Nation briefs 02/28/03

Graham files papers for presidential committee

WASHINGTON -- Democratic Sen. Bob Graham of Florida took a major step toward a likely run for the White House on Thursday, filing papers to begin raising money for a full-fledged campaign.

The 66-year-old Graham, who is recovering from heart surgery on Jan. 31, will have to wait for a doctor's clearance before heading out on the campaign trail, aides said. Depending on his health, and his prospects in a crowded Democratic field, Graham will make a formal announcement on pursuing the nomination in April.

The field of Democrats who have either formally announced their candidacy or formed a presidential committee now totals nine with Graham's entry. The lawmaker makes for a formidable candidate based on his 16 years in the Senate, fund-raising ability and Florida background. The state, with 27 electoral votes, is crucial in any presidential run.

California patrol settles racial-profiling suitSAN FRANCISCO -- The California Highway Patrol settled a racial-profiling lawsuit Thursday by agreeing to ban some car searches and require officers to specify the reason for each drug-related traffic stop beyond just a hunch about wrongdoing.

The settlement, filed in federal court, also requires the highway patrol to track all stops and constantly review that database to spot whether any officer is pulling over a disproportionate number of black or Hispanic motorists. The highway patrol also must pay $875,000 in legal fees and damages.

Highway patrol officials have insisted officers do not profile or discriminate, and under the settlement they admitted no wrongdoing.

Report: Bed sheets were cause of nursing home fire

HARTFORD, Conn. -- Investigators believe a nursing home blaze that killed 10 people was started by a patient who set her sheets on fire, a newspaper reported Thursday.

The 23-year-old patient suffers from multiple sclerosis and had a history of abusing drugs, including crack, The Hartford Courant reported, citing unidentified law enforcement sources.

Police chief Bruce Marquis would not comment on the report but said the woman was interviewed Wednesday night in the presence of doctors and was cooperating. No charges have been filed against her.

Police said they would try to determine if the woman's "mental capacity" was a factor in the early-morning blaze Wednesday.

Three Chechen groups to be placed on terrorist list

WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration will announce today that it is imposing sanctions on three rebel groups in the breakaway Russian republic of Chechnya because of their involvement in terrorism, including participation in an attack on a Moscow theater last October.

The designations will allow the U.S. government to block the assets of these groups in U.S. financial institutions. Members of these groups would be barred from receiving visas to visit the United States.

State Department spokesman Richard Boucher declined to name the three groups.

Study: Blacks improve in economic, health care

WASHINGTON -- Boosted by rising incomes and better access to health care, blacks made marked improvements in key health indicators over the 1990s, according to a private analysis of government data released Thursday.

Teenage birth rates declined for blacks more than any other minority group, while more blacks mothers received early prenatal care.

Cases of tuberculosis also were less prevalent among minorities, especially blacks and Asians, researchers from the State University of New York Downstate Medical Center reported.

Still, disparities between whites and minorities persist, and may widen with unemployment rising and governments shifting health care money from outreach and preventative programs to combating bioterrorism, said Dennis Andrulis, lead author of the study.

-- From wire reports