The world at a glance . . . United States

last updated 8 January 2015

Ontario, Calif.

GOP linked to registration fraud: Police this week arrested the head of a voter registration firm that has been accused of duping people into registering as Republicans. Mark Jacoby was hired by the California Republican Party to register 70,000 new Republicans this year, for a fee of $7 to $12 per head. But of 46 of those voters interviewed randomly by the Los Angeles Times, 80 percent said they had been tricked. Some said, for instance, that they were told they were signing a petition for tougher laws against child molestation. Police charged Jacoby with fraudulently registering himself as a California resident in order to be eligible for the job. The state GOP accused California’s Democratic secretary of state of “using her office to play politics.”

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An alarming kidnapping: An unusual kidnapping of a 6-year-old boy last week has authorities worried that tactics used by Mexican drug gangs are taking root in the U.S. Cole Puffinburger was snatched from his home by two men dressed as police officers who tied up his mother and her boyfriend. The boy reappeared on a street corner four days later, unharmed. Police said the likely culprits were drug smugglers who believed that Cole’s grandfather had stolen money from them. “Some of the lawlessness in Mexico is starting to spread into the United States,” said Las Vegas Police Lt. Martin Lehtinen. The boy’s grandfather and a companion were taken into custody as material witnesses.

No more safe haven: Nebraska’s governor and legislature this week agreed to rewrite the state’s “safe haven” law after two parents drove their young teenagers across state lines to abandon them at Nebraska hospitals. The law was designed to prevent new mothers from dumping unwanted babies in the garbage. But since it went into effect in July, parents have dropped off 18 children between the ages of 2 and 18. Citing “serious, unintended consequences,” Gov. Dave Heineman said the law would be changed to apply only to infants up to 3 days old.

Sheriff raids City Hall: Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio staged a 2 a.m. immigration raid on Mesa’s City Hall and town library last week, arresting 16 janitors and infuriating the town’s mayor. Arpaio, known for his tough anti-crime measures, has accused Mayor Scott Smith of being soft on illegal immigration and has feuded with him over who has jurisdiction to enforce laws inside the city limits. The raids were conducted by 30 deputies and 30 “volunteer posse” members carrying semiautomatic weapons. “I believe the safety of our citizens was gravely compromised,” said Mayor Smith, who was unaware of Arpaio’s plans. Arpaio blamed a “culture” within Mesa that made city police reluctant to respond to immigration complaints.

Scarlet pumpkins for sex offenders: The state of Maryland this week ordered all child sex offenders currently on parole to display pumpkin-shaped Halloween stickers reading, “No candy at this residence.” The signs were mailed to 1,200 registered offenders, who were also instructed to leave their porch lights off and stay inside after 6 p.m. “Halloween provides a rare opportunity for you to demonstrate to your neighbors that you are making a sincere effort to change the direction of your life,” an instruction letter to the offenders stated. Officials said agents will conduct spot checks to make sure convicted offenders do not hand out any candy.

UFO secret revealed: A retired U.S. fighter pilot living in Miami confirmed a newly declassified report that he had been ordered to shoot down an unidentified flying object over the U.K. in 1957. The British Defense Ministry document did not reveal any details about the incident. But Milton Torres, who had been stationed at a British air base, said this week that after he was ordered to take flight, he locked his missiles onto an object that gave a radar reading like “a flying aircraft carrier” but was traveling at the speed of a fighter jet. The mysterious craft vanished before he could fire. Torres said he was visited the next day by an American man in a trench coat who said that if he ever spoke of the matter, he would never fly again. Torres, 77, still has no idea what he was up against, but said, “I felt very much like a one-legged man in an ass-kicking contest.”