National News - The Morning Sun

This image provided by Lloyd Wolf shows the demolition of Arlington Presbyterian Church in Arlington, Va, in 2016. In its place now stands Gilliam Place, a six-story affordable housing complex with 173 apartments. Hundreds of faith groups are using their property to build homes. For cash-poor congregations that face declining revenue and member participation and rising maintenance costs, developing housing can offer a financial benefit while also expanding their social mission. (Lloyd Wolf via AP)

To stem the housing crisis, religious congregations are building homes

The crowd that prayed together at Arlington Presbyterian Church’s Sunday worship service had dwindled from more than 100 to a few dozen. Neighbors’ stories guided the church’s radical … more

By EDEN STIFFMAN of The Chronicle of Philanthropy | 5/10/23

FILE - Vermont Gov. Phil Scott delivers his State of the State address remotely from the Pavilion office building, Jan. 5, 2022, in Montpelier, Vt. Vermont's Republican governor signed abortion and gender affirmed shield bills into law Wednesday, May 10, 2023, that include protecting access to a medication widely used in abortions even if the U.S. Food and Drug Administration withdraws its approval of the pill, mifepristone. (Glenn Russell/VTDigger via AP, Pool, File)

Vermont governor signs shield bills aimed at protecting access to medicated abortion

Vermont’s Republican governor has signed abortion and gender affirming shield bills into law that include protecting access to a medication widely used in abortions even if the U.S. Food and Drug … more

By LISA RATHKE | 5/10/23

Belinda Carlisle appears at the 9th annual "Home for the Holidays" benefit concert in Los Angeles on Dec. 10, 2019, left, and Diane Warren appears at the 95th Academy Awards Nominees Luncheon in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Feb. 13, 2023. A five-track EP, “Kismet,” reunites Warren and Carlisle, who first worked together in 1987 for Carlisle's second solo album "Heaven on Earth." (AP Photo)

Diane Warren, Belinda Carlisle reunite after decades apart

Appropriate for an album called “Kismet,” the reunion of songwriter Diane Warren and singer Belinda Carlisle happened by chance. Warren, who penned global hits such as “I Don’t Want to Miss a … more

By MARK KENNEDY | 5/10/23

FILE - This undated image made available by the National Human Genome Research Institute shows the output from a DNA sequencer. The much-heralded Human Genome Project was a huge milestone for science, but most of that genetic blueprint came from one man from Buffalo, N.Y. On Wednesday, May 10, 2023, scientists announced they have sequenced the genomes of 47 people from around the world, allowing scientists to be able to look at what's normal and what's not across people and learn more about what genes do and what diseases genetic problems may cause. (NHGRI via AP, File)

DNA "reference guide" expanded to reflect human diversity

For two decades, scientists have been comparing every person's genetic blueprint they study to a template that relies mostly on just one man. But now, scientists are building a much more diverse set … more

By LAURA UNGAR | 5/10/23

Mourners carry the bodies of Ahmed Assaf, 19, right, and Rani Qatanat, 24, left, draped in the flag of Islamic Jihad, two Palestinians killed by Israeli forces in Qabatiya, near the West Bank city of Jenin, Wednesday, May 10, 2023. The Israeli military said that Palestinian gunmen opened fire at troops in the Palestinian town of Qabatiya in the northern West Bank during an army raid. Troops returned fire, killing the two men, and confiscated their firearms, it said. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)

Israel: Rocket attack underway from Gaza on southern Israel

Israeli authorities say Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip have launched rockets toward southern Israel. Air raid sirens are going off across the area, warning residents. Wednesday’s launch … more

By FARES AKRAM and ILAN BEN ZION | 5/10/23

Nyarok Gach, who fled Sudan after fighting erupted and returned to her home village in South Sudan earlier this month, stands in a house that she shares with her eight children and other families, at Wunlueth village in Canal-Pigi county, South Sudan Thursday, May 4, 2023. More than 40,000 people, mostly South Sudanese, have crossed the border into South Sudan since Sudan erupted in conflict nearly one month ago, yet many are returning to areas unable to support them and still riddled by fighting. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick)

