Standoff: Ala. gunman kills bus driver, seizes boy
Written by PHILLIP RAWLS,Associated Press
MIDLAND CITY, Ala. (AP) — Police hostage negotiators were locked in a standoff Wednesday with a gunman authorities say intercepted a school bus, killed the driver, snatched a 6-year-old boy and retreated with the kindergartener into a bunker at his home.
Phoenix police at home connected to shooting
Written by JACQUES BILLEAUD,Associated Press
PHOENIX (AP) — A gunman opened fire at a Phoenix office building on Wednesday, wounding three people, one of them critically, authorities said. Police were searching for the shooter.
Brazil nightclub owner blames country for fire
Written by JULIANA BARBASSA,Associated Press
SANTA MARIA, Brazil (AP) — The owner of a nightclub in southern Brazil where more than 230 people died in a fire last weekend deflected blame to "the whole country," as well as to architects and inspectors charged with making sure the building was safe, his lawyer said Wednesday.
Nabors on marrying partner: 'Just wanted it legal'
Written by OSKAR GARCIA,Associated Press
HONOLULU (AP) — Actor Jim Nabors says marrying his longtime male partner doesn't change anything about their relationship — he just wanted it to be formally acknowledged.
Ten years since loss of space shuttle Columbia
Written by MARCIA DUNN,AP Aerospace Writer
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — He was just 8 when NASA lost the space shuttle Columbia and he lost his astronaut mom.
US economy shrinks 0.1 pct., 1st time in 3½ years
Written by CHRISTOPHER S. RUGABER,AP Economics Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. economy unexpectedly shrank from October through December, the first quarterly drop since 2009 and a reminder of the economy's vulnerability as automatic cuts in government spending loom.
UPDATE: Man linked to Ala. standoff was facing court
Written by PHILLIP RAWLS,Associated Press
MIDLAND CITY, Ala. (AP) — Police, SWAT teams and negotiators surrounded a rural property where a man was believed to be holed up in an underground shelter Wednesday after fatally shooting the driver of a school bus and fleeing with a 6-year-old child passenger.
Slow US economic growth in Q4 may hide strength
Written by CHRISTOPHER S. RUGABER,AP Economics Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) — Most economists agree that Wednesday's snapshot of U.S. economic growth is going to look dismal.