National News - The Morning Sun

California Gov. Gavin Newsom breaks ground at a new state park in a decade on Monday April 22, 2024 at the Dos Rios property, in Modesto, Calif. The announcement comes as the state sets targets for cutting planet-warming emissions on natural lands. (AP Photo/Sophie Austin)

California announces first new state park in a decade and sets climate goals for natural lands

California will open its first new state park in a decade this summer. The Dos Rios tract in the state's Central Valley is set to open in June. Gov. Gavin Newsom made the announcement Monday. The … more

By SOPHIE AUSTIN | 4/22/24

Insider Q&A: Trust and safety exec talks about AI and content moderation

Alex Popken was a trust and safety executive at Twitter, leaving in 2023 after a decade at the social media company focusing on content moderation. Now, she serves as the vice president of trust and … more

By BARBARA ORTUTAY | 4/22/24

This artist sketch depicts Salah Al-Ejaili, foreground with glasses, a former Al-Jazeera journalist, before the U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Va., Tuesday, April 16, 2024. Al-Ejaili, a former detainee at the infamous Abu Ghraib prison, has described to jurors the type of abuse that is reminiscent of the scandal that erupted there 20 years ago: beatings, being stripped naked and threatened with dogs, stress positions meant to induce exhaustion and pain. (Dana Verkouteren via AP)

Jury deliberating in Iraq Abu Ghraib prison abuse civil case; contractor casts blame on Army

A lawyer for a military contractor being sued by three survivors of the notorious Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq says the plaintiffs are suing the wrong people. Lawyers for Virginia-based CACI told jurors … more

BY MATTHEW BARAKAT | 4/22/24

FILE - The Chinese and the Olympic flag wave during the opening ceremony of the 2022 Winter Olympics, Feb. 4, 2022, in Beijing. In the two years before the World Anti-Doping Agency cleared 23 Chinese swimmers of doping allegations, that country’s government contributed nearly $2 million in additional funding to WADA programs, including one designed to strengthen the agency’s investigations and intelligence unit. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek, file)

Chinese generosity in lead-up to cleared doping tests reflects its growing influence on WADA

In the two years before the World Anti-Doping Agency cleared 23 Chinese swimmers of doping allegations, that country’s government contributed nearly $2 million in additional funding to WADA … more

By EDDIE PELLS | 4/22/24

Sima Gutierrez, right, observes as a teammate examines water at the Flint Community Water Lab, Wednesday, April 3, 2024, in Flint, Mich. The lab, with more than 60 high school and college interns, has provided free water testing for thousands of residents since 2020. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

Children of Flint water crisis make change as young environmental and health activists

Dozens of the children of Flint, Michigan’s lead-contaminated water crisis have turned their trauma into advocacy 10 years after it began. Now as teenagers and young adults, they’re providing … more

By TAMMY WEBBER | 4/22/24

FILE - Social media applications are displayed on an iPhone, March 13, 2019, in New York. An independent Russian news site has reported that a court in Russia convicted the spokesman of U.S. technology company Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, of justifying terrorism and sentenced him to six years in prison in absentia. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File)

Russia convicts the spokesperson for Facebook owner Meta in a swift trial in absentia

An independent Russian news site has reported that a court in Russia convicted the spokesperson of U.S. technology company Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, of justifying terrorism and … more

By The Associated Press | 4/22/24

FILE - A woman walks by a Yale sign reflected in the rainwater on the Yale University campus, Aug. 22, 2021, in New Haven, Conn. Columbia University canceled in-person classes Monday, April 22, 2024 and police arrested several dozen protesters at Yale University as tensions on U.S. college campuses continue to grow over the war in the Middle East. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey, File)

Columbia cancels in-person classes and Yale protesters are arrested as Mideast war tensions grow

Columbia University has canceled in-person classes and police have arrested dozens of students at Yale University as tensions over the war in the Middle East continue to grow on U.S. college … more

By NICK PERRY and DAVE COLLINS | 4/22/24

FILE - Two lake sturgeons are set to be weighed near Black Lake in Cheboygan County, Mich., Feb. 4, 2017. Lake sturgeon don't need Endangered Species Act protections, federal wildlife officials announced Monday, April 22, 2024, saying that stocking programs have helped the prehistoric fish return to areas where they had vanished. (Julia Nagy/Lansing State Journal via AP, File)

Prehistoric lake sturgeon is not endangered, US says despite calls from conservationists

Federal wildlife officials have decided not to place lake sturgeon on the endangered species list, ensuring annual spearing seasons in Wisconsin and Michigan can continue. The Center for Biological … more

By TODD RICHMOND | 4/22/24

Pages from the CyberTipline website are seen on a computer in New York on Friday, April 19, 2024. A tipline set up 26 years ago to combat online child exploitation is “enormously valuable” but hasn't lived up to its potential. That’s what a new report from the Stanford Internet Observatory released on Monday, April 22, 2024 has found. (AP Photo/Patrick Sison)

Report urges fixes to online child exploitation CyberTipline before AI makes it worse

A tipline set up 26 years ago to combat online child exploitation is “enormously valuable” but hasn't lived up to its potential. That’s what a new report from the Stanford Internet Observatory … more

By BARBARA ORTUTAY and MATT O'BRIEN | 4/22/24

Children of Flint water crisis make change as young environmental and health activists

Dozens of the children of Flint, Michigan's lead-contaminated water crisis have turned their trauma into advocacy 10 years after it began. Now as teenagers and young adults, they're providing input … more

