DEDHAM, Mass. — The Karen Read murder retrial is taking today off.

The announcement came in the form of a somewhat cryptic message from the state’s courts.

“Please be advised that the trial in Commonwealth v. Karen Read is not taking place today due to unavoidable circumstances,” Massachusetts state courts spokeswoman Jennifer Donahue ...Read more

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A south Sacramento motel is slated to be turned into permanent housing for homeless adults and families.

The Sacramento County Board of Supervisors will Tuesday consider a proposal to redevelop a Motel 6, near the corner of Stockton Boulevard and Elsie Avenue, into housing.

If the supervisors approve, nonprofit ...Read more

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he’s days away from ordering an all-out escalation of Israel’s war against Hamas, and even the release of more hostages would only pause the campaign to destroy the Iran-backed group.

Speaking to wounded military veterans on Monday, the Israeli leader said his armed forces are preparing to “finish ...Read more

ATLANTA — Top Georgia lawmakers acknowledged during this year’s legislative session that costly steps were needed to deal with a prison system operating in crisis mode, and they acted accordingly.

The state House and Senate approved most of what Gov. Brian Kemp asked for in a special request for the prison system and incorporated some of ...Read more

LOS ANGELES -- Two men lay in a dark street in Pomona.

The gunshot wounds made clear how they died. Their tattoos offered clues about how they lived: Swastikas. Lightning bolts. Iron crosses. The words “Blood and Honor” and “Death Squad.”

The slain men were part of a white supremacist gang called Public Enemy Number 1, or PEN1. ...Read more

Even as Republicans in Congress walk back their most aggressive proposal to slash federal Medicaid spending, they are weighing other options that could force states to cut services for children and other vulnerable populations.

U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters last week that his caucus won’t reduce the 90% federal funding match ...Read more

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — State Sen. Akilah Weber Pierson anticipates that California’s sprawling Medicaid program, known as Medi-Cal, may need to be dialed back after Gov. Gavin Newsom releases his latest budget, which could reflect a multibillion-dollar deficit.

Even so, the physician-turned-lawmaker, who was elected to the state Senate in ...Read more

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Tara Campbell unlocked the front door of the Bricklayers Hall, a no-frills brick building on South Union Street in downtown Montgomery, half a mile from the white-domed Alabama Capitol.

She was dressed in leggings, a T-shirt and bright blue running shoes. It was 8 a.m. on a Saturday, and she exuded the bouncy enthusiasm of ...Read more

While Baja California Gov. Marina del Pilar Ávila says she still doesn’t know why the U.S. government revoked her non-immigrant visa, she is convinced the matter will be worked out.

“It doesn’t mean I did anything wrong,” she said Monday at a news conference in Tijuana. “It’s an administrative decision, not an accusation. There is ...Read more

ORLANDO, Fla. — Like many parents, Imani Brooks struggled to find affordable childcare after the birth of her son, with her search made more complicated because he has cerebral palsy.

When she finally found a place that could provide her baby the extra help he needed, she learned it was a 30-minute drive from her home near Orlando’s Camping...Read more

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Whooping cough cases are surging in California with rates returning to pre-pandemic levels, medical experts said.

As of April 26, a total of 590 Californians had contracted the highly contagious disease in 2025, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“California is one of the hot ...Read more

Day care providers, parents and advocates from across the Bay Area rallied Monday as part of a statewide push for affordable child care amid concerns of additional cuts from the Trump administration to a struggling system still reeling from the pandemic.

More than half a dozen child care providers from the region closed their doors Monday and ...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — As state and federal officials prepare to strictly enforce English rules for commercial drivers in the coming weeks, many immigrant truckers across the country are speaking out and calling the rule unfair.

But people in the industry say knowing basic English is important for safety.

Trump signed an executive order on April 28 ...Read more

It was the kind of week that would make even a seasoned diplomat’s head spin: China trade talks, India-Pakistan truce, a ceasefire with the Houthis and Iran nuclear negotiations. Not to mention a Gaza hostage release, new trade framework with the U.K. and the tantalizing prospect of ending Russia’s war in Ukraine.

For President Donald ...Read more

BOSTON — Harvard President Alan Garber sought “common ground” with the Trump administration in the latest communications Monday, but again said the university will “not surrender its core, legally-protected principles out of fear of unfounded retaliation.”

“As your letter suggests, we share common ground on a number of critical ...Read more

Despite having more years in public office than other candidates in the Democratic primary race to replace retiring U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly on Monday embraced her underdog status in the nascent campaign against a pair of opponents expected to be flush with campaign cash.

To take on Republican President Donald Trump and Vice...Read more

Two Johns Hopkins University student protesters for Palestine were injured during the university’s response to an encampment Thursday morning, a campus activist group said.

“Within the hour, demonstrators were met with indiscriminate aggression and physical harassment by armed Johns Hopkins Police and Baltimore Police officers, resulting in...Read more

MANILA, Philippines — Philippine voters appear to have delivered a blow to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and a boost to the rival Duterte clan, whose members and allies outperformed expectations in Monday’s midterm elections.

Ex-President Rodrigo Duterte looks set to become mayor of Davao City despite his detention by the International ...Read more