Lawyer: Admins were warned 3 times the day boy shot Virginia teacher
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — Concerned staff warned administrators at a Virginia elementary school three times that a 6-year-old boy had a gun and was threatening other students in the hours before he shot and wounded a teacher, but the administration “was paralyzed by apathy” and didn’t call police, remove the...
Pennsylvania passes ‘forever chemicals’ drinking water limit
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania has enacted a statewide drinking water limit on two forms of highly toxic chemicals, nicknamed “forever chemicals.” The rule, published earlier this month in the official register of state government agency actions, sets a limit of 14 parts per trillion for perfluorooctanoic acid and 18 parts per...
After U.S. offer, Germany unleashes Leopard tanks for Ukraine
BERLIN — After weeks of hesitation that created impatience among Germany’s allies, Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced Wednesday that his government would provide Ukraine with Leopard 2 battle tanks and approve requests by other countries to do the same. The German government said it would initially provide Ukraine with one company...
Pope warns German church reform process elitist, ideological
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis has warned there’s a risk that a reform process in the German Catholic Church over calls for married priests and other possible liberalizing reforms might become harmfully “ideological.” In an interview with The Associated Press at the Vatican on Tuesday, Francis was asked about the...
Ukraine forces pull back from Donbas town after onslaught
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian forces have conducted an organized retreat from a town in the eastern region of the Donbas, an official said Wednesday, in what amounted to a rare but modest battlefield triumph for Russia after a series of setbacks in its invasion that began almost 11 months ago....
Leaders are meant to keep state secrets; just not at home
WASHINGTON — Democrats responded with aggrieved fury when former President Donald Trump was found in possession of classified documents that should have been turned over to the government when he left office. Then disclosures that President Joe Biden also mishandled secret papers set loose a Republican “well, what about” roar....
Prosecutors urge Congress to let state prisons jam cellphones
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Top state prosecutors from across the country are again urging Congress to pass legislation allowing state prisons to jam the signals of cellphones smuggled to inmates, devices the attorneys argue allow prisoners to plot violence and carry out crimes. “Simply, we need Congress to pass legislation giving...
Severe weather threat moves east after tornadoes hit Texas
PASADENA, Texas — A winter storm that brought severe weather to the Gulf Coast and wintry precipitation to the north was headed east Wednesday, a day after tornadoes caused widespread damage in the Houston area and injured three people in Louisiana. On Tuesday, forecasters issued a rare tornado emergency for...
With more ways to tip, customers willing to pay it forward
Desiree Singleton recalled her late father, Bill Ringler, having her, her brother and sister figuring out a tip on a bill when the family dined out. “He talked to us about the service we got and how much we should tip,” Singleton said Tuesday inside her business, Harvest Moon Coffee...
Proud Boys expected ‘civil war’ ahead of Capitol riot, witness says
WASHINGTON — The month before the riot at the U.S. Capitol, members of the Proud Boys were growing increasingly angry about the outcome of the 2020 election and were expecting a “civil war,” a former member told jurors on Tuesday as he took the stand in the seditious conspiracy case...
Elon Musk defiantly defends himself in Tesla tweet trial
SAN FRANCISCO — Elon Musk returned to federal court to defend himself against a class-action lawsuit that alleges he misled Tesla shareholders with a tweet about an aborted buyout that the billionaire defiantly insisted Tuesday he could have pulled off, had he wanted. Musk spent roughly three more hours on...
Trump drops appeal, ending legal fight over New York probe
NEW YORK — Former President Donald Trump has abandoned efforts to revive his federal lawsuit against New York Attorney General Letitia James — the second time he’s halted legal action against her after a judge last week fined him and his lawyers nearly $1 million for filing frivolous cases. Trump’s...
West Virginia Senate passes guns-on-campus bill at colleges
CHARLESTON — Senators in West Virginia overwhelmingly voted to pass a bill Tuesday allowing people with concealed carry permits to bring firearms onto college and university campuses, despite ardent opposition from higher education leaders. “Thank God for West Virginia and freedom,” the bill’s lead sponsor Republican Sen. Rupie Phillips said,...
