Associated Press BRICK, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey’s governor declared a drought warning. Black Hawk helicopters scooped water from a lake to dump on a burning forest in New York state. A park in Manhattan caught fire. And authorities in two states revealed criminal charges Wednesday against people accused of setting some of the wildfires
Continue ReadingAssociated Press PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The FBI is offering up to $25,000 as a reward for information about the suspect behind recent ballot box fires in Oregon and Washington state. Authorities believe a male suspect was behind three ballot box fires in Portland, Oregon, and Vancouver, Washington, last month. One fire damaged hundreds of
Continue ReadingAssociated Press PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Gun rights advocacy groups are challenging Maine’s 72-hour waiting period for gun purchases, arguing that it’s unconstitutional. The federal lawsuit filed Tuesday on behalf of five individuals contends that it’s unconstitutional to require someone who passed a background check to wait three days to complete a gun purchase. Maine
Continue ReadingAssociated Press MEXICO CITY (AP) — The last words Michelle Reed heard from her 6-year-old adopted son in early November were: “Mom, come get me.” But after American authorities blocked airlines from traveling to Haiti on Tuesday for 30 days after a number of planes were shot by gangs, 51-year-old Reed is once again cut
Continue ReadingAssociated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Federal prosecutors say some evidence that a judge had excluded from the bribery trial of former New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez was inadvertently put on a computer given to jurors, but they say it should not affect the Democrat’s conviction. Prosecutors told a federal trial judge in a letter
Continue ReadingLOS ANGELES (AP) — Diamond Sports Group announced Wednesday it reached a multiyear agreement with Prime Video to make its 16 regional sports network channels available as an add-on subscription. FanDuel Sports Network RSNs will be available for customers living within each team’s designated geographic area. The 16 networks cover fans in 31 states. “Partnering
Continue ReadingAssociated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump has tapped former Hawaii Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard to be the next director of national intelligence. If confirmed by the Senate Gabbard would take over a powerful position that sits atop the nation’s intelligence services. Gabbard is a veteran who deployed to Iraq and Kuwait and who later
Continue ReadingAP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — European food delivery giant Just Eat Takeaway.com is selling Grubhub for $650 million, a fraction of the billions it spent to buy the U.S. platform just three years ago. Wonder Group, a New York-based food ordering company that touts “fast fine” dining, is set to be Grubhub’s new
Continue ReadingAssociated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Tenants searching for an apartment in New York City have long been forced to pay thousands of dollars to real estate brokers. That was true even if that person was hired by the landlord. But a new bill passed Wednesday would shift those costs to landlords, bringing New York
Continue ReadingGALVESTON, Texas (AP) — An endangered sea turtle that was found about a year ago some 5,000 miles (8,047 kilometers) from its native waters has been released into the Gulf of Mexico, according to the Houston Zoo. The Kemp’s ridley sea turtle, named Boeier after the boat that rescued it, was found off the coast
Continue ReadingAP Technology Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Social media site Bluesky has gained 1 million new users in the week since the U.S. election, as some X users look for an alternative platform to post their thoughts and engage with others online. Bluesky said Wednesday that its total users surged to 15 million, up from
Continue ReadingAssociated Press BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — The son of one of Mali’s top politicians says the country’s ruling junta has arrested his father for criticizing the military rulers of neighboring Burkina Faso. Issa Kaou N’Djim, was previously a supporter of Mali’s current military leader Col. Assimi Goita before distancing himself from the junta. His son
Continue ReadingAssociated Press McLEAN, Va. (AP) — A federal inspector general has exonerated two U.S. Park Police officers who fatally shot a Virginia man after a highway chase seven years ago. The report issued Tuesday by the Department of Interior’s inspector general found the officers, Lucas Vinyard and Alejandro Amaya, did not violate procedures when they
Continue ReadingAssociated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — There were no protests on the streets as Donald Trump returned to Washington. He visited the nation’s capital on Wednesday, a week after emerging victorious in the presidential election. Trump met with House Republicans and Democratic President Joe Biden. Trump’s second term in office could bring even more upheaval than
Continue ReadingWASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump returned to Washington on Wednesday as president-elect where he headed to the White House for the first time in four years. Here’s a look that visit in photos.
Continue ReadingAssociated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Former U.S. Solicitor General Ted Olson, who served two Republican presidents as one of the country’s best known conservative lawyers and successfully argued on behalf of same-sex marriage, died Wednesday. He was 84. The law firm Gibson Dunn, where Olson practiced since 1965, announced his death on its website. No
Continue ReadingALAMOGORDO, N.M. (AP) — A man who fled from a traffic stop in New Mexico has been sentenced to life in prison without parole for using a sawed-off shotgun to fatally shoot a police officer during the chase. Dominic De La O was sentenced on Monday. It came just days after a jury found the
Continue ReadingAssociated Press PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A Philadelphia judge said the $1 million voter sweepstakes linked to Elon Musk was allowed to continue through Election Day because prosecutors failed to show that it was an illegal lottery. District Attorney Larry Krasner called the daily sweepstakes a scam. But Common Pleas Judge Angelo Foglietta in an opinion
Continue ReadingAssociated Press DETROIT (AP) — The Michigan Court of Appeals has ruled in favor of police and dismissed a lawsuit alleging negligence in the 2020 death of a woman while she was in custody in suburban Detroit. The court says there was not enough evidence to show Harper Woods police were “grossly negligent” in how
Continue ReadingMONTEREY, Calif. (AP) — More than two decades after spotting a mysterious, gelatinous, bioluminescent creature swimming in the deep sea, California researchers this week announced that it is a new species of sea slug. The Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute posted video online of the new sea slug floating gently in the depths. Using a
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