World – Brandon Sun

Former Uvalde officer acquitted in trial over police response to Robb Elementary attack

Valerie Gonzalez And Jim Vertuno, The Associated Press 4 minute read Updated: 8:28 PM CST

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (AP) — A former Uvalde police officer was acquitted Wednesday of charges that he failed in his duties to confront the gunman at Robb Elementary during the critical first minutes of one of the deadliest school shootings in U.S. history.

Jurors deliberated for more than seven hours before finding Adrian Gonzalez, 52, not guilty in the first trial over the hesitant law enforcement response to the 2022 attack, which killed 19 children and two teachers.

Gonzales appeared to close his eyes and take a deep breath as he stood to hear the verdict in a Corpus Christi courtroom hundreds of miles from Uvalde, where Gonzales' attorneys argued that he could not receive a fair trial. After the verdict was read, he hugged one of his lawyers and appeared to be fighting back tears.

“Thank you for the jury for considering all the evidence,” Gonzales told reporters. Asked if he wanted to say anything to the families, he declined.

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More than 150 worshippers were abducted in Nigeria after gunmen attacked 3 churches, a lawmaker says

Dyepkazah Shibayan, The Associated Press 2 minute read Monday, Jan. 19, 2026

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Gunmen abducted more than 150 worshippers in simultaneous attacks on three separate churches in northwest Nigeria, a state lawmaker told The Associated Press on Monday.

The attack occurred on Sunday in Kurmin Wali, a community in the Kajuru area of Kaduna state, while services and a Mass were underway at the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), a church belonging to the denomination Cherubim and Seraphim, and a Catholic church, according to Usman Danlami Stingo, a lawmaker representing the area at the state parliament.

“As of yesterday, 177 people were missing, and 11 came back. So we have 168 still missing,” he said.

Police in Kaduna state have not commented.

Trump to pardon ex-Puerto Rico governor Vázquez in campaign finance case, official says

Darlene Superville, The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview

Trump to pardon ex-Puerto Rico governor Vázquez in campaign finance case, official says

Darlene Superville, The Associated Press 3 minute read Friday, Jan. 16, 2026

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump plans to pardon former Puerto Rico Gov. Wanda Vázquez, a White House official said Friday.

Vázquez pleaded guilty last August to a campaign finance violation in a federal case that authorities say also involved a former FBI agent and a Venezuelan banker. Her sentencing was set for later this month.

Federal prosecutors had been seeking one year behind bars, something that Vázquez’s attorneys opposed as they accused prosecutors of violating a guilty plea deal reached last year that saw previous charges including bribery and fraud dropped.

They noted that Vázquez had agreed to plead guilty to accepting a promise of a campaign contribution that was never received.

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Friday, Jan. 16, 2026

FILE - Governor Wanda Vázquez speaks at a press conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico, May 21, 2020. (AP Photo/Carlos Giusti, File)

A South Korean court sentences Yoon to 5 years in prison on charges related to martial law decree

Hyung-jin Kim, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

A South Korean court sentences Yoon to 5 years in prison on charges related to martial law decree

Hyung-jin Kim, The Associated Press 4 minute read Friday, Jan. 16, 2026

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A South Korean court sentenced former President Yoon Suk Yeol to five years in prison Friday in the first verdict from eight criminal trials over the martial law debacle that forced him out of office and other allegations.

Yoon was impeached, arrested and dismissed as president after his short-lived imposition of martial law in December 2024 triggered huge public protests calling for his ouster.

The most significant criminal charge against him alleges that his martial law enforcement amounted to a rebellion, An independent counsel has requested the death sentence over that charge, and the Seoul Central District Court will decide on that in a ruling on Feb. 19.

Yoon has maintained he didn’t intend to place the country under military rule for an extended period, saying his decree was only meant to inform the people about the danger of the liberal-controlled parliament obstructing his agenda. But investigators have viewed Yoon’s decree as an attempt to bolster and prolong his rule, charging him with rebellion, abuse of power and other criminal offenses.

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Friday, Jan. 16, 2026

A picture of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is placed on a board as supporters gather outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

Venezuela’s Machado says she presented her Nobel Peace Prize to Trump during their meeting

Will Weissert, Joey Cappelletti And Regina Garcia Cano, The Associated Press 6 minute read Preview

Venezuela’s Machado says she presented her Nobel Peace Prize to Trump during their meeting

Will Weissert, Joey Cappelletti And Regina Garcia Cano, The Associated Press 6 minute read Friday, Jan. 16, 2026

WASHINGTON (AP) — Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said she presented her Nobel Peace Prize medal to President Donald Trump during a meeting with him at the White House on Thursday, “as a recognition for his unique commitment with our freedom.”

