News - Friday, October 4, 2024

J.C. Vacheresse and Cassie Wanamaker are onstage at the Chattanooga Public Library performing a bit about a young man who leaves his family to escape religious oppression and moves in with nuns.

“I’m ready to join the convent,” Vacheresse declares to Wanamaker. “Give me the collar.”

Zachary Atchley has joined Grant, Konvalinka & Harrison as an associate.

Atchley comes to the firm as a fourth-generation attorney after first practicing with his father, Fielding Atchley, and his brother, Trevor Atchley.

His practice areas include general civil and commercial litigation, financial and estate planning, probate administration and business and corporate law.

Officials of The Raines Group, one of Chattanooga’s longest standing commercial real estate companies, are celebrating 40 years of bringing real estate management, leasing and sales services to the greater Chattanooga area.

President William Raines Jr., founded the company in 1984.

While the safety conversation in real estate often focuses on residential agents, it’s crucial to remember that commercial real estate agents face unique risks. From entering unoccupied buildings and large spaces to handling complex client relationships, commercial agents must remain vigilant to protect themselves and their clients.

Home sellers who choose to work without an agent are twice as likely as agent-assisted sellers to be unhappy with the results of their sale, according to a new study from Clever Real Estate.

Those who opt to do it themselves – for sale by owner, also known as FSBO – forgo an agent to save money and a variety of other reasons. But the study’s findings suggest a majority of FSBO sellers would have an easier and more lucrative sale if they worked with a real estate agent.

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga has named Dr. Yvette Stewart assistant professor and literacy director for UTC’s School of Education and its Center for Excellence and Innovation in Education.

Stewart, who has worked for Hamilton County Schools since 2018, will begin her new role Oct. 21. She’ll jointly lead School of Education and Center for Excellence and Innovation in Education initiatives aimed at equipping educators with the skills they need to teach children how to read.

The Hamilton County Health Department is offering flu vaccinations at all locations; no appointment is necessary. The flu vaccine is recommended for anyone six months and older.

The flu is a contagious respiratory illness caused by influenza viruses that infect the nose, throat and lungs. Those at highest risk of severe complications from the flu include children under five years, adults 65 years and over, pregnant women, and those with preexisting medical conditions or a compromised immune system.

When you invest, you’ll find that knowledge is power. The more you know about your investment choices and who is offering them the better prepared you’ll be to make good decisions. And this diligence can also help protect you against investment scams.

Despite the assumed importance of health in retirement, nearly two-thirds of Americans appear to have other priorities. A recent poll of 1,000 retirement-age individuals conducted by 55 Places reveals 64% of Americans don’t consider health the most important factor in their retirement planning.

Josh Hazelwood wanted to find a way to include his grandfather in the excitement as the University of Tennessee football team prepared to host Alabama in 2022. Both teams were undefeated, and the Vols had a good chance of finally snapping a 15-year losing streak to the Tide.

While the Titans offensive line remains a serious work in progress, one player who has held his own among that group is a player who had been written off multiple times as a failure in his time in Tennessee.

Dillon Radunz, a second-round pick and the last man standing from the Titans’ ill-fated 2021 draft, has been one of the Titans’ better players on an offensive line that is still struggling.

With the Titans headed toward a bye week, let’s examine four things that the team needs going forward for the remainder of the 2024 season.

First down

Fix the offensive line. Much of the blame for the team’s performance has been placed at the feet of quarterback Will Levis, and he’s had more than his share of early-season mistakes. But no quarterback can thrive when the protection is spotty and the run game has been inconsistent. Bill Callahan’s work as offensive line coach is respected league-wide, but it’s difficult to find five guys on the roster who can get the job done.

Heading into his second season as the general manager of the Predators, Barry Trotz used his training camp-opening media conference to remind all that the team has not won a playoff round since 2018 despite making the playoffs in nine of the past 10 seasons.

Competition in both the Central Division and Western Conference will be tough for the Predators, and position in the standings at the end of the regular season will determine the path teams take in their pursuit of the Stanley Cup.

The top three teams in each division automatically qualify for the postseason, while the remaining teams with the highest point totals in each conference earn wild card berths.

While Honda has a long reputation for building fuel-efficient cars and trucks, it’s only now getting serious about EVs with its new 2024 Prologue. The Prologue is an all-electric SUV that seats five and is about the same length as a Honda Passport.

All in all, I’d say Arkansas just one-upped Tennessee, which is not something that happens very often, unless you’re talking about poverty rates or Walmart headquarters. Which I’m not.

The competitive venue in this instance is the National Statuary Hall Collection in the U.S. Capitol. Every state gets two entries, and Arkansas just installed a statue of Johnny Cash.

NASHVILLE (AP) — The fourth-ranked Tennessee Volunteers are rested and about to be tested yet again on the road in the Southeastern Conference in a place where they haven't had much success.

