Associated Press stories, Page 1842
Execution of only woman on U.S. death row delayed, possibly to after Joe Biden’s inauguration
WASHINGTON — A federal judge said the Justice Department unlawfully rescheduled the execution of the only woman on federal death row, potentially setting up the Trump administration to schedule the execution after President-elect Joe Biden takes office. U.S. District Court Judge Randolph Moss also vacated an order from the director...
Israeli jets strike Gaza after militants fire rockets
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Israeli aircraft struck several sites in the Gaza Strip early Saturday after Palestinian militants fired two rockets toward southern Israel. The airstrike targets included rocket manufacturing facility and training and military posts belonging to Hamas, the militant group ruling Gaza, according to the military. Palestinian...
Despite smooth election, GOP leaders seek vote restrictions
ATLANTA — Changes to the way millions of Americans voted this year contributed to record turnout, but that’s no guarantee the measures making it easier to cast ballots will stick around for future elections. Republicans in key states that voted for President-elect Joe Biden already are pushing for new restrictions,...
Downtown Nashville explosion knocks communications offline
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A recreational vehicle parked in the deserted streets of downtown Nashville exploded early Christmas morning, causing widespread communications outages that took down police emergency systems and grounded holiday travel at the city’s airport. Police were responding to a report of shots fired Friday when they encountered the...
Covid-19 concerns cause Duke women’s basketball to end seasonVideo
The Duke women’s basketball team ended its season Friday amid the coronavirus pandemic. “The student-athletes on the Duke women’s basketball team have made the difficult decision to conclude their current season due to safety concerns,” said Michael Schoenfeld, Vice President for Public Affairs & Government Relations and Chief Communications Officer...
Alvin Kamara’s 6 TDs ties NFL record as Saints beat VikingsVideo
NEW ORLEANS — Alvin Kamara tied an NFL record by running for six touchdowns in a game and finished with a career-high 155 yards rushing to help New Orleans beat the Minnesota Vikings, 52-33, on Friday and clinch a fourth straight NFC South title. Wearing different colored shoes — one...
Buffalo holds off Marshall to win Camellia BowlVideo
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Kevin Marks scored on a 1-yard touchdown run with 1 minute, 9 seconds left, and Buffalo made a final defensive stop to beat Marshall, 17-10, in the Camellia Bowl on Friday. Subbing for the national leader in rushing yards per game, Jaret Patterson, Marks carried 35 times...
Boston Celtics Hall of Fame player, coach K.C. Jones dies at 88Video
BOSTON — Basketball Hall of Famer K.C. Jones, an Olympic gold medalist and two-time NCAA champion who won eight straight NBA titles during the Celtics’ Bill Russell era and then coached the Boston teams with Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish to two more championships in the 1980s, has...
Tom Brady-led Bucs can clinch playoff spot with win over LionsVideo
DETROIT — Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are rolling into the Motor City with a chance to clinch a spot in the playoffs. “This is why we play, to put your team in a place and give yourself an opportunity to compete for a championship,” Brady said. The...
Dolphins move past Raiders in rebuilding processVideo
Coach Brian Flores started the rebuilding process in Miami a year after Jon Gruden did the same in his return to the Raiders. Both coaches traded away big-name players for premium draft picks and reshaped the roster in hopes of reviving once-proud franchises. While Flores arrived a year later than...
Cardinals pushing for playoffs in home game vs. 49ersVideo
GLENDALE, Ariz. — The Arizona Cardinals are in the middle of the playoff race for the first time in years, while the San Francisco 49ers have been eliminated from the postseason a year after playing in the Super Bowl. Saturday’s game between the two teams is yet another example of...
2 children die in Detroit fire; mom, 3 kids leap to safety
A Christmas morning fire killed a 4-year-old and a 6-year-old at a home on Detroit’s east side and forced others to jump from a second-floor window to escape, fire department officials said. The Detroit Fire Department said the two children were found dead in a front living room of the...
A pandemic Christmas: Services move online, people stay home
Families that usually reunite on Christmas over a hearty, lingering meal stayed home Friday, services were held online, and gift exchanges were low-key in one of the most unusual holiday seasons in decades. The coronavirus left almost no one unaffected. Patricia Hager, 60, delivered homemade caramel rolls for breakfast to...
