STATE-BY-STATE
News from across the USA
ALABAMA Bridgeport: Google held a groundbreaking ceremony for a new $600 million data center. Between 75 and 100 technical jobs are expected to be created.
ALASKA Juneau: The Legislature rejected Gov. Bill Walker’s nomination of a former Planned Parenthood field organizer to serve on a board that regulates midwifery in Alaska.
ARIZONA Phoenix: The city jumped in one year from 44th place to 19th in a U.S. News & World Report study of the best places to live in the country.
ARKANSAS Town: Jury selection is underway in the trial of former state senator Jon Woods, who faces 15 fraud charges for an alleged kickback scheme.
CALIFORNIA Death Valley National
Park: Federal officials say the Eureka Valley evening primrose, a rare desert wildflower that grows only in Death Valley National Park, is no longer endangered.
COLORADO Colorado Springs: A recent report shows that work zone fatalities have gone up. Last year the number was 17, compared with seven in 2016 and 2015 and eight in 2014.
CONNECTICUT Stamford: Cops charged a man suspected of being involved with a phone scam that defrauded a 90-year-old woman out of $9,000.
DELAWARE Wilmington: Mayor Mike Purzycki’s staff was asked to explain the $79,352 spent on office equipment and furniture last year, an amount that greatly exceeds the $10,000 that had been budgeted.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: A man was arrested for impersonating a police officer and causing a disturbance at Whole Foods. The man was said to have threatened customers with a pair of handcuffs. When officers arrived, police say the man became aggressive and handcuffed one of the officers. He then demanded the officer to “stop resisting.”
FLORIDA Crestview: The driver of a pickup truck drove through the front windows of a store. A police officer says the driver’s foot became stuck under the pedals of the vehicle and he could not come to a stop before crashing.
GEORGIA Perry: Perdue Farms will create 125 new jobs and invest $42 million to expand its cooking operation in Houston County, Gov. Nathan Deal announced.
HAWAII Honolulu: The missile alert Hawaii mistakenly sent out in January prompted the Federal Communications Commission to recommend that government workers avoid the phrase “this is not a drill” during practice sending emergency notices.
IDAHO Boise: The state is considering applications from transgender people who want their birth certificates to properly reflect their identities.
INDIANA Evansville: About 80 jail inmates will move to Illinois and Kentucky during the next two weeks to alleviate congestion.
IOWA Ames: A manufacturing plant was fined $12,000 following the workplace death of an employee in January.
KANSAS Topeka: Kansas is seeking to put the brakes on out-of-state gubernatorial candidates after 10 people living outside its borders took the initial steps to run.
KENTUCKY Lexington: Homeowners in a community were notified of expanded dog restrictions that now ban 11 breeds, including German shepherds, St. Bernards and chows, the Lexington Herald Leader reports.
LOUISIANA Rayne: A 25-year-old man and a teenage boy are accused of killing two endangered whooping cranes nearly two years ago, wildlife officials said. They face up to $65,000 in fines and 11½ years in jail.
MAINE Orono: Joan Ferrini-Mundy will become the president of the University of Maine on July 1. She was the CEO of the National Science Foundation.
MARYLAND Salisbury: A theft suspect was captured after a resident, awakened by his cat about 1 a.m., saw someone taking items from his car.
MASSACHUSETTS
Plymouth: A wastewater treatment firm agreed to pay $1.6 million to settle a lawsuit with Massachusetts for a spill in which more than 10 million gallons of raw sewage flowed into state-owned woodlands in Plymouth and Plymouth Harbor.
MICHIGAN Howell: A farmer charged with animal cruelty after about 70 cows were found dead on his properties has been sentenced to 15 days in jail and ordered to pay nearly $20,000 in restitution.
MINNESOTA Minneapolis: A pizza delivery man is recovering after being shot during a suspected robbery. Police are still looking for suspects.
MISSISSIPPI Arcola: A fire at a nightclub damaged the only convenience store and post office in the town of 360. Residents now will have to drive several miles to buy groceries, get gas or pick up mail.