The Vols have lost their last three visits playing Arkansas in Fayetteville, a drought they aim to end Saturday night before finally getting to go back to Knoxville for a four-game home stand that will feature visits from Florida, No. 1 Alabama and Kentucky. Lots has changed since Arkansas last beat a team ranked in the Top Five on Nov. 13, 1999, a win that came over then-No. 3 Tennessee.

NASHVILLE (AP) — The Alabama Crimson Tide have lots of experience being ranked No. 1 and staying focused on what matters most.

That's lifting the national championship trophy at season's end. So last week's emotional victory over then-No. 2 Georgia is not going to linger enough for Alabama to trip up Saturday in a rare visit to Vanderbilt.

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The kids in the SEC are more than alright.

From quarterbacks to pass catchers and pass rushers, from 17-year-olds to second-year freshmen, the Southeastern Conference has seen an explosion of young talent emerging as the league's top playmakers. Some were pressed into duty because of injuries, while some just could not be kept off the field.

MEMPHIS (AP) — The future of three former Memphis officers charged with violating Tyre Nichols' civil rights in a beating that proved fatal is in the hands of a jury after a nearly monthlong federal trial.

Jurors began their deliberations Thursday, a day after prosecutors and defense attorneys presented closing arguments in the trial of Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith. They were among five officers who were fired from the Memphis Police Department after the Jan. 7, 2023, beating.

BLACK MOUNTAIN, N.C. (AP) — Hurricane Helene's death toll reached 200 on Thursday and could rise higher still, as searchers made their way toward the hardest to reach places in the mountains of western North Carolina, where the storm washed out roads and knocked out electricity, water and cellular service.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump "laid the groundwork for his crimes" well before Election Day in 2020. He said "the details don't matter" when told his election fraud claims would fail in court. And his response to learning that then-Vice President Mike Pence was taken to a secure location as rioters stormed the Capitol?

WASHINGTON (AP) — Special counsel Jack Smith has provided a road map for how prosecutors hope to prove their case charging former President Donald Trump with an illegal scheme to overturn his 2020 election loss — if it ever gets to trial.

CHICAGO (AP) — Melania Trump revealed her support for abortion rights Thursday ahead of the release of her upcoming memoir, exposing a stark contrast with her husband, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, on the crucial election issue.

In a video posted to her X account Thursday morning, the former first lady defended women's "individual freedoms" to do what they want with their body — a position at odds with much of the Republican Party and her own husband, who has struggled to find a consistent message on abortion while wedged between anti-abortion supporters within his base and the majority of Americans who support abortion rights.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Liz Cheney, one of Donald Trump's fiercest Republican antagonists, will join Democrat Kamala Harris at a campaign event in Wisconsin on Thursday aimed at reaching out to moderate voters and rattling the former president.

Cheney was the top Republican on the House committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, earning Trump's disdain and effectively exiling herself from her own party.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The devastation wrought by Hurricane Helene has brought climate change to the forefront of the presidential campaign after the issue lingered on the margins for months.

Vice President Kamala Harris traveled to Georgia Wednesday to see hard-hit areas, two days after her Republican opponent, former President Donald Trump, was in the state and criticized the federal response to the storm, which has killed at least 200 people in the Southeast. Helene is the deadliest storm to hit the U.S. mainland since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden's latest attempt at student loan cancellation is free to move ahead — at least temporarily — after a judge in Georgia decided that a legal challenge should be handled by a court in Missouri.

Biden's plan has been on hold since September after seven Republican-led states challenged it in federal court in Georgia. But on Wednesday, a federal judge decided not to extend the pause and instead dismissed Georgia from the lawsuit, finding that it lacked the legal right, or standing, to sue.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The IRS is expanding its program that allows people to file their taxes directly with the agency for free.

The federal tax collector's Direct File program, which allows taxpayers to calculate and submit their returns to the government directly without using commercial tax preparation software, will be open to more than 30 million people in 24 states in the 2025 filing season.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Google is injecting its search engine with more artificial intelligence that will enable people to voice questions about images and occasionally organize an entire page of results, despite the technology's past misadventures with misleading information.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A hacking group tied to Russian intelligence tried to worm its way into the systems of dozens of Western think tanks, journalists and former military and intelligence officials, Microsoft and U.S. authorities said Thursday.

The group, known as Star Blizzard to cyberespionage experts, targeted its victims with emails that appeared to come from a trusted source — a tactic known as spear phishing. In fact, the emails sought access to the victims' internal systems, as a way to steal information and disrupt their activities.

NEW YORK (AP) — Crude prices jumped Thursday on worries that worsening tensions in the Middle East could disrupt the global flow of oil, while U.S. stocks pulled back further from their records.

The S&P 500 fell 0.2% amid a shaky week that's knocked the index off its all-time high set on Monday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 184 points, or 0.4%, and the Nasdaq composite edged down by less than 0.1%.

MEMPHIS (AP) — Three former Memphis police officers were convicted Thursday in the 2023 fatal beating of Tyre Nichols, but were acquitted of the harshest charges they faced for a death that sparked national protests and calls for broad changes in policing.

