National News - The Morning Sun

FILE - Libya's Khalifa Hifter, the commander of the self-styled Libyan National Army, is seen at the International Defense Exhibition and Conference in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Monday, Feb. 20, 2023. A U.S. judge tossed out a series of civil lawsuits, Friday, April 12, 2024, against Hifter, who used to live in Virginia and was accused of killing innocent civilians in that country's civil war. (AP Photo/Jon Gambrell, File)

US judge tosses out lawsuits against Libyan commander accused of war crimes

A U.S. judge has tossed out a series of civil lawsuits against a Libyan military commander who used to live in Virginia and was accused of killing innocent civilians in that country’s civil war. A … more

By MATTHEW BARAKAT | 4/14/24

FILE - Denise Lodge, left, covers her face with a printout of the indictment against her as she walks from the federal courthouse, Wednesday, June 14, 2023, in Concord, N.H., following her arrest on charges related to an alleged scheme to steal and sell donated body parts. Lodge, 64, the wife of a former Harvard Medical School morgue manager has pleaded guilty Friday, April 12, 2024, to a federal charge after investigators said she shipped stolen human body parts to buyers. (Steven Porter/The Boston Globe via AP, File)

Wife of ex-Harvard morgue manager pleads guilty to transporting stolen human remains

The wife of a former Harvard Medical School morgue manager has pleaded guilty to a federal charge after investigators said she shipped stolen human body parts to buyers. Sixty-four-year-old Denise … more

4/14/24

FILE - In this March 22, 1956, file photo, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. is welcomed with a kiss by his wife, Coretta, after leaving court in Montgomery, Ala. Gene Herrick, a retired Associated Press photographer who covered the Korean War and is known for his iconic images of Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks and the trial of the killers of Emmett Till in the early years of the Civil Rights Movement, died Friday, April 12, 2024. He was 97. (AP Photo/Gene Herrick, File)

Gene Herrick, AP photographer who covered the Korean war and civil rights, dies at 97

Gene Herrick, a retired Associated Press photographer who covered the Korean War and is known for his iconic images of Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks and the civil rights movement, died Friday. … more

4/14/24

A demonstrator waves Iranian and Palestinian flags during an anti-Israeli gathering at the Felestin (Palestine) Square in Tehran, Iran, early Sunday, April 14, 2024. Iran launched its first direct military attack against Israel Saturday. The Israeli military says Iran fired more than 100 bomb-carrying drones toward Israel. Hours later, Iran announced it had also launched much more destructive ballistic missiles. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

The Latest | Israel hails interception of drones and missiles in unprecedented attack by Iran

Israel is hailing the success of its defenses in the face of an unprecedented attack by Iran involving hundreds of drones, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles. An Israeli military spokesman said … more

By The Associated Press | 4/14/24

Iran's state TV confirmed early on Sunday that the country's powerful Revolutionary Guard had launched drones and missiles at Israel. Iran launched drones toward Israel late Saturday, the Israeli military also announced, and Iran's state-run media reported that dozens had been fired.

The Latest | Iran launches its first direct military attack against Israel

Iran launched a first direct military attack against Israel on Saturday, sending drones and cruise and ballistic missiles toward Israel. Iran’s state-run media reported that dozens of drones had … more

By The Associated Press | 4/13/24

This photo provided by Nebraska State Patrol shows Ceresco Police Officer Ross Bartlett. Bartlett was killed when his squad car was struck by another vehicle after he made a traffic stop in eastern Nebraska, authorities said Saturday, April 13, 2024. (Nebraska State Patrol via AP)

Veteran Nebraska police officer killed in crash when pickup truck rear-ended his cruiser

A veteran Nebraska police officer was killed when his cruiser was struck by another vehicle after he made a traffic stop. The State Patrol says 54-year-old Ceresco Police Officer Ross Bartlett … more

4/13/24

President Joe Biden boarding Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., Friday, April 12, 2024, enroute to New Castle, Del. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) President Joe Biden during his arrival on Air Force One at Delaware Air National Guard Base in New Castle, Del., Friday, April 12, 2024.(AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Biden will meet with his national security team as fears rise of an Iranian strike against Israel

