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Jan. 6 charges against Trump would add to his mounting legal peril as he campaigns for 2024

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:02:51 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Hush-money payments. Classified records. And now, his efforts to overturn the 2020 election that led to the Capitol attack. Already facing criminal cases in New York and Florida, Donald Trump faces increasing legal peril as investigations into his struggle to cling to power after his election loss appear to be coming to a head. A target letter sent to Trump by special counsel Jack Smith suggests he may soon be indicted on new federal charges, adding to the remarkable situation of a former president up against possible prison time while vying to reclaim the White House as the frontrunner for the Republican nomination. Smith’s wide-ranging probe into the chaotic weeks between Trump’s election loss and his supporters’ attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, seems to be nearing an end just as another case could be on the horizon. A grand jury that was sworn in this month in Georgia will likely consider whether to charge Trump and his Republican allies ...

Stanford University president announces resignation over concerns about his research

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:02:51 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The president of Stanford University said Wednesday he would resign, citing an independent review that cleared him of research misconduct but found flaws in some papers he authored.Marc Tessier-Lavigne said in a statement to students and staff that he would step down August 31.The resignation comes after the board of trustees launched a review in December following allegations he engaged in fraud and other unethical conduct related to his research and papers.He says he “never submitted a scientific paper without firmly believing that the data were correct and accurately presented.” But he says he should have been more diligent in seeking corrections regarding his work.The review assessed 12 papers that Tessier-Lavigne worked on, five of them in which he was the principal author. He said he was aware of issues with four of the five papers but acknowledged taking “insufficient” steps to deal with the issues. He said he’ll retract three of the papers and correct tw...

Masks are out at In-N-Out after burger chain bans employees from wearing them in 5 states

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:02:51 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — The In-N-Out burger chain will bar employees in five states from wearing masks unless they have a doctor’s note, according to internal company emails leaked on social media.In the memo announcing new guidelines for Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, Texas and Utah workers, the fast food chain pointed to “the importance of customer service and the ability to show our Associates’ smiles and other facial features while considering the health and well-being of all individuals.”The policy, which goes into effect Aug. 14, applies to all In-N-Out employees in those states, except for those who need to wear masks or other protective gear for job duties that require it, like painting. Employees could face disciplinary action, including being fired, if they do not comply, the memo says.California and Oregon both have laws in place preventing employers from banning masks.It is not the first time that the chain, based in California, has clashed with health experts over safet...

US approves $1.3 billion package of long-term military aid for Ukraine

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:02:51 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon announced a new $1.3 billion package of long-term military aid to Ukraine on Wednesday, including four air defense systems and an undisclosed number of drones.The new assistance comes on the heels of a meeting Tuesday by defense and military leaders from around the globe to discuss ongoing efforts to give Ukraine the weapons it needs in its battle to retake territory seized by Russian forces.Included in the aid, which is being provided under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, will be funding for four National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System, or NASAMS, and munitions for them, as well as Phoenix Ghost and Switchblade drones. Unlike the presidential drawdown authority that the Pentagon has used repeatedly over the past 17 months to pull weapons from its own stocks and quickly ship them to Ukraine, the USAI-funded equipment could take a year or two to get to the battlefront. As a result, this new package will do little to help Ukraine in i...

Ex-officer Derek Chauvin to ask US Supreme Court to review his conviction in murder of George Floyd

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:02:51 GMT

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin will ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review his conviction for second-degree murder in the killing of George Floyd, now that the Minnesota Supreme Court has declined to hear the case, his attorney said Wednesday.The state’s highest court without comment denied Chauvin’s petition in a one-page order dated Tuesday, letting Chauvin’s conviction and 22 1/2-year sentence stand. Chauvin faces long odds at the U.S. Supreme Court, which hears only about 100 to 150 appeals of the more than 7,000 cases it is asked to review every year.Floyd, who was Black, died on May 25, 2020, after Chauvin, who is white, pressed a knee on his neck for 9 1/2 minutes on the street outside a convenience store where Floyd tried to pass a counterfeit $20 bill. A bystander video captured Floyd’s fading cries of “I can’t breathe.” Floyd’s death touched off protests worldwide, some of which turned violent, and forced a national reckoning with police b...

