National News - The Morning Sun

Workers hand off plants during operations at a vertical farm greenhouse in Cleburne, Texas, Aug. 29, 2023. Indoor farming brings growing inside in what experts sometimes call “controlled environment agriculture.” There are different methods; vertical farming involves stacking produce from floor to ceiling, often under artificial lights and with the plants growing in nutrient-enriched water. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Lots of indoor farms are shutting down as their businesses struggle. So why are more being built?

Across the country, more indoor farms are launching or expanding even as others founder. This summer marked the groundbreaking of a huge vertical farming operation in Virginia by the California-based … more

By MELINA WALLING and KENDRIA LaFLEUR | 9/17/23

FILE - California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks to reporters outside the California Natural Resources Agency in Sacramento, Calif., on Oct. 7, 2022. The state of California has filed a lawsuit against some of the world's largest oil and gas companies, claiming they deceived the public about the risks of fossil fuels blamed for climate change-related storms and wildfires that caused billions of dollars in damage. Newsom says Exxon Mobil, Shell, Chevron and others have lied about the danger of fossil fuels for years and taxpayers shouldn't have to pay for damages. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File)

California lawsuit says oil giants for deceived public on climate, seeks funds for storm damage

The state of California has filed a lawsuit against some of the world's largest oil and gas companies, claiming they deceived the public about the risks of fossil fuels blamed for climate … more

By MICHAEL R. BLOOD | 9/16/23

An outdoor tent city for the homeless is seen July 26, 2023, across from the city's historic railroad depot in downtown Anchorage, Alaska. Officials in Alaska's largest city are scrambling to find enough shelter for homeless people before the first snowfall usually in October, after the city's mass shelter held in at the "Sullivan Arena"was closed. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen, File)

Anchorage scrambles to find enough housing for the homeless before the Alaska winter sets in

Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson gained national attention this summer when he proposed buying one-way airfare out of Alaska’s largest city for anyone without housing who wanted to leave. Now, those … more

By MARK THIESSEN | 9/16/23

FILE - Prison guards ride horses that were broken by inmates as they return from farm work detail at the Louisiana State Penitentiary on Aug. 18, 2011, in Angola, La. Men incarcerated at Louisiana State Penitentiary filed a class-action lawsuit Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023, contending they have been forced to work in the prison’s fields for little or no pay, even when temperatures soar past 100 degrees. They described the conditions as cruel, degrading and often dangerous. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)

Louisiana prisoner suit claims they’re forced to endure dangerous conditions at Angola prison farm

Prisoners at the Louisiana State Penitentiary have filed a class-action lawsuit over conditions at the prison's farm. The prisoners say they are forced to work in fields for little or no pay, even … more

9/16/23

FILE - Activists gather and walk through lower Manhattan for the Global Climate Strike protests, Sept. 23, 2022, in New York. The annual Climate Week, which coincides with the U.N. General Assembly, kicks off Sunday, Sept. 17, 2023, with tens of thousands of people expected in the “March to End Fossil Fuels” Manhattan rally, one of hundreds of worldwide protests. (AP Photo/Brittainy Newman, File)

Special UN summit, protests, week of talk turn up heat on fossil fuels and global warming

The heat is about to be turned up on fossil fuels, the United States and President Joe Biden. The United Nations and the city that hosts it are focusing this upcoming week on climate change and the … more

By SETH BORENSTEIN | 9/16/23

Protesters march through downtown Seattle after body camera footage was released of a Seattle police officer joking about the death of Jaahnavi Kandula, a 23-year-old woman hit and killed in January by officer Kevin Dave in a police cruiser, Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Outrage boils in Seattle and in India over death of a student and an officer's callous remarks

Demonstrators in Seattle have demanded the resignation of two police officers over the death of a student from India and callous remarks by one of them. Meanwhile, diplomats from India are seeking an … more

By MANUEL VALDES and ANDREW SELSKY | 9/15/23

A jury acquitted three men Friday in the last trial connected to a plan to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. The scheme was portrayed as an example of homegrown terrorism on the eve of the 2020 presidential election. (Sept. 15)

