SANTA ANA, Calif. – Investigators found DNA from the tears of a 5-year-old girl inside a car that belonged to the man now charged with her kidnap and murder, a prosecutor said Monday in the opening statements of the man’s trial. Assistant District Attorney David Brent (search) said investigators found …

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The widow of Democratic Rep. Robert T. Matsui (search) was the odds-on favorite in a 12-way special election Tuesday for her husband’s seat in Congress. Doris Matsui could become the nation’s 45th widow since 1923 to go to Capitol Hill upon the death of her husband. The …

WASHINGTON – Support for President Bush’s plan to create personal Social Security (search) retirement accounts which might include stocks or mutual funds has dropped over the last month among Americans under age 30, according to a poll released Thursday. Young adults have been the strongest supporters of the proposal for …

Anthrax, a dangerous bacteria that can be deadly, has been used as a tool of domestic terror. Here are some questions and answers about it: • How do people get anthrax? In any of three ways: when bacterial spores land on a scratch or other broken skin; when spores of …

WASHINGTON – President Bush (search) announced Wednesday that he intends to recommend that Defense Deputy Secretary Paul Wolfowitz (search) take over as head of the World Bank. “He’s a man of good experience … Paul is committed to development. He’s a compassionate, decent man who will do a fine job …

NEW YORK – A veteran “60 Minutes” (search) staffer sued CBS on Wednesday for alleged age discrimination and defamation, charging that the network used the flawed report on President Bush’s National Guard service as an excuse to try to ease her out. Esther Kartiganer (search), 67, filed the lawsuit on …

NEW YORK – Stocks retreated Tuesday as bellwether Intel Corp. and insurance giant AIG’s losses dragged on blue chips, offsetting a solid rise in retail sales and better-than-expected quarterly results from Lehman Brothers. The Dow Jones industrial average (search) was down 59.41 points, or 0.55 percent, at 10,745.10. The Standard …

LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Authorities in Stockton, Calif., are looking for a 12-year-old girl who was allegedly kidnapped by a man who had been renting a room and living at her family’s home. Officials issued an Amber Alert late Wednesday for Juana Martinez (search), described as a 5′ 3″, 110-pound …

While the Vatican (search) expresses optimism Pope John Paul II (search) will rebound from his latest health crisis, outside medical experts give a grimmer long-term view, saying the pontiff’s Parkinson’s disease puts him on the path of a steady — and perhaps rapid — decline. The 84-year-old pope was rushed …

BAGHDAD, Iraq – Umm Ali says militants killed her son last month for the most unlikely of reasons: He trims men’s beards. In Baghdad’s Dora neighborhood, residents say Sunni Muslim extremists (search) have made barbers the new hunted, accusing them of violating a strict reading of Islamic teachings that say …