DAILY BRIEFING
Soldier convicted in death of 3 Iraqis
Kentucky FORT CAMPBELL -- A military panel found a 101st Airborne soldier guilty of three counts of negligent homicide but not guilty of premeditated murder in the deaths of three Iraqi detainees. Staff Sergeant Ray Girouard, 24, smiled as he hugged his lawyer and relatives after the verdict. He faced up to life in prison had he been found guilty of premeditated murder. The panel also found Girouard guilty of obstruction of justice for lying to investigators and of conspiracy for trying to conceal the crime. (AP)
FLORIDA
Three divers die at shipwreck site
KEY LARGO -- Three divers died yesterday off the Florida Keys while trying to explore the wreck of a sunken US military ship. Shortly after a group descended near the USS Spiegel Grove, the captain of the dive boat notified the Coast Guard that four divers were missing. One of the men soon surfaced. Another was pulled up but was pronounced dead at a hospital. Authorities later found the bodies of the other two in the wreck. (AP)
MARYLAND
Senate approves slavery apology
ANNAPOLIS -- Two states showed signs yesterday of following Virginia's lead in apologizing for its role in slavery. Maryland's Senate approved an apology resolution, and a Georgia Senate leader said he expects a similar measure to be adopted. The Maryland Senate voted 44 to 0 to express "profound regret" for the state's role. (AP)
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Extremists sought school bus jobs
Suspected members of extremist groups have signed up as school bus drivers in the United States, counterterrorism officials said yesterday in a bulletin to police. FBI officials said that the agency had no information on any terrorist plots and that "parents and children have nothing to fear." The advisory did not say how often foreign extremists have sought to acquire licenses to drive school buses or where. (AP) 