WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump told Axios he will not lift a naval blockade of Iran’s ports until he secures a deal with Tehran to address the country’s nuclear program, extending a standoff over the Strait of Hormuz that has caused a global energy crisis.

“The blockade is somewhat more effective than the bombing. They are choking ...Read more

SPRINGFIELD — Hours after a U.S. Supreme Court majority ruled a Louisiana voting map was an unconstitutional racial gerrymander, Illinois Senate President Don Harmon announced Wednesday that a state constitutional amendment to enshrine protections for majority-minority districts will not appear on Illinois’ November ballot.

Harmon said in a...Read more

President Donald Trump’s portrait will be added to a special edition U.S. passport that the State Department is rolling out to commemorates the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence this summer.

An estimated 25,000 to 35,000 of the limited edition documents including Trump’s image on an inside page will be available to ...Read more

President Donald Trump threatened Iran in a predawn social media post Wednesday as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Congress in a stormy hearing that the monthlong war has been a huge success and has cost taxpayers $25 billion so far.

Posting a fake image of himself carrying a machine gun with the caption “No more Mr. Nice Guy,” Trump ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — D4vd allegedly used a chainsaw to dismember the body of a teenager he was sexually abusing, then amputated two of her fingers to destroy a tattoo linking him to the girl, according to a court document made public Wednesday afternoon by L.A. County prosecutors in the singer's murder case.

David Anthony Burke, 21, is charged with ...Read more

A coalition of Maryland environmental groups is asking a Baltimore County judge to strike down or overhaul a state stormwater permit they say is too weak to curb industrial pollution flowing into the Chesapeake Bay.

Five organizations, including the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and Blue Water Baltimore, argued Tuesday before a circuit court judge ...Read more

WASHINGTON — Former FBI Director James Comey made his initial court appearance Wednesday in response to federal criminal charges for allegedly threatening President Donald Trump’s life in a social media post.

Comey appeared in federal court in Virginia in response to a grand jury indictment obtained by the Justice Department, according to ...Read more

LANSING, Mich. — The Democratic-led Michigan Senate approved bills Wednesday that aimed to rein in technology companies' interactions with children, while some Republicans said the measures didn't go far enough.

The so-called "Kids Over Clicks" legislation would ban social media websites and mobile applications from providing addictive feeds ...Read more

Scott Peterson’s latest attempt to present evidence his legal team claims would prove he didn’t kill his wife and unborn son has been rejected by a Bay Area judge.

In an order handed down Monday, San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Hill denied the motion from Peterson’s attorneys with the Los Angeles Innocence Project — ...Read more

Five small dams failed during the widespread flooding in northern Michigan this month and five others with the ability to cause major downstream damage were on the verge of failure, Michigan's dam safety supervisor told a House legislative committee Wednesday.

"The reality is that it's not a question of if another heavy rainfall or flooding ...Read more

A 53-year-old San Diego man pleaded guilty Tuesday to impersonating a U.S. Border Patrol agent as part of an effort to disrupt deportations, according to authorities.

Jaime Ernesto Alvarez-Gonzalez, who authorities said is an undocumented Mexican citizen, pleaded guilty to one count of impersonating a federal agent and three counts of illegally...Read more

Alaska lawmakers voted Wednesday to send a public pension bill to the desk of Gov. Mike Dunleavy, calling it the culmination of years of effort to restore guaranteed income in retirement for Alaska’s teachers, public safety officers and other state employees.

The House, which passed the bill last year, voted 21-19 along caucus lines to accept...Read more

DENVER — National Democrats will visit Denver next week as the race to host the party’s next presidential convention heats up.

During the three-day site visit, which begins Tuesday, Denver bid leaders will showcase the city’s best features as they attempt to persuade the party officials to choose the city for the 2028 event, Mayor Mike ...Read more

DENVER — A pair of bills that would have changed rules around marijuana and THC-infused drinks in Colorado died this week after the sponsors yanked them ahead of their first votes.

The bills were withdrawn ahead of committee votes Tuesday. One of them, Senate Bill 164, would have expanded the market for hemp-based beverages infused with THC, ...Read more

According to acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and other top Trump administration officials, U.S. Secret Service agents did a fine job protecting President Donald Trump and much of his Cabinet from the gunman who barged into the White House Correspondents’ Assn. dinner Saturday intent on killing them.

“That horrible act was stopped ...Read more

A federal judge this week refused to toss a trove of evidence against former Oakland, California, Mayor Sheng Thao and the men accused of bribing her, dealing a setback to efforts by the city’s one-time leader to fight federal fraud and bribery charges months before trial.

Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled Monday that Thao and her three co-...Read more

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court’s conservative majority on Wednesday sharply limited a part of the Voting Rights Act that has forced states to draw voting districts to help elect Black or Latino representatives to Congress as well as state and local boards.

In a 6-3 decision in Louisiana vs. Callais, the court ruled that creating these ...Read more