Machado did not provide further details, however, and the White House didn't immediately say if Trump accepted the medal, or provide more clarity.

The Nobel Institute, which awarded the prize, had said Machado couldn't give it to Trump. The White House said before the meeting that, if she tried to do that, whether he accepted it would be entirely up to Trump.

Even if it was just symbolic, however, Machado's gesture was extraordinary given that Trump has dismissed Machado's credibility to take over leadership of Venezuela after an audacious U.S. military raid that captured then-President Nicolás Maduro.

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Friday, Jan. 16, 2026

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado is swarmed by journalists and supporters as she departs the U.S. Capitol after meeting with senators Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Venezuela’s acting president adapts to post-Maduro reality and signals a new era of US ties

Regina Garcia Cano, The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview

Venezuela’s acting president adapts to post-Maduro reality and signals a new era of US ties

Regina Garcia Cano, The Associated Press 5 minute read Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodríguez used her first state of the union message on Thursday to advocate for opening the crucial state-run oil industry to more foreign investment following the Trump administration's pledge to seize control of Venezuelan crude sales.

For the first time, Rodríguez laid out a vision for Venezuela’s new political reality — one that challenges her government’s most deeply rooted beliefs less than two weeks after the United States captured and toppled former President Nicolás Maduro.

Under pressure from the U.S. to cooperate with its plans for reshaping Venezuela’s sanctioned oil industry, Maduro's former vice president declared that a “new policy is being formed in Venezuela."

She urged the foreign diplomats in attendance to tell investors abroad about the changes and called on lawmakers to approve oil sector reforms that would secure foreign firms' access to Venezuela’s vast reserves.

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Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

Judge hands offshore wind industry another victory against Trump in clearing way for NY project

Michael Phillis And Jennifer Mcdermott, The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview

Judge hands offshore wind industry another victory against Trump in clearing way for NY project

Michael Phillis And Jennifer Mcdermott, The Associated Press 3 minute read Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge Thursday cleared the way for a New York offshore wind project to resume construction, a victory for the developer who said a Trump administration order to pause it would likely kill the project in a matter of days.

District Judge Carl J. Nichols, an appointee of President Donald Trump, ruled construction on the Empire Wind project could go forward while he considers the merits of the government’s order to suspend the project. He faulted the government for not responding to key points in Empire Wind’s court filings, including the contention that the administration violated proper procedure.

Norwegian company Equinor owns Empire Wind. It’s the second developer to prevail in court against the administration this week.

The Trump administration froze five big offshore wind projects on the East Coast days before Christmas, citing national security concerns. Trump has targeted offshore wind from his first days back in the White House, most recently calling wind farms “losers” that lose money, destroy the landscape and kill birds.

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Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

Blades and turbine bases for offshore wind sit at a staging area at New London State Pier, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in New London, Conn. (AP Photo/Matt O'Brien)

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Court ruling jeopardizes freedom for pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil

Jake Offenhartz And Michael R. Sisak, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

Court ruling jeopardizes freedom for pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil

Jake Offenhartz And Michael R. Sisak, The Associated Press 4 minute read Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

A federal appeals panel on Thursday reversed a lower court decision that released former Columbia University graduate student Mahmoud Khalil from an immigration jail, bringing the government one step closer to detaining and ultimately deporting the Palestinian activist.

The three-judge panel of the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals didn’t rule on the key issue in Khalil’s case: whether the Trump administration’s effort to throw Khalil out of the U.S. over his campus activism and criticism of Israel is unconstitutional.

But in its 2-1 decision, the panel ruled a federal judge in New Jersey didn’t have jurisdiction to decide the matter at this time. Federal law requires the case to fully move through the immigration courts first, before Khalil can challenge the decision, they wrote.

“That scheme ensures that petitioners get just one bite at the apple — not zero or two,” the panel wrote. “But it also means that some petitioners, like Khalil, will have to wait to seek relief for allegedly unlawful government conduct.”

