# In 'Origin,' Ava DuVernay and Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor seek the roots of racism
By **JAKE COYLE**
January 19, 2024. 1:55 PM EST

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**NEW YORK (AP)** - Ava DuVernay kept hearing she had to read "Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents." She had Isabel Wilkerson's book in galleys before it was published in 2020. Oprah Winfrey kept telling her to read it. But she put it off. It seemed an imposing read. Copies kept proliferating in her home.

"At one point, a high-profile director said to me, 'I heard you got the book,'" DuVernay says. "And I was like, 'Yeah, I got a couple copies.' He said, 'No, I heard you're doing it.' I said, 'As in doing a movie?' So I said I better read this."

But even once she cracked Wilkerson's book open, it took DuVernay a few reads before it really sunk in. "Caste," a best-seller released shortly before the death of George Floyd, reframed American racism through historical stratifications of caste. "Race, in the United States, is the visible agent of the unseen force of caste," wrote Wilkerson. "Caste is the bones, race the skin."

For DuVernay, whose films ( "The 13th,""Selma" ) have illuminated American history with rigor and passion, the thesis of "Caste" was eye-opening.

"I was so wrapped up with the idea of race as a Black woman. That was the lens through which I see myself and the world sees me," says DuVernay. "That's what I thought."

"Origin," DuVernay's new film, isn't a direct adaptation of Wilkerson's book. DuVernay, who wrote the script, centers it on Wilkerson (Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor), following the author while she researches the book and navigates her own personal joys and tragedies. The film takes a heavyweight work of historical and sociological inquiry and transforms it into a deeply humanistic drama and a globe-trotting detective story.

"She's Indiana Jones. She's going around the world in search of the holy grail," says Ellis-Taylor. "She's on this process of discovery and then in the middle of that worldwide hunt, she loses, and her loss is immeasurable. But she's still searching. That is a hero. That is a cinematic hero."

DuVernay and Ellis-Taylor met for an interview last month in the downtown offices of Neon, which is releasing "Origin" theatrically Friday. They had only just begun talking about their still-fresh experience making the film. Ellis-Taylor hadn't yet seen it and wasn't sure she was going to. "It was so personal for me," she said. "I don't want to share it with anybody yet."

Some have overlooked "Origin" since its Venice Film Festival debut. DuVernay has lamented Ellis-Taylor's absence thus far from the pomp of award season. But underestimating "Origin" would be a mistake. The film, which made numerous 10 lists including this critic's, is audaciously original in how it fuses big ideas with emotional warmth.

If "Caste" sought to describe some of the man-made hierarchies that repeat throughout history, "Origin" - which DuVernay and her producing partner, Paul Garnes, gathered financing for independently - is itself a work that boldly and beautifully transcends conventional Hollywood limitations.

DuVernay and Garnes raised $38 million with the help of philanthropists - including the Ford Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation - many of whom had little Hollywood experience but believed in the movie. Melinda Gates is a producer. NBA stars like Chris Paul invested.

"We are in an industry and a society where everything has a label. If there's a Black woman director and a Black woman lead, it has to be about things they care about," DuVernay says. "My hope is that we can somehow break caste."

"Origin" opens with a dramatic recreation of the shooting of Trayvon Martin and later dips into historical vignettes including Nazi Germany, Jim Crow-era Mississippi and the experience of the Dalits in India. It steps into stories from history while capturing Wilkerson's life with her husband (Jon Bernthal) and mother (Emily Yancy) - intimate dramas that touchingly counter and clarify some of the social structures Wilkerson traces while seeking the roots of racism.

"I wanted something where her intimate personal journey ran alongside, mirrored, challenged and actually complemented this huge universal truth that we don't really know," DuVernay says. "And I felt like somewhere in there, there were touch points where they could complement each other. One doesn't always lead perfectly into other, but that they were in a conversation."

Ellis-Taylor, the Oscar-nominated co-star of "King Arthur," had acted in DuVernay's 2019 miniseries "When They See Us," about the 1989 Central Park jogger case. She signed on to "Origin" without a script. "I had read 'The Warmth of Other Suns,'" she says, alluding to Wilkerson's prior book. "So how bad could it be?"

