WORCESTER, Mass. – Two men are accused of burning down the birthplace of the woman made famous by the nursery rhyme “Mary Had a Little Lamb.” John Rousseau and Michael Dreslinski, who also face charges in a series of fires in central and western Massachusetts, have been held without bail …

WASHINGTON – Heading toward the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln’s birthday, President Bush on Sunday celebrated the nation’s 16th president as a man of steadfast convictions and honorable ideals. “It’s fitting that we honor Abe Lincoln,” Bush said in the ornate East Room of the White House. “Of all the successors …

DES MOINES, Iowa – Two Iowa men pleaded guilty Wednesday to marijuana charges in Canada after they fell through the ice of a partially frozen river while trying to illegally enter the country from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Daniel Rathjen, 19, of Marengo and John Lindley, 19, of Iowa City each …

WASHINGTON – Admitted Al Qaeda member Zacarias Moussaoui is asking a federal appeals court to undo his guilty plea. He says his lawyers were prohibited from discussing with him crucial evidence in his case. Moussaoui is serving a life sentence. He described himself as the so-called “20th hijacker” and says …

CHICAGO – Jailed political fundraiser Antoin “Tony” Rezko’s lawyer made an emotional plea for his release from a federal lockup Wednesday, saying he is being held in “degrading” conditions where inmates must share underwear. “It’s disgusting, judge,” chief defense counsel Joseph Duffy told U.S. District Judge Amy J. St. Eve. …

A bloody duvet stuffed into a supermarket cage bore his lifeless corpse while his severed head was found in a canal nearby, in Kilburn — just north of London. Lakhdar Ouyahia, 43, was an Algerian national. A pedestrian discovered his body, police his head, reports the BBC. Mohamed Boudjenane, 45, …

A Colombia missionary who was granted asylum by a U.S. judge in October may be deported back to her native country, where her life was being threatened, according to a MyFOXOrlando.com report. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, has appealed the asylum case because they say Janeth Reyes assisted …

MINNEAPOLIS – Maverick Thomas Werth was born on January 21, and nearly died 12 hours later when a fire started under the hood of his incubator at Mercy Hospital in Coon Rapids. More than 18 percent of his body was badly burned. His parents, Melissa and Justin Werth, told KARE-11 …

WASHINGTON – The House Intelligence Committee chairman expects a compromise soon on renewal of an eavesdropping law that could provide legal protections for telecommunications companies as President Bush has insisted. Rep. Silvestre Reyes, in a television interview broadcast Sunday, did not specifically say whether the House proposal would mirror the …

WASHINGTON – President Bush has called Russia’s new president-elect and has said he hopes to establish a close working relationship that will help them deal with important world issues. Dmitry Medvedev, the hand-picked successor of Vladimir Putin, won Russia’s presidential election with just over 70 percent of vote, according to …