Federal water allocation for drought-stricken California farms cut to zero
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – The worsening drought in California will force a first-ever complete cutoff of federally supplied irrigation water to most farm districts throughout the state’s Central Valley heartland this year, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation …
Winds batter southeast after snowstorm, tornadoes blast Midwest
(Reuters) – A powerful storm that blasted the north central United States with heavy, wet snow and damaging tornadoes pushed onward Friday, threatening more twisters, severe thunderstorms and high winds in the southeastern states, forecasters said.
Coca-Cola moves toward bottling deals in Chicago, Central Florida
BOCA RATON, Florida (Reuters) – Coca-Cola Co on Friday announced deals to sell bottling operations in Greater Chicago and Central Florida, as it slowly undoes its 2010 purchase of its North American bottler.
Court allows appeals of Detroit bankruptcy eligibility
(Reuters) – A court on Friday said it will hear direct appeals by seven groups of petitioners, including pension plans for Detroit’s police and firefighters, regarding the city’s eligibility for bankruptcy.
Zimbabwe court orders deportation of former congressman
HARARE (Reuters) – A Zimbabwean court dismissed pornography charges against former congressman Mel Reynolds on Friday but ordered his deportation after he pleaded guilty to staying in the southern African country on an expired visa.
Four dead in attack at Native American tribal office in California
(Reuters) – Four people were killed and two others critically wounded when a woman opened fire at a Native American tribal office near the Oregon border in Northern California on Thursday, police said.
Ten inmates injured in Arizona prison melee
PHOENIX (Reuters) – A brawl sparked by tensions between Hispanic and Black inmates broke out briefly at an Arizona prison on Thursday, injuring 10 inmates, including one still in critical condition, authorities said.
Illinois leads multistate probe of Sallie Mae’s student loan practices
NEW YORK (Reuters) – SLM Corp, better known as Sallie Mae, faces a multistate probe led by Illinois into its student loan practices, a spokeswoman for Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan said on Thursday.
Arizona lawmakers pass bill to allow faith-based refusal of services
PHOENIX (Reuters) – Arizona lawmakers gave final approval on Thursday to a bill that would allow businesses to refuse service to customers when such work would violate their religious beliefs, in a move critics describe as a license to discriminate aga…
Ex-NFL star Darren Sharper pleads not guilty to rape
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Former football star Darren Sharper pleaded not guilty on Thursday to charges that he drugged and raped two women in a Los Angeles hotel as investigations continue into similar sex crimes in four other U.S. states, according to …