DuVernay describes the making of "Origin" as centered on her work with Ellis-Taylor, a collaboration founded on their mutual personal connection to the material.

"These things that she speaks about in her pillars of caste, that's stuff I lived with. They're not abstract ideas. That's my reality," says Ellis-Taylor, who was raised in Mississippi.

Seeing race as a caste was, to Ellis-Taylor, a revelatory new paradigm.

"That excites me. That sets me on fire," she says. "And I believe this film is a dangerous film. If it does the work that I want it to do in theaters, it should make people angry. It should make people mad. I felt myself as being a soldier in that battle."

DuVernay, too, describes herself as ready for "ugly feedback" to the film. A prominent proponent of inclusivity in cinema and the first African American woman to direct a $100 million-budgeted live-action film, she's accustomed to the cultural battles that often accompany frank discussions of race.

"I am used to it. But on 'Selma' I was unprepared and it hurt me. It hurt me when people came at me about LBJ (on 'Selma') and that I'm tearing down people's legacy and that I'm wrong and how dare I do this and that when I was advancing the perspective of a group of people that usually don't have a story told from their point of view," says DuVernay. "It seems whenever I do that, I'm wrong. I've felt that vitriol and felt that anger."

"In this, I'm prepared for it in a way I hadn't been before," DuVernay adds. "And my preparation involves: Deal with it. I'm not going to fight you. It's in there. Have at it."

Yet the most common reaction to "Origin" from audiences has been an outpouring of emotion. Moviegoers often come out of the theater drying their eyes. Far from academic, the movie's power builds through its straightforward humanity - what DuVernay calls "15 little love stories."

In between are some painful historic episodes. Yet even filming those - like the Martin shooting - the director doesn't find agonizing.

"My experience in shooting these kinds of films before has given me a set of muscles and tools where it doesn't bother me, and I actually feel empowered and bolstered because I get to be the teller of these stories," says DuVernay.

"Origin" was shot quickly, in 37 days across three countries during early 2023. DuVernay turned it around quickly, completing the edit in time for Venice in September. It was a fast enough process that Ellis-Taylor has trouble locating it chronologically in her mind.

"I think I know why," she says. "Because it doesn't feel real. It feels like a miracle."

DuVernay calls "Origin" the film she's proudest of, partly because of how she made it outside the studio system. Each film before has felt to DuVernay, who started in the industry as a publicist, like a test, either to herself or to prove her talent behind the camera. Her last movie, "A Wrinkle in Time, " for the Walt Disney Co., adapted a famously difficult-to-adapt novel. The experience of "Origin" - while no less daunting -- was different.

"For me, it's shifted everything I know about myself and my work. To be working with a freedom and an abandon yet a sense of certainty in my skills. To not feel like 'Oh, I didn't go to film school and I'm just skating by,'" DuVernay says. "This was just free."


# Raiders remove interim tag and hire Antonio Pierce as their head coach
By **MARK ANDERSON**
January 19, 2024. 8:39 PM EST

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**HENDERSON, Nev. (AP)** - Mark Davis could've waited to see if he could lure someone from an unusually deep roster of coaches on the open market to the Las Vegas Raiders.

And even though Antonio Pierce's resume was relatively thin, the Raiders owner determined he had done enough since becoming the interim coach on Halloween night to get the job full time.

The Raiders announced Friday the hiring of Pierce as their new coach, crossing out the word "interim" in a post on X, the social platform formerly known as Twitter. He's the fourth interim coach the Raiders have elevated, joining Art Shell, Tom Cable and Marty Feldman.

Pierce, 45, took over as interim coach after Josh McDaniels was fired. The Raiders went 5-4 under his watch and the team went 8-9 overall.

"Can't think of anyone more deserving," Las Vegas tackle Jermaine Eluemunor posted on X. "The Raider way is the only way that needs to be in Vegas."