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — N.C. State football player Davin Vann was on the move, tiptoeing his way between obstacles in the Wolfpack's indoor practice facility midway through a game week.

And it had nothing to do with the upcoming visit from Wake Forest.

PENSACOLA, N.C. (AP) — The search for victims of Hurricane Helene dragged into its second week on Friday, as exhausted rescue crews and volunteers continued to work long days — navigating past washed out roads, downed power lines and mudslides — to reach the isolated and the missing.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court left in place Friday an environmental regulation aimed at reducing the oil and gas industry's emissions of methane, a key contributor to climate change.

Republican-led states and industry groups had filed emergency appeals asking the high court to pause the Biden administration rule. They argue the Environmental Protection Agency overstepped its authority and set standards that are "impossible to meet."

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court said Friday it will decide whether to block a $10 billion lawsuit Mexico filed against leading U.S. gun manufacturers over allegations their commercial practices have helped caused much bloodshed there.

The gun makers asked the justices to undo an appeals court ruling that allowed the lawsuit to go forward despite broad legal protections for the firearm industry.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court agreed on Friday to step into a fight over plans to store nuclear waste at sites in rural Texas and New Mexico.

The justices said they will review a ruling by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that found that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission exceeded its authority under federal law in granting a license to a private company to store spent nuclear fuel at a dump in West Texas for 40 years. The outcome of the case will affect plans for a similar facility in New Mexico.

LONDON (AP) — The European Union's top court said Friday that social media company Meta can't use public information about a user's sexual orientation obtained outside its platforms for personalized advertising under the bloc's strict data privacy rules.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Barack Obama is planning to hit key swing states to boost Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign for the White House, starting next Thursday in Pittsburgh.

The Harris campaign says Obama will travel around the country over the final 27 days ahead of the election. The former president and Harris have a friendship that goes back 20 years, from when they first met while he was running for Senate.

DETROIT (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris will visit the union stronghold of Flint, Michigan, on Friday as she battles with Donald Trump for working-class voters who could tip the scales in this year's election.

Her appearance in the battleground state comes the day after U.S. dockworkers suspended their strike in hopes of reaching a new contract, sparing the country a damaging episode of labor unrest that could have rattled the economy. A tentative agreement was reached to raise salaries, although other issues still need to be resolved.

RIPON, Wis. (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris rallied with Republican Liz Cheney in the birthplace of the modern Republican Party on Thursday as the pair delivered a double-barreled denunciation of GOP nominee Donald Trump as a dire threat to democracy.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Days before rioters roamed the halls of the U.S. Capitol threatening to "hang Mike Pence," Donald Trump told his vice president that people are going to "hate your guts" and "think you're stupid" if he failed to stop the 2020 election certification.

WASHINGTON (AP) — After a tumultuous and unproductive session of Congress, nearly 50 House members decided either to not seek reelection or to run for a higher office this year, leaving Democratic vacancies in several tight races that could tilt control of the House to either party.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge in Missouri put a temporary hold on President Joe Biden's latest student loan cancellation plan on Thursday, slamming the door on hope it would move forward after another judge allowed a pause to expire.

Just as it briefly appeared the Biden administration would have a window to push its plan forward, U.S. District Judge Matthew Schelp in Missouri granted an injunction blocking any widespread cancellation.

BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union countries on Friday voted to impose duties on imports of electric vehicles from China, as talks continued between Brussels and Beijing to find an amicable solution to their trade dispute before an end-of-October deadline.

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Google said Friday it will stop linking to New Zealand news content and will reverse its support of local media outlets if the government passes a law forcing tech companies to pay for articles displayed on their platforms.

WASHINGTON (AP) — America's employers added a surprisingly strong 254,000 jobs in September, the latest evidence that the U.S. labor market is still solid enough to support steady hiring and a growing economy.

Last month's hiring gain was far more than economists had expected, and it was up sharply from the 159,000 jobs that were added in August. And after rising for most of 2024, the unemployment rate dropped for a second straight month, from 4.2% in August to 4.1% in September, the Labor Department said Friday.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The future was once dazzling for IronNet.

Founded by a former director of the National Security Agency and stacked with elite members of the U.S. intelligence establishment, IronNet promised it was going to revolutionize the way governments and corporations combat cyberattacks.

MEXICO CITY (AP) — In her first days as Mexico's new president, Claudia Sheinbaum made a point of distancing herself from the fossil fuel reliance promoted by her predecessor and mentor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, and vowed to resume an energy transition that he halted.

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S.-arranged flights have brought about 350 Americans and their immediate relatives out of Lebanon this week during escalated fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, while thousands of others still there face airstrikes and diminishing commercial flights.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A retired New Jersey State Police trooper who stormed the U.S. Capitol with a mob of Donald Trump supporters was sentenced to probation instead of prison on Friday, as the federal courts reached a milestone in the punishment of Capitol rioters.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court left in place Friday two Biden administration environmental regulations aimed at reducing industry emissions of planet-warming methane and toxic mercury.

