National Headlines
2 federal judges block Trump’s effort to ban DEI from K-12 education
Andrew Harnik-Pool/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- A second federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from withholding federal funds from schools that participate in diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.Hours after a New Hampshire judge issued a similar order on Thursday, a federal judge in Maryland appointed by Trump issued a broader ruling that prohibits the Department of Education from using federal funding to end DEI initiatives within public schools."This Court takes no view as to whether the policies at issue here are good or bad, prudent or foolish, fair or unfair," wrote U.S. District Judge Stephanie A. Gallagher of Maryland. "But this Court is constitutionally required to closely scrutinize whether the government went about creating and implementing them in the manner the law ... Read More
DOJ accidentally files document outlining flaws with Trump administration’s plan to kill NYC congestion pricing
Barry Williams/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service via Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- Lawyers with the Department of Justice accidentally filed a document overnight that outlined a series of legal flaws with the Trump administration's plan to kill New York City's congestion pricing tolls.In an 11-page letter to the Department of Transportation, lawyers with the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York wrote that Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy's attempt to terminate congestion pricing faces "considerable litigation risk" and is "unlikely" to be accepted by the court."As discussed below, there is considerable litigation risk in defending the Secretary's February 19, 2025 decision against plaintiffs' claims under the Administrative Procedure Act, that the decision was contrary to law, pretextual, procedurally arbitrary ... Read More
Karen Read murder trial: Mother of victim speaks out for 1st time
Jessica Rinaldi/The Boston Globe via Getty Images(BOSTON) -- As Karen Read stands trial for a second time in Massachusetts for the alleged murder of her police officer boyfriend, the victim's mother spoke about her son's death publicly for the first time on Wednesday.Prosecutors allege that, following a night of drinking in Canton, Read struck her boyfriend -- Boston police officer John O'Keefe -- with her Lexus SUV outside of a get-together at another officer's home and left him to die in a blizzard in January 2022.After a jury was unable to reach a verdict in the initial murder trial last year, she is being retried on charges including second-degree murder, vehicular manslaughter while operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol and ... Read More
Teen charged with allegedly starting massive New Jersey wildfire
The sun rises through haze behind lower Manhattan created by smoke from wildfires burning in New Jersey, April 24, 2025 in New York City. Gary Hershorn/ABC News(OCEAN COUNTY, N.J.) -- A 19-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of starting a massive New Jersey wildfire that has consumed at least 15,100 acres and continued to burn Thursday afternoon, authorities said.In a statement released Thursday morning, New Jersey officials, including Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer, announced the arrest of Joseph Kling of Waretown, New Jersey. He was charged with second-degree aggravated arson, for allegedly purposely destroying a forest; and third-degree arson, for allegedly recklessly endangering buildings or structures.Kling was arrested after investigators determined the fire to be "incendiary by an improperly extinguished ... Read More
Massachusetts mother falls about 75 feet to her death while hiking with her children at Purgatory Chasm
Thinkstock Images/Getty Images(TOPSFIELD, Mass.) -- A 49-year-old mother of four died on Wednesday after she fell about 50 to 75 feet from a cliff while hiking at Purgatory Chasm in Massachusetts.The woman, Carolyn Sanger from Topsfield, Massachusetts, was hiking at the Purgatory Chasm State Reservation in Sutton just before 2 p.m. when the incident took place, according to local police and the Worcester County District Attorney's Office. She was hiking with three of her children and other family members when she fell, authorities said."There were multiple medical professionals in the area hiking the chasm at the same time, and were able to provide medical attention right away," Sutton police said. "However, she had succumbed to the injuries sustained during the ... Read More
Trump administration says it sent 4 alleged migrant gang members to El Salvador despite court order
Alex Peña/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- The Trump administration is acknowledging it deported four noncitizens to El Salvador despite a court order barring the removal of people to countries other than their place of origin without an opportunity to raise concerns about their safety.In a series of court filings overnight, Justice Department lawyers argued that the court order was not violated because the removal of four alleged members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua was carried out by the Department of Defense -- not the Department of Homeland Security, which is a defendant in the lawsuit.U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy issued a court order on March 28 requiring that anyone with a final order of removal must have an opportunity to ... Read More
