Nation news and national headlines from the Chicago Sun-Times

5-year-old boy shoots 2-year-old sister in Kentucky

BURKESVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A 5-year-old boy accidentally shot his 2-year-old sister to death in rural southern Kentucky with a rifle he had received as a gift last year, authorities said.

Vermont woman disfigured in attack reveals new face

BOSTON (AP) — A Vermont woman revealed her new face Wednesday, six years after her ex-husband disfigured her by dousing her with industrial-strength lye, and said she went through “what some may call hell” but has found a way to be happy.

Computer glitches derail school tests in 3 states

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — School districts across several states are rescheduling high-stakes tests that judge student proficiency and even determine teachers’ pay because of technical problems involving the test administrators’ computer systems.

Medicaid improved mental health for uninsured

WASHINGTON (AP) — If you’re uninsured, getting on Medicaid clearly improves your mental health, but it doesn’t seem to make much difference in physical conditions such as high blood pressure.

Justice Dept. appeals court order on morning-after pill

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration on Wednesday appealed a federal judge’s order to lift all age limits on who can buy morning-after birth control pills without a prescription. The decision came a day after the Food and Drug Administration had lowered the age that people can buy the Plan B One-Step morning-after pill without a prescription to 15 — younger than the current limit of 17.

US institute: NKorea reactor nearing completion

WASHINGTON (AP) — North Korea is nearing completion of a light-water reactor that is primarily intended to generate electricity but which could add to concern over its nuclear program, a U.S.-based institute said Wednesday.

Official: Arrested student entered US without visa

WASHINGTON (AP) — One of three college students arrested Wednesday in the Boston Marathon bombings case was allowed to return to the United States from Kazakhstan in January despite not having a valid student visa, a federal law enforcement official told The Associated Press.

2 men charged in Boston bomb case waive bail

BOSTON (AP) — A third college friend of one of the Boston Marathon bombing suspects is being held pending a detention and probable cause hearing.

Ore. shooter bought 6 boxes of ammo before attack

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The man who killed two people and wounded another at a suburban Oregon mall bought more than 100 rounds of ammunition in the days before the December attack, according to a sheriff’s report released Wednesday.

Just how crucial were experts for Arias defense?

PHOENIX (AP) — As Jodi Arias’ trial wraps up this week after four months of testimony, her fate rests in part on the testimony of expert witnesses who have offered up one clinical diagnosis after another for the small-town waitress and aspiring photographer from California to explain why she killed her lover five years ago.

Court could decide on imprisoning kids for life

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida’s highest court may consider whether U.S. Supreme Court decisions banning automatic life sentences without parole for people under 18 should be retroactive.

Obama picks veteran Watt as housing finance head

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — President Barack Obama is picking a Capitol Hill veteran experienced in business, law and civil rights by naming North Carolina Congressman Mel Watt to head the federal regulatory agency that oversees the country’s two mortgage lending behemoths.

Dog bites off piece of Ohio prison inmate’s nose

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The state says a rescue dog bit off part of an Ohio prison inmate’s nose after the prisoner tripped and fell on the dog.

US: Women in NY, NJ forced into sex 25 times a day

NEW YORK (AP) — The young Mexican women were driven to rural New Jersey, U.S. authorities said, where their handlers used threats to make them have sex with 25 farmworkers a day. Or they were confined to dingy brothels in the New York City area. They were paid very little, or nothing at all.

Abused disabled Iowa plant workers awarded $240M

IOWA CITY, Iowa — A jury on Wednesday awarded a total of $240 million to 32 mentally disabled Iowa turkey processing plant workers for what an expert witness described as years of “virtual enslavement” by the Texas company that oversaw their care, work and lodging. …

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