White House back to normal after security lockdown

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A brief, partial lockdown at the White House was lifted on Monday after a metal object tossed over the fence was tested and determined not to be dangerous, the U.S. Secret Service said.

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Illinois legislature overrides veto of bill to ease Chicago pension payments

CHICAGO (Reuters) - A bill to spread out Chicago's payments to its public safety workers' pension will become law after the Illinois House and Senate on Monday overrode the governor's veto.

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Suspected shark attacks in Florida, California over holiday weekend

(Reuters) - Two people were injured in suspected shark attacks in Florida and California over the U.S. Memorial Day holiday weekend, but beachgoers returned to nearby ocean waters on Monday, officials said.

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NBA player Bryce Dejean-Jones killed in Dallas shooting

(Reuters) - Rookie New Orleans Pelicans basketball player Bryce Dejean-Jones died after being shot early on Saturday when he broke into a Dallas apartment, authorities said.

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Killing of gorilla to save boy at Ohio zoo sparks outrage

(Reuters) - The killing of a gorilla at the Cincinnati Zoo after a 4-year-old boy tumbled into the ape's enclosure triggered outrage and questions about safety, but zoo officials called the decision to use lethal force a tough but necessary choice.

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Two people, including one suspect, dead in Houston shooting: police

(Reuters) - One suspect was dead and a second was wounded in a shooting in Houston, while another person was found dead in a vehicle, police said on Sunday.

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Georgia sheriff's deputy shot and wounded during traffic stop

(Reuters) - A sheriff's deputy was shot and wounded in the face on Saturday during a traffic stop in Georgia, authorities said.

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Flint, Michigan, pipe-replacement cost nearly doubles: newspaper

(Reuters) - The cost of replacing water lines in Flint, Michigan, has nearly doubled amid a health crisis from high lead levels in drinking water, the Detroit Free Press reported on Saturday.

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Bathroom lawsuit could send transgender rights to Supreme Court

(Reuters) - A lawsuit brought by Texas and other states against the Obama administration's policy on bathroom access may move the United States closer to a resolution on transgender rights by putting the issue on a trajectory for the Supreme Court.

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Florida man arrested for fatal shooting of woman in front of children

(Reuters) - A Florida man accused of fatally shooting a mother in front of her children and later wounding his former boss, was arrested by a SWAT team after a seven-hour standoff with police in an Orlando suburb, authorities said.

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Slaying of Colorado prison chief ordered by neo-Nazi gang - report

DENVER (Reuters) - The murder of Colorado's prison chief by a white supremacist ex-convict in 2013 was ordered by leaders of a neo-Nazi gang, the Denver Post reported on Friday, citing newly released documents.

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First 2016 U.S. tropical storm warning issued for South Carolina

(Reuters) - A tropical storm warning, the year's first for the United States, was issued on Friday by the National Weather Service for the coast of South Carolina, five days before the official start of the Atlantic hurricane season.

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At least two killed, others missing in Texas flooding

(Reuters) - At least two people person were killed and three others missing on Friday as record rainfall and severe flooding hit hard parts of southeast Texas, officials said.

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U.S. judge sentences Vietnamese man to 40 years for al Qaeda affiliate support

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A Vietnamese-born man who U.S. authorities say was instructed by a top figure with al Qaeda's Yemen affiliate to carry out a suicide attack at London's Heathrow Airport was sentenced on Friday to 40 years in prison.

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Dr. Heimlich, 96, saves choking woman with namesake maneuver

(Reuters) - Dr. Henry Heimlich, the 96-year-old Cincinnati surgeon credited with inventing the lifesaving technique named for him, used it for the first time this week to save a fellow senior center resident who was choking on a hamburger, a center spokesman said on Friday.

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Man killed by more than 1,000 bee stings in Arizona park

(Reuters) - A 23-year-old man who set out for a peaceful hike in an Arizona park died after being stung by more than 1,000 bees, a swarm so threatening it thwarted rescuers' repeated attempts to reach him.

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Virginia taxi driver indicted for conspiracy to support Islamic State

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Virginia taxi driver was indicted by a federal grand jury on Thursday for conspiring to support Islamic State, the Justice Department said on Friday.

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California mayors ask for governor's support for highway cameras after shootings

(Reuters) - Five mayors in northern California on Thursday asked Governor Jerry Brown in a letter to have surveillance cameras installed on state highways in the area after a string of shootings that have gripped their communities.

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Mother of Texas 'affluenza' teen indicted for money laundering

FORT WORTH, Texas (Reuters) - The mother of a Texas teenager who used an "affluenza" defense after killing four people in a 2013 drunken-driving crash was formally charged with money laundering on Thursday, related to her helping him flee to Mexico last year, her attorney said.

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Contestants from Texas, N.Y. state co-champs of U.S. Spelling Bee

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. (Reuters) - Nihar Janga, a fifth-grader from Austin, Texas, and Jairam Hathwar, a seventh-grader from Painted Post, New York, were declared co-champions of the U.S. Scripps National Spelling Bee on Thursday.

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Secret Service punishes 41 over leak of lawmaker's data

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Forty-one U.S. Secret Service employees have been disciplined over a media leak of the personal files of a congressman who had criticized the agency's security lapses, the Department of Homeland Security said on Thursday.

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Two deputies plead not guilty in videotaped San Francisco beating

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Two San Francisco-area sheriff's deputies pleaded not guilty on Thursday to felony assault charges stemming from the brutal beating of a suspect last year that was captured on video.

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About two dozen trapped in Kentucky cave

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Reuters) - Nearly two dozen people were trapped in a Kentucky cave on Thursday due to flash flooding, according to police and local media.

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Mississippi governor to join suit against Obama transgender policy

(Reuters) - Mississippi's Republican governor said on Thursday he planned to join a lawsuit by officials from 11 states to overturn an Obama administration directive that tells schools to let transgender students use bathrooms matching their gender identity.

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Airport screening made 70,000 miss American Airlines flights this year

(Reuters) - Airport screening delays have caused more than 70,000 American Airlines customers and 40,000 checked bags to miss their flights this year, an executive for the airline told a U.S. congressional subcommittee on Thursday.

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Two U.S. Navy jets collide off North Carolina, crew safe: officials

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two U.S. Navy jets collided while airborne on Thursday off the North Carolina coast, and all four crew members were recovered safely, U.S. officials said.

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'Saved by the Bell' actor Dustin Diamond back in jail over probation

(Reuters) - The actor known for playing the character "Screech" in the 1990s U.S. TV sitcom "Saved by the Bell" was back in a Wisconsin jail on Thursday, accused of violating probation after being freed last month following a conviction over a stabbing, officials said.