MISSOURI Jefferson City: A former administrator of the Pettis County Ambulance District was sentenced to two years in federal prison with- out parole for embezzling more than $227,000.
MONTANA Billings: Twelve people, including two this week, have been shot and killed by law officers in Billings since May 2012. NEBRASKA Beatrice: Fiddle playing will be celebrated at the
20th annual Tallgrass Prairie Fiddle Festival and Acoustic Band Contest at the Homestead National Monument on May
26.
NEVADA Las Vegas: City leaders were to see the plans for the $860 million expansion of the Las Vegas Convention Center.
NEW HAMPSHIRE Concord: The House subcommittee is working on a bill that would allow 16- and 17year-old students to work more hours during school vacation weeks and summer break. The increase would be from the current 48 hours to 56 hours.
NEW JERSEY Jersey City: Transit officials say a boy suffered non-lifethreatening injuries when he tried to hang from a light rail train and fell.
NEW MEXICO Albuquerque: Sara Mauter, 31, accused of abandoning five dogs to die in a sweltering car last week, has been arrested in Arizona, police say.
NEW YORK Albany: Seven finalists have been chosen by the state for a $2.5 million competition seeking innovative ideas to boost economic activity and tourism along the State Canal System.
NORTH CAROLINA Caroleen: Robbins Oil Change and Inspection is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the recovery of a boat and the arrest of those responsible for its theft.
NORTH DAKOTA Minot: The Minot Planning Commission approved a permit for the request of Power of the Purse, Inc., a nonprofit group, to bring a transitional living facility to the city to serve people with disabilities or other difficulties.
OHIO Columbus: Regulators of Ohio’s new medical marijuana program say not all of the state’s growers, manufacturers and dispensaries will be operational by the legislated deadline of Sept. 8.
OKLAHOMA Woodward: Warm temperatures and low humidity have caused Forestry Services officials to warn the western part of the state of fire. Burn bans in the region have been issued.
OREGON Astoria: Clatsop County voters might have the option in November to institute a tax on retail marijuana sales.
PENNSYLVANIA Turtle Creek: The state Fish and Boat Commission determined that Turtle Creek, a popular stream in the area, will not be stocked this year with trout.
RHODE ISLAND East Greenwich: The New England Institute of Technology announced that actor William Shatner will deliver the commencement address to students on May 6.
SOUTH CAROLINA Columbia: State Rep. Leon Howard, D-Richland, has proposed legislation that would make it illegal to sell or give an energy drink to anyone under 18 years old.
SOUTH DAKOTA Aberdeen: Volunteers of America will stop sponsoring the Foster Grandparents and Retired Senior Volunteer programs in eastern and northeastern South Dakota by the end of May.
TENNESSEE Nashville: The state GOP executive committee has removed seven U.S. Senate candidates and one in the governor’s race from the August primary ballot, saying they lacked party voting credentials to run.
TEXAS Austin: Health officials say a revised method for counting maternal deaths found that the 2012 number was drastically lower than previously reported — 56 instead of 147.
UTAH Salt Lake City: Saying drugs designed to ease suffering should be tested and approved by officials first, the Mormon church has come out against a ballot initiative that would allow people with certain medical conditions access to marijuana.
VERMONT Barre: Students at Spaulding High School are seeking a grant to help reduce bathroom waste by installing hand dryers rather than providing paper towels in two bathrooms.
VIRGINIA Virginia Beach: The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is asking mariners to slow down or route around Virginia Beach to protect a group of five endangered right whales seen in the area.
WASHINGTON Lind: A North Carolina company plans to start installing 81,000 solar panels near Lind, making it the largest solar farm in Washington.
WEST VIRGINIA Moundsville: The Finance Committee is in talks about upgrading to a new software system, the Wheeling News-Register reports.
WISCONSIN Milwaukee: A man who fell into the Milwaukee River was rescued after a call for help. Robert Carr, who is trained in water rescues, heard the cries, hopped into his pontoon boat and drove across the river to save the man.
WYOMING Cheyenne: The Wyoming Lottery transferred $1.4 million in profits to the state Treasurer’s Office for distribution to local cities, towns and counties.