U.S./World category, Page 1193
Federal hate crime charges filed in black church fires
NEW ORLEANS — The son of a Louisiana sheriff’s deputy is facing federal hate crime charges in connection with three fires that destroyed African American churches this year. Holden Matthews , 21, was charged in a six-count federal indictment that was unsealed Wednesday. The indictment charges Matthews with three counts...
Nevada law prevents most employers from rejecting pot-users
LAS VEGAS — Two backers of a pioneering Nevada law to prevent employers from rejecting job-seekers based on a pre-employment marijuana test cast the effort Wednesday as an anti-discrimination measure in a state where recreational pot sales are booming and rules about legal marijuana consumption are evolving. The law, which...
Dallas law firm places winning bid for Robert E. Lee statue
AUSTIN, Texas — A Dallas-based law firm placed the winning $1.435 million bid for a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee that the city put in an online auction almost two years after removing it from a state park. Holmes Firm PC made the top offer for the bronze...
Maine becomes 8th state to legalize assisted suicide
AUGUSTA, Maine — Maine legalized medically assisted suicide Wednesday, becoming the eighth state to allow terminally ill people to end their lives with prescribed medication. Democratic Gov. Janet Mills, who had previously said she was unsure about the bill, signed it in her office. Oregon was the first state to...
1st black priest in U.S., ex-slave, positioned for sainthood
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Pope Francis on Wednesday deemed the first known black Roman Catholic priest in the United States to be “venerable,” positioning the former slave for possible sainthood. The pontiff’s designation of the Rev. Augustine Tolton as venerable, meaning the church intensely scrutinized his life and recognizes it as...
After emotional testimony from 9/11 responders, House panel votes to replenish victim fund
WASHINGTON — The House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday voted unanimously in support of a bill that would give fresh money to a compensation fund for those who are sick or dying from illnesses linked to their work amid the toxic debris at 9/11 attack sites. The vote comes a day...
Feds: 81-year-old robbery suspect wanted to return to prison
PHOENIX — An 81-year-old man who has spent most of his adult life behind bars for stealing from banks said he robbed a credit union in Tucson months after his release from prison because his monthly $800 Social Security payment wasn’t enough to live on, according to court records. Robert...
Journalist killed in southern Mexico, another kidnapped
A reporter was shot dead in the southern state of Tabasco, her newspaper said Wednesday, the latest in a string of journalist killings in one of the world’s most lethal countries for the profession. Another reporter was kidnapped by a pair of armed men in the nearby state of Veracruz....
New Mexico city famous for UFO event trademarks new logo
ROSWELL, N.M. — A New Mexico city known for its proximity to arguably the most famous UFO event in the United States has trademark protection for its alien-inspired logo. The city of Roswell said Tuesday it received its requested trademark certification from the New Mexico Secretary of State’s Office. The...
Badly made fake license plate leads to arrest in California
MOORPARK, Calif. — A big-rig truck driver has been arrested after authorities spotted a phony license plate on his rig. How could they tell? Well, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department says the 1960s-style yellow-on-black plate had wobbly letters and numbers. Also, instead of “CALIFORNIA,” it read “CALIFAS.” The department said...
Watchdog: Abuse and neglect in nursing facilities unreported
WASHINGTON — Nursing facilities have failed to report thousands of serious cases of potential neglect and abuse of seniors on Medicare even though it’s a federal requirement for them to do so, according to a watchdog report released Wednesday that calls for a new focus on protecting frail patients. Auditors...
Canadian store shames shoppers into not using plastic bags
One Canadian grocery story has come up with a pretty ingenious way of discouraging its customers from using plastic bags: shame. The East West Market in Vancouver, British Columbia, is looking to push the green agenda. To that effort, they ordered plastic bags with some rather embarrassing logos on them...
