US from Newser

FBI Killed Man Who Knew Tamerlan Tsarnaev: Friend

Evann Gastaldo — Wed, 22 May 2013 07:55:31 CDT

An odd Boston-bombing sidebar: A man was fatally shot overnight by an FBI agent in Orlando, and multiple sources say the dead man was connected to Tamerlan Tsarnaev in some way. NBC 's anonymous sources say Ibragim Todashev had previously been questioned about his relationship with the suspect and had...

Mystery Illness Kills 2 in Alabama

Rob Quinn — Wed, 22 May 2013 07:40:00 CDT

State and federal officials are scrambling to investigate a mysterious respiratory illness that has killed two people and left five others hospitalized in southeast Alabama. Officials describe the outbreak as a cluster of illnesses with flulike symptoms, with fever, coughing, and shortness of breath as the most important symptoms to...

Okla. Tornado: Inside the Leveled School

Rob Quinn — Wed, 22 May 2013 06:17:13 CDT

As the massive tornado hit the Plaza Towers Elementary School, "it sounded like rivets being pulled out by a monster," a teacher's assistant tells the Wall Street Journal , recounting how she and some 10 other adults huddled and tried to protect as many children as they could during the minutes...

Weiner Officially Jumps Into NYC Mayoral Race

Rob Quinn — Wed, 22 May 2013 05:52:20 CDT

Anthony Weiner—possibly inspired by Mark Sanford's shocking comeback —has made it official: He's running for mayor of America's biggest city. The former congressman launched his run for New York City mayor with a video posted on YouTube at midnight, in which he says, "I made some big mistakes and...

Senate Panel Clears Immigration Reform

Tue, 21 May 2013 19:21:36 CDT

Far-reaching legislation to grant a chance at citizenship to millions of immigrants living illegally in the United States cleared the Senate Judiciary Committee on a solid bipartisan vote tonight after supporters somberly sidestepped a controversy over the rights of gay spouses. The 13-5 vote cleared the way for an epic...

Freedom Goat Runs for Her Life, Snarls Traffic

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:17:38 CDT

It's hard not to root for the goat in this one: One believed to have escaped en route to a slaughterhouse snarled the morning commute along one of the busiest roadways in northern New Jersey today, leading police on a nearly two-hour chase. The small female eluded five Jersey City...

Cops: We Can't Solve Susan Powell Case

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:08:05 CDT

Josh Powell reportedly had an affair just months before his wife disappeared, and his brother may have been "heavily involved" in getting rid of her body, Utah police revealed as they announced they couldn't solve the sensational case. The West Valley City Police Department yesterday opened its books on the...

Weather Service: Tornado as Big as It Gets

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:38:01 CDT

The National Weather Service says the tornado that hit Oklahoma yesterday was a top-of-the-scale EF-5 twister with winds between 200 and 210mph. The agency upgraded the tornado from an EF-4 based on what a damage-assessment team saw on the ground. Less than 1% of US tornadoes are this violent. Yesterday's...

Now Jodi Arias Doesn't Want to Die

Kate Seamons — Tue, 21 May 2013 14:04:33 CDT

Pretty much immediately after being convicted of murder , Jodi Arias told a reporter she wanted the death penalty: "The worst outcome for me would be natural life," she said. In the last 12 days she has changed her mind. Arias today made an impassioned, 18-minute plea for her life, telling...