SYLVESTER, Ga. – A third-grade teacher accused of slashing her wrists in front of her class and molesting students has pleaded not guilty. Georgianne Harrell (search), 24, was indicted last month on 24 charges of child molestation and reckless conduct. Her attorney entered the plea on her behalf and waived …

Whether or not a woman suffers from monthly premenstrual mood swings may be related to how her brain is wired as well as her hormones. A new study shows that women who experience no menstrual mood changes use parts of their brain differently than women who have PMS (premenstrual syndrome), …

LONDON – The United States is certain that Syrian military intelligence operatives remain in Lebanon (search) in defiance of international demands to withdraw all forces and agents, two senior U.S. officials said Thursday. Syria (search) claims all its forces quit Lebanon in April after some three decades as the dominant …

WASHINGTON – Sales of new homes in May climbed to the second highest level in history, but the median sales price fell sharply, the government reported Friday. The Commerce Department (search) said that sales of new single-family homes rose by 2.1 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate …

OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma City (search) bombing conspirator Terry Nichols was called before a federal grand jury in Denver last week but declined to testify, his ex-wife and sister said. Nichols is serving a life sentence without parole for his role in the 1995 bombing that killed 168 people, but …

A new study shows that obese teens who dieted, exercised, and took the fat-blocking pill Xenical lost more weight in a year than those who worked out, cut calories, and took a placebo pill. However, that does not make Xenical a “magic bullet” against teen obesity. The teens were asked …

Ibuprofen, naproxen, and similar pain relievers raise a person’s risk of heart attack, a new study suggests. Ibuprofen and naproxen — traditional anti-inflammatory pain relievers — have been considered more heart friendly than the new Cox-2 type of pain drugs. Two of the Cox-2 drugs, Vioxx and Bextra, have been …

WASHINGTON – Investigations by the Homeland Security Department‘s (search) internal watchdog yielded the arrests of 146 workers and grant recipients and identified $18.5 million in unsupported costs during a six-month period that began last fall. The semiannual report to Congress, issued by Homeland Security’s inspector general, details findings of 325 …

WASHINGTON – The Bush administration agreed Wednesday to ask Congress for more money to meet veterans’ health care expenses after disclosing last week a politically embarrassing $1 billion shortfall in the program. Even before the announcement by Veterans Affairs Secretary Jim Nicholson (search), the Senate scheduled a vote Wednesday on …

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – An armored car company’s offices were broken into, raising security fears, but the company said an inventory eventually showed nothing was taken. A police report had said an unknown number of armored car uniform shirts and pants, along with gun belts and holsters, were taken in a …