AP National News

By KRISTIN M. HALL AP Entertainment Writer NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tom T. Hall, the singer-songwriter who composed “Harper Valley P.T.A.” and sang about life’s simple joys as country music’s consummate blue collar bard, has died. He was 85. His son, Dean Hall, confirmed the musician’s death on Friday at his home in Franklin, Tennessee.

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (AP) — A former Alabama police officer has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for the 2018 shooting death of a suicidal man who was holding a gun to his own head. The sentence was handed down Friday for former Huntsville police officer William “Ben” Darby. Darby was convicted in May of

By MICHAEL R. BLOOD and KATHLEEN RONAYNE Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — A day after facing allegations that he emotionally mistreated a former fiancee, Republican Larry Elder scheduled two weekend rallies and showed no outward signs of altering the course of his campaign in the California recall election that could remove Democratic Gov. Gavin

By MARTHA MENDOZA and MICHAEL TARM Associated Press CHICAGO (AP) — Some Capitol Hill Democrats and civil rights advocates are concerned about how police and prosecutors increasingly use algorithm-powered technologies that may amplify racial bias. In response to an Associated Press investigation into the ShotSpotter gunshot detection system, Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon says

By BOB CHRISTIE Associated Press PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey toured a small community southwest of Phoenix where flooding inundated homes and led to two deaths last weekend. The governor praised the resiliency of the people of Gila Bend on Friday and residents of other areas of the state who have endured flooding

WASHINGTON (AP) — Guest lineups for the Sunday news shows

By The Associated Press As New Englanders scramble to prepare for what could be their first hurricane in three decades, many can’t help but think of the last one: Bob. It made landfall as a devastating Category 2 storm. Thursday marked exactly 30 years since Bob landed, killing at least 17 people and leaving behind

By CLAUDIA TORRENS The Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — A mother who was separated from her children on the U.S.-Mexico border during former President Donald Trump’s administration says that she and other parents who experienced similar separations asked the Homeland Security Secretary for permanent legal residency in the United States and compensation. Keldy Mabel

By RANDALL CHASE Associated Press DOVER, Del. (AP) — Attorneys for the Boy Scouts of America are postponing a key bankruptcy hearing that was scheduled to start next week following a court ruling that casts uncertainty on the future of the case.  Attorneys on Friday filed court papers postponing a hearing set to begin Wednesday

By DÉBORA ÁLVARES and MARCELO SILVA DE SOUSA Associated Press BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) — Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has asked the Senate to impeach a Supreme Court justice — a largely symbolic move that shows he has little desire to ease tensions between his administration and the judiciary. Senate President Rodrigo Pacheco will have to

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is temporarily halting a judge’s order that would have forced the government to reinstate a Trump administration policy forcing thousands to wait in Mexico while seeking asylum in the U.S. Justice Samuel Alito issued the temporary stay late Friday night. It will remain in effect until Tuesday night so

By JUAN A. LOZANO Associated Press HOUSTON (AP) — The legal battle over whether Texas communities can require students and others to wear masks in response to the current surge in COVID-19 cases remains entangled in a series of lawsuits, orders and appeals.  Ten counties and cities and 52 school districts or systems around the

By PAUL J. WEBER Associated Press AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The abrupt end of Texas Democrats’ 38-day walkout has put Republicans on a fast track to pass an election overhaul. It is also causing rifts among some Democrats who said Friday they felt “betrayed” by colleagues who returned to the state Capitol. Texas is the

By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER Associated Press The host of a program for the right-wing website Infowars, Owen Shroyer, has been charged in connection to the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol. Shroyer, who hosts “The War Room With Owen Shroyer” for the website operated by conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, faces misdemeanor charges such as

FORT MILL, S.C. (AP) — Anne Springs Close who used her family’s textile fortune to give back to the community through education and land preservation has died. She was 95. Close’s family says she died Friday from injuries suffered when a tree branch fell on her at her property in Fort Mill, South Carolina, a

By HILLEL ITALIE AP National Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The author of the million-selling “Lies My Teacher Told Me” books has died. James W. Loewen was 79. “Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong” was published in 1995 and became a favorite of students and former students as it

By MICHAEL RUBINKAM Associated Press Pennsylvania state prosecutors have dropped their case against a jail guard accused of sexually abusing inmates. They say they were hamstrung by the recent state Supreme Court decision that freed Bill Cosby. The attorney general’s office had been seeking to prosecute John Shnipes on charges that he assaulted four female

By JULIE CARR SMYTH Associated Press COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Trustees of the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium said Friday that financial abuses by four former executives cost the institution more than $630,000. A forensic analysis ordered by the zoo’s board of trustees showed money from a zoo levy that pays for animal care was not

By TOM KRISHER AP Auto Writer GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — General Motors is recalling all Chevrolet Bolt electric vehicles sold worldwide to fix a battery problem that could cause fires. The recall raises questions about lithium ion batteries, which now are used in nearly all electric vehicles. President Joe Biden wants to cut greenhouse