In the Nation

NEW JERSEY

Bid to vacate 1950 conviction denied

A New Jersey woman, 98, lost her bid Thursday to persuade a judge to erase her 1950 conviction for conspiracy to obstruct justice in the run-up to the atomic spying trial of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg. U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein rejected Miriam Moskowitz's unusual request immediately after hearing oral arguments, saying her lawyers could not show that transcripts of grand jury statements by the lone witness against her would have changed her trial's result. As he left the bench, he wished her well and told her it was a pleasure to have her in his court.

Moskowitz, who lives in Washington Township in Bergen County, served a two-year prison sentence after her conspiracy conviction. "OK, that's the end," a cheerful Moskowitz, using a cane, told a film crew that has been following her. "You can finish your documentary now." - AP

CALIFORNIA

Stranded by floods

Heavy downpours took a parting shot Thursday at California, triggering flash floods that temporarily stranded more than three dozen people in their cars in inland Riverside County as the state took stock of the effects of days of steady downpours. Stranded drivers and city workers in San Jacinto Valley spent the day digging their cars out of mud and cleaning up after the deluge. No one was injured. - AP

GEORGIA

Ebola-scare plea

Prosecutors say a Virginia man who caused an Ebola scare at a Georgia county jail has pleaded guilty to making false statements and to DUI. Cobb County District Attorney's spokeswoman Kim Isaza said Harry Randall Withers Jr., 35, of Suffolk, Va., admitted telling a paramedic he had recently traveled to West Africa after he was arrested for drunken driving. He told local health officials the same thing and prompted a disease- containment response. - AP