Month: April 2024

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — A top court in the eastern Caribbean island of Dominica has struck down colonial-era laws criminalizing gay sex. It’s the latest nation to repeal such laws in the socially conservative region, joining Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, St. Kitts and Nevis, and Antigua and Barbuda. Monday’s ruling comes nearly five years after

By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A new exhibit inside the federal agency that’s responsible for enforcing the nation’s gun laws features photos of the faces of more than 100 victims of gun violence. It’s meant to serve as a powerful reminder to law enforcement of the human toll of gun violence

By OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Rev. Cecil Williams, who with his late wife turned Glide Church in San Francisco into a world-renowned haven for poor, homeless, and marginalized people, has died. He was 94. Williams advocated for civil rights and social justice and his work drew the attention of

By ANDREW DALTON AP Entertainment Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — A photographer who worked for hip-hop star Megan Thee Stallion says she was an abusive boss who fired him unfairly after he was forced to watch her have sex. Emilio Garcia says in a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Los Angeles that he was stuck next

By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS Associated Press JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Top Mississippi lawmakers have started negotiating on what could become a landmark plan to expand Medicaid coverage to tens of thousands of people in one of the poorest states in the U.S. But even with Republicans controlling both the state House and Senate, it’s far

By AMY BETH HANSON Associated Press HELENA, Mont. (AP) — A minor league baseball team in Montana is calling out the U.S. Department of Interior for “unwarranted and relentless” trademark claims in a battle over the use of an arrowhead logo. The Glacier Range Riders in Kalispell, Montana, are members of a Major League Baseball

By JOSH CORNFIELD Associated Press LAS VEGAS (AP) — Adele, Mariah Carey and Garth Brooks tower over the Las Vegas Strip, peering out from billboards advertising their various casino residencies. But the 20,000 fans marching toward the glowing Sphere last week were there for a band that many Strip visitors have no idea exists. Over

By MANUEL RUEDA Associated Press BOGOTÁ, Colombia (AP) — Colombia’s government is rolling out new incentives to reduce electricity consumption in the South American nation, which has been hit by a drought that has diminished the capacity of local hydroelectric plants and brought officials close to imposing power cuts. The ministry of mines and energy

By DEVI SHASTRI AP Health Writer U.S. health officials are warning of counterfeit Botox injections after more than 20 people got sick. All of the people told health officials that they got the shots from unlicensed individuals or in settings like homes or spas. Most said they received the injections for cosmetic reasons. The Centers

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — The Alabama Senate has voted for legislation meant to ensure President Joe Biden will appear on the state’s November ballot. The legislation approved Tuesday mirrors accommodations made four years ago for then-President Donald Trump. The legislation now moves to the Alabama House of Representatives. The state has one of the earliest

By TRAVIS LOLLER Associated Press NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A transgender Tennessee woman has sued the state’s Department of Safety and Homeland Security after officials refused to change the sex on her driver’s license to match her gender identity. The lawsuit filed in state court under the pseudonym Jane Doe on Tuesday says the department

By EDITH M. LEDERER Associated Press UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations is calling for “a clear, transparent and credible investigation” of mass graves uncovered at two major hospitals in war-torn Gaza that were raided by Israeli troops. A U.N. spokesman said Tuesday that credible investigators must have access to the sites. The U.N.

By STEVE KARNOWSKI Associated Press MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A Korean War veteran from Minnesota who still carries shrapnel in his leg from when he was wounded in combat will finally get his Purple Heart medal, 73 years late. The U.S. Army notified 96-year-old Earl Meyer, of St. Peter, this week that it has reversed itself

By KIMBERLEE KRUESI Associated Press NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A bill designed to ban LGBTQ+ Pride flags in Tennessee public school classrooms has been spiked after failing to attract enough support in the GOP-controlled Senate. The proposal had easily cleared the similarly Republican-dominant House nearly two months prior after the bill’s sponsor said he had

By ANTHONY IZAGUIRRE Associated Press Former U.S. Rep. George Santos on Tuesday said he is dropping his longshot bid to return to Congress, months after he was expelled from the House while facing a slew of federal fraud charges. Santos, who was running as an independent candidate for the 1st Congressional District in New York,

By JONATHAN MATTISE Associated Press NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee Republican lawmakers have passed a bill that would let some teachers and staff carry concealed handguns on public school grounds. If Republican Gov. Bill Lee signs the bill into law, it would be the biggest expansion of gun access in the state since last year’s

