O’Reilly Auto says 3rd-qtr profit more than doubles on higher sales, greater buying power

O’Reilly Automotive 3Q profit more than doubles

Bob Barker gives Mo. alma mater $1 million to promote animal rights curriculum

Bob Barker donates $1M for animal rights professor

Mohegan Sun promises thousands of new jobs if proposed casino in western Mass. approved

Mohegan Sun plugs jobs for proposed Mass. casino

Mohegan Sun holds forum to promote proposed casino in western Massachusetts

Mohegan Sun promotes proposed casino in Mass.

Police say a Mass. woman flashes $27,000 in cash at a bar, then gets robbed

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — Massachusetts police say they are searching for two men suspected of robbing a woman of $27,000 after she flashed the cash in a Springfield bar. Sgt. John Delaney said on Friday that the 22-year-old woman was robbed Monday night by two men wearing dark clothing and bandanas, one armed with what appeared to be a semiautomatic handgun.

2 accused of setting Mass. church fire after Obama election plead not guilty in 2003 home fire

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — Two of the men charged with setting a Springfield church fire after President Barack Obama’s election have pleaded not guilty to state charges in a 2003 house fire.

Ill. treasurer announces Springfield hotel taken over by state to be sold at auction in Dec.

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — A beleaguered and debt-ridden hotel in downtown Springfield will be auctioned in December, the state treasurer announced Tuesday.

Mass. police say victim finds man accused of stealing her wallet applying for job

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — Police said a man accused of stealing a woman’s wallet was tracked down by his alleged victim after he made his getaway on a bus and later tried to fill out a job application. Springfield Capt. Lee Bennett said Thursday that Demot Weaver robbed the woman as she was pulling out money for the fare at a bus stop.

With 1 ex-gov. in prison, another indicted, Ill. voters may get chance to recall governors

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — With one former Illinois governor in prison and another facing corruption charges, the state’s Senate decided Thursday to let voters choose whether they want the power to recall crooked governors in the future.

Obama says he’ll explore every possible avenue to create jobs, grow the economy

SPRINGFIELD, Va. — Standing at the site of a highway project funded by his economic stimulus plan, President Barack Obama said Wednesday he is committed to exploring all avenues to create jobs.

Ill. treasure hunt halted after author of cryptic note turns out to be prolific prankster

ST. LOUIS — An Illinois woman who set out on a treasure hunt for buried gold coins after finding a cryptic note in an antique rocking chair may have been the victim of a prolific prankster who died more than 30 years ago.

Men charged with burning Mass. church in response to president’s election face new charges

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — Two white men charged with torching a predominantly black Massachusetts church in response to President Barack Obama’s election have been indicted in an earlier fire.

Ill. woman presses on with treasure hunt sparked by mysterious note found in antique chair

ST. LOUIS — Patty Henken always thought she found great value in the rickety rocking chair when she plunked down $200 for it at an auction, figuring she could restore the century-old relic to its former charm.

Ill. woman continues search for hidden treasure after finding mysterious note in antique chair

QUINCY, Ill. — A western Illinois postal worker’s hunt for supposedly buried treasure continues in Springfield. Patty Henken launched the search recently when she was refinishing an antique chair and found a key in an envelope with a note promising $250 in U.S. gold coins buried in a chest in Springfield.

2 men accused in unrelated plots to detonate bombs outside Ill. courthouse, Texas office tower

CHICAGO — Two men unconnected to each other or to the investigation that has spawned recent national terrorism warnings are in federal custody after attempting to detonate what they thought were bombs outside an Illinois courthouse and a Texas skyscraper, authorities said.

Jordanian man arrested on charges he plotted to bomb office tower in downtown Dallas

DALLAS — A 19-year-old Jordanian man living in Texas was arrested Thursday on charges he intended to bomb a downtown Dallas skyscraper, federal officials said.

Man charged with plot to bomb Springfield, Ill., federal courthouse, kill employees

CHICAGO — A 29-year-old man who idolized American-born Taliban soldier John Walker Lindh has been arrested after attempting to set off what he thought was a powerful bomb in a van outside a federal courthouse in the Illinois capital of Springfield, officials said Thursday.

Illinois Supreme Court OKs couple’s wills that disinherit grandchildren who marry non-Jews

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Proud of his religion and worried about its future, Chicago dentist Max Feinberg wrote a will with an unusual catch: His grandchildren wouldn’t inherit a penny if they married someone who wasn’t Jewish.

Correction: Postal worker theft story

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — In a Sept. 22 story about a postal worker pleading guilty to stealing Netflix DVDs, The Associated Press misstated the number of DVDs stolen. Myles Weathers pleaded guilty to stealing more than 3,000 DVDs, not 30,000.

Mass. postal worker pleads guilty to stealing 30,000-plus DVDs sent by Netflix to customers

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — A former postal service employee has pleaded guilty to stealing more than 30,000 DVDs that moved through a western Massachusetts post office.

Health care overhaul plans provoking fears, worries among older Americans already on Medicare

SPRINGFIELD, Va. — Turns out you can fear a government takeover of health care even if the government already took over your health care.