PARADISE, Calif. – One person was found dead inside a burned-out house Friday after a wind-fueled wildfire swept through a rural community in the Sierra Nevada foothills, a rare human casualty among the hundreds of blazes that have tormented the state for weeks. Investigators believe the person died in the …

BERLIN – Bettina Schardt knew that the combination of drugs she drank in the living room of her home in Wuerzburg last week would kill her, and she died alone. But this was no ordinary suicide. A German doctor told her just the right formula of antimalarial drugs and tranquilizers …

WANTAUGH, N.Y. – Cue the ominous theme music. Visitors to Zach’s Bay in Jones Beach State Park were banned from swimming after a shark sighting on Thursday morning. George Gorman, deputy regional director for the state parks, said the fish was believed to be a thresher shark, about 4 to …

WASHINGTON – Across Capitol Hill, Democratic-led committees Wednesday weighed punishments for past and present Bush administration officials for a range of alleged misdeeds, from discriminating against liberals at the Justice Department to blowing off subpoenas and lying to Congress. The proceedings were the latest congressional review of the White House, …

BARCELONA, Spain – Parents of twins are more likely to have mental health problems than those of single-born babies, researchers said Monday, but some questioned how important the difference really was. In a small study that tracked the parents of about 100 twins and more than 700 single-born babies, Finnish …

TOYAKO, Japan – President Bush, who backs U.N. sanctions against Zimbabwe, urged the international community on Monday to come together on ways to punish its president, Robert Mugabe, who is accused of using violence to win votes and quash his political opposition. At the Group of Eight summit of industrialized …

DENVER – A man accused of firing a bullet into a home that killed two people at a New Year’s celebration told investigators he was shooting at a streetlight, according to police documents released Wednesday. Pedro Cortez, 25, was arrested hours after the shooting on two counts of first-degree murder. …

This is a rush transcript from “On the Record ,” January 1, 2008. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated. GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, HOST: A just hours ago, we sat down with Governor Mitt Romney, or actually we could say we drove around, we …

This is a rush transcript from “Hannity & Colmes,” January 9, 2008. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated. SEAN HANNITY, “HANNITY & COLMES” CO-HOST: In a surprising twist, Barack Obama lost to Hillary Clinton in the New Hampshire primary last night. Early exit …

HAVANA – Fidel Castro looked frail but alert and even playful in a series of official photographs taken during a meeting with Brazil’s president on Tuesday, the first images of the ailing Cuban leader released in about three months. Wearing a tracksuit and tennis shoes that have become his trademark …