The Trump administration's campaign of blowing up alleged drug-trafficking vessels in Latin American waters has persisted since early September and killed at least 183 people in total. Other strikes have taken place in the Caribbean Sea.

The military has not provided evidence that any of the vessels were carrying drugs.

The attacks began as the U.S. built up its largest military presence in the region in generations and came months ahead of the raid in January that captured then-Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. He was brought to New York to face drug trafficking charges and has pleaded not guilty.

In the latest attack Friday, U.S. Southern Command repeated previous statements by saying it had targeted the alleged drug traffickers along known smuggling routes. It posted a video on X showing a boat floating in the water before a explosion left it in flames.

President Donald Trump has said the U.S. is in “armed conflict” with cartels in Latin America and has justified the attacks as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs into the United States.

Critics, meanwhile, have questioned the overall legality of the boat strikes.

Mali’s army said in a statement that “unidentified armed terrorist groups targeted certain locations and barracks” in Bamako and that soldiers were “engaged in eliminating the attackers.” It said in another statement later the situation was under control.

An Associated Press journalist in Bamako heard sustained heavy weapons and automatic rifle gunfire coming from Modibo Keïta International Airport, around 15 kilometers (9 miles) from the city center, and saw a helicopter over nearby neighborhoods. The airport is adjacent to an air base used by Mali's air force. A resident living near the airport also reported gunfire and three helicopters patrolling overhead.

The U.S. Embassy in Bamako issued a security alert citing reports of explosions and gunfire near Kati and the international airport, and urged U.S. citizens to shelter in place and avoid travel there.

Mali has been plagued by insurgencies fought by affiliates of al-Qaida and the Islamic State group, as well as a separatist rebellion in the north.

Residents in other cities in central and northern Mali reported gunfire and blasts on Saturday morning.

A resident of Kati, a town near Bamako that is home to Mali’s main military base, said he was woken by the sound of gunfire and explosions. Gen. Assimi Goita, the leader of Mali’s military junta, resides in Kati.

Videos on social media showed militant convoys in trucks and motorcycles moving through the town's deserted streets, while residents looked on fearfully.

Residents of Sevare and Mopti, two towns in central Mali, also reported attacks by gunmen.

Other videos in the northern towns of Kidal and Gao showed gunfire exchanges in the streets, with dead bodies lying on the ground.

Gunmen entered Kidal, taking control of some neighborhoods and leading to exchanges of fire with the army, a former mayor of the town told the AP by phone, speaking on condition of anonymity out of fear for his safety.

Mohamed Elmaouloud Ramadane, a spokesperson for the Tuareg-led Azawad separatist movement, said in a post on Facebook that its forces had taken control of Kidal as well as some areas in Gao, another northeastern city. The AP could not independently verify his claim.

Kidal had long served as a stronghold of the separatist rebellion before being taken by Malian government forces and Russian mercenaries in 2023. Its capture marked a significant symbolic victory for the junta and its Russian allies.

The Tuareg-led separatists have been fighting for years to create an independent state in northern Mali.

A resident of Gao, the largest city in northern Mali, said gunfire and explosions started in the early hours of Saturday and could still be heard in the late morning.

“The force of the explosions is making the doors and windows of my house shake. I’m scared out of my wits,” the resident told AP by phone. He spoke on condition of anonymity because of concerns for his safety. The resident said the gunfire came from the army camp and the airport, which are right next to each other.

Ulf Laessing, head of the Sahel program at the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, said the assault seems to be the largest coordinated attack in years in Mali.

“It’s especially concerning that JNIM (al-Qaida affiliated group) apparently has been coordinating today’s attacks with Tuareg rebels. Jihadists and Tuareg rebels teamed up in 2012 when they overran northern Mali, sparking the region's security crisis.” Laessing said.

Mali, alongside neighboring Niger and Burkina Faso, has long been battling armed groups affiliated with al-Qaida and the Islamic State group.

Following military coups, the juntas in the three countries have turned from Western allies to Russia for help combating Islamic militants. But the security situation has worsened in recent times, analysts say, with a record number of attacks by militants. Government forces have also been accused of killing civilians they suspect of collaborating with militants.

In 2024, an al-Qaida-linked group claimed an attack on Bamako’s airport and a military training camp in the capital, killing scores of people.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was seen off at an airport, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. He had met with Pakistani Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif about what he called Iran’s red lines for negotiations, and said Tehran would engage with Pakistan’s mediation efforts “until a result is achieved.”

It was unclear when President Donald Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were due to arrive in Islamabad. The White House declined to comment.

An open-ended ceasefire has paused most fighting, but the economic fallout grows with global shipments of oil, liquefied natural gas, fertilizer and other supplies disrupted by the near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian officials have openly asked how they can trust the U.S. after talks last year and early this year over Tehran’s nuclear program ended with it being attacked by the U.S. and Israel.

Iran has said talks will be indirect

Islamabad had been in near-lockdown ahead of the expected talks. Pakistan has been trying to get U.S. and Iran back to the table since Trump this week announced an indefinite extension of the ceasefire, honoring Islamabad’s request for more diplomatic outreach.

The White House on Friday said Trump was sending Witkoff and Kushner to meet with Araghchi. But Iran's foreign ministry said any talks would be indirect and Pakistani officials would convey messages.

The first round of talks in Pakistan, led on the U.S. side by Vice President JD Vance, lasted over 20 hours and were face-to-face, the highest-level direct talks between the longtime adversaries since the Islamic Revolution in 1979.

Araghchi and Trump's envoys held hours of indirect talks in Geneva on Feb. 27 but walked away without a deal. The next day, Israel and the United States started the war.

The standoff around the strait continues

The price of Brent crude oil, the international standard, is still nearly 50% higher than when the war began because of Iran's grip on the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway through which a fifth of the world’s oil passes in peacetime.

Iran attacked three ships this week, while the U.S. maintains a blockade on Iranian ports. Trump has ordered the military to “shoot and kill” small boats that could be placing mines.

Germany’s Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said Saturday his country is sending minesweeper ships to the Mediterranean to help remove Iranian mines from the Strait of Hormuz once hostilities end.

The squeeze on shipments through the strait has rippled through global maritime trade, including through the Panama Canal nearly halfway around the world.

Also Saturday, Iran resumed commercial flights from Tehran’s international airport for the first time since the war began with U.S. and Israeli strikes two months ago. Flights were scheduled to depart for Istanbul, Oman’s capital of Muscat and the Saudi city of Medina, according to Iran’s state-run television. Iran partly reopened its airspace earlier this month due to the ceasefire.

A growing toll even as ceasefires hold

Since the war began, authorities say at least 3,375 people have been killed in Iran and more than 2,490 people in Lebanon, where new fighting between Israel and the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah broke out two days after the Iran war started.

Additionally, 23 people have been killed in Israel and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab states. Fifteen Israeli soldiers in Lebanon, 13 U.S. service members in the region and six members of the U.N. peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon have been killed.

Trump announced Thursday that Israel and Lebanon had agreed to extend a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah by three weeks. Hezbollah has not participated in the Washington-brokered diplomacy.

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Ahmed reported from Islamabad and Gambrell reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Associated Press writers Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv, Israel; Bassem Mroue in Beirut; and Will Weissert in Washington contributed.

The bodies of four people were found in the ruins of a house destroyed in overnight attacks, Dnipropetrovsk regional head Oleksandr Hanzha said.

“The Russians have been hitting Dnipro and other cities and communities practically all night,” Hanzha wrote on Telegram of the attacks, which caused fires to break out across Dnipro and partially destroyed several apartment buildings, businesses and a private house.

Another person was killed in a separate Russian attack on Dnipro Saturday afternoon, according to Hanzha, in the same residential area hit by the overnight strikes. He said that 46 people were wounded in total.

To the southwest, two people were wounded in overnight drone attacks on the Odesa region. Residential buildings, port infrastructure and cars were damaged in the south of the region, regional head Oleh Kiper said Saturday.

In Russia, a woman was killed and a man was seriously wounded by a Ukrainian drone strike in the border region of Belgorod, local officials said.

Leonid Pasechnik, the Russia-installed governor in Ukraine’s Luhansk region — of which Russia earlier this month said it had taken full control, a claim denied by Ukraine — said Saturday that three people were killed in an overnight Ukrainian drone strike on a village. Ukraine did not comment on the attack, and the claim could not be independently verified by The Associated Press.

Following the overnight attacks, Romania’s Defense Ministry said Saturday that drone fragments were found in a residential area of the southeastern city of Galati, as well as on a farm some 30 kilometers (18.5 miles) from Galati, near the NATO member’s border with Ukraine. No casualties were reported.

Romania has confirmed drone fragments on its territory on multiple occasions.

The overnight attacks followed a prisoner swap Friday, in which Russia and Ukraine exchanged 193 service members.

Periodic prisoner exchanges have been one of the few positive outcomes of otherwise fruitless monthslong U.S.-brokered negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv. The talks have delivered no progress on key issues preventing an end to Russia’s invasion of its neighbor, now in its fifth year.

While meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine is open to continuing peace talks with Russia in Azerbaijan.

“We have already held such talks — in Turkey and with our American partners in Switzerland,” he said. “We are also ready for upcoming negotiations in Azerbaijan, if Russia is ready for diplomacy.”

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Morton reported from London. Associated Press writer Stephen McGrath in Leamington Spa, England, contributed to this report.

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This story has been corrected to use the Ukrainian transliteration of Hanzha.

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Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Chatrie made off with $195,000 from the bank he robbed in suburban Richmond, Virginia, and eluded the police until they turned to a powerful technological tool that erected a virtual fence and allowed them collect the location history of cellphone users near the crime scene.

The geofence warrant police served on Google found that Chatrie's cellphone was among a handful of devices in the vicinity of the bank around the time it was robbed.

Now the Supreme Court will decide whether geofence warrants violate the Fourth Amendment's ban on unreasonable searches. It's the latest high court case that forces the justices to wrestle with how a constitutional provision ratified in 1791 applies to technology the nation’s founders could not have contemplated in their wildest dreams.

Chatrie's appeal is one of two cases being argued Monday. The other is an effort by Bayer to have the court block thousands of state lawsuits alleging the global agrochemical manufacturer failed to warn people that its popular Roundup weedkiller could cause cancer.

Geofence warrants turn the usual way of pursuing suspects on its head. Typically, police identify a suspect and then obtain a warrant to search a home or a phone.

With geofence warrants, police do not have a suspect, only a location where a crime took place. They work in reverse to identify people who were in the area.

Prosecutors credit the warrants with helping crack cold cases and other crimes where surveillance cameras did not reveal suspects' faces or license plates.

Civil libertarians say that geofences amount to fishing expeditions that subject many innocent people to searches of private records merely because their cellphones happened to be in the vicinity of a crime. A Supreme Court ruling in favor of the technique could “unleash a much broader wave of similar reverse searches,” law professors who study digital surveillance wrote the court.

Investigators used geofence warrants to identify supporters of President Donald Trump who attacked the Capitol in the riot on Jan. 6, 2021, as well as in the search for the person who planted pipe bombs outside the Democratic and Republican party headquarters the night before.

Police also credit these warrants with helping identify suspects in killings in several states, including California, Georgia and North Carolina.

An academic group that works to bridge gaps between the police and communities wrote that the court should avoid an all-or-nothing approach in Chatrie’s case.

The Trump administration's position would allow police to use geofence warrants and similar tools “with no judicial supervision or constitutional safeguards,” according to the Policing Project at the New York University School of Law. Chatrie's lawyers want the court to rule out any use of geofence warrants at all, impeding “legitimate law enforcement activities,” the group wrote.

In Chatrie's case, the geofence warrant invigorated an investigation that had stalled. After determining that Chatrie was near the Call Federal Credit Union in Midlothian around the time it was robbed in May 2019, police obtained a search warrant for his home. They found nearly $100,000 in cash, including bills wrapped in bands signed by the bank teller.

He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to nearly 12 years in prison. Chatrie's lawyers argued on appeal that none of the evidence should have been used against him.

They challenged the warrant as a violation of his privacy because it allowed authorities to gather the location history of people near the bank without having any evidence they had anything to do with the robbery. Prosecutors argued that Chatrie had no expectation of privacy because he voluntarily opted into Google’s location history.

A federal judge agreed that the search violated Chatrie’s rights, but allowed the evidence to be used because the officer who applied for the warrant reasonably believed he was acting properly.

The federal appeals court in Richmond upheld the conviction in a fractured ruling. In a separate case, the federal appeals court in New Orleans ruled that geofence warrants "are general warrants categorically prohibited by the Fourth Amendment.”

In the Supreme Court's last case on digital-age searches, in 2018, the court divided 5-4 in favor of a defendant whose movements were tracked by authorities for nearly four months, without a warrant, through the review of cellphone tower data.

An issue in that case that also appears in Chatrie's is whether the defendant had an expectation of privacy that would trigger Fourth Amendment protections.

The Supreme Court has previously ruled that information shared with third parties cannot be considered private.

But Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in his majority opinion about the extraordinary computing power of cellphones, describing “seismic shifts in digital technology” and "the exhaustive chronicle of location information casually collected by wireless carriers today.”

The league confirmed the suspension in a statement late Friday, warning that the decision amounted to “a serious and arbitrary violation of freedom of association” and “a direct assault” on one of Tunisia’s key democratic gains.

President Kais Saied has often cited foreign funding, which rights groups sometimes rely on, as a threat to Tunisia, using it to fuel a populist narrative and accuse his political opponents and social justice activists of being foreign agents and stirring unrest at home.

“This measure cannot be seen in isolation from a broader context in the country marked by increasing systematic pressure on civil society and independent voices,” the group said, adding that it would challenge what it called an unjust decision in court while continuing to defend victims of rights violations without discrimination.

The suspension follows a series of similar measures targeting rights groups in the North African country, where courts last year ordered multiple prominent NGOs to halt activities for a month, including organizations focused on migrants’ and women’s rights.

The decision comes as journalist Zied El-Heni was placed under 48-hour detention over a Facebook post, amid a broader pattern of arrests and legal pressure targeting critics.

Mohamed Yassine Jlassi, a former president of the Tunisian journalists union SNJT, told The Associated Press on the sidelines of a protest in Tunis on Friday that hundreds of people are being detained over speech-related charges, including social media posts.

“Repression has come to affect everyone. Journalism has become a crime, civil society work has become a crime, political opposition has been criminalized,” he said.

“People now increasingly find themselves facing arbitrary prosecutions without the bare minimum guarantees of a fair trial.”

Meanwhile, the investigative outlet Inkyfada faces a court hearing on May 11, as authorities pursue the dissolution of Al Khatt, the association that publishes it.

The group said in a statement that it disputes the legal basis of the case and says the claims cited by the government have not been examined by Tunisian courts since 2024.

These developments add to growing concerns among rights advocates over restrictions on independent media, civil society and any dissenting voices under Saied, who has consolidated power since 2021 and has increasingly targeted groups he repeatedly accuses of receiving foreign funding to stir unrest and destabilize Tunisia’s national interests.

The bronze figure of Rocky Balboa — arms raised in victory, clad in boxing trunks and boots — has become a point of pilgrimage for people around the world.

For decades, the museum kept an uncomfortable distance from this kind of devotion. Now, it is embracing it — and inviting Rocky in.

Opening this weekend, “Rising Up: Rocky and the Making of Monuments” examines how a fictional fighter became a real-world symbol, placing the statue within the sweep of art history and Philadelphia’s identity. The exhibition is the brainchild of guest curator Paul Farber, who spent years exploring the meaning of the statue and public monuments — including through his NPR podcasts — before bringing the conversation into the museum.

The exhibition spans more than 2,000 years of boxing imagery, tracing a thread of human struggle that Louis Marchesano, the museum’s deputy director of curatorial affairs and conservation, said helps explain Rocky’s enduring pull.

“The common theme that runs throughout 2,000 years of boxing imagery is that people respond to the body under struggle, a conflict in much the same way today as they did 2,500 years ago,” Marchesano said. “It’s not simply about watching two people beat each other up — it’s about endurance, internal fortitude and internal struggle.”

When the bronze statue was left on the steps after filming the “Rocky” movies, the museum fought to have it removed. It was eventually relocated to South Philadelphia before returning to the bottom of the steps in 2006. It was welcomed back, but never fully embraced. The city owns the spot where the statue sits — not the museum.

“The museum has had — and I hate to say this, no pun intended — a rocky relationship with the statue,” Marchesano said.

“It took us decades to come to terms with it,” he added. “But I’m glad that we did.”

According to the Philadelphia Visitor Center, about 4 million people visit the steps each year — rivaling the nearby Liberty Bell in annual foot traffic.

David Muller, a wrestling coach from France who recently brought his students to the steps, said he thinks Balboa’s trials and travails are “good for the next generation.”

“The movie ‘Rocky’ is important for the mind of sport and the mind of life,” Muller said, after running with them up the steps as they raised their hands at the top, smiling and punching the air like boxers.

Kate Tarchalska traveled from Poland with family and made the statue one of their stops.

“He was my hero when I was younger,” she said. “And now I am so glad I could be in the same spot as him.”

Suraj Kumar, visiting his aunt in Philadelphia from St. Louis, made a point to photograph the statue to share with his father, who first introduced him to the films when he was growing up in Bengaluru, India.

“When I got to know this statue is here, I was like, I really have to come down here,” he said.

One gallery places Rocky in the global boxing fever of the 1970s, featuring works by Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Andy Warhol — all created during a time when boxing had the world’s attention.

“In the 1970s, we knew minute by minute who the heavyweight champion of the world was,” Marchesano said. “The artists in this gallery are responding to that global frenzy. Sylvester Stallone, in ‘Rocky,’ was doing the same — thinking about internal and external struggle.”

Another gallery turns to Philadelphia itself, presenting photographs of the Blue Horizon boxing gym and a section on Joe Frazier, whose real-life story at least partially inspired Rocky.

“Without Joe Frazier, Rocky doesn’t exist,” Marchesano said.

When the exhibition closes in August, the statue inside will move to a permanent home at the top of the museum’s steps — a place it has never officially held. The statue currently outside remains on loan from Stallone.

Rocky’s longtime spot at the bottom of the steps won’t be empty — a statue of Frazier will replace it.

“People in this neighborhood aren’t receiving the benefits of trees,” said Natasha Harrison, executive director of the Newport Tree Conservancy. “They need more.”

The conservancy has planted hundreds of native trees to create a healthier forest in a 30-acre city-owned park, Miantonomi Memorial Park. Fifteen volunteers met staff from the conservancy at the park in the northern part of the city on Wednesday for Earth Day.

Many native trees in the park’s forest have been crowded out by invasive plants, killed by disease or eaten by deer, rabbits and squirrels. This year, for the first time, the conservancy wanted to dig up native seedlings to nurture the trees in their nursery and replant them in the forest to better their chances of survival.

The conservancy's goal is to grow the tree canopy in the area and raise its low “tree equity score.” The score is a measure of whether there are enough trees in a neighborhood for people to experience the health, economic and climate benefits trees provide.

The conservancy's work was supposed to be aided by federal funding the U.S. Forest Service awarded to the Arbor Day Foundation, a global nonprofit dedicated to tree planting and conservation, Harrison said. As President Donald Trump's administration sought to end environmental justice initiatives, the Forest Service terminated a $75 million grant last year to the foundation, which was working to plant trees in neighborhoods that might not otherwise be able to afford them.

Harrison said the conservancy expected to receive $150,000 from the foundation. The conservancy's donors made up the difference after the cancellation, and volunteers help the nonprofit to achieve its mission.

“It was stressful, but I didn't want to let it derail us,” Harrison said.

The conservancy has been partnering with the city to plant trees throughout Newport for almost 40 years and improve the tree canopy.

At Miantonomi Park, Joe Verstandig, the conservancy's living collections manager, led the group into the forest. He pointed out the invasive species they are working against, like the groves of Aralia spinosa, commonly called devil’s walking stick, Norway maples and Japanese knotweed. He showed them how to methodically dig up the plants they wanted to save, such as the arrowwood that is common throughout Rhode Island, elderberry and American holly.

The group included friends Allie Bujakowski and Mara Swist. Bujakowski lives a mile from the park and walks her dog there. Swist lives nearby in Portsmouth, Rhode Island. They both said they wanted to get their hands dirty for Earth Day and help the conservancy, which planted a tree in Bujakowski's front yard.

“They are getting trees in spaces in the community where we really need them,” said Bujakowski, who wore a Newport mansions hat. “It makes a big difference visually. I see the trees they planted two years ago and they're bringing the birds back.”

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The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

Trump will be watched closely at the event held by the organization of reporters who cover him and his administration. Past presidents who have attended have generally spoken about the importance of free speech and the First Amendment, adding in some light roasts about individual journalists.

The Republican president did not attend during his first term or the first year of his second. He came as a guest in 2011, sitting in the audience as President Barack Obama, a Democrat, made some jokes about the New York real estate developer. Trump also attended as a private citizen in 2015.

Past dinners have also featured comedians who poke at presidents. This year, the group opted to hire mentalist Oz Pearlman as the featured entertainment.

Trump’s planned appearance is rekindling a longer running debate about the dinner and events like it — in particular, whether it is poor form for journalists to be seen socializing with the people they cover. The New York Times, for example, stopped attending the dinner more than a decade ago for that reason.

“What was once (a fairly long time ago) a well-intended night of fundraising and camaraderie among professional adversaries is now simply a bad look,” wrote Kelly McBride, ethics expert at the Poynter Institute, a journalism think tank.

A contentious relationship

Between berating individual reporters, fighting organizations like the Times, The Wall Street Journal and The Associated Press in court and restricting press access to the Pentagon, the administration’s animus toward journalists has been a fixture of Trump’s second term.

On the eve of the dinner, nearly 500 retired journalists signed a petition calling on the association "to forcefully demonstrate opposition to President Trump’s efforts to trample freedom of the press.”

“The White House Correspondents’ dinner reinforces the importance of the First Amendment in our democracy," said the WHCA president, Weijia Jiang, a CBS News reporter. "As we mark America’s 250th birthday, our choice to gather as journalists, newsmakers and the president in the same room is a reminder of what a free press means to this country and why it must endure. Not for the media or the president, but for the people who depend on it.”

Many reporters who attend, however, consider it a valuable opportunity get story ideas and establish personal connections with those in government, one that may pay dividends with returned telephone calls in the future.

Some news organizations invite sources as guests

Journalists often invite sources as guests at the dinner. It will be noticed Saturday whether administration officials who have also expressed hostility to the press will attend, and with whom they will be sitting.

The AP has invited Taylor Budowich, a former White House deputy chief of staff who left last fall for the private sector. The invitation is notable because Budowich, in his role crafting White House communications policy, was a named defendant last year when the AP sued the administration after it reduced its access to the president because the news outlet did not follow Trump's lead in renaming the Gulf of Mexico.

“We maintain professional relationships with people across the political spectrum because we are nonpartisan by design — focused on reporting the facts in the public's interest,” AP spokesman Patrick Maks said.

The White House correspondents will also hand out awards for exemplary reporting. That includes some stories that displeased Trump, such as one from the Journal about a birthday message Trump once sent to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The story led to a presidential lawsuit.

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David Bauder writes about the intersection of media and entertainment for The Associated Press. Follow him at http://x.com/dbauder and https://bsky.app/profile/dbauder.bsky.social.

Some U.S. doctors are worried about the potential for a bad year for tick-borne diseases.

“If you have a lot of exposures, there will probably be more cases of tick-related infections,” said Dr. Alina Filozov, an infectious disease doctor at Middlesex Hospital in Middletown, Connecticut.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued an early advisory to the public this week to guard against ticks.

Tick bites typically spike in May, but “the data are telling us now is the time to take action,” said Alison Hinckley, a CDC Lyme disease expert. “Ticks are out and people are getting bitten.”

ER visits for tick bites are running high

Current data is very limited, but the early signs are not good.

The CDC's tracking system shows that weekly rates of ER visits for tick bites are the highest for this time of year since 2017. That's true in all regions of the country, except the south-central United States.

About 85% of U.S. hospital emergency departments send data to the surveillance system, but it doesn't capture people who didn't go to a hospital.

It will take months for systematic tick sampling by researchers to chart changes in tick populations. And because not every bite results in an infection, it will also take time for medical experts to know whether there’s an actual surge in Lyme disease or other illnesses.

Ticks cause disease, including a meat allergy

Ticks are small, eight-legged bloodsucking parasites — arachnids, not insects — that feed on animals and sometimes people.

Tick populations vary throughout the year, and their numbers depend on a few factors. Climate change is widely believed to be having an effect: Ticks like warm, humid weather, and more can be seen after a mild winter. The more deer and mice available for them to feed on may also factor.

Some ticks are infected with germs that can cause serious diseases, including Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever and alpha-gal syndrome, a red meat allergy. Lyme disease is the most common, with an estimated 476,000 people treated for it each year, according to the CDC. Infections are commonly treated with antibiotics.

So far this year, most ticks seen in the Northeast have been large adult ticks. But in the weeks ahead, juvenile nymphs will become more common. The emergence of nymphs, along with more people spending time outdoors, are among the reasons tick bites tend to be highest in May. Worse, tiny nymphs attached to people are harder to see — and often are there longer — leading to an increased risk of infections, experts say.

A notorious hot spot is seeing a tick surge

Connecticut has a connection to tick-borne disease — Lyme disease is named after a town there. And earlier this month, the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station reported that residents were already submitting an average of 30 ticks per day for testing.

State officials also said an unusually high percentage of the submitted ticks — 40% — tested positive for the bacteria that cause Lyme disease.

Several factors have been helping tick populations expand, including unusually high numbers of mice in the last two years, said Scott Williams, a tick researcher at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station.

All we have so far is an early snapshot, said Megan Linske, a wildlife biologist with the same agency. She expects the problem to continue to worsen, with more ticks spreading over more areas.

How to prevent tick bites

Experts advise that if you go outdoors, note any wooded areas and grassy properties that start bleeding into wooded areas. Ticks tend to perch on ankle-level vegetation with their upper legs outstretched, waiting to latch on to an unsuspecting dog or human.

Try to walk in the middle of paths. Wear light-colored clothing treated with the insecticide permethrin. And use Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-registered insect repellents.

If you do find a tick, remove it immediately. It's not necessary to go to a doctor unless you think the tick has been on you for days or if you develop a rash or other symptoms, experts said.

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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

The late Queen Elizabeth II wowed Congress in 1991 with a speech that celebrated the shared democratic traditions of Britain and the United States, quoted Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D. Roosevelt and Ralph Waldo Emerson, and highlighted the deep bonds between the two nations.

Those themes will also be at the top of Charles’ agenda as he celebrates America's 250th birthday and seeks to calm tensions surrounding Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s refusal to support U.S. President Donald Trump’s war against Iran, said Douglas Brinkley, a presidential historian at Rice University in Texas.

“We’ve got to always make the distinction that there’s a difference between the government of the U.K. and the kings and queens of Great Britain, who are really always coming to try to put (on) a good face,” Brinkley told The Associated Press. “Politics come and go, prime ministers, presidents, come and go, but there’s something deeper about the special relationship between the United States and the U.K.”

Behind the scenes

Beneath the pomp and pageantry of Charles’ four-day trip to Washington, New York and Virginia beginning Monday is a carefully choreographed diplomatic event staged, like all royal visits, at the request of the British government. Starmer resisted pressure to cancel it after Trump belittled the British military’s sacrifices in Afghanistan and criticized him personally for failing to back the U.S. in Iran.

Despite those tensions, Trump has continued to speak warmly about Charles.

“History has shown that President Trump really tries to be impressive whenever he’s dealing with British royalty,” Brinkley said. “And I’m sure it’ll be the same this time around.”

Ever since 1939, when King George VI became the first British monarch to set foot on the soil of the country’s former colony, there’s been a special sort of excitement whenever the royals come to the United States.

Take that first visit, which took place as World War II loomed over Europe. The royals toured the east coast and attended a “picnic” at Roosevelt’s private home in Hyde Park, New York. “King tries hot dog and asks for more,’’ declared the New York Times.

But the big moment was when the royals traveled to Mount Vernon to lay a wreath at the tomb of George Washington, America’s first president. It showed respect at a time of isolationism.

“People could see the handwriting on the wall and know that it was going to be important for the United States and Britain to stay strong for fighting against Hitler,” said Barbara Perry, a presidential scholar at the University of Virginia’s Miller Center.

But bonding over sausages had broader benefits, helping the royals build links to the general public as well as its leadership. After war broke out in September 1939, Queen Elizabeth, the wife of George VI and mother of the future Elizabeth II, wrote to first lady Eleanor Roosevelt to say how moved she'd been by letters from Americans who enclosed small sums for British forces.

“Sometimes, during the last terrible months, we have felt rather lonely in our fight against evil things, but I can honestly say that our hearts have been lightened by the knowledge that friends in America understand what we are fighting for,’’ she wrote.

The queen's connection

Queen Elizabeth II built on those relationships, making four state visits to the U.S. during her 70-year reign. She helped President Gerald R. Ford celebrate America’s bicentennial in 1976 and met with President George W. Bush in 2007 as British and American forces fought in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Smoothing turbulent waters and reminding both sides about their common bonds were what those trips were all about.

Charles’ visit will be no different. It includes a commemoration of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, a ceremony honoring fallen service members and an event to be attended by Queen Camilla to mark the 100th anniversary of Winnie the Pooh stories by British author A.A. Milne.

Awkward events will be avoided.

The royals won’t meet with Jeffrey Epstein's victims, despite calls for the king to address his brother’s links to the convicted sex offender. Nor are there plans for Charles to meet with his son Prince Harry, who has been a critic of the monarchy since giving up royal duties and moving to California.

Those issues aren’t the priority, said Robert Hardman, author of “Elizabeth II: In Private. In Public. The Inside Story.”

“He’s going because 250 years ago the Founding Fathers of the USA kicked out his great-times-five grandfather, and he’s going to say, `No hard feelings, it’s been a great divorce, we’ve had a lovely 250 years and let’s reflect on the high points,’’’ Hardman said. “I mean, there are going to be some very, very large elephants in the room during that visit … but, you know, there are plenty of other things for the king to focus on.”

History, not politics

Charles’ speech to a joint session of Congress offers the chance to deliver the message that long-term friendship is more important than transient disputes.

He is also likely to offer a bit of humor, as his mother did when she faced lawmakers in 1991.

Wearing soft peach amid a sea of gray suits, the diminutive monarch began her remarks with a joke about an earlier blunder at the White House when her lectern was so tall it obscured the audience’s view of her.

“I do hope you can see me today from where you are,’’ she deadpanned.

The chamber erupted in laughter. A standing ovation followed. Then she launched into a speech about democratic values, the rule of law and the Atlantic Alliance.

But Charles will have to offer his own take on those ideas, Brinkley said.

“The theme of the speech is going to be American exceptionalism, American history, the importance of U.S.-British alliance, and some memories from the past,” he said. “But also about the love affair the two countries share with each other, even though it goes over rocky rapids from time to time.”

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in Islamabad on Friday to take part in Pakistani-led mediation efforts, and held a series of meetings with Pakistani officials. He met with Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday.

Iran’s government said there would be no direct negotiations with U.S. representatives during Araghchi’s visit to Islamabad.

Pakistan was preparing to receive U.S. special envoys Witkoff and Kushner, Trump's son-in-law, although officials have not specified when they are due in Islamabad. Vice President JD Vance will not attend, the White House said.

Separately, the Trump administration announced it is placing economic sanctions on a major China-based oil refinery and roughly 40 shipping companies and tankers involved in transporting Iranian oil. The move appeared to be part of the administration's threat to impose secondary sanctions on entities doing business with Iran in order to cut off Iran’s oil exports, a key source of its revenue.

Here is the latest:

Israeli airstrikes kill 4 people in southern Lebanese village

Lebanon’s Health Ministry said that Israeli airstrikes on the village of Yohmor in southern Lebanon targeted a pickup truck and a motorcycle, killing four people.

Saturday’s airstrikes came despite a 10-day ceasefire in place since April 17.

Since the truce went into effect, it has been repeatedly violated by both sides.

U.S. President Donald Trump said Thursday that Lebanon and Israel agreed to extend the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah by three weeks.

Pakistan’s prime minister meets with Iran’s foreign minister

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Saturday at the prime minister’s office in the capital, Islamabad.

Sharif’s office issued a statement saying the meeting was ongoing.

It said Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir were also present.

No further details were immediately available, and the statement only said the “current regional situation will be discussed.”

Iran’s top diplomat meets with Pakistan army chief

Iran’s top diplomat and Pakistan’s army chief have discussed efforts to launch a new round of talks with the United States.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Telegram that he met with Pakistan’s Field Marshal Asim Munir Saturday morning in Islamabad, Pakistan’s capital, and explained Iran’s views on ending the war between the Islamic Republic and the U.S.

Araghchi didn’t offer further details, but said Tehran will continue engaging in the Pakistani-led mediation efforts “until a result is achieved.”

Iran’s president calls on people to save electricity

Iran’s president has urged people to reduce their use of electricity after American and Israeli strikes damaged the county’s energy infrastructure, state media reported.

President Masoud Pezeshkian said the government aims to “control consumption” of electricity, according to the Iranian state television.

“Instead of turning on 10 lights at home, turn on two lights. What is wrong with that?” he said.

He said the U.S. and Israel “destroyed our infrastructure,” and noted that the U.S. imposed a blockade on Iran’s ports.

Commercial flights resume at Tehran’s airport

Commercial flights resumed Saturday at Imam Khomeini International Airport in Tehran for the first time since the war with the United States and Israel started about two months ago.

Iran’s state-run television reported the airport has flights to Istanbul in Turkey, Oman’s capital Muscat and the Saudi city of Medina.

Flightradar24, a flight tracking platform, showed at least three Istanbul-bound flights departed Saturday morning.

Iran partly reopened its airspace earlier this month during a ceasefire with the U.S.

Germany to deploy minesweeper ships

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said his country plans to deploy minesweeper ships to the Mediterranean, which later could be transferred to the Strait of Hormuz.

“We will deploy a minesweeper to the Mediterranean and provide it with a command and supply ship,” Pistorius told the Rheinische Post newspaper Saturday.

He did not say exactly when the ships are scheduled to depart.

After an end to hostilities between the U.S., Israel and Iran, the German minesweepers could be deployed in the Strait of Hormuz, though such a mission would need to be approved by Germany’s parliament.

“To save time, we have decided to deploy part of the German units to the Mediterranean early on so that — once the mandate is approved — we do not lose any further time,” Pistorius said.

Islamabad locked down before talks

Pakistan’s capital Islamabad appeared to be in a near-lockdown Saturday morning, hours after Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived on a closely watched visit as Pakistan attempts to ease tensions between the United States and Iran.

The weeklong security restrictions have disrupted daily life, with hundreds of thousands of residents struggling to commute even short distances. Checkpoints, road closures and diversions have become routine sights, particularly around sensitive zones.

The usually busy arteries leading to the airport and the heavily fortified Red Zone were largely deserted early Saturday, with movement tightly restricted. Soldiers and police were at key intersections while helicopters circled overhead.

The measures were reinforced over the past 24 hours on the city’s outskirts with additional forces stationed along key airport access routes. Soldiers were visible on rooftops overlooking major approach roads, particularly near the airport where the Iranian delegation arrived late Friday.

Iran executes another man over alleged ties to Mossad

Iran hanged a man Saturday over alleged ties to Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency and his participation in anti-government protests in January.

Erfan Kiani was the latest in a series of executions in Iran following the war and nationwide protests.

The Mizan news agency of Iran’s judiciary announced Kiani was convicted of charges including attacks on security forces in the city of Asfahn in January.

The agency claimed he was on a “mission for Mossad” without offering evidence.

Human rights activists long have said Iran convicts people in closed-door trials without allowing defendants to properly defend themselves.

There recently have been multiple executions of alleged spies, as well as protesters and those affiliated with an Iranian exiled opposition group.

Pakistan president will travel to China

Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari is expected to travel to Beijing on Saturday to begin a weeklong visit at the invitation of the Chinese government.

Discussions will include economic and trade cooperation and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

China has played a role in facilitating Pakistan as a host for ceasefire talks between the United States and Iran. Zardari is expected to discuss his country’s efforts to host a second round.

The visit is part of a longstanding tradition of high-level exchanges between Pakistan and China and holds special significance as they mark the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations, Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said.

“It reflects the deep commitment of both countries to further strengthening the all-weather strategic cooperative partnership,” the ministry said.

Iran's foreign minister arrives in Pakistan

Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met late Friday with Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir shortly after arriving in Pakistan’s capital Islamabad, officials said.

On Saturday morning Araghchi met with Munir and Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, officials said.

Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said the Iranian delegation will hold talks with Pakistan’s senior leadership on the latest regional developments and efforts to promote peace and stability.

The visit comes as Pakistan is also preparing to receive U.S. envoys, although officials have not specified when Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are due in Islamabad.

Egyptian and Pakistani officials discuss the Iran war

Egyptian and Pakistani foreign ministers late Friday discussed efforts to launch a new round of talks between the United States and Iran.

Badr Abdelatty of Egypt spoke by phone with his Pakistani counterpart Mohammad Ishaq Dar.

The Egyptian foreign ministry said the diplomats affirmed that negotiations are the best way to end the war.

“Turn and burn,” top Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino called the strategy, with relentless displays of force and teams of agents descending on restaurant kitchens, bus stops and Home Depot parking lots.

In December, arrests by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents peaked at nearly 40,000 nationwide and were nearly as high the next month, according to data provided to UC Berkeley’s Deportation Data Project and analyzed by The Associated Press.

In late January, the killings in Minneapolis of two American citizens by immigration officers and growing concerns over the government’s heavy-handed tactics led to a shake-up of top immigration officials. In the weeks that followed, ICE arrests across the country dropped on average by nearly 12%.

Polling has found the general public felt the immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota went too far, a factor that may have contributed to the abrupt firing of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in early March.

The numbers don't follow the same pattern everywhere

Bovino, who swaggered through raid scenes in tactical gear and was the public face of the Trump administration crackdown, was pushed aside following the killings in Minneapolis of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Border czar Tom Homan was then sent to the Twin Cities to chart a new course for immigration enforcement, and he announced the drawdown of immigration agents in the state on Feb. 4.

