Associated Press stories, Page 1614
Police groups sue over changes to Minnesota deadly force law
ST. PAUL, Minn. — A coalition of Minnesota’s largest law enforcement groups sued the state Friday seeking to overturn a state law that changed the standard for justified use of deadly force by police. The lawsuit claims the law, which took effect in March, violates officers’ rights to self-defense and...
Proposal would ban mink farming to stem coronavirus mutation
COLUMBIA, S.C. — A bipartisan proposal in the U.S. House would ban the farming of mink fur in the United States in an effort to stem possible mutations of the coronavirus, something researchers have said can be accelerated when the virus spreads among animals. The bill introduced this week is...
Biden backs changes in military sexual assault prosecution
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Friday put his stamp of approval on a long-debated change to the military justice system that would remove decisions on prosecuting sexual assault cases from military commanders. Biden, however, stopped short of backing a congressional effort to strip commanders of oversight of all major...
U.S. Supreme Court backs Minnesota Amish in septic tank fight
MINNEAPOLIS — The U.S. Supreme Court sided Friday with members of an Amish group in Minnesota who are fighting efforts by authorities to compel them to install septic systems, sending their appeal back to a state court for reconsideration in light of the high court’s recent ruling in a religious...
U.S. vacates key Afghan base; pullout target now ‘late August’
WASHINGTON — Nearly 20 years after invading Afghanistan to oust the Taliban and hunt down al-Qaida, the U.S. military has vacated its biggest airfield in the country, advancing a final withdrawal that the Pentagon on Friday said will be completed by the end of August. President Joe Biden had instructed...
Tax law experts see ‘strong’ case against Trump Organization, CFO
NEW YORK — Companies give perks to their employees all the time. Many top executives at Fortune 500 companies have access to a corporate jet for personal use, a company apartment, or an expense account for fancy meals. Even lower-level employees regularly get access to perks like tuition reimbursement or...
Trevor Bauer placed on leave by MLB following assault allegation
WASHINGTON — Trevor Bauer was placed on administrative leave by Major League Baseball on Friday, three days after an allegation of assault was made against the Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher. “MLB’s investigation into the allegations made against Trevor Bauer is ongoing,” the commissioner’s office said in a statement. “While no...
Mohoric posts first Tour stage win, Roglic out of contention
LE CREUSOT, France — Matej Mohoric posted his first stage win in the Tour de France on Friday following a long breakaway in the race’s longest stage. The 155-mile hilly trek from Vierzon to Le Creusot in the seventh stage was the longest in 21 years. Mohoric was part of...
2 for 2: Lightning trades for Coleman, Goodrow pay off
Two trades in an eight-day span in February 2020 could deliver two Stanley Cup championships for the Tampa Bay Lightning. General manager Julien BriseBois paid the hefty price of two first-round picks and a blue-chip prospect to acquire Blake Coleman and Barclay Goodrow, figuring they would be able to help...
Tally of missing in Miami-area condo collapse reduced to 128 after audit; death toll up to 20
SURFSIDE, Fla. — The tally of the missing in the Florida condominium collapse was substantially reduced Friday even as the death toll continued to rise. The number of missing was revised from 145 to 128 after duplicate names were eliminated and some people reported missing turned up safe, officials said....
Richard Branson plans 1st space trip days before Jeff Bezos blasts off
Richard Branson plans to fly to space on July 11, days before a similar journey by fellow billionaire Jeff Bezos. The shares of Branson’s Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. surged. The VSS Unity spacecraft will also carry three Virgin Galactic employees and two pilots from the launch site in New Mexico,...
Cargo plane makes emergency landing in ocean off coast of Hawaii; 2 rescued
HONOLULU — A cargo plane made an emergency landing in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Hawaii early Friday and both people on board have been rescued. The pilots of the Transair Flight 810 had reported engine trouble and were attempting to return to Honolulu when they were forced...
Stocks climb on Wall Street following encouraging jobs data
NEW YORK — Stock indexes are ticking higher on Wall Street Friday after a report showed the nation’s job market was even stronger last month than expected. The S&P 500 was up 0.3% in morning trading and on pace for its seventh straight gain, though slightly more stocks were falling...
