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• Thief snatches cookie sale cash box from 10-year-old California Girl Scout
• Conjoined twins separated at Texas hospital after marathon surgery
• John Travolta explains Oscars flub
• Families of 3 missing UK girls urge 'Please come home!'
• U.S. Marine who vanished in Iraq found guilty of desertion
• Boston schools to reflect on city's violent past with desegregation
• Supreme Court weighs case involving Afghan man barred from U.S.
• U.S. Justice Department asks for stay to allow immigration action
• France seizes passports of would-be jihadists
• GM gets 33 more claims for faulty ignition switch compensation
• Four dead, one seriously injured in Texas shooting
• Yemen's Shiite rebels threaten to arrest, charge ministers
• Texas trial for 'American Sniper' halted due to ice storm
• Obama presses new rule for broker advice on retirement investments
• United States urges update to fast-track trade authority
• Honda to replace its president following air bag fiasco
• Texas, Louisiana brace for ice as bitter US winter drags on
• Rent walkouts point to strains in U.S. farm economy
• Oscars 2015: Complete coverage
• Somali extremists urge attacks on U.S. malls
• U.S. refinery strike affects one-fifth of national capacity
• 11 Wesleyan students treated for MDMA drug overdoses
• Sen. Graham: 'No doubt' President Obama loves his country
• Telecom workers ratify agreement to end strike in New England
• Smoke appears in Washington subway system three times in two days

Thief snatches cookie sale cash box from 10-year-old California Girl Scout Posted: 23 Feb 2015 01:38 PM PST A thief briefly struggled with a 10-year-old Girl Scout outside a California supermarket and snatched her troop's cookie sale cash box, but officers tracked down the suspect and then bought up the rest of the cookies, authorities said on Monday. Cody Gintz, 23 of San Jose, was arrested for investigation of robbery and held on $50,000 bail at Santa Clara County Jail, according to San Jose Police spokesman Officer Albert Morales. He said the Girl Scouts had been selling cookies at a table outside a San Jose supermarket on Sunday afternoon when Gintz grabbed the cash box away from the girl, who initially didn't let go. He took the money." The girl, Sophia Contos, told Bay Area television station KNTV that the box contained about $600 the troop was planning to use on a water conservation project.

Conjoined twins separated at Texas hospital after marathon surgery Posted: 23 Feb 2015 01:06 PM PST In surgery lasting more than 24 hours, a Texas hospital medical team has separated nearly 1-year-old twins who were joined at the abdomen and shared a liver, diaphragm, pelvis, intestines and the lining of the heart, officials said on Monday. The girls, Knatalye Hope Mata and Adeline Faith Mata, born in April 2014, were separated on Feb. 17 at Texas Children's Hospital, with a team including 12 surgeons, six anesthesiologists and eight surgical nurses. "This surgery was not without its challenges with the girls sharing several organ systems," said Dr. Darrell Cass, pediatric surgeon and co-director of Texas Children's Fetal Center. He said this was the first successful separation surgery for conjoined twins with this particular configuration.

John Travolta explains Oscars flub Posted: 23 Feb 2015 12:47 PM PST

Families of 3 missing UK girls urge 'Please come home!' Posted: 23 Feb 2015 12:31 PM PST Turkish police searched Monday for three missing British schoolgirls believed to be headed to Syria to join the Islamic State extremist group...

U.S. Marine who vanished in Iraq found guilty of desertion Posted: 23 Feb 2015 11:41 AM PST By Colleen Jenkins WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (Reuters) - A U.S. Marine who disappeared from his base in Iraq in 2004 and later fled to Lebanon was found guilty on Monday of twice deserting the military and could face up to 7 1/2 years in prison. Corporal Wassef Hassoun, 35, was convicted of deserting in Iraq to avoid hazardous duty and deserting again in 2005 with the intent to stay away for good, according to a statement from Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, where his court-martial was held. After Hassoun vanished from his base in Fallujah, Iraq, in June 2004, the Arabic language interpreter turned up a month later in Lebanon claiming to have been kidnapped by militants, the military has said. Before the start of military legal proceedings against him, Hassoun failed to report for duty at Camp Lejeune in January 2005, fled the United States and again went to Lebanon, the Marine Corps said.

Boston schools to reflect on city's violent past with desegregation Posted: 23 Feb 2015 11:25 AM PST By Elizabeth Barber BOSTON (Reuters) - Four decades after a U.S. judge ordered Boston to desegregate its schools, sparking a wave of violent protest, the incident is set to formally become a part of the history curriculum in the city's public schools. While Boston Public Schools have long included desegregation and race relations in history and social studies courses, the lessons have largely focused on events in the southeastern United States. "We're not going to let Boston off the hook any longer," Kerry Dunne, director of history and social studies at the Boston Public Schools, said on Monday. In 1974, a federal court in Boston ruled that public schools in the Massachusetts capital were in violation of the 1965 Racial Imbalance Act and needed to even out classroom demographics by busing students to schools outside their neighborhoods.

