Feds raid "Princeton of Pot" in California

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• Feds raid "Princeton of Pot" in California
• Procurement chief quits as agency accused of waste
• Timeline: Major U.S. school and college shootings
• Plan cuts California high-speed rail plan cost
• Ex-student kills seven, wounds three at California Christian college
• Florida shooter will surrender if charged: lawyer
• Detroit unions to end talks if state plan accepted
• Prosecutor denies interfering in Florida shooting case
• Gunman kills 7, wounds 3 at California Christian college
• Anti-Kony campaign in turmoil after filmmaker's breakdown
• Bankrupt processor cites "pink slime" uproar
• Prosecutor denies interfering in Florida shooting case
• Obama takes a shot at Supreme Court over healthcare
• Detroit unions to end talks if state plan accepted
• Feds raid "Princeton of Pot" in California
• Groupon settles coupon expiration lawsuits for $8.5 million
• Florida shooter will surrender if charged: lawyer
• Supreme Court upholds jail strip searches
• JetBlue midair meltdown pilot hears charges
• Government sees lifetime cost of F-35 fighter at $1.51 trillion
• U.S. airline performance improving, report says
• Romney set to beat Santorum in Wisconsin primary: poll
• Agents arrest more than 3,000 criminal immigrants in sweep
• Detroit unions do not want more negotiations
• Small device detonates outside Wisconsin Planned Parenthood clinic
• Supreme court: immunity for witness grand jury testimony
• Supreme Court upholds jail strip-searches
• Weather Service to test more graphic tornado warnings
• Calling America's builders: Australia needs you!
• Coast Guard rescues two hurt from round-the-world yacht

Feds raid "Princeton of Pot" in California Posted: OAKLAND, California (Reuters) - Federal agents searched a cannabis cultivation college known as the "Princeton of Pot" and briefly detained its founder at his home in a series of raids on Wednesday in a U.S. government clamp-down on medical marijuana. The sweep turned Oaksterdam University, which offers courses in the growing and dispensing of marijuana, into the latest flashpoint between federal law enforcement and medical cannabis advocates in California and other states where pot has been decriminalized for medicinal purposes. ...

Procurement chief quits as agency accused of waste Posted: WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The head of the government's federal procurement office is resigning and two senior officials have been dismissed ahead of a report criticizing the agency's lavish spending on an "over the top" training conference, the White House said on Monday. Many expenditures by the General Services Administration for the October 2010 conference at a resort outside Las Vegas were "excessive and wasteful" and violated the agency's own policies, said a report by the GSA's Office of Inspector General. ...

Timeline: Major U.S. school and college shootings Posted: (Reuters) - A gunman opened fire at a private Christian college in California on Monday, killing at least seven people and wounding three others, after telling former classmates to "get in line, I'm going to kill you all. Here is a timeline of major U.S. school and university shootings and other violence: -- CHARDON, Ohio, February 27, 2012 - A student opened fire in a cafeteria at Chardon High School, killing three students and injuring two others before he was arrested. ...

Plan cuts California high-speed rail plan cost Posted: SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - California officials on Monday unveiled a major overhaul of a controversial plan to build a high-speed rail system in the state, slashing the cost by some $30 billion, to $68.4 billion, and addressing other criticisms of the massive project. The new plan must now receive a final blessing from the California High Speed Rail Authority before going to the state legislature, which has to approve the release of the first chunk of the nearly $10 billion in rail bond funds voters approved in 2008. ...

Ex-student kills seven, wounds three at California Christian college Posted: OAKLAND, California (Reuters) - A former student opened fire at a private Christian college in California on Monday, killing at least seven people and wounding three others after telling old classmates: "get in line ... I'm going to kill you all." A suspect in what was the deadliest U.S. school shooting in five years was arrested at a store several miles away from the scene of the shooting at Oakland's Oikos University. ...

