Associated Press stories, Page 1684
240-pound fish, age 100, caught in Detroit River
Now that’s a whopper — a very old whopper! A 240-pound sturgeon that could be more than 100 years old was caught last week in the Detroit River by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The “real life river monster” was nearly 7 feet long, the agency said Friday on...
SpaceX making 1st U.S. crew splashdown in dark since Apollo 8
SpaceX this weekend will attempt the first U.S. splashdown of returning astronauts in darkness since the Apollo 8 moonshot in 1968. Elon Musk’s company is targeting the predawn hours of Sunday to bring back three NASA astronauts and one from Japan, after dangerously high wind scuttled a pair of earlier...
MLB: 9 teams reach 85% vaccination rate
NEW YORK — Major League Baseball says nine teams have had 85% of players, coaches and others with Tier 1 access receive their final dose of the coronavirus vaccine, allowing those clubs to ease some health and safety protocols. Four of those teams have already begun relaxing some protocols after...
With fans and flowery hats, Kentucky Derby is back at home in May
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The bourbon is flowing again, flowery hats and humans are on the scene and 20 horses are ready to run the most chaotic race of their lives. After being disrupted by a pandemic, the Kentucky Derby is back with many of its traditions intact. America’s longest continuously...
Hall of Famer Roberto Alomar fired by MLB over sexual misconduct
NEW YORK — Hall of Fame second baseman Roberto Alomar has been fired as a consultant by Major League Baseball and placed on the league’s ineligible list after an investigation into an allegation of sexual misconduct. Commissioner Rob Manfred announced the firing Friday, saying in a statement that a baseball...
Canada to start to get Pfizer vaccines from the U.S. next week
TORONTO — Canada will start getting Pfizer covid-19 vaccines from the United States next week, a company spokesperson said Friday, in what will be the first time the U.S. has allowed that company’s vaccine exported to Canada. Despite Canada’s tightly woven commercial ties with the U.S., it has been getting...
Judge orders Columbus police to alter tactics for protests
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Police in Ohio’s capital city ran “amok” last year when responding to demonstrations against racial injustice and police brutality by using physical violence, tear gas and pepper spray against protestors without provocation, a federal judge said Friday in a ruling ordering officers to approach such scenarios differently....
Former reality TV star Josh Duggar faces child porn charges
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Former reality TV star Josh Duggar faces charges of downloading and possessing child pornography under a federal indictment unsealed Friday. Federal prosecutors announced the indictment a day after Duggar was arrested by U.S. Marshals in northwest Arkansas. Prosecutors said Duggar possessed the material, some of which depicts...
3D-printed home in Dutch city expands housing options
EINDHOVEN, Netherlands — Elize Lutz and Harrie Dekkers’ new home is a 1,011-square foot, two-bedroom bungalow that resembles a boulder with windows. The curving lines of its gray concrete walls look and feel natural. But they are actually at the cutting edge of housing construction technology in the Netherlands and...
Stocks move lower, still head for 3rd straight monthly gain
Stocks fell broadly in afternoon trading as investors backed away from technology and communications companies. Despite the decline, the market is on pace for its best month so far this year, as investors remain optimistic that the pandemic is slowly and steadily coming to a close. The S&P 500 was...
Wu-Tang Clan imposter gets prison for cheating hotels, limos
AUGUSTA, Ga. — A Georgia man has been sentenced to more than eight years in federal prison for using stolen credit cards to live large in hotels and limousines while claiming to have ties to the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan. Walker Washington of Augusta was sentenced to 100 months...
U.S. closes in on 100 million Americans fully vaccinated
Disneyland reopened Friday and New York’s mayor predicted the big city will be up and running again at full strength by July 1, as the number of Americans fully vaccinated against covid-19 closed in on 100 million. Visitors cheered and screamed with delight as the Southern California theme park swung...
