KANSAS CITY – An anesthesiologist at a Lee’s Summit, Missouri, hospital pleaded guilty in federal court last week to illegally taking fentanyl from the hospital, according to the United State's Attorney.

<a href="https://med.umkc.edu/dir/peplinski-roman/">Roman Peplinski, 37, of Kansas City </a>waived his right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Greg Kays to a federal information that charges him with one count of obtaining a controlled substance by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception, or subterfuge.

<a href="https://med.umkc.edu/dir/peplinski-roman/">Peplinski </a>was employed as an anesthesiologist at Union Hill Group in Kansas City. Peplinski worked at Lakewood Medical Center in Lee’s Summit and Truman Medical Center in Kansas City which are both part of University Health.

<a href="https://med.umkc.edu/dir/peplinski-roman/">Peplinski a</a>dmitted that he illegally obtained fentanyl from Lakewood Medical Center on Nov. 5, 2022. Peplinski misrepresented the fentanyl was for a patient, when in reality, that patient had been discharged from Lakewood Medical Center earlier that day. Fentanyl was not listed under the “medication orders” on the patient’s chart for the hospital visit.

<a href="https://med.umkc.edu/dir/peplinski-roman/">Peplinski</a> also admitted to withdrawing fentanyl from three vials from Sept. 1, 2022, through Nov. 30, 2022.

On Feb. 16, 2023, personnel from Lakewood Medical Center reported to the Drug Enforcement Administration that three vials of fentanyl in an automated dispensing cabinet showed signs of tampering. In March 2023 seven vials of fentanyl that were suspected of being tampered with were sent to the FDA’s Forensic Chemistry Center where tests were performed on the vials and their contents. Of the seven vials, three showed evidence of being tampered with. One of those vials contained no fentanyl and the other two vials contained a small amount of fentanyl.

The government has no evidence that any patients were harmed as a result of Peplinski tampering with vials of fentanyl.

Under federal statutes, Peplinski is subject to a sentence of up to four years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Bradley Cooper. It was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and Food and Drug Administration-Office of Criminal Investigations.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/4/1714254250527.png" alt="-Roman Peplinski photo UMKC" />
 <figcaption>-Roman Peplinski photo UMKC</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY – An anesthesiologist at a Lee’s Summit, Missouri, hospital pleaded guilty in federal court last week to illegally taking fentanyl from the hospital, according to the United State's Attorney.<a href="https://med.umkc.edu/dir/peplinski-roman/">Roman Peplinski, 37, of Kansas City </a>waived his right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Greg Kays to a federal information that charges him with one count of obtaining a controlled substance by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception, or subterfuge.<a href="https://med.umkc.edu/dir/peplinski-roman/">Peplinski </a>was employed as an anesthesiologist at Union Hill Group in Kansas City. Peplinski worked at Lakewood Medical Center in Lee’s Summit and Truman Medical Center in Kansas City which are both part of University Health.<a href="https://med.umkc.edu/dir/peplinski-roman/">Peplinski a</a>dmitted that he illegally obtained fentanyl from Lakewood Medical Center on Nov. 5, 2022. Peplinski misrepresented the fentanyl was for a patient, when in reality, that patient had been discharged from Lakewood Medical Center earlier that day. Fentanyl was not listed under the “medication orders” on the patient’s chart for the hospital visit.<a href="https://med.umkc.edu/dir/peplinski-roman/">Peplinski</a> also admitted to withdrawing fentanyl from three vials from Sept. 1, 2022, through Nov. 30, 2022.On Feb. 16, 2023, personnel from Lakewood Medical Center reported to the Drug Enforcement Administration that three vials of fentanyl in an automated dispensing cabinet showed signs of tampering. In March 2023 seven vials of fentanyl that were suspected of being tampered with were sent to the FDA’s Forensic Chemistry Center where tests were performed on the vials and their contents. Of the seven vials, three showed evidence of being tampered with. One of those vials contained no fentanyl and the other two vials contained a small amount of fentanyl.The government has no evidence that any patients were harmed as a result of Peplinski tampering with vials of fentanyl.Under federal statutes, Peplinski is subject to a sentence of up to four years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Bradley Cooper. It was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and Food and Drug Administration-Office of Criminal Investigations.

Doctor admits taking fentanyl from Kansas City area hospital

SULPHUR, Okla. (AP) — Tornadoes killed four people in Oklahoma and left thousands without power Sunday after a destructive outbreak of severe weather flattened buildings in the heart of one rural town and injured at least 100 people across the state.

More than 20,000 people remained without electricity after tornadoes began late Saturday night. The destruction was extensive in Sulphur, a town of about 5,000 people, where a tornado crumpled many downtown buildings, tossed cars and buses and sheared the roofs off houses across a 15-block radius.

“You just can't believe the destruction,” Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt said during a visit to the hard-hit town. “It seems like every business downtown has been destroyed.”

Stitt said about 30 people were injured alone in Sulphur, including some who were in a bar as the tornado struck. Hospitals across the state reported about 100 injuries, including people apparently cut or struck by debris or hurt from falls, according to the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management.

White House officials said President Joe Biden spoke to Gov. Stitt on Sunday and offered the full support of the federal government.

The deadly weather in Oklahoma added to the dozens of reported tornadoes that wreaked havoc in the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/video/omaha-nebraska-paul-wright-tornadoes-national-6f8d220ab3584beab54ccdb900649b87">nation's midsection since Friday</a>. On Sunday, authorities in Iowa said a man injured during a tornado that hit the town of Minden on Friday had died, according&nbsp;<a href="https://omaha.com/news/local/weather/man-dies-from-injuries-received-during-tornado-in-minden-iowa/article_eca7d946-0596-11ef-b6a5-0394c5014d7f.html#tracking-source=home-top-story">to local reports</a>.

Authorities said the tornado in Sulphur began in a city park before barreling through the downtown, flipping cars and ripping the roofs and walls off of brick buildings. Windows and doors were blown out of structures that remained standing.

“How do you rebuild it? This is complete devastation,” said Kelly Trussell, a lifelong Sulphur resident as she surveyed the damage. “It is crazy, you want to help but where do you start?”

Carolyn Goodman traveled to Sulphur from the nearby town of Ada in search of her former sister-in-law, who Goodman said was at a local bar before just before the tornado hit the area. Stitt said one of the victims was found inside a bar but authorities had not yet identified those killed.

“The bar was destroyed,” Goodman said. “I know they probably won’t find her alive ... but I hope she is still alive.”

Farther north, a tornado near the town of Holdenville killed two people and damaged or destroyed more than a dozen homes, according to the Hughes County Emergency Medical Service. Another person was killed along Interstate 35 near the southern Oklahoma city of Marietta, state officials said.

Heavy rains that swept into Oklahoma with the tornadoes also caused dangerous flooding and water rescues. Outside Sulphur, rising lake levels shut down the Chickasaw National Recreation Area, where the storms wiped out a pedestrian bridge.

Stitt issued an executive order Sunday declaring a state of emergency in 12 counties due to the fallout from the severe weather.

At the Sulphur High School gym, where families took cover from the storm, Jackalyn Wright said she and her family heard what sounded like a helicopter as the tornado touched down over them.

Chad Smith, 43, said people ran into the gym as the wind picked up. The rain started coming faster and the doors slammed shut. “Just give me a beer and a lawn chair and I will sit outside and watch it,” Smith said. Instead, he took cover.

Residents in other states were also digging out from&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tornado-midwest-nebraska-iowa-missouri-kansas-f12770a52d1644d88c1dea1b92bc9903">storm damage</a>. A tornado in suburban&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tornado-midwest-nebraska-iowa-missouri-kansas-f12770a52d1644d88c1dea1b92bc9903">Omaha, Nebraska,</a>&nbsp;demolished homes and businesses Saturday as it moved for miles through farmland and into subdivisions, then slammed an Iowa town.

The tornado damage began Friday afternoon near Lincoln, Nebraska. An industrial building in Lancaster County was hit, causing it to collapse with 70 people inside. Several were trapped, but everyone was evacuated, and the three injuries were not life-threatening, authorities said.

One or possibly two tornadoes then spent around an hour creeping toward Omaha, leaving behind damage consistent with an EF3 twister, with winds of 135 to 165 mph (217 to 265 kph), said Chris Franks, a meteorologist in the National Weather Service’s Omaha office.

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen and Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds spent Saturday touring the damage and arranging for assistance for the damaged communities. Formal damage assessments are still underway, but the states plan to seek federal help.

HOLDENVILLE, Okla. (AP) — At least two people, including a child, died in tornadoes that swept through Oklahoma, authorities said Sunday as emergency crews assessed the extensive damage to homes and businesses from the high winds, hail and flooding.

Dozens of reported tornadoes have wreaked havoc in the nation's midsection since Friday, with flood watches and warnings in effect Sunday for Oklahoma and other states — including Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas and Texas.

In Oklahoma, a tornado ripped through Holdenville, a town of about 5,000 people, late Saturday, killing two people, and injuring four others, Hughes County Emergency Medical Services said in a statement Sunday. Holdenville is roughly 80 miles from Oklahoma City.

“My prayers are with those who lost loved ones as tornadoes ripped through Oklahoma last night,” Gov. Kevin Stitt said in a statement.

He issued an executive order Sunday declaring a state of emergency in 12 counties due to the fallout from the severe weather as crews worked to clear debris and assess damage from the severe storms that downed power lines. Later in the day, he planned to tour the southern Oklahoma city of Sulphur, where some buildings were reduced to piles of rubble.

Nearly 33,000 customers were without power in Oklahoma as of Sunday morning, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://poweroutage.us/">poweroutage.us</a>, which tracks electric utility outages. In Texas, nearly 67,000 customers were without power.

In Sulphur, authorities reported unspecified injuries along with significant destruction. Photos from local news media showed several leveled buildings and roofs ripped off of homes. The Murray County Sheriff’s Office urged people to stay away from the city to clear the way for first responders following extensive damage from tornadoes, according to a statement posted by the agency on Facebook.

“Stay home and do not come to look,” the sheriff's office said.

