AP-National

BILOXI, Miss. (AP) — A former NFL draft prospect has been found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison for shooting a man to death on the floor of a casino on Mississippi’s Gulf Coast. Jurors deliberated for only 46 minutes Thursday before reaching a guilty verdict in the trial of Jereme

By MICHAEL WEISSENSTEIN Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Daniel Pedro came to the U.S. from Angola five months ago. He works construction in the New York City borough of Queens. Kadija Tyler made the journey from Senegal to Harlem. She works in sales in a department store. Neither is a full-time activist. But they

By SEUNG MIN KIM and COLLEEN LONG Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden says he is determined to stop gun violence in the U.S. as he formally launches the first-ever federal office to be dedicated to uncovering solutions and supporting communities ravaged by shootings. The new office of gun violence prevention will be

OTTUMWA, Iowa (AP) — Police were searching for an Iowa man who failed to show up at his first-degree murder trial on Friday, the day a jury found him guilty of killing his wife. A judge issued an arrest warrant for Gregory Showalter Sr. of Ottumwa after he missed the reading of the jury verdict,

WASHINGTON (AP) — ABC’s “This Week” — Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg; Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio. __ NBC’s “Meet the Press” — Buttigieg; former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a Republican presidential candidate; Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C. __ CBS’ “Face the Nation” — Olena Zelenska, first lady of Ukraine; Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz.; Rep. Tony Gonzales,

CHICAGO (AP) — Lawn mowers and other equipment valued at around $100,000 have been stolen from a parking lot at Soldier Field, home to the Chicago Bears. Stadium spokesperson Luca Serra says the equipment belonging to a subcontractor was taken sometime overnight Wednesday. Serra tells the Chicago Tribune that the equipment was wedged between a

By ADAM BEAM Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — A federal judge has struck down a California law banning gun magazines that hold more than 10 rounds. U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez ruled Friday that California’s law was unconstitutional. The ruling will not take effect immediately. California Attorney General Rob Bonta has promised to appeal

By MARGERY A. BECK Associated Press A Nebraska mother who pleaded guilty to giving her teenage daughter pills for an abortion and helping to burn and conceal the fetus has been sentenced to two years in prison. Jessica Burgess pleaded guilty in July to tampering with human remains, false reporting and providing an abortion after

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has signed a bill requiring people selling their homes to disclose whether their properties have been flooded or are at risk for future flooding. The Democratic governor signed the bill on Friday. The new law comes as inland areas in the state have become more vulnerable

By KIMBERLEE KRUESI Associated Press A federal judge has ruled that a university in the Texas Panhandle did not violate the constitutional right to free speech when the school’s president canceled a drag show earlier this year. The U.S. district judge argued Thursday that drag shows are “sexualized content” and can be subject to more

By MEG KINNARD Associated Press The third Republican presidential debate will be held in Miami on Nov. 8, and candidates will be facing the most stringent requirements yet to take part. The Republican National Committee said Friday that participating candidates must secure 4% of the vote in multiple polls and 70,000 unique donors to earn

By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS Associated Press JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Hollis Watkins, who started challenging segregation and racial oppression in his native Mississippi when he was a teenager and toiled alongside civil rights icons including Medgar Evers and Bob Moses, has died. He was 82. Watkins — who also sometimes went by Hollis Watkins Muhammad

By MATTHEW BARAKAT Associated Press FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) — A northern Virginia mother who sedated her daughters with melatonin-laced gummy bears before fatally shooting has been sentenced to 78 years in prison. Thirty-eight-year-old Veronica Youngblood was arrested in August 2018 after shooting her daughters, 15-year-old Sharon Castro and 5-year-old Brooklynn Youngblood, in their apartment in

By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN Associated Press ENGLE, N.M. (AP) — U.S. wildlife officials have finalized an agreement with Ted Turner’s Endangered Species Fund regarding the release of more Bolson tortoises on the media mogul’s Armendaris Ranch in central New Mexico. It’s the largest and rarest of the six North American tortoise species. Friday’s announcement marks

By ADAM BEAM Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California’s insurance commissioner says he will write new rules for insurers in the nation’s most populous state. Ricardo Lara’s announcement on Thursday comes after state lawmakers failed to agree on a new law for insurance companies. Lara said the new rules he’ll write would let insurance

WASHINGTON (AP) — A former high-ranking FBI counterintelligence official has pleaded guilty to concealing at least $225,000 in cash that he allegedly received from a former Albanian intelligence official while working for the agency. Charles McGonigal pleaded guilty Friday to concealment of material facts, which carries a maximum prison sentence of five years. He is

By RUSS BYNUM Associated Press SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — A U.S. agency says it will nominate the Okefenokee Swamp’s vast wildlife refuge for a place on the official list of the world’s most treasured natural and cultural sites. The National Park Service filed a notice Friday that it will seek a UNESCO World Heritage site

By LINDSAY WHITEHURST and MARY CLARE JALONICK Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Democratic U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez and his wife are accused of taking bribes of gold bars, a luxury car and cash in exchange for using his outsized sway in foreign affairs to help the authoritarian government of Egypt as well as others. An

By MIKE CATALINI Associated Press TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Sen. Bob Menendez’s defense against new federal corruption charges against him, his wife and business associates Friday, revealed he’s adopting the same defiant stance he took when he faced federal accusations nearly a decade ago. Menendez is a three-term senator who has held office at every

By MICHAEL R. SISAK and BOBBY CAINA CALVAN Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — A New York judge peppered Donald Trump’s lawyers with questions Friday — sometimes admonishing them — as they tried to persuade the court to throw out a civil lawsuit brought by New York’s attorney general accusing the former president and his