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In front of a run-down shack in north Houston, federal agents step from a government sedan into 102-degree heat and face a critical question: How can the woman living here buy four high-end handguns in one day?

The house is worth $35,000. A screen dangles by a wall-unit air conditioner. Porch swing slats are smashed, the smattering of grass is flattened by cars and burned yellow by sun.

“I’ll do the talking on this one,” agent Tim Sloan, of South Carolina, told partner Brian Tumiel, of New York.

Success on the front lines of a government blitz on gunrunners supplying Mexican drug cartels with Houston weaponry hinges on logging heavy miles and knocking on countless doors. Dozens of agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives — sent here from around the country — are needed to follow what ATF acting director Kenneth Melson described as a “massive number of investigative leads.”

Federal agents raided an Alexandria man's home and seized 75 guns after he sold three machine guns to an undercover agent beginning in April, authorities said yesterday.

John M. Walker, 50, was charged with illegally converting semiautomatic weapons into fully automatic ones, court records show. Fully automatic weapons are legal but heavily regulated. Walker was not a licensed dealer, according to Special Agent Mike Campbell of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Campbell said that people who buy such converted weapons on the black market are more likely to have criminal ideas for their use than legitimate collectors.

June 2 (Bloomberg) -- A Chicago ordinance banning handguns and automatic weapons within city limits was upheld by a U.S. Court of Appeals panel, which rejected a challenge by the National Rifle Association.

The unanimous three-judge panel ruled today that a U.S. Supreme Court decision last year, which recognized an individual right to bear arms under the U.S. Constitution’s Second Amendment, didn’t apply to states and municipalities.

TOLEDO, OH (WTOL) - The first round of Toledo police layoffs, in which 75 officers were let go, may already be having an affect on gun ownership.

"I just don't feel safe with the amount they're laying off," says Jonna Ewing. "I think it's going to be a longer respond time."

(MANSFIELD (CBS 11 News) (cbs11tv.com) Is it okay to show your patriotism at the office?

For one Arlington woman, the answer was "no" after she hung an American flag in her office just before the Memorial Day weekend.

Debbie McLucas is one of four hospital supervisors at Kindred Hospital in Mansfield. Last week, she hung a three-by-five foot American flag in the office she shares with the other supervisors.

When McLucas came to work Friday, her boss told her another supervisor had found her flag offensive. "I was just totally speechless. I was like, 'You're kidding me,'" McLucas said.

McLucas' husband and sons are former military men. Her daughter is currently serving in Iraq as a combat medic.

Stifling a cry, McLucas said, "I just wonder if all those young men and women over there are really doing this for nothing."

McLucas said the supervisor who complained has been in the United States for 14 years and is formerly from Africa. McLucas said the supervisor took down Debbie's flag herself.

"The flag and the pole had been placed on the floor," McLucas said. But McLucas also said hospital higher ups had told her some patients' families and visitors had also complained.

"I was told it wouldn't matter if it was only one person," she said. "It would have to come down."

McLucas said hospital bosses told her as far as patriotism was concerned, the flag flying outside the hospital building would have to suffice.

Kindred Hospital Corporate Headquarters are located in Kentucky. They have yet to make a final decision on the matter. They have not returned our phone calls for comment.

The Kindred Hospital Corporation was chosen as Fortune's most admired for 2009. McLucas hopes they'll back her patriotism.

"I find it very frightening because if I can't display my flag, what other freedoms will I lose before all is said and done," McLucas asked.

(politico.com) House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer all but conceded Tuesday that Democrats have been beaten on the gun issue for now.

Republicans have been increasingly using pro-gun amendments to throw a wrench into Democratic legislation, attaching amendments to seemingly unrelated bills allowing for expanded gun carrying privileges in national parks.

The tactic seems to be working.

"There clearly is a majority in both houses that the Second Amendment rights ... that relate to the national parks are too restricted," Hoyer told reporters Tuesday. "The reality is that a majority in both houses agree with that position."

Republicans have slowed down a D.C. voting rights bill using the tactic, though a credit card bill with an amendment allowing for expanded ability to carry guns in national parks is widely expected to pass both houses.

