Month: December 2023

By JEFFREY COLLINS Associated Press COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster plans to be put under anesthesia Friday to fix a minor irregular heartbeat. The governor is being treated for atrial fibrillation where some chambers of the heart beat out of sync with others. His office says McMaster underwent a similar procedure

By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN Associated Press ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — New oil and natural gas leasing will be prohibited on New Mexico state land surrounding Chaco Culture National Historical Park for the next 20 years. State Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard signed an executive order Wednesday extending a temporary moratorium she put in place when

By CURT ANDERSON Associated Press ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — They began as the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in 1998, then shortened their name in 2007 to simply Tampa Bay Rays. Now, as plans for a new ballpark take shape, some officials in the team’s home city are talking about changing the name again to

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — The Michigan Court of Appeals won’t stop former President Donald Trump from appearing on the state’s 2024 Republican primary ballot. The court turned aside challenges from critics who argue that Trump’s role in the 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol disqualifies him. The court affirmed lower court rulings without determining whether

By RUSS BYNUM Associated Press A federal agency says a chemical leak that killed six workers at a Georgia poultry plant in 2021 could have been prevented. The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board concluded the liquid nitrogen spill at the Foundation Food Group plant in Gainesville was caused by a bent tube that

By DEE-ANN DURBIN AP Business Writer Miljenko “Mike” Grgich, a celebrated winemaker who helped establish Napa Valley as one of the world’s premier wine-making regions, has died. He was 100. Grgich died in his sleep Wednesday morning at his home in Calistoga, California, according to his winery, Grgich Hills Estate. Grgich was born on April

By KAREN MATTHEWS Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — A doctor and his wife who appeared on the Bravo reality series “Below Deck” have been arraigned on drug charges in New York for allegedly filling out bogus opioid prescriptions using the names of cast members from the show. Urologist Francis Martinis and his wife, Jessica

By JULIA FRANKEL Associated Press JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s president has joined the ranks of high-ranking Israeli officials to speak out against a two-state solution after the war in Gaza. In an interview with The Associated Press on Thursday, Isaac Herzog said it is not the time to be talking about establishing an independent Palestinian

Abortion clinics in Ohio are pushing for a court to strike down abortion restrictions now that voters have enshrined abortion rights into the state Constitution. The push comes on the heels of an amendment that Ohio voters approved last month that ensures access to abortion and other reproductive health care. It took effect last week.

By ANGELA CHARLTON Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — Ukraine has gotten a green light to start sped-up talks on joining the European Union. That’s a big boost for war-ravaged Ukraine and a loud message to Vladimir Putin. But it could be years or even decades before the countries actually become full-fledged members of the EU.

By MAURICIO SAVARESE Associated Press SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazil’s Congress has overturned a veto by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva so it can reinstate legislation that undoes protections of Indigenous peoples’ land rights. The decision sets a new battle between lawmakers and the country’s top court on the matter. Both federal deputies and

By KEVIN FREKING Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Members of the House have introduced a bill, likely the last of the year, they hope may one day stomp out Parkinson’s disease. The bill is named for Virginia Rep. Jennifer Wexton, who has the disease, and Florida Rep. Gus Bilirakis’ brother, who passed away in May

By MARK LONG AP Pro Football Writer JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — A 31-year-old former Jacksonville Jaguars financial manager accused of stealing more than $22 million from the NFL franchise through its virtual credit card program has pleaded guilty to federal charges and faces up to 30 years in prison. Amit Patel, wearing a dark suit

By LEA SKENE Associated Press BALTIMORE (AP) — More than 100 people incarcerated as children in Maryland juvenile detention facilities have sued the state alleging they endured sexual abuse from staff members decades ago. The lawsuits are made possible by a new state law that eliminated the statute of limitations for child sexual abuse claims.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Andre Braugher’s cause of death has been revealed. His publicist says Thursday that the actor died from lung cancer. The Emmy-winning actor who starred in the series “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” and “Homicide: Life on the Street” died Monday at age 61. His representatives said at the time only that he had been

By LARRY NEUMEISTER Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — A former FBI counterintelligence official has been ordered to spend over four years in prison for violating sanctions on Russia by going to work for a Russian oligarch seeking dirt on a wealthy rival. Charles McGonigal was sentenced Thursday in Manhattan federal court. Judge Jennifer H.