Jury clears 3 men in the last trial tied to the plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer

A jury has acquitted three men in the last trial connected to a plan to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. The scheme was portrayed as an example of homegrown terrorism on the eve of the 2020 … more

By ED WHITE | 9/15/23

FILE - West Virginia University students lead a protest against cuts to programs in world languages, creative writing and more amid a $45 million budget deficit outside Stewart Hall in Morgantown, W.Va., on Monday, Aug. 21, 2023. West Virginia University's Board of Governors gave final approval Friday, Sept. 15, 2023, to wide-ranging cuts in academic programs and faculty positions as the university addresses a $45 million budget shortfall. (AP Photo/Leah Willingham, File)

West Virginia University gives final approval to academic program, faculty cuts

West Virginia University has given final approval to wide-ranging cuts in academic programs and faculty positions. The university is addressing a $45 million budget shortfall. The cuts come after the … more

By LEAH WILLINGHAM and JOHN RABY | 9/15/23

Researchers and burial oversight committee member Brenda Alford carry the first set of remains exhumed from the latest dig site in Oaklawn Cemetery to an onsite lab for further examination Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023 in Tulsa, Okla. They are searching for vicims of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. (Mike Simons /Tulsa World via AP)

Remains exhumed from a Tulsa cemetery as the search for 1921 Race Massacre victims has resumed

Archaeologists have exhumed the remains of one person and plan to exhume a second in the search for victims of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. State archaeologist Kary Stackelbeck said Thursday that … more

By KEN MILLER | 9/15/23

FILE - Firefighters and ambulance attendants remove a covered body from the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Ala., Sept. 15, 1963, after a deadly explosion detonated by members of the Ku Klux Klan during services. Alabama on Friday, Sept. 15, 2023, will mark the 60th anniversary of the bombing that killed four girls. Lisa McNair, the sister of one of the victims, said as the anniversary is remembered, she hoped people will think about what they can do to combat hate. (AP Photo, File)

Alabama will mark the 60th anniversary of the 1963 church bombing that killed four Black girls

Alabama is marking the 60th anniversary of one of the most heinous acts during the Civil Rights Movement, the 1963 bombing of a church that killed four Black girls in 1963. U.S. Supreme Court Justice … more

9/15/23

FILE - In this July 3, 2020, file photo, a makeshift memorial stands at a site across the street from where Elijah McClain was stopped by police officers while walking home in Aurora, Colo. A trial for two of the officers charged for Elijah McClain's death is set to begin Friday, Sept. 15, 2023 with jury selection. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)

Trial begins in Elijah McClain death, which sparked outrage over racial injustice in policing

Four years after Elijah McClain died after being stopped by police in Colorado, two of the police officers charged in his death are set to go on trial. Jury selection is scheduled to begin Friday in … more

By COLLEEN SLEVIN | 9/15/23

FILE - In this photo made with a long exposure, a man is silhouetted against lights reflected in the waters off Cape Neddick in Maine on Dec. 11, 2017. A study published Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, in the journal Nature Medicine has found that the psychedelic drug MDMA, combined with talk therapy, can reduce symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty, File)

Psychedelic drug MDMA eases PTSD symptoms in a study that paves the way for possible US approval

A study has found that the psychedelic drug MDMA, combined with talk therapy, can reduce symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. Researchers reported the results Thursday in the journal Nature … more

By CARLA K. JOHNSON | 9/14/23

FILE - The legal team for Planned Parenthood South Atlantic speaks outside the South Carolina Supreme Court building in Columbia, S.C. on Tuesday, June 27, 2023. In a complaint filed Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, the team wrote that a strict new abortion ban should be interpreted to take effect after approximately nine weeks of pregnancy. (AP File Photo/James Pollard, File)

Planned Parenthood sues to expand South Carolina abortion access under strict new ban

Abortion providers in South Carolina want to lengthen the narrow window when they can legally terminate a pregnancy under a strict new ban. The conservative state’s all-male Supreme Court last … more

