U.S./World category, Page 1297
Student arrested for stealing own car settles suit for $1.25M
EVANSTON, Ill. — A Chicago suburb has tentatively agreed to pay a former doctoral student $1.25 million to settle a lawsuit alleging police officers tackled him to the ground and arrested him for stealing a car that turned out to be his own, his attorney said. Evanston City Manager Wally...
Iowa Sen. Ernst says she was raped in college by boyfriend
DES MOINES, Iowa — Sen. Joni Ernst says in an interview that she was raped by a boyfriend while she was a student at Iowa State University but didn’t report the assault. In an interview with Bloomberg posted online Wednesday night, Ernst disclosed the attack. She also clarified her discussions...
4 Nevada killings spook neighbors who don’t know motive
CARSON CITY, Nev. — Nervous neighbors were shining floodlights on their property at night in a northern Nevada community where Connie Koontz and Sophia Renken were killed this month in slayings that authorities blame on a 19-year-old from El Salvador said to be in the U.S. illegally. Residents also were...
Europe court orders Italy to pay damages to Amanda Knox
MILAN — Europe’s human rights court on Thursday ordered Italy to pay Amanda Knox financial damages for police failure to provide legal assistance and a translator during a long night of questioning following the Nov. 1, 2007 murder of her British roommate. But the court said there was insufficient evidence...
When drones get near airports: Answers to common questions
The ability of drones to interfere with airliners — and inconvenience their passengers — has been demonstrated on two continents, and the problem is likely to get worse as the number of small, unmanned devices multiply. Law enforcement authorities are trying to figure out who flew a drone so high...
Surgery patients return from Mexico with deadly superbug
Tamika Capone thought she was making a smart call by traveling to Mexico for bariatric surgery. Her doctor had urged her to have the procedure to reduce her out-of-control weight and blood pressure. But her husband’s health insurance would not cover the $17,500 bill. After a friend got the surgery...
California city approves 25-cent fee on disposable cups
SAN FRANCISCO — Patrons of restaurants and coffee shops in Berkeley, Calif., who don’t bring a reusable cup for their beverage will have to pay a 25-cent fee for a disposable cup as part of an ordinance approved by city officials to reduce restaurant waste. Berkeley’s City Council voted unanimously...
Navy SEAL commander arraigned in alleged Iraq war crime cover-up
SAN DIEGO — A general court martial began with the arraignment of a Navy SEAL platoon commander Tuesday for allegedly failing to report war crimes that prosecutors say were committed by another SEAL under his command. Lt. Jacob X. Portier was in a San Diego military courtroom where he was...
Police: 5 fatally shot inside Florida bank, suspect arrested
SEBRING, Fla. — A gunman opened fire Wednesday inside a Florida bank, killing five people before surrendering to a SWAT team, police said. The shooter called police to report that he had fired shots inside the bank in Sebring, about 80 miles southeast of Tampa. Negotiations failed to persuade the...
Venezuela’s Juan Guaido declares himself president amid protests
CARACAS — Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido declared himself interim president in a defiant speech Wednesday before masses of anti-government demonstrators who took to the streets to demand President Nicolas Maduro’s removal — a bold move that was immediately recognized by the Trump administration and a growing number of other...
Police: Mother of dead baby denied knowing she was pregnant
PHOENIX — Police say a worker accused of putting her newborn in a bathroom trash can at an Amazon distribution center in Phoenix, where the child was found dead, told investigators she didn’t know she was pregnant. Samantha Vivier of Tonopah, Ariz., was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of unlawful disposal...
Nancy Pelosi denies Trump access to House for State of the Union
WASHINGTON — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday derailed President Trump’s State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress, forcing the president to put his views before the nation another way. She said he can’t have access to the House chamber for the speech until the government...
Transgender woman sues over ‘false personation’ arrest
NEW YORK — New York City police officers charged a transgender woman with “false personation” and used pink handcuffs to mock her after they arrested her for walking through a park after hours, a lawsuit charges. Linda Dominguez says in her lawsuit filed Tuesday that she was hit with the...