An AP analysis of ICE arrest records show the department averaged 7,369 weekly arrests nationwide in the five weeks after Homan’s drawdown announcement, , the most recent period for which data is available, down from 8,347 per week in the previous five weeks. Those arrest numbers were still higher on average than during much of the first year of President Donald Trump's second term, and were dramatically higher than during the Biden administration.

The numbers were not, however, uniform across the country.

ICE arrests rose significantly in Kentucky, Indiana, North Carolina and Florida during those five weeks, in some cases hitting their highest weekly count since the start of Trump’s second term.. In Kentucky alone, weekly arrests more than doubled, reaching 86 by early March.

Those increases were offset by steep drops in a handful of large states, including Minnesota and Texas.

Many arrested were not Trump's ‘worst of the worst’

The Trump administration insists it is targeting the most vicious criminals living illegally in the U.S., and the president has referred to them as “ the worst of the worst.”

In some cases the description is accurate, but the reality is complicated.

Many of the toughest criminals taken into ICE custody were already in prison, but many others who were arrested have no criminal history.

Nationally, some 46% of the people ICE arrested in the five weeks before Feb. 4 had no criminal charges or convictions, dropping to 41% in the five weeks that followed.

Yet that’s still above the 35% weekly average for the time since Trump returned to office. And in a number of states, even after Feb. 4, the share of noncriminals being arrested went up, not down.

Has there been a change in approach?

Across the country, thousands of federal court filings offer an imperfect window into how the Trump administration’s deportation tactics remain in high gear, even if activity has waned.

Like the 21-year-old Honduran man with no criminal record who has filed a petition for release after being arrested Feb. 22 in a suburban San Diego traffic stop. The father of three U.S. citizen children — ages 5, 3 and 10 months — had been under ICE surveillance, the petition says, before officers in tactical gear pulled him over.

Or the 33-year-old Venezuelan woman, a well-known South Texas doctor who worked in a region designated as medically underserved, who was arrested earlier this month with her five-year-old daughter, a U.S. citizen, on her way to her husband’s asylum hearing.

She was arrested, officials said, for overstaying her visa.

Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow with the research and advocacy group the American Immigration Council, says he sees signs of change in lower arrest and detention numbers but warns it’s too early to know if those shifts are permanent.

“The Trump administration says: ‘We’re not slowing down,’ ‘Nothing has changed,’” in immigration enforcement, he said. “But it’s very clear that they have pulled back from some of the tactics of Operation Metro Surge,” the crackdown that swept Minneapolis.

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Kessler reported from Washington and Sullivan from Minneapolis. Associated Press reporters Elliot Spagat in San Diego and Gisela Salomon in Miami contributed.

We’re starting Saturday with patchy fog, particularly the further East that you are. Some areas have seen light drizzle, keeping sidewalks and streets wet. We’ll dry out under mostly cloudy skies for the afternoon and evening.

Highs today will be around 60° for most areas. A northerly breeze will keep those in our northern communities closer to 50°.

Tonight’s temperatures fall to the upper 30s to low 40s with a light northeast wind.

Clouds decrease overnight into Sunday morning giving way to more sunshine tomorrow.

Highs Sunday will reach the mid 50s to lower 60s.

This time of year, Southeast Michigan should be experiencing highs in the low 60s and lows in the lower 40s. Highs will be near normal to begin the coming week.

The next chance of rain arrives late Monday and carries into Tuesday.

The toll on Friday included two men who were killed in Gaza City, and eight others killed in the southern city of Khan Younis, according to local hospitals. Officials at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis said the eight people, including four police officers, were killed after Israel targeted a police vehicle.

Khalid Al-Tanani, of Beit Lahiya, recalled the series of strikes that killed his wife and two of his four children in the northern Gaza Strip.

“With the first shell, thank God we all survived and were calling out to each other. Then they fired the second, third, and fourth shells one after the other. Their voices fell silent. I went inside and found my wife, Islam Al-Tanani, martyred, and my son, Hamza, and Naya in her mother’s arms. I found them martyred.” The children were 4 and 13 years old.

Hamza’s 13-year-old twin survived, along with another of the couple's children. Al-Tanani said they had just started talking about gathering baby items and clothes for the twins.

Family members wailed over the bodies on Saturday. “You took my soul with you, Hamza, you took me with you and broke me, Hamza,” his grandmother sobbed.

Israel's military said several militants had threatened troops in the area and the military targeted them in an airstrike after warning civilians. Al-Tanani said the strikes came without prior notice.

Israel’s military said it had targeted two militants that threatened its troops in Gaza City and did not comment on the third strike in Khan Younis that killed eight.

While the heaviest fighting has mostly subsided, deadly Israeli strikes have repeatedly disrupted the truce since it took effect on Oct. 10. The escalating Palestinian toll has prompted many in Gaza to say it feels like the war has continued unabated.

Israeli forces frequently fire on Palestinians near military-held zones. Militants have carried out shooting attacks on troops, and Israel says its strikes are in response to that and other violations. Four Israeli soldiers have been killed since the ceasefire.

Israeli attacks have killed more than 790 people since the fragile ceasefire between Hamas and Israel was put in place six months ago, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The ministry, part of the Hamas-led government, maintains detailed casualty records that are seen as generally reliable by U.N. agencies and independent experts. It does not give a breakdown of civilians and militants.

Overall, the health ministry says 72,300 Palestinians had been killed since the war in Gaza began with the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israel

The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel and killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, on Oct. 7, 2023.

“America’s energy policy should be grounded in facts, fiscal responsibility, and the national interest — not ideology or politics,″ they wrote.

One of the lawmakers is Rep. Jen Kiggans, a former Navy helicopter pilot who represents a coastal district in Virginia where an $11.5 billion wind farm is expected to create 1,000 jobs. Her support for an initiative targeted by Trump shows the scrambled politics of clean energy in an election year where Republicans are at risk of losing the House.

Kiggans could be even more at risk after Virginia voters on Tuesday approved a new congressional map that makes her competitive district more Democratic than before.

Trump's broader campaign against clean energy resulted in the cancellation of nearly $35 billion in U.S. projects last year, according to a report by E2, a clean energy business group. Republican-held congressional districts lost nearly twice as much in investments than did Democratic districts, the report said.

For now, the Virginia project is back on track, along with the other four, because of federal court rulings. But Elaine Luria, a former congresswoman who is seeking the Democratic nomination in the 2nd Congressional District represented by Kiggans, said the incumbent's efforts have been futile in the face of Trump’s onslaught.

“Her advocacy did nothing," Luria said. Kiggans did not respond to requests for comment.

A president who hates ‘windmills’

Trump has treated energy issues as another front in the nation's cultural clashes, referring to Democrats' support for clean energy as the “Green New Scam.” He frequently talks about his hatred of “windmills,” which he described as “STUPID AND UGLY” on social media. He issued an executive order on the first day of his second term blocking wind projects and he has insisted that “smart countries” do not use wind power.

Solar farms are not much better in his mind.

“You go around and you see all these things that are 3 miles long by 3 miles wide and you say what the hell is that,” Trump said at the White House last summer.

The administration even agreed to pay $1 billion to a French company to walk away from two U.S. offshore wind leases and instead invest in oil and natural gas projects.

Kiggans voted in favor of Republican legislation to gut clean energy tax credits as part of Trump’s sweeping tax and spending bill even though she has long portrayed herself as a champion of renewable energy. Democrats have turned the issue into campaign advertisements, and Luria said it undermines Kiggans' attempt to “sell herself as if she's a moderate.”

Luria said Kiggans “voted for a bill to make energy more expensive.”

In a Facebook post after the bill was passed in July, Kiggans said her vote “wasn’t about politics — it was about overall results.”

“I had ONE vote, and I voted YES on the One Big Beautiful Bill Act not because it was perfect but because it delivers permanent tax relief for families & small businesses, rebuilds our Navy & invests in national defense," she wrote.

Stephen Farnsworth, a political science professor at the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia, said front-line Republicans have been put in a difficult position.

“Kiggans is not the only Republican being squeezed" as Trump focuses on his own priorities and the country faces economic headwinds exacerbated by the war with Iran, he said. Although few want to risk upsetting the president, Farnsworth said, “in coastal Virginia politics, there’s not much upside to opposing wind."

U.S. Rep. Tom Kean Jr., R-N.J., has been caught up in a controversy over the Gateway Tunnel, which will add new rail tracks under the Hudson River to alleviate congestion between his state and New York City. Trump tried to block federal funding, a potential setback for commuters in towns that Kean represents. A judge ordered the administration to restore money for the project after Democratic leaders in New Jersey and New York went to court.

An opportunity to lead on offshore wind

Although Trump has dismissed offshore wind turbines as ugly, the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project is about 27 miles (43 kilometers) out into the ocean, making it difficult to see from land. On a recent visit to the Portsmouth Marine Terminal, where construction is staged, the turbines were impossible to discern along the horizon.

Dominion Energy, which operates the wind farm, says it delivered its first power to the grid last month. The project, first announced in 2013, is expected to create 1,000 jobs and generate about $2 billion in economic activity, the company said.

Once finished, the 176-turbine project could deliver 2.6 gigawatts of power to the grid — enough to supply more than 660,000 homes — at a time when Virginia faces growing energy demand from an expanding hub of artificial intelligence data centers.

“There's an opportunity here for Hampton Roads to be a national leader in offshore wind,'' said Andrew Nissman, a spokesman for the Hampton Roads Workforce Council, which has trained maritime workers for the project.

Nissman declined to comment on the congressional race, saying, ”as with any stop-and-start challenge, it's important the project is moving forward.''

While the wind farm is now partially online, "Kiggans nearly cost her constituents this project by standing with an administration dead set on dismantling the offshore wind industry and voting to repeal critical clean energy tax credits last year,'' said Dan Taylor, Southeast regional field manager for the BlueGreen Alliance, which coordinates labor unions and environmental groups.

“Kiggans claims to prioritize jobs, lower energy costs for Virginians and reducing emissions,” Taylor added. “Yet she voted to kill jobs, skyrocket energy costs to families and increase the emissions driving climate change.”

More than 70,000 people are eligible to vote for municipal government in Deir al-Balah, a central Gaza city that has been damaged by airstrikes but was spared an Israeli ground invasion. The single-city vote is a largely symbolic “pilot," election officials say, part of an effort to politically link Gaza and the occupied West Bank. Palestinians see both as integral to any future path to statehood.

Voters spoke about the near-total absence of public services and said the devastation in Gaza compelled them to participate.

“I came to vote because I have a right to elect members to municipal council so they can provide us with services,” Ashraf Abu Dan said outside his Deir al-Balah polling place.

There and throughout the occupied West Bank, voting will determine the makeup of local councils tasked with overseeing water, roads and electricity. Turnout may reflect the level of public trust in a broader system led by aging leaders in the West Bank and as Gaza prepares for an anticipated transition from Hamas rule.

Some polling places in the West Bank and central Gaza's Deir al-Balah were busy on Saturday, though others were more empty. Election officials reported 24.5% turnout as of 1 p.m.

Voters who turned out said they wanted a say over decision-making in their cities.

“Municipal laws need to be enforced so people feel there’s justice,” Khalid al-Qawasmeh, a voter in the West Bank city of Beitunia, said outside his polling place in the West Bank city Beitunia. His finger was inked blue to mark having voted.

Linking the West Bank and Gaza politically

Though it has not held presidential or legislative elections since 2006, the Palestinian Authority promoted the local races after reforms it enacted last year in response to demands from international backers.

Under the slogan “We Stay,” the Ramallah-based Central Election Commission campaigned to encourage participation and reflect how Palestinians living amid war and occupation want a say in how they're governed.

“We’re talking about geographically linking the West Bank and Gaza Strip,” Rami Hamdallah, the commission's chairman, said.

With Gaza mostly decimated after more than two years of war, the commission chose to hold its first vote in Deir al-Balah but had to improvise because it was unable to conduct traditional voter registration.

Hamdallah said Israel blocked the entry of materials like ballot paper, ballot boxes or ink into Gaza. The commission repurposed material instead, using wooden ballot boxes and blue ink leftover from a vaccination drive last year.

The commission said it did not coordinate directly with either Israel or Hamas ahead of the vote. Associated Press footage showed security officers keeping order outside polling stations. COGAT, the Israeli military body that oversees humanitarian affairs in Gaza, did not respond to questions about blocking materials.

Though Palestinian voter turnout has gradually decreased, it has been relatively high in past local elections by regional standards, averaging between 50% and 60%. By comparison, turnout in recent local elections in Lebanon and Tunisia was under 40% and 12%, respectively.

A thin candidat

e pool

Ninety-year-old President Mahmoud Abbas signed a decree last year reforming elections in line with some demands of Western donors, including allow voting for individuals rather than slates.

In January, another Abbas decree required candidates to accept the program of the Palestine Liberation Organization, the group that leads the Palestinian Authority. The program calls for the recognition of Israel and renouncing armed struggle, effectively sidelining Hamas and other factions.

Campaign posters have been plastered across cities, though many — including Ramallah and Nablus — don't have contested elections.

Slates in major cities are dominated by Fatah, the faction that leads the Palestinian Authority, and independents, some with ties to other factions. However, it’s the first time in six local elections that no faction besides Fatah has put forward its own slate — an absence that analysts say reflects political disillusionment under Abbas and the authority’s aging leadership.

In Qalqilya, a city where no slates registered to participate at all, Marwan Ennabi said elections didn't reflect that Palestinian democracy was thriving. He said he expected more of the same from officials regardless of what happens in any city. The Palestinian Authority will appoint councils in cities without contested races.

“This isn't transparency," he said. "This is chaos, chaos, chaos!”

The Palestinian Authority’s power has withered amid years without peace negotiations and Israel tightening its grip on the occupied West Bank. But it sees local elections as a low-risk way to demonstrate progress on reforms, said Aref Jaffal, director of the al-Marsad Arab World Democracy and Electoral Monitor.

“The PA wants to show it is on the right track on political, financial and administrative reforms, and is using local elections as a symbol of that,” he said.

With the authority incapable of addressing hundreds of new military gates and settler outposts constricting movement in the West Bank, he said councils have taken on greater importance, overseeing local health centers and schools that residents once accessed elsewhere.

Deir al-Balah will be Gaza's first election since 2006

Hamas won parliamentary elections in 2006 and violently seized control of Gaza from the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority a year later. It did not put forward candidates Saturday.

Hamas controls the half of Gaza that Israel withdrew from last year, including Deir al-Balah, but the coastal enclave is preparing to transition to a new governance structure under U.S. President Donald Trump’s 20-point plan.

The plan established an international Board of Peace and a committee of unelected Palestinian experts supposed to operate and govern under it. Progress toward further phases, including disarming Hamas, reconstruction and transferring power, is stalled.

Though elections in Israeli-annexed East Jerusalem are regular points of contention between Israel and Palestinian leaders, the Oslo Accords did not include provisions about holding local races there.

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Metz reported from Ramallah, West Bank. Associated Press writers Jalal Bwaitel and Imad Isseid in Ramallah, West Bank, contributed to this report.

The odds of Kevin Warsh becoming chair by the time Jerome Powell's term ends May 15 shot higher Friday when U.S. Attorney for Washington, D.C., Jeanine Pirro, said she would drop her probe into Powell over his testimony last summer about the Fed’s costly building renovations.

But should he be confirmed, Warsh will still face several hurdles to reducing rates, including rising gas prices that are pushing up inflation, questions about his political independence, and 11 other Fed policymakers who have a vote on the decision, with most of them not ready to cut.

At a Senate hearing Tuesday, Warsh pledged to be independent from White House pressure, but said relatively little about the direction he would take rates. While economists say he was likely just being cautious, he missed a chance to lay out an argument for rate cuts.

“Warsh’s stated outlook is much more consistent with an extended hold than additional cuts,” Aditya Bhave, head of U.S. economics at BofA Securities, wrote in a client note.

Trump, meanwhile, has kept up the pressure. When asked last week on Fox Business whether he still expects interest rates to decline, Trump said, “when Kevin gets in, I do ... interest rates should be much lower.”

Here's what you need to know about Warsh and what he will face as next Fed chair:

Rising inflation will make it harder to cut rates

Warsh, who was a member of the Fed's governing board from 2006 to 2011, regularly argued for rate cuts last year as he sought Trump's nomination to replace Powell. But since being named in late January, he has kept quiet, and hasn't made any public comments since the Iran war started Feb. 28.

The war has pushed up oil and gas prices, which caused inflation to spike to a two-year high of 3.3% in March, above the Fed's target of 2%. The Fed typically keeps its short-term rate — currently at about 3.6% — elevated to combat inflation, or even raises it.

The Fed reduces its rate to spur more spending and hiring, and earlier this year several Fed officials worried that a slowdown in job gains demonstrated that the rate was too high. But in recent weeks there are signs the job market may be stabilizing, possibly undercutting the need for a rate reduction.

Christopher Waller, a Fed governor who voted in favor of a rate cut in January, last week expressed concerns that rising inflation could mean the Fed would have to stand pat. He also suggested that with the unemployment rate a still-low 4.3%, rate cuts might not be necessary.

And Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said last week that if the Fed wanted “to wait for some clarity” before cutting rates, "I understand that,” a statement widely seen as providing some cover for Warsh to keep rates unchanged for at least a few months.

For now, Wall Street investors see little chance for a rate cut until October 2027, according to futures pricing.

Certainly, if inflation cools in the coming months and unemployment worsens, more Fed officials could end up supporting a rate cut. The economy has been volatile for the past year, at times looking healthy and other times anemic.

Warsh is just one of 12 voters at the Fed

Another challenge for Warsh is that he will be just one of 12 voters on the Fed's rate-setting committee, which meets eight times a year to decide on where to set its overnight interest rate. Most have indicated in recent speeches or votes that they are reluctant to lower borrowing costs with inflation as high as it is. The committee voted 11-1 to keep rates unchanged in March.

Next week, at a meeting likely to be Powell's last, the committee is widely expected to keep rates where they are.

Stephen Miran, a governor Trump appointed last September, was the only official to vote for a rate cut in March and has voted to cut rates at every meeting he has attended. But Warsh will replace Miran. Another governor Trump named in his first term, Michelle Bowman, has also occasionally dissented in favor of a rate cut.

But there is a larger faction on the committee that wants the Fed to start considering the possibility of hiking rates, rather than cutting them, at upcoming meetings, according to minutes of their March gathering.

Members of the Fed's board typically seek to support the chair, former Fed officials say. But rarely can a chair single-handedly and quickly swing an entire committee in his or her direction.

Jon Faust, an economist at Johns Hopkins and former adviser to Powell, said that the last time a chair was able to achieve something close to that was in the late 1990s, when then-chair Alan Greenspan famously persuaded the rest of the committee that rising productivity from the Internet would prevent inflation from taking off, and so the Fed didn't need to raise rates.

Yet that was after Greenspan had been chair for several years and had built support on the committee, Faust said.

“Warsh comes in with essentially none of the gravitas that Greenspan had,” Faust said. “Instead, Warsh comes in with the baggage that Trump has really loaded on him. It’s not Warsh’s fault, but Trump has led to legitimate questions about whether he’ll act independently.”

One way to establish independence would be for Warsh to not cut rates right away, economists have said.

Warsh didn't make a big case for cuts

In his remarks at Tuesday's hearing, Warsh acknowledged that “we have a short window to try to bring inflation back down to where it should be,” which some economists said sounded more like an argument for rate hikes, rather than cuts.

Warsh also said that the job market is essentially at what the Fed considers “maximum employment,” or the lowest the unemployment rate can go before it starts to push up inflation. That also suggests the Fed doesn't need to cut to boost hiring.

Before being nominated, Warsh had often argued that artificial intelligence would accelerate growth and make the economy more efficient. Similar to the Internet, he often said, it would allow the Fed to reduce interest rates without worrying about inflation.

At his hearing, Warsh repeated his claim about AI, but added, “we don't know that, we can't bank on that,” which struck many economists as a step back from his previous stance.

Warsh's views "didn't have a lot of clarity going in,” Claudia Sahm, chief economist at New Century Advisers and a former Fed economist, said. “And then he muddied the waters. There were so few specifics.”

If the Detroit Lions' No. 17 overall pick is tired, he doesn’t show it on or off the field.

The 22-year-old made his debut at Detroit’s team facility on Friday (April 24) afternoon in Allen Park, flanked by his parents, Chris and Karen.

“All these thoughts going through my head of what things are going to look like, and they’re all good ones,” Miller told Local 4. “I’m just excited to get here and meet everyone, and even more excited for when everyone reports to meet all my teammates.”

Miller has already received welcome texts from quarterback Jared Goff and linemates Tate Ratledge and Penei Sewell.

Sewell, who intends to move to left tackle to accommodate the incoming rookie and veteran free agent signee Larry Borom on the right side, influenced Miller’s playing style over four seasons at Clemson.

“I really admire the athleticism and the explosiveness he has when he plays,” Miller said. “When he gets out of his stance, he’s like a cat. It’s immediate and impressive, too. The physicality, the nastiness, the finish he plays with is incredible.”

The Lions hope to see those same qualities out of their newest addition.

Miller started all 54 games in college, earning a reputation as an ironman and finisher of plays in 3,778 offensive snaps from 2022-25.

Miller credits his background in youth wrestling with developing the mental fortitude he’s carried throughout his career in the trenches.

“You’ve got to be more gritty than the other guy,” Miller said of his play style. “You have to have in your mindset that you’re not going to be beat by anyone. No one’s going to outwork you. No one’s going to out-finish you. You have to be the best one out there.”

Offseason workouts for the Lions open May 27 with mandatory minicamp slated to kick off June 16.

Clemson strength and conditioning coach Joey Batson will continue working with Miller in the meantime, getting the 6-foot-7, 317-pound grinder into the best shape possible to fulfill his promise to Dan Campbell and Brad Holmes.

“I’m getting as ready as I humanly can so I can put my best foot forward,” Miller said.

At 99-years-old, Katherine Leaphart says she’s blessed to be here every day. Retired since 1991 after working for the department for corrections, she leads a simple, quiet life at a senior living facility in Allen Park.

“I have a niece who says she wants to be like me,” she said on Wednesday. “She wants to be retired longer than she worked.”

Last week, a letter arrived, seemingly from the IRS, saying that it needed her bank account information to further process a tax refund.

The letter sported the IRS logo, a notice number, a seemingly legit website address, and – strangely – a QR Code.

Confused by the letter, she called her oldest daughter, Rita Leapheart-Coleman, who immediately knew that this letter was a scam attempt.

“It said that she was going to receive a refund,” Rita said. “I knew after doing her taxes two or three weeks ago that she wasn’t receiving a refund, so I’m like, this is bogus.”

One unique aspect of this scam is that, unlike the text, phone, and email scams that have become more prevalent, the IRS still uses letters to contact taxpayers.

A real IRS letter features an IRS logo and treasury address, a notice number, and either a tax ID number or a social security number. The letter that Katherine received had the IRS logo, the address to the Treasury Building in Kansas City, and appeared to have a notice number.

However, it was the QR code that tipped Rita off to it being a fake.

“I know the scams are out there, so I just knew that I needed to do something about it,” she said. “The police really don’t have that kind of force to look out for other people. So, you got to make sure you do it for yourself and the people you love.”

Rita says that her mother’s social security number was once compromised, and it was an entire ordeal to protect her accounts.

Katherine Leapheart will celebrate her 100th birthday in October, and Rita wants to make sure that every day she’s here, she doesn’t have to stress about stuff like this.

“You’re going to make me emotional talking about her because I love her dearly. And I don’t want to see nothing happening to her. She’s a good woman, and I’m gonna make sure that she, all the time she has here left, it’s gonna be good.”

There are a few ways you can check to see if a letter is really from the IRS:

• Log in to their secure IRS online account to see if the letter or notice is in their file
• Contact IRS customer service directly online.
• Call 800-829-1040. Follow the IRS representative’s instructions.

Other things you want to look out for are urgent demands for online payment, threats to send you to jail, and one of the biggest clues: look for poor grammar and misspellings in the letters, which are often a giveaway that the form is a scam.

In a federal complaint and arrest warrant unsealed April 22, 2026, investigators said it all started with an online “digital footprint:” an internet address tied to a home in Eastpointe.

A Special Agent with the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General said in a criminal complaint filed April 17, that Lela Lewis, Letora Liggins and Mesa Allen took part in a scheme that “resulted in the outlay of over $450,000” in suspected fraudulent benefits from March 2020 to approximately October 2021.

Investigators said some claims were filed from an internet address subscribed to Liggins at her Eastpointe home, while other activity traced back to an address linked to Lewis.

Court records said investigators reviewed financial records, employment records, vehicle license records and property records along with unemployment claim data, surveillance and information from other agencies, including the FBI and Michigan’s Unemployment Insurance Agency fraud unit.

The money trail

Often referred to as Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA), during the COVID-19 pandemic, Michigan used Bank of America-issued debit cards and electronic funds transfers to pay claimants. Those transfers, the feds said, traveled through Bank of America data centers located in Virginia and Colorado, making them “interstate wire communications.”

Michigan’s unemployment system, called MiDAS, then captured access data, like dates, times, and Internet Protocol (IP) addresses, that investigators said they later used to help stitch together the “coordinated operation.”

“Each time a claim is accessed in MiDAS, it creates a digital footprint of sorts,” the feds said.

For example, according to the complaint, a $32,000 claim filed in May 2020 was traced to Liggins and her Eastpointe address. Another claim also filed in May 2020 from the same IP address paid over $33,000 between June 2020 and August 2021, court records show.

In both cases, investigators said Bank of America ATM surveillance footage captured Liggins withdrawing cash at ATMs in St. Clair Shores, Grosse Pointe Woods and Eastpointe.

A phone number tied to that IP address, the agent said, “was associated with a UI claim in the name of Lewis.” Federal investigators said Lewis also used a Clinton Township address on her unemployment claim and driver’s license, and said Lewis is Allen’s sister.

Investigators said the claim paid out over $17,000 between June and November 2020, and another claim paid out over $20,000 between June 2020 and March 2021.

According to the feds, Bank of America surveillance footage showed Allen withdrawing cash tied to the fraudulent claims. The feds compared the footage to her driver’s license photo and a distinctive “Ariel” tattoo on her upper right arm.

What the women told investigators

In an interview on April 25, 2025, Liggins identified herself in the ATM footage tied to withdrawals from accounts connected to fraudulent claims, confirmed she knew Lewis, then stopped talking, the feds said.

Lewis, according to investigators, confirmed Allen was her sister, confirmed she lived at the St. Clair Shores address for several years, and acknowledged Liggins was “a friend.” But Lewis denied filing anything beyond a claim in her own name.

Allen denied filing fraudulent claims but acknowledged she was the person in the ATM footage. She told investigators someone else gave her debit cards and asked her to withdraw cash -- and she kept a small cut.

“Allen kept approximately $20-$30 from the cash she withdrew,” the feds said.

Lewis, Liggins and Allen were charged with wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 13, 2026, in Detroit.

She revealed the information during an interview with ABC News’ Linsey Davis, which aired during Good Morning America on Friday, April 24.

Here are 16 takeaways from the interview:

Relationship started in 2022

Shiver, who is now 32 years old, told ABC that she started as an intern with the football program in 2021, and her consensual relationship with Moore began in January 2022.

When Moore became the university’s head football coach in 2024, Shiver was promoted to be his executive assistant.

Shiver said Moore had ‘complete control’ over her

During the interview, Davis asked about Shiver’s allegations that she faced years of harassment and manipulation from Moore, and wanted to know how so.

“Here’s a man that had complete control over me,” Shiver said. “Over my emotions. Over my career. And he knew that. And he used it against me. Every time I tried to pull away, every time I tried to get out of even Michigan, he always had a story, always had a way to pull me in and making me feel that I couldn’t leave him because he was so miserable without me.”

Pressure over job security

Shiver said she felt pressured to be involved in the relationship with Moore to have job security.

“I mean, he and other coaches had control over my career, especially him,” Shiver said. “I mean, he could fire me in a second.”

Shiver got pregnant by Moore

In the interview, the former assistant revealed that during their relationship, she learned that she was pregnant by Moore.

Pregnancy complicated by Pompe disease

Shiver said the pregnancy was complicated by Pompe disease, which is a “genetic condition in which a complex sugar called glycogen builds up in the lysosomes of your body’s cells,” according to the Cleveland Clinic.

It can cause severe muscle weakness.

“Without early detection and treatment, the disease can be fatal,” according to the Cleveland Clinic.

Decision to terminate pregnancy

Due to this rare genetic disorder, Shiver had an abortion.

“Multiple doctors and experts told me that it wouldn’t be right or healthy for me to keep the baby,” Shiver said in the interview.

When Davis asked Shiver if she wanted to keep the baby, Shiver was choked up as she said, “Yeah.”

Moore’s response to Shiver’s pregnancy

When asked how the former football coach responded to the news, Shiver said: “He said you have to do what’s right for your body.”

‘Did you love him?’

Davis also asked Shiver if she loved Moore.

“Back then, I did, but obviously, looking back at things and really reflecting on what happened, what was happening, yeah, that’s not love at all.”

What university said when Shiver reported the affair

On Dec. 10, 2025, Shiver reported the relationship to the university.

“They said, ‘You know we’re really sorry about everything you went through, and we’re here to protect you and help you through all of this,’” Shiver said.

After that conversation, Moore was fired.

Former colleagues knew about the affair

Shiver said that former colleagues, including those who were in leadership positions, knew about their relationship.

‘They didn’t do anything about it’

Davis asked Shiver if she felt as though the University of Michigan had “more obligation” to come to her sooner.

“Yes,” Shiver said in response. “He controlled everything that was going on in my life, and they didn’t do anything about it.”

What happened when Moore showed up at Shiver’s apartment

Less than an hour after being fired, the former coach went to Shiver’s apartment.

Details about this were previously released when Moore was arrested and charged, but Shiver shared what happened from her perspective.

Shiver said she was inside her apartment when Moore showed up.

“All of a sudden, I hear footsteps, and they’re getting closer and louder, and I’m like crap, so I run to my door to try and lock it,” Shiver said. “He barges in, and he’s standing like this close to me, and he said, ‘You ruined my life. Why would you do this to me?’ And then I start backing up, and he starts following me.”

‘Did you fear for your life?’

At this point, Davis asked Shiver if she feared for her life.

“Oh my gosh, yes,” Shiver said. “I mean, he’s 6’4, and he comes in with his hood up, looking down at me, saying, I ruined his life, crying. Then he starts coming at me, and I tell him to leave, and he’s not supposed to be here. He’s not listening to me. And then he starts grabbing, yes, butter knives.”

‘Do you think he should’ve gone to jail?’

Moore was sentenced to 18 months of probation after he pleaded no contest to two misdemeanor charges as part of a plea deal.

As part of the plea, the charges he was initially issued --third-degree home invasion, stalking, and breaking and entering-- were dismissed.

During the interview, Davis asked Shiver whether she felt Moore should have gone to jail.

“Yes,” Shiver said. “I think he should’ve gotten more punishment for what he did.”

U of M Statement

Here is a statement the university provided to Local 4 on April 24:

“The University of Michigan terminated Sherrone Moore promptly upon discovering his undisclosed workplace relationship with a direct report. His conduct violated university policy, and we expect more from our leaders. The University of Michigan is committed to ensuring a professional and respectful workplace for all members of its community.”

Paul Corliss, Assistant Vice President for Public Affairs and Internal Communications

Why Shiver is speaking out now

This interview is the first time Shiver has spoken publicly about what happened.

She explained that she is sharing her story now with the hopes that it will help other women who are dealing with similar situations.

“I just want other women that are going through this to know that this doesn’t need to happen, this doesn’t need to go this far,” Shiver said.

Statement from Shiver’s attorneys

Shiver’s attorneys released the following statement on April 24:

“The University of Michigan Athletic Department’s systemic failure to comply with basic policies and procedures created and enabled a hostile and male-dominated environment at Schembechler Hall that traumatized Ms. Shiver. This environment was an open secret. The university chose to focus solely on winning at all costs on the football field and to disregard Ms. Shiver’s safety and well-being. Interim President Domenico Grasso, General Counsel Tim Lynch, and the Board of Regents must take accountability for this failure and commit to building a NCAA and Title IX compliant Athletic Department across all sports.”

Paige Shiver's Attorneys Andrew M. Stroth and Steven A. Hart

Nelson Otto Ropke, 41, of Grosse Pointe Park, was arraigned on the following 26 felony counts on Wednesday, April 22, 2026:

• Two counts of aggravated child sexually abusive activity -- a felony with a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison.
• Four counts of aggravated distribution of child sexually abusive activity -- a felony with a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.
• Four counts of aggravated possession of child sexually abusive activity -- a felony with a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
• Two counts of capturing/distributing an image of an unclothed person -- a felony with a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
• One count of possession of child sexually abusive matter -- a felony with a maximum penalty of four years in prison.
• 13 counts of using a computer to commit a crime -- all felonies with various maximum penalties (more on that below).

During the arraignment, Ropke waived a formal reading of the charges, stood mute and a not guilty plea was entered on his behalf.

Tina Ripley, assistant prosecuting attorney at the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office, argued for a high bond, alleging the case involves more than passive possession.

They told the court Ropke is accused of creating child sexually abusive material by pasting faces, including his own and those of family members, onto images of children engaged in sexual acts.

They further alleged he communicated with others online to receive and distribute such material.

They also accused him of secretly capturing videos and pictures of himself and his ex-wife engaged in sexual acts, sharing the materials on a website.

Ripley argued Ropke poses a danger to the community, emphasizing that he is accused of actively creating and distributing illicit material. She also cited his profession as an attorney, saying his access to resources and connections increases his potential flight risk.

Prosecutors requested a $1 million bond and, if released, sought conditions including no access to electronic devices, no contact with minors or his ex-wife, and GPS monitoring. Concerns were also raised about fear among family members due to alleged past threats. He allegedly

Andrew Moxie, Ropke’s court-appointed attorney, told the court Ropke is currently unemployed and that his “housing situation is limited.” He most recently was at a nursing facility in Harper Woods, and “seems to be having some severe heart conditions,” noting he was hospitalized at the time of the hearing.

Ropke is currently on probation out of Grosse Pointe Farms.

Judge John R. Parnell said he was “very concerned” about the nature of the allegations, especially given that they are alleged to have occurred while Ropke was on probation.

According to court records, in September 2024, Ropke was sentenced to 24 months of probation on the charges of disturbing the peace/disorderly person and operating while impaired.

The judge set bond at $1 million cash/surety, with no 10% option.

If Ropke posts bond, he must have no contact with anyone under 18, no contact with his ex-wife or any alleged victims, and a ban on using internet-capable devices. He must also surrender his passport and any devices with cameras, including his cellphone. The court said he may use a phone without internet access solely to communicate with his attorney.

A probable cause conference is scheduled for May 6, and his preliminary examination is scheduled for May 13.

The crash involved a stolen vehicle driven by a 15-year-old who fled a traffic stop attempt by Michigan State Police.

The crash occurred around 5 a.m. Sunday (April 19) near Outer Drive and Evergreen Road.

Police said a trooper attempted to pull over a stolen truck on Outer Drive near Schoolcraft Road, but the teen driver did not stop.

Police said the teen ran a red light and continued on Evergreen Road.

MSP said the trooper did not pursue, in accordance with department policy restricting chases unless there is probable cause to believe a violent felony has occurred.

Shortly afterward, MSP said the trooper came upon a crash scene where the stolen truck had struck another vehicle, then slammed into a nearby home and caught fire.

→ 15-year-old driving stolen truck crashes into car, home on Detroit’s west side; driver hospitalized

The woman driver of the struck vehicle was hospitalized.

Police have not released an update on her condition.

Mikai Jackson, the woman’s boyfriend, said he witnessed the aftermath and helped pull her from the wreckage.

Jackson said his girlfriend stopped by his home to drop off some diapers and other items for their children before leaving.

Moments later, as she approached a traffic light, the 15-year-old, per Jackson, came flying through the area at about 100 mph.

“The truck ended up bursting into flames,” Jackson said. “Her car ended up spinning, doing a whole 360 on the opposite side of the road.”

Jackson said he rushed outside after the crash and immediately went to help.

“My first instinct is that’s my girlfriend, that’s the mother of my two children, and I’ve got to go try to get her out of that car,” Jackson said.

He said her injuries appeared to include a cut on her hand and complaints of back and neck pain.

“She was slung around in that car as fast as he was going,” Jackson said, adding that the impact caused extensive damage, including the vehicle’s engine being dislodged.

The crash also damaged a nearby home.

The homeowner, Warren Scott, said the impact knocked the house off its foundation and trapped him inside.

“I got up and tried to open up the door. I heard people kind of screaming, but I couldn’t get out of my front door because the impact of the crash actually jammed the door shut,” Scott said.

State police said the 15-year-old driver was treated at a hospital for a minor head injury and released to his mother pending possible charges.

Jackson said he was shocked to learn the driver was a minor.

“I would think people would have better supervision of their children,” Jackson said.

Despite the severity of the crash, Jackson said he was relieved the injuries were not worse.

“If she would have been going the speed limit, it could have been way worse,” Jackson said.

The crash remains under investigation.

Previous report

The statement Saturday by foreign ministry spokesman Abdul Qahar Balkhi comes after reports emerged that the Trump administration is in discussions to potentially send 1,100 Afghans who assisted the U.S. during its war in Afghanistan and relatives of U.S. service members to Congo.

An organization called #AfghanEvac that supports Afghan resettlement efforts said Wednesday that U.S. officials had informed the group of discussions between the United States and Congo about taking the Afghan refugees who have been in limbo at Camp As-Sayliyah, a U.S. base in Doha, for the past year.

The State Department said it is working to identify options to “voluntarily” resettle the refugees in a third country, but did not confirm which nations were being discussed.

An alternative provided to the refugees was to return to Afghanistan, #AfghanEvac said, where they fear reprisals or even death at the hands of the Taliban, who have been running the country since they seized power in the wake of the chaotic withdrawal of U.S.-led forces in 2021, for working alongside the U.S. during the two-decade war.

