Storms leave scattered power outages in Georgia

TLANTA (AP) - A line of strong thunderstorms moving through a large part of north Georgia left scattered power outages early Monday morning.

'Big Dawg' carries on tradition in dad's memory

NJ town OKs boardwalk ban on saggy pants

Boston woman pays $560,000 for 2 parking spots

BOSTON (AP) - Parking is such a precious commodity in Boston that one woman was willing to pay $560,000 for two off-street spaces near her home.

Officials confirm tornado in Cherokee County

ATLANTA (AP) - The National Weather Service says a survey team has confirmed a tornado touched down in Cherokee County as part of a system of severe thunderstorms that moved across the state.

Superintendent must revisit book decision

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) - Clarke County's school board has decided that its superintendent must reconsider his decision to allow a book in classrooms after it drew objections by parents.

School boards, libraries face insurance cost hike

ATLANTA (AP) - Georgia school boards and public libraries will have to pay more for the employer share of health insurance following a decision by the Community Health Board.

US stocks edge lower at end of a volatile week

NEW YORK (AP) - Stocks edged lower in the early going on Wall Street Friday as trading quieted down at the end of a turbulent week.

Commander in SS-led unit living in US

BERLIN (AP) - A top commander of a Nazi SS-led unit accused of burning villages filled with women and children lied to American immigration officials to get into the United States and has been living in Minnesota since shortly after World War II, according to evidence uncovered by The Associated Press.

Government has history of secrecy, spying, leaks

Plane from Nashville to Atlanta strikes pole

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Passengers on Delta flight 1066 from Nashville to Atlanta were removed from the plane after it struck a light pole while taxiing on the ramp.

Prosecutors push for anti-phone theft measures

Girl who took on transplant rules gets new lungs

Southern Baptists address prisoners, trafficking

HOUSTON (AP) - The Southern Baptist Convention tackled topics at its annual meeting this week that seemed to show a concern for a broadening array of social issues, including human trafficking and the country's high rate of incarceration.

Severe storms could bring hail, high winds to Ga.

ATLANTA (AP) - Forecasters are predicting severe storms for much of Georgia.

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.

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 ...

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.