West Point sets aside day to confront sexual harassment
WEST POINT, N.Y. — West Point has suspended classes for a day so cadets can address sexual assault and harassment after a survey found an increasing number of incidents at the academy. U.S. Military Academy Superintendent Lt. Gen. Darryl A. Williams ordered a full-day “stand-down” at the academy on Monday....
Trump tamps down expectations as he heads to Kim summitVideo
WASHINGTON — Redefining success, President Trump headed to his second meeting with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un on Monday, determined to tamp down expectations that he’ll achieve big strides toward denuclearization. Yet he was still eager to claim an attention-grabbing victory to offset the political turmoil he faces at home....
Sheriff: 2 bodies recovered from Texas plane crash site
ANAHUAC, Texas — A southeast Texas sheriff said Sunday that two bodies have been recovered at the site where a Boeing 767 cargo plane crashed into a coastal bay. All three people aboard the Flight 3591 died, according to the plane’s owner. Crews continued to search for the third body...
Drivers rescued in Minnesota snow; Wisconsin pileup kills 1
MINNEAPOLIS — Authorities have rescued dozens of people stranded by a blizzard that howled across southern Minnesota and dumped about a foot of snow in some places. In east-central Wisconsin, one person was killed and several others injured Sunday in an interstate pileup involving more than 100 vehicles during whiteout...
The Big Number: Diet drinks linked to 23 percent increase in stroke risk in women
Swapping regular sodas for diet drinks might seem like a smart way to cut calories. But new research suggests that women who drink a lot of artificially sweetened beverages increase their risk of having a stroke by 23 percent. What’s a lot? At least two diet beverages a day for...
Ex-officials declare ‘no factual basis’ for wall emergency
WASHINGTON — A bipartisan group of 58 former senior national security officials will issue a statement Monday saying that “there is no factual basis” for President Trump’s proclamation of a national emergency to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border. The joint statement, whose signatories include former Secretary of State...
Trump administration considers sending more humanitarian aid for Venezuela
CUCUTA, Colombia — The day after military, police and civilian gangs loyal to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro inflicted a brutal crackdown on Venezuelans trying to reach international shipments of food, medicine and other supplies in Colombia, U.S. officials appeared to be preparing to send more humanitarian aid to South America...
Trump extends China tariff deadline, cites progress in talks
WASHINGTON — President Trump said Sunday he will extend a deadline to escalate tariffs on Chinese imports, citing “substantial progress” in weekend talks between the two countries. Trump tweeted that there had been “productive talks” on some of the difficult issues dividing the United States and China, adding that “I...
Tennessee police officer killed by hit-and-run driver
CHATTANOOGA — Tennessee officials say an officer who graduated from the police academy last month has been killed by a hit-and-run driver while checking on a hazard in a roadway. A statement from the Chattanooga Police Department says 38-year-old Nicholas Galinger was struck Saturday night while on a call with...
Trump books Lincoln Memorial for July 4th gala he’ll host
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump says he’ll host a July Fourth celebration at the Lincoln Memorial. And though the event he’s calling “A Salute to America” is months away, he’s boasting it’ll be one of the city’s biggest Independence Day gatherings—ever. Trump tweeted Sunday: “HOLD THE DATE! We will be...
California man cleared after 40 years in prison gets $21M
SIMI VALLEY, Calif. — The city of Simi Valley, California, has reached a $21 million settlement with a man wrongly imprisoned for nearly 40 years in the killing of his girlfriend and her 4-year-old son. Craig Coley was released in 2017 after he was pardoned by then-Gov. Jerry Brown, who...
Schiff vows lawsuit for Mueller report if it’s not released
WASHINGTON — Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., said Sunday that House Democrats will subpoena special counsel Robert Mueller to testify before Congress if his report on Russian interference in the 2016 election is not made public. Schiff, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said on ABC News’ “This Week” that Democrats...
