AP-National

By JOHN ANTCZAK Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — The first of two back-to-back atmospheric rivers is pushing into California, triggering statewide storm preparations and calls for people to get ready for potential flooding, heavy snow and damaging winds. Heavy rain and gusty winds began hitting the San Francisco Bay Area Wednesday night and much

By ADAM BEAM Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — A federal judge has ruled Californians don’t have to pay for and pass a background check every time they buy bullets. U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez ruled Tuesday the law is unconstitutional. His ruling took effect immediately. California Democratic Attorney General Rob Bonta has asked Benitez

By MARK ANDERSON AP Sports Writer LAS VEGAS (AP) — Fans have been wondering for days whether Taylor Swift will make it to the Super Bowl next week to cheer on boyfriend Travis Kelce and the Kansas City Chiefs and, if so, how many times she’ll show up on TV during the game. They can

BERLIN (AP) — A union has called on security staff at most of Germany’s major airports to stage a one-day strike on Thursday as it steps up pressure on employers in a pay dispute. The ver.di union announced the strikes on Tuesday. It said the strike will affect Germany’s busiest airport, Frankfurt, as well as

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky’s juvenile justice system has lingering problems with the use of force and isolation techniques and has done little to implement a 2017 state audit’s suggestions for improvement, according to a report released Wednesday. The new report from Kentucky Auditor Allison Ball says the state’s juvenile detention centers lack clear policies

HONOLULU (AP) — A surge of earthquakes at Kilauea’s summit is prompting scientists to raise the alert level for the Hawaiian volcano. But any eruption is unlikely to threaten homes. The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory says it has detected 25 to 30 small earthquakes per hour since 3 a.m. Wednesday at the southern part of the

By HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH Associated Press Donations poured in Wednesday to replace a decimated statue of Jackie Robinson on what would have been the 105th birthday of the first player to break Major League Baseball’s color barrier. The total raised just through one online fundraiser surpassed $145,000, well in excess of the estimated $75,000 value of

By SOPHIA TAREEN Associated Press CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago’s City Council narrowly approved a resolution Wednesday calling for a permanent cease-fire in the war between Israel and Hamas, with Mayor Brandon Johnson casting the tiebreaking vote. The symbolic declaration in the nation’s third-largest city follows weeks of rowdy public meetings with disruptions from demonstrators, including

By ROBERT YOON Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Donald Trump has won the last remaining unresolved delegate from New Hampshire, giving him a 13-9 delegate advantage in the Granite State over former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley. The Associated Press allocated the final delegate based on the latest vote results from the Jan. 23

By NOAH TRISTER AP Baseball Writer Cal Ripken Jr. and Grant Hill are part of the investor group that has agreed to buy the Baltimore Orioles. So are former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and former Baltimore Mayor Kurt Schmoke. The group is headed by Baltimore native David Rubenstein. He is co-founder of the Carlyle

By STEVE LeBLANC Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — A Boston doctor was found not guilty Wednesday on a charge of lewd acts near a 14-year-old girl on an airplane after a three-day trial in federal court in Boston. Lawyers for Dr. Sudipta Mohanty, 33, said more than a dozen passengers sitting in seats near Mohanty

By BRUCE SCHREINER Associated Press FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Abortion rights supporters mounted another push Wednesday to restore abortion access in Kentucky, but the Democratic lawmaker sponsoring the legislation acknowledged the odds are overwhelmingly against them in the Republican-dominated legislature. A near-total abortion ban has been in place in Kentucky since the U.S. Supreme Court

By MAYSOON KHAN Associated Press/Report for America ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul nominated Steven G. James as the top leader of the state police force. If the state Senate agrees, he would be the second Black person confirmed to hold the rank of superintendent and the third to lead the 5,000-member

By KATE BRUMBACK Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — A defense attorney who has alleged that Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has had an inappropriate romantic relationship with a special prosecutor hired for the Georgia election interference case against former President Donald Trump has called the two to testify at a hearing next month. Lawyer

By GARY D. ROBERTSON Associated Press RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson remains the top fundraiser in the GOP primary campaign for North Carolina governor entering 2024. But a recent rival has used his own personal fortune to compete with him monetarily. Finance reports for the second half of 2023 show Robinson’s

By SEAN MURPHY Associated Press Writer OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — After facing fierce criticism, the head of Oklahoma’s public schools now says his agency is working to see if teachers improperly awarded up to $50,000 can keep the bonuses. State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters made the comments on Wednesday. Walters and the Department

By COLLEEN LONG and MATTHEW DALY Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — White House senior adviser John Podesta will replace John Kerry as the top U.S. official on international climate change. Kerry announced earlier this month that he would step down from the top climate job to work on President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign. According to

By JENNIFER PELTZ Associated Press For about 15 years, Uriel Rincon told authorities he didn’t recognize the gunman who he saw kill Run-DMC’s Jam Master Jay in the rap star’s recording studio. But on Wednesday, Rincon — who was himself wounded in the gunfire — pointed across a courtroom and identified Karl Jordan Jr. as

By STEPHEN GROVES, LISA MASCARO and MARY CLARE JALONICK Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — With time slipping to bolster Ukraine’s defenses, Senate negotiators struggled Wednesday to finalize a bipartisan deal that would pair policy changes at the U.S. southern border with wartime aid for Kyiv as their carefully negotiated compromise ran into strong resistance from