Seattle Times

Lawmakers are poised to legalize gay marriage in Washington state, which would make it the seventh state in the nation to allow same-sex couples to wed.

The Pierce County Sheriff's department says a dispatcher's extensive questioning of a caseworker who tried to summon help to Josh Powell's home was inappropriate.

A federal judge on Wednesday rejected arguments from four attorneys who prosecuted the late Sen. Ted Stevens to keep private a report that reveals details of their mishandling of the case, but said he will not hold them criminally responsible for their "ill-gotten verdict."

An uncle and aunt of Josh Powell issued a statement saying there's no justification for the loss of his children, but Maurice and Patti Leach feel "this family tragedy was set into motion from the beginning due in part to the various questionable government agencies' practices, religious bias, the Internet kangaroo courts, and sensationalized news media."

The thought of having to submit to an intrusive, embarrassing and potentially damning psychosexual evaluation before he could regain custody of his sons might have been more than a control-obsessed man like Josh Powell could bear, said the Pierce County prosecutor.

Washington students are taking and passing more Advanced Placement exams.

Police have released a series of recordings from 911 calls made Sunday when authorities in Washington state say Josh Powell locked himself and his two young sons in his house and lit it on fire. The following transcript comes from a social worker who had just arrived at the home with the boys for a court-ordered supervise visit. The transcript has been edited to remove personal information.

Police have released a series of recordings from 911 calls made Sunday when authorities in Washington state say Josh Powell locked himself and his two young sons in his house and lit it on fire. The following transcript comes from a social worker who had just arrived at the home with the boys for a court-ordered supervise visit. The transcript has been edited to remove personal information.

An uncle and aunt of Josh Powell issued a statement saying there's no justification for the loss of his children, but Maurice and Patti Leach feel "this family tragedy was set into motion from the beginning due in part to the various questionable government agencies' practices, religious bias, the internet kangaroo courts, and sensationalized news media."

A Lakewood police officer was charged with embezzling more than $120,000 from a fund for families of four colleagues who were shot to death on duty then spending some of the money on trips to Las Vegas, the U.S. attorney's office said Wednesday.

Lowell Elementary Principal Gregory King's move comes as a special investigator is finishing a report about his handling of staff.

Grays Harbor County Forester Larry Smith says county forests are being raided by illegal salal pickers who are stripping the plants of the greens used in floral arrangements.

A 911 call recording reveals a social worker's attempts over a more than six-minute call to get a dispatcher to send authorities quickly to the home of Josh Powell after he locked himself and his two sons in the home he then set ablaze.

13-year-old Jasper Hugunin, of Mercer Island, participated in Tuesday's White House science fair, where he showed off a computer game he had created. It was part of the Obama administration's effort to lift American students' performance in math and science.

A new passenger screening program to make check-in more convenient for certain travelers is being expanded to 28 more major U.S. airports, the government said Wednesday. There will be no cost to eligible passengers, who would no longer have to remove their shoes and belts before they board flights.

A 911 recording reveals a social worker's urgent attempts over more than six minutes to get a dispatcher to send deputies after Josh Powell locked himself and his two sons in his home.

Amazon.com, the world's biggest online retailer, is in talks to bring two warehouses to New Jersey in a deal that could bring 1,500 or more full-time jobs to a state where unemployment has hovered around 9 percent.

The state House has started to debate a measure that would legalize gay marriage in Washington state.

A new passenger screening program to make check-in more convenient for certain travelers is being expanded to 28 more major U.S. airports, the government said Wednesday. There will be no cost to eligible passengers, who would no longer have to remove their shoes and belts before they board flights.

The ferry Coho is back in service on its Port Angeles-Victoria, British Columbia, route with a new paint job after two weeks of maintenance at Anacortes.