Associated Press stories, Page 2526
Trump backtracks on call to gut $300M Great Lakes program
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. — President Donald Trump tried repeatedly to gut funding for a wide-ranging Great Lakes cleanup, only to be stymied by Congress. Suddenly, he did an about-face. It happened Thursday during a campaign-style speech in the battleground state of Michigan. For years, the program the Obama administration established...
Police killing of pipe-wielding NYC man called legal
NEW YORK — Police officers were “legally justified” in the killing of a mentally disturbed man they said was wielding a piece of pipe like a gun on a New York City street, according to a report on the shooting released Friday. The review by the office of New York...
Cancellations of Latino-themed shows spark anger, reflection
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Netflix’s cancellation of “One Day at a Time” has led to an outcry on social media by the show’s viewers. And fans of CW’s “Jane the Virgin” are preparing to say goodbye to a show entering its fifth and final season. The departure of the two Latino-themed...
Judge blocks California’s high-capacity ammunition ban
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — High-capacity gun magazines will remain legal in California under a ruling Friday by a federal judge who cited home invasions where a woman used the extra bullets in her weapon to kill an attacker while in two other cases women without additional ammunition ran out of bullets....
‘Evil attracts evil’: Judge gives Pa. mom life in teen murder
DOYLESTOWN, Pa. — A woman who plotted the rape, torture and murder of her own teenage daughter pleaded guilty on Friday and was sentenced to life in prison for a crime so barbaric that prosecutors and the judge strained for superlatives to describe it. One day after her co-conspirator boyfriend...
Judge rejects Trump plan for road in Alaska wildlife refuge
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — The Trump administration violated federal law with a proposed road through a national wildlife refuge in Alaska, a federal judge ruled Friday, saying the project would have reversed previous policy without explanation. U.S. District Court Judge Sharon Gleason rejected an Interior Department land exchange that would have...
Auburn gives boot to No. 1 seed North Carolina
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Auburn insisted all along it wouldn’t change its style against up-tempo North Carolina. Turns out the SEC Tournament champs can run a bit, too. Auburn earned its second trip to the Elite Eight by coasting to a to a 97-80 victory over the No. 1 seed...
Freshmen lead Michigan State past LSU into Elite Eight
WASHINGTON — Matt McQuaid could not believe LSU was giving Michigan State freshmen Aaron Henry and Gabe Brown so much room at the 3-point line. “They were like 3 or 4 feet off Gabe on that one 3,” McQuaid said. “I was like, ‘Dang, do they know he can shoot?’...
A look at the cast of characters in the Jussie Smollett saga
CHICAGO — Jussie Smollett, a successful but not A-list actor, burst into the world’s consciousness in January after he reported being the victim of a racist and anti-gay attack. In the two months since, a number of figures in Chicago and beyond have gained international attention and emerged as supporting...
Catholic church in SC names 42 priests accused of sex abuse
CHARLESTON, S.C. — The Catholic diocese in South Carolina on Friday released a list of 42 priests with ties to the state who have been credibly accused of sexually abusing children. All but 11 of the priests on the list released by the Charleston Diocese have died. The list doesn’t...
Police: Seattle shooting suspect says he was in alcoholic blackout
SEATTLE — A man accused of randomly shooting at cars and a public bus in Seattle, leaving two people dead and two injured, told police afterward that he was in an alcoholic blackout and didn’t remember doing it, authorities said in court documents Friday. Tad-Michael Norman, 33, was charged in...
Judge restricts access to evidence in Minneapolis police shooting case
MINNEAPOLIS — The judge overseeing the trial of a former Minneapolis police officer who shot and killed an unarmed Australian woman has set tight restrictions for how the courtroom will be run and ruled Friday that members of the public and media will not view graphic evidence that is presented...
