Jim Burress

An estimated 100,000 college basketball fans are in Atlanta, ready to cheer on their teams in the NCAA Basketball Final Four.

The games are Saturday, but lots of fans were hanging out at the Georgia Dome Friday, enjoying open practices.  

Wichita State fan Jennifer Green says she wouldn't miss it. 

“Every flight out of Wichita is booked solid," she says.  "It’s awesome."

This is the first Final Four for the Shockers in 48 years, and even though they're the underdogs, Green has confidence they'll beat Louisville. 

We’ll soon learn when former Atlanta Public School superintendent Beverly Hall will face arraignment on criminal charges related to the worst cheating scandal in the nation’s history.

And it's possible Hall’s health will influence how a trial plays out.

In an interview this week with WABE’s Denis O’Hayer, one of Hall’s attorneys, J. Tom Morgan, confirmed the former superintendent’s health is suffering.

Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines has seen steep drops in its stock prices this week, as Wall Street falling out of love with most US carriers.

Delta revised down its quarterly outlook this week, blaming a drop-off in late bookings.   

The airline says across-the-board federal budget cuts are partly responsible for the softening demand.  

Delta’s not alone.

US Airways on Wednesday said its March was flat for the same reason, although its stock only fell by about a percent. 

Of the 365,000 teens who gave birth in the US in 2010, almost 20% involved mothers who already had at least one child, says a new report from the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  

The good news is that number has fallen to a 20-year low.

But the figure still concerns Dr. Lee Warner with the CDC’s Division of Reproductive Health.

If a mother is stressed during pregnancy, does that increase the likelihood of a stillbirth?

That's what researchers from Emory University and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development wanted to examine. 

For the study, they looked at some 600 stillbirths and 180 live births from across the US.

Dr. Carol Hogue led the study for Emory. She says they looked for specific stressors.  

A statewide law bans smoking in most indoor, public places. 

In Atlanta, that ban even applies to parks.  But efforts over the years to extend a ban to include bars and nightclubs have failed.

One reason: bar and club owners say their business would suffer. 

That’s what Brian Maloof said in 2005 when lawmakers were considering banning indoor smoking state-wide.

Look at the crime stats for Atlanta’s Zone 2, which includes Buckhead, and you can understand why residents are concerned.

In January, robberies were up 440% compared to a year ago.  Aggravated assaults increased 200%.  Auto theft, up 22%. 

To help combat crime, Atlanta Police Dept. officers set up a traffic stop Thursday night on Lenox Road.

Former Georgia Congressman Bob Barr said Thursday he wants to return to Capitol Hill.

The Republican turned Libertarian Presidential candidate turned Republican again is running to replace Phil Gingrey, who on Wednesday announced he'll seek the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Saxby Chambliss.  

Barr, who's a staunch gun rights advocate and has served on the board of the National Rifle Association, made the announcement at Adventure Outdoors in Smyrna.

The US Supreme Court Wednesday heard arguments on whether a provision limiting federal benefits under the Defense of Marriage Act is constitutional.

Five air traffic control towers in Georgia will close next month due to across the board federal spending cuts know as sequestration.

They are: McCullom Field in Kennesaw, Briscoe Field in Lawrenceville, and Southwest Georgia Regional in Albany.  Each handles primarily business and general aviation traffic.

Airport towers in Macon and Athens will also close. And while they too primarily handle business and general aviation traffic, the airports also support regularly-scheduled commercial flights.