In the news

Gov. Chris Christie, R-N.J., said his relationship with state Senate President Steve Sweeney - a Democrat who earlier this week said, then retracted, that Christie had “prayed” for superstorm Sandy to hit the state - was fine, telling reporters at a news conference: “I never thought I’d be asked what the status of my relationship with the Senate president is. I love him, but our love is strained.”

Mayor Thomas Menino

of Boston declared a public health emergency over the city’s flu outbreak, which already consists of about 700 confirmed cases, compared with 70 cases for all of last flu season, and encouraged residents to get flu shots.

E. Patricia Llodra, an elected official in Newtown, Conn., said in an e-mailed comment that Florida Atlantic University should fire communication professor James Tracy over “his outlandish conspiracy theories” that last month’s school massacre of 20 children and six adults may not have happened.

Roger Pion, 34, a Newport, Vt., man accused of driving a tractor over seven police vehicles and crushing them, has been found incompetent to stand trial.

Joe Arpaio, sheriff of Maricopa County, Ariz., said he plans to have as many as 500 armed volunteers patrol areas just outside schools to guard against shootings, adding that the patrols had started at 59 schools.

Christopher Tappin, 66, who pleaded guilty in November to aiding and abetting to export defense materials to Iran in a deal that opened the door for him to serve part of his sentence in Britain near his ailing wife, has been sentenced in El Paso, Texas, to nearly three years in prison.

Paul R. Potter, 49, of Kirksville, Mo., has been charged with second-degree murder, arson and tampering with a motor vehicle over allegations that he killed a man, dismembered the body, set fires to conceal the crime and then hurled the victim’s arms at witnesses shortly before he was arrested, police said.

Front Section, Pages 1 on 01/10/2013

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