Associated Press stories, Page 2433
Judge denies bail, public defender to man accused of spying
SAN FRANCISCO — A U.S. judge said Wednesday that a California tour operator is a flight risk and denied him bail while he awaits trial on charges of carrying national security documents to officials in China. U.S. Magistrate Judge Jacqueline Corley also ordered Xuehua Edward Peng to hire his own...
3 charged with providing drugs that killed Mac Miller
LOS ANGELES — Three men arrested during the investigation into rapper Mac Miller’s deadly overdose last year have now been charged with providing the drugs that killed him, U.S. prosecutors said Wednesday. A grand jury indictment that was unsealed in Los Angeles accuses the men of conspiring and distributing cocaine...
Stocks drop again to worst loss in weeks on economy worries
NEW YORK — Stocks tumbled again on Wednesday as worries about a weakening global economy boomeranged around the world. For a second straight day, the S&P 500 dropped to its worst loss in five weeks. The latest wave of selling came after a report showed hiring by U.S. companies slowed...
Protests escalate in Iraq: 9 dead, hundreds wounded
BAGHDAD — At least seven people were killed and dozens were wounded in clashes that spread across several Iraqi provinces on Wednesday as security forces fired live ammunition and tear gas for the second day to disperse anti-government protesters demanding jobs, improved services and an end to corruption. The deaths...
Ex-South Carolina official gets prison time in prostitution sting
COLUMBIA, S.C. — A former member of the board that oversees South Carolina highways will spend seven months in prison for trying to hire a prostitute just hours after he received probation for admitting he tried to derail an FBI investigation by destroying evidence. John Hardee, 72, was sentenced Wednesday...
Billionaire, friend get no-jail plea deal in Las Vegas drug case
LAS VEGAS — A billionaire California technology firm founder and his friend took no-jail plea deals Wednesday that had them donate $1 million to charities while not admitting guilt in a Las Vegas Strip hotel room drug investigation. Henry Thompson Nicholas III and co-defendant Ashley Christine Fargo stood with their...
Placido Domingo resigns as general director of LA Opera
SAN FRANCISCO — Opera star Placido Domingo resigned Wednesday as general director of the Los Angeles Opera and withdrew from future performances at the company following multiple allegations of sexual harassment reported by The Associated Press. “I hold Los Angeles Opera very dearly to my heart and count my work...
Netanyahu’s legal saga reaches critical stage in Israel
JERUSALEM — Prosecutors began a pre-indictment hearing for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, opening a critical stage in a lengthy legal saga that threatens to end the career of the long-serving Israeli leader and has paralyzed the country’s political system. Netanyahu’s lawyers sat down with Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit...
Longtime Cardinals owner William V. Bidwill dies at 88Video
TEMPE, Ariz. — William V. Bidwill, who owned the NFL’s Cardinals franchise in three cities, has died. He was 88. The team announced that Bidwill passed away Wednesday. A cause of death wasn’t immediately given. “Our dad passed away today the same way he lived his life: peacefully, with grace,...
Democrats warn White House to expect subpoena on Ukraine
WASHINGTON — House Democratic leaders warned the White House on Wednesday to expect a subpoena demanding documents on President Trump’s dealings with Ukraine, accusing the administration of “flagrant disregard” of previous requests and saying that refusal could be considered an impeachable offense. Separately, the Democrats accused Trump of “an incitement...
Garth Brooks to receive Gershwin Prize for Popular SongVideo
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Country music superstar Garth Brooks has more than just friends in low places. The Library of Congress said Wednesday the Grammy winner will receive the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song in March 2020. Previous recipients include Tony Bennett, Paul Simon, Carole King and Willie...
World War II-era bomber crashes; at least 7 reported deadVideo
WINDSOR LOCKS, Conn. — A World War II-era B-17 bomber with 13 people aboard crashed and burned at the Hartford airport after encountering mechanical trouble on takeoff Wednesday, and a state official said at least seven were killed. The same plane also crashed in 1987 at an air show near...
