U.S./World category, Page 918
Officials eye sedative given before death of Elijah McClain
Colorado health officials have opened an investigation into the use of a sedative given to a Black man by paramedics during a police stop in suburban Denver before his death last year. The inquiry is the latest in a series of new reviews of the case of Elijah McClain that...
U.S. death toll from coronavirus hits 150,000
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The death toll from the coronavirus in the U.S. hit 150,000 on Wednesday, by the far the highest in the world, according to the tally kept by Johns Hopkins University. The bleak milestone comes amid signs that the nation’s outbreak is beginning to stabilize in the Sun...
Outrage builds after NYPD hustles protester into unmarked vanVideo
NEW YORK — The New York Police Department’s use of plainclothes officers and an unmarked minivan to haul away a vandalism suspect during a protest Tuesday created confusion and drew outrage from people who compared it to covert tactics used recently by federal agents in Portland, Ore. Bystander video of...
Trump says he never raised Taliban bounties in talks with PutinVideo
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump says he hasn’t discussed reports that Russia paid bounties to the Taliban to kill U.S. troops in Afghanistan with Russian President Vladimir Putin, despite having numerous phone calls as recently as last week. “I have never discussed it with him,” Trump told Axios in a...
MacKenzie Scott begins giving away her Amazon wealth: Here’s where nearly $1.68B is goingVideo
SEATTLE — MacKenzie Scott sees the $59.3 billion she’s accumulated through her ownership of about 4% of Amazon stock as “the product of a collective effort, and of social structures which present opportunities to some people, and obstacles to countless others.” On Tuesday, a day before her ex-husband, Amazon founder...
U.S. energy use hit 30-year low during pandemic shutdowns
BILLINGS, Mont. — U.S. energy consumption plummeted to its lowest level in more than 30 years this spring as the nation’s economy largely shut down because of the coronavirus, federal officials reported Wednesday. The drop was driven by less demand for coal that is burned for electricity and oil that’s...
Arizona train derails on bridge that collapses, catches fire
PHOENIX — A freight train traveling on a bridge that spans a lake in a Phoenix suburb derailed Wednesday, setting the bridge ablaze and partially collapsing the structure, officials said. Video images showed huge flames and thick black smoke rising into the air and three train cars in a park...
Prosecutors: Agents will probe crimes, not bust protests
MADISON, Wis. — Federal prosecutors worked Wednesday to dispel concerns that federal agents headed to a number of U.S. cities will be used to break up protests, insisting that the agents will work side-by-side with local and state investigators to solve violent crimes. President Donald Trump recently sent federal agents...
U.S. expected to report record-breaking economic plunge
WASHINGTON — Having endured what was surely a record-shattering slump last quarter, the U.S. economy faces a dim outlook as a resurgent coronavirus intensifies doubts about any sustained recovery the rest of the year. A huge plunge in consumer spending as people stayed home and avoided shopping, traveling or gathering...
Oregon governor says U.S. agents will start leaving Portland
PORTLAND, Ore. — Federal agents who have clashed with protesters in Portland, Oregon, will begin a “phased withdrawal” from Oregon’s largest city, Gov. Kate Brown said Wednesday. Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf said in a statement the plan negotiated with Brown over the last 24 hours includes a “robust...
U.S. to bring 6,400 troops home from Germany, move others elsewhere in Europe
WASHINGTON — Spurred on by President Donald Trump’s demand to pull troops out of Germany, the U.S. will bring about 6,400 forces home and shift about 5,600 to other countries in Europe, U.S. defense leaders said Wednesday, detailing a Pentagon plan that will cost billions of dollars and take years...
Passage of Turkey’s social media law raises censorship worries
ISTANBUL — Turkey’s parliament approved a law early Wednesday that gives authorities greater power to regulate social media despite concerns of growing censorship in a country where critical voices are already muted. The law requires social media companies such as Facebook and Twitter to maintain representatives in Turkey to deal...
Georgia inmates hailed as heroes for saving injured deputy
LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. — A Georgia sheriff’s office is thanking a group of inmates credited with rescuing a deputy who collapsed and suffered a head injury while supervising a jail housing unit. The Gwinnett County deputy was patrolling the unit when the inmates noticed he did not appear to be feeling...
