U.S./World category, Page 1103
Virgin Galactic reveals futuristic outpost for space tourism
UPHAM, N.M. — Spaceport America is no longer just a shiny shell of hope that space tourism would one day launch from this remote spot in the New Mexico desert. The once-empty hangar that anchors the taxpayer-financed launch and landing facility has been transformed into a custom-tailored headquarters where Virgin...
Metallica donates to Romanian pediatric cancer hospital
BUCHAREST, Romania — Metallica says it has donated $277,600 to support the construction of Romania’s first pediatric oncology hospital. The American heavy metal band, which is very popular in Romania, made the donation ahead of their sold-out show Wednesday in Romania’s National Arena, according to the band’s All Within My...
Gov’t wants a new 911-like number just for suicide hotline
NEW YORK — With suicides on the rise , the U.S. government wants to make the national crisis hotline easier to reach. Once implemented, people will just need to dial 988 to seek help. Currently, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline uses a 10-digit number, 800-273-TALK (8255). Callers are routed to...
U.K. judge sentences David Schwimmer lookalike to 9 months in jail
LONDON — A British judge has sentenced a lookalike of “Friends” actor David Schwimmer to nine months in prison for theft and fraud. Judge Sara Dodd sentenced Abdulah Husseni on Thursday for using a stolen bank card to make or attempt to make fraudulent purchases at four shops in Blackpool,...
Scientists confirm July was hottest month record
BERLIN — July was the hottest month measured on Earth since records began in 1880, the latest in a long line of peaks that scientists say backs up predictions for man-made climate change. The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said Thursday that July was 1.71 degrees warmer than the...
Gibraltar releases Iran supertanker that US sought to seize
MADRID — Gibraltar on Thursday allowed a detained Iranian supertanker to leave the British overseas territory despite a last-minute U.S. attempt to seize the vessel, potentially defusing tensions between London and Tehran as a British-flagged tanker remains held by the Islamic Republic. The release of the Grace 1 comes amid...
Trump nominates law professor for judicial vacancy
RALEIGH, N.C. — President Donald Trump has nominated a law professor who previously worked as a prosecutor, defense attorney and journalist to fill the nation’s longest federal judiciary vacancy. Trump nominated Richard E. Myers on Wednesday to be a federal judge in the Eastern District of North Carolina. Raleigh lawyer...
Michael Avenatti blames arrest on ‘vindictive’ prosecutors
NEW YORK — Lawyer Michael Avenatti wants a judge to dismiss criminal charges alleging he extorted Nike, and he’s blaming his arrest on what he calls “vindictive” prosecutors. Avenatti’s attorneys filed papers Wednesday in Manhattan federal court. Avenatti has pleaded not guilty to charges he tried to extort up to...
Authorities: Woman pulls gator from pants during stop – Aug. 15, 2019
PUNTA GORDA, Fla. — Officials say a Florida woman who pulled a small alligator from her yoga pants during a traffic stop and illegally possessed numerous other wild animals has been sentenced to probation after pleading guilty to four charges. Florida prosecutors say a Charlotte County sheriff’s deputy stopped a...
U.S. long-term mortgage rates stay near historic lows
WASHINGTON — U.S. long-term mortgage rates remained near historically low levels this week against a backdrop of volatile financial markets around the globe. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac says the average rate on the benchmark 30-year loan was unchanged at 3.60%, its lowest level since November 2016. A year ago the...
Man who fell 15 feet in Ohio says dog saved him
PORTSMOUTH, Ohio — A man in Ohio is crediting his dog for saving him after the man suffered a bad fall. WSAZ-TV reports Jimmy Hale fell off a flood wall in Portsmouth last week while walking his dog Taco. Hale ended up passing out after falling 15 feet and didn’t...
Report: Levi’s, Wrangler, Lee seamstresses harassed, abused
Women sewing blue jeans for Levi’s, Wrangler, Lee and The Children’s Place faced sexual harassment and gender-based violence and some were coerced into having sex with supervisors to keep their jobs in African factories, labor rights groups say. In response to the revelations, the brands have agreed to bring in...
