May 5, 2020 2:35 am
MCKEES ROCKS, Pa. (AP) – A body found in an unplugged refrigerator at a western Pennsylvania apartment building has been identified as a woman who went missing last week. Authorities say 41-year-old Daryl Jones, of McKees Rocks, was charged Monday with abusing a corpse. He was ordered held without bail because he may be a danger to the community and himself, according to court records. McKees Rocks police went to the apartment building Monday morning after residents who had smelled a foul odor discovered the decomposed body of 38-year-old Kristy Jefferson. Authorities haven’t said how Jefferson’s body ended up in the refrigerator, which was in a common area of the building. (Photo: WPXI)
May 4, 2020 3:45 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) – The secretary of the Senate has declined Joe Biden’s request to release any potential documents pertaining to an allegation of sexual assault against him from a former Senate staffer, citing confidentiality requirements under the law. Biden made the request Friday after delivering his public comments responding to the allegation from former staffer Tara Reade that he sexually assaulted her in the basement of a Capitol Hill office building in the spring of 1993. Biden has denied the allegation. The secretary of the Senate says the Senate legal counsel advised that the secretary “has no discretion to disclose any such information.”
May 4, 2020 3:39 pm
MIAMI (AP) – Carnival Cruise Line is announcing it will start cruising again, from Florida and Texas, beginning August. The coronavirus pandemic forced a near total pause in the global cruise industry, and these journeys will be limited to domestic ports, with Miami, Cape Canaveral and Galveston, Texas selected because most guests can reach them by car. The company says ships will not be cruising from Alaska, Hawaii and Australia through Aug. 31. The State Department began warning against cruise travel on March 8, and the CDC issued a no-sail order on March 14. The order prompted several countries to reject cruise ships altogether.
May 4, 2020 10:16 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – It’s been a morning of firsts for the Supreme Court: the first time audio of the court’s arguments was heard live by the world and the first arguments by telephone. The changes are a result of the coronavirus pandemic, which has made holding courtroom sessions unsafe. The experiment that began Monday could propel the court to routinely livestream its arguments. The phone arguments ran smoothly. The justices asked roughly two questions apiece. The chief justice occasionally interjected to keep things moving. And there was one mild surprise: Justice Clarence Thomas asked questions for the first time in more than a year. (Photo: CNN)
May 4, 2020 9:32 am
NEW YORK (AP) – The owner of J.Crew is filing for bankruptcy protection, the first major retailer to do so since the pandemic forced the closing of most stores in the United States. More retail bankruptcies are expected in coming weeks with the doors of thousands of stores still locked. March sales at stores and restaurants had their most severe plunge on records dating back to 1992. Clothing sales fell more than 50% that month and it has grown worse. The abrupt closure of stores threatens the overall health of the U.S. with consumers driving 70% of all economic activity in the country. The company said Monday that it anticipates its stores will reopen when it’s safe to do so.
May 4, 2020 4:09 am
ROME (AP) – From the United States to Asia, people are emerging from their homes as virus-related restrictions are being eased. But the pandemic is climbing to worrisome peaks in some of the world’s most populous countries. India reported more than 2,600 new cases, its biggest single-day jump, and new cases in Russia exceeded 10,000 for the first time. Britain’s death toll climbed near Italy’s, even though the U.K. population is younger and Britain had more time to prepare. The coronavirus has killed more than 247,000 people. Experts warn a second wave of infections could hit unless testing is expanded dramatically.
May 4, 2020 4:07 am
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) – Officials in Nebraska are forging ahead with plans for the state’s May 12 primary despite calls from Democrats to only offer voting by mail and concerns from public health officials that in-person voting will help the coronavirus spread. Top Republican officials in the GOP-dominated state have repeatedly urged voters to cast early, absentee ballots, but they argue that voters must have the option of voting in-person. If the election proceeds as planned, Nebraska will be the first to hold a statewide election with physical polling sites since Wisconsin’s much-criticized primary, which was plagued by a poll worker shortage and long lines.
May 4, 2020 4:06 am
NEW YORK (AP) – Faced with 20,000 coronavirus deaths, the nation’s nursing homes are pushing to get states to grant them emergency protection from lawsuits alleging inadequate care. At least 15 states have enacted measures providing nursing homes some protection from lawsuits arising from the crisis. Now the industry is forging ahead with a campaign to get other states on board. Their argument is that nursing homes should not be liable for events beyond their control, such as shortages of protective equipment and testing. Watchdogs and patient advocates argue that lawsuits are the only safety net to keep facilities accountable.
May 4, 2020 4:05 am
HVAMMSTANGI, Iceland (AP) – High schools, hair salons, dentists and other businesses across Iceland are reopening after six weeks of lockdown, after this North Atlantic nation managed to tame its coronavirus outbreak. Iceland has confirmed 1,799 cases of the virus, but just 10 people have died. The number of new COVID-19 cases each day has fallen from 106 at the peak of the outbreak to single digits – even, on some days, zero. áIceland’s success reflects decisive action by authorities, who used a rigorous policy of testing and tracking to find and isolate infected people, even when they had no symptoms. Even so, Iceland’s chief epidemiologist, Thorolfur Gudnason, says “I didn’t expect the recovery to be this fast.”
May 4, 2020 4:04 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The Senate gaveled in Monday as the coronavirus raged. The senators face a deepening national debate over how best to confront the deadly pandemic and its economic devastation. With the House staying away due to the health risks, but the 100 senators meeting for the first time since March, the conflicted Congress reflects an uneasy nation. Tops on the Senate agenda is not the next virus aid package, but confirming President Donald Trump’s nominees. Senate Republicans are reluctant to spend more money on virus relief. They’re counting on the country’s re-opening to kick start the economy and reduce the need for aid. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is quietly crafting the next relief package and Democrats say more must be done.
