Dolly downgraded to tropical storm in south Texas
Forecasters say Dolly has weakened to a tropical storm.
Ship-barge crash closes Mississippi at New Orleans
A stretch of the Mississippi River at New Orleans could be closed for days as crews clean a 12-mile oil slick caused Wednesday when a tanker and barge collided, officials said.
Dolly becomes hurricane, set to hit Tex-Mex border
Rain started to fall along the Gulf Coast as Hurricane Dolly - upgraded in force from a tropical storm - closed in on towns straddling the Texas-Mexico border.
Judge: EPA must regulate ship water discharge
An appeals court Wednesday upheld a ruling ordering the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate the water discharged from ships as a way to protect local ecosystems from invasive species.
Church surrenders lot near ground zero for $20M
Leaders of a church destroyed on Sept. 11 have surrendered land needed to rebuild the World Trade Center site in a $20 million deal with the government.
Prosecutor: More people say LA doctor abused them
A doctor charged with molesting eight patients was ordered held on $4 million bail Wednesday as a prosecutor said accusations from seven more patients had surfaced.
Huge brush fire subsides in central Washington
An evacuation order for up to 300 people was lifted Wednesday as more firefighters were put to work on a wind-driven wildfire fueled by sagebrush in central Washington, officials said.
McKusick, pioneer in medical genetics, dies at 86
Dr. Victor A. McKusick, a key architect of the Human Genome Project and a winner of the National Medal of Science, has died. He was 86.
Farm labor contractor fined in worker's death
The employer of a pregnant teenager who died of heat stroke after pruning grapevines for nine hours in hot weather was hit Wednesday with the highest fine ever issued to a California farming operation.
Detective who helped arrest Oswald dead at 87
Dallas police Detective Paul Bentley, who helped arrest presidential assassin Lee Harvey Oswald at the Texas Theater, had a ready retort for those who didn't accept the official story that Oswald acted alone.
Convicted killers in Texas, Miss., put to death
Texas executed a man Wednesday who was convicted of killing a woman and her child, while Mississippi put to death a man who took part in the fatal beating of another man.
Only 2 Texas high schoolers positive for steroids
The nation's largest steroids testing program caught only two Texas high school athletes taking unauthorized substances out of more than 10,000 students who were tested, according to results issued Wednesday.
Kansas man pleads guilty in teen's kidnap-slaying
A man pleaded guilty Wednesday to snatching an 18-year-old from a store parking lot, raping her and strangling her with her own belt before dumping her body in a park.
Mass. woman kills self before home foreclosure
A 53-year-old wife and mother fatally shot herself shortly after faxing a letter to her mortgage company saying that by the time they foreclosed on her house that day, she would be dead.
Anti-gay Okla. lawmaker caught with gun at Capitol
A state lawmaker who gained national notoriety with an anti-homosexual rant was stopped from entering the state Capitol Wednesday when she was found to have a loaded handgun in her purse, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol said.
NC police warned about woman with 5 dead spouses
A former police officer and a neighbor said Wednesday that a Georgia grandmother who now has five dead spouses tried to hire them to kill her fourth husband more than two decades ago.
Ohio governor declares emergency from wind damage
Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland has declared a state of emergency in the county hit by a storm with winds of up to 110 mph.
Chicago cop accused of shaking down tow operators
A police officer was arrested Wednesday on federal charges of shaking down tow truck operators for payoffs of up to $400 per vehicle in exchange for steering towing business to them.
NTSB investigates near collision at O'Hare
The National Transportation Safety Board said Wednesday it is investigating a near collision of airborne planes at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport - the third such incident at a major airport this month.
Suspect in girlfriend's killing found dead in cell
A man charged with murdering his pregnant girlfriend in front of their two children killed himself in his jail cell, a state prison official said Wednesday.
Alleged SF computer saboteur's bail request denied
A judge on Wednesday refused to reduce the $5 million bail of a San Francisco technology expert accused of rigging the city's computer system to malfunction during routine maintenance.
Pa. judge won't reduce sentence for triple killer
A Pennsylvania judge says a teenager who killed three members of a family must serve three consecutive life terms.
Unknown disease killing off Florida's state tree
The sabal palm, Florida's state tree, is under attack by a microscopic killer that has scientists stumped. An unknown but growing number of sabal palms in the Tampa Bay area have died from a mysterious disease that researchers are struggling to identify. Even after scientists pinpoint the disease - and that could take years - they will have to learn what insect spreads it. The disease will be tough to stop.
New policy lowers flags only for Ky. soldiers
Kentucky has started lowering flags to half-staff only for fallen soldiers from the Bluegrass State, upsetting veterans and lawmakers who say the policy dishonors tens of thousands of service members from other states stationed at installations such as Fort Campbell and Fort Knox.
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