People in the Northeast stocked up on food and supplies and road crews readied salt and sand Thursday as the region braced for a major winter storm that could bring up to 2 feet of snow to places that haven't seen significant accumulations in more than a year.
The owners and makers of assault-style weapons could soon be held legally liable in Colorado for crimes committed with their guns, if sponsors of a new gun-control package have their way. 
CIA director nominee John Brennan was pressed at his confirmation hearing Thursday to give lawmakers more information about the administration's legal rationale for drone strikes, with a top senator complaining that she and her colleagues are still seeking vital memos. 
A multi-agency manhunt is under way in California after police say the former Los Angeles police officer suspected in the murders of a college basketball coach and her fiancé last weekend is following through on his vow to kill police officers after he opened fire Wednesday night on three police officers, killing one, KTTV.com reported.
In a symbolic move to teach "personal responsibility," an Idaho lawmaker wants every high school student in the state to read Ayn Rand's "Atlas Shrugged."