Family of American killed in downed MH17 jet sues Russia banks, money-transfer firms
The family of an American killed when a Malaysian Airlines plane was shot down over Ukraine in 2014 filed a lawsuit on Thursday against U.S.-based money transfer companies and two Russian banks they accuse of providing services to the group they blame …
DNA test to confirm if teen found in Kentucky is boy who disappeared in 2011: reports
Illinois police on Thursday were running a DNA test to determine if a 14-year-old boy found wandering in Kentucky a day earlier is Timmothy Pitzen, who disappeared in 2011 around the time his mother committed suicide, according to local media reports.
U.S. weekly jobless claims fall to lowest level since 1969
The number of Americans filing applications for unemployment benefits fell to a more than 49-year low last week, pointing to sustained labor market strength despite slowing economic growth.
Pope names first African-American to highest U.S. post
Pope Francis named the first African-American to the Catholic Church’s most senior U.S. position on Thursday, seeking to end a period of upheaval in a job whose previous two occupants were caught in sexual abuse scandals.
Texas bans all clergy from death chamber after court stays Buddhist’s execution
Texas will bar clergy of all faiths from accompanying inmates into the death chamber after the U.S. Supreme Court stayed an execution because the state did not allow the man’s Buddhist spiritual adviser in.
Target raises minimum wage to $13 an hour in tight labor market
Target Corp will raise its U.S. minimum wage to $13 an hour in June, from $12 currently, increasing its payroll costs and putting new pressure on rival Walmart Inc to attract retail workers in a tight labor market.
Hawaii residents return to new normal after epic volcano eruption
For weeks on end last year, Darryl Clinton watched the Kilauea Volcano from a front-row seat on the deck of his friend’s house in Kapoho on Hawaii’s Big Island, only leaving after a “lava bomb” from an erupting ground fissure flew onto the porch and nearly sliced his foot off.
Los Angeles police arrest suspect in ‘slasher’ attacks
Los Angeles police arrested a 19-year-old man on Wednesday on suspicion he is the “slasher” who has cut the faces of at least nine people, seemingly at random, as he rode through the city on a bicycle, police said.
Pope names Atlanta’s Wilton Gregory as new archbishop of Washington, D.C.
Pope Francis has named Atlanta Archbishop Wilton Gregory as the new head of the Catholic Church in Washington, D.C., the Vatican said on Thursday. The previous two holders of the post were caught up in sexual abuse scandals.
U.S. rallies scheduled to demand release of full Mueller report
A leading progressive advocacy group plans to hold rallies in Washington and other U.S. cities on Thursday to demand the full release of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report on Russia’s role in the 2016 presidential election.