Florida shooter will surrender if charged: lawyer Posted: SANFORD, Florida (Reuters) - George Zimmerman will surrender to authorities if he is charged in the shooting death of unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin, his attorney said on Monday. "If he's charged, he will be arrested and he will turn himself in," attorney Craig Sonner told Reuters in a telephone interview. "However it goes, he's not hiding from the authorities. If he is asked, he will turn himself in. There's not going to be a manhunt or anything like that." Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer, fatally shot Martin on the night of February 26, saying he had acted in self defense. ...

Detroit unions to end talks if state plan accepted Posted: DETROIT (Reuters) - Detroit's public employee unions will not negotiate more cost-cutting agreements with the city if it agrees to a state-mandated financial plan designed to stop Detroit from running out of money, the head of a major union said on Monday. The financial stability agreement drafted by Michigan Governor Rick Snyder's administration would require significantly deeper concessions from city unions than have already been agreed to. Opposition to the plan has come as the city's elected leaders and state-appointed officials try to agree on Snyder's financial plan for Detroit. ...

Prosecutor denies interfering in Florida shooting case Posted: SANFORD, Florida (Reuters) - A Florida prosecutor who removed himself from the investigation into the shooting death of black teenager Trayvon Martin denied on Monday that he quashed police intentions to charge the shooter with manslaughter. State Attorney Norm Wolfinger asked the U.S. Justice Department civil rights division to disregard a letter it received from lawyers for Martin's family which referred to reports that Wolfinger interfered in the police investigation. The letter contained "outright lies," Wolfinger said. ...

Gunman kills 7, wounds 3 at California Christian college Posted: OAKLAND, California (Reuters) - A gunman opened fire at a private Christian college in California on Monday, killing at least seven people and wounding three others after telling former classmates to "get in line ... I'm going to kill you all." A suspect in what was the deadliest U.S. school shooting in five years was later arrested at a shopping mall several miles away from the scene of the shooting at Oakland's Oikos University, which appears to cater largely to the area's Korean community. ...

Anti-Kony campaign in turmoil after filmmaker's breakdown Posted: LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The public meltdown of the man behind the viral "Kony 2012" video has thrown his campaign into turmoil even as the film succeeded in turning the world's attention to capturing an elusive and brutal Ugandan warlord. Jason Russell, whose 30-minute video sensation shone a spotlight on Joseph Kony's use of child soldiers in Uganda, was taken by police to a hospital in California last week after suffering what doctors described as a brief psychotic breakdown. ...

Bankrupt processor cites "pink slime" uproar Posted: (Reuters) - Ground beef processor AFA Foods filed for bankruptcy protection on Monday, citing the impact of the uproar over a meat filler dubbed "pink slime" by critics. Meat processors have faced a backlash over the use of an ammonia-treated beef filler they call "finely textured beef." Food activists have campaigned to have it banned, but supporters say the product is safe to eat. AFA is one of the largest ground beef processors in the United States and produces more than 500 million pounds of ground beef products annually, the company said in documents filed in U.S. ...

Prosecutor denies interfering in Florida shooting case Posted: SANFORD, Florida (Reuters) - A Florida prosecutor who removed himself from the investigation into the shooting death of black teenager Trayvon Martin denied on Monday that he quashed police intentions to charge the shooter with manslaughter. State Attorney Norm Wolfinger asked the U.S. Justice Department civil rights division to disregard a letter it received from lawyers for Martin's family which referred to reports that Wolfinger interfered in the police investigation. The letter contained "outright lies," Wolfinger said. ...

Obama takes a shot at Supreme Court over healthcare Posted: WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama took an opening shot at conservative justices on the Supreme Court on Monday, warning that a rejection of his sweeping healthcare law would be an act of "judicial activism" that Republicans say they abhor. Obama, a Democrat, had not commented publicly on the Supreme Court's deliberations since it heard arguments for and against the healthcare law last week. Known as the "Affordable Care Act" or "Obamacare," the measure to expand health insurance for millions of Americans is considered Obama's signature domestic policy achievement. ...

