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NRA: Congress Not Likely to Ban Assault Weapons

The National Rifle Association president says Congress is not likely to pass a new ban on assault weapons.

David Keene tells CNN’s “State of the Union” that right now the powerful gun lobby has the support in Congress to block a new assault weapons ban, but he’s not discounting any proposal backed by the full power of the White House.

Senior members of Congress have pledged to ban assault weapons and limit the sale of high-capacity ammunition magazines like the one used to kill 27 people, most of them children, in Newtown, Conn., last month.

Vice President Joe Biden is expected to send a comprehensive package of recommendations for curbing gun violence to President Barack Obama on Tuesday, including universal background checks and bans on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.

Police: 32-Year-Old Mother Gave Birth To A Meth (+) Baby

A Columbus woman set to be sentenced for dealing drugs has been arrested again after authorities say she gave birth to a baby who tested positive for methamphetamine.

The Columbus Telegram reports that sentencing for 32-year-old Kristal Thomas was postponed so that she could give birth last week.

On Wednesday, five days after giving birth, Thomas was jailed on Wednesday after doctors reported meth in the baby’s system.

The baby boy was removed from Thomas’ custody.

Earlier this year, Thomas pleaded no contest to two counts of delivery of marijuana. She is set to be sentenced for that conviction next month.

San Diego Officer Shot In Movie Theater

A San Diego police officer has shot and critically injured an armed man in a movie theater.

Officer David Stafford said police went to Reading Cinemas Carmel Mountain 12 in response to a domestic violence call Saturday afternoon.

Stafford said the shooting occurred inside a theater at about 3:50 p.m. The officer was not hurt.

No other details were immediately released.

A San Diego Fire-Rescue Department dispatcher said the suspect was taken to a hospital with life-threatening injuries.

U-T San Diego reports witnesses were evacuated from the theater.

Reddit Co-Founder Is Dead Weeks Before Trial

The family of a Reddit co-founder who committed suicide in New York weeks before he was to go on trial on federal charges that he stole millions of scholarly articles is blaming prosecutors for his death.

Twenty-six-year-old Aaron Swartz hanged himself Friday night in Brooklyn. In 2011, he was charged with stealing millions of scientific journals from a computer archive at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in an attempt to make them freely available.

He had pleaded not guilty, and his federal trial was to begin next month. If convicted, he faced decades in prison.

Swartz’s family said in a statement Saturday that his death “is the product of a criminal justice system rife with intimidation and prosecutorial overreach.”

The U.S. attorney in Boston couldn’t be reached for comment.

Loaded 18th Century Cannon Found Ready To Go

Via CNN

New York City police say an 18th century cannon was found loaded with gun powder and a cannon ball during a routine cleaning at the Central Park Conservancy.

Police say residual gun powder was spotted after a piece of rust was removed Friday from the cannon, exposing the cannon ball. Authorities were summoned to remove the gun powder and make the cannon safe for public display. The cannon came from a British Royal Navy Ship, the HMS, circa 1763 to 1780.

Packing material, gun powder and a cannon ball are occasionally found inside cemented cannons when they are X-rayed during routine cleaning. A spokeswoman for the Central Park conservancy had no comment.

If You Can Nab The Biggest Snake You Win Cash

Nearly 800 people have signed up to hunt Burmese pythons on public lands in Florida.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is holding a month-long “Python Challenge.” Officials are offering cash prizes to whoever brings in the longest python and whoever bags the most pythons.

The hunt starts at 1 p.m. Saturday and ends at midnight Feb. 10.

The Burmese python is an invasive species that experts say is decimating native wildlife in the Florida Everglades. Florida currently prohibits possession or sale of the pythons for use as pets. Federal law bans the importing and selling the species.

For the first time, the public is joining licensed hunters in the search for the snakes. Officials hope the competition will help rid the Everglades of the invaders.

NE Board of Health Seeks to Fill Two Board Vacancies

The Nebraska Board of Health says it’s searching for professionals to fill vacancies on two of its boards.

The Board of Alcohol and Drug Counseling needs a practicing alcohol and drug counselor, and the Board of Hearing Instrument Specialists needs an experienced audiologist. The boards are responsible for granting licenses to health care providers.

The application deadline is Feb. 20. The application form is posted on the Department of Health and Human Services’ website. Candidates will be interviewed on March 18. Selected candidates will be appointed to serve on the boards by the State Board of Health later that day.

NE Right to Life Organization Planning March Through Lincoln

Abortion foes will march through Lincoln later this month in the annual Nebraska Walk for Life.

The event is a demonstration against Roe v. Wade, the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion issued 40 years ago.

The walk will be held Jan. 19 and is sponsored by Nebraska Right to Life. Following a brief ceremony at the State Capitol, participants will walk down 14th Street to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Student Union.

Carol Tobias, president of the National Right to Life Committee, will give the keynote speech at the end of the walk.

CDC Says The Flu Is Widespread in 47 States

Health officials say flu is more widespread across the nation, but the number of hard-hit states has declined.

Flu season started early this winter, and includes a strain that tends to make people sicker.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday said flu was widespread in 47 states last week, up from 41 the week before. But many cases may be mild. The only states without widespread flu are California, Mississippi and Hawaii.

The hardest hit states dropped to 24 from 29.

So far, 20 children have died from the flu. There is no running tally of adult deaths, but the CDC estimates that the flu kills about 24,000 people in an average year.

Experts say it’s too early to say if this is a bad year.

Plattsmouth Area Dog Shot With Bow & Arrow

Deputies in eastern Nebraska are looking for a person who shot a woman’s dog with a bow and arrow.

Tamie Cluck of Plattsmouth tells Omaha television station KETV that she left her 8-year-old Sheltie, Dallas, in her fenced backyard to play Wednesday afternoon. Fifteen minutes later, her husband found the dog with an arrow in its stomach.

The dog was rushed to a veterinarian. Because the arrow did not hit any vital organs, it is expected to recover.

Cluck plans to hang posters around Beaver Lake, hoping someone with information will come forward.

Anyone with information is encouraged to call the Cass County Sheriff’s Office at 402-296-9370.

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