combined briefs

wife, posting photo

A Florida man who authorities say fatally shot his wife — and apparently then posted a photo of her body on Facebook — has turned himself into police. Miami-Dade police report that Derek Medina, 31, turned himself in Thursday, telling them he had shot Jennifer Alfonso, 26. Detectives didn’t immediately give a motive. Charges were pending. A post on a Facebook page identified as Medina’s says, “I’m going to prison or death sentence for killing my wife.” The post claims that his wife was punching him and that he wasn’t going to stand any more abuse.

WASHINGTON, D.C.

More peace talks

planned for next week

The second round of U.S.-brokered Mideast peace talks will be held next week, the State Department said Thursday, even as the Palestinians protested new Israeli settlement activity. In a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry, the chief Palestinian negotiator, Saeb Erekat, said Israel’s latest settlement announcements were an indication of “Israel’s bad faith and lack of seriousness” in the talks. The letter was sent Thursday, the same day the State Department announced that Mideast peace envoy Martin Indyk and deputy special envoy Frank Lowenstein were heading to the region for talks Wednesday in Jerusalem, followed by a later meeting in the West Bank.

NEW YORK

Marvel can keep

Spider-Man, X-Men

Spider-Man, Iron Man and the Incredible Hulk can continue to reside in Marvel’s offices after a federal appeals court Thursday rejected an ownership claim by the children of the artist who helped create them. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan agreed with a lower court judge who denied claims by the family of Jack Kirby, the legendary artist who died in 1994 and whose work spanned more than half a century. U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon ruled in July 2011 that Kirby’s work was done “for hire,” a legal term that rendered the heirs’ claims invalid.

ARIZONA

Lawmakers to consider

aiding firefighters’ families

Arizona lawmakers will be considering retroactive bills to extend full employee benefits to any firefighter who dies on state land, including the seasonal Granite Mountain Hotshots killed in the June 30 wildfire near Yarnell. The legislation hasn’t been drafted yet and couldn’t be considered until lawmakers return in January. But talks have started, Rey Torres, director of communication for the Arizona House majority caucus of Republicans, said Thursday. Some of the firefighters killed in the Yarnell wildfire were classified as seasonal employees with the city of Prescott, so their families don’t qualify for full survivor benefits. House Speaker Andy Tobin announced earlier this week that he would bring legislation to the floor to correct that problem.

MASSACHUSETTS

Bulger deliberations

to go into fourth day

Jurors in the Boston racketeering trial of reputed mobster James “Whitey” Bulger deliberated for a third day Thursday without reaching a verdict. The 12-member federal jury will return to the jury room this morning. Bulger, 83, is accused of playing a role in 19 killings during the 1970s and ’80s as leader of the Winter Hill Gang. On Thursday, Judge Denise Casper gave jurors an added instruction at the request of prosecutors, urging them to make findings on each of the 33 racketeering acts against Bulger.

MISSOURI

Heavy rains unleash

deadly flooding

Torrential rains continued across the nation’s midsection Thursday, causing flash flooding that killed a woman and a child, damaged homes and forced multiple water rescues. Up to 10 inches of rain pounded southern Missouri overnight. A woman died near Jane, Mo., in the far southwestern corner of the state where creek water washed over a highway, sweeping away her car. Authorities in the south-central Missouri town of Waynesville continued to search for 23-year-old Jessica D. Lee, whose car was swept up in a flash flood early Tuesday. The body of her 4-year-old son, Elyjah, was found Tuesday. Flash flood warnings were common in Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Tennessee. And things could get worse: Heavy rain is in the forecast into the weekend.

FLORIDA

Teen accused of training

with terrorists held

A 19-year-old Florida man accused of conspiring to aid al-Qaida and traveling to the Middle East to join terrorist groups in Yemen waived his bail hearing. Shelton Thomas Bell, of Jacksonville, is charged with two federal counts of trying to provide material support to terrorists. His attorney said Thursday there was no need to decide bail on federal charges because he is already in state custody on grand theft charges. Bell is accused of stealing money and computers to finance his trip to the Middle East. If convicted of the federal crimes, Bell could face up to 30 years in prison.

TANZANIA

Two British women

attacked with acid

Assailants on the East African island of Zanzibar threw acid on two British women volunteering at a primary school on the Tanzanian island, police said Thursday. The attackers, riding on a small motorcycle, threw the acid on the women’s faces and arms as they were walking, said Mkadam Khamis, a police commander on the island. The attack took place Wednesday night in an area of the island’s capital city known as Stone Town, an area popular with tourists. The women were transferred to Tanzania’s commercial capital, Dar es Salaam, for medical treatment.

ENGLAND

Experts find first hint MERS

may be infecting camels

Since the virus was first identified in September, there have been 94 illnesses, including 46 deaths, from MERS, or Middle East respiratory syndrome, mostly in Saudi Arabia. Aside from several clusters where the virus has likely spread between people, experts have largely been stumped as to how patients got infected. In a preliminary study published today, European scientists found traces of antibodies against the MERS virus in dromedary, or one-humped, camels, but not the virus itself. Finding antibodies means the camels were at one point infected with MERS or a similar virus before fighting off the infection.