Mississippi River opens after sinking

1: 2: Md. prisoners freed after court ruling

DES MOINES, Iowa — A portion of the Mississippi River between eastern Iowa and northern Illinois has reopened to barge traffic, as officials continue to investigate the sinking of a towboat still leaking diesel fuel and oil.

Coast Guard spokesman Lt. Colin Fogarty says officials determined Tuesday night that other boats can safely navigate the waterway. A queue has cleared, and boats are traveling through at a slower pace.

A towboat carrying 100,000 gallons of diesel fuel and oil, named the Stephen L. Colby, sank Monday afternoon near LeClaire. Nine crew members escaped. Fogarty says investigating the cause could take months.

BALTIMORE — Faulty jury instructions given at trials held decades ago have led prosecutors in Maryland to release approximately 50 people, and some 200 prisoners could ultimately be released from Maryland prisons as a result.

The state’s highest court ruled last year that before 1980 judges statewide gave juries instructions that failed to clearly explain in part that prosecutors have to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt and that defendants are innocent until proven guilty. As a result of the court’s so-called Unger decision, anyone who was tried by a jury before 1980 could get a new trial.

But given the length of time that’s passed, that’s tough. As a result, some counties agreed to forgo new trials and grant some prisoners freedom if they agree to go on probation.

3: Italy Senate expels Silvio Berlusconi

Rome — The Italian Senate expelled three-time ex-Premier Silvio