National News - The Morning Sun

Audrina Demma, left, and her sister Giuliana hug in the basement at the sewing station of their Freehold, N.J., home on June 19, 2024. The sisters have sewn and donated 1,800 hospital gowns to sick children in 36 states plus Africa. Giuliana was inspired by seeing her baby cousin wearing an ugly, ill-fitting gown while hospitalized with brain cancer in 2017. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry)

Baby cousin with cancer inspires girls to sew hospital gowns for sick kids across U.S. and Africa

Sick children across the country and in Africa are having their hospital stays brightened somewhat by the efforts of two young sisters from New Jersey, who make and donate brightly colored, … more

By WAYNE PARRY | 6/26/24

FILE - In this March 15, 2021, file photo Demonstrators gather on the steps of the Montana State Capitol protesting anti-LGBTQ+ legislation in Helena, Mont., March 15, 2021. A judge on Tuesday struck down a Montana law that defined “sex” in state law as only male or female, finding that it was unconstitutional. (Thom Bridge/Independent Record via AP, File)

Judge strikes down Montana law defining sex as only male or female for procedural reasons

A judge has struck down a Montana law that defined sex as only male or female, finding that it was unconstitutional. District Court Judge Shane Vannatta ruled the law, passed last year, violated the … more

6/25/24

FILE - Louisville Metro Police Chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel speaks during a news conference, May 23, 2024, in Louisville, Ky. Louisville's police chief has been placed on leave over her handling of a sexual harassment allegation involving her officers, Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said Wednesday, June 12. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley, File)

Louisville police chief resigns after mishandling sexual harassment claims

Louisville’s police chief has resigned. Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel was suspended earlier this month over her handling of a sexual harassment claim from an officer. Mayor Craig Greenberg accepted her … more

By DYLAN LOVAN | 6/25/24

This image taken from a Seattle Police Department body camera shows part of anti-police graffiti written in chalk on a concrete barricade outside of the East Precinct of the Seattle Police Department, Jan. 1, 2021, in Seattle. On Friday, June 21, 2024, the four protestors who were jailed for the graffiti were awarded nearly $700,000 by a federal jury who decided their civil rights had been violated. (Seattle Police Department via AP)

Jury awards $700k to Seattle protesters jailed for writing anti-police slogans in chalk on barricade

Four protesters have been awarded nearly $700,000 after they were jailed for writing anti-police slogans in chalk on a temporary police barricade on Jan. 1, 2021. The defendants in the case were the … more

By MARK THIESSEN | 6/25/24

FILE - This 2003 photo provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows a female Aedes albopictus mosquito acquiring a blood meal from a human host. Dengue, a tropical illness caused by a virus, is spread by Aedes mosquitos, a type of warm weather insect that is expanding its geographic reach because of climate change, experts say. (James Gathany/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention via AP, File)

Health officials tell US doctors to be alert for dengue as cases ramp up worldwide

U.S. health officials are warning doctors to be alert for dengue cases as the tropical disease breaks international records. Dengue is spread by mosquitoes and it has been surging worldwide, helped … more

By MIKE STOBBE | 6/25/24

U.S. Army soldiers gestures as trucks loaded with humanitarian aid arrive at the U.S.-built floating pier Trident before reaching the beach on the coast of the Gaza Strip, Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

US military shows reporters pier project in Gaza as it takes another stab at aid delivery

A $230 million pier project that the U.S. has built on the coast of Gaza to deliver badly needed humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza is running again. The project has faced many setbacks since … more

By LEO CORREA and AMI BENTOV | 6/25/24

This booking photo provided by the Houston Police Department shows Johan Jose Martinez Rangel. Prosecutors filed capital murder charges Friday, June 21, 2024, against two men, Martinez Rangel and Franklin Pena, who are suspected of killing a 12-year-old Houston girl whose body was found in a creek after she disappeared during a walk to a convenience store. (Houston Police Department via AP)

Judge sets $10M bond for second Venezuelan man accused of killing a 12-year-old Houston girl

A second Venezuelan man living in the U.S. illegally and accused of killing a 12-year-old Houston girl has been ordered to be held on a $10 million bond. Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel is one of two … more

6/25/24

The Apache Fire burns in Butte County, Calif. Monday, June 24, 2024. Improved weather conditions aided firefighters Tuesday as they battled the rural northern California wildfire. (Cal Fire via AP)

Improved weather helps firefighters battling wildfire near rural community in northern California

Improved weather is helping firefighters battling a rural northern California wildfire threatening the community of Palermo, which is near where the state’s deadliest wildfire struck six years ago. … more

6/25/24

FILE - Customers eat lunch at the counter at the Lexington Candy Shop on Sept. 28, 2023, in New York. On Tuesday, June 25, 2024, the Conference Board issues its monthly survey of consumer confidence in the United States, which reflects Americans' assessment of current economic conditions and their outlook for the next six months. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)

Consumer confidence in U.S. falls in June as Americans fret about near-term prospects

American consumers lost some confidence in June as expectations over the near-term future fell again. The Conference Board, a business research group, said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index … more

By MATT OTT | 6/25/24

This combination of photos shows Iranian June 28, presidential candidates Masoud Pezeshkian, lawmaker and a former Health Minister, top left, Saeed Jalili, former senior nuclear negotiator, top center, Alireza Zakani, Tehran Mayor, top right, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, Parliament Speaker, bottom left, Amirhossein Ghazizadeh Hashemi, the late President Raisi's Vice-President, bottom center, and Mostafa Pourmohammadi, a former Minister of Justice. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Parliament speaker. The Tehran mayor. A heart surgeon. The race is on for Iran's next president

Six candidates have been approved by Iran’s theocracy to run in Friday’s presidential election to replace the late President Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash with several other … more

