Minn. teen whose farewell song became web hit dies
LAKELAND, Minn. (AP) -- When high school student Zach Sobiech learned he didn't have much longer to live, his mother suggested he write letters to tell his loved ones goodbye. Instead, the Minnesota teenager turned to writing music - and his farewell song, "Clouds," became a YouTube sensation that has attracted more than 4 million views....
Fire Marshal's Office: Panel had blast site access
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- The State Fire Marshal's Office says a federal safety panel's investigators had access to the site of a Texas fertilizer plant blast that killed 15 people and injured about 200 others....
1 child dead, 1 missing in Minn. park landslide
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -- A fourth-grade field trip to a Mississippi River park popular with fossil hunters turned deadly Wednesday when gravel saturated by persistent rain gave way, killing one child and injuring two others. A fourth child was missing....
Float driver says train seemed still before crash
LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) -- The driver of a parade float involved in a train wreck that killed four war veterans in West Texas told investigators the oncoming train appeared to be stationary, and that he didn't notice anything was wrong until he saw people jumping from the float, according to documents released Wednesday....
Okla. men get video of deadly tornado overhead
MOORE, Okla. (AP) -- Two 19-year-old Oklahoma men who took cover in a cellar during a deadly tornado were able to use their cellphones to get video of the twister as it passed over the home....
FBI: Arrest made in Wash. state ricin letter scare
SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) -- A 37-year-old man was arrested Wednesday in connection with a case in which a pair of letters containing the deadly poison ricin were discovered in Washington state last week....
Suit filed over Conn. gun law passed after Newtown
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) -- A group of Connecticut organizations that support gun rights, pistol permit holders and gun sellers has filed a lawsuit in federal court against Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and other state officials, arguing the state's new gun control law violates their constitutional rights....
Boy Scout leaders to vote on lifting gay ban
GRAPEVINE, Texas (AP) -- As protesters made one last stand, the Boy Scouts of America's leadership began a conference Wednesday that was expected to culminate in a long-anticipated vote on whether to allow openly gay Scouts - a decision that, either way, could deeply affect the organization's membership and funding....
Conn. bill gives families say over Newtown records
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) -- A bill crafted privately by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy's office, Connecticut's top prosecutor and legislative leaders would require the written consent of family members of the Sandy Hook Elementary School victims before certain records concerning the shooting may be publicly released....
3rd grader who loved to sing among tornado victims
MOORE, Okla. (AP) -- Nicknamed "The Wall," 8-year-old Kyle Davis loved soccer and going to Monster Truck exhibitions at the fairgrounds with his grandfather. JaNae Hornsby, 9, loved to draw, sing, and be a big sister and cousin to her younger relatives....
Vt gov signs novel law against false patent claims
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) -- Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin signed into law Wednesday a novel measure aimed at protecting companies from so-called patent trolling, the practice of making deceptive claims of patent infringement in the hopes of collecting licensing or settlement money....
More than 50 hurt when Indiana school buses crash
NORTH WEBSTER, Ind. (AP) -- A school bus slammed into the back of another one Wednesday afternoon, setting off a chain-reaction crash involving four buses in northern Indiana, leaving about 50 middle and high students with non-serious injuries and one driver seriously injured....
Boston church official faces racketeering charges
BOSTON (AP) -- A Boston church official who claimed in an autobiography he was a leg-breaker for reputed gangster James "Whitey" Bulger faces accusations that he looted the church's assets for personal financial gain....
Flooding forces evacuation of 1,300 in ND town
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) -- A dam that threatened to give way and flood a North Dakota town was holding back the water on Wednesday, though the 1,300 residents of Cavalier were still being told to stay away from their homes....
