AP-National

By MIKE CATALINI Associated Press TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — A federal appeals court shot down claims Monday that New Jersey residents’ refusal to wear face masks at school board meetings during the COVID-19 outbreak constituted protected speech under the First Amendment. The 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals issued a ruling in two related cases stemming

By MICHAEL R. SISAK Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — The judge in Donald Trump’s civil fraud trial is demanding more information after a key witness was reported to be in negotiations to plead guilty to a perjury in connection with his testimony in the case. Judge Arthur Engoron asked lawyers in the case to

By JACK DURA Associated Press South Dakota has apologized and will pay $300,000 under a settlement with a transgender advocacy group that sued Gov. Kristi Noem and her health secretary. The settlement with the Transformation Project over a canceled health contract was announced Monday. The project had a contract for a community health worker that

By JONATHAN LANDRUM Jr. AP Entertainment Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Killer Mike says an “over-zealous” security guard contributed to the physical altercation that led to his arrest after the rapper and activist won three awards at the Grammys. “As you can imagine, there was a lot going and there was some confusion around which

By JONEL ALECCIA AP Health Writer A California cheese and dairy company is the source of a decadelong outbreak of listeria food poisoning that killed two people and sickened more than two dozen. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention made the announcement Tuesday. Rizo-Lopez Foods of Modesto, California, has recalled more than 60 types

By HOLLY RAMER and ALI SWENSON Associated Press CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — Authorities are issuing cease-and-desist orders against two Texas companies they believe were connected to robocalls that used artificial intelligence to mimic President Joe Biden’s voice and discourage people from voting in New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary last month. New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella

By ALBERT STUMM The Associated Press Rather than spending on store-bought chocolates for Valentine’s Day, why not make your own this year? Many recipes are simple enough for novices. And making chocolates together is a fun way to spend the evening with your Valentine. Sue Quinn is the author of “The Little Chocolate Cookbook.” She

LONDON (AP) — Former Irish Prime Minister John Bruton, who played a key role in bringing peace to Northern Ireland, has died at the age of 76. Bruton’s family said he died Tuesday in a Dublin hospital after a long illness. The family said “he was a good husband, a good father and a true

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Carole Baskin, who became a pop culture sensation due to Netflix’s docuseries “Tiger King,” has asked the Florida Supreme Court to review an appellate court’s ruling that said she isn’t protected from a defamation lawsuit brought by a former assistant. Baskin last week asked the high court to reconsider its earlier

By LARRY NEUMEISTER Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — A federal prosecutor says 70 corrupt employees of the nation’s largest public housing authority accepted over $2 million in bribes to dispense small repair-job contracts to contractors doing work on nearly a third of the city’s public housing buildings. U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said the Tuesday

By MATTHEW BARAKAT Associated Press McLEAN, Va. (AP) — A Virginia Senate committee has rejected legislation that would have allowed a referendum on a casino in the wealthy suburbs of the nation’s capital. The Senate Finance and Appropriations committee voted 13-2 Tuesday against a bill allowing Fairfax County to hold a referendum on a casino

By STEPHEN GROVES, MARY CLARE JALONICK and AAMER MADHANI Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A Senate deal on border enforcement measures and Ukraine aid suffered a swift and total collapse Tuesday as Republicans withdrew support despite President Joe Biden urging Congress to “show some spine” and stand up to Donald Trump. Just minutes after the

By CODY JACKSON and FREIDA FRISARO Associated Press WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — An adorable, furry baby Hoffman’s two-toed sloth has made its debut at zoo in Florida. Zookeepers at the Palm Beach Zoo & Conservation Society have been monitoring the baby sloth and its mother, Wilbur, since witnessing the birth early in the

ERIE, Pa. (AP) — The conservative group Project Veritas and its former leader are taking the unusual step of publicly acknowledging that claims of ballot mishandling at a Pennsylvania post office in 2020 were untrue. The statements from Project Veritas and founder James O’Keefe came as a lawsuit filed against them by a Pennsylvania postmaster

By FARNOUSH AMIRI Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democrats are pushing to prevent the Biden administration from bypassing Congress when approving weapons sales to Israel as the Jewish state continues its war against Hamas under increasing scrutiny. Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia will be introducing an amendment Tuesday that if passed would strike

By JOSEPH WILSON Associated Press BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Dani Alves sat in silence and listened to a stream of witnesses give testimony during the second day of his sexual assault trial in Barcelona. Alves is accused of sexually assaulting a woman in the bathroom of an upscale Barcelona nightclub on Dec. 31, 2022. He

CHILLICOTHE, Ohio (AP) — A professional bowler from Ohio was arrested by the U.S. Marshals Service while he was competing in a tournament in Indiana. Brandon Novak, of Chillicothe, was taken into custody Thursday at the 2024 U.S. Open Bowling Tournament in Indianapolis. Charles Sanso, deputy U.S. Marshal for the Southern District of Ohio, said

MILAN (AP) — A 16-year-old boy has been stabbed by another teen at a high school near Milan. It was the second school stabbing in as many days in the northern Lombardy region after a teacher was knifed by a student. The news agency LaPresse said Tuesday that authorities were questioning the 17-year-old suspected aggressor.

A Texas firefighter was critically injured and three others suffered lesser injuries when the firetruck they were in rolled over while responding to a fire. The Fort Worth Fire Department says that in addition to the firefighter who was hospitalized in critical condition, one firefighter was in stable condition and two others were treated and

By ANDREW DALTON AP Entertainment Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — She’s everywhere, and the world is merely her backup band. This is Taylor Swift’s week. It’s hard to remember a star of Swift ‘s stature straddling so many roles, spanning so much of the globe, covering so many corners of the culture and doing so