Coloradoan wins $7 million in popcorn lung lawsuit

DENVER (AP) - A suburban Denver man who was diagnosed with "popcorn lung," possibly from inhaling the artificial butter smell of the microwave popcorn he regularly ate, has won a $7.2 million verdict against various food companies. Wayne Watson's attorney, Ken McClain, said a federal jury granted the award Wednesday against Gilster-Mary Lee Corp., The Kroger Co. and Dillon Companies Inc. after ...

Prosecutor: Dad killed girl over toilet training

DETROIT (AP) - A Detroit man was so obsessed over toilet training that he fatally beat his 2-year-old daughter for having an accident, a prosecutor said Wednesday in an opening statement to jurors at the man's first-degree murder trial. D'Andre Lane also is charged with child abuse in the Dec. 2 disappearance of Bianca Jones, whose body has never been found. Lane ...

Bay Area briefs

SAN FRANCISCO MOVES TO PROVIDE GREEN POWER: SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Supervisors have given initial approval to a five-year deal with Shell Energy North America that gives San Francisco residents the option of getting 100 percent of their power from renewable sources.

Bakersfield hockey team mocks opposing Stockton’s bankruptcy

BAKERSFIELD (AP) - A hockey game promotion poking fun at America's largest bankrupt city has caused a tiff between fans in the San Joaquin Valley. The Condors, a Bakersfield minor league hockey team, advertised its game against Stockton Thunder on Dec. 27 as "Our City Isn't Bankrupt Night." The team promised to ...

Obama boosted by upbeat housing reports, new polls in bid for 2nd term

FBI asked to keep data on anti-Sikh hate crimes

SD prison tobacco ban curbs religion rights

209 News

MODESTO OFFICIALS VOTE TO STOP WATER DEAL WITH SF: MODESTO (AP) - Modesto water officials are no longer negotiating with San Francisco to sell Tuolumne River water to the coastal city.

Nation news briefs

EGYPT TO TRY 7 COPTS, US PASTOR OVER PROPHET FILM: CAIRO (AP) - Egypt's general prosecutor issued arrest warrants Tuesday for seven Egyptian Coptic Christians and a Florida-based American pastor and referred them to trial on charges linked to an anti-Islam film that has sparked riots across the Muslim world.

Feds: NC sheriff and deputies targeted Latinos

18 immigrants sue US over entry program denials after investing $1M

LOS ANGELES (AP) - LOS ANGELES - Eighteen immigrants are suing the federal government, alleging they were wrongly denied entry into a program that grants legal residency to foreign entrepreneurs. Attorney Ira Kurzban said Tuesday that some of the plaintiffs he's representing had already been admitted to the I-526 program but their acceptances were revoked. According to U.S. ...

Jury hears LA-area chef say on tape he cooked wife

Chicago teachers vote to return to classroom

Republicans: Bad gets worse for Romney over flap about American’s dependency

More than half in 39 states will be obese

3 missing women found in Cleveland

Nation news briefs

2 DROWN IN SACRAMENTO COUNTY RIVER: SACRAMENTO (AP) - Two men drowned in a Sacramento County river over the weekend in separate incidents that officials are blaming on the cold water.

Man accused of lying seeks release

BOSTON (AP) - Lawyers for a man charged with lying to investigators after the Boston Marathon bombings are asking a federal judge to release him from jail, saying he had nothing to do with the deadly bombings and isn't a flight risk.

Uncle arranging suspect’s burial rites

WORCESTER, Mass. (AP) - The uncle of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev arrived in Massachusetts on Sunday to arrange for his burial, saying he understands that "no one wants to associate their names with such evil events."

Obama to grads: Reject cynical voices

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - A year to the day after kicking off his victorious re-election campaign on this college campus, President Barack Obama returned to Ohio State University and told graduates that only through vigorous participation in their democracy can they right an ill-functioning government and break through relentless cynicism about the nation's future.

Solar powered plane lands in Arizona

PHOENIX (AP) - Alone in the single-seat cockpit and high above the American Southwest, pilot Bertrand Piccard could hear only his plane's gear box and the quiet whine of four electric motors. No noisy jet engines.

Giffords receives Profile in Courage award

BOSTON (AP) - Former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords received the 2013 Profile in Courage award at the John F. Kennedy Library on Sunday in recognition of the political, personal, and physical courage she has demonstrated in her fearless public advocacy for policy reforms aimed at reducing gun violence.

Utah cabin had uninvited guests: 60,000 or so bees

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - It was the biggest beehive that that Ogden beekeeper Vic Bachman has ever removed - a dozen feet long, packed inside the eaves of a cabin in Ogden Valley.

Gerbils strut their stuff at New England pageant

BEDFORD, Mass. (AP) - The American Gerbil Society's annual pageant brought dozens of rodents scurrying to New England this weekend for a chance to win "top gerbil."

Nation news briefs

• WOMAN USED FACEBOOK TO HARASS HERSELF, COPS SAY: GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) - A western Michigan woman is accused of creating a Facebook account to stalk herself.

Priest with history of molestation resigns

Exercise cuts kidney stone risk in women

NRA: 'Culture war' more than gun rights

Police: No crime in student mouth taping in Colorado

Climber dies in fiery fall on power tower