The family of a missing cruise ship passenger said Monday that they suspect the woman "chose an unfortunate ending to her life" and jumped from a cruise ship balcony into the waters off Mexico's coast on Christmas night.

If you hit the malls this weekend you saw that desperate retailers were slashing prices in an effort to move inventory and push shoppers to open their wallets ... but will it be enough to turn business around?

Some water samples near a massive spill of coal ash in eastern Tennessee are showing high levels of arsenic, and state and federal officials on Monday cautioned residents who use private wells or springs to stop drinking the water.

The U.S. Border patrol today reported a dramatic decrease in the numberof people caught trying to cross the border from Mexico illegally. Backin 2000, 1.6 million arrests were made. This year, the number is downto 705,000, the lowest level since

Barely one week in, winter is quickly wearing out its welcome, reportsCBS News correspondent Cynthia Bowers, especially in the PacificNorthwest, which got battered again Monday with heavy snow, rain andhigh winds.

Search teams recovered the bodies of seven snowmobilers Monday, a dayafter they were swept away by avalanches in western Canada'sbackcountry, police said. An eighth man was missing and believed dead.

Wall Street has ended an erratic session with a moderate loss ascontinuing violence in the Middle East reminded investors that themarket could face problems beyond the recession. The collapse of a DowChemical Co. joint venture, meanwhile, intensified Wall Street'seconomic worries.

Israel continued its attack on Hamas strongholds in Gaza on Monday, the third day of what the defense minister described as a "war to the bitter end." The three-day death toll rose to 370 on Monday, with some 1,400 reported

There is plenty around the country that needs fixing, reports CBS News correspondent Hari Sreenivasan. InWest Palm Beach, Judith Montrone is not waiting for the other shoe todrop. Instead, she is dropping off her shoes for repair.

The Bush administration called again Monday for a "sustainablecease-fire" in the Mideast and demands that Hamas stop its attacks onIsrael. Spokesman Gordon Johndroe told reporters in Texas thatPresident Bush had a detailed briefing early Monday by videoconferencing with Vice President

The 18-year-old daughter of former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin has given birth in Alaska to a son. Peoplemagazine reports that Bristol Palin gave birth to Tripp Easton MitchellJohnston on Sunday. He weighed 7 pounds, 4 ounces.

An Illinois legislative panel meets again Monday to debate whether or not to impeach Governor Blagojevich and it looks like they may get to see a report put together by the staff of President-elect Barack Obama.

U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald wants lawmakers to hear what Gov. Rod Blagojevich says on wiretapped phone calls.

Hollywood loves breaking box-office records, yet studio executivesaren't griping that their 2008 lineup will fall a bit shy of theall-time high set a year earlier. With the overall economy in the pits, movie moguls are just gladto have weathered the

Sculptor Robert Graham, whose massive bronze works mark civic monuments across America, died Saturday after an illness. He was 70. Graham died at the Santa Monica UCLA Medical Center and Orthopaedic Hospital with his family at his side, including his

Grammy-winning jazz musician Freddie Hubbard, whose style influenced a generation of trumpet players, has died at age 70.

Singer-songwriter-producer Delaney Bramlett, who penned such classicrock songs as "Let it Rain" and worked with musicians George Harrisonand Eric Clapton, died on Dec. 27. He was 69.

Folks who grew up as television came of age will delight in a 20-stampset included in the Postal Service's plans for 2009 recalling earlymemories of the medium. Lucy and Ethel and Joe Friday are just some of the characters that

How far would you go to demonstrate your concern for the environment? One California man is so concerned about how much garbage we generate that he's decided to live with it ... literally.