Private investigator first to admit guilt in offering bribes to get intoxicated drivers off the hook

A private investigator embroiled in a corruption scandal that rocked New Mexico’s law enforcement community for over a decade was the first to plead guilty to a slew of federal charges that include racketeering and bribery, according to court records released Friday. Ricardo Mendez...

Italy's Meloni defends repatriation of a Libyan warlord wanted by the International Criminal Court

ROME (AP) — Italy's prime minister on Saturday addressed growing criticism of the repatriation of a Libyan warlord wanted by the International Criminal Court, as Giorgia Meloni cited an appeals court order and security concerns. The repatriation of Ossama Anjiem to Libya, a key...

Man accused of helping son hide 4 bodies in Wisconsin cornfield sentenced to 16 years in prison

MENOMONIE, Wis. (AP) — A Minnesota man accused of helping his son hide four bodies in a Wisconsin cornfield has been sentenced to 16 years in prison, online court records show. Dunn County Circuit Judge James Peterson sentenced 59-year-old Darren Osborne of St. Paul on Thursday. A...

Democrats and voting groups say a bid to toss out North Carolina ballots is an attack on democracy

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Copland Rudolph cast a ballot in the November election, just as she has for years, with her vote counting on a long list of North Carolina contests that were settled soon after. Nearly three months later, she's still not sure it will count for one of the...

Pakistani court sentences 4 people to death for blasphemy

MULTAN, Pakistan (AP) — A Pakistani court Saturday sentenced four people to death for blasphemy, allegedly because they posted sacrilegious material on social media about Islamic religious figures and the Quran. Their lawyer said appeal preparations are underway. Under the...

Iowa immigration law remains blocked, US appeals court says, but second lawsuit to be dismissed

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A federal appeals court on Friday sided with the Biden administration's Department of Justice and kept a temporary block on an Iowa law that makes it a state crime for a person to be in Iowa if they are in the U.S. illegally. But a second order from the 8th...

North Dakota’s overturned abortion ban won’t be in effect during appeal, court rules

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — North Dakota’s abortion ban will not be enforced while the state appeals an earlier decision that found it unconstitutional, the state's highest court ruled Friday. That appeal has yet to fully play out in the state Supreme Court after a judge struck down...

Minnesota high court sides with Democrats in struggle with Republicans over control of state House

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Supreme Court sided with Democrats on Friday in a power struggle with Republicans in the state House of Representatives but left it up to lawmakers to figure out a way to work together. The justices unanimously agreed with House Democratic leaders...

Supreme Court will weigh approval for US’ 1st publicly funded religious charter school, in Oklahoma

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court agreed Friday to take on a new culture war dispute: whether the nation’s first publicly funded religious charter school should be allowed to open in Oklahoma. The justices said they would review an Oklahoma Supreme Court decision that...

North Dakota’s overturned abortion ban won’t be enforced during the state’s appeal, court rules