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U.S. Virgin Islands sues Takata, Honda over airbags

(Reuters) - The U.S. Virgin Islands sued Takata Corp and Honda Motor Co late Wednesday over the sale of millions of recalled airbags linked to deadly ruptures, seeking civil penalties and other penalties.

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One dead, three wounded in shooting at N.Y.C. rap concert

(Reuters) - Police on Thursday were investigating a shooting that left one man dead and three other people wounded shortly before a concert by rapper T.I. in lower Manhattan.

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Man killed, three hurt in shooting at New York rap concert

(Reuters) - At least one person was killed and three wounded on Wednesday in a shooting during a rap concert in New York city, police said, with screaming concertgoers scattering in a chaotic scene captured on social media.

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Ohio legislature votes to allow limited medical marijuana use

CLEVELAND (Reuters) - Lawmakers in Ohio on Wednesday approved legislation that would legalize marijuana use for medical purposes under certain circumstances, less than a year after recreational marijuana use was soundly defeated by Ohio voters.

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Kentucky judge rules Louisville can remove Confederate monument

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Reuters) - The city of Louisville, Kentucky can remove a 121-year-old monument to Confederate soldiers that critics have objected to as an emblem of slavery, a state judge ruled on Wednesday.

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South Carolina governor to sign ban on abortion past 19 weeks

CHARLESTON, Texas (Reuters) - Republican South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley on Wednesday signed into law a bill banning most abortions after 19 weeks of pregnancy unless the mother's life is at risk, a spokesperson told Reuters on Wednesday.

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U.S. opposes $50 million bail for Turkish-Iranian gold trader

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. prosecutors on Wednesday opposed a Turkish-Iranian gold trader's request to be released on bail while he awaits trial for conspiring to violate U.S. sanctions against Iran, saying his vast wealth makes him a flight risk.

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Wisconsin appeals court grants stay, reinstates right-to-work law

(Reuters) - A Wisconsin state appeals court has reinstated a right-to-work law that was struck down by a lower court that said it was unconstitutional, granting a stay while the earlier ruling is appealed, the state's attorney general said.

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Senators urge House to move on aviation security bill

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The top members of the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee have urged their counterparts in the House of Representatives to move forward on Senate legislation to boost aviation security and authorize the programs of the Federal Aviation Administration.

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U.S. airports still understaffed for peak travel: TSA head

(Reuters) - The U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is taking steps to shorten airport lines including moving officers to different posts, but still lacks the staffing to handle peak travel times, Administrator Peter Neffenger said in a Congressional hearing Wednesday.

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Tornados, storms hit U.S. Great Plains, injure two in Kansas

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Two people were critically injured and buildings were damaged on Tuesday in southwest Kansas as several tornados and storms hit the U.S. Great Plains, a local official and a meteorologist said on Wednesday.

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San Francisco lawmakers vote to uphold sanctuary city policy

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Lawmakers in San Francisco voted to uphold the "sanctuary city" policy on Tuesday, almost a year after San Francisco was flung into a national debate about immigration after an undocumented immigrant was charged in the fatal shooting of a woman.

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Acquittal in Freddie Gray case will not alter Maryland prosecutors' strategy

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Prosecutors of Baltimore police officers charged in the death of black detainee Freddie Gray will likely stick to their arguments of illegal arrest and causing criminal injury in a transport van even though an officer was acquitted in the case this week, legal experts said.

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Ferguson city attorney steps down after criticism

(Reuters) - The city attorney for Ferguson, Missouri, who was criticized in a U.S. Justice Department report on policing in the town, said on Tuesday she is stepping down.

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Texas teen sentenced to 38 years for murdering Iraqi immigrant

DALLAS (Reuters) - A Dallas jury sentenced a teenager to 38 years in prison on Tuesday for murdering an Iraqi immigrant as he took family pictures while experiencing snow for the first time.

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Two FBI agents shot while serving warrant outside of Chicago

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Two FBI agents were shot and wounded in a Chicago suburb on Tuesday as they tried to arrest an alleged gang member wanted for dealing drugs, and the suspect was killed, the FBI and local media said.

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Houston police investigating bomb threat on Delta plane

(Reuters) - Houston police dispatched a bomb squad on Tuesday to George Bush Intercontinental Airport to investigate a possible bomb threat against a Delta Air Lines plane, a police spokesman said.

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Cosby to return to court in criminal sexual assault case

(Reuters) - Bill Cosby was set to return to criminal court on Tuesday for the first time since his lawyers' failed effort to have the sexual assault charges against him thrown out.

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Head of security for TSA removed from post

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The head of security for the U.S. Transportation Security Administration has been removed from his position, according to an internal TSA memo on Monday seen by Reuters, after the agency was criticized for long lines at airport security checkpoints.

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Financial tech startups compete for overlooked U.S. immigrant market

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - For two decades, Noe Sanchez sent money from California to his father in Mexico City through storefront outlets of traditional remittance firms such as Western Union.

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Planned Parenthood sued over Colorado abortion clinic shooting

DENVER (Reuters) - The widow of a man fatally shot at a Planned Parenthood abortion clinic in Colorado and a woman wounded in the same 2015 attack are suing the facility over lax security, court records showed on Monday.

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U.S. e-cigarette use stalls as health concerns grow: Reuters/Ipsos poll

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Use of electronic cigarettes and other vaping devices has stalled in the United States as more Americans question their safety, according to a new online Reuters/Ipsos poll.

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Judge halts Ohio law that blocked funds for Planned Parenthood

CLEVELAND (Reuters) - A federal judge in Cincinnati temporarily blocked the implementation of a state law that would have effectively de-funded 28 Ohio Planned Parenthood clinics, in a ruling on Monday.

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Sanders rejects deal on Puerto Rico, offers alternative

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidate and U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders on Monday rejected a bipartisan deal reached in the House of Representative on legislation to address Puerto Rico's debt crisis, calling it a concession to Wall Street.

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Baltimore police officer acquitted in Freddie Gray death

BALTIMORE (Reuters) - Baltimore police officer Edward Nero was acquitted on Monday of all charges in the 2015 death of black detainee Freddie Gray, an incident that triggered rioting and protests and fueled the Black Lives Matter movement.

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U.S. justices rule against Virginia Republicans in black voters case

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday left in place a lower court's ruling that said Virginia's Republican-led legislature unlawfully considered race when drawing U.S. congressional districts by packing black voters into one of them.

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U.S. top court rules for Georgia black death row inmate

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday ruled in favor of a black Georgia death row inmate convicted of murdering an elderly white woman in a 1987 trial, finding that prosecutors unlawfully excluded black jury candidates in selecting an all-white jury.

