December 30, 2004 In the United States, the FBI probes incidents where lasers have been pointed to cockpits of various aircraft, for potentially harmful results. (ABC News) (New York Post) (Slashdot) After several recounts, Democrat Christine Gregoire is declared the winner of the Washington governor election. However, her Republican opponent Dino Rossi, who was initially declared the winner after the initial tabulation and a recount, has not conceded and proposes a special election be held. (USA Today)(ABC) December 29, 2004 American swimmer Michael Phelps is sentenced to 18 months of probation after pleading guilty to drunken driving on Wednesday. (Houston Chronicle) December 28, 2004 Author and activist Susan Sontag has died at the age of 71 in New York City, apparently of complications from acute myelogenous leukemia. (Yahoo!) Theater and TV Actor Jerry Orbach has died at the age of 69 in New York City, he was in treatment for prostate cancer. He is most famous for his work in Law & Order. He was survived by his second wife Elaine Cancilla and his sons from his first marriage Chris and Tony. (Yahoo!) December 27, 2004 2004 U.S. presidential election controversy: Moss v. Bush: Ohio Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell fights a subpoena in a lawsuit contesting the presidential election. (AP) (AP) (freepress) December 24, 2004 Democrat Christine Gregoire's lead in the race for governor of the U.S. state of Washington increases from 10 votes to 130 in the latest official count. (NY Times) December 23, 2004 Former New York City Police Commissioner and U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security nominee Bernard Kerik withdraws from his joint business venture with former NY mayor Rudolph Giuliani, to take time to "clear his name". (Bloomberg) (MSNBC) December 19, 2004 President George W. Bush is named "Person of the Year" by Time magazine for the second time. (CNN)Yahoo! December 18, 2004 2004 U.S. presidential election controversy: Voting machine manufacturer Diebold Election Systems will pay a $2.6 million settlement to the State of California over the lawsuit filed by the state in September alleging that Diebold was not truthful about the security and reliability of its electronic voting machines. In a sharp change from their traditional role, members of the U.S. Electoral College have filed a protest of the official election results, one even casting his electoral vote "provisionally" upon a revote. They have called for a member of the senate to protest the election