A Florida man with a tattoo of Florida on his face is facing burglary charges. The Palm Beach Post reported Wednesday that 25-year-old Johnathan Hewett is jailed without bond. He has a map of Florida tattooed on his left forehead and temple. The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office said Hewett… Read More

Pope Francis on Wednesday blessed the eyes of a 5-year-old Ohio girl who suffers from a rare genetic disease that is gradually robbing her of her sight. Lizzy Myers and her family, including 3-year-old sister Michaela, had special seats for Francis’ Wednesday general audience, and Francis spent several minutes with… Read More

A 1930s-era oak chair that J.K. Rowling used while writing the first two books of the Harry Potter series has sold for $394,000. Heritage Auctions held the sale Wednesday in New York. The chair was one of four mismatched chairs given to the then little-known writer for her flat in… Read More

Country giant Merle Haggard, who celebrated outlaws, underdogs and an abiding sense of national pride in such hits as “Okie From Muskogee” and “Sing Me Back Home,” died Wednesday at 79, on his birthday. Haggard’s manager, Frank Mull, said the country icon died in Palo Cedro, California, of pneumonia. A… Read More

An imprisoned convicted kidnapper has led Texas authorities for the second time in two months to human remains that could be linked to the disappearance of a young woman two decades ago. Police said Tuesday that remains found in a Southeast Texas pasture potentially belong to Kelli Cox, a 20-year-old… Read More

A California certified public accountant who stole more than $4 million from a religious center in New Jersey has been sentenced to nearly five years in prison. Federal prosecutors said Tuesday that Donald Gridiron must also pay about $5.1 million in restitution. The 51-year-old Pomona man had pleaded guilty in… Read More

Investigators will try to piece together a homemade model rocket to figure out why it exploded at a Southern California school, killing a high school student and sending his friend to a hospital with minor injuries, authorities said Tuesday. The two senior honor students apparently were experimenting with “some sort… Read More

Virginia State Trooper Chad Dermyer’s intuition told him something was wrong when he pulled a woman over last year for expired license plates. Authorities say it turned out that the remains of her long-missing son were hidden in the trunk. Those same instincts were on display on the last day… Read More

The University of Northern New Jersey fielded no sports teams, held no graduation ceremonies and had no instructors, classes or degree programs. It did have a very attractive website that promised an “exceptional” education for foreign students wishing to study in the U.S. It was a sham from beginning to… Read More

A U.S. Marine Corps dog that sniffed out explosives and protected thousands of troops has been honored with a prize for animals serving bravely in military conflict. Lucca, a 12-year-old German Shepherd, won the Dickin Medal, the animal equivalent of the Victoria Cross, a decoration for bravery. She is the… Read More