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U.S. states on Zika's frontline see big gaps in funding, expertise

(Reuters) - In Mississippi, a small team of entomologists has begun the first survey of mosquito populations in decades. Experts do not believe the kind of mosquitoes most likely to carry the Zika virus are active in the state, but they cannot know for sure.

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Twenty injured in southern California bus accident

(Reuters) - Twenty people were injured when the bus carrying them rolled over on a highway in southern California on Sunday, authorities said.

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Uber deal shows divide in labor's drive for role in 'gig economy'

(Reuters) - The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers trumpeted an agreement reached earlier this month to represent New York Uber drivers, saying it "gives organized labor an opportunity to shape the new economy in a way that supports and values workers and their families."

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Former Megadeth drummer dies after collapsing during Los Angeles gig

(Reuters) - Nick Menza, a former drummer for the heavy metal band Megadeth, died at age 51 after collapsing on stage at a Los Angeles club late on Saturday, a family spokesman said on Sunday.

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Manhunt underway for suspect in Massachusetts cop killing

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A manhunt was underway on Sunday in central Massachusetts for a gunman who shot and killed a police officer during a traffic stop just after midnight, state police said.

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Solar plane lands in Dayton, Ohio on latest leg of round-the-world flight

(Reuters) - An experimental airplane powered solely by energy from the sun landed in Ohio on Saturday night on the latest leg of its historic bid by pilots and developers to fly around the globe without a drop of fuel.

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'ET Comes Home' for NASA fuel tank's street ride through LA

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A giant NASA fuel tank crossed the half-way mark in its final journey on Saturday, with crowds cheering on its parade along Los Angeles streets to a science center where it will go on display with the space shuttle Endeavour.

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Man shot dead at famed Buffalo bar: police

(Reuters) - A gunman killed a man and wounded another on Friday in the famed New York state bar credited with inventing the spicy "Buffalo Wings" snack, police and media said.

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Gun used to kill Trayvon Martin sold for $250,000: TV reports

(Reuters) - George Zimmerman said he has sold the gun he used to kill unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin in Florida in 2012 for $250,000, television stations in Orlando and Las Vegas reported on Friday.

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Secret Service shoots gun-wielding man near White House

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. Secret Service agent shot a man who brandished a gun near the White House on Friday while President Barack Obama was out golfing, and the man was taken to a hospital in critical condition, officials said.

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Oklahoma governor vetoes bill to jail abortion doctors

(Reuters) - Oklahoma's Republican Governor Mary Fallin vetoed a bill calling for prison terms of up the three years for doctors who performed abortions, saying the legislation would not withstand a criminal constitutional legal challenge, her office said on Friday.

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Audit of U.S. Catholic church shows sharp spike in sex abuse reports

BOSTON (Reuters) - An annual audit of reports of sexual abuse by members of the U.S. Roman Catholic clergy released on Friday showed sharp increases in the number of new claims and in the value of settlements to victims.

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Oklahoma introduces measure to impeach Obama over bathroom rights

OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) - Oklahoma's Republican-dominated legislature has filed a measure calling for President Barack Obama's impeachment over his administration's recommendations on accommodating transgender students, saying he overstepped his constitutional authority.

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CDC says 157 pregnant women in U.S. infected with Zika

(Reuters) - Some 157 pregnant women in the United States and another 122 in U.S. territories, primarily Puerto Rico, have tested positive for infection with the Zika virus, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday.

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U.S. targets spying threat on campus with proposed research clampdown

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Leading U.S. universities are pushing back against a proposed State Department rule that would bar foreign students from more research projects and classes involving information seen as vital to national security.

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Lawmakers vote down LGBT rights measure

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Shouts of "Shame, shame, shame," erupted in the U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday as Republican lawmakers narrowly defeated legislation to protect the civil rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees of government contractors.

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7-Eleven worker becomes first woman to climb Everest seven times

KATHMANDU (Reuters) - A 42-year-old woman born in Nepal climbed Mount Everest for the seventh time on Friday, breaking her own record for the most summits of the world's highest mountain by any woman, a hiking official said.

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Oklahoma bungled drugs used in executions: grand jury report

(Reuters) - An Oklahoma grand jury looking into the state's troubled executions said in a report released on Thursday that jail staff did not verify what drugs they were using for lethal injections and were unaware when the wrong drugs were administered.

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Cinemark theater chain not liable in 2012 Colorado movie massacre

DENVER (Reuters) - The owners of a Colorado movie theater where a gunman killed 12 people during the screening of a Batman film in 2012 are not liable for the mass shooting, a jury ruled on Thursday, in the first civil lawsuit stemming from the incident.

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Phoenix police officer shot by suspect dies of gunshot wounds

PHOENIX (Reuters) - A Phoenix police officer died on Thursday of wounds he sustained while exchanging gunfire with a burglary suspect, authorities said.

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San Francisco police fatally shoot black woman

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A black woman was fatally shot on Thursday by a San Francisco police officer checking on a stolen vehicle, marking another killing for a department faced with public outrage over fatal police shootings and a federal review.

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Grammar fail, or do Texas Republicans believe most Texans are gay?

AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - A Texas-based LGBT advocacy helped spark a grammar debate this week over whether an errant comma in the stridently anti-homosexual Republican Party of Texas platform can be read as saying the majority of Texans are gay.

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U.S. House panel delivers Puerto Rico crisis bill, debt looms

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers on Thursday began coalescing around revised bipartisan legislation to help address Puerto Rico's unpayable debt burden that now threatens a full-blown humanitarian crisis.

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Oklahoma bill to jail abortion doctors heads to governor

OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) - An Oklahoma bill that could send any doctor who performs an abortion to jail headed to the governor on Thursday, with opponents saying the measure is unconstitutional and promising a legal battle against the cash-strapped state if it is approved.

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More commuter trains restored to NY's Grand Central Terminal

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Commuter trains in and out of New York City's Grand Central Terminal, disrupted by a fire earlier this week, operated on an enhanced weekend schedule on Thursday after the third of four tracks was brought back into service, officials said.

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Closing arguments set for Baltimore cop tried in Freddie Gray death

(Reuters) - The trial of a Baltimore police officer charged in the 2015 death of black detainee Freddie Gray is set for closing arguments on Thursday, with a decision to come early next week in the high-profile case.

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Wisconsin fraternity suspended after reports of racism

(Reuters) - A fraternity has been suspended on University of Wisconsin's flagship campus after a member reported that the organization created an environment that breeds discrimination and racial insensitivity, the school said.

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Chicago to pay $3.2 million to settle two fatal police shooting cases

Chicago (Reuters) - Chicago on Wednesday agreed to pay $3.2 million to settle cases where a black man and a Hispanic man were each fatally shot by police officers who were part of a department now under fire for racial bias and the excessive use of force.