By JAMES POLLARD | 9/14/23

Members of the Ottawa County, Mich., Board of Commissioners, from left, Joe Moss, Gretchen Cosby and Allison Miedema, listen during a board meeting, Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2023, in West Olive, Mich. The county on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan has seen its local government transformed by backlash to COVID-19 restrictions, with traditional Republicans losing seats to self-described conservative Christians who almost immediately voted dissolve an equity office and to remove the head of the public health department. (AP Photo/Kristen Norman)

Opponents of COVID restrictions took over a Michigan county. They want deep cuts to health funding

The public health department in Ottawa County in Michigan is facing deep cuts to its funding. County commissioners who were elected after taking a stance against COVID-19 restrictions want the health … more

By JOEY CAPPELLETTI | 9/14/23

FILE - Demonstrators protest outside the state Capitol in Madison, Wis., Tuesday, May 3, 2022. Planned Parenthood announced Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, that it will resume offering abortions in Wisconsin next week after a judge ruled that an 1849 law that seemingly banned the procedure actually didn't apply to abortions.(Amber Arnold/Wisconsin State Journal via AP)

Planned Parenthood to resume offering abortions next week in Wisconsin, citing court ruling

Planned Parenthood says that it will resume offering abortions in Wisconsin next week after a judge ruled that an 1849 law that seemingly banned the procedure actually didn’t apply to abortions. … more

By SCOTT BAUER | 9/14/23

NASA releases UFO report, says new science techniques needed to better understand them

NASA says the study of UFOs will require new scientific techniques, including advanced satellites as well as a shift in how unidentified flying objects are perceived. The space agency released … more

By MARCIA DUNN | 9/14/23

Firefighters work to put out a fire that started at the Tissue Depot in Cheboygan, Mich., Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023. The fire at the northern Michigan paper mill closed several roads Wednesday and prompted city officials to tell residents to shelter in place, while state police warned people to stay away from the area. (Jared Greenleaf/Cheboygan Daily Tribune via AP)

Fire at Michigan paper mill closes roads, residents told to shelter in place while air monitored

Residents near a northern Michigan paper mill that caught fire Wednesday have been told to shelter in place until Thursday afternoon as environmental officials continue monitoring local air quality. … more

9/14/23

FILE - Juana Salcedo, aunt and guardian of 13-year-old Diego Stolz, cries during a news conference in Riverside, Calif., Oct. 29, 2019, announcing the family has started legal proceedings against the Moreno Valley Unified School District. The school district has agreed to pay $27 million to settle a lawsuit by the family of Stolz who died after being assaulted by two other students at a middle school four years ago. The settlement with the Moreno Valley Unified School District was announced Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023, by lawyers for relatives of 13-year-old, who was was attacked at Landmark Middle School. (Will Lester/The Orange County Register via AP, File)

California school district pays $27M to settle suit over death of teen assaulted by fellow students

A Southern California school district has agreed to pay $27 million to settle a lawsuit by the family of an eighth grade boy who died after being assaulted by two other students at a middle school … more

9/13/23

Nigerien national guardsmen sit outside the customs offices in Niamey, Niger, Monday, Aug. 21, 2023. Around 300 trucks of food and other materials crossed into Niger from Burkina Faso with many arriving in the capital, Niamey Sunday, according to a regional custom's official. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick)

US military resumes drone, manned counterterrorism missions out of Niger bases

The top Air Force commander for Europe and Africa says the U.S. military has resumed counterterrorism missions in Niger, flying drones and other aircraft out of Niger air bases more than a month … more

By TARA COPP | 9/13/23

Colette Peters, director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons testifies during a Senate Judiciary Oversight of the Federal Bureau of Prisons hearing on Capitol Hill. Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib)

Senators clash with US prisons chief over transparency, seek fixes for problem-plagued agency

The director of the federal Bureau of Prisons was scolded Wednesday by members of the Senate Judiciary Committee who say her lack of transparency is hampering their ability to help fix the agency, … more

By MICHAEL R. SISAK | 9/13/23