NASCAR driver faces seven charges in biggest tobacco-smuggling bust in North America  —  NASCAR driver/owner Derek White turned himself into authorities Wednesday and faces seven charges in connection to the biggest tobacco-smuggling bust in North American history, NBC Sports has learned.

Donald Trump's Muslim Ban Somehow Got Worse  —  Donald Trump told a Wisconsin town hall on Wednesday that his proposed ban on Muslims entering the United States would have an exception for the billionaire's rich friends.  —  “I have actually—believe it or not, I have a lot of friends …

GOP nears the breaking point  —  The presidential primary has been a wrenching experience for the GOP so far — and it's about to get even worse.  —  and John Kasich have all backed away from their pledge to support the party's eventual nominee, foreshadowing a fight at the convention …

Strange baby faces popping up around Denver … DENVER — For months little doll faces have been turning heads all over Denver.  —  Many people have shared photos and locations of the faces online, but there still appear to be more questions about these strange faces than answers.

Michelle Fields Abandons Apartment Over Safety Concerns After Fox, BuzzFeed Publish Personal Info  —  Ex-Breitbart reporter Michelle Fields said Wednesday she had temporarily moved out of her D.C.-area apartment over safety concerns after Fox News and BuzzFeed accidentally published her address online.

Pool owners warned of electrocution risk  —  James Tramel, 43, died trying to save his children from a pool in Palm Springs Easter Sunday.  Tramel was electrocuted when he jumped into the pool after seeing his nine-year-old daughter being electrically shocked.  —  “Electricity is invisible.

Central Texas mother allows children to get tattoos  —  A Central Texas mother was taken into custody after allowing her young children to be tattooed.  Police say the mom was intoxicated at the time and let her boyfriend's brother do the work.  Now the three children each have tattoos on their ankles.

Five Top Female Players Accuse U.S. Soccer of Wage Discrimination  —  Five key members of the United States women's national soccer team, the reigning Women's World Cup and Olympic champion, plan to file a federal complaint Thursday charging U.S. Soccer with wage discrimination.

Kasich defends eating pizza with fork: It was ‘scalding hot, OK?’  —  During a stop at a pizza joint in New York on Wednesday, John Kasich drew the mock ire of locals and reporters on Twitter as he used a fork.  —  On Thursday, Kasich explained himself.  —  “Look, look, the pizza came scalding hot, OK?

35 years later: John Hinkley, Jr., closer to living permanently in Hampton Roads  —  John Hinckley, Jr., may soon accomplish something no other man has.  Never has anyone shot an American president, and then walked the streets, full-time, as a free man.  —  “I don't think anyone who owned …

The Electoral College: The Only Thing That Matters  —  It's a long way to November, but for the moment the GOP is an underdog  —  We live in a post-factual era.  Thanks to the Internet and social media, which mix informed and uninformed views in equal measure, the old rule …

FBI agrees to help Arkansas prosecutors open iPhone after hack of San Bernardino device  —  Apple appears to have gained a momentary reprieve in the tech industry's sparring with the government over encryption technology.  (Mark Lennihan / Associated Press)

DID YOU SEE THIS AMAZING VIDEO??  It was taken by visitor Tina Dorschel on the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary boardwalk early Monday morning.  (Please be warned, there is a curse word at the end!)  —  This gorgeous # Floridapanther seems to have unexpectedly found himself cornered while traveling around …

Bernie Sanders May Be Off DC Ballot After Democratic Party Filing  —  A hearing is expected as early as next week over the challenge to Sanders' inclusion on the D.C. ballot  —  Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders' name is not on the primary ballot in Washington, D.C. …

Hillary Clinton's entourage blocks up traffic in New York as she gets $600 haircut at luxury Bergdorf Goodman salon before heading to Harlem on the campaign trail  —  She has been out and about in New York trying to woo voters in Harlem.  —  But before hitting the campaign trail …

Seventh Person Dies from Fentanyl Overdose in Sacramento County  —  A seventh person has died of a fentanyl overdose in Sacramento County.  —  Family confirms that Jerome Butler, who was in a coma with liver and kidney failure after taking a fentanyl pill, was taken off life support on Wednesday afternoon.

Trump would be least-popular major-party nominee in modern times … If Donald Trump secures the Republican presidential nomination, he would start the general election campaign as the least-popular candidate to represent either party in modern times.  —  Three-quarters of women view him unfavorably.

Citrus Heights Police Need Help Identifying Serial Peeper, Sex Assault Suspect … It's the police sketch giving Citrus Heights residents the creeps — a man police are looking for in a sexual assault investigation.  —  “I don't know.  He looks really creepy,” resident Brianna Rowland said.

Carson: Trump didn't have time to think about abortion question  —  Ben Carson defended Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump  —  on Wednesday for his proposal to punish women who get illegal abortions, a position he quickly reversed.  —  “Well bear in mind …

Lonely?  This chair will hug you back … There's nothing like coming home and wrapping yourself in the arms of a loved one...or a bizarre-looking chair.  —  Don't have anyone to hold?  No worries.  —  South Korean designer Lee Eun Kyoung created a furry sofa with soft flexible arms …

Metro could shut down entire rail lines to do extended maintenance, board chair says  —  Metro's top officials warned Wednesday that the transit system is in such need of repair that they might shut down entire rail lines for as long as six months for maintenance, potentially snarling thousands …