Hoyer vowed Tuesday that the D.C. voting rights bill would pass "one way or another."

"It's gonna happen," he said.

(livescience.com) Americans grow happier as they age, surveys find. And a new Pew Research Center survey shows the tendency is holding up as the economy tanks.

Happiness is a complex thing. Past studies have found that happiness is partly inherited, that Republicans are happier than Democrats, and that old men tend to be happier than old women.

And even before the economy got nasty, seniors were found to be generally happier than Baby Boomers. Some of that owes to the American Dream being lived by past generations, while Boomers work two jobs and watch the dream wither.

In times like this, it's clear how age can have its advantages. While not all seniors are weathering the recession well, for many the impact is much less severe than it is for younger people.

Why? Many people 65 and older retired and downsized their lifestyles before the economy imploded, according to Pew analysts. Most aren't raising kids and many are not so worried about being laid off. Loss of income can be, of course, a source of stress and displeasure. (While money doesn't buy happiness, a study in February showed cash can help, especially when people use it to do stuff instead of buy things.)

If you're thinking that Republicans are happy just because they perhaps make more money, that does not seem to be the case. The study that found Republicans to be happier than Democrats also showed that it held true even after adjusting for income.

It's those age 50-64 who've "seen their nest eggs shrink the most and their anxieties about retirement swell the most," the Pew survey found. It also finds that younger adults (ages 18-49) "have taken the worst lumps in the job market but remain relatively upbeat about their financial future."

Not everyone in any category is blissful, of course. Other research has shown that happiness in old age depends largely on attitude factors such as optimism and coping strategies. Add financial planning to the list.

In the new Pew telephone survey, taken in March and April of 2,969 adults, here's how many respondents in each age group said they had cut back on spending in the past year:

    * 18-49: 68 percent
    * 50-64: 59 percent
    * 65+: 36 percent.

And is the recession causing stress in your family?

    * 18-49: 52 percent
    * 50-64: 58 percent
    * 65+: 38 percent.

Now for the good news: A study in January found that key groups of people in the United States have grown happier over the past few decades, while other have become less so. The result: Happiness inequality has decreased since the 1970s. Americans are becoming more similar to each other on the happiness scale.

(ocala.com) CANDLER – Sheriff’s deputies say a 25-year-old Summerfield man accused of burglarizing a home didn’t get very far, as the homeowner retrieved his .45-caliber handgun and held the man at gunpoint until they arrived.

Calvin Crews told deputies on Wednesday he was at his residence in the 10000 block of Southeast 108th Terrace Road when he heard someone calling his name. Crews said he looked outside and saw 25-year-old James Lazarus Wayne Day running toward a truck, according to a Marion County Sheriff’s Office report.

Crews said he got his gun and returned to the window. He said Day drove the truck up to the front porch, ran inside the home, went to a bedroom and removed a five-gallon jug that was filled with about $600 in change.

Crews then held the man at gunpoint and called deputies, according to the report. When they arrived, Crews came out of the home with his gun and told authorities what had happened.

Entering the home, deputies found Day kneeling on the floor next to the five-gallon jug of change. Day told them he went to Crews’ home to ask for a job. He said he had just stuck his head in the door when Crews pulled a gun on him.

Officials said Day used to work for Crews.

Day was then arrested and taken to the Marion County Jail where he was charged with residential burglary and grand theft.

(kcbd.com) LUBBOCK, TX (KCBD) - A local man wants your help finding two men who tried to break into his house, and he caught the almost home invasion on his web cam.

Many people would be frightened if they were at home and someone tried to break in, but Andy Hartman says he stayed calm because he had a weapon, and he knew the rules on when and how to use it. "I heard somebody knock on the door, and rang the doorbell. I thought it was just a salesman so I kind of ignored it," Hartman said.

Every day when he gets home from work Hartman puts his wallet, keys, phone and gun on the kitchen counter. He carries his gun with him where ever he goes, and last Wednesday, he almost had to use it in the comfort of his own home.

Hartman's home web cam taped someone kicking his back door repeatedly.  In the video, you can see the shutters shake each time the person kicks. Hartman grabbed his phone, his gun and called 911. "I'm in my bedroom with a gun. They're breaking in my house," he said in the 911 call.

