Sexual assault is a 'scourge' on U.S. military: Hagel
Sat, 25 May 2013 14:45:49 -0400
(Reuters) - Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel called sexual assault a "scourge" on Saturday as he addressed graduates of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, where a sergeant stands accused of videotaping female cadets in the showers. "Sexual harassment and sexual assault in the military are a profound betrayal - a profound betrayal - of sacred oaths and sacred trusts," Hagel said. "This scourge must be stamped out." His comments came a day after President Barack Obama delivered a similar message to graduates at the U.S. ...

Two believed dead as heavy rains flood San Antonio streets
Sat, 25 May 2013 19:26:28 -0400
By Jim Forsyth SAN ANTONIO (Reuters) - One woman died when her car was washed off a bridge and a second was believed to have drowned on Saturday as drenching rains in San Antonio triggered floodwaters so strong they swept a city bus off the street and forced the rescue of some 130 people, officials said. The flooding, which followed torrential rains that brought flash-flood warnings across South Texas, inundated a number of major thoroughfares in San Antonio and collapsed the roof of an apartment complex. ...

Two freight trains collide in Missouri, bringing down overpass
Sat, 25 May 2013 16:23:12 -0400
By Tim Bross ST. LOUIS (Reuters) - Two freight trains collided at a rail intersection in rural Missouri on Saturday, triggering the collapse of a highway overpass when at least a dozen rail cars derailed and struck a support pillar, authorities said. None of the seven people hurt in the fiery crash - two train workers and five people who had been in two cars on the overpass - suffered life-threatening injuries, Scott County Sheriff Rick Walter said in a statement. ...

On Memorial Day, remembering friends, family with ‘a heavy but grateful heart’
Fri, 24 May 2013 14:55:25 -0400
From William Ray Fullmer: "My nephew, Sgt. Derek Tillman Roberts, spilled his blood on the sands of Iraq to extend the right to live free to the people of the Middle East. On June 14, 2007, Derek was killed by a roadside bomb in Kirkuk, placed by those too cowardly to face him on the [...]

Storm chaser footage captures the ferocity of Oklahoma tornado (VIDEO)
Fri, 24 May 2013 13:30:06 -0400
Storm chasers from an outfit called Fast Unit 70 uploaded raw footage of the first 10 minutes of the Moore, Okla., tornado that gives viewers a harrowing sense of what the EF5 twister looked like. Watch that footage here. As cars and trucks zoom past, Chance Coldiron and Justin Cox's camera focuses on the dark [...]

Police in Australia issue warning on 3-D printed gun
Fri, 24 May 2013 11:48:51 -0400
The DIY 3-D gun may not be quite ready for prime time. According to Techworld, the police commissioner in Australia’s New South Wales, Andrew Scipione, has issued a warning after his officers tested one of the firearms—dubbed the "Liberator"—and experienced a “catastrophic misfire” (no one was seriously injured). According to the website, the NSW police [...]

Cop arrested on suspicion of firebombing police captain’s house
Fri, 24 May 2013 10:09:20 -0400
A police officer from Edison, N. J., was arrested Thursday on five counts of attempted murder and one count of aggravated arson in connection with the firebombing of another officer's house, NJ.com reports. Michael A. Dotro was taken into custody after a massive search, and he has been suspended from the force with pay. Bail [...]

Boy Scouts vote to end ban on gay youth members
Thu, 23 May 2013 19:55:38 -0400
[Updated at 6:55 p.m. CT] DALLAS – The Boy Scouts of America, one of the country’s largest and oldest youth organizations, decided on Thursday to break 103 years of tradition by allowing openly gay members into its ranks. The controversial move was approved by more than 60 percent of the approximate 1,400 votes cast by [...]

Mo. highway buckles after rail cars hit overpass
Sat, 25 May 2013 20:29:58 -0400
CHAFFEE, Mo. (AP) — A highway overpass in southeast Missouri collapsed early Saturday when rail cars slammed into one of the bridge's pillars after a cargo train collision, authorities said. Seven people were injured, though none seriously.

Truck load in Washington state bridge collapse believed taller than span's low point
Sat, 25 May 2013 20:21:33 -0400
(Reuters) - The oversize load on a semi-trailer truck that struck a Washington state bridge was believed to be too tall for the lowest point of clearance on the structure, part of which collapsed after the collision, a federal safety official said on Saturday. The truck was permitted by the state to carry a load at a height of 15 feet and 9 inches, but the lowest point of clearance on the bridge was 14 feet and 6 inches, Deborah Hersman, chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, said at an afternoon news conference. ...