Author: Associated Press

Geocachers can get into the Halloween spirit during an event this weekend at Barren River Lake State Resort Park in south-central Kentucky. Geocaching is an adventure game that involves using technology and global positioning systems, or GPS, units to find…

Fifteen residents of a Nashville apartment complex sued Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers Wednesday over what they said were violations of their constitutional rights during a raid last year. The suit was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of…

The Mississippi Secretary of State's Office says many counties will have to reprint ballots or add inserts because ballot wording distributed by the office lacked key information. Pamela Weaver, spokeswoman for Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann, says the attorney general…

Memphis Police say a woman told them she allowed animals to die in her home because she could no longer take care of them. City police said an animal control officer investigated Tuesday after a report of a foul odor…

Tennessee's Jack Daniel distillery, celebrated for years in folksy advertising, is being targeted to pay more taxes. How about a bar tab of up to $5 million? A proposal approved by the county council in Lynchburg, Tenn., site of the…

A comedian who angered Appalachian residents with jokes they considered offensive won't be allowed to sell CDs in a state park in Kentucky's hill country. The Department of Parks ordered recordings of comic-turned-politician Robert Farmer off the shelves at Cumberland…

A Middle Tennessee police officer is recovering after being shot during a traffic stop. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation says Hohenwald city police officer Robert Fransen pulled over a car shortly after 10 p.m. Tuesday and shots were fired from…

A rain-soaked spring planting season - combined with a scorching summer - have cut into some autumn crop yields in Kentucky. But corn and soybean crops have shown resilience as farmers wind down their harvest. A crop-reporting service says corn…

U.S. Army Cadet Command officials are reviewing rules about what religious clothing is allowed by the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps Program. It comes after a complaint on behalf of a Brentwood freshman who was told she could not march…

The Murray State University board of regents has voted to approve a ground lease for the construction of a planned extended campus in Paducah. The vote happened in a special-called meeting on Friday. In May, the board voted to enter…

Metro Nashville Police say a man working on a pickup truck died when the vehicle rolled off portable ramps and crushed him. No foul play is suspected in the death of 39-year-old Virgil Kempenaar. Investigators said Kempenaar was under the…

For the second time this year, the visitors center at Parker's Crossroads is hosting a traveling Civil War exhibit. The display focuses on 1861, the year the war began. It highlights the impact of slavery on the country, the fallout…

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is speaking at a Christian women's gathering this weekend in Mississippi. The speech by the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee is set for 3 p.m. Saturday. It's part of the Extraordinary Women Conference at the…

The Shelby County Commission has voted to switch the county family-planning contract from Planned Parenthood to Christ Community Health Services. The underlying issue remained abortion, according to The Commercial Appeal.Catholic deacon Jeff Drzycimski was one of several abortion opponents who…

The Kentucky Office of Employment and Training has launched a new free job-match system aimed at helping users create resumes highlighting their skills and sending job leads based on a database of current job listings. The service matches people with…

Admissions officers from the University of Tennessee system said they plan to discuss a policy that forbids illegal immigrants from enrolling as students. Yancey Freeman, who is assistant vice chancellor for enrollment services at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga,…

Visits to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park remain behind the numbers from last year. With figures released Monday, the National Park Service said visitation for 2011 through September was off 6.2 percent from 2010. For September, the number of…

Gov. Bill Haslam says Rep. Curry Todd has acknowledged and apologized for a "bad mistake" in being arrested on drunken driving and gun charges last week. Haslam told reporters after a speech in Franklin that he spoke with Todd at…

A poor crop of berries and acorns has left bear cubs in East Tennessee undernourished and searching for food. The Appalachian Bear Rescue Center in Townsend has taken in a near-record 22 cubs. All of them were born in January…

Adams County is taking out a $1.2 million loan to cover its payroll until enough taxes are collected. The Natchez Democrat reports that such loans are allowed by state law, and supervisors must specify how the money will be spent.…

A northwest Georgia woman charged with leaving her 2-year-old daughter in a ditch near a playground told police she is addicted to prescription drugs and hoped a nice family would find the child. Thirty-one-year-old Jennifer Haines was being held Friday…

A theater production inspired by terrifying moments as a killer tornado tore through Tuscaloosa and in the days after the storm will have its premier Friday night. University of Alabama doctoral student Amir Zaheri said he emerged from his basement…

Tennessee Valley Authority ratepayers will get another slight decrease because of lower fuel cost in November, with a drop between 50 cents and $1.00 for average residential customers. TVA said in a statement Friday that the third straight monthly reduction…

Rep. Curry Todd has resigned as chairman of a Republican firearms task force in the state House following his arrest on drunken driving and gun charges. House Majority Leader Gerald McCormick said Thursday that he accepted the resignation because Todd…

Wearing baggy pants may be banned in Tupelo. The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal reports that the city council has asked an attorney to draft an ordinance against baggy, drooping pants that reveal the wearer's backside and underwear. They also recommend…

