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Letter written by Thomas Jefferson while in Annapolis sells for $90,000

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BALTIMORE — A significant letter written by founding father Thomas Jefferson sold Friday for the asking price of $90,000 and will return to Maryland, the state where it was penned 242 years ago.

The letter, featuring Jefferson’s large and even right-handed slant “went to a private collector in the greater Annapolis area,” according to a...Read more

Kaiden J. Yu/The Philadelphia Inquirer/TNS

'If that means I'm a one-term mayor, then so be it:' Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker puts it all on the line in city workers strike

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PHILADELPHIA — Mayor Cherelle L. Parker is putting it all on the line.

In a fiery news conference on the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Parker made clear on Thursday that she wasn't ready to capitulate in negotiations to end the ongoing city workers strike and delivered a broadside at union president Greg Boulware, who three days ...Read more

Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune/TNS

This Independence Day, immigrants face how to celebrate a nation deeply divided over Trump's deportation efforts

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The four women sat in camping chairs on 19th Street sipping mix-made mojitos. One was knitting, another talked on her cellphone. Amalia Alejo sang in Spanish and Ana Flores held onto her small white dog.

They looked at home because they were. They sat right outside Flores’ house in Pilsen, laughing as the sun beat down on the quiet Tuesday ...Read more

Dreamstime/Dreamstime/TNS

Arrest warrant issued for KC mother accused of threatening to 'bomb' children's hospital

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — An arrest warrant has been issued for a Kansas City woman months after she allegedly made terrorist threats to a children’s hospital, according to court records.

La’toya Summerville is charged in Jackson County Circuit Court with three counts of making terrorist threats after she allegedly told hospital staff she would ...Read more

Gov. Maura Healey ready to cut local project spending if Massachusetts hits financial downturn

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BOSTON — Gov. Maura Healey said her budget office is ready to slash millions in legislative earmarks for local projects and will seek the extraordinary power to cut spending across all state government in an effort to prep for potential federal funding cuts that could spell disaster for Massachusetts.

The first-term Democrat also announced ...Read more

Wrongly convicted of murder, Baltimore man receives $2.85 million and an apology

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BALTIMORE — A man who spent 27 years in prison for a murder he didn’t commit has been awarded $2.85 million — and a heartfelt apology — by state officials.

“There are no words to express how deeply sorry we are for what was taken from you and for the failure of our justice system,” Lt. Gov. Aruna K. Miller said Wednesday while ...Read more

Hurricane center says system off Florida coast has 70% chance to develop

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ORLANDO, Fla. — An area of low pressure formed off the coast of Jacksonville on Friday and could develop into the season’s next tropical depression or storm, according to the National Hurricane Center.

In its 2 p.m. tropical outlook, the NHC said the system had become more defined and was located about 150 miles off the northeast Florida ...Read more

Monkey Business Images/Dreamstime/TNS

Powerful storms kill at least 3 in NJ, leave thousands without power

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Powerful thunderstorms that swept through New Jersey on Thursday killed at least three people and knocked out power to thousands, officials said.

In a social media post late Thursday night, Gov. Phil Murphy said he had been briefed on the “severe thunderstorms that hit Central Jersey … and resulted in fatalities.”

Without providing ...Read more

No veto on controversial election change. Miami mayor already signed it into law

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MIAMI — Within hours of the Miami City Commission approving a controversial measure to postpone the upcoming November election to 2026 in order to move the city to even-year elections, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez had already signed the legislation into law.

Suarez does not have a vote on the City Commission, nor is he required to sign ...Read more

PHOTO BY AL DIAZ/Miami Herald/PHOTO BY AL DIAZ

Alligator Alcatraz has opened in the Florida Everglades. Here are some takeaways

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MIAMI — A state-run detention facility for migrants has opened in the Florida Everglades. Alligator Alcatraz — that is the official name — was assembled in eight days and opened on July 1. President Donald Trump visited the remote site on opening day, built at an old runway near the Miami-Dade and Collier county line.

