COLUMBIA, S.C. — Fluoride has been used in water systems across the country for decades, with multiple studies showing it has slowed the prevalence of tooth decay in children and adults.

But a handful of South Carolina legislators want to ban fluoride in public drinking water. A pair of bills introduced in the past year are challenging the ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — The slayings of Hollywood legend Rob Reiner and his photographer wife, Michele, have given rise to a complex and intensely watched legal struggle involving their accused son, prosecutors and defense attorneys, who all face key strategic decisions in the coming weeks and months.

Prosecutors allege Nick Reiner fatally stabbed his ...Read more

BOSTON — An out-of-state adult visitor who spent time in the region earlier this month has been diagnosed with measles, according to health officials who are warning the public of possible exposures in multiple locations.

The visitor arrived at Boston Logan airport on American Airlines flight 2384 from Dallas-Fort Worth on Dec. 11 at 2:39 p.m...Read more

BALTIMORE — A coalition of states filed a lawsuit this week challenging a recent action by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that seeks to restrict access to gender-affirming care for transgender youth.

The suit, filed in federal court, asks a judge to block what HHS has labeled a “declaration,” issued Dec. 18, asserting ...Read more

The Centers for Disease Control has issued a warning about consuming raw oysters, citing an ongoing salmonella outbreak.

In total, 64 people have reported getting sick with 20 hospitalizations across 22 states, the CDC said.

Pennsylvania and New York both have the most cases with 17 total.

“The true number of sick people in this outbreak is...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Gov. Tim Walz says President Donald Trump’s federal immigration enforcement is targeting people of color in Minnesota, including U.S. citizens, and he’s warning that there could be a surge of ICE agents in the state over the next two weeks.

“It’s pretty clear to all of us exactly what this president is doing. He’s ...Read more

WASHINGTON — States are expecting clarity within days for a key feature of Republicans’ signature budget reconciliation law — a $50 billion rural health care fund that has an end-of-year deadline for the administration to announce its plans.

The wide-ranging law reduces health spending by about $1 trillion over a decade, primarily from ...Read more

Russia will seek key changes to the latest U.S. peace plan to end its war on Ukraine, including more restrictions on Kyiv’s military, according to a person close to the Kremlin.

Moscow regards the 20-point plan worked out between Ukraine and the U.S. as a starting point for further negotiations, as it lacks provisions important for Russia and...Read more

ATLANTA — Two women were arrested Tuesday after nearly 40 dogs were found either dead inside refrigerators or malnourished at a Gwinnett County home, police said.

Christine Abbott, 67, and Donna Slavin, 65, each face six felony counts of animal cruelty and seven misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty. They were booked into the Gwinnett jail, ...Read more

The Thai military said ceasefire talks with Cambodia, set to begin on Wednesday, are expected to conclude with a meeting of the countries’ defense ministers on Dec. 27, as the two sides seek to end weeks of deadly clashes.

The talks are set to start at 4 p.m. Bangkok time in Thailand’s Chanthaburi province, which borders Cambodia.

Thailand...Read more

Ukraine and the U.S. remain split primarily on territorial issues in talks on a peace plan to end Russia’s war, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

“We now have draft documents that largely reflect the joint Ukrainian-American position, in some respects the American position,” Zelenskyy told reporters in Kyiv on Tuesday. “Some issues ...Read more

SAN DIEGO — Cross-border students in the San Diego-Tijuana region will soon have an option for a faster commute to school.

Early next year, the pedestrian border crossings in San Ysidro and Otay Mesa will add dedicated lanes for students living in Mexico who cross daily to go to school in the United States, officials from U.S. Customs and ...Read more

Ukraine and the U.S. remain split primarily on territorial issues in talks on a peace plan to end Russia’s war, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

“We now have draft documents that largely reflect the joint Ukrainian-American position, in some respects the American position,” Zelenskyy told reporters in Kyiv on Tuesday. “Some issues ...Read more

As immigrants in southeastern Louisiana and Mississippi braced for this month’s U.S. Homeland Security operation, Cristiane Rosales-Fajardo received a panicked phone call from a friend.

The friend’s Guatemalan tenant, who didn’t know she was pregnant, had just delivered a premature baby in the New Orleans house. The parents lacked legal ...Read more

WASHINGTON — Every night, Abdullah Ibrahim retreats from the streets into a wooded stretch along the Potomac River.

As night falls and temperatures drop, he erects a tent and builds a fire beneath a canopy of pine, hemlock, and cedar trees.

He evades authorities by rotating use of three tents of different colors at three campsites. As day ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — The baby-faced teen called his mom for the fourth time that November day. He was homesick, but he wanted her to know he was OK.

Benjamin Guerrero Cruz had recently turned 18, and he was farther from his mother and younger siblings than he'd ever been before.

But he wasn't off at college or starting a new job. He was calling ...Read more

WASHINGTON — A provision tucked into the fiscal 2026 National Defense Authorization Act restricts the Pentagon’s ability to quickly revoke protections for former officials who face security threats — an attempt by lawmakers to curb retaliatory moves like those carried out by President Donald Trump at the beginning of his second term.

The ...Read more