O.J. Simpson, legendary football player and actor brought down by his murder trial, dies at 76
LAS VEGAS — O.J. Simpson, the football star and Hollywood actor acquitted of charges he killed his former wife and her friend in a trial that mesmerized the public and exposed divisions on race and policing in America, has died. He was 76. The family announced on Simpson’s official X...
New rule will require more gun dealers to run background checks on buyers
WASHINGTON — Thousands more firearms dealers across the United States will have to run background checks on buyers when selling at gun shows or other places outside brick-and-mortar stores, according to a Biden administration rule that will soon go into effect. The rule aims to close a loophole that has...
As his trans daughter struggles, a father pushes past his prejudice. ‘It was like a wake-up’
SMITHVILLE, Mo. — Before his transgender daughter was suspended after using the girls’ bathroom at her Missouri high school. Before the bullying and the suicide attempts. Before she dropped out. Before all that, Dusty Farr was — in his own words — “a full-on bigot.” By which he meant that...
An Israeli airstrike in Gaza kills 3 sons and 4 grandchildren of Hamas’ top leader
TEL AVIV, Israel — Israeli aircraft killed three sons of Hamas’ top political leader in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, striking high-stakes targets at a time when Israel is holding delicate cease-fire negotiations with the militant group. Hamas said four of the leader’s grandchildren were also killed. Ismail Haniyeh ‘s...
A mission of mercy, then a fatal strike: How an aid convoy in Gaza became Israel’s target
DEIR AL BALAH, Gaza Strip — It was hours after sundown when the eight aid trucks drove from the makeshift jetty, cobbled together from tons of wreckage left across Gaza by months of war. The trucks were escorted by three vehicles carrying aid workers from the World Central Kitchen, the...
Ukraine’s parliament passes controversial law to boost much-needed conscripts as war drags on
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukraine’s parliament passed a controversial law Thursday that will govern how the country recruits new soldiers to replenish depleted forces who are increasingly struggling to fend off Russian troops. Two years after Russia’s full-scale invasion captured nearly a quarter of the country, the stakes could not be...
Vietnam sentences real estate tycoon Truong My Lan to death in its largest-ever fraud case
HANOI, Vietnam — Real estate tycoon Truong My Lan was sentenced Thursday to death by a court in Ho Chi Minh City in southern Vietnam in the country’s largest financial fraud case ever, state media Vietnam Net said. The 67-year-old chair of the real estate company Van Thinh Phat was...
Trump assails Jewish voters who back Biden: ‘Should have their head examined’
ATLANTA — Donald Trump on Wednesday lashed out at Jewish voters who back President Joe Biden and framed this year’s election as a referendum on the strength of Christianity in the U.S., part of his sharp-edged continuing appeal to evangelical conservatives who are a critical element of his political base....
Conservative revolt in the House blocks effort to reauthorize a key spy tool
WASHINGTON — A bill that would reauthorize a crucial national security surveillance program was blocked Wednesday by a conservative revolt, pushing the prospects of final passage into uncertainty amid a looming deadline. The legislative impasse follows an edict earlier in the day from former President Donald Trump to “kill” the...
GOP lawmakers offer alternative to Gov. Shapiro’s higher ed plan
Senate and House Republican lawmakers have crafted a college affordability plan that seeks to make Pennsylvania more competitive for both in-state and out-of-state students in high-demand fields in exchange for a requirement that they remain in the state after graduation. The Grow PA proposal introduced on Wednesday also establishes a...
U.S. sees missile strike on Israel by Iran, proxies as imminent
The United States and its allies believe major missile or drone strikes by Iran or its proxies against military and government targets in Israel are imminent, in what would mark a significant widening of the six-month-old conflict, according to people familiar with the intelligence. The potential assault, possibly using high-precision...
Shouts of ‘Shame! Shame!’ erupt in Arizona House as fight over abortion ban engulfs lawmakersVideo
PHOENIX — The Arizona Legislature devolved into shouts of “Shame! Shame!” on Wednesday as Republican lawmakers quickly shut down discussion on a proposed repeal of the state’s newly revived 1864 law that criminalizes abortion throughout pregnancy unless a woman’s life is at risk. The state Supreme Court cleared the way...
