Mar. 30 Reports: Rachel Wiersch reported the theft of her Ford Explorer, license XBS784, black with silver sparkles and chrome flames. (3075 N. Hwy. 97) Aaron Dwayne Murdock, 36, was arrested on an out-of-county arrest warrant. (1008 NW Galveston Ave.) Edward Dean Coughran, 49, was arrested for suspicion of driving under the influence of intoxicants (DUII). (Butler Market Rd. & NE Milltown Ln.) Mark David Bottcher, 43, was arrested for resisting arrest and robbery from ... [full story]

WASHINGTON - Fundraising upsets have thrown open the campaign for the 2008 U.S. presidential nominations, according to veteran campaign watchers. First-quarter fundraising totals indicate Democratic Sen. Hilary Rodham Clinton of New York and Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona are no longer the odds-on favorites to win their party's nominations, The Los Angeles Times reports. "A year ago, there was a clear Clinton scenario, a clear McCain scenario" for winning their respective party nominations," says ... [full story]

ORLANDO, Fla. - A hearing scheduled for Monday in Orlando, Fla., for former astronaut Lisa Nowak, charged with attempted kidnapping, was delayed, prosecutors said. Florida Today reported that another hearing for Nowak scheduled for Tuesday in Orange County Circuit Court may also be delayed. Nowak was fired as an astronaut by NASA after she was charged with attempted kidnapping and other charges in connection with a January incident at the Orlando airport in which police ... [full story]

ORLANDO, Fla. - Three men were rescued off the coast of Florida after a rogue wave tore apart their 49-foot sailboat. Everette Sezler, John Fisher and Doug Plowden were in the water more than 30 hours after their boat sank during a trip from Port Canaveral to the Bahamas, reported television station WKMG in Orlando, Fla. "We took a dip and the bow dove," Plowden told WKMG. "It was incredible. I've never seen a boat ... [full story]

LOS ANGELES - A push to bring "green energy" to Los Angeles would destroy wildlife preserves and mar scenic vistas, say California environmental activists. The proposed 85-mile "Green Path" corridor would put power lines and transmission towers through the San Bernardino National Forest and the Big Morongo Wildlife Preserve north of Palm Springs. The plan to import nonpolluting power is supported by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, but opposed by more than a dozen preservation ... [full story]

SOFIA - Bianca Jagger, a political activist who works with several human rights groups, visited Sofia campaigning for the release of Bulgarian nurses in Libyan prisons. After meeting Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev in Sofia Sunday, Jagger said she supported the You Are Not Alone initiative through which the international community is making efforts to free the five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor, the Bulgarian news agency BTA reported Monday. Jagger said she will ... [full story]

BAGHDAD - The Iraqi man who helped destroy a statue of Saddam Hussein with a sledgehammer four years ago says the fall of Hussein's regime accomplished nothing. "We got rid of a tyrant and tyranny. But we were surprised that after one thief had left, another 40 replaced him," Khadim al-Jubouri told the Washington Post. "Now, we regret that Saddam Hussein is gone, no matter how much we hated him." The image of the muscular ... [full story]

MOSCOW - A shipbuilding yard in northern Russia was the site for the launch of the country's fourth-generation strategic nuclear submarine. The 580-foot-long Borey-class sub, called the Yury Dolgoruky, will be equipped with the Bulava ballistic missile in 2008 after undergoing sea trials this year, the Russian news service RIA Novosti reported. The submarine is capable of carrying up to 16 ballistic missiles. Two other Borey-class nuclear subs, the Alexander Nevsky and the Vladimir Monomakh, ... [full story]

WASHINGTON - A dispute over frozen North Korean funds makes it unlikely that a mid-April deadline will be met to shut down North Korea's nuclear reactor. Top U.S. nuclear envoy Christopher Hill plans to travel to South Korea and China this week for more negotiations. The dispute centers on North Korea's refusal to shut down its Yongbyon reactor until it receives $25 million of its funds that have been frozen in a Macau bank, the ... [full story]

WASHINGTON - Congressional investigators demanded access to e-mail sent from White House laptop computers provided by the Republican National Committee. The RNC computers were provided so top White House aides could communicate on political matters, but The Los Angeles Times reported Monday that congressional investigators said e-mail has surfaced relating to official government business, including the firings last year of eight U.S attorneys. U.S. Rep. Henry A. Waxman, D-Calif, chairman of the House Oversight and ... [full story]