government.

Two young New Jersey men are scheduled to appear in federal court in Newark Monday morning on charges of trying to join a terrorist group.

The two were arrested Saturday at John F. Kennedy International Airport before they could board separate flights to Egypt, where they hoped to continue on to Somalia to join the terrorist group al-Shabab, a militant organization with links to Al Qaeda.

New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said Mohamed Mahmood Alessa, 21, and Carlos Eduardo Almonte, 23, had gone to Jordan in 2007. From there, they tried to get into Iraq but were turned back.

"It's a cause for concern," Kelly told reporters during a press conference on Sunday.

"It's not unlike other cases that we've seen recently where individuals who express an interest to do 'jihad' go overseas and then are turned around" and "come back to attempt acts of violence in the United States," he said, citing other high-profile cases, like Najibullah Zazi and Faisal Shahzad, both charged with plotting separate acts of terror inside the United States.

A jury sentenced a 28-year-old Nevada man to death for raping and killing a college coed after sexually assaulting two others in Reno more than two years ago.

The same Washoe County District Court jury that convicted James Biela (BEEL'-uh) last week deliberated about nine hours before reaching a unanimous verdict Wednesday.

The former pipe fitter from Sparks will be sent to death row to await execution by lethal injection.

Biela's public defenders asked the jury to spare Biela's life because he had no previous criminal record and had been abused growing up in poverty in the Chicago area.

Nineteen-year-old Brianna Denison was raped and strangled to death during a string of attacks that shook the Reno community in early 2008.