U.S./World category, Page 1083
Spanish police try to find cause for U.K. family drownings
MADRID — Autopsy results show the three members of British family who lost their lives in a swimming pool in southern Spain on Christmas eve died by drowning, police said Thursday. Investigators were now trying to determine why they drowned, Civil Guard union spokesman officer Paco González said. Leading Spanish...
W.Va. man arrested after Christmas Day chase with baby in car
CLARKSBURG, W.Va. — A West Virginia man who led police on a Christmas Day chase with a baby in his car has been arrested, authorities said Wednesday. Harrison County Sheriff Robert Matheny told The Exponent Telegram the pursuit started in Upshur County after the suspect “fired a shotgun and fled...
Alabama police deaths rise; 5 of 6 killed with stolen guns
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Lowndes County Sheriff John “Big John” Williams was shot and killed at a gas station. Huntsville police Officer Billy Fred Clardy III was killed as officers tried to intercept a suspected drug delivery. In all, six Alabama law enforcement officers were shot and killed in 2019, the...
Thousands in Asia marvel at ‘ring of fire’ solar eclipse
BANDA ACEH, Indonesia — People along a swath of southern Asia gazed at the sky in marvel on Thursday at a “ring of fire” solar eclipse. The so-called annular eclipse, in which a thin outer ring of the sun is still visible, could be seen along a path stretching from...
N. Carolina couple call 911 on vacuum thought to be intruder
HIGH POINT, N.C. — ‘Twas the night of Christmas at a North Carolina house, no creature should have been stirring, not even a mouse. But a Forsyth County couple awoke with a fright, as something was moving about their house in the night. They dashed to their closet and hid...
Police: Man arrested days after fatal stabbing in TennesseeVideo
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Law enforcement officials arrested man charged with criminal homicide Wednesday, concluding a dayslong search after a fatal stabbing outside a Tennessee bar. Michael Mosley, 23, was captured in Cheatham County, the Nashville Metro Police announced. Mosley is accused in the Saturday attack at a Midtown Nashville bar...
Woman, 2 kids die after being found on sidewalk near Boston garage
BOSTON — A woman and two young children have died after being found unconscious on a sidewalk near a Boston parking garage on Christmas Day. “Today is a tragedy,” said Boston Police Commissioner William Gross. The identities of the victims, as well as the woman’s relationship to the children, who...
Remains of soldier killed in Afghanistan returned to U.S.
DOVER, Del. — The remains of a 33-year-old American soldier killed in combat in Afghanistan have been returned to the United States, arriving at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Goble of Washington Township, New Jersey, was killed Monday in a roadside bombing in northern...
Man robs Colorado bank, throws cash, says ‘Merry Christmas’
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — A 65-year-old Colorado man is jailed after witnesses say he robbed a bank in Colorado Springs, walked outside and threw money out of the bag and then said “Merry Christmas.” The man walked to the coffee shop next door, “sat down and waited for the cops,”...
Notre Dame rector: Fragile cathedral might not be savedVideo
PARIS — The rector of Notre Dame Cathedral says the Paris landmark is still so fragile that there’s a “50% chance” the structure might not be saved, because scaffolding installed before this year’s fire is threatening the vaults of the Gothic monument. Monsignor Patrick Chauvet said restoration work isn’t likely...
Police: 3 dead in apparent murder-suicide in Florida; 4 children safe
LAKELAND, Fla. — Three adults were killed in an apparent murder-suicide on Christmas Eve while four young children were inside the home, authorities in Florida said. The children were safely removed from the home after the shooting Tuesday night, Lakeland Police Capt. Ed Cain told reporters. The three dead adults...
Officer creates Christmas ‘investigation’ for neighbor, 3
OXFORD, Miss. — A Mississippi police officer created a Christmas caper for her preschool neighbor to investigate. Oxford police Officer Rachel Ratcliffe knew Bailey Stacey’s family had had a rough year. The 3-year-old and his parents had stayed in her house when their house next door flooded and the Staceys...