The justices did not detail their reasoning in the orders, which came after a flurry of emergency applications to block the rules from industry groups and Republican-leaning states. There were no noted dissents.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden had terse words for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday, and said he didn't know whether the Israeli leader was holding up a peace deal in order to influence the outcome of the 2024 U.S. presidential election.

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks rallied Friday after a surprisingly strong report on the U.S. job market raised optimism about the economy.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.9% and got close to its all-time high set on Monday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 341 points, or 0.8%, to set its own record, while the Nasdaq composite clambered 1.2% higher.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. and British militaries struck more than a dozen Houthi targets in Yemen on Friday, going after weapons systems, bases and other equipment belonging to the Iranian-backed rebels, U.S. officials confirmed.

Military aircraft and warships bombed Houthi strongholds at roughly five locations, according to the officials.

NASHVILLE (AP) — The Vanderbilt Commodores have beaten a No. 1 team in football. That's a first, and the biggest win in program history.

The Commodores never trailed in upsetting top-ranked Alabama 40-35 on Saturday, handing coach Clark Lea a victory to finally match some of those posted by his alma mater in men's basketball, women's basketball and two national championships in baseball.

It was a week of upheaval in The Associated Press college football poll, with Texas returning to No. 1 on Sunday after a one-week absence following Vanderbilt's monumental upset of Alabama.

The Commodores' win as more than three-touchdown underdogs caused the Crimson Tide to drop from No. 1 to No. 7. The last top-ranked team to fall so far was Ohio State, which plunged to No. 11 in 2010 following an October loss to Wisconsin.

Texas' return to No. 1 in the AP Top 25 on Sunday also gave the Longhorns the top seed in The Associated Press College Football Playoff bracket projection, which now features two SEC head-to-head meetings in the first round.

The Longhorns would be the No. 1 seed as the Southeastern Conference champion. Ohio State of the Big Ten is No. 2, Miami of the Atlantic Coast Conference is No. 3 and Iowa State of the Big 12 is No. 4. Those four teams would receive first-round byes in the 12-team playoff.

NEW YORK (AP) — Santiago Rodríguez scored 17 seconds into the match and had two goals by the 18th minute as New York City FC cruised to a 3-1 victory over Nashville SC on Sunday.

Rodríguez netted his 11th goal of the season for New York City (14-11-8) when he missed with his left foot, corralled the rebound and drilled a right-footed shot to the bottom left corner of the net. His 12th goal came with an assist from rookie Hannes Wolf for a two-goal lead. Wolf's assist was his eighth.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. government's top disaster relief official said Sunday that false claims and conspiracy theories about the federal response to Hurricane Helene — spread most prominently by Donald Trump — are "demoralizing" aid workers and creating fear in people who need recovery assistance.

While hospitals and health care organizations in the Southeast largely stayed open and functioning during Hurricane Helene to provide essential care for their communities, they were not unscathed.

The massive system battered the region's health centers, causing blackouts, wind damage, supply issues and flooding — leading to a dramatic rescue of patients and workers at the Unicoi County Hospital in eastern Tennessee.

ERWIN (AP) — With shaking hands, Daniel Delgado kissed a photo of his wife, Monica Hernandez, before lighting a candle in a supermarket parking lot. Family members hugged pictures printed on poster board, some collapsing into them in tears as search helicopters flew overhead in the direction of the hills.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Monday let stand a decision barring emergency abortions that violate the law in Texas, which has one of the country's strictest abortion bans.

Without detailing their reasoning, the justices kept in place a lower court order that said hospitals cannot be required to provide pregnancy terminations that would violate Texas law. There were no publicly noted dissents.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Monday turned away a challenge from Republican state lawmakers in Pennsylvania to a Biden administration executive order that is intended to boost voter registration.

The justices did not comment in rejecting an appeal from the Republicans, who claimed the order is an unconstitutional attempt to interfere in the November election. Lower courts had dismissed the lawsuit.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court said Monday it won't hear an appeal from the social media platform X over a search warrant prosecutors obtained in the election-interference case against former President Donald Trump.

The justices did not explain their reasoning and there were no noted dissents.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal from Martin Shkreli, who was once dubbed "Pharma Bro" afterjacking up the price of a lifesaving drug.

Shkreli appealed an order to return $64.6 million in profits he and his former company reaped after monopolizing the market for the medication and drastically increasing its price. His lawyers argued that the money went to his company rather than him personally.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal Monday from the singer R. Kelly, who is now serving 20 years in prison after being convicted of child sex convictions in Chicago.

The Grammy Award-winning R&B singer, born Robert Sylvester Kelly, was found guilty in 2022 of three charges of producing child sexual abuse images and three charges of enticement of minors for sex.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court won't hear an appeal from a former Texas police officer convicted in the death of a woman who was shot through a window of her home.

