Month: December 2024

Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Advertisements pasted along the sidewalk in Kyiv ask for donations to help fill financial gaps across Ukraine’s military. By scanning a QR code people can help buy anything from body warmers, to drones and armored cars for soldiers defending the nearly 1,000-kilometer or 620-mile front line. Grassroots funding for

Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — At a time of heightened political division, Americans’ confidence in their country’s judicial system and courts dropped to a record low of 35% this year, according to a new Gallup poll. The United States saw a sharp drop of 24 percentage points over the last four years, setting the country

AP National Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Crime writer John D. MacDonald, a master of the genre, was so prolific that sometimes he couldn’t keep up with what he was doing. He might have dozens of stories in submission at once and would leave some unfinished or unpublished as he moved to a new idea.

Associated Press PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump says he might reverse President Joe Biden’s decision to permit Ukrainian forces to use American long-range weapons to strike deeper into Russian territory. Trump on Monday called the move by Biden “stupid.” He also criticized the current administration for not consulting him before the decision

Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — An attorney defending Jay-Z against the rape allegation brought against him last week by an unnamed woman outlined a range of evidence Monday that he said showed the accuser’s account to be “provably, demonstrably false.” The woman told NBC News last week that Jay-Z and Sean “Diddy” Combs sexually

Associated Press ST. LOUIS (AP) — Missouri’s status as one of the most active death penalty states is about to change for one simple reason: The state is running out of inmates to execute. The lethal injection of Christopher Collings on Dec. 3 left just eight men on Missouri’s death row. By contrast, nearly 100

Associated Press Up in the sky, is that a drone, a plane or a helicopter? Experts who study unmanned aircraft systems — better known as drones — say it can be tough to tell from miles away. But there are clues. A light in the sky at night can easily be misinterpreted, according to John

Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — Two men, including a dual Iranian American citizen, have been arrested on charges that they exported sensitive technology to Iran that was used in a drone attack in Jordan that killed three American troops early this year and injured dozens of other servicemembers. Officials said the pair were arrested after

LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) — Prosecutors in Bolivia on Monday sought the arrest of former President Evo Morales in connection to a sexual abuse investigation involving his alleged fathering of a child with a 15-year-old girl. The arrest warrant, which still must be approved by a judge, was issued after Morales defied an order to

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — A man detained in Venezuela during the civil unrest that followed the country’s disputed July presidential election has died while in custody. His is the third such death reported by the inmates’ rights group, Venezuelan Prison Observatory. The nongovernmental organization says the 43-year-old man died Monday after spending more than four

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina reached its Medicaid expansion enrollment goal of 600,000 people just over a year since the program rolled out. Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper called the enrollment numbers a “monumental achievement” that is “life-changing” for people in need of health insurance. Medicaid expansion received bipartisan support in its passage through the

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — Federal authorities have charged a National Guard soldier with murder in a shooting that triggered a weekend lockdown at a Georgia military base. Court records show 25-year-old Natravien Landry made an initial court appearance Monday before a federal magistrate judge in Augusta. He’s charged with killing another man Saturday morning at

Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — A California man has been sentenced to more than three years in prison for running a business to help pregnant Chinese women travel to the United States to deliver babies who would automatically have American citizenship. U.S. authorities had sought a more than five-year prison term for Michael Wei

ATHENS, N.Y. (AP) — Efforts to save an imperiled 150-year-old lighthouse in New York are getting a boost with federal officials announcing new funding to study ways to protect the structure. New York Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer says that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is funding a study on how to restore the Hudson-Athens

Associated Press The U.S. Census Bureau is changing how it counts international migration in its annual population estimates. Officials said Monday that the bureau will add a large share of humanitarian immigrants to its calculations to better reflect the influx of refugees to the United States this decade. The change will be incorporated into 2024

Associated Press TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Should underage gambling no longer be a crime? New Jersey lawmakers are considering changing the law to make gambling by people under age 21 no longer punishable under criminal law. Instead, the proposal would impose fines ranging between $500 and $2,000. The money would be used for prevention, education,

Associated Press ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey’s red-hot internet gambling market continued to smash records in November, even as revenue inside physical casinos continued to lag behind pre-pandemic levels at six of Atlantic City’s nine casinos. State gambling regulators say internet gambling brought in $214 million in November, narrowly eclipsing the previous record

AP Medical Writer President-elect Donald Trump seemed to entertain the discredited theory that vaccines cause autism as he answered questions from journalists Monday at his Mar-a-Lago club. Trump said that Robert F. Kennedy Jr., his choice to lead the Department of Health and Human Services who has been an anti-vaccine advocate, would look into the

DETROIT (AP) — Starting in September of 2027, all new passenger vehicles in the U.S. will have to sound a warning if rear-seat passengers don’t buckle up. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Monday that it has finalized the rule. It also requires longer warnings when front seat belts aren’t fastened. Front seat changes

Police in Madison, Wisconsin, believe multiple factors prompted a 15-year-old student to open fire at a private Christian school, but they declined to share those Tuesday. The shooting Monday at Abundant Life Christian School in Wisconsin’s capital city was just days before winter break. A fellow student and a teacher were killed and six others

SKOPJE, North Macedonia (AP) — Eight former senior officials in North Macedonia, including a former prime minister, are under investigation for alleged financial misconduct regarding gambling licences of a state lottery company approved under the previous government. Authorities did not name the officials but state-run television reported that they include former Dimitar Kovachevski – who

JENIN, West Bank (AP) — Palestinian security forces have launched a rare crackdown against local militant groups in the northern West Bank. They have sent in armored cars and are engaging in fierce gunbattles that have killed at least two people in the volatile area. The raid marks an unusual step for the Palestinian Authority.

Associated Press SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — A Georgia judge has denied a former prosecutor’s legal motion to halt her upcoming trial on charges that she interfered with police investigating the 2020 killing of Ahmaud Arbery. A senior judge on Monday rejected former District Attorney Jackie Johnson’s argument that the Georgia attorney general’s office should be

Associated Press TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy has pardoned 33 people and commuted the sentences of three women, one of whom was supported by Kim Kardashian, in the first use of his clemency authority during his administration. The clemency comes after Murphy set up a special review board under an

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Kristen Bell will return as host of next year’s Screen Actors Guild Awards, streaming live on Netflix for a second consecutive year. The star of “Nobody Wants This” and “The Good Place,” was the first host of the SAG Awards in 2018. The 31st annual awards ceremony will air Feb. 23