NATION IN BRIEF

Vaccine study backs safety of chemical

A new study has added to a mountain of evidence that a mercury-based preservative once used in many vaccines doesn’t hurt children, offering more reassurance to parents. A study in the February issue of the journal Pediatrics, being released today, says brain-function tests of 1,403 children injected with two different levels of the preservative thimerosal in routine innoculations in the 1990s found only one case of autism 10 years later, and that was in a group that got a lower level of thimerosal. The preservative, used in some vaccines to prevent the growth of bacteria and fungus, hasn’t been in U.S. childhood vaccines since 2001, except for certain flu shots. The study was funded by the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Second sex-scandal claim rocks church

The pastor of the New Life Church in Colorado Springs, Colo., said “holy tenacity” will help his congregation recover from new allegations in a 2-year-old sex scandal that forced out its former leader. Brady Boyd consoled and encouraged members Sunday after revelations that a male church volunteer had reported having a sexual relationship with former pastor Ted Haggard —- the second such claim against Haggard since a male prostitute in 2006 said he had a three-year, cash-for-sex relationship with him. Haggard confessed to undisclosed “sexual immorality” after that earlier allegation but declined to comment on the new claim.

McCain: Let defense nomination proceed

Arizona Sen. John McCain said Sunday the confirmation of William J. Lynn, President Barack Obama’s choice for deputy defense secretary, should move forward despite concerns about the nominee’s role as a former defense lobbyist for Raytheon, one of the military’s top contractors. “I don’t like it,” McCain told “Fox News Sunday.” “But I think we need to probably move forward with his —- with his nomination.” The Pentagon announced Friday that Lynn will sell his stock in Raytheon. But he won’t be forced to step back from decisions related to his former employer. Instead, his dealings at the Defense Department will be subject to ethics reviews for one year, the Pentagon said.

Nightclub gunman kills 2, shoots self

A gunman opened fire outside an under-21 nightclub in Portland, Ore., killing two girls and injuring eight other people before shooting himself in the head. Police said there was no indication the man knew the people he shot as they stood in front of The Zone nightclub late Saturday. A stray bullet also hit a manager inside a neighboring bar. The 24-year-old alleged gunman was in critical condition after shooting himself. The dead included a 16-year-old from Portland and a 17-year-old exchange student from Peru who were at The Zone to celebrate a birthday. Two of the wounded also were exchange students.

Teen charged with impersonating cop

Chicago police arrested a 14-year-old boy for impersonating one of their own over the weekend. Police said the boy walked into a district station dressed in a police uniform and was savvy enough to sign out a police radio and a ticket book and go on traffic stops with a policeman before another officer became suspicious. The boy was charged as a juvenile for impersonating an officer, and an investigation was under way to determine how he got the uniform.