‘Bewitched’ statue in Salem vandalized with red paintVideo
SALEM, Mass. — In the wiggle of a nose, a man covered the “Bewitched” statue in Salem, Massachusetts with red paint, police said. Witnesses called police at about 5 p.m. Monday to report someone spray painting the bronze statue, Capt. John Burke said Tuesday. The statue depicts actor Elizabeth Montgomery...
Arizona officers’ inaction during drowning spurs investigationVideo
PHOENIX — A Phoenix suburb is reviewing how it handles water rescues as video of three police officers standing nearby as a homeless man drowns sparks outcry. The Tempe Police Department says the officers are on paid administrative leave after last month’s drowning in a city lake. An uproar arose...
Indigenous expert, British writer still missing in Brazil
RIO DE JANEIRO — A British journalist and an Indigenous affairs official were still missing in a remote part of Brazil’s Amazon on Tuesday as authorities said they were expanding search efforts in the area, which has seen violent conflicts between fishermen, poachers and government agents. Dom Phillips, who has...
Russia claims advances in Ukraine amid fierce fighting
KYIV, Ukraine — Russia on Tuesday claimed to have taken control of 97% of one of the two provinces that make up Ukraine’s Donbas, bringing the Kremlin closer to its goal of fully capturing the eastern industrial heartland of coal mines and factories. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Moscow’s...
German foreign minister cuts trip after positive covid test in Pakistan
BERLIN — Germany’s foreign minister is cutting short a three-country foreign trip after testing positive for covid-19 in Pakistan on Tuesday. Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock took a test after she noticed that she had lost her sense of taste at lunch, her ministry said on Twitter. It said that a...
Infants among 22 worshippers killed in Nigeria church attack
ABUJA. Nigeria — Two infants are among the 22 worshippers killed in an attack on a church in southwestern Nigeria that has shocked the West African nation, an emergency official told the Associated Press on Tuesday. The dead have been taken to the morgue while about 50 wounded people are...
Financier’s $2.5M foundation gift to fund nursing scholarships at Duquesne
The news came during National Nurses Week, and it was stunning. Although six- and seven-figure gifts to colleges are not unheard of, many of them come with strings. Often money is to be allocated for endowed professorships, labs or buildings. The $2.5 million award Duquesne University’s School of Nursing has...
Czech president Milos Zeman vows to block same-sex marriages
PRAGUE — Czech President Milos Zeman said Tuesday that he is ready to veto, if it’s approved by parliament, proposed legislation that would give same-sex couples in the country the right to hold civil weddings. The bill drafted by lawmakers from across the political spectrum was submitted to the Czech...
Spain to enforce ‘doggybag’ option in bars, restaurants
MADRID — Bars and restaurants in Spain will be obliged to offer “doggybags” free of charge to clients to take home the food they have not eaten under a new law aimed at reducing food waste. Under the new bill passed by the Spanish government Tuesday, businesses in the food...
Man fatally shoots woman, self at supermarket in Germany
BERLIN — A man apparently fatally shot a woman and then himself at a supermarket in central Germany on Tuesday, police said. The incident took place shortly after 1 p.m. in the small town of Treysa, and police quickly said there was no danger to the public. Witnesses reported that...
Italian police seek Pakistanis tied to 2020 attack in Paris
MILAN — Authorities in the northwestern Italian port city of Genoa on Tuesday were executing arrest warrants on 14 Pakistani citizens linked to the man who stabbed two people in September 2020 outside the former offices in Paris of the Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine. The suspects are accused of criminal...
Top German diplomat: Taliban to cause Afghanistan’s downfall
ISLAMABAD — Germany’s top diplomat expressed concerns Tuesday during a visit to Pakistan that neighboring Afghanistan’s new Taliban rulers are leading that country into a complete “downfall,” and bringing about incredible suffering and hunger. Annalena Baerbock spoke at a press conference with her Pakistani counterpart, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, after discussing...
British prime minister Boris Johnson’s ups and downs: key events in his career
LONDON — A timeline of key events related to Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson 2001-2008: Sits in the House of Commons representing the constituency of Henley. During his tenure Johnson twice serves as the Conservative spokesman on business, innovation and skills while the party is out of government. 2008-2016: Serves...