South Sudanese flee Sudan's conflict yet return to crisis

More than 40,000 people have crossed into South Sudan since neighboring Sudan erupted into conflict nearly one month ago. Most of them are South Sudanese refugees who fled civil war in their own … more

By SAM MEDNICK | 5/10/23

Migrants hold flowers and listen to speakers during a vigil for the eight migrants that were killed and several others that were injured the day before while waiting at a bus stop, in Brownsville, Texas, Monday, May 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Michael Gonzalez)

Days after Texas bus stop crash, little info on the victims

Two days after eight people were killed when an SUV slammed into a bus stop in Brownsville, Texas, information on the victims remains scarce. That has left relatives of missing people scrambling to … more

By VALERIE GONZALEZ | 5/9/23

This undated photo provided by the National Park Service show the West Ridge climbing route of Moose's Tooth, a 10,300-foot peak in Denali National Park where officials are looking for two climbers. The two climbers missing in Alaska likely triggered a small avalanche while climbing and fell, coming to rest in a heavily crevassed glacier at the bottom of the slide path, officials said Tuesday, May 9, 2023. (National Park Service via AP)

Missing climbers in Alaska likely triggered avalanche, fell

National park officials in Alaska say two missing mountain climbers likely triggered a small avalanche. A Denali National Park and Preserve spokesperson said Tuesday the projected path of their … more

By MARK THIESSEN | 5/9/23

Texas state Rep. Sam Harless, R-Spring, listens to debate in the House chamber in Austin, Texas, Tuesday, May 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Rare GOP votes in Texas for gun bill after mass shootings

Republican state representatives' head-turning votes are helping advance a bill in the Texas House that proposes raising the purchase age for AR-style rifles. Reps. Sam Harless and Justin Holland on … more

By ACACIA CORONADO and PAUL J. WEBER | 5/9/23

FILE - A sign is posted outside a water well indicates perchlorate contamination at a site in Rialto, Calif., March 28, 2005. A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday, May 9, 2023, that the Environmental Protection Agency must regulate perchlorate, reversing a Trump-era rollback on a drinking water contaminant linked to brain damage in infants. (AP Photo/Ric Francis, File)

Court: EPA must regulate perchlorate, contaminant in water

A federal appeals court has ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency must regulate perchlorate, reversing a rollback the agency first made under then-President Donald Trump. Perchlorate is used … more

By DOUG GLASS | 5/9/23

This image provided by Hopewell Township Police Department shows a metallic object believed to be a meteorite on a hardwood floor at a residence in Hopewell Township, N.J. The object punched a hole in the roof of the central New Jersey home, smashing into a hardwood floor and bouncing around a bedroom. The family who owns the home discovered the black, potato-sized rock in a corner — still warm. (Hopewell Township Police Department via AP)

Possible meteorite crashes into New Jersey home, no injuries

A metallic object believed to be a meteorite punched a hole in the roof of a central New Jersey home. But authorities say no injuries were reported and the object didn’t cause serious damage to … more

5/9/23

Sisters Claire E. Regan, center, and Dorothy Metz, right, members of the leadership council of the Sisters of Charity, stand in the Chapel of the Immaculate Conception, at the College of Mount Saint Vincent, a private Catholic college in the Bronx borough of New York, on Tuesday, May 2, 2023. They had taken their vows in the chapel. In more than 200 years of service, the Sisters of Charity of New York have cared for orphans, taught children, nursed the Civil War wounded and joined Civil Rights demonstrations. Last week, the Catholic nuns decided that it will no longer accept new members in the United States and will accept the "path of completion." (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

The end of an era for the Sisters of Charity of New York

Through more than 200 years of service, the Sisters of Charity of New York have nursed Civil War casualties, joined civil rights and anti-war demonstrations, cared for orphans, and taught countless … more

By LUIS ANDRES HENAO | 5/9/23

Russian RS-24 Yars ballistic missiles move toward Red Square to attend a Victory Day military parade in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, May 9, 2023, marking the 78th anniversary of the end of World War II. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)

Russia, holding WWII tributes, rains missiles on Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin has addressed his country’s Victory Day parade on Moscow’s Red Square, claiming that “a real war” has been unleashed against Russia — a reference to the war … more