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Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

FILE - Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil holds a news conference outside Federal Court on Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025 in Philadelphia (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)

US seizes in Caribbean Sea another sanctioned oil tanker it says has ties to Venezuela

Konstantin Toropin, The Associated Press 2 minute read Preview

US seizes in Caribbean Sea another sanctioned oil tanker it says has ties to Venezuela

Konstantin Toropin, The Associated Press 2 minute read Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. forces in the Caribbean Sea have seized another sanctioned oil tanker the Trump administration says has ties to Venezuela, coming as part of a broader U.S. effort to take control of the South American country’s oil.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote Thursday on social media, “Motor Tanker Veronica had previously passed through Venezuelan waters, and was operating in defiance of President Trump’s established quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean.”

A social media post from U.S. Southern Command on the capture said that Marines and sailors launched from the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford to make the capture while Noem’s post noted that, like in previous raids, a U.S. Coast Guard tactical team conducted the boarding and seizure.

Noem posted a brief video that appeared to show part of the ship’s capture. The black-and-white footage showed helicopters hovering over the deck of a merchant vessel while armed troops dropped down on the deck by rope.

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Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a press conference, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

What Americans think about Trump’s first year back in office, according to AP-NORC polling

Linley Sanders, The Associated Press 6 minute read Preview

What Americans think about Trump’s first year back in office, according to AP-NORC polling

Linley Sanders, The Associated Press 6 minute read Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s second term has been eventful. You wouldn’t know it from his approval numbers.

An AP-NORC poll from January found that about 4 in 10 U.S. adults approve of Trump’s performance as president. That’s virtually unchanged from March 2025, shortly after he took office for the second time.

The new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research does show subtle signs of vulnerability for the Republican president. Trump hasn’t convinced Americans that the economy is in good shape, and many question whether he has the right priorities when he’s increasingly focused on foreign intervention. His approval rating on immigration, one of his signature issues, has also slipped since he took office.

Here’s how Americans’ views of Trump have — and haven’t — changed over the past year, according to AP-NORC polling.

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Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

FILE - President Donald Trump waves after arriving on Air Force One from Florida, Jan. 11, 2026, at Joint Base Andrews, Md. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)

Uganda’s presidential election experiences hours of delays at some polling stations

The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview

Uganda’s presidential election experiences hours of delays at some polling stations

The Associated Press 5 minute read Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — Uganda’s presidential election was plagued by widespread delays Thursday in addition to a days-long internet shutdown that has been criticized as an anti-democratic tactic in a country where the president has held office since 1986.

Some polling stations remained closed for up to four hours after the scheduled 7 a.m. start time due to “technical challenges," according to the nation's electoral commission, which asked polling officers to use paper registration records to ensure the difficulties did not “disenfranchise any voter.”

President Yoweri Museveni, 81, faces seven other candidates, including Robert Kyagulanyi, a musician-turned-politician best known as Bobi Wine, who is calling for political change.

The East African country of roughly 45 million people has 21.6 million registered voters. Polls were expected to close at 4 p.m., but voting was extended one hour until 5 p.m. local time. Results are constitutionally required to be announced in 48 hours.

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Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

Uganda opposition presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, known as Bobi Wine, right, greets election observers, including former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, at his home in Magere village on the outskirts of Kampala, Uganda, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Hajarah Nalwadda)

Trump threatens to use the Insurrection Act to end protests in Minneapolis

Steve Karnowski, Alanna Durkin Richer, Hallie Golden And Aamer Madhani, The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview

Trump threatens to use the Insurrection Act to end protests in Minneapolis

Steve Karnowski, Alanna Durkin Richer, Hallie Golden And Aamer Madhani, The Associated Press 5 minute read Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened to invoke an 1807 law and deploy troops to quell persistent protests against the federal officers sent to Minneapolis to enforce his administration's massive immigration crackdown.

The threat comes a day after a man was shot and wounded by an immigration officer who had been attacked with a shovel and broom handle. That shooting further heightened the fear and anger that has radiated across the city since an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent fatally shot Renee Good in the head.

Trump has repeatedly threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act, a rarely used federal law, to deploy the U.S. military or federalize the National Guard for domestic law enforcement, over the objections of state governors.

“If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E., who are only trying to do their job, I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT, which many Presidents have done before me, and quickly put an end to the travesty that is taking place in that once great State,” Trump said in social media post.

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Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

Law enforcement officers stand amid tear gas at the scene of a reported shooting Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)

Press freedom advocates worry that raid on Washington Post journalist’s home will chill reporting

David Bauder, The Associated Press 6 minute read Preview

Press freedom advocates worry that raid on Washington Post journalist’s home will chill reporting

David Bauder, The Associated Press 6 minute read Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

If the byproduct of a raid on a Washington Post journalist's home is to deter probing reporting of government action, the Trump administration could hardly have chosen a more compelling target.

