National News - The Morning Sun

FILE - This Feb. 11, 2023, booking photo provided by the Oklahoma Department of Corrections shows death row inmate Jemaine Cannon. Oklahoma is preparing to execute Cannon on Thursday, July 20, 2023, for stabbing 20-year-old Sharonda Clark to death with a butcher knife in 1995 after his escape from a prison work center. In a statement sent to The Associated Press this week, Cannon's attorney, Mark Henricksen, said the state's decision to proceed with Cannon's execution amounts to “historic barbarism.” But prosecutors from the attorney general's office and Clark's adult daughters have urged the state to execute Cannon. (Oklahoma Department of Corrections via AP, File)

Oklahoma prepares to execute man for 1995 slaying of Tulsa woman

Oklahoma is preparing to execute a man for stabbing a Tulsa woman to death with a butcher knife in 1995. Fifty-one-year-old Jemaine Cannon is scheduled to receive a lethal injection Thursday morning … more

By SEAN MURPHY | 7/20/23

In this image taken from video provided by ABC 33/40, Hoover Police Chief Nick Derzis speaks at a press conference, Wednesday, July 19, 2023, in Hoover, Ala. Police in Alabama cast doubt Wednesday on the story of Carlee Russell who set off a frantic search when she disappeared for two days after calling 911 to report a toddler wandering on the highway. Derzis said detectives were still investigating her whereabouts, but had so far been “unable to verify most of Carlee's initial statement.” (ABC 33/40 via AP)

Police cast doubt on Carlee Russell's kidnapping claim after reporting toddler on an Alabama highway

Police are casting doubt on a 25-year-old Alabama woman's claim that she was kidnapped from the side of an interstate after calling 911 to report seeing a toddler. Hoover Police Chief Nick Derzis … more

By SUDHIN THANAWALA | 7/19/23

FILE - Officers escort Richard Allen out of the Carroll County courthouse following a hearing, Nov. 22, 2022, in Delphi, Ind. Allen, charged with killing two teenage girls, will remain held at a northern Indiana prison after a judge concluded Wednesday, July 19, 2023, he's being treated better there than other inmates, after his attorneys requested to relocate him from the Indiana Department of Correction’s Westville Correctional Facility. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings, File)

Judge orders man charged with killing 2 teenage girls to remain at northern Indiana prison

An Indiana man charged with killing two teenage girls will remain in prison after a judge concluded he’s being treated better there than other inmates. Special Judge Fran Gull denied a request from … more

7/19/23

FILE - In this image taken from video, former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin addresses the court at the Hennepin County Courthouse, June 25, 2021, in Minneapolis. Chauvin was convicted in the killing of George Floyd. On Tuesday, July 18, 2023, the Minnesota Supreme Court rejected Chauvin’s request to hear his appeal of his conviction for second-degree murder in the killing of Floyd, and his attorney said Wednesday, July 19, that they will now take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court. (Court TV via AP, Pool, File)

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

An attorney for former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin says they'll ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review his second-degree murder conviction in George Floyd's killing. The Minnesota Supreme … more

By STEVE KARNOWSKI | 7/19/23

A Star of David hangs from a fence outside the dormant landmark Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh's Squirrel Hill neighborhood on Thursday, July 13, 2023, the day a federal jury announced they had found Robert Bowers, who in 2018 killed 11 people at the synagogue, eligible for the death penalty. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Pittsburgh synagogue attack survivors testify about overcoming wounds both physical and emotional

Survivors of the 2018 Pittsburgh synagogue attack are testifying to the severe physical and emotional injuries they suffered during the deadliest antisemitic massacre in U.S. history. The testimony … more

By PETER SMITH | 7/19/23

This image, taken with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), shows the young planetary system PDS 70, located nearly 400 light-years away from Earth. Astronomers have discovered what could be two planets sharing the same orbit around their star. They say it's the strongest evidence yet of this bizarre cosmic pairing. long suspected but never proven. The researchers published their findings on Wednesday, July 19, 2023. (European Southern Observatory via AP)

Two planets sharing same orbit around their star? Astronomers find strongest evidence yet

Astronomers have discovered what could be two planets sharing the same orbit around their star. They say it's the strongest evidence yet of this bizarre cosmic pairing. long suspected but never … more

By MARCIA DUNN | 7/19/23

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Cillian Murphy in a scene from "Oppenheimer." (Universal Pictures via AP)