The Associated Press | 5/9/23

A miniature poodle is groomed before competing in breed judging during the 147th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 8, 2023, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

In dog show world, details obvious and subtle rule the day

Doe-eyed dachshunds, push-faced French bulldogs and other nonsporting breeds circle the hallowed rings at one of the world’s biggest dog shows. A Bracco Italiano receives a jowl massage. Spaniels … more

By ANNA FURMAN | 5/9/23

E. Jean Carroll arrives to federal court in New York, Monday, May 8, 2023. Former President Donald Trump has rejected his last chance to testify at a civil trial where the longtime advice columnist has accused him of raping her in a luxury department store dressing room in 1996. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Jury to start deliberations in suit accusing Trump of rape

A jury in New York City is set to begin deliberations in a civil trial over advice columnist E. Jean Carroll’s claims that Donald Trump raped her in a luxury Manhattan department store. The judge … more

By LARRY NEUMEISTER | 5/9/23

A koala sits in a tree at a koala park in Sydney, Australia, Friday, May 5, 2023. Australian scientists have begun vaccinating wild koalas against chlamydia in a pioneering field trial in New South Wales. The aim is to test a method for protecting the beloved marsupials against a widespread disease that causes blindness, infertility and death. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)

First wild koalas caught and vaccinated against chlamydia

Australian scientists have begun vaccinating wild koalas against chlamydia in a pioneering field trial in New South Wales. The aim is to test a method for protecting the beloved marsupials against a … more

By CHRISTINA LARSON | 5/9/23

A woman signs a cross that stands by others at a makeshift memorial for the victims of a mass shooting, Monday, May 8, 2023, in Allen, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Texas mall shooting victims include guard, young sisters

The eight people killed when a gunman opened fire at a mall near Dallas over the weekend represent a multicultural cross-section of the area's increasingly diverse suburbs. They include two … more

By JAMIE STENGLE, VANESSA A. ALVAREZ and REBECCA REYNOLDS | 5/8/23

FILE - People identifying themselves as members of the Proud Boys join supporters of President Donald Trump for pro-Trump marches, Nov. 14, 2020, in Washington. Two supporter in the center are wearing hats with red lettering that read “RWDS,” which is short for “Right Wing Death Squad.” The gunman who killed eight people on Saturday, May 6, 2023, at a Dallas-area mall was wearing a “RWDS” patch. The phrase has been embraced in recent years by far-right extremists who glorify violence against their political enemies. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

Texas shooter's 'RWDS' patch linked to far-right extremists

The shooter who killed eight people at a Dallas-area mall was wearing a patch that read “RWDS," short for “Right Wing Death Squad.” It's a phrase that has been embraced in recent years by … more

By ALANNA DURKIN-RICHER, MICHAEL KUNZELMAN and LINDSAY WHITEHURST | 5/8/23

Sri Lankans shout anti-government slogans while blocking the entrance to president's office during a protest in Colombo, Sri Lanka, April 11, 2022. The image was part of a series of images by Associated Press photographers that was a finalist for the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

AP photos from Sri Lanka, Ukraine were Pulitzer finalists

The Associated Press was a finalist in two Pulitzer Prize categories — for breaking news photography of Sri Lanka's political crisis, and for feature photography of the elderly in Ukraine. That … more

5/8/23

FILE - Roman Catholic Diocese of Oakland Bishop Michael Barber, center, listens to a presentation alongside fellow bishops at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' annual fall meeting in Baltimore, Nov. 12, 2013. On Monday, May 8, 2023, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Oakland filed for bankruptcy due to hundreds of new child sex abuse claims, becoming the second diocese in California to do so. The San Francisco Bay Area diocese faces more than 330 lawsuits brought under a California law allowing claims that would have otherwise expired, Barber said in a letter posted to the diocese's website. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)

Oakland 2nd California diocese to seek bankruptcy over abuse

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Oakland has filed for bankruptcy due to hundreds of new child sex abuse claims, becoming the second diocese in California to do so. Bishop Michael C. Barber says the San … more

5/8/23