Obamas denied presidential guesthouse. Barack Obama may be the most popular incoming president in recent memory, but it won’t help him get a bed at Blair House before mid-January. Blair House is where newly elected commanders-in-chief traditionally move in five days before inauguration to the White House. The Obama clan initially “explored the idea” of an early check-in so daughters Sasha and Malia could start school in D.C. immediately after the Christmas break, a spokesperson says. But they were told that pre-scheduled events and guests at Blair House, which also lodges visiting dignitaries, prevents a move before Jan. 15. “The Blair House, the president’s guest house for visiting dignitaries, is available to President-elect Obama and his family starting Jan. 15, as is historically the case,” says Sally McDonough, a D.C. spokesperson. “As for any conversation, I don’t comment on specific conversations about transition details.” Obama’s transition team spokesperson says the White House has been “extremely accommodating” to the Obamas, and that process has been “smooth and friendly.”

Rapper remains in Florida custody

DMX has been denied bond and the ability to return to his home in Arizona, angering a judge with his reported profanity. The rapper, who’s been held in Miami-Dade County on a bench warrant arrest since Aug. 12, hoped to get bond Tuesday. But Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Lawrence Schwartz upheld X’s no-bond status, citing the fact that the rapper faces drug charges in Florida. X appeared via video monitor before reportedly stating under his breath “I ain’t going back to no f***ing jail” as he heard the judge’s decision. Schwartz told DMX that he heard the obscenity, as the rapper walked away from a podium. The judge warned a lawyer representing the 37-year-old performer and film star. He’s expected to remain in custody until October. 

Brother of R&B singer explains fainting spell

The man who is shown in Web footage singing dutifully as his brother lay passed out on an Australia concert stage says neither member of the R&B duo was under the influence. K-Ci and JoJo, who recently performed without their Jodeci band mates, are shown crooning live when JoJo walks toward the back of the stage and abruptly crumbles to the floor, loudly dropping his microphone. A stagehand walks out and picks up the mic, ignoring JoJo on the floor as audience members express shock. K-Ci has taken to the airwaves to explain that JoJo suffered an epileptic seizure, and that rumors about the duo’s drug addiction are false. Footage shows JoJo regaining consciousness on his own after about a minute, eventually getting to his feet and waving to the crowd before he’s helped off the stage. K-Ci says JoJo is feeling much better.

“Run’s House” stars write about parental success. Take Back Your Family, a book written by Rev. Run, formerly of rap group Run-DMC, and his wife Justine Simmons is a hit. The self-help guide has reached No. 15 on the New York Times best-selling hard-cover advice list. The book features principles applied within the family whose lives are shown weekly on MTV’s hit reality show “Run’s House.” Take Back Your Family is the first book jointly written by Rev. Run and his wife.

Black Ohio residents denied water get millions
A federal grand jury awarded residents of a Black neighborhood in Ohio almost $11 million last week because, for nearly five decades, they were forced to dig wells, haul water or collect rain so they could drink, cook and bathe, while Whites enjoyed the benefits of the public water system. The jury found that the 67 residents of the Coal Run community in Muskingum County in east-central Ohio were victims of longstanding discrimination and awarded them between $15,000 and $300,000, depending on how long they had lived there. The award is for “monetary losses and the residents’ pain and suffering between 1956, when water lines were first laid in the area, and 2003, when Coal Run got public water,” The Associated Press reports. The Ohio Civil Rights Commission found in 2003 that the residents had been discriminated against, which prompted the lawsuit. “As a child, I thought it was normal because everyone done it in my neighborhood,” said one of the plaintiffs, Cynthia Hale Hairston, 47. “But I realized as an adult it was wrong.” The city, county and water company, however, deny that any discrimination has occurred. Attorney Mark Landes, who represented the county and water district, described the suit as “a case that was started and filed by out-of-town lawyers who saw an opportunity for a cash settlement.”

Jury selection in the Nichols trial resumes today

Jury selection in the oft-delayed trial of Brian Nichols is back on track following a surprising weekend off. Last week, Judge James Bodiford made a big deal about the need to convene the court during weekends for the trial of Nichols, the man accused of escaping from an Atlanta courtroom in 2005 and killing a judge, court reporter and two other people during his escape and time on the lam. Lawyers, victim’s rights advocates and others have criticized the system for allowing the case to linger unresolved for so long. Bodiford is the second judge after taking the case over from Judge Hilton Fuller several months ago. Fuller, who stepped down amid controversy surrounding his statements that “everybody knows Nichols is guilty,” had placed the trial on hold for several weeks, honoring defense claims that the state had not adequately funded the defense of the death-penalty defendant. As many as 1,000 prospective jurors eventually will be called to the Fulton County Courthouse for questioning. During the first week of interviews last week, all but one from an initial batch of juror candidates had been called in. Bodiford said he could not justify asking the county to pay for opening the courthouse over the weekend for one interview. Legal observers say the Nichols trial, which is expected to last several months, could be the most costly in the state’s history. Already, the defense has spent at least $1.2 million representing their 38-year-old high-profile defendant.

The NAACP to host both presidential candidatates
The NAACP Convention kicked off its 99th national convention Cincinnati Saturday, uniting its 8,000 delegates around the diverse issues affecting people of color, including poverty, health, criminal justice, voting and home ownership. As an example of ideas anti-poverty proposals surfacing from the gathering, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg aims to redefine the standard of poverty to account for society’s rising costs. In other words, food, clothing, shelter and housing costs, and utilities expenses would be factored in, and the poverty line for those living in New York would go from $20,000 for a family of four to $26,000. Although the new formula would not affect federal social service programs, it would be used by city officials to develop initiatives within New York. This conference, whose official theme is “Power, Justice, Freedom, Vote,” is being held at the Duke Energy Center in downtown Cincinnati. The city’s African-American mayor, Mike Mallory, expects to generate an estimated $10 million from hotel room charges, meals, tips and other tourism-related activities by the time the event concludes on Thursday. Both presidential candidates, senators John McCain and Barack Obama, will speak at the event.