Afghanistan’s foreign ministry “reiterates that Afghanistan constitutes the shared homeland of all Afghans and it invites all those concerned, as well as others sharing a similar situation, (to) return to their homeland, whose doors remain open to them, to do so with full confidence & peace of mind,” Balkhi wrote in his statement.

He added that “those intending to travel to another country may do so at an appropriate juncture through legal & dignified channels.” Afghanistan’s foreign ministry “stands ready to engage with all countries,” Balkhi said, adding that the foreign ministry “underscores to all sides that there exist no security threats in Afghanistan, & none is compelled to leave the country on account of security considerations.”

In a joint statement posted by the #AfghanEvac group on behalf of those in Camp As-Sayliyah, the Afghans said they had received no information from U.S. officials about the talks to potentially relocate them, and had found out about it from the press. The state of limbo they have been living in is taking a severe toll on them, they said.

“Many of us are not well. The uncertainty has been more than some of us can carry. There is deep depression,” the group said, adding that some were struggling with their mental health because of the situation.

“We will say this plainly. We do not want to go to the Democratic Republic of Congo,” the group said, adding that “it is a country in its own war. We have been in enough war. We cannot take our children into another one.”

The African country has been battered by decades-long fighting between government forces and Rwanda-backed rebels in its eastern region.

The Afghans in the camp in Doha said returning to Afghanistan was also not an option. “The Taliban will kill many of us for what we did for the United States,” the group said in their statement. “This is not a fear. This is a fact. The United States knows this, because the United States is the reason we cannot go home.”

The relocation discussions, initially reported by The New York Times, come more than a year after President Donald Trump paused his predecessor’s Afghan resettlement program as part of a series of executive orders cracking down on immigration.

That policy left thousands of refugees who fled war and persecution, and had gone through a sometimes yearslong vetting process to start new lives in America, stranded at places worldwide, including the base in Qatar.

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Becatoros reported from Athens, Greece.

Japanese radio plays music every morning at 6:30 to accompany basic instructions for calisthenics, and millions perform in the choreography: in parks, workplaces, schools — and at home.

Radio Taiso has an almost 100-year history, formally introduced in 1928 and coinciding with the enthronement of Emperor Hirohito. The tradition endures because the exercises are suitable for all ages and capabilities, and easily accessible.

We're talking about basic exercise movements: reach to the sky to limber up, twist at the torso, bend at the hips, swing the arms and get the shoulders loose, or jump or run in place.

Exercisers can make it as strenuous as they wish, and it's over in just 10 minutes, all done to the rhythm of a soft piano melody. Japan has one of the longest-lived populations on Earth, and this ritual is credited for promoting physical and social well-being.

If you’re interested you can find Radio Taiso routines on YouTube in English and in other languages.

The basic moves for all

There are about a dozen basic moves that can be done standing or seated. The idea is to keep moving and, though the program runs early in the morning, many devotees repeat it on their own later in the day.

The routine features a trio of three-minute segments that get slightly more difficult — but not much. Most Radio Taiso followers know the sequences by heart, but beginners can join in and quickly pick up the routines. No equipment is needed.

The program begins with arms exercises — lifting the arms, circling the arms and stretching the arms side-to-side. It's followed by bending from the waist and twisting at the waist.

Shoulder raises are incorporated with a few mini-jumping exercises and marching-in place moves. Along the way you add in neck exercises, moves to stretch the chest and small squats for leg power.

Each movement is repeated four to eight times with instructions throughout to relax, breathe, and inhale and exhale slowly.

A social event, too

Mieko Kobayashi is 88 and goes to Kiba Park — an expansive layout in the east Tokyo area — almost every day, where a large group gathers without fail.

“If it's cold or raining, I don't go,” she said. “By moving my body, I feel better.”

She and her 77-year-old friend, Yoshiko Nagao, said that some who go to the park daily live alone, and this is an important social anchor — particularly for the elderly.

“Laughing and chatting while taking a walk after (the exercise) is also good,” Nagao added. “We come even on New Year's Day.”

Kenji Iguchi is 83 — he'd pass for 60 — and he's been a regular for about 20 years.

“It's for my joints, mainly the knees and back, because of my age,” Iguchi said.

“I get up a 5 a.m. anyway,” he added. “I come to the park about 6 and do a round of walking ahead of the Radio Taiso session. Most of the faces are familiar, and coming here and getting together with them is also one of the things I look forward to.”

Japan has one of the world's longest-lived populations, attributed to its diet, healthcare system and a lifestyle that encourages the elderly to be active. The average life expectancy is about 85, and only Hong Kong is reported to be slightly higher. By comparison, the United States life expectancy is about 79.

The Japanese government announced late last year that 99,763 people were alive in Japan at 100 or more, a new national record for the 55th straight year. The breakdown was 87,784 female (88%) and 11,979 male (12%). Japan holds the record for the most centenarians relative to its population, which is about 122 million.

American roots

Radio Taiso was inspired a century ago by a similar radio program in the United States sponsored by the Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. The Japan Radio Taiso Federation says officials of the postal ministry visited the United States in the 1920s and returned to Japan with the concept.

Within a decade, millions were participating. The federation says the program was led by postal workers who distributed pamphlets and organized training sessions.

Japan was under United States occupation after its defeat in 1945 in World War II, and the exercises were banned — largely because they were done in groups. The federation says the practice was seen as “totalitarian" with a possible air of militarism.

The group exercise were resumed in 1951, backed by popular demand as the American occupation ended in 1952.

According to a 2023 survey by the federation, more than 20 million people in Japan practiced a Radio Taiso session at least once a week.

Radio Taiso has caught on in many countries abroad, most notably in Brazil, which has the largest population of people of Japanese decent living outside Japan.

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Mayuko Ono and Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo contributed to this report.

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Follow AP’s Be Well coverage, focusing on all aspects of wellness, at https://apnews.com/hub/be-well

Dylan Harper added 27 points and 10 rebounds for the Spurs, who trailed by 15 points in the third quarter. Game 4 of the first-round series is Sunday at the Moda Center.

Before the game Spurs coach Mitch Johnson announced that Wembanyama would not play while he continues to recover from a concussion sustained Tuesday night in Game 2.

Jrue Holiday had 29 points for the Trail Blazers. Making their first home playoff appearance since 2021, they couldn't ultimately take advantage Wembanyama's absence.

Portland led 82-67 in the third quarter but the Spurs clawed back with a 21-5 run to take an 88-87 lead into the final period. Castle's step-back jumper and a pair of free throws gave the Spurs a 105-95 lead midway through the fourth and the Trail Blazers collapsed.

“I feel like we have a lot of confidence in ourselves. We know how good we are,” Castle said. “So, down 10, down 15, in a game like that, with a lot of time to go, we just need to string some stops together and keep fighting. I feel we have a lot of dogs that arent going to quit on our team.”

Wembanyama — the league’s first unanimous Defensive Player of the Year and one of three finalists for the Most Valuable Player award — went down in the second quarter of the Spurs' 106-103 Game 2 loss in San Antonio.

Johnson would not elaborate on Wembanyama's condition, only to say he was progressing. He averaged 25 points, 11.5 rebounds, 3.1 assists and a league-best 3.1 blocks per game this season. His status for Sunday's game was not known.

Luke Kornet started against the Trail Blazers as Wembanyama’s watched from the banch, finishing with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Portland went on a 15-2 run in the first half to go up 50-43 and led 65-59 at the break after Jerami Grant's 3-pointer.

In the final moments of the half Fox was handed an offensive foul when he charged toward the basket and elbowed Deni Avdija in the face. Johnson challenged the call and it was overturned to a defensive foul on Avdija, who had a chipped a tooth but kept playing.

“This loss hurts, but we've got another one Sunday, so you can't really hang your hat on it too low,” Holiday said. “Maybe take it on the chin tonight, and then tomorrow, we've got to get back to work.”

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

Wembanyama — the league’s first unanimous Defensive Player of the Year and one of three finalists for the Most Valuable Player award — went down in the second quarter of Game 2 on Tuesday night and did not return.

Portland went on to win the game 106-103 in San Antonio to tie the series at 1-1. The Spurs then overcame Wembanyama's absence to win 120-108 on Friday night.

“Victor is not playing tonight. Obviously, there's a lot that goes into that, but he's doing well and progressing,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said before the game.

Wembanyama traveled to Portland with the Spurs on Thursday afternoon while continuing to complete the steps mandated by the league’s concussion protocol. He was listed as questionable for Friday’s game.

Johnson said he was going to keep details of Wembanyama’s condition "in-house,” except to say he’s continuing to progress. His status for Sunday's Game 4 was not known.

Wembanyama was putting up shots at the team’s shootaround Friday morning at the Moda Center. He watched from the bench in street clothes during the game, often standing to cheer on his teammates.

Luke Kornet got the start against the Trail Blazers in Wembanyama’s absence, finishing with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Players must clear a series of benchmarks before being cleared for play under the concussion protocol. The results are compared to baseline neurological evaluations players take at the start of the season.

Any extended absence by Wembanyama could be a massive blow to San Antonio, which finished with the league’s second-best record behind the versatile 7-foot-4 center from France. They were 12-6 in the regular season without him.

Wembanyama averaged 25 points, 11.5 rebounds, 3.1 assists and a league-best 3.1 blocks per game this season.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

Jeffrey Viel and Jackson LaCombe also scored in the third and Lukas Dostal made 20 saves for the upstart Ducks, who have poured in 16 goals in three games to take an early lead in this first-round series against the two-time Western Conference champion Oilers. Mason McTavish and Alex Killorn scored early goals to the soundtrack of a raucous sellout crowd hungry for Orange County's first postseason hockey since 2018.

“It sounded like an army out there almost,” Sennecke said. “They've been waiting eight years for this, nine years for a win, so it was pretty special.”

Just as they've done so many times over their first season under coach Joel Quenneville, the Ducks overcame their clear defensive shortcomings by simply outscoring the powerhouse Oilers, thriving even after Connor McDavid recorded his first points of the series.

“I thought we had a great start to the game (and) did a lot of good things most of the night,” Quenneville said. “It was nice to see the crowd get rewarded with a win. Been a long time coming.”

Game 4 is Sunday night in Anaheim.

McDavid had a power-play goal in the third period and an assist, although the NHL scoring champion still doesn't appear to be at full health. Vasily Podkolzin, Kasperi Kapanen and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins also scored, and Connor Ingram stopped 32 shots.

“You look at the goals against, and just some stuff that shouldn't happen, especially at this time of year,” Edmonton coach Kris Knoblauch said. “There was lost coverage in front of the net. Couple of times we were careless with the puck. Early on, they were much more intense. They definitely looked like they wanted it more in the first period. We were able to find our legs. We started skating later in the game.”

Appropriately for a defense-deficient series, the Ducks capitalized on two transition sequences early in the third to take control.

Moments after Sennecke ripped a wrist shot for the tiebreaking goal and the precocious rookie's first playoff point, Carlsson clinically finished a textbook 2-on-1 rush with Troy Terry.

McDavid trimmed the Oilers’ deficit with a fortunate deflection off Pavel Mintyukov’s stick, but the superstar short-circuited another power play later in the third by cross-checking Tyson Hinds.

Viel then flipped home a backhand with 3:03 left to cap a strong game by the Ducks' fourth line, and LaCombe lofted an empty-net goal all the way from the Ducks' goal line to seal Anaheim's first home playoff victory since May 14, 2017, in the conference finals against Nashville.

“We couldn't even hear ourselves out there,” Viel said. “Definitely got us going right from the start.”

The clubs split the series' first two games in Edmonton, but the Ducks demonstrated they could stay with the playoff-tested Oilers despite the obvious deficiencies of an inexperienced group that allowed more goals this season than any other playoff team.

Anaheim rode the wave of crowd energy and dominated play early in Game 3, putting 20 shots on Ingram in the first period. The Oilers surged to a 3-2 lead early in the second, but Killorn tied it with his 39th career playoff goal.

Oilers forwards Adam Henrique and Jason Dickinson missed Game 3 with injuries.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL

While none of this dissent indicates an imminent threat to Putin’s rule, analysts say it presents a new and growing challenge for the Kremlin.

“Greater and greater effort needs to be spent on maintaining the status quo,” Mark Galeotti, an expert on Russian politics who heads the Mayak Intelligence consultancy, wrote in an analysis.

Here’s a look at the public outcry in Russia and what is driving it:

Influencers appeal to Putin, while his approvals drop

A 19-minute video by popular Russian blogger Victoria Bonya has received 31 million views on Instagram since it was published 10 days ago.

In the video, Bonya, who has 13.6 million followers on the platform, complained to Putin that he was probably misinformed about some things — local authorities' poor handling of recent floods in the southern province of Dagestan, the culling of livestock in Siberia that prompted protests from farmers, crippling internet restrictions and strains on small businesses.

Bonya, a popular Russian TV host who now lives abroad, emphasized that she supports Putin, but she said ordinary Russians and his own officials are too scared to tell him the truth.

“There’s a lot you don’t know,” she said. “People are screaming at the top of their lungs now. They’ve been robbed of everything they have, and they continue to be robbed. Businesses are dying.”

Reactions to the video snowballed. Other Russian influencers aired similar sentiments in their videos, some of which were later deleted.

In a rare acknowledgment of the public criticism, Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Kremlin officials saw the video and that “a lot of work is being done” on the issues Bonya mentioned. “None of it is being ignored,” Peskov said.

Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov, a longtime Putin supporter, lambasted the government Tuesday in a speech to parliament, saying that his party had raised the issues before. He threatened a repeat of the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution if measures are not taken to deal with the problems.

Forecasts of a revolt also have been regularly floated in pro-Kremlin Telegram channels and by loyal military bloggers.

In the meantime, Russian state-controlled pollster VTsIOM has reported a consistent decline of Putin’s approval ratings in recent weeks. Data released Friday showed his approval at 65.6%, the lowest level the pollster has reported since before the war in Ukraine, down from the 77.8% in late December 2025.

Russia's top independent pollster, the Levada Center, also reported a slight decline in Putin's approvals, from 85% in October 2025 to 80% in March.

Internet restrictions trigger a wave of discontent

Russians across the vast country have faced regular cellphone internet shutdowns since last spring. The authorities have justified them as a way to thwart Ukrainian drone attacks, but critics have argued that the outages are another step in a yearslong effort to bring the internet under tight government control.

The shutdowns came on top of sweeping, ever-growing internet censorship that over the years saw thousands of websites and platforms in Russia blocked or throttled, including the two most popular messaging apps — WhatsApp and Telegram.

Authorities are promoting a new state-backed messaging app, Max, seen by many as a surveillance tool, while also blocking VPNs to stop widespread censorship circumvention.

Public frustration over the measures elicited acts of resistance, including petitions to the presidential administration, a class-action lawsuit against the government, a few street pickets and multiple attempts to organize bigger protests that were quashed by authorities.

The Kremlin appears unfazed. At a government meeting Thursday, Putin again justified the shutdowns as necessary to “prevent terror attacks” and urged authorities to better inform the public about restrictions.

His remarks indicate that the security services “are doing everything correctly, and it will continue for as long as they see fit," Tatiana Stanovaya of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center wrote in a Telegram post.

Strained economy fuels frustration

The critical videos have emerged at a time of growing strain on the country’s wartime economy.

Economic growth stopped after the initial boost from massive military spending wore off. High interest rates imposed by the central bank to control inflation and increased taxes have also weighed on businesses.

Economic Minister Maxim Reshetnikov said recently that the economy's reserves “have been largely depleted,” and Putin said at a televised government meeting earlier this month that economic growth has declined for two months in a row. Russia's gross domestic product shrank by 1.8% between January and February, he said.

Denis Volkov, director of the Levada Center, said economic problems are the main driver of the growing dissatisfaction and declining approval for Putin and the government.

“It begins to show in the opinion polls, when the mood starts to get worse, just because life becomes harder,” Volkov said.

No end in sight for the war in Ukraine

Sam Greene, professor of Russian politics at King's College London, also points to dwindling hopes that Russia’s war in Ukraine, now in its fifth year, could soon end.

Those hopes coalesced after U.S. President Donald Trump took office in January 2025 and spearheaded an effort to negotiate a peace deal that has since stalled.

“The Kremlin was really putting some weight behind that idea as well. And I think that became priced into public opinion,” Greene said. “And yet that’s not happening."

The resulting disappointment and frustration means that Putin “pays a bit of a price.”

No imminent demise for Putin either

Galeotti said in his analysis that “none of this can be taken to herald the imminent end of Putin’s rule.”

There is “no meaningful organized opposition,” and Putin’s “control of the security apparatus is unchallenged," Galeotti said. In a war, "even his critics do not want to destabilize the country.”

Volkov echoed that thinking and said the discontent grows only slowly. Putin’s approvals are declining “from a very high point.”

“For now, we shouldn’t downplay or exaggerate this, because we’re only at the very beginning of the road,” he said.

In the meantime, frustration will continue to deepen, with people feeling empowered by popular public figures voicing criticism, said Abbas Gallyamov, a former Putin speechwriter turned political analyst.

“The feeling of power in politics," he said, "is largely tied to how widespread the position that you share and defend is.”

Craig Counsell reached 899th managerial victories.

Swanson's 413-foot shot off Tanner Scott (0-1) landed in the left-field pavilion, scoring Pete Crow-Armstrong who singled leading off.

The Cubs trailed 4-0 against Dodgers starter Emmet Sheehan, who allowed one earned run over 6 1/3 innings and tied his career high with 10 strikeouts. The right-hander struck out seven of the first nine batters he faced.

Then Chicago got to the Dodgers' bullpen.

The Cubs scored six consecutive runs off the erratic trio of Alex Vesia, Blake Treinen and Scott.

They closed to 4-3 in the seventh off Vesia. With two outs, Swanson tripled to center for two runs and Nico Hoerner followed with an RBI single.

Alex Bregman homered leading off the eighth against Treinen, tying the game 4-4.

Ryan Rolison (1-0) got the win with three scoreless innings of relief. Corbin Martin retired the side in the ninth to earn his first save.

The Dodgers led 4-0 on Will Smith's three-run homer with two outs in the third and Hyeseong Kim's RBI single in the fourth.

The Dodgers' big hitters got shut out. Shohei Ohtani struck out three times to go with a walk, while Freddie Freeman was 0-for-4 . Kyle Tucker went 0-for-3 with a walk against his former team.

Up next

Cubs RHP Colin Rea (3-0, 3.00 ERA) was scheduled to start Saturday against scuffling Dodgers RHP Roki Sasaki (0-2, 6.11).

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Nick Kurtz, Carlos Cortes and Tyler Soderstrom each hit a ball over the outfield wall — just seven pitches into the game – all off 15-season veteran Nathan Eovaldi.

“Three runs on the board is huge,” said Cortes, who also homered off Eovaldi in the fifth with two runners on. “That guy’s a legend, great pitcher. I just felt good today. Excited to come through in some big situations.”

Kurtz launched Eovaldi’s first-pitch fastball over the right-field wall. Cortes sent another shot to right, and Tyler Soderstrom homered on the first pitch he saw to straight-away center.

“It’s kind of great from pitch one to be able to put a score up on the board,” Kurtz said. “The boys followed up that with two more. It’s pretty cool. We usually get a heater, so I was looking for it, and he threw it in a place where I could hit it.”

It was the first time in franchise history the A’s homered three times in the top of the first inning, according to Elias and Sarah Langs. The last time they homered three times in the first came at home on July 8 last season against the Atlanta Braves.

Eovaldi gave up at least three homers in an inning for the fourth time in 15 big league seasons, the first time since he came to Texas in 2023. He allowed a career-high five to Houston in May 2022, while with the Boston Red Sox.

The 36-year-old right-hander had no trouble with the Athletics’ batting order when he faced them on April 13 in California, shutting them out over seven innings on three hits in an 8-1 Rangers victory. He entered Friday with a career ERA against the A’s of 2.54, his lowest against any opponent he has faced at least six times.

“We’ve had our struggles against him,” Athletics manager Mark Kotsay said. “We came out tonight and got some balls up in the zone. It’s obviously a great start when your leadoff guy hits a homer. There’s a lot of excitement, a lot of momentum.”

“Early on they were really on top of the fastball,” Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said. “First pitch of the game, obviously, their game plan was on the attack, and they executed it.”

Eovaldi's ERA is 5.79 through six starts after compiling a career-best 1.73 last season in 22 starts. He said he's struggling with pitch location.

“Lately I’ve just been middle-middle, middle-away, middle-in," he said.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/mlb

The primary concern through Friday evening remains isolated strong wind gusts and brief downpours.

While thunderstorms had already prompted warnings in Mid-Michigan and Southeast Michigan, widespread severe weather is not expected.

Any stronger cell could still produce damaging winds and localized flooding, especially in low-lying or poor drainage areas.

Rainfall totals will generally stay under an inch, but higher amounts are possible where storms repeatedly track over the same location.

If thunderstorms approach, residents are urged to move indoors immediately.

The safest place is inside a sturdy building, away from windows. Avoid outdoor activities, postpone travel if possible during heavy rain, and never drive through flooded roadways.

Lightning can strike well ahead of storms, so if you can hear thunder, you are close enough to be struck.

Conditions will improve later Friday night as a cold front moves through and storms exit to the east.

Drier air will move in overnight, leading to a much quieter pattern heading into the weekend.

Saturday

Saturday will start cloudy but dry, with highs near 60 degrees. Plan to see some sunshine in the afternoon.

Winds will shift to the northeast, keeping temperatures cooler, especially closer to Lake Huron. Skies will gradually clear later in the day.

Sunday

Sunday looks more pleasant, with more sunshine and highs in the low to mid 60s.

It will remain seasonable but on the cooler side compared to earlier this week.

Looking ahead

Dry weather continues into Monday with a modest warm-up, with highs approaching the upper 60s.

The next chance for showers and thunderstorms returns Monday night into Tuesday as another system approaches the Great Lakes.

Behind that system, temperatures settle back closer to normal for midweek, with highs generally in the 60s and quieter weather returning.

Share your weather photos with Local 4 at MIPics.

The Lakers rallied from a six-point deficit with under 30 seconds remaining and can sweep the series Sunday night in Houston.

“It’s tough to win on the road in the playoffs and even without KD they’re a great basketball team,” coach JJ Redick said. “And that was a huge test for us, especially in that moment when we’re down six.”

Los Angeles opened overtime with a 6-2 run, highlighted by a 3-pointer from Smart to take a 107-103 lead.

Smart made two free throws with 35.5 seconds to go to make it 111-105. Reed Sheppard made a 3-pointer to get Houston within three with less than 30 seconds left in overtime but Smart made 1 of 2 free throws to push the lead to 112-108.

The 41-year-old James played more than 45 minutes Friday night. He said with top scorers Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves out with injuries he has no choice but to do whatever he can.

“Everyone has to do a little bit more because of how much we’re missing,” James said. “It’s a challenge for all of us and just trying to figure it out together.”

Smart added 21 points and 10 assists, and Rui Hachimura added 22 points for the Lakers.

Even with Durant out for a second game in this series — this time with a sprained ankle after missing Game 1 with a knee injury — the Rockets were in position to close out the game after James had consecutive turnovers that Houston turned into a 101-95 lead.

Houston struggled at times to close out games in the fourth quarter and the problem continued Friday night.

“It’s obviously a weakness of ours to close out and finish,” coach Ime Udoka said. “The amount of mistakes or the type of mistakes are egregious and you can’t have those.”

Durant wasn't on the bench Friday night and Udoka said it was because he was receiving treatment on his injured ankle.

Alperen Sengun led the Rockets with 33 points and 16 rebounds. Amen Thompson added 26 points and 11 rebounds.

The Lakers led by 15 early, but were down six before Smart was fouled on a 3-point attempt with 25 seconds to go after a Houston turnover and made all three free throws.

“It was a smart play, and that’s part of my vet savvy, being in the league for 12 years,” Smart said. “I picked up some tricks from some guys, right. So, that helped us a lot.”

James then stole the ball from Sheppard and his 3-pointer tied it at 101-all with 13 seconds to go in the fourth.

Sengun missed a 7-footer and the Lakers had a chance to win, but James' 3-point attempt bounced off the rim to send it to OT.

James, who threw an alley-oop pass to his son Bronny for a basket in the first half, also had 13 rebounds.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

Carie Hallford faced between 25 and 35 years in prison under a plea agreement. Some family members of those whose bodies were left to rot had urged Judge Eric Bentley to impose the maximum sentence. But the judge said Carie Hallford made credible claims of being a victim of domestic violence and her ex-husband, Jon Hallford, was the driving force in their relationship.

Bentley added that 30 years was a “staggeringly huge sentence” and appropriate for her crimes.

Jon Hallford was sentenced to 40 years on corpse abuse charges at a February hearing in which he was called a “monster” by relatives of the victims.

Carie Hallford was the public face of Return to Nature, dealing with bereaved customers at the couple’s funeral home in Colorado Springs. Jon Hallford performed much of the physical work, including at a second location south of Colorado Springs in Penrose.

That's where authorities found bodies piled throughout a bug-infested building after neighbors complained about a foul odor in 2023.

One of those corpses was the mother of Tanya Wilson, who told Bentley on Friday that the family released what they thought were her ashes from a boat in Hawaii. It turned out her body was lying in toxic fluids on the floor of the Hallfords’ makeshift mortuary. Like other Return to Nature customers, the family received fake ashes instead of the cremated remains they were promised.

They had prepared her mother's body for meeting her Korean ancestors in the afterlife, Wilson said. To preserve her dignity, they brushed her hair, applied her favorite moisturizer and dressed her in special clothes to preserve the dignity she had in life.

“Carie Hallford annihilated that dignity,” Wilson said.

Carie Hallford apologized in court Friday, saying she was raised to know right from wrong but had lost who she once was.

She fought back tears as she said her marriage had been “a convoluted web of lies, deceit and abuse.” She said she was not a monster but deserved punishment.

Discovery of corpses spurred first routine inspections

Prosecutors have alleged that the Hallfords were motivated by greed. They charged more than $1,200 per customer, and authorities said the amount they spent on luxury items would have covered the cremation costs many times over.

The case became the most egregious in a string of allegations involving Colorado funeral homes as details emerged about the their lavish spending and their pattern of defrauding customers.

Colorado had been the only state that did not regulate funeral homes before lawmakers adopted recent changes. The Hallfords' case prompted laws mandating routine inspections and adopting a funeral director licensing system.

State inspectors acting under the new law last year found 24 decomposing bodies and multiple containers of bones behind a hidden door of a funeral home owned by the Pueblo County coroner and his brother. It was the first inspection of that Pueblo mortuary.

Before the bodies were found at Penrose, a mother and daughter who operated a funeral home in the western Colorado city of Montrose were sentenced to federal prison after being accused of selling body parts and giving clients fake ashes. In 2024, authorities in Denver arrested a financially troubled former funeral home owner who kept a body in a hearse for two years at a house where police also found the cremated remains of at least 30 people.

Carie Hallford was ‘the one who fed the monster’

Carie Hallford asked for leniency in March when she was sentenced in the federal fraud case, saying she was a victim of abuse and manipulation in her marriage.

Her attorney, Michael Stuzynski, said Friday said Carie Hallford initially believed what happened at Return to Nature was entirely her fault. He said she had a “lonely, gray and terrifying existence” and found solace in the interactions she had with the funeral home’s customers.

But Chief Deputy District Attorney Rachael Powell said Jon Hallford couldn’t have carried out the crimes alone. While his actions were gruesome, Powell said, Carie Hallford was the one manipulating clients as she smiled and took their money, knowing she was lying to them.

“She solicited bodies and took the checks. She fed Jon the bodies,” Powell said.

The Associated Press left voicemail and email messages with Jon Hallford's attorney seeking comment on the abuse allegations.

The Hallfords, who divorced following their arrest, received prison sentences in the related federal fraud case — 18 years for Carie and 20 years for Jon. They have each appealed.

Plea agreements call for the Hallfords' state prison sentences to be served concurrently with the federal sentences.

Authorities recovered 189 sets of remains from the Penrose building and said another two bodies were improperly buried. Two of the remains have not yet been identified, but officials continue trying, Fremont County coroner Randy Keller said.

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Brown reported from Billings, Montana. Associated Press journalist Thomas Peipert contributed.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Friday that the EU is ready to work with Persian Gulf countries for new projects conveying energy to global markets that wouldn’t be held hostage to war or geopolitical strife.

"The events of the past month have taught us a hard lesson,” von der Leyen told a news conference at the end of an informal meeting of EU leaders in the capital of Cyprus. “Our security is not just related, it is intrinsically linked. A threat to a merchant vessel in the Strait of Hormuz is a threat to a factory, for example, in Belgium.”

The EU executive called for ramping up defense ties and promoted the bloc's maritime security mission in the Red Sea as a possible naval security option in the Persian Gulf, but focused her public remarks on European support for repairing and building Middle East energy sites.

Diversification of Middle East energy infrastructure

“We are also ready to team up with the Gulf countries to diversify export infrastructure away from solely the bottleneck of the Hormuz Strait," she said, also offering to help repair Gulf energy infrastructure damaged in the war.

A fifth of the world's oil and gas normally passes through the Strait of Hormuz, but the war has largely closed the waterway, spiking fuel prices.

Early Friday, Brent crude was up 98 cents at $100.33 a barrel. U.S. benchmark crude picked up 81 cents to $96.66 per barrel.

Von der Leyen repeated that as a result of the oil and gas price hikes, the 27-nation bloc’s energy bill in the last 43 days skyrocketed by 25 billion euros ($29.3 billion.)

Neither she nor European Council President Antonio Costa offered precise details on which projects are being considered or when they’ll move forward. But von der Leyen referred to the India-Middle-East-Europe Economic Corridor between the EU and the world’s largest democracy.

Von der Leyen said a summit between the EU and the Gulf Cooperation Council scheduled for later this year will give both sides the opportunity to explore such projects.

The EU's focus on its southern neighbors

The rotating EU presidency is currently held by Cyprus, an island nation adjacent to Lebanon, Syria, Israel and Turkey. Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides has sought to bring the bloc closer to countries in the Middle East to shore up their economies and bolster their security.

That focus was underscored by his guests at the EU leaders informal summit: Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El Sissi, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, Jordan's Crown Prince Hussein and GCC Secretary-General Jasem Mohamed AlBudaiwi.

“We know that Europe needs Syria as much as Syria needs Europe,” Al-Sharaa said, while Aoun called on EU support for rebuilding his war-ravaged country.

Costa praised Aoun for banning the military activities of Hezbollah that he called “an existential threat” to Lebanon, pledging to assist the country in disarming the militant group.

Costa said that “the European Union is not part of the conflict, but we will be part of this solution.”

Human rights groups blasted EU leaders for not increasing pressure on Israel over its military campaigns in the Middle East.

EU leaders including German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said they would not lift sanctions on Iran until a wide array of issues were resolved, including ending its missile program and support for proxies within the region.

“It’s too early to talk about relief of any kind of sanctions,” said Costa.

Cyprus itself came under attack early in the war when a Shahed drone fired from Lebanon on March 2 damaged an aircraft hangar at a British military base on the island’s southern coast. Greece, France, Italy, Spain and the Netherlands dispatched warships with anti-drone capabilities to defend the island.

That has spurred renewed interest in a clause in the EU's foundational treaties about mutual assistance if a member nation is attacked.

Christodoulides said the EU leaders had agreed to start creating a formal mechanism for such responses because they agreed that “ad hoc arrangements” are unreliable.

——- McNeil reported from Brussels. Associated Press writer Baraa Anwer in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia contributed to this report.

Julie Jaworowski left home on foot on Silver Lake Road near Walton Boulevard on Wednesday (April 22) around 2:40 p.m. without her phone, medications, or wallet.

While it is not uncommon for her to go on long walks, she always returns the same day and never stays away overnight, according to the police.

Jaworowski typically wears her hair up, as shown in the attached photo, and was wearing a grey sweatshirt, black leggings, and grey/pink tennis shoes.

Anyone with information should contact Waterford Police Detective Austin Moll at 248-618-6142, the Waterford Police Department at 248-618-7550, or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-Speak Up.

All tips to Crime Stoppers are anonymous. Click here to submit a tip online.

READ: More Missing in Michigan coverage

The Arizona Cardinals took the polarizing Miami quarterback with the 65th overall pick on Friday night. He’ll join a quarterback room that includes veterans Jacoby Brissett and Gardner Minshew and play for rookie coach Mike LaFleur.

“I’m super excited, super grateful, super blessed,” said Beck, who spent five seasons at Georgia before transferring to Miami. “I took a visit out there and loved the staff, loved Coach LaFleur.”

Beck was only the third QB selected in a draft that’s considered thin at the sport’s most important position. Fernando Mendoza went No. 1 to Las Vegas and Ty Simpson was selected 13th by the Los Angeles Rams.

No quarterbacks were picked in a second round that saw 22 defensive players taken.

Drew Allar became the fourth quarterback selected when the Pittsburgh Steelers took him at No. 76. He doesn’t have to leave the state after an injury-riddled college career at Penn State.

Pittsburgh set an NFL record with 320,000 fans in attendance on the first day Thursday night, breaking the mark set by Detroit in 2024 when a crowd of 275,000 came out.

The selection of Allar drew a mixed reaction from Steelers fans watching the draft at Acrisure Stadium. Allar is returning from a broken ankle that ended his college career last October.

The hometown faithful waving yellow Terrible Towels in the draft theater roared in approval when Pittsburgh chose Iowa guard Gennings Dunker later in the third round. Dunker, who sports a red mullet and a mustache, became a fan favorite at the combine where he displayed his athleticism.

Defense was the priority in the second round. Twenty-two of the 32 picks were defensive players and the Philadelphia Eagles acquired 2024 Pro Bowl edge rusher Jonathan Greenard from Minnesota.

Eight teams made their first selections of the draft on Friday night after sitting out Round 1, with the 49ers kicking off the second day by taking Mississippi wide receiver De’Zhaun Stribling. San Francisco traded down twice to end up with the 33rd pick.

The eight teams that didn’t pick Thursday was the second-most teams sitting out Round 1 since 1970. Ten teams didn’t pick in the first round in 2022.

The Bills, who traded back three times, ended up with an edge rusher, choosing Clemson's T.J. Parker at No. 35.

Two players who came to Pittsburgh but didn’t hear their names called Thursday went back-to-back at 36 and 37 on Friday. Ohio State defensive tackle Kayden McDonald was selected by Houston and Tennessee cornerback Colton Hood went next to the New York Giants.

“Of course it was disappointing,” said Hood, who was back home in Atlanta for Round 2. “I know God does everything for a reason. He was probably preventing me from something or he had something better in store for me, and that being the Giants. I’m super excited to go into this next chapter of my life and will just go in there and give my best and give my all and be the best version of myself.”

The Bengals strengthened their defense with their first pick of the draft, taking Texas A&M edge Cashius Howell at No. 41. Atlanta’s first pick was Clemson cornerback Avieon Terrell with the 48th pick. Green Bay also chose a cornerback with its first pick, taking South Carolina’s Brandon Cisse 52nd.

The Colts got Georgia linebacker CJ Allen at No. 53 after trading their first-rounder in a deal for Sauce Gardner last season.

Jacksonville’s first pick was Texas A&M tight end Nate Boerkircher.

The Broncos had to wait until the third round to make their first pick after trading No. 62 to Buffalo. Denver, which previously sent Miami its first-rounder in a trade for wideout Jaylen Waddle, took Texas A&M defensive tackle Tyler Onyedim at No. 66.

After losing Makai Lemon to the Eagles on Thursday night, the Steelers got their wide receiver, taking Alabama’s Germie Bernard 47th.

The Super Bowl champion Seahawks closed out the second round by adding Texas Christian safety Bud Clark at No. 64.

Just 16 of the 32 first-round picks were made by the original teams that owned them.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

--> Weeks-long search by police in Michigan ends as missing NMU student found in Marquette Harbor

Trenton Massey, a 21-year-old NMU student, was last seen on Feb. 22, 2026, at around 3 a.m. He was seen on cameras walking in the area of E Baraga Ave and the Founder’s Landing Boardwalk in Marquette. Police said he was likely trying to walk to his place on McMillan Street in the city.

Massey was last seen wearing a black and olive-green coat. According to police, the 21-year-old appeared disoriented in the surveillance video and had difficulty walking.

Marquette police, as well as multiple other agencies, have been searching for Massey since he was reported missing and provided daily updates on the search on social media.

On Feb. 23, police provided a map of the relevant search area where they believe Massey is.

Police suspended the search at around 7 p.m. on Feb. 23 and said they will resume searching for Massey at 9 a.m. on Feb. 24.

Police will focus on the water in the lower harbor near Founder’s Landing.

Volunteers who want to help find Massey are asked to report to the Hampton Inn lobby at 461 S. Lakeshore Boulevard on Feb. 24 at 10 a.m. for further directions. Police are reminding volunteers to stay off the ice in the harbor.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Marquette Police Department at (906) 228-0400.

Trenton Massey, 21, was found at about 3:30 p.m. submerged in the water north of Shiras Dock, according to the Marquette Police Department. Volunteers from Hybrid Robotics, an underwater remotely operated vehicle manufacturer based in Traverse City, made the discovery.

Divers from the Marquette County Sheriff’s Office recovered the body, which was turned over to UPHS EMS and transported to UPHS-Marquette for an autopsy. The investigation remains ongoing.

Nearly two months of searching

Massey’s recovery followed an extensive search spanning nearly two months.

Multiple agencies and volunteer groups assisted in the operation, searching by land, air, ice, and water.

Massey, an NMU student, was last seen Feb. 22, 2026, at around 3 a.m. Surveillance cameras captured him walking near E. Baraga Ave. and the Founders Landing Boardwalk in Marquette.

Police said he appeared disoriented and had difficulty walking, and was believed to be heading to his residence on McMillan Street.

He was last seen wearing a black and olive-green coat.

Marquette police launched a search after Massey was reported missing and provided daily social media updates throughout the effort. Authorities suspended the search Feb. 23 before resuming the following morning, focusing on the water in the lower harbor near Founders Landing.

