Examiners confirm girl was assaulted

Homosassa, Fla. A convicted sex offender entered Jessica Lunsford’s house through an unlocked door, snatched the 9-year-old from her bed and sexually assaulted her, officials said.

Examiners on Sunday confirmed the sexual assault. Because suspect John Evander Couey was under the influence of drugs, detectives might never know how long she was held before she was slain, officials said.

Couey was returned to Florida on Sunday. He was booked on a probation violation and failure to register as a sex offender. Couey, 46, confessed to kidnapping and killing Jessica after taking a lie-detector test in Georgia, officials said. Her body was found Saturday.

DeLorean, noted auto innovator, dies at 80

Newark, N.J. John DeLorean, an automotive executive and innovator who left General Motors Corp. to develop a futuristic sports car only to see the venture crash as he fought drug charges, has died at 80.

While remembered as the man behind a car modified for time travel in the “Back to the Future” movies, DeLorean left an imprint on automaking’s unique cars.

DeLorean died late Saturday at Overlook Hospital in Summit, N.J., of complications from a recent stroke, a spokesman said.

Three youths missing, 16 hurt, in lodge blast

Paonia, Colo. Three youngsters were missing and 16 were injured in a fiery explosion that destroyed a remote mountain lodge as people started arriving for a family reunion, authorities said Sunday.

The three missing – 3, 12 and 15 years old – were from the same family, an official said, adding that the explosion Saturday at Electric Mountain Lodge may have been caused by propane used for heating.

The lodge in Gunnison National Forest is isolated by heavy snow, so helicopter crews took injured people off the mountain while ground crews transported medical teams to the site.