Federal judge issues temporary order to keep detained Columbia student in Vermont
Witthaya Prasongsin/Getty Images(COLCHESTER, Vt.) -- A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order to keep Mohsen Mahdawi, the Columbia student who was arrested during his citizenship interview last week, in Vermont while his case proceeds.In the written order filed on Thursday morning, U.S. District Judge Geoffrey Crawford said the order was necessary to "prevent disputes" about jurisdiction "or any other issues that may arise in the case of involuntary movement of a petitioner between states."On Wednesday, Judge Crawford said he was going to issue the temporary restraining order and ordered a hearing for next week to decide whether Mahdawi should be released while the case continues.Mahdawi, who co-founded a university organization called the Palestinian Student Union with detained Columbia student ... Read More
Judge orders return of 2nd migrant deported to El Salvador
Alex Pena/Anadolu via Getty Images)(BALTIMORE) -- A federal judge in Maryland has ordered the Trump administration to facilitate the return of a 20-year-old Venezuelan man deported to El Salvador, whose removal violated a previous court settlement, according to an order issued on Wednesday.U.S. District Judge Stephanie Gallagher, a Trump appointee, also ordered the government not to remove other individuals covered by the settlement.The class action case from 2019 was filed on behalf of individuals who entered the U.S. as unaccompanied minors and later sought asylum.The group sued the government to be able to have their asylum applications adjudicated while they remained in the United States. The parties settled in 2024.Attorneys for the plaintiffs say the Trump administration, in breach of ... Read More
Largest coral bleaching event on record impacts 84% of world’s reefs: NOAA
Dr. Pinsak Suraswadi, the Director General of the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources conducts a survey on reefs affected by coral bleaching on May 07, 2024 in Trat, Thailand. (Photo by Sirachai Arunrugstichai/Getty Images)(NEW YORK) -- The world's coral reefs are in the midst of the fourth and largest global bleaching event in recorded history, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced this week.The grim milestone was recorded between January 2023 and April 2025, with the agency documenting that bleaching-level heat stress has impacted 83.7% of the world's coral reef area.The impacted reefs span at least 83 countries and territories, the agency said.Since early 2023, mass bleaching of coral reefs has been confirmed in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian ... Read More
Federal judge pauses discovery in Abrego Garcia case for 1 week
(ftwitty/Getty Images)(WASHINGTON) -- A federal judge is temporarily pausing discovery in the case of the wrongful deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia.U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis issued an order Wednesday evening pausing expedited discovery in the case for seven days. The move came after the Trump administration, in a sealed motion earlier in the day, asked the judge for the pause.The judge's order said the pause was made with the agreement of both the government and attorneys representing Abrego Garcia.On Tuesday, Xinis had ordered the government to more fully answer questions about the wrongful deportation and to respond by Wednesday evening to discovery requests from Abrego Garcia's attorneys.Last week, Xinis slammed Justice Department attorneys over their inaction in the case and ... Read More
DOJ unseals 1st terrorism case against alleged Tren de Aragua member
(Thinkstock/Getty Images)(WASHINGTON) -- Prosecutors have unsealed federal terrorism charges targeting an alleged "high-ranking" member of the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang who was arrested in Colombia late last month, the Justice Department announced Wednesday.Jose Enrique Martinez Flores, also referred to as "Chuqui," is the first alleged TdA member to be charged with terrorism offenses since President Donald Trump's declaration designating the gang as a terrorist organization.Charging documents describe Flores as a "high-ranking TdA leader" in Bogota, Colombia, who is alleged to have helped deliver approximately five kilos of cocaine for international distribution, which prosecutors said were "used to further TdA's criminal goals."He was taken into custody in Colombia on March 31 pursuant to a U.S. arrest warrant, though the department ... Read More
Judge appears inclined to permanently block Trump order targeting law firm
