Associated Press stories, Page 2350
Disney characters say tourists inappropriately touched them
ORLANDO, Fla. — Walt Disney World employees who portray Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse and Donald Duck each filed police reports this month claiming they were inappropriately touched by tourists. The woman inside the Mickey Mouse costume went to the hospital with neck injuries caused by a grandmother patting the character’s...
Greece gives actor Tom Hanks honorary Greek citizenship
Tom Hanks may officially consider himself Greek. Greece’s President Prokopis Pavlopoulos has signed an honorary naturalization order allowing the 63-year-old actor to claim Greek citizenship, his office told the Associated Press on Friday. Hanks frequently spends his summer vacation on the Greek island of Antiparos and his wife, actress and...
Remains of 6 people found after Hawaii helicopter crashVideo
HONOLULU — The remains of six people have been found after a helicopter heading to one of the most rugged and remote coastlines in Hawaii crashed at the top of a mountain on the island of Kauai, authorities said. Officials said Friday that there are no indications of survivors and...
EU chief warns that new Brexit delay might be necessary
BRUSSELS — The European Union and Britain will struggle to seal an agreement on trade and other aspects of their future ties after Brexit next year and should consider extending the negotiations beyond 2020, a top EU official said in an interview published Friday. The U.K. is scheduled to leave...
Another executive departs as Boeing tries to correct course
A close adviser to Boeing’s ousted CEO will also leave the company. Mike Luttig was Boeing’s general counsel from 2006 until this spring. Shortly after the crash of a second Boeing 737 Max, the companies premiere aircraft, he was assigned to head the company’s legal strategy and to advise the...
India clamps down on marches, internet after deadly protests
NEW DELHI — A group of protesters in New Delhi was beaten and shoved into buses by police on Friday as they attempted to demonstrate against a new citizenship law that has triggered nationwide protests in recent weeks. About two dozen people gathered near an Uttar Pradesh state government building...
Russia commissions intercontinental hypersonic weapon
MOSCOW — Russia’s defense minister reported to President Vladimir Putin that a new hypersonic weapon of intercontinental range became operational Friday following years of tests. Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu informed Putin that the first missile unit equipped with the Avangard hypersonic glide vehicle entered combat duty, the Defense Ministry said....
Advice to first-time gardeners: Think small, find your spot
Another growing season is building momentum with the arrival of the 2020 seed catalogs, and gardeners are drafting plans for new harvests. There’s such a thing as being too enthusiastic, though, especially among novices. Beginners can achieve their best planting results by thinking small. “Starting too large is the most...
Daycare owner arrested after 26 kids found behind false wall
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — A Colorado woman accused of hiding 26 children behind a false wall at her daycare center was arrested for investigation of misdemeanor child abuse, police said Thursday. Carla Faith, 58, was arrested Monday in Colorado Springs on suspicion of two counts of reckless child abuse without...
Louisiana Tech shuts out Miami in Independence BowlVideo
SHREVEPORT, La. — That “bridge to 2020,” to which Miami Hurricanes coach Manny Diaz referred heading into the Independence Bowl, hopefully, for the Hurricanes’ sake, has been obliterated and is under construction. Diaz thought the Hurricanes had “one more really good performance” in them, but reality said the opposite Thursday...
Ryan Silverfield debuts as Memphis coach vs. Penn State in Cotton BowlVideo
ARLINGTON, Texas — Ryan Silverfield has been coaching for 20 years, first for a Florida prep team as a teenager the season after being part of his second state championship there as a player. He then coached instead of played during four seasons at Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia. There were...
Quarterbacks for Clemson, Ohio State are ‘future of the NFL’Video
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Justin Fields and Trevor Lawrence went to high school about 20 miles from each other in the suburbs northwest of Atlanta. They have worked out since middle school with the same quarterback trainer, a former Pac-12 QB and full-time firefighter who is more respected than known in...