Supreme Court weighs case involving Afghan man barred from U.S. Posted: 23 Feb 2015 10:52 AM PST By Lawrence Hurley WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Supreme Court appeared divided on Monday as it considered whether U.S. citizens have the right to object if the government denies their spouse a visa in a case involving a California woman whose Afghan husband was barred from the United States. Some of the nine justices appeared sympathetic to Fauzia Din, a naturalized American citizen from Afghanistan, but the court appears more likely to rule for the government, which says there is no right to appeal when a visa is denied. Din, who lives in Fremont, California, sued the U.S. government after her husband, Afghan citizen Kanishka Berashk, was denied a visa in 2009. Din's lawyers believe the denial was related to the fact that Berashk had worked as a payroll clerk for the Afghanistan government when it was controlled by the Taliban, an Islamist militant organization.

U.S. Justice Department asks for stay to allow immigration action Posted: 23 Feb 2015 09:29 AM PST The U.S. Justice Department on Monday formally requested an emergency stay to put on hold a Texas judge's decision that temporarily blocked President Barack Obama's executive actions on immigration from taking effect. U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen had issued a court order to halt the immigration actions, which would grant temporary relief from deportation for 4.7 million people who are in the United States illegally. The Justice Department said Hanen lacked authority to issue that preliminary injunction. Officials also filed on Monday to appeal his decision, and they asked that the immigration actions be allowed to move forward while the appeals process plays out.

France seizes passports of would-be jihadists Posted: 23 Feb 2015 08:58 AM PST The suspects in question were planning to travel to Syria and Iraq.

GM gets 33 more claims for faulty ignition switch compensation Posted: 23 Feb 2015 08:25 AM PST (Reuters) - General Motors Co received another 33 claims for compensation for ignition switch defects in its cars in the past week, bringing the total to 4,345, according to the administrator of the company's compensation program. Through Friday, GM had received 479 claims for death, 292 for catastrophic injuries and 3,574 for less-serious injuries requiring hospitalization, according to a report from lawyer Kenneth Feinberg, hired by GM to administer the program. The number of claims found to be eligible for compensation so far is 151, the report said. Feinberg has so far determined that 57 deaths, nine severe injuries and 85 other injuries are eligible for compensation.

Four dead, one seriously injured in Texas shooting Posted: 23 Feb 2015 08:07 AM PST (Reuters) - Four people were dead and one woman was in serious condition on Monday after gunfire erupted at two homes in Killeen, Texas, according to local police. The dead included a 30-year-old man suspected of shooting three people in one home before forcing his wife back to their neighboring house, where the two were later found with fatal gunshot wounds, Killeen police said in a statement.

Yemen's Shiite rebels threaten to arrest, charge ministers Posted: 23 Feb 2015 07:19 AM PST The prime minister and all Cabinet members have been warned.

Texas trial for 'American Sniper' halted due to ice storm Posted: 23 Feb 2015 06:33 AM PST By Jon Herskovitz STEPHENVILLE, Texas (Reuters) - The Texas trial of a man charged with fatally shooting former U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, whose best-selling autobiography was turned into the blockbuster movie "American Sniper, was halted on Monday due to an ice storm. Eddie Ray Routh, 27, is accused of shooting Kyle and Kyle's friend Chad Littlefield multiple times at a gun range about 70 miles (110 km) southwest of Fort Worth in February 2013 and then fleeing in Kyle's pickup truck. Defense attorneys are trying to have Routh declared innocent by reason of insanity. A psychiatrist called by the defense testified last week that Routh had paranoid schizophrenia and showed signs of psychosis that could not be faked, media reports said.

Obama presses new rule for broker advice on retirement investments Posted: 23 Feb 2015 04:55 AM PST By Jeff Mason and Sarah N. Lynch WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama will direct the Department of Labor on Monday to proceed with new rules that would rein in conflicts of interests among Wall Street brokers who advise clients on retirement investments, administration officials said. "The president will call on the Department of Labor to establish updated rules of the road to make sure that responsible Americans who are saving for retirement are getting a fair share of returns on their savings," Jeff Zients, Obama's top economic adviser, said in a conference call with reporters on Sunday. Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, a consumer advocate who some Democrats hope will challenge former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for the party's presidential nomination, is expected to attend.

United States urges update to fast-track trade authority Posted: 23 Feb 2015 02:12 AM PST The United States' top trade official urged lawmakers on Monday to update legislation streamlining the passage of trade deals through Congress to reflect the new global economy. Bipartisan negotiations are continuing on the final form of a bill which will restrict Congress to a yes-or-no vote on trade deals in exchange for setting negotiating objectives. The Republican chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Orrin Hatch, has said he hopes to present legislation this month. U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman said the last time Congress passed such legislation, in 2002, only 4 percent of companies on the Fortune Global 500 list were from emerging markets, compared to one in four now.

Honda to replace its president following air bag fiasco Posted: 23 Feb 2015 12:33 AM PST TOKYO (AP) — Honda Motor Co., the Japanese automaker at the center of an air-bag defect scandal, said Monday its president Takanobu Ito will step aside and be replaced by another Honda executive.

