South Carolina House adds firing squad to execution methods
COLUMBIA, S.C. — The South Carolina House voted Wednesday to add a firing squad to the state’s execution methods amid a lack of lethal-injection drugs — a measure meant to jump-start executions in a state that once had one of the busiest death chambers in the nation. The bill, approved...
Kentucky medical student found dead at bottom of cliff at Red River Gorge
STANTON, Ky. — A 24-year-old University of Kentucky student who went hiking at Red River Gorge has been found dead at the bottom of a 150-foot cliff, authorities said. Powell County Search and Rescue said in a statement that the organization was notified Tuesday that the woman had gone hiking...
U.S. to back waiver of vaccine intellectual property protections at WTO
WASHINGTON — The U.S. will support a proposal to waive intellectual property protections for covid-19 vaccines, joining an effort to increase global supply and access to the life-saving shots as the gap between rich and poor nations widens. “We are for the waiver at the WTO, we are for what...
U.S. birth rate falls to lowest point in more than a century
NEW YORK — The U.S. birth rate fell 4% last year, the largest single-year decrease in nearly 50 years, according to a government report being released Wednesday. The rate dropped for moms of every major race and ethnicity, and in nearly every age group, falling to the lowest point since...
Pennsylvania GOP wants to restore work-search rule for jobless benefits
HARRISBURG — Republicans in Pennsylvania’s GOP-controlled Legislature are advancing legislation to reinstate work-search requirements for people claiming unemployment benefits, with one survey showing that workers aren’t taking open jobs at a record rate. The bill cleared the House Labor and Industry Committee on a party-line vote Tuesday. Lawmakers suspended the...
West Virginia sets new targets in sluggish vaccine campaign
CHARLESTON — West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice made an array of promises Wednesday to turn around the state’s lagging coronavirus vaccination campaign as it trails over a dozen states. The state is confronting vaccine hesitancy, Justice has said, amid a focus on vaccinating residents aged 16 to 35. The Republican...
In visit to Mexican restaurant, Biden touts $28.6B covid-relief grants for eateriesVideo
WASHINGTON — Setting foot in a restaurant for his first time as president, Joe Biden made a Cinco de Mayo taco and enchilada run to highlight his administration’s $28.6 billion program to help eateries that lost business because of the coronavirus pandemic. The president went to Taqueria Las Gemelas in...
Firing of Atlanta officer who shot Rayshard Brooks reversed
ATLANTA — The firing of the former Atlanta police officer who’s charged with murder in the shooting death of Rayshard Brooks was reversed after a review panel found the city failed to follow its own procedures for disciplinary actions. Garrett Rolfe was fired in June, a day after he shot...
National parks will still require masks in some outdoor areas this summer
WASHINGTON — National parks will still require visitors to wear masks in some outdoor settings entering the summer season, an Interior Department spokeswoman said on Wednesday. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said last month that people could safely walk, run or bike without wearing masks — whether they...
Families, advocates mark day of awareness for Native victims
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — From Washington to Indigenous communities across the American Southwest, top government officials, family members and advocates gathered Wednesday as part of a call to action to address the ongoing problem of violence against Indigenous women and children. U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland and other federal officials commemorated...
60 years since 1st American in space: Tourists lining up
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Sixty years after Alan Shepard became the first American in space, everyday people are on the verge of following in his cosmic footsteps. Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin company used Wednesday’s anniversary to announce an auction for a seat on the company’s first crew spaceflight, launched by...
Louisiana cop who used stun gun on handcuffed man resigns
PORT ALLEN, La. — An officer who used a stun gun twice on a handcuffed, seated man has resigned from a Louisiana police department one day before a termination hearing. Nolan Dehon III had been scheduled for a hearing Tuesday before the Port Allen City Council, to consider whether to...
Myanmar’s military disappearing young men to crush uprising
JAKARTA, Indonesia — Myanmar’s security forces moved in and the street lamps went black. In house after house, people shut off their lights. Darkness swallowed the block. Huddled inside her home in this neighborhood of Yangon, 19-year-old Shwe dared to peek out her window into the inky night. A flashlight shone back,...
