May 23, 2013 — Federal prisoners can request compassionate release if they are terminally ill, but a recent investigation found that many die while their requests drift through the system. Now, prison leaders say they will simplify the approval process and start tracking requests electronically.

May 22, 2013 — A San Francisco dealer quadrupled his income by moving to New York after California legalized medical marijuana.

May 22, 2013 — Although scientists have known that a funguslike organism caused the potato blight that triggered the Great Famine in Ireland in the 1840s, they didn't know which strain was the culprit. But they do now, thanks to the genes in some 19th century potato samples.

May 22, 2013 — Amid warnings the proposal would shatter support for the measure, Democrats backed away from a provision that would allow gay U.S. citizens to sponsor foreign-born spouses for green cards. Advocates for gay and lesbian immigration rights accused Democrats of caving in to threats.

May 22, 2013 — Lois Lerner, who's at the center of the political firestorm over her agency's singling out of some conservative groups for extra scrutiny, invoked her Fifth Amendment right not to answer questions from Congress.