Study: No evidence museum’s stovepipe hat was Lincoln’s
A new study has found no evidence to corroborate that a beaver-skin stovepipe hat — for years a centerpiece of Illinois’ Abraham Lincoln museum — ever actually belonged to the 16th U.S. president, according to a published report. Among the findings spelled out in a 54-page report was that the...
Pope marks joyful Christmas Eve after less-than-joyful year
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis assured the faithful on Christmas Eve that God loves everyone — “even the worst of us” — as he celebrated the joyous birth of Christ after a less-than-joyful year of scandals and opposition. With a choir singing the classic Christmas hymn “The First Noel,” Francis...
Pothole Christmas tree inspires Mississippi pastor to write holiday song
McCOMB, Miss. — A scraggly metal Christmas tree planted in a pothole has inspired a Mississippi minister to pen a holiday song. One bit asks, “If a man can take a pothole and bring the whole world together, the question is what are you doing to spread the Christmas joy?”...
Bankruptcy judge thrust into spotlight in Purdue Pharma case
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. — The judge overseeing the bankruptcy of OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma warns that real-life court cases don’t unfold like “Perry Mason.” But he’s afraid this one might come to resemble “Dr. Strangelove.” U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert Drain of White Plains, N.Y., has a reputation for thorough preparation,...
Santa slammed, shoppers hurt in crush for mall freebiesVideo
Several shoppers were injured when a crowd struggled to catch prizes inside an Australian shopping mall. Balloons containing vouchers for trivial gifts, such as free coffee and parking, were released Tuesday above a crowd of about 150 people at the Westfield Parramatta shopping center in Sydney, reports news.com.au. Video shows...
Teen shot, killed in Missouri in apparent fight over shoes
GRANDVIEW, Mo. — A 20-year-old man was shot and killed in an apparent fight over shoes in suburban Kansas City, police said. Grandview police said an officer responded Sunday night to a reported shooting and found Jaylen Blackmon, of Kansas City, dead on a sidewalk. Witnesses told police that the...
Former Uber CEO Kalanick severs ties with ride-hailing giant
NEW YORK — Former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick is resigning from the board of directors, severing ties with the ride-hailing company that he co-founded a decade ago and ran until a series of scandals led to his downfall. The departure, announced Tuesday, did not come as a surprise. Kalanick recently...
Trump lashes out as impeachment trial stuck in limbo
PALM BEACH, Fla. — President Donald Trump lashed out Tuesday as his Senate impeachment trial remains at an impasse, with Republican and Democratic leaders at odds over its format and whether witnesses should be called. Speaking at his private club in Palm Beach, Florida, after a teleconference call with troops...
Wisconsin city mulls dumping old ban on throwing snowballsVideo
WAUSAU, Wis. — For decades, those who have participated in snowball fights in one Wisconsin city have risked getting in trouble with the law. But that may be about to change. A 1962 ban on throwing projectiles in Wausau lumps snowballs into the same category as rocks and other items...
Chicago fog delays and cancels hundreds of flights on Christmas Eve
CHICAGO — Fog led to hundreds of flight delays and cancellations Tuesday morning, launching a chain reaction that delayed travelers at the city’s two airports as the clock ticked away hours that were to have been spent with loved ones on Christmas Eve. About 5:30 a.m. Central time, as a...
Melania Trump silently forges path through impeachment
WASHINGTON — Hillary Clinton spent the morning of her husband’s impeachment visiting Capitol Hill to rally Democrats to his side. Pat Nixon kept assuring reporters her husband wouldn’t quit — right up until he did. Eliza Johnson, frail from tuberculosis, kept watch over her husband during his impeachment while sitting...
Queen Elizabeth II to admit ‘bumpy’ year in Christmas speech
LONDON — Queen Elizabeth II plans to acknowledge that both Britain and her family have endured a difficult year by saying during her Christmas message that it has been a “bumpy” time. The pre-recorded message will be broadcast in Britain and the Commonwealth nations on Christmas Day. It was recorded...
San Francisco cafes are banishing disposable coffee cups
SAN FRANCISCO — A new cafe culture is brewing in the San Francisco area, where a growing number of coffee houses are banishing paper to-go cups and replacing them with everything from glass jars to rental mugs and BYO cup policies. What started as a small trend among neighborhood cafes...
