Free Republic

GOP senator who vowed to quit turns independent THE PADUCAH SUN PADUCAH - State Sen. Bob Leeper said he will stay in the Senate until at least this summer but will change his political registration from Republican to independent. He said not being a part of the Republican caucus will allow him to think issues through more clearly "without the political spin" of the party leaders. "I want to make it clear that the change in no way is a reflection on the Republican Party's philosophies," Leeper said. "I continue to support what they believe in." Friday, Leeper became frustrated...

College student says he was trying to expose security weaknesses ... A North Carolina college student who hid box cutters on airplanes to expose weaknesses in airline security was sentenced Thursday to two years of supervised probation and fined $500. Nathaniel Heatwole of Damascus, Md., a student at Guilford College in Greensboro, N.C., also must serve 100 hours of community service and reimburse his parents for up to $500 in legal expenses under the sentence imposed by U.S. District Judge Paul Grimm.