In reversal, U.S. poised to approve Abrams tanks for UkraineVideo
WASHINGTON — In what would be a reversal, the Biden administration is poised to approve sending M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine, U.S. officials said Tuesday, as international reluctance to send tanks to the battlefront against the Russians begins to erode. The decision could be announced as soon as Wednesday, though...
Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley will introduce legislation to ban TikTok nationwide
WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley said Tuesday he will introduce a bill to ban the app TikTok in the United States. “(TikTok) is China’s backdoor into Americans’ lives,” Hawley, R-Mo., said. “It threatens our children’s privacy as well as their mental health. Last month Congress banned it on all...
New year brings a grim wave of mass killings across America
Eleven people killed as they welcomed the Lunar New Year at a dance hall popular with older Asian Americans. Seven Chinese and Latino farmworkers killed amid the serene beauty of California’s Half Moon Bay. A 17-year-old mother and her baby shot dead in an attack that killed six people across...
Bedford County man charged with threatening to blow up courthouse and eat sheriff
Authorities said a Schellsburg man is behind bars with a million-dollar bail after threatening to kill the Bedford County Sheriff by blowing up the Bedford County Courthouse, according to reports from WTAJ and 6WJAC. State police said 39-year-old Luke Bartholow has been charged with misdemeanor bomb threats: threatening the placement...
Don’t release Georgia grand jury report now, prosecutor says
ATLANTA — A Georgia prosecutor argued Tuesday in court that a judge should not immediately release a report by a special grand jury investigating whether then-President Donald Trump and his allies broke the law by seeking to overturn his 2020 election loss. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis said disclosure...
Treasury takes another extraordinary step on debt limit
WASHINGTON — U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen sent a letter Tuesday to congressional leaders saying she’s suspending the reinvestment of federal bonds in a government workers’ savings plan — an additional “extraordinary” measure to buy time for President Joe Biden and Congress to raise the nation’s debt limit. The government...
Suspect sought after 3 killed in Washington state convenience store shootingVideo
SEATTLE — At least three people were killed in a random shooting early Tuesday in Yakima, Washington, and police are still searching for the suspect. Yakima police Chief Matt Murray said the shooting was reported at a Circle K convenience store about 3:30 a.m., and responding officers found three people...
Classified documents at Mike Pence’s home, too, his lawyer saysVideo
NEW YORK — Documents with classified markings were discovered in former Vice President Mike Pence’s Indiana home last week, his lawyers says, the latest in a string of recoveries of confidential information from the homes of current and former top U.S. officials. The records “appear to be a small number...
Before Alex Murdaugh testimony starts, judge has key rulings
WALTERBORO, S.C. — Before testimony begins in South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh’s murder trial, defense lawyers will ask the judge to make a pair of key rulings this week that could strike a massive amount of evidence from the case. Prosecutors want to present voluminous evidence of Murdaugh’s bad behavior...
Paris rushing to finish 2024 Olympics construction work
PARIS — Paris is rushing to finish construction work in time for the 2024 Olympics with just 18 months to go. Delays are being experienced in part because of the impact of Russia’s war in Ukraine on the steel industry. A venue, which was due to be finished this summer,...
Finland’s top diplomat hints at joining NATO without Sweden
HELSINKI — Finland’s foreign minister suggested Tuesday that the country may consider joining NATO without neighboring Sweden if Turkey continues to block their joint bid to enter the military alliance. Pekka Haavisto later backpedaled, but his comments were the first time a leading government official in either Nordic country appeared...
Trump posed for picture with former Philly mob boss Joey Merlino at South Florida golf club
They share an affinity for golf and an aversion to cooperating witnesses who “flip” to help federal investigators. But former President Donald Trump and former Philly mob boss Joseph “Skinny Joey” Merlino don’t have much to say about how they wound up in a photo together at a South Florida...
