AP-National

By FATIMA HUSSEIN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A Bangkok-based plastics firm has agreed to pay $20 million to settle with the U.S. over 467 violations of Iran sanctions. The U.S. Treasury announced the settlement on Friday. Treasury says the firm was engaging in a joint venture with an Iranian firm and giving “significant economic

BEAL CITY, Mich. (AP) — A Catholic priest has resigned as pastor of a church in a small central Michigan community, the result of weeks of controversy following his publicly expressed regret that a gay author had read a book to preschool children. Gay rights activists and others have held regular protests outside St. Joseph

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A fired Philadelphia police officer has pleaded guilty to murder in the shooting of a fleeing 12-year-old boy. Prosecutors have said the boy was on the ground and unarmed when Edsaul Mendoza fired the fatal shot. Mendoza also pleaded guilty Friday to possession of an instrument of crime as part of a

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — A video of people pulling bear cubs from a tree in North Carolina has prompted an investigation, but a state official says no charges will be filed. The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission says staff responded to a report of people harassing bear cubs at an Asheville apartment complex on Tuesday.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Mandisa, a contemporary Christian singer who appeared on “American Idol” and won a Grammy for her 2013 album ‘Overcomer’, has died. She was 47. A representative for the singer told The Associated Press that the singer was found dead in her home in Nashville, Tennessee, on Thursday. The representative said the

By CHEYANNE MUMPHREY Associated Press PHOENIX (AP) — A small blue dog with an Australian accent has captured the hearts of people across the world. She’s the title character of “Bluey,” a kids’ program consisting of seven-minute episodes that have enraptured children and adults alike. This week’s release of its longest episode yet — at

By STEPHANY MATAT Associated Press An attorney wants a federal court to overturn a Florida law that she says discriminates against Chinese citizens by barring their purchase of real estate in much of the state. Ashley Gorski represented four Chinese nationals before the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday. She argued that the law

By ANITA SNOW Associated Press PHOENIX (AP) — Jurors were sent home for the weekend after failing to reach a verdict Friday in the trial of a 75-year-old Arizona rancher accused of fatally shooting a migrant on his property. The jury in Nogales near the Mexico border got the case Thursday after a nearly one-month

By GIADA ZAMPANO Associated Press ROME (AP) — An Italian court has dismissed a long-running case against migrant rescue ship crews of three humanitarian organizations. It dropped charges accusing crew members of collaborating with smugglers as they helped rescue thousands of migrants at sea. The judges in the Sicilian city of Trapani decided not to

By DAVE COLLINS Associated Press A convicted rapist has been charged with murder and attempted sexual assault in the killing of a visiting nurse at a Connecticut halfway house for sex offenders in October. The charges were added against 39-year-old Michael Reese as he appeared in court Friday on related charges. Police say Joyce Grayson

GOVERNMENT CAMP, Ore. (AP) — Firefighters doused a late-night fire at Oregon’s historic Timberline Lodge before it caused significant damage. The hotel was featured in Stanley Kubrick’s 1980 film “The Shining.” Timberline said in a Facebook post that the fire Thursday night was confined to the roof and attic of the lodge. The lodge is

By ANTHONY IZAGUIRRE Associated Press ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York state lawmakers are on the verge of passing a $237 billion budget that includes sweeping plans to build housing, shutter unlicensed cannabis storefronts and help manage the city’s migrant crisis. The raft of proposals was expected to pass through the Legislature late Friday and

By MENELAOS HADJICOSTIS and ABBY SEWELL Associated Press NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — The United Nations agency for refugees says Cypriot efforts at sea to stop numerous Syrian refugee-laden boats departing Lebanon from reaching the European Union-member island nation mustn’t contravene international human rights laws. Cypriot authorities have reportedly dispatched police patrol vessels to thwart boat

By ACACIA CORONADO Associated Press AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A Texas appeals court has ruled that Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton can face discipline from the state bar association over his failed effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election. A disciplinary committee of the group says Paxton made false claims of fraud in a lawsuit

By MARK KENNEDY AP Entertainment Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Heart — the pioneering band that melds Nancy Wilson’s shredding guitar with her sister Ann’s powerhouse vocals — is hitting the road this spring for a world tour that Nancy Wilson describes as “the full-on rocker size.” The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers who

By SCOTT BAUER Associated Press MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Republican candidate in Wisconsin’s closely watched U.S. Senate race emphasized this week that he doesn’t oppose elderly people voting after initially saying that “almost nobody in a nursing home is in a point to vote.” Eric Hovde faces Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin in the race

By SOPHIE AUSTIN Associated Press/Report for America SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — A California superior court judge has tentatively denied a group’s request to change language describing a proposed ballot measure that would require school staff to notify parents if their child asks to change gender identification at schools. Proponents of the measure say Attorney General

By KEN MILLER Associated Press OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A Department of Homeland Security official told survivors and loved ones of the 168 people killed in the Oklahoma City bombing that federal officials are resolved to never allow a similar terrorist attack again. Deputy Security Adviser Caitlin Durkovich spoke Friday morning during a ceremony on

By JESSICA DONATI and SAM MEDNICK Associated Press DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Two Western officials have told The Associated Press that the United States is trying to create a new military agreement with Niger that would allow it to remain in the country, weeks after the junta said its presence was no longer justified. The

LONDON (AP) — Prosecutors say 15 former British soldiers won’t face charges for perjury at an inquiry into Bloody Sunday, one of the deadliest days of the decades-long Northern Ireland conflict. Prosecutors said on Friday that there was insufficient evidence to convict the soldiers or a former alleged member of the Irish Republican Army of