BALTIMORE — A Baltimore jury awarded over $1.5 billion in damages to a Maryland woman who alleged in a lawsuit that Johnson & Johnson’s talc-based personal care products caused her to develop cancer. But the sizeable award “is far from final,” an attorney said.

The company, which has been ordered to pay billions in other baby powder-...Read more

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — On Jan. 1, a host of new state laws go into effect, dictating everything from kitchen appliances in rental properties to bank overdraft fees to whether California cats can have claws.

Some were crafted by the Legislature, which passed 790 bills into law in 2025, the first year of the current two-year session. Others were ...Read more

BOSTON — Worker unions and politicians in New England are pushing back against the Trump administration’s move to implement a 90-day freeze on five industrial-sized offshore wind projects off the East Coast, including the Vineyard Wind 1 windfarm off of Nantucket.

Ironworkers Local 7, which represents over 3,600 workers across New England, ...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — In May, Florida officials announced a plan outlining to the federal government new measures to curb illegal immigration, including new detention centers.

Two months later, the state opened Alligator Alcatraz on an old airstrip inside Big Cypress National Preserve.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem praised the move, saying...Read more

LOS ANGELES — A father who has become the sole caretaker for his two young children after his wife was deported. A school district seeing absenteeism similar to what it experienced during the pandemic. Businesses struggling because customers are scared to go outside.

These are just a sampling of how this part of Ventura County is reckoning ...Read more

Christmas Eve has arrived and so has the rain for the Las Vegas Valley.

A fire hose of tropical moisture from the Pacific Ocean is bringing widespread showers to Southern Nevada. The valley is under a flood watch until 4 a.m. Christmas morning.

Large portions of the valley has seen considerable rain today, with one home in Centennial Hills ...Read more

Texas supermarket chain H-E-B gifted customers free groceries this week when a computer glitch upended the registers at a Fort Worth-area store, resulting in a Christmas miracle for those already in line.

The Burleson location’s technical error caused “dead” registers on Monday, leaving customers unable to check out, as shopper David ...Read more

A Roseville couple accused of murder and torture in the death of a 7-year-old girl, who was found with injuries Monday at the couple’s home, made their first appearance Wednesday in Placer Superior Court.

Along with the murder charge, Retuquel Dupree, 27, and Jessica Savangsy, 26, have both been charged with two counts of torture. The victims...Read more

SEATTLE — U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. declared a public health emergency for Washington after dozens of communities across the western side of the state were pummeled by flooding.

The declaration, issued Christmas Eve, is meant to address ensuing health impacts caused by the flooding, back-to-...Read more

Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy appointed two Mat-Su Republicans to fill vacant seats in the state House on Wednesday.

Dunleavy chose Garret Nelson, an online salesman and father of nine who lives in Sutton, to fill a seat previously held by George Rauscher. The governor selected Stephan St. Clair, a veteran and former legislative staffer from ...Read more

BRISTOL, Pa. — As first responders arrived at the Bristol Health & Rehab Center on Tuesday afternoon, they were faced with a nightmarish scene: A nursing facility that housed 120 people had exploded, and dozens were trapped.

Shards of wood, glass, and paneling littered the lawn. The smell of gas hung thick in the air — and flames were ...Read more

Federal employees were given two additional days off this week after President Donald Trump designated Christmas Eve and the day after Christmas federal holidays.

This week, Gov. Brad Little followed suit for Idaho state workers.

But not everyone has the rest of the week off. Many local governments, including Ada County and the city of Boise, ...Read more

Russia may be getting help from Chinese satellite imaging data to carry out strikes on energy targets in Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

“There have been correlations between Chinese satellite imaging of Ukrainian territory and Russian strikes on the corresponding energy infrastructure facilities,” Zelenskyy said Wednesday in a...Read more

As one of his final acts in office, Mayor Eric Adams late on Christmas Eve vetoed a City Council bill that would temporarily allow victims of gender-based violence to sue their perpetrators even if the statute of limitations for their claim has lapsed.

The veto, which Adams issued just a week before he leaves office on Dec. 31, came even though...Read more

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A Kansas City Fire Department captain has filed a lawsuit alleging he was retaliated against after raising concerns about racist hiring and promotion practices, including claims that department leadership destroyed evidence and blamed Black firefighters’ test performance on a lack of education.

The complaint, filed on ...Read more

WASHINGTON — A sanctioned oil tanker pursued by U.S. forces turned away from Venezuela and retreated out into the Atlantic Ocean, according to people familiar with the matter, as the Trump administration continues a blockade piling pressure on Caracas.

The U.S. Coast Guard encountered the ship, Bella 1, amid bad weather near Barbados on ...Read more

In a scene reminiscent of the 1990 Christmas classic “Home Alone,” a quick-thinking Long Island boy foiled a robbery by leaping out of his bedroom window and calling police as he hid in the backyard of his Medford home.

The incident occurred on Tuesday afternoon when the 12-year-old child heard glass breaking in the kitchen and someone ...Read more