Ga. man pleads guilty to possession of child porn

ATLANTA (AP) - U.S. Attorney's officials say a 52-year-old man has pleaded guilty to receiving child pornography.

Braves bring Jason Heyward off disabled list

ATLANTA (AP) - Braves right fielder Jason Heyward has been activated from the disabled list and is starting against the Dodgers.

Ga. Republicans gather in Athens for convention

A year after IPO, Facebook aims to be ad colossus

Stocks rise on hopeful signs for the US economy

Handel jumps into crowded US Senate race in Ga.

IRS refuses to turn over documents

30 catalytic converters stolen in past 2 weeks

ATLANTA (AP) - Authorities say more than 30 catalytic converters have been stolen from vehicles during the past two weeks in Atlanta and nearby Decatur.

Brady Campaign sues Ga town over mandatory gun law

NELSON, Ga. (AP) - A group that supports gun control is suing a north Georgia town that passed a law requiring gun ownership.

Ga. Rep. Brooks of Atlanta indicted for wire fraud

ATLANTA (AP) - A federal grand jury has indicted state Rep. Tyrone Brooks over allegations claiming he misappropriated more than $1 million in charitable funds.

Tablets in the classroom push learning, teaching

JOHNS CREEK, Ga. (AP) - At Autrey Mill Middle School in suburban Atlanta, students are using electronic tablets instead of paper and pencil to answer questions, take tests and tell their teachers whether they understand their lesson or not.

CDC: Fecal bacteria common in swimming pools

NEW YORK (AP) - Health officials say they found fecal bacteria in more than half of the water samples taken from Atlanta-area public swimming pools last summer.

Powerball jackpot quickly jumps to $550 million

Obama: No special prosecutor to investigate IRS

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama dismissed the idea of a special prosecutor to investigate the Internal Revenue Service Thursday, saying probes by Congress and the Justice Department should be able to figure out who was responsible for improperly targeting tea party groups when they applied for tax-exempt status.

Stocks flip between gains and losses; Cisco climbs

NEW YORK (AP) - Cisco Systems led the Dow Jones industrial average slightly higher Thursday after the technology company reported higher sales. Mixed corporate earnings and economic reports kept the major stock indexes flipping between slight gains and losses.

Bush: Romney's stance on immigration was costly

WASHINGTON (AP) - Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush writes in a new book that Mitt Romney moved so far to the right on immigration that it proved "all but impossible" for the Republican presidential nominee to appeal to Hispanic voters in the 2012 election. Bush writes in his new book, "Immigration Wars," that many Republicans have been "remarkably tone-deaf" when it comes to attracting Latino voters. He says if the party doesn't change, ...

Jordan files for paternity lawsuit to be dismissed

ATLANTA (AP) - Michael Jordan has asked a Georgia court to dismiss a lawsuit filed against him by a woman who says the NBA hall of famer is the father of her 16-year-old son. Jordan's lawyer John Mayoue said in the document filed Monday in Fulton County Superior Court that the six-time NBA champion is not the father of Pamela Y. Smith's son. Jordan accused her of making false claims against him. The NBA's ...

House, debris over Fla. sinkhole to be removed

SEFFNER, Fla. (AP) - Authorities hope to get a better look at a sinkhole that swallowed a man in his Florida home once demolition crews knock down the remaining walls of the house Monday and begin clearing away the debris. The remainder of the house and its contents will be dragged toward the street so crews can recover items inside and keep debris from falling into the hole, Hillsborough County spokesman Willie Puz said ...

Baby born after parents killed in NYC crash dies

NEW YORK (AP) - A baby delivered after his parents were killed in a Brooklyn hit-and-run accident died early Monday, a community spokesman said.

Cardinals begin pre-conclave meetings amid scandal

VATICAN CITY (AP) - Cardinals from around the world gathered Monday inside the Vatican for their first round of meetings before the conclave to elect the next pope, amid scandals inside and out of the Vatican and the continued reverberations of Benedict XVI's decision to retire. The Vatican said 103 of the 115 electors had arrived, while the other dozen are en route. The dean of the College of Cardinals has said a date ...

Falcons release 3 key players to help salary cap

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. (AP) - The Atlanta Falcons started their youth movement Friday by ditching three key players from the most successful era in franchise history.

Taco Bell, Icelandic pies drawn into meat scandal

LONDON (AP) - Taco Bell is the latest restaurant chain to acknowledge that its food has been adulterated with horse meat, yanking a variety of ground beef products from its three British outlets and issuing an apology to its patrons Friday. Meanwhile, in Iceland, a food official said his team had found a beef product from a local producer that contained no meat at all. Chief meat inspector Kjartan Hreinsson said a brand of ...

Bill seeks to protect Ga. youth from concussions

ATLANTA (AP) - Newly approved legislation would require that young athletes in Georgia who show the symptoms of a concussion be pulled from games and reviewed by medical professionals. House lawmakers voted 161-7 on Friday to adopt a bill requiring the changes. It now heads to the state Senate. Republican Rep. Jimmy Pruett of Eastman urged his colleagues to support a compromise plan. A similar bill failed to pass last year amid concerns it ...

Angel Food Ministry defendants enter guilty pleas

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) - The founders and leaders of a Georgia-based ministry that sent discounted groceries to needy families across the country have pleaded guilty to federal charges.

Florida man swallowed by sinkhole under bedroom

SEFFNER, Fla. (AP) - A huge sinkhole opened up under a man's bedroom and swallowed him as he screamed for help. He was missing Friday and feared dead. Officials lowered equipment into the sinkhole but didn't see any sign of life. Jeremy Bush, who was at the home near Tampa, said it took him only seconds to get to his brother's room about 11 p.m. Thursday. He jumped into the hole and dirt ...

Obama says he can't 'Jedi mind meld' a budget deal

WASHINGTON (AP) - A combative President Barack Obama blamed Republican lawmakers Friday for failing to stop automatic spending cuts from beginning to kick in late in the day, arguing he can't perform a "Jedi mind meld" to get Republicans to agree on a deal. But he and GOP leaders displayed no appetite for letting the fight shut the government down later this month.

Stocks open lower on Wall Street as cuts loom

NEW YORK (AP) - Stocks opened lower on Wall Street Friday, with the Dow pulling back from close to a record, as automatic government spending cuts are about to kick in. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 35 points, or 0.3 percent, to 14,019 points as of 10 a.m. EST. The index came within 15 points of its record close of 14,164 Thursday afternoon, before momentum petered out in late trading, leaving the index ...

Obama, congressional leaders meet at White House

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama and congressional leaders are meeting at the White House, with billions of dollars in automatic budget cuts ready to start kicking in. The meeting got under way shortly after 10 a.m. EST. Representing Republicans are House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid are the Democratic leaders in the meeting. No breakthrough is expected ...

First lady: Not surprised by reaction to Oscars

CHICAGO (AP) - Michelle Obama says it was "absolutely not surprising" to her that her satellite appearance at the Academy Awards ceremony provoked a national conversation about whether it was appropriate, after some conservative critics accused her of selfishly crashing the event in an attempt to upstage it. She attributed the chatter to a culture shift that has spawned legions of bloggers, tweeters and others who talk about anything and everything all the time. ...

Lake Lanier at highest level in nearly 2 years

GAINESVILLE, Ga. (AP) - With recent rains, Lake Lanier is at its highest level in almost two years.