Associated Press stories, Page 597
Young bear spotted relaxing on hammock in Vermont yard
WAITSFIELD, Vt. — Noah and Kristen Dweck have seen a number of black bears around their home in Vermont but this was a first: a bear relaxing on their hammock. Noah Dweck took iPhone video of two young bears in their yard in Waitsfield on Tuesday with one sitting on...
Jersey Shore cops, politicians want to hold parents responsible for kids’ rowdy actions after meleesVideo
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Parents should be held civilly or criminally responsible for the actions of their children that create disturbances or damage in public places, a group of New Jersey police chiefs and Republican lawmakers said Wednesday during a forum held after a second consecutive year of disturbances at...
NBA mock draft: Frenchmen go 1-2, then Sheppard and Castle follow as best of the one-and-donesVideo
The only certainty in the NBA Draft used to be a college freshman at the top of it. From John Wall in 2010 to Paolo Banchero in 2022, 13 straight drafts began with a one-and-done player. That streak ended last year, when San Antonio selected Victor Wembanyama with the No....
House votes to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt for withholding Biden audio
WASHINGTON — The House voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for refusing to turn over audio of President Joe Biden’s interview in his classified documents case, Republicans’ latest and strongest rebuke of the Justice Department as partisan conflict over the rule of law animates...
Biden faces first lawsuit over asylum crackdown at border
WASHINGTON — A coalition of immigrant advocacy groups sued the Biden administration Wednesday over President Joe Biden’s recent directive that effectively halts asylum claims at the southern border, saying it differs little from a similar move during the Trump administration that was blocked by the courts. The lawsuit — filed...
Florida’s 2024 hurricane season arrives with a rainy delugeVideo
Dangerous flooding from a tropical disturbance inundated much of southern Florida on Wednesday, blocking roads, floating vehicles and delaying the Florida Panthers on their way to Stanley Cup games in Canada against the Edmonton Oilers. The disorganized storm system was pushing across Florida from the Gulf of Mexico at roughly...
Republicans stick to attacking criminal justice system, echoing Trump, after Hunter Biden conviction
PHOENIX — Republicans are responding to Hunter Biden’s conviction on federal gun charges with some version of, “That’s it?” Loyal to Donald Trump, they largely echoed the former president’s claim that the Justice Department has treated President Joe Biden’s son with kid gloves while zealously prosecuting Trump. Using the attention...
Biden, Zelenskyy will sign security agreement between U.S., Ukraine at G7
ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE — President Joe Biden and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will sign a bilateral security agreement between the U.S. and Ukraine on Thursday when they meet on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in Italy, aiming to send a signal to Russia of American resolve in...
Nick Dunlap returns to Pinehurst No. 2 for the U.S. Open a PGA Tour winner, and no longer an amateurVideo
PINEHURST, N.C. — Nick Dunlap walked away from Pinehurst No. 2 less than a year ago with a shiny trophy to show for his work. Very little remains the same as he returns for the U.S. Open. The 20-year-old champion of the North & South Amateur, played over the same...
Blinken says some of Hamas’ proposed changes to a cease-fire plan in Gaza are workable and some not
BEIRUT — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday mediators would keep trying to close an elusive cease-fire deal for Gaza after Hamas proposed changes to a U.S.-backed plan, some of which he said were “workable” and some not. The back-and-forth laid bare frustration over the difficulty of reaching...
AP-NORC poll: About half of U.S. adults approve of Trump’s conviction, but views of him remain stable
NEW YORK — About half of U.S. adults approve of Donald Trump’s recent felony conviction, according to a poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. The survey shows some potential vulnerabilities, along with some signs of resilience in his support, as Trump tries to become the first...
Federal Reserve sees some progress on inflation but envisions just 1 rate cut this yearVideo
WASHINGTON — Federal Reserve officials said Wednesday that inflation has fallen further toward their target level in recent months but signaled that they expect to cut their benchmark interest rate just once this year. The policymakers’ forecast for one rate cut was down from a previous forecast of three, because...
Dodgers acquire Cavan Biggio from Blue Jays for minor league pitcher Braydon Fisher
LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Dodgers acquired infielder-outfielder Cavan Biggio from the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for minor league pitcher Braydon Fisher on Wednesday. Biggio was designated for assignment last week after batting .200 with four doubles, two home runs and nine RBI in 44 games for the...
