National News - The Morning Sun

Activists protest outside the Houses of Parliament in London, Friday, April 21, 2023. Extinction Rebellion and other environmental groups are protesting for four days from Friday to Monday, with an event they are calling "The Big One". (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

April 21-27, 2023 A week in which climate activists demonstrated in various cities across Europe, while victims of a religious cult were exhumed in Kenya. Anzac Day was commemorated, the national … more

By The Associated Press | 4/28/23

A person walks to Tokyo Stock Exchange building Thursday, April 27, 2023, in Tokyo. Shares advanced in Asia on Friday after Wall Street rallied to its best day since January. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Stock market today: Asia shares gain as BOJ stands pat

Shares are mostly higher in Asia after Wall Street rallied to its best day since January and the Bank of Japan kept its ultra-lax monetary policy unchanged. In its first policy meeting under its new … more

By ELAINE KURTENBACH | 4/28/23

This mage released by Warner Bros. Pictures showsRyan Gosling, left, and Margot Robbie in a scene from "Barbie." (Warner Bros. Pictures via AP)

Summer Movies: Indy, Barbie, 'Fast X' zooming to theaters

Hollywood's summer movie season kicks off on May 5 with the release of Disney and Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” and runs through Labor Day. Since “Jaws,” the summer season has … more

By LINDSEY BAHR | 4/28/23

This combination of photos shows promotional art for films, top row from left, "Barbie," "Blue Beetle," "Book Club: The Next Chapter," "Every Body," "The Flash," second row from left, "Guardians of the Galaxy, Volume 3," "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny," "The Little Mermaid," "Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part I," "Oppenheimer," bottom row from left, "Past Lives," "Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken," "Talk To Me," "White Men Can't Jump," and "You Hurt My Feelings." (Warner Bros., Warner Bros., Focus Features, Focus Features, Warner Bros., Marvel Studios, LucasFilms, Disney, Paramount, Universal, A24, Universal, A24, 20th Century Studios and A24 via AP)

Summer Movie Guide: What to watch from May through Labor Day

There is something for everyone at the movies this summer, both in theaters and streaming at home. In May, audiences can bid farewell to the Guardians of the Galaxy, go to Italy with Jane Fonda, … more

4/28/23

Dennis Maliq Barnes speaks during an interview at International High School of New Orleans in New Orleans, Thursday, April 27, 2023. To date, Barnes has been accepted into 175 colleges and universities and has been offered a total of more than $9 million in scholarships from close to 130 schools. Officials at the school are trying to determine if Barnes has set a record for U.S. high school students. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

New Orleans student's scholarship offers surpass $9 million

He is a senior at 16. His grade point average is 4.98. Even before graduating from high school, he has earned 27 college credits. But perhaps the most impressive numbers for Dennis Maliq Barnes of … more

By KEVIN McGILL | 4/27/23

FILE - The Holyoke Soldiers' Home is seen on May 29, 2018, in Holyoke, Mass. Massachusetts’ highest court overruled a lower court judge Thursday, April 27, 2023, and reinstated criminal neglect charges against two top former officials at the veterans’ home. Nearly 80 veterans died at the Veterans’ Home in Holyoke after contracting the coronavirus in one of the worst COVID-19 outbreaks in a long-term care facility in the nation. (Patrick Johnson/The Republican via AP, File)

Court reinstates charges against leaders of veterans' home

Massachusetts’ highest court has overruled a lower court judge and reinstated criminal neglect charges against two top former officials at a veterans’ home. Nearly 80 veterans died at the … more

4/27/23

FILE - Gunnar Kaasen and with his dog Balto, the heroic dogsled team leader, sit for a portrait in the early 1920s. As a part of the Zoonomia Project, with 11 papers published Thursday, April 27, 2023, in the journal Science, by comparing Balto’s genes to those of other dogs, researchers found he was more genetically diverse than modern breeds and may have carried genetic variants that helped him survive harsh conditions. The Zoonomia Project is an international effort comparing the genetic blueprints of an array of animals, including this species, and some of the discoveries were shared in 11 papers published Thursday, April 27, 2023, in the journal Science. (AP Photo, File)

