U.S./World category, Page 359
Ring will no longer allow police to request doorbell camera footage from users
NEW YORK — Amazon-owned Ring will stop allowing police departments to request doorbell camera footage from users, marking an end to a feature that has drawn criticism from privacy advocates. In a blog post on Wednesday, Ring said it will sunset the “Request for Assistance” tool, which allows police departments...
Heavy rain soaks Texas and closes schools as downpours continue drenching parts of the country
HOUSTON — Heavy rain in Texas on Wednesday closed schools and elevated flooding risks around Houston in another round of soaking downpours that have made for a soggy and dangerous week across large portions of the United States. A stretch of wet and freezing winter weather has swept away vehicles...
Colorado pastor accused of defrauding investors of $3M via crypto scheme says he got help from ‘the Lord’
DENVER — A Colorado pastor for an online church who is accused of defrauding investors of more than $3.2 million through a cryptocurrency marketplace he ran with his wife says “the Lord” helped him orchestrate the venture. Colorado’s securities commissioner filed civil fraud charges against Eli Regalado and his wife...
Alabama inmate waiting to hear court ruling on scheduled nitrogen gas execution
MONTGOMERY — An Alabama inmate scheduled to be the first person in the United States to be put to death with nitrogen gas is waiting to see if he will receive a last-minute reprieve from federal courts in his bid to halt the execution. Unless blocked by the courts, Alabama...
Ohio bans gender-affirming care and restricts transgender athletes despite GOP governor’s veto
COLUMBUS — Ohio has banned gender-affirming care for minors and restricted transgender women’s and girls’ participation on sports teams, a move that has families of transgender children scrambling over how best to care for them. The Republican-dominated Senate voted Wednesday to override GOP Gov. Mike DeWine’s veto. The new law...
Proud Boys member sentenced to 6 years in prison for Capitol riot role after berating judge
WASHINGTON — A man who stormed the U.S. Capitol with fellow Proud Boys extremist group members was sentenced on Wednesday to six years in prison after he berated and insulted the judge who punished him. Marc Bru repeatedly interrupted Chief Judge James Boasberg before he handed down the sentence, calling...
Scientists spot previously unknown colonies of emperor penguins in Antarctica
Previously unknown colonies of emperor penguins have been spotted in new satellite imagery. Emperor penguins, considered “near threatened” with extinction, are the world’s largest penguins. They raise their chicks in Antarctic winter on patches of frozen sea ice. But if the ice breaks up before the chicks have fledged, most...
Hungary is the last holdout for Sweden’s NATO membership. So when will Orbán follow Turkey’s lead?
BUDAPEST, Hungary — With Turkey completing its ratification of Sweden’s bid to join NATO, Hungary is the last member of the military alliance not to have given its approval. After more than a year of delays, and consistent urging from its Western partners to move forward with Sweden’s application, the...
Ford to recall nearly 1.9 million Explorer SUVs to secure trim pieces that can fly off in traffic
DETROIT — Ford is recalling nearly 1.9 million Explorer SUVs in the U.S. because a trim piece can fly off and create a hazard for other drivers. The recall covers Explorers from the 2011 through 2019 model years. Documents posted Wednesday by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration say...
Russia accuses Kyiv of downing a military transport plane, killing all 74 aboard, including POWs
Russia’s Defense Ministry on Wednesday accused Ukrainian forces of shooting down a military transport plane, killing all 74 people aboard, including 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war being swapped. Ukrainian officials did not immediately confirm or deny Russia’s claims about the crash in Russia’s Belgorod border region, although they said they...
A blast of cold lets gators show off a special skill to survive icy weather
The recent blast of cold weather has given alligators a chance to show off their way of coping with freezing temperatures. The Swamp Park Outdoor Adventure Center in Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina, posted eerie videos on social media on Sunday showing alligators suspended in frozen ponds with just the...
Heavy fighting in Gaza’s 2nd-largest city leaves hundreds of patients stranded in main hospital
RAFAH, Gaza Strip — Israeli forces battled Palestinian militants on Wednesday near the main hospital in Gaza’s second-largest city of Khan Younis, where medics said hundreds of patients and thousands of displaced people were unable to leave because of the fighting. Israel has ordered residents to leave a swath of...
