July 10, 2019 4:02 am
NEW YORK (AP) – A New York judge says the Justice Department can’t change lawyers so late in the dispute over whether to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census. Judge Jesse Furman ruled Tuesday, saying lawyers must cite satisfactory reasons for withdrawing. Furman said the urgency to resolve legal claims in the case and the need for efficient judicial proceedings had only grown. The Justice Department sought to change its lawyers after the Supreme Court barred the inclusion of the question, at least temporarily. The Justice Department formally asked Furman Monday to let them switch lawyers after an embarrassing episode last week when lawyers seemed to be giving up the legal fight as President Donald Trump vowed to keep trying to include the question on the census. The Justice Department declined comment.
July 10, 2019 4:01 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium says its 10-year-old African lion has died. Razi’s death was announced Wednesday. Officials say the lion had suffered for years from seizures. He had a grand mal seizure on Sunday and fell in his exhibit, breaking his jaw. Veterinary and zoo staff determined that it wasn’t in Razi’s best interest to attempt the difficult surgery he would need. Razi was first diagnosed with idiopathic epilepsy after experiencing a seizure in the spring of 2013, a year after he arrived at the zoo with his brother, Ajani, who is still at the facility.
July 10, 2019 3:57 am
WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. (AP) – Authorities say portions of two sawn-off human legs found on a central Pennsylvania riverbank earlier this year are believed to have belonged to a woman, but she still hasn’t been identified. State police in Lycoming County said Tuesday that an “extensive examination” by a forensic anthropologist indicates the legs are those of an adult white female about 5 feet to 5-feet-6-inches tall. Police said her toenails were painted pink and released photos of white Polo Jeans ankle socks found on both feet. A fisherman found the legs May 11 along the Susquehanna River near the Hepburn Street Dam in Williamsport. The county coroner said they appeared to have been cut near the knee joint by a hand-held saw, and death occurred up to six months before the discovery.
July 10, 2019 3:56 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Pennsylvania students who attend one of the 14 state-owned universities won’t see higher tuition next year, the first such freeze in more than 20 years. The State System of Higher Education’s board on Wednesday voted for to keep in-state tuition flat at about $7,700. Most of the system’s students are from Pennsylvania. The system’s last tuition freeze was for the 1998-99 school year, when the cost for in-state students was less than half what it is today. The universities have seen total enrollment fall over the past eight years from about 112,000 to just over 90,000. The state government’s support for the system is rising by about 2 percent this year, to $477 million.
July 9, 2019 3:52 pm
NEW YORK (AP) – Uber is letting passengers tell their driver in advance that they’d like a little less conversation, and a little more legroom, if they’re willing to pay. The ride-hailing giant launched “comfort” rides today. Riders are guaranteed a minimum amount of legroom in cars less than five years old and can use the app to tell drivers they don’t want to talk. The move could help Uber boost revenue and nudge the money-losing company closer to profitability.
July 9, 2019 3:50 pm
ALTOONA, Pa. (AP) – A Pennsylvania-based convenience store chain is putting Bitcoin ATMs in six shops around the state and one in North Carolina, giving customers the ability to buy and sell the cryptocurrency with U.S. dollars. Sheetz, based in Altoona, Pennsylvania, announced Tuesday it has teamed up with Coinsource to put the ATMs in the five Pennsylvania stores and a shop in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Ryan Sheetz, a vice president at the company, says the chain is always trying to be innovative and give customers what they want. Customers must enroll with Coinsource before they can use the ATMs. Then, they’ll be able to make transactions from $5 to $5,000 per day from the machines. Family-owned Sheetz operates over 585 stores in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, Ohio and North Carolina. Last month, Arizona-based convenience store Circle K partnered with DigitalMint to install Bitcoin ATMs in 20 shops in Arizona and Nevada.
July 9, 2019 12:51 pm
CLEVELAND (AP) – The Cleveland Clinic says it has delivered the first baby in North America after a womb transplant from a dead donor. Uterine transplants have enabled more than a dozen women to give birth, usually with wombs donated from a living donor such as a friend or relative. In December, doctors in Brazil reported the world’s first birth using a deceased donor’s womb. These transplants were pioneered by a Swedish doctor who did the first successful one five years ago. The Cleveland hospital said Tuesday that the girl was born in June. The clinic has done five uterus transplants so far and three have been successful, with two women waiting to attempt pregnancy with new wombs. In all, the clinic aims to enroll 10 women in its study.
July 9, 2019 10:28 am
DALLAS (AP) – H. Ross Perot, the colorful, self-made Texas billionaire who twice ran for president, has died. Family spokesman James Fuller says Perot died early Tuesday. He was 89. Perot rose from Depression-era poverty to become one of the nation’s richest men as the founder of computer services giant Electronic Data Systems Corp. In 1992, Perot jumped into the presidential campaign as an independent candidate, challenging President George H.W. Bush and Democrat Bill Clinton. Perot drew nearly 19% of the vote, the biggest percentage for a third-party hopeful in 80 years. Republicans blamed him for Bush’s defeat. He had founded EDS in 1962 and sold control of it to General Motors for $2.5 billion in 1984. He later founded another company, Perot Systems.
July 9, 2019 10:24 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Billionaire activist Tom Steyer is joining the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, reversing course after deciding earlier this year that he would forgo a run.
Steyer made the announcement Tuesday, casting himself as an outsider who will oppose what he calls “the hostile corporate takeover of our democracy.” The 62-year-old from California is one of the most visible and deep-pocketed liberals advocating for President Donald Trump’s impeachment. He surprised many Democrats in January when he declared he would focus entirely on the impeachment effort instead of seeking the White House. Since then, Steyer has said he’s grown frustrated at the pace at which the Democratic-controlled House is approaching Trump.
Despite becoming a national voice on the impeachment issue, Steyer made no mention of it in his campaign announcement.
July 9, 2019 8:44 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – A Marine combat aviator who narrowly lost a House race to an incumbent Republican in Kentucky has set her sights on a more formidable target: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Amy McGrath announced Tuesday she will be trying to defeat one of the most entrenched officials in Washington. But McGrath sees McConnell as vulnerable because of his lengthy tenure in Washington, his stance on health care and his allegiance to President Donald Trump. McGrath’s decision to enter the race represents a rare victory for Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer, who has struggled to persuade other top-tier candidates to take on incumbent Republicans with control of the Senate at stake. The contest will test the power of incumbency against a call for generational change along with a measure of whether Trump’s popularity is transferable.
