Confederate statue being removed in North Carolina city
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — A construction crew was preparing to take down a Confederate statue in a North Carolina city Tuesday morning, a rare move in a state where such monuments are largely protected by law. Two cranes were set up on either side of the statue in Winston-Salem and traffic...
Firebomb sparks unrest at sensitive Jerusalem holy site
JERUSALEM — Israeli police on Tuesday closed the entrances to Jerusalem’s most sensitive holy site after Palestinian suspects threw a firebomb at a police station. There were no injuries reported from the firebombing. But police quickly deployed across the hilltop compound, scuffling with Palestinians in the area, as they searched...
Fire officials say 13 dogs die in Ohio house fire
TOLEDO, Ohio — Fire officials say a house fire in Ohio has killed 13 dogs, including eight puppies. Toledo fire officials say the blaze started in the home around 11:30 p.m. Monday. They say no people were in the home at the time of the fire. Fire crews say the...
State lawmakers weigh ranking university performance
Pennsylvania’s public universities would have to compete for state subsidies should a proposal circulating in the state Senate gain traction. PennLIVE reported that state Sen. Pat Browne, R-Lehigh County, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, and state Rep. Ryan Aument, R-Lancaster Coounty, chairman of the House Education Committee, are working...
Utah teacher apologizes for Ash Wednesday cross incident
SALT LAKE CITY — A Utah teacher on administrative leave apologized Monday for making 9-year-old Catholic student William McLeod wash off the Ash Wednesday cross from his forehead, saying it was a misunderstanding. Fourth-grade teacher Moana Patterson said Monday she thought the cross was dirt, and she gave William a...
Species by the dozen moved north during marine heatwaves
SAN FRANCISCO — Dozens of species of sea slugs, jellyfish and other marine life from toastier southern waters migrated into the Northern California region over an unusually long two-year period of severe heatwaves, says a new scientific report. The 67 species identified in the report include a carnivorous sea slug...
Judge’s ruling revives questions about Russian man’s death
WASHINGTON — On a foggy November morning in 2015, a heavily intoxicated man showed up before dawn at the Dupont Circle Hotel, forked over $1,200 cash for a ninth-floor penthouse suite and kept drinking. His bender continued all day. By the next morning, he was dead. Authorities concluded that he...
Trump’s budget proposal offers preview of upcoming campaign
WASHINGTON — Frustrated by a divided Congress and rifts within his own party, President Donald Trump is giving little indication in his latest budget proposal of any new policy ambitions for the coming two, or six, years. Trump’s budget plan increases spending on his border wall and the military but...
What you need to know about polyps in your colon
Perhaps one of the most dreaded parts of turning
50 is being handed the order to get a colonoscopy. While regular colon screening can be uncomfortable, Dr. John Kisiel, a Mayo Clinic gastroenterologist, says this screening is a crucial step in catching colorectal cancer and precancerous polyps early. Kisiel says...
‘Diet’ or eating ‘plan’: Either one can lead to improved lifestyle
What’s new in the world of weight loss? For one thing, the word “diet” is often replaced nowadays by terms like “eating plan” or “lifestyle change.” One reason for that is the negative association people have with the idea of a diet, says Julianne Hagan, a licensed dietitian/nutritionist and owner...
Tips for a heart-healthy sandwich
Packing a healthy lunch seems like an easy task, but sometimes all the sandwich choices may seem daunting. Many deli, or processed meats, are packed with preservatives, nitrates and sodium that could raise your risk of heart disease and other health issues. So is there a better choice to build...
New Jersey takes big step toward legalizing recreational pot
TRENTON, N.J. — New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy and legislative leaders say they’ve agreed on legislation to legalize recreational marijuana for adults. The Democrats announced the agreement in a statement Tuesday after more than a year of negotiations, mostly behind closed doors. It’s unclear whether there are enough votes in...
Mexican top cop: Security is deficient throughout country
MEXICO CITY — Mexico’s top security official said Tuesday that “security is deficient in practically the whole country,” after a large group of migrants went missing in northern Mexico. Public Safety Secretary Alfonso Durazo said the number of men pulled off a bus last week in the border state of...
