In the news

State Rep. Tim Scott, 44, won the GOP nomination to an open South Carolina congressional seat, which if he wins in November would make him the first black Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives since Oklahoma’s J.C. Watts retired in 2003.

David Brown, Dallas’ police chief whose son killed an officer and another man over the weekend before being killed himself, offered condolences to the families of his son’s victims, saying: “My family has not only lost a son, but a fellow police officer and a private citizen lost their lives at the hands of our son. That hurts so deeply I cannot adequately express the sadness I feel.”

Elena Kagan, 50, President Barack Obama’s nominee for the Supreme Court and the first woman solicitor general, has been endorsed by eight former solicitors general, including four Republicans.

Brennan Breene

of Bridgeville, Pa., turned over to police an envelope containing $3,600 that he found on a busy highway, and officers then returned the cash to newlyweds David and Ashley Marasco, who had lost the money after their wedding reception.

Capt. Tom McLachlan

of the West Valley City, Utah, police said a woman in her early 30s is undergoing a mental evaluation after she stole two cars, one a police cruiser, and led officers on a chase, all while naked.

Rep. Steny Hoyer, a Maryland Democrat and House majority leader, said the nation’s mounting debt may make it necessary for Congress to temporarily extend tax cuts for individuals making less than $200,000 a year and families making less than $250,000 that are set to expire at the end of the year, instead of the permanent cuts proposed by President Barack Obama.

Peter Erlinder, 62, a Minnesota law professor who was imprisoned in Rwanda and accused of violating the country’s laws against minimizing the country’s 1994 genocide, has returned home after authorities released him on medical grounds.

Mari Kiviniemi, the new leader of Finland’s governing Center Party, has been elected by parliament as the country’s prime minister in a 115-56 vote.

Rod Blagojevich, an Illinois Democrat and former governor who is on trial for corruption, told reporters he loves his wife’s new haircut, a shorter bob-style, and called her beautiful, before adding, “I’m not just saying that because she’s going to testify” in his defense.

Front Section, Pages 1 on 06/23/2010

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