In 1st, U.S. surgeons transplant pig heart into human patientVideo
A Maryland man is doing well after surgeons and clinicians from the University of Maryland School of Medicine and the University of Maryland Medical Center performed the first successful transplant of a genetically modified pig’s heart Friday to save his life, officials from the health system said Monday. After being...
Pa. House expected to vote on proposed congressional map as redistricting lawsuit looms
This article is part of a yearlong reporting project focused on redistricting and gerrymandering in Pennsylvania. It is made possible by the support of Spotlight PA members and Votebeat, a project focused on election integrity and voting access. HARRISBURG — The state House is expected to vote on a proposed...
U.S. hospitals letting infected staff members stay on the job
Hospitals around the U.S. are increasingly taking the extraordinary step of allowing nurses and other workers infected with the coronavirus to stay on the job if they have mild symptoms or none at all. The move is a reaction to the severe hospital staffing shortages and crushing caseloads that the...
Pilot rescued from wreckage in L.A. moments before train hitsVideo
The pilot of a small plane averted death twice in a span of minutes on Sunday, first when he crash-landed onto railroad tracks, then when Los Angeles police rescued him just before a commuter train smashed into the aircraft. Bodycam video showed the officers working furiously to disentangle the bloodied...
Rare snowy owl soars over Washington, thrills crowds
A snowy owl apparently touring iconic buildings of the nation’s capital is captivating birdwatchers who manage to get a glimpse of the rare, resplendent visitor from the Arctic. Far from its summer breeding grounds in Canada, the snowy owl was first seen on January 3, the day a winter storm...
Tax season begins 2 weeks early due to virus, IRS funding
WASHINGTON — This year’s tax filing season will begin on Jan. 24, 17 days earlier than last year, the Internal Revenue Service announced Monday. The IRS is warning that a resurgence of covid-19 infections on top of less funding authorization from Congress than the Biden administration had requested could make...
Robert Durst, real estate heir convicted of murder, dies
LOS ANGELES — Robert Durst, the wealthy New York real estate heir and failed fugitive who was dogged for decades with suspicion in the disappearance and deaths of those around him before he was convicted of killing his best friend and sentenced to life in prison, has died. He was...
Man who bought gun for Kyle Rittenhouse pleads no contest
MADISON, Wis. — The man who bought an AR-15-style rifle for Kyle Rittenhouse pleaded no contest Monday to a reduced charge of contributing to the delinquency of a minor in a deal with prosecutors that allows him to avoid prison. Kenosha County Circuit Judge Bruce Schroeder accepted Dominick Black’s plea...
Pennsylvania Farm Show’s butter sculpture highlights state’s dairy farmersVideo
The Pennsylvania Farm Show, which runs through Jan. 15 in Harrisburg, highlights the importance of the state’s agriculture industry. And one of the largest segments of that industry is dairy products. So it only makes sense that the show’s massive annual butter sculpture, commissioned by the show and sponsored by...
Will omicron finally free us from the covid shackles?
Maybe the record-setting omicron storm is the prelude to the sunnier place we’ve hoped for during two years of covid-19. Dr. John Goldman, a UPMC infectious disease specialist, believes it’s possible. He bases it on the fact ultra-contagious omicron is touching so many people so fast it won’t be much...
Avalanche in Colorado mountains kills 2 snowshoers and dog
ALMA, Colo. — Two people snowshoeing in the mountains of Colorado were killed in an avalanche over the weekend, authorities said. Their bodies and the body of their dog were found buried near Hoosier Pass in central Colorado by searchers using an avalanche rescue dog, the Colorado Avalanche Information Center...
GOP seeks more control over Pa. legislative redistricting
HARRISBURG — State House Republicans who just lost a key vote on new preliminary legislative district maps moved Monday to regain more control of the process by advancing a GOP friendly constitutional amendment that would utterly revamp Pennsylvania’s redistricting process. The State Government Committee passed, on party lines, a plan...
‘American Idol’ star Clay Aiken will run for N.C. seat in Congress
Clay Aiken, the “American Idol” star and a Raleigh native, wants to represent North Carolina in Congress. Aiken, a Democrat who previously ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in 2014, announced Monday that he’s planning to run this year in the Durham-centric House district that’s now open. The 6th...
