More minority babies than whites in U.S.: Census Bureau

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - For the first time, there are more black, Hispanic and other minority babies being born in the United States than white babies, according to government data released on Thursday that confirm a long-growing trend.

Parents of slain Chinese students sue California university

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The parents of two Chinese graduate students slain near the University of Southern California last month have filed a wrongful death lawsuit accusing the school of misrepresenting the area as safe and failing to provide security patrols.

Trayvon Martin had traces of marijuana in his system

ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) - Florida teenage shooting victim Trayvon Martin had traces of marijuana in his system when he was killed by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman, according to case documents released on Thursday.

Kansas governor apologizes for century of segregation

KANSAS CITY, Kansas (Reuters) - Kansas Governor Sam Brownback apologized on Thursday to blacks for segregation in his state in the last century as he marked the anniversary of a ruling that struck down segregation in schools.

Storied battleship making final port call in Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The USS Iowa, which ferried the late President Franklin D. Roosevelt across the perilous Atlantic waters to a historic meeting with Winston Churchill and Josef Stalin in the dark days of World War Two, will have to be towed to its final port call.

Mississippi high court declines to rehear pardon case

TUPELO, Miss (Reuters) - Mississippi's high court on Thursday rejected a motion by its state attorney general to reconsider its approval of 10 pardons issued in January by then Governor Haley Barbour.

New York state says jobless rate steady at 8.5 pct

(Reuters) - New York state's unemployment rate was unchanged in April from March at 8.5 percent but the state has won back all the private sector jobs lost during the recession, the state's Department of Labor said on Thursday.

Mississippi officials: April incident may be linked to murders

TUPELO, Mississippi (Reuters) - Authorities in Mississippi are checking an April incident they say may be related to two highway murders this month that have raised alarms about a killer possibly posing as a police officer.

Family values ex-Nevada lawmaker appears in bikini for Maxim

LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - A former Nevada state Senator who ran on a Christian family values platform has posed in a bikini as a write-in candidate for the men's magazine Maxim's "Hot 100" contest.

Winds, low humidity bedevil Arizona, Colorado firefighters

PHOENIX (Reuters) - Firefighters struggled against strong winds on Thursday to halt the advance of Arizona wildfires that have charred more than 30 square miles (78 square km) of dry ponderosa forest, brush and grass, and a blaze in nearby Colorado swelled overnight.