Report: Newtown Schools Seeks Security Boost

Newtown school board members have agreed to ask the Connecticut town to put more armed police officers in the town's four elementary schools. WVIT-TV, an NBC affiliate, reported that school security was a chief topic at Thursday's Board of Education meeting. The board voted to ask the town to include in next year's budget one additional full-time police officer for each of the four elementary schools. Board members plan to meet with state and federal officials Friday to discuss funding for security.

Biden Says Gun Curbs Won't End Mass Killings

Vice President Joe Biden says curbs on guns can reduce firearm deaths but won't ensure an end to mass killings like December's slaying of 20 first-graders in Newtown, Conn. Biden met with Senate Democrats on Thursday to urge them to support the gun restrictions that President Barack Obama has proposed. They include bans on assault weapons and on high-capacity magazines for ammunition and requiring all gun buyers to undergo background checks. After that session, Biden told reporters that the administration's plans would not eliminate the chances of another mass shooting, or bring gun deaths down to 1,000 yearly from the current 30,000 estimated by the Brady Campaign to End Gun Violence. Biden said lives can be saved by curbing firearms without restricting the right to bear arms.

Jennifer Hudson To Sing With Sandy Hook Chorus

Jennifer Hudson will join the chorus from Sandy Hook Elementary School to sing "America the Beautiful" before Sunday's Super Bowl game. NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said Thursday that the Grammy and Oscar-winning singer would join the Sandy Hook chorus. It features 26 children from the school in Newtown, Conn., where 20 first-graders and six adults were killed in a Dec. 14 shooting rampage. The performance will be part of CBS's pre-game show before the game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens, and will be broadcast live. Alicia Keys will sing the national anthem. Children who survived the shooting rampage also recorded a version of "Over the Rainbow" to raise money for charity. Proceeds benefit the United Way of Western Connecticut and the Newtown Youth Academy.

Minimum Wage Raise Back On Legislative Agenda

For the second year in a row, Connecticut's largest business group and labor advocates are digging in for a fight in the legislature over raising the minimum wage. The two sides squared off Thursday at a legislative hearing.  Connecticut Working Families is backing legislation that would increase the minimum wage from $8.25 an hour to $9 on July 1 and to $9.75 a year later. The legislation also calls for automatic raises in the minimum wage tied to increases in the Consumer Price Index, the federal measure of inflation. The Connecticut Business and Industry Association opposes the legislation. It says higher labor costs will force employers to hire fewer workers and increase prices. A spokesman says Gov. Dannel P. Malloy supports "the ideals behind the legislation," but understands the cost pressures facing businesses.

Bridgeport Settles Suit In Fatal 2005 Fire

The city of Bridgeport is settling a lawsuit filed by a Vietnamese immigrant whose young family was killed in a 2005 apartment fire. The Connecticut Post reports that the amount of the settlement with Rinh Thach wasn't available Thursday. Thach's 35-year-old wife, 14-year-old son and two daughters, ages 11 and 3, were killed in the blaze. Thach had to be dragged away by emergency workers after trying to re-enter the building to save his family. Subsequent investigation showed the apartment had no smoke detectors, barred windows and that a possible escape route was nailed shut. Thach sued the city, charging the fire marshal failed to make inspections that could have prevented the deaths. Jury selection was scheduled for March. Thach's landlord pleaded guilty to negligent homicide in 2006 and received a suspended sentence.

Governor Proposes $1.5 Billion For UConn Expansion

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has proposed spending $1.5 billion to support a major expansion at the University of Connecticut over the next decade. The program, which was announced Thursday, aims to boost high-wage science, technology, engineering and math jobs, as well as patents and licenses. It would increase student enrollment and faculty at UConn's Storrs and Stamford campuses and increase enrollment by 70 percent at the School of Engineering. Officials say the effort is expected to attract $270 million in research grants. State Sen. Gary LeBeau, vice-chairman of the legislature's Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee, said he's concerned about how much would be borrowed and if it would reduce money available to borrow for other needs.

Connecticut Supreme Court Nominee Faces Hearing

Members of the state legislature's Judiciary Committee are scheduled to question Appellate Court Judge Carmen Espinosa about her nomination to the Connecticut State Supreme Court. A public hearing and committee vote on Espinosa's nomination, as well as several other judicial nominees, was scheduled for Friday. It's the first step in the confirmation process. Nominated by Governor  Malloy, the 63-year-old Espinosa would be the first Hispanic to serve on both the Appellate and Supreme Court. Malloy tapped Espinosa for the Appellate Court 21 months ago. The General Assembly has already confirmed Malloy's other appointment to the state's highest court, former state Sen. Andrew McDonald. A mother of three from Southington, Espinosa was first appointed to the state superior court in 1992.

Joint Chiefs Chairman Addresses USCG Academy

The country's highest-ranking military officer has told cadets at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy that as they prepare to graduate, they are facing a world that has been growing more dangerous. The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, gave an address and took questions from cadets on a visit Thursday to the academy in New London. Dempsey, a 1974 graduate of West Point, said officers today must be more prepared for leadership at a young age than his generation was. He said the world has been growing more dangerous, and individuals and groups now have a capacity to do harm that once belonged only to nations. The academy has about 1,030 cadets in its four-year program.