Associated Press stories, Page 1607
Olympic men’s soccer clashed with European seasonVideo
Often the event that connects an Olympic host city with the rest of the nation, soccer could be a source of trepidation rather than excitement in Japan. Players spreading across the country is far from desired as Japan is trying to stage a Games that limits the risks of covid-19...
Troy Merritt, Joaquin Niemann share lead in Rocket Mortgage Classic
DETROIT — Troy Merritt aced the 219-yard 11th hole at Detroit Golf Club and shot a 5-under-par 67 on Saturday for a share of the lead with Joaquin Niemann in the Rocket Mortgage Classic. Niemann, who shared the 36-hole lead with Tom Lewis, pulled into a tie by two-putting from...
Kurt Busch chases NASCAR playoffs with future uncertainVideo
ELKHART LAKE, Wis. — Kurt Busch has welcomed the uncertainty of this season as he chases a playoff berth while pondering his future in NASCAR. Busch posted the fastest practice time Saturday as NASCAR’s Cup Series returned to Road America for the first time since 1956. His younger brother, Kyle...
Trump voices radio ad for Rep. Mo Brooks in US Senate race
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Former President Donald Trump is appearing in a radio ad for U.S. Rep Mo Brooks as he tries to sway the outcome of the state’s Senate race. Brooks’ campaign said the ad began airing Friday. “Hi Alabama, this is your favorite president, Donald Trump. Few Republicans have...
Supreme Court rules against inmate in death penalty case
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled against an Alabama inmate whose lawyers argued that his trial counsel should have done more to try to show he is intellectually disabled and therefore he should be spared a death sentence. In an unsigned 6-3 opinion, the conservative majority on...
Capitol, symbol of democracy, off-limits on Independence Day
WASHINGTON — As it has been for nearly 16 months, longer than any time in the nation’s history, the U.S. Capitol is closed to most public visitors. The one-two punch of the coronavirus pandemic that shuttered the Capitol’s doors in the spring of 2020 and the deadly insurrection by then-President...
Elsa falls back to tropical storm as it batters Haiti
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — Hurricane Elsa fell back to tropical storm force as it brushed past Haiti and the Dominican Republic on Saturday and threatened to unleash flooding and landslides before taking aim at Cuba and Florida. The storm was centered about 255 miles east of Kingston, Jamaica, and was moving...
50 years after his death, fans honor Jim Morrison in Paris
PARIS — Paris on Saturday was the only place to be for die-hard Jim Morrison fans. Fifty years after his death at age 27, rock music lovers from France and across the world came to the Pere-Lachaise cemetery in eastern Paris where The Doors’ frontman is buried. Many brought candles...
Syria government shelling kills 8, mostly children, in Idlib
BEIRUT — Artillery fire from government-controlled territory and airstrikes Saturday killed at least eight civilians in Syria’s last rebel enclave, most of them children, and destroyed a civil defense center and a water station, rescue workers and a war monitor said. The regional director of the United Nations children’s agency...
Train derails in Canada, spilling timber and tar sands
BLACKFALDS, Alberta — A train carrying tar sands and timber has derailed in the Canadian province of Alberta, spilling at least part of its load, officials said, though there were no reports of injuries. Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Blackfalds said crews were working Friday night to contain the spill,...
Man rescued after at least 3 days in abandoned Pennsylvania cistern
READING — A man was rescued after at least three days at the bottom of an abandoned stone cistern near the landmark pagoda overlooking the eastern Pennsylvania city of Reading, authorities said. The man was healthy enough to climb out on his own on a city fire department rope ladder...
With storm looming, demolition of collapsed condo to start
SURFSIDE, Fla. — Demolition workers will bring down the remainder of a partially collapsed condo building in South Florida ahead of an approaching storm that has heightened concerns that the structure could crumble dangerously on its own, officials said Saturday. With Tropical Storm Elsa looming in the Caribbean and forecast...
11 people in custody after hourslong armed standoff on I-95
WAKEFIELD, Mass. — An hourslong standoff with a group of heavily armed men that partially shut down Interstate 95 ended Saturday with 11 suspects in custody, Massachusetts state police said. Police initially reported nine suspects were taken into custody, but two more were taken into custody in their vehicle later...
