American Scene

ALABAMA

BP clears tar balls dumped on shore

GULF SHORES — BP workers used fishing nets to scoop tar balls off Alabama’s Gulf Coast beaches Wednesday after the white sands were fouled by gooey, dark gobs churned up by heavy surf from Tropical Storm Lee.

Both the company and area officials said it would be days before tests confirmed whether the tar balls were from last year’s massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, but BP contractors were removing the pollution anyway.

Grant Brown, a spokesman for the city of Gulf Shores, said residents have feared more oil remains on the Gulf’s sandy floor despite months of cleaning, and the appearance of tar balls after Lee only reinforced those concerns.

FLORIDA

ACLU to sue over welfare drug testing

MIAMI | The American Civil Liberties Union is suing to block Florida’s new law requiring new welfare recipients to pass a drug test, filing the lawsuit on behalf of a Navy veteran who was denied assistance to help care for his 4-year-old son because he refused to take the test.

The lawsuit was filed Tuesday in federal court.

The ACLU, which is also challenging a mandate by Gov. Rick Scott requiring drug testing for state employees, says the law is unconstitutional — an argument that federal judges have agreed with before — because it constitutes an unreasonable search or seizure.

MISSOURI

College begins widespread drug tests

LINN — A two-year college has launched a program to drug-test new students, raising the hackles of civil libertarians who see an illegal invasion of privacy.

The tests started Wednesday at Linn State Technical College.

Courts have upheld more limited drug testing of high schools students, as well as NCAA athletes and students at private colleges. But Linn State’s move appears to be the first effort by a public college or university to enact widespread drug tests of the general student body.

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