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New York courthouse hosting Trump civil trial is briefly evacuated hours after testimony wraps

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:16:40 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — The courthouse in New York City where former President Donald Trump’s civil business fraud trial has been taking place was briefly evacuated Wednesday hours after testimony concluded for the day.About a dozen firefighters ascended the steps of the New York State Supreme Court Building shortly after 4 p.m. There was a visible haze in the stairwell between the third and fourth floor, according to an Associated Press reporter who was asked to leave the building.Among those evacuated was Judge Arthur Engoron, who has presided over Trump’s trial on the building’s fourth floor for the past 10 weeks. The evacuees were permitted to return to the building shortly after firefighters entered.Fire and police officials didn’t immediately have information on what prompted the evacuation.A court spokesperson said they were looking into the incident.The Associated Press

Israel-Hamas war tensions roil campuses; Brown protesters are arrested, Haverford building occupied

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:16:40 GMT

Dozens of student protesters at Brown University were arrested, and a weeklong sit-in at Haverford College ended Wednesday under threat of disciplinary action as U.S. college campuses continue to be roiled by tensions over the Israel-Hamas war.Brown’s police department charged 41 students with trespass when they refused to leave the University Hall administrative building after business hours on Monday, according to officials at the Ivy League school in Providence, Rhode Island. Earlier that day, protesters had met with Brown President Christina H. Paxson and demanded that Brown divest “its endowment from Israeli military occupation,” the school said in a statement on the arrests. Students were photographed and fingerprinted at the administration building before their release Monday night. Other students waited outside to cheer them on.It was the second round of arrests at Brown in a little over a month as college administrators around the country try to reconcile the ri...

French actor Gérard Depardieu stripped of Order of Quebec after documentary remarks

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:16:40 GMT

QUEBEC — The Quebec government has stripped French actor Gérard Depardieu of his Order of Quebec after “shocking” comments made by the actor came to light in a documentary filmThe release of a documentary in France this month showing him repeatedly making obscene sexual remarks and gestures during a 2018 trip to North Korea has caused the French actor’s behaviour towards women to come under scrutiny once more.The footage, filmed by a professional crew that covered Depardieu’s visit during the 70th anniversary of North Korea’s formation, was included in an investigative documentary that aired last week on French TV, and some of the clips have gone viral on social media.Quebec Premier François Legault today announced the decision to remove Depardieu from the order, acting on a recommendation from the council that oversees the honour.Legault says in a statement that Depardieu’s comments have shocked people around the world and his behaviour has tarni...

Florida mother fears her family will be devastated as trial on trans health care ban begins

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:16:40 GMT

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — The mother of a transgender girl sobbed in federal court Wednesday as she contemplated having to move away from her Navy officer husband to get health care for her 12-year-old if Florida’s ban on gender dysphoria treatments for minors is allowed to take affect.The woman, who testified as Jane Doe to protect the identity of her child, said her daughter went from being anxious and upset to a thriving, happy straight-A student after being allowed to live as a girl about eight years ago, a decision she made with her husband after multiple visits to their family’s doctor. But as the girl approaches puberty, she fears she will start turning into a boy. Without treatment, she and her family will be devasted, the mother said.“I will go to the end of the Earth to get my daughter the help she needs,” the woman testified through sobs as she pulled facial tissues from a box. “I think about, will our family get torn apart? Will we have to live somewhere else ...

Every state's favorite Christmas song – and the 10 most-hated: study

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:16:40 GMT

KENTUCKY (WDKY) — A new study breaks down the nation's favorite Christmas songs by state, as well as the most-disliked – which happened to be the same song, in some states.To get a better sense of which songs are most and least likely to nurture Christmas cheer, FinanceBuzz used Google Trends to find the most popular Christmas song in every state and surveyed more than 1,200 U.S. adults on the most annoying Christmas songs.FinanceBuzz collected Google Trends search data on the 25 highest-charting Christmas songs on the Billboard Hot 100 for the week of Christmas 2022. For the list of the most annoying holiday songs, FinanceBuzz surveyed 1,250 U.S. adults in November 2022.Across the nation, "All I Want for Christmas is You" by Mariah Carey trended in 10 states, including Illinois, making it the most popular Christmas song. Mariah’s Christmas mega-hit was the most-searched song in both the Northeast and the South.Forbes estimated that Mariah makes a profit of $2.5 million ev...

