National news briefs

Plane crashes on golf course, kills one

SAN DIEGO (AP) — A small plane crashed on a golf course Monday, killing a woman and seriously injuring a man and three children, authorities said.

It was unclear if the five people aboard the single-engine, home-built plane were related, said San Diego Fire-Rescue Department spokesman Maurice Luque, who did not have their names or ages. No one was injured on the ground.

The pilot took off from San Diego's Montgomery Field and radioed that he had an open door and was going to try to return, said Ian Gregor, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration. The plane was headed for Fullerton Municipal Airport.

The plane crashed around 12:45 p.m. near the 11th hole of the Admiral Baker Golf Course in the city's Tierrasanta area.

Washington Post Co. sells Newsweek

NEW YORK (AP) — The Washington Post Co. is selling Newsweek magazine to Sidney Harman, the 91-year-old founder of audio equipment maker Harman International Industries.

The sale marks the close of a nearly 50-year chapter for Newsweek as part of the Post Co.

The magazine has been struggling to find a profitable niche amid poor economic conditions and a flood of online competition. Declines in circulation and advertising led to a nearly $30 million loss in 2009, and Newsweek expects to lose money again this year.

In a statement, Post Co. CEO Donald Graham says Harman has pledged to keep most of the magazine's staff.

Court says prison headscarf bans OK

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A U.S. appeals court in Philadelphia says prison officials can ban employees from wearing Muslim headscarves out of safety concerns.

The judges say the case is a close call. But they say prison officials have legitimate concerns the headscarves can hide contraband or be used by an inmate to choke someone.

The 2-1 decision is a defeat for the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

The commission believes the three Muslim women employed at the Delaware County Prison in Thornton had to compromise their religious beliefs to keep their jobs.

Monday's ruling upholds a district judge who dismissed the EEOC lawsuit.

The suit was filed against the Geo Group, a Boca Raton, Fla.-based contractor that operated the prison.