Nation roundup for January 12

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Man tasered at California airport

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Authorities said Wednesday that they do not know what prompted a New Hampshire man to evade the security line at Sacramento International Airport, leading a sheriff’s deputy to shock the man three times with a Taser.

Edwin Barton, 26, arrived Tuesday on a Southwest Airlines flight but told security officials he needed to go back inside the airport’s secure area to retrieve bus tickets he had left on his flight.

He objected to going through the screening process and ran toward a secure area before he was stunned with a Taser gun.

Officials with the Transportation Security Administration and Sacramento County sheriff’s department said he wasn’t carrying anything dangerous.

“We don’t have any idea why he escalated things to the extent he did,” sheriff’s Deputy Jason Ramos said. “He had nothing on his person or in his bag that would constitute a threat to himself, the airline or any other passengers.”

Ramos said that after Barton was shocked with a Taser, he tried to pull out the barbs and was stunned two more times.


Power plants top warming culprits

WASHINGTON (AP) — The most detailed data yet on emissions of heat-trapping gases show that U.S. power plants are responsible for the bulk of the pollution blamed for global warming.

Power plants released 72 percent of the greenhouse gases reported to the Environmental Protection Agency for 2010, according to information released Wednesday that was the first catalog of global warming pollution by facility. The data include more than 6,700 of the largest industrial sources of greenhouse gases, or about 80 percent of total U.S. emissions.

According to an Associated Press analysis of the data, 20 mostly coal-fired power plants in 15 states account for the top-releasing facilities.

Gina McCarthy, the top air official at the EPA, said the database marked “a major milestone” in the agency’s work to address climate change. She said it would help industry, states and the federal government identify ways to reduce greenhouse gases.


Marines allegedly urinated on dead

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Marine Corps said Wednesday it is investigating a video depicting what appears to be four Marines urinating on the corpses of Taliban fighters.

In a statement, the Marine Corps said it has not verified the origin or authenticity of the YouTube video. But it also said the actions portrayed are not consistent with Marine values.

If verified the video could create a strong backlash in the Muslim world and beyond for the disrespectful actions it portrays. A defense official said the case will be referred to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.


Anthony: Party led to pregnancy

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Casey Anthony told a psychiatrist that she became pregnant with her daughter, Caylee, after passing out at a party when she was 18 years old, according to depositions in which the doctor said tests gave no indication that Anthony was mentally ill as she faced her murder trial.

Anthony, 25, was acquitted last July of killing her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee, in a trial that captured the nation’s attention. Anthony didn’t know who fathered Caylee, the psychiatrist, Jeff Danziger, recounted in a deposition that was unsealed by a Florida judge and released Wednesday. Danziger interviewed Anthony five times over two years but never testified at trial.

Man tasered at California airport

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Authorities said Wednesday that they do not know what prompted a New Hampshire man to evade the security line at Sacramento International Airport, leading a sheriff’s deputy to shock the man three times with a Taser.

Edwin Barton, 26, arrived Tuesday on a Southwest Airlines flight but told security officials he needed to go back inside the airport’s secure area to retrieve bus tickets he had left on his flight.

He objected to going through the screening process and ran toward a secure area before he was stunned with a Taser gun.

Officials with the Transportation Security Administration and Sacramento County sheriff’s department said he wasn’t carrying anything dangerous.

“We don’t have any idea why he escalated things to the extent he did,” sheriff’s Deputy Jason Ramos said. “He had nothing on his person or in his bag that would constitute a threat to himself, the airline or any other passengers.”

Ramos said that after Barton was shocked with a Taser, he tried to pull out the barbs and was stunned two more times.


Power plants top warming culprits

WASHINGTON (AP) — The most detailed data yet on emissions of heat-trapping gases show that U.S. power plants are responsible for the bulk of the pollution blamed for global warming.

Power plants released 72 percent of the greenhouse gases reported to the Environmental Protection Agency for 2010, according to information released Wednesday that was the first catalog of global warming pollution by facility. The data include more than 6,700 of the largest industrial sources of greenhouse gases, or about 80 percent of total U.S. emissions.

According to an Associated Press analysis of the data, 20 mostly coal-fired power plants in 15 states account for the top-releasing facilities.

Gina McCarthy, the top air official at the EPA, said the database marked “a major milestone” in the agency’s work to address climate change. She said it would help industry, states and the federal government identify ways to reduce greenhouse gases.


Marines allegedly urinated on dead

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Marine Corps said Wednesday it is investigating a video depicting what appears to be four Marines urinating on the corpses of Taliban fighters.

In a statement, the Marine Corps said it has not verified the origin or authenticity of the YouTube video. But it also said the actions portrayed are not consistent with Marine values.

If verified the video could create a strong backlash in the Muslim world and beyond for the disrespectful actions it portrays. A defense official said the case will be referred to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.


Anthony: Party led to pregnancy

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Casey Anthony told a psychiatrist that she became pregnant with her daughter, Caylee, after passing out at a party when she was 18 years old, according to depositions in which the doctor said tests gave no indication that Anthony was mentally ill as she faced her murder trial.

Anthony, 25, was acquitted last July of killing her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee, in a trial that captured the nation’s attention. Anthony didn’t know who fathered Caylee, the psychiatrist, Jeff Danziger, recounted in a deposition that was unsealed by a Florida judge and released Wednesday. Danziger interviewed Anthony five times over two years but never testified at trial.