PITTSBURGH (AP) -- A white man claims he was fired as manager of a suburban Panera Bread shop for repeatedly having a black man work the cash register instead of putting him in a less visible location and having "pretty young girls" be the cashiers.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The ranks of America's poorest poor have climbed to a record high - 1 in 15 people - spread widely across metropolitan areas as the housing bust pushed many inner-city poor into suburbs and other outlying places and shriveled jobs and income.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The head of the nation's largest public employee union plans to step down, setting up a heated contest to guide a political powerhouse that has been among the biggest spenders in Democratic campaigns.

CHICAGO (AP) -- A Chicago alderman says he's found a way for the city to raise desperately needed cash that will also keep more police officers on the street: Marijuana.

PALO ALTO, Calif. (AP) -- Twin 2-year-old girls who were joined at the chest and abdomen were separated Tuesday during a lengthy, complex procedure at Stanford University's children's hospital.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Transportation Security Administrator John Pistole says a small test program that pre-screens some travelers who volunteer extra information about themselves in exchange for swifter trips through airport security has so far been successful.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Bank of America Corp. is nixing its plans to charge a $5 monthly debit card fee.

WARSAW, Poland (AP) -- A Boeing airliner carrying 231 people from the U.S. landed on its belly in Warsaw on Tuesday after its landing gear failed to open, triggering sparks and small fires. No one was injured.

Ritalin and similar medicines that millions of children and teens take to curb hyperactivity and boost attention do not raise their risk of serious heart problems, the largest safety study of these drugs concludes.