Win McNamee/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- A federal judge appeared inclined Wednesday to enter a permanent ruling barring the Trump administration from implementing an executive order targeting the law firm of Perkins Coie, after repeatedly pressing a government attorney over whether President Donald Trump's sweeping efforts to target the legal community run afoul of the Constitution.U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell, who Trump criticized on social media earlier Wednesday over her assignment to the case, suggested repeatedly in the hearing that the administration's efforts to target law firms who had represented or hired Trump's political opponents echoed the repression of McCarthyism and the "Red Scare" era in American history.Trump's executive order, which cited Perkins Coie's former representation of Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign, sought ... Read More
Highland Park shooter Robert Crimo III sentenced to life in prison without parole
Nam Y. Huh-Pool/Getty Images(HIGHLAND PARK, Ill.) -- Robert Crimo III, the gunman who killed seven people and injured dozens in a mass shooting in Highland Park, Illinois, on July 4, 2022, was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on Thursday.Crimo was sentenced to seven consecutive life sentences along with 50 years in prison for each person injured, Judge Victoria A. Rossetti announced on Thursday."This court hopes this sentence brings a sense of justice and an end to the continued horror," Rossetti said.The sentencing hearing, which began Wednesday and finished Thursday morning, included testimony from multiple survivors and relatives of those killed in the shooting at the Independence Day parade.Crimo, 24, decided to not appear in court on ... Read More
State of emergency declared as New Jersey wildfire explodes to 12,000 acres
Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images(OCEAN COUNTY, N.J.) -- A wildfire in New Jersey has exploded to 12,000 acres after igniting Tuesday in Ocean County and threatening more than 1,000 structures, shutting down a major highway and causing thousands of people to flee the flames.The Jones Road Wildfire was 35% contained on Wednesday afternoon, according to the New Jersey Forest Fire Service.Shawn LaTourette, New Jersey's Commissioner of Environmental Protection, said fire officials expect the blaze to grow and that it could turn out to be the largest wildfire in New Jersey in 20 years."Thanks to the incredible, heroic work of the good men and women of our New Jersey fire service folks, homes and lives have been saved and we ... Read More
City of Uvalde reaches settlement with families of school shooting victims
Evadulia Orta, mother of Rojelio Torres, a victim in the shootings at Robb Elementary School holds a photo of her son as she is interviewed with her sister by ABC News, Uvalde, Texas, May 26, 2022. (ABC News)(UVALDE, TEXAS) -- An attorney representing the families of the Robb Elementary School mass shooting victims confirmed to ABC News on Tuesday night that a settlement was reached and approved by a unanimous vote at a city council meeting in Uvalde, Texas.Josh Koskoff, one of the attorneys who filed the lawsuit against the city, did not specify the exact terms of the settlement.The lawsuit responds to the circumstances surrounding the school shooting that took place on May 24, 2022, claiming the lives of ... Read More
Top vaccine official resigns from FDA, criticizes RFK Jr. for promoting ‘misinformation and lies’
WASHINGTON (AP) — The top vaccine official with the Food and Drug Administration has resigned and criticized the nation’s top health official for allowing “misinformation and lies” to guide his thinking behind the safety of vaccinations. Dr. Peter Marks sent a letter to Acting FDA Commissioner Sara Brenner on Friday saying that he would resign and retire by April 5 as director of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. In his letter, which was obtained by The Associated Press, Marks said he was “willing to work” to address the concerns expressed by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. about the safety of vaccinations. But he concluded that wasn't possible. “It has become clear that truth and transparency are not desired by ... Read More
AP sues three Trump administration officials, citing freedom of speech
(AP) — The Associated Press sued three Trump administration officials Friday over access to presidential events, citing freedom of speech in asking a federal judge to stop the 10-day blocking of its journalists. The lawsuit was filed Friday afternoon in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. The AP says its case is about an unconstitutional effort by the White House to control speech — in this case refusing to change its style from the Gulf of Mexico to the “Gulf of America,” as President Donald Trump did last month with an executive order. “The press and all people in the United States have the right to choose their own words and not be retaliated against by the government,” the AP ... Read More
Here’s what we know about a commuter plane crash in Alaska that killed 10 people
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Authorities are focusing on the wreckage of a plane that crashed off western Alaska as they try to determine what caused the small commuter aircraft to go down in the icy Bering Sea, killing 10 people. The single-engine turboprop plane was traveling from Unalakleet to the hub community of Nome when it disappeared Thursday afternoon. Crews on Saturday succeeded in recovering the remains of those killed in the Bering Air crash from a drifting ice floe before the anticipated onset of high winds and snow. By the end of the day, the wreckage was taken by helicopter to a hangar in Nome. Here are things to know about the plane crash, which is one of the ... Read More
