Associated Press JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri’s governor has commuted the sentence of a white Kansas City police officer who was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in the fatal shooting of a Black man. Gov. Mike Parson decided Friday to free Eric DeValkenaere, who was serving a six-year prison sentence after he was convicted in
Continue ReadingSAN ANTONIO (AP) — Authorities say a teacher at a San Antonio-area day care was killed when one car accelerated into another in a parking lot and both vehicles crashed through a fence into a play area. Another day care employee and five toddlers were injured in the accident that happened Thursday afternoon as parents
Continue ReadingAssociated Press SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AP) — The Inter-American Court of Human Rights has found El Salvador’s government responsible for violating the rights of a young Salvadoran woman who was denied an abortion of her anencephalic fetus in a country with a total abortion ban. The Costa Rica-based regional court said Friday that the
Continue ReadingAssociated Press MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minneapolis has softened an ordinance that prohibited obstructing entrances and driveways to abortion clinics after anti-abortion activists sued to challenge it on free-speech grounds. The City Council this month quietly amended the ordinance to exclude constitutionally protected activities and agreed to pay the plaintiffs’ legal fees. Brian Gibson, chief executive
Continue ReadingAssociated Press President-elect Donald Trump’s billionaire ally Elon Musk played a key role this week in killing a bipartisan funding proposal that would have prevented a government shutdown, railing against the plan in a torrent of more than 100 X posts that included multiple false claims. The X owner, an unelected figure, not only used
Continue ReadingLUSAKA, Zambia. (AP) — Two people have been arrested for allegedly plotting to harm Zambia’s president Hakainde Hichilema using witchcraft. Police spokesperson Rae Hamoonga said Friday in a statement that the two suspects, Jasten Mabulesse Candunde, 42, and Leonard Phiri, 43, were allegedly hired by Nelson Banda, the young brother to fugitive lawmaker Jay Banda.
Continue ReadingCULPEPER, Va. (AP) — Three Black men who were lynched by mobs in Virginia during the 1800s and early 1900s have been declared innocent by a judge. The Washington Post reported Friday that the men were Charles Allie Thompson, William Thompson and William Grayson. Each was killed in rural Culpeper County. Circuit Court Judge Dale
Continue ReadingAssociated Press NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee Republican Gov. Bill Lee says he is pardoning 43 people who have served out their sentences in what he says is “very different” than President Joe Biden’s recent wave of commutations. Lee’s latest clemency moves are nearly double his next highest total for a single year. But Lee
Continue ReadingPHOENIX (AP) — The director of the Arizona Department of Water Resources has determined that it’s necessary to regulate the use of groundwater in the state’s rural southeast. The agency’s announcement Friday allows it to designate a controlled area to stop rapid depletion of the water through agricultural use. The department’s director says data analysis
Continue ReadingAssociated Press/Report for America AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A Texas man facing execution did not appear at the state Capitol after two failed attempts by lawmakers to issue a subpoena for his testimony. The second failed effort Friday comes after Texas’ attorney general ordered to block what was likely the final chance to have Robert
Continue ReadingAssociated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and his wife, Jill, brought some holiday cheer to patients and families at a children’s hospital in Washington. The president and first lady on Friday made a traditional Christmastime visit to Children’s National Hospital. They visited privately with patients and their families for photos. Jill Biden read
Continue ReadingNORFOLK, Va. (AP) — Norfolk State officially named Michael Vick its head football coach Friday, the latest hire of a talented NFL player with no college coaching experience to lead an HBCU program. Vick’s addition was unanimously approved by the school’s board of visitors, Norfolk State athletic director Melody Webb said in a release from
Continue ReadingAssociated Press NEW YORK (AP) — The man accused of gunning down United Healthcare’s CEO outside a Manhattan hotel is now jailed in New York, awaiting arraignment Monday on a state murder indictment after he was returned to the city in dramatic fashion to face charges in multiple courts. Shackled and wearing an orange prison
Continue ReadingAssociated Press MIAMI (AP) — Real estate broker Oren Alexander and his twin brother Alon will remain in custody following an initial court appearance in Miami. The brothers sought bond during the Friday afternoon hearing on sex trafficking and gang rape charges. Federal prosecutors argued they’re a flight risk and a danger to the community.
Continue ReadingAssociated Press WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump says he’s nominating the president of the advocacy group CatholicVote to be the U.S. ambassador to the Vatican. Brian Burch is the president and co-founder of CatholicVote. He and his wife, Sara, have nine children and live in the Chicago suburbs. Trump on Friday
Continue ReadingAssociated Press SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A Department of Homeland Security agent who the FBI says conspired with another agent to sell an illicit drug known as “bath salts” has pleaded not guilty to a drug distribution conspiracy charge. A grand jury in Salt Lake City brought the criminal charge against Special Agent David
Continue ReadingAssociated Press ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Members of Greece’s former royal family have applied for Greek citizenship and formally acknowledged the country’s republican system of government, in a landmark move 50 years after the monarchy was abolished. A government official said relatives of the late King Constantine II, who died last year aged 82, had
Continue ReadingAP Media Writer NEW YORK (AP) — To many Australians, Saturday is more than just Dec. 21. It’s “Gravy Day,” all because of a lyric in one of the most unlikely Christmas songs ever written. “How to Make Gravy,” written by singer Paul Kelly, has become a holiday classic in Australia over the past few
Continue ReadingAssociated Press PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Fentanyl fueled a record number of homeless deaths last year in Oregon’s Multnomah County, home to Portland. An annual report released by the county on Friday says 456 homeless people died in 2023. That’s the highest number on record in the county and a 45% jump compared to 2022.
Continue ReadingAP Sports Writer Netflix is planning to provide plenty of gifts for viewers of its two Christmas Day games, including Mariah Carey kicking it all off with a taped performance of “All I Want for Christmas is You.” Yet, Netflix executive Brandon Riegg realizes it all amounts to a lump of coal if there are
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