By The Associated Press | 6/25/24

Retired forensic pathologist Dr. Frank Sheridan (not shown) is questioned by defense attorney Elizabeth Little during the murder trial for Karen Read at Norfolk Superior Court, in Dedham, Mass., Monday, June 24, 2024. (Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool)

A romance turned deadly or police frame job? Closing arguments loom in Karen Read trial

Jurors in the murder trial of Karen Read must decide whether she was a callous girlfriend who drove off after killing her Boston police officer boyfriend with her SUV, or whether police framed her to … more

By MICHAEL CASEY | 6/25/24

FILE - Photos of victims are displayed under white crosses at a memorial for the August 2023 wildfire victims, above the Lahaina Bypass highway, Dec. 6, 2023, in Lahaina, Hawaii. The death toll from the deadliest U.S. wildfire in over a century, which devastated the historic town of Lahaina on the Hawaiian island of Maui last year, has risen to 102, authorities said Monday, June 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File)

Hawaii wildfire death toll rises to 102 after woman determined to have died from fire injuries

Hawaii authorities say the death toll from last year’s wildfire in Lahaina on the island of Maui has risen to 102. The Maui Police Department said Monday the Honolulu Medical Examiner’s office … more

By JENNIFER SINCO KELLEHER | 6/25/24

Alexis Nungaray, the mother of Jocelyn Nungaray, center, is embraced by Tiffany Carmona, left, and Jackie Major after speaking about her daughter during a news conference after Franklin Peña, one of the two men accused of killing the 12-year-old girl, appeared in court, Monday, June 24, 2024, in Houston. Peña was ordered held on $10 million bail as he and another man, Johan Jose Rangel-Martinez, are charged with capital murder over the girl's death. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

Judge sets $10 million bond for Venezuelan man accused of killing a 12-year-old Houston girl

A judge in Texas has set bond of $10 million for an undocumented Venezuelan man accused of killing a 12-year-old Houston girl. Jocelyn Nungaray's body was found in a creek after she disappeared … more

By JUAN A. LOZANO | 6/24/24

FILE - Arizona graduate student Murad Dervish sits in Pima County Superior Court, May 8, 2024, in Tuscon, Ariz. Dervish was sentenced Monday, June 24, to life in prison without the possibility of parole for fatally shooting a hydrology professor on campus months after he was expelled. (Mamta Popat/Arizona Daily Star via AP, File)

Ex-University of Arizona grad student gets life sentence for killing professor on campus

A former University of Arizona graduate student has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for killing a professor on campus months after he was expelled. … more

6/24/24

FILE - Claire Fritz rallies for abortion rights at the Capitol, in Austin, Texas, May 14, 2022. A new study released by Johns Hopkins University on Monday, June 24, 2024, shows the infant death rate in Texas went up in the wake of the state's abortion ban. ( Jay Janner/Austin American-Statesman via AP, File)

Infant mortality rate rose 8% in wake of Texas abortion ban, study shows

A new study shows the infant death rate in Texas went up in the wake of the state's abortion ban. The analysis published Monday out of Johns Hopkins University is the latest research to find higher … more

By DEVI SHASTRI | 6/24/24

Trash and debris little an empty lot on Detroit's eastside, Monday, June 24, 2024. The eastside neighborhood is one of a few that are expected to receive solar arrays as part of Detroit's efforts to remove blight and find uses for underpopulated areas in the city. (AP Photo/Corey Williams)

Detroit plans to rein in solar power on vacant lots throughout the city

Patricia Kobylski remembers when there were plenty of people in her eastside Detroit neighborhood. There aren’t as many anymore. On Monday, Mayor Mike Duggan has announced Kobylski's neighborhood … more

By COREY WILLIAMS | 6/24/24

In this photo provided by NASA, astronaut Jeanette Epps (center) is pictured assisting NASA astronauts Mike Barratt (left) and Tracy Dyson (right) inside the Quest airlock. (NASA TV via AP)

NASA calls off spacewalk after spacesuit water leak

NASA has canceled a spacewalk at the International Space Station after water leaked from an astronaut's spacesuit. Astronauts Tracy Dyson and Mike Barratt opened the hatch to the space station's … more

By The Associated Press | 6/24/24

Rev. Dr. Kevin R. Johnson is pictured in this undated photo provided by Brian Communications. After a year-plus search, Abyssinian Baptist Church – the nation’s premier, Black Baptist Church founded in 1808 – has voted to name Rev. Johnson as the new senior pastor, following a rigorous search process and a final vote by the congregation on Sunday, June 23, 2024. (Karim Muhammad/Brian Communications)

Philadelphia pastor elected to lead historic Black church in New York City

New York’s historic Abyssinian Baptist Church has elected its new senior pastor, likely bringing an end to a national search to replace the late Rev. Calvin O. Butts, who had served the church for … more

By DARREN SANDS | 6/24/24

Testimony nears end for woman accused of killing her Boston officer boyfriend with SUV

A retired forensic pathologist says some the injuries suffered by a Boston police officer who was left for dead in a snowbank don't match being struck by a heavy vehicle. Dr. Frank Sheridan, who … more

By MICHAEL CASEY | 6/24/24

This image provided by NOAA, pictures a harmless green dye used to show a rip current. Rip currents are powerful, narrow channels of fast-moving water that are prevalent along the East, Gulf, and West coasts of the U.S., as well as along the shores of the Great Lakes. About 100 people drown from rip currents along U.S. beaches each year, according to the U.S. Lifesaving Association. (NOAA via AP)

Things to know about dangerous rip currents and how swimmers caught in one can escape

Stinging jellyfish, rays with their whip-like tails and sharks on the hunt are some ocean hazards that might typically worry beachgoers. But rip currents are the greatest danger and account for the … more

By CURT ANDERSON | 6/24/24