By LEAH ASKARINAM and CHAD DAY Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Rep. Dean Phillips will receive at least three delegates from the Ohio Democratic primary, but he is encouraging those delegates to support President Joe Biden at the Democratic National Convention this summer. So far, Biden has won 99% of convention delegates, a sign that

By LORNE COOK Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union auditors are struggling to work out whether some of the billions the bloc has sent Turkey to help it cope with Syrian refugees is having an impact. They say some Turkish officials seem reluctant to cooperate. Under a deal between EU leaders and Turkey in

By MARK THIESSEN and GENE JOHNSON Associated Press SEATTLE (AP) — A former Washington state police officer who court documents say had a child with a teenage girl he met through a school resource program was on the run Tuesday after killing two people, including his ex-wife, who had recently obtained a protection order against

BOSTON (AP) — A former Weymouth, Massachusetts, police officer has pleaded guilty to assaulting a man in his custody nearly two years ago by punching him about a dozen times without justification. Federal prosecutors say 43-year-old Justin Chappell pleaded guilty to one count of deprivation of rights under color of law. In 2022, Chappell was

By ISABEL DEBRE Associated Press BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — A worsening budget crisis at Argentina’s public universities is sending thousands of protestors into the streets as libertarian President Javier Milei pushes ahead with radical austerity measures. The massive show of defiance Tuesday in downtown Buenos Aires and other cities came days after the prestigious

By DARLENE SUPERVILLE Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Actor Ashley Judd and singer-songwriter Aloe Blacc have helped the Biden administration promote its new national strategy to prevent suicide. Both were at the White House on Tuesday as Doug Emhoff, the husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, helped unveil the Democratic administration’s blueprint for reducing suicide

By JAMES POLLARD Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — GoFundMe is expanding into Mexico, the company announced Tuesday. That marks 20 countries now serviced by the crowdfunding giant. CEO Tim Cadogan says the for-profit platform is eyeing new international targets now that COVID-19’s unprecedented campaign levels have eased to pre-pandemic figures. Mexico remains a country

MONTREAL (AP) — Canadian police say that two former United Nations employees in Montreal have been charged with participating in a conspiracy to sell Chinese-made drones and other military equipment in Libya. RCMP spokesman Sgt. Charles Poirier said the alleged offenses occurred between 2018 and 2021, when the two men were working at the International

By The Associated Press Russian authorities say they have detained a top military official on suspicion of accepting a bribe. The arrest of Timur Ivanov, a deputy defense minister, comes as Moscow’s war in Ukraine drags on into its third year. The Investigative Committee, Russia’s top law enforcement agency, reported Ivanov’s detention on Tuesday without

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — A large alligator made its way onto the runway at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida where it had to be captured and taken away for release in a nearby river, officials said. The toothy reptile was spotted Monday morning beside the landing gear of a KC-135 aerial refueling aircraft, officials

HOUSTON (AP) — Officials say a deputy who was a 20-year-veteran of a Houston-area sheriff’s office has died after being hit by a truck while trying to help a driver following a minor crash. Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez says that John Coddou had pulled over around 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday to help following a

By ANDREW DALTON AP Entertainment Writer Several crew members were injured when a car and truck collided on the Georgia set of the Eddie Murphy film “The Pickup.” Amazon MGM Studios says in a statement that the accident happened Saturday and all safety precautions were taken beforehand. A person close to the production not authorized

By MAE ANDERSON AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Cyberattacks on businesses are rising, including small businesses. It’s a troubling trend because a breach can be very costly and time consuming if owners don’t have a plan to deal with one. According to the Verizon 2023 Data Breach Investigations Report, the median cost per

By SOPHIA TAREEN Associated Press CHICAGO (AP) — A unique book club at one of the nation’s largest jails brings together college students and inmates. The student-led volunteer effort started years ago as an offshoot of a DePaul University program offering college credit classes at the jail for students and detainees. Their recent meeting at

NEWBERRY, S.C. (AP) — Emerging cicadas are so loud in one South Carolina county that residents are calling the sheriff’s office asking why they can hear sirens or a loud roar. The Newberry County Sheriff’s Office sent out a Facebook message Tuesday letting people know that the whining sound is just the male cicadas singing

