U.S./World category, Page 305
West Virginia transgender sports ban discriminates against teen athlete, appeals court says
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia’s transgender sports ban violates the rights of a teen athlete under Title IX, the federal civil rights law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in schools, an appeals court ruled Tuesday. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 that the law cannot be applied to...
North Korea is buying Chinese surveillance cameras in a push to tighten control, report says
SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea is putting surveillance cameras in schools and workplaces and collecting fingerprints, photographs and other biometric information from its citizens in a technology-driven push to monitor its population even more closely, a report said Tuesday. The state’s growing use of digital surveillance tools, which combine...
Only 1 in 3 U.S. adults think Trump acted illegally in New York hush money case, AP-NORC poll shows
WASHINGTON — The first criminal trial facing former President Donald Trump is also the one in which Americans are least convinced he committed a crime, a new AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll finds. Only about one-third of U.S. adults say Trump did something illegal in the hush money...
First 7 jurors are chosen for Trump’s hush money criminal trial; 11 more still neededVideo
NEW YORK — The first seven jurors for Donald Trump’s hush money trial were seated Tuesday after lawyers grilled the jury pool about their social media posts, political views and personal lives to decide who can sit in fair judgment of the former president. The panelists who were selected are...
Biden administration announces new partnership with 50 countries to stifle future pandemics
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden’s administration will help 50 countries identify and respond to infectious diseases, with the goal of preventing pandemics like the covid-19 outbreak that suddenly halted normal life around the globe in 2020. U.S. government officials will work with the countries to develop better testing, surveillance, communication...
Fire rages through 17th-century Old Stock Exchange in Copenhagen, toppling iconic spire
COPENHAGEN, Denmark — A fire raged through one of Copenhagen’s oldest buildings on Tuesday, causing the collapse of the iconic spire from the 17th-century Old Stock Exchange as passersby rushed to help emergency services save priceless paintings and other valuables. Danish Culture Minister Jakob Engel-Schmidt said it was “touching” to...
Police: Knife attack in Australia against a bishop, priest being treated as terrorism
SYDNEY— Australian police say a knife attack in Sydney that wounded a bishop and a priest during a church service as horrified worshippers watched online and in person was an act of terrorism. Police arrested a 16-year-old boy Tuesday after the stabbing at Christ the Good Shepherd Church that injured...
Owners of a Colorado funeral home where 190 decaying bodies were found are charged with covid fraud
DENVER — A couple who owned a Colorado funeral home where authorities last year discovered 190 decaying bodies were indicted on federal charges that they misspent nearly $900,000 in pandemic relief funds on vacations, cosmetic surgery, jewelry and other personal expenses, according to court documents unsealed Monday. The indictment reaffirms...
Audit cites potential legal violations in purchase of $19,000 lectern for Arkansas governor
LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ office potentially violated state laws on purchasing, state property and government records when it purchased a $19,000 lectern for the Republican governor that’s prompted nationwide attention, an audit requested by lawmakers said Monday. Legislative auditors referred the findings in the long-awaited audit...
Supreme Court allows Idaho to enforce its ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court is allowing Idaho to enforce its ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth while lawsuits over the law proceed, reversing lower courts. The justices’ order Monday allows the state to put in a place a 2023 law that subjects physicians to up to 10 years...
Members of self-proclaimed anti-government group ‘God’s Misfits’ held in killings of Kansas women
OKLAHOMA CITY — Two Kansas women who vanished as they tried to pick up children for a birthday party two weeks ago were killed over a custody dispute involving a group of anti-government Oklahomans calling themselves “God’s Misfits,” authorities said Monday. Their vehicle was found March 30 along a rural...
Gun supervisor for ‘Rust’ movie gets 18 months in prison for fatal shooting by Alec Baldwin on setVideo
SANTA FE, N.M. — A movie weapons supervisor was sentenced to 18 months in prison in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer by Alec Baldwin on the set of the Western film “Rust,” during a hearing Monday in which tearful family members and friends gave testimonials that included calls for...