Iran sentences human rights lawyer to 38 years in prison — and 148 lashes
A prominent Iranian lawyer who defended women arrested for protesting the country’s mandatory headscarf law has been sentenced to a total of 38 years in prison and 148 lashes, according to her husband. Nasrin Sotoudeh, who has been imprisoned since being taken from her home June 18, is already serving...
Hundreds turn out to honor slain Illinois deputy
HUNTLEY, Ill. — Dozens of American flags waved in the chilly air Tuesday afternoon as hundreds of mourners visited a Huntley funeral home to pay their respects to McHenry County sheriff’s Deputy Jacob Keltner. Keltner, 35, a married father of two young boys, was killed in the line of duty...
White House mum on if Trump really thinks Democrats ‘hate’ JewsVideo
WASHINGTON — White House press secretary Sarah Sanders on Monday repeatedly refused to say whether President Trump really thinks Democrats “hate” Jewish people. Before Trump left the White House on Friday for his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, he said: “The Democrats have become an anti-Israel party. They’ve become an anti-Jewish...
U.K., EU announce change to Brexit deal ahead of key vote
STRASBOURG, France — Britain and the European Union emerged from last-minute talks late Monday to announce they had finally removed the biggest roadblock to their Brexit divorce deal, only hours before the U.K. Parliament was due to decide the fate of Prime Minister Theresa May’s hard-won plan to leave the...
House Democrats to look for more evidence of voter suppression
WASHINGTON — House Democrats plan to expand their investigation of possible voter suppression to North Carolina and probably Kansas, the chairman of the House Oversight and Reform Committee said. “We’re looking at the most egregious situations,” said Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md. Cummings said his committee could wind up investigating at...
Devoted wife, mother, took care of injured daughter
Donna Liberatore took care of her daughter Stacie, who suffered a traumatic brain injury in a car wreck near Mountain View on July 4, 1990, and was hospitalized for eight months. “She was the devoted therapist, occupational therapist and speech therapist. She did a tremendous job in getting her (Stacie’s)...
Federal court moves to unseal documents in Jeffrey Epstein sex scandal
MIAMI — A federal court of appeals in New York on Monday took the first step in unsealing documents that could reveal evidence of an international sex trafficking operation allegedly run by multimillionaire Jeffrey Epstein and his former partner, British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell. The three-judge panel for the U.S. Court...
9-year-old Los Angeles area girl found in duffel bag ID’d
LOS ANGELES — Investigators have identified a Los Angeles-area girl found dead in a duffel bag along a suburban equestrian trail, and two people have been detained in connection with the case. The coroner’s office determined the girl was 9-year-old Trinity Love Jones and ruled her death a homicide, the...
‘I’m not for impeachment,’ Nancy Pelosi says, potentially roiling fellow Democrats
WASHINGTON — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in an interview that she opposes moving to impeach President Trump even though she believes he is “unfit” for office — her first definitive statement on the subject and one that stands to alienate members of her own Democratic Party who are intent...
PennDOT grades itself in performance report
PennDOT released its first performance report on efforts to address funding, mobility and safety on the state’s roadways, giving itself marks ranging from marginal to getting better in more than two dozen categories. “This report is a true reflection of the department’s focus on safety,” PennDOT Secretary Leslie S. Richards...
Agents seize $77 million of cocaine at New York-area port
NEWARK, N.J. — Customs agents have seized the biggest shipment of cocaine recovered at the ports of New York and New Jersey in 25 years. U.S. Customs and Border Protection says 3,200 pounds of the drug in 60 packages were seized at Port New York/Newark on Feb. 28. The street...
Casey, Toomey launch federal judicial candidate search
With three pending nominees to vacancies in Western Pennsylvania’s federal court, U.S. Sens. Pat Toomey, R-Lehigh Valley, and Bob Casey, D-Scranton, on Monday began soliciting applications from those interested in filling additional federal judicial vacancies in the district. The announcement came a week after President Trump nominated Robert Colville and...
