Archive By Section - Signal AP
Debate preparation trumps 2012 campaigning
WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (AP) - President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney are skipping campaigning Sunday to focus on preparing for their debate Tuesday night, with the incumbent trying to rebound from a widely panned performance at the first face-off and the Republican nominee hoping to repeat his strong showing.
Skydiver begins daring bid to break sound barrier
ROSWELL, N.M. (AP) - Lifted by a massive balloon, extreme athlete Felix Baumgartner ascended high above Earth on Sunday in his bid to complete a death-defying 23-mile free fall that could make him the first skydiver to break the sound barrier.
Longtime GOP Senate moderate Arlen Specter dies
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - Former U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter, the outspoken Pennsylvania centrist whose switch from Republican to Democrat ended a 30-year career in which he played a pivotal role in several Supreme Court nominations, died Sunday. He was 82.
Skydiver begins daring stunt
ROSWELL, N.M. (AP) - Extreme athlete Felix Baumgartner started his daring ascent to 23 miles above Earth on Sunday, hoping to make a death-defying free fall that could make him the first skydiver to break the sound barrier.
22 saved from sinking boat in San Francisco Bay
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Nearly two dozen people who were enjoying a bachelor party on what's billed as San Francisco Bay's only "floating wine tasting room" are OK after their boat hit a shoal near Alcatraz Island and began sinking Friday night, officials said.
Los Angeles mayor wants ID card for immigrants
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Immigrants would get access to banking services in Los Angeles under a proposal by the mayor that would create an official city photo identification card that could also be used as a prepaid ATM card for their private bank account.
Geithner: Work remains despite US fiscal progress
TOKYO (AP) - Despite making progress on getting its fiscal house in order, the United States still has much work to do, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner told fellow financial leaders Saturday. The comment came just hours after the U.S. government announced that the budget deficit had topped $1 trillion for a fourth straight year despite a modest improvement thanks to stronger economic growth.
Salmonella fear spurs firm to recall dog treats
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) - A pet food company is voluntarily recalling dog treats that could be contaminated with salmonella.
Divers' attack on clams may slow Lake Tahoe boats
RENO, Nev. (AP) - Scientists waging a war on an Asian clam infestation at Lake Tahoe are asking for patience on the part of boaters.
Shuttle inches toward retirement
LOS ANGELES (AP) - At every turn of Endeavour's stop-and-go commute through urban streets, a constellation of spectators trailed along as the space shuttle ploddingly nosed past stores, schools, churches and front yards.
Libel trial to focus on Britney Spears' meltdown
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Britney Spears' darkest days are about to be revisited in a Los Angeles courtroom, but not by the resurgent pop singer.
22 passengers rescued from sinking wine tasting boat
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Nearly two dozen people who were enjoying a bachelor party on what's billed as San Francisco Bay's only "floating wine tasting room" are OK after their boat hit a shoal near Alcatraz Island and began sinking Friday night, officials said.
French president commits to exchange in Congo
KINSHASA, Congo (AP) - French President Francois Hollande said his country was committed to facilitating freedom of movement, exchange and trade within the French-speaking world during a Saturday visit to Congo for the Francophonie Summit.
Palestinians seek work in Israel as crisis deepens
BEIT EL, West Bank (AP) - For Palestinians, the Israeli military coordination office on the outskirts of Jerusalem is a symbol of Israel's decades-long control over their lives. Now it has also become an unlikely source of hope for employment.
Car bomb kills 17 people in northwestern Pakistan
PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) - A car bomb tore through a crowded bazaar outside an office for anti-Taliban tribal elders Saturday in northwestern Pakistan, killing at least 17 people, officials said.
Articles by Section - Signal AP
Revelers from SCV to Dublin celebrate St. Patrick's Day
NEW YORK (AP) - Crowds cheered and bagpipes bellowed during New York City's annual St. Patrick's Day parade Saturday, and people with a fondness for anything Irish began a weekend of festivities from the Louisiana bayou to Dublin.
California sees steep fall in teacher pink slips
SACRAMENTO (AP) - California teachers are seeing a steep drop in pink slips, thanks to a strengthening economy and new revenue from voter-approved taxes.
Pregnant coach dies in crash of team bus
CARLISLE, Pa. (AP) - A road trip by a college women's lacrosse team came to a horrifying end Saturday when the team bus veered off the Pennsylvania Turnpike and crashed into a tree, killing a pregnant coach, her unborn child and the driver and injuring numerous others.
Man shoots wife at L.A.-area restaurant
MONTEBELLO, Calif. (AP) - Los Angeles County sheriff's officials are seeking a suspect who they say shot his estranged wife outside the restaurant where she works.
10 years on, Iraq still grapples with war's legacy
BAGHDAD (AP) - It's been more than six years since a bomb ripped away the eyes from Shams Karim, killed her mother and left the little girl, now 7, blind and disfigured for life. Psychiatric drugs help control her outbursts of crying and screaming.
Colo Legislature OKs expansion of firearms checks
DENVER (AP) - A landmark expansion of background checks on firearm purchases was approved Friday by lawmakers in Colorado, a politically moderate state that was the site of last year's mass shooting at a suburban Denver movie theater.
Maryland lawmakers vote to repeal death penalty
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) - Maryland lawmakers approved a measure abolishing the death penalty on Friday and sent the bill to Gov. Martin O'Malley, who has long supported banning capital punishment.
States wrestle with 'gambling' rooms in Fla. probe
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) - The charity-run businesses under investigation in a Florida gambling probe started popping up in strip malls about six years ago and rapidly spread as the unregulated stores became a billion-dollar enterprise.
North Dakota close to banning abortions at 6 weeks
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) - North Dakota on Friday moved closer to adopting what would be the most restrictive abortion laws in the country, with lawmakers sending the Republican governor measures that could set the state up for a costly legal battle over the U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized the procedure.
California home sales dip slightly in February
LOS ANGELES (AP) - California homes sales dipped slightly last month and so did prices but the state still seems on the road to recovery after a five-year housing slump.
Arizona woman reviled for son's murder may go free
PHOENIX (AP) - Debra Milke was once one of the most reviled mothers around, convicted of dressing her 4-year-old son in his favorite outfit and sending him off to visit a mall Santa Claus with two men who shot the boy execution-style in the Arizona desert.
Colo. fire burns in erratic winds, threatens homes
FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) - A wildfire driven by erratic winds charred up to 1,000 acres and threatened more than 50 homes in northern Colorado on Friday, prompting hundreds of evacuation orders.
US to beef up missile defense against NKorea
WASHINGTON (AP) - The Pentagon announced Friday it will spend $1 billion to add 14 interceptors to a West Coast-based missile defense system, responding to what it called faster-than-anticipated North Korean progress on nuclear weapons and missiles.
U.S. to beef up missile defense against NKorea
WASHINGTON (AP) - The Pentagon announced Friday it will spend $1 billion to add 14 interceptors to an Alaska-based missile defense system, responding to what it called faster-than-anticipated North Korean progress on nuclear weapons and missiles.
US clergy victims make demands of new pope
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Most Roman Catholics are rejoicing at the election of Pope Francis, but alleged victims of clergy abuse in the U.S. are demanding swift and bold actions from the new Jesuit pontiff: Defrock all molester priests and the cardinals who covered up for them, formally apologize, and release all confidential church files.