Retail sales up a strong 0.7% in March from February, underscoring the resiliency of the U.S. consumer
NEW YORK — Americans increased their spending pace in March at a better-than-expected pace the previous month, , underscoring how shoppers remain resilient despite inflationary pressures and other economic challenges. Retail sales rose 0.7% last month after being up a revised 0.9% in February, according to the Commerce Department’s report...
Trump’s historic hush-money trial gets underway; 1st day ends without any jurors being pickedVideo
NEW YORK — The historic hush-money trial of Donald Trump got underway Monday with the arduous process of selecting a jury to hear the case charging the former president with falsifying business records in order to stifle stories about his sex life. The day ended without any jurors being seated....
Police officer, sheriff’s deputy and suspect killed in a shootout in upstate New York, police say
LIVERPOOL, N.Y. — A police officer and a sheriff’s deputy in upstate New York were shot and killed Sunday night in an exchange of gunfire with a suspect, who also was killed, police said. The shooting took place shortly after 8 p.m. in Liverpool, about 6 miles north of Syracuse....
Horrified worshipers watch online and in person as a bishop is stabbed at a church in Sydney
SYDNEY — Horrified worshipers watched online and in person as a bishop was stabbed at the altar during a church service in Sydney on Sunday evening, and three others were stabbed as people rushed to help. Police said there were no life-threatening wounds, and a man was arrested. Hundreds of...
Ship that caused bridge collapse had apparent electrical issues while still docked
BALTIMORE — The massive container ship that caused the deadly collapse of a Baltimore bridge experienced apparent electrical issues before it left port but set out anyway, someone with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press on Monday, hours after the FBI said it was investigating whether any laws...
Biden administration agrees to provide $6.4 billion to Samsung for making computer chips in Texas
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration has reached an agreement to provide up to $6.4 billion in direct funding for Samsung Electronics to develop a computer chip manufacturing and research cluster in Texas. The funding announced Monday by the Commerce Department is part of a total investment in the cluster that,...
Trump’s criminal trial to mark milestone in American politicsVideo
Donald Trump is poised to become the first former U.S. president to face a criminal trial, a watershed moment for American democracy as the Republican nominee fights a divisive battle to retake the White House. The New York trial starting Monday over the alleged falsification of business records to conceal...
House Speaker Mike Johnson says he will push for aid to Israel and Ukraine this week
WASHINGTON — House Speaker Mike Johnson said Sunday he will try to advance wartime aid for Israel this week as he attempts the difficult task of winning House approval for a national security package that also includes funding for Ukraine and allies in Asia. Johnson, R-La., is already under immense...
Middle East enters dangerous new phase with Iran’s drone and missile attack on IsraelVideo
Israel and allies including the U.S., U.K. and France managed to mostly foil an unprecedented attack by Iran on the Jewish state. The Islamic Republic fired more than 300 drones and missiles against Israel on Saturday evening. Almost all were intercepted before they reached Israeli airspace and there were no...
McCormick gets Trump’s endorsement in Pa. Senate race despite awkward history
Former President Donald Trump endorsed U.S. Senate candidate David McCormick of Pennsylvania on Saturday, urging his supporters in the state to “go out and vote for him” in one of the year’s most hotly contested Senate races. Trump’s endorsement came two years after he successfully helped sink McCormick in Pennsylvania’s...
Police in Australian identify Sydney stabbing attacker who killed 6
SYDNEY — Police have identified the assailant who stabbed six people to death at a busy Sydney shopping center before he was fatally shot by a police officer. New South Wales Police said Sunday that Joel Cauchi, 40, was responsible for the Saturday afternoon attack at the Westfield Shopping Centre...
Israel hails ‘success’ in blocking Iran’s unprecedented attack
TEL AVIV, Israel — Israel on Sunday hailed its air defenses in the face of an unprecedented attack by Iran, saying the systems thwarted 99% of the more than 300 drones and missiles launched toward its territory. Regional tensions were high amid fears of an Israeli counter-strike that could fuel...
Donald Trump says he’ll ‘absolutely’ testify in upcoming hush money criminal trial
NEW YORK — Former President Donald Trump said he’ll have no issue taking the stand in his upcoming criminal trial centered on an illicit hush money payoff to porn star Stormy Daniels. “I’m testifying,” he declared during a news briefing Friday night. “I tell the truth. All I can do...