A hospital was damaged in Marietta, according to the Oklahoma Office of Emergency Management, which also said that Interstate 35 was closed at the border with Texas "due to overturned vehicles and powerlines across the highway."

Residents in other states were also digging out from&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tornado-midwest-nebraska-iowa-missouri-kansas-f12770a52d1644d88c1dea1b92bc9903">storm damage</a>. A tornado in suburban Omaha, Nebraska, demolished homes and businesses Saturday as it moved for miles through farmland and into subdivisions, then slammed an Iowa town.

Fewer than two dozen people were treated at Omaha-area hospitals, said Dr. Lindsay Huse, health director of the city’s Douglas County Health Department.

“Miraculous” she said, stressing that none of the city’s injuries were serious. Neighboring communities reported a handful of injuries each.

The tornado damage started Friday afternoon near Lincoln, Nebraska. An industrial building in Lancaster County was hit, causing it to collapse with 70 people inside. Several were trapped, but everyone was evacuated, and the three injuries were not life-threatening, authorities said.

One or possibly two tornadoes then spent around an hour creeping toward Omaha, leaving behind damage consistent with an EF3 twister, with winds of 135 to 165 mph, said Chris Franks, a meteorologist in the National Weather Service’s Omaha office.

Ultimately the twister slammed into the Elkhorn neighborhood in western Omaha, a city of 485,000 people with a metropolitan-area population of about 1 million.

Staci Roe surveyed the damage to what was supposed to be her “forever home,” which was not even two years old. When the tornado hit, they were at the airport picking up a friend who was supposed to spend the night.

“There was no home to come to,” she said, describing “utter dread” when she saw it for the first time.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/4/1714352043261.png" alt="“You just can't believe the destruction,” Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt said-photo courtesy KTUL TV" />
 <figcaption>“You just can't believe the destruction,” Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt said-photo courtesy KTUL TV</figcaption>
 </figure>SULPHUR, Okla. (AP) — Tornadoes killed four people in Oklahoma and left thousands without power Sunday after a destructive outbreak of severe weather flattened buildings in the heart of one rural town and injured at least 100 people across the state.More than 20,000 people remained without electricity after tornadoes began late Saturday night. The destruction was extensive in Sulphur, a town of about 5,000 people, where a tornado crumpled many downtown buildings, tossed cars and buses and sheared the roofs off houses across a 15-block radius.“You just can't believe the destruction,” Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt said during a visit to the hard-hit town. “It seems like every business downtown has been destroyed.”Stitt said about 30 people were injured alone in Sulphur, including some who were in a bar as the tornado struck. Hospitals across the state reported about 100 injuries, including people apparently cut or struck by debris or hurt from falls, according to the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management.White House officials said President Joe Biden spoke to Gov. Stitt on Sunday and offered the full support of the federal government.The deadly weather in Oklahoma added to the dozens of reported tornadoes that wreaked havoc in the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/video/omaha-nebraska-paul-wright-tornadoes-national-6f8d220ab3584beab54ccdb900649b87">nation's midsection since Friday</a>. On Sunday, authorities in Iowa said a man injured during a tornado that hit the town of Minden on Friday had died, according&nbsp;<a href="https://omaha.com/news/local/weather/man-dies-from-injuries-received-during-tornado-in-minden-iowa/article_eca7d946-0596-11ef-b6a5-0394c5014d7f.html#tracking-source=home-top-story">to local reports</a>.Authorities said the tornado in Sulphur began in a city park before barreling through the downtown, flipping cars and ripping the roofs and walls off of brick buildings. Windows and doors were blown out of structures that remained standing.“How do you rebuild it? This is complete devastation,” said Kelly Trussell, a lifelong Sulphur resident as she surveyed the damage. “It is crazy, you want to help but where do you start?”Carolyn Goodman traveled to Sulphur from the nearby town of Ada in search of her former sister-in-law, who Goodman said was at a local bar before just before the tornado hit the area. Stitt said one of the victims was found inside a bar but authorities had not yet identified those killed.“The bar was destroyed,” Goodman said. “I know they probably won’t find her alive ... but I hope she is still alive.”Farther north, a tornado near the town of Holdenville killed two people and damaged or destroyed more than a dozen homes, according to the Hughes County Emergency Medical Service. Another person was killed along Interstate 35 near the southern Oklahoma city of Marietta, state officials said.Heavy rains that swept into Oklahoma with the tornadoes also caused dangerous flooding and water rescues. Outside Sulphur, rising lake levels shut down the Chickasaw National Recreation Area, where the storms wiped out a pedestrian bridge.Stitt issued an executive order Sunday declaring a state of emergency in 12 counties due to the fallout from the severe weather.At the Sulphur High School gym, where families took cover from the storm, Jackalyn Wright said she and her family heard what sounded like a helicopter as the tornado touched down over them.Chad Smith, 43, said people ran into the gym as the wind picked up. The rain started coming faster and the doors slammed shut. “Just give me a beer and a lawn chair and I will sit outside and watch it,” Smith said. Instead, he took cover.Residents in other states were also digging out from&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tornado-midwest-nebraska-iowa-missouri-kansas-f12770a52d1644d88c1dea1b92bc9903">storm damage</a>. A tornado in suburban&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tornado-midwest-nebraska-iowa-missouri-kansas-f12770a52d1644d88c1dea1b92bc9903">Omaha, Nebraska,</a>&nbsp;demolished homes and businesses Saturday as it moved for miles through farmland and into subdivisions, then slammed an Iowa town.The tornado damage began Friday afternoon near Lincoln, Nebraska. An industrial building in Lancaster County was hit, causing it to collapse with 70 people inside. Several were trapped, but everyone was evacuated, and the three injuries were not life-threatening, authorities said.One or possibly two tornadoes then spent around an hour creeping toward Omaha, leaving behind damage consistent with an EF3 twister, with winds of 135 to 165 mph (217 to 265 kph), said Chris Franks, a meteorologist in the National Weather Service’s Omaha office.Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen and Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds spent Saturday touring the damage and arranging for assistance for the damaged communities. Formal damage assessments are still underway, but the states plan to seek federal help.___<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/4/1714319458264.png" alt="Image Murray Co. Oklahoma Sheriff" />
 <figcaption>Image Murray Co. Oklahoma Sheriff</figcaption>
 </figure>HOLDENVILLE, Okla. (AP) — At least two people, including a child, died in tornadoes that swept through Oklahoma, authorities said Sunday as emergency crews assessed the extensive damage to homes and businesses from the high winds, hail and flooding.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/4/1714319484856.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Dozens of reported tornadoes have wreaked havoc in the nation's midsection since Friday, with flood watches and warnings in effect Sunday for Oklahoma and other states — including Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas and Texas.In Oklahoma, a tornado ripped through Holdenville, a town of about 5,000 people, late Saturday, killing two people, and injuring four others, Hughes County Emergency Medical Services said in a statement Sunday. Holdenville is roughly 80 miles from Oklahoma City.“My prayers are with those who lost loved ones as tornadoes ripped through Oklahoma last night,” Gov. Kevin Stitt said in a statement.He issued an executive order Sunday declaring a state of emergency in 12 counties due to the fallout from the severe weather as crews worked to clear debris and assess damage from the severe storms that downed power lines. Later in the day, he planned to tour the southern Oklahoma city of Sulphur, where some buildings were reduced to piles of rubble.Nearly 33,000 customers were without power in Oklahoma as of Sunday morning, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://poweroutage.us/">poweroutage.us</a>, which tracks electric utility outages. In Texas, nearly 67,000 customers were without power.In Sulphur, authorities reported unspecified injuries along with significant destruction. Photos from local news media showed several leveled buildings and roofs ripped off of homes. The Murray County Sheriff’s Office urged people to stay away from the city to clear the way for first responders following extensive damage from tornadoes, according to a statement posted by the agency on Facebook.“Stay home and do not come to look,” the sheriff's office said.A hospital was damaged in Marietta, according to the Oklahoma Office of Emergency Management, which also said that Interstate 35 was closed at the border with Texas "due to overturned vehicles and powerlines across the highway."Residents in other states were also digging out from&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tornado-midwest-nebraska-iowa-missouri-kansas-f12770a52d1644d88c1dea1b92bc9903">storm damage</a>. A tornado in suburban Omaha, Nebraska, demolished homes and businesses Saturday as it moved for miles through farmland and into subdivisions, then slammed an Iowa town.Fewer than two dozen people were treated at Omaha-area hospitals, said Dr. Lindsay Huse, health director of the city’s Douglas County Health Department.“Miraculous” she said, stressing that none of the city’s injuries were serious. Neighboring communities reported a handful of injuries each.The tornado damage started Friday afternoon near Lincoln, Nebraska. An industrial building in Lancaster County was hit, causing it to collapse with 70 people inside. Several were trapped, but everyone was evacuated, and the three injuries were not life-threatening, authorities said.One or possibly two tornadoes then spent around an hour creeping toward Omaha, leaving behind damage consistent with an EF3 twister, with winds of 135 to 165 mph, said Chris Franks, a meteorologist in the National Weather Service’s Omaha office.Ultimately the twister slammed into the Elkhorn neighborhood in western Omaha, a city of 485,000 people with a metropolitan-area population of about 1 million.Staci Roe surveyed the damage to what was supposed to be her “forever home,” which was not even two years old. When the tornado hit, they were at the airport picking up a friend who was supposed to spend the night.“There was no home to come to,” she said, describing “utter dread” when she saw it for the first time.Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen and Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds spent Saturday touring the damage and arranging for assistance for the damaged communities. Formal damage assessments are still underway, but the states plan to seek federal help.

Death toll climbs after tornadoes in Oklahoma leave trail of destruction

OSAGE COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a Kansas man on drug allegations.

On April 22, an Osage County K-9 unit conducted a traffic stop at milepost on Interstate 35 in Osage County for a traffic violation, according to Sheriff Chris Wells. During the stop, deputies found illegal narcotics.

