AP-National

By JAKE OFFENHARTZ Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — When the invitation to lunch at the Empire State Building first arrived last summer, some of George Santos’ campaign staffers were wary. The sender described himself as a deep-pocketed donor, eager to max out his contribution to the Republican congressional candidate. He signed the email Reyem

ELLSWORTH, Maine (AP) — A woman who survived a fiery crash that claimed the lives of four Maine Maritime Academy students is facing charges because she’s accused of facilitating conduct that led to the tragedy. Noelle Tavares, of North Falmouth, Massachusetts, pleaded not guilty this week to numerous charges related to the crash last December.

By TERRY CHEA Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — First came the robotaxis. Then the driverless buses arrived. San Francisco has launched an autonomous shuttle service — less than a week after California regulators approved the expansion of robotaxis despite traffic and safety concerns. The free shuttle will run daily in a fixed route called

By KEN SWEET and MAE ANDERSON The Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — The Federal Emergency Management Agency said Friday it has approved more than $5.6 million in assistance to nearly 2,000 households in Maui so far as the federal government tries to help survivors of the devastating wildfires. The White House and FEMA approved

By LAURA UNGAR AP Science Writer Phil Durst recalled clawing at his face after a chemical from a commercial dishwashing machine squirted into his eyes, causing “the most indescribable pain I’ve ever felt — ever, ever, ever.” His left eye bore the brunt of the 2017 work accident, which stole his vision, left him unable

By HANNAH SCHOENBAUM and GARY D. ROBERTSON Associated Press RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina was ground zero in the nationwide fight over transgender rights with the passage of its 2016 “bathroom bill.” But the public pushback against three new laws passed this week has been light in comparison. Republicans on Wednesday enacted a law

BERLIN (AP) — The archbishop of Cologne, one of Germany’s most important Catholic dioceses, on Friday expressed disappointment that employees used work computers to try to access pornographic websites. The statement from Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki came after the city’s Koelner Stadt-Anzeiger newspaper reported that a list from the archdiocese showed more than 1,000 attempts

By MIKE SCHNEIDER Associated Press The new administrator of Walt Disney World’s governing district can’t continue to work in his new job and be chair of Florida’s ethics commission at the same time. That’s according to a legal opinion issued this week. Glen Gilzean, an ally of Gov. Ron DeSantis, can’t continue in both positions

BEL AIR, Md. (AP) — Authorities say DNA has linked the killing of a Maryland woman found near a hiking trail to a home invasion and assault in Los Angeles earlier this year. Officials announced the connection at a Thursday evening news conference in Harford County. Rachel Morin was a mother of five from suburban

By MARK PRATT and PATRICK WHITTLE Associated Press A rare Rhode Island tornado lifted a car off a highway Friday as severe weather swept already storm-weary New England, damaging homes, flooding roads and toppling trees. Tornadoes were reported in several spots in Rhode Island and southern Massachusetts. The National Weather Service said there were at

By BASSEM MROUE and QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — A Lebanese Shiite cleric who has angered politicians and religious leaders in Lebanon and Iraq says that groups including Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah are trying to silence voices of dissent within the sect — including his own. Sheikh Yasser Auda’s comments on Friday come days

By The Associated Press This week’s new entertainment releases include albums from Irish singer-songwriter Hozier and Idina Menzel, the animated “The Monkey King” from Stephen Chow and Jennifer Lawrence’s R-rated comedy “No Hard Feelings.” The star-studded TV fundraiser for cancer research co-founded by Katie Couric called “Stand Up to Cancer” returns with Elizabeth Banks, Jessica

By ADRIAN SAINZ Associated Press MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — A Tennessee judge has set a September court hearing to discuss requests by three of five former Memphis police officers charged in the death of Tyre Nichols to face separate trials. Lawyers for Tadarrius Bean, Desmond Mills and Justin Smith have filed motions asking Judge James

By The Associated Press This week’s new entertainment releases include the “Mandalorian” spin-off “Star Wars: Ahsoka” starring Rosario Dawson, the well-received, fantasy movie “Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves” lands on Prime Video and Tim McGraw roars back with the album “Standing Room Only.” Adam Sandler and his daughter, Sunny, star in “You Are So

By KAREL JANICEK Associated Press PRAGUE (AP) — Jiri Cerny, a legendary Czech music critic who introduced Western music to generations of listeners behind the Iron Curtain and became one of the voices of the 1989 anti-communist Velvet Revolution, has died. He was 87. Cerny died on Thursday in a hospital in Prague, his colleague

By KAREN MATTHEWS Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — The daughter of the 65-year-old woman who was bitten by a shark at a New York City beach says her mother has undergone five surgeries since the attack and will require more. The victim’s daughter, Darya Koltunyuk, says her mother’s recovery from the Aug. 7 shark

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — A Japanese town says it has agreed to a geological study to determine its suitability as an interim storage site for spent nuclear fuel. Kaminoseki, a small town in the southwestern prefecture of Yamaguchi, says it will accept the offer of a survey by Chugoku Electric Power

By LEA SKENE Associated Press BALTIMORE (AP) — A second teenager has been arrested in connection with Baltimore mass shooting that left two people dead and 28 others injured during a neighborhood block party earlier this summer. Baltimore police announced the arrest Thursday evening. Eighteen-year-old Tristan Brian Jackson has been charged with multiple counts of

By ELLIOT SPAGAT Associated Press SAN DIEGO (AP) — The Biden administration has announced a major expansion of temporary legal status for Ukrainians already living in the United States, granting a reprieve for those who fled Russia’s invasion. The Homeland Security Department says the move is expected to make 166,700 Ukrainians eligible for Temporary Protected

By LINDSAY WHITEHURST Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Authorities are searching for a member of the Proud Boys extremist group who disappeared days before his sentencing in a U.S. Capitol riot case, where prosecutors are seeking more than a decade in prison, according to a warrant made public Friday. Christopher Worrell, 52, of Naples, Florida,