Archive By Section - Signal AP
Tennis ref reinstated after murder case dropped
LOS ANGELES (AP) - A tennis referee whose career was almost ended by a charge that she murdered her husband with a coffee cup has been reinstated after the charge was dismissed for lack of evidence.
Traffic on LA freeway stopped for robbery search
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Law enforcement officers halted traffic on a Los Angeles freeway Friday to search for fleeing robbery suspects after realizing a bag of stolen money contained a tracking device, authorities said.
Boehner on averting fiscal cliff: 'God only knows'
WASHINGTON (AP) - Stocks fell, congressional leaders squabbled and the fiscal cliff drew implacably closer.
Parents struggle to find gender-neutral toys
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) - A 13-year-old girl's campaign to get Hasbro to make an Easy-Bake Oven that isn't purple or pink so it would appeal to her little brother is a fresh sign of movement in an old debate. Parents who hope to expose their children to different kinds of play - science sets for girls and dolls for boys, for example - can find themselves stymied by a toy industry that can seem stuck in the past when it comes to gender roles.
'Sandy' Claus delivers toys to storm-stricken kids
NEW YORK (AP) - From his toy-cluttered Brooklyn apartment, the man in the red suit was making his list and checking it twice. But he made no distinction between naughty or nice: Every child on it would receive a gift from this Santa Claus.
Denver sirens are just test, not doomsday signal
DENVER (AP) - Officials in Denver want people to know this is only a test. The city is testing new outdoor warning sirens on Friday, and they're well aware of all the talk about the Mayan calendar and time running out for the world's population. In announcing the drill, officials said they wanted to make sure that people knew that the wailing sirens didn't mean it was the end of the world. A chorus ...
Kerry nominated for Secretary of State
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama on Friday nominated Sen. John Kerry as his next secretary of state, elevating the longtime lawmaker and foreign policy expert to the top diplomatic job he had coveted.
Bells toll for victims one week after shooting
NEWTOWN, Conn. (AP) - The chiming of bells reverberated throughout Newtown on Friday, commemorating one week since the crackle of gunfire in a schoolhouse killed 20 children and six adults in a massacre that has shaken the community - and the nation - to its core.
Hot spots draw believers, but not doomsday
As the sun rose from time zone to time zone across the world on Friday, there was still no sign of the world's end - but that didn't stop those convinced that a 5,125-year Mayan calendar predicts the apocalypse from gathering at some of the world's purported survival hot spots.
US economy grew at 3.1 percent in summer
WASHINGTON (AP) - The U.S. economy grew at an annual rate of 3.1 percent over the summer as exports increased, consumers spent more and state and local governments added to growth for the first time in three years. But the economy is likely slowing in the current quarter.
Obama nominating Kerry for secretary of state
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama on Friday will nominate Sen. John Kerry as his next secretary of state, a senior administration official said, making the first move in an overhaul of his national security team heading into a second term.
NRA calls for armed police officer in every school
WASHINGTON (AP) - The nation's largest gun-rights lobby called Friday for armed police officers to be posted in every American school to stop the next killer "waiting in the wings."
Hot rhetoric, tiny numbers separate Obama, Boehner
WASHINGTON (AP) - Despite all the hot fiscal cliff rhetoric, the differences between President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner seem relatively narrow. So why haven't they shaken hands already? One answer: Both sides need to keep - or get - their own troops behind them.
Newtown first responders carry heavy burdens
NEWTOWN, Conn. (AP) - While the people of Newtown do their best to cope with loss and preserve the memories of their loved ones, another class of residents is also finding it difficult to move on: the emergency responders who saw firsthand the terrible aftermath of last week's school shooting.
All we want for Christmas is our gifts on time!
NEW YORK (AP) - Will Santa's sleigh be late? A record number of Americans took to the Web to order holiday gifts after retailers flooded their inboxes with offers of extra discounts, free shipping and easy returns. But a storm bringing heavy winds and snow to much of the Midwest on Thursday - the heaviest shipping day of the year - could mean that some packages might not make it under the tree in time ...
Articles by Section - Signal AP
Jesse Jackson Jr. pleads guilty in campaign case
WASHINGTON (AP) - Former U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., holding back tears, entered a guilty plea Wednesday in federal court to criminal charges that he engaged in a scheme to spend $750,000 in campaign funds on personal items. He faces 46 to 57 months in prison, and a fine of $10,000 to $100,000, under a plea deal with prosecutors.
Pentagon notifies Congress of likely furloughs
WASHINGTON (AP) - Defense Secretary Leon Panetta told Congress on Wednesday that if automatic government spending cuts kick in on March 1 he may have to shorten the workweek for the "vast majority" of the Defense Department's 800,000 civilian workers.
Future science: Using 3-D worlds to visualize data
CHICAGO (AP) - Take a walk through a human brain? Fly over the surface of Mars? Computer scientists at the University of Illinois at Chicago are pushing science fiction closer to reality with a wraparound virtual world where a researcher wearing 3-D glasses can do all that and more.
Renewed fervor for Google lifts stock above $800
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Google's stock price topped $800 for the first time Tuesday amid renewed confidence in the company's ability to reap higher profits from its dominance of Internet search and prominence in the growing mobile market.
US homebuilder confidence dips from a 6½ year high
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Confidence among U.S. homebuilders slipped this month from the 6½ year high it reached in January, with many builders reporting less traffic by prospective customers before the critical spring home-buying season.
UPDATE: Body found in rubble of KC explosion
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - The mayor of Kansas City says search crews have found a body in the rubble of a Kansas City restaurant destroyed by an explosion.
In fact-based films, how much fiction is OK?
NEW YORK (AP) - The scene: Tehran's Mehrabad airport, January 1980. Six U.S. diplomats, disguised as a fake sci-fi film crew, are about to fly to freedom with their CIA escorts. But suddenly there's a moment of panic in what had been a smooth trip through the airport.
US ready to strike back against China cyberattacks
WASHINGTON (AP) - As public evidence mounts that the Chinese military is responsible for stealing massive amounts of U.S. government data and corporate trade secrets, the Obama administration is eyeing fines and other trade actions it may take against Beijing or any other country guilty of cyberespionage.
14 hurt in Kansas City gas blast, fire
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - A gas explosion that sparked a massive, block-engulfing blaze in an upscale Kansas City shopping district injured 14 people, a city official said Tuesday evening, adding it is believed that an accident by a utility contractor may have caused the blast.