Bernie Sanders has heart procedure, cancels campaign events
WASHINGTON — Bernie Sanders’ campaign said Wednesday that the Democratic presidential candidate had a heart procedure for a blocked artery and was canceling events and appearances “until further notice.” The 78-year-old Sanders experienced chest discomfort during an event Tuesday and sought medical evaluation, according to a campaign statement. It said...
Fed-up San Francisco neighbors use rocks to block homeless
SAN FRANCISCO — A group of San Francisco neighbors say they bought boulders and had them delivered to their sidewalk to stop people from camping and dealing drugs on their street. In Los Angeles this summer, the owner of a cultural center erected massive planters around his building to block...
Pompeo acknowledges he was on Trump call at center of probeVideo
WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo acknowledged on Wednesday that he was on the July phone call between President Donald Trump and the Ukraine president that’s at the center of the House impeachment inquiry. But Pompeo continued to push back against what he said was Democrats’ “bullying and intimidation.”...
Sheriff: Armed girl threatened to kill boy over crush
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — Authorities in South Carolina say a girl brought two kitchen knives to her elementary school and threatened to kill a boy who had a crush on another girl. Citing a Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office report, The Island Packet reports the knives were found in the...
Store-bought is fine: ‘Barefoot Contessa’ writing memoir
The next book by million-selling chef Ina Garten will be a little more personal. Celadon Books announced Wednesday that Garten is working on a memoir, not yet titled. It’s tentatively scheduled for 2022. Garten, longtime host of the Food Network’s “Barefoot Contessa,” has written such bestsellers as “Barefoot Contessa Parties!”...
Mail on Sunday says it will fight Meghan’s lawsuit, Harry speaks out
The Mail on Sunday newspaper says it will defend itself “vigorously” against a lawsuit brought by Prince Harry’s wife Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, over a story it published. The newspaper said Tuesday night it “stands by the story” in question, which concerns publication of a letter Meghan had written...
Juan Soto lifts Nationals to comeback wild-card win over BrewersVideo
WASHINGTON — After all the heartache and close calls, all the early exits, maybe it makes sense that a 20-year-old kid who never had been to the postseason, Juan Soto, would help the Washington Nationals finally advance. And maybe, just maybe, it makes sense that it would be this particular...
Judge temporarily blocks law aimed at Trump’s tax returns
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A U.S. judge on Tuesday temporarily blocked a California law aimed at forcing President Donald Trump to release his personal income tax returns in order to appear on the 2020 primary ballot. U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England Jr. issued a written opinion saying the law likely...
Lizard protections sought in Southwest amid U.S. oil boom
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A small lizard found among the dunes straddling New Mexico and West Texas in one of the nation’s richest oil basins is at the center of a legal complaint filed Tuesday. Environmentalists want the U.S. government to add the lizard to the endangered species list as part...
Federal judge temporarily blocks Georgia abortion law
ATLANTA — A federal judge on Tuesday temporarily blocked Georgia’s restrictive new abortion law from taking effect, following the lead of other judges who have blocked similar measures in other states. The law signed in May by Republican Gov. Brian Kemp bans abortions once a “detectable human heartbeat” is present,...
White ex-officer’s guilty verdict stuns some black advocates
Monica Blake watched closely as a Texas jury weighed the case against a white police officer charged in the fatal shooting of a black neighbor, wondering whether the panel would render a different decision than so many others in recent years. When Amber Guyger was convicted of murder Tuesday, Blake,...
Pipeline rules adopted years after deadly explosion, spills
BILLINGS, Mont. — U.S. transportation officials on Tuesday adopted long-delayed measures that are meant to prevent pipeline spills and deadly gas explosions but don’t address recommended steps to lessen accidents once they occur. The new rules from the Department of Transportation apply to more than 500,000 miles of pipelines that...
Missouri executes killer despite concern about painful death
ST. LOUIS — A Missouri man was executed Tuesday for killing a man during a violent 1996 crime spree, despite concerns that the inmate’s rare medical condition would cause a gruesome lethal injection. Russell Bucklew was executed at the state prison in Bonne Terre. It was Missouri’s first execution since...