New York appeals court rejects Donald Trump’s 3rd request to delay hush money trial
NEW YORK — Donald Trump is now 0 for 3 in last-minute attempts to get a New York appeals court to delay his looming hush money criminal trial. An appeals court judge Wednesday swiftly rejected the latest salvo from the former president’s lawyers, who argued he should be on the...
Pennsylvania’s $10M student teacher stipend program to launch
Anyone planning to do their student teaching in 2024-25 better set their alarms on Thursday to be ready around 9 a.m. when applications for stipends through Pennsylvania’s new $10 million Student Teacher Support Program become available. The stipends will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. The process begins with...
Why independents can’t vote in the 2024 Pa. primary, and the slow-moving push to change that
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 — Millions of voters are expected to cast ballots during Pennsylvania’s April 23 primary, choosing candidates to represent the Democratic and Republican parties in...
OK, the eclipse was cool, but those glasses aren’t. Now what?
OK, you hopped on the eclipse bandwagon, did your research and viewed the celestial miracle responsibly. But now what are you going to do with those odd-looking glasses? Fact is, you won’t need them again in most of the U.S. for a couple of decades, and some glasses are good...
Storms bring floods, damaging wind to states across the South; 1 dead in MississippiVideo
NEW ORLEANS — Strong storms flooded New Orleans streets and demolished buildings in one of the city’s suburbs Wednesday, part of a severe weather system that pounded communities across much of the South, killing one in Mississippi. In Slidell, Louisiana, northeast of New Orleans, multiple people were injured and first...
3 shot and 5 in custody after gunfire disrupts Philadelphia Eid event, police sayVideo
PHILADELPHIA — A joyful celebration of the end of Ramadan devolved into panic Wednesday in Philadelphia after rival groups exchanged gunfire, leaving at least three people injured and hundreds of parents and children to flee in search of safety. The annual Eid al-Fitr event, held outside a large mosque in...
Marijuana legalization measure fails in central Pa. borough
A small central Pennsylvania borough on Tuesday night rejected a measure that would have decriminalized possession of small amounts of marijuana. The North York Borough Council upheld a veto by the mayor, who had opposed the measure from the beginning and last month vetoed it immediately after council had approved...
Trump says Arizona’s abortion ban goes too far and defends the overturning of Roe v. Wade
ATLANTA — Donald Trump said Wednesday that an Arizona law that criminalizes nearly all abortions goes too far and the former president called on Arizona lawmakers to change it, while also defending the overturning of Roe v. Wade that cleared states to ban the procedure. “It’ll be straightened out and...
As medical perils from abortion bans grow, so do opportunities for Democrats in a post-Roe world
WASHINGTON — For much of her life, Angela Crawford considered herself a fairly conservative Republican — and she voted that way. But then a wave of court rulings and Republican-led actions in states restricted abortion and later in vitro fertilization, the very procedure that had helped her conceive her daughter....
Environmental advocates praise new EPA limits on PFAS chemicals in drinking water
Environmental groups praised the Biden administration Wednesday for finalizing strict drinking water limits on toxic substances commonly referred to as “forever chemicals.” The new rules will require utilities to reduce the per- and polyfluorinated chemicals, also known as PFAS, to the lowest level that can be reliably measured. The rule...
Higher gas and rents keep U.S. inflation elevated, likely delaying Fed rate cuts
WASHINGTON — Consumer inflation remained persistently high last month, boosted by gas, rents, auto insurance and other items, the government said Wednesday in a report that will likely give pause to the Federal Reserve as it considers how often — or even whether — to cut interest rates this year....
Muslims worldwide celebrate Eid al-Fitr, but the festivities are marred by the war in Gaza
JAKARTA, Indonesia — Muslims around the world celebrated the Eid al-Fitr holiday Wednesday, marking the end of the Islamic holy month with family reunions, new clothes and sweet treats. But the celebrations were overshadowed by the worsening humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip and Israel’s expected offensive in the city...
Biden says Netanyahu’s approach to the war is a mistake, deepening a rift between the 2 allies
TEL AVIV, Israel — U.S. President Joe Biden called Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of the war in Gaza a mistake and called for his government to flood the beleaguered territory with aid, ramping up pressure on Israel to reach a cease-fire and widening a rift between the two staunch...