Here are the top ...Read more

US, Colombia withdraw ambassadors amid accusations of coup plotting

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MEDELLÍN, Colombia — The United States and Colombia have recalled their respective ambassadors amid tensions surrounding an alleged plot to oust President Gustavo Petro in which two Florida congressmen were implicated.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that he ordered the recall of John T. McNamara, the acting ambassador in Bogotá, ...Read more

Russia launches air attack on Kyiv after Putin-Trump call

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Russia unleashed a record air strike on Ukraine as U.S. President Donald Trump expressed disappointment over his latest phone call with Vladimir Putin aimed at bringing an end to the war.

Ukrainian air defense said Russia fired 550 drones and missiles, mostly targeting Kyiv, in overnight attacks that lasted more than 11 hours. It reported that ...Read more

SVEN HOPPE/AFP/Getty Images North America/TNS

Zelenskyy says he agreed to work with Trump to boost air defense

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President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he and Donald Trump agreed to cooperate on air defense as the Ukrainian leader sought to press Washington to resume key weapons deliveries.

The two leaders held a phone call hours after Russia unleashed one of the biggest air strikes on the Ukrainian capital since the start of its full-scale invasion in 2022....Read more

WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP/Getty Images North America/TNS

Russia formally recognizes Taliban government in Afghanistan

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Russia has formally recognized the Taliban-ruled Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, almost four years after the controversial regime came to power, according to a statement issued by Afghanistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Russia is the first country to offer recognition to the Taliban government that took over following the U.S.’s rushed ...Read more

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez under attack from all sides after graft shock

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MADRID — As allegations of corruption against a former aide began to circle three weeks ago, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez couldn’t bring himself to believe them, according to people close to him.

Santos Cerdán was a powerful figure in Sánchez’s Socialist Party. As organizational secretary, he was in charge of the day-to-day ...Read more

Monkey Business Images/Dreamstime/TNS

Multiple homes burn, 1 dead in California's Pacoima fireworks explosion

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LOS ANGELES — Amid exploding fireworks, more than 130 firefighters battled a fire that engulfed four homes in Pacoima on Thursday night, authorities said.

On Friday morning, officials said one person was found dead.

The Los Angeles Fire Department responded to three burning one-story homes in the area of 12933 W. Corcoran St. around 9 p.m. ...Read more

Christina House/Los Angeles Times/TNS

Federal contractors improperly dumped wildfire-related asbestos waste at LA area landfills

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LOS ANGELES — Federal contractors tasked with clearing ash and debris from the Eaton and Palisades wildfires improperly sent truckloads of asbestos-tainted waste to nonhazardous landfills, including one where workers were not wearing respiratory protection, according to state and local records.

From Feb. 28 to March 24, federal cleanup crews ...Read more

Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times/TNS

'We are in a crisis': Santa Ana creates emergency fund for families harmed by ICE raids

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LOS ANGELES - As immigration raids continue to sweep through Santa Ana's car washes and Home Depot parking lots, spreading fear across the 77% Latino community, the city has created a $100,000 fund to help affected families cover basic necessities such as food, rent and utilities.

The emergency fund was proposed by Mayor Valerie Amezcua, who ...Read more

Dreamstime/Dreamstime/TNS

Multiple homes burn in massive Pacoima fireworks explosion; 1 critically injured

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LOS ANGELES — Amid exploding fireworks, more than 130 firefighters battled a fire that had engulfed four homes in Pacoima and critically injured a woman on Thursday night, authorities said.

The Los Angeles Fire Department responded to three burning one-story homes in the area of 12933 W. Corcoran St. around 9 p.m. Fireworks were exploding ...Read more

Pedro Portal/El Nuevo Herald/Pedro Portal

Detention center driving out wildlife, damaging Everglades, critics contend

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MIAMI — The sales pitch for erecting a detention center for detainees in the heart of the Everglades is the swamp and creatures surrounding it. The wildlife has become both a presidential punchline and the government’s official name for the controversial camp: Alligator Alcatraz.

But environmentalists worry that the rapidly constructed ...Read more