Hannah Natanson, nicknamed the “federal government whisperer” at the Post for her reporting on President Donald Trump's changes to the federal workforce, had a phone, two laptops and a Garmin watch seized in the Wednesday search of her Virginia home, the newspaper said.

A warrant for the raid said it was connected to an investigation into a government contractor accused of illegally retaining classified government materials, said Matt Murray, the Post's executive editor, in an email to his staff. The Post was told that Natanson and the newspaper are not targets of the investigation, he said.

In a meeting Thursday, Murray told staff members that “the best thing to do when people are trying to intimidate you is not be intimidated — and that's what we did yesterday.”

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Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

FILE - A person walks into the One Franklin Square Building, home of The Washington Post newspaper, June 21, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

Federal officer shoots person in leg after being attacked during Minneapolis arrest, officials say

Steve Karnowski And Alanna Durkin Richer, The Associated Press 7 minute read Preview

Federal officer shoots person in leg after being attacked during Minneapolis arrest, officials say

Steve Karnowski And Alanna Durkin Richer, The Associated Press 7 minute read Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A federal officer shot a man in the leg in Minneapolis after being attacked with a shovel and broom handle while trying to make an arrest Wednesday, officials said.

Smoke filled the street near the site of the shooting as federal officers and protesters squared off. A group of officers wearing gas masks and helmets fired tear gas and grenades into a small crowd while protesters threw snowballs and chanted, “Our streets.”

Such scenes have become common on the streets of Minneapolis since an immigration agent fatally shot Renee Good on Jan. 7. Agents have yanked people from cars and homes and been confronted by angry bystanders who bare demanding that officers pack up and leave.

The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement on the social media platform X that federal law enforcement officers stopped a person from Venezuela who was in the U.S. illegally. The person drove away and crashed into a parked car before taking off on foot, DHS said.

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Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026

Federal agents remove a woman from a car after smashing her window, two blocks from where Good was fatally shot last week by an ICE officer. MUST CREDIT: Joshua Lott/The Washington Post

Trump claims killing of Iran protesters ‘has stopped’ even as Tehran signals executions ahead

Michelle L. Price And Farnoush Amiri, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

Trump claims killing of Iran protesters ‘has stopped’ even as Tehran signals executions ahead

Michelle L. Price And Farnoush Amiri, The Associated Press 4 minute read Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump made a vague statement Wednesday that he’s been told “on good authority” that plans for executions in Iran have stopped, even as Tehran has indicated fast trials and executions ahead in its crackdown on protesters.

The U.S. president’s claims, which were made with few details, come as he’s told protesting Iranians in recent days that “help is on the way” and that his administration would “act accordingly” to respond to the Iranian government. But Trump has not offered any details about how the U.S. might respond and it wasn’t clear if his comments Wednesday indicated he would hold off on action.

“We’ve been told that the killing in Iran is stopping -- it’s stopped -- it’s stopping,” Trump said at the White House while signing executive orders and legislation. “And there’s no plan for executions, or an execution, or executions -- so I’ve been told that on good authority.”

Trump did not specify where he had received that information but only described it as “very important sources on the other side.”

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Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026

A man stands with his motorbike in front of a huge banner showing hands holding Iranian flags as a sign of patriotism, in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Actor Timothy Busfield ordered held without bond in New Mexico child sex abuse case

Susan Montoya Bryan And Morgan Lee, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

Actor Timothy Busfield ordered held without bond in New Mexico child sex abuse case

Susan Montoya Bryan And Morgan Lee, The Associated Press 4 minute read Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Emmy Award-winning actor Timothy Busfield was ordered held without bond at his first court appearance Wednesday, a day after turning himself in to face charges of child sex abuse stemming from allegations that he inappropriately touched a minor on the set of a TV series he was directing in New Mexico.

Busfield appeared remotely via a video link from jail, where he was booked Tuesday. Whether he remains in jail will be the subject of a detention hearing that will be scheduled within five business days.

Albuquerque police issued a warrant for his arrest last week on two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor and one count of child abuse. A criminal complaint alleges the acts occurred on the set of the series “The Cleaning Lady,” which was filmed in the city.

Busfield, who is married to actor Melissa Gilbert and is known for appearances in “The West Wing,” “Field of Dreams” and “Thirtysomething,” has vowed to fight the charges. In a video shared before turning himself in, Busfield called the allegations lies.

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Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026

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