Lawyers for Texas 'affluenza' teen seek his release from jail

FORT WORTH, Texas (Reuters) - Lawyers for the Texas "affluenza" teenager who killed four people while driving drunk are seeking to have him released from a two-year jail term, arguing the judge who sentenced him had no authority to place him behind bars.

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Tropical Storm Hermine approaches Florida, Hawaii on watch

TAMPA, Fla. (Reuters) - A tropical storm developing in the Gulf of Mexico could produce near hurricane-force winds by the time it makes landfall in Florida, the National Hurricane Center said on Wednesday.

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U.S. urges North Korea to pardon and release American prisoner

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States on Wednesday urged North Korea to pardon and release on humanitarian grounds an American student serving a sentence of 15 years of hard labor.

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U.S. senators seek federal probe of Takata-linked explosion

(Reuters) - Two U.S. senators on Wednesday called on the National Transportation Safety Board to investigate the Aug. 22 crash and explosion of a truck carrying Takata Corp air bag parts that killed a woman and injured four others.

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Obama shortens prison sentences of 111 convicts: White House

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama shortened the prison sentences of 111 convicts serving time for drug-related offenses in his second round of clemency grants this month, the White House said on Tuesday.

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First U.S.-Cuba scheduled flight in decades set to depart

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (Reuters) - The first regularly scheduled commercial flight between the United States and Cuba in more than half a century is set to depart on Wednesday, starting a new chapter in the Obama administration's bid to open trade and travel with the former Cold War foe.

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Rubio wins Republican nod for another Senate term

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Insurgent challengers fell flat in Florida on Tuesday as Republican U.S. Senator Marco Rubio won his party's nomination to seek re-election in November and U.S. Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz held a big lead in her Democratic nominating race.

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