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New York City police officers disciplined in ongoing corruption probe

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A high-ranking New York City police commander became the latest officer to face discipline as a result of a wide-ranging federal corruption probe that stretches from the police department to City Hall, officials said on Wednesday.

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Mississippi schools back away from adopting U.S. transgender policy

(Reuters) - Mississippi's schools chief backed away on Wednesday from federal guidance to allow transgender students to use the bathrooms of their choice amid pushback from state leaders.

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Gun used to kill Trayvon Martin auctioned; is bid real?

(Reuters) - Online bidding for the gun used by George Zimmerman to kill unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin in Florida in 2012 ended on Wednesday, though it was not clear whether the final offer of $138,900 was legitimate.

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BMW's i3 electric vehicle can suddenly lose power: U.S. lawsuit

(Reuters) - A U.S. owner of a BMW i3 has filed a lawsuit claiming that the German automaker's electric vehicle can experience a sudden loss of power when a feature designed to nearly double its driving range is deployed.

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One dead in shooting in midtown Manhattan during morning rush

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A man was fatally shot and a woman injured in a morning rush-hour incident in midtown Manhattan on Wednesday, police said.

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South Carolina bans abortion after 19 weeks

CHARLESTON, SC (Reuters) - The South Carolina legislature on Tuesday passed a bill banning most abortions after 19 weeks of pregnancy unless the mother's life was at risk, making it the 17th U.S. state to approve such a ban.

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Chicago police officer involved in fatal 2012 shooting resigns

(Reuters) - The Chicago police officer who killed a 22-year-old black woman in an off-duty shooting in 2012 resigned on Tuesday, two days before a hearing was set to begin on whether he should be fired over the incident, officials said.

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Fire halts train service in and out of New York's Grand Central Terminal

NEW YORK CITY (Reuters) - Commuter rail service in and out of New York City's Grand Central Terminal was suspended during the evening rush hour on Tuesday due to a fire under a section of elevated tracks, officials said.

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U.S. extends overtime pay to 4.2 million salaried workers

(Reuters) - The Obama administration on Tuesday unveiled the final version of a long-awaited and controversial rule to extend overtime pay to 4.2 million U.S. workers, which marks one of the administration’s most significant moves to address stagnant wages.

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Texas grand jury does not indict officer who fatally shot naked teen

AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - A Texas grand jury has decided not to bring charges against an Austin police officer who fatally shot an unarmed and naked teenage male in February, a local prosecutor said on Tuesday.

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Blazing meteor creates light show across New England sky

BOSTON (Reuters) - A meteor lit up the night sky over New England and eastern Canada early on Tuesday, startling people who saw it including police officers who captured the show on a dashcam.

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Justice Department reviews South Carolina city's police after driver's shooting

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department, aiming to reduce tension between black residents and a mostly white police force, on Tuesday launched a review of the police department in the South Carolina city where a white officer fatally shot an unarmed black motorist in the back a year ago.

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Plains All American Pipeline indicted in Santa Barbara oil spill

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Plains All American Pipeline Company and one of its employees have been indicted in California on criminal charges stemming from a petroleum spill last year near Santa Barbara, the company said on Tuesday.

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BofA targeted by top female banker in 'bro's club' lawsuit

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A senior female fixed-income banker at Bank of America Corp filed a lawsuit accusing the bank of underpaying women, and retaliating against her for complaining about illegal or unethical business practices by her colleagues.

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Radio distracted engineer in 2015 Amtrak crash: U.S. safety agency

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The engineer involved in a deadly Amtrak passenger train crash in 2015 that killed eight passengers in Philadelphia was distracted by radio traffic, U.S. safety officials said on Tuesday.

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Los Angeles schools reach $88 million settlement for sex abuse: report

(Reuters) - The Los Angeles Unified School District has agreed to pay $88 million to settle two sexual abuse cases involving now-imprisoned former elementary school teachers of the second largest public school system in the United States, according to local media.

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Red tuna crabs carpet Southern California beaches again

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Masses of tiny red crustaceans known as tuna crabs have washed up for a second straight year along stretches of the Southern California shoreline in a phenomenon marine scientists say is linked to warmer ocean currents flowing up the coast.

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Two former L.A. Sheriff's deputies guilty of beating inmate: prosecutors

(Reuters) - A federal court found two former Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputies guilty of beating, kicking and pepper spraying a mentally ill jail inmate in the largest county jail system in the United States, prosecutors said.

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Boston men jailed for Trump-inspired hate crime attack

BOSTON (Reuters) - Two Boston brothers accused of urinating on and beating a homeless Mexican man and telling police "Donald Trump was right: All these illegals need to be deported," were sentenced to prison on Monday, prosecutors said.

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NTSB finds engineer distracted by radio traffic in 2015 Amtrak crash: NBC

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The National Transportation Safety Board has concluded that the engineer of an Amtrak passenger train that crashed in Philadelphia in 2015 was distracted by radio traffic, NBC News reported on Monday, citing an unnamed source.

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Court orders Mississippi town to desegregate schools after 50-year fight

(Reuters) - A federal court has ordered a Mississippi town to consolidate its junior high and high schools in order to fully desegregate its school system after a 50-year battle the town has waged with the U.S. Department of Justice, agency officials said Monday.

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Obama says transgender rule is important aid to schools: BuzzFeed

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama said on Monday that his administration's guidance on transgender issues is needed to help schools grapple with the sensitive topic and ensure that all children are treated fairly.

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Occupation of Massachusetts Catholic church to end after 12 years

BOSTON (Reuters) - The occupation of a Massachusetts Roman Catholic church to prevent its closure will end now that the Supreme Court has declined to hear the case brought by people who have held their ground for 12 years, the Friends of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini said on Monday.

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Groups seek immediate halt to N.C. law restricting transgender bathroom choice

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (Reuters) - Several groups supporting the rights of transgender people filed a motion on Monday asking a U.S. court to block North Carolina from enforcing a law that mandates bathroom access according to birth sex while the measure is being challenged.

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Police in Chicago suburb checking on 'well-being' of Sinead O'Connor

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Police in the Chicago suburb of Wilmette said on Monday they are "seeking to check the well-being" of Irish singer Sinead O'Connor, who they said has been missing since early Sunday.

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U.S. top court sidesteps major ruling on Obamacare contraception coverage

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday ducked a major ruling on a challenge by Christian nonprofit employers to an Obamacare mandate to provide female workers health insurance covering birth control by sending the cases back to lower courts for further proceedings.

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U.S. top court rejects Philip Morris appeal of judgment in smoker's death

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear Philip Morris USA's challenge to a $25 million Oregon jury verdict in favor of a man whose wife died of a lung cancer-related brain tumor after smoking the company's low-tar cigarettes.

