The appeals court said Wednesday that a judge made a mistake when he ruled the works belonged to the son, Thomas Steinbeck, and granddaughter Blake Smyle (SMILE'-ee).

A lawyer for the two didn't return a telephone message seeking comment Wednesday.

The two had won rights previously held by various individuals and organizations, including Penguin Group Inc. and the heirs of John Steinbeck's widow, Elaine.

The appeals court ordered the lower court judge to rule in favor of Penguin and the heirs of Elaine Steinbeck. Steinbeck's widow died in April 2003.

A U.S. district court judge in Massachusetts issued a temporary restraining order preventing the Massachusetts Institute of Technology students from demonstrating at the Defcon conference on Sunday in Las Vegas how to take advantage of the system's vulnerabilities to get free rides.

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority says in a complaint filed Friday that the students offered to show others how to use the hacks before giving the transit system a chance to fix the flaws.

Huron County prosecutor Russ Leffler had argued that a judge should not have dismissed falsification and perjury charges that were filed against Michael and Sharen Gravelle.

But on Friday the appeals court in Toledo agreed with the lower court judge and upheld his dismissal of the charges.

The Gravelles' attorney, Kenneth Myers, says it means one less potential hurdle to overcome as they appeal their child abuse and endangering convictions.

"God forgive them, receive my spirit," Heliberto Chi said in English. In Spanish, he told a friend watching through a window that he loved him and appreciated his hard work. He appeared to be whispering a prayer in Spanish with a tear at the corner of his right eye as the lethal drugs began to take effect.

One of Chi's cousins, who was among the witnesses, sobbed uncontrollably. Two sons of his victims watched through another window and Chi glanced at them briefly but didn't appear to acknowledge them. Chi was pronounced dead nine minutes later at 6:25 p.m. CDT.

He murdered his former boss, Armand Paliotta, during a 2001 robbery at an Arlington men's clothing store where Chi had once worked. An employee was wounded trying to run away and another hid among clothing racks and called 911 for help.

Chi went on the run with his 18-year-old pregnant girlfriend. She turned him in California about six weeks later for assaulting her and told authorities he was wanted for murder in Texas.

Lawyers for Chi had claimed in appeals to the U.S. Supreme Court that he should have been told he could get legal assistance from the Honduran consulate when he was extradited to Texas to face charges.

The Supreme Court, ruling about 2 1/2 hours before his scheduled execution time, rejected his appeal without dissent. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the state's highest criminal court, rejected a similar appeal late Wednesday.

The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday the Madison-based Freedom From Religion Foundation and three of its members have no legal standing to bring the case.

The group was trying to end the department's practice of asking patients about their religion in "spiritual assessments," its use of chaplains to treat patients, and drug and alcohol treatment programs that incorporate religion. It claimed those practices violated the separation of church and state.

But the court ruled that federal taxpayers cannot challenge those expenditures. The court cited a U.S. Supreme Court decision last year in which the same group was not allowed to sue over President Bush's faith-based initiative.

In that case, the court ruled 5-4 the executive branch cannot be sued by taxpayers for expenses that allegedly promote religion. Cases can only be brought when the questionable expenditures are explicitly authorized in a congressional spending bill, the court ruled.

Congress never authorized spending on the chaplain services, pastoral care and other programs challenged, the 7th Circuit ruled.

Annie Laurie Gaylor, the foundation's co-president, criticized the ruling but said an appeal to the Supreme Court was unlikely. She said the group would look for VA patients who object to their treatment to be potential plaintiffs but said such a case would still be difficult to win.

"The courts are moving to the position where government can fund religious activities and endorse religion without restraint," she said. "It's really very disturbing."

The veterans agency, which treated 5.3 million people at its facilities in 2005, says it believes spirituality should be integrated into care, but it allows patients to decide whether that involves religion.

Its spiritual assessments ask patients a series of questions about their faith, such as how often they attend church and how important religion is in their lives. Agency officials say the assessments help them determine patients' needs.

Osvaldo Aldrete Davila, who was wounded in the buttocks while fleeing from an abandoned marijuana load in 2005, was sentenced to 9 1/2 years in prison for his role in two other smuggling efforts later that same year.

His sentencing came a little more than a week after a federal appeals court upheld lengthy sentences for the two agents convicted in his shooting, Ignacio Ramos and Jose Alonso Compeau. Several members of Congress have called on President Bush to commute the agents' sentences or pardon them.

Aldrete was shot in February 2005, and testified against the agents in their 2006 trial, telling jurors he was unarmed when he was shot as he ran toward Mexico after a brief scuffle with Compean. Ramos and Compean argued they believed Aldrete had a weapon.

Aldrete pleaded guilty in April to two counts of possession with the intent to distribute a controlled substance, and one count each of conspiracy to import a controlled substance and conspiracy to possess a controlled substance.