May 17, 2003

Matrix Reloaded sells $42.5 million worth of tickets in its first day, enough to qualify as biggest opening day in movie history, but figure includes receipts from 10 pm screenings the day before official opening; table shows five movies with biggest first-day sales totals; photo (M)

At least 14 people are killed in several explosions in Casablanca, Morocco, as attackers use car bombs and detonate another device to strike Jewish, Spanish and Belgian targets; Interior Min Mostafa Sahel tells reporters that attacks 'bear the hallmark of international terrorism'; says that 10 suicide bombers were also killed anddddthat 60 other people were injured (M)

Jury forewoman in Crown Heights murder retrial says jury cleared Lemrick Nelson Jr of killing Yankel Rosenbaum during race riots in 1991 because it knew of Rosenbaum family's negligence lawsuit against hospital for alleged wrongful death, and conceded that two parties cannot both be responsible for one death; says that Nelson was guilty of violating Rosenbaum's civil rights not by killing him but by following rioting crowd in pursuing Rosenbaum, who was jewish (M)

Pimlico Race Course, site of Preakness Stakes, has both historical significance and reputation for being charmless (M)

Large-scale national study finds that drug testing in schools does not deter student drug use any more than no screening at all; new federally financed study of 76,000 students nationwide, by far largest to date, finds that drug use is just as common in schools with testing as in those without it; graph (M)