NATION BRIEFS

WASHINGTON/Judge attacked at court

Officials say a man stabbed a Washington state judge and shot a sheriff's deputy with her own weapon in a courthouse struggle, and authorities placed the town where the attack happened on lockdown as they hunted for the assailant. Grays Harbor County Undersheriff Rick Scott said the suspect might still have the officer's weapon and was last seen running from the courthouse, about 90 miles southwest of Seattle. Scott says a possible motive for the attack was not immediately known. Judge David Edwards and Deputy Polly Davin were stable and conscious after the attack Friday.

NEW JERSEY/Witnesses: No anti-gay views

They never knew Dharun Ravi to say anything bad about gays -- but they also never discussed it with him. That was what seven character witnesses -- most of them software engineers and current or former business associates of Ravi's fatherAll of them said they had never known Ravi to express any anti-gay views. But on cross-examination, they all said they had never discussed the issue with him. -- had to say Friday in the trial of Ravi, a former Rutgers University student accused of using a webcam to spy on his roommate's intimate encounter with another man. Ravi, now 20, is accused of using a webcam for the central crime, then using Twitter, instant messages and texts to tell friends about it. He's charged with 15 criminal counts, including bias intimidation and invasion of privacy. His roommate, Tyler Clementi, committed suicide by jumping off the George Washington Bridge in September 2010, just days after the alleged spying. Most of the men called by defense lawyers were software engineers and current or former business associates of Ravi's father.

TEXAS/Flight disrupted after rant

Passengers on American Airlines Flight 2332 were settling in for a trip to Chicago on Friday when they say a flight attendant took over the public-address system and launched into a rant that included references to 9/11 and the safety of their plane. Several passengers wrestled the flight attendant into a seat while the plane was still on the ground at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. The pilot returned the plane to the gate, where it was met by airport police and the FBI.