NEWS OF THE DAY
From Across the Nation
_ 1Oil platform fire: Divers hired by the owner of an oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico that caught fire recovered a body near the site Saturday evening, authorities said. The divers and the Coast Guard had been searching for two oil workers who were missing after the blaze severely burned four other workers on the platform Friday. John Hoffman, the CEO of Black Elk Energy, which owns the platform 25 miles southeast of Grand Isle, La., said the body is that of one of the two missing crew members. Officials said no oil was leaking from the platform.
2Deputy _ shot: Four suspected gang members were arrested early Saturday on suspicion of attempted murder following a shooting that wounded a sheriff’s deputy in south Los Angeles, authorities said. The suspects were taken into custody during an intense search involving more than 100 law officers, said Sheriff’s Lt. Gregory Nelson. Their names were not released. At least three gunmen in a group of suspected gang members opened fire Friday night in the Florence area as deputies approached. The officer, who was not identified, was shot in the abdomen. He was in stable condition after surgery.
3Dolphins _ harmed: Authorities are investigating several attacks on dolphins in the northern Gulf of Mexico after some were found with gunshot wounds, cuts and missing jaws. “We think there’s someone or some group on a rampage,” said Moby Solangi, executive director of the Institute for Marine Mammal Studies in Gulfport, Miss. Attacks on dolphins carry fines and jail sentences.
_ 4Election 2012: Democrats celebrated a victory Saturday in Gabrielle Giffords’ former congressional district in Tucson. The race was in one of the few districts where winners were still undecided after the Nov. 6 election. The former district director for Giffords, Ron Barber, prevailed over the Republican candidate, Martha McSally. Barber was with Giffords in January 2011 when a mentally ill man, Jared Lee Loughner, opened fire, killing six and wounding 13 others. Giffords was hit in the head and ultimately had to step down from her seat. Barber was hit in the thigh and cheek.
5Plane _ crash: A small plane that crashed shortly after takeoff in Owls Head, Maine, killing three people, first struck a pickup truck crossing the runway, authorities said Saturday. The Cessna climbed after clipping the truck Friday evening and then spiraled into woods and burst into flames. Two of the victims were students at the University of Maine; the third was an alumnus. The truck, which was authorized to be on airport grounds, was driven by a pilot who wasn’t hurt.
_ 6Pot bust: Large amounts of chemicals commonly used for making explosive devices were found at the Ridgewood, N.J., home of an unemployed doctor, prosecutors said. Roberto Rivera, 60, faces charges including possession of a destructive device. Investigators also found several assault rifles when they searched Rivera’s home Friday night.