(lohud.com) PELHAM MANOR - Someone at the Pelham Public Library tattled on a teen researching gun carry and concealment laws, which led to the 11th-grader being called into the high school assistant principal's office and being interviewed by police, police said.

The unidentified student was called to Assistant Principal Lynn Sabia's office Tuesday after someone from the public library called the school, saying the teen had ordered a book on concealing a gun.

"It is not our procedure to notify somebody," about the books people order, library Director Patricia Perito said Wednesday, the day after the incident. But, she said, she had to look into it. Since then, Perito has declined to provide any explanation of the incident or information on the instructions the library has regarding notifying authorities about questionable book choices.

Pelham Manor police Detective Ken Campion said the teen was doing research on gun carry and concealment laws, not on how to conceal a gun.

The name of the book could not be verified and neither the student nor his family would comment.

There was not anything to be worried about with regard to the teen, Campion said after interviewing him Tuesday. He did not break any laws.

The boy is nervous about college, Campion said, and has heard about shootings on college campuses and was doing the research.

Pelham Manor school's spokeswoman, Angela Cox, said calling police was "a responsible step," but added that they were sure the student posed no threat and remained in school.

(southbendtribune.com) MISHAWAKA — Two young girls, sisters, were in critical condition late Thursday after being run down earlier in the evening while crossing the street arm-in-arm after playing with friends.

The driver reportedly attempted to flee, but was stopped at gunpoint by a man who witnessed the accident.

According to witnesses, the two girls, ages 4 and 6, were crossing 11th Street at Dodge Street about 7:18 p.m. when a man traveling west on 11th in a blue Chevrolet Lumina struck both of them at about 40 mph.

RACINE — Four teens knocked a 42-year-old Racine man from his bike Friday night. He thought they were going to rob him.

The man pulled a Smith and Wesson revolver from his side holster, pointed it at the sky and yelled, “Gun!”

(wsbtv.com) COLLEGE PARK, Ga. -- A group of college students said they are lucky to be alive and they’re thanking the quick-thinking of one of their own. Police said a fellow student shot and killed one of two masked me who burst into an apartment.

Channel 2 Action News reporter Tom Jones met with one of the students to talk about the incident.

“Apparently, his intent was to rape and murder us all,” said student Charles Bailey.

Bailey said he thought it was the end of his life and the lives of the 10 people inside his apartment for a birthday party after two masked men with guns burst in through a patio door.

“They just came in and separated the men from the women and said, ‘Give me your wallets and cell phones,’” said George Williams of the College Park Police Department.

Bailey said the gunmen started counting bullets. “The other guy asked how many (bullets) he had. He said he had enough,” said Bailey.

That’s when one student grabbed a gun out of a backpack and shot at the invader who was watching the men. The gunman ran out of the apartment.

The student then ran to the room where the second gunman, identified by police as 23-year-old Calvin Lavant, was holding the women.

“Apparently the guy was getting ready to rape his girlfriend. So he told the girls to get down and he started shooting. The guy jumped out of the window,” said Bailey.

A neighbor heard the shots and heard someone running nearby.

“And I heard someone say, ‘Someone help me. Call the police. Somebody call the police,’” said a neighbor.

The neighbor said she believes it was Lavant, who was found dead near his apartment, only one building away.

Bailey said he is just thankful one student risked his life to keep others alive.

“I think all of us are really cognizant of the fact that we could have all been killed,” said Bailey.

One female student was shot several times during the crossfire. She is expected to make a full recovery.

Police said they are close to making the arrest of the second suspect.

POLK COUNTY, FL (Bay News 9) -- A Polk County man shot at two robbery suspects Tuesday morning when he thought they were going to run him down.

One of the suspects was hit in the head and died, and the other is still at large.

The incident happened near a citrus grove on Rifle Range Road in the Wahneta area of Winter Haven.

Property owner Jamie Jones heard a commotion outside while working inside his shed just before dawn.

Jones told detectives a man and woman were driving away in his Land Rover. He said after they saw him, they tried to run him over.

Fearing for his life, Jones pulled the trigger.

