STATE-BY-STATE
ALABAMA Birmingham:
The Jefferson County sheriff ’s office will begin testing body cameras for deputies next year, AL.com reports.
ALASKA Juneau:
The city’s Police Department is facing a shortage of 11 officers, with two more retiring soon, The Juneau Empire reports.
ARIZONA Williams:
State game officials are investigating another poaching of a bull elk, at least the fourth in Arizona since last month.
ARKANSAS Little Rock:
Recent rain has lifted burn bans in all but four counties, The Arkansas DemocratGazette reports.
CALIFORNIA Los Angeles:
The Los Angeles Zoo euthanized its entire herd of threatened Nubian ibex goats last month because they were the source of an infectious and incurable strain of herpes.
COLORADO Aspen:
Federal officials say they don’t believe a proposed timber cut in the Fryingpan Valley will overrun Basalt with logging trucks, The Aspen Times reports.
CONNECTICUT Danbury:
A police bloodhound went missing during the search for a man with autism in woods near Wooster Mountain. Authorities say another bloodhound located the missing man, but the dog named Texas couldn’t be found.
DELAWARE Dover:
Gov. John Carney is asking a federal judge to revisit a ruling that the state constitution requirement for courts to be politically balanced is unconstitutional.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA:
Suburban Washington police investigating a fatal crash involving an intoxicated driver wound up making two DUI arrests of drivers who came upon the scene.
FLORIDA Leesburg:
A medical examiner’s office was temporarily shut down after mercury was discovered on human bones, The Daily Commercial reports.
GEORGIA Sandersville:
A grand jury indicted three former Washington County sheriff ’s deputies who are white on murder charges in the stun gun death of a black man who they said acted “suspiciously” after asking a stranger for water, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
HAWAII Wailuku:
Rapidly increasing erosion on the Maui shoreline is threatening a cemetery temple building and has swept away close to 100 gravestones, The Maui News reports.
IDAHO Boise:
Idaho Power is scaling back plans to boost hydroelectric capacity at its generating facility at Shoshone Falls.
ILLINOIS Springfield:
A report finds that incidents alleging abuse and neglect of residents under the state Department of Human Services’ care have increased by half since 2010.
INDIANA Indianapolis:
The state Department of Transportation has a new mobile app that shows current traffic speeds, travel advisories and winter weather road conditions.
IOWA Des Moines:
A state audit says a University of Iowa physics professor misused more than $90,000 on hosting unauthorized conferences between 2011 and this year.
KANSAS Lawrence:
The University of Kansas is cutting out-of-state tuition to attract high-achieving students, while sending more money to in-state students who need financial help, The Topeka Capital-Journal reports.
KENTUCKY Ashland:
A former senior vice president at Town Square Bank has admitted to taking $1.4 million by processing loans to fake customers, The Independent reports.
LOUISIANA New Orleans:
Authorities say a city jail guard was arrested after acknowledging she had sexual contact with an inmate and gave him and others contraband drugs and cigarettes.
MAINE Waterville:
Police arrested the owners of two pit bills that were ordered euthanized for killing another dog and seriously injuring a woman, The Morning Sentinel reports. One of the owners claims the dogs ran off into the woods during a walk.
MARYLAND Baltimore:
The number of people killed in city fires, 28 so far this year, is the highest in a decade, The Baltimore Sun reports.
MASSACHUSETTS Framingham:
A woman was arrested for attempting to steal more than $1,000 in goods from a Target store during a “Shop with a Cop” holiday event, The Boston Globe reports.
MICHIGAN Farmington:
The owner of two Guinness World Recordholding cats says the animals died in a fire that destroyed their home. Arcturus was the world’s tallest domestic cat; Cygnus had the longest tail.
MINNESOTA Minneapolis:
The state isn’t close to its goal of reducing road salt use, but Minneapolis shows slow progress, Minnesota Public Radio reports.
MISSISSIPPI
Mayor Percy Bland says the city will keep its pledge to donate $1 million over 10 years to the new Mississippi Arts and Entertainment Experience museum set to open in April, but may have to delay some payments be-
Meridian:
cause of sales tax shortfalls, The Meridian Star reports.
MISSOURI Columbia:
A longtime professor will be the interim provost at the University of Missouri starting Feb. 1. Jim Spain has taught in the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources since 1990.
