The Sunrise News Sampler

Thursday, January 23, an informational meeting will be held in the Tuscaloosa Career and Technology Academy Lecture Hall for parents to receive information on the Tuscaloosa Magnet Schools and University Place. Applications for both are currently being accepted, with the window remaining open until Friday, January 31.

Capital defense lawyers are opposing proposals by Attorney General Luther Strange and victims advocates to streamline appeals in death penalty cases, which they say could result in Alabama executing innocent people.

Today, the House is expected to approve a short-term funding bill that would give the Senate until midnight Saturday to finish an overall spending bill that would pay for the operations of government through October.

According to the Commerce Department, retail sales rose 0.2 percent last month, with more money being spent on clothing and online. However, Americans cut back almost everywhere else to thend the holiday shopping season on a lackluster note.

Police near Tampa, FL say an argument over texting in a movie theater triggered a retired cop to fatally shoot a man who sat in front of him.

"Octomom" Nadya Suleman has been charged with welfare fraud after allegedly failing to report nearly $30,000 in earnings.

Yesterday, actress/singer Ashlee Simpson and Diana Ross's son, actor Evan Ross, announced that they're engaged.