2 men ordered to trial in deaths of men discovered in Somerset County woods
SOMERSET, Pa. — Two men have been ordered to stand trial in the slayings of two western Pennsylvania men reported missing almost two years ago. A Somerset County district judge on Friday held 24-year-old Devon Wyrick of Columbus, Ohio, and 26-year-old Samson Washington, of Johnstown, for trial in county court...
Pope vows to end abuse cover-ups but victims disappointed
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis closed out his extraordinary summit on preventing clergy sex abuse by vowing Sunday to confront abusers with “the wrath of God” felt by the faithful, end the cover-ups by their superiors and prioritize the victims of this “brazen, aggressive and destructive evil.” But his failure...
Tornado death confirmed as violent storms smack the South
COLUMBUS, Miss. — Weekend storms raked parts of the Southeast, leaving deaths and injuries in their wake as a tornado smashed into a commercial district in a small Mississippi city and drenching rains fed a rising flood threat. A woman was killed when a tornado hit Columbus, Mississippi, and a...
Pompeo pledges continued pressure on Venezuela’s Maduro
WASHINGTON — The United States will continue to pressure Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro until he understands his days are “numbered,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sunday. Pompeo’s comments came the day after clashes between activists trying to deliver U.S-backed humanitarian aid into Venezuela and troops loyal to Maduro....
White House manages expectations for second Kim summit
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is trying to manage expectations for his second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, predicting a “continuation of the progress” made last time. Trump tweeted Sunday that he was leaving early the next day for the meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam, adding a tantalizing...
Unclaimed $1.5B Mega Millions jackpot mystery: Winner died? Ticket lost?
SIMPSONVILLE, S.C. — Nearly everyone in this small South Carolina town has a theory for the city’s billion-dollar mystery: Who won the $1.5 billion Mega Millions jackpot announced last October? Maybe the winner was so overwhelmed upon seeing the winning numbers that she or he died on the spot? Maybe...
UN: Last year saw highest number of Afghan civilian deaths
KABUL, Afghanistan — More civilians were killed in Afghanistan last year than in any of the previous nine years of the increasingly bloody conflict, according to a U.N. report released Sunday, which blamed the spike in deaths on increased suicide bombings by the Islamic State group and stepped up aerial...
Hanoi summit nightmare scenario: Bad deals and little change
HANOI, Vietnam — The nightmare scenario heading into the second summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un isn’t so much “fire and fury” and millions dead. Rather, some experts fear the meeting could result in an ill-considered deal that allows North Korea to get everything...
Congress mulls cap on what Medicare enrollees pay for drugs
WASHINGTON — With health care a top issue for American voters, Congress may actually be moving toward doing something this year to address the high cost of prescription drugs. President Trump, Democrats trying to retire him in 2020, and congressional incumbents of both parties all say they want action. Democrats...
Final weeks to see the Carnegie International at Carnegie Museum in Pittsburgh
The 57th Carnegie International , Carnegie Museum of Art’s signature exhibition comes to a close March 25. Find 'museum joy' at Carnegie Museum of Art's 57th Carnegie International in #Pittsburgh. WQED Pittsburgh (@wqed) January 28, 2019 Over the next four weeks, there will be artist talks, creative drawing sessions...
Priest speaks publicly about how McCarrick allegedly ruined his life
Less than a week after Theodore McCarrick became the first cardinal ever defrocked, a New Jersey priest has for the first time agreed to be interviewed about his accusations that McCarrick sexually abused him in the 1990s and the effect the alleged abuse has had on his life and career....
Cyber charter school costs are under the microscope
Tiffany Nix, superintendent of Leechburg Area schools, watched in frustration for years as hundreds of thousands of dollars went out the doors of her small, cash-strapped district with families who enrolled their children in cyber charter schools. “We were paying $13,000 to $24,000 a year for each of them. It...
Sheriff: No likely survivors in cargo plane crash near Houston
HOUSTON — A Boeing 767 cargo jetliner heading to Houston with three people aboard disintegrated after crashing Saturday into a bay east of the city, according to a Texas sheriff. Witnesses told emergency personnel that the twin-engine plane “went in nose first,” leaving a debris field three-quarters of a mile...