OAKLAND, Calif. — The former California transit officer charged with fatally shooting an unarmed man has been freed on $3 million bail.

Alameda County Sheriff's Sgt. J.D. Nelson said Johannes Mehserle posted bail yesterday afternoon at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin. Mehserle had been in custody since his Jan. 13 arrest.

Mehserle has pleaded not guilty to one count of murder in the Jan. 1 shooting of Oscar Grant on a train platform in Oakland. Prosecutors say Mehserle shot the 22-year-old Grant in the back while the man lay face-down on the ground.

The shooting has sparked protests. Those outside Mehserle's bail hearing last week demanded that he remain jailed.

FBI INVESTIGATING SUSPECT LETTER

WASHINGTON — FBI officials say they are investigating reports of a letter containing white powder and a dead fish that was sent to a Department of Homeland Security employee in Washington.

An FBI spokeswoman said officials were taking the letter to a lab for testing.

FERTILITY DOCTOR UNDER SCRUTINY

LOS ANGELES — The fertility doctor who helped a California woman have 14 children, including octuplets born last month, is now facing a state investigation on top of harsh criticism from medical ethicists.

The Medical Board of California did not identify the doctor who helped Nadya Suleman, 33, become pregnant with the six boys and two girls born on Jan. 26. Suleman has six other children.

Suleman, a divorced single mother, told NBC's "Today" show that the same fertility specialist provided in vitro fertilization for all 14 children using sperm donated by a friend.

POLICE OFFICER WAS KLAN OFFICIAL

FRUITLAND PARK, Fla. — A city police officer resigned last month after allegations surfaced that he was a "district Kleagle" and "staff sergeant" in the Ku Klux Klan.

James Elkins, 28, resigned Jan. 20 after the Police Department launched an internal investigation when it received information that Elkins was distributing fliers promoting the KKK in Sumter County, Fla., police said yesterday.

The Lake County Sheriff's Office also received photos earlier this week that show Elkins dressed in KKK gowns and hoods. Police confirmed that the pictures are authentic.