Police in major US cities are preparing for potential unrest in case ex-President Donald Trump is arrested this week as part of a hush-money inquiry. Authorities in New York, Washington DC and Los Angeles are ramping up their law enforcement presence. A Manhattan prosecutor may charge Mr Trump over claims that he paid a porn star to keep quiet about the affair they allegedly had. It would be the first criminal case brought against a former US president. Steel barricades were being erected on Monday outside the Manhattan Criminal Court, where Mr Trump could be charged, fingerprinted and photographed if … Continue reading US police forces on alert ahead of possible Trump arrest

A six-year-old boy who shot his teacher in a primary school in the US state of Virginia is unlikely to be charged, a prosecutor has said. But authorities in the city of Newport News have yet to decide if any adult will face criminal charges in the case. Police have said the child brought the gun in his backpack to Richneck Elementary School on 6 January. Abigail Zwerner, a 25-year-old teacher, was shot in the hand and chest, but survived. On Wednesday, Newport News Commonwealth’s Attorney Howard Gwynn told NBC News that his office would not seek charges against the … Continue reading US six-year-old who shot teacher won’t be charged

A US black couple has settled a lawsuit with a real estate appraiser whom they accused of giving their home a low valuation because of their race. Tenisha Tate-Austin and Paul Austin’s house was valued in 2020 at nearly $1m – much less than expected. They asked for an appraisal with another firm – this time with a white friend posing as the California home’s owner. It was valued at nearly $1.5m. According to official figures, 92.4% of home appraisers are white. In 2021, the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation released a study of 12 million appraisals over five years, … Continue reading US black couple settles lawsuit over discriminatory home valuation

US President Joe Biden had a cancerous skin lesion removed last month during a routine health screening, the White House has said. All cancerous tissue was removed and no further treatment is required, Mr Biden’s doctor said. Mr Biden will continue dermatologic surveillance as part of his ongoing healthcare, the doctor added. The president, 80, had a physical exam in February which the White House said found him healthy and “fit for duty”. Kevin O’Connor, Mr Biden’s doctor, wrote in a note provided to media on Friday that the lesion was removed from Mr Biden’s chest on 16 February at … Continue reading Joe Biden had cancerous skin lesion removed, White House says

Seattle has become the first US city to ban discrimination based on caste after a vote by the city council. Councilwoman Kshama Sawant, who wrote the legislation, said the fight against caste bias “is deeply connected to the fight against all forms of oppression”. Advocates of the ban say that it is needed to prevent caste bias from becoming more prevalent in the US. The caste system in India dates back over 3,000 years and divides Hindu society into rigid hierarchical groups. The ordinance passed by Seattle on Tuesday follows similar bans on caste bias that have been introduced on … Continue reading Seattle becomes first US city to ban caste discrimination

Former US President Jimmy Carter will end medical treatment and enter hospice care at his Georgia home, his foundation announced on Saturday. The Carter Center said Mr Carter had decided to “spend his remaining time at home with his family,” but did not say what had prompted the decision. Mr Carter, 98, has suffered from recent health issues, including a melanoma that spread to his liver and brain. The country’s oldest living leader, he served one term in office from 1977-81. During his tenure as president Mr Carter faced a spate of foreign policy challenges and the Democrat was defeated … Continue reading Former US President Jimmy Carter to receive hospice care

Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones has filed for bankruptcy but has nearly $10m in assets and spends almost $100,000 a month, according to court filings. He owes almost $1.5bn in court-awarded damages to relatives of victims in the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting. Details of his finances were laid bare this week in documents filed with a Texas bankruptcy court. In previous court filings, he declared assets in a range between $1m and $10m. The Infowars founder declared bankruptcy last year, and the latest documents include voluminous detail about his possessions, debts, outgoings and legal issues. Mr Jones, who repeatedly made … Continue reading How Alex Jones became bankrupt as he spends nearly $100,000 a month

The FBI has conducted two searches within the last month at the University of Delaware to check if US President Joe Biden donated papers that could have been classified. Investigators retrieved multiple boxes from the college on two different days, according to CBS News. The university, Mr Biden’s alma mater, houses thousands of boxes of files related to his time in the Senate. Donald Trump faces a criminal inquiry over his handling of classified files. Documents marked classified have been found in recent months at Mr Biden’s home in Delaware and offices that he used in Washington DC. The FBI … Continue reading FBI searches Biden papers at University of Delaware

The US has shot down another unidentified flying object in the fourth military operation of its kind this month. President Joe Biden ordered it to be downed near Lake Huron, close to the Canadian border, on Sunday afternoon. The object could have interfered with commercial air traffic as it was traveling at 20,000ft (6,100m), a Pentagon statement said. It was first detected above military sites in Montana on Saturday, it added. The object, which was not deemed a military threat, has been described by defence officials as unmanned and octagonal in shape. It was downed by a missile fired from … Continue reading US military shoots down fourth flying object over North America

A New York school has apologised after serving what it called an “inexcusably insensitive” lunch on the first day of Black History Month. Students at Nyack Middle School were served fried chicken, waffles and watermelon on 1 February. The foods have been used as racist tropes against African Americans. Officials from the school said its food supplier – Aramark, had changed the planned meal of cheesesteaks, broccoli and fruit. “We are extremely disappointed by this regrettable situation and apologise to the entire Nyack community for the cultural insensitivity displayed by our food service provider,” Principal David Johnson wrote in a … Continue reading US school apologises for ‘inexcusably insensitive’ Black History Month lunch

US Navy divers are working to recover the wreckage of the Chinese surveillance balloon that was shot down off the coast of South Carolina. Fighter jets brought the craft down over US territorial waters on Saturday and debris is spread over a wide area. The US believes the balloon was monitoring sensitive military sites. Its discovery set off a diplomatic crisis, with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken immediately calling off this weekend’s trip to China. The Chinese authorities denied it was used for spying and insisted it was a weather ship blown astray. Admiral Mike Mullen, former chair of … Continue reading Update: US searches for wreckage of suspected Chinese spy balloon

A Washington DC householder has been charged with second-degree murder in the shooting of a 13-year-old child who he suspected of breaking into cars. Jason Michael Lewis, 41, turned himself in to Washington police on Tuesday. He is accused of shooting the teenager at around 04:00 on 7 January. According to arrest documents, as he was being shot, Karon Blake shouted, “I am sorry, please don’t” and “I’m a kid, I’m a kid.” Mr Lewis is black, as was the teenager. He is an employee with the city’s Department of Parks and Recreation. The Washington Post reports that he has … Continue reading Washington DC householder charged with shooting boy, 13