Dozens of agencies joined the effort

Authorities thanked the many organizations involved in the search, including the Antrim County Sheriff’s Office, NMU Police Department, Marquette City Fire Department, Michigan State Police K-9 and Marine Services units, the U.S. Coast Guard Station in Marquette, the U.S. Army, Michigan Department of Natural Resources conservation officers, Alger County Sheriff’s Office, No One Left Behind K9 Search and Rescue, Frontline Strong and community volunteers.

Previous report

Game 4 is Sunday in Philadelphia.

Tatum was 5 of 9 on 3-pointers in just his 19th game this season following surgery last May to repair his Achilles tendon. Brown scored eight straight points late in the fourth for a 96-92 lead that put some distance between them and a Sixers team brimming with confidence following a surprise Game 2 win in Boston.

“We definitely wanted to come back and respond after dropping one on our home floor,” Brown said. “We can't lose two games in a row in the playoffs. It's tough. So this was a big win for us.”

Tatum and Brown did their part in the fourth, scoring 19 of the Celtics' 29 points.

Tatum buried a 3 for a 100-96 lead and Payton Pritchard hit a step-back 3 to make it 103-98. Tatum, still looking to regain his top form after not playing for nearly a year, may just be there and hit the final 3-point dagger for the 106-100 lead that even sent Allen Iverson headed toward the exit.

Pritchard scored 15 points and the Celtics shot 44% from the floor.

Philadelphia played again without center Joel Embiid for Game 3 as he continues to ease his way back into practice following an appendectomy on April 9.

Tyrese Maxey scored 31 points and Paul George added 18.

“We were in a position to win this game,” Maxey said. "Come in Sunday, got to get one. Got to protect home court and even the series.”

The more games Embiid misses, the more Maxey and VJ Edgecombe have played their way into the faces of the franchise.

Fans were already on their feet when the Sixers brought the ball down in the fourth and roared when Maxey let a 28-footer fly and hit it for an 85-84 lead.

Yet growing pains are inevitable in the playoff process.

Tatum took the lead right back on a goaltending call against Edgecombe. Edgecombe paired his second double-double of the series - 10 points and 10 rebounds — with a brutal 0-for-7 effort from 3-point range. With Boston up 90-85, Edgecombe was whistled for his third foul when he smacked Brown on his way to the bucket. Brown hit both to stretch the lead to seven.

Boston's 32-point Game 1 win stands as the outlier so far of two otherwise fantastic playoff games. What has stayed steady, the team with the 3-point edge wins. Boston hit 16 in Game 1 and the 76ers had the advantage with 19 in Game 2. Led by five each from Tatum and Pritchard, the Celtics made 20 of 47 in Game 3 while the Sixers were just 12 of 35.

“They did make some pretty heavily contested ones, especially late in the game," 76ers coach Nick Nurse said.

The Sixers got only a combined 22 points from Embiid replacements Adem Bona and Andre Drummond.

___

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Curtis Robinson said his wife died April 12 from complications of lupus.

Robinson said he and his wife were separated but still legally married, making him her next of kin.

He said he told Butler Funeral Home that his wife’s sons could handle funeral arrangements, but he requested a copy of her death certificate and a portion of her ashes.

“I just told the funeral home that her sons could plan the funeral. I didn’t want to interrupt with them burying their mother, I just wanted the death certificate and some of her ashes,” Robinson said.

Robinson said funeral home co-owner Charita Butler called him last week to arrange a time for him to come in and sign cremation paperwork.

The voicemail began routinely, but then appeared to capture Butler speaking after she believed she had hung up.

In the recording, Butler is heard telling another employee not to mention the ashes again and to give Robinson “somebody else’s ashes” if he kept asking.

“Don’t bring up the ashes again, but if he brings up the ashes or whatever, I’m just gonna give him somebody else’s ashes,” Butler is heard saying on the voicemail. “So we got some ashes back here that need to be disposed of. I’ll just give those to him.”

Robinson said the message caught him completely off guard.

“Very unsettling,” he said. “Kind of made me feel real sad, stressed out, that I couldn’t trust the funeral home with giving me any of my wife’s ashes like I asked for.”

Butler told Local 4 over the phone she was caught in a family dispute and said his wife’s sons did not want Robinson to receive any ashes. Butler said she was trying to keep the peace when she made the remarks.

“I was just really processing, I was throwing stuff out,” Butler said. “Like, if it gets down to it, if he gets ugly, is really what I was thinking, maybe I could do that. I don’t know, but I hadn’t really decided quite honestly.”

Butler said she has not given anyone the wrong remains.

“I haven’t done that,” Butler said. ”I have never done that, and I had not done that. It was just something that, it was just a discussion that was happening.”

Butler said she apologized and offered Robinson the chance to witness the transfer of the ashes into an urn.

Butler said she also bought a small keepsake urn for him.

Robinson said the apology wasn’t enough.

“If they said that to me, how many other people have they done like this or treated like this?” Robinson said.

Local 4 found no similar complaints about Butler Funeral Home, which has an A-plus rating from the Better Business Bureau.

Robinson said he is still waiting for his wife’s ashes and is exploring legal options.

Even when he's ailing, he still finds a way to come up with the biggest hit of the game.

After being scratched from the lineup because of tightness in his left quad, Harris delivered as a pinch-hitter against the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday night.

Harris drove a two-run double against the wall in left-center off Andrew Painter to lead the Braves to a 5-3 victory, handing the Phillies their 10th straight loss.

“He's really feeling it right now," manager Walt Weiss said. “We've seen him like this before, but this might be another level."

Harris left the previous day’s victory at Washington in the seventh inning, and the Braves decided to play it safe by not starting him in the opener of a weekend series against the struggling Phillies.

But with Atlanta trailing 3-2, two runners aboard and two outs in the sixth inning, Weiss decided to send Harris up against fading Phillies starter Andrew Painter.

One could hardly blame the manager. Harris is off to a blistering start for the first-place Braves, hitting .326 with six homers and 18 RBIs.

“If the situation showed itself, I was going to use him,” Weiss said. "That was probably the only time we could guarantee he was gonna face a right-handed pitcher. With a couple of guys on and two outs, we took a shot right there. Mikey was ready. He had been swinging in the cage. He was ready for that moment and got a huge hit for us.”

Harris had faced Painter just last weekend in Philadelphia. He homered in a 4-2 victory that completed a three-game sweep.

“I kind of knew what he had,” Harris said. “I just went up there and tried to put a good swing on it.”

Harris looked just fine as he jogged into second base. He didn’t even feel his quad as he watched the ball sail over the head of leaping Brandon Marsh in left field.

“I couldn’t even tell you” if it was hurting, Harris said. “I was worried about the ball getting down.”

Even so, he was immediately replaced by pinch-runner Jorge Mateo, who stole third and came home for an insurance run on a wild pitch by Painter.

It's been quite a season — on and off the field — for Harris. He and his wife, Esther, welcomed their first child two weeks ago, a boy named Michael Harris III. He's known as Trip, which is short for triple.

“It's pretty good,” Harris said, breaking into a big smile when asked what it was like to a new father.

The NL rookie of the year in 2022, Harris struggled mightily to regain the form he showed in that debut season. But he started to turns things around in the second half of 2025, and that momentum has carried through the first month of this campaign.

Asked to explain his turnaround, Harris replied, “I don't think I can, and that's the best thing about it. Just let it happen. I can't really figure out what's going right and what's was going wrong before. I just know what feels good and trying to stay this way.”

The Braves have nine of 10 for the best record in the majors at 19-8. Most notably, they already have a 10 1/2-game lead over the two-time reigning NL East champion Phillies with the season not yet a month old.

“We can't take that for granted," Harris said. “We've got to keep our foot on their necks.”

Harris' status is day to day. The Braves hope he'll be back in the lineup Saturday, but they're not taking any chances.

“We're gonna be cautious," Weiss said. “That soft-tissue stuff can be tricky. We want to use good judgment here.”

Besides, Harris showed he can do plenty of damage with just one swing.

“He’s the GOAT,” said Braves starter Grant Holmes, who picked up the win off Harris' big blow. "It’s crazy. It’s like every time he’s up there, he gets a hit. He’s coming through big time for the guys.”

___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Another Wolverine making his way to the Lone Star State! pic.twitter.com/GsFnEY55OT

— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) April 25, 2026

Barham spent his collegiate career at Maryland before transferring to Michigan, where he showcased his ability as a hybrid linebacker and pass rusher with impact potential at multiple spots in a defensive front.

As a freshman with the Michigan Wolverines in 2022, Barham earned Freshman All-American honors after leading Maryland with 6.5 tackles for loss and tying for the team lead with four sacks.

He started 12 games and finished the season with 58 tackles, four sacks, a pass breakup, and a forced fumble.

In 2023, he was named honorable mention All-Big Ten after starting 11 games and recording 37 tackles, three sacks, an interception, and a pass breakup.

Barham continued his steady production in 2024, starting all 13 games and finishing with 66 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, one sack, and two pass breakups.

In 2025, he earned honorable mention All-Big Ten honors again, appearing in 12 games with 11 starts. He totaled 32 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, four sacks, three pass breakups, and a forced fumble.

Primarily deployed as an off-ball linebacker, Barham’s 2025 film highlighted his explosiveness and versatility, drawing interest from teams seeking a developmental rush linebacker in multiple defensive schemes.

At 6-foot-3 with a powerful, athletic build, Barham is known for his ability to defeat blocks with quickness and strength. He flashes sudden first-step explosiveness as a rusher and can win with dips, rips, and edge-flattening speed against slower offensive tackles.

Scouts note his elite bend and reactive athleticism, which allow him to make plays in space and finish tackles from difficult angles.

He also shows smooth movement in coverage and strong stop-start ability when changing direction.

While Barham’s motor and physical tools stand out, evaluators say he remains raw as a pass rusher and must improve his discipline and consistency to limit negative plays. His ability to stack and shed blocks is considered a strength, but his edge-setting technique is still developing.

Despite those areas for growth, Barham is widely viewed as a high-upside defender with the versatility to play inside linebacker or stand-up edge, and he projects as a potential future starter once his technique matures.

“It is headed right for us,” she recalled thinking, as she peeked outside, unable to contain her curiosity.

Huddled inside the dark 8-by-8 foot (2.44-by-2.44 meters) concrete shelter with her husband, brother-in-law and a neighbor, she heard roaring, metal slapping on the door and glass breaking.

Afterward, they emerged unscathed, but found the windows smashed out of the one-story brick home in Enid and the roof badly damaged.

The scene was repeated Thursday night across the city of about 50,000 people about 85 miles north of Oklahoma City as the EF-4 tornado hit. It was on the ground for 9 miles (14.48 kilometers), packing winds of 170 to 175 mph and measuring 500 yards across at its widest, said Rick Smith, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

For those 30 to 40 minutes, at least 40 homes were damaged, some blown off their foundations. But no one was killed and only minor injuries were reported.

“People around here have a plan,” Hunt explained, noting that residents of this tornado-alley state are trained to either take shelter in a room near the center of their home or get underground.

Basements aren’t common in Oklahoma because of the red clay soil and elevated water tables that make it difficult and expensive to install them, but many homes — like Hunt's — have storm cellars or safe rooms with reinforced concrete walls where people can take cover.

People here also know to flip on the TV and set up weather alerts on their phones — particularly in the springtime, when the risk of violent twisters is highest.

“Especially in Oklahoma, we have great meteorologists,” said Justin Hunt of Enid, who described the storm's aftermath as a “disaster.”

Storm leaves rubble in its wake

Commercial buildings just south of the city were turned into a pile of twisted metal, splintered wood and insulation by powerful winds that pushed the buildings completely off the concrete foundations.

The tornado knocked down utility poles and left power lines wrapped with huge chunks of debris. A home had part of its metal roof torn off and trees were left stripped of bark and limbs. At another home, a section of one wall had peeled away to reveal the interior of the home with some furniture still in place.

“Usually when we come to a neighborhood that’s been hit this bad, there’s one or two deaths,” Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt said during a news conference Friday. “We’re just so thankful there wasn’t a loss of life.”

People pick through rubble, clear away debris

Police and fire departments and the Oklahoma Highway Patrol conducted multiple home searches, rescuing some trapped residents, Enid Mayor David Mason said Friday.

“Supplies have poured in already,” Mason posted online. “This is who Enid is in challenging moments — we continue to show up for one another.”

Dave Lamerton of Enid spent Friday morning salvaging what was left of his son Joseph’s woodworking shop just south of the city, along with some family members and a group of volunteers who traveled from Kansas to help with cleanup.

“The tornado just swung right through here and just hit us directly,” Lamerton said, pointing to a giant mess of splintered wood beams, furniture, debris and heavy machinery that was pushed into a massive pile at the edge of the building’s foundation. “We’ve got stuff on the property we can’t even find.”

Meteorologists describe powerful storm system

One striking image from Thursday’s storms shows a tornado in the Enid area with a dark clouds of debris extending in V-shape on either side. That is typical of higher-end tornadoes, according to Mark Fox, the meteorologist in charge of the National Weather Service’s office in Norman.

It has such a violent motion as winds pick up dirt, debris and things like parts of people’s houses.

“If you start seeing things like this, you know it’s a violent tornado,” he said.

Neighboring counties also reported some flooded roads and barn damage. The National Weather Service was sending two crews out Friday to do damage surveys related to six potential tornadoes in the Enid and Braman areas of north-central Oklahoma, meteorologist John Pike said.

Air force base is damaged

Fences and some equipment were knocked down at nearby Vance Air Force Base, about 80 miles (129 kilometers) north of Oklahoma City. The base was closed until further notice “due to ongoing power and water restoration efforts,” it posted online Friday.

Everyone assigned to the base has been accounted for and no injuries were reported, 71st Flying Training Wing Public Affairs Chief Ashley D. Hendricks said in an email Friday.

More bad weather possible

More storms are possible through Friday night across south-central and southeast Oklahoma, the weather service said. Strong to severe thunderstorms are expected to develop Saturday, including in the Enid area.

It was a stormy night in other states, too. In Kearney, Missouri, north of Kansas City, officials reported downed trees, debris blocking roadways and damage to homes on Thursday night after storms passed through the area. Officials said in a social media post that no injuries had been reported. Crews worked to make roads passable by early Friday and were expected to continue cleanup efforts during the day.

—-

Associated Press writers Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire, and Sarah Brumfield in Cockeysville, Maryland, contributed to this report.

Marlin is headed to Houston! pic.twitter.com/AlsKqn2tJ2

— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) April 25, 2026

Klein, a German native, emerged as a key contributor for the Wolverines late in his career and served as a team captain during the 2025 season, earning honorable mention All-Big Ten honors.

After redshirting in 2022 and appearing in two games, Klein began to carve out a role in 2023, playing in 10 games primarily as a reserve and recording one reception for eight yards.

His role expanded in 2024, when he played in all 13 games with six starts and was named Michigan’s Most Improved Player on offense.

Klein finished the season with 13 receptions for 108 yards.

In 2025, Klein took another step forward, appearing in 11 games with six starts, totaling 24 catches for 248 yards and a touchdown, and serving as a captain.

At 6-foot-6 with a sturdy frame, Klein is viewed as a traditional “Y” tight end who does much of his work at the line of scrimmage.

He shows toughness and physicality as a blocker, using strong hands and a solid base to engage defenders and sustain contact.

Scouts note Klein’s ability to create leverage and accelerate through contact, along with his awareness in traffic to stay on schedule in route concepts.

While not considered an elite athlete in space, he builds speed with long strides and has shown reliable hands when targeted.

Evaluators say Klein still has room to develop, particularly with his technique as a blocker and by adding strength to his frame.

Given his relatively limited experience in the sport, he is considered a developmental prospect.

Klein projects as a potential depth tight end at the next level, capable of contributing as a blocker while continuing to refine his all-around game.

To acquire Moore, Detroit sent the New York Jets’ pick No. 50 (second round) and No. 128 (fourth round) for the 44th pick on Friday (April 24), placing him on the same line as fellow Wolverines alum, Aidan Hutchinson.

Lions trading up to 44, sending 50 and 128 to the Jets.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 24, 2026

The Lions selected offensive tackle Blake Miller with the No. 17 pick in the first round on Thursday (April 23).

The College Football Playoff national champion developed into one of the Big Ten’s most productive pass rushers during his career with the Michigan Wolverines, emerging as a team captain and first-team all-conference selection by the end of the 2025 season.

Moore saw action in all 14 games as a reserve in 2022, finishing with eight tackles and two sacks while beginning to carve out a role on the defensive line.

He took a significant step forward in 2023, earning honorable mention All-Big Ten honors while appearing in all 15 games for Michigan’s national championship team.

Moore recorded 34 tackles, including six for loss and five sacks, along with two pass breakups and a forced fumble.

With the 44th overall pick in the @NFLDraft, the @Lions have selected EDGE @Big8DMoore.

The 2025 First-Team All-Big Ten selection logged 41 total pressures last season, per @PFF. #OnePride pic.twitter.com/H6BCTpyZ0r

— Detroit Lions PR (@LionsPR) April 24, 2026

In 2024, Moore again earned honorable mention all-conference recognition and moved into a starting role, starting 12 games. He totaled 23 tackles, six tackles for loss, and four sacks, adding two pass breakups.

Moore’s breakout came in 2025, when he was named first-team All-Big Ten and served as a team captain. He led the Wolverines with 10.5 tackles for loss and 10 sacks, starting 12 games and finishing with 30 tackles, three pass breakups, and two forced fumbles.

At 6-foot-4 with long arms and a powerful frame, Moore is regarded as a physical edge defender who excels as a pass rusher. He relies heavily on a bull rush, using strong hands and lower-body drive to collapse the pocket and generate pressure.

Scouts note Moore’s ability to build momentum through his rush and overwhelm blockers once he gains leverage.

His combination of size, technique, and timing allows him to finish plays effectively, whether pursuing quarterbacks or ball carriers.

While Moore has shown the ability to set the edge against the run, evaluators say he can be inconsistent in that area and will need to bring greater urgency on early downs to become a complete three-down defender.

Even so, Moore’s production and skill set project him as a starting-caliber edge rusher at the next level, with the potential to consistently generate pressure and sacks.

--> Detroit Lions introduce first-round pick Blake Miller after ‘whirlwind’ draft night

Lions’ recent playoff history

The heartbreak stretches back further.

In the 2023-24 postseason, Detroit reached the NFC Championship Game but squandered a 24-7 halftime lead, ultimately falling to the San Francisco 49ers 34-31.

General Manager Brad Holmes addressed the team’s offseason evaluation process with candor, acknowledging inconsistency as a defining issue of the 2025 campaign.

“You always have to evolve,” Holmes said. “And when you don’t get the desired results, you’ve got to just look at everything.”

Holmes emphasized that the organization will examine all offseason decisions and processes, but that the foundational identity and type of players sought will remain the same.

→ What Detroit Lions General Manager Brad Holmes said during NFL Scouting Combine

Holmes and Dan Campbell are looking to replenish the roster and return to their winning ways with the No. 17 pick, which was the highest draft slot they’ve had since drafting running back Jahmyr Gibbs with the No. 12 overall selection in 2023.

--> Detroit Lions General Manager Brad Holmes explains trading up for Michigan football’s Derrick Moore

Lions’ 2026 draft capital

Detroit enters the draft with nine total picks: one in the first round, one in the second, two in the fourth, two in the fifth, two in the sixth, and one in the seventh.

Notably absent is a third-round selection.

The Lions traded two third-rounders, including a compensatory pick tied to former defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn’s departure to become head coach of the New York Jets, to the Jacksonville Jaguars in order to move up and select wide receiver Isaac TeSlaa in the third round of the 2025 draft.

Detroit also received an extra 2026 sixth-round pick in that deal.

The Lions’ extra fourth-round pick came via a trade that sent running back David Montgomery to the Houston Texans during the offseason.

Detroit also received a compensatory fifth-round pick after offensive lineman Kevin Zeitler departed in free agency ahead of the 2025 season.

An additional sixth-round pick came in the deal that sent wide receiver Tim Patrick to Jacksonville.

Detroit’s seventh-round pick came from the Cleveland Browns as part of a 2024 trade deadline deal that moved pass rusher Za’Darius Smith to Cleveland.

Lions first round picks by Brad Holmes, Dan Campbell

• 2025 (No. 28 overall): DT Tyleik Williams, Ohio State.
• 2024 (No. 24 overall): CB Terrion Arnold, Alabama.
• 2023 (No. 12 overall): RB Jahmyr Gibbs, Alabama.
• 2023 (No. 18 overall): LB Jack Campbell, Iowa.
• 2022 (No. 2 overall): EDGE Aidan Hutchinson, Michigan.
• 2022 (No. 12 overall): WR Jameson Williams, Alabama.
• 2021 (No. 7 overall): OT Penei Sewell, Oregon.

Lions 2026 NFL draft picks

Here’s the complete list of the Lions’ remaining picks in the 2025 NFL draft:

• Round 1: Offensive tackle Blake Miller, No. 17 overall.
• Round 2: Edge rusher Derrick Moore, No. 44 (from Jets)
• Round 4: No. 118.
• Round 5: No. 157.
• Round 5: No. 181 (compensatory pick).
• Round 6: No. 205 (from Jacksonville).
• Round 6: No. 213 (from Seattle).
• Round 7: No. 222 (from Cleveland).

“We’re really, really excited,” Holmes said. “It’s hard to find guys that, I’m not going to say we’re picky, but we have a certain type that we like, and he fits those boxes.”

To acquire Moore, Detroit sent the New York Jets’ pick No. 50 (second round) and No. 128 (fourth round) for the 44th pick on Friday (April 24).

--> Detroit Lions trade up to select Michigan football star Derrick Moore with No. 44 pick in NFL draft

Lions target Moore amid edge rusher run

Detroit traded up six spots to secure Moore amid a run on edge rushers early in the second round.

Holmes noted the uncertainty of how other teams graded prospects.

“He was part of that cluster we were targeting,” Holmes said. “For us, he was our one at that point.”

Holmes pointed to Moore’s performance during Senior Bowl practices as a pivotal evaluation moment, even though the defender did not play in the game itself.

“His practices were really, really good,” Holmes said. “He showed he’s an improved pass rusher, not just off the edge, but inside as well. That’s a very underrated part of his game.”

Versatility key to Moore’s fit in Detroit

The Lions believe Moore’s versatility will strengthen a defensive front built around star pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson, a fellow Michigan Wolverines alumnus.

Holmes said Moore can contribute immediately in a rotation, spelling Hutchinson while lining up across multiple positions in sub-packages.

“He can set edges in the run game, rush outside, rush inside,” Holmes said. “That’s what he showed on tape, and that’s how we expect to use him.”

Holmes also emphasized Moore’s instincts and willingness to handle the less glamorous aspects of the position.

“You’ve got to earn the right to rush the passer,” Holmes said. “He does the dirty work. He’s instinctive, and that gives him a high floor.”

Michigan background eases NFL transition

Detroit’s front office has consistently prioritized players from programs that run pro-style systems.

Holmes said Moore’s experience at Michigan should ease his transition to the NFL.

“When you see guys coming out of programs like Michigan, Alabama, or Georgia, they’re used to NFL concepts,” Holmes said. “It takes a little projection off your plate.”

While the Lions lost pass-rush production in the offseason, Holmes said expectations for Moore’s rookie year will remain measured.

“He just needs to come in and be who he is,” Holmes said. “We didn’t draft him to replace anybody’s numbers right away, but we do believe he can grow into that kind of player over time.”

Intangibles, work ethic set Moore apart

Detroit’s first two selections, an offensive tackle and Moore — aligned with both roster needs and the team’s best-player-available philosophy, Holmes added.

“When it blends together like that, it’s really nice,” Holmes said.

Holmes credited the organization’s scouting process for identifying Moore’s work ethic and passion for football as differentiators.

“There are a lot of guys with physical ability,” Holmes said. “But the intangibles, the love for the game, the coachability, that’s what really matters. He checks those boxes.”

With additional picks remaining, Holmes said the Lions still have flexibility to add depth but expressed satisfaction with how the draft has unfolded.

“We feel like we’ve got enough ammo to keep building,” Holmes said.

Lions 2026 NFL draft picks

Here’s the complete list of the Lions’ remaining picks in the 2025 NFL draft:

• Round 1: Offensive tackle Blake Miller, No. 17 overall.
• Round 2: Edge rusher Derrick Moore, No. 44 (from Jets)
• Round 4: No. 118.
• Round 5: No. 157.
• Round 5: No. 181 (compensatory pick).
• Round 6: No. 205 (from Jacksonville).
• Round 6: No. 213 (from Seattle).
• Round 7: No. 222 (from Cleveland).

Brad Holmes is live at the podium: https://t.co/8JlKbF2pmG

— Detroit Lions (@Lions) April 25, 2026

Skenes (4-1), the NL Cy Young winner, didn’t allow a base runner until Jake Bauers’ sharp single to right with two outs in the seventh. He was vying to become the first pitcher to throw a perfect game in American Family Field, previously known as Miller Park, which opened in 2001. There have been two no-hitters.

Skenes gave up one hit over seven shutout innings. He struck out seven and didn’t walk a batter. He threw 93 pitches — 62 for strikes.

Mason Montgomery and Isaac Mattson completed the one-hitter.

Skenes had another no-hitter close call in Milwaukee on July 11, 2024, when he allowed no hits over seven innings in a 1-0 win. The Brewers’ only hit in that game was Bauers' single off Colin Holderman in the eighth.

Griffin hit a solo shot off Brewers starter Brandon Woodruff (2-1) in the third.

Nick Gonzales’ run-scoring single in the fourth extended the Pittsburgh lead to 2-0. The Pirates added another run in the fifth on Oneil Cruz’s RBI force-out. Ryan O’Hearn doubled and scored on Spencer Horwitz’s single as the Pirates lead grew to 4-0 in the sixth.

Griffin’s two-run single in the eighth put the Pirates up 6-0.

The Brewers made a series of moves prior to the game, recalling first baseman/outfielder Tyler Black and left-hander Shane Drohan from Triple-A Nashville. They also optioned right-hander Carlos Rodriguez to Nashville and designated outfielder Luis Matos for assignment.

Up next

RHP Mitch Keller (2-1, 2.79 ERA) was set to start for Pittsburgh on Saturday against Jacob Misiorowski (1-2, 3.04).

___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

An unusually large number of wildfires are burning this spring across the Southeast, where scientists say the threat of fire has been amplified by a combination of extreme drought, gusty winds, climate change and dead trees still littering some forests after being toppled by Hurricane Helene in 2024.

In northern Florida, the Nassau County Sheriff's Office said Friday that volunteer firefighter James “Kevin” Crews suffered an unspecified medical emergency while suppressing a brush fire. Crews was rushed to a hospital where he died Thursday evening, according to a news release posted to social media.

“Kevin was the epitome of courage and dedication,” Hilliard Volunteer Fire Chief Jerry Johnson said in a statement. “His sacrifice will never be forgotten.”

‘No way to stop this fire’ without soaking rain

After getting a firsthand look at firefighting efforts in southeast Georgia, Gov. Brian Kemp told reporters that state officials believe 87 homes burned in rural Brantley County this week are the most destroyed by a single wildfire in the state's history.

An additional 35 homes have been lost to a larger fire burning in sparsely populated Clinch and Echols counties near the Florida state line, Kemp said. That blaze has burned about 50 square miles (129 square kilometers), an area twice the size of Manhattan.

Kemp said officials suspect the Brantley County was sparked by a foil party balloon that touched live power lines, creating an electrical arc that ignited the ground. He said investigators suspect the larger fire started with a man welding a gate outside.

Spread across nearly 12 square miles (31 square kilometers) and still growing, the Brantley County blaze was 15% contained Friday, the Georgia Forestry Commission said. An estimated 4,000 homes in the county were under evacuation orders Friday, said commission spokesperson Seth Hawkins.

“There’s no way to stop this fire,” Kemp said. “They’re having to contain the flanks and the back of it and then, hopefully, we get a change in the weather.”

No fire deaths or injuries have been reported in Georgia.

Firefighters are battling more than 150 other wildfires in Georgia and Florida that have sent smoky haze into places far from the flames, triggering air quality warnings for some cities.

‘We’ve lost everything, but I'm one of the lucky ones'

Michael Gibson was at his job Thursday at a chicken feed producer when his fiancee called urging him to come home. By the time he arrived, firefighters were already on the road where Gibson, his fiancee and their four children lived. He said he took his family to safety and tried to return to salvage belongings, but police stopped him.

Gibson said the fire consumed his mobile home and one beside it where his fiancee's brother lived. His family has been staying in a camper on a relative's property.

“We’ve lost everything, but I’m one of the lucky ones.” Gibson said Friday. “We’ve been prepared to leave. And I’m truly blessed to have my family and to have somewhere to sleep. ... A lot of people in my county didn’t make it out with the clothes on their backs.”

Jennifer Murphy said she had little time to react when firefighters knocked at her door in the Brantley County community of Hortense.

She said she barely had a chance to gather her dog, Chip, and a single bag of belongings before firefighters urgently helped her walk down her wheelchair ramp and grab a rolling walker from her van outside.

“It was like, 'Get out now, right now. You’ve got to leave,’” Murphy said Friday at the local church where she had spent the night on a couch.

Firefighters are hosing down homes, trying to limit destruction

While crews with bulldozers work to clear fire breaks around the burning areas, firefighters from dozens of local agencies have focused on protecting nearby homes and other structures — clearing away dry brush and using hoses and sprinklers to keep houses and yards wet.

"We’ve definitely had the local fire guys out there literally hosing stuff down,” said Hawkins of the forestry commission.

In Florida, firefighters were battling more than 120 wildfires Friday, mostly in the state’s northern half. Fire crews in Georgia responded to 31 new and relatively small blazes Thursday, the state forestry commission said.

Officials say soaking rain is badly needed to snuff out the large fires, and that possible showers forecast this weekend won't bring enough rainfall. There's also a chance of thunderstorms, raising concerns that lightning could spark more fires.

"It is going to take 8 to 10 inches before we can walk away from these fires,” said Johnny Sabo, director of the Georgia Forestry Commission.

He said long-range forecasts predict less than average rainfall until July.

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Bynum reported from Savannah, Georgia. Associated Press journalist Jeff Amy contributed from Atlanta

Despite homers from Trea Turner and Bryce Harper, the two-time reigning NL East champion Phillies dropped 10 1/2 games behind the first-place Braves with the season not even a month old. Atlanta has won nine of 10 for the best record in the majors (19-8).

Ronald Acuña Jr. hit a two-run homer for the Braves, but it was Harris who delivered the biggest hit on a night when it appeared he wouldn't play at all.

Harris was a late scratch from the lineup as a precautionary measure after tightness in his left quad forced him to leave the previous day's victory over Washington.

But when the Braves, trailing 3-2, put two runners aboard with two outs in the sixth against Andrew Painter (1-1), the call went to Harris as a pinch-hitter for Eli White.

After getting ahead 2-0 in the count, Harris pounced on a 96 mph fastball. The ball cleared leaping left fielder Brandon Marsh while Dominic Smith and Mauricio Dubón raced around the bases with the tying and go-ahead runs.

Harris showed no pain at all as he chugged into second base, but he was immediately replaced by pinch-runner Jorge Mateo, who gave the Braves an insurance run by stealing third and coming home on a wild pitch by Painter.

Grant Holmes (2-1) surrendered a two-run homer to Turner in the third inning and a solo shot by Harper leading off the fifth. But he lasted six innings to pick up the win, avoiding further trouble by striking out Kyle Schwarber with the bases loaded to end the fourth.

Robert Suarez earned his third save as a fill-in for injured Atlanta closer Raisel Iglesias, retiring Marsh on a weak grounder to end the game with runners at second and third.

Painter gave up nine hits and all five Braves runs over 5 2-3 innings.

Up next

RHP Zack Wheeler finally makes his season debut for the Phillies on Saturday after coming back from thoracic outlet surgery. The Braves will counter with RHP Bryce Elder (3-1, 1.50 ERA).

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

The pair will meet Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who was heading to Pakistan on Friday for “bilateral consultations,” Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency confirmed. Vice President JD Vance will not be traveling, the White House said.

The trip to Pakistan comes as officials there have been trying to get the United States and Iran to a second round of ceasefire negotiations.

The Trump administration also announced it is placing economic sanctions on a major China-based oil refinery and roughly 40 shipping companies and tankers involved in transporting Iranian oil. The move, actualizes the administration’s threat to impose secondary sanctions on entities that do business with Iran, an effort to cut off Iran’s key source of revenue: its oil exports.

Here is the latest:

US says detained Kuwaiti-American journalist has been released by Kuwait

The State Department says a detained Kuwaiti-American journalist who was arrested in Kuwait has been released after intervention by the Trump administration.

The department said late Friday that Ahmed Shihab-Eldin had been freed and allowed to leave Kuwait. It offered no other details, citing privacy concerns.

Iran says no direct talks with US in Islamabad are planned

Shortly after Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi touched down in Pakistan, his government made it clear that there would be no direct negotiations with American government representatives during this visit.

Foreign ministry spokesperson Esmael Baqaei said on X that “No meeting is planned to take place between Iran and the U.S.” Instead, Baqaei said Pakistani officials would convey messages between the delegations.

Baqaei thanked the Pakistani government for its “ongoing mediation & good offices for ending American imposed war of aggression.”

The White House said earlier Friday that its envoys would meet Araghchi.

Iranians have long sought work and relative stability in Turkey. The war could force some to return

Sadri Haghshenas spends her days selling borek — a layered, savory pastry — at a shop in Istanbul, but her mind is on her daughter in Tehran.

The family had to send her home to Iran after they ran into difficulties renewing her visa, despite fears that a shaky ceasefire could soon collapse.

For years, short-term residency permits have allowed tens of thousands of Iranians to pursue economic opportunities and enjoy relative stability in neighboring Turkey. But it’s a precarious situation, and the war has raised the stakes.

“I swear, I cry every day,” Haghshenas said, raising her hands from behind the counter of the pastry shop. “There is no life in my country, there is no life here, what shall I do?”

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Bessent rules out renewal of Iranian and Russian oil waivers

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Friday that the U.S. does not plan to renew a waiver allowing the purchase of Russian oil and petroleum products that are currently at sea. He also said a renewal of a one-time waiver for Iranian oil at sea is totally off the table.

“Not the Iranians,” Bessent told The Associated Press. “We have the blockade, and there’s no oil coming out.”

In an AP interview about the impact of the war on the global energy market and other topics, Bessent also said he had no plans to extend the sanctions relief for Russia.

“I wouldn’t imagine that we’d have another extension. I think the Russian oil on the water has been largely sucked up,” he said.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrives in Islamabad for talks on reviving ceasefire negotiations

Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said an Iranian delegation led by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in Islamabad on Friday.

Araghchi was received by Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir and other senior officials upon arrival.

In a statement, it said during the visit Araghchi is expected to meet Pakistan’s senior leadership to discuss the latest regional developments and ongoing efforts to promote regional peace and stability.

US imposes sanctions on a China-based oil refinery and 40 shippers over Iranian oil

The Trump administration is placing economic sanctions on a major China-based oil refinery and roughly 40 shipping companies and tankers involved in transporting Iranian oil.

The move, announced Friday and first reported by The Associated Press, makes good on the Trump administration’s threat to impose secondary sanctions on companies and countries that do business with Iran. It’s also part of the Republican administration’s overall ramped-up campaign to cut off Iran’s key source of revenue — its oil exports.

Concurrently, the U.S. this month imposed a physical blockade on the Strait of Hormuz, the Persian Gulf waterway that is crucial to global energy supplies.

These sanctions come just a few weeks before President Donald Trump and China’s Xi Jinping are due to meet in China.

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Israeli strikes kill at least 11 in Gaza, health officials say

Among those killed in three separate Israeli strikes on Friday across Gaza were a woman and a child, health officials said.

An afternoon drone strike near a police checkpoint in northwestern Gaza City killed two Palestinians and wounded two others, according to officials at Shifa hospital.

The Israeli military acknowledged the strike, saying that it targeted “terrorists” without providing evidence or further details.

In the evening, another strike targeted a police vehicle in southern Gaza, killing at least seven, according to officials at Nasser hospital. A third strike in northern Gaza killed a woman and a child, health officials at Shifa hospital said.

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the evening strikes.

Deadly Israeli strikes are a near-daily threat in Gaza, where more than 790 Palestinians have been killed despite a ceasefire with Hamas since October, according to figures from the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.

Leavitt says Vance is willing to go to Pakistan ‘if we feel it’s a necessary use of his time’

Leavitt told reporters the president decided to send Witkoff and Kushner “to hear the Iranians out.”

“We’ve certainly seen some progress from the Iranian side in the last couple of days,” Leavitt said. She did not offer any details about what U.S. officials were hearing.

Witkoff and Kushner dispatched to Pakistan for new talks with Iranian foreign minister

President Donald Trump is sending his envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Pakistan on Saturday to continue talks with Iran, the White House said Friday.

White House press secretary Karolien Leavitt said in an interview on Fox News Channel that the two will have talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.

“We’re hopeful that it will be a productive conversation and hopefully move the ball forward to a deal,” Leavitt said.

She said that Vice President JD Vance would not be traveling but that he remains “deeply involved.”

Leavitt said he will be in the U.S., along with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the president’s national security team, on “standby” to fly to Pakistan “if necessary.”

Lebanon’s health ministry raises death toll to 2,491

The ministry included figures released Friday that 7,719 people were wounded in the latest Israel-Hezbollah war that broke out March 2.

It was the first time the ministry has released new figures since April 17, when a ceasefire went into effect.

Despite the ceasefire, the death toll rose by 197 in one week because bodies were apparently recovered from areas that previously had been out of reach.

Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu says he was treated for prostate cancer and is now healthy

It’s his first public acknowledgment of the diagnosis.

He said that roughly a year and a half ago he had prostate surgery. Then two and a half months ago, his doctors discovered and treated a small tumor at Jerusalem’s Hadassah Hospital with radiation therapy. That was not announced at the time.

“I requested to delay its publication by two months so that it would not be released at the height of the war” against Iran, the 76-year-old Israeli leader said, to prevent “more false propaganda against Israel.”

He said he was healthy and called the tumor a “minor medical issue.”

