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National News

Guilty: Trump becomes first former US president convicted of felony crimes

NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump became the first former American president to be convicted of felony crimes Thursday as a New York jury found him guilty of all 34 charges in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through a hush money payment to a porn actor who said the two had sex. […]
24 hours ago

Disneyland performers’ vote to unionize is certified by federal labor officials

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Character and parade performers at Disneyland in California are officially unionized. Federal labor officials said Wednesday that they’ve certified the results of a three-day election that took place earlier this month in Anaheim. Actors’ Equity Association will represent roughly 1,700 performers and assistants who help bring Disney’s popular characters to life […]
1 day ago

Michigan willing to spend millions to restore Flint properties ripped up by pipe replacement

DETROIT (AP) — The state of Michigan said it’s willing to step in and oversee property repairs at 1,900 homes in Flint where water pipes have been inspected or replaced but the grounds remain a mess. The city in March was found in civil contempt by a judge after blowing past deadlines to get the […]
1 day ago

Massachusetts fugitive dubbed the ‘bad breath rapist’ captured in California after 16 years at large

DANVILLE, Calif. (AP) — A fugitive dubbed the “bad breath rapist” has been arrested in the San Francisco Bay Area more than 16 years after he fled following his conviction for sexually assaulting a coworker in Massachusetts, authorities said this week. Tuen Kit Lee was found guilty at a 2007 trial of the kidnapping and […]
1 day ago

West Virginia’s first ombudsman for state’s heavily burdened foster care system resigns

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — The first ombudsman of West Virginia’s heavily burdened foster care system has resigned. Pamela Woodman-Kaehler’s resignation will take effect June 6, the state Department of Health announced in a statement. Woodman-Kaehler said she was “choosing to pursue a new opportunity,” but did not provide more details. Woodman-Kaehler said the ombudsman’s program […]
1 day ago

Ohio man gets probation after pleading guilty to threatening North Caroilna legislator

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — An Ohio man received supervised probation after pleading guilty to threatening to kill a North Carolina state senator in a social media message last year. Nicolas Alan Daniels, of West Portsmouth, Ohio, entered a plea to one felony count of threatening a legislative officer last Thursday in Wake County court, according […]
1 day ago

House Ethics Committee will investigate Rep. Henry Cuellar after his federal indictment

WASHINGTON (AP) — The House Ethics Committee is opening an investigation into Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, after his indictment earlier this month on allegations of bribery, money laundering and working on behalf of a foreign government. The committee said Wednesday that it voted unanimously to take the rare step of pursuing an investigation into Cuellar, […]
1 day ago

Murder trial ordered in Michigan killing that stoked anti-immigrant campaign rhetoric

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — A man accused of killing his Michigan girlfriend after returning to the U.S. following deportation was ordered Wednesday to stand trial for murder. The case against Brandon Ortiz Vite, a Mexican citizen, became a political flashpoint in April when former President Donald Trump accused the Biden administration of failing to […]
1 day ago

Authorities arrest man allegedly running ‘likely world’s largest ever’ cybercrime botnet

WASHINGTON (AP) — An international law enforcement team has arrested a Chinese national and disrupted a major botnet that officials said he ran for nearly a decade, amassing at least $99 million in profits by reselling access to criminals who used it for identity theft, child exploitation, and financial fraud, including pandemic relief scams. The […]
1 day ago

New Orleans mystery: Human skull padlocked to a dumbbell is pulled out of water by a fisherman

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A human skull padlocked to an exercise dumbbell has been fished out of a New Orleans waterway, leaving police with a mystery on their hands. The skull was found earlier this month by a man using a red rope and a magnet the size of a hockey puck on a bridge […]
1 day ago

A nurse honored for compassion is fired after referring in speech to Gaza ‘genocide’

NEW YORK (AP) — A nurse was fired by a New York City hospital after she referred to Israel’s war in Gaza as “genocide” during a speech accepting an award. Labor and delivery nurse Hesen Jabr, who is Palestinian American, was being honored by NYU Langone Health for her compassion in caring for mothers who […]
1 day ago

Noose used in largest mass execution in US history will be returned to a Dakota tribe in Minnesota

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A noose that was used in the largest mass execution in U.S. history will be returned to a Dakota tribe, the Minnesota Historical Society announced. The society plans to repatriate what is known as the Mankato Hanging Rope to the Prairie Island Indian Community after the 30-day notice period required under federal […]
1 day ago

Black men who were asked to leave a flight sue American Airlines, claiming racial discrimination

