FBI officials say they are conducting more than 250 investigations across all of their field offices into a group they describe as a “nihilistic violent extremist network” that looks to “sow chaos” and “bring down society.”

The FBI is investigating the so-called “764” online predator group that is known to push victims to “...Read more

A federal judge posed a new threat to President Donald Trump’s hard-line immigration policies, telling government lawyers he may order the U.S. to facilitate the return of alleged Venezuelan gang members who were deported to a notorious prison in El Salvador.

At a hearing Wednesday, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg said he is weighing ...Read more

North Carolina gun owners who want concealed carry handgun permits could soon have to apply only once in their lives, if a bill in the state legislature becomes law.

The current law requires concealed carry permit holders to renew the permits every five years.

Under House Bill 674, which passed the House on Wednesday evening, there would be a ...Read more

NEW YORK — Arrests were underway late Wednesday as the NYPD moved in to clear about 100 pro-Palestinian protesters at Columbia University who took over Butler Library just days before final exams.

Several hours into the protest, Acting President Claire Shipman authorized the NYPD to enter campus, on top of a limited number of arrests made by ...Read more

The Trump administration’s Environmental Protection Agency is planning to eliminate the money-saving Energy Star appliance program.

The program — which began in 1992 under Republican President George H.W. Bush — called for some appliances like refrigerators, air conditioners and washing machines to meet certain energy efficiency standards...Read more

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said he’s unwilling to preemptively lower tariffs on China in order to unlock more substantive negotiations with Beijing on trade.

“No,” Trump said Wednesday when asked by a reporter if he is open to pulling back his 145% duties on Chinese imports to get the world’s second-largest economy to the ...Read more

RALEIGH, N.C. — North Carolina lawmakers have now approved multiple bills to allow private school teachers to carry concealed handguns on campus.

On Wednesday, the state Senate voted 29-18 to pass the Private School Security Act that sets conditions where private schools can authorize school employees and volunteers to carry handguns. Last ...Read more

Gov. JB Pritzker on Wednesday signed an executive order that formally restricts the unauthorized collection of autism-related data by state agencies.

Pritzker’s order responds to federal efforts under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to create databases of personal information for those with autism “without clear legal safeguards or ...Read more

A legislative effort to attack rising property insurance costs in Colorado failed in the last days of the session.

The bill, which was supported by Gov. Jared Polis and Colorado Insurance Commissioner Michael Conway, would have tacked a 1% fee onto property insurance policies statewide, increasing the average premium by $32 per year. The ...Read more

NEW YORK — New York City’s Campaign Finance Board is sticking to its guns in denying Mayor Eric Adams more than $4 million in public matching funds for his reelection run — and will not give him another chance to challenge the decision until mid-July, the Daily News has learned.

The board first denied Adams the matching funds in December ...Read more

The California State Bar’s botched roll out of a new exam — a move that the cash-strapped agency made in the hopes of saving money — could ultimately end up costing it an additional $5.6 million.

Leah T. Wilson, executive director of the State Bar, told state lawmakers at a Senate Judiciary hearing Tuesday that the agency expects to pay ...Read more

BALTIMORE — Sex abuse survivors scoffed at the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s claim of “charitable immunity” in bankruptcy court and encouraged others Wednesday to sue the church before financial damages face new limits next month.

“Just when you think you may be reaching the end of the Catholic Church’s road of hypocrisy, they find a ...Read more

NEW YORK — Someone emailed threats to three New York City politicians Tuesday afternoon, with one of the threats including a bomb threat, according to police sources.

Cops were alerted to three separate threats, which were sent to the offices of Council members Althea Stevens of the Bronx and Crystal Hudson of Brooklyn, as well as state Sen. ...Read more

WASHINGTON — Democrats haven’t won a Senate race in Tennessee since Al Gore was reelected in 1990, but they might need to win there next year to win the majority.

While midterm elections typically go poorly for the president’s party, that trend is more evident in the House — Democrats had a net gain of 41 seats in 2018 and 31 seats in ...Read more

The Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission have announced a public inquiry into the live music industry's business practices and issues facing consumers.

The inquiry comes a month after an executive order from President Donald Trump — issued on the advice of Kid Rock — to combat ticket scalpers, and ordered the government to ...Read more

NEW YORK — The estranged sister of Harvey Weinstein accuser Kaja Sokola told jurors her sibling appeared “extremely tense” after a 2006 post-lunch meeting with the movie mogul in a Tribeca hotel room — but nothing about the encounter led her to think Weinstein sexually assaulted her.

Ewa Sokola added that she didn’t even know her ...Read more

WASHINGTON — FBI Director Kash Patel told lawmakers Wednesday that he is working to avoid a proposed $545 million in cuts to the agency outlined in the White House’s budget request for fiscal 2026, saying those reductions would force him to fire 1,300 employees.

Patel, appearing before the House Commerce-Justice-Science appropriations ...Read more

HARRISBURG, Pa. — Pennsylvania took its first step Wednesday toward legalizing recreational marijuana under a state-owned-store model, adopting the same system for how the state currently sells liquor.

The Pennsylvania state House, for the first time, narrowly approved a bill to legalize, tax and regulate recreational marijuana for adults ...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — It’s not every day that a Florida Republican comes out against a tax cut.

But that’s what happened Wednesday at a Tampa news conference when Gov. Ron DeSantis voiced his opposition to a Florida House plan to cut the state sales tax.

“We need to have a Florida first tax policy here,” DeSantis said. “Any Florida last ...Read more

SAN JOSE, Calif. — California is joining 16 other states in a federal lawsuit to force the Trump administration to release billions of dollars in funds for electric vehicle chargers approved by former President Joe Biden’s hallmark infrastructure law.

“Alongside 16 attorneys general, I’m suing the Federal Highway Administration for ...Read more