Associated Press stories, Page 2608
Court picks Virginia redistricting plan that helps Democrats
RICHMOND, Va. — A panel of federal judges has chosen a redistricting map for Virginia’s House of Delegates that could shift some districts toward Democrats and help the party regain control in this year’s election. The judges ordered a new map after ruling that lawmakers had racially gerrymandered 11 House...
Police: Drunken man took wrong Lyft to wrong home
CAPE ELIZABETH, Maine — Police in Maine say a drunken man took the wrong Lyft and tried to get into a house he mistakenly thought was his home. Cape Elizabeth police say the Falmouth man mistakenly got into a Lyft summoned by a man who lived next door. Police say...
Forgoing staffers, many businesses turn to freelancers
NEW YORK — It hasn’t been lost on small business owners that Uber and other ride-sharing services are enormously successful without having employees doing the work. It’s one of the reasons why small companies are forgoing employees in favor of independent contractors. Todd Miller transformed his small business a year...
Parrot rescued after nearly 3 nights in storm drain
LOS ANGELES — An African Grey parrot is home after being trapped for nearly three nights in a storm drain in Los Angeles. Arturo Vasquez tells KABC-TV he turned to YouTube parrot advocate Marlene Mc’Cohen when no one would help him try to free his 10-year-old parrot Milly. Mc’Cohen says...
Shutdown makes it tough for groups to help endangered whales
PORTLAND, Maine — Rescuers who respond to distressed whales and other marine animals say the federal government shutdown is making it more difficult to do their work. A network of rescue groups in the U.S. works with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to respond to marine mammals, including whales...
Alec Baldwin pleads guilty to harassing motorist
NEW YORK — Alec Baldwin has pleaded guilty to harassing a man during a dispute over a parking spot last fall. The 60-year-old actor appeared in a New York City courtroom Wednesday. He agreed to complete a one-day anger management class to resolve the criminal case. The charge is a...
1 point away, Serena stunned by Pliskova at Australian Open
MELBOURNE, Australia — Four times, Serena Williams was only one point — a single point — from closing out a victory in the Australian Open quarterfinals. On the first such chance, at 5-1, 40-30 in the third set, she turned her left ankle awkwardly. The owner of the best serve...
Using banned pesticide that sickened family nets man prison
WILMINGTON, Del. — The ex-manager of a pest-control company in the U.S. Virgin Islands has been sentenced to a year in prison for poisoning a Delaware family with a banned pesticide. The News Journal reports 59-year-old Jose Rivera was charged with knowingly using methyl bromide in the St. John condominium...
N.Y. enacts new protections for abortion rights
ALBANY, N.Y. — New York state enacted one of the nation’s strongest protections for abortion rights Tuesday, a move that state leaders say was needed to safeguard those rights should the U.S. Supreme Court overturn Roe v. Wade. The Democrat-led Senate and Assembly passed the bill Tuesday, the 46th anniversary...
Amid wall debate, pope says fear of migration ‘makes us crazy’
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis said Wednesday that fear of migration is “making us crazy” as he began a trip to central America amid a standoff over President Donald Trump’s promised wall at the U.S.-Mexico border and a new caravan of migrants heading north. Francis was asked by reporters about...
Body found encased in frozen Pa. pool
NEW HOPE — Police say a body was found incased in ice in a pool in Pennsylvania. Authorities say the body was discovered Tuesday at a business in New Hope. Police say the body had to be cut from the pool, and they are investigating the victim’s identity and cause...
Cardi B set to begin residency at Las Vegas’ Palms Casino
LAS VEGAS — Cardi B will have her first Last Vegas residency this spring. Palms Casino Resort announced Wednesday the 26-year-old singer’s appearance as part of its debut of KAOS, a dayclub and nightclub amphitheater-style complex that is set to open in April. Above and Beyond, G-EAZY, Kaskade and Skrillex...
Covington Catholic reopens amid criticism over videotaped encounter
PARK HILLS, Ky. — A Catholic boys’ school widely criticized after a confrontation at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington is reopening under the watchful eye of law enforcement in Kentucky. News outlets reported that a letter sent to parents details extra safety measures being taken as classes resume at Covington...
