Task force tells Chicago police to acknowledge racism: report
(Reuters) – Chicago’s police department must acknowledge its racist past and change its handling of excessive force allegations to pave the way for wider reform, a task force set up by mayor Rahm Emanuel has urged, the Chicago Tribune reported on Tuesd…
High lead levels found at homes near L.A.-area battery plant
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Soil testing at 500 homes surrounding the now-shuttered Exide Technologies battery recycling plant near Los Angeles found all but a handful of dwellings with lead contamination at levels requiring cleanup, public health official…
Grandmother rescued after nine days lost in Arizona forest
PHOENIX (Reuters) – A 72-year-old woman who got lost in an Arizona forest after running out of gas en route to a visit with her grandchildren was rescued after nine days surviving on pond water and plants, state troopers said on Tuesday.
Georgia executes man for 1996 murder of female neighbor
ATLANTA (Reuters) – A Georgia man whose next-door neighbor pleaded for her life before he killed her during a 1996 burglary was executed by lethal injection on Tuesday, the state’s attorney general said.
Taxpayers pick up bulk of rehab bill for ‘affluenza’ Texan: newspaper
FORT WORTH, Texas (Reuters) – Texas taxpayers picked up most of the $200,000 bill for the so-called affluenza teen’s court-ordered rehabilitation in a probation deal that kept him out of prison for killing four while driving drunk, a newspaper reported…
Georgia executes man for 1996 murder of female neighbor: state attorney general
ATLANTA (Reuters) – A Georgia man whose next-door neighbor pleaded for her life before he killed her during a 1996 burglary was executed by lethal injection on Tuesday in the U.S. state, the state’s attorney general said.
San Diego man pleads not guilty to killing woman found in suitcase
SAN DIEGO (Reuters) – A California man pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to a charge of murdering a 21-year-old woman whose body was found stuffed into a suitcase on a San Diego street, as prosecutors told the court that the victim was beaten and strangled…
Oklahoma lawmakers aim to increase cattle rustling penalties
OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) – Oklahoma lawmakers sent a measure to the governor on Tuesday to increase penalties for cattle rustling, in an attempt to curtail a crime associated with the Wild West that has seen a resurgence from ranch hands stealing livest…
California lawmakers take step toward outlawing ‘ransomware’
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – California lawmakers on Tuesday took a major step toward outlawing the use of so-called “ransomware” to hijack computers for money, passing a bill through its first committee with the support of law enforcement.
Chicago council panel votes to change selection process for police chief
CHICAGO (Reuters) – Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel moved a step closer on Tuesday to being allowed to name his choice for police chief on a permanent basis, after a city council committee voted to temporarily change the selection process.
