Author: Associated Press

The parents of a schizophrenic man who committed suicide blame TennCare cuts for his death in an obituary they placed to draw attention to the impact of reducing public-funded mental health care in Tennessee. Frank and Ann Zingheim, who live…

Tennessee sales tax collections grew 8 percent in March, the highest rate in five years. Finance Commissioner Mark Emkes on Tuesday called the revenue numbers a strong "indication of consumer optimism." Sales taxes account for two out of every three…

State wildlife officers are investigating after a man said he was accidentally shot by a fellow turkey hunter who said he was going for help and never returned. Daryl Lloyd Wilson told Carter County sheriff's deputies he was hunting on…

Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney says Allstate Property and Casualty Co. will increase homeowner insurance rates 19.4 percent in Mississippi. Chaney told The Sun Herald newspaper that the rate was lower than Allstate initially sought and that he "worked diligently…

A crew is clearing away 40,000 pounds of cat litter after a tractor-trailer overturned on a rain-slick Nashville highway ramp. The driver was negotiating a tight ramp that leads from Interstate 40 eastbound onto I-440 eastbound when the truck flipped…

A husband and wife who've had a lawn care contract with the Rankin County School District since 2005 are charged with defrauding the district out of more than $80,000 worth of pine straw. Mississippi Auditor Stacey Pickering announced the arrests…

Some 40 people who have been crime victims will be honored Tuesday night for volunteer work at Middle Tennessee prisons. The 40 speak to offenders as part of the Tennessee Department of Corrections' victim impact classes. They will be saluted…

The Tennessee Highway Patrol's leadership says it wants to rename the agency the Tennessee State Patrol because its role has evolved beyond traffic enforcement in the years since it was established in 1929. But Safety Department public records requested by…

The Tennessee Valley Authority stores spent fuel and fuel rods at its plants, just Like other nuclear plant operators, but an industry analyst is questioning the safety of that storage. TVA has more than 2,544 metric tons of radioactive spent…

A private airplane crashed just outside McComb before dawn, killing all three people aboard. McComb Police Chief Greg Martin said the plane crashed Sunday into trees near the McComb-Pike County Airport in a moderately populated area on the western edge…

University of Kentucky trustees may be handed a list of finalists for the school's presidency later Monday. A search committee is scheduled to meet Monday on the Lexington campus to review candidates in the running to replace outgoing UK President…

Police say they are investigating a shooting that left three people dead near The University of Memphis campus. WMC-TV and The Commercial Appeal are reporting that two women and a man were killed Sunday afternoon and that it might have…

Kentucky is moving toward a statewide health care system that uses federal Medicaid dollars and puts one or more companies in charge. The initiative began with a request on Thursday for proposals from vendors, according to The Courier-Journal of Louisville.…

That Northwestern University professor's decision allowing the demonstration of sex toy use after one of his classes caused trouble for student volunteers. The Chicago Sun-Times reports the pastor of a Baptist church in Hixson, Tenn. refused to allow 14 Northwestern…

Highway fatalities in Kentucky dropped to an 11-year low in 2010. The Kentucky Office of Highway Safety said Thursday there were 760 fatalities on roadways last year, down 31 from 2009. It's the lowest total since 1999, when the death…

When patrons at a Knoxville bar heard a man say he was robbing them, they weren't all that pleased. Police say one man whacked the suspect on the head and others wrapped him in duct tape and called police. The…

Plans for Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville Casino & Restaurant along the Mississippi Gulf Coast have been approved by state gambling regulators. On Thursday, the Mississippi Gaming Commission backed plans for a $48 million resort with a 68,000-square-foot casino and restaurant, along…

Mississippi lawmakers on Thursday ended their 2011 session without finishing the job of redistricting. It's unclear what happens now. Federal judges could draw new legislative districts. Or, Republican Gov. Haley Barbour could call lawmakers back to do the job. Or,…

Farmers in Kentucky and elsewhere are preparing to plant the fewest burley tobacco acres on record, according to government estimates. The National Agricultural Statistics Service says farmers intend to set 94,750 acres of burley overall this year. That would be…

Members of the House and Senate both unanimously honored former Tennessee Gov. Ned McWherter with a resolution on Thursday. McWherter, a two-term Democratic governor and longtime House speaker from West Tennessee, died Monday of cancer at the age of 80. As the state's 46th governor, he supported education improvements - called the "21st Century Classroom" - that put more computers and technology in classrooms, increased teachers' pay, shrunk class sizes and gave local school boards more control. Two funeral services are planned for McWherter this weekend. One will be at 2 p.m. Saturday in the War Memorial Auditorium in Nashville and the other is set for 1:30 p.m. Sunday in Dresden on the front lawn of McWherter's home.

