NATION IN BRIEF

Judge in Atlanta Resigns From Courthouse-Shooting Case

ATLANTA -- The judge presiding over the murder case of the man charged with killing four people in a 2005 shooting rampage that began inside a courthouse said Wednesday that he is stepping down from the case.

Superior Court Judge Hilton Fuller cited recent media reports referring to a New Yorker magazine article quoting him as saying of the defendant, Brian Nichols: "Everyone in the world knows he did it." The quote was made in the context that Nichols's attorneys were employing an insanity defense.

Fuller, a retired DeKalb County judge who was asked to take the Nichols case after all Fulton County judges recused themselves, has been criticized for decisions in the case related to defense funding issues.

Astronauts Take Risks to Fix Space Station

CAPE CANAVERAL -- The international space station's two American astronauts went on a riskier-than-usual spacewalk that lasted seven hours. They replaced a motor needed to tilt a solar wing toward the sun, taking extra precautions to avoid being shocked. The tilting mechanism stopped working in early December, exacerbating a power problem that arose three months earlier when a solar wing's rotating joint jammed and had to be shut down.

To avoid being shocked, Commander Peggy Whitson and flight engineer Daniel Tani performed virtually the entire job in the darkness of night, pausing during the daytime swings around Earth when 160 volts of electricity would course through the cables connected to the electric motor they were replacing.

Detroit Mayor Pleads for Forgiveness

DETROIT -- Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick pleaded for forgiveness from his family and his constituents and vowed to remain mayor in an emotional televised speech, his delayed response to recently revealed racy text messages that contradict his sworn testimony that he did not have a physical relationship with a key aide.

He did not specify, however, what he was apologizing for, saying legal matters prevented him from doing so. A prosecutor is investigating whether the mayor and chief of staff Christine Beatty lied under oath during a whistle-blower's lawsuit last summer in which both denied having a physical relationship. A conviction of lying under oath can bring up to 15 years' imprisonment.