Trump on his own again as he skips farewell to Lewis
WASHINGTON — One by one, they passed through the grand Capitol Rotunda to pay respects to the civil rights icon. It was a solemn display of unity as congressional leaders from both sides of the aisle offered praise for longtime Georgia Rep. John Lewis. There was House Speaker Nancy Pelosi,...
U.S. officials: Russia behind spread of virus disinformation
WASHINGTON — U.S. officials say Russian intelligence officers are spreading disinformation about the coronavirus pandemic through English-language websites, trying to exploit a crisis that America is struggling to contain before the presidential election in November. Two Russians who have held senior roles in Moscow’s military intelligence service known as the...
UK judge holds hearing in Meghan’s lawsuit against newspaper
LONDON — A judge in London is hearing the latest stage on Wednesday of the Duchess of Sussex’s privacy-infringement lawsuit against a British newspaper, as Meghan tries to keep the names of five of her friends out of the public eye. The former Meghan Markle is suing the publisher of...
Source: U.S., Oregon in talks about pulling agents in PortlandVideo
PORTLAND, Ore. — The Trump administration has started talks with the Oregon governor’s office and indicated that it would begin to draw down the presence of federal agents sent to quell two months of chaotic protests in Portland if the state stepped up its own enforcement, a senior White House...
Prosecutors: ‘Alarming’ that Ghislaine Maxwell may publicize victims
NEW YORK — Some witnesses in the criminal case against Jeffrey Epstein’s former girlfriend may face harassment and intimidation and could be reluctant to cooperate with the government if defense attorneys are allowed to discuss them publicly, prosecutors said Tuesday. Prosecutors asked a Manhattan federal court judge to block lawyers...
Police: Hell’s Angel sparked Minneapolis riots over George FloydVideo
MINNEAPOLIS — Police say a man captured on surveillance video breaking windows at a south Minneapolis auto parts store in the days after George Floyd’s death is a Hell’s Angels member who was bent on stirring up social unrest. Dubbed “Umbrella Man” for an all-black getup that included hood, gas...
Shark that killed New York woman off Maine was great whiteVideo
PORTLAND, Maine — Authorities in Maine said Tuesday the shark that killed a woman in a rare attack off the state’s coast was a great white, the same type of shark that served as the inspiration for the movie “Jaws.” The shark bite killed Julie Dimperio Holowach, 63, of New...
U.S. officials: Russia spreading coronavirus disinformation
WASHINGTON — Russian intelligence operatives are using a trio of English-language websites to spread disinformation about the coronavirus pandemic, seeking to exploit a crisis that America is struggling to contain ahead of the presidential election in November, U.S. officials said Tuesday. Two Russians who have held senior roles in Moscow’s...
Columbus schools, Ohio’s largest district, going virtual
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Children attending Columbus city schools, Ohio’s largest district, will take classes virtually at least through October, city officials announced Tuesday. The district had considered a blended approach involving online and in-person learning for students through middle school, but worsening public health conditions led to the decision to...
Florida man allegedly spent almost $4M in coronavirus relief aid on Lamborghini, dating sites
A Florida man accused of blowing nearly $4 million in coronavirus relief aid on dating sites, hotel getaways and a brand new Lamborghini has been arrested and charged with three felonies. David Hines is facing one count of bank fraud, one for making false statements to a financial institution and...
Twitter gives Trump’s son Don Jr. a tweet timeout
CHICAGO — Twitter has temporarily halted President Donald Trump’s son from tweeting on its site after he shared a video riddled with unsupported claims about the coronavirus Monday. Many Republicans reacted with outrage, filling social media with cries of “censorship,” after Donald Trump Jr.’s account was put on a timeout...
‘Appalled’ Cuomo to investigate crowded Chainsmokers concert
ALBANY, N.Y. — New York’s governor says he is “appalled” by videos showing crowds standing close together at a Hamptons concert featuring electronic music duo The Chainsmokers over the weekend. Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the state Department of Health will conduct an investigation into “egregious social distancing violations.” “We have...
