Dozens of U.S. Marines in Japan’s Okinawa get coronavirus
TOKYO — Dozens of U.S. Marines at two bases on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa have been infected with the coronavirus in what is feared to be a massive outbreak, Okinawa’s governor said Saturday, demanding an adequate explanation from the U.S. military. Gov. Denny Tamaki said he could say...
Widow condemns ‘barbaric’ death of driver beaten over masks
BAYONNE, France — The wife of a French bus driver savagely beaten after he asked four passengers to wear face masks aboard his vehicle called Saturday for “exemplary punishment” after he died of his injuries. The assault on Philippe Monguillot has scandalized France. President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday dispatched the...
Vintage Super Mario Bros. video game sells for $114,000
DALLAS — An unopened copy of a vintage Super Mario Bros. video game has been sold for $114,000 in an auction that underscored the enduring popularity of entertainment created decades ago. A bidder who wished to remain anonymous snapped up an early version of the pioneering Super Mario Bros. game...
Conservation groups upset by North Cascades grizzly decision
SPOKANE, Wash. — The forested mountains in and around North Cascades National Park in north central Washington state have long been considered prime habitat for threatened grizzly bears, so environmental groups are upset the Trump administration scrapped plans to reintroduce the apex predators there. U.S. Secretary of the Interior David...
813 new covid-19 cases reported in Pennsylvania
The Pennsylvania Department of Health on Saturday confirmed 813 additional positive cases of covid-19, bringing the statewide total to 94,689. There were 17 new deaths reported bringing the total number of covid-19 deaths in Pennsylvania to 6,897. All 67 counties in the state have cases of covid-19. “As the entire...
Q&A: US government not as prolific an executioner as states
CHICAGO — Executions carried out by federal authorities have stopped, restarted and stopped again for long stretches since the first one in 1790, when U.S. marshals hanged a mariner in Maine for fatally shooting the captain of a slave ship. After a 17-year hiatus, the Trump administration wants to restart...
Foreign students weigh studying in person vs. losing visas
PHOENIX — International students worried about a new immigration policy that could potentially cost them their visas say they feel stuck between being unnecessarily exposed during the coronavirus pandemic and being able to finish their studies in America. Students from countries as diverse as India, China and Brazil told The...
Fay becomes post-tropical cyclone over eastern New York
MIAMI — A tropical storm that brought heavy rain to mid-Atlantic states and southern New England was downgraded twice Saturday morning as is moved over New York, forecasters said. Post-tropical cyclone Fay was about 30 miles south of Albany and had maximum sustained winds near 35 mph, the National Hurricane...
Pandemic, racism compound worries about Black suicide rate
CHICAGO — Jasmin Pierre was 18 when she tried to end her life, overdosing on whatever pills she could find. Diagnosed with depression and anxiety, she survived two more attempts at suicide, which felt like the only way to stop her pain. Years of therapy brought progress, but the 31-year-old...
Virus surge visible across Texas: ‘The tsunami is here’
AUSTIN, Texas — Urgent calls for field hospitals. Cars lined up for hours at drive-thru testing centers. Bars boarded up and grocery stores enforcing masks. Texas today resembles the state in the early days of the coronavirus pandemic. Except now, the outbreak is far worse. Records for COVID-19-related deaths and...
‘Alien-like’ creature resembling ET discovered in ancient area of Pacific seafloor
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A marine creature that resembles the alien E.T. has been found growing in a prehistoric area of eastern Pacific seafloor rock. The “E.T. sponge” has been classified as a new species and genus, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said Thursday as it announced the discovery. The...
Amazon’s homeless shelter faces Seattle crisis, criticism
SEATTLE — A homeless shelter built on Amazon’s perfectly manicured urban Seattle campus is a major civic contribution that pushes the company to face the crisis and criticism in the hometown it has rapidly transformed. Believed to be the first homeless shelter built inside a corporate office building, Amazon’s partnership...
