SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Gov. Gavin Newsom and state officials said Thursday that California will shelter wildfire evacuees in hotels, require temperature checks and make other changes to protect people from COVID-19 as the state battles an increase in blazes during the pandemic.

The coronavirus outbreak presents a new challenge to the ...Read more

WASHINGTON -- House appropriators approved a $115.5 billion Military Construction-VA spending bill Thursday on a 30-20 vote, with Texas Republican Will Hurd joining Democrats to advance the legislation to the floor.

The rest of the panel's Republicans opposed Democrats' decision to add $12.5 billion in emergency spending to the annual funding ...Read more

BALTIMORE -- Baltimore Mayor Bernard C. "Jack" Young said Thursday he was not going to tolerate the destruction of the Christopher Columbus statue, warning those who toppled the monument near the Little Italy neighborhood that "if we identify them, they will be brought to justice."

Young's comments are the strongest reaction from the ...Read more

Coronavirus outbreak tied to fraternity parties imperils fall semester at UC Berkeley

SAN FRANCISCO -- An outbreak of coronavirus infections tied to parties connected to fraternities at the University of California, Berkeley is imperiling the prospect of in-person fall semester classes, university officials warned.

In just one week, there have...Read more

NEW YORK -- Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance could soon get his hands on President Donald Trump's tax returns, but that doesn't mean the public will see them.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday rejected the president's claim of absolute immunity shielding his corporate and personal tax records from a subpoena Vance issued to Trump's ...Read more

LOS ANGELES -- Los Angeles County prosecutors have filed six more counts of sexual assault and battery against disgraced University of Southern California gynecologist George Tyndall, who was arrested last year after he was accused of sexual misconduct by hundreds of former students.

Tyndall, 73, was charged with five counts of sexual ...Read more

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Tropical Storm Fay has formed just east of the Outer Banks off the coast of North Carolina, forecasters said Thursday.

In a 5 p.m. update Thursday, the National Hurricane Center said Fay was about 40 miles east of Cape Hatteras moving north at 7 miles per hour with maximum sustained wind speeds of 40 mph.

A Tropical Storm ...Read more

WASHINGTON -- The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on Thursday stressed the importance of a "visual distinction" between members of the police and the military, an issue that has surfaced anew during recent protests.

"You want a clear definition between that which is military, and that which is police in my view," Gen. Mark Milley told the...Read more

MIAMI -- The rate of daily coronavirus deaths reported by the state of Florida has begun to tick up again for the first time since May, a trend that was apparent even before Thursday's announcement of a record 120 COVID deaths, following weeks of rising hospitalizations.

Public health experts and coronavirus data researchers say it's still too ...Read more

Foreign students ready to attend college in the U.S. are being turned away by a government ban on visas for those whose classes are online only, a lawyer for Harvard University told a judge weighing its request to freeze the new policy.

"Quite honestly, your honor, we are getting flooded with inquiries and requests because of the policies being...Read more

Joe Biden laid out a populist economic vision on Thursday, starting with a $700 billion proposal to reinvigorate the nation's manufacturing sector, and laced into President Donald Trump for being out of touch with the challenges facing the American public.

Speaking at a metal works plant in Dunmore, Pennsylvania, the presumptive Democratic ...Read more

LOS ANGELES -- Los Angeles County sheriff's investigators have concluded that Robert Fuller, whose body was found hanging from a tree in Palmdale last month, died by suicide, saying a thorough investigation found no signs of foul play and showed the 24-year-old had previously expressed suicidal behavior.

The findings upheld a preliminary ...Read more

WASHINGTON -- A criminal investigation into whether FBI officials acted improperly while probing Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign and his associates may produce some results by the end of summer, Attorney General William Barr said.

"The investigation is going to take the time that is necessary to do a thorough and good investigation ...Read more

Rangers at California's Joshua Tree National Park have shut down the popular Jumbo Rocks Campground "due to aggressive honey bee activity."

"There were a couple of vehicles with a lot of bees in them. And campsites. Visitors were very uncomfortable," said Joshua Tree Superintendent David Smith. He said no stings were reported, the bees are "...Read more

MIAMI -- An American longline fishing boat captain has been in jail for a month after he was detained in the British Virgin Islands on June 8 for traveling into BVI waters during coronavirus border closures. Now he is facing criminal charges and a monthslong wait in a sweltering island prison cell.

Michael Foy, who lives in Puerto Rico and left...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS -- The judge overseeing the cases against four former Minneapolis police officers charged in the killing of George Floyd issued a gag order Thursday prohibiting attorneys and others working on the matter from publicly talking about "opinions, strategies, plans or potential evidence," among other issues.

Hennepin County District ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA -- Speaking to a group of ironworkers just outside his hometown of Scranton on Thursday, Joe Biden promised to be a true champion of the working class as he laid out a plan to reverse the country's devastating economic decline.

"This is our moment to imagine and to build a new American economy for our families and for our ...Read more