By BETH DUFF-BROWN   Associated Press   2/12/2012 12:32 AM   

NICASIO, Calif. -- Luke Skywalker would be proud. A rebel alliance has formed in the hills north of San Francisco to fight a perceived Evil Empire. The alliance is a group of Marin County homeowners. Their phantom menace is George Lucas, the world- ...

By LEANNE ITALIE   Associated Press   2/12/2012 12:32 AM   

NEW YORK -- Barbie threw open the sparkly, pink doors of her dream closet to rock a party she hosted for her fellow fashionistas. She (well, actually the Mattel marketing machine that has kept Barbie dolls a bestselling toy for more than a half-cen ...

By PAUL ELIAS   Associated Press   2/12/2012 12:32 AM   

SAN FRANCISCO -- Human remains uncovered in Northern California with the help of a convicted serial killer have been preliminarily identified as one of his victims, and authorities continued to search another site for the remains of as many as 10 peo ...

By RACHEL LA CORTE   Associated Press   2/12/2012 12:32 AM   

TACOMA, Wash. -- The family of missing Utah woman Susan Powell thanked police, social workers, teachers and everyone who cared about her two sons at a funeral Saturday for the boys who were killed by their father in a gas-fueled blaze. The boys' g ...

    2/12/2012 12:31 AM   

"Two thousand dollars won't cover my moving costs." -- Brian Duncan, evicted from his Tempe, Ariz., home last April, who received a check for $2,000 as part of a $25 billion government settlement with the nation's top mortgage lenders for victims ...

By NEKESA MUMBI MOODY   Associated Press   2/11/2012 11:20 PM   

LOS ANGELES -- Whitney Houston, who ruled as pop music's queen until her majestic voice and regal image were ravaged by drug use, erratic behavior and a tumultuous marriage to singer Bobby Brown, died Saturday. She was 48. Beverly Hills police Lt. M ...

Associated Press     2/10/2012 12:33 AM   

SEATTLE -- The Washington state social worker who was supposed to supervise a visit between Josh Powell and his young sons says Powell told his oldest boy he had a "surprise" for him moments before attacking and killing the children. Elizabeth Grif ...

By MATTHEW DALY   Associated Press   2/10/2012 12:32 AM   

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The nation's first new nuclear power plant in a generation won approval Thursday as federal regulators voted to grant a license for two new reactors at a site in eastern Georgia. Atlanta-based Southern Co. hopes to begin operati ...

Associated Press     2/10/2012 12:32 AM   

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) -- Eastman Kodak Co. said Thursday that it will stop making digital cameras, pocket video cameras and digital picture frames, marking the end of an era for the company that brought photography to the masses more than a century ag ...

By DEREK KRAVITZ   Associated Press   2/10/2012 12:32 AM   

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A landmark $25 billion settlement with the nation's top mortgage lenders was hailed by government officials Thursday as long-overdue relief for victims of foreclosure abuses. But consumer advocates countered that far too few peopl ...

By KIMBERLY HEFLING and BEN FELLER   Associated Press   2/10/2012 12:32 AM   

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- It could be the beginning of the end for No Child Left Behind. The goal was lofty: Get all children up to par in math and reading by 2014. But the nation isn't getting there, and now some states are getting out. In a sign of ...

By NANCY BENAC   Associated Press   2/10/2012 12:32 AM   

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) -- Hold the mystery meat: Military mess halls soon will be serving more fruits, vegetables and low-fat dishes under the first program in 20 years to improve nutrition standards across the armed services. First lady Michelle O ...

By CHRISTINA HOAG   Associated Press   2/10/2012 12:31 AM   

LOS ANGELES (AP) SEmD A hubbub of controversy surrounded the reopening of an elementary school on Thursday where the arrest of two former teachers on lewdness charges led to the entire staff being replaced. Outside Miramonte Elementary School, abou ...

By BETSY BLANEY   Associated Press   2/9/2012 11:20 AM   

LUBBOCK, Texas -- The smallest cattle herd since the 1950s likely will mean higher beef prices at the supermarket for the next two years. Experts said beef prices could climb as much as 10 percent a year in 2012 and 2013, and the increase could be ...

  Associated Press   2/9/2012 11:14 AM   

COAL CENTER, Pa. — Police say a southwestern Pennsylvania university student may be the victim of an international extortion plot using the Facebook social networking site — or just the target of an elaborate hoax. Southwest Regional Pol ...

By JANET McCONNAUGHEY   Associated Press   2/9/2012 10:46 AM   

NEW ORLEANS — A young whooping crane is recovering after surgery to repair a broken bone in its shoulder. The female crane spent almost a week isolated at White Lake in southwest Louisiana after veterinary surgeons at Louisiana State University ...

By LOLITA C. BALDOR   Associated Press   2/9/2012 10:37 AM   

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Pentagon rules are catching up a bit with reality after a decade when women in the U.S. military have served, fought and died on the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan. On Thursday, the Pentagon is recommending to Congress tha ...

By NANCY BENAC   Associated Press   2/9/2012 10:37 AM   

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Hold the mystery meat: Military bases will soon be serving more fruits, vegetables and low-fat dishes under the first program in 20 years to improve nutrition standards across the armed services. First lady Michelle Obama and Pe ...

By CHRISTOPHER S. RUGABER   Associated Press   2/9/2012 10:34 AM   

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The number of people seeking unemployment aid neared a four-year low last week, a positive sign that strong hiring could continue in the coming months. The Labor Department said Thursday that weekly applications for unemploymen ...

By GENE JOHNSON and MIKE BAKER   Associated Press   2/9/2012 10:34 AM   

TACOMA, Wash. -- Nearly eight minutes elapsed between when a social worker called 911 to report that Josh Powell's children were in danger and when sheriff's deputies were dispatched, emergency call logs show. The home was a gas-fueled inferno - with ...