VENTURA, Calif. – “Growing Pains” (search) actress Tracey Gold (search) was placed on three years’ probation after she unexpectedly pleaded guilty to a second felony drunken driving charge in a rollover crash that injured her husband and two of her three children. Tracey Gold Marshall, 35, of Valencia had pleaded …

MANILA, Philippines – Laboratory tests show that 27 schoolchildren who died after eating cassava roots last week were poisoned with pesticide, health experts said Monday. Authorities earlier said they suspected the victims from Mabini (search) town on central Bohol island were sickened with cyanide poisoning that occurs if the starchy …

VIENNA, Austria – Austrians recognized Michael Jackson’s (search) star — the one he wore on his chest that is. The pop singer has been photographed before recent court appearances in California wearing what experts here say is the “Order of Vienna,” a medal awarded to artists, businessmen or others of …

What should parents ask themselves before handing over a cell phone to a teen or pre-teen? Educators and social scientists offer these guidelines: Q: Is the phone truly necessary? A: At most schools, a student can make a phone call during the day by just walking into the office and …

WICHITA, Kan. – The man accused of being the BTK serial killer (search) has complained about depression and asked about his family, who have not talked to him since he entered prison, his lawyers say. Dennis Rader (search), 60, is charged with 10 counts of first-degree murder in deaths that …

TALLINN, Estonia – Prime Minister Juhan Parts (search) handed in his and his government’s resignation to the president Thursday, as political parties prepared for talks to form Estonia’s (search) fourth government in six years. Parts announced his surprise resignation Monday after lawmakers passed a no-confidence vote against his justice minister. …

QUETTA, Pakistan – A bomb exploded Saturday as minority Shiite Muslims congregated at a shrine in a remote town in southwestern Pakistan (search), killing at least 27 people and wounding 18, police said. Thousands of worshippers were at the shrine of a Shiite saint near the town of Naseerabad, about …

SAN FRANCISCO – Prosecutors asked an appeals court Tuesday to reinstate a murder conviction for a woman who served two years in prison for manslaughter in the dog-mauling death of a neighbor. Separately, Marjorie Knoller‘s (search) attorneys asked the court to reverse her March 2002 conviction in the death of …

BAGHDAD, Iraq – Stories of homicide bombers or kidnappers get most of the news headlines out of Iraq (search) but U.S. officials working in the country want Americans to think about other things when they mull the millions of tax dollars spent there. U.S. and Iraqi workers are joining to …

WASHINGTON – President Bush poked fun at himself at a press corps dinner Saturday night and offered a new reason for overhauling the Social Security system. Raising the name of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld (search), Bush said, “We have to fix it or Rumsfeld may never retire.” Bush noted — …