Associated Press stories, Page 2439
Pa. Gov. Tom Wolf now supports legalizing marijuana
Gov. Tom Wolf says he is now in favor of legalizing marijuana for recreational use in Pennsylvania, and is asking lawmakers to consider it. Wolf’s announcement Wednesday advances his position from last December, when he signaled that he was open to taking a look at it as it gathered popularity...
Chicago-area girl dies on 12th birthday after being shot
HARVEY, Ill. — Medical examiners say a girl shot in the head while she sat at a home computer in suburban Chicago has died on her 12th birthday. The Cook County Medical Examiner’s office confirmed Wednesday that Kentavia Blackful of Harvey died Tuesday night at a hospital. Harvey Police Chief...
Trump rebuked on military base project cuts, but veto looms
WASHINGTON — The Senate has passed a measure that blocks President Donald Trump from using emergency powers to raid the budget for construction projects on military bases as a way to pay for building his fence along the U.S.-Mexico border. Eleven Republicans voted to rebuke the president on a 54-41...
‘We’re all in big trouble’: Climate panel sees a dire future
Earth is in more hot water than ever before, and so are we, an expert United Nations climate panel warned in a grim new report Wednesday. Sea levels are rising at an ever-faster rate as ice and snow shrink, and oceans are getting more acidic and losing oxygen, the Intergovernmental...
Law firm says it settled some cases involving Boeing crashes
CHICAGO — A Chicago law firm says it has settled lawsuits against Boeing on behalf of the families of 11 passengers killed in the crash of a Lion Air jet off the coast of Indonesia. It’s believed to be the first settlement in the nearly 100 lawsuits filed against Boeing...
Top French chef upset by loss of 3rd star takes Michelin Guide to court
PARIS — Chef Marc Veyrat, known for his black chapeau and his mountain cuisine, is taking the Michelin Guide to court to find out why he lost his third star this year — and how the publication that makes, and sometimes breaks, reputations in the world’s prestigious kitchens could allegedly...
Coast Guard cutter intercepts cocaine-carrying sub
MIAMI — The U.S. Coast Guard says a cutter seized a “narco” submarine carrying cocaine worth a street value of more than $165 million while patrolling in the eastern Pacific Ocean. In a Tuesday news release, the agency says the crew captured the self-propelled semi-submersible in international waters earlier this...
Arby’s parent Inspire Brands buys Jimmy John’s Sandwiches
ATLANTA — The parent company of Arby’s is buying Jimmy John’s Sandwiches, hoping to reverse sluggish sales at the chain. Atlanta-based Inspire Brands said Wednesday the acquisition will make it the fourth-largest restaurant company in the United States, with annual sales of $14 billion and 11,200 restaurants. Inspire also owns...
18 charged in alleged Ohio heroin ring
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Eighteen people accused of being involved in conspiracies to receive imported heroin from Mexico and sell it in central Ohio have been indicted on federal charges. Authorities say 13 of the defendants were arrested Tuesday in central Ohio. Five others are being sought in California. Federal prosecutors...
Memo: Trump prodded Ukraine leader to investigate Biden
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump repeatedly prodded Ukraine’s new leader to work with Rudy Giuliani and the U.S. attorney general to investigate Democratic political rival Joe Biden, according to a rough transcript summarizing the call released Wednesday. In the call, Trump raised unsubstantiated allegations that the former vice president sought...
Juul to end advertising, lobbying efforts of e-cigarette; CEO stepping down
Juul Labs will no longer promote its e-cigarettes in print, digital and TV advertisements and is replacing its CEO amid an escalating backlash against vaping nationwide. The nation’s largest e-cigarette maker also pledged Wednesday not to lobby against a sweeping ban on vaping flavors proposed by the Trump administration earlier...
Homeless man pleads guilty to Minnesota synagogue fire
DULUTH, Minn. — A homeless man has pleaded guilty to starting a fire that destroyed a 117-year-old synagogue in Duluth, Minnesota. Thirty-six-year-old Matthew Amiot entered his guilty pleas on negligent fire charges Tuesday in St. Louis County District Court. The fire destroyed the Adas Israel Synagogue on September 9. Authorities...
