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Jury being seated in Hudson family murder trial

CHICAGO (AP) — The final four jurors were to be selected Tuesday for the trial of the man accused of killing three members of actress-singer Jennifer Hudson's family.

Fourteen people were selected Monday to be among the 12 jurors and six alternates after nine hours of interviewing potential jurors one ...

Calif. finds toxins in 'non-toxic' nail polishes

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Some nail polishes commonly found in California salons and advertised as free of a so-called "toxic trio" of chemicals actually have high levels of agents known to cause birth defects, according to state chemical regulators.

A Department of Toxic Substances Control report to be released Tuesday ...

Miss Universe pageant allowing transgender women

NEW YORK — Transgender women will be allowed to participate in the Miss Universe beauty pageant next year, officials announced Tuesday, a week after they ruled a trail-blazing 23-year-old could vie for the crown this year.

Pageant officials said they are working on the language of the official rule policy ...

Documents: 2 suspects confessed in Tulsa shootings

TULSA, Okla. (AP) — The two suspects arrested in a shooting rampage that terrorized Tulsa's black community and left three people dead have confessed, according to police documents given to the Associated Press.

The documents given to the AP on Monday say 19-year-old Jake England confessed to shooting three people ...

Plunging birthrate of U.S. teens 'amazing'

In 16 states, teen birthrates tumbled by at least 20 percent in recent years, the federal government said in a report. Large declines such as these helped push the nation's teen birthrate to a new low in 2010.

It's a "pretty amazing" set of trends, said Brady E. Hamilton, senior ...

$9M bond set for Tulsa suspects

TULSA, Okla. — Two Oklahoma men suspected in a shooting rampage that left three people dead and terrorized Tulsa's black community appeared in court Monday and had bond set at more than $9 million each.

Jake England, 19, and Alvin Watts, 32, appeared via closed-circuit television from jail. Both are ...

Trayvon killing case will not have grand jury

ORLANDO, Fla. — A grand jury will not look into the Trayvon Martin case, a special prosecutor said Monday, leaving the decision of whether to charge the teen's shooter in her hands alone and eliminating the possibility of a first-degree murder charge in a racially charged case that has garnered ...

Warehouse fire claims 2 firefighters

PHILADELPHIA — Two firefighters who were battling a massive blaze at an abandoned warehouse Monday were killed when an adjacent furniture store they were inspecting collapsed, burying them in a pile of debris, authorities said.

It took about two hours to extract the bodies of Lt. Robert Neary, 60, and ...

American Scene: Wave of bomb threats leaves campus on edge

PITTSBURGH — Dozens of bomb threats at the University of Pittsburgh, including at least four Monday, have prompted professors to start holding classes outside and forced security officials to implement new building access measures.

The threats began in mid-February, at first targeting a landmark building at the center of campus. ...

Report: Fungus tied to bat deaths came from Europe

LOS ANGELES — The mysterious deaths of millions of bats in the United States and Canada over the past several years were caused by a fungus that hitchhiked from Europe, scientists reported Monday.

Experts had suspected that an invasive species was to blame for the die-off from "white nose syndrome." ...

Trial nears in slaying of Hudson kin

CHICAGO — A judge and lawyers began questioning dozens of potential jurors Monday at the Chicago trial of the man accused of killing singer and Oscar-winning actress Jennifer Hudson's mother, brother and nephew.

Selecting 12 jurors and six alternates able to set aside sympathy for the Hollywood star and assess ...

3 adults killed at Minn. day care; suspect sought

BROOKLYN PARK, Minn. (AP) — Three adults were killed early Monday at an in-home day care in a suburb northwest of Minneapolis, and a nearby college was locked down as police searched for a suspect who fled on a bicycle.

Police released few details about the deaths in Brooklyn Park. ...

2 firefighters killed in Philadelphia warehouse fire

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A massive fire at an abandoned warehouse claimed the lives of two Philadelphia firefighters after a wall collapsed inside an adjacent building where the two men were trying to halt the fire's progress, officials said Monday.

Fire Commissioner Lloyd Ayers said three other firefighters were injured in ...

Trayvon Martin death won't go to Fla. grand jury

ORLANDO, Fla. — A grand jury will not look into the Trayvon Martin case, a special prosecutor said Monday, leaving the decision of whether to charge the teen's shooter in her hands alone and eliminating the possibility of a first-degree murder charge.

That prosecutor, Angela Corey, said her decision had ...

2 suspects in Oklahoma shooting rampage appear in court

TULSA, Okla. (AP) — Two Oklahoma men suspected in a shooting rampage that left three people dead and terrorized Tulsa's black community appeared in court Monday and had bond set at more than $9 million each.

Jake England, 19, and Alvin Watts, 32, appeared via closed-circuit television from jail. Both ...

Start of 2012, March shatter U.S. heat records

WASHINGTON — It has been so warm in the United States this year, especially in March, that national records were not just broken, they were deep-fried.

Temperatures in the lower 48 states were 8.6 degrees above normal for March and 6 degrees higher than average for the first three months ...

Jury selection begins in earnest in Hudson family murder trial

CHICAGO (AP) — A judge will question would-be jurors as jury selection begins in earnest Monday at the Chicago trial of the man accused of murdering singer and Oscar-winning actress Jennifer Hudson's mother, brother and nephew.

Selecting 12 jurors and six alternates able to set aside sympathy for the Hollywood ...

Homeowner association could be sued in Martin case

SANFORD, Fla. — If Trayvon Martin's family sues over his death, they might not target George Zimmerman but instead the homeowners association of the neighborhood where the shooting happened and Zimmerman lived.

That's because if Zimmerman's claim that he shot the unarmed 17-year-old in self-defense is upheld by prosecutors, a ...

Child abuse shames and silences victims

The child sex-abuse accusations against former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky are staggering and yet familiar.

Mr. Sandusky, the founder of the Second Mile charity for troubled boys, generously brought them to football games and treated them to food, clothes and gifts, eight men told a grand jury. ...

American Scene: 7 months after Irene, more cleanups needed

CHARLESTON, N.Y. — Seven months after the deluge of Tropical Storm Irene, cleanups continue and worries remain in upstate New York and Vermont.

Farmers are still grappling with crop-smothering rocks, trees, gravel and sand left behind when the floodwaters receded. And they're also concerned that the gray or even sandy ...

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