NATIONAL NEWS
Chuck Brown, pioneer of 'go-go' funk music, dies
WASHINGTON (AP) — Chuck Brown, who styled a unique mix of funk, soul and Latin party sounds to create go-go music in the nation's capital, has died after suffering from pneumonia. He was 75. ...Read More
Defense rests without calling Edwards, mistress
GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) — John Edwards' defense team rested Wednesday without calling the two-time Democratic presidential candidate or his one-time mistress to the witness stand, a sign of confidence after presenting little more than two days of testimony and evidence. ...Read More
RFK Jr.'s estranged wife, Mary, found dead in NY
BEDFORD, N.Y. (AP) — Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s estranged wife, Mary Richardson Kennedy, who had fought drug and alcohol problems, was found dead at the family property Wednesday. ...Read More
World leaders set for busy US weekend of summitry
WASHINGTON (AP) — More than two dozen world leaders will join President Barack Obama in an extraordinary weekend of back-to-back summits to tackle Europe's mounting economic woes and solidify plans for winding down the decade-long war in Afghanistan. ...Read More
Army launches review of PTSD diagnoses
WASHINGTON (AP) — Army leaders said Wednesday they are launching a sweeping, independent review of how the service evaluates soldiers with possible post-traumatic stress disorder following recent complaints that some PTSD diagnoses were improperly overturned. ...Read More
House OKs GOP's anti-violence against women bill
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans set up a showdown Wednesday with the Senate and President Barack Obama over legislation to protect women from domestic violence, a fight that's become as much about female voters this election year as cracking down on abuse. ...Read More
Officer's acquittal over Texas arrest upsets some
HOUSTON (AP) — A jury's acquittal Wednesday of a former Houston police officer in the alleged beating of a 15-year-old burglary suspect during a videotaped arrest upset black community leaders who criticized the verdict as unjust and racist. ...Read More
Business raids cost Kansas City millions in taxes
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — The states of Missouri and Kansas are divided here only by the yellow stripe of State Line Road. It's a single community, but the division is sharp when it comes to the cutthroat business of economic development. ...Read More
Susan Powell looms over Wash. voyeurism conviction
TACOMA, Wash. (AP) — Inside the jury room, the case had nothing to do with Susan Powell. Outside, it was all about her. ...Read More
TB patient charged in Calif. for not taking meds
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Authorities in California took the unusual step of jailing and charging a tuberculosis patient who they say refused to take medication to keep his disease from becoming contagious. ...Read More
US lowers cutoff for lead poisoning in young kids
ATLANTA (AP) — For the first time in 20 years, U.S. health officials have lowered the threshold for lead poisoning in young children. ...Read More
Safety agency aims to stop bus, truck rollovers
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal regulators are proposing to require that manufacturers equip large trucks and buses with safety systems that help prevent rollover accidents. ...Read More
Ex-Houston cop not guilty in teen suspect beating
HOUSTON (AP) — A former Houston police officer was found not guilty Wednesday of official oppression in the videotaped beating of a 15-year-old burglary suspect, prompting an outraged response from black community leaders who called the verdict an injustice. ...Read More
Wis. GOP governor releases better jobs numbers
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Embattled Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker has released updated employment figures that show the state actually added a small number of jobs during his first year in office. ...Read More
FTC: Skechers deceived consumers with shoe ads
WASHINGTON (AP) — The government wants you to know that simply sporting a pair of Skechers' fitness shoes is not going to get you Kim Kardashian's curves or Brooke Burke's toned tush. ...Read More
Congress considers threats from airport employees
WASHINGTON (AP) — Commercial air travel is at risk from terrorists who quietly get jobs at airports so that they can attack from within sensitive areas, a senior Homeland Security Department official told lawmakers Wednesday. ...Read More
Ex-Houston cop acquitted in videotaped beating
HOUSTON (AP) — A jury has found a former Houston police officer not guilty of charges that he participated in the videotaped beating of a 15-year-old burglary suspect in 2010. ...Read More