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U.S. top court rejects Exxon appeal in groundwater contamination case

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected Exxon Mobil Corp's appeal of a $236 million judgment against the oil company in a case brought by the state of New Hampshire over groundwater contamination linked to a gasoline additive.

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U.S. Coast Guard resumes probe into El Faro ship sinking

TAMPA, Fla. (Reuters) - U.S. Coast Guard investigators are resuming their probe of the deadly sinking of a cargo ship during a hurricane last fall, with two weeks of hearings to examine ship operations, weather forecasts and regulatory oversight getting under way on Monday.

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'McDonald's Diet' brand ambassador dropped from schools: company

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The former Iowa science teacher and McDonald's Corp "brand ambassador," who preached the virtues of walking and near-daily french fries in presentations to youth, is no longer visiting U.S. schools, the fast-food chain said on Friday.

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'The Wire' actor Pierce arrested after scuffle over Democratic politics: TMZ

(Reuters) - Actor Wendell Pierce was arrested in Atlanta at the weekend and charged with battery, according to court records, over what TMZ website said was an altercation sparked by differences over the U.S. presidential race.

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Coast Guard calls off search for passenger missing from cruise ship off Texas

(Reuters) - The U.S. Coast Guard said on Sunday it had called off its search for a woman believed to have fallen overboard from the Carnival Liberty cruise ship off the coast of Galveston, Texas, two days earlier.

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Dozens arrested in Washington state environmental protest

(Reuters) - Dozens of people were arrested in Washington state on Sunday, two days after protesters set up a blockade on railroad tracks leading to a pair of oil refineries as part of a global protest over dependence on fossil fuels, authorities said.

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Chicago mayor to replace police review board with more independent watchdog

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel plans to scrap a police review board and replace it with a more independent and better-funded watchdog to investigate police shootings and other misconduct cases, he wrote in a newspaper column.

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U.S. investigators probing Texas bus crash that killed eight

(Reuters) - U.S. investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) were dispatched to Texas on Sunday to investigate a charter bus crash that killed eight people and injured 44 on Saturday, the NTSB said.

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Facebook's Sandberg speaks about husband's death, 'brutality of loss'

BERKELEY, Calif (Reuters) - Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg spoke publicly for the first time on Saturday about what she has learned from the sudden death of her husband a year ago, during a commencement speech for students at the University of California, Berkeley.

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Climate activists in New York, Washington state protest fossil fuels

(Reuters) - Hundreds of climate change activists in Washington state and New York mobilized on Saturday as part of a global protest against fossil fuels, event organizers said.

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Texas rollover bus crash kills eight, injures dozens: media

(Reuters) - Eight people were killed and about 40 others were injured when a charter bus rolled over on a Texas highway on Saturday morning, the Laredo Morning Times newspaper reported.

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Top U.S. auctioneers refused to sell gun from Trayvon Martin shooting

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Two of America's leading auctioneers of guns said they refused on ethical grounds to handle the sale of the 9 mm pistol that George Zimmerman used to kill unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin.

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Pfizer blocks its drugs from use in lethal injections

NEW YORK (Reuters) - - Pfizer Inc has taken steps to ensure that none of its products are used in lethal injections, the largest U.S. drugmaker said on Friday.

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Suspect killed, police wounded in Los Angeles shoot-out: media

(Reuters) - Two Los Angeles police officers were wounded in a shootout in Los Angeles in which an armed suspect was shot and killed, local media reported.

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U.S. Coast Guard searching for woman who fell overboard from cruise ship off Texas

(Reuters) - The U.S. Coast Guard said it was searching for a woman who is believed to have fallen overboard on Friday from the Carnival Liberty cruise ship off the coast of Galveston, Texas.

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Sorority apologizes for racist T-shirt made by chapter in Alabama

(Reuters) - A sorority in Alabama apologized on Friday for a T-shirt that it made depicting a racially offensive image of an African-American person eating a piece of watermelon.

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Three killed in California when Amtrak train slams pickup

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Reuters) - Three people were killed on Friday when an Amtrak train slammed into their pickup truck near Fresno, the California Highway Patrol said.

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After delay, calorie counts to hit U.S. restaurant menus in 2017

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - U.S. restaurant owners will have an extra five months to post the calorie counts of the food they sell under a new federal deadline of May 5, 2017.

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Air Force general becomes first woman to lead combatant command

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Air Force General Lori Robinson took charge of the U.S. military’s Northern Command on Friday, becoming the first woman to head a U.S. combatant command.

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Judge finds Arizona sheriff violated court orders in racial profiling case

PHOENIX (Reuters) - Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio and three of his top officials were found to be in civil contempt on Friday after a federal judge ruled that he violated court orders stemming from a 2007 racial profiling case.

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U.S. court rejects bid to make full Senate 'torture report' public

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A federal appeals court on Friday rejected a lawsuit calling for the full release a U.S. Senate report detailing the Central Intelligence Agency's interrogation and detention program following the Sept. 11 attacks.

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U.S. prosecutors to reveal 'Bridgegate' scandal co-conspirators

(Reuters) - U.S. prosecutors are expected on Friday to file a list of unindicted co-conspirators as part of the criminal case against two former allies of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie in the "Bridgegate" scandal.

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World's oldest person dies in New York City, aged 116

(Reuters) - The world's oldest living person, 116-year-old Susannah Mushatt Jones, died on Thursday in New York City, a research group said.

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U.S. to issue decree on transgender access to school restrooms: NYT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Obama administration is planning to issue a sweeping decree telling every public school district in the country to allow transgender students to use the bathrooms that match their gender identity, the New York Times reported on Thursday.

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U.S. Navy fires commander of sailors held by Iran

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Navy said on Thursday it has fired the commander of the 10 American sailors who wandered into Iranian territorial waters in the Gulf in January and were briefly captured by Iran.

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Maryland's Joint Base Andrews on lockdown after security incident

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, the military facility in suburban Washington where the presidential aircraft Air Force One is based, was put on lockdown on Thursday, the base said, and ABC News reported an individual was arrested after claiming to have a bomb.

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Gun Zimmerman used to kill Martin pulled from auction site

(Reuters) - The Florida man who shot and killed black teenager Trayvon Martin, triggering nationwide civil rights protests, had offered the gun for sale in an online auction Thursday, but the listing vanished from the site moments after bidding was due to begin.

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Shots fired in standoff between Chicago police and murder suspect

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Shots rang out on Chicago's South Side on Thursday as police surrounded a suspect in three killings and tried to draw him out of a house and have him surrender peacefully, authorities said.

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Michigan expands water payments in Flint to speed recovery

DETROIT (Reuters) - Michigan on Thursday extended and expanded coverage of water bills for residents of Flint to speed recovery from a health crisis caused by high levels of lead.