Bret A. Crowther, 60, of Wichita was taken into custody and transported to the Osage County Jail Facility on requested charges of Possession of methamphetamine, Possession of drug paraphernalia and Driving while license is suspended.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/4/1713901855198.png" alt="Crowther-photo Osage Co." />
 <figcaption>Crowther-photo Osage Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>OSAGE COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a Kansas man on drug allegations.On April 22, an Osage County K-9 unit conducted a traffic stop at milepost on Interstate 35 in Osage County for a traffic violation, according to Sheriff Chris Wells. During the stop, deputies found illegal narcotics.Bret A. Crowther, 60, of Wichita was taken into custody and transported to the Osage County Jail Facility on requested charges of Possession of methamphetamine, Possession of drug paraphernalia and Driving while license is suspended.

Kan. man with no drivers license, caught transporting drugs

NEW YORK (AP) — The Biden administration has finalized a new rule set to make millions of more salaried workers eligible for overtime pay in the U.S.

The move marks the largest expansion in federal overtime eligibility seen in decades. Starting July 1, employers will be required pay overtime to salaried workers who make less than $43,888 a year in certain executive, administrative and professional roles, the Labor Department said Tuesday. That cap will then rise to $58,656 by the start of 2025.

“Too often, lower-paid salaried workers are doing the same job as their hourly counterparts but are spending more time away from their families for no additional pay. That is unacceptable,” acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su said in a prepared statement.

She added that the administration was “following through on our promise to raise the bar.”

Tuesday’s news marks a significant jump from the current overtime eligibility threshold of $35,568, which was set&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/20a969ae220d4dd587e21a1ae73a849d">under the Trump administration</a>&nbsp;in 2019 — just three years after a more generous Obama-era effort&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/a0d8eada5bb24cbd91ff03f692306aa3/21-us-states-sue-block-expansion-overtime-pay-law">was ultimately scuttled in court</a>&nbsp;after facing pushback from some business leaders and Republican politicians.

Under the federal law, nearly all hourly workers in the U.S. are entitled to overtime pay after 40 hours a week. But many salaried workers are exempt from that requirement — unless they earn below a certain level.

The new rule also expands overtime eligibility for some highly-compensated workers. According to a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/overtime/rulemaking/faqs#impact17">Labor Department FAQ</a>, the current $107,432 annual threshold for highly-compensated workers is set to increase to $132,964 on July 1 and $151,164 by the start of 2025.

The Labor Department estimates that 4 million lower-paid salary workers who are exempt under current regulations will become eligible for overtime protections in the first year under the new rule. An additional 292,900 higher-compensated workers are also expected to get overtime entitlements.

The July 1 increases update the current salary thresholds using methodology put in place under the Trump administration’s 2019 regulation. The new rule’s methodology takes effect Jan. 1, the Labor Department said, with salary thresholds set to update every three years based on the latest wage data.

The Biden administration first announced&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/work-labor-overtime-pay-biden-ba1613a766bd45c4f15650bb7d361063">plans for its new rule in late August</a>, and submitted a proposal in September. The Labor Department said it “conducted extensive engagement with employers, workers, unions and other stakeholders” and considered more than 33,000 comments as it developed the final rule.

Critics have argued that the new regulation could saddle companies with new costs and add to persistent labor challenges. In a statement, U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx, a North Carolina Republican and chair of the House Education and the Workforce Committee, said that employers “are staring down the barrel of billions in annual costs to comply with the rule” while calling the regulation “excessive and heavy-handed.”

Meanwhile, advocates applauded the administration’s rule — with some noting that such a move is overdue. The left-leaning Economic Policy Institute says that the overtime threshold has not been updated properly for almost 50 years — leaving millions without such federal protections.

“The rule is an important step toward correctly valuing one of the most precious resources workers have — their time,” EPI president Heidi Shierholz said Tuesday. “This rule is an essential milestone in creating a stronger, fairer economy.”

NEW YORK (AP) — The Biden administration has finalized a new rule set to make millions of more salaried workers eligible for overtime pay in the U.S.The move marks the largest expansion in federal overtime eligibility seen in decades. Starting July 1, employers will be required pay overtime to salaried workers who make less than $43,888 a year in certain executive, administrative and professional roles, the Labor Department said Tuesday. That cap will then rise to $58,656 by the start of 2025.“Too often, lower-paid salaried workers are doing the same job as their hourly counterparts but are spending more time away from their families for no additional pay. That is unacceptable,” acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su said in a prepared statement.She added that the administration was “following through on our promise to raise the bar.”Tuesday’s news marks a significant jump from the current overtime eligibility threshold of $35,568, which was set&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/20a969ae220d4dd587e21a1ae73a849d">under the Trump administration</a>&nbsp;in 2019 — just three years after a more generous Obama-era effort&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/a0d8eada5bb24cbd91ff03f692306aa3/21-us-states-sue-block-expansion-overtime-pay-law">was ultimately scuttled in court</a>&nbsp;after facing pushback from some business leaders and Republican politicians.Under the federal law, nearly all hourly workers in the U.S. are entitled to overtime pay after 40 hours a week. But many salaried workers are exempt from that requirement — unless they earn below a certain level.The new rule also expands overtime eligibility for some highly-compensated workers. According to a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/overtime/rulemaking/faqs#impact17">Labor Department FAQ</a>, the current $107,432 annual threshold for highly-compensated workers is set to increase to $132,964 on July 1 and $151,164 by the start of 2025.The Labor Department estimates that 4 million lower-paid salary workers who are exempt under current regulations will become eligible for overtime protections in the first year under the new rule. An additional 292,900 higher-compensated workers are also expected to get overtime entitlements.The July 1 increases update the current salary thresholds using methodology put in place under the Trump administration’s 2019 regulation. The new rule’s methodology takes effect Jan. 1, the Labor Department said, with salary thresholds set to update every three years based on the latest wage data.The Biden administration first announced&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/work-labor-overtime-pay-biden-ba1613a766bd45c4f15650bb7d361063">plans for its new rule in late August</a>, and submitted a proposal in September. The Labor Department said it “conducted extensive engagement with employers, workers, unions and other stakeholders” and considered more than 33,000 comments as it developed the final rule.Critics have argued that the new regulation could saddle companies with new costs and add to persistent labor challenges. In a statement, U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx, a North Carolina Republican and chair of the House Education and the Workforce Committee, said that employers “are staring down the barrel of billions in annual costs to comply with the rule” while calling the regulation “excessive and heavy-handed.”Meanwhile, advocates applauded the administration’s rule — with some noting that such a move is overdue. The left-leaning Economic Policy Institute says that the overtime threshold has not been updated properly for almost 50 years — leaving millions without such federal protections.“The rule is an important step toward correctly valuing one of the most precious resources workers have — their time,” EPI president Heidi Shierholz said Tuesday. “This rule is an essential milestone in creating a stronger, fairer economy.”

Millions of salaried workers now eligible for overtime pay under new Biden rule

JOHNSON COUNTY —One person died in an accident just before 3:30a.m. Sunday in Johnson County.&nbsp;

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2021 Jeep Gladiator driven by&nbsp; &nbsp;Matthew E. Karabas, 27, Monroe, New Jersey, was southbound&nbsp;&nbsp;in the northbound lanes of Interstate 35 just northeast&nbsp; from Edgerton Road.

The Jeep struck a 2024 Freightliner semi driven by Garrido S. Chinea, 29, Kansas City, Missouri, head-on.

A passenger in the Jeep identified as Eric M. Diaz, 22, Melbourne, Florida, was pronounced dead at the scene and was transported to Frontier Forensics. EMS transported Karabas to Overland Park Regional Medical Center for treatment of suspected serious injuries. Chinea was not injured. Karabas was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.

JOHNSON COUNTY —One person died in an accident just before 3:30a.m. Sunday in Johnson County.&nbsp;The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2021 Jeep Gladiator driven by&nbsp; &nbsp;Matthew E. Karabas, 27, Monroe, New Jersey, was southbound&nbsp;&nbsp;in the northbound lanes of Interstate 35 just northeast&nbsp; from Edgerton Road.The Jeep struck a 2024 Freightliner semi driven by Garrido S. Chinea, 29, Kansas City, Missouri, head-on.A passenger in the Jeep identified as Eric M. Diaz, 22, Melbourne, Florida, was pronounced dead at the scene and was transported to Frontier Forensics. EMS transported Karabas to Overland Park Regional Medical Center for treatment of suspected serious injuries. Chinea was not injured. Karabas was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.

Man dead after wrong-way crash with semi on Kansas highway

WASHINGTON (AP) —No, TikTok will not suddenly disappear from your phone. Nor will you go to jail if you continue using it after it is banned.

After years of attempts to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tiktok-ban-bytedance-bill-divest-5b5a685e8f1e19d22182d62526bf19b8">ban the Chinese-owned app</a>, including by&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/global-trade-ap-top-news-politics-asia-business-719d8c83f689929c9c9d8c9aa5593fc8">former President Donald Trump</a>, a measure to outlaw the popular video-sharing app has won congressional approval and is on its way to President Biden for his signature. The measure gives Beijing-based parent company ByteDance nine months to sell the company, with a possible additional three months if a sale is in progress. If it doesn't, TikTok will be banned.

So what does this mean for you, a TikTok user, or perhaps the parent of a TikTok user? Here are some key questions and answers.

The original proposal gave ByteDance just six months to divest from its U.S. subsidiary, negotiations lengthened it to nine. Then, if the sale is already in progress, the company will get another three months to complete it.

So it would be at least a year before a ban goes into effect — but with likely court challenges, this could stretch even longer, perhaps years. TikTok has seen some success with court challenges in the past, but it has never sought to prevent federal legislation from going into effect.

TikTok, which is used by more than 170 million Americans, most likely won't disappear from your phone even if an eventual ban does take effect. But it would disappear from Apple and Google's app stores, which means users won't be able to download it. This would also mean that TikTok wouldn't be able to send updates, security patches and bug fixes, and over time the app would likely become unusable — not to mention a security risk.

Teenagers are known for circumventing parental controls and bans when it comes to social media, so dodging the U.S. government's ban is certainly not outside the realm of possibilities. For instance, users could try to mask their location using a VPN, or virtual private network, use alternative app stores or even install a foreign SIM card into their phone.

