ORLANDO, Fla. — Universal Orlando Resort will reopen its Stardust Racers roller coaster on Saturday for the first time since the tragic death of rider Kevin Rodriguez Zavala last month, but the coaster will no longer accommodate riders like Zavala in wheelchairs, the Orlando Sentinel has learned.

Zavala, of Kissimmee, was helped into the Epic...Read more

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court’s term starting Monday could include major cases on President Donald Trump’s immigration policies, with the government now asking the justices to determine the lawfulness of his order to curtail birthright citizenship.

The executive order from Trump, signed on the first day of his second term as part of a ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — An elementary school teacher who reportedly shared a racist image in a group chat with colleagues has been placed on administrative leave as the Long Beach Unified School District investigates the matter.

John Solomon, a fourth- and fifth-grade teacher at MacArthur Elementary School, is being investigated for allegedly sharing ...Read more

A prominent right-wing influencer was arrested after a fight outside the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Portland, Oregon, late Thursday night, police said.

Nick Sortor, 27, of Washington, D.C., and two Oregon residents were taken into custody by the Portland Police Bureau just before 11:30 p.m.

All three were charged with ...Read more

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Prosecutors in Tallahassee are convening a grand jury relating to the Hope Florida Foundation, marking a potentially serious development that could lead to criminal charges in the ongoing scandal.

In recent weeks, the state attorney’s office for the 2nd Judicial Circuit has issued subpoenas for witnesses to appear before...Read more

The sentencing hearing for Sean “Diddy” Combs has begun in a Manhattan federal courtroom, where the music mogul faces years behind bars for transporting prostitutes across state lines for drug-fueled sex performances he dubbed “freak-offs.”

In a letter submitted to the court ahead of the hearing, Combs apologized to the court for his ...Read more

RALEIGH, N.C. — Democratic Gov. Josh Stein signed into law on Friday a wide-ranging crime bill that GOP lawmakers put together after the fatal stabbing on board a light rail train in Charlotte last month.

The bill, which Republicans named Iryna’s Law in honor of Iryna Zarutska, the 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee who died after she was ...Read more

NEW YORK — President Donald Trump bowed to pressure Friday and restored $187 million in anti-terrorism funding cuts to New York law enforcement amid widespread outrage from both sides of the political aisle.

The Department of Homeland Security said it would restore the funding to the NYPD, FDNY, Port Authority and other New York state ...Read more

Investors don’t need the official government jobs report to see that the labor market has shifted into a lower gear.

Even without the marquee data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics — which won’t be published on Friday due to the government shutdown — a number of private-sector indicators out in recent days pointed to sluggish hiring, ...Read more

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court agreed Friday to decide if licensed guns owners have a right to carry their weapons at public places, including parks, beaches and stores.

At issue are laws in California, Hawaii and three other states that generally prohibit carrying guns on private or public property.

Three years ago, Supreme Court ruled that...Read more

NEW YORK — Lawyers for Sean “Diddy” Combs have released a last-minute plea for mercy by way of a video showcasing the disgraced music mogul’s charity work and family life.

The 11-minute highlight reel, an apparent bid to help secure Combs’ quick release from prison, was submitted ahead of his sentencing in New York on Friday.

Edited ...Read more

CHICAGO — Protesters on Friday yelled “shame!” while banging drums as vehicles entered and exited the Broadview ICE facility, while state troopers in riot gear kept the street clear.

Some protesters had donned masks and about six had been arrested by 9:30 a.m.

Such demonstrations at the site have grown heated in recent weeks, with agents...Read more

President Donald Trump said he is setting a Sunday evening deadline for Hamas to agree to his plan to end the war in Gaza, warning of stark consequences if the group does not sign on to the proposal.

“An Agreement must be reached with Hamas by Sunday Evening at SIX (6) P.M., Washington, D.C. time,” Trump said in a social media post on ...Read more

LANSING, Mich. — The Michigan Senate approved a 24% wholesale tax on marijuana early Friday morning, marking the key vote in a wide-ranging deal to increase funding for roads and to achieve a new state budget.

At about 3 a.m. Friday, senators voted 19-17 in favor of the tax hike, which the Legislature's fiscal agencies estimate will generate ...Read more

LAKE ELSINORE, Calif. — Celeste Rivas Hernandez was just one of the kids in her neighborhood in Lake Elsinore, an Inland Empire community that for generations has drawn young families looking for a piece of suburbia far from the high prices and drama of the big city.

She visited the corner store almost every day with her friends, wearing a ...Read more

CHICAGO — From the open window in her dining room, Dana Caruso watched the bedlam unfold late last week off of 25th Avenue in Broadview. The road to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility is just across the street and the sight of unmarked ICE vans and protesters had already become commonplace, when early last Friday she heard what ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs will learn Friday how long he will serve in prison for transporting prostitutes across state lines to engage in drug-fueled sexual performances that he dubbed "freak-offs."

His sentencing comes a year after federal prosecutors unsealed a sweeping indictment that painted Combs' Bad Boy Entertainment...Read more