NEW YORK — The devastated parents of the Black man killed in a caught-on-video beating by Memphis, Tennessee, police officers recounted the horrors of his death Saturday during a Harlem visit where they once more demanded justice for their slain son.
“This has been a very difficult time for our family,” said RowVaughn Wells, the mother of slain 29-year-old Tyre Nichols. “I’m still trying to process all of this and it hasn’t been easy. I’ve had my good days, I have my bad days. But the only thing that keeps me going is all the prayers I’ve been receiving.”
CHICAGO — A Cook County judge last year moved cases involving allegations of torture by a former Chicago police detective to Will County, because the detective was married to another sitting Cook County judge.
TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — Arizona State has agreed to a contract extension with men’s basketball coach Bobby Hurley that runs through the 2025-26 season. The deal is subject to approval by the Arizona Board of Regents. Hurley’s previous contract was set to expire after next season. Hurley led the …
MARSEILLE, France (AP) — On a sunny afternoon in the center of Marseille in southern France, traffic was stopped as the sound of drumming and a swarm of rollicking beasts filled the streets.
Japanese television stuck to its live coverage from Miami for almost two hours after Japan beat the United States 3-2 to win the World Baseball Classic. This was must-see viewing. Shohei Ohtani striking out Los Angeles Angels teammate Mike Trout on a pitch away to end the game was replayed repeatedly between player interviews, beer-sprayed clubhouse interludes, and the tradition of team members tossing the winning manager and players into the air. The country’s top circulating newspaper Yomiuri rolled out a special Wednesday afternoon edition for commuters, usually reserved for serious matters of state, or late-breaking election news. The headline read in Japanese: “Japan, the World's No. 1."
South Korea says North Korea has test-launched multiple cruise missiles toward the North’s eastern waters. The launches on Wednesday are the North’s fourth weapons tests since the U.S. and South Korean militaries began large-scale military drills last week. North Korea views the drill as a preparation to attack it. The U.S.-South Korean military drills are to end on Thursday. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff says North Korea fired “several” cruise missiles from its northeastern coastal town of Hamhung. It says the South Korean and U.S. intelligence authorities are analyzing further details of the launches.
Cory Franklin and Robert Weinstein - Chicago Tribune (TNS)
For the past three years, the COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated, and will continue to demonstrate in the future, that America is one of the unhealthiest countries in the industrialized world. Critics on the right and left harp on how the pandemic was handled, but in fact the dismal outcomes…
New York Daily News Editorial Board - New York Daily News (TNS)
The end of the pandemic has been less like a car slamming on the brakes and more like a ship that has turned off its engines and is slowly gliding to a stop.
The IMF and Ukraine have agreed on a new loan package to support the government's financies severely strained by Russia's invasion. The $15.6 deal is expected to leverage even more money by assuring other donors that Ukraine is following strong economic policies. Ukraine’s finance ministry said Wednesday that the program will “help to mobilize financing from Ukraine’s international partners" and “ensure the path to post-war reconstruction.” The government is running a huge budget deficit amid massively higher military spending and is reliant on outside help to fund pensions, salaries and basic services. The loan agreement announced Tuesday also aims to support Ukraine's efforts to revamp its economy as part of its bid to join the European Union.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has met with Poland's prime minister for talks about the region's security and bilateral relations a day after he made a surprise visit to Kyiv where he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Kishida was in Ukraine while Chinese leader Xi Jinping was holding talks in Moscow with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The two visits showed how various countries are lining up behind Moscow or Kyiv. Kishida was greeted in Warsaw on Wednesday by Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki before brief talks. The Japanese leader will later meet with Polish President Andrzej Duda. Poland has been supplying military and other support to neighbouring Ukraine which has been fighting to repel Russia's full-scale invasion that began more than a year ago.
The No. 20 Tennessee Volunteers play the No. 25 Florida Atlantic Owls in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Tournament. Thursday's matchup is the first of the season between the squads. Tennessee is 11-7 against the SEC, and Florida Atlantic is 18-2 against the C-USA.
The No. 7 UCLA Bruins and No. 9 Gonzaga Bulldogs play in the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16. The teams play Thursday for the first time this season. UCLA is 18-2 against the Pac-12, and Gonzaga is 14-2 against the WCC.
