Court upholds law on tree-cutting for billboards

ATLANTA (AP) - Georgia's highest court has upheld a Georgia statute that allows trees to be chopped down under certain circumstances so that billboard companies can advertise along highways.

Senate bill lets states tax Internet purchases

WASHINGTON (AP) - Attention online shoppers: The days of tax-free shopping on the Internet may soon end for many of you.

Bride, 4 others die in limo fire on Calif. bridge

US orders new visa reviews for arriving students

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Homeland Security Department ordered border agents "effective immediately" to verify that every international student who arrives in the U.S. has a valid student visa, according to an internal memorandum obtained Friday by The Associated Press. The new procedure is the government's first security change directly related to the Boston bombings.

Bombing probe takes investigators into Mass. woods

Ga man charged with fondling child in store

CARROLLTON, Ga. (AP) - A west Georgia man is being held without bond on a child molestation charge after allegedly fondling a 6-year-old girl in a Walmart store.

States fear loss of health care aid

Police warn motorists of 'bumping' carjackings

ATLANTA (AP) - Atlanta police are warning motorists to be on guard for a type of carjacking that occurs after vehicles are bumped in traffic.

Boston Marathon suspect's remains claimed

Stocks surge in early trading after hiring climbs

Deluge of rain could lead to flooding in north Ga.

ATLANTA (AP) - More than two-dozen counties in north Georgia are under a flood watch as storms approach the state.

Police say they didn't release Witherspoon video

ATLANTA (AP) - The Georgia State Patrol says it did not release the video from a state trooper's dash-camera showing a combative Reese Witherspoon confronting the officer during a traffic stop in Atlanta.

Fresh off victory, NRA holds convention in Houston

Driver killed by falling tree in western Georgia

CARROLLTON, Ga. (AP) - Georgia State Patrol officials say a driver in Carroll County has been killed by a falling tree.

New documentary examines the lives of porn stars

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Ever wonder what makes young, pretty, "good" girls pursue careers in porn?

Dow Jones industrial average trades at a new high

NEW YORK (AP) - The Dow has never been higher. The Dow Jones industrial average jumped nearly 100 points early Tuesday, reaching an all-time high, powered by China's strong economic growth targets and a jump in European retail sales. Shortly after the opening bell the Dow was trading at 14,222. It's on track to close above its record of 14,164 reached on Oct. 9, 2007. It's up 7.8 percent for the year. The Standard & ...

ATL school system considers ending cell phone ban

ATLANTA (AP) - Atlanta public schools officials are considering ending a cell phone ban for younger students so they would be able to contact their parents in case of an emergency.

Playboy magazine launches Hebrew language edition

JERUSALEM (AP) - Israelis can now read Playboy 'for the articles' as a Hebrew language edition came to the holy land Tuesday.

US home prices rose by most in nearly 7 years

WASHINGTON (AP) - U.S. home prices jumped in January, a sign the housing market is gaining momentum as it nears the spring selling season. Home prices rose 9.7 percent in January from a year ago, according to data released Tuesday by CoreLogic. That's up from an 8.3 percent increase in December and the biggest annual gain since April 2006. Prices rose in all states except Delaware and Illinois. And prices increased in 92 of ...

Ex-DEA heads: Feds should nullify state pot laws

CHICAGO (AP) - Eight former Drug Enforcement Administration chiefs say the federal government needs to act now or it might lose the chance to nullify Colorado and Washington's laws legalizing recreational marijuana use. The onetime DEA heads plan to issue joint statements Tuesday saying the Obama administration has reacted too slowly and should immediately sue to force the states to rescind the legislation. The Associated Press received an advance copy of the statement Monday. ...

Financial aid process changing for Ga. students

MACON, Ga. (AP) - Students planning to attend college in Georgia and apply for state financial aid will soon have to fill out a federal application instead of a state form.

Ga. House sides with business lobby on labor laws

ATLANTA (AP) - The Georgia House of Representatives has approved two labor law changes that Republican leaders say would protect workers and boost market competition. Democratic opponents, meanwhile, criticized the measures on Monday as an attack on the organized labor in a state that already restricts union power with so-called "right-to-work" laws. Those laws bar union membership as a condition of employment. House Bill 361 would allow workers to opt out at any time ...

Ga. House adopts changes to immigration law

ATLANTA (AP) - The Georgia House of Representatives has approved proposed changes to a 2011 law targeting illegal immigration.

Judge won't halt school board members' removal

ATLANTA (AP) - A federal judge on Monday allowed the Georgia governor's removal of two-thirds of the school board members in a suburban Atlanta school district to move forward, although legal questions remain.

Jury sees sick images at NY cannibalism-plot trial

NEW YORK (AP) - Prosecutors finished presenting evidence to a jury hearing the cannibalism conspiracy case against a New York police officer Monday after showing jurors a video of a screaming woman, made to appear as if cooking over an open flame, and other disturbing images from websites devoted to torturing and eating women. The government rested a week after it began trying to prove that Officer Gilberto Valle tried to conspire with others ...

Casey Anthony speaks at bankruptcy hearing

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - Appearing in public for the first time since she was acquitted of murder, Casey Anthony revealed that she doesn't have a job or a car, lives with friends and relies on unsolicited gift cards and cash to get by. "I guess you could say I'm living free off the kindness" of others, Anthony said at a bankruptcy hearing in Tampa. Anthony, 26, was acquitted of murder in July 2011 in ...

Stocks grind higher, pushing Dow toward record

NEW YORK (AP) - Investors brushed off early jitters about a potential slowdown in China and pushed the Dow to its highest close of the year. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 38.16 points, or 0.3 percent, to 14,127.82. The index is a fraction of a percentage point away from its record close of 14,164, reached on Oct. 9, 2007. Stocks dropped at the opening bell and stayed lower most of the morning amid ...

GOP-backed overhaul of Ga. gun laws taking shape

ATLANTA (AP) - Republican lawmakers are moving to loosen restrictions on where Georgians can carry or keep firearms. A series of legislative proposals affecting gun ownership are working their way through the General Assembly ahead of a crucial deadline coming Thursday. A House committee was expected to debate legislation that would allow people to carry concealed weapons inside bars and churches, unless private property owners forbid it. It would also allow school district officials ...

Couples flock to Ga. town for cheap, easy weddings

RINGGOLD, Ga. (AP) - A town of about 3,500 in northwest Georgia has established a reputation as a marriage mecca, with between 2,000 and 2,400 marriage licenses being issued there annually.

Republicans unveil government funding measure

WASHINGTON (AP) - Republicans controlling the House are moving to give the Pentagon more money for military readiness. They also want to largely exempt agencies like the FBI and the Border Patrol as well as Western firefighting efforts from the effects of across-the-board spending cuts that are just starting to take effect. The effort comes as top Republicans unveil a huge spending measure to fund the government through September. The broad new measure would ...