YouTube toughens policy on gun videos and youth; critics say proof will be in enforcement (2024)

HARRISBURG, Pa. — As the Pennsylvania House of Representatives recognized two police officers Wednesday who defended the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021 riot, several House Republicans booed or walked off the floor in protest and at least one state official yelled “traitor” at the men.

The owner of the container ship that struck the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, collapsing the bridge and killing six workers, has hired a firm to lobby in Washington regarding proposed changes to liability law, according to federal lobbying records.

Some Republican members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives booed and walked out this week when two former police officers who helped protect the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 riot were recognized on the state House floor. Witnesses said the appearance on Wednesday afternoon by former U.S. Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn and former Sgt. Aquilino Gonell triggered a chaotic response from Republicans, including a shout that they were cowards. Pennsylvania House Democratic Speaker says the reaction was disrespectful, while her Republican counterpart says she's been using the guest list and the legislative calendar for political purposes and fundraising.

Bryan Woo and three relievers combined on a two-hit shutout, and the Seattle Mariners beat the Oakland Athletics 2-0. Woo, who grew up 10 minutes away from the Coliseum in Alameda, California, allowed two hits and struck out six in six innings. The 24-year-old threw a season-high 85 pitches and didn’t walk a batter while being cheered by friends and family in the stands. Mitch Garver homered and had an RBI single for the AL West-leading Mariners, who have won nine of 11. The A’s (25-39) were shut out for the fifth time this season in their sixth loss in eight games.

MLB

All Times EDT

All Times EDT

AMERICAN LEAGUE

All Times EDT

AMERICAN LEAGUE

THROUGH JUNE 5

THROUGH JUNE 5

THROUGH JUNE 5

NATIONAL LEAGUE

The Florida Panthers are back in the Stanley Cup Final for the second straight season, marking five consecutive years the Sunshine State has been represented.

A former New Jersey attorney general has testified at Sen. Bob Menendez's bribery trial that the Democrat twice confronted him about a pending criminal case. Gurbir Grewal told the Manhattan federal court jury on Thursday that he refused to discuss it with Menendez. He said he didn't feel pressured but called Menendez's effort “pretty unprecedented." A defense attorney noted on cross-examination that others had done it. Federal prosecutors say the senator was trying to interfere with the prosecution of a friend of a New Jersey businessman who was paying him bribes. Menendez denies it.

A white Mississippi police officer has lost his job after telling a Hispanic man “go back to Mexico” while responding to a home disturbance. Richland Police Chief Adrian Ready says the officer resigned after being “relieved of duty” over using “derogatory slurs." Jeremy Rast and other officers had responded to a call Sunday in Richland, a Jackson suburb. WLBT-TV reports it obtained video that one of the men, Luis Rodriguez, made of Rast's remarks. Rodriguez says he's a native of Honduras, and he's planning to move out of Mississippi because of concerns that other officers will target him.

LAS VEGAS — In November 2022, Elton John told his crowd at Allegiant Stadium he’d performed 469 shows in Las Vegas. Now it’s 470, as he has tacked on a lucrative corporate gig.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is trying to raise taxes on businesses in the city to close a big budget gap that emerged after she halted a plan to charge drivers a toll to enter the center of Manhattan. Lawmakers on Thursday detailed the governor's behind-the-scenes effort to win support for the tax increase. The move came a day after she unexpectedly upended the “congestion pricing” toll, a program that was in the works for years and expected to net billions for the city’s ailing mass transit system and reduce traffic on city streets.

The Atlantic Coast Conference has asked a Florida appeals court to review its recent legal loss to Florida State University.

Federal environmental regulators said they expect to decide this year on a controversial proposal that would allow Tampa-based Fortune 500 mining company Mosaic to test its phosphate waste as an ingredient in road construction.

Evansville was an afterthought in the college baseball discussion two weeks ago. It entered the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament as the No. 3 seed, a decided underdog to regular-season champ and rival Indiana State. The Purple Aces were relying on a true freshman pitcher and a committed coach with no ties to any other college. Suddenly, everything changed. Now the Aces are all in as they peparte to face top-seeded Tennessee on Friday in their first super regional appearance. And they're hoping their unusual roster will find another winning hand.

