Cigarette may have caused fatal New Jersey motel fire: officials
PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) – An improperly discarded cigarette was the likely cause of a New Jersey shore motel fire that killed four people last week, according to a preliminary finding released on Monday.
Detroit emergency manager sees bankruptcy plan confirmed by fall
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Detroit’s emergency manager expects the city’s $18 billion bankruptcy plan to win court approval by the fall despite obstacles such as a dispute over swap agreements and a vote by retirees on the plan that could potentially slow or…
Wisconsin Governor Walker signs $504 million tax cut
MILWAUKEE (Reuters) – Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, a Republican, on Monday signed into law a measure that uses the state’s projected surplus to give a tax break of more than $500 million to workers and property owners.
Consumer advocates seek to raise California cap on medical malpractice awards
SACRAMENTO, California (Reuters) – Consumer advocates in California said on Monday they had gathered enough signatures to place an initiative on the November ballot that would raise a decades-old state cap on medical malpractice awards to $1.1 million….
Washington must find rooms for homeless families out in cold: judge
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A judge on Monday ordered the District of Columbia to provide homeless families private rooms when temperatures drop below freezing instead of housing them in public recreation centers.
U.S. justices take up religious challenge to Obamacare provision
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday considers whether business owners can object on religious grounds to a provision of President Barack Obama’s healthcare law that requires employers to provide health insurance that covers birth c…
Anti-fracking activist in court, fights ban from Pennsylvania land
MONTROSE, Pennsylvania (Reuters) – A Pennsylvania judge could rule as early as this week on whether to modify his five-month-old injunction banning an anti-fracking activist from approaching lands leased by a Texas-based natural gas producer that effec…
‘Non-politician’ leads Democratic race for Pennsylvania governor
YORK, Pennsylvania (Reuters) – Four years ago, Pennsylvania businessman Tom Wolf abandoned a promising bid for governor to return to his family’s building products company, a once successful business that was spiraling toward collapse after a sale to p…
Boston Marathon bombing response a world model, governor says
BOSTON (Reuters) – Boston’s handling of the bombing attack on its marathon in April has become a model for cities around the world on how to respond to tragedy, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick said on Monday, as the city made its final preparation…
Indian tribe seeks pot business ban in part of Washington state
OLYMPIA, Washington (Reuters) – A Native American tribe, concerned about the impact of marijuana on its youth, is fighting to derail the rollout of a nascent recreational pot industry across a quarter of Washington state, where it still holds some trad…
