AP - Jurors in the murder trial of a former University of Virginia lacrosse player began deliberating Wednesday whether he battered his ex-girlfriend to death in a drunken, jealous rage or if his intent to talk with her spiraled out of control, leaving her bleeding and dying in her bedroom.

AP - The Supreme Court appears to be sharply divided over a law that makes it a crime to lie about having been awarded top military honors.

AP - Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner says the current business tax system is bad for business and for job creation and says a plan by President Barack Obama to reduce corporate tax rates would make the tax system more globally competitive.

AP - Americans living and working in New Jersey's largest city were subjected to surveillance as part of the New York Police Department's effort to build databases of where Muslims work, shop and pray. The operation in Newark was so secretive even the city's mayor says he was kept in the dark.

AP - A comic collection that includes a staggering array of some of the most prized issues ever published was headed for auction Wednesday in New York City, where it was expected to fetch more than $2 million.

AP - Julio Gerena is in a wheelchair, his long career in the U.S. Navy and Army forever behind him. But the 52-year-old recaptured some of the old military camaraderie while peeling potatoes and chopping cilantro in a crowded kitchen.

Reuters - U.S. home resales surged in January to a 1-1/2 year high and the supply of properties on the market was the lowest in almost seven years, pointing to a nascent housing recovery.

AP - Europe has endured the pain of layoffs, wage cuts and tax increases designed to bring government debt under control.

AP - Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is trying to ramp up diplomatic efforts against Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime on a trip to North Africa this week, as some countries begin to explore the possibility of arming Syria's rebels.

AP - The mayor faced off with the president of Yale University on Tuesday over an effort by the city's police department to monitor Muslim student groups for any signs that their members harbored terrorist sympathies.

AP - Texas authorities said Tuesday they removed 11 children from a crowded home where a registered sex offender lives after they found eight confined in a small, dark bedroom with restraints tying some to their beds.

AP - Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s business offers valuable insight into how Americans are reacting in the slow economic recovery: they will spend, but only if they believe they're getting the lowest prices.