NORFOLK, Virginia — Virginia House of Delegates Speaker Don Scott said state lawmakers will return to Richmond later this month to address recent changes to a state program that covers higher education costs for some military families.

An Alabama sheriff has evacuated his county’s jail, citing a need to prevent “health and safety issues.” Autauga County Sheriff Mark Harrell says in a statement posted on Facebook that deputies began transporting inmates from the Autauga County Metro Jail to other facilities Thursday morning. His office's website currently lists 164 people on its inmate roster. It is not clear which agencies agreed to house them or for how long. County Administrator Scott Kramer says the commission is aware of certain issues at the jail, but without providing specifics. Kramer says the facility was assessed recently and is attempting to address Harrell's concerns.

Members of the Indian American community are frustrated after a recent decision to gut diversity, equity and inclusion efforts at North Carolina’s public universities.

MINNEAPOLIS — The ownership battle for the Timberwolves between majority shareholder Glen Taylor and minority shareholders Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez is adding some financial heft.

Gov. Andy Beshear says drug overdose deaths in Kentucky fell nearly 10% in 2023. It marks the second straight yearly decline, but the governor says the fight against addiction is far from over, The number of fatal overdoses statewide dropped below 2,000 in 2023. Officials on Thursday credited a comprehensive response that includes treatment and prevention as well as illegal drug seizures by law enforcement. U.S. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell says the latest report is a “cause for hope.” McConnell has steered huge sums of funding to his home state over the years to help combat addiction woes.

PHILADELPHIA — The University of Pennsylvania on Thursday issued new temporary guidelines on campus demonstrations that for the first time specifically refer to encampments and prohibit them.

LAS VEGAS — Whether it’s a water polo team, an order of surf-and-turf or a basket of cheddar biscuits, Flavor Flav will support it.

Gov. Jared Polis this week signed a bill into law that allows students to wear objects of cultural or religious significance during graduation ceremonies.

Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown announced a new online portal for reporting hate crimes and hate bias incidents Tuesday in an effort to tackle hate and reduce the number of hate crimes that go unreported.

The Los Angeles Lakers parted ways with Darvin Ham in early May after the Denver Nuggets eliminated them from the playoffs for the second straight season.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced Thursday in Bemidji alongside local leaders that it would be awarding $123 million to address youth homelessness across the nation.

A 71-year-old woman who was found dead inside her Sierra County home last November had been mauled by a black bear, the first such fatal attack in California history.

Three shootings in three weeks involving police officers in Anchorage, Alaska, have rattled residents and created a fight over transparency. The shootings come only a few months after Anchorage police officers began wearing body cameras. There have been protests and calls to release footage from the first shooting, in which a man was fatally shot. A neighbor’s security camera footage seems to dispute the police department’s narrative of the shooting. Anchorage Police Chief-designee Bianca Cross has the legal authority to immediately release the footage from all three shootings. However, she says she plans to wait until after all department and state investigations are finished. That process could take months.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Assemblyman Bill Essayli, R-Corona, has had a busy legislative session.

BALTIMORE — Vice President Kamala Harris will campaign with U.S. Senate candidate Angela Alsobrooks on Friday in Maryland — marking the first major campaign event for the Prince George’s County executive since she won last month’s Democratic primary and underscoring the White House’s support…

Connecticut’s Democratic governor has formed a new working group to explore options and come up with a legislative proposal allowing ranked-choice voting in certain elections in the state. Gov. Ned Lamont, who made a campaign promise to propose ranked-choice voting legislation, announced Thursday that he wants the bipartisan group to develop recommendations by the end of 2024 that would allow municipalities and political parties to use ranked-choice voting in caucuses, conventions, primaries, and certain municipal elections. Current law in Connecticut does not allow ranked-choice voting, which comes in different forms but essentially allows voters to rank candidates by preference on their ballots rather than voting for just one person.

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson’s executive order to send Missouri National Guard members to the Texas border with Mexico expires next week, raising questions about whether the Republican governor will extend the deployment.