top-stories

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (AP) — A sea otter launched into the national spotlight after images of her aggressively wresting surfboards away from surfers off the coast of Santa Cruz, California circulated on social media is building a fan club as she continues to evade capture.

NEW YORK (AP) — The In-N-Out burger chain will bar employees in five states from wearing masks unless they have a doctor’s note, according to internal company emails leaked on social media.

Authorities in Alabama cast doubt Wednesday on the story of a woman who set off a frantic search when she disappeared for two days after calling 911 to report a toddler wandering on the highway. Carlee Russell told investigators she was abducted and forced into a car Thursday, but they have been unable to verify her account, police said.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes fell in June to the slowest pace since January, as a near-historic low number of homes for sale and rising mortgage rates kept many would-be homebuyers on the sidelines. The national median sales price fell on an annual basis for the fifth month in a row, though fierce competition led to about one-third of homes selling for more than their list price.

Temperatures have peaked at or above 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43.3 degrees Celsius) the entire month of July in Phoenix. Air conditioning, which made modern Phoenix even possible, is a lifeline.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Robert F. Kennedy Jr. worked to defend himself Thursday against accusations that he traffics in racist and hateful online conspiracy theories, testifying at a House hearing on government censorship despite requests from outside groups to disinvite the Democratic presidential candidate after his recent antisemitic remarks.

Border Patrol does not have protocols for assessing medical needs of children with preexisting conditions, according to an independent report made public Tuesday on the death of an 8-year-old girl from Panama who was in federal custody.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia pounded Ukraine’s southern cities, including the port city of Odesa, with drones and missiles for a third consecutive night in a wave of strikes that has destroyed some of the country’s critical grain export infrastructure.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The president of Stanford University said Wednesday he would resign, citing an independent review that cleared him of research misconduct but found “serious flaws” in five scientific papers on subjects such as brain development in which he was the principal author.

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans raised unsubstantiated allegations Wednesday against President Joe Biden over his family’s finances as they summoned IRS whistleblowers to testify publicly for the first time about claims the Justice Department improperly interfered with a tax investigation into Biden’s son Hunter.