Paul Elias

In baseball steroids probe, govt won't contest appeals court ruling that barred some evidence. The government will not contest an appeals court ruling that investigators illegally seized a list of baseball players who allegedly tested positive for steroids, the Justice Department said Friday. That decision keeps intact a legal victory for scores of ballplayers snared in the doping investigation.

Pot activists parse reasons behind California defeat, vow to push legalization again in 2012. It seemed an easy sell in California: The state that gave us medical marijuana would allow pot for recreation.

Fire crews try to reach smoldering homes after blast that killed at least 4 near San Francisco. Investigators searched the smoldering rubble of a quiet, middle-class neighborhood tucked into the hills overlooking San Francisco on Friday, looking for answers to why a gas line ruptured and fed a giant fireball that killed at least four people.

In case with broad implications in science, NYC judge invalidates patents on 2 human genes. In a ruling with potentially far-reaching implications for the patenting of human genes, a judge on Monday struck down a company's patents on two genes linked to an increased risk of breast and ovarian cancer.

In case with broad implications in science, NYC judge invalidates patents on 2 human genes. In a ruling with potentially far-reaching implications for the patenting of human genes, a judge on Monday struck down a company's patents on two genes linked to an increased risk of breast and ovarian cancer.

In a ruling with potentially far-reaching implications for the patenting of human genes, a judge on Monday struck down a company's patents on two genes linked to an increased risk of breast and ovarian cancer.

Supreme Court says 'no' to cameras at California trial on gay marriage. The Supreme Court on Wednesday indefinitely blocked cameras from covering the high-profile federal court trial on the constitutionality of California's ban on same-sex marriage.

Appeals court says Ashcroft may be liable for witnesses wrongly detained after Sept. 11. A federal appeals court has ruled that former Attorney General John Ashcroft can be sued by people who claim they were wrongfully detained as material witnesses after 9/11, and called the government practice "repugnant to the Constitution."

Authorities: Wife in California kidnapping watched over victim while husband briefly jailed. Nancy Garrido spent years caring for her elderly, bedridden mother-in-law while a girl kidnapped in 1991 was allegedly held prisoner in the backyard of the home she shared with her husband.

Nancy Garrido spent years caring for her elderly, bedridden mother-in-law while a girl kidnapped in 1991 was held prisoner in the backyard of the home she shared with her husband.

A kidnapped girl, an 18-year disappearance, missed opportunities _ and unanswered questions. Phillip Garrido's unspeakable private life began unraveling in a very public place: a college campus.

A kidnapped girl, an 18-year disappearance, missed opportunities _ and unanswered questions. Phillip Garrido's unspeakable private life began unraveling in a very public place: a college campus.

David Ortiz, 1 of 104 on 'The List,' not consoled by court ordering results returned to MLBPA. David Ortiz didn't bother getting worked up over a court decision that said investigators overreached when they seized a list of players ? which included the Red Sox slugger ? who failed drug tests in 2003.

Calif. gay rights groups at odds over when to ask voters to repeal same-sex marriage ban. SAN FRANCISCO ? California gay rights activists are at odds over when to ask voters to repeal the state's same-sex marriage ban, with one of the largest groups saying it needs until 2012 to put together a winning campaign and two others saying they plan go to the polls next year.

AP sources: Women and Hispanics dominate Obama's list of possible high-court nominees. Focusing on specific candidates for the nation's highest court, President Barack Obama is considering a diverse list dominated by women and Hispanics. The six names confirmed as being under review by Obama include three judges, two members of his administration and one governor.

Bush administration attorneys who wrote terror memos face calls for dismissal, prosecution. Pressure is mounting against two former Bush administration attorneys who wrote the legal memos used to support harsh interrogation techniques that critics say constituted torture. John Yoo, a constitutional law professor at the University of California, Berkeley, is fighting calls for disbarment and dismissal, while Judge Jay Bybee of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals faces calls for impeachment.

Slain Oakland officers honored at funeral with overflow attendance, emotional tributes. The city virtually halted Friday for the funeral of four slain police officers, with a populace still in shock jamming a large sports arena, spilling into an overflow stadium and filling the streets to pay their last respects.