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U.S. traffic deaths climb, while New York streets are safer

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The "Boulevard of Death" is getting a makeover, part of a New

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Insurers shun risk as oil-linked quakes soar in Oklahoma

OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) - As the number of earthquakes in Oklahoma exploded into the hundreds in the last few years, nearly a dozen insurance companies moved to limit their exposure, often at the expense of homeowners, a Reuters examination has found.

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Massachusetts lawmakers to take up transgender rights bill

BOSTON (Reuters) - Massachusetts' Senate on Thursday is set to take up debate of a bill protecting the rights of transgender people, a move some see as a rebuke to a North Carolina law requiring people to use bathrooms corresponding to the sex on their birth certificates.

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Bench trial of Baltimore officer in death of black man gets under way

(Reuters) - A Baltimore police officer goes on trial Thursday on charges stemming from the 2015 death of Freddie Gray, a black man who died from injuries while in police custody.

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Ex-New York Senate leader, son to face corruption sentencing

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Former New York Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos is set to be sentenced on Thursday, becoming the second legislative leader this month to face potential prison time following a high-profile crackdown on corruption in the state's capital.

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Four children wounded, woman killed in Alabama shooting: local media

(Reuters) - A domestic dispute in Birmingham, Alabama has ended with a woman shot dead, a 12-year old girl suffering life-threatening injuries and three other children wounded but in a stable condition, local media reported on Thursday.

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Video shows police punching suspect after chase ends in New Hampshire

(Reuters) - Authorities in New Hampshire and Massachusetts on Wednesday vowed to investigate an incident captured on video in which police officers beat a man after a high-speed chase spanning both states, media reported.

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High-ranking San Francisco politician calls for new police chief

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A member of San Francisco's Board of Supervisors became the city's first high-ranking politician on Wednesday to call to replace the city's police chief amid scandals that have rocked the department for months.

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Former South Carolina officer used excessive force in fatal shooting: indictment

CHARLESTON, S.C. (Reuters) - A white former police officer caught on video as he shot dead a black man fleeing a traffic stop in South Carolina last year has been charged with a federal civil rights offense that could send him to prison for life, U.S. prosecutors said on Wednesday.

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U.S. Senate backs Arlington burial honor for female pilots

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate voted late on Tuesday to allow women pilots from World War Two to be buried at Arlington National Cemetery, the vast military cemetery just outside Washington.

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Missouri to execute man who killed three, including deputy sheriff

(Reuters) - A man who was convicted in the 2002 murders of three people including a sheriff's deputy, is scheduled to be executed in Missouri on Wednesday or on Thursday, a spokeswoman for the state's Supreme Court said.

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Colorado judge to rule on competency of accused clinic gunman

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Reuters) - A judge in Colorado is expected to decide on Wednesday whether the man accused of killing three people and wounding nine others in a shooting rampage last year at a Planned Parenthood clinic is mentally fit to stand trial.

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Colorado inmate files first claim of paternity in Prince's estate

(Reuters) - A man serving time in federal prison in Colorado has come forward claiming he is the biological son and legal heir of the late pop star Prince, marking the first paternity claim filed in court since the recording artist's death last month.

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Victims of long-ago abuse find justice in some U.S. states

(Reuters) - Minnesota's reform of child sex abuse laws has given Laura Adams a chance to come forward with accusations she long feared to make public: that an employee of a children's theater in Minneapolis abused her in the early 1980s when she was a teenager.

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Missouri lawmakers pass bill to restrict viewing of police camera footage

(Reuters) - Missouri lawmakers passed a bill on Tuesday to restrict the public's access to police camera footage, nearly two years after the slaying of a black teen in a St. Louis suburb fueled demands across the country for more police accountability.

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Suspect dead after four stabbed at Massachusetts home, mall

(Reuters) - A man stabbed four people, two of whom later died, in twin attacks in the Boston area on Tuesday before being fatally shot by police, authorities said.

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North Carolina transgender battle could expand civil rights law

(Reuters) - The legal battle over transgender rights between the state of North Carolina and the U.S. government has moved the country closer to settling one of the last frontiers in civil rights law.

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U.S. will not seek death penalty against Benghazi attack suspect

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Federal prosecutors will not seek the death penalty in the case against Abu Khatallah, the man charged in the 2012 attacks on the American consulate in Benghazi, Libya, according to court documents filed Tuesday.

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Competency hearing to resume for accused Colorado clinic gunman

DENVER (Reuters) - The man who proclaimed himself a "warrior for the babies" after a fatal shooting spree at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado last year was due back in court on Tuesday for the continuation of a hearing on his mental state.

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New Jersey judge orders naming of Bridgegate scandal co-conspirators

(Reuters) - A federal judge in New Jersey on Tuesday ordered the release of a list of unindicted co-conspirators in the criminal case against two former allies of Republican Governor Chris Christie in a 2013 scandal involving lane closures on the George Washington Bridge.

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Dallas woman dies after being mauled by pack of dogs in city

DALLAS (Reuters) - A 52-year-old woman bitten more than 100 times by a pack of dogs last week in a Dallas neighborhood has died, the county medical examiner said on Tuesday.

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Baltimore officer goes on trial in 2015 death of black man

(Reuters) - A Baltimore police officer facing charges stemming from the 2015 death in police custody of a black man is due to go on trial on Tuesday with a judge likely to decide the case instead of a jury.

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Large tornado hits south of Oklahoma City, two dead

OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) - A large and violent tornado hit an area south of Oklahoma City on Monday, causing at least two deaths and reducing at least three homes to splinters, authorities said.

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Lawsuit accuses Flint mayor of trying to redirect water crisis donors to campaign fund

(Reuters) - A former administrator in Flint, Michigan, charged in a federal lawsuit on Monday that she was fired for seeking a probe into allegations the mayor tried to redirect donations to her personal campaign fund from a charity meant to help families hurt by the city's water crisis.

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U.S. government and North Carolina escalate legal fight over transgender law

WASHINGTON/WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (Reuters) - A fight between the Obama administration and North Carolina over a state law limiting public bathroom access for transgender people escalated on Monday as both sides sued each other, trading accusations of civil rights violations and government overreach.

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California Assembly passes gender-neutral restroom bill

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Reuters) - A bill requiring all single-occupancy public restrooms to be open to anyone regardless of gender or gender identity passed the California Assembly on Monday, and will proceed to the state Senate.

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Ferguson, Missouri to swear in black police chief

FERGUSON, Mo. (Reuters) - Ferguson, Missouri, the site of violent protests after a white officer shot and killed an unarmed black teenager in 2014, on Monday will swear in an African American police chief who said his focus is on making the community safer, not more profitable.

