Mark Memmott

David "Deacon" Jones, a hall of fame defensive lineman credited with coining the term "sack" for how he would tackle opposing teams' quarterbacks, has died.

He was 74.

According to the NFL's Washington Redskins, the last team Jones played for, he "passed away [Monday] from natural causes at his home in Southern California."

Ten days after their national organization voted to allow openly gay boys to be members, a handful of Boy Scouts marched in uniform on Sunday at the Utah Pride Parade in Salt Lake City.

By a 5-4 vote, the U.S. Supreme Court has upheld a Maryland law that allows police to collect DNA, without first getting a warrant, from persons who are arrested.

New Jersey Sen. Frank Lautenberg died early Monday, his office says in a statement sent to reporters.

He was 89. According to the statement, the Democratic senator "passed away due to complications from viral pneumonia at 4:02 a.m. today at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell."

As the senator's office adds, Lautenberg was "the last remaining World War II veteran serving in the Senate."

He announced in February that he would not be seeking a sixth term in the Senate.

After more violence overnight, protesters and police clashed again in Istanbul on Monday. As the BBC writes:

"Police used tear gas to stop a group of demonstrators marching on the prime minister's office in Istanbul, the private Dogan news agency reports."

Good morning.

Our early headlines:

-- Death Toll From Latest Oklahoma Tornado Rises Further.

-- More Than 100 Dead In China Poultry Plant Blaze.

Hearing that Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke offered Princeton graduates "10 suggestions" at their commencement ceremony Sunday, we had visions of those in caps and gowns nodding off during a treatise on the fine points of investing in municipal bonds.

After capturing the imagination of people around the world last year with video of a bicycle made almost entirely out of cardboard, Israeli inventor Izhar Gafni is now hoping to capture money from folks who would like to own one.

There are now reports that as many as 18 people died from injuries they received Friday when the latest in a weeks-long series of tornado-spawning storms tore through parts of Oklahoma.

Update at 8:50 p.m. ET. Death Toll Revised:

An update from Oklahoma's Department of Emergency Management Monday evening reports that 12 adults and 6 children died in Friday night's storms, NPR Southern Bureau Chief Russell Lewis tells us. Officials say that they haven't identified all of the victims. Our original post continues:

Starbucks is moving its smoking ban outdoors.

Starting Saturday, according to signs posted in its more than 7,000 shops across the U.S. and Canada, "the no-smoking policy ... will include outdoor areas."

"Smoking will be restricted within 25 feet of the store and within outdoor seating areas," the notices read.

"The trust fund that finances Medicare's hospital insurance coverage will remain solvent until 2026, two years beyond what was projected in last year's report," the program's trustees reported Friday.

In a statement, the administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services gives some of the credit to the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.

Update at 12:22 a.m. ET. Medical Examiner Confirms 5 Killed

The Associated Press is reporting that the Oklahoma medical examiner's office says 5 people have been killed in the tornado outbreak in the Oklahoma suburbs.

Update at 9:55 p.m. ET. Highway Patrol Says Two Killed:

A mother and baby were killed in the Oklahoma City area during the storm, the Associated Press reports, citing the Oklahoma Highway Patrol.

Good morning.

Our early headlines:

-- Reports: Texas Man Questioned About Latest Ricin Letters.

-- Arizona Mom Released From Mexican Jail.

This is our first, and possibly last, mention of a story that's been getting lots of play on cable news:

"Mexican Court Frees Arizona Mom Accused Of Drug Smuggling." (CNN.com)

"I'm free now ... and I'm very grateful," Yanira Maldonado told reporters early Friday.

"Authorities, including the FBI, questioned a New Boston, Texas, man Thursday night in connection with an investigation of ricin-laced letters sent to government officials, including President Barack Obama," KSLA-TV in Shreveport, La., reports.

The shrinking of the staffs in the nation's newsrooms continues.

The Chicago Tribune broke the news Thursday that its Second City rival The Chicago Sun-Times has "laid off its entire photography staff."

A letter mailed to President Obama that is similar in some way to two possibly ricin-laced letters sent to New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg was intercepted Thursday at a mail-handling facility, the Secret Service and other law enforcement authorities confirm.

Secret Service spokesman Brian Leary says in an email to NPR that:

Rev. Andrew Greeley, who was a best-selling novelist as well as a liberal thinker known for "sometimes scathing critiques of his church," died Wednesday night in his sleep, The Chicago Tribune and other news outlets report. He was 85.

Update at 7 a.m. ET, May 31:

Since we first posted about the reports of what Syrian President Bashar Assad said regarding the delivery to his military of Russian anti-aircraft missiles, new reports have surfaced:

-- "Russian S-300 missiles unlikely to reach Syria for months." (Reuters)

Unfortunately, the forecasts have been pretty accurate in recent days. The National Weather Service warned there would be more tornadoes and severe storms on Wednesday — and there were.

Good morning.

Our early headlines:

-- FBI Pick Is A Republican With Deep Roots In Law Enforcement

-- New Data Confirm That Economy Isn't Growing As Fast As Hoped

The U.S. economy grew at a 2.4 percent annual rate in the first quarter, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported Thursday morning.

That basically confirms what the agency said a month ago, when it released its initial estimate for gross domestic product growth in the quarter. Then, it reported the economy had expanded at a 2.5 percent pace.

There were several emotional moments during Wednesday's nationally broadcast "Healing in the Heartland" benefit concert to raise money for victims of the May 20 tornado that devastated Moore, Okla., and nearby communities.

The newborn boy whose rescue from a sewer pipe in eastern China drew attention around the world earlier this week has been released from a hospital and is now in the care of his mother's family, according to media reports from Beijing.

There's also word that the mother will not be facing any charges. According to The Associated Press:

"Name any high office in federal law enforcement ... odds are Jim Comey's had it over the years."

That's some of what NPR's Carrie Johnson had to say early Thursday on Morning Edition about the man who she has been told, by two sources with knowledge of the decision, will be President Obama's choice to be the next director of the FBI.