Across Georgia

Teenager charged in shooting of boy, 11

ATLANTA --- Atlanta police have charged a teen in a shooting in which an 11-year-old boy was shot in the abdomen.

Police say the 15-year-old boy pulled out the gun and waved it in a threatening manner at younger children in the home Sunday night.

It wasn't clear how the teen got the gun, which was reported stolen in Cherokee County. Police spokesman James Polite says police aren't sure whether the teen meant to fire the gun, but police believe he told the younger children not to leave the room, which led to charges of kidnapping, cruelty to children, aggravated assault and possession of a stolen weapon.

More flights on time at Hartsfield-Jackson

ATLANTA --- A new report says Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport was one of only two large airports in the U.S. that improved the number of flights on time last year.

The report by travel information service FlightStats says Hartsfield-Jackson and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in Washington state improved on-time performance. The report says 26 large airports saw more flights arrive late.

The report says 74.3 percent of the flights at Hartsfield-Jackson arrived on time in 2007, up from 72.3 percent in 2006.

Seattle's performance improved by about 1 percentage point to 73.4 percent.

Commission votes to expand landfill space

LEXINGTON --- The Oglethorpe County Commission voted Monday to help Athens-Clarke County expand the landfill both counties share.

Two commissioners -- Phil Sanders and David Clark -- voted against the agreement. They said they had reservations about some financial aspects and didn't want to use eminent domain to seize 79 acres needed for the expansion.

Mr. Clark proposed postponing a vote on the intergovernmental agreement and exploring a much larger regional landfill that would bring in more revenue.

Texas men convicted in cocaine operation

ATLANTA --- A federal jury has convicted two Texas men of cocaine trafficking for a Mexican cartel that authorities said was responsible for distributing 4,000 kilograms through Atlanta and Memphis, Tenn., over three years.

Jesus Hector Flores, 38, of Laredo, and Joe Louis Lopez, 40, of Dallas, also were convicted of possessing guns in furtherance of the drug conspiracy, the U.S. attorney's office said.

Eight others pleaded guilty earlier, and three are fugitives in the case, which was broken with arrests in November 2005 and raids on two "stash houses" in Atlanta, officials said. They said the cartel shipped cocaine from Mexico and sent back cash shipments of millions of dollars.

-- Edited from wire reports