NEW YORK (AP) — Black passengers who were briefly ordered off an American Airlines plane in January sued the airline Wednesday, alleging that they were victims of racial discrimination. Three of the men filed a lawsuit in federal court in New York. They said they were told to leave a plane waiting to take off […]
1 day ago

Cleveland Fed names Goldman Sachs executive Hammack to succeed Mester as president

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Cleveland branch of the Federal Reserve said Wednesday that Beth Hammack, an executive at investment bank Goldman Sachs, would be its next president effective Aug. 21. Hammack, 52, has worked at Goldman Sachs since 1993. She was most recently the cohead of global finance, and has also served as global treasurer […]
2 days ago

New Hampshire’s limits on teaching on race and gender are unconstitutional, judge says

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A federal judge has struck down New Hampshire’s nearly 3-year-old law limiting what teachers can say about race, gender, sexual orientation, disability and other topics in public schools as unconstitutionally vague. The ruling could revive the topic as an election year campaign issue. Republicans pitched the 2021 law as an anti-discrimination […]
2 days ago

Vermont’s Republican governor allows ghost gun bill to become law without his signature

Vermont Gov. Phil Scott, a Republican, has allowed a bill to become law that requires serial numbers on firearms that are privately made with individual parts, kits or 3D printers. Scott allowed the bill, part of an effort to crack down on hard-to-trace ghost guns that are increasingly showing up in crimes, to become law […]
2 days ago

The Panda Party is back on as giant pandas will return to Washington’s National Zoo by year’s end

WASHINGTON (AP) — Months after the nation’s capital bid an emotional farewell to its giant pandas, the National Zoo is expecting a renewed surge in panda-mania with the announcement that two more of the furry black-and-white icons will be coming to Washington. The zoo announced Wednesday that a fresh agreement had been struck with the […]
2 days ago

ConocoPhillips buying Marathon Oil for $17.1 billion in all-stock deal, plus $5.4 billion in debt

ConocoPhillips is buying Marathon Oil in an all-stock deal valued at approximately $17.1 billion. The deal is valued at $22.5 billion when including $5.4 billion in debt. Crude prices have jumped more than 12% this year and the cost for a barrel rose above $80 this week. As part of the transaction, Marathon Oil shareholders […]
2 days ago

The Latest | Judge excuses jurors, ending first day of deliberations in Trump’s criminal trial

NEW YORK (AP) — The first day of jury deliberations in Donald Trump’s criminal hush money trial concluded after the panel sent their first two notes to the judge Wednesday afternoon, just a few hours after beginning deliberations. They requested to rehear jury instructions, as well as rehear testimony from former National Enquirer publisher David […]
2 days ago

Harvey Weinstein may face new charges as more accusers come forward, New York prosecutors say

NEW YORK (AP) — Manhattan prosecutors told a judge Wednesday they are evaluating more claims of sexual misconduct made against Harvey Weinstein and could potentially seek a new indictment against him before his scheduled retrial on rape and sexual assault charges. Assistant District Attorney Nicole Blumberg said during a court hearing that additional people have […]
2 days ago

The art of drag has become a target. With Pride Month nigh, performers are organizing to fight back

“Drag is joy, but it’s under attack. Our very existence, our self-expression, our art — all of it is being threatened. And we’ve had enough.” That’s the opening salvo of Qommittee, a group of drag performers banding together to protect and promote their art form, as it announced its formation ahead of June’s LGBTQ+ Pride […]
2 days ago

Power outages could linger for days after storms batter Texas again, leaving 1 dead

HOUSTON (AP) — Power outages scattered across storm-weary Texas on Wednesday could linger into the weekend after storms flooded streets in Houston for the second time this month and ripped off roofs in Dallas, leaving a teenager dead and injuring others. The teen was killed Tuesday at a construction site while working on a home […]
2 days ago

Jury in Donald Trump’s hush money case asks to rehear testimony as deliberations get underway

NEW YORK (AP) — The jury in Donald Trump’s hush money trial asked to rehear testimony Wednesday less than four hours after beginning deliberations in the first criminal case against a former American president. The four requests included testimony related to a 2015 meeting at Trump Tower where a tabloid publisher agreed to identify negative […]
2 days ago

Appeals court won’t halt upcoming Alabama execution

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — A federal appeals court on Tuesday declined to halt the upcoming execution of an Alabama man convicted in the beating deaths of an elderly couple during a 2004 robbery. The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied two separate requests for an execution stay for Jamie Ray Mills, 50. Mills is […]
2 days ago