FAIRBANKS, Alaska (AP) — A Doulgas DC-4 has crashed into the Tanana River outside Fairbanks, Alaska. It is not immediately known how many people were on board. An aviation website says the plane model dates back to the 1940s and standard seating was originally for 44 passengers. However the site says most surviving DC-4s have

By SOPHIA ROSENBAUM Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Emily Henry knows that love can change your life. She’s had it happen personally and she’s spent the last four years releasing bestselling romance novels. Ahead of the release of her latest novel “Funny Story,” Henry talked with The Associated Press about how she got into

By MARCIA DUNN AP Aerospace Writer CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA has finally heard back from Voyager 1 in a way that makes sense. The most distant spacecraft from Earth stopped sending back understandable data last November. Flight controllers in California traced the blank communication to a bad computer chip and rearranged the spacecraft’s

BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — The man charged with starting a fire outside independent U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders’ Vermont office earlier this month has pleaded not guilty to a federal charge. Thirty-five-year-old Shant Michael Soghomonian was indicted by a grand jury on a charge of maliciously damaging or attempting to damage and destroy by fire a

By DÁNICA COTO Associated Press PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — A transitional council charged with selecting a new prime minister and Cabinet for Haiti is demanding that its members be sworn in at the National Palace, raising concerns about their safety. Gangs control most of the territory that surrounds the palace. Every day, bullets whiz past

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) — A former MIT researcher has been sentenced to 35 years in prison for the killing of a Yale University graduate student in Connecticut. Qinxuan Pan apologized for his actions Tuesday during a hearing in a New Haven courtroom packed with family and friends of the victim, Kevin Jiang. Pan pleaded

PARIS (AP) — Officials at Paris Charles de Gaulle airport have unveiled a new security baggage system and a dedicated baggage handling area ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. The new equipment includes a revamped scanner system to allow a more detailed scan of passengers’ baggage, so that travelers won’t have to remove items

McRAE-HELENA, Ga. (AP) — Authorities say someone fishing with a magnet in a Georgia creek pulled up new evidence in a nine-year-old murder case. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation says the citizen’s magnet fishing in rural Telfair County turned up a .22-caliber rifle and a bag containing driver’s licenses and credit cards that belonged to

By JAKE COYLE AP Film Writer NEW YORK (AP) — How sexy can a qualifying tennis tournament in New Rochelle, New York, be? When the on-court drama involves Zendaya, Josh O’Connor and Mike Faist, the answer turns out to be quite a bit more than your average USTA singles match in Luca Guadagnino’s “Challengers.” The

By KEN RITTER Associated Press LAS VEGAS (AP) — The defense attorney representing a former Los Angeles-area gang leader accused of killing music legend Tupac Shakur in 1996 in Las Vegas says his client’s accounts of the killing are fiction. Attorney Carl Arnold told reporters outside a courtroom on Tuesday that his client, Duane “Keffe

MEXICO CITY (AP) — The head of Mexico’s detective service has acknowledged the country is “the champion” of fentanyl production, contradicting President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. The president has long denied that fentanyl is produced in Mexico, saying that Mexican cartels only press it into pills or add finishing touches. But the head of Mexico’s

DENVER (AP) — The NBA and Denver police are looking into an incident in which a man reported to be one of the brothers of Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic was seen punching a fan after the team’s buzzer-beating 101-99 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA playoffs. In videos shared by TMZ

By LINDSAY WHITEHURST Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Nearly two years after overturning the constitutional right to abortion, the Supreme Court will consider Wednesday how far state bans can extend to women in medical emergencies. The justices are weighing a case from Idaho, where a strict abortion ban went into effect shortly after the high

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. companies would no longer be able to bar employees from taking jobs with competitors under a rule approved by a federal agency, though the rule is sure to be challenged in court. The Federal Trade Commission voted to ban measures known as noncompete agreements, which

YEREVAN, Armenia (AP) — Armenia and Azerbaijan have come a step closer toward normalizing relations after a bitter conflict over territory. Experts in both countries are working to demarcate their boundaries and the first border marker has been placed. The two nations are working toward a peace treaty after Azerbaijan regained full control of the

By GARY D. ROBERTSON Associated Press RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A federal judge has halted the enforcement of a North Carolina law that made it a serious crime for someone to vote while still on probation or parole for a felony conviction when they had simply violated the voting law by mistake. Monday’s ruling was