Archive By Section - Signal AP
FDA review of tobacco products grinds to a halt
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Talk about a smoke break. Tobacco companies have introduced almost no new cigarettes or smokeless tobacco products in the U.S. in more than 18 months because the federal government has prevented them from doing so, an Associated Press review has found. It's an unprecedented pause for an industry that historically has introduced dozens of new products annually, and reflects its increasingly uneasy relationship with the Food and Drug Administration, which in ...
Transsexual college hoops player stays focused
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) - The women's basketball team at Mission College expected the bleachers to be full and the hecklers ready when its newest player made her home court debut.
Man sentenced in bizarre murder solicitation
SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) - A former Southern California man has been sentenced to prison for soliciting the murder of his ex-girlfriend and asking the hit-man to videotape the killing so he could watch it on Christmas.
Smartphones can soon be used to 'e-hail' NYC taxis
NEW YORK (AP) - Raising your arm and yelling "taxi!" is the old-fashioned way to nab a New York City cab. Soon, all you'll need is a smartphone app.
NKorea still years away from reliable missiles
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - After 14 years of painstaking labor, North Korea finally has a rocket that can put a satellite in orbit. But that doesn't mean Pyongyang is close to having an intercontinental ballistic missile.
Raul Castro says economic reforms are working
HAVANA (AP) - President Raul Castro declared Thursday that Cuba's two-year experiment with market reforms is working and has the wind at its back, but said much work remains to breathe life into the sputtering economy.
Embattled, Rice bows out of running; Kerry likely
WASHINGTON (AP) - Susan Rice, the embattled U.N. ambassador, abruptly withdrew from consideration to be the next secretary of state on Thursday after a bitter, weekslong standoff with Republican senators who declared they would fight to defeat her nomination.
Texas boy with pentagram carved back discharged
RICHLAND HILLS, Texas (AP) - A 6-year-old Texas boy whose father allegedly carved a pentagram on the child's back is out of the hospital and doing well given the circumstances, police said Thursday.
Florida won't restore rights to famed jewel thief
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) - Jack Roland Murphy, the famed jewel thief and surfer known as "Murph the Surf," has spent the last quarter-century going into prisons and telling inmates that they could still turn their lives around.
Huge DNA code of the Christmas tree being revealed
NEW YORK (AP) - To millions of people, the Christmas tree is a cheerful sight. To scientists who decipher the DNA codes of plants and animals, it's a monster.
Dozens sue pharmacy, but compensation uncertain
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Dennis O'Brien rubs his head as he details ailments triggered by the fungal meningitis he developed after a series of steroid shots in his neck: nausea, vomiting, dizziness, drowsiness, blurred vision, exhaustion and trouble with his speech and attention.
California sees unusually high 'king tides'
HUNTINGTON BEACH (AP) - Seawater spread into several low-lying communities along the California coast Thursday morning as unusually high "king tides" pulled the Pacific Ocean farther ashore than normal.
Fiscal cliff splits big, small businesses on taxes
WASHINGTON (AP) - The "fiscal cliff" debate is splitting the business community over taxes, driving a wedge between two natural Republican allies: the nation's corporate leaders who are helping strengthen President Barack Obama's bargaining position and the small business advocates bristling over the prospect of higher taxes.
Man accused in Ore. mall shooting had 'weird look'
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - Before police say Jacob Tyler Roberts walked into a mall wearing a hockey-style mask, shooting numerous rounds that killed two and injured a teenage girl, he visited the brother of his roommate, hugged him and told him he was going "somewhere south, somewhere warm."
11 arrests aboard pot-laden panga smuggler boat
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (AP) - Eleven people aboard a marijuana-laden panga smuggler boat have been arrested on a remote Santa Barbara County beach.
Articles by Section - Signal AP
South Africa police replace top Pistorius investigator
PRETORIA, South Africa (AP) - Ahead of a judge's decision on whether to release Oscar Pistorius on bail, South African police on Thursday appointed a new chief detective in the murder case, replacing a veteran policeman who was himself charged with attempted murder.
Does Oscar crown await Affleck's 'Argo?'
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Nominations morning last month revealed major surprises for the Academy Awards, promising one of the most wide-open campaigns ever for Hollywood's highest honors.
Freed Afghan Taliban fighters return to insurgency
ISLAMABAD (AP) - At least half the Afghan Taliban recently freed from Pakistani prisons have rejoined the insurgency, a Pakistani intelligence official says, throwing into question the value of such goodwill gestures that the Afghan government requested to restart a flagging peace process.
Police: Hotel altercation sparked Vegas shooting
LAS VEGAS (AP) - The Las Vegas Strip became a scene of deadly violence early Thursday when someone in a black Range Rover opened fire on a Maserati at a stoplight, sending it crashing into a taxi that burst into flames, leaving three people dead and at least six injured.
Star Wars fans feel the force at lightsaber class
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A group of San Francisco Star Wars fans who want to travel to a galaxy not that far away have created a combat choreography class for Jedis-in-training with their weapon of choice: the lightsaber.
Obama considers weighing in on gay marriage case
WASHINGTON (AP) - The Obama administration is quietly considering urging the Supreme Court to overturn California's ban on gay marriage, a step that would mark a political victory for advocates of same-sex unions and a deepening commitment by President Barack Obama to rights for gay couples.
BP civil settlement remains elusive as trial nears
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - The U.S. Justice Department and the five Gulf coast states affected by a massive oil spill nearly three years ago have indicated they would like to settle their environmental and economic claims with BP PLC ahead of a trial scheduled to start next week.
5 killed in Georgia plane crash
THOMSON, Ga. (AP) - Federal and local authorities were investigating Thursday after a small jet crashed off the end of a runway at a Georgia airport, killing five people and injuring two.
Officials probe death on L.A. hotel roof
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Canadian tourist Elisa Lam had been missing for about two weeks when officials at the historic Cecil Hotel in downtown Los Angeles found her body in a water cistern on the hotel roof.
UPDATE: Snowstorm dumping on Midwest
ST. LOUIS (AP) - Much of the nation's heartland awoke Thursday to heavy snow, treacherous roads and a day off from work or school as a large, potentially dangerous winter storm pushed eastward out of the Rockies.
Official: Calif. gunman was loner, 'gamer'
TUSTIN, Calif. (AP) - The first of three people killed in a gunman's rampage was identified Wednesday as a 20-year-old woman but police did not know why she was in the home of the shooter, who lived with his parents and was described by authorities as a video game-playing loner.
Bolivia leader unable to visit Chavez at hospital
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) - Bolivian President Evo Morales said Wednesday that he was unable to meet with his friend and ally Hugo Chavez when he came to the military hospital in Caracas where the Venezuelan president is undergoing unspecified cancer treatment.