Man accused of stabbing dog in retaliation for chicken’s death, affidavit says
AUSTIN, Texas — A man accused of stabbing a dog that he said killed his chicken a year ago was arrested in northwestern Travis County, Texas, over the weekend, according to an arrest affidavit filed in Travis County on Tuesday. Owen Jay Pettit, 45, was charged with cruelty to animals...
Police: Drunken man took wrong Lyft to wrong home
CAPE ELIZABETH, Maine — Police in Maine say a drunken man took the wrong Lyft and tried to get into a house he mistakenly thought was his home. Cape Elizabeth police say the Falmouth man mistakenly got into a Lyft summoned by a man who lived next door. Police say...
Could Kansas abandon daylight saving time?
TOPEKA, Kan. — Imagine no longer “falling back” or “springing ahead.” Imagine a world where you don’t have to figure out how to set your microwave or dashboard clock. If you live in Kansas, imagine it’s a day that may be closer than you think. A bill before state lawmakers...
White supremacist pleads guilty to NYC sword killing
NEW YORK — A white supremacist has pleaded guilty to killing a black man with a sword as part of a racist plot that prosecutors described as a hate crime. James Jackson admitted to fatally stabbing 66-year-old Timothy Caughman in 2017 after stalking a number of black men in New...
Parrot rescued after nearly 3 nights in storm drain
LOS ANGELES — An African Grey parrot is home after being trapped for nearly three nights in a storm drain in Los Angeles. Arturo Vasquez tells KABC-TV he turned to YouTube parrot advocate Marlene Mc’Cohen when no one would help him try to free his 10-year-old parrot Milly. Mc’Cohen says...
Shutdown makes it tough for groups to help endangered whales
PORTLAND, Maine — Rescuers who respond to distressed whales and other marine animals say the federal government shutdown is making it more difficult to do their work. A network of rescue groups in the U.S. works with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to respond to marine mammals, including whales...
Using banned pesticide that sickened family nets man prison
WILMINGTON, Del. — The ex-manager of a pest-control company in the U.S. Virgin Islands has been sentenced to a year in prison for poisoning a Delaware family with a banned pesticide. The News Journal reports 59-year-old Jose Rivera was charged with knowingly using methyl bromide in the St. John condominium...
N.Y. enacts new protections for abortion rights
ALBANY, N.Y. — New York state enacted one of the nation’s strongest protections for abortion rights Tuesday, a move that state leaders say was needed to safeguard those rights should the U.S. Supreme Court overturn Roe v. Wade. The Democrat-led Senate and Assembly passed the bill Tuesday, the 46th anniversary...
Amid wall debate, pope says fear of migration ‘makes us crazy’
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis said Wednesday that fear of migration is “making us crazy” as he began a trip to central America amid a standoff over President Donald Trump’s promised wall at the U.S.-Mexico border and a new caravan of migrants heading north. Francis was asked by reporters about...
Covington Catholic reopens amid criticism over videotaped encounter
PARK HILLS, Ky. — A Catholic boys’ school widely criticized after a confrontation at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington is reopening under the watchful eye of law enforcement in Kentucky. News outlets reported that a letter sent to parents details extra safety measures being taken as classes resume at Covington...
Galveston police capture pair of runaway emus
GALVESTON, Texas — Police in coastal Texas have captured a pair of runaway emus that had been on the lam for a day after escaping their owner’s backyard. Emus aren’t permitted in Galveston, but police say a man recently brought the large, flightless birds to the island after the death...
Giant ice disk equipped with webcam after surviving storm
WESTBROOK, Maine — Maine’s giant spinning ice disk that quickly gained international fame survived the weekend winter weather that pummeled New England and now has its own webcam. The webcam in Westbrook monitors the disk that’s been spinning in the Presumpscot River for more than a week and continues its...