Aaron Dean was convicted of manslaughter in Atatiana Jefferson's fatal shooting, and he was sentenced to nearly 12 years in prison. Dean was originally charged with murder. He argued on appeal that prosecutors should not have been allowed to ask the jury to consider the lesser charge at the end of the trial.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is taking the bench again on Monday, ready to hear cases on ghost guns, a death sentence and transgender rights.

The docket doesn't have quite as many blockbuster cases as it did last term, when its rulings included an opinion granting broad immunity to former President Donald Trump.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are marking the first anniversary of the deadliest attack on Jews since the Holocaust as the presidential candidates approach the final weeks of the campaign during a widening conflict in the Middle East.

WASHINGTON (AP) — No one is likely to be happy with the projected higher deficits laid out in a new analysis of Kamala Harris' and Donald Trump's economic plans.

The analysis released Monday by the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget suggests a Harris presidency could increase the national debt over 10 years by $3.5 trillion. That's even though the vice president's campaign insists her proposed investments in the middle class and housing would be fully offset by higher taxes on corporations and the wealthy. Her campaign policy guide states that Harris is "committed to fiscal responsibility — making investments that will support our economy, while paying for them and reducing the deficit at the same time."

WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris opened a media blitz by the Democratic ticket on Sunday by appearing on the popular "Call Her Daddy" podcast about abortion, sexual abuse and other issues that resonate with women, working in some digs at her GOP opponent along the way.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Turning Point 's representatives have made two things clear in meetings with state and local Republican leaders— Donald Trump has blessed their conservative organization to help lead his get-out-the-vote effort, and local party officials ought to use the group's new voter mobilization app.

JUNEAU, Wis. (AP) — Donald Trump on Sunday visited Wisconsin for the fourth time in eight days as his campaign showers attention on a pivotal state where Republicans fret about his ability to match Democrats' enthusiasm and turnout machine.

"They say that Wisconsin is probably the toughest of the swing states to win," Trump said in his opening remarks at an airplane hangar in a rural Juneau where the overflow crowd spilled out on to the tarmac. "I don't think so."

LOS ANGELES (AP) — For more than two decades, the low rent on Marina Maalouf's apartment in a blocky affordable housing development in Los Angeles' Chinatown was a saving grace for her family, including a granddaughter who has autism.

But that grace had an expiration date. For Maalouf and her family it arrived in 2020.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — While Americans continue to struggle under unrelentingly high rents, as many as 223,000 affordable housing units across the U.S. could disappear in the next five years alone.

It leaves low-income tenants facing protracted eviction battles, scrambling to pay a two-fold rent increase or more, or shunted back into a housing market where costs can easily eat half a paycheck.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States has spent a record of at least $17.9 billion on military aid to Israel since the war in Gaza began and led to escalating conflict around the Middle East, according to a report for Brown University's Costs of War project, released Monday on the anniversary of Hamas' attacks on Israel.

The Southeastern Conference has fined Vanderbilt and Arkansas after their fans stormed the field following upset wins on Saturday.

Arkansas was fined $250,000 after its 19-14 win over then-No. 4 Tennessee because it is a second offense. Future offenses will cost the school $500,000. It was Arkansas' first home win over a top-five opponent since beating No. 3 Tennessee in 1999.

NASHVILLE (AP) — The Tennessee Titans have an extra day coming off their early bye, and coach Brian Callahan is making sure that quarterback Will Levis uses that time for healing his throwing shoulder.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Joe Flacco and his teammates on offense did their job Sunday at Jacksonville.

The Indianapolis Colts defense — not so much.

After rebounding from two dismal defensive performances to open the season with two solid games, it looked as if Indy's defense may have turned the corner.

Alabama safety Malachi Moore apologized Monday for his late-game outburst during a weekend loss to Vanderbilt.

The two-time team captain shoved Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia's head toward the ground at the end of a play, threw his mouthguard and drew an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for kicking the football in the 40-35 upset that cost the Crimson Tide the No. 1 ranking. Moore also appeared to refuse coaches' orders to come off the field when they tried to replace him.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A federal judge on Monday ordered Google to tear down the digital walls shielding its Android app store from competition as a punishment for maintaining an illegal monopoly that helped expand the company's internet empire.

The injunction issued by U.S. District Judge James Donato will require Google to make several changes that the Mountain View, California, company had been resisting, including a provision that will require its Play Store for Android apps to distribute rival third-party app stores so consumers can download them to their phones if they so desire.

A judge granted preliminary approval Monday to the $2.78 billion legal settlement that would transform college sports by allowing schools to pay players.

U.S District Judge Claudia Wilken released an order setting a timeline for a deal that would put millions of dollars into the pockets of college athletes, who can begin applying for payment on Oct. 18.

SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — The Georgia Supreme Court on Monday halted a ruling striking down the state's near-ban on abortions while it considers the state's appeal.

