Aaron's Daily WWW Newspaper

MIDDLETOWN, Conn. - A 29-year-old man accused of stalking and killing a Connecticut college student inside a bookstore is expected to make his first court appearance Friday.

WASHINGTON - A decision involving the iconic polar bear could determine whether protecting endangered species might also help save the earth from global warming.

NEW YORK - Kiefer Sutherland has been charged with misdemeanor assault for allegedly head-butting a fashion designer at a Manhattan nightclub.

LOS ANGELES - Now that the Los Angeles Dodgers won't have Manny Ramirez at their disposal for the rest of his 50-game drug suspension, they plan to keep grinding it out as though nothing had happened. That may be easier said than done, despite his teammates' bravado.

BOSTON - Dominic DiMaggio, the bespectacled Boston Red Sox center fielder who was overshadowed by his older brother Joe's Hall of Fame career, died early Friday at his Massachusetts home. He was 92.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. employers cut a smaller-than-expected 539,000 jobs in April, the smallest amount since October, according to government data on Friday that hinted at some improvement in the labor market and the recession-hit economy.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. regulators told top banks on Thursday to raise $74.6 billion to build a capital cushion officials hope will restore faith in financial firms and set a course out of the deepest recession in decades.

MINGORA, Pakistan (Reuters) - Pakistani planes bombed the Taliban in their Swat bastion on Friday, after the prime minister ordered elimination of "militants and terrorists" and on the heels of a commitment to Washington to fight extremists.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates is expected to appoint a three-star general to boost the U.S. military leadership in Afghanistan, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday.

SANTA BARBARA, California (Reuters) - Firefighters braved a return of unpredictable "sundowner" winds on Thursday night as they battled to keep a wildfire that destroyed dozens of multimillion-dollar homes from burning through the coastal city of Santa Barbara.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. health officials warned of worsening outbreaks of the new H1N1 flu, and a top global health official predicted up to a third of the world's population could eventually become infected.

LOUISVILLE, Kentucky (Reuters) - A former U.S. soldier was convicted on Thursday of raping an Iraqi girl and killing her and her family near Baghdad in 2006 and now faces a possible death sentence.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Statue of Liberty's crown, closed to the public since the 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center, will reopen on July 4, U.S. Independence Day, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said on Friday.

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AFP) - Pakistan warplanes bombed Taliban hideouts in the Swat valley Friday where the government sent fresh troops with orders to "eliminate" extremists in an increasingly bloody confrontation.

MEXICO CITY (AFP) - Global health chiefs warned against complacency over swine flu Thursday saying one in three people may be infected worldwide if there is a pandemic, as life in Mexico got back to normal.

TBILISI (AFP) - Georgia's opposition offered to hold talks with President Mikheil Saakashvili Thursday after clashes between police and protesters raised fears of unrest around controversial NATO exercises.

KABUL (AFP) - A suicide attack in a busy Afghan bazaar killed 12 civilians Thursday, while hundreds of people angrily protested against the reported deaths of scores of villagers in US-led strikes on insurgents.

SANTA BARBARA, California (AFP) - An out-of-control wildfire raged in California on Thursday after destroying dozens of homes and forcing thousands of residents to flee, officials said.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - President Barack Obama Thursday showcased his bumper 3.44-trillion-dollar budget, but facing record deficits, vowed to cut "stunning" waste by slicing 121 programs worth 17 billion dollars.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Ten major US banks need to raise a total of 74.6 billion dollars for "capital buffers" in the event of a deeper economic slump under "stress tests" unveiled Thursday by US regulators.