Powerful storm pounds Southern California with rain, snowVideo
LOS ANGELES — A cold and blustery winter storm unleashed downpours and extensive snowfall on Southern California, triggering tornado warnings and snarling post-Christmas travel on major routes Thursday. Snow shut down vital Interstate 5 in Tejon Pass through the mountains north of Los Angeles and stopped traffic on Interstate 15...
Ohio dad faces felony charges in 2-year-old girl’s shooting death
NEWARK, Ohio — An Ohio man has been indicted on involuntary manslaughter and other charges after his 2-year-old daughter was fatally shot at home. In a 911 call about the Dec. 14 shooting, the girl’s mother said Noelle Massuros was accidentally shot by her 6-year-old brother, who had found a...
Blackhawks’ Brandon Saad out 3 weeks; Brent Seabrook done for season
CHICAGO — The Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday announced Pine-Richland product Brandon Saad will be sidelined three weeks with a right ankle injury. The 27-year-old forward got hurt during last week’s 4-1 victory at Winnipeg. He has 11 goals and eight assists in 36 games this season. The news is much...
Police release teen suspect in Barnard student’s killing
NEW YORK — A 14-year-old boy suspected of fatally stabbing a Barnard College freshman was released from police custody on Thursday, mere hours after New York City police said he had been located and taken into custody following a two-week manhunt. Chief of Detectives Rodney Harrison tweeted that finding the...
Online sales make up a larger portion of overall sales again
NEW YORK — More people did their shopping online this year during one of the shortest holiday shopping seasons in years, helping to push total sales higher. Retail sales in the U.S. rose 3.4% between Nov. 1 and Dec. 24 compared with last year, according to early data from Mastercard...
Online sales make up a larger portion of overall sales again
NEW YORK — More people did their shopping online this year during one of the shortest holiday shopping seasons in years, helping to push total sales higher. Retail sales in the United States rose 3.4% between Nov. 1 and Dec. 24 compared with last year, according to early data from...
Police locate teen suspected in killing of Barnard freshman
NEW YORK — A 14-year-old boy suspected of fatally stabbing a Barnard College freshman in a park near the school’s New York City campus has been found following a two-week manhunt, police said Thursday. Chief of Detectives Rodney Harrison tweeted that police “have located this individual” but gave no other...
No. 24 Air Force meets Washington State in Cheez-It BowlVideo
PHOENIX — Washington State plays an offense known as the Air Raid, designed to spread teams out, get players into space, rack up huge amounts of passing yards. Air Force tends to work in tighter spaces, relying on a triple option that’s difficult to defend and annually is among the...
Redwood tree falls, kills hiker in California park
MUIR WOODS NATIONAL MONUMENT PARK, Calif. — A huge redwood tree fell and killed a man visiting Muir Woods National Monument Park in California on Christmas Eve, authorities said Thursday. Subhradeep Dutta, 28, of Edina, Minn., died while walking on a marked dirt trail with two other people in the...
Prosecutor: Boston-area mom found dead with kids may have killed herself
BOSTON — Authorities believe a mother killed herself after her two young children fell from the roof of a Boston parking garage on Christmas Day and died. Suffolk District Attorney Rachael Rollins said Thursday the woman, whom she did not identify, was 40 years old, and her children were 15...
Simone Biles named 2019 AP Female Athlete of the YearVideo
They’re called “Simone Things,” a catch-all phrase for the casual ease with which Simone Biles seems to soar through her sport and her life. The irony, of course, is there’s nothing casual or easy about it. Any of it. The greatest gymnast of all time and 2019 Associated Press Female...
Women sue Frontier Airlines over sex assaults by passengersVideo
DENVER — Two women who say they were sexually assaulted by passengers on Frontier Airlines flights sued the Denver-based budget carrier for allegedly refusing to help them and either not having or failing to follow policies to respond to assaults. The class action lawsuit was filed Dec. 16 by two...
Florida waitress receives $2,000 tip on Christmas Eve
A Florida waitress who had just depleted her bank account to make a car repair received a $2,000 tip on Christmas Eve from regulars with whom she had shared her financial woes. Lynette Baio said the couple left her a check with the eye-popping amount Tuesday. Baio has worked at...
