Associated Press

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - A winter storm has caused a multi-vehicle pileup on an Interstate 70 bridge in central Missouri on but mostly missed a parade to celebrate the Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl win. The National Weather Service initially predicted 2 inches to 3 inches (5.08 to 7.62 centimeters) of snowfall Wednesday along the parade route. But National Weather Service meteorologist Jimmy Barham said the storm shifted slightly, sparring fans from all but a few flurries.

ST. LOUIS (AP) - The St. Louis Circuit Attorney's Office has dismissed more than a dozen charges against one of five men indicted in a series of homicides and shootings but plans to refile them later. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that Marquise Henderson had been set for trial this week in the 3 1/2 year old case. Among the charges that were dismissed when a judge denied the state's request to postpone the trial were three counts of first-degree murder. Two of the killings happened on Jan. 10, 2016, and the third occurred eight days later.  

ST. LOUIS (AP) - Prosecutors say a Missouri dentist was sentenced Wednesday to 18 months in prison and fined $50,000 after admitting he illegally prescribed drugs for a woman despite being aware she had a drug problem and a history of mental illness. The U.S. attorneys office says Bradley Seyer, of Florissant, pleaded guilty in June to two felony charges of making false statements to Medicare and illegally issuing prescriptions for narcotic opioids without a legitimate medical purpose.  

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) - A Missouri man at the heart of a state Supreme Court case that overturned what critics called modern-day debtors' prisons is suing the local officials who put him there. Lawyers for 65-year-old Warrensburg resident George Richey sued St. Clair County officials Tuesday. Richey is one of two Missouri men who sued over boarding costs for time spent in county jails. Those are commonly referred to as board bills. Supreme Court judges last year ruled unanimously that while inmates are responsible for those costs, judges cannot send people back to jail for not paying.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - A cleanup effort is underway in Jefferson City after about 1,100 gallons of a mud that is used to lubricate and cool cutting tools spilled into a stormwater culvert that feeds into the Moreau River. The Jefferson City News-Tribune reports that the spill happened on Jan. 27 during the ongoing replacement of about 30 miles of pipeline for Phillips 66. The pipelines carry propane and butane to customers in Missouri and Illinois.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Hundreds of thousands of Kansas City Chiefs fans braved sub-freezing wind chills to celebrate the team's first Super Bowl victory in 50 years. If head coach Andy Reid is to be believed, they'll be back for an encore next year. Fans lined the 2-mile parade route on Wednesday to thank their football heroes for bringing the Lombardi Trophy back to Kansas City and ending a Super Bowl drought that began after the Chiefs won Super Bowl IV in 1970.

MAGNOLIA, Ark. (AP) - The Columbia County Sheriff's Office says a homicide investigation is underway after two people were found dead in a burning car in southern Arkansas. The car fire was reported Monday afternoon in a rural area of Columbia County. The Banner-News reports that police are investigating the deaths as homicides, but few details have been released, including a cause of death.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Arkansas' finance office says the state's January revenue remained above forecast and above the same month last year. The Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration said Tuesday that the revenue was helped by higher-than-expected corporate income and sales tax collections. Arkansas has accumulated a surplus of roughly $94 million since the fiscal year that began July 1. The department says individual income tax collections in January were above the same month last year but below forecast.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Former Arkansas governor and senator David Pryor and his son, former senator Mark Pryor, are supporting Joe Biden's bid for the Democratic presidential nomination. The former vice president's campaign announced the endorsements from the Pryors on Tuesday. Arkansas is holding its primary on March 3 along with more than a dozen other states. David Pryor served as Arkansas governor from 1975 to 1979 and went on to serve three terms in the U.S. Senate. Mark Pryor served two terms in the Senate before losing re-election in 2014.  

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - An Arkansas judge has approved an agreement that will allow new tests of fingerprint and DNA evidence that two groups say could exonerate a man executed in 2017. Pulaski County Circuit Judge Wendell Griffen approved the agreement between the city of Jacksonville and the sister of Ledell Lee, who was executed for the 1993 slaying of Debra Reese. The American Civil Liberties Union and the Innocence Project had sued the city seeking the release of the evidence.

Universities all over the world are scrambling to assess the risks to their programs from China's virus outbreak. Some are canceling study-abroad opportunities and prohibiting travel affecting hundreds of thousands of students. In the U.S., the cancellations add to the tension between two governments whose relations were already sour. The scare also threatens to cause lasting damage to growing academic exchange programs that reached new heights over the last decade and a half. China sends far more students to the U.S. than any other country, more than 369,000 in the last academic year.

MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) - Bernie Sanders says he raised a whopping $25 million in January and will use his Democratic presidential campaign's flush bank account to increase television and digital advertising in 10 states. The Vermont senator spent $50 million during the final three months of 2019 and finished the year with $18.2 million in cash on hand. Sanders' campaign manager announced Thursday the candidate will immediately increase staffing in states that vote during the Democratic primary's Super Tuesday, on March 3.

EL PASO, Texas (AP) - A winter storm is bringing snowfall as far south as El Paso, Texas, while areas of the Deep South are at risk of severe weather including tornadoes and torrential rains. The National Weather Service says winter storm warnings and advisories are in effect from eastern New Mexico to the St. Louis metropolitan area on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the Storm Prediction Center says severe storms are possible across much of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama later in the day.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Tennessee's annual estimated cost for needed public infrastructure improvements is at least $54.8 billion. The Tennessee Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations report says the estimate is up by $4.8 billion - or around 9.7% - from last year. Transportation and utilities needs are the most expensive at $29.6 billion for projects that need to be in some development stage from July 2018 through June 2023, an increase of more than $3.7 billion. The second largest is $14.2 billion needed for education infrastructure.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Disgraced former Tennessee House Speaker Glen Casada has confirmed he will run for reelection this year. Casada made the announcement Tuesday on a social media post. The 60-year-old Casada, a Republican from Franklin, has been a state lawmaker since 2003. He won nearly 70% of the vote against his Democratic opponent in 2018. Casada resigned from the top leadership post in August after revelations he exchanged sexually explicit text messages about women with his former chief of staff years ago.  

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Civil rights activists are challenging a Tennessee court rule that says people who have been jailed can't get their bail bond deposit back when their case is finished until court costs and other fees are removed first. The American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee, Civil Rights Corps and Choosing Justice Initiative announced Wednesday that they had sued Davidson County in federal court. It's Tennessee's second largest county and it includes Nashville.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Almost three dozen big companies and more than 100 small businesses in Tennessee are predicting economic backlash from a newly enacted adoption state law and other proposals that target LGBT people. A letter from the likes of Amazon, Nike and Nissan to state officials offers the most wide-spanning rebuke to date of the law signed by Republican Gov. Bill Lee. Representatives from Dell, Warner Music Nashville, Postmates, Nashville Soccer Club spoke at a Nashville news conference announcing the letter.

BENTONVILLE, Ark., Sept. 16, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Walton Family Foundation Board Chair Carrie Walton Penner announced the selection of Caryl M. Stern as the foundation's new executive director. Stern is a dynamic change-maker with deep experience in serving others. Recognized as one of the most respected nonprofit leaders in the country, Stern will lead the foundation known for creating access to opportunity for people and communities.

The Associated Press is making this 2020 Candidate tracker available as another round of debates nears. You can view candidate bios and compare policy positions to help you understand the different candidates better.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Authorities say two people, including a sheriff's deputy, were killed Thursday in a shooting in rural northern Arkansas.

Arkansas State Police spokesman Bill Sadler said Stone County Sheriff's deputy Sergeant Mike Stephen, 56, was killed as he was responding to a call in Leslie when a suspect opened fire. Leslie is about 77 miles (124 kilometers) north of Little Rock.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — An Arkansas judge who participated in an anti-death penalty demonstration the same day he blocked the state from using a lethal injection drug wants state Supreme Court justices to disqualify themselves from hearing his request to handle execution-related cases again.

The Associated Press has provided a copy of the redacted Mueller Report concerning Russia's involvement in the 2016 Presidential election.  You can read the full report below.

POCAHONTAS, Ark. (AP) — Alcohol sales are now legal in a northeastern Arkansas county after residents approved a measure to lift a 70-year-old ban on sales.

The Jonesboro Sun reports that Randolph County began selling alcohol again this week. The county banned the sale of alcohol in the early 1940s. Voters in November approved a measure allowing alcohol sales after multiple legalization attempts.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — The Arkansas Racing Commission has approved regulations for the state's new casinos, including one that could affect plans for a casino in Pope County.

The panel on Thursday approved the regulations, which will be reviewed by state lawmakers next week.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — The Arkansas House has voted to ban employers in the state from requiring their employees to be implanted with a microchip.

The House on Thursday approved by an 84-4 vote a bill that would ban employers from requiring an implant as a condition of employment. The measure would only allow microchipping if the employee gives written consent, and employers would be responsible for the cost of implanting and removing the chip.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — The Arkansas Department of Human Services says it will distribute February's food stamp benefits early as a result of the partial government shutdown.