WASHINGTON — Three State Department officials resigned under pressure Wednesday, less than a day after a damning report blamed management failures for a lack of security at the U.S. diplomatic … more

WASHINGTON — Battling tears, the father of one of the first-graders slain at the December elementary school massacre in Connecticut pleaded with senators on Wednesday to ban assault weapons like … more

LOS ANGELES — Ben Affleck's "Argo," a film about a fake movie, has earned a very real prize: best picture at the Academy Awards. From the White House, First Lady Michelle Obama joined Jack … more

A man with a history of theft and weapons convictions gunned down two police officers investigating possible drug activity in a Kansas grocery parking lot, and was later killed after an armed … more

CANTON, Ohio — A taxpayer is challenging an Ohio judge’s decision that a $5,000 fine paid by a former high school basketball coach who videotaped boys in a locker room shower should go to a … more

A Chechen immigrant was shot to death by authorities while being questioned in the Boston Marathon bombing investigation early Wednesday after he lunged at an FBI agent with a knife, officials … more

PROVIDENCE — Former Rhode Island Rep. Patrick Kennedy says he’s established a group to lobby against legalized marijuana. The ex-congressman says efforts around the United States to legalize … more

SALT LAKE CITY — After considerable debate Monday, the Utah House of Representatives approved legislation making it illegal for Utah drivers to smoke in their cars if they have a child as a … more

PAULS VALLEY — It may have taken 46 years, but one boy’s postcard has made it home to Mom. Bert Jacobson sent the postcard to his mother in Pauls Valley, Okla., in January 1967, when he was 13 … more

MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin’s domestic partnership registry is constitutional, a state appeals court ruled in a decision released Friday that marks a major victory for the state’s largest gay … more