Associated Press stories, Page 2611
Another Texas chemical fire kills 1 worker, injures 2
HOUSTON — A fire at a Texas chemical plant Tuesday that sent plumes of black smoke into the air killed one worker and injured at least two others, authorities said, in the second major blaze at a Houston-area chemical facility in about two weeks. Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez confirmed...
Ohio proposal would honor presidential popular vote
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio’s coveted 18 electoral votes would be delivered to the presidential candidate who wins the national popular vote under a proposal making its way toward the state’s fall ballot. The proposed constitutional amendment, whose summary language was certified Monday, would force state lawmakers to assure the powerful...
U.K. police say railway sabotage attempt linked to Brexit
LONDON — British police said Tuesday that they are investigating two attempts to sabotage railway lines that are believed to be linked to Brexit. The British Transport Police force said two “malicious obstructions” hit sections of rail line in central and eastern England on March 21 and 27. In both...
Author James Patterson donates $1.25M to classroom libraries
NEW YORK — James Patterson’s latest gift for literacy is a $1.25 million pledge to classroom libraries. On Tuesday, the best-selling author announced the fifth installment for his Patterson Partnership, formed in coordination with Scholastic Book Club. Patterson is giving $250 each to 4,000 teachers around the country to help...
Pope: Women have ‘legitimate claims’ for justice, equality
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis said in a document released Tuesday that women have “legitimate claims” to seek more equality in the Catholic Church, but he stopped short of endorsing recent calls from his own bishops to give women leadership roles. In the text, Francis also told young adults they...
TV host Deborah Norville will have cancerous nodule removed
LOS ANGELES — “Inside Edition” anchor Deborah Norville will undergo surgery to remove a cancerous thyroid nodule from her neck. The 60-year-old host says in a video a viewer reached out a long time ago and told her she had seen a lump on her neck. Norville says she had...
Blast injures 3 at top military school in Russia
MOSCOW — Russia’s Defense Ministry says three people have been injured in an explosion inside an elite military academy in Russia’s second-largest city. The ministry said in a statement on Tuesday that an unidentified “object” went off early afternoon inside the prestigious Mozhaisky Academy in St. Petersburg, which trains officers...
2020 by the numbers: Democrats posting big campaign stats
WASHINGTON — How many ways can you measure the first quarter of the year? For Democratic presidential candidates, it’s 300-plus events, 24 states and hundreds of voter questions. The Iowa caucus is still 10 months away, but the Democratic primary campaign is already an all-out sprint — passing eye-popping markers...
Loretta Lynn sings with friends at birthday concert
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Loretta Lynn was honored like country music royalty by country and rock stars alike with gifts of flowers and songs during a concert Monday night celebrating her upcoming 87th birthday. Lynn, whose birthday is April 14, closed out the all-star concert in Nashville, Tennessee, by singing her...
Los Angeles police identify suspect in Nipsey Hussle slaying
LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles police are seeking a 29-year-old man who they believe shot and killed Nipsey Hussle outside the rapper’s clothing store where he was trying to remake his community. Los Angeles police Chief Michel Moore has scheduled a briefing Tuesday morning in which he will discuss how...
U.S. officials worry paralyzing illness may grow more common
NEW YORK — One morning last fall, 4-year-old Joey Wilcox woke up with the left side of his face drooping. It was the first sign of an unfolding nightmare. Three days later, Joey was in a hospital intensive care unit, unable to move his arms or legs or sit up....
Man convicted of killing woman out jogging in NYC parkVideo
NEW YORK — A man was convicted Monday of killing a woman out running near her New York City home in a case that stirred urban fears, helped change the state’s DNA-investigation rules and raised questions about race and police procedures. News station video showed Karina Vetrano’s loved ones erupting...
61-year-old serves as surrogate mother for son, his husband
OMAHA, Neb. — A 61-year-old Nebraska woman who served as a surrogate mother for her son and his husband has given birth to a baby girl. Matthew Eledge and Elliot Dougherty were talking about becoming parents when Eledge’s mother and Dougherty’s sister offered to help. Cecile Eledge was 60 at...
