Washington, D.C.: Haz-mat truck drivers to have background checks

The government will launch background checks next week on the nation’s 3.5 million truckers who haul hazardous goods, part of an effort to prevent terrorist attacks.

The checks are required by the Patriot Act passed by Congress after the Sept. 11 attacks. Certain felons — including those convicted of possession of a controlled substance within the last seven years — no longer may drive trucks with hazardous materials. The same applies to anyone who has been judged mentally incompetent and illegal immigrants.

The Transportation Security Administration will be checking state and federal records to determine which truckers fall into those categories. Those who do will lose their licenses to haul hazardous materials.

California: Husband accused in killing hires prominent attorney

A lawyer who has represented celebrities and served as a television commentator during coverage of the Laci Peterson homicide investigation said Friday he would defend her accused husband.

Mark Geragos of Los Angeles said he had been hired by Scott Peterson’s family. He will replace two public defenders assigned to Peterson during arraignment April 21, when Peterson said he couldn’t afford a lawyer.

Peterson, a 30-year-old fertilizer salesman, has pleaded innocent to two counts of murder in the deaths of his 27-year-old wife and their unborn son. Their bodies washed ashore last month in San Francisco Bay near where Scott Peterson said he was fishing Christmas Eve, the day he last saw his wife.

New Mexico: Unusual material sent to shuttle investigators

An odd assortment of material has been hauled from New Mexico’s rugged mountains and investigators suspect it could be debris from the space shuttle Columbia.

The material includes chunks of mysterious chalky matter and shiny black cinders that look like hardened tar but easily crumble. All of it has been sent to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Officials have targeted the New Mexico mountain — and specifically, a rugged area known as Cedro Peak — based on videotapes that show the shuttle losing parts as it crossed the West on Feb. 1. A clear, bright moment on one of the tapes — along with radar evidence — indicates something fell in New Mexico that morning.

Washington, D.C.: U.S. warns of attacks in Peru

The State Department is warning of a potential for terror activity by Shining Path and other violent groups in Peru.

The warning, issued Friday, is timed to May 17, the 23rd anniversary of the Maoist guerrilla group’s founding.

U.S. residents and travelers in the South American country should exercise caution, the department said. “There are indications that terrorist organization are continuing to plan actions directed against U.S. citizens and U.S. interests in Peru,” the department said in a statement.

Shining Path is suspected in a car bombing last year near the U.S. Embassy in Lima that killed nine people.