Detroit unions to end talks if state plan accepted Posted: DETROIT (Reuters) - Detroit's public employee unions will not negotiate more cost-cutting agreements with the city if it agrees to a state-mandated financial plan designed to stop Detroit from running out of money, the head of a major city union said on Monday. The financial stability agreement drafted by Michigan Governor Rick Snyder's administration would require significantly deeper concessions from city unions than have already been agreed to. Opposition to the plan has come as the city's elected leaders and state-appointed officials work to agree on Snyder's financial plan for Detroit. ...

Feds raid "Princeton of Pot" in California Posted: OAKLAND, California (Reuters) - Federal agents raided a cannabis cultivation college on Monday in the San Francisco Bay area widely known as the "Princeton of Pot" and the "Harvard of Hemp," authorities said, as the U.S. government pressed its clamp-down on medical marijuana. The sweep turned the college, which offers courses in the growing and dispensing of marijuana, into the latest flashpoint between federal law enforcement and medical cannabis advocates in California and other states where pot has been decriminalized for medicinal purposes. ...

Groupon settles coupon expiration lawsuits for $8.5 million Posted: (Reuters) - Groupon Inc, which runs the world's largest online coupon site, has agreed to an $8.5 million settlement of nationwide litigation alleging the expiration dates on its coupons are illegal. The settlement resolves 17 lawsuits that had been combined in a federal court in San Diego and which accused the Chicago-based company and retailers it works with of violating federal and state consumer protection laws. ...

Florida shooter will surrender if charged: lawyer Posted: SANFORD, Florida (Reuters) - George Zimmerman will surrender to authorities if he is charged in the shooting death of unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin, his attorney said on Monday. "If he's charged, he will be arrested and he will turn himself in," attorney Craig Sonner told Reuters in a telephone interview. "However it goes, he's not hiding from the authorities. If he is asked, he will turn himself in. There's not going to be a manhunt or anything like that." Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer, fatally shot Martin on the night of February 26, saying he had acted in self defense. ...

Supreme Court upholds jail strip searches Posted: WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Supreme Court on Monday upheld strip searches of new jail inmates, even those arrested for minor traffic offenses, ruling that security concerns outweigh personal privacy rights. By a 5-4 vote, splitting along conservative-liberal ideological lines, the high court rejected the argument that the searches violated privacy rights and cited concerns by jailers about a suspect hiding drugs, weapons or other contraband. ...

JetBlue midair meltdown pilot hears charges Posted: AMARILLO, Texas (Reuters) - The JetBlue pilot who suffered a midair meltdown that triggered an emergency landing last week limped into federal court in shackles on Monday to hear the charges against him. Captain Clayton Osbon, who appeared with his attorneys, told Magistrate Judge Clinton Averitte he understood his rights and the charges against him for interfering with a flight crew. "I do," said Osbon, who was wearing a green collared shirt and khaki pants. A preliminary hearing and a detention hearing were scheduled for Thursday. ...

Government sees lifetime cost of F-35 fighter at $1.51 trillion Posted: WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The government now projects that the total cost to develop, buy and operate the Lockheed Martin Corp F-35 Joint Strike Fighter will be $1.51 trillion over the next 50-plus years, according to a Pentagon document obtained by Reuters. The Pentagon's latest, staggering estimate of the lifetime cost of the F-35 -- its most expensive weapons program -- is up from about $1.38 trillion a year ago, and includes inflation. ...

U.S. airline performance improving, report says Posted: (Reuters) - U.S. airlines are doing a better job in overall performance, improving on-time arrivals and handling of lost bags, while drawing fewer customer complaints, an annual report based on federal data shows. An analysis of U.S. Department of Transportation airline performance data shows that the industry's overall quality rating improved to -1.08 in 2011 from -1.20 in 2010. The rankings are based on four factors: On-time performance, denied boardings, mishandled baggage and customer complaints. Dean Headley, associate professor at the W. ...