A powerful storm sweeps Croatia and Slovenia after days of heat, killing at least 4 people

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:02:51 GMT

ZAGREB, Croatia (AP) — A powerful storm with strong winds and heavy rain hit Croatia and Slovenia on Wednesday, killing at least four people and injuring several others, police and local media outlets said. The storm was the second in two days to sweep over the two countries following a string of extremely hot and dry days. Elsewhere in Europe, a heat wave caused wildfires and public health warnings. Two men died in Croatia’s capital, Zagreb, after they were hit by falling trees, Croatian police said. A 50-year-old man was struck while outside in the street, and a 48-year-old man was in his car, a police statement said. Earlier, emergency doctor Ljupka Hitrova told the official Hina news agency that the two victims had multiple head injuries. The civil protection service in eastern Croatia reported that one person died when a tree fell on their car in the town of Cernik.Elsewhere in Zagreb, a 36-year-old man was severely injured when a construction crane collapsed, the police ...

Researchers hope undersea work yields new information on 1994 Baltic Sea ferry disaster

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:02:51 GMT

HELSINKI (AP) — A research vessel carrying investigators from Sweden and Estonia was scheduled to arrive Wednesday at the Baltic Sea site where a passenger ferry sank almost 30 years ago to conduct underwater studies that might produce new information about one of Europe’s deadliest maritime disasters.Representatives of the Estonian Safety Investigation Bureau and the Swedish Accident Investigation Authority plan to study the wreckage of the M/S Estonia in cooperation with Finnish authorities over the next eight days.The ferry sank in heavy seas on Sept. 28, 1994, killing 852 people, most of them Swedes and Estonians. The ferry was traveling from Estonia’s capital, Tallinn, to Stockholm when it sank about 30 minutes after an initial distress call. Only 137 people survived. Among other activities, the investigators plan to collect bedrock samples from the bottom of the sea near the wreckage site, film the ferry’s car deck and retrieve the vessel’s bow ramp from the seabed. They...

Israeli president tells Congress his country is committed to democracy but concedes ‘painful debate’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:02:51 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Israeli President Isaac Herzog sought to reassure Congress on Wednesday about the state of Israel’s democracy and the strength of the U.S.-Israel relationship, acknowledging “heated and painful debate” at home and criticism abroad over actions of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s hardline government.Herzog, whose post in Israel is largely symbolic, became the second Israeli president, after his father, Chaim Herzog, to address Congress. While his speech officially marked modern Israel’s celebration of its 75th year, he also indirectly addressed unease in the Biden administration and among Democratic lawmakers over the Netanyahu government’s planned sweeping overhaul of Israel’s judicial system, expanded Jewish settlement in the occupied West Bank and other matters.The divide was reflected in his audience. While lawmakers repeatedly rose to their feet in thundering applause of Herzog’s recounting of Israel’s founding, a handful ...

Judge rejects Trump’s bid to move hush money case to federal court

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:02:51 GMT

(The Hill) -- A judge on Wednesday rejected former President Donald Trump’s bid to move his hush money criminal case to federal court, ruling that the allegations are not connected to Trump’s role as president.U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein, a Clinton appointee, granted Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s (D) office’s request to keep the case in New York state court.Trump had argued the case must be moved to federal court because he was being prosecuted for an act under the color of his office as president and that Bragg’s prosecution was politically motivated.Manhattan prosecutors charged Trump with 34 counts of falsifying business records, accusing him of making a series of false entries as he reimbursed his then-fixer, Michael Cohen, in part to conceal a $130,000 hush payment that Cohen made to adult film star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election. Trump pleaded not guilty.The former president’s lawyers argued that Trump hired Cohen to handle his per...

‘Is watching a movie crossing the picket line?’ and other Hollywood strike fan questions answered

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:02:51 GMT

You watch movies. You watch TV. And now you're wondering how the dual Hollywood strikes — a pitched battle with actors and writers on one side, and studios and streaming services on the other — will affect you. We have answers.Do the strikes mean “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” aren't coming out?They — and all other summer releases — are still on track! Many flashy premieres have been canceled, however, or dramatically scaled down.Am I crossing the picket line by seeing one of those movies?No, the unions have not asked fans to boycott productions, and are quick to make that explicit. Instead, the guilds have asked supporters who aren't members to post on social media and donate to community funds. These notable movies, TV shows are on hold because of the actors strike Should I cancel Netflix, MAX or the 16 other streaming services I subscribe to if I want to show support?Nope, there's been no consumer boycott of any kind called yet. Some guild members have said watching their programs ...