Month: October 2021

By PAUL J. WEBER Associated Press AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has picked a new elections chief who briefly joined former President Donald Trump’s failed efforts to challenge the 2020 election results. The appointment Thursday of John Scott as Texas Secretary of State comes near the end of an already highly charged

By DÁNICA COTO and ALBERTO ARCE Associated Press PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Gangs across Haiti’s capital and beyond are wielding power like never before. They control more land and commit more crimes than ever — all without a care. Their tightening grip on society threatens the country’s social fabric and its fragile, anemic economy. Poverty

By TOM HAYS Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — A neurologist has pleaded not guilty to federal charges alleging he was a serial sexual abuser of women who had gone to him for help with debilitating, chronic pain. Prosecutors say Dr. Ricardo Cruciani entered the plea Thursday in federal court in Manhattan. He was expected

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. (AP) — The 2-month-old California wildfire that threatened the Lake Tahoe resort region over the summer has been declared 100% contained. Officials say the fire reached the milestone late Wednesday. Storms this week covered the fire’s western side in snow and rain fell on the blaze’s eastern side. Stronger storms are

By KEN SWEET AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — In its first significant action under a new director, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is ordering Apple, Amazon, PayPal and other tech giants to reveal how their proprietary payment networks function. Apple Pay, Google Pay and other payment systems created by big tech companies now

PARIS (AP) — The world’s biggest triceratops skeleton, known as “Big John,” has been sold for 6.6 million euros ($7.7 million) to a private collector at a Paris auction house. The enormous skeleton, estimated to be over 66 million years old, was found in 2014 in South Dakota. The triceratops is known for its three

CAIRO (AP) — Egyptian prosecutors have ordered a man to face trial who appeared to steal a journalist’s phone while it was livestreaming outside the capital Cairo. The country’s public prosecutor said on Wednesday that the man, who was caught on video grabbing the phone out of the journalist’s hands while riding on a motorbike

By RIAZ KHAN Associated Press PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — Pakistan’s foreign minister says his country will keep its border with Afghanistan open around the clock to support bilateral trade and the new Taliban government. Thursday’s announcement by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi came after a daylong visit to Kabul, the Afghan capital, where he met

By DAVID BAUDER AP Media Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Katie Couric, in a new memoir called “Going There,” writes of feeling betrayed by Matt Lauer following the sexual misconduct accusations that led to his firing at the “Today” show in 2017. She details the disintegration of their relationship to the point where she believes

By STEFANIE DAZIO Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — Public health departments across California are gearing up to administer coronavirus vaccines to children ages 5 to 11 in the coming weeks and officials say they are planning “family-friendly” events — including at schools — to convince parents and guardians to get their kids vaccinated. The