Former Senator Mitchell tapped to monitor Penn State

Former Senator Mitchell tapped to monitor Penn State
San Bernardino, California, files for bankruptcy with over $1 billion in debts
Thousands of Florida ex-felons may not know they can vote
Two sentenced in plot to smuggle guns to Mexico's Zetas cartel
Judge in George Zimmerman's Florida trial will not step down
Drew Peterson lawyers to decide on pursuing mistrial request
U.S. rule highlights Catholic tensions over contraception
U.S. appeals court blocks Arizona's new late-term abortion ban
Boston priest arrested on child pornography charges
San Antonio airport terminals reopened after bomb threat
U.S. cities increasingly segregated by income: study
Princeton scores straight A's as top U.S. college in new ranking
Due diligence on Dylan: writer found fraud in first chapter
Connecticut town ruled not liable in fatal 1997 shooting
Assured says Stockton bankruptcy plan unfair, favors Calpers
Due diligence on Dylan: writer found fraud in first chapter
Appeals court blocks Arizona's new late-term abortion ban
Senators blast House leaders over Postal Service default
Same-sex marriage foes flock to Chick-fil-A chain
Less rain for drought-hit crops in midday outlook
New York man set to plead guilty in butchering of eight-year-old boy: source
Maryland "joker" accused of making threats charged
Massachusetts lawmakers finalize major transport bill
Judge gets second mistrial request in Peterson murder trial
Cuba Gooding Jr. reports to police after New Orleans bar dispute
Companies add 163,000 jobs, but manufacturing falters
Friends, fans mourn death of author Gore Vidal
Congress urged to take steps to avert looming budget cut
U.S. rule highlights Catholic tensions over contraception
U.S. cities increasingly segregated by income: study
San Bernardino, California, files for bankruptcy with over $1 billion in debts
Two sentenced in plot to smuggle guns to Mexico's Zetas cartel
U.S. appeals court blocks Arizona's new late-term abortion ban
Thousands of Florida ex-felons may not know they can vote
Due diligence on Dylan: writer found fraud in first chapter
Assured says Stockton bankruptcy plan unfair, favors Calpers
U.S. rule highlights Catholic tensions over contraception
U.S. cities increasingly segregated by income: study
Drew Peterson lawyers to decide on pursuing mistrial request
Connecticut town ruled not liable in fatal 1997 shooting

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 02:42 PM PDT

(Reuters) - The governing body of U.S. college sports on Wednesday appointed former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell to monitor Penn State's compliance with sanctions it faces for failing to stop coach Jerry Sandusky's sexual abuse of children. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) said Mitchell would have access to the school's campus, personnel and records during his five-year appointment. He will make quarterly reports and can hire lawyers, investigators and experts to help monitor the school. ...

San Bernardino, California, files for bankruptcy with over $1 billion in debts

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 07:16 PM PDT

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - San Bernardino filed for bankruptcy protection on Wednesday citing more than $1 billion of debts and making it the third California city to seek protection from creditors. San Bernardino declared a fiscal crisis last month after a report said local government had tapped out its reserves and projected spending would top revenue by $45 million in the fiscal year that began on July 1. ...

Thousands of Florida ex-felons may not know they can vote

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 06:00 PM PDT

TALLAHASSEE, Florida (Reuters) - More than 13,000 ex-felons may be eligible to vote in Florida but don't know it because the notices the parole board mailed to them were returned as undeliverable, the American Civil Liberties Union said Wednesday. The civil rights group raised the concern after analyzing more than 17,000 names of ex-felons who had their voting rights automatically restored by the Florida Parole Commission. ...

Two sentenced in plot to smuggle guns to Mexico's Zetas cartel

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 07:05 PM PDT

MCALLEN, Texas (Reuters) - Two men were sentenced to 70 and 80 months in prison on Wednesday in a foiled plot to smuggle 147 assault rifles and thousands of rounds of ammunition to Mexico's Zetas drug cartel, federal officials in Texas said. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents seized the AK-47 rifles, 10,000 rounds of ammunition and 269 ammunition clips during an undercover investigation in May 2010, U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson said in a statement. ...

Judge in George Zimmerman's Florida trial will not step down

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 08:55 AM PDT

ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) - A Florida judge on Wednesday rejected a motion asking him to step down from the murder trial of George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch captain who killed unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin, ruling the defense request was "legally insufficient." Zimmerman's lawyer Mark O'Mara, in a motion filed July 13 asking the judge to step down, accused Judge Kenneth Lester of bias, citing what he called "gratuitous" and "disparaging remarks" Lester made in a July 5 ruling raising Zimmerman's bond from $150,000 to $1 million. ...

Drew Peterson lawyers to decide on pursuing mistrial request

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 03:39 PM PDT

JOLIET, Illinois (Reuters) - Defense attorneys will decide by Thursday morning whether to pursue a request for a mistrial for former Chicago-area police officer Drew Peterson, who is charged with killing his third wife. The defense asked for a mistrial on Wednesday, saying the prosecution had improperly introduced evidence. It was the second mistrial request in as many days in the murder trial before Will County Judge Edward Burmila. Defense lawyers want the charges against Peterson dropped and the judge to declare he cannot be retried on them. ...