Netanyahu’s health was the subject of speculation during the early weeks of the war with Iran as fake, AI-generated images circulated suggesting he had died, including on Iranian state media.

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Businesses dole out up to $4 million to cross Panama Canal during Strait of Hormuz chokehold

That’s according to the Panama Canal Authority.

While passage through the waterway usually comes at a flat rate via reservations, companies without reservations can cross by paying an additional fee in an auction for slots, which are awarded to the highest bidder rather than waiting for days off the coast of Panama City.

That price has ballooned in recent weeks as Iran and the United States have bottlenecked the key shipping route, the Strait of Hormuz, and demand for those slots has skyrocketed. Ships have increasingly traveled through the Panama Canal as shipments are rerouted and buyers purchase from other countries to avoid commerce through the now-treacherous Middle Eastern waterway.

“With all the bombings, the missiles, the drones ... companies are saying it’s safer and less expensive to cross through the Panama Canal,” said Rodrigo Noriega, a lawyer and analyst in Panama City. “All of this is affecting global supply chains.”

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Netanyahu says Israel and the US are operating in ‘full cooperation’ on Iran

“The same is true in Lebanon: We have begun a process to achieve a historic peace between Israel and Lebanon, and it is clear to us that Hezbollah is trying to sabotage this,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday in a video statement released by his office. He was referring to direct negotiations underway between the two countries — which don’t have formal diplomatic relations — for the first time in decades.

Israel says it struck Hezbollah sites after rocket fire from Lebanon

The Israeli military said it hit sites from which rockets were launched toward the town of Shtula a day earlier.

The strikes targeted the town of Deir Aames, which is outside the border area in Lebanon that Israeli forces have declared a buffer zone and continued to occupy since a 10-day truce was implemented last week. Earlier Friday, the Israeli military issued a warning for residents of Deir Aames to leave.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday announced a three-week extension to the Israel-Hezbollah truce, but both sides have continued to fire at each other.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says meeting in Saudi Arabia was productive

In a Telegram post Friday, Zelenskyy said his meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was productive and that both countries are developing a strategic security agreement.

The agreement includes three elements, he said: exporting Ukraine’s defense expertise and capabilities, expanding energy cooperation, and strengthening food security.

“We are working together to strengthen our nations and partners. We have defined tasks for our teams and I expect their prompt and full implementation,” he said.

Saudi Arabia, along with other Mideast countries, has been targeted by missile and drone attacks from Iran since the war began.

Iran’s top diplomat says purpose of tour is to consult on regional developments

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a social media post that the purpose of his upcoming tour to Islamabad, Pakistan; Muscat, Oman; and Moscow is to “closely coordinate with our partners on bilateral matters and consult on regional developments.”

Araghchi’s comments didn’t address any possible resumption of talks with the U.S., but Pakistani officials have been intensifying efforts in recent weeks to get the U.S. and Iran to a second round of ceasefire negotiations.

Hezbollah legislator says extension of ceasefire is ‘meaningless’

Ali Fayyadh said in comments Friday that the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah that was extended for three weeks the day before has no meaning as long as Israel continues its attacks, targeted killings and strikes on Lebanese villages.

Since the 10-day ceasefire went into effect last Friday it has been repeatedly violated by both sides.

Fayyadh said every Israeli attack against any Lebanese target, regardless of its nature, gives his group that right to respond appropriately.

He added that any ceasefire that doesn’t constitute a prelude to an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory affirms the Lebanese people’s “inalienable and final right to resist” the occupation and expel it from our land in order to restore full Lebanese sovereignty.

Lebanon’s president calls on European Union to hold conference for reconstruction of his country

President Joseph Aoun’s comments Friday came during a visit to the Mediterranean island of Cyprus where he’s a guest at the European Union summit.

Aoun said in a speech that “Lebanon’s stability is part of the region’s stability.”

He added that Lebanon refuses to be a bargaining chip in regional conflicts. He was apparently referring to Iran, which has put a permanent ceasefire between Israel and the militant Hezbollah group on top of its list in talks with the U.S..

Aoun said Lebanon, like other countries in the region, “places great importance on de-escalation, stability, and peace.”

Aoun used World Bank figures, saying the Israel-Hezbollah was has caused damage worth $1.4 billion to Lebanon’s infrastructure and that 38,000 housing units were destroyed.

He said 150,000 people in Lebanon are without homes.

US protected ships from Iran in Strait of Hormuz during ‘Tanker war’ in the ’80s. Could it again?

Today, offering escorts in the Strait of Hormuz wouldn’t be so easy. Military technology has advanced since the “Tanker war.”

The U.S. hasn’t defined the same clear, narrow goals in this war as it did in the 1980s. And it’s not clear international shippers would feel safe even with an American Navy escort given it’s a combatant now.

The U.S. Navy has long been familiar with the small boat tactics deployed by Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, which has adapted to international sanctions blocking its ability to access military vessels by using smaller civilian ships for military purposes.

For years, the Guard has used vessels the size of small commercial fishing boats to shadow American aircraft carriers whenever they pass through the strait. Instead of bearing fishing poles, most have Soviet-era heavy machine guns bolted to their bows with a small rocket launcher atop.

Using those small boats, Iran seized two cargo ships this week.

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A surge for Intel sends tech stocks higher on Wall Street and crude oil prices swing some more

A surge for Intel following a blowout profit report is leading technology stocks higher, while oil prices keep swinging in the wait for what’s next with the Iran war.

The S&P 500 rose 0.2% early Friday and pulled near its all-time high set Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 74 points, while the Nasdaq composite jumped a market-leading 0.7%.

The price for a barrel of Brent crude to be delivered in June was down 0.4% at $104.67 after yo-yoing between roughly $103 and $107.

European stock markets were modestly lower and Asian markets closed mixed.

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Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar spoke with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov

In a statement in Islamabad, the foreign ministry said Lavrov appreciated Pakistan’s “constructive role” in facilitating dialogue between Iran and the United States.

Dar reaffirmed Islamabad’s commitment to supporting efforts that promote dialogue and diplomacy to resolve disputes, it said.

Both sides agreed to remain in contact, it added.

Israeli military confirms a drone downed over Lebanon

The army said in a statement Friday that a remotely piloted aircraft was downed in southern Lebanon following the launch of a small surface-to-air missile by the militant group Hezbollah.

The military said the incident is under review.

The statement came after Hezbollah said it shot down an Israeli Hermes 450 drone over the outskirts of the southern city of Tyre.

Malaysia in talks with Iran to let two tankers pass

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said Friday that his government is in talks with Iran to allow two Malaysian-owned tankers carrying fuel supplies to pass through.

The vessels have exited the Strait of Hormuz but face severe restrictions despite earlier clearance given by the Iranian government, he was cited as saying by the national Bernama news agency. He didn’t provide further details.

One Malaysian vessel has earlier reached home and another is expected to enter Malaysian waters soon, he said. Another is stranded at port due to technical problems, he added.

Hegseth says any new Iranian mine laying would violate the ceasefire with the US

Hegseth told reporters at the Pentagon on Friday that the military is prepared to deal with any Iranian ships that “recklessly and irresponsibly” lay more mines.

But he said he wouldn’t speculate on reports that it will likely take six months to clear mines in the strait. The Associated Press reported that the Pentagon gave that timeline in a classified briefing to lawmakers this week.

Hegseth was responding to statements from President Trump who said Thursday that he has ordered the military to “ shoot and kill ” small Iranian boats deploying mines.

Hegseth said the U.S. is confident it can clear any mines it identifies “and would encourage other countries to be a part of such an effort as well.”

White House didn’t immediately respond to questions on Iran’s foreign minister going to Pakistan

And it didn’t respond to questions on whether the U.S. would send a delegation.

Crews of seized tankers remain in US custody

The crews of all three merchant vessels seized by the U.S. military over the past week are still in U.S. custody, Gen. Dan Caine said at a briefing Friday.

“We will continue to conduct similar maritime interdiction actions and activities in the Pacific and Indian Oceans against Iranian ships and vessels of the Dark Fleet,” Caine said.

Caine also said the crew of the Tousca, the first merchant ship seized by U.S. forces Sunday, “repeatedly ignored U.S. warnings” over a six-hour period. Caine said this behavior prompted the crew of the Navy destroyer following the ship to fire five warning shots.

“The vessel and her crew continued to ignore warnings and, after exhausting all other measures, CENTCOM authorized disabling fire against the Tousca,” Caine said. Then, according to Caine, the destroyer disabled the ship’s engine by firing nine inert rounds from the destroyer’s 5-inch guns “precisely into the engine room and engine space on board the Tousca.”

“Not surprisingly, the vessel then reported issues with their engine, went dead in the water and began to comply with U.S. directions,” Caine added.

Hegseth criticizes European allies for inaction on the Strait of Hormuz

The U.S. secretary of defense suggested traditional U.S. allies in Europe are “free-riding” and being disloyal by not using their own forces to open the Strait of Hormuz that’s been closed because of President Trump’s Iran war.

“We are not counting on Europe, but they need the Strait of Hormuz much more than we do,” Hegseth insisted. He mocked a recent European confab, saying U.S. allies “might want to start doing less talking” instead of holding “a fancy conference” and “a silly conference.”

Iran’s maneuver to choke off the strait has disrupted global energy supplies — especially in Europe, where many leaders remain frustrated. French President Emmanuel Macron said at one point that the U.S. can’t complain about a lack of support “in an operation they chose to undertake alone.”

Hegseth’s broadsides echo Trump’s swipes that other nations should “Go get your own oil!” and “start learning how to fight for yourself.”

The players remained backstage while the 15 other NFL draft prospects in attendance made their way to the stage to hug NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell after being selected in the first round.

McDonald and Hood's time would have to wait until Friday, though not for very long.

The Houston Texans selected McDonald, the burly 6-foot-3, 326-pound defensive tackle from Ohio State with the fourth pick of the second round. Hood, a cornerback from Tennessee, went to the New York Giants with the next selection.

McDonald chose to return to the green room on Friday, though this time he had traded the suit he had on Thursday while walking the red carpet for a far more casual fit. Wearing a black short-sleeved button down shirt, a white T-shirt and a chain, McDonald was visibly shaken as he made the slightly delayed talk toward Goodell.

The commissioner and McDonald embraced for a long moment, the tears streaking down McDonald's face hard to miss.

“It’s emotional man,” McDonald said. “I knew I’m supposed to be here. I’m just so blessed.”

McDonald added he's blessed to join the Texans, who finished last season with the NFL's top-ranked defense and bludgeoned the Pittsburgh Steelers in the opening round of the playoffs.

Asked what he can add to a unit that's already among the league's best, McDonald didn't hesitate.

“Disruptive, making it easier for the (defensive) end,” McDonald said. “We all go to work.”

While McDonald stuck around, Hood did not, opting to head home to Atlanta instead, where Hood said he felt more comfortable because he could be surrounded by even more friends and family.

When Hood's name was called by Goodell, who had former Giants star defensive end Osi Umenyiora at his side, the videoboard behind them merely flashed a picture of Hood wearing Tennessee orange.

“Way to go Colton,” Goodell said before retreating backstage before the next selection.

The distance between the epicenter of the NFL universe this weekend and Atlanta did little to dampen the joy Hood felt when a lifelong dream was realized.

While sitting around on Thursday was disappointing, Hood doesn't view having to wait an additional 24 hours as a bad thing.

“I know God does everything for a reason,” he said. "He was probably preventing me from something, or he has something better in store for me and that being the Giants.”

Hood admitted he was a little surprised he heard from New York. Maybe he shouldn't have been. First-year Giants coach John Harbaugh coached Hood's uncle, former NFL defensive back Roderick Hood, when both were in Philadelphia in the early 2000s.

If anything, what happened on Thursday night just added a significantly large chip to Hood's shoulder.

Asked if the perceived first-round snub is motivation, Hood said "for sure, but I’d say it’s more just wanting to prove the Giants right and just thanking them for taking the chance on me.”

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AP Sports Writer Stephen Whyno contributed to this report.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Instead, the 58-year-old Army veteran said he ended up tased, cuffed, and in the hospital.

“I want justice,” said Walls. “I’m a proud person. I try to be polite, and my politeness almost got me killed.”

Walls said he was assaulted Wednesday morning at the Home Depot near 7 Mile Road and Meyers Road.

Walls said he was using a store-provided scooter while shopping around 10 a.m. He said he cannot walk long distances due to a “bad accident.”

How Walls said it started

“It was a young, it was a lady there with a cart, and it seemed as if when I first started rolling through the door, they were harassing her,” Walls said.

Walls said one of the men, “the gentleman with no shirt on,” as he described him, waved a bottle at the woman.

Then, as he headed down the main aisle toward the paint department at the back of the store, Walls said the three men would not let him pass. Walls said that’s when the threats began.

“They were going to slap me in my bald head,” he said. He said the men then threatened to kill him and demanded he pay for their purchases.

Walls said he tried to call 911, but hesitated when one of the men allegedly yelled, “I see you reaching.”

“I kind of stood up, and I went to reach with my phone, because I was going to call 911,” Walls said. “And then the one gentleman started growling like an animal and reaching in his shirt. So, I just put my phone back.”

“Did you think he had a weapon?”

“Yes, I did,” Walls said.

Walls said he tried to move away, but the men followed him through the store, blocking his path and continuing to threaten him.

“At this point now, I’m in fear for my life,” Walls said. “So, I’m going to move on.”

Asking Home Depot for help

He said he asked an employee to call 911 — and said the employee refused to help.

“I see a Home Depot employee,” Walls said. “I said, ‘Can you please call 911,’ and he looked at me and turned around and walked away.”

Walls said the men kept trailing him toward the front of the store. When he turned into another aisle, he said the oldest man stepped in front of him again to stop him. Walls said that’s when he grabbed a pipe.

“I noticed those pipes was right there, so I grabbed those pipes, and I stood up … and I yelled out, ‘Leave me the hell alone. Stop messing with me,’” Walls said.

“And the older gentleman told them two boys, ‘Y’all kill him,’” Walls said. “And they came straight at me. And that’s when I defended myself.”

Detroit Police get involved

Walls said a Detroit police officer got involved after he struck one of the men with the pipe.

“That’s when an officer rushed in on me,” Walls said.

Walls alleges the officer used excessive force and said he was tased as the beating continued.

“She even tased me while they were beating on me and had me in the corner with the shirt over my head, trying to pound my brains out,” Walls said.

But a Detroit police spokesperson told Local 4 that there is nothing to suggest anyone was tased, saying the officer pulled out a Taser but did not discharge it.

Detroit police also said the officer was working security at the store and is still recovering from minor injuries. The department defended her actions, saying she had to manage a chaotic scene with limited resources and that Walls was holding a weapon.

“She attempted to take control and manage the situation with the limited resources she had at that time,” Detroit police said.

Police also said use-of-force incidents are always investigated.

Charges have been submitted for two of the three involved, and potential charges are being discussed for the third (a juvenile).

Local 4 learned the three men may have been causing problems at a car wash near the Home Depot before entering the store.

Video obtained by Local 4 showed employees at the car wash saying the same three men had been there just before the brawl, blocking the entrance and harassing customers.

Attorney response

Walls said he was handcuffed and questioned before being released, then went to the hospital and left Thursday night. He said he’s dealing with memory issues and pain throughout his body.

Todd Stearn, an attorney for Walls, said he wants to see additional video and a fuller investigation before drawing final conclusions, but said what he has seen so far is incredibly troubling.

“We all know that the police have a tough job to do, but they’re there to protect,” Stearn said. “And in this particular case, what we saw is the police using excessive force going after Mr. Walls.”

Stearn also criticized Home Depot’s response, saying the situation could have been de-escalated if employees had acted sooner.

“All they had to do was call the police. All they had to do was try and de-escalate,” he said. “But instead, everything just escalated.”

Stearn said he has not heard back from Home Depot or police as of the interview, and that his office has taken steps to preserve evidence.

Local 4 reached out to Home Depot for comment, but we have not yet heard back.

You can donate to Robert Walls’ medical expenses by clicking here.

But the Heisman Trophy winner had been working on making a strong impression long before he arrived in Las Vegas to be formally introduced by the Raiders.

He worked with former quarterback Brian Griese — both attended the same Miami high school — on what his role in the West Coast offense could look like, giving him a head start in preparing for a similar system used by new Raiders coach Klint Kubiak.

“I needed some guidance on how to become the best NFL quarterback,” Mendoza said. “Not just for a pro day or the combine, for September, October, December. With that, we went over some general under-center concepts and installed basic bread-and-butter concepts that any team would have.”

That dedication and mental approach to the game, as well as Mendoza's physical traits, sold management on the idea that he was the quarterback the franchise has long searched for in hopes of returning to the days when the Raiders were regular contenders.

General manager John Spytek marveled at Mendoza's ability to recall plays from even early in the season at Indiana. Spytek didn't have to hit the play button while they watched video before Mendoza not only recognized the play, but explained it in detail. Mendoza also acknowledged those plays that didn't go well and what he might have done differently.

“There was an honesty and a self-awareness to it,” Spytek said. “I’ve been a part of a few other quarterback interviews like that before, but not very many.”

Much has been made of how quickly Mendoza can transition from a college system in which he was in the shotgun nearly every down to an offense in which he will be under center the vast majority of snaps.

“His skill-set fits with any offense in professional football,” Kubiak said. "The No. 1 thing that I love about Fernando is his leadership, the way that he relates to his teammates and his ability to win. We’re looking for a competitor to be our quarterback, and he went 16-0 last year with a heck of a team, and he led that group.”

Mendoza's focus in Las Vegas will be to learn from veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins, whom the Raiders signed earlier this month, and to begin to live up to the expectations of being the first-overall pick. Kubiak and Spytek have talked about how they don't want to throw a rookie right into the starting lineup, but also said the best player will get the job.

Mendoza also has another mission. He is launching the Mendoza Family Fund, contributing $500,000 out of his pocket, to try to find a cure for multiple sclerosis. His mother, Elsa, uses a wheelchair because of MS, but made the cross-country trip with her family to Las Vegas for Mendoza's first full day with the Raiders.

“I believe one of my pillars and my identities is giving back and helping fight MS, giving to the community,” Mendoza said. "So that was a huge part of my identity, and it’s something that our family really wanted to do.”

He credited his mother with helping revive his football career.

Mendoza was mostly overlooked coming out of high school and spent three years at California, redshirting in 2022 and then starting most of the following two seasons. After earning a bachelor's degree in just more than three years, he transferred to Indiana and put together his breakout season as he led the Hoosiers to the national championship.

“My mom always saw more in me than I saw myself at that time, and she essentially pushed me to take a swing at trying to become a great NFL player,” Mendoza said. "That first step was transferring and challenging myself by being in an uncomfortable environment. When you’re uncomfortable, you’re able to grow.

“She said, ‘Hey, if you step to the plate, if you swing and you miss, at least in 20 years you knew you did everything possible to try to accomplish your dream.’ And I stepped to the plate, and luckily enough, I was able to hit a home run last year.”

The Raiders hope there are plenty of long balls left.

Kubiak raved about watching Mendoza at his Indiana pro day on April 1 as he directed his receivers on which routes to run and then delivered on-target passes.

“Then took him upstairs and talked football with him and just listened to him communicate the game and how quickly he picked things up,” Kubiak said. “We already liked how he played the game on film, but seeing him in person was really helpful, and it allowed us to watch film on a lot of other guys. We knew we had the guy.”

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

There's still no projected timeline for Lindor's return, but the five-time All-Star will wear a protective boot on his lower left leg for the next week. He will undergo imaging again in three weeks and then be re-evaluated.

Lindor was placed on the 10-day injured list Thursday because of a left calf strain, with manager Carlos Mendoza saying only that the switch-hitter was "going to be down for quite a bit here.”

“We've still got a lot of people looking at this,” Mendoza said before Friday night's game against the Colorado Rockies.

Lindor got hurt while scoring from first base on Francisco Alvarez's double Wednesday night in a 3-2 victory over Minnesota that ended New York's 12-game losing streak.

The injury came just hours after star slugger Juan Soto was reinstated from the IL after missing 15 games with a right calf strain that wasn't as severe as the one sustained by Lindor.

“We've got to see where this is in three weeks and see how the healing goes,” president of baseball operations David Stearns said.

Ronny Mauricio was recalled Thursday from Triple-A Syracuse and he started at shortstop Friday for the second consecutive game.

Soto was the designated hitter for the third game in a row since returning, even though he initially had been slated to play left field Thursday night. Mendoza said keeping Soto at DH allowed him to start three straight games.

“Finding ways to keep his bat in the lineup while we’re not putting him at risk," Mendoza said. "If he needs a day, he needs a day. As much as we need his bat in the lineup, he’s going to get days (off).”

Right-hander Christian Scott was optioned back to Syracuse after a wild outing Thursday against the Twins in his first major league start since undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2024. New York selected the contract of veteran right-handed reliever Carl Edwards Jr. from its top farm club.

Scott issued five walks and lasted only 1 1/3 innings. He also hit a batter with a pitch and committed a balk, but the Mets pulled out a 10-8 victory despite a late mix-up with their bullpen.

Left-hander David Peterson is scheduled to pitch Wednesday night against Washington when that turn in the rotation comes up next — although it could be in a bulk-relief role again, rather than a start.

In another update, Stearns described Jorge Polanco's status as week-to-week, rather than day-to-day. The first baseman and DH is on the 10-day injured list with a bruised right wrist — although he's also dealing with bursitis in his left heel, which has bothered him since very early in the season.

Mendoza said Polanco is feeling better. He is scheduled to undergo more testing this weekend.

Left-handed reliever A.J. Minter remains on target to return in early May from left lat surgery that cut short his 2025 season.

“Injuries are part of this, and injuries to good players are part of this," Stearns said. "We’re certainly not the only team in baseball that deals with this, and we just have to get through it.”

The 12-game skid was New York's longest since August 2002. The Mets won back-to-back games once Soto returned to the lineup, but no team has ever made the playoffs during the same season in which it lost 12 consecutive games.

“I still think we're a good team. I recognize we had a stretch where we did not play good baseball and it cost us, and cost us repeatedly, but I think we're a good team and I think we will show that,” Stearns said.

“Yes, it's a frustrating stretch and we didn't play well. We're also not going to wholesale-change our evaluation of our team over a two-week stretch. This is a long season. Going through a 12-game losing streak is difficult and it's not usual. There's a reason it doesn't happen very often. Even with that, I don't think it should change our overall evaluation of the team — especially this early in the season.”

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Korda has made only one bogey through 36 holes at Memorial Park, missing a 3-foot putt on the sixth hole after a nifty chip from below the green.

Otherwise, the two-time major champion has been practically flawless in reaching 14-under 130 that makes her appear to be playing a different course.

“I'm comfortable with my game," Korda said. "I think where I’m the most comfortable is definitely with my mindset of knowing when I mess up I’ll figure it out. Sometimes I think you get stuck in wanting to play well and wanting to be at the top always that you have this tension of not wanting to make a mistake.

“I think there is a power in knowing it’s OK to make a mistake and just bounce back.”

Patty Tavatanakit had another bogey-free round with a 69. Another shot behind were Ina Yoon (68), Ryan O'Toole (68) and Texas junior Farah O'Keefe (69), one of five amateurs to make the cut.

O'Keefe didn't get her invitation to The Chevron until after the Augusta National Women's Amateur three weeks ago, and she's making the most of it. She played bogey-free in the second round, though she only managed one birdie on the par 5s.

But her scrambling saved her, and the 20-year-old didn't seem all that fazed by Korda on the verge of running away with this major.

“I compared it to Rory (McIlroy) at the Masters. You never know what can happen in golf,” O'Keefe said, referring to McIlroy losing a six-shot lead on the weekend at the Masters before going on to win for the second straight time.

“There is so much random out there that you can get a bad break and it’s just kind of that thing,” she said. “My dad and I called it that golf is a staring contest and all you have to do is not blink first. So I’m just trying not to blink. Just trying to keep playing my game, and whatever that ends up at the end of the week is where it ends up.”

Korda, however, has hit her stride again. She won the season opener in a weather-shortened event, and has played in the final group in all four of her tournaments.

She looks calm and poised, and there is power.

Korda began her great closing stretch with a 3-wood into the wind from 221 yards that landed in the perfect spot to roll out 15 feet beyond the hole, leaving an eagle putt that grazed the right edge of the cup.

She missed an 8-foot birdie chance on the par-5 16th, and then finished with a flourish — a 7-iron that danced around the cup and settle 10 feet away for birdie, and then a 9-iron that again scared the hole and left her 4 feet for her 15 birdie in 36 holes.

It was the lowest 36-hole score in her career in the majors, and the third-best 36-hole score in LPGA majors behind Jeongeun Lee6 (127), Brooke Henderson (128) and In Gee Chun (129), all at the Evian Championship, the tournament in France the LPGA chose to designate as a major in 2013.

For for all the birdies, some of the pars were the best example of Korda showing great patience and smarts in taking on some deceptively tough pins on the heavily contoured greens.

One example was the par-3 15th, a left pin with a steep slope falling off to the left. Lilia Vu went over the edge, her pitch over the slope was too strong and it rolled 45 feet away. Korda went for the fat of the green, leaving a 30-foot putt she lagged to tap-in range.

“I’m just hitting it in the spots that I want to, missing it into the spots that I want to,” Korda said. “If there is a tucked pin and it’s kind of stupid, I would rather give myself a longer lag putt and give myself the best opportunity for par. That’s kind of the way we been playing the past two days, not taking kind of stupid risks.”

She also played away from the pin on the 13th, tucked to the right with another massive slope. Korda watched defending champion Mao Saigo roll a 45-foot past the cup and down off the green. She lagged hers to 2 feet for a simple par.

“We’re going to go after the ones we can and where we have to play back and miss in the right spots, that’s kind of what I’m doing,” she said. “I think overall everything is really flowing.”

Her shot into the 17th might be an indication of where Korda is going as she tries to reclaim her spot atop the world ranking.

She was waiting in the fairway as Jeeno Thitikul in the group ahead ran a long birdie putt some 12 feet by the hole and missed that coming back for a bogey that led to a 73, meaning the No. 1 player in women's golf missed the cut.

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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

During oral arguments last fall, the Supreme Court appeared poised to strike down Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which has been used to counter racially discriminatory election practices. A decision in the case, Louisiana v. Callais, is expected before the court’s term ends in June.

Overturning Section 2 would give state legislatures and local governments the opportunity to redraw maps while preventing minority voters from challenging ones that dilute their influence.. A decision wiping out a pillar of the 1965 Voting Rights Act could help Republicans gain seats in the U.S. House by eliminating Democratic-leaning districts that are majority Black or Latino, especially in the South. Most of those redraws would not happen in time for this year's midterm elections.

The special session proclamation, signed by Reeves on Thursday, relates to a specific case involving judicial districts for the Mississippi Supreme Court. Last August, a federal judge ordered Mississippi to redraw its Supreme Court electoral map after finding it violated Section 2 by diluting the power of Black voters.

In his proclamation, Reeves wrote that the lack of a ruling in the Louisiana case "deprived the Mississippi Legislature of its undisputed federally recognized right' to remedy the Section 2 violation.

The governor in a social media post said he hoped the Supreme Court "will reaffirm the animating principle that all Americans are created equal.” He said the Legislature will convene the special session 21 days after the Supreme Court issues its ruling in the Louisiana case.

The announcement comes amid a national debate over election security and what type of requirements voters should face to show they are qualified to cast a ballot. In Congress, Republicans are pushing a strict proof-of-citizenship proposal for residents to vote, encouraged by President Donald Trump.

The California plan — also backed by Republicans — is being pitched as a common sense idea to strengthen confidence in voting in a vast state with more than 23 million people registered to cast a ballot. State officials said its backers submitted sufficient petition signatures to qualify for the November ballot.

“We already show ID for everyday activities like flying, opening a bank account and picking up prescription medications. Thirty-six other states and many countries around the world already use voter ID,” said state Sen. Tony Strickland, a Republican from Huntington Beach.

“Californians deserve secure, transparent elections,” added Strickland, a proponent of the proposal.

If approved in November in the heavily Democratic state, other provisions would require those who vote through popular mail-in ballots would have to give the last four digits of a government-issued ID, such as a Social Security number.

California is among 14 states and the District of Columbia that do not require voters to show some form of identification at the polls or to register to vote.

While California at times has faced questions from critics about the legitimacy of its vote tallies, research shows voter fraud in the country is rare. Voting by noncitizens has occurred, but reviews of state cases have shown it to be uncommon and typically a mistake rather than an intentional effort to sway an election.

Most California residents vote by mail, and in the pursuit of accuracy, thoroughness and counting every vote, the nation’s most populous state has gained a reputation for tallies that can drag on for weeks — and sometimes longer.

The effort to tighten restrictions on voter registration and mail ballots will come in a critical election year, when Californians will be picking their next governor and with control of Congress on the line.

Opponents argued that such requirements make it more difficult for people to vote, especially the elderly, those with disabilities and those without driver’s licenses.

The president continues to claim that he was not the loser in the 2020 presidential election — and has long falsely said the election was marred by widespread fraud. Trump’s claims were rejected by dozens of judges, including several he appointed. His own attorney general and an exhaustive review by The Associated Press found no evidence of widespread fraud that could have changed the results. Multiple reviews, audits and recounts in the battleground states where Trump disputed his loss confirmed Democrat Joe Biden’s victory, including several overseen by Republican lawmakers.

—-

Associated Press writer Trân Nguyễn contributed from Sacramento, California.

Zamil Limon’s remains were found on the Howard Frankland bridge Friday morning, but Nahida Bristy is still missing, Hillsborough County Chief Deputy Joseph Maurer said.

Limon’s roommate Hisham Saleh Abugharbeih, 26, was taken into custody at his family's home nearby on preliminary charges that include unlawfully moving a dead body, failure to report a death, tampering with evidence, false imprisonment and battery. He was expected to make a first appearance in court Saturday morning.

“We are still actively searching for Nahida,” Maurer said, appealing to the public to share any useful information. Law enforcement dive teams were searching the bay near the bridge as part of those efforts, the sheriff's office said.

Officers encountered Abugharbeih as they responded to a report of domestic violence at his family's home, just north of the campus, and were able to move his relatives to safety. But then he barricaded himself inside and refused to come out. A SWAT team responded — along with a drone, a robot and crisis negotiators — before Abugarbeih came out with his hands up, apparently wearing nothing but a blue towel.

“This is a deeply disturbing case that has shaken our community and impacted many who were hoping for a safe resolution,” Sheriff Chad Chronister said. “While the discovery of Zamil Limon’s remains is heartbreaking, I want the public to know that our detectives worked and are working tirelessly and relentlessly to uncover the truth.”

Limon and Bristy, both 27, were considering getting married, a relative said. They disappeared from campus on April 16. Limon was last seen at his home in an off-campus apartment complex where he lived with Abugharbeih. Bristy, who lived on campus, was last seen an hour later at a campus science building.

A family friend contacted authorities last Friday after being unable to contact either one, USF police said.

Investigators spoke with Abugharbeih, who is a native-born U.S. citizen, on Thursday, Maurer said, but after initially talking, Abugharbeih chose to end the interview. He said Abugharbeih was speaking with detectives again after his arrest Friday morning.

There are no other suspects in the investigation at this time, Maurer said.

An autopsy is being done on the remains to determine the manner and cause of Limon's death, and those results are expected Saturday morning, he said.

Abugharbeih had been a USF student but was not currently enrolled. University records showed he had attended the school from Spring 2021 through Spring 2023, and had pursued a BS in Management, a university spokesperson said.

Limon was studying geography, environmental science and policy, and Bristy is studying chemical engineering.

Abugharbeih had several previous arrests, the sheriff’s office said. He was charged with battery and burglary of an unoccupied dwelling in September 2023, and with battery that May — both classified in court records as misdemeanors. Court records show Abugharbeih entered into a diversion program for first-time offenders charged with misdemeanors. He completed the program in 2024 and the charges were discontinued. A phone call to his lawyer in that case was not immediately returned.

Hillsborough County Court records also showed two domestic violence petitions filed by a family member in 2023. A judge granted an injunction in one case and denied the other petition. He also was accused of traffic violations.

____ This story has been updated to correct that it was Hillsborough County Chief Deputy Joseph Maurer who spoke Friday morning, not the sheriff.

___ Lauer reported from Philadelphia and Boone reported from Boise, Idaho. Associated Press reporter Michael Schneider in Orlando, Florida, contributed.

Thornell died Thursday at a hospital in the New Orleans suburb of Metairie from complications from kidney disease, his son, Jay Thornell said Friday.

He worked for the AP from 1964 to 2004 and had a variety of assignments over the years, photographing politicians, natural disasters, crime scenes. But the struggle for racial justice punctuated Thornell’s wire service career from the beginning. He covered the integration of a Mississippi Gulf Coast school on his first day of work for the AP New Orleans bureau.

In June 1966, Thornell, then 26, was assigned to cover a civil rights march led by Meredith, who had already made history by integrating the University of Mississippi in 1962, and was mounting a “March Against Fear” through the state encouraging Black residents to register and vote.

Meredith was walking on U.S. Highway 51 near Hernando, Mississippi, and Thornell and a rival photographer were in a car parked roadside, when the sound of the first shotgun blast sent them scrambling.

One resulting Thornell image remains a sobering photographic reminder of the violent resistance to desegregation. It shows a wounded Meredith grimacing in agony as he dragged himself to the road’s edge. Along with it was the Pulitzer-winning photo Thornell didn’t initially realize he had captured: Meredith is on the ground at the edge of the highway with arms extended and hands on the pavement — it’s unclear if he is still falling or pushing himself up after the fall. His head is turned and he appears to be looking at his would-be assassin, visible at the extreme left of the picture in a weedy ditch.

Meredith was hospitalized and recovered. Aubrey James Norvell, who was apprehended at the scene, pleaded guilty and served 18 months of a five-year prison sentence.

Until he developed the film and pored over the negatives, Thornell believed he might be fired. He feared his competitor had an image of the gunman and he didn’t. Instead of dismissal, Thornell won the Pulitzer in 1967.

Decades chronicling history

Jay Thornell remembered his father as a loving dad, but said he could be “regimented” and “stubborn,” saying that the stress of covering the Civil Rights Movement could sometimes kept Jack Thornell from realizing his own achievements at the time.

“He never really enjoyed or appreciated what he was accomplishing and doing,” Jay Thornell said. “Through his pictures, he was serving the world and exposing things that were going on in places that other parts of the world and country didn’t know about during the Civil Rights era.”

In 1964, Jack Thornell photographed the burned-out station wagon in Neshoba County, Mississippi, that belonged to civil rights workers Michael Schwerner, James Chaney and Andrew Goodman, whose bodies were found buried in an earthen dam weeks after Ku Klux Klansmen abducted and killed them. And Thornell would hurriedly snap a photo of the local sheriff being arrested by federal agents on conspiracy charges in connection with their deaths. Thornell got the shot while backing away as a supporter of the sheriff threatened him with a knife.

Thornell chronicled violence leading up to the integration of schools in Grenada, Mississippi, in 1966. One of his photos showed a Black man covering his ears as he moved away from a cherry bomb tossed by angry white people.

Thornell photographed the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. multiple times, including during the Selma-to-Montgomery march in Alabama in 1965, and demonstrations in support of striking sanitation workers in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1968, the week before King was assassinated there.

Thornell had returned to his home base in New Orleans before King was assassinated, but later was dispatched to Atlanta, where he photographed King’s family viewing the body at Spelman College’s Sisters Chapel.

He was late for that assignment. He said in the 2018 interview that he dashed around another photographer and climbed atop a pew, clambering toward the casket by stepping over pew after pew to get in position to make the picture.

“I was shaken when I left there. I had my eyes on the floor because I knew everyone was looking at me for my despicable behavior,” Thornell said in the interview at his home in Kenner, Louisiana. “But I didn’t leave without the picture.”

Years later, in 1977, King’s assassin, James Earl Ray, escaped from a Tennessee prison. Thornell was on hand when Ray, muddy and haggard, was recaptured.

A photographer by chance

Thornell was born and raised in Vicksburg, Mississippi. His career as a photographer might not have happened but for an Army snafu in the late 1950s, according to a 1967 account in the AP World corporate magazine.

“The U.S. Army had decided to make a radio repairman of him. But at Fort Monmouth, his name got mixed up with that of a camera bug who wanted to attend photographic school. So Thornell, who didn’t know an aperture from a back focus, took the short course in picture-taking while the camera bug learned to fix radios.”

After leaving the Army, Thornell got a job with the Jackson (Miss.) Daily News before he was hired by the AP in New Orleans.

Hired during a turbulent time in the South, Thornell recalled the fear he sometimes felt amid violence and threats. But there was a greater fear than physical harm.

“The greatest fear for me was coming back without the photograph,” he said. “The things that were happening there, you just kind of dealt with it and tried to photograph what was happening, because that was your bread and butter, that was your career. And your success depended on how well you did that day. Because tomorrow there’s always another newspaper coming out.”

But Jay Thornell said that later in life, his father got to survey his achievements without that deadline pressure, enjoying autographing his photos sent to him by others. Jay Thornell said a recent cherished memory is Jack Thornell telling the stories behind some of his famous photos to his granddaughter.

Thornell is survived by his son Jay, his daughter Candy Gros, and a granddaughter.

___

Amy reported from Atlanta.

That top freshman trio includes Duke's Cameron Boozer, The Associated Press national player of the year who joined the list Friday evening; and BYU’s A.J. Dybantsa, who announced Thursday he was officially part of this deep and touted draft class.

The 6-foot-6 Peterson showed flashes of brilliance with the Jayhawks, but he also caused a lot of headaches for the team. He dealt with a severe full-body cramping issue that required hospitalization before the season, and additional injuries and illnesses caused him to miss 11 games, hurting his ability to build any continuity with the rest of his teammates.

Peterson wound up averaging 20.2 points and 4.2 rebounds while shooting 38.2% from beyond the arc in 24 games.

He started to hit his rhythm in the postseason, scoring 24 points against TCU and 14 against Houston in the Big 12 Tournament. He had 28 points in a first-round NCAA tourney win over Cal Baptist and 21 in a last-second loss to St. John's in the second round.