Serbia police detain 71 after 4th night of virus protests
BELGRADE, Serbia — Serbian police have detained 71 people after clashes during the fourth night of anti-government protests that were initially sparked by the announcement of a new coronavirus lockdown, a senior police official said Saturday. Fourteen policemen were injured in the rioting when hundreds of right-wing demonstrators tried to...
Trump commutes longtime friend Roger Stone’s prison sentence
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump commuted the sentence of his longtime political confidant Roger Stone on Friday, just days before he was set to report to prison. Democrats denounced the move as just another in a series of unprecedented interventions by the president in the nation’s justice system. Stone had...
Attorney not disputing suicide findings in Black man’s death
LOS ANGELES — An attorney for the family of a Black man found hanging from a tree last month in a Southern California city park did not dispute on Friday investigators’ finding that the death was a suicide. The family of Robert Fuller was absorbing the findings and grieving, attorney...
Tensions rise over Detroit police killing of man they say fired first at officers
DETROIT — Detroit police fatally shot a man Friday afternoon while investigating a deadly Fourth of July block party — an incident that quickly escalated and sparked tensions between law enforcement and police brutality protesters. Police Chief James Craig says the victim was an alleged gang member who pulled a...
Ex-West Virginia health chief says cuts hurt virus response
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The former West Virginia public health leader forced out by the governor says decades-old computer systems and cuts to staff over a period of years had made a challenging job even harder during a once-in-a-century pandemic. Republican Gov. Jim Justice demanded Dr. Cathy Slemp’s resignation on June...
Trump undercuts health experts — again — in schools debate
WASHINGTON — The White House seating chart spoke volumes. When the president convened a roundtable this week on how to safely reopen schools with coronavirus cases rising, the seats surrounding him were filled with parents, teachers and top White House officials, including the first and second ladies. But the head...
Ghislaine Maxwell seeks jail release in Epstein abuse case
NEW YORK — British socialite and longtime Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell was made a scapegoat for the disgraced financier since he killed himself last summer while he was facing sex abuse charges, her lawyers said in court papers filed Friday seeking her release from jail while she awaits trial....
Comet streaking past Earth, providing spectacular show
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — A newly discovered comet is streaking past Earth, providing a stunning nighttime show after buzzing the sun and expanding its tail. Comet Neowise — the brightest comet visible from the Northern Hemisphere in a quarter-century — swept within Mercury’s orbit a week ago. Its close proximity...
West Chester becomes 1st Pennsylvania public university to announce online only classes this fall
West Chester University of Pennsylvania became the first public university in the state to announce it will open the fall semester almost entirely online. Located just outside of Philadelphia, West Chester posted an enrollment of 17,700 last fall and is the largest university in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher...
Trump postpones New Hampshire rally over tropical storm
MIAMI — President Donald Trump is postponing his planned rally Saturday in New Hampshire, the White House said, citing a tropical storm threatening parts of the mid-Atlantic and southern New England. Press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters traveling to Florida with the president on Friday that the event — slated...
Wisconsin high court gives mixed ruling on partial vetoes
MADISON, Wis. — The conservative-controlled Wisconsin Supreme Court on Friday overturned three of four partial budget vetoes issued by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, bucking decades of court precedent that upheld the governor’s broad veto powers. However, the justices also upheld one of Evers’ vetoes as well as two made by...
Tropical Storm Fay churns north toward NYC, New England
MIAMI — Rain lashed the New Jersey shore Friday as the fast-moving Tropical Storm Fay churned north on a path expected to soak the New York City region. The storm system was expected to bring 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 centimeters) of rain, with the possibility of flash...
Russia skeptical about nuclear pact extension prospects
MOSCOW — Russia’s top diplomat said Friday he’s not very optimistic about prospects for an extension of the last remaining U.S.-Russia arms control agreement because of Washington’s focus on making China sign up to the pact. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned that Russia only wants to keep the New START...
