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Defiant Perry booked, then has ice cream<p></p>

 
This image provided by the Austin Police Department shows Texas Gov. Rick Perry while being booked at the Blackwell-Thurman Criminal Justice Center in Austin, Texas, for two felony indictments of abuse of power on Tuesday, Aug. 19, 2014, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Austin Police Department) NY117
This image provided by the Austin Police Department shows Texas Gov. Rick Perry while being booked at the Blackwell-Thurman Criminal Justice Center in Austin, Texas, for two felony indictments of abuse of power on Tuesday, Aug. 19, 2014, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Austin Police Department) NY117
Published Aug. 20, 2014

Austin, Texas

Defiant Perry booked, then has ice cream

Gov. Rick Perry wore a wry smile and ditched the black-framed glasses that are synonymous with his political comeback as he posed Tuesday for his mug shot at the Travis County Courthouse complex in Austin. Then he went out for ice cream. Perry, the first Texas governor to be indicted in nearly a century, was greeted by cheers at the courthouse. "I'm going to enter this courthouse with my head held high," he told a crush of reporters and some cheering supporters. Perry, a Republican presidential candidate in 2012 and a potential one in 2016, was indicted by a grand jury Friday on charges that he abused his office and tried to coerce an elected official to resign. He has called the indictment a farce.

California

Firefighters gain on Yosemite blaze

Firefighters gained ground Tuesday on a blaze in the foothills near Yosemite National Park, allowing some of the 1,000 people who fled the flames to return to their homes. Nearly 1 square mile in Madera County had been scorched, state fire officials said. Flames erupted Monday near Oakhurst, a community of several thousand about 16 miles from a Yosemite entrance, forcing the evacuations. Some residents were allowed to go home, but authorities did not say how many. The blaze that destroyed eight structures did not affect Yosemite National Park. The road to the park reopened Tuesday.

Canada

Agency is blamed in train derailment

Canadian officials blamed lax oversight for the derailment of a runaway train carrying Bakken crude oil that killed 47 people and destroyed much of Lac Mégantic, Quebec, last year. In a report released Tuesday, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada cited 18 interconnected factors for the derailment, including the railway operator's disregard of safety rules and its inadequate training. But the investigation also took aim at Transport Canada, the federal department responsible for rail regulation, for failing to deal with a railway that it knew was plagued by safety problems.

Afghanistan

Reporter can't leave country

Afghanistan's attorney general banned a New York Times reporter from leaving the country Tuesday pending an investigation into a story about purported plans by unidentified officials to take power if a political crisis continues. Matthew Rosenberg, 40, said Tuesday that night that he was summoned to the attorney general's office and asked questions about the story. He said he rejected requests to reveal his sources and was told to return the next day with a lawyer to face more questions.

Elsewhere

Flagstaff, Ariz.: A lucrative contract to operate some of the most iconic lodging and food locations at the Grand Canyon has been reopened for bidding. The contract went out for bid a year ago, but superintendent Dave Uberuaga said the park didn't receive any bids adhering to the conditions called for in the 15-year pact.

Times wires