Lightning on cusp on sweeping Canadiens, winning back-to-back CupsVideo
MONTREAL — Tyler Johnson and the quick-strike Tampa Bay Lightning moved a victory away from successfully defending their title, beating the Montreal Canadiens, 6-3, on Friday night in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final. The Lightning caught the Canadiens flat-footed by scoring twice in the opening minutes of each...
Florida condo building deemed unsafe, evacuation ordered
NORTH MIAMI BEACH, Fla. — The city of North Miami Beach ordered the evacuation of a condominium building Friday after a review found unsafe conditions about 5 miles from the site of last week’s deadly collapse in South Florida. An audit prompted by the collapse of Champlain Towers South in...
Biden says teachers deserve ‘a raise, not just praise’
Speaking to the nation’s largest teachers union, President Joe Biden said Friday that the pandemic has given America’s parents the “ultimate education” on the challenges of the teaching profession. But even more, he said, the past year has proved that teachers across the U.S. deserve higher pay. “You deserve a...
Ransomware hits hundreds of U.S. companies, security firm says
WASHINGTON — A ransomware attack paralyzed the networks of at least 200 U.S. companies on Friday, according to a cybersecurity researcher whose company was responding to the incident. The REvil gang, a major Russian-speaking ransomware syndicate, appears to be behind the attack, said John Hammond of the security firm Huntress...
College-bound Olympians, especially gymnasts, look to cash in on new opportunityVideo
Maggie Nichols just laughs when asked if she plans on asking Under Armour where her check is. “I should, right!” the retired two-time world championship medalist and two-time NCAA all-around champion said. Nichols is kidding. Well, mostly. She didn’t complain when the athletic apparel giant approached her in 2016 about...
Keeping name, image, likeness deals safe, compliant possible trouble for collegesVideo
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Chris Clunie chuckles thinking about what Stephen Curry’s marketing potential might’ve been at Davidson during the Wildcats’ remarkable 2008 NCAA Tournament run had Curry played in an era when college students could profit from their own fame and celebrity. Curry jerseys. Curry shoes. Curry chicken sliders. Who...
U.S. men seeking 4th consecutive Olympic basketball goldVideo
Kobe Bryant, a few months before he died, made an appearance at the Basketball World Cup in China and was asked about the future of USA Basketball. His message was clear: Gold medals no longer will come easily. “It’s not a matter of the rest of the world catching up...
Joaquin Niemann, Tom Lewis share lead at Rocket Mortgage Classic
DETROIT — Joaquin Niemann and Tom Lewis topped the jam-packed leaderboard heading into the weekend in the Rocket Mortgage Classic. Niemann and Lewis each shot 3-under-par 69 on Friday to reach 10-under 134. Troy Merritt (68), Chris Kirk (68) and Max Homa (65) were a shot back. First-round leader Davis...
Police groups sue over changes to Minnesota deadly force law
ST. PAUL, Minn. — A coalition of Minnesota’s largest law enforcement groups sued the state Friday seeking to overturn a state law that changed the standard for justified use of deadly force by police. The lawsuit claims the law, which took effect in March, violates officers’ rights to self-defense and...
Proposal would ban mink farming to stem coronavirus mutation
COLUMBIA, S.C. — A bipartisan proposal in the U.S. House would ban the farming of mink fur in the United States in an effort to stem possible mutations of the coronavirus, something researchers have said can be accelerated when the virus spreads among animals. The bill introduced this week is...
Biden backs changes in military sexual assault prosecution
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Friday put his stamp of approval on a long-debated change to the military justice system that would remove decisions on prosecuting sexual assault cases from military commanders. Biden, however, stopped short of backing a congressional effort to strip commanders of oversight of all major...
U.S. Supreme Court backs Minnesota Amish in septic tank fight
MINNEAPOLIS — The U.S. Supreme Court sided Friday with members of an Amish group in Minnesota who are fighting efforts by authorities to compel them to install septic systems, sending their appeal back to a state court for reconsideration in light of the high court’s recent ruling in a religious...