But some tech savvy is required, and it's not clear what will and won't work. More likely, users will migrate to another platform — such as Instagram, which has a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-business-u-s-news-featured-mark-zuckerberg-600d0654df8a24c0ad9cc79507f1063a">TikTok-like feature called Reels</a>, or YouTube, which has incorporated vertical short videos in its feed to try to compete with TikTok. Often, such videos are taken directly from TikTok itself. And popular creators are likely to be found on other platforms as well, so you'll probably be able to see the same stuff.

“The TikTok bill relies heavily on the control that Apple and Google maintain over their smartphone platforms because the bill’s primary mechanism is to direct Apple and Google to stop allowing the TikTok app on their respective app stores,” said Dean Ball, a research fellow with the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. “Such a mechanism might be much less effective in the world envisioned by many advocates of antitrust and aggressive regulation against the large tech firms.”

Lawmakers from both parties — as well as law enforcement and intelligence officials — have long expressed concerns that Chinese authorities could force ByteDance to hand over data on the 170 million Americans who use TikTok. The worry stems from a set of Chinese national security laws that compel organizations to assist with intelligence gathering - which ByteDance would likely be subject to – and other far-reaching ways the country’s authoritarian government exercises control.

Data privacy experts say, though, that the Chinese government could easily get information on Americans in other ways, including through&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-executive-action-personal-data-protections-china-ea0fe0af31dc26b254e2724c8e53867f">commercial data brokers</a>&nbsp;that sell or rent personal information.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1708714541315.png" alt="Image from President Biden's TikTok account" />
 <figcaption>Image from President Biden's TikTok account</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) —No, TikTok will not suddenly disappear from your phone. Nor will you go to jail if you continue using it after it is banned.After years of attempts to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tiktok-ban-bytedance-bill-divest-5b5a685e8f1e19d22182d62526bf19b8">ban the Chinese-owned app</a>, including by&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/global-trade-ap-top-news-politics-asia-business-719d8c83f689929c9c9d8c9aa5593fc8">former President Donald Trump</a>, a measure to outlaw the popular video-sharing app has won congressional approval and is on its way to President Biden for his signature. The measure gives Beijing-based parent company ByteDance nine months to sell the company, with a possible additional three months if a sale is in progress. If it doesn't, TikTok will be banned.So what does this mean for you, a TikTok user, or perhaps the parent of a TikTok user? Here are some key questions and answers.WHEN DOES THE BAN GO INTO EFFECT?The original proposal gave ByteDance just six months to divest from its U.S. subsidiary, negotiations lengthened it to nine. Then, if the sale is already in progress, the company will get another three months to complete it.So it would be at least a year before a ban goes into effect — but with likely court challenges, this could stretch even longer, perhaps years. TikTok has seen some success with court challenges in the past, but it has never sought to prevent federal legislation from going into effect.WHAT IF I ALREADY DOWNLOADED IT?TikTok, which is used by more than 170 million Americans, most likely won't disappear from your phone even if an eventual ban does take effect. But it would disappear from Apple and Google's app stores, which means users won't be able to download it. This would also mean that TikTok wouldn't be able to send updates, security patches and bug fixes, and over time the app would likely become unusable — not to mention a security risk.BUT SURELY THERE ARE WORKAROUNDS?Teenagers are known for circumventing parental controls and bans when it comes to social media, so dodging the U.S. government's ban is certainly not outside the realm of possibilities. For instance, users could try to mask their location using a VPN, or virtual private network, use alternative app stores or even install a foreign SIM card into their phone.But some tech savvy is required, and it's not clear what will and won't work. More likely, users will migrate to another platform — such as Instagram, which has a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-business-u-s-news-featured-mark-zuckerberg-600d0654df8a24c0ad9cc79507f1063a">TikTok-like feature called Reels</a>, or YouTube, which has incorporated vertical short videos in its feed to try to compete with TikTok. Often, such videos are taken directly from TikTok itself. And popular creators are likely to be found on other platforms as well, so you'll probably be able to see the same stuff.“The TikTok bill relies heavily on the control that Apple and Google maintain over their smartphone platforms because the bill’s primary mechanism is to direct Apple and Google to stop allowing the TikTok app on their respective app stores,” said Dean Ball, a research fellow with the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. “Such a mechanism might be much less effective in the world envisioned by many advocates of antitrust and aggressive regulation against the large tech firms.”SHOULD I BE WORRIED ABOUT USING TIKTOK?Lawmakers from both parties — as well as law enforcement and intelligence officials — have long expressed concerns that Chinese authorities could force ByteDance to hand over data on the 170 million Americans who use TikTok. The worry stems from a set of Chinese national security laws that compel organizations to assist with intelligence gathering - which ByteDance would likely be subject to – and other far-reaching ways the country’s authoritarian government exercises control.Data privacy experts say, though, that the Chinese government could easily get information on Americans in other ways, including through&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-executive-action-personal-data-protections-china-ea0fe0af31dc26b254e2724c8e53867f">commercial data brokers</a>&nbsp;that sell or rent personal information.

What a TikTok ban in the US could mean for you

KANSAS CITY —Law enforcement and railroad officials are on the scene of a train derailment early Sunday.

At 12:40am deputies were dispatched the derailment involving a Union Pacific train on 87th street, near Colbern, according to Sheriff Daryl Forte'.

&nbsp;The engine car pulling the train derailed. There are no hazardous materials in box cars, according to Forte'.&nbsp; The engineer and conductor sustained minor injuries. Special agents from Union Pacific are investigating.&nbsp; Check the Post for additional details as they become available.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/4/1714306628069.png" alt="Photos Sheriff Daryl Forte'" />
 <figcaption>Photos Sheriff Daryl Forte'</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY —Law enforcement and railroad officials are on the scene of a train derailment early Sunday.At 12:40am deputies were dispatched the derailment involving a Union Pacific train on 87th street, near Colbern, according to Sheriff Daryl Forte'.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/4/1714306883511.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>&nbsp;The engine car pulling the train derailed. There are no hazardous materials in box cars, according to Forte'.&nbsp; The engineer and conductor sustained minor injuries. Special agents from Union Pacific are investigating.&nbsp; Check the Post for additional details as they become available.

Train derailment in Kansas City under investigation

WASHINGTON (AP) —<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war">The war in Gaza</a>&nbsp;spurred large protests outside a glitzy roast with President Joe Biden, journalists, politicians and celebrities Saturday but went all but unmentioned by participants inside, with Biden instead using the annual White House correspondents’ dinner to make both jokes and grim warnings about Republican rival Donald Trump’s fight to reclaim the U.S. presidency.

An evening normally devoted to presidents, journalists and comedians taking outrageous pokes at political scandals and each other often seemed this year to illustrate the difficulty of putting aside the coming presidential election and the troubles in the Middle East and elsewhere.

Biden opened his roast with a direct but joking focus on Trump, calling him “sleepy Don,” in reference to a nickname Trump had given the president previously.

(Click below to watch Colin Jost complete remarks at 2024 White House Correspondents' Dinner)

Despite being similar in age, Biden said, the two presidential hopefuls have little else in common. “My vice president actually endorses me,” Biden said. Former Trump Vice President Mike Pence has refused to endorse Trump’s reelection bid.

But the president quickly segued to a grim speech about what he believes is at stake this election, saying that another Trump administration would be even more harmful to America than his first term.

“We have to take this serious — eight years ago we could have written it off as ‘Trump talk’ but not after January 6,” Biden told the audience, referring to the supporters of Trump who stormed the Capitol after Biden defeated Trump in the 2020 election.

Trump did not attend Saturday's dinner and never attended the annual banquet as president. In 2011, he sat in the audience, and glowered through a roasting by then-President Barack Obama of Trump's reality-television celebrity status. Obama's sarcasm then was so scalding that many political watchers linked it to Trump's subsequent decision to run for president in 2016.

Biden’s speech, which lasted around 10 minutes, made no mention of the ongoing war or the growing humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

One of the few mentions came from Kelly O’Donnell, president of the correspondents’ association, who briefly noted some 100 journalists killed in Israel's 6-month-old war against Hamas in Gaza. In an evening dedicated in large part to journalism, O’Donnell cited journalists who have been detained across the world, including Americans Evan Gershkovich in Russia and Austin Tice, who is believed to be held in Syria. Families of both men were in attendance as they have been at previous dinners.

To get inside Saturday's dinner, some guests had to hurry through hundreds of protesters outraged over the mounting humanitarian disaster for Palestinian civilians in Gaza. They condemned Biden for his support of Israel's military campaign and Western news outlets for what they said was undercoverage and misrepresentation of the conflict.

“Shame on you!” protesters draped in the traditional Palestinian keffiyeh cloth shouted, running after men in tuxedos and suits and women in long dresses holding clutch purses as guests hurried inside for the dinner.

“Western media we see you, and all the horrors that you hide,” crowds chanted at one point.

Other protesters lay sprawled motionless on the pavement, next to mock-ups of flak vests with “press” insignia.

Ralliers cried “Free, free Palestine." They cheered when at one point someone inside the Washington Hilton — where the dinner has been held for decades — unfurled a Palestinian flag from a top-floor hotel window.

Criticism of the Biden administration's support for Israel's military offensive in Gaza has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinian-campus-student-protests-war-2ab919ad849c50c9d177a32c0309bd1e">spread through American college campuses</a>, with students pitching encampments and withstanding police sweeps in an effort to force their universities to divest from Israel. Counterprotests back Israel's offensive and complain of antisemitism.

Biden’s motorcade Saturday took an alternate route from the White House to the Washington Hilton than in previous years, largely avoiding the crowds of demonstrators.

Saturday's event drew nearly 3,000 people. Celebrities included Academy Award winner Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Scarlett Johansson, Jon Hamm and Chris Pine.

Both the president and comedian Colin Jost, who spoke after Biden, made jabs at the age of both the candidates for president. “I’m not saying both candidates are old. But you know Jimmy Carter is out there thinking, ‘maybe I can win this thing,’” Jost said. “He’s only 99.”

