Associated Press stories, Page 317
Rapper Busta Rhymes accused of punching a man in the face in New York
NEW YORK — Rapper Busta Rhymes has been accused of repeatedly punching another man in the face, police said Friday. Police said Rhymes, whose legal name is Trevor Smith, was issued a desk appearance ticket for third-degree assault, a misdemeanor, on Tuesday related to an incident in Brooklyn, N.Y., on...
NCAA adds women’s wrestling as its 91st and latest championship sport
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The NCAA added women’s wrestling as a sport Friday, bringing its total number of championships to 91. The sanctioning body approved the addition at the annual convention in Nashville, Tenn. Women’s wrestling had been under the “emerging sports for women” banner. Now, female athletes from Division I,...
Former First Energy executives indicted in Ohio bribery scheme
A former CEO and one of his top executives with an Ohio energy company at the center of a $60 million bribery scheme have been indicted on racketeering charges, federal prosecutors announced Friday. The former FirstEnergy Corp. executives — ex-CEO Chuck Jones and Senior Vice President Michael Dowling — were...
Former Kentucky sheriff accused of killing a judge appears remotely from jail during court hearing
A former Kentucky sheriff accused of gunning down a judge last year, stunning their tight-knit Appalachian community, appeared remotely from a jail Friday for a court hearing as defense attorneys and prosecutors discussed preliminary matters that will lead up to his murder trial. Former Letcher County Sheriff Shawn “Mickey” Stines...
Doctor accused of sexual abuse by over 200 former patients is indicted on rape charges
A grand jury in Massachusetts has indicted a doctor who is accused of sexually assaulting more than 200 former patients over a period of more than a decade. The patients sued Dr. Derrick Todd, who has been accused of performing unnecessary pelvic floor therapy, breast examinations, testicular examinations and other...
U.S. lawsuit accuses Pepsi of price discrimination that favored Walmart over smaller stores
The Federal Trade Commission sued PepsiCo on Friday, alleging that it has engaged in illegal price discrimination by giving unfair price advantages to one big-box retailer at the expense of other vendors and consumers. The benefiting customer wasn’t named in an FTC statement about the lawsuit. But a source familiar...
CNN found guilty in Florida trial of libeling Navy veteran in Afghan story
A Florida jury on Friday found CNN guilty of libeling a U.S. Navy veteran in a 2021 story about people paid to rescue endangered Afghans following the Taliban takeover of that country. The jury in Panama City, Fla., deliberated for more than eight hours starting Thursday before ruling in favor...
Trump wants 1 of the agents who covered him in Butler to lead Secret Service
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — President-elect Donald Trump will choose to lead the U.S. Secret Service one of the agents who covered him after a gunmen opened fire at the candidate during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. Donald Trump Jr. said his father will be naming Sean Curran, who heads the...
Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted expected to succeed JD Vance in the U.S. Senate, AP sources say
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine is expected to select his lieutenant governor, Jon Husted, on Friday to succeed Vice President-elect JD Vance in the U.S. Senate. That’s according to two people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity before an announcement planned for Friday...
Biden says the Equal Rights Amendment should be considered ratified
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden announced Friday that the Equal Rights Amendment should be considered a ratified addition to the U.S. Constitution, making a symbolic statement that’s unlikely to alter a decades-long push for gender equality. “It is long past time to recognize the will of the American people,” Biden...
What other apps can you turn to with TikTok ban just days away?
With a possible TikTok ban just days away, many U.S. users are looking for alternative social media platforms to help them keep up with pop culture or provide the type of entertaining videos that popularized the short-form video app. The Supreme Court on Friday unanimously upheld the federal law banning...
Trump’s swearing-in will move inside Capitol Rotunda because of intense cold
WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump will take the oath of office from inside the Capitol Rotunda on Monday due to forecasts of intense cold weather. “The weather forecast for Washington, D.C., with the windchill factor, could take temperatures into severe record lows,” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform. “There...
How to prepare for a TikTok ban, including how to save your content
TikTok has cemented itself as a quintessential entertainment app, offering everything from funny skits and makeup tutorials to social commentary and news. Without a sale to an approved buyer, the platform is expected to vanish from U.S. app stores by Sunday now that the Supreme Court unanimously upheld the the...
