MIAMI — José, a 60-year-old undocumented landscaper from Guatemala, had planned his whole day off around getting a COVID-19 vaccine. (He asked that his full name not be used because of his immigration status.)

Initially, he was hesitant. Bad information about Publix pharmacies charging (it doesn't) and worries about being asked for a Florida...Read more

The United States Wednesday urged nations "to act quickly" in deciding on the composition and date of an Organization of American States mission to Haiti, which is under pressure to hold legislative, local and presidential elections this fall.

The U.S.'s plea came during a tension-filled meeting in which Haiti's representative to the ...Read more

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — King Soopers will redesign and renovate its southside Boulder store with a goal to reopen in late fall, the company’s corporate affairs manager, Jessica Trowbridge, announced in a news conference Wednesday.

The store has remained closed since the March 22 shooting that killed 10 people. But in late April, survivors...Read more

SAN DIEGO — An Australian destroyer pulled into San Diego Bay Saturday with an unexpected cargo: two dead fin whales lodged against the ship’s hull.

And their size is no trivial matter.

The largest carcass belonged to a female adult measuring 65 feet long, according to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The other was much ...Read more

A man who allegedly opened fire with an AK-47 in the killing of 7-year-old Jaslyn Adams at a Chicago McDonald’s drive-thru last month is believed to have fled the state, according to newly unsealed federal charges.

Devontay Anderson, 21, was charged in a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court on April 29 with unlawful flight to avoid...Read more

WASHINGTON — Three months ago, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy helped quell a small protest against Rep. Liz Cheney, one of the Republican Party’s most vocal critics of former President Donald Trump, declaring the GOP a “big tent” that was broad enough to include dissenting voices.

But that tent deflated Wednesday morning, when ...Read more

Are the mask rules that Californians have been required to follow for nearly a year about to be scrapped?

In the span of 24 hours, Gov. Gavin Newsom caused confusion over the issue, appearing to tell a TV reporter in Los Angeles that indoor mask rules would be dropped after June 15, the date he plans to end California’s colored COVID-19 tiers...Read more

Two Los Angeles County firefighters who allegedly took souvenir photos of victims’ remains at the scene of Kobe Bryant’s horrific helicopter crash last year are facing termination, a new court filing claims.

The firefighters were sent “notices of discharge” on Dec. 2 as part of a disciplinary action that “recently” came to light ...Read more

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Just five months ago, Santa Clara University President Kevin O’Brien stood beneath the marble and mosaics of St. Matthews Cathedral in Washington, D.C., presiding over an inauguration-morning Mass and wishing his old friend and President-elect Joe Biden sitting in the pews “a deep-seated peace that will sustain you.�...Read more

WASHINGTON — In the five years since the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency last updated its climate-science scorecard, the world has seen five of the six hottest years on record and California has endured three of its five most destructive wildfires. The number of heatwaves tripled in the last decade from two a year on average in the 1960s....Read more

DURHAM, N.C. — On April 19, Nicole Pyles faced a choice of removing her hair beads or abandoning her Hillside High School softball teammates in the middle of their game against Durham rival Jordan High.

The demand came from the game’s two umpires, who were following a strict interpretation of a National Federation of State High School ...Read more

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Gov. Ron DeSantis signed two bills Wednesday that lawmakers say will leave Florida better prepared for future flooding and sea level rise.

The bills, SB 1954 and SB 2514, will — among other things — set aside hundreds of millions of state dollars for flooding infrastructure projects. The Republican-led efforts would ...Read more

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Wednesday signed an executive order intended to strengthen U.S. cybersecurity through the sharing of information on attacks and adopting better practices throughout the government, as administration officials urged the private sector to build more secure software.

The order had been in the works for months,...Read more

SAN JOSE, Calif. — A 25-year-old man cited last month for reckless driving after he was seen in the backseat of his Tesla — with no person controlling the car from its front seat — was arrested a second time for a similar incident, authorities said.

In a statement Tuesday, the California Highway Patrol said officers responded shortly ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Three alleged gang members were arrested in the armed robbery of a man's $500,000 watch while he was eating lunch outdoors at an Italian restaurant in Beverly Hills, authorities said Wednesday.

A woman was shot in the leg during a struggle over the gun used in the March 4 holdup at Il Pastaio on Canon Drive.

The three suspects,...Read more

Ohio will give away $1 million prizes to five adults, plus another five full-ride public college scholarships to teens who get vaccinated against COVID-19, Gov. Mike DeWine announced on Wednesday during a statewide televised address.

Calling it "Ohio Vax-a-Million," DeWine said drawings will be held for five consecutive Wednesdays, starting May...Read more