‘Straight, country boy’ turns pickup rainbow for Pride month
HULBERT, Okla. — Self-described “straight, country boy” Cody Barlow believes duct tape really can fix anything, including bigots. The 28-year-old college student from Hulbert, Okla., recently decorated the tailgate of his pickup truck like a Pride flag with a bold message: “NOT ALL COUNTRY BOYS ARE BIGOTS.” Barlow’s Facebook post...
Some rural states double down on attracting new residents
BENNINGTON, Vt. — With jobs unfilled and young people moving away, some rural states are doubling down on efforts to attract new blood by expanding programs that offer incentives to live there. Over the past decade, states including South Dakota, Maine and Vermont have lured new residents with financial incentives...
Hong Kong police fire tear gas, rubber bullets at protesters
HONG KONG — Hong Kong police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at protesters who had massed outside government headquarters Wednesday in opposition to a proposed extradition bill that has become a lightning rod for concerns over greater Chinese control and erosion of civil liberties in the territory. The afternoon...
Report: Cereals positive for trace amounts of weed killerVideo
Popular breakfast cereals contain a controversial herbicide found in weed killers, according to a report released Wednesday. The new report, by Environmental Working Group, or EWG, an environmental advocacy group in Washington D.C., found trace levels of glyphosate in 21 oat-based cereals and snack products. Glyphosate is the main ingredient...
Band plays song from ‘Titanic’ as mall in Mexico floods
The band played on. Literally. As a mall in Guadalajara began flooding Saturday, a live band made the best of the situation. Not missing a beat, the musicians began performing Céline Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On” as water seeped through the shopping center’s roof and began to accumulate on...
After war on drugs, Seattle tries ‘peace’
SEATTLE - Police officers sprang from a black patrol van on a recent day, surrounding two men smoking crack on a gritty downtown block. The officers asked for ID and confiscated a homemade pipe fashioned from glass and surgical hose. Such stops have played out for decades on the front...
Utah man arrested in shooting of off-duty Los Angeles deputy
ALHAMBRA, Calif. — A Utah man was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of shooting an off-duty Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy at a fast-food restaurant, and authorities say they are investigating whether he killed another man an hour earlier in attacks that both appear to be random. Rhett Nelson, 30, of...
Woman alleges 2008 sexual assault by UCLA gynecologist
LOS ANGELES — A woman says she was sexually assaulted by a gynecologist who worked for the University of California, Los Angeles and is upset the school apparently knew about it from her social media post but never contacted her as it investigated other incidents that led to charges against...
Public rental bikes used for Naked Bike Ride in New Orleans
Public bicycles sponsored by a health insurance company were used in a rather unsanitary way. It was more than 90 degrees on June 8 in New Orleans when the 2019 World Naked Bike Ride kicked off and riders mounted their saddles for a ride through the French Quarter. Although many...
Jon Stewart lashes out at Congress over 9/11 victims fund
WASHINGTON — Comedian Jon Stewart scolded Congress Tuesday for failing to ensure that a victims’ compensation fund set up after the 9/11 attacks never runs out of money. Stewart, a longtime advocate for 9/11 responders, also called out lawmakers for failing to attend a hearing on a bill to ensure...
Florida Uber driver has ear medically reattached after fight
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — An Uber driver nearly lost an ear in a fight in a parking garage at a Florida airport. The South Florida SunSentinel reports 26-year-old Sir-Christian Alexander Gordon appeared in court Thursday to face a charge of aggravated battery. The charge stems from what authorities describe as...
In hot water? Study says warming may reduce sea life by 17%
WASHINGTON — The world’s oceans will likely lose about one sixth of its fish and other marine life by the end of the century if climate change continues on its current path, a new study says. Every degree Celsius (1.8 degrees Fahrenheit) that the world’s oceans warm, the total mass...
U.S. Catholic bishops convene to confront sex-abuse crisis
BALTIMORE — The nation’s Roman Catholic bishops convened a high-stakes meeting Tuesday under pressure to defuse the ever-widening child sexual abuse crisis that has weakened the church. The bishops “face the task of rooting the evil of sexual abuse from the church,” Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, president of the U.S. Conference...