Texas, Louisiana brace for ice as bitter US winter drags on Posted: 23 Feb 2015 12:15 AM PST (Reuters) - A winter storm pummeled the southern and western United States on Monday, forcing authorities to cancel flights and close schools as most of the country braced for another bout of freezing weather. A storm warning was issued from southeastern California through Louisiana as an arctic cold front expands south and east after dropping heavy snow on Colorado, the National Weather Service said. In Denver, residents were digging out from between six and 12 inches of snow (15-30 cm), while higher elevations in the Rocky Mountains got up to two feet (61 cm), the Service said. In Louisiana, Governor Bobby Jindal issued a state of emergency late Sunday due to the storm and potentially hazardous travel conditions, and schools and state offices in 23 Louisiana parishes were closed, his office said.

Rent walkouts point to strains in U.S. farm economy Posted: 22 Feb 2015 10:37 PM PST By Jo Winterbottom and P.J. Huffstutter CHICAGO (Reuters) - Across the U.S. Midwest, the plunge in grain prices to near four-year lows is pitting landowners determined to sustain rental incomes against farmer tenants worried about making rent payments because their revenues are squeezed. On Friday, tractor maker John Deere cut its profit forecast citing falling sales caused by lower farm income and grain prices. Many rent payments – which vary from a few thousand dollars for a tiny farm to millions for a major operation – are due on March 1, just weeks after the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimated net farm income, which peaked at $129 billion in 2013, could slide by almost a third this year to $74 billion. The costs of inputs, such as fertilizer and seeds, are remaining stubbornly high, the strong dollar is souring exports and grain prices are expected to stay low.

Oscars 2015: Complete coverage Posted: 22 Feb 2015 08:45 PM PST Red carpet arrivals, winners, and more.

Somali extremists urge attacks on U.S. malls Posted: 22 Feb 2015 07:55 PM PST A video alleged to be from al-Shabab calls for an assault similar to Westgate Mall siege.

U.S. refinery strike affects one-fifth of national capacity Posted: 22 Feb 2015 06:18 PM PST By Erwin Seba HOUSTON (Reuters) - The largest U.S. refinery strike in 35 years entered its fourth week on Sunday as workers at 12 refineries accounting for one-fifth of national production capacity were walking picket lines. Sources familiar with the negotiations said talks may resume by mid-week to end the walkout by 6,550 members of the United Steelworkers union (USW) at 15 plants, including the 12 refineries. The refinery work stoppage began on Feb. 1 when talks for a new three-year contract between the USW and lead oil company negotiator Shell Oil Co broke down. After the latest breakdown between the two sides, Steelworkers leaders targeted Shell, which is the U.S. arm of Royal Dutch Shell Plc, calling workers out at a chemical plant and three refineries in the company's Motiva Enterprises [MOTIV.UL] joint-venture with Saudi Aramco [SDABO.UL].

11 Wesleyan students treated for MDMA drug overdoses Posted: 22 Feb 2015 05:28 PM PST (Reuters) - Eleven students at Connecticut's Wesleyan University are being treated for overdoses of the drug MDMA, and one of them, a sophomore, is in critical condition, officials said on Sunday. The sophomore at the elite school in Middletown was transported to a hospital early on Sunday with two students in less serious conditions but showing similar symptoms, Michael Whaley, vice president for student affairs, said in an emailed statement to the school. Wesleyan spokeswoman Lauren Rubenstein said in an email that seven students were transported to hospitals "with overdose symptoms consistent with the use of Molly (MDMA)." Another four went directly to hospitals, she said. It is the main chemical in ecstasy, a psychoactive drug.

Sen. Graham: 'No doubt' President Obama loves his country Posted: 22 Feb 2015 03:48 PM PST Potential Republican presidential candidate Sen. Lindsey Graham has "no doubt" that President Obama loves his country, refuting comments made by former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani earlier this week. President Obama has divided us more than he's brought us together and I don't want to add to that division," Graham initially said on ABC's "This Week" today, before adding, "I have no doubt that he loves his country.

Telecom workers ratify agreement to end strike in New England Posted: 22 Feb 2015 02:45 PM PST (Reuters) - Union members ratified an agreement on Sunday that ends a four-month-long strike by some 1,800 workers at FairPoint Communications, a major land-line telecommunications provider in northern New England, union officials announced. Members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and Communications Workers of America (CWA) in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont went on strike Oct. 17 when negotiations broke off. FairPoint used replacement workers in their absence. Union and FairPoint negotiators reached a tentative agreement on Feb. 19, followed by three days of union member voting that ended on Sunday.

Smoke appears in Washington subway system three times in two days Posted: 22 Feb 2015 02:28 PM PST By John Clarke WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A mechanical failure on a Washington subway train caused smoke to fill a station stop on Sunday in the nation's capital, the third such incident in two days, according to officials. L'Enfant Plaza station briefly filled with smoke after a mechanical issue occurred around 11 a.m., Metro spokesman Dan Stessel said. Earlier on Saturday, around noon, passengers riding another train were evacuated after faulty brakes caused smoke to fill Woodley Park Metro station, officials said. The system, which operates in Washington, D.C., as well as the Virginia and Maryland suburbs, is the second-busiest in the country after New York City's subway network.

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