Convicted murderer Eric Copple got his last glimpse of Napa early Thursday morning. In the near-freezing morning air, Copple, 27, boarded a van at 7:30 a.m. at the county jail and headed off to San Quentin State Prison.

The Napa man shot on a downtown Napa sidewalk early Wednesday morning was recovering from his wound after undergoing surgery on Thursday afternoon, police said.

The Vintage Bank and its sister financial organization in Solano County have been acquired for $156 million by Umpqua Holdings Corporation, the parent company of Napa’s Umpqua Bank on Soscol Avenue.

House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi appointed Rep. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, to the House Select Committee on Intelligence late Wednesday.

A page one story Wednesday about Berryessa For All suing over the Bureau of Reclamation’s plan for Lake Berryessa misstated stated how many lawsuits were filed by Pleasure Cove resort tenants. Jeffrey McCracken of Reclamation said there was one lawsuit.

Wanted: American Canyon residents interested in land-use, design, parks and recreation issues.

Jamieson rumble strip to extend

Beth Atton and Napa Valley Support Services have something to celebrate this year — Atton’s 30 years with the organization on the front lines of helping hundreds of developmentally disabled individuals find employment in Napa Valley.

WASHINGTON  — That age-old stereotype about dangerous women drivers is shattered in a big new traffic analysis: Male drivers have a 77 percent higher risk of dying in a car accident than women, based on miles driven.

LONDON  — Hurricane-force winds and heavy downpours hammered northern Europe on Thursday, killing 25 people and disrupting travel for tens of thousands — including Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, whose plane was forced to circle for 15 minutes before landing amid winds gusting to 77 mph.

SAN FRANCISCO — A biotechnology advocacy group reported Thursday that a record number of biotech crops were planted worldwide last year, but critics complained the gains were more of the same: aimed at making corn, soy and cotton crops resistant to weed killers and bugs.

SACRAMENTO — California taxpayers will be asked to spend billions of dollars to reform the state’s overcrowded and mismanaged prison system.

ST. LOUIS — The parents of a kidnapped Missouri boy said Thursday they believe their son was molested during the four years he was missing, and his grandmother claimed his captor had awakened the boy every 45 minutes, apparently as a way to control him.

AMERICAN FORK, Utah — Three pregnant teens living in a group home whacked the director in the head with a frying pan, tied her up and fled in a minivan, police said.

WASHINGTON — The House wrapped up the Democrats’ “100 Hours” legislative sprint Thursday with time to spare, voting to recoup billions of dollars in lost royalties from oil and gas companies and roll back industry tax breaks.

WASHINGTON — The Chinese military used a ground-based missile to hit and destroy one of its aging satellites orbiting more than 500 miles in space last week — a high-stakes test demonstrating China’s ability to target regions of space that are home to U.S. spy satellites and space-based missile defense systems.

BEIJING — Michelle Kwan’s first performance as an American diplomat was almost flawless.

CAIRO, Egypt — An Egyptian blogger went on trial Thursday on charges of insulting Islam and causing sectarian strife with his Internet writings. Egypt’s first prosecution of a blogger came as Washington has backed away from pressuring its Mideast ally to improve its human rights record and bring democratic reform.

DALLAS — A group of Methodist ministers from across the nation launched an online petition drive Thursday urging Southern Methodist University to stop trying to land George W. Bush’s presidential library.