“To my teammates, friends and everyone at the University of Kansas, a heartfelt thank you!” Peterson posted to social media. “Your belief in me, your encouragement and your constant support have been invaluable every step of the way. This journey has been everything to me, and none of it would have been possible without your love, support and sacrifices.”

Most mock drafts have Peterson or Dybantsa going first overall, though Boozer also could be in the mix.

The closest comp to Peterson has generally been 6-foot-5 Devin Booker, the Phoenix Suns' five-time All-Star. Both have the ability to score at all three levels, and their athleticism allows them to play much bigger than their size.

Peterson's announcement came one day after Dybantsa declared for the draft in his hometown of Brockton, Massachusetts.

Dybantsa led the nation with 25.5 points per game, while also pulling down 6.8 rebounds with 3.7 assists. He’s the first player to post those averaged in a season and be a consensus All-American since Larry Bird did it in 1978-79 for Indiana State.

Boozer was the third of that trio to announce his long-expected plans, coming after he became only the fifth freshman to be named AP national player of the year. The 6-foot-9, 250-pound forward averaged 22.5 points, 10.2 rebounds and 4.1 assists.

That made him a force on the interior, as well as an effective playmaker who could reliably set up teammates out of double teams or while running the offense up top — notably with him feeding fellow early draft entrant Isaiah Evans for the go-ahead 3-pointer to eventual NCAA 1-seed Florida.

Arizona freshmen Brayden Burries and Koa Peat also declared for the draft on Friday after leading the Wildcats to their first Final Four since 2001.

Burries had a dynamic freshman season that shot him up NBA draft boards. The 6-4 guard led the Wildcats with 16.1 points per game while averaging 4.1 rebounds and 2.4 rebounds. The San Bernadino, California, native shot 49% from the floor and led Arizona with 59 steals.

“Ever since I was a kid, I dreamed of playing in the NBA and building a long career,” Burries posted on Instagram. “Now that opportunity is right in front of me.”

The 6-8 Peat averaged 14.1 points and 5.6 rebounds while shooting 53% from the floor in 36 games. The Arizona native is projected as a first-round pick.

“Playing for the University of Arizona has been an incredible blessing and something I'll always be grateful for,” Peat posted on Instagram. “Wearing this name and where I come from means everything to me. It's been an honor to compete at this level while still being rooted in the place that raised me.”

Vanderbilt guard Tyler Tanner also declared for the draft with the sophomore keeping his options open to return to school. He is currently projected as a late first-round pick.

The AP All-Southeastern Conference guard led Vanderbilt to one of the best seasons in program history, scoring 19.5 points a game. His heave from beyond half court rattled out after falling halfway through in a second-round NCAA Tournament loss to Nebraska.

Tennessee freshman Nate Ament declared for the draft Thursday after starting all 35 games he played and averaging 16.7 points and 6.3 rebounds. His announcement came in an Instagram post in which he thanked the Volunteers for the opportunity.

“I promise to always represent the Vols with the upmost pride,” Ament wrote. “This University means more to me than just basketball — to me it’s a place I call home. I might’ve only been here a year but I’ll remember this year for the rest of my life.”

Another top draft prospect, Darius Acuff Jr. of Arkansas, declared for the draft on Wednesday. He joined LSU legend Pete Maravich as the only SEC players to have led the league in scoring (23.5 points per game) and assists (6.4 per game) in the same season.

Ament and Acuff also are widely considered to be top-10 draft picks.

At North Carolina, junior 7-footer Henri Veesaar declared for the draft Friday, leaving a big hole up front for new coach Michael Malone as he takes over the Tar Heels.

Veesaar averaged 17.0 points and 8.7 rebounds after transferring from Arizona, joining star freshman Caleb Wilson – who previously announced he would go to the NBA draft – in a potent frontcourt duo. Veesaar, who also shot 42.6% on 3-pointers, is considered a possible late first-round prospect.

“This journey didn’t happen alone,” Veesaar said in a statement thanking family, friends, teammates and coaches. “Thank you to everyone who’s been part of the journey.”

___

AP Basketball Writer Aaron Beard in North Carolina and AP Sports Writer John Marshall in Arizona contributed to this report.

___

AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball

The talks planned for Saturday come as much of the world is on edge over a war that has snarled crucial energy exports through the Strait of Hormuz, clouded the global economic picture and left thousands dead across the Middle East.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in Islamabad late Friday. Earlier on social media, he wrote that he was traveling to Pakistan on a trip focused on “bilateral matters and regional developments.” He didn’t specify who he would meet.

Shortly after Araghchi touched down, the country’s government made it clear there would be no direct negotiations with American government representatives during this visit.

Foreign ministry spokesman Esmael Baqaei said on X that, “No meeting is planned to take place between Iran and the U.S.”

Instead, Baqaei said Pakistani officials would convey messages between the delegations. Baqaei thanked the Pakistani government for its “ongoing mediation & good offices for ending American imposed war of aggression.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt had said in an interview on Fox News Channel that Witkoff and Kushner would meet with Araghchi.

“We’re hopeful that it will be a productive conversation and hopefully move the ball forward to a deal,” Leavitt said.

She said Vice President JD Vance would not travel but that he remains “deeply involved,” and would be willing to go to Pakistan “if we feel it's a necessary use of his time.”

Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the president’s national security team are on “standby” to fly to Pakistan if needed, Leavitt said.

Araghchi and the two Trump envoys held hours of indirect talks in Geneva on Feb. 27 over Tehran’s nuclear program, but walked away without a deal. The next day, Israel and the United States started the war against Iran.

Leavitt said the president decided to send Witkoff and Kushner to Pakistan “to hear the Iranians out.”

“We’ve certainly seen some progress from the Iranian side in the last couple of days,” Leavitt said. She did not offer any details about what U.S. officials were hearing.

Islamabad has sought to reinject momentum into the negotiations between Iran and the United States, which did not resume this week as had been expected.

Trump extends the Jones Act waiver for 90 days

Separately Friday, the White House said Trump issued a 90-day extension to the Jones Act waiver, making it easier for non-American vessels to transport oil and natural gas.

He first announced a 60-day waiver in March in a move intended to stabilize energy prices and ease oil and gas shipments to the U.S. following the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

“New data compiled since the initial waiver was issued revealed that significantly more supply was able to reach U.S. ports faster,” the White House post on social media said.

The price of Brent crude oil, the international standard, retreated on the news, vacillating between $103 a barrel and more than $107 — still early 50% higher than where it was on Feb. 28, when the war began.

The squeeze on shipments through the strait has rippled through global maritime trade flows, including through the Panama Canal nearly halfway around the world.

Pakistan forges ahead with diplomatic efforts

Pakistan has been trying to get U.S. and Iranian officials back to the table after Trump this week announced an indefinite extension of the ceasefire with Iran, honoring Islamabad's request for more time for diplomatic outreach.

That hasn’t lowered tensions in the strait, a strategic waterway through which a fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas is shipped during peacetime.

Iran has kept its stranglehold on traffic through the strait, attacking three ships earlier this week, while the U.S. is maintaining a blockade on Iranian ports and Trump has ordered the military to “shoot and kill” small boats that could be placing mines.

“Iran has an important choice, a chance to make a deal, a good deal, a wise deal,” U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters on Friday. He said a second U.S. aircraft carrier will join the blockade in a few days.

Washington already has three aircraft carriers in the region; the USS George H.W. Bush in the Indian Ocean; the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea; and the USS Gerald R. Ford in the Red Sea.

It is the first time since 2003 that three American carriers have been operating in the region simultaneously. The force includes 200 aircraft and 15,000 sailors and Marines, U.S. Central Command said.

A growing toll even as ceasefires hold

Since the war began, at least 3,375 people have been killed in Iran, and more than 2,490 people in Lebanon, where new fighting between Israel and the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah broke out two days after the war started, according to authorities.

Additionally, 23 people have died in Israel and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab states. Fifteen Israeli soldiers in Lebanon and 13 U.S. service members throughout the region have been killed.

The U.N. peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon has also sustained casualties. UNIFIL said Friday that an Indonesian peacekeeper died of wounds sustained in an attack on his base on March 29, raising to six — four Indonesians and two French — the number of force members killed since the war erupted.

Tensions linger in Lebanon despite extended truce

The situation in Lebanon remained tense a day after Trump announced Israel and Lebanon had agreed to extend a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah by three weeks. Hezbollah has not participated in the diplomacy brokered by Washington.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a video statement released by his office on Friday, hailed “a process to achieve a historic peace between Israel and Lebanon.”

Earlier, the Israeli army asked residents of the southern Lebanese village of Deir Aames to evacuate, saying Hezbollah was using the village to launch attacks against Israel.

Israel's military said it downed a drone over Lebanon following the launch of a small surface-to-air missile by Hezbollah. The militant group, meanwhile, said it shot down an Israeli drone with a surface-to-air missile over the outskirts of the southern port city of Tyre.

___

Gambrell reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Keaten from Geneva. Associated Press writers David Rising in Bangkok; Koral Saeed in Abu Snan, Israel; Bassem Mroue in Beirut; and Aamer Madhani, Josh Boak and Ashraf Khalil in Washington contributed.

“We barely missed a shot,” Matt Fitzpatrick said. “We’re in good stead going into the weekend for sure.”

Smalley and Springer, having tied the tournament record with a 58 in better-ball play in the opening round, had a 70 to get to 16-under 128.

“We scrambled pretty well and hung in there,” Springer said. “We kind of picked each other up where we needed to and made the putt where we needed to.”

The third round Saturday will tee off with nine teams within two shots of the leaders — a pair 29-year-old Americans who are winless on the tour.

Matt Fitzpatrick, ranked third in the world after edging world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler in a playoff in the RBC Heritage last weekend, highlighted his round with a chip-in birdie on the par-5 18th.

Alex, a European tour regular, made four of the tandem's six birdie putts, the longest from more than 17 feet. He credited his older brother, a 2022 US Open winner known for a meticulous green-reading routine that includes dropping into a near-prone position for a ground-level view.

“I didn’t feel like I did much. (Matt) read the putts for me, and I just keep listening to him, and they go in,” Alex said. “It’s much easier having somebody who reads the greens very well by your side.”

Shane Lowry and Brooks Koepka missed the cut by a stroke despite combining for five birdies. They were done in by bogeys on a pair of par 3s: Nos. 3 and 17.

Koepka had a 5-footer for par on No. 3 and slid it 3 feet past, after which he pounded the bottom of his putter into his palm. Lowry, a 2024 Zurich winner with Rory McIlroy, narrowly missed a birdie putt from inside 10 feet on their closing hole — the par-3 ninth — and disgustedly slapped his right hand on the side of his leg.

The format switches to better ball Saturday, as it was in Thursday, and returns to alternate shot Sunday.

Billy Horschel — the only player to win the Zurich in both single-player and team formats — sank a 19-foot birdie putt on 18 to briefly pull himself and teammate Tome Hoge into a first-place tie at 15 under.

“This tournament does mean a lot to me. I’ve created a lot of special relationships with the fans here,” Horschel said. “It’s nice that we’re in a good position going into the weekend to do something special.”

Moments after Horschel's putt, Tony Finau missed a birdie chance on the same green from within six feet that would have seen him and Max Greyserman through. Instead, they finished with a 135, one stroke below the cut line.

Americans Davis Thompson and Austin Eckroat also were tied for second after a second-round 70.

Five teams were tied at 130 in the PGA Tour's only team event: Matt McCarty and Mac Meissner; Doug Ghim and Jeffrey Kang; Nick Dunlap and Gordon Sargent; Kristoffer Reitan and Kris Ventura; and Sam Stevens and Zac Bouchou.

Other higher-profile teams in striking distance included Aaron Rai and Sahith Theegala at 132, and 2023 US Open winner Wyndham Clark and Taylor Moore at 133.

Defending Zurich champs Ben Griffin and Andrew Novak narrowly made the cut at 134. They were in trouble after Novak missed a 5-foot par putt on 17 to drop them to 9-under. But Novak redeemed himself with a 281-yard shot from the 18th fairway that set Griffin up for an eagle putt from the back fringe. Griffin rolled his ball to 16 inches and Novak sank the do-or-die bridie putt, smiling in relief as it went in.

Koepka — in his first season back on the PGA Tour after four years with LIV Golf — needed a good showing to earn his first exemption for a signature event. He'll likely be left out of the field next week at Trump National Doral in Miami, unless he gets in as an alternate.

The Fitzpatricks are playing together a fourth straight year in New Orleans and the Englishmen have been in form lately. Matt Fitzpatrick has won twice since March and Alex won his first European tour title at the Hero Indian Open last month.

When the second-round ended, Alex — who could earn a career-changing, two-and-a-half-year PGA Tour exemption with a win, was looking forward to his preferred New Orleans meal at Mr. B's Bistro in the French Quarter: garlic truffle fries, roasted garlic chicken with orzo pasta and a warm white chocolate brownie.

“I don't even need to look at the menu,” he said.

___

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Miller, a native of Cleveland, said the transition to Detroit came together rapidly after draft night.

The Lions used the No. 17 overall pick in the NFL draft to select Miller, marking the franchise’s highest draft slot since taking running back Jahmyr Gibbs at No. 12 in 2023.

“It’s been a bit of a whirlwind, but in the best way possible,” Miller said. “We got up this morning, drove up here, smooth drive. It was fast, but it was smooth.”

Despite the quick turnaround, Miller emphasized gratitude as he toured the Lions’ facility and met team personnel.

“The amount of thankfulness and gratitude that I have in my heart right now is incredible,” Miller said. “It feels good to be back here. It feels like home.”

Miller credited his work ethic and durability to his parents, who worked in real estate and set an example of consistency and commitment.

“They were working around the clock,” Miller said. “I feel like I owe it to them to embody that and go above and beyond.”

→ Why Detroit Lions GM Brad Holmes took Blake Miller with pick No. 17 in first round of 2026 NFL draft

Holmes had his eye on Miller for years

Lions General Manager Brad Holmes said Thursday the organization had evaluated Miller for three years, a detail the rookie called “really cool” as validation of his steady improvement.

“Every year you shoot to improve,” Miller said. “To hear that they saw that, it means a lot. I just want to keep getting better in every way possible.”

Miller’s development included a position switch at Clemson that came about almost by accident.

A lifelong left tackle, he lined up at right tackle during drills simply because the line was shorter, and never looked back.

“I just wanted to play,” Miller said. “I wanted to be available and contribute.”

→ ‘Take someone’s will’: Blake Miller talks joining Detroit Lions at No. 17 pick in 2026 NFL draft

Miller brings fire between the lines

Though soft-spoken off the field, Miller described a different mentality once the game begins.

“I like to bring some fire,” Miller said. “There’s no greater compliment than seeing a pass rusher fired up early in the game, and by the end, he’s looking to the sideline.”

Miller said he grew increasingly excited about joining Detroit after watching clips of head coach Dan Campbell late into the night.

“You listen to him speak, and you can hear the passion,” Miller said. “It gets you fired up. I was ready to run through a wall.”

Connecting with teammates, Goff, Sewell

The first-round pick has already begun connecting with teammates, including quarterback Jared Goff and offensive lineman Penei Sewell, calling the outreach “surreal.”

“Just getting a text from guys like that, it means a lot,” Miller said. “I’m excited to get in the building, learn from them, and get to work.”

Miller’s athletic background extends beyond football.

A former wrestling standout and track-and-field competitor, wrestling, in particular, helped shape his toughness and mindset.

“It was all about grit and not quitting,” Miller said. “That stuck with me. You want to be someone who finishes.”

Detroit culture mirrors Clemson’s, Miller says

Miller sees similarities between Detroit’s culture and the program he played in under Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney.

“They value toughness, finish, grit, that resonates with me,” Miller said. “Both coaches care deeply about their players. That’s something that stands out.”

As for his role on the field, Miller didn’t hesitate when asked about his favorite play.

“Wide zone,” Miller said with a smile. “You get to run off the ball and displace people.”

‘Comparison is the thief of joy’

For now, Miller is focused less on comparisons with other first-round picks and more on maximizing his own potential.

“Comparison is the thief of joy,” Miller said. “I’m just trying to be the best version of me every day.”

With family members, including his parents and girlfriend, in attendance, Miller’s introduction marked the beginning of what he hopes will be a long career in Detroit.

“I just want to contribute as much as I can and make this fan base proud,” Miller said.

Union leaders said 90% voted to approve the deal struck between the Writers Guild of America West, Writers Guild of America East and Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. Studios will now shift to negotiations with actors and directors.

Leaders of the unions emphasized gains in health coverage.

“In the face of industry contraction and runaway health care cost inflation, writers were able to secure a contract that returns our Health Fund to a sustainable path and builds on gains from the 2023 strike,” WGA West President Michele Mulroney said in a statement.

Guild leaders said the deal also includes minimum pay hikes, especially for comedy and variety writers, with more money in residuals for the re-airing of their work.

The AMPTP congratulated the union on the ratification.

“This deal reflects a collaborative approach that supports both writers and the industry’s long-term stability,” it said in its own statement.

An April 4 tentative agreement came about three weeks after negotiations began — a stark contrast to the contentious contract negotiation that along with an actors strike brought the industry to a standstill in 2023.

The Writers Guild has had its own labor struggles with its staff, whose strike brought the cancellation of their annual awards ceremony in March.

Actors, through their union SAG-AFTRA, are still negotiating their new contract. The groups have negotiated for about a month and are set to resume Monday after a break.

SAG-AFTRA President Sean Astin said in a February interview with The Associated Press that he has seen signs that the studios want “to work as partners again."

The Directors Guild begins its contract talks May 11.

Baton Rouge Police Chief TJ Morse said the shooting Thursday at the Mall of Louisiana was not a random act and seemed to be driven by “social media beefs and maybe gang-related stuff," adding that the investigation was ongoing.

“We know that this was two groups of people that met up at the mall, exchanged words and then pulled guns and innocent people were hit,” Morse said.

The chief spoke at a news conference alongside Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, who vowed to crack down on gang violence in the capital city and said he had spoken with FBI Director Kash Patel. The Republican governor promised to use state, local and federal resources to address the issue and that consequences "are going to start being felt immediately.”

Landry said he was asking all levels and sectors of law enforcement to “prepare for a targeted warrant sweep” for anyone connected to the mall shooting. He said it would focus on the “neighborhoods that these individuals came out of" without naming specific parts of the city.

“We are not going to allow our streets, our schools and our public spaces to become your battleground,” Landry said. “Those who brought this violence into our public spaces and into the lives of our ordinary citizens, I want you to know you are now the criminal problem and we are focused on you.”

Shoppers and workers inside mall fled and hid for cover as shots rang out at in the food court. Morse said that two officers on duty at the mall ran toward the gunfire without hesitation and rendered aid. Their quick action helped save lives, he said.

Hundreds of police officers — some wearing tactical gear and carrying long riffles — descended on the mall.

Authorities say Martha Odom, a 17-year-old high school student from Lafayette, died in the shooting. Odom was visiting the mall with friends for her “senior skip day,” The Advocate reported. Two other high school students from Odom's school, Ascension Episcopal School, were among the injured.

In a social media post by the school, Odom was described as “a joyful presence whose kindness and infectious enthusiasm brought light to all who knew her.”

Five people were initially taken into custody following the shooting but later released. A 17-year-old was arrested Friday after turning himself in, Morse said. The teen has been charged with first-degree murder, five counts of attempted first-degree murder and a count of illegal use of a weapon.

Under recently enacted Louisiana law, 17-year-olds are treated as adults in the state's criminal justice system.

The deadly shooting is the second high-profile case of gun violence in Louisiana this week. A father fatally shot eight children, including seven of his own, in an attack on his family Sunday morning that stretched across two houses in a Shreveport neighborhood, police said. Two women, including the gunman’s wife who was the mother of their children, were critically wounded.

After her dog, Coco, slipped through a fence and disappeared last week, Elise Amidon posted photos of the dog and her phone number on social media.

“It was devastating,” Amidon said.

Soon after, a man called, saying he’d found Coco.

He texted her a photo of a dog that looked similar to the one in her post. In her panic, Amidon said she immediately believed it was her pet.

When she tried to arrange to pick up the dog, the man demanded money first, saying he needed to be reimbursed for taking the dog to a veterinarian and for gas.

Amidon said she was so focused on getting Coco back that she sent him close to $200 via Cash App.

But each time they set a meeting place in Ecorse, the man failed to show up, she said.

“Just please give me my dog back, that’s all I want,” Amidon recalled thinking.

After several failed attempts to meet, Amidon took another look at the photo.

This time, she noticed details that didn’t seem right.

“I did notice that there wasn’t a shadow in the photo,” Amidon said, adding that she now believes the image may have been generated using artificial intelligence.

To help others avoid similar scams, Local 4 reached out to experts.

Rich Miller, founder of Stack Cybersecurity, said there are several ways to spot a fake or manipulated image.

“There’s different things you can look at with the image itself,” Miller said. “To see if it’s sloppy edges or blurred edges or really kind of analyzing the background, and you can run the images through Google.”

Miller’s coworkers also let Local 4 know Content Credentials is another website people can use to spot AI-generated images.

Amidon said she doesn’t want anyone else to lose money or hope the way she did.

“Ask for a video, ask to FaceTime to see if that pet is with that person,” Amidon said.

In the end, Amidon was reunited with Coco.

The Lincoln Park animal shelter posted online about a stray dog they had found. The dog was Coco.

Like many soft toys, the creatures developed by a manufacturer in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, are made with polyester and acrylic, synthetic fibers derived from petroleum. Three weeks after the war started, suppliers in China notified Aleni Brands that getting the materials already was costing them 10% to 15% more, CEO Ricardo Venegas said.

“I think this situation demonstrates how much oil permeates throughout our system, and we can’t get away from it,” said Venegas, who founded Aleni Brands last year and is in the process of adding product lines. “Who would have thought that the price of a toy would have a direct relationship with oil?”

It's not just toys. Petrochemicals derived from oil and natural gas go into making more than 6,000 consumer products, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Computer keyboards, lipstick, tennis rackets, pajamas, soft contact lenses, detergent, chewing gum, shoes, crayons, shaving cream, pillows, aspirin, dentures, tape, umbrellas and nylon guitar strings are just a few of them.

So far, the war's most tangible and immediate effect for many people outside the conflict zone has been spiking gasoline prices. Travelers also are seeing higher airfares and flight fees as airlines respond to the rising cost of jet fuel. Consumers may find themselves paying more for food, furniture or any of the myriad of goods transported by trucks that run on diesel.

But crude oil isn't just refined as fuel. It gets turned into chemicals, waxes, oils and other mixtures that appear in a vast array of everyday items, including most made with plastic and rubber. Petroleum derivatives also are used in a lot of packaging. With disruptions to global oil supplies now in their eighth week, higher production costs also could make things more expensive for shoppers, according to trade groups and some companies.

Venegas, a 30-year toy industry veteran, said he would absorb higher material costs for now but expects to increase prices for customers by early 2027, if the war goes on another three to six months.

From crude oil to T-shirts and rugs

While 85% of global oil consumption is in the form of fuel, the rest goes into a wide range of consumer products, according to Gernot Wagner, a climate economist at Columbia University's School of Business.

Crude oil is mostly a complex mixture of hydrocarbons, which are compounds made of carbon and hydrogen atoms. Refineries and chemical plants separate and break them down to convert them into smaller chemical building blocks known as petrochemicals.

Six petrochemicals — ethylene, propylene, butylene, benzene, toluene and xylenes — are the major foundations of plastics and synthetic materials like nylon and polyesters, which manufacturers in turn use to design and deliver products. More from the Department of Energy: Automobile parts, ballpoint pens, curtains, dice, eyeglasses, fertilizer, golf balls, hearing aids, insect repellant, kayaks, luggage, mops and nail polish.

Materials account for a big share of production costs for many manufacturers, including those that supply carpets, clothing and tires, according to Andrew Walberer, partner and global lead in the chemicals practice of global strategy and management consultancy Kearney.

Take a button-down shirt, for example. Walberer estimated that materials account for 27%-30% of how much it costs a manufacturer to make one. Labor costs contribute 10% to 30%. Business expenses tied to marketing, distribution and administration comprises the rest, he said.

The ripple effect

Experts say if oil holds above $90 per barrel for the next several months, cost pressures will accelerate throughout the supply network.

Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America CEO Matt Priest said most of the trade organization's members keep a two- to three-month inventory of finished products, providing a temporary cushion against higher materials costs.

Roughly 70% of the materials in synthetic shoes are petrochemical-based, and 30% of the costs for those materials are directly tied to oil price rate swings, according to a report the organization published last month on the U.S. footwear industry's “exposure to oil prices & the impact on shoe costs.”

The FDRA analysis estimated that between materials, factory energy and transportation, companies paying more for petroleum could translate into a 1.5% to 3% increase in the price shoppers pay for a pair of shoes by late summer and the fall.

By the end of April, U.S. shoe and clothing manufacturers need to start signing contracts with suppliers, mostly outside the U.S., for orders of polyester staple fiber and polyester filament yarn to get their designs on retail shelves and online for the holiday shopping season, according to Nate Herman, executive vice president of the American Apparel & Footwear Association.

One kilogram, or a little over two pounds, of the materials used in polyester textiles, has increased in price from an average of 90 cents before the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran to $1.33 per kilogram, Herman said. He estimated that each garment will cost 10 cents to 15 cents more to produce as a result.

Another cost for importers

Some businesses are looking for ways to offset rising costs.

Lisa Lane is the founder of Rinseroo, which sells portable shower head, bathtub and sink attachments for cleaning, pet grooming, and bathing. She recently tripled the number of the slip-on hoses she procures from China each month after her manufacturer said the cost would be 30% higher in another 30 days. She had a few days to decide whether to place a three-month advance order.

The components of Rinseroo's products include petroleum derivatives like polyvinyl chloride, Lane said. After purchasing 240,000 units instead of her usual 80,000, she is also evaluating cost-cutting options.

Lane said she wants to hold off on increasing prices for retailers that sell the attachments since Rinseroo did that last year to offset higher U.S. tariffs on imports from China. For example, a hose for washing pets in a bathtub went up to $33.95 from $29.95 on retail websites, she said.

“We want to stay at that sweet spot where people want to continue to buy from us and feel like they’re getting a good value," Lane said.

Another company, which sells wound care products like bandages, dressings, pads and sponges to nursing homes and other medical facilities, plans to raise its prices by 15% in a matter of weeks. Gentell CEO David Navazio noted that adhesives in the products rely on several petrochemicals.

Including energy for production and materials, Navazio estimated the company's costs are going up by 20%.

Gentell, which is based in Yardley, Pennsylvania but has its main manufacturing location in Toronto, also makes private label products for other companies, including a medical technology firm that supplies retail stores like CVS.

Because bandages and dressings are necessities, Navazio said he doesn't think his business will suffer if it raises customer prices. Less certain is whether prices will come down once the war ends and oil shipments stabilize.

“In the past, I’ve seen transportation costs come down, but I’ve never seen prices of raw material come down,” he said.

“I love this,” Hebron, the executive director of the Oakland Avenue Urban Farm, said on Friday morning. “This is my happy place.”

The sprawling urban farm, which occupies the entire 9100 block of Goodwin Street between Owen and Westminster streets, grows 33 kinds of fruits and vegetables and sells them at farmers’ markets.

For years, she’s wondered what she could do to address the pervasive issue of food insecurity in Detroit.

“Can we really reduce the amount of people, families that are insecure, food insecure in Detroit?” Hebron said. “There are over 3,000 farms and gardens in the city of Detroit in schools, churches, community gardens, and firms, all of different scales.”

It’s why she’s embarking on a plan, along with a group of other urban farms, to convert a 9,000-square-foot vacant grocery store at the corner of Oakland and Westminster, into what she calls a “community resilience center.”

The center will offer a commercial kitchen space, community food storage, an event space, and affordable housing.

The group of farms along Oakland Avenue includes Cadillac Urban Gardens, Feedom Freedom Farms, and others, and they are pursuing plans to build similar community resiliency spaces throughout the city.

Hebron remembers the days when urban farming was openly mocked by skeptical members of the Detroit city government, before it became an important part of community revitalization.

“They would say, ‘I left the south. I don’t want to see corn. I don’t wanna see chickens running around,’” Hebron said. “What people fail to realize is that we all eat. That’s part of our survival.”

The farm is part of Northern Christian Community Development Corporation, which was founded by Hebron’s 94-year-old mother, the Rev. Bertha Carter, back in 2000.

It’s tended by residents, school kids, volunteers, and Hebron herself. It’s often an eye-opening experience, particularly for the kids.

“We have chickens down the street,” Hebron said. “We would take them down there to harvest the eggs. That’s when they learned that’s where the eggs came from.”

On Friday (April 24), a group of volunteers from the accounting firm Ernst & Young were outside getting dirty. Earlier this week, it was students from U of D High School, U of D-Mercy, and Michigan State University.

The latter is part of an educational program and applied research in partnership with the Michigan State Fair and MSU Extension.

The word she repeatedly used was ‘resilience,’ and Hebron says it also represents the resilience of different neighborhoods in the city that have seen farms replace abandoned and blighted homes.

“When I came back to North End, I saw the devastation, the vacancy, the abandonment, high crime level, people weren’t talking to each other,” Hebron said. “We had all this vacant land. There’s only been one house on this block demolished since I’ve been here.”

“The food justice movement was already happening,” Hebron added. “We don’t have any money, but we have all this land, and we need to partner with some of these organizations because food insecurity was very high here.”

She also feels that resilience is what is truly needed to help combat food insecurity here in Detroit.

Hebron said she expects to have this entire project up and running by 2028, and she could at least start to get things going by the summer, once they take control of the building.

They’re looking for funding right now, and she thinks this could cost about $8 to $10 million.

“We can be resilient through food, through emergency preparation, through engagement with each other,” Hebron said. “We can really reduce the amount of people, families that are food insecure in Detroit. Not just on the North End, but Rosedale Park, the East Side, West Side, and Southwest Detroit.”

Less than a week after beating Burnley 4-1, Forest rose eight points clear of the relegation zone and sent shivers down the spine of Tottenham Hotspur fans. Spurs occupy the third relegation spot, two points behind West Ham.

With Burnley and Wolves already relegated, Spurs or West Ham are now the most likely candidates to join them.

“It gives us some breathing room and puts pressure on the two chasing behind," Forest's New Zealand striker Chris Wood said. "Back-to-back wins do that for you.

“We built on the second half from last week, that is what we wanted to do. We want to build and get better and show what we are capable of. We started fast and what we did today was fantastic."

Sunderland had the best defensive record in the league at home after Manchester City and Arsenal, but that defensive solidity disappeared during a woeful first half.

Forest looked quicker and hungrier from the off and took the lead after 16 minutes when Igor Jesus’ header went in off Trai Hume following a neatly worked short corner.

Disaster then struck for Sunderland as goalkeeper Robin Roefs gifted Forest a second. His sloppy pass went straight to Morgan Gibbs-White, who fed Chris Wood to give the big New Zealander, recently back from a long injury layoff, his first league goal since the opening day of the season.

Gibbs-White made it 3-0 three minutes later when he drilled home a low shot after Jesus’ superbly cushioned header gave him time and space.

Jesus got Forest’s fourth three minutes later as Sunderland crumbled.

Sunderland’s Dan Ballard had a goal chalked off after a video review in the second half and if there was any doubt the home side was all out of luck it came in stoppage time when Elliot Anderson made it five and confirmed Sunderland’s heaviest ever defeat at the Stadium of Light.

“It is hard to explain straight after the game,” Sunderland captain Granit Xhaka said. “What I can say is that we apologise to our fans. They were easy goals we conceded today. Three set-pieces and the coach has just said in there that if you drop 1% of your maximum then you are dead. You get punished and we got punished at home.”

___

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Melania Trump on Friday announced that she is expanding the White House honey program by adding a beehive in the shape of the White House to two other beehives that have been on the south grounds since 2009.

The existing hives can swell to about 70,000 bees during peak summer months and produce 200 pounds to 225 pounds (91 to 102 kilograms) of honey in a year, the White House said. The new hive could increase honey production by about 30 pounds (13.6 kilograms), according to the White House.

The announcement came just before Britain's King Charles III and his wife, Queen Camilla, were expected to arrive in Washington on a four-day state visit, including an elaborate White House state dinner on Tuesday hosted by President Donald Trump and the first lady.

Charles and Camilla are supporters of beekeeping. The king keeps at least three beehives at Highgrove House, their private residence southwest of Tetbury in Gloucestershire, England, as part of his support for the environment and sustainability.

The queen is also a bee fan. She is a patron of Bees for Development, a charity that promotes the role of bees in sustainable development worldwide.

The White House uses the clover honey its bees produce to prepare meals, as official gifts from the president and first lady, and in donations to food kitchens.

The bees help pollinate a nearby produce garden that then-first lady Michelle Obama started in 2009 and a nearby flower cutting garden, along with vegetation on the National Mall.

The beekeeping program began after a White House carpenter started beekeeping as a hobby on the complex.

The new hive was funded through the Trust for the National Mall, the White House said.

The hive and the base were designed by White House residence staff and handmade by a Virginia artisan.

Jerjuan Howard, an Army veteran, youth advocate, and lifelong Detroiter, is behind the vision for the Howard Family Bookstore.

“This community is me. And I am it,” Howard said.

Howard bought the long-vacant building in 2024 and has spent the last year and a half transforming it through construction and renovation, documenting the process along the way.

He said his goal is bigger than opening a business; it’s about creating a positive, welcoming “third space” for kids, families, and neighbors to gather.

Within about a mile and a half of the location, Howard notes there are six schools, but no bookstores. For years, the building stood empty, a familiar sight in many Detroit neighborhoods.

Howard says he sees it differently: as potential.

Inside, the bookstore is expected to feature a variety of books, community-focused programming, and a café with drinks in an inviting atmosphere.

Howard hopes it becomes a hub that helps shift how the neighborhood sees itself and what’s possible there.

“I believe that this will begin to kind of shift the culture of what this community is and how it values itself, and how it values the things that are in it,” Howard said.

When the Howard Family Bookstore officially opens Saturday (April 25), Howard says he wants the project to serve as encouragement for others, too.

“I want the message to be you can do this too. You can solve a problem for your community,” Howard said.

Grand opening details

• Howard Family Bookstore: 13803 Puritan Ave, Detroit, MI 48235
• Ribbon-cutting: Saturday, April 25 at 11 a.m.
• Traffic note: Some nearby streets may be blocked off during the ribbon-cutting
• Hours: Open Monday through Saturday

More info: https://howardfamilybookstore.myshopify.com.

“Not the Iranians,” Bessent told The Associated Press. "We have the blockade, and there’s no oil coming out.”

"And we think in the next two, three days, they’re going to have to start shuttering production, which will be very bad for their wells.”

Bessent's statements come as the world is on edge over the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran, and global energy markets have been ensnarled by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

The U.S. originally issued a waiver for Russian oil sales and petroleum products in March with the intent of stabilizing global energy markets after crude oil prices surged above $100 per barrel.

The Treasury Department renewed the waiver two days after Bessent said at the White House that he had no plans to extend the sanctions relief.

In an AP interview about the impact of the U.S.-Israeli war on the global energy market and other topics, the U.S. treasury secretary explained his previous change of heart and ruled out the notion of renewing sanctions waivers for both Russia and Iran.

Bessent said during the World Bank and International Monetary Fund meetings last week, “More than 10 of the most vulnerable and poorest countries came to me and said, ‘Can you help?” Bessent said.

"It was for those vulnerable and poor countries. But I wouldn’t imagine that we’d have another extension. I think the Russian oil on the water has been largely sucked up.”

In a post on Substack on Friday, Jake Reiner shares his sweetest memories of the beloved Hollywood director and the photographer and philanthropist who was his wife for 36 years. And he describes the horror of losing them when they were stabbed to death on Dec. 14 in the Los Angeles home he grew up in. It is his first detailed public account of his experience. He had previously only issued brief joint statements with his sister.

“Nothing can prepare you for what it feels like to lose both parents instantly at the same time,” Jake Reiner writes. “It’s too devastating to comprehend. I still wake up every morning having to convince myself that, no, it’s not a dream. This truly is my living nightmare.”

The long post makes only two fleeting mentions of his younger brother Nick Reiner, who has been charged with killing their parents, and he does not use Nick's name.

“Sure, any loss of a parent is devastating, but nothing compares to losing both of them at the same time and, on top of that, having your brother be at the center of it,” Jake Reiner writes toward the end of the post.

He also says, switching to the present tense, that the "love they have for me, my brother, and my sister is truly unconditional.”

Jake Reiner writes that he was at a memorial service for one of his best friends when he got the news.

“I received a call from my sister Romy telling me our father was dead,” he says. “Minutes later, she called back telling me our mother was also dead.”

He says his parents “were robbed of so many things that day" and that it “simultaneously breaks my heart and enrages me."

He writes that he cannot stop thinking of how frightened they must have been in their final moments.

But much of the piece invokes fond memories.

“The way my dad presented himself in the public eye was exactly the beautiful person he was at home,” Jake Reiner writes. “He was authentic, passionate, and his sense of humor has always been my sense of humor.”

The two especially connected over baseball.

“We loved the Dodgers more than anything,” he writes. “We went to so many damn games.”

He calls his mother "the engine, the backbone, and the heart of our entire family. And not just our immediate family. She was the reason behind why we spent time with our extended family too.”

“My mom was really funny and constantly complained about how nobody in the family thought she was,” he writes.

Rob and Michele Reiner had three children together: Jake, Nick and Romy. Rob Reiner was also father to Tracy, a daughter with his previous wife, Penny Marshall.

Jake Reiner writes that Romy, who was the first family member at the scene of the killings, will tell her own story when the time is right.

Nick Reiner has pleaded not guilty to two counts of murder. His next court appearance will be at a pretrial hearing Wednesday. Authorities have said nothing about possible motives and have withheld most details about the deaths.

Rob Reiner was a prolific director whose work included some of the most memorable and endlessly watchable movies of the 1980s and ’90s. Friends and colleagues, including Billy Crystal, paid him an extended tribute at this year's Oscars.

His credits included “This is Spinal Tap,” “Stand By Me,” “A Few Good Men” and “When Harry Met Sally…,” during the production of which he met photographer Michele Singer. They wed soon after and were married for 36 years.