By TAMMY WEBBER | 4/22/24

FILE - Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council 7, Monday, Jan. 22, 2024, in Big Bend, Wis. Harris plans to return to Wisconsin next week for her third visit to the battleground state this year. President Joe Biden's campaign announced Thursday, April 18, that Harris plans to campaign in La Crosse on Monday at an event focused on abortion rights (AP Photo/Morry Gash, File)

Vice President Harris to reveal final rules mandating minimum standards for nursing home staffing

The federal government will for the first time require nursing homes to have minimum staffing levels after the COVID-19 pandemic exposed grim realities in poorly staffed facilities for older … more

By ADRIANA GOMEZ LICON | 4/22/24

Israeli forces pursue suspected attackers in a ramming attack that wounded three people on the eve of the Jewish holiday of Passover, in Jerusalem, Monday, April 22, 2024. Israeli police say a car slammed into pedestrians in Jerusalem on Monday, wounding three people lightly in an apparent attack. The three were injured when a car ran them over in the neighborhood of Romema, northeast of the city center. Police said they were searching for the two attackers, who they said had exited the vehicle with a submachine gun and fled the scene. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

The Latest | 2 suspects arrested after Jerusalem in car attack

Israeli police said they have arrested two people after a car slammed into pedestrians in Jerusalem, wounding three people lightly. Palestinians have carried out periodic attacks on Israeli cities … more

By The Associated Press | 4/22/24

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks to supporters during a campaign event, Sunday, April 21, 2024, in Royal Oak, Mich. (AP Photo/Jose Juarez)

Kennedy says he loves his family 'either way' after relatives endorse Biden's campaign over his

Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is acknowledging endorsements from more than a dozen of his relatives who are backing Democratic President Joe Biden, saying he feels no ill will over the … more

By MEG KINNARD | 4/21/24

In this photo provided by Jesse Sorenson, actor Kevin Bacon, center, helps fill care packages for his charity, Saturday, April 20, 2024, in Payson, Utah, while visiting the Utah high school where cult classic "Footloose," was filmed. (Jesse Sorenson via AP)

Kevin Bacon dances back to 'Footloose' high school

Actor Kevin Bacon has returned to the Utah high school where his cult classic movie “Footloose” was filmed more than 40 years ago. Bacon danced his way to a stage on a Payson High School athletic … more

4/21/24

Jon Batiste performs during the second weekend of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on Saturday, April 20, 2024, at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, Calif. (Photo by Amy Harris/Invision/AP)

AP Photos: A gallery of images from the Coachella Music Festival, the annual party in the desert

INDIO, Calif. (AP) — Thousands of fans flocked to the Southern California desert town of Indio this year for the Coachella Valley Music Festival, now on its second of two weekends. Headline acts … more

4/21/24

This photo provided by the Ada County, Idaho, Sheriff’s Office shows Deputy Tobin Bolter. The sheriff's deputy died after being shot by a driver during a traffic stop, and a man believed to be the shooting suspect was later fatally shot by police, authorities said Sunday, April 21, 2024. (Ada County Sheriff’s Office via AP)

Suspect in killing of Idaho sheriff's deputy fatally shot by police, authorities say

Authorities say an Idaho sheriff’s deputy is dead after being shot by a driver during a traffic stop in Boise. A man believed to be the shooting suspect was later found and fatally shot by police … more

4/21/24

A Palestinian baby girl, Sabreen Jouda, who was delivered prematurely after her mother was killed in an Israeli strike along with her husband and daughter, lies in an incubator in the Emirati hospital in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip. Sunday, April 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammad Jahjouh)

A Palestinian baby in Gaza is born an orphan in an urgent cesarean section after an Israeli strike

Sabreen Jouda came into the world seconds after her mother left it. Their home was hit by an Israeli airstrike shortly before midnight. The family had been like many other Palestinians trying to … more

By MOHAMMAD JAHJOUH | 4/21/24

FILE - This Sept., 21, 2007 file photo shows a sign posted at the front gate of Delaware State University in Dover, Del. An 18-year-old woman died after she was shot on the campus of Delaware State University on Sunday, April 21, 2024 authorities said. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

Woman, 18, dies after being shot at Delaware State University; campus closed

Authorities say an 18-year-old woman died after she was shot on the campus of Delaware State University. Dover police say officers responded at 1:40 a.m. Sunday to a report of shots on the campus. A … more

4/21/24

A voter is identified before he casts his vote at a polling station in North Mitrovica, Kosovo Sunday, April 21, 2024. Residents of four Serb-majority municipalities are casting their votes Sunday in a referendum to decide whether to remove their ethnic Albanian mayors from office following last year’s mayoral elections, overwhelmingly boycotted by the Serb minority. (AP Photo/Visar Kryeziu)

Residents of four Serb-majority municipalities boycott vote on removing ethnic Albanian mayors

Residents of four Serb-majority municipalities have overwhelmingly boycotted a vote on removing their ethnic Albanian mayors from office following last year’s mayoral elections. The referendum on … more

By FLORENT BAJRAMI and LLAZAR SEMINI | 4/21/24

An assortment of vegan, organic, locally sourced, and wild caught food products all using plastic packaging, sit in a shopping cart at a grocery store in New Orleans, Wednesday, April 17, 2024. People are increasingly breathing, eating and drinking tiny particles of plastic, however, there are simple things people can do at the grocery store if they want to use less plastic. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

Earth Day: How one grocery shopper takes steps to avoid 'pointless plastic'

Nature wraps bananas and oranges in peels. But in some modern supermarkets, they’re bagged or wrapped in plastic too. For Judith Enck, that’s the epitome of pointless plastic. The global theme … more

By JENNIFER McDERMOTT and MICHAEL HILL | 4/21/24