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A judge has ruled Texas’ abortion ban is too restrictive for women with pregnancy complications

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:37:03 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A Texas judge ruled Friday that the state’s abortion ban has proven too restrictive for women with serious pregnancy complications and must allow exceptions without doctors fearing the threat of criminal charges. The ruling is the first to undercut Texas’ law since it took effect in 2022 and delivers a major victory to abortion rights supporters, who see the case as a potential blueprint to weaken restrictions elsewhere that Republican-led states have rushed to implement. The challenge is believed to be the first in the U.S. brought by women who have been denied abortions since the Supreme Court last year overturned Roe v. Wade, which for nearly 50 years had affirmed the constitutional right to an abortion. The immediate impact of State District Judge Jessica Mangrum’s decision was unclear in Texas, where all abortion clinics have shuttered in the past year. During two days of emotional testimony in an Austin courtroom, women gave wrenching accounts of learning ...

Trump boasts at Alabama fundraiser that he needs ‘one more indictment to close out this election’

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:37:03 GMT

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Former President Donald Trump, fresh off his third appearance in court as a criminal defendant, delivered a speech full of defiance and bluster on Friday night, insulting prosecutors and declaring that the charges he faces only help his 2024 presidential campaign. “Any time they file an indictment, we go way up in the polls,” Trump said at a Republican Party dinner in Alabama. “We need one more indictment to close out this election. One more indictment, and this election is closed out. Nobody has even a chance.”Trump pleaded not guilty on Thursday to crimes related to his efforts to overturn the results of his 2020 election loss. Although it’s his third criminal indictment this year, this case is the most serious, with the federal government he once ran charging him with orchestrating a scheme to block the peaceful transfer of power.But Trump was characteristically unapologetic as he took the stage Friday night to Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless ...

Big Ten grabs Oregon, Washington; Big 12 completes Pac-12 raid with Arizona, Arizona State and Utah

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:37:03 GMT

The Big 12 announced Friday night it is adding Arizona, Arizona State and Utah as members next year, completing its raid of the Pac-12.The latest blow to the Pac-12, came just hours after the Big Ten welcomed Oregon and Washington to grow its new West Coast wing next year. A little more than a year ago, Southern California and UCLA announced they were joining the Big Ten in 2024. With the Ducks and Huskies, too, the Big Ten will be an 18-team conference.The Big 12 has been targeting the Pac-12’s so-called Four Corner state schools for months, with Colorado making the jump last week.The additions of the Arizona schools and Utah give the Big 12 16 schools, stretching from Florida to Arizona.THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows belowDealing a combination of crushing blows to the Pac-12, the Big Ten announced Friday it will accept Oregon and Washington as new members next August, and the Big 12 was poised to complete its raid of the beleaguered conference on the We...

Person in connection with dancer’s stabbing death at Brooklyn gas station is in custody, police say

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:37:03 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Police have a person in custody in connection with the death of O’Shae Sibley, a gay man who was fatally stabbed after a confrontation between a group of friends dancing to a Beyoncé song and several young men who taunted them, authorities said Friday.The New York City Police Department declined to immediately identify the person or say what criminal charges they would face, if any, describing them only as a “person of interest.”Sibley, a 28-year-old professional dancer, died July 29 after being stabbed in the torso at a Brooklyn gas station. His death outraged New York City’s LGBTQ+ community and drew tributes from celebrities including Beyoncé and Spike Lee.Sibley was at a Mobil station with friends getting gas, listening to music and dancing shirtless on a hot night when they were heckled by a group of young men. One witness, Summy Ullah, said in interviews that the men complained that their behavior offended them as Muslims.Security camera video showed the two gr...

Scouting body asks South Korea to cut Jamboree short as heat wave prompts exodus of British scouts

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:37:03 GMT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The world scouting body urged South Korea to cut short the World Scout Jamboree as thousands of British scouts began leaving the coastal campsite Saturday because of a punishing heat wave.Hundreds of participants have been treated for heat-related ailments since the Jamboree began Wednesday at the site in the coastal town of Buan as South Korea grapples with one of its hottest summers in years. The World Organization of the Scout Movement said it asked South Korean organizers to “consider alternative options to end the event earlier than scheduled and support the participants until they depart for their home countries.”Should organizers decide to proceed, there needs to be stronger assurances “they will do everything possible to address the issues caused by the heat wave by adding additional resources,” the body said in a statement.“We continue to call on the host and the Korean government to honor their commitments to mobilize additional financial and huma...

