Voters reject plan to raze Alcatraz

SAN FRANCISCO - Voters have rejected a proposal to demolish the famed Alcatraz prison and transform the island into a global peace center. The proposition was rejected by 72 percent of San Francisco voters Tuesday. The island is the city's second-most popular paid tourist attraction after its cable cars, and occupies a dramatic position near the Golden Gate Bridge. Supporters had wanted to raze the prison and build a conference center for conflict resolution. (Reuters)

INDEPENDENCE - The ashes of Margaret Truman Daniel, the only child of President Harry S. Truman, will be interred Feb. 23 next to her parents at the Truman Presidential Library. Daniel died Jan. 29 in Chicago at age 83. Daniel's ashes will be buried with those of her husband, E. Clifton Daniel, who died in 2000. (AP)

MADISON - A former child-care provider sent to prison more than a decade ago in the fatal shaking of a baby was freed yesterday, six days after an appeals court ruled the latest research into shaken baby syndrome might prove her innocence. The release of Audrey Edmunds, 46, came after an appeals court overturned her 1996 conviction and ordered a new trial. The court said new research into shaken-baby syndrome presents alternate theories on what happened to 7-month-old Natalie Beard. (AP)

The American Red Cross, the biggest operator of US blood banks, has been fined $4.6 million after regulators found that it failed to properly screen blood donations. The Food and Drug Administration sent a letter to the Red Cross yesterday describing the agency's findings, said FDA spokeswoman Peper Long, in an interview. The penalty followed an FDA review of blood that was recalled by the Red Cross, she said. (Bloomberg)