Law enforcement, including the Secret Service, instituted extra street closures and other measures to ensure what Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said would be the “highest levels of safety and security for attendees.”

Protest organizers said they aimed to bring attention to the high numbers of Palestinian and other Arab journalists killed by Israel's military since the war began in October.

More than two dozen&nbsp;<a href="https://medium.com/@gazajournalists/appeal-boycott-the-white-house-correspondents-dinner-stand-with-your-colleagues-in-gaza-fac979195de6">journalists in Gaza wrote a letter</a>&nbsp;last week calling on their colleagues in Washington to boycott the dinner altogether.

“The toll exacted on us for merely fulfilling our journalistic duties is staggering," the letter stated. “We are subjected to detentions, interrogations, and torture by the Israeli military, all for the ‘crime’ of journalistic integrity.”

One organizer complained that the White House Correspondents' Association — which represents the hundreds of journalists who cover the president — largely has been silent since the first weeks of the war about the killings of Palestinian journalists. WHCA did not respond to a request for comment.

According to a preliminary investigation released Friday by the Committee to Protect Journalists, nearly 100 journalists have been killed covering the war in Gaza. Israel has defended its actions, saying it has been targeting militants.

“Since the Israel-Gaza war began, journalists have been paying the highest price — their lives — to defend our right to the truth. Each time a journalist dies or is injured, we lose a fragment of that truth,” CPJ Program Director Carlos Martínez de la Serna said in a statement.

Sandra Tamari, executive director of Adalah Justice Project, a U.S.-based Palestinian advocacy group that helped organize the letter from journalists in Gaza, said “it is shameful for the media to dine and laugh with President Biden while he enables the Israeli devastation and starvation of Palestinians in Gaza."

In addition, Adalah Justice Project started&nbsp;<a href="https://actionnetwork.org/letters/protect-journalists-in-gaza-boycott-the-white-house-correspondents-dinner?source=MC">an email campaign targeting 12 media executives</a>&nbsp;at various news outlets — including The Associated Press — expected to attend the dinner who previously signed onto a letter calling for the protection of journalists in Gaza.

“How can you still go when your colleagues in Gaza asked you not to?" a demonstrator asked guests heading in. "You are complicit.”

WASHINGTON (AP) —<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war">The war in Gaza</a>&nbsp;spurred large protests outside a glitzy roast with President Joe Biden, journalists, politicians and celebrities Saturday but went all but unmentioned by participants inside, with Biden instead using the annual White House correspondents’ dinner to make both jokes and grim warnings about Republican rival Donald Trump’s fight to reclaim the U.S. presidency.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">WATCH: President Biden complete remarks at 2024 White House Correspondents&#39; Dinner.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WHCA?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WHCA</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WHCD?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WHCD</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/nerdprom?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#nerdprom</a> <a href="https://t.co/cIP2UXH44O">pic.twitter.com/cIP2UXH44O</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1784418992595063104?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 28, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>An evening normally devoted to presidents, journalists and comedians taking outrageous pokes at political scandals and each other often seemed this year to illustrate the difficulty of putting aside the coming presidential election and the troubles in the Middle East and elsewhere.Biden opened his roast with a direct but joking focus on Trump, calling him “sleepy Don,” in reference to a nickname Trump had given the president previously.(Click below to watch Colin Jost complete remarks at 2024 White House Correspondents' Dinner)<div><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9c6uQrPLiZk?si=GLF5sqmSR5jy4qQR&amp;start=1" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>Despite being similar in age, Biden said, the two presidential hopefuls have little else in common. “My vice president actually endorses me,” Biden said. Former Trump Vice President Mike Pence has refused to endorse Trump’s reelection bid.But the president quickly segued to a grim speech about what he believes is at stake this election, saying that another Trump administration would be even more harmful to America than his first term.“We have to take this serious — eight years ago we could have written it off as ‘Trump talk’ but not after January 6,” Biden told the audience, referring to the supporters of Trump who stormed the Capitol after Biden defeated Trump in the 2020 election.Trump did not attend Saturday's dinner and never attended the annual banquet as president. In 2011, he sat in the audience, and glowered through a roasting by then-President Barack Obama of Trump's reality-television celebrity status. Obama's sarcasm then was so scalding that many political watchers linked it to Trump's subsequent decision to run for president in 2016.Biden’s speech, which lasted around 10 minutes, made no mention of the ongoing war or the growing humanitarian crisis in Gaza.One of the few mentions came from Kelly O’Donnell, president of the correspondents’ association, who briefly noted some 100 journalists killed in Israel's 6-month-old war against Hamas in Gaza. In an evening dedicated in large part to journalism, O’Donnell cited journalists who have been detained across the world, including Americans Evan Gershkovich in Russia and Austin Tice, who is believed to be held in Syria. Families of both men were in attendance as they have been at previous dinners.To get inside Saturday's dinner, some guests had to hurry through hundreds of protesters outraged over the mounting humanitarian disaster for Palestinian civilians in Gaza. They condemned Biden for his support of Israel's military campaign and Western news outlets for what they said was undercoverage and misrepresentation of the conflict.“Shame on you!” protesters draped in the traditional Palestinian keffiyeh cloth shouted, running after men in tuxedos and suits and women in long dresses holding clutch purses as guests hurried inside for the dinner.“Western media we see you, and all the horrors that you hide,” crowds chanted at one point.Other protesters lay sprawled motionless on the pavement, next to mock-ups of flak vests with “press” insignia.Ralliers cried “Free, free Palestine." They cheered when at one point someone inside the Washington Hilton — where the dinner has been held for decades — unfurled a Palestinian flag from a top-floor hotel window.Criticism of the Biden administration's support for Israel's military offensive in Gaza has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinian-campus-student-protests-war-2ab919ad849c50c9d177a32c0309bd1e">spread through American college campuses</a>, with students pitching encampments and withstanding police sweeps in an effort to force their universities to divest from Israel. Counterprotests back Israel's offensive and complain of antisemitism.Biden’s motorcade Saturday took an alternate route from the White House to the Washington Hilton than in previous years, largely avoiding the crowds of demonstrators.Saturday's event drew nearly 3,000 people. Celebrities included Academy Award winner Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Scarlett Johansson, Jon Hamm and Chris Pine.Both the president and comedian Colin Jost, who spoke after Biden, made jabs at the age of both the candidates for president. “I’m not saying both candidates are old. But you know Jimmy Carter is out there thinking, ‘maybe I can win this thing,’” Jost said. “He’s only 99.”Law enforcement, including the Secret Service, instituted extra street closures and other measures to ensure what Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said would be the “highest levels of safety and security for attendees.”Protest organizers said they aimed to bring attention to the high numbers of Palestinian and other Arab journalists killed by Israel's military since the war began in October.More than two dozen&nbsp;<a href="https://medium.com/@gazajournalists/appeal-boycott-the-white-house-correspondents-dinner-stand-with-your-colleagues-in-gaza-fac979195de6">journalists in Gaza wrote a letter</a>&nbsp;last week calling on their colleagues in Washington to boycott the dinner altogether.“The toll exacted on us for merely fulfilling our journalistic duties is staggering," the letter stated. “We are subjected to detentions, interrogations, and torture by the Israeli military, all for the ‘crime’ of journalistic integrity.”One organizer complained that the White House Correspondents' Association — which represents the hundreds of journalists who cover the president — largely has been silent since the first weeks of the war about the killings of Palestinian journalists. WHCA did not respond to a request for comment.According to a preliminary investigation released Friday by the Committee to Protect Journalists, nearly 100 journalists have been killed covering the war in Gaza. Israel has defended its actions, saying it has been targeting militants.“Since the Israel-Gaza war began, journalists have been paying the highest price — their lives — to defend our right to the truth. Each time a journalist dies or is injured, we lose a fragment of that truth,” CPJ Program Director Carlos Martínez de la Serna said in a statement.Sandra Tamari, executive director of Adalah Justice Project, a U.S.-based Palestinian advocacy group that helped organize the letter from journalists in Gaza, said “it is shameful for the media to dine and laugh with President Biden while he enables the Israeli devastation and starvation of Palestinians in Gaza."In addition, Adalah Justice Project started&nbsp;<a href="https://actionnetwork.org/letters/protect-journalists-in-gaza-boycott-the-white-house-correspondents-dinner?source=MC">an email campaign targeting 12 media executives</a>&nbsp;at various news outlets — including The Associated Press — expected to attend the dinner who previously signed onto a letter calling for the protection of journalists in Gaza.“How can you still go when your colleagues in Gaza asked you not to?" a demonstrator asked guests heading in. "You are complicit.”

🎥Chants of ‘shame on you’ greet guests at White House correspondents’ dinner 

BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/tim-carpenter/">TIM CARPENTER</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>

TOPEKA — The Kansas Legislature sent Gov. Laura Kelly a bill directing the judicial system to recognize child-support claims on behalf of fetuses from conception to birth.

The legislation introduced on behalf of faith-based Kansas Family Voice and endorsed by anti-abortion lobbying organizations was described by a supporter as “simple and short” and by a critic as “very dangerous.”

It wouldn’t authorize child-support payments for medical expenses incurred during pregnancy if the woman received an “elective” abortion. The exception in Senate Bill 232 would be if an abortion was performed to save the life of a pregnant woman.

The bill was approved 82-38 in early April by the House and adopted 25-12 by the Senate on Friday following brief debate. Neither chamber adopted the bill by the two-thirds majority required to overturn a potential veto by the governor. She recently vetoed an abortion regulation bill for being excessively intrusive and a separate measure that would have created a crime of compelling someone to get an abortion.

“This bill is simple and short and does not effect a fundamental change in current Kansas law about the definition of a person, a human being or an unborn child,” said Sen. Kellie Warren, R-Leawood. “The real impact of this bill is helping women — helping women to pay for things.”

The Kansas Department for Children and Families said parental relationships were not legally established under state law until a live birth. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment reported 12,700 children were born out of wedlock last year in the state.

Sen. Ethan Corson, a Johnson County Democrat, had urged colleagues to reject the bill. He said the innocuous-appearing legislation added a layer to state statute declaring Kansas law conferred personhood on a fetus at the moment of conception.