One of the bullets hit 21-year-old Nikki McCormick in the head. While she lay bleeding in the passenger seat, the male suspect fled on foot.

McCormick was rushed to the hospital where she later died.

Detectives aren't sure if the male suspect was hit. The property owner last saw him limping down a nearby street.

The Polk County Sheriff's Office searched for him by air and ground for hours but did not locate him. The sheriff's office hasn't been able to identify him.

Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd says Jones likely won't face charges, and he offers a warning to other would-be robbers.

"The word to the criminal is first -- quit being a criminal, quit stealing," Judd said. "But if you're breaking into someone's house, the homeowner is very likely to shoot you."

(Richmond Times Dispatch) Authorities said a man shot and killed after allegedly breaking into a woman's car Wednesday in Richmond's East End appeared to have been unarmed.

A Virginia Commonwealth University student was arrested in the shooting death of Jamall Holman, 24, of the 1700 block of Forest Glen Road in Henrico County.

Eric G. Driver Jr., 25, of the 500 block of North 22nd Street, was charged with second-degree murder and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony in the shooting in the 2100 block of East Leigh Street on Wednesday about 4:30 p.m.

Richmond Commonwealth's Attorney Michael N. Herring said yesterday that Driver was charged with second-degree murder instead of first-degree murder because the shooting was "more of an overreaction" than a premeditated killing.

Herring said it is illegal to use deadly force to protect property.

(Loudoun Independent) Residents of Lansdowne and neighboring Potomac Station may sleep a little more soundly after the news. Sources have reported to the Loudoun Independent that four suspects are in custody related to the March 22 murder of William Bennett and the brutal attack on his wife, Cynthia Bennett.

Loudoun County Sheriff Steve Simpson, Commonwealth’s Attorney Jim Plowman and several local elected representatives met at a Saturday, April 25 press conference only feet away from where William Bennett’s body was discovered.

While some may feel less a sense of relief at the arrests, others may become more uneasy as it appears that the Lansdowne Attack, and other recent crimes in Loudoun, can now be tied to gang activity. While Sheriff Simpson described the attack on the Bennetts as “not in furtherance of the gang,” at least two of the suspects are believed to be connected to local gang activity due to prior encounters with law enforcement. Simpson indicated that the motive for the attack was likely robbery, a crime of opportunity. There appears to be no evidence that the Bennetts were targeted.

“They were simply at the wrong place at the wrong time,” said Simpson.

STOCKHOLM (AP) -- A defense lawyer in the Pirate Bay file-sharing case said Thursday he will demand a retrial after the judge admitted he was a member of copyright protection organizations.

A Stockholm court last week convicted four men behind the notorious Web site of helping others commit copyright violations and gave them one-year prison sentences.

They also were ordered to pay damages of 30 million kronor ($3.6 million) to entertainment companies, including Warner Bros., Sony Music Entertainment, EMI and Columbia Pictures.

Peter Althin, who represented Pirate Bay spokesman Peter Sunde in the case, said he would request a retrial after Judge Tomas Norstrom confirmed Swedish Radio reports that he was a member of two Swedish copyright groups.

Althin said that constituted a conflict of interest, especially considering that three people who represented the entertainment industry during the trial also held membership in one of the organizations.

"This is completely new to me. It is reasonable that we should have known about this before," Althin told The Associated Press. "It is a clear case of bias."

With an estimated 22 million users, The Pirate Bay has become the entertainment industry's enemy No. 1 after successful court actions against file-swapping sites such as Grokster and Kazaa.

All defendants said they would appeal the district court's verdict on Friday. The request for a retrial would likely be included in the appeal, Althin said.

Norstrom acknowledged to Swedish Radio that he was a member of The Swedish Association for Copyright, as well as a board member of the Swedish Association for the Protection of Industrial Property. He also said he has worked alongside Monica Wadsted, who represented the American movie industry in the trial, to solve disputes related to Internet domain names. However, he rejected that there was any conflict of interests.

"I don't think there are any circumstances that have made me biased in this case," he said.

Sunde -- the Pirate Bay spokesman -- called the judge's links to the copyright groups "quite remarkable," and told AP the case had turned into a "farce."