Galveston police capture pair of runaway emus
GALVESTON, Texas — Police in coastal Texas have captured a pair of runaway emus that had been on the lam for a day after escaping their owner’s backyard. Emus aren’t permitted in Galveston, but police say a man recently brought the large, flightless birds to the island after the death...
Giant ice disk equipped with webcam after surviving storm
WESTBROOK, Maine — Maine’s giant spinning ice disk that quickly gained international fame survived the weekend winter weather that pummeled New England and now has its own webcam. The webcam in Westbrook monitors the disk that’s been spinning in the Presumpscot River for more than a week and continues its...
South Bend mayor Pete Buttigieg joins 2020 presidential race
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Democrat Pete Buttigieg, the 37-year-old mayor of South Bend, Indiana, is forming an exploratory committee for a 2020 presidential bid, according to a video and email announcement obtained by The Associated Press. “The reality is there’s no going back, and there’s no such thing as ‘again’...
Poll: Support for ‘Medicare-for-all’ fluctuates with details
WASHINGTON — “Medicare-for-all” makes a good first impression, but support plunges when people are asked if they’d pay higher taxes or put up with treatment delays to get it. The survey, released Wednesday by the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation, comes as Democratic presidential hopefuls embrace the idea of a government-run...
Dueling Senate bills would end shutdown in different ways
WASHINGTON — Senate leaders agreed to hold votes this week on dueling proposals to reopen shuttered federal agencies, forcing a political reckoning for senators grappling with the longest shutdown in U.S. history: Side with President Donald Trump or vote to temporarily end the shutdown and keep negotiating. Senate Majority Leader...
Arizona nurse arrested in rape of incapacitated woman who gave birth
PHOENIX — A nurse who was supposed to be looking after an incapacitated woman at a long-term health care facility has been charged with raping her, weeks after the patient stunned her caregivers and family by giving birth to a baby boy , Phoenix police said Wednesday. Investigators arrested Nathan...
Explosion near U.S. Consulate in Geneva; no injuries
GENEVA — An electrical fault triggered an explosion Wednesday near the U.S. Consulate in Geneva, police and officials said. The U.S. Embassy in the Swiss capital, Bern, issued a security alert over the blast, but no one was injured. “The explosion was linked to an electrical junction box, cooled by...
Larry Fitzgerald returning to Cardinals for 16th season
TEMPE, Ariz. — Star receiver Larry Fitzgerald is returning to the Arizona Cardinals for a 16th NFL season. The Cardinals announced Wednesday that they signed the 35-year-old Fitzgerald to a one-year contract. Team president Michael Bidwell says, “No player has meant more to this franchise or this community than Larry...
Comcast loses cable users, but internet subscribers surge
NEW YORK — Comcast is still losing U.S. cable customers but is racking up more internet subscribers and has gotten a revenue boost from Sky, its big bet on European TV. The Philadelphia company said Wednesday that it lost 29,000 U.S. cable customers in the fourth quarter but added 351,000...
Jimmy Page’s dragon guitar reborn after 50 years on ice
LOS ANGELES — After five decades, Jimmy Page’s dragon has re-emerged from its lair. Fender instruments on Wednesday gave the public its first look at its recreation of a Telecaster guitar that Page once painted with a dragon, a long-lost piece of six-string history that marked the guitar hero’s last...
Los Angeles teachers approve contract, end strike
LOS ANGELES — Teachers overwhelmingly approved a new contract Tuesday and planned to return to the classroom after a six-day strike over funding and staffing in the nation’s second-largest school district. Although all votes hadn’t been counted, preliminary figures showed that a “vast supermajority” of some 30,000 educators voted in...
Hobbled Serena Williams knocked out of Australian Open in quarters
MELBOURNE, Australia — Serena Williams was one point from quite a comeback victory in the Australian Open quarterfinals when she turned her left ankle. Everything unraveled from there. In a startling reversal and result, Williams wasted four match points along the way to dropping the last six games of a...
