AP - A grand jury declined Monday to indict a bus driver in connection with the deaths of 23 passengers killed in a fire that destroyed the vehicle as they fled Hurricane Rita in September.

AP - An Army officer who was cleared 10 months ago in the killings of three Iraqi civilians is facing new charges in two of the deaths.

AP - A grand jury declined Monday to indict a bus driver in connection with the deaths of 23 passengers killed in a fire that destroyed the vehicle as they fled Hurricane Rita in September.

AP - Faced with a serious and continuing decline in the number of Roman Catholic priests, the nation's bishops are acting on new guidelines for more than 30,000 lay employees who help fill the gap.

AP - Smokers got in a few last puffs in restaurants and other businesses on the eve of a partial smoking ban in a city that once was a home to top cigarette makers.

AP - FBI agents arrested a woman Tuesday who was suspected of robbing four banks in suburban Virginia while appearing to be talking on a cell phone.

AP - Peg, a 4-month-old puppy born without an ankle joint or right paw, will always have 'a little hitch in her giddyup,' says Rex Miller.

AP - Central California's Dungeness crab season started Tuesday, but that doesn't mean the tasty critters will be hauled up anytime soon. Fishermen and processors haven't been able to agree on prices.

AP - A federal judge blocked the military trial of a terrorism suspect held at Guantanamo Bay, pending a Supreme Court ruling on the legality of such proceedings.

AP - The death penalty trial of Zacarias Moussaoui will be delayed a month as lawyers for the government and the admitted al-Qaida conspirator battle over classified information in the case.

AP - An 18-year-old Pennsylvania youth accused of killing his girlfriend's parents waived extradition to his home state Tuesday, the day after he and his 14-year-old girl were arrested some 600 miles from the shooting scene.

AP - Faced with a serious and continuing decline in the number of Roman Catholic priests, the nation's bishops are acting Tuesday on new guidelines for more than 30,000 lay employees who help fill the gap.

AP - A federal judge blocked the military trial of a terrorism suspect held at Guantanamo Bay, pending a Supreme Court ruling on the legality of such proceedings.

AP - The Rev. Adrian Rogers, a three-time president of the Southern Baptist Convention and leader of a conservative takeover of the denomination, the nation's second largest, died early Tuesday in Memphis. He was 74.

AP - An 18-year-old Pennsylvania youth accused of killing his girlfriend's parents waived extradition to his home state Tuesday, the day after he and his 14-year-old girl were arrested some 600 miles from the shooting scene.

AP - The uncle and father of a Louisiana lawmaker won three no-bid contracts worth $108 million to provide temporary housing for Hurricane Katrina evacuees, stirring complaints of a sweetheart deal from rival businesses and prompting a state investigation.

AP - A teenage girl shot another girl in the chest Tuesday while they were arguing on a school bus in this Fort Lauderdale suburb, authorities said.

AP - FEMA will stop paying for hotel rooms for most evacuees of hurricanes Katrina and Rita on Dec. 1, officials said Tuesday as the agency pushed victims to find more stable housing.

AP - Authorities searched on Tuesday for two convicted murderers who escaped from the Iowa State Penitentary by using a homemade grappling hook to scale an unguarded section of the prison's limestone walls.

AP - Grizzly bears in and around Yellowstone National Park should be removed from the endangered species list after 30 years of federal protection, the Department of Interior said Tuesday.

AP - For decades, getting more students into college has been the top priority of America's higher education leaders. But what's the point, a growing number of experts are wondering, when so few who go to school finish a degree?

AP - A man who served 18 years in prison for a rape he didn't commit was charged Tuesday with killing a missing freelance photographer who had an appointment with him the last day she was seen alive.

AP - FBI agents arrested a woman Tuesday who was suspected of robbing four banks in suburban Virginia while appearing to be talking on a cell phone.

AP - Just eight days after a deadly tornado struck southwestern Indiana, emergency warning sirens wailed Tuesday morning as a storm system produced at least one funnel cloud.

AP - Montana's first bison hunt in 15 years opened at sunrise Tuesday, with a 17-year-old boy bagging the first buffalo within 90 minutes.

AP - A teenage girl shot another girl in the chest Tuesday in an argument on a school bus in this Fort Lauderdale suburb, authorities said.

AP - A man who served 18 years in prison for a rape he didn't commit was charged Tuesday with murdering a young woman who vanished after going to his salvage yard on a photography assignment.

AP - The fallen soldier's mother who drew thousands to her 26-day war protest near President Bush's Crawford ranch this summer plans to return for Thanksgiving next week, despite new county ordinances banning roadside camping.

AP - The Colorado Supreme Court said Tuesday a sheriff can refuse to release videotapes and writings made by the Columbine gunmen before the high school massacre.

AP - The uncle and father of a Louisiana lawmaker won three no-bid contracts worth $108 million to provide temporary housing for Hurricane Katrina evacuees, stirring complaints of a sweetheart deal from rival businesses and prompting a state investigation.

AP - Just eight days after a deadly tornado struck southwestern Indiana, another strong storm system rolled across the nation's midsection Tuesday, producing funnel clouds in at least three states.

AP - A Chinese-American engineer and two relatives who allegedly conspired to steal sensitive information about Navy warships and smuggle it to China were indicted Tuesday on federal charges, authorities said.

USATODAY.com - The Department of Interior will formally propose Tuesday to remove the largest group of grizzly bears in the USA from the endangered species list, marking a success in the 30-year effort to keep the continent's most feared predator from going extinct.

AP - Two children who died in separate incidents this summer at Walt Disney World were both victims of irregular heartbeats linked to natural causes, the medical examiner's office said Tuesday.

AP - Severe thunderstorms rolled across the nation's midsection late Tuesday, producing funnel clouds that tore off roofs and destroyed or damaged buildings in at least four states.