Month: March 2024

PANAMA CITY, Panama (AP) — Panama’s Electoral Tribunal has disqualified former president Ricardo Martinelli’s candidacy in the country’s May 5 presidential election because of a 10-year prison sentence for money laundering he received last year. Martinelli, a supermarket tycoon who was president of Panama from 2009 to 2014, was convicted last July of money laundering

By JOHN LEICESTER Associated Press PARIS (AP) — For the Paris Olympics, it could almost be a new sport: Score points by hunting down mosaics that a mystery artist who calls himself “Invader” has cemented to walls across France’s capital, the world and even had carried aloft to the International Space Station. Vincent Giraud, one

By WILL WEISSERT Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and Republican Donald Trump are poised to have the biggest day of the primary campaign move them to the brink of winning their party’s presidential nominations and set up a historic rematch that many voters would rather not endure. Super Tuesday elections are being

By JEFFREY COLLINS Associated Press Primaries in North Carolina will mark an exceptional change in the state’s U.S. House delegation. Dozens of Republicans are competing for five of North Carolina’s 14 congressional seats on Super Tuesday. Some turnover can be attributed to redistricting. The Republican-controlled General Assembly approved districts skewing rightward, prompting three Democrats to

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama Republicans will choose who they want to replace the retiring chief justice of the state Supreme Court. Justices drew national attention last month for their decision to recognize frozen embryos as children. The Republican primary has pitted Sarah Stewart, a current associate justice on the Alabama Supreme Court, against Bryan

By GARY D. ROBERTSON Associated Press RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina primary voters are choosing potential successors to term-limited Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper. Five Democrats and three Republicans were competing Tuesday for their parties’ gubernatorial nominations in the nation’s ninth-largest state. Democratic Attorney General Josh Stein and Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson have received

By DAVID FISCHER Associated Press MIAMI BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Miami Beach is trying to break up with spring break, but it’s not yet clear whether spring break will take the hint. After three consecutive years of spring break violence, Miami Beach officials are implementing monthlong security measures aimed at curbing the chaos. The city

By ED WHITE Associated Press PONTIAC, Mich. (AP) — A man who purchased a gun with his son four days before the teen used that weapon in a mass school shooting in Michigan is headed to trial on involuntary manslaughter charges. Jury selection starts Tuesday. James Crumbley is accused of failing to take steps that

By JESSE BEDAYN Associated Press/Report for America DENVER (AP) — Colorado lawmakers have unveiled a bill that would install requirements for funeral home directors after nearly 200 bodies were found stacked and rotting in a funeral home in September. Another bill expected to be introduced would require routine inspections of facilities. Both bills would overhaul

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Police in Nashville say that multiple people have died after a small plane crashed Monday night near an interstate highway, shutting down multiple lanes. The Metro Nashville Police Department says the single-engine plane crashed just off of Interstate 40 in the western part of the city. Police say multiple people onboard

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The Philippines says Chinese coast guard ships blocked Philippine vessels from a disputed South China Sea shoal, causing a minor collision. A Philippine coast guard spokesperson said Tuesday that Chinese coast guard ships and accompanying vessels executed “dangerous maneuvers” against two Philippine coast guard ships and the Philippine vessel had minor

SAN DIEGO (AP) — A Southern California man was arrested on suspicion of smuggling refrigerants into the U.S. from Mexico. Federal prosecutors said Monday that he’s the first person to be charged with violating regulations intended to curb the use of greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change. Investigators say he posted them for sale

By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has defended an exclusive deal his city-state struck with Taylor Swift that prevents the pop star taking her current Eras Tour to anywhere else in Southeast Asia. Swift is performing six concerts from March 2 to 9 in Singapore under

By AUDREY McAVOY Associated Press HONOLULU (AP) — A University of Hawaii report says regulatory costs account for more than half of the price of a new condo in Hawaii. High housing costs in the state are fueling an exodus of local-born residents searching for cheaper places to live. Some are worried the migration of

BEIJING (AP) — China is increasing its defense budget 7.2% this year in a similar increase to last year’s. It’s already the world’s second-highest behind the United States at $222 billion. Tensions with the U.S., Taiwan, Japan and neighbors who share claims to the crucial South China Sea are seen as furthering growth in increasingly

