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PERUGIA, Italy, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- The Italian student charged with killing a young British woman in Perugia in 2007 denied Thursday that he was present when Meredith Kercher died.

SEATTLE, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- The aunt of Maurice Clemmons said her nephew called her four times after he allegedly shot and killed four police officers in Lakewood, Wash.

DETROIT, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- Detroit firefighters said five houses caught fire within minutes of each other, leading to suspicions of arson.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- The number of Sri Lankans who think their economy is improving jumped 28 percent to 64 percent, a national opinion poll indicated Thursday.

PORTSMOUTH, Va., Dec. 3 (UPI) -- A 21-year-old man will spend 25 years in prison for his part in a 2006 gun-beating death in Portsmouth, Va., a court ruled Thursday.

NEWPORT NEWS, Va., Dec. 3 (UPI) -- A U.S. District judge said a Virginia man with suspected gang ties will spend 37 years in prison for a variety of crimes.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- The U.S. Congress must do more to ensure immigrants facing deportation have access to all the benefits of the legal system, Human Rights Watch said.

SEATTLE, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- Seattle authorities said they are searching for the individual who took an unauthorized photograph of alleged killer Maurice Clemmons.

BAGHDAD, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- Iraqi lawmakers must work together to agree on amendments to a national election law so elections can take place by February, top U.N. officials said.

BEIRUT, Lebanon, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- The political firestorm is not over for Beirut as ruling lawmakers expressed reservations over a decision to allow Hezbollah to maintain its armed resistance.

CHICAGO, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- Internet scammers are taking advantage of swine flu worries by sending fake U.S. government e-mails to install a virus in victims computers, authorities said.

PENDLETON, Okla., Dec. 3 (UPI) -- Oregon State Police Thursday said three members of a family from Pendleton, Ore., died when their vehicle crashed into a pickup truck on Highway 11.

HOUSTON, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- The fingerprinting comparison unit of the Houston Police Department is facing a criminal investigation, a police official said.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- No job-creating idea, as long as it's sound, will be dismissed out of hand, U.S. President Barack Obama said Thursday as he opened a White House jobs forum.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- Analysts are split over the prospects for U.S. troops in Afghanistan as some see a surge as a chance for success, while others see victory coming from Pakistan.