3 deputies shot while responding to northern Illinois home, suspect also wounded, official says
DIXON, Ill. — Three sheriff’s deputies were shot Wednesday while responding to a northern Illinois home, and the suspect was also wounded, authorities said. Ogle County Sheriff Brian VanVickle said the deputies were responding to a report that someone inside the home in the Lost Lake community near Dixon was...
Senators blast health and law enforcement officials over illegal e-cigarettes used by teensVideo
WASHINGTON — Senators on Wednesday blasted top health and law enforcement officials for not doing more to combat the rise of illegal electronic cigarettes in the U.S., a multibillion-dollar business that has flourished amid haphazard enforcement. Democrats and Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee expressed frustration and exasperation while questioning...
Federal court dismisses appeal of lawsuit contesting transgender woman in Wyoming sorority
DENVER — A federal court on Wednesday dismissed the appeal of a lawsuit that challenged a transgender woman’s acceptance into a sorority at the University of Wyoming, ruling it had no jurisdiction to hear the case. The lawsuit could not be appealed because a lower court judge in Wyoming left...
Elon Musk drops lawsuit against ChatGPT-maker OpenAI without explanation
SAN FRANCISCO — Elon Musk has dropped his lawsuit against OpenAI just ahead of a scheduled Wednesday hearing on the case. Musk in February sued the San Francisco artificial intelligence company and its CEO Sam Altman over what he said was a betrayal of the ChatGPT maker’s founding aims of...
Southern Baptists narrowly reject formal ban on churches with any women pastors
INDIANAPOLIS — Southern Baptists narrowly rejected a proposal Wednesday to enshrine a ban on churches with women pastors in the denomination’s constitution after opponents argued it was unnecessary because the denomination already has a way of ousting such churches. The vote received support from 61% of the delegates, but it...
Florida and star Jac Caglianone are back in Omaha thanks to a contributing supporting cast
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Jac Caglianone grabbed a Florida teammate to help carry the bucket of ice water and tried to sneak up on coach Kevin O’Sullivan moments after the Gators advanced to the College World Series for the second consecutive year. “I saw him coming the whole way,” O’Sullivan said...
Jerry West, a 3-time Hall of Fame selection and the NBA logo, dies at 86
Jerry West, who was selected to the Basketball Hall of Fame three times in a storied career as a player and executive and whose silhouette is considered to be the basis of the NBA logo, died Wednesday morning, the Los Angeles Clippers announced. He was 86. West, nicknamed “Mr. Clutch”...
Jerry West, a 3-time Hall of Fame selection and the NBA logo, dies at 86Video
Jerry West, who was selected to the Basketball Hall of Fame three times in a storied career as a player and executive, and whose silhouette is considered to be the basis of the NBA logo, died Wednesday morning, the Los Angeles Clippers announced. He was 86. West, nicknamed “Mr. Clutch”...
Thefts of charging cables pose yet another obstacle to appeal of electric vehicles
DETROIT — Just before 2 a.m. on a chilly April night in Seattle, a Chevrolet Silverado pickup stopped at an electric vehicle charging station on the edge of a shopping center parking lot. Two men, one with a light strapped to his head, got out. A security camera recorded them...
Faking an honest woman: Why Russia, China and Big Tech all use faux females to get clicks
WASHINGTON — When disinformation researcher Wen-Ping Liu looked into China’s efforts to influence Taiwan’s recent election using fake social media accounts, something unusual stood out about the most successful profiles. They were female, or at least that’s what they appeared to be. Fake profiles that claimed to be women got...
What’s next for Hunter Biden after his conviction on federal gun charges
WILMINGTON, Del. — Hunter Biden’s legal woes are not over after his conviction on three felony firearms charges in a trial that put a spotlight on his drug-fueled past. Now, President Joe Biden’s son faces sentencing, and another criminal trial on tax charges in the middle of his father’s reelection...
Hezbollah fires scores of rockets at northern Israel as Gaza cease-fire talks hang in the balance
BEIRUT — Lebanon’s Hezbollah fired a massive barrage of rockets into northern Israel on Wednesday to avenge the killing of a top commander, further escalating regional tensions as the fate of an internationally-backed plan for a cease-fire in Gaza hung in the balance. The retaliatory attack came as U.S. Secretary...