Covid’s U.S. toll projected to drop sharply by the end of July
NEW YORK — Teams of experts are projecting covid-19’s toll on the U.S. will fall sharply by the end of July, according to research released by the government Wednesday. But they also warn that a “substantial increase” in hospitalizations and deaths is possible if unvaccinated people do not follow basic...
Macron to commemorate 200th anniversary of Napoleon’s death
PARIS — President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday is marking the bicentenary of the death of Napoleon Bonapart, the warrior and emperor who famously bequeathed to France its civil code but whose legacy is today tarnished in the eyes of some for reinstating slavery. In a speech, Macron is expected to...
Hot mic in courtroom captures insurance adjuster calling judge an idiot
Virtual court proceedings during the covid-19 pandemic have seen their share of cyber blunders. Participants have appeared naked or with a beer in hand, while an errant video filter turned a Texas attorney into a cat during a Zoom hearing. In the Silicon Valley last month, an insurance adjuster provided...
2 Denver officers suspended for excessive force in protests
DENVER — Two police officers in Denver have been suspended without pay after city officials said they used excessive force during racial justice protests last year sparked by the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Officers Derek Streeter and Diego Archuleta were the first in the department to be...
Canada authorizes Pfizer vaccine for age 12 to 16
TORONTO — Canada’s health regulator has authorized Pfizer’s covid-19 vaccine for ages 12 and older. Dr. Supriya Sharma, chief medical adviser at Health Canada, on Wednesday confirmed the decision for the ages to 12 to 15 and said it will help children return to a normal life. The vaccine was...
Woman from Mali expecting 7, gives birth to 9 babies in Morocco
BAMAKO, Mali — A Malian woman has given birth to nine babies after only expecting seven, Mali’s Ministry of Health said Wednesday. The 25-year-old Halima Cisse gave birth to the babies via cesarean section on Tuesday in Morocco after being sent there for special care, the ministry announced. “The newborns...
Germany aims for net-zero emissions by 2045, 5 years earlier
BERLIN — Officials in Germany proposed Wednesday accelerating the plans to cut the country’s greenhouse gas emissions by setting a new goal of reaching “net-zero” by 2045. Under the proposal announced by Environment Minister Svenja Schulze and Finance Minister Olaf Scholz, the country would increase its emissions reduction targets from...
No. 2 House Republican backs Cheney ouster over Trump barbs
WASHINGTON — The No. 2 House Republican publicly called Wednesday for the removal of Rep. Liz Cheney from the party’s leadership, adding momentum to the drive to topple her after she clashed repeatedly with former President Donald Trump. Rep. Steve Scalise, the House GOP whip, is backing New York GOP...
Flood threats persist as storms continue to drench the South
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Relentless wind and rain keeps pummeling much of the southeastern United States, spawning tornadoes, sparking a flash flood emergency in Alabama and damaging homes from Texas to Virginia. The storms have prompted boat rescues and toppled trees and power lines. Crews were preparing to continue cleaning up...
Rome jury convicts 2 American students in slaying of police officer
ROME — A jury convicted two American friends Wednesday in the 2019 slaying of a police officer in a tragic unraveling of a small time drug deal gone bad, sentencing them to the maximum life in prison. The jury of two judges and six civilians deliberated more than 12 hours...
Facebook board upholds former President Trump’s suspension
SAN FRANCISCO — Former President Donald Trump won’t return to Facebook — for now. The social network’s quasi-independent Oversight Board voted to uphold his ban from the platform after his account was suspended four months ago for inciting violence that led to the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol riot. While upholding...
4 killed when plane crashes into Mississippi home
HATTIESBURG, Miss. — Four people were killed when a small plane crashed into a home in Mississippi late Tuesday night, police said. Authorities in Hattiesburg were called to the scene of the civilian plane crash just before 11:30 p.m., Hattiesburg Police Public Information Officer Ryan Moore said. Police initially said...