The legislation resembled an Alabama law relied on by the Alabama Supreme Court to declare embryos to be “extrauterine children” and that destruction of embryos created through in vitro fertilization could be illegal, Corson said.

“The impact of this bill is likely to be much more serious, much more sweeping and much broader in its application. Particularly, I think, if we’re going to say that fetuses now have legal rights,” Corson said.

He said the legislation conflicted with the decision of Kansas voters in August 2022 to defend the right to bodily autonomy in the Kansas Constitution, which was interpreted by the Kansas Supreme Court to guarantee a person’s right to end a pregnancy. Voters of Kansas overwhelmingly defeated a proposed amendment to the constitution that would have nullified the high court’s decision and make it easier for state lawmakers to impose additional restrictions on abortion.

“I know Kansas women right now are scared,” Corson said. “They want to make sure that this body (Senate) is going to protect their access to reproductive technology. Enacting a bill like this … is very dangerous.”

On the contrary, Warren said there were multiple references in Kansas health, family, criminal and probate law that advanced the belief human life began at conception. Signing SB 232 into law, she said, would merely add a factor for courts to consider when making determinations of child support.

“Fetal personhood is not what this bill is about,” the senator said. “Kansas statute has already determined the question. It is a settled issue. It’s not going to be some sea-level change of how our codes are looked at or our statutes are looked at.”

Other factors relied upon by state courts to work through child support cases included the basic needs and age of a child, financial standing of parents, educational requirements of a child as well as financial resources of the child.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/4/1714244239208.jpeg" alt=" Sen. Kellie Warren, the Republican chairwoman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, lauded a bill sent to Gov. Laura Kelly affirming new mothers could seek court orders for child support for a fetus from the moment of conception. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption> Sen. Kellie Warren, the Republican chairwoman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, lauded a bill sent to Gov. Laura Kelly affirming new mothers could seek court orders for child support for a fetus from the moment of conception. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/tim-carpenter/">TIM CARPENTER</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>TOPEKA — The Kansas Legislature sent Gov. Laura Kelly a bill directing the judicial system to recognize child-support claims on behalf of fetuses from conception to birth.The legislation introduced on behalf of faith-based Kansas Family Voice and endorsed by anti-abortion lobbying organizations was described by a supporter as “simple and short” and by a critic as “very dangerous.”It wouldn’t authorize child-support payments for medical expenses incurred during pregnancy if the woman received an “elective” abortion. The exception in Senate Bill 232 would be if an abortion was performed to save the life of a pregnant woman.The bill was approved 82-38 in early April by the House and adopted 25-12 by the Senate on Friday following brief debate. Neither chamber adopted the bill by the two-thirds majority required to overturn a potential veto by the governor. She recently vetoed an abortion regulation bill for being excessively intrusive and a separate measure that would have created a crime of compelling someone to get an abortion.“This bill is simple and short and does not effect a fundamental change in current Kansas law about the definition of a person, a human being or an unborn child,” said Sen. Kellie Warren, R-Leawood. “The real impact of this bill is helping women — helping women to pay for things.”The Kansas Department for Children and Families said parental relationships were not legally established under state law until a live birth. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment reported 12,700 children were born out of wedlock last year in the state.Sen. Ethan Corson, a Johnson County Democrat, had urged colleagues to reject the bill. He said the innocuous-appearing legislation added a layer to state statute declaring Kansas law conferred personhood on a fetus at the moment of conception.The legislation resembled an Alabama law relied on by the Alabama Supreme Court to declare embryos to be “extrauterine children” and that destruction of embryos created through in vitro fertilization could be illegal, Corson said.“The impact of this bill is likely to be much more serious, much more sweeping and much broader in its application. Particularly, I think, if we’re going to say that fetuses now have legal rights,” Corson said.He said the legislation conflicted with the decision of Kansas voters in August 2022 to defend the right to bodily autonomy in the Kansas Constitution, which was interpreted by the Kansas Supreme Court to guarantee a person’s right to end a pregnancy. Voters of Kansas overwhelmingly defeated a proposed amendment to the constitution that would have nullified the high court’s decision and make it easier for state lawmakers to impose additional restrictions on abortion.“I know Kansas women right now are scared,” Corson said. “They want to make sure that this body (Senate) is going to protect their access to reproductive technology. Enacting a bill like this … is very dangerous.”On the contrary, Warren said there were multiple references in Kansas health, family, criminal and probate law that advanced the belief human life began at conception. Signing SB 232 into law, she said, would merely add a factor for courts to consider when making determinations of child support.“Fetal personhood is not what this bill is about,” the senator said. “Kansas statute has already determined the question. It is a settled issue. It’s not going to be some sea-level change of how our codes are looked at or our statutes are looked at.”Other factors relied upon by state courts to work through child support cases included the basic needs and age of a child, financial standing of parents, educational requirements of a child as well as financial resources of the child.

Kansas legislators send governor bill extending child support to fetuses at point of conception

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs plan to explore options that include leaving Arrowhead Stadium after voters in Jackson County, Missouri, soundly rejected a sales tax initiative that would have helped to pay for renovations to the 52-year-old building.

The Chiefs and Royals, whose Kauffman Stadium shares the Truman Sports Complex with the football stadium, have relied on a three-eighths cent sales tax for upkeep. The franchises wanted to extend that tax with the Royals using their share of the money for a new downtown ballpark and the Chiefs envisioning an $800 million renovation of Arrowhead.

More than 58% of voters rejected the sales tax initiative after the campaign was met with criticism from all sides.

“Time is short for us at this point and so we need to see what other options are out there for us,″ Chiefs owner Clark Hunt said Saturday. “When we started on this process three years ago, it felt like we had a very long time — a long runway with about 9 1/2 (years) left on our lease. We’re now down to 6 1/2 and so I do feel very much of a sense of urgency."

Hunt, whose father Lamar founded the Chiefs and helped to get Kauffman and Arrowhead stadiums built, has always preferred to renovate a stadium that his father called one of his favorite places in the world. The Hunt family had promised to spend $300 million in private funds on the renovation with the remainder coming from public funding.

Now, the Chiefs are left to consider overtures from other locations. One of those could be just across the state line, where public officials in Kansas have made it clear that they would love to have the Chiefs on their side of the border.

“Stadium development projects just take a long time," Hunt said, “and I don’t want to put a specific number on it, but with only 6 1/2 years left on the lease, we’re going to have to work very hard over the next year, year-and-a-half.”

Whatever direction the Chiefs go next, Hunt indicated they would head that way on their own, rather than be tied together with the Royals. That would give the NFL franchise greater latitude to seek the best financing package for itself, whether that means with a renovation of Arrowhead Stadium in mind or a completely new facility elsewhere.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/4/1714253335906.jpeg" alt="Kansas City Chiefs owner Clark Hunt, left, and Kansas City Royals owner John Sherman talk before a baseball game between the Kansas City Royals and the Minnesota Twins Thursday, March 28, 2024, in Kansas City, Mo. Jackson County voters will decide on a ballot question to extend a sales tax to fund a new stadium for the Royals and stadium improvements for the Chiefs in an election held Tuesday, April 2. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)" />
 <figcaption>Kansas City Chiefs owner Clark Hunt, left, and Kansas City Royals owner John Sherman talk before a baseball game between the Kansas City Royals and the Minnesota Twins Thursday, March 28, 2024, in Kansas City, Mo. Jackson County voters will decide on a ballot question to extend a sales tax to fund a new stadium for the Royals and stadium improvements for the Chiefs in an election held Tuesday, April 2. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)</figcaption>
 </figure>By DAVE SKRETTA&nbsp;KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs plan to explore options that include leaving Arrowhead Stadium after voters in Jackson County, Missouri, soundly rejected a sales tax initiative that would have helped to pay for renovations to the 52-year-old building.The Chiefs and Royals, whose Kauffman Stadium shares the Truman Sports Complex with the football stadium, have relied on a three-eighths cent sales tax for upkeep. The franchises wanted to extend that tax with the Royals using their share of the money for a new downtown ballpark and the Chiefs envisioning an $800 million renovation of Arrowhead.More than 58% of voters rejected the sales tax initiative after the campaign was met with criticism from all sides.“Time is short for us at this point and so we need to see what other options are out there for us,″ Chiefs owner Clark Hunt said Saturday. “When we started on this process three years ago, it felt like we had a very long time — a long runway with about 9 1/2 (years) left on our lease. We’re now down to 6 1/2 and so I do feel very much of a sense of urgency."Hunt, whose father Lamar founded the Chiefs and helped to get Kauffman and Arrowhead stadiums built, has always preferred to renovate a stadium that his father called one of his favorite places in the world. The Hunt family had promised to spend $300 million in private funds on the renovation with the remainder coming from public funding.Now, the Chiefs are left to consider overtures from other locations. One of those could be just across the state line, where public officials in Kansas have made it clear that they would love to have the Chiefs on their side of the border.“Stadium development projects just take a long time," Hunt said, “and I don’t want to put a specific number on it, but with only 6 1/2 years left on the lease, we’re going to have to work very hard over the next year, year-and-a-half.”Whatever direction the Chiefs go next, Hunt indicated they would head that way on their own, rather than be tied together with the Royals. That would give the NFL franchise greater latitude to seek the best financing package for itself, whether that means with a renovation of Arrowhead Stadium in mind or a completely new facility elsewhere.

Chiefs owner: Leaving Arrowhead Stadium an option after sales tax funding rejected

SHAWNEE COUNTY—Fire crews rescued one person from a house fire on Saturday.

Just after 4 a.m., crews from the Topeka Fire Department responded to a reported house fire at 2600 SW Belle Avenue, according to department spokesperson Rosie Nichols.

Crews found smoke and flames coming from the rear of the residence. Firefighters performed a primary search and located one occupant, who they rescued from the house.&nbsp;Crews extinguished the fire and kept it contained to the residence.

The cause of the fire was determined to be accidental; due to an electrical issue. There were no injuries. The total loss from the fire was approximately $100,000, with approximately $80,000 associated&nbsp;with structural loss and approximately $20,000 associated with content loss. The home did not have working smoke detectors, according to Nichols.