By MICHAEL GOLDBERG Associated Press/Report for America JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A 10-year-old Black child who urinated in a parking lot is being sentenced to three months’ probation. He also has to write a two-page book report on the late NBA star Kobe Bryant. A Tate County Youth Court judge handed down the sentence after

By STEPHEN GROVES and LISA MASCARO Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress is departing Washington without a deal to pass wartime support for Ukraine. President Joe Biden’s administration is still acing to negotiate with Senate Republicans who are demanding changes to U.S. border security policy. And the Senate plans to return next week in hopes

By TERESA M. WALKER AP Sports Writer Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies have been counting down the days until the two-time All-Star’s 25-game suspension ends. The point guard suspended for flashing a gun on social media twice in the span of three months has posted an hourglass emoji a couple times. Morant will speak

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has declined to put on hold a new Illinois law that would ban high-power semiautomatic weapons like the one used in the mass killing of seven people at a 2022 parade in a Chicago suburb. The justices did not comment Thursday in refusing an emergency appeal from a gun

By JEFF AMY Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — Lawyers for the city of Atlanta are asking an appeals court to overturn a ruling that let nonresidents collect signatures in the “Stop Cop City” effort to force a referendum on a police and fire training center. Those lawyers on Thursday asked three federal judges to kill

By WAYNE PARRY Associated Press ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — Workers angry that a proposed smoking ban in Atlantic City’s casinos seems to be going nowhere protested by lighting up during a state government hearing Thursday in Trenton. Seven members of a union representing casino dealers began smoking during a state Senate hearing that had

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The shiny, gold Nike sneakers were hard to miss in the donation pile at a shelter in Portland, Oregon, earlier this year. They were Air Jordan 3s, size 12 1/2, and one of just a few custom pairs that had been made for filmmaker Spike Lee. Now they’re up for auction,

By JACK DURA Associated Press BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — New charges approved Thursday against the 42-year-old son of U.S. Sen. Kevin Cramer included an upgraded homicide count in a crash that killed a North Dakota sheriff’s deputy. Ian Cramer initially faced a manslaughter charge related to the Dec. 6 death of Mercer County Sheriff’s Deputy

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — An Iowa man has been sentenced to 16 years in prison for a drag-racing crash that killed a 4-year-old boy. A jury in November found 48-year-old Keith Eric Jones of Des Moines guilty of homicide by vehicle, operating under the influence, reckless driving and knowingly leaving the scene of an

By ISABEL DEBRE and WAFAA SHURAFA Associated Press DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — The Israeli military has rounded up hundreds of Palestinians across the northern Gaza Strip, separating families and forcing men to strip to their underwear before trucking some to a detention camp on the beach, where they spent hours, in some cases

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Marine Corps officials have identified the Marine killed at a California base this week in a training exercise after the amphibious combat vehicle he was in rolled over earlier this week, sending 14 others to area hospitals. Officials said Thursday all but one remains hospitalized and was listed in good condition.

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A judge has released from jail a New Hampshire man accused of sending text messages threatening to kill a presidential candidate. The judge says thirty-year-old Tyler Anderson must avoid contact with any presidential candidate and their political campaigns. Anderson was charged with sending a threat using interstate commerce. A federal prosecutor

By MATTHEW PERRONE AP Health Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. officials recently seized more than 1.4 million illegal e-cigarettes from overseas manufacturers, including the company behind Elf Bar. The fruity disposable products have become the top choice among underage American teens who vape. The Food and Drug Administration pegged the value of the e-cigarettes seized

By MATTHEW DALY Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is initiating a formal evaluation of risks posed by vinyl chloride, the cancer-causing chemical that burned in a towering plume of toxic black smoke following a fiery train derailment earlier this year in eastern Ohio. The Environmental Protection Agency has said it will review

By JAKE OFFENHARTZ Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — A Manhattan jury will soon decide if Jonathan Majors is guilty of assaulting his girlfriend following two weeks of clashing narratives about whether the rising Hollywood star was the aggressor or victim during a chaotic struggle in the backseat of a car. The court case has

By LINDSEY BAHR AP Film Writer Mark Wahlberg knows as well as any parent that it’s hard to find a movie everyone in the household wants to watch – especially with teenagers around.  It’s part of the reason he latched on to “The Family Plan,” an action-comedy about a former assassin turned suburban dad whose

PARIS (AP) — French media say that a British teenager who went missing six years ago on a family holiday in Spain has been found in southwestern France. Broadcasters BFMTV and TF1 on Thursday cited the prosecutors’ office in Toulouse as saying that 17-year-old Alex Batty has been found. BFMTV said a delivery driver spotted

By LOLITA C. BALDOR Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has made his first visit to the U.S. military headquarters in Germany where allied leaders coordinate the delivery of weapons and other aid to the war effort. In a social media post after he left, he expressed optimism about getting additional American

By KEVIN FREKING Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The House passed a defense policy bill Thursday that authorizes the biggest pay raise for troops in more than two decades, overcoming objections from some conservatives concerned the measure did not do enough to restrict the Pentagon’s diversity initiatives, abortion travel policy and gender-affirming health care for

By ISABEL DEBRE and WAFAA SHURAFA Associated Press DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — The Israeli military has rounded up hundreds of Palestinians across the northern Gaza Strip, separating families and forcing men to strip to their underwear before trucking some to a detention camp on the beach, where they spent hours, in some cases