The high court's order came a week after a judge found that Georgia unconstitutionally prohibits abortions beyond about six weeks of pregnancy, often before women realize they're pregnant. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney ruled Sept. 30 that privacy rights under Georgia's state constitution include the right to make personal healthcare decisions.

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks slid Monday after Treasury yields hit their highest levels since the summer and oil prices continued to climb.

The S&P 500 dropped 1%, though it's still close to its all-time high set a week earlier. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 398 points, or 0.9%, coming off its own record, while the Nasdaq composite sank 1.2%.

MEMPHIS (AP) — Two former Memphis police officers convicted of obstruction of justice in the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols will be released from jail ahead of sentencing in January, but a third who was found guilty of more serious civil rights violations will remain in custody, a federal judge ruled Monday.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday called former President Donald Trump "incredibly irresponsible" for spreading falsehoods about the federal response to Hurricane Helene 's destruction, offering especially sharp words as a new storm bears down on Florida with just weeks until Election Day.

LAKE LURE, N.C. (AP) — The head of the U.S. disaster response agency continued to forcefully push back Monday against false claims and conspiracy theories about her agency's response to Hurricane Helene as the death toll from the storm continued to climb.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court will hear a challenge Tuesday to a Biden administration regulation on ghost guns, the difficult-to-trace weapons with an exponentially increased link to crime in recent years.

The rule is focused on gun kits that are sold online and can be assembled into a functioning weapon in less than 30 minutes. The finished weapons don't have serial numbers, making them nearly impossible to trace.

NEW YORK (AP) — When Vice President Kamala Harris sat down for an interview with podcaster Alex Cooper, the conversation didn't start by parsing policy positions. The goal, Cooper told the Democratic nominee, was "to get to know you as a person."

WASHINGTON (AP) — Black registered voters have an overwhelmingly positive view of Vice President Kamala Harris, but they're less sure that she would change the country for the better, according to a recent poll from the AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is making a rare jump into the 2024 political battleground fray since taking a step back after ending his reelection bid.

He'll campaign on Tuesday in Pennsylvania for a close ally and visit Wisconsin to spotlight a signature legislative achievement.

WASHINGTON (AP) — It's not just the presidential election: Foreign governments are targeting House and Senate races around the country in their effort to meddle with American democracy this election year, intelligence officials warned Monday.

Russia and China have launched influence operations designed to help or hurt candidates in specific congressional races. Without giving specifics about the number of affected races, an official from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said Monday that both countries have zeroed in on races where they believe they have a national security interest at stake.

Hurricanes are humanity's reminder of the uncontrollable, chaotic power of Earth's weather.

Milton's powerful push toward Florida just days after Helene devastated large parts of the Southeast likely has some in the region wondering if they are being targeted. In some corners of the internet, Helene has already sparked conspiracy theories and disinformation suggesting the government somehow aimed the hurricane at Republican voters.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A decade after the Flint, Michigan, water crisis raised alarms about the continuing dangers of lead in tap water, President Joe Biden is setting a 10-year deadline for cities across the nation to replace their lead pipes, finalizing an aggressive approach aimed at ensuring that drinking water is safe for all Americans.

LONDON (AP) — Social media users in the European Union will soon have a new forum to challenge decisions by platforms to remove posts and videos for breaking their rules or leave up others that may violate them.

An "out of court dispute settlement body" named the Appeals Center Europe said Tuesday it has been certified by Irish regulators to act as a referee on content moderation disputes across the 27-nation EU, starting with cases involving Facebook, YouTube and TikTok.

NEW YORK (AP) — The Small Business Administration could run out of money to fund disaster loans in the wake of Hurricane Helene's devastation.

As is typical after a disaster, the government is offering aid to small businesses that were in Helene's path. The SBA is offering disaster loans for small businesses in some counties in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is postponing a planned trip to Germany and Angola to remain at the White House to monitor Hurricane Milton, which is bearing down on Florida's Gulf Coast, the White House announced on Tuesday.

Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the change was necessary "given the projected trajectory and strength" of the storm.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A bill was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday to award Congressional Gold Medals to the 1980 "Miracle on Ice" Olympic hockey team that defeated the heavily favored Soviet Union in Lake Placid, New York, at a period of high tension during the Cold War.

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese drinkers may pay more for Remy Martin and other European brandies after the government announced provisional tariffs of 30.6% to 39% on those liquors Tuesday, four days after a majority of European Union countries approved duties on electric vehicles made in China.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court seemed likely Tuesday to uphold a Biden administration regulation on ghost guns, the difficult-to-trace weapons with a rising link to crime.

In arguments that ranged to classic cars and Western omelets, key conservative justices seemed open to the government's argument that kits for quickly making nearly untraceable guns at home can be regulated like other firearms.

WASHINGTON (AP) — On Election Day, some voting lines will likely be long and some precincts may run out of ballots. An election office website could go down temporarily and ballot-counting machines will jam. Or people who help run elections might just act like the humans they are, forgetting their key to a local polling place so it has to open later than scheduled.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump has had as many as seven private phone calls with Vladimir Putin since leaving office and secretly sent the Russian president COVID-19 test machines during the height of the pandemic, Bob Woodward reported in his new book, "War."