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ACLU sues over Mississippi law that OKs denying services to gays

(Reuters) - The American Civil Liberties Union on Monday said it filed a lawsuit in federal court to block a Mississippi law allowing people with religious objections to deny services to gay and transgender people.

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Penn State president 'appalled' by media reports on Paterno

(Reuters) - The president of Penn State said on Sunday he was appalled by the media coverage surrounding allegations the university's late head football coach Joe Paterno knew about child sex abuse by his assistant coach as far back as the mid-1970s.

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Redstone legal drama could come to abrupt end

(Editor's note: paragraph 5 contains language that may offend some readers.)

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Feds order Washington subway to tighten safety after rail fire

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Federal officials ordered Washington's troubled subway on Saturday to tighten safety standards because of a rail fire, a directive that followed announcement of an extensive repair program to boost reliability.

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Obama says U.S. race relations have improved, but work to be done

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama said in a commencement speech on Saturday that U.S. race relations have improved over the last three decades, but that significant work still needs to be done.

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One dead, one hurt in shooting at Maryland high school: local TV

(Reuters) - One person was killed and another injured in a shooting on the grounds of a high school in Beltsville, Maryland, a local NBC affiliate said on Thursday.

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U.S. cracks down on e-cigarettes and cigars, bans sales to minors

NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. government on Thursday took wide-ranging steps to crack down for the first time on e-cigarettes and cigars, growing in popularity among teens, and banned sales to anyone under age 18 in hopes of sparing a new generation from nicotine addiction.

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Obama commutes prison sentences of 58 people

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama has commuted the prison terms of 58 individuals, nearly a third of whom were serving life sentences, the White House said on Thursday.

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Prosecutor removes herself from Chicago cop's murder trial

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Chicago's top prosecutor removed herself from the murder trial of police officer Jason Van Dyke on Thursday and asked the judge to appoint a special prosecutor to handle the politically sensitive case, which set off protests last year.

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North Carolina lawmaker dismisses U.S. deadline to change restroom law

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (Reuters) - A top Republican lawmaker in North Carolina said the state would not be "bullied" by the U.S. Justice Department into meeting a Monday deadline to change a new law regulating which bathrooms transgender people can use.

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Abortion provider Planned Parenthood sues Kansas over plan to cut funding

(Reuters) - Planned Parenthood, a U.S. women's healthcare and abortion provider, has filed a federal lawsuit against the state of Kansas over a plan to strip it of government healthcare funding, court records showed.

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Michigan lawmakers advance $500 million package for Detroit schools

(Reuters) - The Michigan House of Representatives approved on Thursday a $500 million spending package for Detroit schools, which could run out of money to pay employees at the end of June.

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U.S. bullet train proposals shun public funds, favor private cash

(Reuters) - It took years of lawsuits and political battles for California to finally break ground last year on the nation’s first bullet train, which aims to connect San Francisco to Los Angeles by 2029.

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Chicago teachers sidestep strike date, tout $502 million funding plan

CHICAGO (Reuters) - The Chicago Teachers Union withheld the threat on Wednesday of imminent strike action, instead floating a $502 million revenue package as part of a “self-help” plan to stabilize finances in the United State's third largest school system.

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Case dropped against Arizona student facing charges for yearbook prank

PHOENIX (Reuters) - An Arizona prosecutor will not press criminal charges against a Phoenix-area high school student arrested for exposing his penis in a football team photograph published in the school’s yearbook, police said on Wednesday.

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North Carolina transgender law violates civil rights law: U.S.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Federal authorities told North Carolina's governor on Wednesday that a new state law limiting restroom access for transgender people violates the U.S. Civil Rights Act.

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California teens abducted after prom but break free from captor

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A 22-year-old man with a handgun kidnapped a teenage couple over the weekend in Southern California after their high school prom, but the abduction was foiled when the boy wrestled away the firearm and hit the suspect with it, police said on Wednesday.

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Flint official cuts deal in water crisis, agrees to aid prosecutors

FLINT, Mich. (Reuters) - An official in Flint, Michigan, agreed to cooperate in probes of dangerous levels of lead in the city's drinking water as part of a deal reached on Wednesday in which he pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge and won the dismissal of a more serious felony charge.

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Obama visits Flint as questions linger on EPA role in water crisis

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama on Wednesday will visit Flint, Michigan, a city struggling with the effects of lead-poisoned drinking water, as questions linger over whether his environmental regulators could have acted more urgently to address the crisis.

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U.S. Navy SEAL killed in Iraq was part of 'quick reaction force'

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. Navy SEAL killed by Islamic State militants in northern Iraq on Tuesday was part of a "quick reaction force" called in after a firefight broke out involving American advisers, a U.S. military spokesman said on Wednesday.

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Powerball jackpot at $348 million, approaching top 10 U.S. payouts

(Reuters) - The multi-state Powerball jackpot has grown to $348 million, making it the 15th highest U.S. lottery prize in history with a chance to reach the top 10 if no one wins the drawing on Wednesday night, officials said.

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Disgruntled Texas man killed after fatally shooting co-worker: TV

(Reuters) - A disgruntled man fatally shot a co-worker at a Houston-area transportation company on Wednesday, then was killed, local TV station KPRC reported, citing law enforcement officials.

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U.S. warns of more risks in Iraq after Navy SEAL's death

STUTTGART, Germany (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter cautioned on Wednesday of risks ahead in the campaign against Islamic State as he confirmed the identity of a Navy SEAL killed during attack by the militant group in northern Iraq on Tuesday.

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Closing arguments set in trial of Ohio man charged with killing three women

CLEVELAND (Reuters) - Closing arguments are expected to begin on Wednesday in the trial of an Ohio man who may face the death sentence if convicted of killing three women and wrapping their bodies in plastic bags to disguise them as trash almost three years ago.

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University of Iowa, police investigate reported racist attack

(Reuters) - The University of Iowa is investigating a report that a black student was beaten by a group of white men in a racially motivated attack, it said on Wednesday.

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Trump, the outrageous outsider, now presumptive Republican nominee

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (Reuters) - Billionaire reality TV star Donald Trump completed his transformation from long-shot White House candidate to presumptive Republican presidential nominee after his commanding win in Indiana's primary forced his main rival Ted Cruz to drop out of the race

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Ex-officer in San Francisco text scandal pleads not guilty to unrelated charges

(Reuters) - A former San Francisco police officer embroiled in a scandal over racist and homophobic text messages pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to charges he unlawfully accessed records from the Department of Motor Vehicles, prosecutors said.

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Requests for data rise sharply under secretive U.S. surveillance orders

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - FBI requests for customer records under a secretive surveillance order increased by nearly 50 percent in 2015, according to a U.S. government transparency report published this week.