SHAWNEE COUNTY—Fire crews rescued one person from a house fire on Saturday.Just after 4 a.m., crews from the Topeka Fire Department responded to a reported house fire at 2600 SW Belle Avenue, according to department spokesperson Rosie Nichols.Crews found smoke and flames coming from the rear of the residence. Firefighters performed a primary search and located one occupant, who they rescued from the house.&nbsp;Crews extinguished the fire and kept it contained to the residence.The cause of the fire was determined to be accidental; due to an electrical issue. There were no injuries. The total loss from the fire was approximately $100,000, with approximately $80,000 associated&nbsp;with structural loss and approximately $20,000 associated with content loss. The home did not have working smoke detectors, according to Nichols.

Crews rescue resident from Kansas house fire

KANSAS CITY —A Kansas City man is going to prison for years of sex crimes involving a child victim.

A judge this month sentenced a Kansas City man man to four life sentences without parole for sexual assaults of a girl under the age of 12, according to&nbsp; Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker.

In February, 23-year-old&nbsp; Brandon William was convicted of four counts of Rape of a Victim Less than 12 Years of Age for abuse of the victim over a period of years. Williams was sentenced to four life sentences of Life without Parole for a period of at least 30 years. This means he would not be eligible for parole for 120 years.

According to court records, the victim reported being raped by the defendant repeatedly and consistently for a period of two years.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/4/1714242439015.png" alt="Williams-photo Jackson Co." />
 <figcaption>Williams-photo Jackson Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY —A Kansas City man is going to prison for years of sex crimes involving a child victim.A judge this month sentenced a Kansas City man man to four life sentences without parole for sexual assaults of a girl under the age of 12, according to&nbsp; Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker.In February, 23-year-old&nbsp; Brandon William was convicted of four counts of Rape of a Victim Less than 12 Years of Age for abuse of the victim over a period of years. Williams was sentenced to four life sentences of Life without Parole for a period of at least 30 years. This means he would not be eligible for parole for 120 years.According to court records, the victim reported being raped by the defendant repeatedly and consistently for a period of two years.

Kansas City man sexually assaulted child victim for 2-years

SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities investigating a shooting death have a Kansas felon in custody.

Just after 8a.m. April 19, police responded to a shooting in the 3700 Block of South Park Court in Topeka, according to Police Lt. Donna Eubanks.

They found 22-year-old Cody P . Cooper with a gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

As a result of the investigation, police reported on Friday the arrest of 26-year-old Kavshun Jerome Boykin. He is being held on requested charges of murder in the first degree, aggravated burglary and theft.

Boykin has three previous convictions for robbery.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/4/1714163438204.png" alt="Boykin -photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Boykin -photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities investigating a shooting death have a Kansas felon in custody.Just after 8a.m. April 19, police responded to a shooting in the 3700 Block of South Park Court in Topeka, according to Police Lt. Donna Eubanks.They found 22-year-old Cody P . Cooper with a gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene.As a result of the investigation, police reported on Friday the arrest of 26-year-old Kavshun Jerome Boykin. He is being held on requested charges of murder in the first degree, aggravated burglary and theft.Boykin has three previous convictions for robbery.

Kan. man with previous robbery convictions accused of murder

NEW YORK (AP)—Student protests over the Israel-Hamas war have popped up on an increasing number of college campuses following last week's arrest of more than 100 demonstrators at Columbia University.

The students are calling for universities to separate themselves from any companies that are advancing Israel’s military efforts in Gaza — and in some cases from Israel itself.

Protests on many campuses have been orchestrated by coalitions of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-college-protests-c94bb0cd246bcc692de86b76b9b2a8cf">student groups</a>. The groups largely act independently, though students say they’re inspired by peers at other universities.

A look at protests on campuses in recent days:

Pro-Palestinian student protesters set up a tent encampment at the Ivy League university in New York last week. Police first tried to clear the encampment on April 18, when they&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/columbia-protests-israel-palestinian-hirsi-cd80372939c7c08a40346e8b7d546da1">arrested more than 100 protesters</a>. But the move backfired, inspiring students across the country and motivating protesters at Columbia to regroup.

Earlier this week, the Ivy League school, where Monday is set to be the last day of classes, switched to hybrid learning. Commencement is set for May 15.

Students said Friday afternoon that they had reached an impasse with administrators and intended to continue their encampment until their demands are met. Columbia officials had earlier said that negotiations were showing progress. Despite dozens of journalists on campus and scores of police officers outside the gates, an unassuming spring day unfolded Friday with students sitting on the library's steps or grabbing a quick bite while soon-to-be-graduates posed for photos in their powder-blue gowns.

Columbia’s president,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/columbia-president-minouche-shafik-protests-30a231f01f8a900ec9585dcf92337ec4">Minouche Shafik</a>, faced a significant — but largely symbolic — rebuke from faculty Friday but retains the support of trustees, who have the power to hire or fire the president. A report by the university senate’s executive committee, which represents faculty, found Shafik and her administration took “many actions and decisions that have harmed Columbia University," including calling in police. Following the report, the senate passed a resolution that included a task force to monitor how the administration would make changes going forward.

Hundreds of counterprotesters gathered on the streets outside Columbia on Friday morning, many holding Israeli flags and chanting for the hostages&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-hostage-video-1284f257698ea5e9c9cc9ac86a849948">being held by Hamas</a>&nbsp;and other militants to be released.

Police in riot gear cleared an encampment on the campus of Northeastern University in Boston as several dozen students shouted and booed at them from a distance. Otherwise, the scene was nonconfrontational.

The school said that the demonstration, which began two days ago, had become “infiltrated by professional organizers” with no affiliation to the school.

Antisemitic slurs, including “Kill the Jews,” were used, the school said in a statement posted on social media.

“We cannot tolerate this kind of hate on our campus,” said the statement.

About 100 people were detained, and students who produced a valid ID were released. They will face “disciplinary action," the university said, but not legal action. People who refused to disclose their affiliation were arrested.

The University of Southern California canceled its main stage graduation ceremony set for May 10 after its campus was roiled by protests. The university already canceled a commencement speech by the school’s pro-Palestinian valedictorian, citing safety concerns. The Los Angeles Police Department said more than 90 people were arrested Wednesday night on charges of trespassing during a protest at the university. One person was arrested on a charge of assault with a deadly weapon. There were no reports of injuries. The university said Wednesday that it had closed campus and police would arrest people who did not leave. Friday was the last day of classes.

Police clashed with protesters at Ohio State University in Columbus, just hours after they gathered Thursday evening. Those who refused to leave after warnings were arrested and charged with criminal trespass, said university spokesperson Benjamin Johnson, citing rules barring overnight events. Of 36 people arrested, Johnson said Friday that 16 were students and 20 were not affiliated with the university. The school's commencement is set for May 5.

About 50 students at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., set up a tent encampment on the school’s University Yard on Thursday. Later in the day, a group of Georgetown University students and professors staged their own protest walkout and marched to the George Washington campus to join them. The protesters are demanding that the university divest from Israel and lift a suspension against a prominent pro-Palestinian student group.

The university's last day of classes before final exams is set for Monday and commencement is scheduled for May 19. Because of the noise generated by the protests, the university said it would move&nbsp;<a href="https://vimeo.com/939155545">law school finals</a>&nbsp;to another building from the one where they had originally been scheduled.

The university said the protesters must remove tents and disperse by 7 p.m.

CALIFORNIA STATE POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY, HUMBOLDT

University officials extended the closure of the campus until May 10 — the end of the semester — saying instruction would continue to be remote, after protesters at the university in northern California used furniture, tents, chains and zip ties to block entrances to an academic and administrative building on Monday. Commencement is scheduled for May 11.

Officials said in a statement Tuesday that students had occupied a second building and three students had been arrested. On Wednesday, officials said some unidentified people who were not students were also inside one of the occupied buildings. On Thursday, the university said protesters continued to occupy the two buildings.

A dean at the school, Jeff Crane, suggested during the meeting that the university form a committee that would include students to do a deep dive into the school’s investments. Crane also suggested faculty and students continue meeting every 24 hours to keep an open line of communication. The sides have yet to announce an agreement.

The school’s senate of faculty and staff demanded the university’s president resign in a no-confidence vote Thursday, citing the decision to call police in to remove the barricaded students Monday.

On Friday, the university released a statement responding to questions from those occupying the buildings. The statement said there will be consequences for actions that violate policy or law, but officials would take into account actions by any students who choose to evacuate the occupied buildings and support efforts to clear them. It did not say the charges faced by those arrested would be dropped.

The administration also offered protesters a 5 p.m. deadline to leave and “not be immediately arrested.” But that deadline passed and the university did not immediately respond to a message seeking an update or provide information on what they planned to do next.

An encampment set up by students at NYU swelled to hundreds of protesters earlier this week. Police on Wednesday said that 133 protesters had been taken into custody. They said all were released with summonses to appear in court on disorderly conduct charges. Commencement is set for May 15.

At Emory University in Atlanta, where Atlanta police and Georgia state troopers had dismantled a camp on the school's quadrangle, the school president on Friday said in an email that some of the videos of a clash between police and people on the campus “are shocking” and that he is “horrified that members of our community had to experience and witness such interactions.”

School officials said 20 of the 28 people arrested were “Emory community members."

Video circulated widely on social media shows two women who identified themselves as professors being detained, with one of them slammed to the ground by one officer as a second officer then pushes her chest and face onto a concrete sidewalk. In a separate incident Thursday evening, some protesters pinned police officers against the glass doors of the Candler School of Theology on the campus and threw objects at the officers, Emory’s president said.

