Associated Press stories, Page 1936
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...
Michigan canvasser still afraid after threat, suspect arrest
FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. — The Republican chair of a county canvassing board in Michigan who initially refused to certify local election results that favored Vice President Job Biden over President Donald Trump said Thursday that she doesn’t know a woman charged with sending her threatening text messages. Wayne County Canvasser...
Online store stops selling Rittenhouse family’s merchandise
KENOSHA, Wis. — An online sales company has stopped selling merchandise supporting an Illinois teen who killed two people and wounded a third during a protest in Wisconsin this summer. The Kenosha News reported Thursday that Kyle Rittenhouse’s family began selling “Free Kyle” merchandise through Printify last week. Printify creates...
U.S. military confirms pandemic won’t sideline Santa Claus
DENVER — The U.S. military is tracking an elderly man with a white beard and a large belly who goes by the name of Saint Nicholas. There’s no reason for alarm though, Air Force Gen. Glen D. VanHerck said. In fact, this is a Christmas tradition going on its 65th...
Protesters call for justice in police killing of Andre Hill
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Demonstrators gathered in a cold Christmas Eve drizzle Thursday to call for justice in the death of Andre Hill, a Black man who was shot and killed by a Columbus police officer this week. Chants of “Whose street? Our street!” rang out from the crowd, which gathered...
College basketball teams fend off holiday loneliness
MINNEAPOLIS — Eric Curry texted his mom last week. He needed a headshot of her and his sister. The photo request was not for a social media post or a scrapbook project, but rather an effort by the fifth-year senior forward to give his closest family members the chance, virtually,...
Italy enters Christmas lockdown amid signs of coronavirus resurgence
ROME — Police in Italy enforced new covid-19 travel restrictions aimed at limiting Christmas get-togethers involving far-flung family members as public health officials appealed Thursday for a “drastic reduction” in social contacts to prevent new infections over the holidays. A modified nationwide lockdown went into effect on Christmas Eve with...
Truckers finally leave U.K. after days of virus gridlock
DOVER, England — Truckers and travelers stuck in a days-long gridlock at the English port of Dover started heading to France on Thursday after the country partially reopened its borders with Britain following international concern over a rapidly spreading new coronavirus variant. However, thousands of stranded truck drivers still awaited...
Dark days: Experts fear the holidays will fuel the U.S. crisis
LOS ANGELES — Hard-hit California eclipsed 2 million coronavirus cases on Christmas Eve as the U.S. headed into a holiday season of travel and family gatherings that threaten to fuel the deadly outbreak across the nation. Despite warnings from public health experts to stay home, over 1.19 million travelers passed...
Judge in Pa. rejects restaurants’ challenge of Wolf’s indoor dining ban
HARRISBURG — A federal judge in Pennsylvania has rejected a bid to block one of Gov. Tom Wolf’s latest orders to try to stem the spread of the coronavirus, a three-week shutdown of indoor dining at restaurants through Jan. 4, as Wolf went to court to sue restaurants defying the...
Police: Couple steals $300 albino python from Massachusetts pet store
PEABODY, Mass. — Police in Peabody, Massachusetts, are looking for a couple who slithered away with a snake worth $300 from a city pet store. The couple entered the Petco store around 4:30 p.m. Monday, police told The Salem News on Wednesday. The man asked an employee if he could...
Pair of Nazi headstones removed from Houston Cemetery
SAN ANTONIO — Two German WWII graves bearing Nazi swastikas have been removed from Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery and replaced with new headstones. The pair of headstones had become a long controversy over whether they were historical artifacts worth preserving or emblems of hate that should be destroyed, according...
Nurses fear what’s to come: ‘Walk down our unit for a day’
LOS ANGELES — The nurses of California are afraid. It’s Christmas Eve, and they aren’t home with their families. They are working, always working, completely gowned up — and worn down. They’re frightened by what people are doing, or not doing, during a coronavirus pandemic that has already killed more...
U.S. stocks tick higher in quiet pre-Christmas trading
NEW YORK — U.S. stock indexes are closing modestly higher Thursday after drifting through an abbreviated session. The S&P 500 rose 0.4% before trading shut on Wall Street for the Christmas holiday, trimming its small loss for the week. Markets will reopen Monday. The majority of stocks in the S&P...
Attempt to recall Lincoln, Neb., mayor, council falls short
LINCOLN, Neb. — A campaign to recall Lincoln’s mayor and four city council members has failed after petition circulators could not to gather enough signatures to trigger a recall election, organizers said Wednesday. The group LNK Recall said it came up thousands of signatures short in their quest to recall...
Melted fuel removal at Fukushima delayed by pandemic
TOKYO — Japan’s government and the operator of the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant said Thursday that the removal of melted reactor fuel planned to start in 2021 will have to be postponed by about one year due to the worsening coronavirus pandemic. The economy and industry ministry and Tokyo Electric...
