IRVINE, Calif. -- The search for a fugitive ex-police officer wanted in the slayings of three people took police to a San Fernando Valley home improvement store and to the home of a possible target in a quiet Southern California suburb.
Also, authorities have set a $1 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Christopher Dorner and small towns remained on edge from the din of police helicopters and cruisers staking out schools.
Authorities have been working to protect dozens of families in the area considered targets based on Christopher Dorner's Facebook rant against those he held responsible for ending his career with the Los Angeles Police Department five years ago.
Among those the 33-year-old Dorner is suspected of killing is a Riverside police officer, and on the fourth day of the manhunt, authorities put up a $1 million reward for information leading to his capture.
"Our dedication to catch this killer remains steadfast. Our confidence remains unshaken," Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said at a news conference alongside police chiefs and mayors from Irvine and Riverside. "We will not tolerate this reign of terror."
Pair in custody: Two men were taken into custody Sunday as "persons of interest" in the fatal shooting of a 15-year-old Chicago girl, a Chicago police spokeswoman said. Chicago Police Department spokesman Melissa Stratton said the two men, ages 18 and 20, were taken into custody early Sunday morning and are being questioned. She said no charges have been filed. The development comes one day after Hadiya Pendleton's funeral, which was attended by first lady Michelle Obama and several other dignitaries. Pendleton was shot to death Jan. 29 in a park that is about a mile from President Barack Obama's home on the city's South Side. Police have said Pendleton was an innocent victim in a gang-related shooting.
Officers let go after crash: The commanding officer and executive officer of a Pearl Harbor-based submarine have been relieved of duty a month after the periscope on the USS Jacksonville collided with a vessel in the Persian Gulf. Cmdr. Christy Hagen, spokesman for the U.S. Pacific Fleet's submarine force, says Cmdr. Nathan Sukols and Lt. Cmdr. Lauren Allen were relieved after a disciplinary hearing in Bahrain on Sunday. Hagen cited a lack of confidence in the pair's leadership, but gave few details. Both have been assigned to administrative duties. On Jan. 10, the Jacksonville hit a vessel that kept moving and showed no signs of distress afterward. A periscope was damaged, and has since been repaired.
Latest Earth satellite to launch: A rocket carrying an Earth observation satellite is scheduled to blast off from the California coast on a mission to keep a continuous eye on the planet's resources. The countdown for the Atlas V launch begins this morning from the Vandenberg Air Force Base along California's central coast. The Landsat satellite is the eighth of its kind to be launched since 1972 to track glaciers, forest fires, crop production and coastlines. Unlike its predecessors, the latest carries more powerful sensors and can return more images.
Seeking Tubman national parks: Sen. Ben Cardin is calling again for the establishment of national parks honoring abolitionist Harriet Tubman. Cardin saID he will join with officials from the NAACP, the National Urban League, the National Organization for Women and other groups on Wednesday in Washington to support a bill that would create parks in Maryland and New York honoring Tubman. Tubman was born in Dorchester County and spent nearly 30 years there as a slave before escaping in 1849. She later led hundreds of slaves to freedom as part of the anti-slavery resistance network known as the Underground Railroad. Tubman is buried in Auburn, N.Y.
Cattle numbers drop: A Purdue Extension scientist says U.S. cattle numbers have dropped to their lowest level since 1952 following last year's record-setting drought. Agricultural economist Christ Hurt says Central and Southern Plains states have struggled hardest as the drought forced ranchers to reduce their herds, but the eastern Corn Belt hasn't been immune. Hurt says the beef industry has had to compete with other sectors for expensive feed and land that's being converted to corn and soybean acreage. Hurt says stopping the decline would require more rain and lower feed prices.
Corn shortage idles 20 ethanol plants: The persistent drought is taking a toll on producers of ethanol, with corn becoming so scarce that nearly two dozen ethanol plants have been forced to halt production. The Renewable Fuels Association, an ethanol industry trade group, provided data to Associated Press showing that 20 of the nation's 211 ethanol plants have ceased production over the past year, including five in January. While most expect to resume, they won't likely do so until after 2013 corn is harvested in late August or September. Industry experts don't expect an ethanol shortage because millions of barrels are stockpiled and the remaining 191 plants are still producing.
Five dead in lifeboat drill: A lifeboat from a British-operated cruise ship fell upside down into the sea at port in Spain's Canary Islands during a safety drill, killing five crew members and injuring three others Sunday, officials said. About 1,400 passengers were on board, but none were involved in the accident. Thomson Cruises confirmed the incident involving the Thomson Majesty ship on the island of La Palma, saying "there have sadly been five crew fatalities and three crew injuries." One of the three injured was discharged from a hospital, and the other two were also expected to be allowed to leave the medical facility. Investigators were trying to determine what caused the lifeboat to plummet into the water.
France hunting fraudsters: Europe's horsemeat scandal is spreading and threatening cross-border tensions, as France says Romanian butchers and Dutch and Cypriot traders were part of a supply chain that resulted in horsemeat disguised as beef being sold in frozen lasagna around the continent. No one has reported health risks from the mislabeled meat, but it has unsettled consumers across Europe. Accusations are flying. In France, the foreign minister called it "disgusting," and consumer safety authorities increased inspections of the country's meat business, from slaughterhouses to supermarkets.
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