Zoonomia: Genetic research reveals all we share with animals

Scientists from around the world are comparing the genetic blueprints of an array of animals to gain new insights into our own species. It's called the Zoonomia Project. It's the subject of 11 papers … more

By LAURA UNGAR | 4/27/23

FILE - The sun rises above the Atlantic Ocean as waves crash near beach goers walking along a jetty, Dec. 7, 2022, in Bal Harbour, Fla. The world's oceans have suddenly spiked much hotter and well above record levels, with scientists trying to figure out what it means and whether it forecasts a surge in atmospheric warming. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File)

Earth in hot water? Worries over sudden ocean warming spike

The world's oceans are suddenly considerably hotter than just a month or two ago and well above record levels. Scientists are trying to figure out why, and whether it forecasts an upcoming surge in … more

By SETH BORENSTEIN | 4/27/23

FILE - This 1955 file photo shows Carolyn Bryant. Carolyn Bryant Donham, the white woman who accused Black teenager Emmett Till of making improper advances before he was lynched in Mississippi in 1955 has died Tuesday night, April 25, in hospice care in Louisiana, according to a death report filed Thursday, April 27, 2023, in Calcasieu Parish Coroner’s Office in Louisiana. She was 88. (AP Photo/Gene Herrick, File)

Carolyn Bryant Donham, at center of Emmett Till death, dies

The white woman who accused Black teenager Emmett Till of making improper advances before he was lynched in Mississippi in 1955 has died in hospice care in Louisiana. Carolyn Bryant Donham was 88. … more

By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS | 4/27/23

In this image from video provided by the U.S. House Appropriations Committee, Drug Enforcement Administration chief Anne Milgram speaks during a meeting with the committee on Capitol Hill in Washington on Thursday, April 27, 2023. During the session, lawmakers questioned Milgram over millions of dollars in no-bid contracts that are the subject of a watchdog probe into whether the agency improperly hired some of her past associates. (U.S. House Appropriations Committee via AP)

DEA chief grilled over probe into no-bid contracts, hiring

Lawmakers grilled U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration chief Anne Milgram over millions of dollars in no-bid contracts that are the subject of a watchdog probe into whether the agency improperly … more

By JOSHUA GOODMAN and JIM MUSTIAN | 4/27/23

In this photo provided by Washington University, Jeff Backus is fitted with a vest of electrodes in St. Louis on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023, to map how his heartbeat goes awry. Doctors are zapping the heart with radiation normally reserved for cancer, a bid to better treat people with life-threatening irregular heartbeats who've exhausted other options. (Huy Mach/Washington University, St. Louis via AP)

Putting radiation to the test to heal irregular heartbeat

Doctors are zapping the heart with radiation normally reserved for cancer in a bid to better treat a dangerous kind of irregular heartbeat. It's highly experimental. But researchers at Washington … more

By LAURAN NEERGAARD | 4/27/23

A hiring sign seeking bus drivers stands in Palatine, Ill., Wednesday, April 19, 2023. On Thursday, the Labor Department reports on the number of people who applied for unemployment benefits last week. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Jobless claims fall again with labor market churning along

Applications for unemployment benefits in the U.S. fell last week as the labor market continues to show strength despite some weakness in other parts of the economy. The number of Americans filing … more

By MATT OTT | 4/27/23

A worker distributes free traditional roti or bread among needy people at a restaurant, in Peshawar, Pakistan, Sunday, April 16, 2023. People are suffering from recent price hike in food, gas, fuel, and power in Pakistan. (AP Photo/Muhammad Sajjad)

Food prices fall on world markets but not on kitchen tables

Around the world, food prices are persistently, painfully high. Puzzlingly, too. On global markets, the price of grains, vegetable oil, dairy and other agricultural commodities has fallen steadily … more

By PAUL WISEMAN and EVELYNE MUSAMBI | 4/27/23

Rep. Zooey Zephyr, D-Missoula, walks out of the Montana House of Representatives after lawmakers voted to ban her from the chamber on Wednesday, April 26, 2023, in the State Capitol in Helena, Montana. Zephyr was barred from participating on the House floor as Republican leaders voted Wednesday to silence her for the rest of 2023 session after she protested GOP leaders’ decision earlier in the week to silence her. (Thom Bridge/Independent Record via AP)

