Armed group says it has accessed government files

Armed group says it has accessed government files

BURNS, Ore.

The leader of a small, armed group occupying a national wildlife refuge in southeastern Oregon said Monday he and his followers are going through government documents stored inside refuge buildings.

Ammon Bundy told reporters the documents will be used to “expose” how the government has discriminated local ranchers who use federal land for cattle grazing.

Bundy said the documents also would help secure the release of Steven and Dwight Hammond, two area ranchers convicted of arson who returned to prison last week to serve longer sentences. The Hammonds’ case set off the occupation of the Burns-area refuge Jan. 2.

House moves on expanded sanctions against N. Korea

WASHINGTON

The House pushed ahead on legislation that seeks to punish North Korea for its latest nuclear test by expanding sanctions on Pyongyang, a move with strong bipartisan support despite questions over how effective the new restrictions can be.

Lawmakers are scheduled to vote today on the North Korea Sanctions Enforcement Act, which proposes to deny North Korea the hard currency it says it needs for its weapons programs. Having the vote today puts it on the same day as President Barack Obama’s final State of the Union address.

Aid convoys reach Syrian communities

DAMASCUS, Syria

Aid convoys delivered long-awaited food, medicine and other supplies to three besieged communities Monday, part of a U.N.-supported operation to help tens of thousands of civilians cut off for months by the war in Syria.

Reports of starvation and images of emaciated children have raised global concerns and underscored the urgency for new peace talks that the U.N. is hoping to host in Geneva on Jan. 25.

Samantha Power, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said the U.N. reported at a closed-door briefing of the Security Council that more than 400 people in the besieged town of Madaya “are on the brink of death and in need of immediate medical evacuation.”

Judge reduces bond for mother in ‘affluenza’ case

FORT WORTH, Texas

The mother of a Texas teenager who used an “affluenza” defense for a deadly wreck could soon leave jail after a judge sharply reduced her bond Monday.

Tonya Couch’s bond is now $75,000 instead of $1 million. The 48-year-old is charged with hindering the apprehension of a felon after she and her son, Ethan Couch, were caught in a Mexican resort city. Ethan, 18, killed four people in a 2013 crash and was facing allegations that he violated his probation.

Trial of police van driver postponed

BALTIMORE

A Maryland appeals court postponed the trial of a police van driver charged with second-degree murder in the death of Freddie Gray, saying it needs to address whether another Baltimore officer should be compelled to testify against Caesar Goodson.

Jury selection for Goodson’s trial was supposed to start Monday. Prosecutors have indicated that testimony from Officer William Porter, whose trial ended in a hung jury last month, is crucial to their case against Goodson.

Associated Press