Archive By Section - Signal AP
UPDATE: Severe weather blamed for Texas man's death
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Freezing rain and sleet made for a sloppy Christmas morning trek in parts of the nation's midsection on Tuesday, while residents along the Gulf Coast braced for thunderstorms, high winds and tornadoes.
Pope decries slaughter in Syria
VATICAN CITY (AP) - Pope Benedict XVI wished Christmas peace to the world Tuesday, decrying the slaughter of the "defenseless" in Syria, urging Israelis and Palestinians to find the courage to negotiate and encouraging China's new leaders to allow more religious freedom.
Homeless man set on fire in Norwalk
NORWALK, Calif. (AP) - Authorities say a 55-year-old man was set on fire as he slept outside a donut shop in southern Los Angeles County.
Klugman, Durning: Consummate character actors
NEW YORK (AP) - What a couple of mugs, sporting less-than-perfect physiques in the bargain.
Man who killed NY firefighters left note
WEBSTER, N.Y. (AP) - Police In Webster, N.Y., say the man who lured firefighters to their deaths in a blaze of gunfire left a typewritten note saying he wanted to burn down the neighborhood and "do what I like doing best, killing people."
'Parental Guidance' unites Crystal, Midler
LOS ANGELES (AP) - After nearly 30 years of friendship and shared tastes in movies, music and comedy, Billy Crystal and Bette Midler have finally taken it to the next level: They did a film together.
Volunteers at Colo. base track Santa's progress
PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. (AP) - Volunteers at a Colorado Air Force base monitoring maps showing Santa Claus' progress are several hours into their goodwill mission and have answered more than 24,000 phone calls from children wanting to know everything from old Saint Nick's age, to how reindeer fly, to when they can expect their presents.
Mountain lions shot in Half Moon Bay 4 months old
HALF MOON BAY, Calif. (AP) - State fish and game officials are vowing to learn from the shooting of two mountain lion cubs in Half Moon Bay - a decision that was criticized by wildlife advocates.
NorCal storms boosts ski resorts and reservoirs
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - The wet weather that has saturated Northern California is giving a much-needed boost to reservoirs and creating ideal skiing conditions.
Storm blows through Southern California
LOS ANGELES (AP) - A storm pushed its way into Southern California on Monday, causing flooding in some areas, snarling holiday traffic in others and leading to the rescue of a man clinging for hours to a clump of bushes in the fast-moving Los Angeles River.
Homicide rate plummeting in Richmond
RICHMOND, Calif. (AP) - A San Francisco Bay Area city once considered among the most dangerous in the nation has seen its homicide rate plummet even as killings in other cities in the region have climbed.
S. Calif. store evacuated after report of gunman
MORENO VALLEY, Calif. (AP) - A Wal-Mart in Southern California was evacuated Monday after shoppers say they saw a man dressed in camouflage enter the store with what appeared to be an assault rifle or shotgun, authorities said.
Landmark thermometer an eyesore for Calif town
BAKER, Calif. (AP) - A giant thermometer built to attract motorists headed to and from Las Vegas has become an eyesore, and residents in this Southern California desert town are divided about whether to take the landmark down.
Report: Cheaper for lawmakers to use personal cars
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - Taxpayers save thousands of dollars when California lawmakers use their personal cars for legislative business rather than state-leased vehicles, a Sacramento Bee review of public records has found.
Twins paired up as co-principals of Calif. school
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) - Students at a Northern California middle school are looking at double the trouble if they misbehave.
Articles by Section - Signal AP
State jobless rate at 4 1/2-year low
SACRAMENTO (AP) - California's unemployment rate has fallen to its lowest level in 4 1/2 years as the state experienced one of the sharpest drops in joblessness nationwide, the state Employment Development Department reported Friday.
Deal to sell Sacramento Kings signed
SACRAMENTO (AP) - Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson announced to screaming throngs of Kings fans Friday that the deal to sell the NBA franchise to a group led by software tycoon Vivek Ranadive has been signed.
Congress gets mixed advice on regulating drones
WASHINGTON (AP) - The growing use of unmanned surveillance "eyes in the sky" aircraft raises a thicket of privacy concerns, but Congress is getting mixed advice on what, if anything, to do about it.
'American Idol' finale draws record low ratings
NEW YORK (AP) - Ratings for the "American Idol" finale plunged to a record low for the 12-year-old show.
Alaska man runs onto frozen lake to avoid jail
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - Anchorage police say a young man who didn't want to return to jail ran out onto the uncertain ice of an Alaska lake to escape officers armed with an arrest warrant.
Arrests in New Orleans parade shootings cheered
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Days after a burst of gunfire brought a chaotic and bloody end to a Mother's Day neighborhood parade in New Orleans, news of six arrests gave an organizer of the traditional event reason to celebrate again.
Obama picks budget official to run troubled IRS
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama picked a senior White House budget official to become the acting head of the Internal Revenue Service on Thursday, the same day another top official announced plans to leave the agency amid the controversy over agents targeting tea party groups.
Famed 'hatchet hitchhiker' arrested in NJ homicide
ELIZABETH, N.J. (AP) - A homeless, hatchet-wielding hitchhiker who became an Internet hero earlier this year was arrested Thursday for allegedly beating a New Jersey lawyer to death inside his home.
Afghans tell of US soldier's killing rampage
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) - Sitting on a dirty straw mat on the parched ground of southern Afghanistan, Masooma sank deeper inside a giant black shawl. Hidden from view, her words burst forth as she told her side of what happened to her family sometime before dawn on March 11, 2012.
Mom in NM chases down child abductor; man arrested
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) - A mother whose 4-year-old was being abducted chased the suspect down and crashed her vehicle into his car, triggering a manhunt and the arrest of the suspect, Albuquerque police said Thursday.
Report: Calif. short on key state water workers
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - California is losing key employees at the Department of Water Resources because it can't pay afford to pay them enough.
Justice Dept. faulted over terrorist identities
WASHINGTON (AP) - The government allowed "a small but significant number" of terrorists into America's witness protection program and then failed to provide the names of some of them for a watch list that's used to keep dangerous people off airline flights, the Justice Department's inspector general says.
Dying man's eye blinks lead to Ohio murder verdict
CINCINNATI (AP) - An Ohio man was found guilty Thursday of fatally shooting a man who authorities say identified his assailant by blinking his eyes while paralyzed and hooked up to a ventilator.
California fuels Powerball $550 million jackpot
SAN DIEGO (AP) - The numbers sum up the frenzy that has taken over the Golden State since it became the newest in the nation to join the madness over Powerball, which saw its jackpot soar Thursday to $550 million.
Texas tornado devastation includes Habitat homes
GRANBURY, Texas (AP) - Habitat for Humanity spent years in a North Texas suburb, helping build many of the 110 homes in the low-income area. But its work was largely undone during an outbreak of 12 tornadoes Wednesday night that killed six people and injured dozens.