Coast Guard finds 43 bales of pot floating off California
AVALON, Calif. — Authorities have found 1,300 pounds of plastic-wrapped marijuana floating in the ocean near Santa Catalina Island off the Southern California coast. The Daily News reports Wednesday that the U.S. Coast Guard acting on a tip discovered 43 bales of pot worth about $1 million. The marijuana was...
Judge: Georgia must scrap old voting machines after 2019
ATLANTA — A federal judge on Thursday ordered Georgia to stop using its outdated voting machines after this year and to be ready with hand-marked paper ballots if its new system isn’t in place for the presidential primaries. U.S. District Judge Amy Totenberg’s 153-page ruling Thursday is not a complete...
Report: Autopsy finds broken bones in Jeffrey Epstein’s neck
An updated autopsy report reveals that imprisoned financier Jeffrey Epstein had broken bones in his neck, the Washington Post reported early Thursday. NEW >>>> Jeff Epstein autopsy found multiple neck bone fractures, which can be caused by suicidal hanging -- but are more commonly found in homicidal strangulation. The mystery...
Michigan governor: Civil rights director should resign over comments
LANSING, Mich. — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Wednesday that the state’s civil rights director should resign or be fired after he made inappropriate, offensive comments about women. Whitmer, who does not have the power to dismiss Agustin Arbulu, said she will no longer let him attend Cabinet meetings and...
Epstein’s Caribbean islands drawing tourists after his death
CHARLOTTE AMALIE, U.S. Virgin Islands — Jeffrey Epstein’s armed guards and the sharp rocks that lie beneath the turquoise waters glistening around his Caribbean island have long deterred boaters from the area, but curiosity has overcome concern since the financier apparently killed himself in jail as he awaited trial in...
Iowa Rep. Steve King suggests rapes, incest helped populate the worldVideo
DES MOINES — U.S. Rep. Steve King on Wednesday defended his call for a ban on all abortions by questioning whether “there would be any population of the world left” if not for births because of rape and incest. Speaking before a conservative group in the Des Moines suburb of...
Florida man arrested for threatening neighbors with nunchucks, hits himself with them
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Police say they’ve arrested a Florida man who’s accused of threatening his neighbors with nunchucks and bug spray before cutting his own head when he accidently hit himself with the weapon. Daytona Beach police spokesman Messod Bendayan says 61-year-old Larry Adams complained about his neighbor’s loud...
Man dies after competing in California taco-eating contest
FRESNO, Calif. — Authorities say a man died shortly after competing in a taco-eating contest at a minor league baseball game Fresno Sheriff spokesman Tony Botti says 41-year-old Dana Hutchings, of Fresno, died Tuesday night shortly after arriving at a hospital. Botti says an autopsy on Hutchings will be done...
Some Apple MacBooks banned from airline flights for fire risk
Federal safety officials have banned some Apple laptops from airline flights after Apple recalled the batteries because they could catch fire. The Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement Wednesday that it alerted airlines last month about the recall involving batteries for some Apple MacBook Pro laptops. Under FAA policy,...
Police: Man broke into hotel, took shower, stole TV
A northern New Mexico man is facing charges after authorities say he broke into a hotel room and took a shower before stealing a television. The Las Vegas Optic reports Ignacio Gallegos was recently arrested following reports of a man leaving the Plaza Hotel in Las Vegas, New Mexico, with...
Pittsburgh’s Jewish Community Center provides outreach to El Paso
A Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh official traveled this week to El Paso, Texas, to help with the community’s healing process after the Aug. 3 mass shooting. “There’s no playbook for any of the communities affected,” said JCC chief program officer Jason Kunzman, who traveled to Texas on Sunday....
Army veteran pleads not guilty in anthem assault on teen
SUPERIOR, Mont. — An Army veteran pleaded not guilty to assaulting a 13-year-old boy who the suspect said refused to remove his hat during the national anthem at a rodeo in Montana. Attorney Lance Jasper has told the Missoulian that defendant Curt Brockway, a 39-year-old veteran with a traumatic brain...
Nepal committee recommends new rules for Everest climbers
KATHMANDU, Nepal — A Nepal government committee formed after a bad mountaineering season on Mount Everest has recommended new rules that would require climbers to have scaled tall peaks, undergone proper training, and possess certificates of good health and insurance that would cover rescue costs if required. A report by...