By ELLIOT SPAGAT Associated Press SAN DIEGO (AP) — A union of immigration judges has been ordered to get supervisor approval to speak to anyone outside the Justice Department, potentially quieting a frequent critic of heavily backlogged immigration courts in an election year. An umbrella organization that includes the National Association of Immigration Judges calls

YAKIMA, Wash. (AP) — Two snowmobilers have been killed in separate avalanches in Washington state and in Idaho. Two snowmobilers riding in the Cascade Mountains west of Yakima, Washington, triggered a slide Friday in a bowl near Darland Mountain, according to the Northwest Avalanche Center. The rider who did not survive was described as fully

By MORGAN LEE Associated Press SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A movie-ammunition supplier has testified at trial that he provided only inert dummy rounds without gunpowder to the Western movie “Rust,” where actor Alex Baldwin fatally shot a cinematographer during a 2021 rehearsal. Albuquerque-based movie firearms and ammunition supplier Seth Kenney said Monday that he

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese Premier Li Qiang has announced that China’s economic growth target for this year is around 5%, in line with last year’s performance despite forecasts for a slowdown. The ruling Communist Party has said it is prioritizing efforts to encourage consumer spending to help drive the economy. Last year, the economy grew

By TIA GOLDENBERG and RAVI NESSMAN Associated Press JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel has ramped up its criticism of the embattled U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees. It said Monday that 450 employees of UNRWA were members of militant groups in the Gaza Strip, though it provided no evidence to back up its accusation. Major funders have

By MICHAEL R. SISAK Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump’s lawyers are warning that a gag order sought by New York prosecutors ahead of his March 25 hush-money criminal trial would amount to unconstitutional and unlawful prior restraint on the former president’s free speech rights. Trump’s lawyers urged Judge Juan Manuel Merchan on

By MARK THIESSEN Associated Press ANCHORAGEW, Alaska (AP) — A veteran musher had to kill a moose after it injured his dog shortly after the start of this year’s Iditarod. Dallas Seavey informed officials with the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race early Monday morning that he was forced to shoot the moose with a handgun

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Nevada U.S. Sen. Jacky Rosen has announced that she has officially filed for reelection in a presidential battleground state that is a top GOP target in a challenging 2024 Senate map. The first-term moderate Democrat launched her campaign last year, and Republican challengers have crowded their primary field to oppose her.

By HYUNG-JIN KIM Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea has called the ongoing South Korean-U.S. military drills a plot to invade the country, as it threatens to take unspecified “responsible” military steps in response. Tuesday’s statement by North Korea’s Defense Ministry came a day after the South Korean and U.S. forces kicked

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Some guns will be banned at voting locations, and the waiting period for purchasing firearms is being extended to seven days under measures signed into law by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. The second-term Democrat visited a school Monday in Albuquerque where she signed four public safety measures that were passed by

By ARNIE STAPLETON AP Pro Football Writer ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Two years ago, Russell Wilson exuberantly declared he intended to play a dozen years in Denver and double the trio of Lombardi Trophies in the Broncos’ lobby. General manager George Paton was equally dizzy, thrilled to send four premium draft picks and three players

CLOQUET, Minn. (AP) — Authorities say the man who fatally shot a Super 8 hotel clerk and a guest in a small Minnesota town doesn’t appear to have had any connection with the victims. Cloquet Police said Monday that it doesn’t appear that 32-year-old Nicholas Elliot Lenius, of Ramsey, knew either of the people he

By KEVIN FREKING Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Congressional leaders have invited the prime minister of Japan, Fumio Kishida, to address a joint meeting of Congress on April 11. The leaders in their invitation say the relationship between the U.S. and Japan has proven to be a force for good and a catalyst for prosperity.

By BRUCE SCHREINER Associated Press FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — The Republican-dominated Kentucky House has voted to remove any role for the state’s Democratic governor in deciding who would occupy a U.S. Senate seat if a vacancy occurred in the home state of Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell. The legislation calls for a special election to

By ASTRID SUÁREZ and MANUEL RUEDA Associated Press BOGOTÁ, Colombia (AP) — Migrants bound for the U.S. are once again crossing the Darien Gap in large numbers after being stranded for much of last week in a small Colombian town due to a work stoppage by local boat captains. Officials in Colombia said Monday that

By ACACIA CORONADO and LINDSAY WHITEHURST Associated Press AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday temporarily halted a new Texas law that allows police to arrest migrants who enter the country illegally and set up another legal showdown over the federal government’s authority over immigration. Hours after the Justice Department asked the

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department says a civilian U.S. Air Force employee has been charged in federal court in Nebraska with transmitting classified information about Russia’s war with Ukraine on a foreign online dating platform. David Franklin Slater was arrested Saturday on charges of illegally disclosing national defense information and conspiring to do so.

