Annmarie Fertoli

A federal judge in Virginia has declared part of the nation's new health care law unconstitutional.

Columbia University has suspended three of its fraternities after five students were arrested earlier this week on drug charges. The university has announced an interim suspension for chapters of Alpha Epsilon Pi, Pi Kappa Alpha and Psi Upsilon.

Two men are facing charges of robbery and assault as hate crimes for allegedly attacking a Muslim man on a subway platform near Canal Street Wednesday morning.

The Senate has voted down a repeal of the 17-year ban, in a vote of 57 to 40.

The city's public advocate is trying to put pressure on negligent landlords who fail to provide heat and hot water to their tenants. Bill de Blasio said that last year, New Yorkers called in more than 114,000 complaints. "Many of those indicate a situation that goes on for days or weeks or more," de Blasio said. "It's just not acceptable in a city like this to have so many New Yorkers facing this problem." Complaints were scattered throughout the city, but the highest number came from the Bronx and Brooklyn.

New Jersey's first black bear hunt in five years is underway. The state's Department of Environmental Protection says the hunt is part of a larger plan -- which includes public education, research and waste management -- to reduce the growing bear population and the number of complaints against them.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has announced an agreement with Assemblyman Reed Gusciora over the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes. The deal allows six alternative treatment centers to grow and distribute the drug. Christie had originally wanted four centers to serve as dispensaries and only two to serve as growers. As part of the deal, satellite locations and home delivery of marijuana will not be permitted under the state's program, which is administered by the Department of Health and Senior Services.

The Senate Armed Services Committee held hearing on the Pentagon's study of the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy.

A 3.9 magnitude earthquake shook the New York City region earlier today.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is condemning the release of millions of documents by the group WikiLeaks. According to The Associated Press, WikiLeaks has begun posting documents online, and ultimately plans to release more than 250,000 documents.

President Barack Obama has announced a two-year pay freeze for all civilian federal employees. He made the announcement from the White House on Monday.

Ireland has released a new budget plan, designed to save the country billions of dollars over the next four years. Details of the plan come days after the country applied for a multi-billion dollar rescue loan from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund.

The holidays are often a time when more people consider volunteering. So many, in fact, that volunteer organizations sometimes have to turn them away.

South Korea is on a high level of alert, after a conflict with North Korea left two South Korean marines and two civilians dead.

Incumbent Senator Lisa Murkowski has been declared the winner of Alaska's U.S. Senate race. But her opponent Joe Miller, who defeated her in the Republican primary, has yet to concede.

President Barack Obama has awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor to Army Staff Sergeant Salvatore Giunta.

During a speech at the White House on Tuesday, the president noted that it was the first time in nearly 40 years that a recipient of the award has been able to receive it in person.

Next month, New Jersey will hold its first black bear hunt in five years. The state's Department of Environmental Protection says the black bear population in northern New Jersey is about 3,500 — and decade ago, that number was under 1,000. DEP Spokesman Larry Ragonese said New Jersey received more than 3,000 bear complaints last year, ranging from minor nuisance calls to aggressive behavior.

According to the state Labor Department, unemployment benefits could run out for about 190,000 New Yorkers by the end of the year, and for thousands more by May of 2011.

Some local lawmakers are opposing Mayor Michael Bloomberg's appointment of Cathie Black as the city's new schools chancellor. Brooklyn Councilman Charles Barron, who held an event at City Hall on Thursday, said Black isn't right for the job.

The Archdiocese of New York has identified 32 of its 185 Catholic schools as "at risk,” meaning they could lose their subsidies at the end of the year. Spokesman Joseph Zwilling said a committee of parents, pastors, and education officials took many factors into account -- including the proximity of neighboring Catholic schools -- to determine which schools were in danger.