U.S. rule highlights Catholic tensions over contraception

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 04:25 PM PDT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New rules requiring free access to prescription birth control for women with health insurance go into effect on Wednesday, but controversy lingers at some Catholic institutions struggling to balance the requirement with their opposition to contraception. At Georgetown University, the nation's oldest Catholic university, students and administration officials are still wrestling with the requirement to cover contraceptives as part of larger effort to expand no-cost preventive care for women. The requirement exempts churches and gives religious groups a one-year reprieve. ...

U.S. appeals court blocks Arizona's new late-term abortion ban

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 06:24 PM PDT

PHOENIX (Reuters) - A federal appeals court blocked Arizona on Wednesday from enforcing a new state ban on most late-term abortions that opponents say is the toughest in the nation, and agreed to an expedited review of the controversial measure. A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued the injunction two days after a federal judge upheld the ban and threw out a lawsuit brought against the Republican-backed law, which was due to go into effect on Thursday. ...

Boston priest arrested on child pornography charges

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 02:38 PM PDT

BOSTON (Reuters) - A South Boston priest was charged on Wednesday with possessing and distributing child pornography using a computer in his parish's rectory, authorities said. Andrew J. Urbaniak was arraigned in South Boston District Court on one count of possession of child pornography and one charge of distributing images of a child in the nude, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney's office. Police arrested Urbaniak, 39, at Our Lady of Czestochowa, a Polish church in the Archdiocese of Boston, on Tuesday. ...

San Antonio airport terminals reopened after bomb threat

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 03:26 PM PDT

SAN ANTONIO (Reuters) - The San Antonio International Airport was evacuated for about 90 minutes on Wednesday after a caller said three bombs were planted in a parking garage, but police did not find anything dangerous. "We have cleared all sections of the parking garage," San Antonio Police spokesman Sergeant Javier Salazar said. Police were on the scene investigating. The terminals were reopened around 4 p.m. local time. But airport officials said they believed it would take several hours for the flights to resume as scheduled because evacuated passengers have to go back through security. ...

U.S. cities increasingly segregated by income: study

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 04:23 PM PDT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. cities have become increasingly segregated by income since 1980, with the greatest divide in fast-growing Texas metropolitan areas, the Pew Research Center reported on Wednesday. This rising segregation is seen in 27 of the 30 biggest metropolitan areas and stems from the long-term increase in U.S. income inequality, Pew said in its study of Census data. Residential segregation by income is less widespread than segregation by race, even though U.S. black-white segregation has been falling for decades, the report said. ...

Princeton scores straight A's as top U.S. college in new ranking

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 10:19 AM PDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Princeton scores top marks and edged past Williams College in Massachusetts and California's Stanford University in a new ranking of the top colleges in the United States released on Wednesday. The New Jersey university topped the Forbes list, which assessed U.S. colleges based on their graduation rates, student outcomes and satisfaction, low levels of debt and post-graduate success. "Princeton does well across the board," said Michael Noer, Forbes executive editor. ...

Due diligence on Dylan: writer found fraud in first chapter

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 05:10 PM PDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Journalist Michael Moynihan did not have to read past the first chapter of writer Jonah Lehrer's best-selling book "Imagine: How Creativity Works" to realize the high-profile writer had fabricated some of its material, namely quotes from Bob Dylan. Yet even after Moynihan exposed Lehrer's misquotations, causing the 31-year-old Rhodes scholar, neuroscientist, columnist, and nonfiction writer to resign from a staff position at The New Yorker magazine and issue an apology this week, he is still mystified by Lehrer's reckless behavior. ...

Connecticut town ruled not liable in fatal 1997 shooting

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 03:36 PM PDT

BOSTON (Reuters) - A federal appeals court ruled on Wednesday that the town of East Haven, Connecticut, is not liable in the 1997 shooting death of Malik Jones, an unarmed black man, by a police officer. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit in New York overturned a lower court decision in favor of Jones' mother, Emma Jones. It had awarded her $900,000 in damages in 2010 for the death of her son, but the town of East Haven appealed. ...

Assured says Stockton bankruptcy plan unfair, favors Calpers

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 04:45 PM PDT

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Bond insurer Assured Guaranty, facing massive losses in Stockton, California's bankruptcy, on Wednesday said the largest U.S. public pension fund, Calpers, was getting preferential treatment among creditors. That may set the stage for a fight over whether cities in dire circumstances legally have the ability to change obligations under pension plan benefits agreed to in much better times. Calpers, the California Public Employees' Retirement System, so far has said that the cities don't have that ability. ...

Due diligence on Dylan: writer found fraud in first chapter

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 03:30 PM PDT

Appeals court blocks Arizona's new late-term abortion ban

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 04:06 PM PDT

Senators blast House leaders over Postal Service default

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 01:05 PM PDT

(Reuters) - Hours before the Postal Service's expected first-ever default on an obligation, senators blasted the Republican-led House of Representatives for not advancing legislation to overhaul the cash-strapped service before a month-long recess. The mail agency, which relies on the sale of stamps and other products rather than taxpayer dollars, confirmed this week that it could not make a $5.5 billion payment for future retiree health benefits that is due by midnight on Wednesday. ...

