• Former top NM senator sentenced in corruption case AP - 23 minutes ago

  ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - A former leader of the New Mexico Senate was sentenced to 5 1/2 years in prison Tuesday for his role in a scheme to defraud the state of some $4 million in a courthouse construction project.

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  Lead is feared in children's books AP - 1 hour, 57 minutes ago

  JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - Could a vintage, dog-eared copy of "The Cat in the Hat" or "Where the Wild Things Are" be hazardous to your children?

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  Mafia assassin convicted in 4 NYC murders AP - 49 minutes ago

  NEW YORK - An aging hit man once used as an enforcer by mob boss John Gotti was convicted on Tuesday in the cold-blooded slayings of four people, including a security guard gunned down during an armored car heist in 1990.

• Air Force nurse charged in 3 patients' drug deaths AP - 2 hours, 23 minutes ago

  SAN ANTONIO - An Air Force nurse has been charged with giving lethal amounts of medication to three terminally ill patients in his care, military officials said Tuesday.

• Petland is accused of scheme to sell sick puppies AP - 5 minutes ago

  COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Humane Society of the United States has accused Petland Inc. of scheming to sell sick puppies to thousands of unsuspecting consumers.

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  Sara Jane Olson, ex-1970s radical, freed from Calif. prison AP - 43 minutes ago

  CHOWCHILLA, Calif. - Sara Jane Olson, the 1970s radical who assumed a new identity as a Minnesota housewife while spending a quarter century as a fugitive, was released from prison Tuesday, a corrections spokeswoman said.

• Prosecutor: SoCal arson killer felt 'all powerful' AP - 1 hour, 48 minutes ago

  RIVERSIDE, Calif. - A man convicted of murdering five firefighters by igniting a wildfire got thrills from committing arson, a prosecutor told jurors Tuesday in penalty phase arguments.

• Guyana drug boss faces 15 years on coke rap in NYC AP - 1 hour, 27 minutes ago

  NEW YORK - A South American businessman said to have led a violent paramilitary organization in Guyana is likely to spend the next 15 years in a U.S. prison.

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  Study: 'Smart drug' Provigil may be habit-forming AP - 48 minutes ago

  CHICAGO - A so-called "smart drug" popular with young people may carry more of an addiction risk than thought, a small government study suggests. Scans of 10 healthy men showed that the prescription drug Provigil caused changes in the brain's pleasure center, very much like potentially habit-forming classic stimulants. Modafinil, the drug's generic name, is sometimes used as an illegal study aid by college students.

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  Hundreds mourn 4 relatives, victims of Ala. gunman AP - 12 minutes ago

  SAMSON, Ala. - The funeral procession for four people killed in a 24-mile shooting spree in south Alabama retraced part of the gunman's route Tuesday, and the small, tight-knit town tried mightily to move beyond the carnage that has come to define it.

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  St. Patrick's revelers in US fete all things Irish AP - 2 hours, 36 minutes ago

  NEW YORK - St. Patrick's Day revelers took a break from worries about the global economy to enjoy a day of shamrock-themed frivolity, dyeing city fountains green, taking icy ocean plunges and crowding sidewalks along parade routes to see and be seen.

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  NY atty gen says 73 AIG execs got $1M bonuses AP - 2 hours, 1 minute ago

  ALBANY, N.Y. - Troubled insurance giant American International Group paid bonuses of $1 million or more to 73 employees, including 11 who no longer work for the company, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said Tuesday.

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  Senator suggests AIG execs should kill themselves AP - Tue Mar 17, 8:18 AM ET

  IOWA CITY, Iowa - Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley suggested that AIG executives should take a Japanese approach toward accepting responsibility for the collapse of the insurance giant by resigning or killing themselves.

• 2 arrested in missing cars case appear in court AP - 2 hours, 43 minutes ago

  TOOELE, Utah - Two people arrested in Utah in connection with the disappearance of dozens of cars from a dealership in Nebraska have had their first court appearance.

• Judge: Ark. foster, adoption ban suit can proceed AP - 2 hours, 42 minutes ago

  LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - An Arkansas judge says a lawsuit can go forward challenging the state's ban on unmarried couples adopting children.

Economy News

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  Obama defends tackling many problems at same time AP - 13 minutes ago

  WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama on Tuesday brushed aside criticism that he's trying to take on too many issues at once, defending a $3.6 trillion budget that seeks to shore up the economy while also overhauling health care, energy and education.

• U.S. housing offers hope for economy Reuters - 46 minutes ago

  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. housing starts and permits rebounded in February from record lows, rising for the first time in 10 months, according to data on Tuesday that gave a glimmer of hope for the recession-hit economy.

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  Housing starts surge; wholesale prices edge up AP - 49 minutes ago

  WASHINGTON - Housing construction posted a surprisingly large increase in February, bolstered by strength in all parts of the country except the West.