William Lopez remembers clearly the day in June 2017 when he says he was asked to call the spouse of a college friend who had just died and ask for her eyes.

The spouse hadn’t responded to calls from other employees at the Rocky Mountain Lions Eye Bank, he said. As Lopez recalled, his supervisor thought a friend’s personal number would have...Read more

ORLANDO, Fla. — Amid fears that a new state law criminalizes those who sleep outside, Central Florida leaders are coalescing around a diversion program to waive court sentences for people experiencing homelessness in exchange for pursuing treatment, housing and employment.

Such a program is called a homeless court and could apply to ...Read more

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — State and Solano County water officials concerned about the spread of invasive golden mussels are barring watercraft traveling from the Delta from launching in Lake Berryessa without a 30-day quarantine or decontamination.

The larval microscopic mussels have been found in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta and easily...Read more

SAN JACINTO, Calif. — A paradox has settled across California’s velvet green fields and orchards. California farmers, who are some of the most ardent supporters of Donald Trump, would seem to be on a collision course with one of the president-elect’s most important campaign promises.

Trump has promised to carry out mass deportations of ...Read more

WASHINGTON — President elect Donald J. Trump announced on Tuesday night that he would nominate Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, a Stanford professor of health policy and outspoken critic of the nation’s public health system, to lead the National Institutes of Health.

In a statement on social media, Trump said that “Together, Jay and RFK Jr. will ...Read more

A nearly 20-year-old video posted by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals alleging turkey abuse at one of the nation’s foremost providers of Thanksgiving birds has triggered an online uproar.

The 2006 footage appears to depict employees of Butterball abusing live turkeys at a plant in Ozark, Arkansas, and drew a slew of comments from ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Gearing up for another Trump presidency, Los Angeles County supervisors will funnel millions in funding to beef up support for immigrants and transgender residents, who could be targeted by the incoming administration.

The governing board of the deep-blue county passed a flurry of resistance-themed motions Tuesday in response to...Read more

CANBERRA, Australia — Australia’s plan to ban social media for children under the age of 16 is expected to pass parliament within days after it was signed off in a truncated Senate inquiry, even as lawmakers from across the political divide expressed discomfort at the “rushed” nature of the bills.

The Senate’s Committee on Environment...Read more

After a trouble-plagued application overhaul, U.S. Department of Education officials have released next year’s Free Application for Federal Student Aid, more than a week before its Dec. 1 target date.

After last year’s rollout disaster, Education Department officials claim to have improved the application process following feedback from ...Read more

Nearly half a million Floridians could lose their health insurance if Republicans in Congress do not extend subsidies that lower insurance premiums through the Affordable Care Act, two new reports warn.

An analysis by the Urban Institute estimates that 453,000 Floridians — including 32,000 children — would become uninsured if tax credits ...Read more

The fourth time wasn’t the charm.

Sean “Diddy” Combs won’t be home for Thanksgiving after yet another request for bail was denied, at least for the time being, UsWeekly reports.

On Friday, the embattled rapper appeared in court, with his legal team attempting to put up $50 million with his Star Island mansion, which was raided by feds ...Read more

WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team is readying an announcement of Jamieson Greer as U.S. trade representative, according to people familiar with the matter.

Greer’s selection highlights the central role tariffs will play in Trump’s economic agenda with the incoming president vowing to use trade policy to raise ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — More than 3,000 fake Gibson electric guitars have been seized through the Los Angeles-Long Beach port complex as part of a multiagency law enforcement investigation, making it the largest counterfeit musical instrument seizure on record, authorities announced Tuesday.

Africa Bell, port director for the Los Angeles-Long Beach ...Read more

WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump is tapping Vince Haley to head the White House Domestic Policy Council, an influential post responsible for coordinating his agenda across major federal agencies.

“I am proud to announce that Vince Haley, who served as Director of Policy and Speechwriting on my Winning Campaign, will lead my ...Read more

BOSTON — The newest member of Karen Read’s defense team is a New York City-based attorney who typically represents businesses in environmental and financial fights and has argued before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Norfolk Superior Court Judge Beverly Cannone has accepted Read’s request for Robert Alessi to be added to her defense team, which ...Read more

NEW YORK — Mayor Eric Adams argued Tuesday that last week’s horrific stabbing spree in Manhattan was the “byproduct” of efforts to reduce the inmate population on Rikers Island.

Ramon Rivera, the homeless man accused of killing three strangers during the Nov. 18 attacks, was released early from Rikers in mid-October after getting credit...Read more

State oil and gas regulators are investigating reports that environmental consultants falsified results of tests on soil, groundwater and contamination at about 350 locations in Weld County between 2021 and this summer.

The information was submitted on behalf of some of Colorado’s largest oil and gas producers and was intended to determine ...Read more

MIAMI — Eric Trump, the son of the president-elect, has joined the fight against Miami-Dade County building a new incinerator in Doral.

Mayor Daniella Levine Cava reportedly told him that she’s requesting a delay in next week’s planned vote by the County Commission on whether to put the $1.5 billion facility in the city.

President-elect ...Read more