Texas judge rescinds anti-death penalty ruling
HOUSTON (AP) -- A Texas judge who came under criticism for his ruling declaring the death penalty unconstitutional took back his controversial decision on Tuesday....

Iowa St looks for strong finish at Big 12 tourney
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -- Iowa State athletic director Jamie Pollard snuffed speculation about coach Greg McDermott's future with a public show of support this week, saying he's looking forward to the two working together for "quite a long time."...

Body found near where exec went missing in La.
NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- A Texas-based nonprofit group that has been searching for a missing oil executive in New Orleans has found a body in the Mississippi River, where police say he may have fallen in near a ferry boat dock....

Mom of missing Arizona baby refuses to go to court
PHOENIX (AP) -- The mother of an 8-month-old Arizona boy missing for more than two months refused to go to court Tuesday, delaying the case....

Murderer of 2 women, fetus hangs himself in prison
ODESSA, Texas (AP) -- A West Texas man who pleaded guilty and got life in prison without parole for killing his pregnant common-law wife and her mother in 2005 has committed suicide....

Class-action lawsuits could cost Toyota $3B-plus
MIAMI (AP) -- Toyota owners claiming that massive safety recalls are causing the value of their vehicles to plummet have filed at least 89 class-action lawsuits that could cost the Japanese auto giant $3 billion or more, according to an Associated Press review of cases, legal precedent and interviews with experts....

Texas company awarded W.Va. school food contract
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) -- The West Virginia Department of Education has awarded a contract to a Texas company to improve its food service operations at schools across the state....

Democrat White criticizes Perry on budget cuts
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- Democrat Bill White criticized Republican Gov. Rick Perry on Tuesday for pressing state agencies to cut their spending by 5 percent, calling the approach "Soviet-style" budget management....

Big 12 looking to get 7 in NCAA tournament
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- The Big 12 tournament gets started this week in Kansas City. For more than half the teams, it will be a warm-up for the real madness of March....

Coach apologizes for remark over newspaper removal
COMMERCE, Texas (AP) -- A Texas college football coach has apologized for saying the alleged removal of school newspapers from campus racks by his players was "the best team-building exercise we have ever done."...