Some fans. No fans. Tokyo undecided as games open in 3 weeks
TOKYO — Banning all fans from the Tokyo Olympics is still an option with the games opening during a pandemic in just three weeks, Seiko Hashimoto, the president of the Tokyo organizing committee, said Friday. This would be a reversal of a decision spelled out 10 days ago by organizers...
Overdue Sabalenka on verge of breakthrough at Wimbledon
WIMBLEDON, England — No. 2-seeded Aryna Sabalenka is into the second week at Wimbledon and on the verge of a career breakthrough. The hard-hitting Belarusian beat qualifier María Camila Osorio Serrano 6-0, 6-3 Friday to reach the fourth round, and she might be overdue for a deep run in a...
California homicides jump 31% in 2020, most in 13 years
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Homicides in California jumped 31% last year, making it the deadliest year since 2007, and Black people accounted for nearly one-third of all victims as the nation’s most populous state struggled with the coronavirus pandemic and concerns over racial injustice, according to reports released Thursday. The 2,202...
Sha’Carri Richardson tests for marijuana, will miss Olympic 100
American champion Sha’Carri Richardson cannot run in the Olympic 100-meter race after testing positive for a chemical found in marijuana. Richardson, who won the 100 at Olympic trials in 10.86 seconds on June 19, told of her ban Friday on the “Today Show.” She tested positive at the Olympic trials...
U.S. hands Bagram Airfield to Afghans after nearly 20 years
KABUL, Afghanistan — After nearly 20 years, the U.S. military left Bagram Airfield, the epicenter of its war to oust the Taliban and hunt down the al-Qaida perpetrators of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on America, two U.S. officials said Friday. The airfield was handed over to the Afghan National Security...
Boy Scouts of America reaches pivotal agreement with victims
DOVER, Del. — The Boy Scouts of America have reached an agreement with attorneys representing some 60,000 victims of child sex abuse in what could prove to be a pivotal moment in the organization’s bankruptcy case. Attorneys for the BSA filed court papers late Thursday outlining a restructuring support agreement,...
Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Fernando Tatis Jr. voted MLB All-Star startersVideo
NEW YORK — The sons are coming out for this year’s All-Star Game in Denver. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. joined his father as an All-Star, and Fernando Tatis Jr. accomplished a feat his dad never achieved. Toronto’s first baseman and San Diego’s shortstop were among nine first-time All-Stars elected Thursday to...
‘Hillbilly Elegy’ author JD Vance joins U.S. Senate campaign
The venture capitalist and author of “Hillbilly Elegy” officially joined the crowded Republican race for the Ohio U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Rob Portman. JD Vance, whose book was widely seen in 2016 as helping explain Republican Donald Trump’s appeal to struggling white, working-class voters, made the announcement Thursday...
PGA rookie Davis Thompson takes early lead at Rocket ClassicVideo
DETROIT — Davis Thompson, in his third PGA Tour event as a professional, is leading the Rocket Mortgage Classic. He’s not excited about that fact. Yet. “Sounds good on Sunday,” Thompson said after matching a Detroit Golf Club record with a 9-under-par 63 to take the early first-round lead. “It’s...
Attorney General Merrick Garland halts federal executions, orders review of protocols
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department is halting federal executions after a historic use of capital punishment by the Trump administration, which carried out 13 executions in six months. Attorney General Merrick Garland made the announcement Thursday night, saying he was imposing a moratorium on federal executions while the Justice Department...
5 injured after building under construction collapses in D.C.Video
WASHINGTON — Five workers were injured Thursday when a building under construction collapsed in the nation’s capital, trapping one man for more than an hour as firefighters worked feverishly to free him from layers of debris. The collapse happened around 3:30 p.m. in the Brightwood Park neighborhood of Washington. Fire...
Dodgers’ manager says Trevor Bauer still expected to start Sunday
WASHINGTON — Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said pitcher Trevor Bauer is still on track to start Sunday against the Washington Nationals while police and Major League Baseball investigate an assault allegation made against the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner. Police in Pasadena, Calif., are investigating claims by...
