In the Nation
OREGON
White supremacist takes pleas in deaths
A white supremacist whose Pacific Northwest crime rampage claimed four lives in 2011 pleaded guilty to federal charges Wednesday in Portland as part of a plea agreement that netted lighter punishments for two accomplices.
David "Joey" Pedersen, 33, pleaded guilty to two counts of carjacking resulting in death - one for the death of teenager Cody Myers on the Oregon coast and the other for the killing of Reginald Clark in Eureka, Calif., court records show.
His court-appointed attorney, Richard Wolf, confirmed the plea deal in an interview and said Pedersen will be sentenced to life in prison at an Aug. 4 hearing.
Pedersen has already been serving a life sentence after pleading guilty in state court to murder in the slaying of his father and stepmother in Everett, Wash.
- AP
CALIFORNIA
Jackson doctor case
The California Supreme Court refused Wednesday to review the involuntary-manslaughter conviction of Michael Jackson's doctor. A state appeals court upheld the conviction of Conrad Murray earlier this year and then refused to reconsider its decision. Authorities said Murray gave Jackson a lethal dose of the anesthetic propofol in 2009 while the singer prepared for a series of comeback concerts. Murray was convicted in 2011 and served two years in jail.
- AP
WYOMING
Town evacuated
A small town in southwestern Wyoming was evacuated after an explosion and fire at a natural gas pipeline hub.
Lincoln County spokesman Stephen Malik said there were no reports of injuries and the evacuation of Opal was done as a precaution. Opal, roughly 100 miles northeast of Salt Lake City, has about 95 residents. - AP