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LONG BEACH, Calif. (AP) -- A former high school football star whose dreams of a pro career were shattered by a rape conviction burst into tears Thursday as a judge threw out the charge that sent him to prison for more than five years....

States have collected billions of dollars from tobacco companies but spent only 3 percent of it to combat smoking - a less-than-robust response to the high costs of health care associated with smoking, a federal report released Thursday says.

Of the $243.8 billion in tobacco money received from 1998 to ...

CHICAGO (AP) -- U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald explained his resignation Thursday on the belief that new blood would be healthy for the office - turning the speculation to who might end up replacing one of the longest-serving and most highly regarded prosecutors in the country....

CHICAGO (AP) -- U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald explained his resignation Thursday on the belief that new blood would be healthy for the office - turning the speculation to who might end up replacing one of the longest-serving and most highly regarded prosecutors in the country....

CHARDON, Ohio — A 17-year-old will be tried as an adult in the school shooting deaths of three students, a juvenile court judge ruled Thursday after hearing a sheriff's deputy describe how the teen wore a T-shirt with the word "Killer" and admitted shooting people.

T.J. Lane admitted firing at ...

Mike Adams | Bill would halt the FDA's armed raids on raw milk farmers and more.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) -- The world's first private supply ship flew tantalizingly close to the International Space Station on Thursday, acing a critical test in advance of the actual docking....

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) -- The world's first private supply ship flew tantalizingly close to the International Space Station on Thursday, acing a critical test in advance of the actual docking....

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) -- The world's first private supply ship flew tantalizingly close to the International Space Station on Thursday, acing a critical test in advance of the actual docking....

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Justice Department's internal ethics watchdog said Thursday that two prosecutors in the bungled corruption case against then-Sen. Ted Stevens engaged in reckless professional misconduct by failing to disclose information favorable to the lawmaker, who eight days after his 2008 conviction lost re-election to the seat he held for 40 years....

POTLATCH, IDAHO — This small community in the forested, western foothills of the Rocky Mountains was created as a company town to house workers for the nation's largest white pine sawmill, and its tidy homes and straight, tree-lined streets are a testament to its planners.

But the town has slumbered ...

MAINE

KITTERY — Officials are venting smoke and noxious fumes from a nuclear-powered submarine at a Maine shipyard so they can get inside to assess what a fire did to it.

Firefighters from the shipyard and coastal departments in Maine and New Hampshire spent Wednesday night and early Thursday fighting ...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Moving quickly to stem a controversy, President Barack Obama on Thursday nominated an expert on nuclear waste to lead the federal agency that regulates the nation's nuclear power plants....

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Moving quickly to stem a controversy, President Barack Obama on Thursday nominated an expert on nuclear waste to lead the federal agency that regulates the nation's nuclear power plants....

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Senate rejected dueling Democratic and Republican plans on Thursday for averting a July 1 doubling of interest rates on federal college loans for 7.4 million students, pushing back efforts to resolve the election-season showdown until next month....

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Senate rejected dueling Democratic and Republican plans on Thursday for averting a July 1 doubling of interest rates on federal college loans for 7.4 million students, pushing back efforts to resolve the election-season showdown until next month....

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) -- New York City police did not violate New Jersey laws when they conducted surveillance of Muslim businesses, mosques and student groups, Gov. Chris Christie's administration said Thursday following a three-month review, a finding that angered Muslim leaders who had sought a clampdown on the cross-border police operations....

HuffPo: FBI Web Surveillance: Bureau Creates Unit To Eavesdrop On Internet Communications by Sara Gates:

With the Federal Bureau of Investigation's recent push for web wiretaps and increased Internet surveillance, the U.S. seems to be edging closer to the fictional state described in George Orwell's "1984."

As CNET reported earlier this week, the FBI recently created a secret web-surveillance unit, the Domestic Communications Assistance Center, aimed at creating tech that would allow the authorities to more easily eavesdrop on Internet and wireless communications. The DCAC will act as hub for all web surveillance, but will not be directly involved in executing Internet wiretapping court orders or operating investigations if proposed legislation passes as planned.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Senate on Thursday voted to extend the life of the National Flood Insurance Program for 60 days, giving lawmakers time to work on a long-term extension that would seek to restore fiscal solvency to the debt-ridden plan....

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Senate on Thursday voted to extend the life of the National Flood Insurance Program for 60 days, giving lawmakers time to work on a long-term extension that would seek to restore fiscal solvency to the debt-ridden plan....