Carnival cruise ship rescues 6 people after small cargo boat capsizes

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:16:40 GMT

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — A Carnival cruise ship rescued six men Wednesday morning after a small cargo vessel capsized overnight. The cruise line said in a press release that its Carnival Vista team saved the men, who were stranded in the middle of the ocean near the Dominican Republic, after the ship's onboard monitoring system received an emergency alert.The crew spotted the six men on a life raft, stopped to rescue them, and brought them aboard. Nearly half of 5 million veterans screened found to have potential toxic substance exposure Carnival Vista St. ThomasThe U.S. Coast Guard later rescued six additional crew members who had been on the small, unidentified vessel. Carnival said it alerted the Coast Guard about the additional missing crew members, which led to a "successful search and rescue operation."The cruise ship departed from Port Canaveral on Sunday, Dec. 10 and was advised to return to its regularly scheduled route. It's visiting Amber Cove in the Dominican Republic on W...

Heart attacks spike during the holidays, data shows

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:16:40 GMT

This is Medical Watch for Dec 13Heart Attacks and the Holidays Heart attacks spike during the winter festivities.More people die from heart attacks in the last week in December than any other time of year according to the American Heart Association.Knowing the risk, those with heart ailments and others should learn the symptoms of heart attack including chest pain, arm and shoulder pain, dizziness and nausea.And people should stay hydrated, limit alcohol and fatty food intake and reduce stress.What causes morning sickness?Doctors have figured out why pregnant women often feel nauseated.And they say by knowing the pregnancy sickness trigger, they can work to alleviate the problem which can be dangerous for mother and baby.USC Keck School of medicine researchers say the hormone GDF 15, produced by the fetus, causes sensitivity in expectant mothers leading to nausea and vomiting.By exposing women to the hormone pre-pregnancy, doctors say they can desensitize them and potentially elimin...

President Biden meets with families of hostages held in Gaza

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:16:40 GMT

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) – Families of Israeli-Americans taken hostage by Hamas joined the president at the White House Wednesday, more than two months after the conflict began. They say they're praying the administration's efforts pay off."We’d love a Christmas miracle,” one family member said. “We would love all of our loved ones to come back and be with us."NSC Coordinator For Strategic Communications John Kirby said, “The President was very grateful for the time that they afforded him, and he harbors that hope too.”The White House says it's pushing for more pauses in the fighting to bring all eight remaining Americans home, but says a broader ceasefire is not the answer."As the president has said, Hamas could release the hostages today and lay down their arms and the war would stop immediately” Kirby continued. “That they haven't done it, I think speaks volumes."But as the death toll inside Gaza continues to rise, the President is also warning Israel they're starting to lose support...

Hunter Biden dodges deposition

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:16:40 GMT

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) - President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, defied an order by congressional investigators to testify behind closed doors about his business dealings. Republicans on the committee subpoenaed Hunter Biden as part of their impeachment inquiry into President Biden. At the time of his scheduled closed-door deposition Hunter Biden arrived on Capitol Hill but never went inside. “I'm here to testify at a public hearing today to answer any of the committees’ legitimate questions,” he said. Hunter slammed the investigation into his father and said he only wants to testify publicly. “Republicans do not want an open process where Americans can see their tactics. What are they afraid of? I'm here. I'm ready.” The two republicans leading the investigation Kentucky Congressman James Comer and Ohio Congressman Jim Jordan responded with threats of holding Hunter in contempt of Congress. “We think he should come in. And if he doesn’t, we are goi...

White House hosts state lawmakers to brainstorm gun violence prevention ideas

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:16:40 GMT

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) -- Wednesday, the White House hosted nearly 100 state lawmakers from around the country to come up with solutions to help reduce gun violence.Vice President Kamala Harris led the meeting and spoke to state lawmakers."We are fighting just for what is reasonable and of course what is right." Harris is calling on states to create state offices of gun violence prevention, enhance background checks and strengthen support for survivors and victims of gun violence."I am absolutely in favor of the Second Amendment, and I am also in favor of an assault weapons ban, a universal background check," she added.Lawmakers from 39 states attended the gathering, including Tennessee state representative Raumesh Akbari, where earlier this year a gunman opened fire at a school in Nashville killing six people."Unfortunately, my state did not make any changes to the laws after the shooting at Covenant," Akbari said.Wisconsin state representative Sheila Stubbs says she is pushing ...