Around the Nation

Life After Exoneration, For The Victims On Both Sides

3:34pm April 15, 2013

According to the National Registry of Exonerations, more than a thousand individual have been exonerated in the U.S. since 1989. After a wrongful conviction, the lives of both the accused and the victim are permanently altered.

Queue Listen Now

Robert Oliver, 27, dances on the corner of 28th and Crenshaw in west Los Angeles, dressed in a Statue of Liberty costume outside the offices of Liberty Income Tax.

Tax Day Is This Statue Of Liberty's Last Day Of Work

1:28pm April 15, 2013

by Nina Gregory

At the corner of Crenshaw Boulevard and 28th Street in Los Angeles, you'll find Robert Oliver wearing a Statue of Liberty costume and dancing to promote Liberty Tax Service. "I'm never embarrassed to be out here," he says. "I'm proud of what I do."

Queue Listen Now

Happy Birthday: Federal Income Tax Turns 100

1:28pm April 15, 2013

This year's IRS Form 1040 has 214 pages of instructions. When tax filing started a century ago, the 1040 had just one page of instructions.

Queue Listen Now

6 Year Old Takes Car Out To Get Chinese

1:28pm April 15, 2013

People in Lapeer, Michigan, called to report a car moving erratically. Callers said it looked like a six year old was driving. Police discovered that a six year old was driving. He'd taken the keys off the counter at home, and taught himself what to do.

Queue Listen Now

Package Delivery Halts, But Grand Canyon's Mules Trudge On

8:57am April 15, 2013

by Laura Morales

For several decades pack mules have carried mail to the bottom of the Grand Canyon, includingg postcards, letters and packages. The company that runs the mule trains says the package load has become too heavy, so it's discontinuing service April 15.

Queue Listen Now

A glass-bottomed boat glides along water in Silver Springs, Fla. The springs, once a major tourist destination, have declined both in volume and in water quality.

Now Endangered, Florida's Silver Springs Once Lured Tourists

5:24pm April 13, 2013

by Greg Allen

Countless movies were filmed there, including Tarzan and Creature From the Black Lagoon. With its wildlife and freshwater springs, Silver Springs in Central Florida was one of the state's most popular tourist destinations. Those waters have receded now as the delicate ecosystem suffers from problems that threaten the entire state.

Queue Listen Now

John Curtis with his 11-year-old son, John Wikiera.

National

Adoptive Dad Dreamed A Dream That Brought Him A Son

4:19pm April 12, 2013

by NPR Staff

John Curtis never thought he would be able to be a dad. But in 1998 he held his son against his chest. It was "like we fit," he says.

Queue Listen Now

Thick jets of processed sewage arc out 30 to 40 feet from giant moving spreaders at Birmingham Farm in Kansas City, Mo.

Cities Turn Sewage Into 'Black Gold' For Local Farms

12:07pm April 12, 2013

by Frank Morris

Cities are finding beneficial and lucrative ways to dispose of solid waste, while also helping farmers. But a lot of sewage still ends up in landfills or being processed at big, industrial incinerators.

Queue Listen Now

Texas Contractors Say Playing By The Rules Doesn't Pay

8:35pm April 11, 2013

by Wade Goodwyn

With a large labor force willing to work for low wages, construction may appear to be a lucrative field for contractors in Texas. But prices have been driven so low that many say they can't compete if they play by the rules. Instead, some misclassify their workers or turn a blind eye to undocumented laborers.

Queue Listen Now

A sportsman participates in a pigeon shoot in Pennsylvania in 2009. Animal-rights activists want to ban the tradition in the state.

National

Fair Or Foul? Pigeon Shoots Ruffle Feathers In Pennsylvania

5:49pm April 11, 2013

by Elizabeth Fiedler

Animal-rights activists in Pennsylvania are fighting to end pigeon shoots in the state. The tradition includes shooting at the birds after they're sprung from boxes into the air. Opponents call the practice "cruel," but hunters and sportsmen are wary of any step toward more regulations.

Queue Listen Now