The sponsor of a bill to strip teachers of their collective bargaining rights has moved the measure back to the Senate Education Committee. The measure sponsored by Republican Sen. Jack Johnson of Franklin cleared the same panel in February on…

A first-ever ranking lists Tennessee 49th nationally in the level of peace. The U.S. Peace Index is based on homicide rates, violent crimes, percentage of the population in jail, number of police officers and availability of small arms. The rankings…

United Furniture Industries, charged by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in February with safety violations, has paid its fine to the federal agency. The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal reports OSHA reduced the original $66,000 penalty to $37,500. OSHA says…

A kindergartener is in state custody after he took a gun to a Memphis elementary school. Shelby County Schools spokesman Mike Tebbe told The Commercial Appeal the 6-year-old apparently brought the gun from home and kept it in his backpack…

Republican Gov. Bill Haslam is paying his department heads significantly more than their counterparts made in the administration of the former Democratic governor. An Associated Press analysis of public salary records shows that Education Commissioner Kevin Huffman is making $200,000…

The Smoky Mountains gateway city of Gatlinburg is dealing with a mud and rock slide after part of a soggy slope gave way. The northbound lanes of U.S. 441 - the main road through the resort town - have been…

State Senator Roy Herron says the Ironman Triathlon will go on without him after he crashed his bicycle. The Dresden Democrat told the Union City Daily Messenger his helmet saved his life when he crashed his bicycle in the West…

The House State and Local Government Committee has passed a bill requiring voters to show a photo ID at the polls. House Republican Caucus Chairwoman Debra Maggart of Hendersonville told the panel on Tuesday the bill is needed to prevent…

Officials say they are searching for two workers missing after a wastewater treatment failed near the Smoky Mountains in Tennessee and spilled millions of gallons of sewage. The Tennessee Emergency Management Agency says a holding tank failed Tuesday morning at…

Police say a longtime Hernando pastor arrested and charged with possession of child pornography, used a computer at the public library to view and download the material. The Commercial Appeals reports that 63-year-old Eddie Prince, pastor of Oak Grove Baptist…

The Tennessee Department of Transportation is stressing highway construction zone safety by launching TDOT SmartWay Mobile for smartphones. Gov. Bill Haslam has declared this week Work Zone Awareness Week in Tennessee. With warmer weather, more road construction and utility work along roadways is ramping up statewide. TDOT says 85 percent of those killed in work zones nationally are drivers and their passengers. Eight people died in construction zone crashes in 2010 in Tennessee. All of them were drivers or their passengers. The new SmartWay Mobile website works like an application, but there is no download and no cost for its use.

Tennessee has turned over a key lethal injection drug to the federal Drug Enforcement Agency after records show the state purchased the drugs overseas. Dorinda Carter, a spokeswoman for the Tennessee Department of Correction, told The Associated Press on Friday…

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has fined and suspended two breeders of champion Tennessee walking horses in connection with allegations that they violated the Horse Protection Act more than 10 years ago. William Bill Johnson and Sandra Johnson of Atlanta,…

A student is dead and at least 10 people were injured in the crash of a school bus and a tractor trailer on a rural Mississippi highway. Mississippi Department of Public Safety spokesman Jon Kalahar confirmed a student died in…

Former attorney Joey Langston, who was convicted in a Mississippi judicial bribery case, will be released from federal prison and be placed on home confinement on April 18. The Daily Corinthian reports U.S. District Judge Michael Mills amended Langston's sentence…

The chairman of the Tennessee Democratic Party is encouraging party supporters to attend county conventions. Chip Forrester said the conventions, held every two years, are a way "to take back Tennessee for working people." In the coming weeks, county Democratic…

A sheriff in southern Kentucky is relying on donations from businesses and other sheriff's offices to keep his department running. Whitley County Sheriff Colan Harrell is taking in the secondhand goods after his predecessor was accused of stealing more than…

Cookeville planners have voted to allow bed and breakfast establishments in most residential neighborhoods. The matter now goes to the Cookeville City Council for final approval. Under the minimum requirements, B&Bs would be allowed in a majority of single-family zones…

Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey is ruling out a rematch against Gov. Bill Haslam in 2014. Ramsey, who came in third in last year's Republican gubernatorial primary, has been at odds with the new governor on several key issues this year,…

Two tractor-trailer rigs have collided in Wilson County, closing the westbound lanes of Interstate 40. The Tennessee Department of Transportation says the crash occurred at 6 a.m. Thursday and officials don't expect the road to be cleared until afternoon. Westbound…

With an apparent deal in hand on a $5.5 billion state budget, Mississippi lawmakers will be busy the next few days ironing out details with dozens of budget-tied bills expected to move. Late Wednesday night, Lt. Gov. Phil Bryant issued…

Reelfoot Lake State Park is welcoming spring by offering half-day canoe floats through seldom explored areas of the lake. Visitors can take a three-hour canoe trip through the cypress swamp, where they'll see large fish, songbirds, owls, ducks taking flight…

The Senate has given final approval to Gov. Bill Haslam's bill to make teacher tenure more difficult to obtain. The chamber voted 21-12 on Thursday to agree with minor House changes to the measure that is a major part of…

Maj. Gen. John F. Campbell, commanding general of the 101st Airborne Division, says a tough battle in which six U.S. soldiers died on Tuesday continues in Afghanistan. Campbell spoke to reporters at Fort Campbell on a video conference from his…

The failure of a reactor coolant valve at the Tennessee Valley Authority's nuclear plant in North Alabama has raised questions about an apparent violation of Nuclear Regulatory Commission requirements. An NRC statement said TVA has been called to a Monday…

MISSISSIPPI WEATHER Possible tornado, big hail hits Mississippi JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - Authorities say wind damaged more than 40 homes in central Mississippi, hail the size of golf balls and quarters pounded some areas and heavy rains flooded roads and…