Wisconsin governor releases better 2011 jobs data
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Republican Gov. Scott Walker released better 2011 jobs figures on Wednesday in an attempt to rebuff a central argument of those trying to recall him from office that Wisconsin's economy has suffered under his leadership. ...Read More
Safety to prevent bus, truck rollovers proposed
WASHINGTON (AP) — Manufacturers would have to equip large trucks and buses with safety systems that help prevent rollover accidents through computer-controlled braking, under new regulations proposed Wednesday by the government. ...Read More
End urged to terror suspects' indefinite detention
WASHINGTON (AP) — A bipartisan group of House lawmakers is challenging a new law that allows the indefinite detention without trial of suspected terrorists, even U.S. citizens seized within the United States. ...Read More
APNewsBreak: Suspect groom made odd phone call
CHICAGO (AP) — The sister of a bride found stabbed to death in suburban Chicago said her new brother-in-law called a relative on the day the body was found and said he left his new wife bleeding after a "bad fight." ...Read More
AP IMPACT: Evacs and drills pared near nuke plants
Without fanfare, the nation's nuclear power regulators have overhauled community emergency planning for the first time in more than three decades, requiring fewer exercises for major accidents and recommending that fewer people be evacuated right away. ...Read More
Students in tornado-hit Ind. town await 'Lady A'
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Tornadoes battered their school and homes, and spring break was spent cleaning up. Henryville has only begun to rebuild, but for one night, its high school students will get to put aside their worries for a private show by one of country music's biggest acts. ...Read More
Detective: Video shows Miss. murder-for-hire plan
GREENWOOD, Miss. (AP) — A well-known Mississippi oncologist accused of orchestrating a plot to kill his ex-wife's divorce lawyer said he wanted a picture of the slain attorney with a "bullet between his eyes," according to testimony Wednesday. ...Read More
911 tape: Confusion at home where mom shot kids
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — The neighbors of a Florida mother who fatally shot her four children before killing herself initially weren't sure who was shot when they heard gunshots and then found three of the woman's kids outside, according to a 911 call released Wednesday. ...Read More
Coffee buzz: Study finds java drinkers live longer
MILWAUKEE (AP) — One of life's simple pleasures just got a little sweeter. After years of waffling research on coffee and health, even some fear that java might raise the risk of heart disease, a big study finds the opposite: Coffee drinkers are a little more likely to live longer. Regular or decaf doesn't matter. ...Read More
No tears as Ga. woman sees bacteria-ravaged hands
SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — A Georgia graduate student fighting a rare flesh-eating infection has been looking at her ravaged hands and asking about the damage, all without tears, her father said Wednesday. ...Read More
Jury convicts Steve Powell of voyeurism charges
TACOMA, Wash. (AP) — A jury on Wednesday convicted Steve Powell on all 14 charges in a voyeurism case that stemmed from an investigation into the 2009 disappearance of his daughter-in-law Susan Powell, a Utah mother of two who has never been found. ...Read More
Healthy eating can cost less, study finds
WASHINGTON (AP) — Is it really more expensive to eat healthy? ...Read More
Army reviews whether women can go to Ranger school
WASHINGTON (AP) — Army leaders have begun to study the prospect of sending female soldiers to the service's prestigious Ranger school — another step in the effort to broaden opportunities for women in the military. ...Read More
AP: Killer of 3 says he considers requesting death
SOMERS, Conn. (AP) — A man on Connecticut's death row for the murder of a suburban mother and her two daughters says he believes the only way he will be put to death is if he volunteers for lethal injection. ...Read More
Obama calls on Congress to help small businesses
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner dug in Wednesday on their already hardened positions on tax increases versus spending cuts as the outlines of another dire debt ceiling showdown emerged. ...Read More
Obama warns against political disruption in Yemen
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama served notice Wednesday that he would punish those trying to disrupt the political transition in Yemen, a strategically important Middle Eastern nation, by freezing their U.S.-based assets. ...Read More
McNamee: Clemens, Canseco had steroids talk