Movie Review: A bomb and its fallout in Christopher Nolan's 'Oppenheimer'

Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” is a kinetic thing of dark, imposing beauty that quakes with the disquieting tremors of a forever rupture in the course of human history, AP Film Writer Jake … more

By JAKE COYLE | 7/19/23

FILE - A woman walks past beauty salons with window decorations which have been defaced in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, Sept. 12, 2021. A spokesman at Afghanistan's Vice and Virtue Ministry said Tuesday, July 4, 2023, the Taliban are banning women's beauty salons. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue, File)

The Taliban use tasers, fire hoses and gunfire to break up Afghan women protesting beauty salon ban

Afghan women protesting a beauty salon ban say the Taliban used tasers, fire hoses and gun shots into the air to break up their demonstration. The closure of beauty salons earlier this month is the … more

By RIAZAT BUTT | 7/19/23

FILE - Amanda Zurawski, one of five plaintiffs, speaks in front of the state Capitol in Austin, Texas, March 7, 2023, as the Center for Reproductive Rights and the plaintiffs announced their lawsuit, which asks for clarity in Texas law as to when abortions can be provided under the "medical emergency" exception. All five women were denied medical care while experiencing pregnancy complications that threatened their health and lives. The women are headed to court Wednesday, July 19, as legal challenges to abortion bans across the U.S. continue a year after the fall of Roe v. Wade. (Sara Diggins/Austin American-Statesman via AP, File)

Women denied abortions in Texas ask court for clarity over state's exceptions to ban

Women who sued Texas after saying they were denied abortions despite serious risks to their health are asking a court to step in. A Texas judge on Wednesday is set to hear testimony from the women, … more

By PAUL J. WEBER | 7/19/23

FILE - Chinese navy sailors stand in formation on board the naval training ship, Qi Jiguang, as it docks at Manila's port, Philippines Wednesday, June 14, 2023. China says it's navy ships are preparing for joint exercises with Russia's sea forces in a sign of Beijing's continuing support for Moscow's invasion of neighboring Ukraine. (AP Photo/Basilio Sepe, File)

China prepares for naval drills with Russia in sign of continuing support amid Ukraine conflict

China says it's navy ships are preparing for joint exercises with Russia's sea forces in a sign of Beijing's continuing support for Moscow's invasion of neighboring Ukraine. The move announced … more

7/19/23

FILE - Mega Millions cards are displayed at the Fuel On Convenience store in Pittsburgh, Jan. 9, 2023. The Mega Millions jackpot has risen to an estimated $720 million after no winning ticket was sold Tuesday, July 18. The estimated jackpot for the next drawing on Friday, July 21, would be the 7th highest ever in Mega Millions history. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)

No winner in Tuesday’s Mega Millions drawing. Jackpot reaches $720 million

The Mega Millions jackpot has risen to an estimated $720 million after no winning ticket was sold — again. No ticket for Tuesday’s drawing matched the white balls 19, 22, 31, 37, 54 and the gold … more

7/19/23

FILE - Chunks of ice float in Mendenhall Lake in front of the Mendenhall Glacier on April 29, 2023, in Juneau, Alaska. An Alaska man inadvertently filmed his own drowning on the glacial lake with a GoPro camera mounted on his helmet, but authorities who recovered the camera have not yet found his body, officials said Tuesday, July 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer, File)

Alaska man inadvertently films his own drowning on a glacial lake with helmet GoPro, officials say

Authorities say an Alaska man inadvertently filmed his own drowning on a glacial lake with a GoPro camera mounted on his helmet. But officials who recovered the camera have not yet found his body. … more

By BECKY BOHRER | 7/18/23

Migrants walk along concertina wire as they try to cross the Rio Grande at the Texas-U.S. border in Eagle Pass, Texas, Thursday, July 6, 2023. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Texas trooper's accounts of bloodied and fainting migrants on US-Mexico border unleashes criticism

The White House is criticizing Texas’ operation to stop migrants along the U.S. border with Mexico after a state trooper told a supervisor that the mission has become inhumane. Nicholas Wingate … more

By ACACIA CORONADO | 7/18/23

FILE - The Louisiana state Capitol stands prominently, April 4, 2023, in Baton Rouge, La. Lawmakers in Louisiana's Republican-dominated Legislature have opted to return to the Capitol for a veto session to begin July 18, 2023, in an attempt to override Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards' recent bill rejections, which included blocking a gender-affirming care ban for transgender youths and the state's version of “Don't Say Gay” legislation. (AP Photo/Stephen Smith, File)