Trump says he’s firing Kennedy Center board of trustees members and naming himself chairman
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says he is firing members of the board of trustees for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and naming himself chairman. He also indicated that he would be dictating programming at one of the nation’s premier cultural institutions, specifically declaring that he would end events featuring performers in drag. Trump’s announcement Friday came as the Republican president has bulldozed his way across official Washington during the first weeks of his second term, trying to shutter federal agencies, freeze spending and ending diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives across the government. “At my direction, we are going to make the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., GREAT AGAIN. I have decided to immediately terminate ... Read More
Judge blocks Trump from placing thousands of USAID workers on leave and giving them 30-day deadline
WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge on Friday dealt President Donald Trump and billionaire ally Elon Musk their first big setback in their dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development, ordering a temporary halt to plans to pull thousands of agency staffers off the job. U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols, a Trump appointee, also agreed to block an order that would have given the thousands of overseas USAID workers the administration wanted to place on abrupt administrative leave just 30 days to move families and households back to the U.S. on government expense. Both moves would have exposed the U.S. workers and their spouses and children to unwarranted risk and expense, the judge said. Nichols pointed to accounts from ... Read More
Passenger jet collides with Army helicopter while landing at Reagan Washington National Airport
ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — A passenger jet collided Wednesday with an Army helicopter while landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington, prompting a large search-and-rescue operation in the nearby Potomac River. There was no immediate word on casualties or the cause of the collision, but all takeoffs and landings from the airport near Washington were halted as helicopters from law enforcement agencies across the region flew over the scene in search of survivors. Inflatable rescue boats were launched into the Potomac River from a point near the airport along the George Washington Parkway, just north of the airport. President Donald Trump was briefed, his press secretary said, and Vice President JD Vance encouraged followers on the social media platform ... Read More
Big Lots reaches deal to keep hundreds of US stores open
COLUMBUS, Oh. (AP) — The discount chain Big Lots, which filed for bankruptcy protection in September, has reached a deal that will keep hundreds of its stores and distribution centers open. Big Lots said Friday it will be sold to Gordon Brothers Retail Partners, a firm that specializes in distressed companies. Gordon Brothers will then transfer Big Lots’ stores, distribution centers and other assets to other retailers. Variety Wholesalers Inc., which owns more than 400 discount stores in the U.S. Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions, plans to acquire between 200 and 400 Big Lots stores and operate them under the Big Lots brand. Variety Wholesalers will also acquire up to two distribution centers. “This sale agreement and transfer present the strongest ... Read More
Government funding bill clears Congress and heads to President Biden, averting a shutdown
WASHINGTON (AP) — Facing a government shutdown deadline, the Senate rushed through final passage early Saturday of a bipartisan plan that would temporarily fund federal operations and disaster aid, dropping President-elect Donald Trump's demands for a debt limit increase into the new year. House Speaker Mike Johnson had insisted Congress would “meet our obligations” and not allow federal operations to shutter ahead of the Christmas holiday season. But the day's outcome was uncertain after Trump doubled down on his insistence that a debt ceiling increase be included in any deal — if not, he said in an early morning post, let the closures “start now.” The House approved Johnson's new bill overwhelmingly, 366-34. The Senate worked into the night to ... Read More
Government funding plan collapses as Trump makes new demands days before shutdown
WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump abruptly rejected a bipartisan plan Wednesday to prevent a Christmastime government shutdown, instead telling House Speaker Mike Johnson and Republicans to essentially renegotiate — days before a deadline when federal funding runs out. Trump's sudden entrance into the debate and new demands sent Congress spiraling as lawmakers are trying to wrap up work and head home for the holidays. It left Johnson scrambling late into the night at the Capitol trying to engineer a new plan before Friday's deadline to keep government open. “Republicans must GET SMART and TOUGH,” Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance said in a statement. The president-elect made an almost unrealistic proposal that combined some continuation of government funds along ... Read More