Idaho bus filled with teen campers crashes on winding highway, injuring 11

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:37:03 GMT

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A school bus carrying teenage campers rolled over on a winding Idaho highway Friday afternoon, injuring 11 people, the Idaho State Police said. Seven of those hurt had critical injuries and four had non-critical injuries, according to an ISP news release. The Boise County Coroner’s office had not received any reports of fatalities as of 5:45 p.m., coroner’s investigator Noah Webster said. The bus was carrying about 30 campers and staff back to Boise from the Treasure Valley YMCA’s camp at Horsethief Reservoir. All of the teens on the bus were between 13 and 18 years old, according to ISP. They were all taken to area hospitals to be checked out, the ISP said. The Valley County Sheriff’s Office said they were notified of the crash about 3 p.m., and several law enforcement and emergency medical agencies responded. Treasure Valley YMCA Director David Duro he wasn’t immediately able to comment on the crash. “We are in the middle of managing par...

PHOTOS: Day two of Lollapalooza 2023

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:37:03 GMT

CHICAGO -- The Lollapalooza Music Festival 2023 kicked day two off with a bang.On a sold out Friday, The 1975, Knocked Loose, Subtronics, Kendrick Lamar were the headliners Lollapalooza 2023. But during the day, fans were able to enjoy a variety of artists from rap to electro pop and indie to pop-punk. PHOTOS: Day one of Lollapalooza 2023 Brittney Denise Parks of the band Sudan Archives performs on day two of the Lollapalooza Music Festival on Friday, Aug. 4, 2023, at Grant Park in Chicago. (Photo by Rob Grabowski/Invision/AP)Brittney Denise Parks of the band Sudan Archives performs on day two of the Lollapalooza Music Festival on Friday, Aug. 4, 2023, at Grant Park in Chicago. (Photo by Rob Grabowski/Invision/AP)Brittney Denise Parks of the band Sudan Archives performs on day two of the Lollapalooza Music Festival on Friday, Aug. 4, 2023, at Grant Park in Chicago. (Photo by Rob Grabowski/Invision/AP)Sudan Archives, also known as Brittney Denise Parks, performs on day two of the L...

Twitch streamer Kai Cenat to be charged with inciting a riot, NYC police say

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:37:03 GMT

UNION SQUARE, Manhattan (WPIX) –  Twitch streamer Kai Cenat will be charged with inciting a riot and unlawful assembly after a massive crowd descended into chaos during a giveaway event of his at Union Square in Manhattan on Friday, police said.On Thursday, Cenat tweeted that he would be heading to Union Square Plaza at 4 p.m. for a giveaway, drawing what's estimated to be thousands to the area on Friday. Man run over by beach rake in Coney Island: officials The streets were clogged with people. Some people were knocked down and bloodied from stampeding in the crowd. Beer bottles were thrown, cops were pelted with objects, people were knocking each other down, and construction sites were overturned. NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey said he witnessed people with bloodied heads and faces emerging from the crowd.“People were suffering out here. A lot of young people got hurt,” NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey said during a briefing. “We’re not against young people hav...

Tory Lanez shooting sentencing set for Monday. Here's what he faces

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:37:03 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Three years have passed since hip-hop superstar Megan Thee Stallion was shot multiple times by rapper Tory Lanez in Los Angeles following a pool party at the home of Kylie Jenner.On Monday, Lanez is scheduled to be sentenced, following his December conviction on three felony charges. Here's what you need to know about the case so far.Who are the key figures in the case?Tory Lanez, whose legal name is Daystar Peterson, is a Canadian artist who began releasing mixtapes in 2009 and saw a steady rise in popularity, moving on to major-label albums. The 31-year-old's last album reached the top 10 on the Billboard 200 chart, and he was a featured artist on Jack Harlow's No. 2 hit, "WHATS POPPIN."Megan Thee Stallion, now 28, was already a major rising star at the time of the shooting, and her prominence has surged since. The Houston-based rapper born Megan Pete won a Grammy for best new artist in 2021, and had No. 1 singles on the Billboard Hot 100 with her own song "Sava...

Former first-round NBA draft pick is sentenced to 10 years in prison in $4M health care fraud

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:37:03 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — A federal judge has sentenced a former first-round NBA draft pick to 10 years in prison, saying he became a leader of a $5 million health care fraud only after frittering away substantial earnings from his professional career.Terrence Williams was sentenced Thursday by Judge Valerie E. Caproni in Manhattan. Williams was picked No. 11 in the 2009 draft by what was then the New Jersey Nets. ‘Asking for prayers’: Steve McMichael admitted to ICU amid ALS battle Before his career ended in 2013, he played for the Nets, Boston Celtics, Houston Rockets and Sacramento Kings.Williams had pleaded guilty to conspiracy, admitting ripping off the NBA's Health and Welfare Benefit Plan between 2017 and 2021.