News from across the USA

ALABAMA Mobile: Fonde Elementary School in Mobile County is going to year- round classes starting this summer, WKRG- TV reports. Students will have a five- week summer break and a two to three- week break after each quarter. ALASKA Juneau: The Coast Guard rescued four people from a disabled fishing vessel in heavy seas. The Lady Gudny was left dead in the water 230 miles east of Kodiak. ARIZONA Chandler: Regulators say there were no human remains in an Arizona funeral home when it caught fire last weekend. The Valley of the Sun Mortuary in Chandler suffered heavy damage. ARKANSAS Little Rock: Arkansas officials say the number of mumps cases in the northwest part of the state appears to be leveling off. The state Department of Health says there were 2,400 confirmed or strongly suspected cases as of Jan. 5. CALIFORNIA Newport Beach: Southern California whale watchers were treated last weekend to five orcas, including a calf, seen near Point Vicente. COLORADO Pueblo: The Army has resumed destruction of chemical weapons at a Colorado plant after fixing a leak. The Pueblo Chemical Depot destruction plant is destroying shells containing mustard agent. CONNECTICUT Groton: The president of defense contractor Electric Boat in Groton says the company can “absolutely” achieve the Navy’s goal of ramping up the number of submarines in the fleet. The Navy released a 355- ship proposal last month with18 attack submarines.

DELAWARE Hockessin: A Delaware teenager has been recognized by President Obama for the hundreds of hours he spends helping the poor. The News Journal reports that Kevin Jasani, 17, of Hockessin, received the President’s Volunteer Service Award last month. DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: Nando’s Peri- Peri restaurant chain launched a “# Everyone Is Welcome” public relations campaign this week at its six District of Columbia locations, plastering the windows with posters proclaiming it’s “an immigrant employing, gay loving, Muslim respecting, racism opposing, equal paying, multicultural restaurant,” WTOP Radio reports. FLORIDA Tampa: Tampa police say seven people with “Food not Bombs” were arrested last weekend for serving food to the homeless without a permit. They face misdemeanor charges. GEORGIA Atlanta: Federal authorities are revoking medical certificates given to truckers by Anthony Lefteris, a chiropractor operating out of an Atlanta truck stop. Prosecutors say Lefteris skipped required tests such as vision and hearing. HAWAII Honolulu: Firefighters helped remove people from a popular hiking trail in Hawaii’s Koko Head District Park after a brush fire broke out. Sunday’s fire took five hours to extinguish. IDAHO Boise: Gov. C. L. “Butch” Otter is proposing $ 2.4 million in spending to add 25 medical residency positions in Idaho. The state’s first medical school is being developed on Idaho State University’s Meridian campus. ILLINOIS Chicago: A case before the Illinois Supreme Court this week challenges a law that allows the state’s not- for- profit hospitals to skip paying property taxes. The

Chicago Tribune reports that hospital applications for property tax exemptions are in limbo while courts consider the issue.

INDIANA Elkhart: Bills in the Indiana Legislature aim to exempt out- of- state buyers of recreational vehicles from having to pay state sales tax, even if their states don’t have a reciprocal agreement in place, The Elkhart

Truth reports.

IOWA Des Moines: Prosecutors say Eddie Tipton, a former official of the Iowa- based Multi- State Lottery Association, took advantage of a false random number generating program he designed to predict winning lottery numbers and recruited his brother, Tommy, to help him cash winning tickets. Their trials are delayed to later this year.

KANSAS Topeka: The Topeka Capital- Journal reports that a Kansas National Guard internal investigation focused on allegations that recruiters were pressured by superiors to clear unqualified applicants. KENTUCKY Danville: A Boyle County family created a calendar dedicated to its hat- wearing llama. Fizzy Ramsey, board president of the local humane society, tells The AdvocateMessenger that a sombrero was put on Wayne the llama at her younger brother’s farm wedding, and that started a chain of other hats and requests to buy photos. LOUISIANA New Orleans: Fifty- five new traffic cameras began photographing and fining New Orleans speeders this week. The cameras are being deployed in school zones, NOLA. com/ The Times- Picayune reports. MAINE Portland: A developer is seeking approval for a $ 13 million condominium development in Portland. The Portland Press Herald reports that the four- story building would have 22 single-bedroom units and 23 two- bedroom units. MARYLAND Dundalk: A Maryland man was arrested following an hourslong standoff Sunday that police say began when a family member took a bite from his grilled cheese sandwich. After the bite, the man fired a gunshot in the house and barricaded himself inside before surrendering. MASSACHUSETTS Boston: Drivers in Boston, beware. The city’s default speed limit is now 25 mph. It applies to any city street unless a different limit is posted.