NEW YORK (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris, in a Tuesday appearance on ABC's "The View," was unable to name a decision she would have made differently than President Joe Biden.

Her answer encapsulated Harris' challenge in portraying herself as a candidate who can deliver the change voters want after serving four years as a loyal member of the current administration.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — At a time of growing concern about the safety of self-driving vehicles, a leading expert is calling on the federal government to develop a national driver's test that such vehicles would have to pass before they could travel on public roads.

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks rebounded Tuesday after falling oil prices released some of the pressure that built up on the market.

The S&P 500 rallied 1% to claw back all of its loss from the day before. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 126 points, or 0.3%, and likewise neared its record set last week, while the Nasdaq composite led the way with a 1.4% rally.

NEW YORK (AP) — McDonald's has some beef with today's largest meat packers.

The fast food giant is suing the U.S. meat industry's "Big Four" — Tyson, JBS, Cargill and National Beef Packing Company — and their subsidiaries, alleging a price fixing scheme for beef specifically. In a federal complaint, filed Friday in New York, McDonald's accused the companies of anticompetitive measures such as collectively limiting supply to boost prices and charge "illegally inflated" amounts.

BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts gun advocates announced Tuesday that they have gathered enough signatures to place a question on the 2026 ballot that would repeal a sweeping new gun law that cracks down on privately made, unserialized ghost guns, criminalizes possession of bump stocks and trigger cranks and requires applicants for a gun license to complete live-fire training.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden said Tuesday he is postponing a planned trip to Germany and Angola to stay at the White House to monitor Hurricane Milton, as it spins closer to Florida's Gulf Coast.

"I just don't think I can be out of the country at this time," he said at the White House after senior members of the administration updated him on the storm and the government's preparations. Biden warned that Milton "could be one of the worst storms in 100 years to hit Florida," and said he's working "to increase the size and presence" of the federal government's response.

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Orlando's tourism machine began grinding to a halt Tuesday with at least three major theme parks and the main airport announcing closures ahead of Hurricane Milton 's expected hit as a major storm in Florida.

Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando and SeaWorld will all close their theme parks and respective entertainment facilities on Wednesday, with the latter two also closed on Thursday and Disney likely to remain closed.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Florida's historically porous defense can be traced to having three coordinators in as many years, the team's top two pass rushers transferring and bringing together so many new faces that communication, cohesion and consistency seem more like pipedreams than principles.

Human-caused climate change boosted a devastating Hurricane Helene 's rainfall by about 10% and intensified its winds by about 11%, scientists said in a new flash study released just as a strengthening Hurricane Milton threatens the Florida coast less than two weeks later.

MEMPHIS (AP) — A Tennessee law giving the appointed state attorney general authority to argue certain death penalty cases and removing that power from the hands of locally elected district attorneys is constitutional, an appeals court has ruled.

Tennessee's Court of Criminal Appeals issued a decision Friday striking down a Shelby County judge's ruling that the law passed by the state's Republican-controlled Legislature was unconstitutional.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is returning to the case of Richard Glossip, who has spent most of the past quarter century on Oklahoma's death row for a murder he says he did not commit.

In a rare alliance, lawyers for Glossip and the state will argue Wednesday that the justices should overturn Glossip's conviction and death sentence because he did not get a fair trial.

NEW YORK (AP) — Nearly a decade into the Trump Era of politics, less than a month from his third Election Day as the Republican candidate for president and there is still remarkably little consensus within the media about how best to cover Donald Trump.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump is holding rallies on Wednesday in pivotal Pennsylvania while Vice President Kamala Harris prepares for another visit to the West — even as Hurricane Milton menaces Florida and threatens to overshadow presidential campaigning.

WAUKEGAN, Ill. (AP) — On a table at the office of the Waukegan Township Democrats sits a box of postcards with Wisconsin addresses that were collected during a postcard-writing pizza party to help turn out voters there. Leaning against the table are homemade Harris-Walz signs.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Thousands of copies of Donald Trump's "God Bless the USA" Bible were printed in a country that the former president has repeatedly accused of stealing American jobs and engaging in unfair trade practices: China.

Global trade records reviewed by The Associated Press show a printing company in China's eastern city of Hangzhou shipped close to 120,000 of the Bibles to the United States earlier this year.

BANGOR, Maine (AP) — Republican Donald Trump mixed up Democratic Gov. Janet Mills' gender on a phone call with supporters in Maine, The Bangor Daily News reported Tuesday.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump has had as many as seven private phone calls with Vladimir Putin since leaving office and secretly sent the Russian president COVID-19 test machines during the height of the pandemic, Bob Woodward reported in his new book, "War."