Police: N.Y. man steals mini-snow plow, crashes into Target store
BAY SHORE, N.Y. — A Long Island man has been arrested after a Christmas morning crime spree that gave new meaning to the term doorbuster. It happened shortly before 2 a.m., Suffolk County police said, when Justin Shuffle stole a 2010 Bobcat skid loader, which is used to push snow,...
British army helps clear backlog of virus-stranded drivers
Around 1,000 British soldiers were spending Christmas Day trying to clear a huge backlog of truck drivers stuck in southeast England after France briefly closed its border to the U.K., then demanded coronavirus tests from all amid fears of a new, apparently more contagious, virus variant. Even though an estimated...
Police: Suspicious blast wounds 3 in Nashville on Christmas
An explosion shook the largely deserted streets of downtown Nashville early Christmas morning, shattering windows, damaging buildings and wounding three people. Authorities said they believed the blast was intentional. Metro Nashville Police Chief John Drake said police were responding to a report of shots fired when they encountered a recreational...
Judge delays execution of only woman on U.S. death row
A federal judge said the Justice Department unlawfully rescheduled the execution of the only woman on federal death row, potentially setting up the Trump administration to schedule the execution after president-elect Joe Biden takes office. U.S. District Court Judge Randolph Moss also vacated an order from the director of the...
Pope on Christmas: Vaccines for all; needy, vulnerable first
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis made a Christmas Day plea for authorities to make covid-19 vaccines available to all, insisting that the first in line should be the most vulnerable and needy, regardless of who holds the patents for the shots. “Vaccines for everybody, especially for the most vulnerable and...
This Date in Sports History: Dec. 25
1956 — Corky Devlin of Fort Wayne goes 0 for 15 from the field against the Minneapolis Lakers to tie an NBA record. 1971 — Garo Yepremian’s 37-yard field goal at 7 minutes, 40 seconds of the second overtime gives the Miami Dolphins a 27-24 victory over the Kansas City...
Todd Graham, Hawaii win New Mexico Bowl — in Texas
FRISCO, Texas — Chevan Cordeiro threw three first-half touchdown passes, and Calvin Turner had two long scoring plays to help Hawaii beat Houston, 28-14, on Thursday in the New Mexico Bowl. The game was moved to Frisco from its usual location in Albuquerque because of covid-19 restrictions in New Mexico....
Heisman finalists: Alabama teammates plus Trevor Lawrence, Kyle TraskVideo
Alabama teammates Mac Jones and DeVonta Smith along with Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence and Florida’s Kyle Trask were named finalists for the Heisman Trophy on Thursday. The Heisman will be awarded Jan. 5 during a virtual ceremony. The coronavirus pandemic forced the cancellation of the usual trip to New York for...
West Virginia LB Tony Fields II shares Big 12 top newcomer awardVideo
Iowa State running back Breece Hall and linebacker Mike Rose are the Associated Press Big 12 Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year after the Cyclones’ best conference season ever also earned Matt Campbell coach of the year honors. The Big 12 runner-up Cyclones will play in a New Year’s...
Trump golfs in Florida as covid relief hangs in the balance
PALM BEACH — After tossing a grenade that threatens to blow up a massive covid relief and government funding bill and force a government shutdown in the midst of a pandemic, President Donald Trump spent his Christmas Eve golfing in Florida. Failure to agree on the bill could deny checks...
Ohio police chief urges officer who shot Black man be fired
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The police chief of Columbus, Ohio, recommended on Thursday that the officer who shot and killed Andre Hill, a 47-year-old Black man, earlier this week be fired. Police Chief Thomas Quinlan said in a statement that he filed two departmental charges alleging critical misconduct against officer Adam...
Reward offered in cases of slashed California pelicans
LOS ANGELES — A $5,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the conviction of whoever is slashing the pouches and necks of brown pelicans on the Southern California coast. International Bird Rescue posted the reward after four pelicans with identical, severe injuries were brought in for care at...