WAYNE COUNTY – Asthma flare-ups, spring allergies, sinus infections, stomach viruses, sports injuries

Dr. Ayed Mahmoud -- Trinity Health Livonia Emergency Medicine Physician

“We have recently seen an increase in children presenting with vomiting and diarrhea, likely related to viral gastroenteritis circulating in the community. Most cases are mild, but parents should watch for signs of dehydration, such as decreased urination, dry mouth, or lethargy, and focus on maintaining hydration with small, frequent fluids. Good hand hygiene and keeping sick children at home can help limit the spread of illness. We also continue to care for common adult conditions including heart failure and COPD exacerbations, which can be triggered by weather changes and respiratory illnesses.”

Dr. Daniel Ridelman -- Vice-chief of Emergency Medicine, DMC Harper University Hospital

“This past week, I had a car accident with a young child riding in the front seat, which is illegal in Michigan, and they sustained facial injuries. In another car accident, the rear seat passengers were not restrained by seat belts, so they were in rough shape compared to the front seat passengers. With these, I’d like to remind our community to follow Michigan laws, because these injuries could have very easily been prevented. Otherwise, our viral infections are on their way out.”

Dr. Tiffney Widner -- Children’s Hospital of Michigan Pediatrician

“With the weather changing, we’re getting flares of allergies and asthma, and eczema’s adjacent. The allergies can be a precursor to sinus infections. So if we don’t get those symptoms under control, these kiddos can get sinus infections. If they have symptoms that aren’t changing or worsening, if they’re at that 1 ½ to two week mark, they need to come in and see us to get antibiotics; that’s how we treat sinus infections.”

Dr. Zafar Shamoon -- Emergency Center Chief, Corewell Health Dearborn Hospital

“We are seeing more individuals coming in for asthma due to the seasons changing. We have also been seeing increased fractures from sports. This would be a good time to remind everyone to wear helmets when on a bike. We haven’t been seeing much viral illness lately — mostly just some GI issues.”

OAKLAND COUNTY— Asthma & COPD flare-ups, spring allergies, stomach viruses, hand, foot & mouth disease, strep throat, upper respiratory infections

Dr. Rena Daiza -- Primary Care Physician, Henry Ford Medical Center, Bloomfield Twp.

“Over the past week in primary care, there’s a mix of upper respiratory infections, strep throat, and GI “stomach bug” illnesses, along with spring allergies and asthma flare-ups driving visits. Prevent most current illnesses with good hand hygiene, staying home when sick, and keeping vaccines up to date.

For allergies/asthma, start daily antihistamines or nasal steroids early and limit exposure to triggers.”

Sarah Rauner -- Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, Emergency Center, Corewell Health Beaumont Troy Hospital

“We are seeing the tail end of our viral respiratory season and early seasonal changes causing asthma issues. We’re also seeing an increase in vomiting and diarrhea with or without fevers. Hand, foot, and mouth disease is making its way around as well.”

Dr. Josh Newblatt -- Pine Knob Urgent Care

“Seeing increase in respiratory illness such as asthma and COPD likely from weather change and allergies. Seeing almost no COVID and influenza numbers are significantly lower. “

Dr. Rachel M. Klamo -- Primary Care Physician, Henry Ford Glennan Primary Care

“We are seeing some viral infections, GI - Gastrointestinal viral infections, and some upper respiratory infections that are not covid or flu.”

WASHTENAW COUNTY – Croup, RSV, stomach viruses, Covid, pneumonia, upper respiratory infections, spring allergies, asthma flare-ups

Dr. Brad Uren -- Clinical Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine, Michigan Medicine

“We continue to see viral upper respiratory infections and even some seasonal allergies causing problems for those with asthma or other underlying lung problems. Flu and COVID activity is low this week.”

Dr. Stuart Bradin -- Clinical Professor of Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics, Michigan Medicine

“We have seen croup, RSV, human rhinoenterovirus, COVID, pneumonia, and some metapneumovirus. There are several cases of GI illness. “

Washtenaw County Health Department

“Influenza cases in Washtenaw County residents are currently elevated but appear to be decreasing. Influenza A wastewater detection is currently at low levels in both Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti. Influenza B wastewater detection is currently at low levels in both Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti. According to the most recent MDHHS MI Flu Focus report, influenza A H3N2 is currently dominating the 2025-2026 influenza season. Influenza-related deaths in Washtenaw County adults have been reported this flu season. All individuals were confirmed with Influenza A.”

MONROE COUNTY – Upper respiratory viruses, spring allergies, asthma flare-ups

Dr. Nicholas Schenk

ProMedica Monroe Regional Hospital Family Medicine Residency

“This week and last, we have seen a slight uptick in viral upper respiratory infections across all age groups, with cases most common among adults. Most of these infections can be managed with rest, proper hydration, and over-the-counter symptomatic treatment.”

MACOMB COUNTY – Spring allergies, stomach viruses, outdoor injuries

Dr. Matthew Steck -- Emergency Physician at McLaren Macomb

“There has been an increase in the already high volume of patients needing care from an injury — either orthopedic or soft tissue — sustained in an outdoor activity or incident around the house, with a noticeable increase in pediatric patients needing care. The early pollen bloom has caused some asthma sufferers to experience complications and exacerbated symptoms.”

Dr. Maria Samuel -- Primary Care Physician, Henry Ford Medical Center, Sterling Heights

“We are seeing some significant allergy and asthma flares, coughs from drainage, as well as gastroenteritis.”

LIVINGSTON COUNTY – Did not report this week

After cutting more than 500,000 square feet of grass in testing, CR’s experts say a few simple habits can go a long way toward keeping your lawn—and your budget—in shape.

Each year, Consumer Reports mower tester Dave Trezza heads to Florida during the winter months to get a head start on testing. There, on more than five acres of grass with hills, trees, and other obstacles, CR evaluates dozens of mowers and tractors for cutting performance, handling, mulching, and bagging.

One of the biggest takeaways from all that testing is that proper maintenance can save you money. Trezza says most mowers can deliver a good cut, but only if they’re well cared for. That means sharpening the blade at the start of the season and keeping the mower deck clean so it performs efficiently.

How you mow also matters. Consumer Reports recommends mulching your grass instead of bagging it whenever possible. Mulching returns nutrients back into the lawn, which can reduce the need for fertilizer and save money over time. A good mulching mower should leave an even cut without clumps of grass behind.

If you’re in the market for a new mower, Consumer Reports says to match the machine to your yard. For larger or sloped lawns, a self-propelled mower can make the job easier. Gas-powered models, like the Yardmax YG2760, can offer strong performance at a lower price point, cutting and mulching as well as more expensive options in CR’s tests.

For smaller yards or those looking to save even more, a battery-powered push mower can be a great choice. Consumer Reports found that models like the Ryobi RY401170VNM deliver an even cut and excellent mulching performance. Compared to gas mowers, battery-powered options also require less maintenance and run more quietly.

No matter which type of mower you use, Consumer Reports says cleaning it after each use is essential. Grass clippings can build up on the deck, leading to rust and reduced airflow, which can hurt performance over time.

With the right mower, proper maintenance, and a few smart mowing habits, you can keep your lawn looking great—without overspending.

In an interview with ABC News’ Linsey Davis, which aired during Good Morning America on Friday, April 24, the former assistant detailed how she felt controlled by Moore during their years-long relationship.

Here are 16 takeaways from the interview:

Relationship started in 2022

Shiver, who is now 32 years old, told ABC that she started as an intern with the football program in 2021, and her consensual relationship with Moore began in January 2022.

When Moore became the university’s head football coach in 2024, Shiver was promoted to be his executive assistant.

Shiver said Moore had ‘complete control’ over her

During the interview, Davis asked about Shiver’s allegations that she faced years of harassment and manipulation from Moore, and wanted to know how so.

“Here’s a man that had complete control over me,” Shiver said. “Over my emotions. Over my career. And he knew that. And he used it against me. Every time I tried to pull away, every time I tried to get out of even Michigan, he always had a story, always had a way to pull me in and making me feel that I couldn’t leave him because he was so miserable without me.”

Pressure over job security

Shiver said she felt pressured to be involved in the relationship with Moore to have job security.

“I mean, he and other coaches had control over my career, especially him,” Shiver said. “I mean, he could fire me in a second.”

Shiver got pregnant by Moore

In the interview, the former assistant revealed that during their relationship, she learned that she was pregnant by Moore.

Pregnancy complicated by Pompe disease

Shiver said the pregnancy was complicated by Pompe disease, which is a “genetic condition in which a complex sugar called glycogen builds up in the lysosomes of your body’s cells,” according to the Cleveland Clinic.

It can cause severe muscle weakness.

“Without early detection and treatment, the disease can be fatal,” according to the Cleveland Clinic.

Decision to terminate pregnancy

Due to this rare genetic disorder, Shiver had an abortion.

“Multiple doctors and experts told me that it wouldn’t be right or healthy for me to keep the baby,” Shiver said in the interview.

When Davis asked Shiver if she wanted to keep the baby, Shiver was choked up as she said, “Yeah.”

Moore’s response to Shiver’s pregnancy

When asked how the former football coach responded to the news, Shiver said: “He said you have to do what’s right for your body.”

‘Did you love him?’

Davis also asked Shiver if she loved Moore.

“Back then, I did, but obviously, looking back at things and really reflecting on what happened, what was happening, yeah, that’s not love at all.”

What university said when Shiver reported the affair

On Dec. 10, 2025, Shiver reported the relationship to the university.

“They said, ‘You know we’re really sorry about everything you went through, and we’re here to protect you and help you through all of this,’” Shiver said.

After that conversation, Moore was fired.

Former colleagues knew about the affair

Shiver said that former colleagues, including those who were in leadership positions, knew about their relationship.

‘They didn’t do anything about it’

Davis asked Shiver if she felt as though the University of Michigan had “more obligation” to come to her sooner.

“Yes,” Shiver said in response. “He controlled everything that was going on in my life, and they didn’t do anything about it.”

What happened when Moore showed up at Shiver’s apartment

Less than an hour after being fired, the former coach went to Shiver’s apartment.

Details about this were previously released when Moore was arrested and charged, but Shiver shared what happened from her perspective.

Shiver said she was inside her apartment when Moore showed up.

“All of a sudden, I hear footsteps, and they’re getting closer and louder, and I’m like crap, so I run to my door to try and lock it,” Shiver said. “He barges in, and he’s standing like this close to me, and he said, ‘You ruined my life. Why would you do this to me?’ And then I start backing up, and he starts following me.”

‘Did you fear for your life?’

At this point, Davis asked Shiver if she feared for her life.

“Oh my gosh, yes,” Shiver said. “I mean, he’s 6’4, and he comes in with his hood up, looking down at me, saying, I ruined his life, crying. Then he starts coming at me, and I tell him to leave, and he’s not supposed to be here. He’s not listening to me. And then he starts grabbing, yes, butter knives.”

‘Do you think he should’ve gone to jail?’

Moore was sentenced to 18 months of probation after he pleaded no contest to two misdemeanor charges as part of a plea deal.

As part of the plea, the charges he was initially issued --third-degree home invasion, stalking, and breaking and entering-- were dismissed.

During the interview, Davis asked Shiver whether she felt Moore should have gone to jail.

“Yes,” Shiver said. “I think he should’ve gotten more punishment for what he did.”

U of M Statement

Here is a statement the university provided to Local 4 on April 24:

“The University of Michigan terminated Sherrone Moore promptly upon discovering his undisclosed workplace relationship with a direct report. His conduct violated university policy, and we expect more from our leaders. The University of Michigan is committed to ensuring a professional and respectful workplace for all members of its community.”

Paul Corliss, Assistant Vice President for Public Affairs and Internal Communications

Why Shiver is speaking out now

This interview is the first time Shiver has spoken publicly about what happened.

She explained that she is sharing her story now with the hopes that it will help other women who are dealing with similar situations.

“I just want other women that are going through this to know that this doesn’t need to happen, this doesn’t need to go this far,” Shiver said.

Statement from Shiver’s attorneys

Shiver’s attorneys released the following statement on April 24:

“The University of Michigan Athletic Department’s systemic failure to comply with basic policies and procedures created and enabled a hostile and male-dominated environment at Schembechler Hall that traumatized Ms. Shiver. This environment was an open secret. The university chose to focus solely on winning at all costs on the football field and to disregard Ms. Shiver’s safety and well-being. Interim President Domenico Grasso, General Counsel Tim Lynch, and the Board of Regents must take accountability for this failure and commit to building a NCAA and Title IX compliant Athletic Department across all sports.”

Paige Shiver's Attorneys Andrew M. Stroth and Steven A. Hart

Millwall was blindsided by the educational pamphlet that featured the southeast London club’s badge edited onto an illustration of a Ku Klux Klan robe. The Westminster City Council has since apologized.

A British lawmaker told The Associated Press that the misuse of Millwall branding is an “insult,” and the team’s leading fan group said it was “outraged” at the portrayal.

The second-division club said it is considering legal action because the imagery creates “a false and damaging image of the club.”

The incident comes at a time when Millwall has a strong chance to secure a first ever promotion to the Premier League. The team was last in the top flight in the 1989-90 season.

Millwall’s image

The checkered reputation of fan behavior dates to the days of England’s worst episodes of hooliganism in the 1970s and 80s. Hardcore Millwall fans proudly chanted, “No one likes us, we don’t care.”

But the club has worked to change its perception. The anti-discrimination body it created in 1994 was “the first organization of its kind at an English football club.” Millwall also boasts of its working relationship with anti-discrimination organizations Kick it Out and Show Racism the Red Card.

Despite the initiatives, Millwall has suffered dings to its image.

Millwall fans turned on each other — and police — during the 2013 FA Cup semifinal against Wigan at Wembley Stadium.

A few days after players were booed for taking a knee before kickoff at a December 2020 game, fans entering The Den received a printed statement that read: “The eyes of the world are on this football club tonight — your club — and they want us to fail.” That night, fans respected anti-racism gestures by both teams.

The English Football Association suggested its disciplinary commission consider a partial stadium closure because of offensive chanting by Millwall supporters about disabilities during a September 2025 game at Crystal Palace in the League Cup. The commission called the chants “abhorrent” and opted to fine Millwall 45,000 pounds ($60,000) in its recent ruling.

It was the third breach in the past three years — the previous chanting focused on religion and sexual orientation.

What was in the pamphlet?

The educational booklet distributed to London primary schools tells the story of Paul Canoville, a Black player who was subjected to racial abuse while playing for Chelsea in the early and mid-1980s.

One page depicts a Ku Klux Klan member in a white robe that has Millwall's logo on the chest. It's next to a Canoville quote about being racially abused at Millwall.

The Paul Canoville Foundation said it wasn't consulted on any of the contents. It said the illustration “is a depiction of a real incident Paul experienced whilst playing for Chelsea Reserves against Millwall Reserves in the 1980s, in which he was subjected to serious racial abuse by a number of individuals wearing Ku Klux Klan-style white hoods.”

The Westminster City Council said the booklet has been removed from circulation.

“We accept the use of this image was an insensitive way to illustrate the historic problem of racism within football. We have apologized to Millwall Football Club for the improper use of their logo and for any offense caused,” it said in a statement.

Neil Coyle, Labour MP for Bermondsey and Old Southwark, told AP on Friday that the decision to use the Millwall branding “is an insult to southeast London frankly,” because of the club's work in the community.

The Millwall Supporters’ Club also weighed in Friday, saying it was “outraged" and “this deeply damaging misrepresentation does not reflect our club or a fanbase that works tireless to eradicate discrimination of any kind from the game.”

The Kensington and Chelsea Council's logo also features on the front of the pamphlet. A council spokesperson told the AP: “We understand the booklet is being withdrawn, and support that decision.”

Premier League promotion in sight

American-owned Millwall is battling Ipswich to earn the second outright promotion spot. Coventry has clinched the title. The top two finishers in the Championship get promoted automatically. The next four enter a playoff for the final promotion spot.

Millwall moved into second place Friday night — but only by one point over Ipswich — after a 1-1 draw at already relegated Leicester. Millwall has just one game left in the season.

Ipswich has three games remaining and plays at West Brom on Saturday.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

A three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit found that immigration laws give people the right to apply for asylum at the border, and the president can’t circumvent that.

The court opinion stems from action taken by Trump on Inauguration Day 2025, when he declared that the situation at the southern border constituted an invasion of America and that he was “suspending the physical entry” of migrants and their ability to seek asylum until he decides it is over.

The panel concluded that the Immigration and Nationality Act doesn’t authorize the president to remove the plaintiffs under “procedures of his own making,” allow him to suspend plaintiffs’ right to apply for asylum or curtail procedures for adjudicating their anti-torture claims.

“The power by proclamation to temporarily suspend the entry of specified foreign individuals into the United States does not contain implicit authority to override the INA’s mandatory process to summarily remove foreign individuals,” wrote Judge J. Michelle Childs, who was nominated to the bench by Democratic President Joe Biden.

“We conclude that the INA’s text, structure, and history make clear that in supplying power to suspend entry by Presidential proclamation, Congress did not intend to grant the Executive the expansive removal authority it asserts,” the opinion said.

White House says asylum ban was within Trump's powers

The administration can ask the full appeals court to reconsider the ruling or go to the Supreme Court.

The order doesn’t formally take effect until after the court considers any request to reconsider.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, speaking on Fox News, said she had not seen the ruling but called it “unsurprising,” blaming politically-motivated judges.

“They are not acting as true litigators of the law. They are looking at these cases from a political lens,” she said.

Leavitt said Trump was taking actions that are “completely within his powers as commander in chief.”

White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said the Department of Justice would seek further review of the decision. “We are sure we will be vindicated,” she wrote in an emailed statement.

The Department of Homeland Security said it strongly disagreed with the ruling.

“President Trump’s top priority remains the screening and vetting of all aliens seeking to come, live, or work in the United States,” DHS said in a statement.

Advocates welcome the ruling

Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, said that previous legal action had already paused the asylum ban, and the ruling won’t change much on the ground.

The ruling, however, represents another legal defeat for a centerpiece policy of the president.

“This confirms that President Trump cannot on his own bar people from seeking asylum, that it is Congress that has mandated that asylum seekers have a right to apply for asylum and the President cannot simply invoke his authority to sustain,” said Reichlin-Melnick.

Advocates say the right to request asylum is enshrined in the country’s immigration law and say denying migrants that right puts people fleeing war or persecution in grave danger.

Lee Gelernt, attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union, who argued the case, said in a statement that the appellate ruling is “essential for those fleeing danger who have been denied even a hearing to present asylum claims under the Trump administration’s unlawful and inhumane executive order.”

Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, welcomed the court decision as a victory for their clients.

“Today’s DC Circuit ruling affirms that capricious actions by the President cannot supplant the rule of law in the United States,” said Nicolas Palazzo, director of advocacy and legal Services at Las Americas.

Judge Justin Walker, a Trump nominee, wrote a partial dissent. He said the law gives immigrants protections against removal to countries where they would be persecuted, but the administration can issue broad denials of asylum applications.

Walker, however, agreed with the majority that the president cannot deport migrants to countries where they will be persecuted or strip them of mandatory procedures that protect against their removal.

Judge Cornelia Pillard, who was nominated by Democratic President Barack Obama, also heard the case.

In the executive order, Trump argued that the Immigration and Nationality Act gives presidents the authority to suspend entry of any group that they find “detrimental to the interests of the United States.”

The executive order also suspended the ability of migrants to ask for asylum.

Trump’s order was another blow to asylum access in the U.S., which was severely curtailed under the Biden administration, although under Biden some pathways for protections for a limited number of asylum seekers at the southern border continued.

Migrant advocate in Mexico expresses cautious hope

For Josue Martinez, a psychologist who works at a small migrant shelter in southern Mexico, the ruling marked a potential “light at the end of the tunnel” for many migrants who once hoped to seek asylum in the U.S. but ended up stuck in vulnerable conditions in Mexico.

“I hope there’s something more concrete, because we’ve heard this kind of news before: A district judge files an appeal, there’s a temporary hold, but it’s only temporary and then it’s over,” he said.

Meanwhile, migrants from Haiti, Cuba, Venezuela and other countries have struggled to make ends meet as they try to seek refuge in Mexico’s asylum system that’s all but collapsed under the weight of new strains and slashed international funds.

This week hundreds of migrants, mostly stranded migrants from Haiti, left the southern Mexican city of Tapachula on foot to seek better living conditions elsewhere in Mexico.

———

AP reporters Gary Fields in Washington, Gisela Salomon in Miami and Megan Janetsky in Mexico City contributed to this report.

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This story has been corrected to show that Leavitt was speaking to Fox News, not to a press gaggle.

Alcaraz posted on X on Friday that neither would he appear in the preceding Italian Open in Rome, where he also won last year.

No. 2-ranked Alcaraz was injured at the Barcelona Open this month during his first-round win and withdrew the day after.

He pulled out of this week's Madrid Open and attended the Laureus World Sports Awards in the Spanish capital on Monday with his wrist immobilized. Alcaraz was named world sportsman of the year at the gala.

Alcaraz confirmed he was a no-go for Paris after undergoing more medical tests on Friday.

"After the results of the tests carried out today, we have decided that the most prudent thing is to be cautious and not participate in Rome and Roland Garros," he wrote on X. “It's a complicated moment for me, but I'm sure we'll come out stronger from here.”

Alcaraz started the year in sensational form, beating Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open final. That made him the youngest man ever to win all four major titles in tennis.

He has won only one title since — at Doha in February — and will be without a title in the major clay-court events. He lost the Monte Carlo final to Jannik Sinner at the start of this month and surrendered the No. 1 ranking to his Italian rival.

Sinner hoped Alcaraz returns soon.

“Tennis needs Carlos,” Sinner said after his first-round win at the Madrid Open. “Tennis is a much better sport when he’s around.

“I hope he's going to come back and he will not have any further injuries. But I also believe that it's good that he and his team take the time. If you come back too early then maybe you have a bigger problem afterwards.

“We all want that he's competitive when he comes back. The next goal I guess for him, and I hope so, it's Wimbledon (in June). So I hope he's going to be back there. I sent him a wish for a speedy recovery, though it's painful and very sad for all tennis.”

Last year, Alcaraz beat Sinner in the finals of the Italian Open and French Open, where he saved three match points in an epic match. Alcaraz then lost the Wimbledon final to Sinner before beating him again in the U.S. Open final.

The Italian Open starts on May 5. The French Open does so on May 18.

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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said on X Friday that her office was ending its probe into the Fed’s extensive building renovations because the Fed’s inspector general would scrutinize them instead.

The move could lead to a swift confirmation vote by the Senate for Warsh, a former top Fed official whom President Donald Trump, a Republican, nominated in January to replace Powell. Powell's term as chair ends May 15. Sen. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, had said he would oppose Warsh until the investigation was resolved, effectively blocking his confirmation.

Republicans praised Warsh during a Tuesday hearing even as Democrats questioned his independence from Trump, the lack of transparency around some of his financial holdings, and what they said was his flip-flopping on interest rates. Still, Trump's previous appointment to the Fed's board of governors, Stephen Miran, was approved by the full Senate just 13 days after his nomination.

Investigation lacked evidence, a court says

Pirro’s investigation focused on a $2.5 billion building renovation that Trump criticized sharply last year for its cost overruns. Trump visited the building last July and on camera presented to Powell an inflated cost estimate, which Powell corrected as the two stood at the construction site in hard hats.

Earlier estimates for the project had put the cost at $1.9 billion. The investigation also covered Powell’s brief testimony about the renovation before the Senate Banking Committee last June.

Pirro also said on X, “I will not hesitate to restart a criminal investigation should the facts warrant doing so.” Powell has previously asked the Fed’s independent inspector general to investigate the cost overruns.

The probe was among several undertaken by the Justice Department into Trump’s perceived adversaries. For months it had failed to gain traction as prosecutors struggled to articulate a basis to suspect criminal conduct. Other efforts by the department to prosecute Trump's adversaries, including New York state Attorney General Letitia James, a Democrat, and former FBI Director James Comey, have also been unsuccessful.

A prosecutor handling the Powell case conceded at a closed-door court hearing in March that the government hadn’t found any evidence of a crime, and a judge subsequently quashed subpoenas issued to the Federal Reserve. The judge, James Boasberg, said prosecutors had produced “essentially zero evidence” to suspect Powell of a crime. Boasberg branded prosecutors’ justification for the subpoenas as “thin and unsubstantiated.”

The investigation was the most brazen attempt yet by the Trump administration to pressure the Fed to cut its short-term interest rate, which indirectly affects other borrowing costs for mortgages, auto loans and business loans. Trump has obsessively attacked Powell for not cutting the rate from its current level of about 3.6% to 1%, a level that no Fed official supports.

Probe was intended to intimidate the Fed, Powell says

Instead, Fed policymakers, including Powell, have said they want to keep rates unchanged while they evaluate the impact of the Iran war, which has sent gas prices soaring, pushing up inflation. The increase could be a one-time shift but could also lead to more sustained inflation. The Fed seeks to restrain rising prices by keeping interest rates high, cooling borrowing and spending.

Powell said in January that the investigation was not really about the renovation or his testimony but “is a consequence of the Federal Reserve setting interest rates based on our best assessment of what will serve the public, rather than following the preferences of the President.”

More recently, prosecutors made an unannounced visit to a construction site at the Fed’s headquarters but were turned away, drawing a rebuke from a defense attorney in the case who called the maneuver “not appropriate.”

Warsh has promised to be independent

Warsh said during a hearing by the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday that he never promised the White House that he would cut interest rates, even as the president renewed his calls for the central bank to do so.

“The president never once asked me to commit to any particular interest rate decision, period,” Warsh said under questioning by the Senate Banking Committee. “Nor would I ever agree to do so if he had."

Warsh’s comments came just hours after Trump, in an interview on CNBC, was asked if he would be disappointed if Warsh didn’t immediately cut rates and responded, “I would.”

Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren said during the hearing that Warsh would be a “sock puppet” for Trump. When she asked if Trump had won the 2020 presidential election — which he lost to Democrat Joe Biden but incorrectly claims was decided by fraud — Warsh said only that the Senate had certified Biden as the winner. When asked for an example of an economic policy on which he disagreed with Trump, Warsh did not name one.

Robert Hur, an attorney for the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, didn’t immediately respond Friday to an email seeking comment.

Trump sought more control over the Fed

Trump has taken other unprecedented steps to try to pressure the Fed, including an attempt last August to fire Lisa Cook, a member of the Fed's governing board, who was appointed by Biden. Yet courts have temporarily blocked the firing, and, at an oral argument in January, the Supreme Court appeared sympathetic to the argument that Cook should keep her job.

A key question still to be resolved is whether Powell will remain on the Fed's board even after his term as chair expires next month. Powell, who serves a separate term as a governor that lasts until January 2028, has said he wouldn't leave until the investigation was dropped. Yet he did not promise to do so if it was. By remaining on the board, Powell would deprive Trump of the opportunity to fill another seat among its seven members, three of whom are Trump appointees.

Other presidents have pressured the Fed to keep borrowing costs low, notably Presidents Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon, though rarely as publicly as Trump. Johnson’s and Nixon’s demands for lower rates, however, are considered key contributors to the 15-year outbreak of high inflation that only ended in the early 1980s after then-chair Paul Volcker ratcheted the Fed's rate to an eye-watering 20%.

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Associated Press writers Michael Kunzelman and Alanna Durkin Richer contributed to this report.

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Follow the AP's coverage of the Federal Reserve System at https://apnews.com/hub/federal-reserve-system.

“Of course, we are hitting what is painful for Russia, and it is very painful,” Zelenskyy said in voice messages to reporters. He said that Russian losses in the strikes have reached tens of billions of dollars.

It wasn't possible to independently verify Zelenskyy’s comments, but Russian officials have reported that attacks have struck infrastructure in regions more than 1,000 kilometers (600 miles) inside Russia.

While Russia presses its all-out invasion, which began on Feb. 24, 2022, Ukraine is using its domestically developed drone and missile technology to strike Russian territory. The Ukrainian military also uses American-made Patriot air defense systems to stop Russian missile attacks on Ukraine's territory.

“We see that the Russians do not want to stop — they are hitting our energy sector and our people. We will respond,” Zelenskyy said.

Prince Harry praises Ukraine's resistance

Ukraine’s fight against Russia’s bigger army drew renewed praise from Prince Harry, who arrived in Kyiv on Thursday for his third visit in a year.

Ukrainians have demonstrated “strength not just in bravery and capability, but in unity, in trust,” he said in a speech to a Kyiv security conference

Ukraine “continues to hold together, and hold together you must,” he said.

The Duke of Sussex stepped off a train in Kyiv’s main station after an overnight journey from Poland, which is the only way to travel to the Ukrainian capital.

It wasn’t clear whether Harry would meet with Zelenskyy, who was due to attend a summit of European Union leaders in Cyprus on Thursday evening.

Russian firefighters tackle huge drone strike blaze

Hours before Harry arrived, three people were killed and 10 were wounded in a Russian drone attack on the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro, according to Oleksandr Hanzha, the head of the regional military administration.

A 13-story building and an administrative building were damaged in the strike, Hanzha said on the Telegram messaging app.

Russian air defenses, meanwhile, intercepted 154 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions, the annexed Crimea Peninsula, the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

Authorities in the Krasnodar region on Russia's Black Sea coast said that 276 firefighters at the Black Sea port of Tuapse were fighting for a third straight day a huge blaze caused by a Ukrainian drone attack earlier this week.

Toxic material from the fire fell with rain, covering several districts of Tuapse with a black layer of dirt, the region’s emergency headquarters reported. The concentration in the air of chemicals from the fire surpassed admissible levels, officials said, and authorities advised residents to stay indoors.

Ukraine targets more Russian oil facilities

For the second consecutive night, Russia’s Samara region also was targeted. In the Samara city of Novokuybyshevsk, about 1,000 kilometers (600 miles) east of the Ukrainian border, a drone attack on an unspecified industrial facility killed one person, regional Gov. Vyacheslav Fedorishchev said.

Drone debris also fell on a roof of a residential building in the city of Samara, wounding a number of people, Fedorishchev said. One person was hospitalized.

Unconfirmed media reports said that a petrochemical plant in Novokuybyshevsk owned by the Rosneft oil and gas company came under attack.

Ukrainian forces also struck Russian oil infrastructure in the Samara region and a pipeline in the Nizhegorodskaya region that transports oil from Western Siberia to Tatarstan, said Andriy Kovalenko, the head of Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation.

An oil refinery in the Samara region and an oil pipeline in the Nizhegorodskaya region were hit, he said. The pipeline transports oil from Western Siberia to Tatarstan. He didn’t offer more details about the strikes.

Also, units of Ukraine’s Security Service struck the Gorky oil pumping station in Russia’s Nizhny Novgorod region east of Moscow, said a senior official from the agency, which goes by the abbreviation SBU.

The nighttime drone attack damaged three oil tanks and caused a large fire, the official said. The official wasn't authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

“The operation of main pipelines is disrupted, the efficiency of processing at refineries decreases, and transportation costs increase. As a result, this directly affects the revenues of the Russian budget, which are used to finance the war against Ukraine,” the official said.

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Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

The magistrate in North Carolina who authorized Gannon Ken Van Dyke's release told him to report to a New York federal courthouse by Tuesday to continue his case there.

Bearded with arm tattoos, Van Dyke said little during the nearly hourlong hearing, during which he was appointed a federal public defender who declined to comment afterward. The $250,000 unsecured bond did not require Van Dyke to put up any money.

Federal prosecutors say Van Dyke used his access to classified information about the operation to capture Maduro in January to win money on Polymarket, one of the largest prediction markets. The sites allow people to trade on almost anything — from the Super Bowl to U.S. elections and even the winners of the TV reality shows.

Van Dyke, who is stationed at Fort Bragg near Fayetteville, North Carolina, was charged Thursday with the unlawful use of confidential government information for personal gain, theft of nonpublic government information, commodities fraud, wire fraud and making an unlawful monetary transaction.

He could face up to 10 years on four of the criminal counts, and up to 20 years on a fifth, the government said Friday. A publicly listed phone number listed for Van Dyke isn't in service.

Van Dyke, 38, was involved for about a month in the planning and execution of capturing Maduro, according to the New York federal prosecutor’s office. He signed nondisclosure agreements promising to not divulge “any classified or sensitive information” related to the operations, but prosecutors say he used what he knew to make a series of bets related to Maduro being out of power by Jan. 31.

“This involved a U.S. soldier who allegedly took advantage of his position to profit off of a righteous military operation,” FBI Director Kash Patel said in a social media post.

Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan said in a post on X that the company flagged the suspicious activity, turned it over to the government and cooperated with the investigation.

“Every trade is public, permanent, and auditable,” Coplan wrote. “Bad actors leave a trail.”

Massive profits from well-timed bets aroused public attention days after the raid in Venezuela and brought bipartisan calls for stricter regulation of the markets.

The sudden rise of these markets has led to growing scrutiny by Congress and state governments. Some lawmakers alarmed by highly specific, well-timed trades on the U.S. and Israel’s war against Iran and wagers on President Donald Trump’s next moves have pushed for guardrails against insider trading.

The Trump administration has been supportive of the industry’s expansion. The president’s eldest son is an adviser for both Polymarket and its main competitor, Kalshi,, and is a Polymarket investor. Trump’s social media platform, Truth Social, is launching its own prediction market called Truth Predict.

Van Dyke moved into a home in Fayetteville just weeks ago, said Larry Duncan, one of his new neighbors.

“I introduced myself. I asked if he needed any assistance,” said Duncan, who once served in the Marines. “I said, ‘You look like special forces.’ He just smiled. I worked on a contract at Fort Bragg. I know how those people carry themselves. He was tatted up, quiet, kind of secretive.”

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the federal agency that regulates prediction markets, announced Thursday that it had filed a parallel complaint against Van Dyke.

That complaint alleges that Van Dyke moved $35,000 from his personal bank account into a cryptocurrency exchange account on Dec. 26 — a little over a week before U.S. forces flew into Caracas and seized Maduro.

Van Dyke made a series of bets on when Maduro might be removed from power, according to the complaint. He placed those bets between Dec. 30 and Jan. 2, with the vast majority occurring the night of Jan. 2 — just hours before the first missiles struck Caracas.

The bets resulted in “more than $404,000 of profits,” the complaint says.

“The defendant was entrusted with confidential information about U.S. operations and yet took action that endangered U.S. national security and put the lives of American service members in harm’s way,” said Michael Selig, the commission’s chairman.

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Associated Press reporters Allen G. Breed in Raleigh, Ed White in Detroit and John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio, contributed.

The National Weather Service office in Detroit/Pontiac has issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Lenawee County in southeastern Michigan, in effect until 4:30 p.m. EDT.

At 3:24 p.m., radar indicated a severe thunderstorm located over Clayton, or near Hudson, moving northeast at 35 mph. The storm is capable of producing wind gusts up to 60 mph.

Forecasters warn that these strong winds could cause damage to roofs, siding, and trees.

The storm is expected to reach Adrian and Clayton around 3:30 p.m., Tecumseh by 3:40 p.m., and Clinton Township and Britton around 3:50 p.m. Deerfield could be impacted by 4 p.m.

Other locations in the storm’s path include Manitou Beach–Devils Lake, Macon, Canandaigua, Ridgeway, Palmyra, Tipton, Sand Creek, Rome Center, Medina, and Springville.

Residents are urged to seek shelter immediately. The National Weather Service recommends moving to an interior room on the lowest floor of a sturdy building.

The storm may also produce small hail, with maximum sizes under three-quarters of an inch.

A severe thunderstorm warning indicates that severe weather is occurring or imminent. People in the affected area should take precautions to protect life and property.

Click here for the latest forecast from our 4Warn Weather team.

Here’s a list of the alerts by county.

Wayne County

• No active weather alerts.

Oakland County

• No active weather alerts.

Macomb County

• No active weather alerts.

Washtenaw County

• No active weather alerts.

Monroe County

• No active weather alerts.

Livingston County

• No active weather alerts.

Lenawee County

• No active weather alerts.

Lapeer County

• No active weather alerts.

Genesee County

• No active weather alerts.

St. Clair County

• No active weather alerts.

Sanilac County

• No active weather alerts.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.8% and topped its prior all-time high, which was set on Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 79 points, or 0.2%, and the Nasdaq composite rallied 1.6% to its own record thanks to the jump for tech.

Intel led the way and roared past its 2000 peak during the dot-com boom to an all-time high. It soared 23.6% for its best day since 1987 after reporting much stronger results for the first three months of the year than analysts expected. CEO Lip-Bu Tan said the next wave of artificial-intelligence technology is increasing the need for Intel’s chips and products, and the company’s forecast for profit in the spring topped analysts’ estimates.

Such strong profit reports have helped Wall Street rally to records, and the S&P 500 has leaped nearly 13% in a little under a month. Hopes have also built in financial markets that the United States and Iran can find a way to avoid a worst-case scenario for the global economy because of their war.

A ceasefire is tenuously in place between the two, but tensions between them are still keeping oil tankers from passing through the Strait of Hormuz to deliver crude from the Persian Gulf to customers worldwide.

Oil prices climbed this week on worries about the strait, but an encouraging signal came Friday after Iran’s top diplomat said he was heading to Pakistan. That’s where officials have been trying to get the United States and Iran to convene for a second round of ceasefire negotiations.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt later said in an interview on Fox News Channel that President Donald Trump is sending his envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Pakistan to meet with Iran’s foreign minister.

The price for a barrel of Brent crude to be delivered in June yo-yoed for much of the day before settling at $105.33, up 0.2%. The price for a barrel of Brent oil delivered in July, which is where more of the trading is happening in the market, fell 0.2% to $99.13.

On Wall Street, Procter & Gamble rose 2.5% after reporting stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. CEO Shailesh Jejurikar said it saw broad-based growth across regions and products, which include Bounty paper towels and Tide detergent.

That helped offset a drop of 25.5% for Charter Communications, whose profit for the latest quarter came in weaker than analysts expected. It lost 120,000 internet customers during the three months, more than some analysts expected.