WASHINGTON (AP) — In some of the closest House races in the country, Democratic candidates are leaning into an issue that Republicans have made a centerpiece of their efforts to expand their majority — immigration.

Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Ohio, says that anyone who crosses the border must do so legally. "I voted to hire more than 10,000 new border guards, penalize businesses that hire people here illegally and lock up anyone bringing fentanyl into our country," she says.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Sherri Myers, an 82-year-old resident of Pensacola City, Florida, says the Social Security cost-of-living increase she'll receive in January "won't make a dent" in helping her meet her day-to-day expenses.

"Inflation has eaten up my savings," she said. "I don't have anything to fall back on — the cushion is gone." So even with the anticipated increase she's looking for work to supplement her retirement income, which consists of a small pension and her Social Security benefits.

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Social media platform X began returning to Brazil on Wednesday, after remaining inaccessible for more than a month following a clash between its owner, Elon Musk, and a justice on the country's highest court.

Internet service providers began restoring access to the platform after Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes authorized lifting X's suspension on Tuesday.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI has arrested an Afghan man who officials say was inspired by the Islamic State militant organization and was plotting an Election Day attack targeting large crowds in the U.S., the Justice Department said Tuesday.

Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, 27, of Oklahoma City told investigators after his arrest Monday that he had planned his attack to coincide with Election Day next month and that he and a co-conspirator expected to die as martyrs, according to charging documents.

Melinda French Gates will grant $250 million to support women's health around the world through an open call for nonprofits to apply for funding.

The pledge announced Wednesday signals a new chapter in her individual philanthropic giving since departing from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation earlier this year and is part of a two-year, $1 billion commitment that French Gates made in May to support women and families around the world.

A top U.S. commercial bakery is pushing back on a Food and Drug Administration warning to stop using labels that say its products contain sesame — a potentially dangerous allergen — when they don't.

Bimbo Bakeries USA, which includes brands such as Sarah Lee, Entenmann's and Ball Park buns and rolls, appears to be defying an FDA warning sent in June that said the several of the company's products are "misbranded" because the labels list sesame or tree nuts even though those ingredients aren't in the foods.

SEATTLE (AP) — Boeing has withdrawn a contract offer that would have given striking workers 30% raises over four years after talks broke down.

The manufacturer said that it had boosted its offer for union workers for take-home pay and retirement benefits during two days of negotiations.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday held their first call in seven weeks, a conversation that comes as Israel expands its ground incursion into Lebanon and considers how to respond to Iran's recent ballistic missile attack.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Months into Russia's war in Ukraine, the United States had intelligence pointing to "highly sensitive, credible conversations inside the Kremlin" that President Vladimir Putin was seriously considering using nuclear weapons to avoid major battlefield losses, journalist Bob Woodward reported in his new book, "War."

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Hurricane Milton hurled tornadoes and rain at the Tampa Bay area Wednesday on its steady, potentially catastrophic march toward Florida's west coast, where officials issued a final plea to residents to evacuate or face grim odds of survival.

NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee's corrections chief said Wednesday that the department expects to unveil a new process for executing inmates by the end of the year, signaling a possible end to a yearslong pause due to findings that several inmates were put to death without the proper testing of lethal injection drugs.

NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee election officials are objecting to a judge's ruling that restored the voting rights of four people who can't have guns under their specific felony offenses, citing a new state law that makes resolving gun and other "citizenship rights" of convicted felons a prerequisite to casting ballots.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court appeared likely Wednesday to give Oklahoma death row inmate Richard Glossip at least another day in court in his long quest to throw out his murder conviction and death sentence.

The justices heard arguments in a case that has produced a rare alliance in which lawyers for Glossip and the state argued that the high court should overturn Glossip's conviction and death sentence because he did not get a fair trial.

NEW YORK (AP) — CBS News said the Trump campaign offered "shifting explanations" for why it backed out of a "60 Minutes" interview special with presidential candidates that aired without him.

The network's Scott Pelley appeared on the air Monday night to explain why Republican Donald Trump did not appear on what has become a "60 Minutes" tradition: back-to-back interviews with presidential candidates in the last month of the campaign.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump is holding rallies on Wednesday in pivotal Pennsylvania while Vice President Kamala Harris prepares for another visit to the West — even as Hurricane Milton menaces Florida and threatens to overshadow presidential campaigning.

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks set records Wednesday after the latest wild swerves for Chinese stocks left few ripples in markets worldwide.

The S&P 500 rose 0.7% to top the all-time high it had set last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 431 points, or 1%, to hit its own record, while the Nasdaq composite gained 0.6%.

A top U.S. commercial bakery is pushing back on a Food and Drug Administration warning to stop using labels that say its products contain sesame — a potentially dangerous allergen — when they don't.

Bimbo Bakeries USA, which includes brands such as Sara Lee, Entenmann's and Ball Park buns and rolls, appears to be defying an FDA warning sent in June that said the several of the company's products are "misbranded" because the labels list sesame or tree nuts even though those ingredients aren't in the foods.