MICHIGAN Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan’s academic medical center is changing its name to better reflect its mission of patient care, education and research. Starting this week, the new name is “Michigan Medicine.” MINNESOTA Minneapolis: Minneapolis park police are warning thrill- seekers to stay away from frozen Minnehaha Falls. Minnesota Public Radio reports that a woman was struck on the head by a falling sheet of ice while trespassing around the falls last weekend. MISSISSIPPI Hattiesburg: A groundbreaking ceremony is set Wednesday for a monument that will honor Mississippi’s Gold Star families — those who lost relatives in military service. Gov. Phil Bryant will speak at the event. MISSOURI Jefferson City: In his first act as Missouri’s chief executive, Gov. Eric Greitens on Monday banned lobbyist gifts to executive branch employees. Greitens campaigned heavily on ethics and promised to clean up Capitol culture. MONTANA Kalispell: A Columbia Falls woman reached a plea agreement in an investment fraud case. The Flathead Beacon reports that prosecutors will recommend a 40- year prison sentence, with 30 suspended, for Catherine Ann Finberg. NEBRASKA Lincoln: Teams and hardy individuals are invited to compete in the second Cowboy Ultra run in May. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission says the race is limited to 75 entrants. NEVADA Las Vegas: Las Vegas police say a man armed with a samurai sword barricaded himself and an elderly woman in his home. Police were called by the man’s father early Monday. NEW HAMPSHIRE Hampstead: New Hampshire officials are warning off- road riders of thin ice. A woman was hurt but escaped with her passenger when her recreational vehicle broke through the ice on a Hampstead pond and sank in about eight feet of water. NEW JERSEY Trenton: New Jersey municipalities that chose to honor law enforcement by adding a streak of blue to the middle of their roads have been advised by federal officials to stop. Blue center lines violate the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways.

NEW MEXICO Santa Fe: A New Mexico lawmaker is reviving efforts to reinstate the death penalty as an option for convicted killers of police, children and corrections officers. A spokesman for Gov. Susana Martinez said she supports the measure.

NEW YORK New York: A year ahead of schedule, cellphone and Wi- Fi coverage are now provided to commuters at New York City’s underground subway station.

NORTH CAROLINA WinstonSalem: North Carolinians who lost their driver’s licenses because of problems at the Department of Motor Vehicles have gotten them back. The Winston- Salem Journal reports that DMV officials had failed to update records for things like paying a fine from a ticket. NORTH DAKOTA Fargo: The crew of a United Express commuter jet headed to Denver from Fargo aborted takeoff early Monday after the plane blew two tires on the runway. No one was hurt, and passengers were re- booked on other flights. OHIO Cincinnati: The use of traffic cameras by Ohio cities is once again before the state Supreme Court. Attorneys for Dayton urged the justices this week to reject a state law requiring that a police officer be present when cameras are being used to generate red- light or speeding citations. OKLAHOMA Oklahoma: The director of Oklahoma’s Department of Human Services says the agency could be forced to furlough workers or cut provider rates if it doesn’t get more than $ 42 million before the fiscal year ends in June. OREGON Corvallis: Police arrested a man accused of hitting two people with a baseball bat. The attacks came without warning Saturday at the Corvallis Public Library. PENNSYLVANIA Philadelphia: A water main break caused a sinkhole to open on a street in Philadelphia’s Fishtown section that was large enough to swallow two cars. RHODE ISLAND Providence: Providence College has received a $ 50,000 gift from a 1958 graduate to help military veterans who want to continue and complete their education. The scholarship gift comes from Col. Noel J. Doyle Jr. and his wife. Doyle served 30 years in the Army.

SOUTH CAROLINA Spartanburg: Footprints in the snow helped police nab a man suspected of breaking into a Spartanburg home. Officers were able to catch up with Drew Lamb last weekend after he stumbled several times in the slippery conditions. SOUTH DAKOTA Pierre: South Dakota lawmakers are considering whether some unmanned aircraft should be exempt from state registration requirements. One bill would excuse the owners of drones weighing less than 55 pounds from being required to register. TENNESSEE Nashville: The annual Tennessee Sandhill Crane Festival is this weekend at the Hiwassee Refuge and Birchwood Community Center. The festival celebrates the thousands of cranes that migrate through or winter around the refuge. TEXAS Austin: Officials are investigating the cause of a fire that destroyed an Islamic center that was under construction in Austin. The three- story building was engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived last weekend. UTAH Salt Lake City: The Bureau of Land Management is planning to round up around 1,500 horses from three herds this winter. The Salt Lake Tribune reports that the roundup will include fitting 100 horses with GPS tracking devices and releasing them back into the herd. VERMONT White River Junction: Fourteen towns in Vermont will connect with certified weatherization contractors for free home professional energy assessments, proposals and quotes. Meetings will start Jan. 17 in the pilot Weatherize Upper Valley program. VIRGINIA Chesapeake: Instead of a stork, it was a snowplow that delivered Hugh and Stephanie Dawson’s baby, Brayden. The couple was enroute to Cheapeake Regional Medical Center when their truck died on an exit ramp Sunday. Hugh Dawson flagged down a snowplow and persuaded the driver to take them the rest of the way.

WASHINGTON Seattle: Seattle police are warning heroin users about dangerous purity levels after several recent overdoses. Three people died and a fourth was taken to Harborview Medical Center for treatment. The Seattle Times reports that bicycle officers were canvassing areas Saturday to warn users of the danger. WEST VIRGINIA Charleston: West Virginia has a new travel guide for 2017 with all crowdsourced content. According to Wild, Wonderful West Virginia, the guide focuses on recreational experiences cited in social media, with stories, pictures, blog posts and links to video. WISCONSIN Madison: Some University of Wisconsin- Madison professors are ripping the state Department of Natural Resources for scrubbing language from its website that declared human activity causes climate change. The agency changed the language last month to say the cause is debatable. Critics of the change in the UW- Madison climate, zoology and ecology departments say the new language incorrectly implies that climate change is mysterious. WYOMING Casper: The University of Wyoming is trying to attract community college students to campus with several types of scholarships. The Casper Star- Tribune reports that all require an associate’s degree and at least a 3.4 grade- point average.