Doctor says vendor may have been in rubble 27 days

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — A rice vendor may have lived under the rubble of a flea market for 27 days with little more than water and possibly fruit, a doctor said Tuesday, in what would be a dramatic tale of survival four weeks after Haiti's devastating earthquake.

NY Senate votes to expel convicted lawmaker

ALBANY, N.Y — The New York Senate has voted to immediately expel a senator convicted of misdemeanor assault.

Snow shuts down federal government, life goes on

WASHINGTON — If snow keeps 230,000 government employees home for the better part of a week, will anyone notice? With at least another foot of snow headed for Washington, Philadelphia and New York, we're about to find out. The federal government in the nation's capital has largely been shut down since Friday afternoon, when a storm began dumping up to 3 feet of snow in some parts of the region. Offices were remaining closed at least through Wednesday.

Calif. man convicted of killing girlfriend's son

LONG BEACH, Calif. — A jury has convicted a 23-year-old California man of killing his girlfriend's 1-year-old son.

Delta, US Airways may drop planned slot swap

ATLANTA — The government says Delta Air Lines and US Airways can swap takeoff and landing slots at airports in New York and Washington, but there's a catch: They must sell some of the slots to protect competition.

LA-area foothills under mudslide threat

LA CANADA FLINTRIDGE, Calif. — A new wave of winter rains on Tuesday washed over the wildfire-scarred foothill towns north of Los Angeles, forcing some residents to flee homes while others risked remaining to deploy shovels and buckets in an attempt to hold back the muddy deluge.

UNICEF warns against Haiti child smuggling

UNITED NATIONS — The head of UNICEF warned Tuesday that people may still be trying to smuggle children out of Haiti and said protecting youngsters who survived the earthquake is the top concern of the U.N. children's agency.

Iran boosts nuclear enrichment, drawing warnings

TEHRAN, Iran — Iranian nuclear technicians set dozens of centrifuges spinning Tuesday to begin enriching uranium stocks to a significantly higher level, prompting President Barack Obama to warn of a "significant regime of sanctions."

NYC jail chaplain released in razor blades case

NEW YORK — A grand jury declined Tuesday to indict a Muslim chaplain accused of trying to smuggle razor blades and scissors into a jail, spurring his release without bail while the case continues.

NY governor says he'll step aside only 'in a box'

ALBANY, N.Y. — New York Gov. David Paterson, defying calls from even fellow Democrats to drop out of the race for a full term, said Tuesday that he would leave only if the voters turned him out through the ballot box, or "in a box."