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Florida Sen. Rick Scott, a close Trump ally, joins race to succeed Mitch McConnell as GOP leader
WASHINGTON — Florida Sen. Rick Scott said Wednesday that he will run for Senate Republican leader when Mitch McConnell steps down from the post, becoming the third Republican in the race. South Dakota Sen. John Thune, the current No. 2 Republican in the Senate, and Texas Sen. John Cornyn have...
Second flag carried by Jan. 6 rioters displayed outside house owned by Justice Alito, report says
WASHINGTON — A second flag of a type carried by rioters during the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, was displayed outside a house owned by Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, The New York Times reported Wednesday. An “Appeal to Heaven” flag was flown outside Alito’s beach...
UCLA police chief reassigned after handling of campus demonstrations prompted criticism
LOS ANGELES — The police chief at the University of California, Los Angeles, has been reassigned following criticism over his handling of recent campus demonstrations that included a mob attacking a pro-Palestinian encampment. Chief John Thomas was temporarily reassigned Tuesday “pending an examination of our security processes,” said Mary Osako,...
Pa. prison officials want $300M in added funding despite declining population, closures
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. HARRISBURG — The Pennsylvania Department of Corrections wants more than $300 million in next year’s budget despite a declining population of incarcerated people and the...
Former Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley says she will vote for Donald Trump
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Nikki Haley said Wednesday that she will be voting for Donald Trump in the general election, a notable show of support given their intense and often personal rivalry during the Republican primary calendar. But Haley also made it clear that she feels Trump has work to do...
Michigan farmworker diagnosed with bird flu, becoming 2nd U.S. case tied to dairy cows
NEW YORK — A Michigan dairy worker has been diagnosed with bird flu — the second human case associated with an outbreak in U.S. dairy cows. The patient had mild eye symptoms and has recovered, U.S. and Michigan health officials said in announcing the case Wednesday. The worker had been...
Prosecutor in Trump classified papers case calls claims of hostility toward co-defendant ‘garbage’
FORT PIERCE, Fla. — A lawyer for Donald Trump’s personal valet accused federal prosecutors Wednesday of targeting the valet because he refused to cooperate against the former president in the classified documents case. A prosecutor called the claim “garbage.” Walt Nauta was charged alongside Trump last year in a federal...
Hunter Biden’s tax trial set for September as judge agrees to delay, with gun trial still in June
LOS ANGELES — Hunter Biden is scheduled to stand trial on federal tax charges in September after a judge on Wednesday granted his request to delay the California trial that had been approaching next month. U.S. District Judge Mark C. Scarsi agreed to delay the trial until Sept. 5, citing...
Judge signs off on $600 million Ohio train derailment settlement but residents still have questions
A federal judge has signed off on the $600 million class action settlement over last year’s disastrous Norfolk Southern derailment in eastern Ohio, but many people who live near East Palestine are still wondering how much they will end up with out of the deal. Preliminary approval for the settlement...
Podcast: Controversy surrounds Pittsburgh’s questionable payments to contractor
Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey’s administration is embroiled in a controversy involving questionable payments to a contractor and use of p-cards as payment. The city’s Department of Parks and Recreation department has paid Mario Ashkar almost $23,000 for his work as a contractor. The payments have been via municipal credit cards,...
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs accused of 2003 sexual assault in lawsuit
NEW YORK (AP) — A former model accused Sean “Diddy” Combs of sexually assaulting her at his New York City recording studio in 2003 in a lawsuit filed Tuesday, the latest in a series of allegations against the embattled hip-hop mogul. The woman said she was a successful 22-year-old model...
Graceland foreclosure sale halted as Presley estate’s lawsuit moves forward
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A judge on Wednesday said Elvis Presley’s estate could be successful in arguing that a company’s attempt to auction Graceland is fraudulent as he halted a foreclosure sale of the beloved Memphis tourist attraction. Shelby County Chancellor JoeDae Jenkins issued a temporary injunction against the proposed auction...
