U.S./World category, Page 1177
Colorado settles suit by transgender inmate who alleged rape
DENVER — Colorado reached a $170,000 settlement with a transgender woman who sued the state and alleged being raped, assaulted and harassed while held in a men’s prison, state officials said Wednesday. Officials said the agreement does not force broad policy changes for transgender inmates in Colorado’s prisons, but the...
New holding center for migrant children opens in Texas
CARRIZO SPRINGS, Texas — A former oilfield worker camp off a dirt road in rural Texas has become the U.S. government’s newest holding center for detaining migrant children after they leave Border Patrol stations, where complaints of overcrowding and filthy conditions have sparked a worldwide outcry. Inside the wire fence...
Driver escapes injury when saguaro cactus pierces windshield
An Arizona driver avoided a prickly situation when a cactus came through their car windshield. A saguaro cactus smashed through the front glass and came to rest in the passenger area of the black Infinity sports car Wednesday morning, according to the Pima County Sheriff’s Department. ?Motor Vehicle Collision Involving...
Man survives unprotected plunge over Niagara Falls
A man has survived the drop over Niagara Falls without any protective gear. The Niagara Parks Police reported that a man “in crisis” was seen climbing over over a retaining wall into the river at around 4 a.m. on Tuesday. He was swept over the 188-foot-high Horseshoe Falls and later...
Officials confirm alligator living in Chicago lagoon, drawing curiosity seekers
Chicago officials confirmed an alligator is living in Humboldt Park Lagoon after several people reported seeing the animal there Tuesday morning and others shared photos of it. Chicago police were called to the 1400 block of North Humboldt Drive about 12:15 p.m. after someone called 911 “saying they saw a...
Police: Woman throws snake at driver in carjacking
GREENVILLE, S.C. — Police say a woman stole a vehicle after throwing a snake at the driver, then crashed through barricades set up for a pole-vaulting exhibition in South Carolina. In a statement, Greenville Police identified the suspect as 29-year-old Hilmary Moreno-Berrios. They she was hurt in Friday’s crash and...
New Orleans floods as Gulf Coast braces for torrential rains
NEW ORLEANS — A storm swamped streets in New Orleans and prompted a tornado warning near the city Wednesday as concerns grew that even worse weather is on the way to Louisiana and other states along the Gulf of Mexico. Garbage containers tilted on their sides and pieces of wood...
Scientists say rising seas will break flooding records
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Federal scientists predict 40 places in the U.S. will experience higher than normal rates of so-called sunny day flooding this year because of rising sea levels and an abnormal El Nino weather system. A report released Wednesday by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration predicts that...
British ambassador to U.S. quits days after leaked cables on Trump
LONDON — Britain’s ambassador to the United States resigned Wednesday, just days after diplomatic cables criticizing President Donald Trump caused embarrassment to two countries that often celebrate having a “special relationship.” The resignation of Kim Darroch came a day after Trump lashed out at him on Twitter describing him as...
Perot roiled football-crazed Texas with ‘No Pass, No Play’
AUSTIN, Texas — Part of late billionaire H. Ross Perot’s legacy is a clear-cut rule about Texas high school sports: If a student can’t pass class, they can’t play. The law, with its catchy “No Pass, No Play” nickname, has been in place since 1984. When first signed by Gov....
Sturgeon, America’s forgotten dinosaurs, show signs of life
CHARLES CITY, Va. — Sturgeon were America’s vanishing dinosaurs, armor-plated beasts that crowded the nation’s rivers until mankind’s craving for caviar pushed them to the edge of extinction. More than a century later, some populations of the massive bottom feeding fish are showing signs of recovery in the dark corners...
Outrage over killing of black teen over rap music complaint
PHOENIX — Hundreds of people including a presidential candidate spoke out on Twitter this week after a 17-year-old black youth was killed at suburban convenience store, allegedly by a white man charged Tuesday with first-degree murder who has said he felt threatened by the boy’s rap music. Family members have...