By ZEKE MILLER AP White House Correspondent WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House has lifted its COVID-19 testing requirement for those who plan to be in close contact with President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and their spouses. That brings to a close the last coronavirus prevention protocol at the White House. The White

By STEVE KARNOWSKI Associated Press ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Minnesota lawmakers are on the verge of a compromise that will give police officers who work in schools clearer authority to use force. Minnesota reacted to the 2020 murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis officer with a series of police accountability measures. But a

BOILING SPRING LAKES, N.C. (AP) — Two people are facing arrest warrants in North Carolina in a poaching case involving hundreds of Venus flytraps. The plants grow naturally in the eastern part of the state. Officers with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission obtained arrest warrants for the two people accused of stealing nearly 600

By HANNAH SCHOENBAUM Associated Press SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Gun violence prevention advocates who gathered Monday at the Utah State Capitol called on Gov. Spencer Cox to veto legislation that they said could place children in harm’s way by training more teachers to carry firearms on campus. The bill funding tactical training for Utah

By ROBERT YOON Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Less than a week after staging rival events on the banks of the Rio Grande River along the U.S.-Mexico border, President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump will face voters on the Texas primary ballot in a state that has openly clashed with the Biden administration

By ROBERT YOON Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Voters in North Carolina will decide a full slate of primaries Tuesday, including contested races for president, governor, U.S. House and other offices. Donald Trump and Nikki Haley have their sixth matchup of the campaign and President Joe Biden faces a challenge from “No preference.” Also on

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greek authorities say they have rescued 100 migrants found on a smuggling vessel in distress off the country’s southern mainland. The coast guard says the migrants were taken off their vessel by a tugboat that had been ordered to the area and safely carried them to the southeastern village of Monemvasia

SAN DIEGO (AP) — The San Diego Fire-Rescue Department says 11 people were hurt over the weekend while trying to climb over a wall that separates Mexico and the United States and falling on the San Diego side. They were the latest such injuries since the Trump administration put in 30-foot steel bollard walls in

By MIKE SCHNEIDER Associated Press ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has a new job for the longtime supporter who has led Walt Disney World’s government since his allies took it over. The Republican governor appointed Glen Gilzean on Monday as elections supervisor in Orange County, one of Florida’s most reliable sources of

By MARK ANDERSON AP Sports Writer LAS VEGAS (AP) — Tara VanDerveer managed to compartmentalize her emotions as she chased down and eclipsed Mike Krzyzewski’s all-time wins record earlier this season, determined to focus only on the moment ahead. And that’s how the Hall of Fame Stanford coach is approaching the final Pac-12 Conference women’s

By HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH Associated Press A Missouri Girl Scout troop that made bracelets to raise funds for children in Gaza was ordered to stop and threatened with legal action by regional scout leaders. Girl Scouts of the USA has said its eastern Missouri chapter was only following fundraising rules, but that it is “disappointed and

By DÁNICA COTO Associated Press SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A key hearing over the future of Puerto Rico’s crumbling power company and its staggering $9 billion debt has begun following years of acrimonious talks between the U.S. territory’s government and creditors seeking to recover their investments. The hearing that began Monday in federal

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — U.S. Sen. Kevin Cramer’s 42-year-old son has pleaded not guilty to charges related to the events that preceded the pursuit and crash that killed a North Dakota sheriff’s deputy in December, but he still hasn’t entered a plea on the more serious homicide and fleeing charges. Ian Cramer appeared remotely in

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s president has acknowledged for the first time that seven National Guard recruits drowned in an army training accident in February. It was the worst military training accident in recent memory in Mexico. The drownings on Feb. 20 raised questions about the president’s insistence that guard members receive military training and

By COREY WILLIAMS and SOPHIA TAREEN Associated Press More than 1,400 pages of emails, text messages and other documents released Monday reveal details of a strategy by Republican operatives tied to then-President Donald Trump to overturn Joe Biden’s 2020 victory in Wisconsin. The documents settle a civil lawsuit filed against two attorneys and 10 Wisconsin