TOP STORY

NEW YORK

Governor vows police conduct to be probed

NEW YORK — Gov. David Paterson pledged to examine undercover police conduct Thursday, a day after more than 200 people were arrested protesting the acquittal of three detectives involved in the shooting death of an unarmed man.

Paterson said he understood the activists' frustrations as he stood with the slain man's fiancee and the Rev. Al Sharpton, who were among the demonstrators arrested while disrupting evening rush hour traffic. But the governor stopped short of endorsing their actions.

"No civil servant can condone civil disobedience," Paterson said, but he added: "They felt that they had no other choice but to take the action that they took, and I respect the decision that they made to take that action."

The governor's involvement was a measure of the emotion and unrelenting attention surrounding the shooting of Sean Bell, who was gunned down hours before he was to be married in November 2006.

IN BRIEF

TEXAS

Sinkhole expansion seems to be slowing

DAISETTA — Geologists said a 260-foot-deep sinkhole that grew to the length of three football fields over just two days seemed to be slowing down Thursday, but that it could take months before it's clear whether surrounding areas are stable.

The 900-foot-long sinkhole, with crumbling dirt around its edges resembling sharp teeth, has swallowed up oil tanks and barrels, tires, telephone poles and several vehicles in Daisetta, a once-booming oil town of about 1,000 residents about 60 miles northeast of Houston.

Residents feared the appetite of the sinkhole, which began as a 20-foot hole in the ground Wednesday, would continue unabated Thursday and threaten nearby homes.

TEXAS

President looking forward to wedding

CRAWFORD — President Bush stuck out his right elbow Thursday, jokingly demonstrating how he'll escort his daughter down the aisle at her wedding this weekend.

He made the gesture at Andrews Air Force Base before boarding Air Force One for the flight to Texas, where Jenna Bush will be married Saturday before about 200 guests at the family's 1,600 acre, secluded ranch. Asked if he was excited, the president smiled and gave a thumbs-up.

"He's looking forward to it," White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe told reporters aboard the plane as it flew from rainy Washington to sunny Texas. "He's excited like any proud father is to see one of his daughters get married."

"I think he's also going to make sure he gets a good night's sleep tonight so he can stay up late the rest of the weekend and enjoy all the activities."

WYOMING

Court clears way for Arapaho's trial

CHEYENNE — A member of the Northern Arapaho Tribe who killed a bald eagle for use in his tribe's Sun Dance in 2005 must stand trial, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday.

A panel of the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver reversed a 2006 decision by U.S. District Judge William Downes of Wyoming that had dismissed a criminal charge against Winslow Friday of Ethete.

In dismissing the charge, Downes had ruled that the federal government does no more than pay lip service to American Indian religious practices. Downes said the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service generally refuses to grant permits allowing tribal members to kill eagles.

—From wire reports