The Hague appeals court re-convicted the four Dutch nationals of Moroccan descent for plotting attacks, and said trial evidence showed they were part of a single group, as prosecutors had argued.

Judges cited their adherence to a single violent belief system, their training with firearms, and their coordinated efforts to find the addresses of Dutch politicians on a hit-list, including the prime minister.

The court's judges added a year to the sentence of ringleader Samir Azzouz, 22, giving him a total of nine years in prison. Azzouz had videotaped a suicide testament.

Both defendants and prosecutors had appealed the original ruling. The defendants asked for acquittal and the prosecutors sought longer sentences, including 15 years for Azzouz.

Azzouz "has made it apparent that he despises Dutch society," judges said in a written ruling. "He has shown that he has no respect for those who have different views and knows no compassion for the potential victims of the acts he planned."

Azzouz evaded jail twice in investigations into alleged terrorist activities. The first time, he was caught with bomb-making materials, but he was released without charge on a technicality.

He later was charged with planning an attack, but was acquitted when the judges ruled his preparations were not advanced enough to prove a terrorist intent.

The Iowa Court of Appeals said Officer Michael Mette's trial judge had no testimony on which to base her ruling that he could have walked away from a fight with another man — but didn't.

Mette had argued self-defense in the 2005 fight in Dubuque with Jake Gothard that left Gothard with a fractured nose, cheek and jaw.

In November 2006, First Judicial District Judge Monica Ackley found Mette guilty of assault causing serious injury and sentenced him to five years. She said Mette was not the initial aggressor but could have retreated.

The case prompted an outcry in Chicago, where prominent officials, including Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, Cook County State's Attorney Richard Devine and Chicago Police Superintendent Jody Weis, had called for Mette's release.

In its ruling, the appeals court found that there was no testimony to support Ackley's findings.

Minutes before the closing bell Tuesday, a flurry of trades sent the Web search leader's stock plummeting 10 percent to close at $341.43.

Nasdaq said in a statement that erroneous orders routed to Nasdaq from another market center were responsible for the high volume of trades.

The exchange raised Google's closing price to $400.52 — a 5 percent gain for the day — and canceled all trades below that amount and above $425.29 between 3:57 p.m. and 4:02 p.m. EDT.

A three-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati denied the Ohio GOP's request that, at the very least, ballots cast during the weeklong period be segregated from other ballots cast for the Nov. 4 presidential election.

A federal district judge in Columbus declined to rule on the matter Monday. The Ohio Supreme Court upheld the early voting window in a 4-3 decision the same day, while a federal judge in Cleveland also sided with Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner.

The appeals court noted that the lower district court did not rule on the matter of the voting window, and said the argument involves facts about how election officials handle absentee ballots that must first be presented to a lower court.

Bill Todd, a lead attorney for the Ohio GOP, said the party was discussing its options Tuesday night. It wasn't known whether they planned to further appeal.

The appeals court also gave Brunner a second victory, rejecting a GOP challenge to her advisory that county boards of elections weren't required to allow poll observers during early voting.

A federal judge in Columbus issued a temporary restraining order against Brunner's instructions Monday. But the appeals court overturned that ruling, saying the district court had abused its discretion in granting the order.

Thousands of Ohioans went to the polls Tuesday for the first day of early voting. Ohio's largest counties had several hundred voters each, and a small portion of them also registered Tuesday.

Defense lawyers maintain that Simpson was just trying to retrieve personal belongings, family photos and heirlooms that had been stolen from him years ago.

On Wednesday, the jury that heard the prosecution's case against Simpson and co-defendant Clarence "C.J." Stewart was scheduled to hear from defense witness, Thomas Scotto, the wedding groom for whom Simpson came to Las Vegas to serve as best man.

Scotto, 46, a North Miami Beach, Fla., auto repair shop owner, served as go-between and banker for Simpson after Simpson's arrest Sept. 16, 2007, and again following his re-arrest in January when he was accused of violating terms of his bail release.

Scotto, who was preparing for his wedding, did not accompany Simpson from the Palms resort pool to the alleged armed robbery in a Palace Station casino hotel room. But his name is heard on audio recordings played for the jury during the first 11 days of testimony in the case.

Simpson and Stewart have pleaded not guilty to 12 criminal charges, including armed robbery and kidnapping. Each man could face five years to life in prison if convicted in the Sept. 13., 2007, confrontation.

The prosecution rested Monday, and the courtroom was dark Tuesday for a scheduled day off. Clark County District Court Judge Jackie Glass said outside the presence of the jury that closing arguments could come as early as Thursday. The jury would then begin deliberations.

Simpson's lawyers told the judge that Scotto could be their last witness. Outside court, defense lawyers said no decisions had been made whether Simpson or Stewart would testify. Stewart's lawyers said they expect to call several witnesses.

Simpson's defense lawyers brought one of the alleged victims, Alfred Beardsley, back to the witness stand. The sports memorabilia dealer repeated that charges against Simpson should be dropped, and said again that he and Simpson had been "set up" by Thomas Riccio, the collectibles broker who arranged their hotel room meeting.

Shell Oil Co. and the railroads — the Burlington, Northern and Santa Fe Railway Co. and the Union Pacific Railroad Co. — say they are being unfairly tagged with an inordinate portion of the cost of cleaning up the site.

The companies contend they merely transported and sold legal, useful products and were not involved in years of soil and groundwater contamination.

The site was once the home of a fertilizer and insecticides manufacturing facility.

The reading, which doesn't reflect attitudes following Monday's steep stock market sell-off, remains near a 16-year low. The Conference Board reports Tuesday its Consumer Confidence Index rose to 59.8 from a revised 58.5 in August.

Wall Street had expected a reading of 55.5, according to Thomson/IFR.

The Dow Jones industrials are up 215 at the 10,588 level.