Appeals panel rejects appeal in drug case

A federal panel has rejected the appeal of a woman sentenced to life in prison for leading a drug conspiracy in the Red River Valley. Francisca Avila Vargas, of St. Paul, Minn., was convicted by a Fargo jury in 2006 of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance. Authorities say the operation involved at least 15,000 grams of methamphetamine.