Montana lawmaker silenced but not silent, vows to fight on

When debate over a gender-affirming care ban escalated into a lengthy fight over civil discourse in statehouses, it vaulted Montana Rep. Zooey Zephyr into the national spotlight. Zephyr was … more

By AMY BETH HANSON and SAM METZ | 4/27/23

FILE - Cigarette butts fill a smoking receptacle outside a federal building in Washington, Thursday, April 15, 2021. According to government survey data released Thursday, April 27, 2023, U.S. adults are smoking less. Cigarette smoking dropped to another new all-time low in 2022, with 1 in 9 adults saying they were current smokers. Meanwhile, e-cigarette use rose, to about 1 in 17 adults. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

US adult cigarette smoking rate hits new all-time low

U.S. adults are smoking less. Cigarette smoking dropped to another new all-time low last year, with 1 in 9 adults saying they were current smokers. Meanwhile, e-cigarette use rose, to about 1 in 17 … more

By MIKE STOBBE | 4/27/23

FILE - Students return to Richneck Elementary in Newport News, Va., on Jan. 30, 2023. The Virginia school district where a 6-year-old shot his teacher argues that her injuries fall under the state's workers compensation act and cannot be addressed through her $40 million lawsuit, according to court documents filed, Wednesday, April 26. (Billy Schuerman/The Virginian-Pilot via AP, File)

School board wants workers comp for teacher shot by boy, 6

The Virginia school district where a 6-year-old shot his teacher argues that her injuries fall under the state’s workers compensation act and cannot be addressed through her $40 million lawsuit. … more

By BEN FINLEY and DENISE LAVOIE | 4/26/23

Visitors take in the Invisible Worlds interactive display during a media preview of the Richard Gilder Center for Science, Education and Innovation, Wednesday, April 26, 2023, at the American Museum of Natural History in New York. The Gilder Center opens to the public May 4. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

Ants march, whales swoop in Museum of Natural History update

The American Museum of Natural History in New York will soon open its massive new building, complete with live insects and swooping architecture. The Gilder Center has been almost a decade in the … more

By MADDIE BURAKOFF | 4/26/23

FILE - This booking photo provided by the Westminster Police Department shows Jeremy Webster on June 15, 2018. The man who shot and killed a 13-year-old boy after a road rage confrontation and wounded the boy's mother, brother and a witness was not in control of his body or his emotions at the time of the 2018 shootings, his lawyers told jurors Wednesday, April 26, 2023. (Westminster Police Department via AP, File)

Colorado road rage shooter convicted of 1st-degree murder

A Colorado man who shot and killed a 13-year-old boy after a road rage confrontation and wounded the boy’s mother, brother and a witness was found guilty of first-degree murder. A jury issued the … more

By COLLEEN SLEVIN | 4/26/23

Ya Ya, a giant panda at the Memphis Zoo, eats bamboo, April 8, 2023, in Memphis, Tenn. Ya Ya began its trip to China on Wednesday, April 26, from the Memphis Zoo, where it has spent the past 20 years as part of a loan agreement. (AP Photo/Karen Pulfer Focht, File)

Ya Ya the giant panda heading to China after 20 years in US

Ya Ya the giant panda has begun its trip to China from the Memphis Zoo, where it has spent the past 20 years as part of a loan agreement. The zoo said Ya Ya is being accompanied on its return to … more

4/26/23

A sign to a First Republic Bank location is shown in San Francisco, Tuesday, April 25, 2023. First Republic Bank’s stock plunged Tuesday after it said depositors withdrew more than $100 billion during last month’s crisis, with fears swirling that it could be the third bank to fail after the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

First Republic Bank rout; unable to shake depositor anxiety

First Republic Bank's stock slid Wednesday in an ongoing rout that has erased more than 50% of its value just this week on concerns about the bank’s financial health in the wake of two other bank … more

By MICHELLE CHAPMAN | 4/26/23