MONTANA Billings:
Representatives of sex abuse victims and their survivors are suing the bankrupt Roman Catholic Diocese of Great Falls-Billings in an effort to ensure that more than $70 million in assets are available for people abused by church officials.
NEBRASKA Lincoln:
Lancaster County has a new roadside memorial sign program for families to honor loved ones killed in car crashes, The Lincoln Journal Star reports.
NEVADA Elko:
The Elko County Sheriff ’s Office has acquired a new drone for special events, search and rescue, missing persons, crime scenes and traffic collisions. But officials tell the Elko Daily Free Press that it won’t be used for random surveillance.
NEW HAMPSHIRE Concord:
A proposal to increase state tolls for the first time in a decade appears dead after Gov. Chris Sununu said he won’t let it proceed. Transportation officials sought to increase tolls by 50%.
NEW JERSEY Asbury Park:
The annual Catsbury Park Cat Convention is making its debut here April 7-8 at Convention Hall, The Asbury Park Press reports.
NEW MEXICO Tesuque Pueblo:
A Native American tribe plans to build a new casino adjacent to the famed Santa Fe Opera.
NEW YORK Albany:
Gov. Andrew Cuomo is proposing rules for online campaign ads to ensure that voters know who’s behind the content.
NORTH CAROLINA Supply:
Four Dollar General store employees are accused of stealing more than $27,000 in items over several months.
NORTH DAKOTA Bismarck:
The Census Bureau says North Dakota’s population shrank slightly over the last year after several years of growth.
OHIO Cincinnati:
A rare white tiger was euthanized last week at the Cincinnati Zoo. Officials say Akere was recently diagnosed with non-treatable oral cancer.
OKLAHOMA Colgate:
Mowdy Ranch offers visitors an up-close look at wild horses. The ranch is one of the Bureau of Land Management’s three ecosanctuaries for mustangs.
OREGON Bend:
The City Council has rejected a proposal to elect councilors from geographic wards but supports a recommendation for voters, rather than council members, elect the mayor, The Bulletin reports.
PENNSYLVANIA Pittsburgh:
Witnesses tell police that the man suspected of setting a fatal fire stood around as the house burned, bragging that he set it. A 4-year-old girl and two women died.
RHODE ISLAND Providence:
Two new charter schools have preliminary approval to open here, WPRI-TV reports.
SOUTH CAROLINA Myrtle Beach:
The Coastal Conservation League has sued to block construction of Interstate 73 from North Carolina to Myrtle Beach, The Sun News reports. The environmental group has proposed the Grand Strand Expressway as an alternative, a U.S. 501 upgrade.
SOUTH DAKOTA Sioux Falls:
A state investigation finds that a construction company renovating the Copper Lounge exposed workers and the public to asbestos before the building collapsed last year, the Argus Leader reports.
TENNESSEE Memphis:
Items tied to Elvis Presley are on the Jan. 6 auction block at The Guest House at Graceland.
TEXAS Galveston:
An ex-cop who became a seafood restaurant firm’s bookkeeper must serve 20 years in prison for embezzling more than $440,000 from the business.
UTAH Salt Lake City:
Animal rights groups say the University of Utah mistreats lab animals, The Salt Lake Tribune reports.
VERMONT Bennington:
The Southern Vermont Natural History Museum says a local family will match dollar for dollar all donations to help Basil the snapping turtle get a new tank, The Bennington Banner reports.
VIRGINIA Ashburn:
A three-acre tract that once served as a slave cemetery is now in the hands of the Loudoun Freedom Center, a preservation group committed to honoring the slaves’ memory.
WASHINGTON Seattle:
A state report says ocean acidification is getting worse but that scientific advancess are helping address the problem, which threatens shellfish and other marine life.
WEST VIRGINIA Keyser:
A state lawmaker says he’ll revive legislation to help homeless people get IDs needed to apply for jobs or public benefits.
WISCONSIN Madison:
Truax Field is the military’s top choice for the home of an F-35 fighter squadron. The new planes will arrive in 2022.
WYOMING Casper:
Wyoming’s population fell for a second stright year, The Casper Star-Tribune reports. Compiled from staff, wire reports.