President Joe Biden is set to meet with his national security team and monitor the situation in the Middle East ahead of a feared Iranian strike against Israel. Tensions are at their highest since … more

By MICHELLE L. PRICE and ZEKE MILLER | 4/13/24

River barges break loose in Pittsburgh, causing damage and closing bridges before some go over a dam

Pittsburgh officials say a large group of river barges broke loose and floated down the Ohio River, damaging a marina and causing bridge closures before the boats were pinned to the riverbank or went … more

4/13/24

Bishop John Wesley Yohanna of the United Methodist Church delivers a message to church members Dec. 10, 2023, at the church's headquarters in Jalingo, Nigeria, during a celebration of 100 years of Methodism in the country. The bishop invited the congregation to remember the early missionaries and the sacrifices they made. But separately, he has said the Nigeria church may split from the denomination over differences on ordination of LGBTQ people and same-sex marriage. (Ezekiel Ibrahim Maisamari/UM News via AP)

As a landmark United Methodist gathering approaches, African churches weigh their future.

The United Methodist Church lost one-fourth of its U.S. churches in a recent schism, with conservatives departing over disputes on sexuality and theology. Now the question is whether the church can … more

By PETER SMITH | 4/13/24

Demonstrators at the University of Michigan Diag protest the university's draft Disruptive Activity Policy on Thursday, April 4, 2024, in Ann Arbor. A University of Michigan proposal aimed at deterring disruptions on its Ann Arbor campus after anti-Israel protesters interrupted an honors convocation is sparking backlash from free speech advocates. (Zena Issa/Michigan Public Radio via AP)

Some fear University of Michigan proposed policy on protests could quell free speech efforts

A University of Michigan proposal aimed at deterring disruptions on its Ann Arbor campus after anti-Israel protesters interrupted an honors convocation is sparking backlash from free speech … more

By COREY WILLIAMS | 4/13/24

FILE - Towers view over the High Desert State Prison in Indian Springs, Nev., April 15, 2015. The mother of a Nevada prisoner who died in custody in April 2023 alleges in a new lawsuit filed late Thursday, April 11, 2024, that her son, Christian Walker, was violently beaten by prison guards and left to die at High Desert State Prison near Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher, File)

Mother of Nevada prisoner claims in lawsuit that prison staff covered up her son's fatal beating

The mother of a Nevada prisoner who died in custody has filed a wrongful death lawsuit calling into question the coroner's narrative that her son died of heart problems. The lawsuit filed late … more

By GABE STERN and RIO YAMAT | 4/12/24

FILE - Manuel Rocha stands for a portrait at Steel Hector & Davis in Miami in January 2003, joining the firm to help open doors in Latin America. Former career U.S. diplomat Rocha was sentenced Friday, April 12, 2024, to 15 years in federal prison after admitting he worked for decades as a secret agent for communist Cuba, a plea agreement that leaves many unanswered questions about a betrayal that stunned the U.S. foreign service. (Raul Rubiera/Miami Herald via AP, File)

Former US ambassador sentenced to 15 years in prison for serving as secret agent for Cuba

A former career U.S. diplomat has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison after admitting he worked for decades as a secret agent for communist Cuba. Manuel Rocha was sentenced Friday after … more

By GISELA SALOMON and JIM MUSTIAN | 4/12/24

Buildings associated with Memorial Hermann Hospital and medical complex are visible Friday, April 12, 2024 in the Medical Center district of Houston. Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center has halted its liver transplant and kidney transplant programs. The Houston Chronicle reported Thursday that the hospital discovered a doctor manipulated records for liver transplant candidates. (Kirk Sides/Houston Chronicle via AP)

Houston hospital halts liver and kidney transplants after learning a doctor manipulated some records

A Houston hospital says it has halted its liver and kidney transplant programs after discovering a doctor manipulated records for liver transplant candidates. Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center … more

4/12/24

This photo provided by U.S. Coast Guard shows HELP" spelled out with palm fronds by three stranded mariners on Pikelot Atoll, Yap State, Federated States of Micronesia, Monday, April 8, 2024. The three mariners are safe after the coordination of U.S. Coast Guard Forces Micronesia/Sector Guam and the U.S. Navy, after being stranded for more than a week. (U.S. Coast Guard photo)