Pfizer seeks conditional EU authorization for covid pill
THE HAGUE, Netherlands — The European drug regulator said Monday it has started evaluating an application by Pfizer for its pill to treat the effects of covid-19. The announcement comes as countries in much of the 27-nation bloc are reporting soaring numbers of infections as the highly transmissible omicron variant...
Pope on covid vaccines says health care a ‘moral obligation’
ROME — Pope Francis suggested Monday that getting vaccinated against the coronavirus was a “moral obligation” and denounced how people had been swayed by “baseless information” to refuse one of the most effective measures to save lives during the pandemic. Francis used some of his strongest words yet calling for...
U.S., Russia meet for talks amid tensions linked to Ukraine
GENEVA — Senior U.S. and Russian officials launched special talks Monday on strategic stability, part of a flurry of diplomatic activity in Europe this week aimed at defusing tensions over a Russian military buildup on the border with Ukraine, though no major breakthrough was immediately in sight. Russian Deputy Foreign...
In Iran, Taliban hold talks with anti-Taliban Afghan group
KABUL, Afghanistan — Afghanistan’s new Taliban rulers held talks over the weekend with senior leaders of an anti-Taliban alliance, the Taliban said Monday. The meeting, held in Tehran, was the first of its kind, underscoring Taliban efforts to bring their former opponents into the fold. During the meeting, the alliance...
Norway tells conscripts to return underwear after service
COPENHAGEN, Denmark — Conscripts in Norway have been ordered to return their underwear, bras and socks after the end of their military service so that the next group of recruits can use them. The Norwegian military said Monday that it is struggling with dwindling supplies, in part due to the...
Black man shot by off-duty deputy, sparking protest in North CarolinaVideo
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — Protesters gathered outside a police station Sunday to decry the fatal shooting of a Black man a day earlier by an off-duty sheriff’s deputy in North Carolina. The demonstrators disputed an initial account of the shooting given by police Saturday. Police in Fayetteville said a preliminary investigation...
Death toll in rockfall on Brazilian lake rises to 10
BRASILIA, Brazil — The death toll from an accident in which a slab of cliff rock toppled onto pleasure boaters on a Brazilian lake has risen to 10, police said Sunday. Authorities worked to identify the dead and divers were searching the lake in case there were more victims. Police...
Man who bought Kyle Rittenhouse his assault-style rifle used in Kenosha killings reportedly will take plea deal
The man who bought Kyle Rittenhouse the gun used to kill two people in Kenosha, Wis., and injure a third when he was just 17 is expected to take a plea deal to avoid convictions on the two felony charges. Dominick Black, now 20, purchased the Smith & Wesson M&P...
Bob Saget, known for ‘Full House,’ ‘America’s Funniest Home Videos,’ dead at 65Video
Bob Saget, the actor-comedian known for his role as beloved single dad Danny Tanner on the sitcom “Full House” and as the wisecracking host of “America’s Funniest Home Videos,” died while on a stand-up tour. He was 65. Deputies in Orange County, Florida, were called Sunday about an “unresponsive man”...
Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson announces bid for another term
WASHINGTON — Republican Sen. Ron Johnson said he’ll seek a third term in 2022, counting on Wisconsin voters to reward his continued and staunch support of former President Donald Trump. “In order for my campaign to succeed, I will need the support of every Wisconsinite who values the truth and...
Man accused of shooting into party headquarters in suburban Philadelphia enters pleas
PHILADELPHIA — A suburban Philadelphia man accused of firing three shots into a local Democratic Party office on Inauguration Day has pleaded guilty to related federal charges. Anthony Nero, 48, entered the pleas last week to federal charges of sending threatening communications and cyberstalking in connection with threats days before...
19 dead, including 9 children, in New York City apartment fireVideo
NEW YORK — A malfunctioning space heater sparked a fire that filled a Bronx apartment building with thick smoke, killing 19 people including nine children Sunday in New York City’s deadliest fire in three decades. Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro said the fire “started in a malfunctioning electric space heater” in...