TCU coach Jamie Dixon honors late sister before NIT semifinal
TCU has a date in Madison Square Garden and a championship it’s trying to win. But first, coach Jamie Dixon had to make a travel stop closer to his heart before he took the Horned Frogs to New York City for an NIT semifinal game against Texas. The Horned Frogs...
4 dead in ‘multiple homicide’ at North Dakota businessVideo
MANDAN, N.D. — Four people were found dead Monday in what police called a “multiple homicide” at a North Dakota property-management business. Three men and a woman were found dead inside RJR Maintenance and Management in Mandan, a city of about 22,000 just across the Missouri River west of Bismarck,...
Georgia boy, 6, dies of heart attack; collapsed during team pictures
CHICKAMAUGA, Ga. — A 6-year-old boy who collapsed at a baseball field in Georgia while taking pictures with his teammates has died. WTVC-TV reports Brantley Neal Chandler died Thursday, hours after suffering a heart attack. Brantley’s mother Meghan Bryson says he was with the other Rock Spring Mustangs getting ready...
Colorado bill would let authorities take guns if person deemed threat
DENVER — The Democrat-controlled Colorado Legislature sent a “red flag” bill Monday to the governor that calls for taking firearms from people who could pose a threat to themselves or others. Gov. Jared Polis, also a Democrat, has pledged to sign the measure that would place the state among 13...
More officers may be reassigned to help border crush
EL PASO, Texas — The Trump administration says it may pull as many as 2,000 inspectors from border crossings to handle a surge of families arriving at the U.S.- Mexico border, many of them Central American asylum seekers. The temporary reassignments, up from 750 inspectors previously, threatens to slow the...
Tom Brady saves 1st tweet for April Fools’ Day: I’m retiring
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Don’t. Even. Joke. New England Patriots fans who forgot that it’s April Fools’ Day might been panicking when quarterback Tom Brady tweeted on Monday that he had decided to retire. The six-time Super Bowl champion has joined Twitter and his first post said simply, “I’m retiring. In...
‘Harry Potter’ books burned at Catholic parish in Poland
WARSAW, Poland — Priests at a Catholic parish in northern Poland have burned books, including the “Harry Potter” series, and other items that their owners said had evil forces. Images from the burning at Gdansk’s Mother of Church parish on Sunday were posted on Facebook by a Catholic foundation that...
Father vows safety push after daughter’s ride sharing death
COLUMBIA, S.C. — The father of a University of South Carolina student killed when police say she got into the wrong car thinking it was her Uber ride says he will dedicate his life to increasing safety with ride sharing services. Seymour Josephson says he thinks his 21-year-old daughter Samantha...
U.S. safety agency opens probes into Hyundai, Kia fires
DETROIT — The U.S. government’s highway safety agency has decided to open two new investigations into fires involving Hyundai and Kia vehicles after getting complaints of more than 3,100 fires and 103 injuries. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says it granted a petition seeking the investigations from the nonprofit...
Queen-inspired rock musical to tour North AmericaVideo
LOS ANGELES — A musical inspired by Queen’s music is preparing for a North America tour following the popularity of the Academy Award-winning movie, “Bohemian Rhapsody.” Producers announced Monday “We Will Rock You” will open in Winnipeg, Canada, on Sept. 3. The tour will stop in other cities including New...
Official: Trump team overruled 25 security clearance denials
WASHINGTON — A career official in the White House security office says dozens of people in President Donald Trump’s administration were granted security clearances despite “disqualifying issues” in their backgrounds, such as concerns about foreign influence, drug use and criminal conduct. Tricia Newbold, an 18-year government employee who oversees the...
Child welfare agencies scrutinized after teen’s brutal death
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Pennsylvania officials are scheduled to release a report on how child welfare agencies handled the case of a teenager who endured years of abuse before her 2016 rape and murder. Sara Packer pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and was sentenced Friday to life without parole for plotting...