Louisiana lawmakers overturn governor's veto on gender-affirming care ban for transgender minors

Louisiana’s Republican-dominated Legislature overturned Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards’ recent veto of a ban on gender-affirming care for transgender minors on Tuesday. Louisiana, where the ban … more

By SARA CLINE | 7/18/23

Advocates for cooling Texas prisons pray during a news conference at the Texas Capitol, Tuesday, July 18, 2023, in Austin, Texas. The group is calling for an emergency special session to address the deadly heat effecting inmates. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Texas heat wave has inmates' families worried about lack of air conditioning in state's prisons

As a summer heat wave continues to bake most of Texas, family members of inmates are calling for all of the state’s prisons to be fully air conditioned. Only about 30% of Texas’ 100 prisons are … more

By JUAN A. LOZANO | 7/18/23

FILE - Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald watches his team during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Rutgers in Evanston, Ill., Oct. 16, 2021. Northwestern has fired Fitzgerald Monday, July 10, 2023, amid a hazing scandal that called into question his leadership of the program and damaged the university's reputation after it mishandled its response to the allegations. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)

Northwestern joins long list of American universities with a scandal in athletics

Northwestern has been added to a long list of American universities to face a scandal in athletics and may eventually join the trend of making large payouts following allegations of sexual abuse. A … more

By The Associated Press | 7/18/23

FILE - This Aug. 27, 2014 file photo shows a statue outside of the Illinois Supreme Court building in Springfield, Ill. The Illinois Supreme Court on Tuesday, July 18, 2023 upheld the constitutionality of a state law ending cash bail, ordering implementation in mid-September. The ruling overturns a Kankakee County judge’s opinion in December that the law violated the constitution’s provision that “all persons shall be bailable by sufficient sureties. (AP Photo/Seth Perlman, file)

Illinois is first state to eliminate cash bail, a penalty affecting low-income communities most

Illinois became the first state in the nation to eliminate cash bail as a condition of pretrial release from jail on Tuesday. The state Supreme Court upheld the constitutionally of the law abolishing … more

By JOHN O'CONNOR | 7/18/23

This web camera image provided by the U.S. Geological Survey shows a low-level ash plume from the Shishaldin Volcano captured on Tuesday, July 18, 2023. An ongoing eruption of a remote volcano in Alaska's Aleutian Islands produced an ash cloud so large Tuesday warnings were sent to pilots about potentially dangerous conditions.(Alaska Volcano Observatory/U.S. Geological Survey via AP)

Alaska volcano's week-long eruption spews another massive ash cloud

An ongoing eruption of a remote volcano in Alaska’s Aleutian Islands produced an ash cloud so large Tuesday warnings were sent to pilots about potentially dangerous conditions. The ash cloud with … more

7/18/23

A hiker photographs the sun rising over the Valley atop South Mountain, Monday, July 17, 2023 Phoenix. Phoenix is set to break its own record for consecutive days of highs of at least 110 degrees. Around one-third of Americans are under some type of heat advisory, with the most blistering temperatures in the South and West, where even the regular simmer has turned up a notch. (AP Photo/Matt York)

A look at how the desert city of Phoenix copes with summer heat

This summer’s punishing heat wave has baked much of the U.S. in sweat-soaked misery. The country’s preeminent desert city has long sweltered through such brutal heat. And there are lessons to be … more

By ALINA HARTOUNIAN | 7/18/23

This image provided by the Canadian Museum of Nature shows entangled dinosaur and mammal skeletons. The scale bar equals 10 cm. The unusual fossil from China suggests some early mammals may have hunted down dinosaur meat for dinner. The fossil shows a badger-like creature chomping down on a beaky dinosaur three times its size. The research published on Tuesday, July 18, 2023, adds to growing evidence that even when dinosaurs ruled the Earth, some mammals were biting back. (Gang Han/Canadian Museum of Nature via AP)

Mammals may have hunted down dinosaurs for dinner, rare fossil suggests

An unusual find in China suggests some early mammals may have hunted dinosaur for dinner. The fossil shows a badgerlike creature chomping down on a small, beaked dinosaur, their skeletons … more

By MADDIE BURAKOFF | 7/18/23