NATIONAL BRIEFS

WASHINGTON: Secret rulings still secret

Three years ago, a review was begun of significant classified rulings by a federal intelligence court to see which could be redacted sufficiently for public release. To date, none have. The challenge, said Robert S. Litt, general counsel at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, is that "in many cases, classified information is so intertwined with the legal analysis that removing the classified information would leave a document that lacks any meaningful substance." Lawmakers have pressed the government for years to declassify significant opinions by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance court, arguing the public has a right to know how the secretive court is interpreting laws that affect Americans' privacy. "We are hopeful we can . . . release them in a manner that protects national security," Litt said.

ARIZONA: Batmobile fetches $4.2M

"Holy windfall, Batman!" The Batmobile just sold for $4.2 million. The 19-foot-long black, bubble-topped car used in the 1960s "Batman" TV show sold at auction Saturday, the Barrett-Jackson Auction Co. in Scottsdale, Ariz., said, but the winning bidder was not disclosed. Auto customizer George Barris of Los Angeles transformed a one-of-a-kind 1955 Lincoln Futura concept car into the sleek crime-fighting machine. It boasted lasers and a "Batphone" and could lay down smoke screens and oil slicks and was used by Adam West as the Caped Crusader and by Burt Ward, his sidekick Robin. At the same auction, a pickup truck used by former President George W. Bush at his Texas ranch was sold for $300,000 after he donated it to benefit a charity that serves U.S. military families. The identity of the buyer of the 2009 Ford F-150 King Ranch 4x4 SuperCrew was not disclosed.

GEORGIA: 19th century shipwreck found

The skeleton of wood beams barely poked above the sand, exposed just enough by wind and tides for a beachcomber to report the curious find. Archaeologists called to Cumberland Island unearthed an astonishing find: a shipwreck held together with wooden pegs, its back story lost in time. The 80-foot-long fragment of history is believed, based on its construction, to date to the mid-1800s.