Author: rpnadmin

WASHINGTON — Civil rights advocates on Monday said they asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a Texas law requiring public schools to display the Ten Commandments, teeing up a case that could set a new national standard for the limits of state-sponsored religious expression in classrooms. Over two dozen Texas families represented by the American Civil Liberties Union and other groups petitioned the nation’s highest court to overturn a split decision in April by the conservative-leaning 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The New Orleans-based appeals court’s 9-8 ruling upheld the Texas law, which requires public school classrooms to…

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is pitching a plan to help shield local police officers who make immigration arrests from possible financial consequences if they are accused of on-duty misconduct. The agency is proposing to subsidize liability insurance for state and local officers who are trained and deputized to enforce federal immigration laws, according to a planning document published Friday. ICE’s partnerships with local departments have soared since President Donald Trump returned to the White House last year and may get an additional boost with liability insurance by removing a hurdle that has made some local police departments reluctant to…

NEW YORK — Luigi Mangione’s state murder trial in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, which was slated to begin Sept. 8, has been postponed indefinitely as his lawyers seek to have the case thrown out on double jeopardy grounds following his guilty plea last week to federal charges. Judge Gregory Carro issued an order Monday canceling the trial and giving the Manhattan District Attorney’s office, which is prosecuting the state case, until Oct. 9 to respond to the defense’s double jeopardy claims. A hearing will be held on Dec. 10, Carro said, about a week before Mangione is…

I’ve never been to Maine for a lobster roll, but the ones I’ve had in other places have been so good that I knew I needed to make one myself. This version is from my cookbook “Home” and is made with perfectly cooked lobster meat that is plump, juicy, and tender but also firm and slightly chewy. The trick to this recipe is soaking the lobster meat in the cooled cooking liquid to give it an extra burst of flavor and to rinse away any residue from the surface, leaving nothing behind but sweet, briny lobster meat. Lobster Rolls Makes…

PLYMOUTH, Mass. — Prosecutors have finished presenting their case in the emotionally charged trial of Lindsay Clancy, the Massachusetts mom who has admitted killing her three young children but blamed her actions on her failing mental health. The prosecution rested its case Monday after three weeks of testimony. Clancy’s lawyer now gets his chance to call witnesses. Prosecutors argue Clancy, a former labor and delivery nurse, was an intentional killer who contrived to get her husband out of the house by sending him to get takeout and to the pharmacy on Jan. 24, 2023. Then, she strangled the children before…

The Supreme Court on Monday again rejected President Trump’s request to review a $5 million judgment in New York writer E. Jean Carroll’s defamation lawsuit against him. It was the second time the high court declined to get involved in the dispute. Without comment, the high court refused to review the judgment against Mr. Trump over statements he made in 2022 denying Ms. Carroll’s accusation that he sexually assaulted her in the 1990s. In his filing, Mr. Trump said that the lower court improperly relied on statements he made against her accusation in 2019 when he was serving in his…

Republicans are accusing Democrats of wanting to raise senior citizens’ taxes in a new ad campaign targeting the most important Senate races in the midterm elections. “Alaska seniors are struggling, and Mary Peltola would make it worse,” a new ad from the National Republican Senatorial Committee says of Ms. Peltola, 52, a former House lawmaker representing Alaska. Ms. Peltola is running against two-term Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan, 61. “Mary Peltola is choosing petty politics over good policy, opposing efforts to save seniors’ money and working to eliminate historic tax savings like ‘no tax on Social Security,’” the ad continues.  The…

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Days of storms and flooding in Indiana left at least seven people dead as floodwaters receded in Indianapolis’ White River and rains eased in other parts of the state Sunday. Frank Gounder was among the Indianapolis residents assessing the damage Sunday, which also happened to be his 37th birthday. The furniture maker, who lives on the city’s hard-hit northside, less than a mile from the White River, had been at home as floodwaters crept up his driveway until they were about 2 feet deep (0.61 meters) in the house and his workshop. Now Gounder is left to…

HONOLULU — Tropical Storm Lala was already whipping and soaking Hawaii’s Big Island early Saturday, and was expected to strengthen into a hurricane as it approaches land. The National Hurricane Center issued a rare hurricane warning for the island, where it would be the first to make landfall in 155 years. Forecasters said higher elevations could get as much as 25 inches of rain. That could cause life-threatening mudslides in a mountainous area where people live off the grid in improvised housing, and authorities urged them to find safe shelters quickly. “This is an enormous storm,” Gov. Josh Green said.…

NEW YORK — Bedbugs are sometimes called the vampires of the insect world – hiding during the day and coming out at night to feast on human blood. Generations of children have been told: “Sleep tight. Don’t let the bedbugs bite.” Well, bad news: Bedbug infestations are increasing. This is the time of year when they tend to be at their worst. And some scientists think the reviled pests might be capable of spreading an antibiotic-resistant infection called MRSA. For centuries, the bugs have horrified homeowners and occasionally panicked the public. That happened in New York City in 2018, when…