Prosecutors drop case against C.J. Rice, subject of Jake Tapper cover story in The AtlanticVideo
PHILADELPHIA — Prosecutors will not seek a new trial against C.J. Rice, a South Philadelphia man convicted of four counts of attempted murder in 2013, they told a judge during a minutes-long hearing Monday. There was no contention between the District Attorney’s Office and Rice’s defense team when prosecutors said...
Trump seeks to appeal decision not to disqualify district attorney from Georgia election case
ATLANTA — Former President Donald Trump and other defendants in Georgia’s election interference case filed court papers Monday seeking to appeal a judge’s ruling not to disqualify Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis from their prosecution or dismiss the charges. The resignation of the special prosecutor with whom Willis had...
Supreme Court rejects appeal by former New Mexico county commissioner banned for Jan. 6 insurrection
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal from a former New Mexico county commissioner who was kicked out of office over his participation in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Former Otero County commissioner Couy Griffin, a cowboy pastor who rode to national political...
Pennsylvania House speaker pushes for same-day registration and widely available early voting
HARRISBURG — The Pennsylvania House speaker said Monday that qualified residents should be able to register to vote at polling places on the day of elections, and that early voting centers should be open for two weeks beforehand. Speaker Joanna McClinton had proposed these measures as part of a wider...
EPA bans asbestos, a deadly carcinogen still in use decades after a partial ban was enacted
WASHINGTON — The Environmental Protection Agency on Monday announced a comprehensive ban on asbestos, a carcinogen that kills tens of thousands of Americans every year but is still used in some chlorine bleach, brake pads and other products. The final rule marks a major expansion of EPA regulation under a...
U.S. weighing options in Africa after Niger junta orders departure from key counterterrorism baseVideo
WASHINGTON — The Pentagon is working with Niger officials, seeking a way for U.S. troops to stay in the country — a key base for counterterrorism operations in sub-Saharan Africa — following a weekend directive that they leave. Last week a high level-delegation of U.S. officials, including Assistant Secretary of...
Astronaut Thomas Stafford, commander of Apollo 10, has died at age 93
WASHINGTON — Astronaut Thomas P. Stafford, who commanded a dress rehearsal flight for the 1969 moon landing and the first U.S.-Soviet space linkup, died Monday. He was 93. Stafford, a retired Air Force three-star general, took part in four space missions. Before Apollo 10, he flew on two Gemini flights,...
Supreme Court seems favorable to Biden administration over efforts to combat social media posts
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court seemed likely Monday to side with the Biden administration in a dispute with Republican-led states over how far the federal government can go to combat controversial social media posts on topics including COVID-19 and election security. The justices seemed broadly skeptical during nearly two hours...
Trump’s lawyers say it is impossible for him to post bond covering $454 million civil fraud judgment
NEW YORK — Donald Trump’s lawyers told a New York appellate court Monday that it’s impossible for him to post a bond covering the full amount of a $454 million civil fraud judgment while he appeals, suggesting the former president’s legal losses have put him in a serious cash crunch....
UPMC pledges seamless transition as dental center closes
State Rep. Dan Frankel, D-Squirrel Hill, says UPMC has assured him that dental patients transferred from its soon-to-close Montefiore center “will be easily absorbed” into the University of Pittsburgh Dental School clinic without undue treatment delays. He said the hospital system said most employees from the Montefiore operation have been...
How Texas’ plans to arrest migrants for illegal entry would work if allowed to take effect
McALLEN, Texas — Texas’ plan to arrest migrants who cross the U.S.-Mexico border illegally is on hold while the Supreme Court considers a challenge to Republican Gov. Greg Abbott’s latest move over immigration. The nation’s highest court put the law on pause over a lawsuit led by the Justice Department,...
Who is Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and why is he running for president?
The lack of excitement many Americans feel about a presidential rematch has heightened interest in alternatives to the major-party candidates, none more so than Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whose famous name has helped him build buzz for his independent bid. Kennedy is a huge longshot to win Electoral College votes,...
The spring equinox is almost here. What does that mean?
Spring is almost here — officially, at least. The vernal equinox arrives on Tuesday, marking the start of the spring season for the Northern Hemisphere. But what does that actually mean? Here’s what to know about how we split up the year using the Earth’s orbit. What is the equinox?...
