LONDON — For holding a sign outside a courthouse reminding jurors of their right to acquit defendants, a retiree faces up to two years in prison. For hanging a banner reading “Just Stop Oil” off a bridge, an engineer got a three-year prison sentence. Just for walking slowly down the...
America’s Animal Shelters Are Overcrowded With Pets From Families Facing Economic and Housing Woes
MENANDS, NY — Kaine is a big, buoyant dog looking for a home. But lately, he's spending a lot of time at the office. Animal shelters around the U.S. are bursting at the seams amid the rising cost of living, so the gray and white 7-year-old has been staying in...
Pacific Storm That Unleashed Coastal Flooding Pushes Across Southern California Into Arizona
LOS ANGELES — A Pacific storm that pounded coastal areas northwest of Los Angeles brought more heavy rain and scattered roadway flooding as it pushed through San Diego to the deserts on its way into Arizona early Friday. Impact on Holiday Travel As millions scrambled to finish their holiday shopping...
Hydrogen Tax Credit Plan Unveiled as Biden Administration Tries to Jump Start Industry
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration released its highly anticipated proposal for doling out billions of dollars in tax credits to hydrogen producers Friday, in a massive effort to build out an industry that some hope can be a cleaner alternative to fossil fueled power. The U.S. credit is the most...
FDA Says Fake Ozempic Shots Are Being Sold Through Some Legitimate Sources
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said it has seized “thousands of units” of counterfeit Ozempic, the diabetes drug widely used for weight loss, that had been distributed through legitimate drug supply sources. Testing the Counterfeit Drugs The FDA and the drug’s maker, Novo Nordisk, are testing the shots. They...
Biden Is Pardoning Thousands Convicted of Marijuana Charges on Federal Lands and in Washington
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden is pardoning thousands of people who were convicted of use and simple possession of marijuana on federal lands and in the District of Columbia, the White House said Friday, in his latest round of executive clemencies meant to rectify racial disparities in the justice system....
Gaza Death Toll Exceeds 20,000 as Israel Expands Ground War Against Hamas
RAFAH, Gaza Strip — More than 20,000 Palestinians have died in Gaza during Israel’s war against Hamas, health officials said Friday, the latest indication of the staggering cost of the conflict as Israel expands its ground offensive and orders tens of thousands more people to leave their homes. The deaths amount to nearly...
Federal Reserve’s Favored Inflation Gauge Tumbles in November as Prices Continue to Ease
WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve's preferred measure of inflation fell last month in another sign that price pressures easing in the face of the central bank's interest rate hikes. Friday's report from the Commerce Department showed that U.S. consumer prices slid 0.1% last month from October and rose 2.6% from...
Federal Court Revives Lawsuit Against Nirvana Over Naked Baby Album Cover
LOS ANGELES — A federal appeals court on Thursday revived a child sexual exploitation lawsuit filed by the man who appeared naked as a 4-month-old on the cover of Nirvana’s 1991 album “Nevermind.” Spencer Elden's lawsuit against the grunge rock group alleges that he has suffered “permanent harm” as the...
Punishing Their Own but Passing Few Laws, a Congress in Chaos Leaves Much Undone
WASHINGTON — This Congress started with showy bluster, a bitter 15-round, multi-day spectacle to elect a House speaker, a Republican who vowed to “never quit,” and then did just that. House lawmakers proceeded not only to oust the GOP speaker, they also punished their own colleagues with censures and expulsion, launched an impeachment inquiry into President Joe...