AP National News

By STEFANIE DAZIO and BRIAN MELLEY Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Coast Guard has announced new safety rules following a deadly blaze that killed 34 people on a scuba diving boat off the California coast more than two years ago. The rules published last month in the Federal Register were prompted by the

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO NEW YORK (AP) — Companies that would be affected by a Biden administration vaccine-or-testing requirement for workers have largely remained on the sidelines while the Supreme Court considers whether the rule can be enforced. The requirement has faced numerous court challenges and was upheld last month by a three-judge panel with the

By HILLEL ITALIE AP National Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Sidney Poitier made history — on the screen and off. He opened up possibilities for generations of Black actors and for generations of Black audiences. Associated Press National Writer Hillel Italie writes in an appreciation that Poitier had as much impact as any performer and

By DAVID EGGERT Associated Press LANSING, Mich. (AP) — A former Michigan legislative leader is denying allegations that he raped his future sister-in-law starting when she was 14 or 15, saying they had a sexual relationship for years but were both consenting adults. Lee Chatfield, a Republican, led the House in 2019 and 2020. His

By LISA BAUMANN Associated Press BELLINGHAM, Wash. (AP) — Snow turned to rain and continued to fall across the Pacific Northwest, causing flooding, landslides and avalanche danger in the mountains. Portions of Washington state’s two major interstates — Interstate 90 and Interstate 5 — were closed Friday. Interstate 5 in the Chehalis area closed due

NEW YORK (AP) — The third straight Pixar feature film will go straight to Disney+, the Walt Disney Co. announced Friday. “Turning Red” will premiere exclusively on Disney+ on March 11, the studio said. Kareem Daniel, chairman of distribution for Disney, cited the pandemic and the slower recovery for family films at the box office.

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — A judge has sentenced a Missouri man to 28 years in prison for the 2019 killing of his wife, whose body he buried in a state park and whose death he misled the authorities about for more than a year. The sentence Judge Brouck Jacobs gave to 26-year-old Joseph Elledge was

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Pittsburgh Steelers rookie running back Najee Harris helped Ben Roethlisberger win last Monday night in what was likely the veteran quarterback’s final game at Heinz Field. Now Harris might have a chance to help Roethlisberger reach the playoffs for the 12th time in his 18 seasons. For starters to make the playoffs,

JAY REEVES Associated Press BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Members of  an Alabama high school marching band that led off this year’s Tournament of Roses Parade with “Yankee Doodle Dandy” have tested positive for COVID-19 since returning home from California. An email sent to band parents at Homewood High School in suburban Birmingham and obtained by

By DARLENE SUPERVILLE Associated Press LOUISVILLE, Colo. (AP) — President Joe Biden is in Colorado to comfort residents grappling with rebuilding homes and businesses that were destroyed last week by a rare winter fire. The blaze burned through a pair of heavily populated suburbs between Denver and Boulder. Two people remain unaccounted for out of

By DAVID EGGERT Associated Press LANSING, Mich. (AP) — A former Michigan legislative leader is denying allegations that he raped his future sister-in-law starting when she was 14 or 15, saying they had a sexual relationship for years but were both consenting adults. Lee Chatfield, a Republican, led the House in 2019 and 2020. His

By KIM CHANDLER Associated Press MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Former Books-A-Million chief operating officer Lew Burdette has announced he is running for governor of Alabama. Burdette made the announcement Tuesday. He currently heads a nonprofit that provides shelters and group homes for abused women and children. Burdette joins a growing list of candidates challenging Gov.

By ED WHITE Associated Press DETROIT (AP) — A judge has denied a request to lower a $500,000 bail set for two parents who with their son are charged in a fatal Michigan school shooting. The judge says James and Jennifer Crumbley failed to turn themselves in when charged with involuntary manslaughter on Dec. 3

By STAN CHOE, DAMIAN J. TROISE and ALEX VEIGA AP Business Writers Stocks ended lower on Wall Street Friday and Treasury yields rose as investors anticipated the Federal Reserve will stay on course to raise interest rates as soon as March. The S&P 500 fell 0.4%, and the yield on the 10-year Treasury hit its

By MATTHEW LEE and LORNE COOK Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States and NATO are roundly rejecting Russian demands that the alliance not admit new members amid growing concerns that Russia may invade Ukraine, which aspires to join the alliance. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Friday

By JUAN A. LOZANO Associated Press HOUSTON (AP) — A Houston mother was charged after authorities allege she placed her 13-year-old son in the trunk of her car to isolate him after he tested positive for COVID-19, then took him to a drive-thru testing site. The 41-year-old is charged with endangering a child after authorities

TULSA, Okla. (AP) — A federal judge has sentenced a former Oklahoma police officer to 25 years in prison for the 2014 killing of his daughter’s boyfriend. U.S. District Judge Gregory Frizzell sentenced 61-year-old Shannon Kepler on Friday following his second-degree murder conviction for the killing of 19-year-old Jeremey Lake. It was the fifth time

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Former Birmingham News publisher Victor Hanson II has died. Son Victor Hanson III says his father died in his sleep Friday at a hospital after a brief illness. Hanson’s family owned the newspaper for decades in the early 1900s, and he began working there after graduating from the University of Alabama

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Attendance at this week’s CES gadget show in Las Vegas fell more than 75% compared to its previous in-person event two years ago, according to the event’s organizer. The Consumer Technology Association said Friday that more than 40,000 people attended the multi-day event, compared to more than 170,000 for the last

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Police in Haiti say two journalists were killed by gang members while reporting in a conflictive area south of Port-au-Prince as a surge in violence continues to shake the Caribbean nation. One of the journalist’s employers and some media reports said Friday that the men had been shot then burned alive,