News from around the nation,

ALABAMA Gulf Shores: Spurred by a citizens group petition, officials in the Alabama coastal town of Gulf Shores are studying whether to form a local school system. ALASKA Birchwood: Construction at an Alaska police training facility is nearing completion, The Chugiak-Eagle River Star reports. Project managers say the Southcentral Law Enforcement Tactical Training Center in Birchwood should open this fall. ARIZONA Flagstaff: Authorities say a World War II-era hand grenade was found in a construction area in Arizona’s Coconino County and taken to the Navajo Army Depot where it was safely destroyed.

ARKANSAS Mal

vern: Authorities are investigating the death of an Arkansas police dog after a necropsy showed blunt force trauma as the cause. Initially, heat was suspected in the death of Luky. CALIFORNIA Los Angeles: The FBI says a man suspected in the 2009 killing of a popular Los Angeles street vendor who sold tamales was extradited from Guatemala. Investigators say Werner Rafael Francisco had been extorting a “street tax” from the victim. COLORADO Longmont: A 4year-old Colorado girl enlisted professional help to ensure her new home is monster-free. Sidney Fahrenbruch invited Officer David Bonday to scour nooks and crannies shortly after her family moved in. The search turned up zero bogeymen. But the girl got a chance to wear her own police uniform for the hunt. CONNECTICUT Storrs: The University of Connecticut has agreed to transfer the school’s 95-acre former Torrington satellite campus to the city for $1. That’s on one condition — that UConn can keep an extension office on the site until at least 2026. DELAWARE Dover: A former Delaware death row inmate who was acquitted in a retrial of a drug-related killing has filed a lawsuit claiming he was wrongfully and maliciously investigated, prosecuted and imprisoned. Isaiah McCoy also claims physical and psychological abuse while behind bars. DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: The Library of Congress is offering a Thomas Jefferson Building tour designed for visitors with visual impairments. The “Touch History” tour will run twice a month. FLORIDA Miami: Four sixweek-old warthogs have joined their parents in Zoo Miami’s public exhibit. The piglets — three male and one female — made their debut Tuesday, The

Miami Herald reports. GEORGIA Atlanta: Two suburban Atlanta teens accused of vandalizing a high school, several restaurants and a police car were arrested after posting videos on Snapchat of their spree. Videos also show the two spraying a fire extinguisher from a car at restaurant patrons. HAWAII Honolulu: About 100 people tried to block an equipment convoy for a solar telescope being built on a Hawaii mountain held sacred by native Hawaiians. Six arrests were made, The Maui News reports. IDAHO Boise: A black bear attacked a man jogging near Idaho’s Priest Lake, the second bear attack in the popular recreation area in a month. Authorities say the man drove off the bear with a kick. ILLINOIS Springfield: The Korean War National Museum in downtown Springfield has closed, The State Journal-Regis

ter reports. The museum included a collection of Korean War books and materials, plus artifacts and videos. INDIANA Peru: A police officer rescued a man who was livestreaming a decision about whether to jump from a bridge into the Wabash River, the Koko

mo Tribune reports. The man was pulled to safety when his attention was diverted to his Facebook feed. IOWA Fort Dodge: A man is accused of stealing more than $20,000 in lottery scratch tickets while working at an Iowa convenience store. Authorities say Christopher Breyfogle claimed more than $11,000 in prizes. KANSAS Wichita: The owner of a Kansas hunting guide company pleaded guilty and was sentenced to probation for violating state and federal hunting laws. Authorities say Josh Hedges admitted his guides baited ponds for waterfowl, helped hunters exceed daily bag limits and didn’t follow tagging, processing or transporting rules. KENTUCKY Fort Thomas: A 15-year-old girl was struck and killed by a tree that was supporting a hammock she was sitting in, WCPO-TV reports. A second girl sitting in the hammock in Fort Thomas wasn’t hurt. LOUISIANA Baton Rouge: Louisiana is getting a new country and classic rock music festival this fall. More than 25 artists will perform across multiple stages Oct. 7-8 at the inaugural Flambeau Fest in Gonzales at the Lamar Dixon Expo Center, The

Advocate reports. MAINE Brooklin: A 44-acre saltwater farm in Maine where E.B. White penned “Charlotte’s Web” is for sale for $3.7 million. The Brooklin home where White lived until his death in 1985 includes a barn that was the setting for the beloved children’s book featuring a spider named Charlotte. MARYLAND Annapolis: A tornado that ripped through a Maryland island last month damaged 155 buildings. Officials say 11 of them were destroyed by the July 24 storm on Kent Island, The Capital Gazette reports. MASSACHUSETTS Boston: Six people, including four motor vehicle clerks, are charged in what authorities in Boston say is a scheme to sell stolen IDs and drivers’ licenses to people living in the country illegally. MICHIGAN Detroit: The president of Wayne State University took a tour of Michigan on a bicycle this week to hear from residents outside of Detroit, The