U.S. officials: Anxiety drove vaccine reactions in 5 states
It was anxiety — and not a problem with the shots — that caused fainting, dizziness and other short-term reactions in dozens of people at coronavirus vaccine clinics in five states, U.S. health officials have concluded. Experts say the clusters detailed Friday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...
Kansas hires Buffalo’s Lance Leipold as football coach
LAWRENCE, Kan. — Kansas hired Buffalo’s Lance Leipold on Friday, turning over one of college football’s worst programs to a longtime Division III coach with strong Midwestern roots. Leipold signed a six-year contract and takes over for Les Miles, who won a national championship at LSU. Miles parted with Kansas...
Fans still mad as Man United pledges no Super League revival
MANCHESTER, England — Manchester United tried to reassure skeptical fans that it won’t revive plans for the Super League, though many supporters still expressed outrage on Friday. The exchange took place in a team-run fan forum with United attempting to make amends amid reports that thousands of supporters plan to...
Sam Darnold to make $18.9 million after Panthers pick up option
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Carolina Panthers upped their commitment to Sam Darnold on Friday, picking up the fifth-year option on the quarterback’s rookie contract. He will now make $18.9 million for the 2022 season. Darnold’s contract would have expired after the 2021 season, and he would have become an unrestricted...
Trial of other cops charged in Floyd’s death to be broadcast
MINNEAPOLIS — Derek Chauvin’s murder trial was the first Minnesota criminal trial to be broadcast live on television. It won’t be the last. Some in the Minnesota legal system were apprehensive about allowing the live broadcast of Chauvin’s trial over the killing of George Floyd, but the video feed had...
AP source: Grammys may cut nomination review committees
NEW YORK — The Grammy Awards are in discussion to remove its nomination review committees — groups that determine the contenders for key awards at the coveted music show. A person familiar with the Recording Academy’s discussions, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to speak...
Arizona: 1 officer killed, 1 hurt by suspect in stolen car
GILBERT, Ariz. — A suspect in a stolen car struck and killed one police officer and critically injured another during a wild chase involving gunfire and multiple law enforcement agencies that ended in a Phoenix suburb, authorities said Friday. Chandler Police Officer Christopher Farrar was killed and a Gilbert police...
Eyeing 2024, Mike Pence says he’ll push back on ‘liberal agenda’
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Former Vice President Mike Pence, positioning himself for a possible return to elected office, told an audience in early-voting South Carolina that he will spend the coming months “pushing back on the liberal agenda” he says is wrong for the country. “We’ve got to guard our values...
Explainer: English soccer leads social media racism boycott
There will be no goal clips, lineup announcements, banter between clubs or even title celebrations. Four days of silence across Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by soccer leagues, clubs and players in England began on Friday in a protest against racist abuse that has been adopted more widely. Such is the...
Georgia man on way to prison escapes at convenience store
ATLANTA — Authorities were searching Friday morning for an inmate who escaped from custody while being taken to a state prison and residents in neighborhoods south of Atlanta’s airport were being asked to lock their doors. Devonte Detuan Ross slipped away from a private transport company at a QuikTrip where...
Germany pledges to adjust climate law after court verdict
BERLIN — The German government on Friday announced that it will swiftly adjust its law aiming to curb climate change, after the country’s top court ruled that existing legislation places an unfair burden on younger generations. Germany’s Constitutional Court said Thursday that the government must set clear goals for reducing...
U.S. wages and benefits jump as economy reopens
WASHINGTON — Wages and benefits grew quickly for U.S. workers in the first three months of the year, a sign that businesses are starting to offer higher pay to fill newly-opened jobs. U.S. workers’ total compensation rose 0.9% in the January-March quarter, the largest gain in more than 13 years,...
Jim Litke: Betting millions on QBs who can turn clubs around on a dime
Last season wasn’t just the strangest in the 100 years of pro football, it was also the highest-scoring by almost any measure — average score, total points and especially passing touchdowns. And because the NFL is a copycat league, you didn’t have to be a general manager, scout or even...