Hartford Insurance Group fell 3.7% after reporting profit growth for the latest quarter that fell short of analysts’ expectations.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 56.68 points to 7,165.08. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 79.61 to 49,230.71, and the Nasdaq composite rallied 398.09 to 24,836.60.

In the bond market, Treasury yields eased as traders upped their bets on the possibility that the Federal Reserve could resume its cuts to interest rates later this year.

The path appeared to clear Friday for Trump’s nominee to chair the Fed, Kevin Warsh, after the U.S. Justice Department ended its probe into the Fed’s current chair, Jerome Powell.

Sen. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, has said he would oppose Warsh until the investigation was resolved, effectively blocking his confirmation. Warsh is the choice of Trump, who has been arguing loudly for lower interest rates, which could help mortgages and other kinds of loans become less expensive.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury dipped to 4.30% from 4.34% late Thursday.

A report in the morning also said sentiment among U.S. consumers remains sour. A survey by the University of Michigan found weaker sentiment in April across political party, income, age, and education, though it improved a bit after the ceasefire in the war with Iran was announced earlier in the month.

In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed across Europe and Asia. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 1%, and France’s CAC 40 fell 0.8% for two of the world’s bigger moves.

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AP Business Writers Chan Ho-him and Matt Ott contributed to this report.

France will remain as NASCAR's chairman and his majority ownership stake will not change.

O'Donnell will be the first person outside the France family to hold the CEO title of NASCAR. Bill France Sr. founded the United States' most popular racing series in 1948 and always had a family member in the top role prior to the changes expected to be announced at Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama on Saturday.

Ben Kennedy, France's great-nephew, will be promoted to chief operating officer.

Jim France had been chairman and CEO of NASCAR since the 2019 resignation of his nephew, Brian.

France took a hardline stance in negotiations for the 2025 revenue-sharing agreement, triggering an anti-trust lawsuit by Michael Jordan's 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports. The sides reached a settlement in December that granted NASCAR teams the permanent charters they had sought.

France was soft spoken, needed several questions repeated and struggled to remember several topics during his first day of testimony in the anti-trust trial before a stronger second day.

NASCAR Commissioner Steve Phelps resigned earlier this year after inflammatory texts he sent during contentious revenue-sharing negotiations were revealed during the trial.

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AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

The Richmond school’s board of visitors voted Friday to fund what VCU calls the East Marshall Street Well Project, an effort to right wrongs committed more than a century ago. Construction of the memorial and burial site are expected to start in summer of 2027.

“Years ago, VCU initiated this journey because we recognized a profound obligation to restore the human dignity of the people who were not afforded respect in their physical existence," VCU President Michael Rao said in a story about the effort posted on the school's website. "The East Marshall Street Well Project’s sacred mission is to ensure every life is honored with the permanence and reverence they deserve.”

The circular memorial will feature a “unity chamber” inspired by the Toguna structures of Dogon culture in West Africa. Its design “is intended to encourage humility and thoughtful discussion by purposefully having a low roof to facilitate seated reflection,” said Stephen Davenport, assistant vice president for social and economic development in the VCU Division of Community Engagement and the administrative lead for the project.

Workers in 1994 uncovered a brick-lined well containing human bones during construction of the Kontos Medical Sciences Building on the VCU medical center campus. Sifting through mud, researchers also found hair and skin, as well as remnants of leather shoes and glass bottles.

Based on archival records from the Medical College of Virginia, researchers believe the remains were dumped in the well between the 1840s and 1860s.

“A preliminary anthropological analysis of the recovered human remains showed some postmortem signs of dissection and amputation consistent with anatomical training and surgical procedure practice,” VCU researchers concluded in a paper published this year. “The constant demand for cadavers led to routine grave robbing practices, mainly targeting African American burial grounds, to supply the medical school.”

Archaeologists were given a short time to examine the burial site after the 1994 discovery. Before construction continued, the remains were removed by backhoes and sent to the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Initial analysis estimated that a minimum of 44 adults and nine children were recovered from the well.

Interest in the remains was renewed in 2011 after the release of a film by a VCU professor and a separate report by two forensic anthropologists.

DNA study results released in February identified at least 43 distinct adults and three juveniles of “predominantly African heritage,” most likely from Central-West Africa. Several sets of remains bore traces of European ancestry.

Skeletal analysis “provided insight into the heavy labor endured by these individuals during their lives and the disregard for their bodies after death,” the study found.

The use of the bodies of people of African descent for medical research in Europe and the U.S. stretches back centuries. And it was frequently done without the expressed permission or knowledge of descendants.

In 2024, the University of Pennsylvania laid to rest the remains of 19 Black Philadelphians it kept for research, including studies once used to promote white supremacy through racist scientific theories.

The same school also discovered it had the bones of people who died in a 1985 police bombing of the headquarters of a Black liberation group in Philadelphia. City officials had assured the victims' families that they had turned over all of the remains that were collected, according to lawyers who represented the families.

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Associated Press reporters John Raby and Aaron Morrison contributed to this report.

The Justice Department alleges the civil rights group defrauded donors by using their money to fund the very extremism it claimed to be fighting, with more than $3 million paid to informants through a now-defunct program to infiltrate white supremacist and other extremist groups. Prosecutors allege some of the money was used by extremists to carry out other crimes, but court papers did not include specific examples.

“The SPLC was not dismantling these groups. It was instead manufacturing the extremism it purports to oppose by paying sources to stoke racial hatred,” Blanche said.

The civil rights group faces charges of wire fraud, bank fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering in the case brought in the federal court in Alabama, where the organization is based.

The indictment came shortly after the SPLC revealed the existence of a criminal investigation into its disbanded informant program to gather intelligence on extremist group activities. The group said the program was used to monitor threats of violence and the information was often shared with local and federal law enforcement.

The SPLC said it “will vigorously defend ourselves, our staff, and our work" against what it described as false allegations. The group said its informant program saved lives.

“Taking on violent hate and extremist groups is among the most dangerous work there is, and we believe it is also among the most important work we do,” interim CEO and president Bryan Fair said in a statement. “The actions by the DOJ will not shake our resolve to fight for justice and ensure the promise of the Civil Rights Movement becomes a reality for all."

A program that dated back to the 1980s

The Justice Department alleges the SPLC made false statements to banks in order to set up accounts used to funnel money to informants. The group created bank accounts for fictitious entities such as “Fox Photography” and “Rare Books Warehouse” that were used to send money from donors to informants, in a scheme to conceal the money’s actual purpose, the indictment alleges.

Prosecutors say the group never disclosed to donors details of the informant program.

“They’re required to under the laws associated with a nonprofit to have certain transparency and honesty in what they’re telling donors they’re going to spend money on and what their mission statement is and what they’re raising money doing,” Blanche said.

The indictment includes details on at least nine unnamed informants were paid by the SPLC through a secret program that prosecutors say began in the 1980s. Within the SPLC, they were known as field sources or “the Fs,” according to the indictment.

One informant was paid more than $1 million between 2014 and 2023 while affiliated with the neo-Nazi National Alliance, the indictment said. Prosecutors say another informant was a member of the “online leadership chat group” that planned the 2017 white nationalist “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. The informant attended the rally at the direction of the SPLC, according to the indictment, and helped coordinate transportation for several others. That person was allegedly paid more than $270,000 between 2015 and 2023.

The SPLC said the program was kept quiet to protect the safety of informants.

“When we began working with informants, we were living in the shadow of the height of the Civil Rights Movement, which had seen bombings at churches, state-sponsored violence against demonstrators, and the murders of activists that went unanswered by the justice system,” Fair said. “There is no question that what we learned from informants saved lives.”

The center has been targeted by Republicans

The SPLC, which is based in Montgomery, Alabama, was founded in 1971 and used civil litigation to fight white supremacist groups. The nonprofit has become a popular target among Republicans who see it as overly leftist and partisan.

The investigation could add to concerns that Trump's Republican administration is using the Justice Department to go after conservative opponents and his critics. It follows a number of other investigations into Trump foes that have raised questions about whether the law enforcement agency has been turned into a political weapon.

The SPLC has faced intense criticism from conservatives, who have accused it of unfairly maligning right-wing organizations as extremist groups because of their viewpoints. The center regularly condemns Trump’s rhetoric and policies around voting rights, immigration and other issues.

The center came under fresh scrutiny after the assassination last year of conservative activist Charlie Kirk brought renewed attention to its characterization of the group that Kirk founded and led. The center included a section on that group, Turning Point USA, in a report titled “The Year in Hate and Extremism 2024” that described the group as “A Case Study of the Hard Right in 2024.”

FBI Director Kash Patel said last year that the agency was severing its relationship with the center, which had long provided law enforcement with research on hate crime and domestic extremism. Patel said the center had been turned into a “partisan smear machine,” and he accused it of defaming “mainstream Americans” with its “hate map” that documents alleged anti-government and hate groups inside the United States.

House Republicans hosted a hearing centered on the SPLC in December, saying it coordinated efforts with President Joe Biden's Democratic administration "to target Christian and conservative Americans and deprive them of their constitutional rights to free speech and free association.” _____

Boone reported from Boise, Idaho.

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This story was first published April 21, 2026. It was updated April 24, 2026, to correct that an informant was allegedly paid more than $270,000 between 2015 and 2023, not between 2015 and 2013.

The PGA of America on Friday afternoon confirmed an Associated Press report on Furyk's selection, which makes him the fourth U.S. captain to get a second chance dating to 1979, considered the modern era of the Ryder Cup when continental Europe became part of it.

The Ryder Cup committee chose Furyk once Tiger Woods removed himself from competition after his March 27 arrest on suspicion of DUI.

“My passion for the Ryder Cup and dedication to the U.S. team have never been stronger," Furyk said in a statement. "Having previously captained the team, I understand the responsibilities and immense pride that come with this role. I look forward to drawing on that experience while incorporating some new ideas as we prepare for 2027.

"I am committed to putting our players in the best position to succeed as we work to reclaim the cup on European soil.”

Furyk was the 2018 captain in Paris, a 17 1/2-10 1/2 win by Europe. That week was marked by the four U.S. captain's picks going 2-10-0 at Le Golf National and Patrick Reed blaming Jordan Spieth for them not playing together and Furyk for benching him twice.

Furyk led the Americans to victory as Presidents Cup captain in 2024, and he was said to be a reliable voice as an assistant to U.S. captain Keegan Bradley in the last Ryder Cup. Europe built a record seven-point lead after two days last year at Bethpage Black and held on for its second straight victory under captain Luke Donald, who returns for a third stint in Ireland.

Bradley was a surprise choice for the 2025 matches after the PGA of America waited until the summer of 2024 to see if Woods wanted the job.

This time around, the PGA of America set a soft deadline for the end of March for Woods to decide, and its backup plan was to have a list of candidates for the Ryder Cup committee to consider if Woods chose not to be captain.

It was not known which way Woods was leaning when his SUV clipped the back of a trailer being pulled by a pickup truck on a residential road in Florida, turning his SUV on its side. Woods was arrested and briefly jailed after Florida authorities determined he was impaired.

Four days later, Woods said he was stepping away indefinitely “to seek treatment and focus on my health," and the PGA of America announced Woods had told them he would not be captain.

"Jim Furyk has been an influential figure in the United States team room for nearly three decades,” PGA vice president Nathan Charnes said, referring to Furyk being part of every Ryder Cup team dating to 1997 — nine times as a player, four times as an assistant, once as a captain. “He is a trusted, widely-respected leader and possesses a wealth of Ryder Cup experience that can only serve to strengthen our team."

Davis Love III (2012 and 2016), Tom Watson (1993 and 2014) and Jack Nicklaus (1983 and 1987) are the other U.S. captains to have the job twice since 1979.

Love and Nicklaus had Ryder Cup matches at home both times. Furyk faces the daunting task of trying to win a Ryder Cup on the road, which the Americans have not done since 1993.

The Americans were coming off a resounding victory at Hazeltine in 2016 when it went over to Le Golf National, set up with narrow fairways and thick rough. After getting out to a 3-1 lead, the Americans never won another session.

Woods, coming off his victory the week before at the Tour Championship, went 0-4. Phil Mickelson went 0-2 and Bryson DeChambeau was 0-3. All were captain's picks. DeChambeau had won two FedEx Cup playoff events leading into the matches.

Europe has won 11 of the last 15 matches dating to Oak Hill in 1995. Donald will try to become the first captain to win three straight times in September 2027 at Adare Manor.

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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

While passage through the canal usually comes at a flat rate via reservations, companies without bookings can pay more to cross through an auction that awards slots to the highest bidder. The alternative would be waiting for days off the coast of Panama City.

The demand for slots skyrocketed and the auction prices ballooned in recent weeks as a standoff between the Iran and the United States over access to the strait kept traffic bottlenecked. Commercial vessels increasingly have traveled through the Panama Canal carrying shipments that were rerouted or purchased from different countries to avoid the waterway off Iran's coast.

“With all the bombings, the missiles, the drones ... companies are saying it’s safer and less expensive to cross through the Panama Canal,” said Rodrigo Noriega, a lawyer and analyst in Panama City. “All of this is affecting global supply chains.”

Meanwhile, Panama's government is “maximizing what it can earn from the Panama Canal," Noriega said.

The average price to cross through the canal ranges between $300,000 and $400,000 depending on the vessel. Previously, to get an earlier crossing, businesses would pay an additional $250,000 to $300,000. In recent weeks, the average additional cost has jumped to around $425,000.

Normally, about 6% of global trade passes through the Panama Canal, which connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans in Central America, according to Patrick Penfield, professor of supply chain practice at Syracuse University. The canal has recovered from several years of drought, he added.

Goods like car parts, grain and consumer electronics being shipped from China to Europe or vice versa, or from China to the U.S. East Coast, pass through the canal.

Some oil passes moves through the Panama Canal, but it isn't a viable large-scale alternative to the Strait of Hormuz because of its size. The largest ships that carry oil, known as ultra-large container vessels, are too big for the canal.

Ricaurte Vásquez, the canal’s administrator, said one company that he would not name paid an extra $4 million when its fuel vessel had to change its destination because of ongoing geopolitical tensions.

"It was a ship carrying fuel to Europe, and they redirected it to Singapore, and it needed to get there because Singapore is running out of fuel,” he said.

Other oil companies paid an excess of $3 million in addition to the crossing fee to accelerate their passage in the face of soaring oil prices.

The extra fees are becoming so high not because ships are piling up at the canal, but rather because of last-minute shifts and greater urgency for vessels to pass through in the wake of broader trade chaos, Vásquez said. He emphasized that these costs were temporarily being shouldered by companies based on their level of urgency.

"They decide how high to go on the price,” Vásquez said.

At the same time as Panama's government is earning more money from the newly brisk business in the canal, its shipping industry is being confronted by the geopolitical struggle in the same way as those of other countries.

Panama's foreign ministry on Wednesday accused Iran of illegally seizing a Panama-flagged vessel from the Italian company, MSC Francesca, in the Strait of Hormuz. Panama, which has one of the world's largest ship registries, said the ship was “forcibly taken" by Iran. It wasn’t immediately clear if the boat remained in Iranian custody.

“This represents a serious attack on maritime security and constitutes unnecessary escalation at a time when the international community is advocating for the Strait of Hormuz to remain open to international navigation without threats or coercion of any kind,” it said.

Noriega, the analyst, said that the amount companies are paying to cross the Panama Canal may continue to go up if the conflict stretches on, as oil prices are already skyrocketing. The price of a barrel of Brent crude oil briefly jumped above $107 this week, soaring from around $66 a barrel a year ago.

Nobody expected the war to have quite so much effect on global trade, Noriega said.

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Mae Anderson in New York contributed reporting.

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Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

The executive order, which acting Attorney General Todd Blanche signed Thursday, does not address current penalties for possessing and selling marijuana or those jailed with yearslong sentences.

“While this is a victory, the fight is far from over," said Jason Ortiz, director of strategic initiatives for the Last Prisoner Project, a nonprofit focused on cannabis criminal justice reform.

Proponents of legalizing marijuana as well as overhauling prison sentencing say this order, which does not completely decriminalize the drug, benefits only cannabis researchers, growers and others in Big Weed. Meanwhile, thousands — many of whom are people of color — are stuck serving harsh sentences for marijuana-related offenses. Or they have served their time but having a conviction on their record has made life difficult.

Now, advocates are calling on Congress and state lawmakers to take concrete steps to ensure those with marijuana-related convictions receive fair treatment or be forgiven altogether.

Prisoners and their families look for hope

Blanche's order reclassifies state-licensed medical marijuana as a less-dangerous drug. The major policy shift, which both Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden had considered, means cannabis won’t be grouped with drugs like heroin.

But it does not legalize marijuana for medical or recreational use. It shifts licensed medical marijuana from Schedule I — reserved for drugs without medical use and with high potential for abuse — to the less strictly regulated Schedule III. This will likely give licensed medical marijuana operators and cannabis researchers a major tax break and less stringent barriers to doing normal business.

Virtually no one imprisoned at the federal level is there solely for marijuana possession. But many are there for large-scale possession, trafficking offenses or both.

Hector Ruben McGurk, 66, has been serving life without the possibility of parole since 2007 for transporting thousands of pounds of marijuana and money laundering. He is currently imprisoned in Beaumont, Texas, over 800 miles (1,290 kilometers) from his son's El Paso home. His incarceration has been hard on his son, said McGurk's daughter-in-law, Ferna Anguiano. And the distance makes visits logistically difficult.

So it's tempting to see this order as a glimmer of hope, given that the family believes McGurk's punishment far outweighs his crimes. But Anguiano has no idea how to navigate lobbying for his release.

“His release date is death," Anguiano said. “I mean, we see all this stuff on the news — bigger cases, fatal cases — and people are going in and out of prison and coming out to their families.”

They try to keep in touch through phone calls and a prison texting service. They're concerned about McGurk's health and his diabetes management. It would be a dream come true for him to come home.

“He deserves a second chance,” Anguiano said. “Yes, it was a poor decision he did in his lifetime. He was younger. But he is not a bad person. I think it's fair to say he has served enough time for it.”

It's not clear whether punishments would be different had marijuana always been scheduled differently, drug policy experts say.

“In addition to schedule-specific penalties, there are marijuana-specific penalties that have nothing to do with the schedule,” said Cat Packer, director of drug markets and legal regulation at the nonprofit Drug Policy Alliance. “Even if marijuana were to be moved to Schedule V, those criminal penalties would still exist and there are mandatory minimums for simple possession.”

Racial disparities exist in convictions and Big Weed

Destigmatizing marijuana has long been an issue for both political parties. Obama commuted the sentences of about 1,900 federal prisoners, almost all of whom were incarcerated for nonviolent drug crimes. Biden pardoned 6,500 people convicted of use and simple possession of marijuana on federal lands and in the District of Columbia. President Donald Trump's administration has taken far fewer drug clemency actions and does not have an overarching policy directing such actions.

“What many people on the right and the left would like is to move marijuana from this ‘just as bad as heroin’ category and to just sort of de-schedule it entirely,” said Marta Nelson, director of sentencing reform at the Vera Institute of Justice. “Regulate it like you do alcohol or tobacco.”

Studies show Black Americans are roughly 3.7 to 4 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than white Americans, despite usage rates being roughly the same across racial groups. Federal-level marijuana cases are pretty small today, but those serving sentences for federal drug offenses are overwhelmingly Hispanic and Black, according to Justice Department and Bureau of Justice Statistics data.

The racial disparity with drug convictions is reminiscent of 2010 legislation Obama signed reducing the gap between mandatory sentences for crack cocaine versus powder cocaine. In 2018, Trump made it apply retroactively.

Because business owners with state medical marijuana licenses are predominantly white, the tax relief created by the rescheduling will also likely give a leg-up to mostly white businesses, Packer said. A lot of equity programs won't apply.

“This is going to, in my mind, widen the gap, the financial disparities, the business disparities that currently exist between Black and brown, Latino and white owners in the cannabis industry because licenses were not distributed equitably,” Packer said.

Possible next steps for marijuana convictions

In theory, Trump could issue a blanket pardon like he did for Jan. 6 rioters. But Nelson thinks that is highly doubtful.

“Having marijuana convictions on the record for things like mass immigration enforcement is helpful to the administration,” Nelson said.

An impactful next step would be for Congress to outline very comprehensive legislation addressing existing marijuana-related convictions, expungements and industry regulations, she added.

The Last Prisoner Project and other organizations are planning to renew a dialogue with federal lawmakers, including the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, which includes Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar and Republican Rep. David Joyce. They will also continue to lobby for Trump to conduct a large-scale act of commutation and clemency.

Advocates are also hoping Trump's order will prompt every state to rethink their marijuana classification and penalties.

“It is imperative that every state review their situation, as a lot of their controlled substances at the state level are tied to the federal government,” Ortiz said. “We’re gonna see other states that are going to need a little help from the public to remind them what the right thing to do is.”

Darion Baldwin did not go to school on Friday (April 24) and failed to return home in the 19900 block of Fairport Street.

He was last seen wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, black pants, black shoes, and carrying a black backpack.

Anyone with information should contact the Detroit Police Department’s 9th Precinct at 313-596-5940 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-Speak Up.

All tips to Crime Stoppers are anonymous. Click here to submit a tip online.

READ: More Missing in Michigan coverage

Maj. Kenneth Chungag, a nurse who lives and works on Fort Belvoir in Virginia, is accused of using his military training and experience to assist the Ambazonia Defense Forces in Cameroon.

Chungag is “greatly dismayed by these charges and looks forward to a timely and just resolution of the matter,” defense attorney Robert Jenkins told The Associated Press in an email Friday.

Chungag, a 50-year-old naturalized U.S. citizen, and co-defendant Mercy Akwi Ombaku were arrested Monday on federal conspiracy charges. A magistrate judge ordered their release from custody after initial court appearances in Alexandria, Virginia. Prosecutors didn’t seek their pretrial detention.

In 2020, Chungag was stationed at Fort Meade in Maryland when he first expressed interest in assisting members of the ADF, according to the FBI affidavit. In online chats with ADF members in Cameroon, Chungag falsely claimed to have combat experience in Iraq but appeared to be embellishing his military background to raise his profile in the group, the affidavit says.

Chungag is accused of plotting with Ombaku, a Maryland resident, to transfer money from the U.S. to Cameroon for the purchase of AK-47 assault rifles. Investigators believe Chungag grew disillusioned and withdrew from the organization in 2024. Later that year, FBI agents questioned him about his ADF-related activities. Investigators believe he tried to destroy incriminating evidence by deleting ADF-related messages from his phone after the FBI contacted him.

Cameroon, with a population of roughly 31 million, has been ruled by Paul Biya since 1982, making him one of Africa’s longest-serving rulers. The ADF is a separatist military organization in southern Cameroon fighting for the Anglophone region to break away from the central African country.

The separatist movement dates back to the early 1960s, when the British Southern Cameroons, a United Nations trust territory previously governed as part of Nigeria’s eastern region, was joined with Cameroon. In 2017, English-speaking separatists launched a rebellion aimed at establishing an independent state. The conflict has killed at least 6,500 people and displaced over 600,000 others, according to the Belgium-based International Crisis Group.

Pope Leo XIV on his recent Africa trip presided over a peace meeting last Thursday with community leaders in one of the two Anglophone regions. During the pope’s visit, separatist groups announced a three-day pause in fighting.

Chungag has worked as a nurse at a Fort Belvoir community hospital, according to a base spokesperson. The spokesperson referred questions about Chungag’s employment status to the medical center, which didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

Ombaku, a healthcare worker who also is a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Cameroon, is charged with conspiring with Chungag to financially support the ADF. She denied having any ADF affiliation when the FBI questioned her last July. An attorney for Ombaku, 38, of New Carrollton, Maryland, didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

Fort Belvoir is located about 20 miles (32 kilometers) south of Washington along the Potomac River.

___

Adetayo reported from Lagos, Nigeria.

Lovell Pope left his residence in the 19500 block of Huntington Road without permission on Thursday (April 23) and did not return home.

He was last seen wearing all dark clothing.

Anyone with information should contact the Detroit Police Department’s 8th Precinct at 313-596-5840 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-Speak Up.

All tips to Crime Stoppers are anonymous. Click here to submit a tip online.

READ: More Missing in Michigan coverage

Shouldn't TMZ have been in Washington already?

The tabloid gossip site that reinvented Hollywood and celebrity gossip coverage is taking a swing at the nation's capital of late with TMZ DC, deploying staff to confront lawmakers paparazzi-style in Washington and turning to the public to capture candid images of politicians living it up on the road. The push has already created viral moments, including an image of Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., holding a wand at Disney World as chaos gripped airport security lines because of congressional inaction on a funding bill.

On Friday, TMZ put its Beltway foray on display at the Pentagon, with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth calling on the outlet and singling them out as “new members of our press group here” — a subtle dig that mirrored his not-so-subtle campaign criticism of legacy media outlets.

Washington and Hollywood have long had an awkward relationship, with players in each power center harboring insecurities and misunderstandings about the other as politics and entertainment have steadily merged into a single cultural force.

Earlier efforts by TMZ to build a Washington bureau faltered. But this time may prove different.

President Donald Trump’s return to the White House further normalizes a particular brand of celebrity culture in the nation’s capital that made him a tabloid fixture for decades. Moreover, Congress is currently gripped by scandal, with three lawmakers resigning in April alone after varying allegations, which include sexual misconduct and fraud.

Also, Gallup polling released this week found that disapproval of Congress has climbed to 86%, tying the record high. Only 33% of U.S. adults approve of Trump's overall job performance, according to AP-NORC polling released this week. That’s a decline of 9 percentage points since early in Trump’s second term.

Washington's institutions are held in low regard

With Washington's institutions held in such low regard, the bigger surprise may be that TMZ hasn't attempted such a flex here sooner.

“I am legitimately surprised they weren't already there,” said Ana Marie Cox, who wrote the Wonkette blog, which covered Washington with an irreverence that was rare in the early 2000s. “They're actually a little bit late to the game.”

A representative for TMZ did not respond to a request for comment.

TMZ was founded in 2005 and is still run by hard-charging Los Angeles lawyer and media figure Harvey Levin, who has had an off-and-on relationship with Trump. Within a decade, TMZ made its name with a combination of sleazy and sensational celebrity news. Early in its life, TMZ broke stories that included antisemitic statements made by actor Mel Gibson during an arrest and an angry voicemail message left by actor Alec Baldwin to his daughter.

But the site, whose initials reference the 30-mile zone from the historic center of the television and film industry in Los Angeles, really established itself by breaking news of Michael Jackson’s death in 2009 and the drug use that led to it.

Its tactics can cross traditional journalistic boundaries, particularly when it comes to paying sources. Beyond the professional breach involved with such arrangements, the payments could run afoul of congressional ethics rules. Levin has not denied paying for story tips, which is frowned upon by traditional journalism outlets.

And TMZ has also had some high-profile failures, including reports that Beyoncé would perform at the 2024 Democratic National Convention, which didn’t happen.

Some of TMZ's work is being applauded

Yet some of TMZ's early work in Washington is being applauded.

Robert Thompson, a trustee professor of television and popular culture at Syracuse University, said the photo of Graham at Disney World was genuinely newsworthy because it showed lawmakers away from Washington during a political crisis. A representative for Graham didn't respond to a request for comment.

TMZ published images of lawmakers from both parties who left Washington during the recent congressional recess that overlapped with the ongoing Department of Homeland Security shutdown. Beyond Graham, the site published pictures of Democratic Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Rep. Robert Garcia of California.

TMZ is not currently credentialed by the congressional press galleries. That limits its Washington coverage to walk-and-talk interviews on the sidewalks outside the Capitol or in the hallways of public office buildings — a feature of its ambush-style celebrity interviews.

Some of the interviews are entertaining for audiences who are in on the bit. In one video this week, Rep. Troy Downing, R-Mont., seemed confused by questions about a party hosted by the gay dating and hookup site Grindr ahead of this weekend's White House Correspondents' Dinner.

“I don't understand,” Downing said. “Are they a media company?”

Others go in unexpected, sometimes touchingly personal, directions. When Rep. Lateefah Simon, D-Calif., was asked how lawmakers celebrate the 4/20 marijuana holiday, she spoke of how the day marked the anniversary of her father's death.

“4/20 is the day that my daddy died,” she said. “My dad was an amazing man in San Francisco. I think about him every single time there's 4/20.”

And sometimes the gotcha nature of the reports backfires. Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., was among the lawmakers whose image was captured away from Washington during the DHS shutdown. He was shown at his son’s basketball game, prompting defense from colleagues, including Republicans, who said he shouldn’t be shamed for being a present father.

At Friday’s briefing, TMZ’s Charlie Cotton eagerly played into Hegseth’s branding of “the Department of War,” and the Trump administration’s claim that the war in Iran is necessary. “Would you consider changing the name again to the Department of Peace since that’s what we’re all after?” Cotton asked.

Hegseth gushed over the “great question” and declared that “the one institution that should win the Nobel Peace Prize every single year is the United States military.”

The long history of the ambush interview

The TMZ approach isn't particularly new. Longtime CBS correspondent Mike Wallace made a habit of the so-called ambush interview, catching unprepared subjects on camera.

Before he broke the news of an extramarital affair that would doom Democrat Gary Hart's 1988 presidential campaign, Tom Fiedler confronted the Colorado senator in a Washington alley. A reporter for the Miami Herald at the time, Fiedler said he “didn't set out to do that.”

“We simply found ourselves in that situation,” he recalled this week. “At that point, we knew that he knew we were there to observe what he was doing. Our feeling was we needed to let him know who we were so he wouldn't think there was, in the worst case, an attempted assassin stalking him.”

Nearly 40 years later, journalism in Washington is drastically different.

The Washington Post cut nearly a third of its staff in February in a brutal blow to the legendary newsroom. Other outlets are growing. The website NOTUS is rebranding as The Star, with ambitions to fill the gap left by the Post, particularly in local and sports coverage.

Cox, the former Wonkette blogger, is now a writer living in Austin, Texas. Reflecting on her time in Washington, she said her goal was to “demystify politics and show that these are people who don't necessarily deserve our respect.”

But she expressed concern about coverage whose tone reinforces the eye-rolling aspects of Washington. If she were starting Wonkette today, she said, “I don't think I'd be as funny.”

“Funny is how we got here,” she said. “Making fun of Donald Trump did not work.”

___

AP Media Writer Dave Bauder and Bill Barrow contributed to this report.

At a press gathering April 16, President Donald Trump was asked about “10 missing scientists with access to classified stuff, nuclear material, aerospace, they've all gone missing or turned up dead in the last couple of months" and whether he thought there were ties among them.

“Well, I hope it's random, but we're going to know in the next week and a half, ” Trump said.

Those speculating about the cases suggest that the individuals were targeted, perhaps by global U.S. adversaries, because of the sensitive nature of their work related to topics such as astrophysics, nuclear weapons and pharmaceuticals. But so far no evidence has been found that definitively links them or establishes coordinated foul play.

Jen Golbeck, a professor at the University of Maryland who studies conspiracy theories, said the idea of a sinister connection between tragedies involving scientists is a common trope within conspiracy theory communities.

“There are a lot of people who work for national labs and universities and government research centers and some of them will go missing or commit suicide or die,” she said. “Any year you could take a bunch of those and name them as something sinister if you wanted to."

The path from niche online communities to the mainstream

The deaths and disappearances in question garnered suspicion from online sleuths as they occurred, but it was the disappearance of 68-year-old William “Neil” McCasland, a retired Air Force general, on Feb. 27 that fueled a wider belief that there could be a nefarious connection between these incidents, spurred in part by his high-ranking military work and connection to the UFO community.

Around this time people began pointing to other examples of scientists who had died or gone missing, ultimately going as far back as June 2022.

The Daily Mail published an article on March 22 naming five individuals and reporting that “a chilling pattern has emerged after a string of US scientists died or went missing in recent months.”

On April 15, a question about the missing or dead individuals came up at a White House press briefing and by the next day Trump said he had met with advisers and the issue was being investigated. FBI Director Kash Patel reiterated the importance of looking for connections in these cases Sunday on Fox News. The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform is conducting its own investigation.

“That’s pretty typical for how a lot of this stuff works, is that there are these fringe online spaces, they start it, it spreads, it gets picked up by ... the more conspiratorial-minded politicians who do have platforms and makes its way onto more mainstream social media and then grabs that attention,” said Golbeck.

Callie Kalny, co-director of the Center of Media Psychology and Social Influence at Northwestern University, agreed that these conspiracy theories are following a familiar pattern of starting in more niche venues before finding their way into the national conversation.

“Once it’s made it to the mainstream and once we experience this repeat exposure to it, it sort of just embeds into our minds as something that maybe we just take as fact or we just take as something that is common knowledge without ever really critically thinking well, where did this come from to begin with? And is there any validity to this?” she said.

Correlation does not imply causation

There are some parallels among the dozen or so individuals at the heart of these conspiracy theories, such as associations with Los Alamos National Laboratory and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and some of those named had specialized knowledge and high-level security clearances. But the list contains many reasons to doubt the claims spreading online.

In some of the cases, investigations had already been conducted, with suspects identified or charged. In others, no connections were apparent or evidence was lacking or not as convincing as it first appeared.

For example, Nuno F.G. Loureiro, a physicist and fusion scientist who was a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is on the list. He was fatally shot on Dec. 15 by Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, who was also responsible for a mass shooting at Brown University days prior. Neves Valente took his own life. A motive has not been established, but the two men knew each other decades earlier as classmates in Portugal studying physics.

Carl Grillmair, an astrophysicist at the California Institute of Technology who discovered water on a distant planet, was fatally shot on Feb. 16, according to local reports. Authorities charged 29-year-old Freddy Snyder with Grillmair’s murder and carjacking. Snyder is being held on a multimillion-dollar bond.

Melissa Casias, then 53, went missing on June 26 in New Mexico. She worked at Los Alamos National Laboratory and while some online assumed she was a scientist there, according to her LinkedIn profile Casias actually worked as an administrative assistant.

As for McCasland, he left home without his phone, prescription glasses and wearable devices, according to the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office. His hiking boots, wallet and a .38 caliber revolver could not be found at the house. There is no evidence indicating foul play and he remains missing.

McCasland’s wife, Susan Wilkerson, wrote in a Facebook post on March 6 responding to online rumors that since his retirement 13 years ago, McCasland “has had only very commonly held clearances” and that “it seems quite unlikely that he was taken to extract very dated secrets from him.” She added that although he “had a brief association with the UFO community,” he does not have any privileged knowledge about aliens.

“In the face of tragedy or uncertainty, people seek patterns and explanations rather than accepting ambiguity or coincidence,” said Donnell Probst, executive director of the National Association for Media Literacy Education. “Narratives suggesting hidden connections or intentional wrongdoing can feel more satisfying than incomplete or evolving information, even without supporting evidence.”

The former executive assistant shared details about the pregnancy during an interview with ABC News’ Linsey Davis, which aired on Good Morning America on Friday, April 24, 2026.

Shiver said during the affair, she became pregnant with the former head coach’s child, but the pregnancy was complicated by a rare genetic disorder called Pompe disease.

It’s a “genetic condition in which a complex sugar called glycogen builds up in the lysosomes of your body’s cells,” according to the Cleveland Clinic.

It can cause severe muscle weakness, and “without early detection and treatment, the disease can be fatal,” according to the Cleveland Clinic.

Due to this, Shiver terminated the pregnancy.

“Multiple doctors and experts told me that it wouldn’t be right or healthy for me to keep the baby,” Shiver said in the interview.

When Davis asked Shiver if she wanted to keep the baby, Shiver became emotional and started to cry as she said, “Yeah.”

Moore responded to this by telling Shiver that she had to do what’s best for her body, according to the former staffer.

Shiver also revealed additional information about their years-long relationship, saying Moore had “complete control” over her, and that colleagues in leadership positions were aware of their relationship.

Read more --> Paige Shiver interview: 16 takeaways from Sherrone Moore’s former assistant

Every parent knows that driving school can be expensive, so that’s why Kajy Law wants to pay for your child to go to driving school for free, thanks to the Motor City Driving Academy.

By watching Live In The D, you can enter every week to this sweepstakes to win a chance at free driving school. A winner will be announced on Live In The D.

To enter the sweepstakes, fill out the form below.

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Michael Lopez, 44, of Southfield, is on trial for allegedly shooting and killing Melvindale Police Officer Mohamed Said on July 21, 2024.

While an official was giving a testimony on April 24, Lopez made an outburst in court, criticizing his attorney.

“What else is new?” he said to his lawyer. “You ain’t gonna object to s----. You’re not gonna help me fight it, are you? ”

Lopez then made misconduct allegations against Said.

Local 4 is working to confirm the allegations with the Melvindale Police Department.

“This is a joke. This is all a joke,” Lopez said as he was being escorted.

Hours after the outburst, loud banging and inaudible shouting were heard in the courtroom for about 20 minutes, prompting the judge to have the jury leave momentarily. The judge addressed the disruption and said Lopez was the person shouting and was moved to another area during the trial.

On Thursday, Lopez made an outburst in court, telling the jury his attorney was no longer working for him.

Previous coverage --> ‘Give me a chance’: What man accused of killing Melvindale police officer said in courtroom outburst

Background

Lopez first encountered Said at 12:34 p.m. July 21, 2024, at a car wash near the intersection of Oakwood Boulevard and Clarann Street in Melvindale, officials said.

Said, 26, was called to the car wash and Lopez fled on foot, according to authorities.

While Said chased Lopez, Lopez pulled out a handgun and shot Said, police said.

Said died from his injuries.

Lopez is facing the following charges:

• Murder of a police officer -- a felony with a maximum penalty of life in prison.
• Felon in possession of a firearm -- a felony with a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
• Felon in possession of ammunition -- a felony with a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
• Carrying a concealed weapon -- a felony with a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
• Possession of methamphetamine/ecstasy -- a felony with a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
• Possession of under 25 grams of a controlled substance -- a felony with a maximum penalty of four years in prison.
• Carrying a dangerous weapon with unlawful intent -- a felony with a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
• Five felony firearm violations -- each two-year felonies, to be served consecutively.

On May 1, 2025, a judge ruled Lopez was competent to stand trial. Jury selection was held on Monday and Tuesday, April 20-21, 2026.