LOS ANGELES -- A federal judge in Los Angeles has postponed sentencing for a man who became a key figure in the national debate over medical use of marijuana. U.S. District Judge George H. Wu said he would like to impose a more lenient sentence on Charles Lynch than the five years required by federal sentencing guidelines, the Los Angeles Times reported. Lynch, 47, was convicted of violating federal drug laws last year for distributing medical marijuana ... [full story]

SAN ANTONIO -- Three people found dead in their San Antonio, Texas, home probably died of carbon monoxide poisoning, police say. The bodies of a father, his son and daughter-in-law were discovered Thursday and investigators found a Hummer in the house's garage that had been allowed to run until its fuel tank emptied, the San Antonio Express-News reported. The car's keys were reportedly still in the ignition when police arrived. Detective Raymond Roberts, who wouldn't release the ... [full story]

WASHINGTON -- A political science professor from California says he found a batch of previously undiscovered letters from, to and about Benjamin Franklin in a London library. Alan Houston uncovered the 47 letters while poring over manuscripts for a book he was writing on Franklin, The Washington Post reported Friday. Houston, who teaches at the University of California at San Diego, said 18 of the letters were written by Franklin. The professor said that as he looked over ... [full story]

WASHINGTON -- Many Americans are finding they can live without some of household appliances they once considered absolute necessities, U.S. researchers say. A national survey indicates substantial numbers of people no longer list microwave ovens, television sets and even home air conditioning as necessary, the Pew Research Center reported Friday. In a telephone survey of 1,003 adults conducted in April, the center's Social & Demographic Trends project found that about half or those questioned now see microwaves, ... [full story]

LEXINGTON, Neb. -- A former Nebraska schoolteacher must serve two 8-to-10-year prison terms for having a sexual relationship with a 12-year-old student, a judge said. Dawson County, Neb., District Court Judge Jim Doyle Thursday sentenced Kelsey Peterson, of Lexington, Neb., to serve the sentences concurrently with a six-year federal sentence she received last year on a conviction for crossing state lines with a person younger than 18 to have sex, the Omaha (Neb.) World-Herald reported. Prosecutors ... [full story]

OKLAHOMA CITY -- A stolen state government laptop computer contains personal information about more than 1 million Oklahoma residents, officials said. The state Department of Human Services said Thursday the laptop, stolen from a state employee's vehicle in Oklahoma City on April 3, has not yet been recovered, The Oklahoman newspaper reported. "The risk of the data being accessed is low because the computer uses a password-protected system," DHS Director Howard Hendrick said in a news release. ... [full story]

HALIFAX, Nova Scotia -- The Canadian Border Services Agency Friday questioned seven men found stowed away on a ship that docked at the Atlantic port of Halifax, Nova Scotia. Jennifer Morrison, a CBSA spokeswoman, told the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. the men were found aboard the Swedish-flagged cargo ship Atlantic Concert at midday Thursday. The report said the ship's last port of call was Antwerp, Belgium. Morrison said she couldn't disclose the men's names, ages or nationalities because of ... [full story]

WASHINGTON -- The number of arrests of U.S. border enforcement agents on bribery charges jumped from 8 to 21 in the last fiscal year, statistics indicate. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency says the trend is alarming as Mexican drug cartels step up their efforts to bribe and corrupt border officials, USA Today reported Friday. An additional 14 agents have been arrested so far this year. Since 2004, 84 border officers have been arrested and 64 ... [full story]

HALIFAX, Nova Scotia -- British Prince Andrew made a ceremonial military visit to Canadian infantry reservists in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Andrew, 49, is the honorary colonel-in-chief of the Princess Louise Fusiliers, a regiment that was formed in 1749. With the troops in full-dress scarlet tunics, the prince reviewed them and chatted with several members in the evening parade at Citadel Hill, The Chronicle-Herald newspaper reported. The report said dozens of civilians were on hand to witness Queen ... [full story]

WASHINGTON -- U.S. President Barack Obama convened a high-level, contentious debate in the White House over whether to release Bush administration torture memos, sources say. In the April 15 meeting, CIA Director Leon Panetta and four former CIA heads argued against releasing interrogation details contained in four "top secret" memos in which Bush administration lawyers sanctioned what many have called torture against terrorism suspects, and Attorney General Eric Holder, Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair and ... [full story]