Famine is said to be ‘imminent’ in northern Gaza as Israel raids the main hospital again
RAFAH, Gaza Strip — Famine is “imminent” in northern Gaza, where 70% of people are experiencing catastrophic hunger, according to a report Monday that warned escalation of the war could push half of Gaza’s total population to the brink of starvation. The report, by the international community’s authority on determining...
Putin extends rule in preordained Russian election after harshest crackdown since Soviet era
President Vladimir Putin sealed his control over Russia for six more years on Monday with a predetermined landslide in an election that followed the harshest crackdown on the opposition and free speech since Soviet times. While the result was never in doubt, Russians attempted to defy the inevitable outcome, heeding a...
Seton Hill presents lecture by San Diego cardinal during inaugural Founders’ Day
The Seton Hill community will honor its past and look toward its future during its inaugural Founders’ Day celebration Tuesday. Founders’ Day — which will feature a lecture by Cardinal Robert McElroy and a panel discussion about religion and violence — was created by the university’s office of Mission and...
Trump ramps up dark rhetoric in Ohio stump speech for Senate candidate Bernie MorenoVideo
VANDALIA, Ohio — Former President Donald Trump claimed that he — not President Joe Biden — will protect Social Security and warned of a “bloodbath” if he loses in November as he campaigned for Senate candidate Bernie Moreno in Ohio. Trump, speaking Saturday on a wind-whipped airfield outside of Dayton,...
Man accused of killing family members in Pennsylvania facing charges in 2 states
LEVITTOWN — A man faces murder charges in Pennsylvania and carjacking and weapons charges in New Jersey after allegedly killing three family members, carjacking vehicles in both states and evading law enforcement for hours as police mobilized in two states, authorities said Sunday. Andre Gordon Jr., 26, is charged in...
Putin is poised to extend his rule in highly orchestrated vote even as Russians quietly protestVideo
Russians crowded outside polling stations at noon Sunday on the last day of a presidential election, apparently heeding an opposition call to protest against President Vladimir Putin in a vote that offered them no real alternatives after he ruthlessly cracked down on dissent. Shortly after the last polls closed in...
Pennsylvania is flush with surplus cash, but it still faces a looming budget problem
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. HARRISBURG — Gov. Josh Shapiro wants to spend $3.5 billion of Pennsylvania’s surplus to stabilize transit systems, fund a court-mandated K-12 education overhaul, and expand...
‘There’s no agenda here’: A look at the judge who is overseeing Trump’s hush money trial
NEW YORK — Judge Juan M. Merchan looked across his high-ceilinged courtroom, facing the defendant in a complicated case. Not the one everyone knows about. Yes, Merchan could become the first judge ever to oversee a former U.S. president’s criminal trial: Donald Trump’s hush money case. But on a recent...
Man faces charges in two states after alleged killings of family members in Pennsylvania
LEVITTOWN, Pa. — A man faces murder charges in Pennsylvania and carjacking and weapons charges in New Jersey after allegedly killing three family members, carjacking vehicles in both states and evading law enforcement for hours as police mobilized in two states, authorities said Sunday. Andre Gordon Jr., 26, is charged...
State Medicaid offices target dead people’s homes to recoup their health care costs
WASHINGTON — As Salvatore LoGrande fought cancer and all the pain that came with it, his daughters promised to keep him in the white, pitched roof house he worked so hard to buy all those decades ago. So, Sandy LoGrande thought it was a mistake when, a year after her...
Wales’ first Black leader is a testament to Britain’s political diversity, but racism persists
LONDON — Vaughan Gething’s election as the next leader of Wales marks a milestone: For the first time, none of the U.K.’s four main governments is led by a white man. It’s a striking moment in a country still grappling with racism and the legacy of empire. Prime Minister Rishi...
Netanyahu snaps back against growing US criticism after being accused of losing his way on Gaza
TEL AVIV, Israel — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu railed Sunday against growing criticism from the United States against his leadership amid the devastating war with Hamas, saying the pressure won’t stop Israel from achieving “total victory.” In recent days, top officials from the U.S., Israel’s staunchest ally which has...
