USA
California lawmakers were to vote Thursday, after the Monitor's deadlines, on a compromise plan worked out with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) to ease the overcrowding crisis in state prisons. The correctional system houses 172,000 inmates, about double the intended capacity, according to the Los Angeles Times. The proposed bill calls for adding thousands more beds at existing facilities and expanding education and drug-treatment programs for inmates.
The Federal Communications Commission released a report Wednesday that suggests general ways Congress could regulate violence on cable, satellite, and broadcast television without violating the First Amendment. One strategy would require cable companies to sell their programming on a per-channel basis rather than in prebundled packages. Broadcast television could be barred from airing violent programming during designated family-viewing hours.
By a 3-to-2 city council vote, Anaheim, Calif., approved a zoning change Wednesday that Disneyland had lobbied hard against. The decision permits the construction of 1,500 condominiums, including more than 200 affordable housing units, at Disneyland's doorstep. Disney officials argue that the zoning change is incompatible with Anaheim's resort district.
The National Football League conducts its annual draft of college players at Radio City Music Hall in New York on Saturday and Sunday. Many experts anticipate that the Oakland Raiders will make Louisiana State quarterback JaMarcus Russell the top overall pick.
Karunakaran Kandasamy, the suspected US head of the Tamil Tigers, a Sri Lankan rebel group, was arrested in New York Wednesday and charged with providing material support for a foreign terrorist organization.
Two years of negotiations aimed at improving the traffic flow across the American-Canadian border near Buffalo, N.Y., ended Wednesday with no resolution. The Department of Homeland Security was unwilling to compromise on an inspection procedure in order to comply with Canadian civil rights laws.
With State Department approval, the US Olympic Committee has invited Iranian athletes in several sports, including wrestling and canoe and kayak racing, to train in the US, the Associated Press reported Thursday. Iran's response may depend on whether fingerprinting requirements for the athletes are dropped.
Miss America Lauren Nelson of Oklahoma, whose platform issue is Internet safety for children, participated in an undercover sting operation in Shirley. N.Y., that led to 14 arrests by Wednesday, authorities said. Nelson worked with police to create an online profile of a 14-year-old girl that ensnared would-be sexual predators.