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HONOLULU — The Caribbean monk seal has become extinct.

The sea mammal had long been thought to be extinct, but the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on Friday said it was official.

The last confirmed sighting of the Caribbean monk seal was in 1952 between Jamaica and Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula.

The animals were native to the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico. Biologists say humans left the population unsustainable after over-hunting the docile creatures for food and blubber.

The federal agency warns that the Hawaiian and Mediterranean monk seals could be next. There are fewer than 1,200 Hawaiian and 500 Mediterranean monk seals remaining.

BISMARCK — A bank that gave employees a total of a half-million dollars for them to donate as they wish is giving workers more time to come up with ideas.

The State Bank & Trust announced at its Christmas party in December that each full-time employee would get $1,000 and each part-time employee would get $500 as part of the "Pay It Forward" initiative.

So far, employees have given away more than $350,000.

The bank had set a deadline of June 30 for workers to find a use for their share of the $502,000. Michael Solberg, the bank's chief operating officer, said Friday that the deadline would be extended until all the money is spent.

"Some of the bigger ideas have taken more time," Solberg said. "We'll make sure we give all the money away."

Employees have given to a variety of causes, from church youth groups to a neighbor with cancer and a stack of medical bills. They also have given money to a Minnesota man who had two kidney transplants and to the family of a slain Jamaican man.

PROVIDENCE — The brother of the mayor of state's capital city pleaded guilty Friday to offering to set up drug deals so clients could get lighter sentences by alerting authorities.

The conviction of John M. Cicilline, a lawyer, comes as Mayor David Cicilline is raising money for a possible gubernatorial run in 2010. The mayor was at the federal courthouse in Boston on Friday to support his brother and other loved ones.

"It's obviously a difficult day for my family," the mayor said.

John Cicilline, 51, pleaded guilty to conspiracy, obstruction of justice and making false statements. He would not comment after the hearing. He had pleaded not guilty in January 2007 but switched his plea before his trial, which was to have begun Monday.

He could have faced up to 25 years in prison and $1 million in fines, but prosecutors will instead recommend a sentence of 18 months in prison.

LEBEC — A wildfire charred nearly a square mile of steep brush and grassland on Friday, threatening about 50 homes in Southern California.

Residents in Digier Canyon were ordered to leave as about 150 firefighters and 10 aircraft battled the blaze about 60 miles northwest of Los Angeles, Kern County fire Capt. Alex Entenman said.

The cause of the fire, which was 20 percent contained, was being investigated.

On the opposite coast, North Carolina's governor declared a state of emergency Friday as firefighters worked to contain a massive wildfire at a federal wildlife refuge that spread smoke as far north as Richmond, Va.

The fire was only 30 percent contained. No injuries or structure damage were reported. Authorities urged the evacuation of about 80 homes.

BAKERSFIELD — A county clerk says she'll stop performing all marriage ceremonies shortly before a state Supreme Court order legalizing same-sex marriage takes effect.

A newspaper said the move came after the clerk received advice from Kern County lawyers who said marriages cannot be performed in a discriminatory fashion.

The Bakersfield Californian reported that Clerk Ann Barnett said Wednesday that she would not have the staff or space to deal with an increase in licenses and ceremonies. She plans to stop all ceremonies starting Friday — three days before gay couples may legally wed.

The newspaper reported that she asked county counsel to file a brief with the California Supreme Court opposing implementation of its May 15 ruling allowing gay marriage.

LOS ANGELES — Ed McMahon blames the possible foreclosure of his multimillion-dollar Beverly Hills house on a set of problems all too familiar to many Americans: a foundering economy, health problems and poor planning.

"If you spend more money than you make, you know what happens," McMahon said Thursday night on CNN's "Larry King Live." "You know, a couple of divorces thrown in, a few things like that. And, you know, things happen."

McMahon, 85, appeared with his wife, Pamela. The couple said they are $644,000 behind on their mortgage payments and are in negotiations with lender Countrywide Home Loans Inc. to set a foreclosure date.

McMahon, in a neck brace, said he had stopped working since he broke his neck in a fall 18 months ago. He didn't elaborate.

McMahon, who was comedian Johnny Carson's sidekick on "The Tonight Show," said the house had been on the market for two years and that although 50 organizations or individuals had looked at it, no one had made an offer. Documents show McMahon has a $4.8 million mortgage on the home.

ST. LOUIS — A group of Muslim immigrants seeking U.S. citizenship sued federal officials on Friday, saying they've been left in limbo for months or years because of slow background checks.

The class-action lawsuit was filed on behalf of 33 plaintiffs who have settled in Missouri from Afghanistan, Bosnia, Egypt, Pakistan, Somalia and other countries. It said some have had to wait for more than four years to be cleared by the FBI, violating time limits.

By law, a decision on processing must be made within 120 days of the immigrant's interview, the last step in becoming a citizen, attorney Jim Hacking said.

The lawsuit seeks to have a federal judge enforce the time limits on name checks for those being naturalized.

The delays prevent the citizen candidates from voting and traveling abroad for fear they will be harassed upon return by customs officials, said Kamal Yassin, who heads the St. Louis chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

CAPE CANAVERAL — The space station's huge new Japanese lab got even bigger Friday when the astronauts attached an attic to it for extra storage.

The attic — essentially a 14-foot shed, or closet, for spare tools and equipment — was popped atop the 37-foot Kibo science laboratory by astronauts operating the international space station's robot arm.

Even before Friday's addition, the billion-dollar, bus-size Kibo was the biggest room at the space station.

The attic had been in a temporary location at the space station since March. There wasn't enough room on a space shuttle to fit both the attic and lab, so NASA split them into two flights. The third and final Japanese section, a porch for outdoor experiments, will be launched next spring.

RICHMOND — Virginia's highest court ruled Friday that the state must enforce a Vermont court order awarding child-visitation rights to a mother's former lesbian partner.

The Virginia Supreme Court rejected Lisa Miller's claim that a lower court improperly ignored a Virginia law and a state constitutional amendment that prohibit same-sex unions and the recognition of such arrangements from other states.

The ruling was a victory for Janet Jenkins, who has been fighting for visitation rights since the dissolution of the civil union she and Miller obtained in Vermont in 2000. In 2002, Miller gave birth to the daughter, Isabella, who now is at the center of a legal battle closely watched by national conservative and gay-rights groups.

Miller renounced homosexuality and moved back to Virginia with the child after the couple split, and she has fought Jenkins' visitation efforts. However, the Supreme Court ruled that a federal law aimed at preventing parents from crossing state lines to evade a custody ruling requires Virginia to enforce Vermont's order.

DARTMOUTH — Authorities say a couple trying to beat the high cost of gasoline accidentally caused a fire that burned their apartment complex.

Fire Chief Richard Arruda said the couple had about 45 gallons of gasoline in nine plastic jugs stacked in a closet that also housed an air-conditioning unit.

The gasoline fumes apparently set off Wednesday's fire, which was quickly put out by a sprinkler system.

No one was seriously hurt, but residents of eight units were displaced.

Investigators believe the couple were storing the gas because of rising prices. Officials say they might face civil penalties for violating the fire code.

CHARLESTON — West Virginia University President Mike Garrison could have taken the heat. He says the school he loves could not.

Snared by a master's-degree scandal involving Gov. Joe Manchin's daughter and key members of his administration, the 39-year-old president resigned Friday after only nine months at the helm. Though an investigation found he did nothing wrong, skeptical faculty members had repeatedly demanded his resignation, and 124 donors had threatened to withhold gifts.

"Personally, I could withstand this for as long as folks cared to dish it out," Garrison said. "It needed to stop, so I made the decision."