Fire at one of the world’s largest battery plants in California forces evacuations
MOSS LANDING, Calif. — A major fire burning Friday at one of the world’s largest battery storage plants in Northern California is sending up flames of toxic smoke, leading to the evacuation of 1,700 people and the closure of a major highway. The blaze in Moss Landing started Thursday. Fire...
Senate advances migrant detention bill that could be Trump’s 1st law to sign
WASHINGTON — The Senate is heading toward a final vote on legislation that would require federal authorities to detain migrants accused of theft and violent crimes and give states power to challenge federal immigration policies, setting a new tone on immigration as Donald Trump enters the White House. Newly in...
Russia and Iran sign a partnership treaty to deepen their ties in the face of Western sanctions
MOSCOW — Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Iranian counterpart, Masoud Pezeshkian, signed a broad cooperation pact Friday as their countries deepened their partnership in the face of stinging Western sanctions. Russian and Iranian officials say the “comprehensive strategic partnership treaty” covers all areas —- from trade and military cooperation...
Supreme Court upholds law banning TikTok if it’s not sold by its Chinese parent company
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Friday unanimously upheld the federal law banning TikTok beginning Sunday unless it’s sold by its China-based parent company,holding that the risk to national security posed by its ties to China overcomes concerns about limiting speech by the app or its 170 million users in...
Hundreds of dead sea turtles are washing ashore on India’s coast
BENGALURU, India — Over 400 endangered sea turtles have washed ashore on India’s east coast near the city of Chennai in the last two weeks in an event not witnessed in over two decades. Olive ridley turtles travel thousands of miles for ideal nesting conditions on India’s coast. But the...
He is credited with one of history’s most indelible photos. A new documentary questions who took it
It is one of the 20th century’s most memorable images: a naked girl, screaming, running from a napalm bombing during the Vietnam War. More than a half-century later, a new documentary is calling into question who took it — and the retired Associated Press photographer long credited for the photo...
Nintendo says its new Switch 2 console will be released in 2025
LOS ANGELES — Gaming giant Nintendo revealed its newest console Thursday in a highly anticipated announcement gamers had been waiting for since rumors of its release first spread years ago. But the initial reaction to the Nintendo Switch 2 was lackluster, and the company’s Tokyo-traded shares slumped 4.3% on Friday....
Tony Award-winning British actor Joan Plowright, widow of Laurence Olivier, dies at 95
LONDON — Award-winning British actor Joan Plowright, who with her late husband Laurence Olivier did much to revitalize the U.K.’s theatrical scene in the decades after World War II, has died. She was 95. In a statement Friday, her family said Plowright died the previous day at Denville Hall, a...
How Trump’s political and business interests will intersect in the White House
As he assumes the presidency for a second time, Donald Trump brings with him a broad expanse of business relationships and financial entanglements — and the possibility that those associations could influence his decision-making in the White House. Trump’s team dismisses such concerns. “President Trump removed himself from his multibillion-dollar...
Israel’s security Cabinet recommends approval of ceasefire in Gaza; deal is now with full Cabinet
JERUSALEM, Israel — Israel’s security Cabinet recommended approval Friday of a Gaza ceasefire deal after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed an agreement had been reached that would pause the 15-month war with Hamas and release dozens of hostages held by militants there. Netanyahu’s office Friday evening said the meeting of...
Biden got an Oval Office letter from Trump and may leave one in the desk himself. It’d be a first
WASHINGTON — Ronald Reagan probably didn’t realize he was starting a tradition when he wrote a note congratulating his successor and left it in the Oval Office desk drawer after two terms as president. He did that for George H.W. Bush, his successor and vice president of eight years. Bush...
Progressives are frustrated by Biden’s final-days warning of billionaire influence
NEW YORK — The Democratic Party’s left wing has warned for decades that America is moving toward an oligarchy in which a handful of billionaires controls much of the nation’s wealth and political power. President Joe Biden elevated such concerns from the Oval Office for the first time this week,...
