S&P 500 closes at a record high, beating '07 mark

Scooter ads face scrutiny from gov't., doctors

WASHINGTON (AP) - TV ads show smiling seniors enjoying an "active" lifestyle on a motorized scooter, taking in the sights at the Grand Canyon, fishing on a pier and high-fiving their grandchildren at a baseball game.

HIV test urged for 7,000 Oklahoma dental patients

Negotiations continuing on Ga. gun bill

ATLANTA (AP) - Lawmakers are negotiating over whether Georgia students should be allowed to carry guns on college campuses.

Lawmakers agree on $41 billion spending plan

ATLANTA (AP) - House and Senate leaders have settled on a roughly $41 billion state operating budget comprised of state and federal money for the next fiscal year.

US launches new batch of graphic anti-smoking ads

Mother, son die in house fire in northwest Georgia

RINGGOLD, Ga. (AP) - State fire officials say a mother and her young son were both killed when an early morning fire swept through their home in the northwest Georgia town of Ringgold.

Sheriff identifies toddler killed in dog attack

PEMBROKE, Ga. (AP) - Authorities in coastal Georgia identified the toddler who was mauled to death by a pack of dogs as Monica Renee Laminack, who would have turned 2 years old in June.

Stocks struggle for direction in early trading

NEW YORK (AP) - U.S. stocks darted between small gains and losses in early trading Thursday as investors considered mixed signals from the U.S. economy and Europe.

Arsenal of weapons found in Newtown gunman's home

Absences pile up at Ga. school as sickness spreads

CARROLLTON, Ga. (AP) - Administrators at a west Georgia elementary school are hoping the upcoming spring break will interrupt a cycle of sickness that led to more than 150 absences.

GOP moves to catch up with Democrats on technology

Ga. woman's camera washes ashore in Taiwan

NEWNAN, Ga. (AP) - A Georgia woman has been reunited with her camera and photos after the camera she lost during a 2007 trip to Hawaii washed ashore in Taiwan.

Wine fight over vintage fakes airs out in NY court

NEW YORK (AP) - The market where vintage wines are traded like treasured works of art has gotten a taste test in a New York court where a billionaire is accusing a wealthy California wine merchant of cheating him.

Senators tour border, say immigration bill near

Ariz. woman gives sexual details about slain lover

PHOENIX (AP) - The woman charged with killing her lover in the shower of his Arizona home described Thursday how he made repeated sexual advances all while converting her into the Mormon faith during the early stages of their stormy romance. Jodi Arias took the witness stand for a third day in her murder trial as she described her relationship with Travis Alexander before she stabbed and shot him in what she says ...

Authorities: 3 dead in fiery highway crash in Ga.

MONTROSE, Ga. (AP) - More than two dozen vehicles collided in a fiery pileup on a Georgia interstate on Wednesday morning, killing at least three people and leaving 12 others hurt, an emergency official said.

Stocks slip as earnings fail to inspire investors

NEW YORK (AP) - Stocks edged lower on Wall Street as the latest round of earnings reports failed to give investors an impetus to push the market's recent rally forward.

Boy Scouts delay decision on admitting gays

IRVING, Texas (AP) - The Boy Scouts of America put off a decision Wednesday on whether to lift its ban on gay members and leaders, saying the question will be taken up at the organization's national meeting in May.

Saturday mail delivery to end in Aug

WASHINGTON (AP) - The U.S. Postal Service will stop delivering mail on Saturdays but continue to deliver packages six days a week under a plan aimed at saving about $2 billion annually, the financially struggling agency says.

Home Depot to hire 80,000 workers

ATLANTA (AP) - Home Depot Inc. said Wednesday that it will hire more than 80,000 seasonal workers for this year's spring selling season - up from about 70,000 a year ago. It cited expectations of sales growth.

Monopoly tokens change! Cat added.

PAWTUCKET, R.I. (AP) - Scottie dog has a new nemesis in Monopoly after fans voted in an online contest to add a new cat token to the property trading game, replacing the iron, toy maker Hasbro Inc. announced Wednesday.

Obama urges stopgap budget deal to avoid deep cuts

WASHINGTON (AP) - Eager to buy time and avoid economic pain, President Barack Obama urged Congress on Tuesday to pass targeted short-term spending cuts and higher taxes as a way to put off sweeping, automatic cuts that would slice deeply into military and domestic programs starting March 1.

Despite horror, Ala. child hostage seems OK

MIDLAND CITY, Ala. (AP) - By all accounts, a 5-year-old in Alabama endured an unforgettable horror: Held for a week in a closet-size bunker underground, a captive of a volatile killer, his only comforts a Hot Wheels car and other treats passed to him by officers.

2 Ga. executions scheduled following court ruling

SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) - Georgia officials on Tuesday ordered February execution dates for two inmates, a day after the state Supreme Court upheld a switch to a new drug used in lethal injections.

Stocks rebound on home prices, earnings; Dow up 99

NEW YORK (AP) - The stock market bounced back Tuesday following a surge in U.S. home prices and signs of recovery in Europe's economy. Strong earnings reports also helped power the gains. The Dow Jones industrial average ended the day 99.22 points higher at 13,979.30, erasing a large part of its loss from Monday. The index traded above 14,000 during the day before falling back in the last hour. The Standard & Poor's 500 ...

New PAC stirs GOP rivalries, tea party angst

WASHINGTON (AP) - Republicans' struggles to redefine their party are intensifying, as tea party insurgents and establishment Republicans vie to control congressional primaries, and GOP leaders try to expand their focus beyond the deficit.

Fulton Co. disputes voter record tampering claims

ATLANTA (AP) - The interim director of the Fulton County elections board has denied allegations that her staff tampered with voter records after the presidential race in November.

Gun background checks drop 10 percent in January

WASHINGTON (AP) - The number of federal background checks for firearms sales declined in the U.S. last month, as retailers continue to run out of guns to sell during a buying spree driven by Washington's new focus on gun control.

Obama seeks to avoid sequester with short-term fix

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama is asking Congress for a short-term deficit reduction package of spending cuts and tax revenue that will delay the effective date of steeper automatic cuts now scheduled to kick in on March 1. Obama said the looming cuts would be economically damaging and must be avoided. The president reiterated his insistence on long-term deficit reduction that combines taxes and cuts, a blend that faces stiff resistance from ...