Safe room mandates remain rare in tornado states
MOORE, Okla. (AP) -- After living nearly 20 years in their one-story brick home, Sherry and Larry Wells finally won the lottery - for a state rebate on a home storm shelter, that is. A contractor finished installing the concrete bunker beneath the slab of their garage in early May. About three weeks later, the shelter saved their lives when a tornado that killed 24 people tore through their neighborhood.... 5/24/2013 7:29 AM

APNewsBreak: Co. says it has permits to cross span
MOUNT VERNON, Wash. (AP) -- A truck hauling an oversized load of drilling equipment hit an overhead bridge girder on the major interstate between Seattle and Canada, sending a section of the span into a river below as the driver watched the structure collapse in his rearview mirror.... 5/24/2013 1:28 PM

Swim coach sentenced to 7 years for sex abuse
ROCKVILLE, Md. (AP) -- A once-prominent swimming coach who trained thousands of children was sentenced to seven years in prison Thursday for sexually abusing one of the girls he instructed.... 5/23/2013 10:31 PM

Oklahoma gets far more than its share of disasters
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Many states get hit frequently with tornadoes and other natural catastrophes, but Oklahoma is Disaster Central.... 5/24/2013 1:49 PM

Boy Scouts approve plan to accept openly gay boys
GRAPEVINE, Texas (AP) -- After lengthy and wrenching debate, local leaders of the Boy Scouts of America have voted to open their ranks to openly gay boys for the first time, but heated reactions from the left and right made clear that the BSA's controversies are far from over.... 5/24/2013 12:31 PM

Jersey shore eyes record-setting summer post Sandy
SEASIDE HEIGHTS, N.J. (AP) -- New Jersey used a record-breaking gesture Friday to celebrate its recovery from a record-setting storm, proclaiming to the nation that the Jersey shore is back in business following Superstorm Sandy.... 5/24/2013 1:20 PM

US: Czech slaying suspect killed relatives
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) -- An American man killed his uncle, aunt and cousins in the Czech Republic and then flew to the United States, where he was arrested at an airport, authorities said Friday.... 5/24/2013 12:16 PM

Obama: Sexual assault threatens trust in military
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) -- With a growing sexual assault epidemic staining the military, President Barack Obama urged U.S. Naval Academy graduates Friday to remember their honor depends on what they do when nobody is looking and said the crime has "no place in the greatest military on earth."... 5/24/2013 12:19 PM

Plastic ocean debris the target of new Calif. bill
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- It's a common sight on the nation's beaches: among the sand, sea foam and gnarled kelp lay plastic bottles, bags and other garbage.... 5/24/2013 5:49 AM

Suspect in killing of officer found dead in cell
OGDEN, Utah (AP) -- A Utah Army veteran charged with killing a police officer and wounding five others in a shootout during a marijuana raid was found Friday hanging dead in his cell, authorities said.... 5/24/2013 1:24 PM