WASHINGTON (AP) — Brian McNamee conceded that the first time Roger Clemens asked for help with a "booty shot," the pitcher did not specifically use the word "steroids." ...Read More
Death as bargaining chip? Ohio prosecutor slammed
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Within days of a drug-related slaying in suburban Cleveland, six men were indicted on charges that carried the possibility of a death sentence. Six months later, all had been allowed to plead to lesser charges, including four who received probation and never went to prison. ...Read More
San Diego jury convicts 2 in cartel-linked murders
SAN DIEGO (AP) — A jury convicted two men Wednesday on first-degree murder charges in the deaths of two men whose bodies were dissolved in acid for a Mexican drug gang. ...Read More
Paralyzed woman uses her mind to control robot arm
NEW YORK (AP) — Using only her thoughts, a Massachusetts woman paralyzed for 15 years directed a robotic arm to pick up a bottle of coffee and bring it to her lips, researchers report in the latest advance in harnessing brain waves to help disabled people. ...Read More
GI killed in Cambodia clash to get Medal of Honor
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is awarding the Medal of Honor to a Pennsylvania Army specialist killed in combat in 1970 while serving as a rifleman in Cambodia during the Vietnam War. ...Read More
Police: Cabbie likely sold ID to NJ airport worker
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — A New Jersey airport security supervisor accused of using a murdered man's identity to hide his illegal immigrant status apparently bought the man's birth certificate and Social Security number from an intermediary before his death, police said Wednesday. ...Read More
Study links vets to brain disease seen in athletes
WASHINGTON (AP) — A small study raises more concern about the long-term consequences of brain injuries suffered by thousands of soldiers — suggesting they may be at risk of developing the same degenerative brain disease as some retired football players. ...Read More
Senate Democrats reject House GOP budget plan
WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats controlling the Senate rejected for the second year in a row Wednesday a budget plan passed by House Republicans. ...Read More
GI killed in Cambodia clash awarded Medal of Honor
WASHINGTON (AP) — Leslie Sabo's Vietnam War ended in the flash of his own grenade, hurled at an enemy bunker in Cambodia to save surrounded comrades. Forty years later — and a dozen years after the long-lost paperwork turned up in military archives — he was honored by President Obama on Wednesday with the nation's highest award for gallantry. ...Read More
2 Navy ships collide in Pacific; no injuries
SAN DIEGO (AP) — A U.S. Navy amphibious assault ship and a refueling tanker collided in the Pacific Ocean on Wednesday, but there were no injuries and no fuel spills, the 3rd Fleet said. ...Read More
Lawyer: RFK Jr.'s estranged wife found dead in NY
NEW YORK (AP) — An attorney says Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s estranged wife has been found dead in New York. ...Read More
Questions linger for family of bride found stabbed
CHICAGO (AP) — Hours after police found Estrella Carrera stabbed to death in her bathtub, still clad in the silver sequined cocktail dress she wore to celebrate her wedding to her on-and-off boyfriend, her family received a haunting phone call from the groom's sister. ...Read More
TB patient charged in Calif for not taking meds
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Armando Rodriguez was warned several times to continue taking his tuberculosis medicine. ...Read More
NY autopsy Thursday for RFK Jr.'s estranged wife
BEDFORD, N.Y. (AP) — A suburban New York official says an autopsy will be conducted Thursday on the body of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s estranged wife. ...Read More
NKorea nuclear reactor construction progressing
WASHINGTON (AP) — A U.S.-based institute said Wednesday new satellite imagery shows that North Korea has resumed building work on a reactor after months of inactivity. ...Read More
NATO summit gives Chicago coveted global spotlight
CHICAGO (AP) — The famous skyline is etched with distinctive buildings. The downtown boasts a vibrant cultural district. And the stunning lakefront and art-filled parks attract thousands of visitors every day. ...Read More
Clemens accuser McNamee: 'I didn't make it up'
WASHINGTON (AP) — Roger Clemens' lawyer toyed with Brian McNamee's memory and attacked him from several directions at once. The attorney even put an easel next to the witness with the words: "MISTAKE. BAD MEMORY. LIE." Eventually, there came the inevitable question: "Do you sometimes just make stuff up?" ...Read More
