SUPREME COURT NOTEBOOK: From bananas to baby socks, lawyers stick to routines before arguments

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration's top Supreme Court lawyer eats a bunch of bananas. Other advocates play music to psych themselves up. Some rub the feet on John Marshall's statue a floor below the courtroom. The Supreme Court, which begins its new term on Monday, is...

Justice Department targets eBay for alleged unlawful sales of pesticides and other toxins

The U.S. Justice Department filed a civil complaint against eBay, claiming the online marketplace unlawfully sold and distributed hundreds of thousands of products like pesticides and motor vehicle emission-evading devices that violate environmental laws. The complaint Wednesday...

Correction: Connecticut Court-Russia Probe story

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — In a story published Sept. 26, 2023, about the confirmation of Nora Dannehy to a seat on Connecticut’s Supreme Court, The Associated Press erroneously reported the vote total in the state’s House of Representatives. It was 120-18 in favor of confirmation.

Memphis officer won't be charged in Black man's shooting after attempted traffic stop

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — No criminal charges will be brought against a Memphis police officer who fatally shot a Black man after a high-speed chase and an attempted traffic stop, the top state prosecutor in the city said Tuesday. Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy said his...

Families of those killed by fentanyl gather at DEA as US undergoes deadliest overdose crisis

WASHINGTON (AP) — Andrea Thomas had never heard of fentanyl when her daughter died after taking half of a pill she thought was prescription medication. Five years later, she's among hundreds of thousands of families who have lost a loved one as the U.S. undergoes the deadliest overdose crisis in...

Texas Walmart shooter agrees to pay more than $5M to families over 2019 racist attack

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A white Texas gunman who killed 23 people at a Walmart in 2019 after ranting about Hispanics taking over the government and economy has agreed to pay more than $5 million to victims of the racist attack, according to an order signed by a judge Monday. Patrick...

US contractor originally from Ethiopia arrested on espionage charges, Justice Department says

WASHINGTON (AP) — A contractor for the U.S. government has been arrested on espionage charges, accused of providing a foreign country classified information that he downloaded and printed from his work computer system, the Justice Department said Thursday. Abraham Teklu Lemma, who...

Federal appeals court reverses ruling that found Mississippi discriminated in mental health care

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A federal appeals court has overturned a lower court ruling that found Mississippi relies too much on institutionalizing people with mental health conditions rather than providing care in their communities. The decision came Wednesday from three judges on the...

House Republicans clash with Attorney General Garland, accusing him of favoring Hunter Biden

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans clashed with Attorney General Merrick Garland on Wednesday, accusing him and the Justice Department of the “weaponization” of the department's work in favor of President Joe Biden 's son Hunter. Garland’s appearance before the House...

Ray Epps, Trump supporter targeted by Jan. 6 conspiracy theory, pleads guilty to Capitol riot charge

WASHINGTON (AP) — Ray Epps, a onetime Donald Trump supporter who was the target of a right-wing conspiracy theory about the Jan. 6, 2021, attack that forced him into hiding, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to a misdemeanor charge for his role in the U.S. Capitol riot. Epps, appearing...