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• But attitudes have softened considerably since then as animal activists and even television shows cast the dogs in a more positive light. The image makeover has prompted many states to pass new laws that forbid communities from banning specific breeds. And it illustrates the power and persistence of dog-advocacy groups that have worked to fend off pit bull restrictions with much the same zeal as gun-rights groups have defeated gun-control measures.
• "Lawmakers are realizing that targeting dogs based on their breed or what they look like is not a solution to dealing with dangerous dogs," said Lisa Peters, a spokeswoman for the American Kennel Club.
• Eighteen states now have laws that prohibit communities from adopting breed-specific bans. Lawmakers in six more states are considering similar measures, and some cities are reviewing local policies that classify pit bulls as dangerous animals.
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Oscar Pistorius trial: Friend allegedly involved in previous gunplay testifies
• PRETORIA, South Africa (AP) -- The friend of Oscar Pistorius who was identified by witnesses as being with the athlete on two occasions when a gun was shot in public is testifying at Pistorius' murder trial on Tuesday.
• Darren Fresco was asked by Pistorius to take the blame, a previous witness testified, when a gun the Olympic runner was handling fired under a table in a restaurant in early 2013, about a month before Pistorius shot dead girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.
• Fresco was also present, another witness said, when Pistorius shot his gun out the sunroof of a car after an altercation with traffic police in 2012.
• Pistorius is on trial charged with murder for the shooting death of Steenkamp on Valentine's Day last year. He also faces firearm charges for those two gun incidents.
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Joe McGinniss, news-making author of 'Fatal Vision,' 'Selling of the President,' dies at 71
• NEW YORK (AP) -- Joe McGinniss wasn't one to let a story tell itself.
• Whether insisting on the guilt of a murder suspect after seemingly befriending him or moving next door to Sarah Palin's house for a most unauthorized biography, McGinniss was unique in his determination to get the most inside information, in how publicly he burned bridges with his subjects and how memorably he placed (Continued on page 32)
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