Effort begins to get more Yale women Wikipedia pages
NEW HAVEN, Conn. — A research scientist who worked at NASA and a chronic disease epidemiologist are just two of Yale University’s renowned female graduates, professors and staff who have gone unmentioned on the pages of Wikipedia. Dozens of Yale students and staff gathered Tuesday at the Yale School of...
Former USC gynecologist’s bail lowered in sex assaults case
LOS ANGELES — A Los Angeles judge reduced bail Tuesday for a former University of Southern California gynecologist accused of sexually assaulting 16 women. Superior Court Judge Teresa Sullivan lowered Dr. George Tyndall’s bail from nearly $2.1 million to $1.6 million, which he may be able to post using his...
GOP-led Virginia Legislature abruptly adjourns gun session
RICHMOND, Va. — Less than two hours after beginning a special session called in response to a mass shooting, Virginia lawmakers abruptly adjourned Tuesday and postponed any movement on gun laws until after the November election. Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam summoned the Republican-led Legislature to the Capitol to address gun...
This deepfake clip of Jim Carrey in ‘The Shining’ will kill your trust in videos
At some point you’ll see a deepfake video that will break your belief that a recording is credible evidence. This may be that video. Special effects have been tricking moviegoers for decades and we are generally willing to suspend our disbelief and enjoy Hollywood’s fantasy worlds. But these are the...
Jeffrey Epstein’s legal woes pile up amid new charges
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Financier Jeffrey Epstein is entangled in two legal fights that span the East Coast, challenging his underage sexual abuse victims in a Florida court hours after he was indicted on sex trafficking charges in a closely related case in New York. The timing of the New...
Report: 90% of natural gas consumed in U.S. produced in U.S.
Natural gas is one of the main sources of energy in the United States — that’s no surprise. But in 2018, more than 90% of the natural gas consumed in the United States was produced domestically, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. U.S. natural gas production and consumption have...
Texas billionaire H. Ross Perot dies at 89
DALLAS — H. Ross Perot, the colorful, self-made Texas billionaire who rose from a childhood of Depression-era poverty and twice ran for president as a third-party candidate, has died. He was 89. Perot, whose 19% of the vote in 1992 stands among the best showings by an independent candidate in...
West Virginia woman admits to killing husband with dagger during foreplay
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — A West Virginia woman has admitted to fatally stabbing her husband in the back with a 14-inch decorative dagger while the two were roughhousing as a part of sexual foreplay. The Huntington Herald-Dispatch reports 49-year-old Jennifer Lynn Via was sentenced Monday to 15 years in prison for...
U.N. report: 464,000 people killed in homicides in 2017
UNITED NATIONS — A U.N. report says some 464,000 homicides were recorded around the world in 2017, far more than the number killed in armed conflicts and terrorist attacks. The Global Study on Homicide 2919 published Monday by the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime also had some good news....
Fuel makers launch ad criticizing Trump ethanol mandates
MADISON, Wis. — An association representing oil refineries launched a television ad in four swing states Monday criticizing President Donald Trump’s moves to expand the use of ethanol in gasoline. The American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers’ 30-second spot will run statewide through July in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Wisconsin. The...
Police: Man holding firework above head killed in explosion
SPARTANBURG, S.C. — Authorities say a 29-year-old South Carolina man has died after suffered burns and other injuries while holding a firework over his head on the Fourth of July. Spartanburg Police spokesman Art Littlejohn said the firework exploded while the man was holding it on Independence Day in a...
Toddler dies after fall from cruise ship in Puerto Rico
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Authorities say a toddler apparently slipped from her grandfather’s hands and fell to her death from a cruise ship docked in Puerto Rico. Police said Monday that the grandfather of the 1-year-old girl from Indiana told officers he lost his grip while holding her outside...
Reports: Iran enriching uranium to 4.5%, breaking deal limit
TEHRAN, Iran — Iran began enriching uranium on Monday to 4.5%, breaking the limit set by its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, semi-official news agencies in the country reported. The acknowledgement by the spokesman of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran comes a day after Iran pledged to break...
