Reuters: U.S.

Investigators seek cause of New York commuter train crash

Sat, 18 May 2013 16:43:38 GMT

(Reuters) - Federal investigators on Saturday searched for the cause of a rush-hour train crash in Connecticut that injured dozens of people commuting home from New York City, three of them critically.

Powerball jackpot could go higher than $600 million

Sat, 18 May 2013 16:18:23 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - The Powerball jackpot being drawn on Saturday night could be even higher than the record $600 million being advertised, pushing it near or above the largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history, a Texas Lottery official said on Saturday.

Tech, labor brandish dueling studies in immigration fight

Sat, 18 May 2013 05:01:00 GMT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The technology industry and organized labor are locked in a fight that threatens to complicate the U.S. Senate's immigration bill.

Colorado sheriffs sue to block new gun-control laws

Sat, 18 May 2013 03:46:30 GMT

DENVER (Reuters) - A group of Colorado county sheriffs, angry about two new state gun control laws passed in the wake of last year's mass shootings in Connecticut and Colorado, filed a federal lawsuit on Friday seeking to block the laws from going into effect.

Obama seeks to cut Afghan war spending by 10 percent

Sat, 18 May 2013 02:03:50 GMT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama on Friday trimmed his funding request for the war in Afghanistan and other overseas operations by 10 percent, reflecting his plans to wind down the U.S. presence in that country.

O.J. Simpson's ex-lawyer says "poured his soul" into Nevada trial

Sat, 18 May 2013 01:47:53 GMT

LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - An attorney who O.J. Simpson claims botched his Nevada robbery trial five years ago told a court on Friday that he poured his "blood, sweat and soul" into defending the former football hero, who he said had been badly tainted by his sensational 1990s murder case.

IRS chief declines to identify employees involved in scandal

Sat, 18 May 2013 00:54:36 GMT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The outgoing head of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service angered Republican lawmakers on Friday by resisting their demands that he identify who at the tax-collection agency had inappropriately targeted conservative groups for extra scrutiny.

Texas tornado leaves Habitat for Humanity neighborhood in ruins

Sat, 18 May 2013 00:43:57 GMT

DALLAS (Reuters) - Veronica Orellana, her husband and three sons were used to living in cramped spaces until six years ago, when they moved into their three-bedroom house in Granbury, Texas, built by a nonprofit that constructs homes for low-income families.

Train derails in Connecticut, at least 20 people hurt

Fri, 17 May 2013 23:58:39 GMT

(Reuters) - Some 20 to 25 people were injured on Friday when a train derailed near Fairfield, Connecticut, but there were no reports of fatalities a police spokesman said on Friday.

Powerball jackpot grows to a record $600 million

Fri, 17 May 2013 23:43:10 GMT

(Reuters) - The jackpot for the Powerball lottery has soared to a record $600 million and the top prize may swell to nearly $1 billion if no one draws the winning numbers this weekend, a lottery official said on Friday.

Virus found in Iowa hog population, possibly beyond

Fri, 17 May 2013 23:33:26 GMT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A potentially fatal hog virus, porcine epidemic diarrhea, has been found in the United States for the first time, government and private industry officials said on Friday, posing a new threat for the country's struggling pork producers.

IRS chief declines to identify employees involved in scandal

Fri, 17 May 2013 22:51:21 GMT

Woman charged with harboring New Orleans Mother's Day shooter

Fri, 17 May 2013 22:45:56 GMT

(Reuters) - Police arrested a 19-year-old woman on Friday and accused her of harboring one of two brothers charged with opening fire at a New Orleans parade on Mother's Day, wounding 20 people in violence that sent shockwaves through the city.

Pentagon chief vows to 'fix' military's sexual assault problem

Fri, 17 May 2013 22:32:10 GMT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel ordered top military chiefs on Friday to redouble their effort to address the problem of sexual assault, saying the frequency and perceived tolerance of the crime was eroding the military's ability conduct its mission.

Passengers in Wall Street ferry crash file 37 lawsuits

Fri, 17 May 2013 22:09:50 GMT

(Reuters) - Passengers aboard a high-speed commuter ferry that crashed while docking near Wall Street in January have filed 37 lawsuits against boat owner Seastreak LLC, seeking as much as $45 million each.

O.J. Simpson's ex-lawyer says did his best at Nevada trial

Fri, 17 May 2013 22:04:17 GMT

America's Cup sailing suspended for review of boats and dangers

Fri, 17 May 2013 21:38:15 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Clouds hung over the America's Cup sailing regatta on Friday after investigators asked the teams to temporarily halt practicing on blustery San Francisco bay following a deadly accident last week.

Incoming IRS chief asked to conduct "thorough review" of agency

Fri, 17 May 2013 20:43:12 GMT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Incoming acting Internal Revenue Service chief Daniel Werfel has been asked to spearhead a "thorough review" of the scandal-plagued agency and report back to President Barack Obama in 30 days, a Treasury Department official said on Friday.

Court denies Boston bombing suspect request for photos by lawyers

Fri, 17 May 2013 20:37:34 GMT

BOSTON (Reuters) - A federal judge on Friday denied a request by lawyers for accused Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev to take photographs of their imprisoned client without sharing them with prosecutors.

Illinois Senate approves marijuana for medical uses

Fri, 17 May 2013 20:12:55 GMT

SPRINGFIELD, Illinois (Reuters) - The Illinois Senate on Friday voted to approve the use of marijuana for medical purposes, which if signed into law would make it the second-most-populous state in the nation after California to allow the drug's use for medical purposes.

Two states say 2014 Obamacare insurance costs on low side

Fri, 17 May 2013 19:57:26 GMT

(Reuters) - In a boost for President Barack Obama's healthcare reform law, two states in the Northwest said on Friday that insurance companies submitted applications to sell policies on the states' health insurance exchanges at rates well below what some insurance executives had predicted.

Judge blocks Arkansas law banning abortions after 12 weeks

Fri, 17 May 2013 18:56:39 GMT

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas (Reuters) - A federal judge on Friday blocked a new Arkansas law that would ban most abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy, one of the most restrictive abortion statutes in the nation.

U.S. Navy SEAL dies in Fort Knox training accident

Fri, 17 May 2013 18:40:54 GMT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An elite U.S. Navy SEAL was killed and seven service members were injured in a vehicle accident during a training exercise at Fort Knox, Kentucky, the Navy said on Friday.

All missing residents accounted for after Texas tornadoes

Fri, 17 May 2013 18:34:58 GMT

GRANBURY, Texas (Reuters) - All seven of the people listed missing after a monster tornado on Wednesday have now been accounted for in Granbury, Texas, leaving the death toll at six, authorities said on Friday.

Canada prepares to target U.S. goods in meat-label spat

Fri, 17 May 2013 18:04:52 GMT

WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - Canada will put forward a list of U.S. products it wants to target in retaliation for U.S. country-of-origin meat labels if last-minute changes to U.S. label regulations don't prove satisfactory, Canadian officials said on Friday.