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Alleged Texas shooter knocked murder victim's gun from his hands: police

DALLAS (Reuters) - An Army private accused of shooting his wife during an argument in a Dallas-area parking lot and killing a man who tried to intervene knocked the man's gun from his hands, police said on Tuesday.

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Six funerals held after Ohio family massacre

WEST PORTSMOUTH, Ohio (Reuters) - More than a week after eight family members were found shot to death at four separate homes in rural Ohio's Appalachian foothills, funerals for six of the victims were held on Tuesday as investigators continue to comb through evidence.

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Teachers' 'sickout' shuts Detroit public schools again

(Reuters) - Nearly all of Detroit's public schools were closed for a second straight day on Tuesday as teachers called in sick to protest news the cash-strapped school system will run out of money to pay employees at the end of June.

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U.S. prosecutors consider more charges against ex-CEO Shkreli

(Reuters) - Former drug executive Martin Shkreli, who last year became a lightning rod for outrage over soaring prescription drug prices, may face additional U.S. charges of securities fraud, a federal prosecutor said on Tuesday.

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Man hijacks Washington bus after attacking driver, person killed

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A man attacked a District of Columbia bus driver on Tuesday, hijacked his vehicle and then struck a person who died, police said.

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So much corruption, stuffed into one Chicago tour

CHICAGO (Reuters) - While designing a walking tour of Chicago focused on corruption and political shenanigans, journalist Paul Dailing watched new scandals pop up at a rate that only reinforced the city's reputation for rackets and rough politics.

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U.S. service member killed in Iraq: U.S. defense chief

STUTTGART, Germany (Reuters) - A U.S. servicemember has been killed in northern Iraq, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Tuesday.

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Seattle city council rejects street closing plan for proposed arena

SEATTLE (Reuters) - Seattle's city council on Monday narrowly rejected a proposal that would pave the way for a new sports arena, dimming the hopes for the NBA to return to the city after the beloved SuperSonics moved away in 2008.

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Solar-powered plane lands in Arizona on round-the-world flight

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A solar-powered airplane midway through a historic bid to circle the globe completed the tenth leg of its journey on Monday, landing in Arizona after a 16-hour flight from California, the project team said.

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Former FBI agent pleads guilty to stealing $136,000 in drug proceeds

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A former agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation accused of stealing more than $136,000 in drug money and spending it on cars, vehicle accessories and cosmetic surgery for his wife pleaded guilty to federal charges on Monday.

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L.A.'s 'Grim Sleeper' murder trial closing arguments underway

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A former Los Angeles sanitation worker charged with murdering nine women and a teenage girl was a serial killer who quietly blended into his community to in order to kill, prosecutors said on Monday as closing arguments began in the so-called "Grim Sleeper" case.

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Ban on Arizona Sheriff Arpaio workplace raids is lifted: court

(Reuters) - A federal appeals court on Monday lifted a court order blocking Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio's use of workplace raids to enforce Arizona laws that make it a crime for illegal immigrants to use stolen identities to obtain work.

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VW, UAW officials to meet on labor dispute at Tennessee plant

DETROIT (Reuters) - Volkswagen AG and United Auto Workers union officials will meet later this month in an effort to overcome a labor dispute at the VW plant in Tennessee.

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FBI arrests man, thwarts possible attack on Jewish target

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested a man in South Florida for planning an attack against the Aventura Turnberry Jewish Center, U.S. Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz said in a statement on Monday.

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U.S. cruise ship pulls into Havana on historic Cuba voyage

HAVANA (Reuters) - The first U.S. cruise ship to arrive in Cuba in decades received a warm welcome on Monday from Havana residents who gathered at the wharf in the colonial old city as hundreds of Americans waved from the decks of the vessel.

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Supreme Court rejects challenge to Seattle minimum wage law

(Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear a challenge by business groups to a trendsetting Seattle law that will raise the city's minimum wage to $15 an hour, leaving in place a lower court's decision to uphold the ordinance.

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Go team! Top court to hear cheerleader uniform copyright case

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to decide whether the stripes, zigzags, chevrons and colors on uniforms worn by cheerleaders across the country can be copyrighted under federal law.

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Puerto Rico government bank to continue debt talks with key creditor group

SAN JUAN - Puerto Rico’s Government Development Bank, which announced plans to skip the bulk of a $422 million debt payment on Sunday, said it has reached a deal with some creditors to keep negotiating a debt restructuring, potentially stemming the expected lawsuits arising from the default.

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Detroit public schools shut with teachers in 'sickout' protest over pay

(Reuters) - Detroit Public Schools closed nearly all of its 97 schools on Monday as hundreds of teachers called in sick to protest the cash-strapped city's revelation that it will soon run out of money to pay employees.

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Minnesota court to begin process of unraveling Prince's fortune

MINNEAPOLIS (Reuters) - Lawyers charged with untangling the multi-million dollar estate of music superstar Prince, who died with no known will, head to court on Monday for the start of what could be a years-long dispute over his fortune.

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Seattle police clash with protesters following May Day marches

(Reuters) - Two police officers were injured and several people arrested on Sunday when a group of May Day demonstrators turned unruly, throwing rocks and bottles and breaking windows, the Seattle police department said.

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May Day rallies in Los Angeles carry strong anti-Trump theme

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Hundreds of people marched through Los Angeles on Sunday in May Day rallies that took aim at Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump for his campaign vow to build a wall along the U.S. border with Mexico to stop illegal immigration.

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Connecticut governor honored for welcoming Syrian refugees

BOSTON (Reuters) - Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy was honored on Sunday by the family of John F. Kennedy for embracing Syrian refugees at a time when other U.S. leaders sought to turn them away.

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Bergdahl defense can access classified information: ruling

(Reuters) - Lawyers for U.S. Army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl, who faces a potential life sentence for desertion while serving in Afghanistan, will be allowed access to classified material to prepare his defense, a military appeals court has ruled.

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Malia Obama headed to Harvard, will take gap year first

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama's eldest daughter Malia will attend Harvard University in the fall of 2017 after taking a year off from studies following her high school graduation this spring, the White House said.

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Freight train derails in Washington, cars leaking hazardous chemicals

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A CSX freight train derailed on Sunday morning in northeastern Washington DC, with several cars overturned and leaking hazardous liquids near the Rhode Island Avenue Metro Station, the District of Columbia Fire Department tweeted.

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Daniel Berrigan, U.S. anti-war priest and poet, dies at 94

(Reuters) - Daniel Berrigan, a Jesuit priest, poet and peace activist who was imprisoned for burning draft files to protest the Vietnam War, died on Saturday at 94, a Jesuit magazine reported.

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