Disgruntled worker fatally shoots 2, wounds 3 at linen company near Philadelphia
CHESTER — A disgruntled employee opened fire at a linen company near Philadelphia on Wednesday, killing two coworkers and injuring three others, authorities said. The shooting took place at the Delaware County Linen at about 8:30 a.m. in the city of Chester, about 18 miles south of Philadelphia. The shooter...
Use of Wegovy and other weight-loss drugs soars among kids and young adults
At 17, Israel McKenzie was so burdened by obesity that he stopped going to high school in person and was embarrassed to speak to people at his restaurant job. “I was in a really dark place,” says McKenzie, whose weight had climbed to 335 pounds on his 6-foot-1 frame, despite...
Lawsuits claim 66 people were abused as children in Pennsylvania’s juvenile facilities
HARRISBURG — Dozens of children who were sent to juvenile detention centers and similar facilities in Pennsylvania suffered physical and sexual abuse including violent rapes, according to four related lawsuits filed Wednesday. The lawsuits describe how 66 people, now adults, say they were victimized by guards, nurses, supervisors and others....
How is the violent unrest in New Caledonia impacting global nickel prices?
JAKARTA, Indonesia — Global nickel prices have soared since deadly violence erupted in the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia last week. The overseas territory, which has been under French rule for over 170 years, is a major global producer of the critical material that is needed to make electric...
Aviation experts to begin probe of Singapore Airlines turbulence incident that left British man dead
BANGKOK — Aviation investigators arrived in Bangkok Wednesday to learn how and why severe turbulence sent a Singapore Airlines plane into a sudden dive that tossed passengers and crew around the cabin, leaving a British man dead and dozens others injured. Twenty people remained in intensive care in hospital after...
Baltic Sea nations react warily to a reported Russian proposal to revise its maritime border
COPENHAGEN, Denmark — Leaders around the Baltic Sea reacted warily Wednesday to reports that Russia could revise the borders of its territorial waters in the region, with Lithuania’s foreign minister calling it an “obvious escalation” that must be met with an “appropriately firm response.” In a draft proposal reported by...
Jealousy of porn actor led to murder attempt with golf club, LAPD says
LOS ANGELES — A man was arrested last month after he tried to ram an adult film star’s motorcycle and bludgeon the victim with a golf club, according to Los Angeles police. James Gosselin, 26, allegedly attempted to run over an adult film actor identified in an LAPD search warrant...
New PennWest University president called right pick at a pivotal time
Jon Anderson, provost and vice president for academic affairs and a professor at Southern Utah University in Cedar City, is Pennsylvania Western University’s new president. The State System of Higher Education board of governors chose Anderson Wednesday during a special meeting held by Zoom to find a permanent leader for...
Daily marijuana use outpaces daily drinking in the U.S., a new study says
Millions of people in the U.S. report using marijuana daily or nearly every day, according to an analysis of national survey data, and those people now outnumber those who say they are daily or nearly-daily drinkers of alcohol. Alcohol is still more widely used, but 2022 was the first time...
Trump says he is open to restrictions on contraception before backing away from the statement
Former President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he was open to supporting regulations on contraception and that his campaign would release a policy on the issue “very shortly,” comments that he later said were misinterpreted. The comments, made during an interview with a television station, suggested that a future Trump...
Fani Willis and judge presiding over Georgia Trump election case defeat challengers
ATLANTA — Two key players in the Georgia election interference case against former President Donald Trump have defeated challengers in an election Tuesday. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee both won. Willis is the prosecutor who last year obtained a sprawling racketeering indictment against...
Multiple deaths confirmed from a tornado in Iowa, state patrol saysVideo
DES MOINES, Iowa — The Iowa State Patrol has confirmed multiple deaths from a tornado and at least a dozen injuries in storms Tuesday, but it has not released specific numbers. “We do have confirmed fatalities,” Iowa State Patrol Sgt. Alex Dinkla said at a news conference Tuesday night. He...
Trump’s ‘unified reich’ post is ‘sickening,’ White House says
WASHINGTON — The White House denounced Republican Donald Trump after a video was posted to his social media account that referenced a “unified reich” as a potential news headline if he won a second term, calling it “dangerous and offensive.” “It is abhorrent, sickening, and disgraceful for anyone to promote...
