Around the Nation

The Road Home is a private nonprofit social services agency that assists homeless individuals and families, in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah. Here, a view from outside.

National

Utah Reduced Chronic Homelessness By 91 Percent; Here's How

1:26pm December 11, 2015

by Kelly McEvers

Over the past decade, Utah's toughest cases of homeless people dropped to fewer than 200, from nearly 2,000. Utah's size and support from Mormon leaders are among the reasons for its success.

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The cookbook, featuring those handprints left in beet juice.

National

At The Root Of It All, A Little Girl's 'Grandmapal' Left Her Lifelong Love

10:04am December 11, 2015

by NPR Staff

More than a grandmother, more, even, than a mentor, Doris Louise Rolison was Chloe Longfellow's best friend growing up. Their love remains inscribed with beet stains in their favorite cookbook.

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Zombie Christmas Fixed To Comply With Zoning Laws

6:59am December 11, 2015

Officials in a Cincinnati suburb have concluded that Jasen Dixon's yard display complies with local zoning laws because he removed its roof. The zombie baby is protected by the U.S. Constitution.

Library Book Returned 37 Years After Due Date

6:05am December 11, 2015

If you return a book late to the Midtown Carnegie Branch Library in Springfield, Mo., the late fines cannot exceed $5. Whoever returned a book nearly four decades too late left $6, just to be safe.

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MLB Commissioner To Decide Whether To Reinstate Pete Rose

12:52am December 11, 2015

by Tom Goldman

One of Major League Baseball's greatest players has been banned since 1989 for gambling on the game. But sports leagues' traditionally hard attitudes toward sports gambling seem to be softening.

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National

La. Marshals Indicted On Murder Charges In Death Of 6-Year-Old Boy

8:51pm December 10, 2015

by Laura Wagner

Last month the marshals were arrested in the fatal shooting of Jeremy Mardis while he was strapped into the front seat of his father's SUV. His father, Chris Few, was severely wounded.

Jessica Metcalf (left) and fellow researcher Daniel Harmaan collect soil samples before placing a body in 2013. The researchers cataloged any microbial colonies already living in the dirt to see how the communities of tiny organisms in that spot change ov

Tiny Witnesses: Microbes Can Tell When A Murder Victim Died

7:56pm December 10, 2015

by Rob Stein

When bodies decompose, the types of bacteria on and around the body change in predictable ways. These patterns can be used to estimate time of death, a crucial clue in solving murders.

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Supporters cheer at a Monday rally for Donald Trump, where he announced his plan to bar Muslims from entering the country.

Politics & Government

Despite Backlash Over Muslim Comments, Supporters Stand By Trump

7:29pm December 10, 2015

by Mara Liasson

Voters who support Donald Trump reveal insights into the appeal of the leading Republican presidential candidate. We hear from a focus group of Trump supporters.

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FBI divers are searching a San Bernardino lake for any evidence pertaining to the Dec. 2 shooting rampage that left 14 people dead.

National

Divers Search Lake For Evidence In San Bernardino Shooting

7:26pm December 10, 2015

by Laura Wagner

The FBI says agents are following up on leads that the shooters visited the lakeside park on the day of the attack.

The world's largest stocking — stitched together from handmade blankets — was confirmed by Guinness World Records this week.

1,600-Pound Stocking Knitted With Care In Hopes A World Record Soon Would Be There

7:26pm December 10, 2015

by Camila Domonoske

Since Veterans Day 2014, more than 1,100 crafters have been making blankets and sending them to a yarn company. The result: a record-setting patchwork stocking, and a donation for military charities.