Nation news briefs

HEAT AND SMOKE MAKE THINGS MISERABLE IN SACRAMENTO: SACRAMENTO (AP) - Sweltering heat and a blanket of smoke from California wildfires are making it a miserable week for Sacramento residents.

Romney seeks to undercut Obama's likability lead; says president seething with animosity

-

Thousands line up for right to work legally

Drug charges dropped in part because of too much evidence against fugitive doctor

Sept. 11 memorial defends display of steel cross

House members’ VIP loans excluded from subpoenas served on Countrywide

WASHINGTON (AP) - A Democratic committee chairman overrode his own subpoena three years ago in an investigation of former subprime mortgage lender Countrywide to exclude records showing that he, other House members and congressional aides got VIP discounted loans from the company, documents show.

School board member to stand trial for pimping

RIVERSIDE (AP) - A Riverside County school board member must stand trial on charges of rape, pimping, pandering and attempted manslaughter.

Camden paying $500K to settle suit with students

CAMDEN, N.J. (AP) - The Camden Board of Education has agreed to pay $500,000 to seven students who were made to eat their lunch on the floor as punishment.

Ron Palillo, of 'Welcome Back, Kotter,' dies at 63

DHS launches new program for young who want to work legally

Debate joined on Medicare as both Romney, Obama attack each other

Odd News

MAN LATE FOR COURT CLOCKED DOING 119 MPH IN INDIANA: EVANSVILLE, Ind. (AP) - Indiana State Police say a motorist late for an Evansville court appearance was clocked doing 119 mph in a 55 mph zone.

Scrabble player caught cheating at national event

Officer, gunman among 3 killed in Texas

Charlotte welcomes Democrats and national coverage

$80 M award in sand suffocation death

6 missing adults, children found alive in Nevada

RENO, Nev. (AP) - A desperate search for a couple and four children missing for two days in the below-zero cold of Nevada's rugged mountains turned jubilant Tuesday when rescuers guided in part by cellphone signals and footprints in the snow found them alive and well near their overturned Jeep.

News from around the nation

MAN TRAPPED IN CLOTHING COLLECTION BIN DIES: BRIDGETON, N.J. (AP) - Authorities say a New Jersey man apparently searching for warm clothes or a place to sleep got trapped in a clothing collection bin and died.

Backcountry skier survives in Utah gully

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - An avalanche that was caught on video dragged a backcountry skier into a Utah ravine and buried her in snow, but the woman survived because she deployed a special air bag and other skiers were able to quickly dig her out, witnesses said Tuesday.

6 year old suspended for kissing a girl

DENVER (AP) - The suspension of a 6-year-old boy for kissing a girl at school is raising questions about whether the peck should be considered sexual harassment.

Bipartisan fix for Medicare doctors' pay

WASHINGTON (AP) - It's that time of year again: doctors caring for Medicare patients once more face a steep pay cut. But this time Congress is pursuing a permanent fix to the annual drama that has undermined the medical profession's confidence in the nation's premier health program.

eBay sale of Palin mayoral SUV causes stir

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - The sale on eBay of a city-owned vehicle used by Sarah Palin when she was mayor of Wasilla is causing a stir in small-town politics: One official says the current mayor is trying to fatten city coffers off Palin's fame, and the mayor says "guilty as charged."

Judge overturns man's rape conviction

CHICAGO (AP) - A judge Tuesday overturned the conviction of a man who spent 30 years in prison for a rape he says he falsely confessed to after being tortured by police.

DiGiorno, supplier drop dairy farm over animal abuse

MILWAUKEE (AP) - Top-selling frozen pizza brand DiGiorno and its cheese supplier cut ties with a Wisconsin dairy farm Tuesday after an animal rights group released undercover video showing workers beating, kicking, stabbing and whipping sick and injured cows.

Race against clock, cold in search for Nevadans

RENO, Nev. (AP) - Rescue teams were working against the clock and the bitter cold Monday to find a couple and four children who went to play in the snow in the remote mountains of northwest Nevada but didn't return after a night of sub-zero temperatures.

30 years for man who let others have sex with son

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - An Australian man has been sentenced to 30 years in prison after authorities say he and his partner allowed at least eight others to have sex with their young adopted son for money. The 36-year-old man is a resident of Queensland and is not being identified by The Associated Press to protect his son's identity. The man pleaded guilty in February to conspiracy to sexually exploit a child and to conspiracy to ...

Woman killed at Vallejo concert

VALLEJO (AP) - Police say a woman who was fatally shot during a rap concert in the San Francisco Bay Area appears to have gotten caught in the crossfire and not to have been the intended target. According to the Times-Herald of Vallejo officers responded to a report of shots fired at Dan Foley Park in Vallejo around 11:53 p.m. Friday. The concert at the park included Atlanta-based rapper "Lil Scrappy." Police say officers found ...

Many lung cancer tumors prove harmless

CHICAGO (AP) - Harmless lung cancer? A provocative study found that nearly 1 in 5 lung tumors detected on CT scans are probably so slow-growing that they would never cause problems.

Passenger awakes to find himself locked in plane

HOUSTON (AP) - As the captain of an oil platform supply boat in the Gulf of Mexico, Tom Wagner is no stranger to bumps and other movement while he sleeps. So when he nodded off on a flight from Louisiana to Houston, it was no surprise that the landing bounce didn't wake him.

News from around the nation

COACH ACCUSED OF TATTOOING MINOR: COTTAGE GROVE, Minn. (AP) - A Minnesota high school gymnastics coach has been accused of tattooing a teenage girl without her parents' permission.