Same-sex marriage foes flock to Chick-fil-A chain

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 02:55 PM PDT

ATLANTA (Reuters) - Thousands of people across the United States heeded the call of two former Republican presidential candidates to eat at Chick-fil-A on Wednesday to show support for the chain restaurant as it weathers criticism for its president's public opposition to gay marriage. Business was so brisk at some of the privately owned chain's more than 1,600 locations that employees directed traffic in parking lots, lines remained long well past the lunch hour, and managers spoke of record sales. "I don't believe in same-sex marriage. ...

Less rain for drought-hit crops in midday outlook

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 10:50 AM PDT

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Rain is still forecast for next week in western portions of the drought-stressed U.S. Midwest but in lighter quantities than originally expected, an agricultural meteorologist said on Wednesday. "The biggest change is less rain in Iowa, northern Missouri, western Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin than earlier runs showed," said Drew Lerner, meteorologist for World Weather Inc. The worst drought in over half a century is ravaging crops across the U.S. ...

New York man set to plead guilty in butchering of eight-year-old boy: source

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 01:46 PM PDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A Brooklyn man was expected to plead guilty next week to butchering an 8-year-old boy who got lost while walking home alone from an Orthodox Jewish day camp, a source close to the case said on Wednesday. The tentative plea deal calls for Levi Aron, 36, to be sentenced to 40 years to life in prison when he appears in state Supreme Court in Brooklyn on August 9, the source said. Terms of the deal could change before then, the source said. ...

Maryland "joker" accused of making threats charged

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 02:20 PM PDT

(Reuters) - A Maryland man accused of threatening to shoot up his former workplace and calling himself "a joker", in an apparent reference to last month's shootings in Colorado, was charged on Wednesday with a misdemeanor. Neil Edwin Prescott was charged with misuse of telephone facilities and equipment, Prince George's County police and prosecutors told a news conference in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. The charge carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison and a fine of $500. ...

Massachusetts lawmakers finalize major transport bill

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 02:11 PM PDT

BOSTON (Reuters) - Massachusetts lawmakers on Tuesday finalized a $1.39 billion bill for transportation infrastructure projects, including highway and bridge repair and railway expansion. The bill was completed late on the final day of the legislature's two-year formal session and sent to Governor Deval Patrick on Wednesday. The bill authorizes $685 million in borrowing for highway and public transportation projects, which will be matched in part by federal funds. ...

Judge gets second mistrial request in Peterson murder trial

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 12:28 PM PDT

JOLIET, Illinois (Reuters) - Defense attorneys sought a mistrial on Wednesday for former Chicago-area police officer Drew Peterson, who is charged with killing his third wife, claiming the prosecution had improperly introduced evidence. It was the second mistrial request in as many days in the murder trial of Peterson before Judge Edward Burmila. Defense attorneys want the charges against Peterson dropped and the judge to declare that he cannot be retried on them. On Tuesday, Peterson's next-door neighbor, Thomas Pontarelli, testified that he found a . ...

Cuba Gooding Jr. reports to police after New Orleans bar dispute

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 12:52 PM PDT

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - An arrest warrant issued for Cuba Gooding Jr. was lifted on Wednesday after the "Jerry Maguire" actor met with police in New Orleans regarding an incident in which he allegedly pushed a female bartender. New Orleans police spokeswoman Remi Braden told Reuters that Gooding and his lawyer met with police on Wednesday and Gooding was summoned to appear in court at a later date. "There is no warrant. Mr. ...

Companies add 163,000 jobs, but manufacturing falters

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 12:17 PM PDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. companies hired more workers than expected in July, but continued weakness in the manufacturing sector pointed to sluggish economic growth. The economic recovery has lost steam in recent months as it has been buffeted by the euro zone debt crisis, a struggling U.S. labor market and concerns over higher taxes and government spending cuts that are set to take place early next year. Economists said Wednesday's data suggested further slow growth after a 1.5 percent growth rate in the second quarter, though the economy should avoid recession. ...

Friends, fans mourn death of author Gore Vidal

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 11:59 AM PDT

NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) - The death of author Gore Vidal at the age of 86 brought tributes from around the globe on Wednesday, as friends and fans mourned the passing of the man remembered as one of America's literary giants. Vidal, whose biting observations on politics, sex and American culture in novels, plays and essays made him one of the best-known authors of his generation, died at his home in Los Angeles on Tuesday of complications from pneumonia. ...

Congress urged to take steps to avert looming budget cut

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 10:22 AM PDT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Congress should stop fretting over the mechanics of implementing a huge, indiscriminate budget cut early next year and instead try to figure out how to avoid it by passing a more reasonable deal to reduce deficits, administration officials told lawmakers on Wednesday. Jeff Zients, acting director of the White House budget office, told lawmakers the cuts due to kick in on January 2 would be devastating for both defense and non-defense programs, causing 16,000 teachers and aides to lose their jobs and eliminating early childhood education for 100,000 youngsters. ...