US judge: School’s rule for girls to wear skirts breaks law
RALEIGH, N.C. — A North Carolina charter school promoting traditional values engaged in unconstitutional sex discrimination by requiring girls to wear skirts, a federal judge has ruled. U.S. District Judge Malcolm Howard ruled that Charter Day School can’t enforce the skirts-only rule as part of its dress code that punishes...
MLB teams putting extra value on versatility
LAKELAND, Fla. — In his rookie season with the Detroit Tigers, Niko Goodrum spent time at first base, second base, third base, shortstop and both corner outfield spots. The next logical step was to try him in center field, and manager Ron Gardenhire did that during spring training this month....
Poll: Most see women equal to men in politics
WASHINGTON — An all-time high of 84 percent of Americans believe women are just as suited emotionally for politics as men, according to a new survey that comes as the largest-ever field of women are running for president and with a record number serving in Congress. The growing acceptance of...
Georgia House passes ‘heartbeat’ abortion ban
ATLANTA — Bucking intense opposition from abortion rights groups, citizens and doctors, the Georgia House gave final approval Friday to a “fetal heartbeat” abortion ban outlawing almost all abortions in the state. The bill now goes to Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, who supports it. The ultimate goal, like that of...
Coroner: Slain Pa. family died by suffocation, strangulation
MORRISVILLE, Pa. — Officials say four of five family members killed in a suburban Philadelphia apartment earlier this year were suffocated, and the fifth was strangled. It’s the latest development since authorities charged a mother and her adult daughter with killing their close family members in February. The Bucks County...
U.K. lawmakers reject Brexit deal for a third time
LONDON — U.K. lawmakers on Friday rejected the government’s divorce agreement with the European Union for a third time, leaving Britain just two weeks to decide between a long delay to Brexit and an abrupt no-deal departure from the bloc. The House of Commons voted 286-344 against the withdrawal agreement...
Entire school system in a West Virginia county closes for flu outbreak
NEW CUMBERLAND, W.Va. — All of the schools in a West Virginia county are being closed because of a flu outbreak. A state Education Department spokesperson forwarded a voicemail from the Hancock County school superintendent confirming the Friday closures. In the voicemail, Superintendent Timothy Woodward says all schools in the...
George Clooney calls for boycott of hotels over anti-gay law
LOS ANGELES — George Clooney is calling for the boycott of nine hotels in the U.S. and Europe with ties to the sultan of Brunei, which next month will implement Islamic criminal laws to punish gay sex by stoning offenders to death. The Hollywood actor wrote Thursday in Deadline Hollywood:...
Autopsy: Heart attack killed Nevada brothel owner
LAS VEGAS — Authorities say America’s most famous pimp died of a heart attack in bed at one of his legal brothels in Nevada after a 72nd birthday bash in October. The Nye County Sheriff’s Office said Thursday an autopsy showed Dennis Hof died of natural causes. The autopsy by...
Cow hit 4 times in crash that sends 1 driver to hospital
MARSHFIELD, Mo. — Authorities say a cow that wandered onto a southwest Missouri highway was hit by four different vehicles with one fiery impact sending a driver to the hospital. The Springfield News-Leader reports that the 21-year-old Hannah Maxwell said she didn’t have time to swerve before her sport utility...
Lyft’s shares soar as investors bet on ride-hailing future
Lyft’s shares soared as the company went public Friday, giving investors their first chance to bet on the future of the ride-hailing industry. The stock opened at $87.24, up 21 percent from its offering price of $72. Lyft won the race with its much larger rival Uber to go public,...
California man sentenced to 20 years in fatal ‘swatting’
WICHITA, Kan. — A California man was sentenced Friday to 20 years in prison for making bogus emergency calls to authorities across the U.S., including one that led police to fatally shoot a Kansas man following a dispute between two online players over $1.50 bet in the “Call of Duty:...
Trump threatens to close border with Mexico next week
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Friday threatened to close the nation’s southern border, or large sections of it, next week if Mexico does not halt illegal immigration at once. “If Mexico doesn’t immediately stop ALL illegal immigration coming into the United States through our Southern Border, I will be...
