WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A prostitution scandal in Colombia involving U.S. Secret Service employees did not result in any security breach and was not behavior that reflected the high ethical standards of the agency, the director of the agency said. Secret Service Director Mark Sullivan defended the culture of the agency in testimony prepared for a Senate hearing on Wednesday, saying its employees were among the most dedicated and "self-sacrificing" in the federal government. It will be his first public appearance before Congress since the scandal. ...

(Reuters) - San Francisco has the best city park system in the United States, while its neighbor less than 200 miles away, Fresno, has the city parks most needing improvement, according to a new ranking of 40 local park systems released by the Trust for Public Land. Using "the most comprehensive park rating system ever developed," the trust found that San Francisco has the highest score in terms of park access, size and services and investment. Nearby Sacramento ranked second, while east coast metropolises Boston and New York tied for third, followed by Washington, D.C. ...