December 2, 2021 12:50 pm
NEW YORK (AP) – Health officials say the omicron variant of the coronavirus has been found in a Minnesota man who attended an anime convention in New York City in November. Officials said Thursday that the man tested positive after returning home and that his symptoms have subsided. Officials in New York say they are working to trace attendees at the convention held Nov. 19-21 at the Javits Convention Center. Vaccinations were required for the event. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul says there are no confirmed omicron cases among state residents. Much remains unknown about the new variant, including whether it is more contagious and whether it can thwart vaccines.
December 2, 2021 9:51 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose last week even though the U.S. job market has been rebounding from last year’s coronavirus recession. Jobless claims climbed by 28,000 to 222,000 from the previous week’s pandemic low 194,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. The four-week average of claims, which smooths out week-to-week ups and downs, fell below 239,000, a pandemic low. Since topping 900,000 in early January, the weekly applications – a proxy for layoffs – have been falling more or less steadily.
December 2, 2021 9:50 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Lawmakers have reached agreement on a stopgap spending bill to keep the federal government running through mid-February. But a temporary shutdown is still possible with some Republicans determined to hold out over the Biden administration’s COVID-19 vaccine mandates. Delays could cause a shutdown at the end of Friday that lasts through the weekend. But not all Republicans are on board, saying even a short stoppage of the federal government will not play well with the public. The White House is confident Congress will approve funding to keep the government running.
December 2, 2021 4:22 am
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) – A 29-year-old man has been arrested in the death of philanthropist Jacqueline Avant, who was fatally shot at the Beverly Hills, California, home she shared with her husband, legendary music executive Clarence Avant. The Beverly Hills Police Department announced the arrest of Aariel Maynor on Thursday. Police were called to the Avants’ home early Wednesday after a 2:23 a.m. call reporting a shooting. Officers found Jacqueline Avant with a gunshot wound. The 81-year-old was taken to the hospital but did not survive. Tributes to Jacqueline Avant poured in Wednesday from across the country. She was remembered by former President Bill Clinton, basketball icon Earvin “Magic” Johnson and Rep. Karen Bass.
December 2, 2021 4:19 am
BETHESDA (AP) – With rising numbers of COVID-19 cases predicted this winter, President Joe Biden is appealing for Americans to get their boosters and get behind his plan to tackle the new omicron variant through wider availability of vaccines and shots. That plan doesn’t impose new major restrictions on daily life. Biden wants to require private insurers to cover the cost of at-home COVID-19 tests. And he’s tightening testing requirements for people entering the United States, regardless of their vaccination status. At this time, the president isn’t imposing additional clampdowns beyond his recommendation that Americans wear masks indoors in public settings. (Photo: ABC)
December 2, 2021 4:18 am
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – Kellogg’s has reached a tentative agreement with its 1,400 cereal plant workers that will deliver 3% raises and end a nearly two-month-long strike if it is approved. The Battle Creek, Michigan-based company said Thursday the five-year deal with the Bakery, Confectionary, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union also includes cost of living adjustments in the later years of the contract and it maintains the workers’ current health benefits. The deal covers workers at four plants in Battle Creek; Omaha, Nebraska; Lancaster, Pennsylvania; and Memphis, Tennessee where all of Kellogg’s well-known brands of cereal, including Frosted Flakes and Rice Krispies. The workers who have been on strike since Oct. 5 will vote Sunday on the new contract.
December 2, 2021 4:15 am
A criminal contempt proceeding scheduled for Thursday morning for Washington County Clerk of Courts Brenda Davis has been continued to Monday, December 6, at 9:30 a.m. President Judge John DiSalle issued that order Wednesday. That order also outlines numerous conditions for the proceeding, including court access, allocation of seating and COVID-19 precautions. The order says the public will be seated in the gallery with a maximum of 70 people. Members of the public will not be permitted in the hallways and masks are to be worn at all times. Only those permitted will have standing to address the court or speak during the session. No electronic transmission, video recording, or any other electronic duplication of the proceedings of any type will be permitted.
December 2, 2021 4:04 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – A Pittsburgh man who threw concrete at a police vehicle and injured an officer amid last year’s protests over the murder of George Floyd has been sentenced to a year and a day in federal prison. George Allen, will also have to serve three years of probation after he’s released under the sentence imposed Wednesday. The 31-year-old Allen had pleaded guilty to obstruction of law enforcement during a civil disorder. Prosecutors say Allen threw “multiple pieces” of concrete at an occupied Pittsburgh police vehicle that was parked on a city street during the protests in downtown Pittsburgh on May 30, 2020. One piece shattered the front passenger window and hit an officer, causing minor bruising to his arm.
December 2, 2021 4:03 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – TV stations in Philadelphia, New York City and Cleveland are taking down the “Dr. Oz Show,” now that the show’s host, Mehmet Oz, has formally become a candidate for U.S. Senate. The stations were compelled by the Federal Communications Commission’s “equal time” rules that give rival candidates the ability to request matching air time. A spokesperson for Fox Television Stations said Wednesday that its stations in New York City and Philadelphia have dropped the “Dr. Oz Show.” Cleveland’s WJW-TV said it made the decision because its signal bleeds into Pennsylvania. Other stations in Pennsylvania may follow suit.
December 2, 2021 3:23 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Federal prosecutors say a Pittsburgh synagogue massacre defendant’s statements at the scene and at a hospital should be allowed at trial because concerns about public safety were a valid reason to question him even after he’d asked for an attorney. U.S. District Judge Donetta Ambrose is considering whether to grant Robert Bowers’ request to suppress statements made after he had been shot and was being treated. His lawyers say Bowers’ repeated assertion of his rights to remain silent and to confer with a lawyer should mean his statements can’t be used against him. Bowers is accused of killing 11 in October 2018 in what is the deadliest attack on Jews in U.S. history.