The Utah Valley Wolverines and Cincinnati Bearcats square off in the National Invitation Tournament. The teams play Wednesday for the first time this season. Utah Valley is 15-3 against the WAC, and Cincinnati is 11-7 against the AAC.
The Charlotte 49ers and Eastern Kentucky Colonels meet in the College Basketball Invitational. Wednesday's matchup is the first of the season for the teams. Charlotte is 9-11 against the C-USA, and Eastern Kentucky is 12-6 against the ASUN.
The No. 10 UConn Huskies square off against the Arkansas Razorbacks in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Tournament. The teams meet Thursday for the first time this season. UConn is 13-7 against the Big East, and Arkansas is 8-10 against the SEC.
The Vanderbilt Commodores take on the UAB Blazers in the National Invitation Tournament. Wednesday's matchup is the first this season between the two teams. Vanderbilt is 11-7 against the SEC, and UAB is 14-6 against the C-USA.
The No. 15 Kansas State Wildcats and Michigan State Spartans play in the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16. Thursday's meeting is the first this season between the squads. Kansas State is 11-7 against the Big 12, and Michigan State is 11-8 against the Big Ten.
One of the oldest surviving biblical manuscripts is up for sale — for a cool $30 million. The Codex Sasson is a nearly complete, 1,100-old Hebrew Bible. Sotheby's is putting it up for auction in New York in May for an estimated price of $30 million to $50 million. Its anticipated sale speaks to the still bullish market for art, antiquities and ancient manuscripts even in a worldwide bear economy. The ancient manuscript was going on display at a Tel Aviv museum on Wednesday as part of a global tour meant to drum up interest.
UNDATED (AP) — Coaches across college basketball are looking at ways to evolve to deal with recruiting, roster management and athletes who can earn money. It is a chaotic landscape. The challenges include players being able to move freely through the transfer portal and cash in on their fame…
UNDATED (AP) — Coaches across college basketball are looking at ways to evolve to deal with recruiting, roster management and athletes who can earn money. It is a chaotic landscape. The challenges include players being able to move freely through the transfer portal and cash in on their fame…
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — In less than a year, Jerome Tang has taken a Kansas State program that was down to two scholarship players and built a team headed to the Sweet 16. The longtime Baylor assistant has changed the culture of the Wildcats' program. Tang and his team are headed to Madison S…
UNDATED (AP) — Jahvon Quinerly’s knee injury that helped doom Alabama’s NCAA Tournament chances a year ago is hardly the start of his college basketball saga. It’s probably not even the low point. The Crimson Tide point guard, who has re-emerged as one of the top players on one of the nation…
An Australian jury has retired to consider their verdicts following the six-week trial of a former principal of a Melbourne ultra-Orthodox Jewish girls school accused of molesting three sisters. Tel Aviv-born Malka Leifer has pleaded not guilty in the Victoria state county court to 27 sexual offenses that were allegedly committed at the school, at her Melbourne home and at school camps. The 12 jurors retired on Wednesday to begin their deliberations. A prosecutor has asked the jurors to consider that the 56-year-old mother of eight tended to have a sexual interest in girls when they were teenage students at the school and later when those same girls became student teachers. Leifer’s lawyer has highlighted variations in the sisters' accounts.
Britain’s inflation rate has risen for the first time in four months in February. The new figures released Wednesday surprised analysts and increased pressure on the Bank of England to raise interest rates at its meeting on Thursday. The consumer price index jumped to 10.4% in the 12 months through February from 10.1% the previous month. The Office for National Statistics said Wednesday that high energy prices continued to squeeze household budgets. Economists expect prices to drop rapidly later this year. But inflation is more than five times higher than the Bank of England’s 2% target.
Women's college basketball has displayed an odd mix this season and now there's the rare combination of South Carolina's undefeated dominance alongside parity in the Sweet 16. Just two of the four No. 1 women's seeds advanced through the first two rounds, which hadn't happened since 1998. The Gamecocks are one of them looking to continue their perfect season against No. 4 seed UCLA on Saturday. Virginia Tech is the other No. 1 seed advancing. South Carolina coach Dawn Staley says her team's success comes from a singular focus on the game and its next task.