Prosecutors recommend resentencing Erik and Lyle Menendez in 1989 killings of their parents
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Prosecutors will recommend Erik and Lyle Menendez be resentenced for the 1989 killings of their parents in the family’s Beverly Hills home, providing the brothers with a chance at freedom after 34 years behind bars. An official with knowledge of the decision who was not authorized to speak on the record ahead of a planned press conference confirmed that Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón would recommend resentencing for the brothers. They were sentenced in 1996 to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Prosecutors must now seek court approval. Lyle Menendez, then 21, and Erik Menendez, then 18, admitted they fatally shot their entertainment executive father, Jose Menendez, and their mother, Kitty Menendez. ... Read More
Hurricane Milton live updates: Monster storm pummels Florida after landfall
Hurricane Milton made landfall on Florida's west coast Wednesday night as a Category 3 hurricane. The monster storm roared ashore with life-threatening storm surge, powerful winds and flooding rains. Here's how the news is developing. 4 killed in tornadoes in St. Lucie County Four people were killed by tornadoes in St. Lucie County on Florida’s east coast, county officials said. "Numerous homes" have "suffered significant damage," officials added. 25 minutes ago Roof of Tropicana Field rips off Wind gusts climbed to 97 mph in Tampa and 102 mph at the Sarasota Bradenton International Airport as Milton slammed the coast. Milton's powerful winds even ripped part of the roof off of Tropicana Field, home of the Tampa Bay Rays. A drone ... Read More
Fed cuts interest rate by half a point
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve on Wednesday cut its benchmark interest rate by an unusually large half-point, a dramatic shift after more than two years of high rates that helped tame inflation but also made borrowing painfully expensive for American consumers. The rate cut, the Fed’s first in more than four years, reflects its new focus on bolstering the job market, which has shown clear signs of slowing. Coming just weeks before the presidential election, the Fed’s move also has the potential to scramble the economic landscape just as Americans prepare to vote. The central bank’s action lowered its key rate to roughly 4.8%, down from a two-decade high of 5.3%, where it had stood for 14 months as ... Read MoreWynn Resorts paying $130M for letting illegal money reach gamblers at its Las Vegas Strip casino
LAS VEGAS -- Casino company Wynn Resorts Ltd. has agreed to pay $130 million to federal authorities and admit that it let unlicensed money transfer businesses around the world funnel funds to gamblers at its flagship Las Vegas Strip property. The publicly traded company said a non-prosecution settlement reached Friday represented a monetary figure identified by the U.S. Justice Department as “funds involved in the transactions at issue†at the Wynn Las Vegas resort. In statements to the media and to the federal Securities and Exchange Commission, the company said the forfeiture wasn’t a fine and findings in the decade-long case didn’t amount to money laundering. U.S. Attorney Tara McGrath in San Diego said the settlement showed that casinos are ... Read More
What we know about the shooter
WASHINGTON (AP) — The man identified as the shooter in the apparent assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump was a 20-year-old from a Pittsburgh suburb not far from the campaign rally where one attendee was killed. Investigators were working Sunday to gather more information about Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, who they say opened fire at the rally before being killed by Secret Service days before Trump was to accept the Republican nomination for a third time. An FBI official said late Saturday that investigators had not yet determined a motive. Two spectators were critically injured, authorities said. Relatives of Crooks didn’t immediately respond to messages from The Associated Press. His father, Matthew Crooks, told CNN late ... Read MorePrayers for Trump also pour in from political rivals
Prayers for the former president are also coming from his political opponents. “I am horrified by what happened at the Trump rally in Pennsylvania and relieved that former President Trump is safe. Political violence has no place in our country,†said Sen. Chuck Schumer in a statement. “We should all condemn what happened today and I am hoping for the health of the former president and everyone else at the rally,†Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy posted on the social platform X. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said in a post on X that his “thoughts and prayers are with former President Trump†and expressed thanks “for the decisive law enforcement response.†... Read MoreTop of page