Romney set to beat Santorum in Wisconsin primary: poll Posted: WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney appeared set to defeat his chief rival Rick Santorum in the Wisconsin primary on Tuesday, according to a Public Policy Polling survey. A win there for Romney would be another nail in the coffin for Santorum, a former senator for Pennsylvania and staunch conservative. As the primary contests enter their fourth month, Santorum is facing pressure from some Republicans to bow out of the race to be the party's nominee to oppose President Barack Obama in November. ...

Agents arrest more than 3,000 criminal immigrants in sweep Posted: WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Agents arrested 3,168 people in the biggest sweep of an operation targeting criminal and fugitive immigrants for deportation, immigration officials said on Monday. The roundup last week was the third "Cross Check" sweep since May 2011. It brought to more than 10,000 the number of foreign lawbreakers or repeat immigration offenders arrested in national and regional operations, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director John Morton said. "These are people we do not want roaming our streets," he said at a news conference. The arrests are part of a U.S. ...

Detroit unions do not want more negotiations Posted: DETROIT (Reuters) - The head of one of Detroit's major unions said on Monday that union leaders will not negotiate more cost-cutting agreements with the city if elected officials agree to a so-called consent agreement financial plan with the state of Michigan. A tough stance by union officials could make it much more difficult for city leaders trying to fix Detroit's fiscal crisis without the intervention of a state-appointed emergency manager, who has far more legal dispensation to make unilateral changes to contracts. Most of the city's labor contracts expire June 30. ...

Small device detonates outside Wisconsin Planned Parenthood clinic Posted: MILWAUKEE (Reuters) - A small explosive device detonated outside a Planned Parenthood clinic in a small town about 100 miles north of Milwaukee on Sunday night, causing minimal damage from a small fire, but no injuries, local authorities said on Monday. The device appeared to be homemade and was placed on a window sill at the Appleton North Health Center in Grand Chute, Wisconsin, and exploded at about 7:30 p.m. Sunday, police said in a statement. The clinic offers abortion and emergency contraception services, according to its website. ...

Supreme court: immunity for witness grand jury testimony Posted: WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Supreme Court ruled on Monday that a government investigator who initiates a criminal case against a private individual and later lies to a grand jury still has immunity from a civil lawsuit over his testimony. The high court justices unanimously handed a defeat to a Georgia accountant who wanted to proceed with his lawsuit seeking damages from a government official who was the chief investigator for a local prosecutor. ...

Supreme Court upholds jail strip-searches Posted: WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Monday that jails do not violate privacy rights by routinely strip-searching everyone, even those arrested on minor traffic offenses. By a 5-4 vote and splitting along conservative-liberal ideological lines, the high court ruled that privacy rights involving the searches were outweighed by security concerns by jails about a suspect hiding drugs, weapons or other contraband. ...

Weather Service to test more graphic tornado warnings Posted: (Reuters) - The National Weather Service on Monday plans to begin a new initiative in Kansas and Missouri designed to make people in Tornado Alley sit up and take notice when potentially devastating twisters are headed their way. Under the new system, tornado warnings will be accompanied by stark language like, "mass devastation is highly likely, making the area unrecognizable to survivors," according to the National Weather Service. Or even: "This storm is not survivable. ...

Calling America's builders: Australia needs you! Posted: CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia has made a plea for American plumbers, electricians and builders to move downunder to fill chronic shortages of skilled workers as the economy struggles to keep up with a resources boom fuelled by demand from China. Industry projections from Australia's employment department show Australia will need 1.3 million extra workers over the next five years, including almost 200,000 more workers for the construction sector. Australia will also need around 320,000 more health care and social assistance workers. ...

Coast Guard rescues two hurt from round-the-world yacht Posted: (Reuters) - The Coast Guard rescued two seriously injured British crew members from an Australian yacht taking part in an around-the-world race on Sunday after it was hit by a huge wave in the Pacific. Four of 13 crew members, three of them Britons and the other an Australian, were hurt when the wave hit the Geraldton Western Australia on Saturday about 400 nautical miles off the Californian coast. The wave disabled the yacht's main steering and some of its communications equipment, Coast Guard and race officials said. ...

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