Poll: Election 2016 shapes up as a contest of negatives  —  The coming presidential race between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump begins in a virtual dead heat, a competition between two candidates viewed unfavorably by a majority of the current electorate and with voters motivated as much by whom …

Five-year-old shoots, kills self while playing with gun  —  A five-year-old in Laplace gets her hands on a gun, and accidentally shoots and kills herself.  The accident happened Saturday at 9:45 a.m. at the girl's home on Country Club Drive.  —  Many residents on Country Club Drive …

Elijah Wood: ‘Hollywood in the grip of child abuse scandal similar to Jimmy Savile’  —  Hollywood is in the grip a child sexual abuse scandal similar to that of Jimmy Savile in Britain, Lord of the Rings star Elijah Wood has claimed.  —  The 35-year-old former child actor said paedophiles …

Trump: I Don't Want Guns In Classrooms, But Some Teachers Should Have Guns  —  GOP presumptive nominee Donald Trump said Sunday that he doesn't want guns to be in classrooms, but that “some teachers” should have guns.  —  Trump was asked to respond on Fox & Friends to criticism …

CLINTON SHRUGS, SEES BENEFITS IN TRUMP'S PERSONAL ATTACKS  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Hillary Clinton has a message for Donald Trump: keep on talking.  —  She's just weeks away from wrapping up the Democratic presidential nomination, and friends, aides and supporters describe a candidate …

Bernie Sanders supporters sue to have California's voter registration extended until election day  —  Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders addresses supporters during a rally on May 21, 2016, in National City.  (Sandy Huffaker / Getty Images)  —  A federal lawsuit alleging …

Just What Were Donald Trump's Ties to the Mob?  —  In his signature book, The Art of the Deal, Donald Trump boasted that when he wanted to build a casino in Atlantic City, he persuaded the state attorney general to limit the investigation of his background to six months.

Trump camp quietly courts Muslims  —  's top foreign policy adviser has quietly opened backchannels within Muslim and Middle Eastern communities in the U.S. in an attempt to win over a small but increasingly important voting bloc.  —  Walid Phares, a top national security adviser for Trump …

POLICE, SOLDIERS SWARM MEXICO'S ACAPULCO, KILLINGS CONTINUE  —  ACAPULCO, Mexico (AP) — Along with beach towels or sandals, there's a new popular beach accessory that says a lot about the violence gripping this once-glamorous resort: a small black leather tote hanging from the neck or shoulders of some men.

Washington state GOP convention backs Cruz over Trump  —  Donald Trump may be the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, but Washington state's GOP convention awarded 40 out of 41 elected delegate slots to Ted Cruz.  However, delegates are bound by party rules to cast national-convention ballots based …

Mars appears at its biggest, brightest as planet moves into opposition  —  Mars is at its biggest and brightest in over a decade, as it comes into a particularly close opposition.  —  Mars comes into opposition — the point when Mars and the Sun are on directly opposite sides of the Earth — once every two years.