Northwestern University changed its student code of conduct Thursday morning to bar tents on its suburban Chicago campus as student activists set up an encampment.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/4/1713893853332.jpeg" alt="The New School students and pro-Palestinian supporters rally outside The New School University Center building, Monday, April 22, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)" />
 <figcaption>The New School students and pro-Palestinian supporters rally outside The New School University Center building, Monday, April 22, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)</figcaption>
 </figure>NEW YORK (AP)—Student protests over the Israel-Hamas war have popped up on an increasing number of college campuses following last week's arrest of more than 100 demonstrators at Columbia University.The students are calling for universities to separate themselves from any companies that are advancing Israel’s military efforts in Gaza — and in some cases from Israel itself.Protests on many campuses have been orchestrated by coalitions of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-college-protests-c94bb0cd246bcc692de86b76b9b2a8cf">student groups</a>. The groups largely act independently, though students say they’re inspired by peers at other universities.A look at protests on campuses in recent days:COLUMBIA UNIVERSITYPro-Palestinian student protesters set up a tent encampment at the Ivy League university in New York last week. Police first tried to clear the encampment on April 18, when they&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/columbia-protests-israel-palestinian-hirsi-cd80372939c7c08a40346e8b7d546da1">arrested more than 100 protesters</a>. But the move backfired, inspiring students across the country and motivating protesters at Columbia to regroup.Earlier this week, the Ivy League school, where Monday is set to be the last day of classes, switched to hybrid learning. Commencement is set for May 15.Students said Friday afternoon that they had reached an impasse with administrators and intended to continue their encampment until their demands are met. Columbia officials had earlier said that negotiations were showing progress. Despite dozens of journalists on campus and scores of police officers outside the gates, an unassuming spring day unfolded Friday with students sitting on the library's steps or grabbing a quick bite while soon-to-be-graduates posed for photos in their powder-blue gowns.Columbia’s president,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/columbia-president-minouche-shafik-protests-30a231f01f8a900ec9585dcf92337ec4">Minouche Shafik</a>, faced a significant — but largely symbolic — rebuke from faculty Friday but retains the support of trustees, who have the power to hire or fire the president. A report by the university senate’s executive committee, which represents faculty, found Shafik and her administration took “many actions and decisions that have harmed Columbia University," including calling in police. Following the report, the senate passed a resolution that included a task force to monitor how the administration would make changes going forward.Hundreds of counterprotesters gathered on the streets outside Columbia on Friday morning, many holding Israeli flags and chanting for the hostages&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-hostage-video-1284f257698ea5e9c9cc9ac86a849948">being held by Hamas</a>&nbsp;and other militants to be released.NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITYPolice in riot gear cleared an encampment on the campus of Northeastern University in Boston as several dozen students shouted and booed at them from a distance. Otherwise, the scene was nonconfrontational.The school said that the demonstration, which began two days ago, had become “infiltrated by professional organizers” with no affiliation to the school.Antisemitic slurs, including “Kill the Jews,” were used, the school said in a statement posted on social media.“We cannot tolerate this kind of hate on our campus,” said the statement.About 100 people were detained, and students who produced a valid ID were released. They will face “disciplinary action," the university said, but not legal action. People who refused to disclose their affiliation were arrested.UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIAThe University of Southern California canceled its main stage graduation ceremony set for May 10 after its campus was roiled by protests. The university already canceled a commencement speech by the school’s pro-Palestinian valedictorian, citing safety concerns. The Los Angeles Police Department said more than 90 people were arrested Wednesday night on charges of trespassing during a protest at the university. One person was arrested on a charge of assault with a deadly weapon. There were no reports of injuries. The university said Wednesday that it had closed campus and police would arrest people who did not leave. Friday was the last day of classes.THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITYPolice clashed with protesters at Ohio State University in Columbus, just hours after they gathered Thursday evening. Those who refused to leave after warnings were arrested and charged with criminal trespass, said university spokesperson Benjamin Johnson, citing rules barring overnight events. Of 36 people arrested, Johnson said Friday that 16 were students and 20 were not affiliated with the university. The school's commencement is set for May 5.GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITYAbout 50 students at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., set up a tent encampment on the school’s University Yard on Thursday. Later in the day, a group of Georgetown University students and professors staged their own protest walkout and marched to the George Washington campus to join them. The protesters are demanding that the university divest from Israel and lift a suspension against a prominent pro-Palestinian student group.The university's last day of classes before final exams is set for Monday and commencement is scheduled for May 19. Because of the noise generated by the protests, the university said it would move&nbsp;<a href="https://vimeo.com/939155545">law school finals</a>&nbsp;to another building from the one where they had originally been scheduled.The university said the protesters must remove tents and disperse by 7 p.m.CALIFORNIA STATE POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY, HUMBOLDTUniversity officials extended the closure of the campus until May 10 — the end of the semester — saying instruction would continue to be remote, after protesters at the university in northern California used furniture, tents, chains and zip ties to block entrances to an academic and administrative building on Monday. Commencement is scheduled for May 11.Officials said in a statement Tuesday that students had occupied a second building and three students had been arrested. On Wednesday, officials said some unidentified people who were not students were also inside one of the occupied buildings. On Thursday, the university said protesters continued to occupy the two buildings.A dean at the school, Jeff Crane, suggested during the meeting that the university form a committee that would include students to do a deep dive into the school’s investments. Crane also suggested faculty and students continue meeting every 24 hours to keep an open line of communication. The sides have yet to announce an agreement.The school’s senate of faculty and staff demanded the university’s president resign in a no-confidence vote Thursday, citing the decision to call police in to remove the barricaded students Monday.On Friday, the university released a statement responding to questions from those occupying the buildings. The statement said there will be consequences for actions that violate policy or law, but officials would take into account actions by any students who choose to evacuate the occupied buildings and support efforts to clear them. It did not say the charges faced by those arrested would be dropped.The administration also offered protesters a 5 p.m. deadline to leave and “not be immediately arrested.” But that deadline passed and the university did not immediately respond to a message seeking an update or provide information on what they planned to do next.NEW YORK UNIVERSITYAn encampment set up by students at NYU swelled to hundreds of protesters earlier this week. Police on Wednesday said that 133 protesters had been taken into custody. They said all were released with summonses to appear in court on disorderly conduct charges. Commencement is set for May 15.EMORY UNIVERSITYAt Emory University in Atlanta, where Atlanta police and Georgia state troopers had dismantled a camp on the school's quadrangle, the school president on Friday said in an email that some of the videos of a clash between police and people on the campus “are shocking” and that he is “horrified that members of our community had to experience and witness such interactions.”School officials said 20 of the 28 people arrested were “Emory community members."Video circulated widely on social media shows two women who identified themselves as professors being detained, with one of them slammed to the ground by one officer as a second officer then pushes her chest and face onto a concrete sidewalk. In a separate incident Thursday evening, some protesters pinned police officers against the glass doors of the Candler School of Theology on the campus and threw objects at the officers, Emory’s president said.NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITYNorthwestern University changed its student code of conduct Thursday morning to bar tents on its suburban Chicago campus as student activists set up an encampment.University President Michael Schill issued an email saying the university had enacted an “interim addendum” to its student code to bar tents, among other things, and warned of disciplinary actions including suspension, expulsion and criminal charges.“The goal of this addendum is to balance the right to peacefully demonstrate with our goal to protect our community, to avoid disruptions to instruction and to ensure university operations can continue unabated,” Schilling said.The university’s commencement is scheduled for June 9.FASHION INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGYA few dozen protesters set up tents and occupied a building Thursday at the Fashion Institute of Technology, part of the public State University of New York system. Protesters sat on the floor or milled around, many wearing face masks and kaffiyehs. Other protesters outside the building held signs and Palestinian flags. They refused to speak to a reporter. Around a dozen protesters spent the night in tents and sleeping bags inside a campus building. The institute’s museum, which is located in the building where the demonstrators set up camp, was closed Friday.The school's commencement was still scheduled for May 22 and May 23.INDIANA UNIVERSITY BLOOMINGTONAfter an encampment was set up at Indiana University Bloomington, police with shields and batons shoved into a line of protesters linked arm-in-arm Thursday afternoon. Videos posted to social media appear to show the protest continuing after law enforcement stopped making arrests.In an update Friday, the university police said 34 people were arrested. Public information officer Hannah Skibba said charges include trespassing, resisting law enforcement and battery on a public safety official. One officer sustained “minor injuries." Protests continued Friday, one day before the last day of classes. The university’s commencement is scheduled for May 4.Jeffrey Kehr, chief deputy prosecutor for Monroe County, said in an email that those arrested were released on their own recognizance and the office will “examine all the reports we receive and any relevant footage to determine what, if any, charges are appropriate.”UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIAA small but growing protest encampment remained in place early Friday on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. A statement issued by the school said officials were “closely monitoring” the encampment, which had started on Thursday, and had not received any reports of threatening or violent behavior by the protesters. However, they warned that protests or speech that violates the university’s policies, disrupts its business, or causes an “intimidating, hostile, or violent environment” would not be tolerated. The school's commencement is scheduled to take place between May 18 and 20.UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDAIn Gainesville, Florida, home to the University of Florida, protesters were warned Friday that students could face suspension and banishment for three years, and employees could be fired, if they violated rules including camping, using bullhorns, protesting inside buildings or possessing weapons. Around 50 people have been protesting on campus since Wednesday.Earlier this year, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis directed the state’s universities to make it easier for out-of-state students facing antisemitism and other religious harassment in the wake of the Israel-Hamas war to transfer to Florida campuses.The Republican governor’s administration last fall also ordered state universities to ban a pro-Palestinian student organization, Students for Justice in Palestine, from campuses, saying it illegally backs Hamas militants who attacked Israel. The group has challenged that decision in federal court.ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITYProtesters at Arizona State University pitched tents, including some that police dismantled, and at least three people were arrested Friday. A&nbsp;<a href="https://www.azfamily.com/2024/04/26/live-pro-palestine-supporters-gather-old-main-lawn-asu-protest-israel-hamas-war/">television news report</a>&nbsp;put the number of protesters in the dozens and video showed people waving flags and holding signs reading “Free Palestine."University and Tempe city police representatives did not immediately answer emails asking about arrests, injuries or the size of the crowd.A university spokesperson, Elena Bras, issued a statement that said “unapproved encampments” were prohibited on campus, and failure to comply would be grounds for arrest for trespassing.