Winds with gusts of up to 40 mph blow into Georgia

ATLANTA (AP) - Forecasters say strong winds with gusts of up to 40 mph are expected to continue throughout Monday across much of Georgia.

Ga. to end Medicaid payments for some early births

ATLANTA (AP) - Georgia health officials are hoping to improve care - and save money - by steering pregnant women and doctors away from some early deliveries.

Heart repair breakthroughs replace surgeon's knife

Woman fired after tweeting pic of men making sexist jokes

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - A female developer was fired after tweeting about a group of men she said were making sexual comments at a computer programming conference, fueling an already vigorous debate about gender equality and culture in Silicon Valley.

Police arrest 2 teens in Ga. baby killing

Pa. caretaker charged with drinking old whiskey

GREENSBURG, Pa. (AP) - The live-in caretaker of a western Pennsylvania mansion is facing criminal charges for allegedly drinking more than $100,000 worth of the owner's whiskey.

Ga. Senate passes competing bill on lobbying rules

ATLANTA (AP) - The Georgia Senate has upped the ante on the House as the two chambers attempt to overhaul lobbying rules at the Capitol.

Soccer players suspended over drinking allegations

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) - Authorities say 18 players on a high school soccer team in east Georgia have been suspended and removed from the team after they were accused of drinking alcohol while on a school-sponsored trip.

Senate Democrats on track to pass budget

WASHINGTON (AP) - Democrats controlling the Senate moved on Friday toward approving their first budget in four years, promising another, almost $1 trillion round of tax increases on top of more than $600 billion in higher taxes on the wealthy enacted in January.

Punxsutawney Phil 'indicted' over spring forecast

Tolls on Georgia 400 to end before Thanksgiving

ATLANTA (AP) - Transportation officials say the tolls on Georgia 400, a busy commuter route on the north side of Atlanta, will end later this year.

UGA student reports attack by mime

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) - A University of Georgia student told police she was attacked by a woman who appeared dressed as a mime.

3 dead, including suspect, in Marine base shooting

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 ...

Stocks make U-turn, rising on home prices, Europe

EW YORK (AP) - The stock market jumped Tuesday following a surge in U.S. home prices and signs of strength in Europe's economy. Strong earnings reports also helped power the gains.

Ex-Ga. teacher sentenced to prison on sex charges

ATLANTA (AP) - A former Georgia middle school teacher has been sentenced to prison on charges of having sex with a student.

Small Ala. town: Relief that child hostage is safe

MIDLAND CITY, Ala. (AP) - For six anguished days, people in this small Alabama town asked just one question about the 5-year-old boy being held hostage in an underground bunker by a menacing, unpredictable neighbor: "Is he free yet?"

US sues S&P over pre-crisis mortgage ratings

WASHINGTON (AP) - The U.S. government is accusing the debt rating agency Standard & Poor's of fraud for giving high ratings to risky mortgage bonds that helped bring about the financial crisis.

Board of Regents OK's Morehead as UGA president

ATLANTA (AP) - Just after he was officially hired as the University of Georgia's 22nd president Monday, Jere Morehead announced that a major capital campaign is in the school's future and changes to the university's organizational structure could be on the horizon.

FBI: Officers stormed bunker when child in danger

MIDLAND CITY, Ala. (AP) - Officers stormed an underground bunker in Alabama where a 5-year-old boy had been held hostage for nearly a week, rescuing the child and leaving the boy's abductor dead, officials said Monday. Steve Richardson with the FBI's office in Mobile said at a news conference Monday afternoon that negotiations had deteriorated with 65-year-old Jimmy Lee Dykes, a man neighbors described as an isolated loner. Dykes had been seen with a gun, ...

Officials: Boy safe, abductor dead after standoff

MIDLAND CITY, Ala. (AP) - A law enforcement official says a 5-year-old has been safely released after a days-long standoff between police and the boy's abductor.

Police: Announcement coming on Ala. hostage

MIDLAND CITY, Ala. (AP) - Authorities say they will be making a major announcement in the case of a 5-year-old who is being held hostage in an underground bunker in Alabama.

State forecast for Georgia

.Tonight...Mostly cloudy. A slight chance of rain in the far north And southwest toward daybreak...Possibly mixing with freezing rain in The extreme northeast georgia mountains. Lows from the lower to mid 30s in the mountains to around 50 on the lower coast. .Tuesday...A chance of rain in the southwest...With a chance of rain In the far north during the morning. Mostly cloudy south with Decreasing clouds north. Highs from the upper 40s in the mountains ...

Dominican lawyer dismisses prostitution reports

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) - A lawyer in the Dominican Republic is dismissing allegations that he and New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez attended parties with under-aged prostitutes.