Gov. Wolf tests positive for coronavirus — for 2nd time
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf tweeted that he tested positive for covid-19 on Monday. The 73-year-old governor said in the tweet he has mild symptoms. He said he tested positive in the evening. “I’m grateful that I recently got my second vaccine booster,” Wolf said in his tweet. This...
Florida’s health department undercounted covid cases and deaths, state audit says
Florida’s covid-19 data was so inaccurate, incomplete and delayed during the first months of the pandemic that government officials and the public may not have had necessary information to determine the effectiveness of the state’s covid-19 precautions and the best plan to fight the virus, according to a state report...
Mother charged after Florida toddler fatally shoots father
ORLANDO, Fla. — A 2-year old boy fatally shot his father in an accident after finding a gun, and the boy’s mother is now facing criminal charges, authorities in Florida said Monday. Reggie Mabry, 26, was fatally shot late last month while he was playing a video game. The gun...
Senate Republicans revive election bill over 2020 complaints
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s Republican-controlled Senate approved a bill Monday that orders a number of changes to state laws over partisan election observers in polling places and election offices, a throwback to complaints in 2020 by former President Donald Trump that the Democratic bastion of Philadelphia needed to be watched closely...
Ex-congressman ‘Ozzie’ Myers pleads guilty in ballot stuffing case
PHILADELPHIA — A former congressman from Philadelphia pleaded guilty Monday to charges related to fraudulently stuffing ballot boxes for Democratic candidates between 2014 and 2018. Federal prosecutors said former Democratic U.S. Rep. Michael J. “Ozzie” Myers pleaded guilty to violations of election law, conspiracy, bribery and obstruction. Messages seeking comment...
Pete Buttigieg tests positive for covid after Michigan visit
U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has tested positive for covid-19 and is experiencing mild symptoms, he wrote Monday on Twitter. Buttigieg spoke at the Detroit Regional Chamber’s Mackinac Policy Conference on Mackinac Island last Wednesday and traveled Thursday to Saginaw for an announcement about rail investment. “I plan to work...
High court won’t hear appeal over McCloskeys’ law licenses
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear an appeal from Mark and Patricia McCloskey, the husband-and-wife attorneys whose law licenses were placed on probation for pointing guns at racial injustice protesters outside their St. Louis mansion in 2020. Mark McCloskey, who is seeking the Republican nomination for one...
Arizona judge declines GOP request to block mail voting
PHOENIX — An Arizona judge on Monday declined a request by the state Republican Party to block most mail ballots for the 2022 election, preserving the voting method used by the overwhelming majority of voters. Mohave County Superior Court Judge Lee Jantzen ruled that nothing in the Arizona Constitution prohibits...
Proud Boys charged with seditious conspiracy in Capitol riot
The former top leader of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group and other members have been charged with seditious conspiracy for what federal prosecutors say was a coordinated attack on the U.S. Capitol to stop Congress from certifying President Joe Biden’s 2020 electoral victory, authorities said Monday. Henry “Enrique” Tarrio,...
Pennsylvania Turnpike adds new payment network for drivers to pay cash
The Pennsylvania Turnpike has added a new payment option for customers who want to use cash to pay Toll By Plate invoices or add money to their E-ZPass accounts. The Turnpike Commission said it has partnered with Kubra Cash Payment Network, which will allow drivers to pay their invoices at...
PLCB offers whiskey connoisseurs 2nd chance at Van Winkle releases
If you missed out on the opportunity to purchase bottles of rare Van Winkle whiskeys earlier this year, you have another chance. This week, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board is awarding lottery registrants the opportunity to purchase 183 bottles of rare whiskeys, including the coveted 2021 Van Winkle releases, through...
Ukraine recovers bodies from steel-plant siege
KYIV, Ukraine — Russia has begun turning over the bodies of Ukrainian fighters killed at the Azovstal steelworks, the fortress-like plant in the destroyed city of Mariupol where their last-ditch stand became a symbol of resistance against Moscow’s invasion. Dozens of fighters’ bodies recovered from the bombed-out mill’s now Russian-occupied...
