March 30, 2021 4:21 am
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – The teenager who shot the widely seen video of George Floyd under the knee of a Minneapolis police officer charged in his death testified Tuesday that Derek Chauvin “just stared at us” and didn’t react to bystander pleas. Eighteen-year-old Darnella Frazier said Chauvin and another officer on the scene put their hands on their Mace when bystanders wanted to intervene. She says she began recording because “it wasn’t right, he was suffering, he was in pain.” Earlier, a man who was among onlookers shouting at Chauvin to get off Floyd last May says he called 911 to report a murder after Floyd was removed by paramedics. Prosecutors led off their case by playing portions of Frazier’s video, which sent waves of outrage around the globe.
March 30, 2021 4:21 am
ATLANTA (AP) – Critics of Georgia’s new Republican-backed election law have issued fresh calls to boycott some of the state’s largest businesses. Leaders of the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Georgia are sending a letter to 90,000 parishioners. The letter calls for a boycott of Georgia’s largest companies if they don’t speak out more forcefully against the law. The pressure comes a day after a group of advocacy organizations filed a lawsuit in federal court challenging the law. A lawsuit filed Sunday asks a judge to find that the law violates the U.S. Constitution and the Voting Rights Act and to block state officials from enforcing it.
March 30, 2021 4:20 am
NEW YORK (AP) – A vicious attack on an Asian American woman near New York City’s Times Square is drawing widespread condemnation and raising alarms about the failure of bystanders to intervene amid a rash of anti-Asian violence across the U.S. An assailant was seen on surveillance video Monday kicking the 65-year-old woman in the stomach, knocking her to the ground and stomping on her face as police say he shouted anti-Asian slurs at her. The attack happened outside an apartment building two blocks from Times Square, a bustling, heavily policed section of midtown Manhattan. Two workers who appeared to be security guards were seen on surveillance video witnessing the attack but failing to come to the woman’s aid. Their union says they called for help immediately.
March 30, 2021 4:19 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Joe Biden is set to unveil the first part of his sweeping multitrillion-dollar infrastructure plan, aiming for passage over the summer. The White House is hoping for a more deliberate and collaborative approach with the contentious Congress than what happened with the COVID-19 rescue plan. Biden is set to unveil the first part of the “Build Back Better” proposal on Wednesday in Pittsburgh. The ambitious plan could cost between $3 trillion and $4 trillion and aims to make generational investments in infrastructure, including reviving domestic manufacturing. The plan also could include $3 trillion in tax increases.
March 30, 2021 2:16 am
The State Police Washington Barracks continues to investigate a missing juvenile from South Franklin Township. Troopers say 15 year old Gage Frame was last seen Friday morning around 10 a.m. He is a white male approximately 5’6″ tall and about 160 pounds. He was last seen wearing a pink polo shirt with a gray hooded sweatshirt, gray McGuffey sweatpants and red Nike running shoes. He was possibly riding a silver bicycle. A spokesman says they have received several calls and are following up on that information. No details were given in regards to the information provided. Anyone with information is asked to contact police. (Photo: Facebook)
March 29, 2021 3:51 pm
(AP) – President Joe Biden announced Monday that the vast majority of American adults will be eligible to be vaccinated against COVID-19 in the coming weeks as officials work to boost the number of pharmacies where shots are available. In a statement released by the White House, officials said 90% of adult Americans will be eligible for vaccination by April 19. Further, officials said 90% of U.S. adults will be able to find a vaccination site within five miles of their homes by that same time. “We’re going to do this by going from having 17,000 pharmacies giving out vaccination shots to nearly 40,000 pharmacies,” Biden said Monday at a news conference. “I’m pleased to announce that at least 90% of all adults in this country will be eligible to be vaccinated by April the 19th, just three weeks from now, because we have the vaccines.”
March 29, 2021 4:23 am
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) – Federal investigators say a helicopter carrying five passengers on a heli-skiing trip in Alaska crashed into a mountain and then rolled downhill nearly 900 feet. The pilot and four of the five passengers on board died in the crash, including billionaire Petr Kellner, the richest man in the Czech Republic. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the cause of the crash just north of Anchorage on Saturday night. The bodies have been recovered, but an approaching snowstorm may stall efforts to remove the wreckage from the mountain near Knik Glacier. The crash site is only accessible by helicopter because of the rugged terrain and snowy conditions.
March 29, 2021 4:22 am
(AP) – Heavy rain across Tennessee has flooded homes and roads, prompting officials to carry out numerous rescues. The flooding is being blamed for at least four deaths. Metropolitan Nashville Police say the body of a man whose car was submerged in a creek was recovered Sunday. Another man’s body was found on a golf course, while two bodies were found near a homeless camp. Nearly 6 inches of rain fell Saturday in Nashville. A portion of Interstate 40 was temporarily shut down due to high water. Some rivers and creeks are at or near their highest level since 2010.
March 29, 2021 4:21 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Joe Biden and CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky are making impassioned pleas to Americans not to let their guard down in the fight against COVID-19. Walensky warned on Monday of a potential “fourth wave” of the virus and spoke of a “recurring feeling … of impending doom.” Biden said the virus will get worse, not better “if we let our guard down now.” He said that “people are letting up on precautions, which is a very bad thing.” Walensky spoke of hope but added, “Right now, I’m scared.”
March 29, 2021 4:21 am
BEIJING (AP) – A joint WHO-China study on the origins of COVID-19 says that transmission from bats to humans through another animal is the most likely scenario and that a lab leak of the coronavirus is “extremely unlikely.” A draft copy was obtained Monday by The Associated Press. The findings were largely as expected, and left many questions unanswered. The team proposed further research in every area except the lab leak hypothesis. The report’s release has been repeatedly delayed, raising questions about whether the Chinese side was trying to skew the conclusions. The AP received what appeared to be a near-final version from a Geneva-based diplomat from a WHO-member country.
