Month: December 2022

By MICHAEL R. SISAK Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The director of the federal Bureau of Prisons is defending her decision to rally behind a high-ranking agency official who climbed the ranks after beating Black inmates in the 1990s, saying Tuesday that she feels he’s shown contrition and deserves a second chance. Colette Peters, making

WETUMPKA, Ala. (AP) — Two Alabama women have been convicted of misdemeanor crimes because they fed and trapped stray cats. Wetumpka Municipal Judge Jeff Courtney on Tuesday found 85-year-old Beverly Roberts guilty of criminal trespassing and disorderly conduct. The 61-year-old Mary Alston was found guilty of criminal trespassing and interfering with governmental operations. Courtney sentenced

By MARK THIESSEN Associated Press ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A trial has started to determine whether an Alaska lawmaker is disqualified from holding office because of ties to the far-right Oath Keepers group. Republican Rep. David Eastman was reelected but the race has not yet been certified. The lawsuit points to a provision of the

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Spain’s Queen Letizia was in Los Angeles on Tuesday where she celebrated the opening of a center that promotes the Spanish language and culture throughout the world. Letizia Ortíz opened the West Coast’s first branch of the Cervantes Institute, which was founded by the Spanish government in 1991 to further the

By AMY BETH HANSON Associated Press HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Zooey Zephyr worked behind the scenes during Montana’s 2021 legislative session to oppose an ultimately unsuccessful effort to ban transgender minors from receiving gender-affirming health care, including puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and surgery. When the 2023 session starts next month, she’ll face a similar challenge

By MICHAEL R. BLOOD AP Political Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — The City Council was disrupted Tuesday by another round of boisterous, foul-mouthed protests after a councilman facing widespread calls to resign for his involvement in a racism scandal defiantly returned to the chamber and took his seat. Councilman Kevin de Leon’s appearance prompted some

CAPE GIRARDEU, Mo. (AP) — A man who set a fire that destroyed an Islamic center in southeast Missouri has pleaded guilty to hate crime and arson charges. Federal prosecutors announced Tuesday that 44-year-old Nicholas John Proffitt, of Cape Girardeau, pleaded guilty in the April 2020 fire at the Cape Girardeau Islamic Center. Videos show