The Internal Revenue Service reminds an estimated 169,000 Tennesseans that their six-month extension for filing their 2010 federal tax returns ends Monday. The IRS said in a news release Thursday that individuals and small businesses should double check their returns…

A Mississippi woman has joined a growing number of Facebook users who are suing the social networking company over allegations that it violates wiretap laws by recording users' Internet browsing history without permission. The lawsuit was filed Wednesday in U.S.…

The Charlie Daniels Band has canceled two shows because of the death of Joel "Taz" DeGregorio, longtime keyboard player and vocalist for the group. Daniels said Thursday in a news release that the band canceled concerts Thursday in Cumming, Ga.,…

A Tennessee woman arrested after refusing an airport pat-down for her 14-year-old daughter has told a judge she was concerned security agents would touch the girl's crotch. Andrea Abbott was charged with disorderly conduct July 9 after Transportation Security Administration…

Rep. Curry Todd, a lead sponsor of a law allowing handgun carry permit holders to bring their guns into bars, has been arrested on charges of drunken driving and possession of a gun while under the influence. Police say in…

A reward is being offered after vandals set fires inside a south-central Kentucky church and painted symbols and words on the walls. The Rev. Roger Wheat of Coffey Hill Friendship Church in Russell County told WKYT-TV that an individual has…

After closing arguments in the Tennessee Valley Authority's coal ash trial, there won't be a quick decision. A federal judge later Thursday begins what could be a months-long process of deciding if the nation's largest public utility is liable for…

Law enforcement officers who want to become Kentucky State Police troopers can apply for an accelerated program that will begin in April. The 11-week Law Enforcement Accelerated Program is for officers who have three years of Kentucky Police Officer Professional…

State officials on Wednesday will announce the ninth of 16 self-guided driving trails in the Discover Tennessee Trails & Byways program. The trail spans 514 miles throughout Middle Tennessee, traveling through Cumberland, Davidson, DeKalb, Jackson, Putnam, Smith, White and Wilson…

A Facebook user in western Kentucky has filed a federal lawsuit against the social networking giant, accusing it of violating wiretap laws with a tracking cookie recording web browsing history after logging off of Facebook. The plaintiff, David Hoffman of…

The Tennessee Valley Authority's coal ash trial starts its fourth week with plaintiff attorneys cross-examining a TVA consultant who says he was hired to find what caused the spill, not to place blame. Geotechnical engineer William H. Walton is to…

Officials of Kentucky Retirement Systems have been subpoenaed to be interviewed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The move is part of the SEC's informal inquiry into the use of placement agents to make certain investments. Placement agents are…

Mayor A C Wharton has called for an investigation into an incident on Memphis' famed Beale Street after video appears to show police using excessive force in restraining someone. The grainy cell phone video was posted on You Tube after…

Four Nashville residents have filed a federal civil rights lawsuit over a raid carried out by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents who were looking for a fugitive. Nashville attorney Elliott Ozment filed the lawsuit on behalf of plaintiffs who say…

Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood has asked a federal court to turn over grand jury records from the U.S. government's investigation into the now-defunct beef plant as he prepares for a civil lawsuit. The beef plant opened in Oakland, Miss.,…

It's almost show time outside in Tennessee. In the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the sugar maples, scarlet oaks, sweet gums, red maples, and hickories are primping for another flashy seasonal parade among about 100 species of native trees, along…

Authorities say a Grenada police officer was killed the line of duty Friday while putting out spike strips to stop a car that was fleeing from police. Grenada Mayor Billy Collins says Capt. John Haddock, who is his 50s, died…

A prisoner who spent 26 years on death row and came within two months of being executed has been freed from Tennessee's Prison for Women. Fifty-eight-year old Gaile Owens of Memphis was released Friday and greeted by a small group…

A fire marshal says an equipment malfunction caused a blaze that destroyed a popcorn plant in southwestern Kentucky. Murray Fire Marshal Dickie Walls told the Murray Ledger & Times that the Ellis Popcorn Company building in Murray is a total…

The Tennessee Department of Tourism and Development says the state's tourism revenue in 2010 increased 6.3 percent from the previous year. The department said Friday the state saw $14.1 billion in tourism revenue in 2009, and received $1 billion in…

Plaintiff attorneys who contend the Tennessee Valley Authority should pay damages for the Kingston Plant coal ash spill have started questioning a TVA consultant who found a mechanical cause but said he did not look for management failures. Geotechnical engineer…

The Tennessee Health Department has announced the first death in Tennessee due to the West Nile virus since 2009. The Shelby County Health Department said the victim was an adult male resident of Shelby County but did not release any…

Federal prosecutors are confirming there's a criminal investigation under way related to the Gibson Guitar raid and are asking a judge to delay efforts by the company to reclaim wood that was seized. Agents last month raided Gibson factories and…

Civil rights leader the Rev. Fred L. Shuttlesworth, who was hailed by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. for his courage and energy, has died. He was 89. Princeton Baptist Medical Center spokeswoman Jennifer Dodd confirms he died at the…