'HELP' sign on beach points rescuers to men stuck nine days on remote Pacific atoll

The U.S. Coast Guard says three men stranded on an uninhabited Pacific atoll survived for over a week before being rescued. The fishermen got in trouble after their boat hit a coral reef and took on … more

By MEAD GRUVER | 4/12/24

FILE - Walt Nauta, center, valet to former president Donald Trump, his attorney Stanley Woodward, rear, and Carlos De Oliveira, foreground, the property manager of Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate, leave the Alto Lee Adams Sr. U.S. Courthouse, Aug. 10, 2023, in Fort Pierce, Fla. Lawyers for Nauta and De Oliveira are set to ask U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon during a Friday, April 12, 2024, hearing to throw out charges of conspiring with Trump to obstruct an FBI investigation into the hoarding of classified documents at the former president's Palm Beach estate. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File)

Trump's co-defendants in classified documents case are asking judge to dismiss charges against them

Lawyers for two co-defendants of former President Donald Trump in the Florida classified documents case are asking a judge to dismiss charges against them. Trump valet Walt Nauta and Mar-a-Lago … more

By STEPHANY MATAT and ERIC TUCKER | 4/12/24

FILE - Children's Defense Fund Program Director Graciela Camarena assists Lucia Salazar with filling out Medicaid and SNAP application forms for her family in Pharr, Texas, Nov. 13, 2023. Almost a quarter of people who were dropped from Medicaid during the post-pandemic eligibility reviews are still uninsured and high costs are preventing them from getting on another plan, a new survey showed Friday, April 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Michael Gonzalez, File)

One-fourth of people dropped from Medicaid still aren't insured, survey shows

A new survey shows that almost a quarter of people who have been dropped from Medicaid during post-pandemic eligibility reviews are still uninsured. High costs also are preventing many from getting … more

By DEVNA BOSE | 4/12/24

A woman views the solar eclipse in Times Square, Monday, April 8, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Peter K. Afriyie)

AP Week in Pictures: North America

April 5 - 11, 2024 People across North America watch a total solar eclipse, members of the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square perform during a conference in Salt Lake City, and a rainbow forms … more

By The Associated Press | 4/11/24

Morgan Geyser is led out Waukesha County Circuit Court after day 1 of a motion hearing on Wednesday, April 10, 2024, in Waukesha, Wis. Two psychologists testified Wednesday that Geyser, who at age 12 stabbed a sixth-grade classmate nearly to death to please the online horror character Slender Man, should not be released yet from a psychiatric hospital. (Scott Ash/Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel via AP)

Wisconsin woman who at 12 nearly killed girl won't be released yet from psychiatric hospital

A judge has turned down a request to release a Wisconsin woman from a psychiatric hospital, a decade after she nearly killed a girl at age 12. Morgan Geyser is now 21 and no longer takes … more

By ED WHITE | 4/11/24

This booking photo provided by the Austin, Texas, Police Department shows Raul Meza Jr. The convicted murderer released from a Texas prison in 1993 and now facing two new murder charges, offered a plea deal Thursday, April 11, 2024 of 50 years back in prison to avoid a new trial and the possibility of the death penalty. (Austin Police Department via AP)

Convicted murderer charged in two new Texas killings offers to return to prison in plea

A convicted murderer who was released early from a Texas prison in 1993 and now faces two new murder charges has offered to enter a plea and to return to prison for 50 years in exchange for avoiding … more

By JIM VERTUNO | 4/11/24

Witness Wayne Eigabroadt, a former police officer who also worked in the Youth Detention Services Unit, gets questioned by attorney David Vicinanzo during David Meehan's trial at Rockingham Superior Court in Brentwood, N.H., Wednesday, April 10, 2024. (David Lane/Union Leader via AP, Pool)

Lawyers defending youth center against abuse allegations highlight former resident's misbehavior

Attorneys defending the state of New Hampshire have begun highlighting the past misdeeds of man who says he suffered horrific physical and sexual abuse as a teenager at the state’s youth detention … more

By HOLLY RAMER | 4/11/24