Al Franken to make return on weekly SiriusXM radio show
Al Franken, who resigned his U.S. Senate seat in 2017 amid sexual misconduct charges, will re-emerge into the public sphere on Saturday when he starts a new weekly radio show on the SiriusXM satellite service. The Minnesota Democrat is perhaps the most prominent public figure felled by the #MeToo movement...
Trump says impeachment drive a plus, but he tweets with fury
NEW YORK — Fifty-eight floors above Manhattan, President Donald Trump watched his legacy change and his political future grow more uncertain. The president, back in his hometown of New York for the U.N. General Assembly, was taking “executive time” at his Trump Tower penthouse late Tuesday afternoon when Speaker Nancy...
Emmett Till cousin on inquiry: ‘What is the holdup?’
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The government is still investigating the brutal slaying of Emmett Till, a black teenager whose death helped spur the civil rights movement more than 60 years ago. A Justice Department report issued to Congress about civil rights cold case investigations lists the 1955 slaying of 14-year-old Emmett...
Dallas officer on trial had no drugs, alcohol in system
DALLAS — A white Dallas police officer who fatally shot her black neighbor in his apartment last year had no drugs or alcohol in her system at the time, a police detective testified Tuesday. Detective Eddie Ibarra’s testimony during the second day of Amber Guyger’s murder trial marked the first...
Pirates end 9-game skid, put Cubs on life support
A seven-game losing streak has all but eliminated the Chicago Cubs from playoff contention, and the near finality of that could be felt in their somber clubhouse following the latest defeat. “You don’t ever envision failing,” right fielder Jason Heyward said quietly. “Whether you’re a parent, someone going to work,...
Placido Domingo withdraws from Met Opera after harassment reports
NEW YORK — The Metropolitan Opera announced Tuesday that Placido Domingo had agreed to withdraw from his slate of scheduled performances at the opera house following allegations of sexual harassment made by multiple women in two Associated Press stories. The opera legend indicated that he would never again perform at...
Robert Hunter, Grateful Dead’s poetic lyricist, dead at 78Video
LOS ANGELES — Robert Hunter, the man behind the poetic and mystical words for many of the Grateful Dead’s finest songs, has died at age 78. Hunter died Monday at his Northern California home with his wife, Maureen, at his side, former Grateful Dead publicist Dennis McNally told The Associated...
Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin says teen climate activist ‘ill-informed’
LOUISVILLE — Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin touted the reliability of fossil fuels and called teen climate activist Greta Thunberg “remarkably ill-informed” during a conference on energy. Bevin was asked about the 16-year-old Swedish activist on Tuesday after he gave a keynote address at the annual meeting of the Southern States...
Nancy Pelosi orders impeachment probe: ‘No one is above the law’Video
WASHINGTON — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi launched a formal impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump on Tuesday, acquiescing to mounting pressure from fellow Democrats and plunging a deeply divided nation into an election year clash between Congress and the commander in chief. The probe centers on whether Trump abused his...
Massachusetts temporarily banning sale of vaping products
BOSTON — The governor of Massachusetts is declaring a public health emergency and ordering a four-month ban on the sale of vaping products in the state. Republican Gov. Charlie Baker’s order Tuesday appears to be the first of its kind in the nation. The ban must be approved by a...
WeWork CEO stepping aside amid questions about company
NEW YORK — WeWork’s charismatic but controversial CEO is stepping aside from the company he founded, another moment of reckoning between a fast-growing tech company and its disenchanted investors. The New York-based company, which runs trendy communal office spaces, said Tuesday that Adam Neumann will remain on its board as...
Google wins case over EU’s ‘right to be forgotten’ rules
BRUSSELS — Handing Google a major victory, the European Union’s highest court ruled Tuesday that the EU’s “right to be forgotten” rules that allow people to control what comes up when their name is searched online do not apply outside the 28-nation bloc. Over the past five years, people in...
NASA says 1969 moon landing lab to be demolished next year
NASA says the Houston building where Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong and his colleagues emerged from quarantine after their 1969 moon mission has fallen into disrepair and will be demolished. The Houston Chronicle reported Tuesday that the Lunar Receiving Laboratory at Johnson Space Center hasn’t been used for two years...
