CHEYENNE, Wyo. – The National Park Service released a final plan Thursday for snowmobile use in Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks allowing limited, guided snowmobile treks in the parks for the next three winters. The plan would allow for up to 720 snowmobiles a day led by guides into Yellowstone and 140 snowmobiles in Grand Teton and on the John D. Rockefeller Jr. Memorial Parkway connecting the parks. Nearly all the snowmobiles would be required to meet new standards for noise and pollution. The winter season is set to start next month.

Nevada: Luck wins an election

A county commission race in this gambling state was decided in true Nevada fashion – by the luck of the draw. After finishing Tuesday’s election tied with 1,847 votes each, Robert Swetich and Raymond Urrizaga agreed to draw cards to resolve the deadlocked White Pine County commission race. Urrizaga drew first, choosing a queen of clubs. His opponent pulled the seven of diamonds, then congratulated the winner.

Texas: Student’s killer executed

A former oilfield worker was executed in Huntsville on Thursday for the fatal beating and slashing of a college student who was abducted while home on spring break. Robert Morrow, 47, was condemned for the 1996 slaying of Lisa Allison, who was taken from a car wash in Liberty. Her body was found the next day. Morrow told the parents of his victim: “I would like to tell you that I am responsible, and I am sorry for what I did and the pain I caused.” As he waited for the lethal drugs to take effect, Morrow added, “I do hope my death brings you all some closure.”

California: Wild condor chick flies

A California condor chick born in the wild has become the first such bird to take flight in 22 years, wildlife officials said Thursday. Hatched in April near Hopper Mountain National Wildlife Refuge, the condor took a flight of 30 feet in mid-October and soared 150 feet two weeks later. The last wild condor chick to fly in the wild was in 1982. The chick’s parents were bred in captivity by biologists trying to save the California condor from extinction.

Schwarzenegger rips Demo ‘losers’

Two days after the Democrats took a drubbing at the polls across the country, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger referred to leaders of the state’s majority party as “losers.” At a Thursday news conference, the Republican governor, who branded Democrats “girlie men” during a budget fight last year, was asked whether he would listen to tax-increase proposals from Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata or other Democratic leaders. “Why would I listen to losers?” Schwarzenegger asked. “Let’s be honest.”

Michigan: Four die in lake plunge

A woman apparently took a wrong turn and drove into a lake, drowning herself and three young girls. The 46-year-old woman was taking her daughter and two classmates to a concert Wednesday evening when the car plunged into Long Lake. She may have taken a wrong turn onto a road that ends at a boat launch. She turned a short distance ahead of another road that goes toward the center where the concert was held. A sign warns drivers that the road ends, but it was dark and a light rain was falling, authorities said.

Georgia: Hepatitis B cases decline

Cases of hepatitis B among children and teenagers have dropped by almost 90 percent in the past decade, thanks to a vaccination program against the virus, the government said Thursday. A total of 13,829 youngsters had hepatitis B in the United States between 1990 and 2002, the period of the study. The rate for that group dropped from 3.03 cases per 100,000 people in 1990 to 0.34 per 100,000 in 2002, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. A recommendation that all infants get hepatitis B vaccinations was put in place in 1991.