us

ST. LOUIS – Federal lawsuits allege that jails in the St. Louis County towns of Ferguson and Jennings operate essentially as modern-day debtors’ prisons, where minor traffic offenses can lead to extended periods behind bars. Two lawsuits were filed Sunday on behalf of people who have spent time in jail …

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Snow falling off a Boston-area ice rink roof buried a man and pummeled four other people Wednesday as they were walking on a path near the rink, police said. The man was partially dug out by his brother and a rink employee before firefighters arrived to free …

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The priest who transformed the University of Notre Dame into an academic power during his 35 years in charge while also serving as an adviser to popes and presidents has died. University spokesman Paul Browne says the Rev. Theodore Hesburgh died Thursday night at age 97. …

ST. LOUIS – An appeals court says porn publisher Larry Flynt can join a lawsuit seeking to force Missouri to disclose more details of its execution methods. A three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis issued the ruling Tuesday. It reverses a lower court …

MONTPELIER, Vt. – Supporters of a proposed ban on the sale of ivory and rhinoceros horns in Vermont are upset by a move to insert exemptions into the legislation for old pianos and other antiques. Vermont activist Ashley McAvey told a state legislative committee Thursday that permitting any sales of …

RONKONKOMA, N.Y. – Authorities say three newborn kittens have been found lined up and decapitated in New York. An animal-welfare activist calls the crime a “vicious, heinous act of animal cruelty.” The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Suffolk County says the dead kittens were discovered Wednesday …

MANSFIELD, Ohio – Police say the home where an Ohio man was fatally shot by officers after a 26-hour standoff contained loaded assault weapons, ammunition and survivalist bags with food and medical supplies. Mansfield police said Wednesday the items were found during an initial assessment of the home where 58-year-old …

NEW YORK – Two judges on a federal appeals panel seem unlikely to reinstate a guilty verdict against a former New York City police officer who became dubbed the “cannibal cop” for his online exchanges about kidnapping and eating women. But the panel’s third judge appeared firmly on the side …

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Connecticut police say they’re looking for a burglar who goes by the name Bob. Police say a woman reported a break-in at about 2:30 a.m. Monday at her home in New Haven. The woman told police she asked who was in her hallway and the man …

A Bucks County, Pennsylvania, middle school counselor has been accused of raping a 14-year-old student, according to local reports and county records. Kelly Ann Schutte, 35, is facing felony and misdemeanor charges, including three counts of having intercourse or sexual contact with a student at school, one count of corruption …