Detroit Free Press reports. M. Roy Wilson invited local cycling clubs to join him. MINNESOTA Stillwater: A $650 million bridge opened this week in Stillwater to replace a lift bridge that has carried traffic across the St. Croix River for more than 85 years. The last car across was a blue Stutz convertible sedan built in 1931, the same year the old bridge opened. MISSISSIPPI Columbus: The Mississippi Ethics Commission has dismissed a complaint that Lowndes County supervisors violated the state Open Meetings law, The Commercial Dis

patch reports. But the commission says a series of private two-person conversations was “troubling.” MISSOURI Jefferson City: The recent special legislative session on abortion policies cost Missouri taxpayers nearly $92,000. The session resulted in a law to exempt pregnancy resource centers from a St. Louis ordinance banning discrimination based on “reproductive health decisions.” MONTANA Helena: Increased fire activity this week prompted authorities to order the evacuation of about 16 residences north of Lincoln. The area is between two lightning-caused fires that have burned 14 square miles in the Lewis and Clark National Forest. NEBRASKA Omaha: A federal lawsuit accuses the Nebraska State Patrol of forcing female recruits to submit to invasive, medically unnecessary pelvic exams before they can be hired. The suit filed by a female trooper accuses the agency of creating a hostile work environment for women. NEVADA Silver Peak: A fire at the nation’s only lithium mine nearly forced this Nevada town’s evacuation, The Las Vegas Re

view-Journal reports. About 100 barrels of lithium caught fire Monday and burned for around eight hours. NEW HAMPSHIRE Concord: The private Dartmouth-Hitchcock psychiatric facility has agreed to pay for an independent review of patient care to settle allegations of understaffing the state-run New Hamp- shire Hospital. The state signed a $36 million contract with Dartmouth-Hitchcock last August to provide services at the state hospital. NEW JERSEY Hackensack: Authorities say a man entered a New Jersey home and tried to join a woman in the shower, then went to the kitchen and started doing dishes. The woman told Hackensack police she had never before seen James King, who is charged with burglary and lewdness. NEW MEXICO Santa Fe: Four doctors say in a lawsuit that New Mexico’s insurance superintendent allowed major hospital chains to tap into a medical malpractice fund despite concerns of insufficient balances. The official, John Franchini, says the claims are without merit. NEW YORK Albany: The annual Hudson River fish count is this weekend. Naturalists will work with visitors Saturday to help collect fish using 30-foot seine nets, minnow traps and rods and reels. The fish are released back into the river.

NORTH CAROLINA Lincoln

ton: A woman who tried to get a Walmart refund for merchandise that police say had been stolen was arrested. Authorities say the merchandise was returned to the store in Lincolnton. NORTH DAKOTA Bismarck: A North Dakota legislative panel is studying the impact of refugee resettlement in the state. The 17-member committee will consider such things as the workforce, government services, law enforcement, schools and health care. OHIO Canton: A one-of-a-kind art exhibit devoted to football is making its last stop in Canton, the birthplace of the NFL. The “Scrimmage” exhibit that opened Tuesday at the Canton Museum of Art features 78 works by artists including Andy Warhol and Norman Rockwell. OKLAHOMA Broken Arrow: The City Council passed a resolution opposing illegal gaming after being told a Broken Arrow restaurant expected to open this year is recruiting employees with gaming experience to operate a casino. Gaming is illegal in Oklahoma, except on tribal land. OREGON Portland: Owners of a Tillamook County dairy farm say a couple leasing their property stole dozens of their cows, The Oregonian reports. The owners say they evicted the tenants for a lease violation, only to find that 113 milking cows were missing of the 230 that had been on the farm. PENNSYLVANIA Harrisburg: Pennsylvania’s state-owned liquor stores are raising the cost of 422 items at the end of the month. The state hasn’t increased prices since the early 1990s.

RHODE ISLAND

Warwick: A naked man who went onto a stranger’s property and beat him to death was found not guilty by reason of insanity this week. Christian Lepore will be committed to a Rhode Island state hospital. SOUTH CAROLINA Columbia: Twenty-nine South Carolina parishes that split with The Episcopal Church over theological issues including the ordination of gay priests can’t take valuable real estate with them, the state Supreme Court says. SOUTH DAKOTA Sioux Falls: A development company plans to turn a blighted area of Sioux Falls into a $43.5 million area of apartments, office and retail space, The Argus Leader reports. TENNESSEE Knoxville: A federal judge says the Tennessee Valley Authority can’t use a “15-foot rule” to remove trees until it submits an environmental impact statement, the

Knoxville News Sentinel reports. TEXAS Levelland: Authorities in Texas arrested two men and seized 107 birds in a probe of alleged cockfighting. Investigators found a ring, bird cages and space for spectators to stand. UTAH Castle Dale: The Bureau of Land Management and the Emery County Sheriff ’s Office are investigating a report that members of the sheriff ’s search and rescue team harassed wild mustangs. The Salt Lake Tribune reports that a photographer captured images of men on ATVs and bikes chasing horses July 9. VERMONT Craftsbury: The state is proposing to limit the hours that rowers can be on Vermont’s Great Hosmer Pond,

The Caledonian Record reports. A rowing center and cottage owners on the pond have been at odds for years on the issue. VIRGINIA Abingdon: A former Virginia nurse who took morphine intended for nursing home patients and used it herself was sentenced to four years in prison. Prosecutors say Christina Lovern Calloway used tap water to refill bottles in an effort to hide the crime. WASHINGTON Seattle: Air quality officials have banned outdoor burning such as campfires and charcoal barbecues in the Puget Sound region because of wildfire smoke. WEST VIRGINIA Morgantown: West Virginia environmental officials have ordered a halt to construction of a concrete plant in Monongalia County. State inspectors found storm water runoff violations at the site. WISCONSIN Madison: Two teenagers filed federal lawsuits alleging they were placed in solitary confinement for months at Wisconsin’s troubled youth prison even after they tried to kill themselves. WYOMING Wheatland: A former Wyoming fire district board member allegedly embezzled more than $237,000 during his last four years in office, KTWO reports. Donald Moede is accused of using the money to pay credit card and store bills and putting some in his own account.