Americans’ economic outlook brightens as inflation slows and wages outpace prices
WASHINGTON — After an extended period of gloom, Americans are starting to feel better about inflation and the economy — a trend that could sustain consumer spending, fuel economic growth and potentially affect President Joe Biden’s political fortunes. A measure of consumer sentiment by the University of Michigan has jumped...
Rampant public drug use forces Oregon to backpedal on decriminalization law
SALEM, Ore. — Democratic lawmakers in Oregon on Tuesday unveiled a sweeping new bill that would undo a key part of the state’s first-in-the-nation drug decriminalization law, a recognition that public opinion has soured on the measure amid rampant public drug use during the fentanyl crisis. The bill would recriminalize...
Turkey’s parliament approves Sweden’s NATO membership, lifting key hurdle
ANKARA, Turkey — Turkish legislators on Tuesday endorsed Sweden’s membership in NATO, lifting a major hurdle on the previously nonaligned country’s entry into the military alliance. Lawmakers ratified Sweden’s accession protocol 287 to 55, with ruling party members saying the Nordic country’s tougher stance on Kurdish militants was key to...
Appeals court rejects Trump’s bid to reconsider gag order in the election interference case
WASHINGTON — Washington’s federal appeals court on Tuesday rejected Donald Trump’s request to reconsider a gag order restricting the former president’s speech in the case charging him with plotting to overturn the 2020 election. Lawyers for the Republican presidential front-runner had asked the full U.S. Court of Appeals for the...
‘Doomsday Clock’ signals existential threats of nuclear war, climate disasters and AIVideo
WASHINGTON — Earth, for the second year running, is nearing apocalypse, a science-oriented advocacy group said, pointing to its famous “Doomsday Clock” that shows 90 seconds till midnight. The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists made the annual announcement Tuesday rating how close humanity is from ending. It cited nuclear threat in...
New York man convicted of murdering woman who wound up in his backcountry driveway after wrong turn
FORT EDWARD, N.Y. — A man was convicted of second-degree murder Tuesday for fatally shooting a young woman when the SUV she was riding in mistakenly drove up his rural driveway in upstate New York. A jury found Kevin Monahan, 66, guilty of second-degree murder for shooting 20-year-old Kaylin Gillis...
Martin Luther King’s daughter recalls late brother as strong guardian of their father’s legacy
ATLANTA — The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s daughter remembered her late brother on Tuesday as a fierce and visionary steward of their father’s legacy. The Rev. Bernice King choked back tears at times as she shared memories of her childhood and recent visits with Dexter Scott King, who died...
Los Angeles Times to lay off one-fourth of newsroom staff starting this week, union head says
LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Times plans to lay off 94 newsroom employees — one-fourth of its newsroom staff — starting Tuesday, a number that is substantial but less than feared, the head of the journalists union said. The announcement comes after the LA Times Guild walked off the...
At United and Alaska airlines, frustration with Boeing’s manufacturing problems is boiling over
The leaders of United Airlines and Alaska Airlines took turns Tuesday blasting Boeing over manufacturing problems that have led to the grounding of more than 140 of their planes, with United’s CEO saying his airline will consider alternatives to buying a future, larger version of the Boeing 737 Max. “I...
Intimate partner violence is a precursor to homelessness, study finds
One in five women who become homeless in California flee their homes to escape violence and escalating abuse by an intimate partner, a new analysis of a statewide survey has reported. The study by the Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative at UC San Francisco found that a dearth of domestic...
France fines Amazon $35M for ‘excessively intrusive’ monitoring of warehouse staff
PARIS — France’s privacy watchdog said Tuesday that it slapped Amazon ‘s French warehouse business with a $35 million for using an “excessively intrusive sytem” to monitor worker performance and activity. The French Data Protection Authority, also known by its acronym CNIL, said the system allowed managers at Amazon France...
Alabama calls nitrogen execution method painless and humane, but critics are raising doubts
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Alabama, unless stopped by the courts, intends to strap Kenneth Eugene Smith to a gurney Thursday and use a gas mask to replace breathable air with nitrogen, depriving him of oxygen, in the nation’s first execution attempt with the method. The Alabama attorney general’s office told federal...
A pastor and a small Ohio city tussle over the legality of his 24/7 homeless ministry
COLUMBUS, Ohio — A Christian church in Ohio filed a federal lawsuit this week after its pastor was charged with violating city ordinances when he opened up the sanctuary around the clock for homeless people and others to find shelter. Police this month filed 18 criminal charges against Dad’s Place...