That's despite Bill Belichick, Mike Vrabel and Pete Carroll being available, along with Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh taking a few NFL interviews after leading the Wolverines to the college national championship

Davis hired from outside two years ago in going with McDaniels over player favorite Rich Bisaccia, who led the Raiders on an unlikely late run to make the playoffs.

Like with Bisaccia, Pierce had his players' backing early, but whether that convinced Davis to hire him was the question. So the players kept up the pressure, including star defensive end Maxx Crosby. On his podcast, "The Rush with Maxx Crosby," he said this week that "nothing is off the table" on his end if Pierce isn't hired.

"AP doesn't have a bunch of experience as a head coach, but the reality is he's come in and helped change the culture," Crosby said on his podcast. "He's helped us win games, and he's helped our defense take off to a different level and our team in general. We're a few pieces away from being in contention. We all feel that. We feel like we should be playing this weekend (in the playoffs)."

Pierce also won over much of the fan base. The crowd chanted "AP!" as the clock wound down in the season-ending 27-14 victory over the Denver Broncos.

Pierce will be charged with restoring a championship pedigree that has three Vince Lombardi trophies to a once-iconic franchise that has missed the playoffs in 19 of the past 21 seasons.

NFL hiring rules prohibited Davis from hiring Pierce before going through a league-mandated process. Davis had to interview at least two external minority and/or female candidates in person to satisfy the Rooney rule. He did that.

The Raiders interviewed former Buffalo defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier. ESPN reported the club also interviewed former New Orleans Saints co-defensive coordinator Kris Richard.

Pierce is the second Black coach to receive a head job during this hiring cycle. The New England Patriots promoted Jerod Mayo to replace Belichick.

The Raiders are the only NFL team with a Black coach, general manager and president. The GM, however, is an interim in Champ Kelly, though he also could get the job full time. Kelly has long been considered a strong candidate to get the position, but the fact he wasn't announced along with Pierce's hire raises questions.

Davis told The Athletic he has thought about about hiring a director of football operations, so it's possible he is reorganizing the front office that could still include Kelly.

Pierce will have to make decisions regarding his staff, and it's most likely he will take a close look at his offense. Bo Hardegree became the interim offensive coordinator when Mick Lombardi was fired at midseason, but it's possible and maybe even likely Pierce goes outside the organization for the OC.

Beyond that, Pierce will have to work with whoever becomes the general manager on personnel issues, including what to do at quarterback. Pierce installed rookie Aidan O'Connell as the starter. He improved as the season progressed, but didn't erase concerns about the need for a franchise quarterback. The Raiders pick 13th in this year's draft, so the top QBs likely will be gone by the time they select.

The future of running back Josh Jacobs also will need to be resolved. After leading the NFL in rushing in 2022, Jacobs got into a contract dispute after the Raiders placed the franchise tag on him. The sides agreed to a one-year deal after training camp. Jacobs' production dropped from 1,653 yards to 805 this season and he missed the final month because of a quadriceps injury.


# Atlanta Falcons complete a second interview with former Patriots coach Bill Belichick
By **PAUL NEWBERRY**
January 19, 2024. 8:06 PM EST

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**ATLANTA (AP)** - Bill Belichick completed his second coaching interview with the Atlanta Falcons on Friday, moving closer to joining the franchise that endured its biggest disappointment with him on the opposite sideline.

The Falcons also met virtually with Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, but all eyes were on Belichick amid reports that he was the team's top choice and had flown to Atlanta on one of owner Arthur Blank's private jets.

If Belichick heads to the Falcons, a team that hasn't had a winning season since 2017 and has never won a Super Bowl championship, it would be a stunning turn of events.

Belichick was coach of the New England Patriots when they pulled off the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history, rallying from a 28-3 deficit in the second half to beat the Falcons 34-28 in overtime after the 2016 season.

Atlanta made the playoffs a year later but hasn't been back since. Arthur Smith was fired just hours after this season's final game - an ugly loss at New Orleans that capped his third straight 7-10 campaign.

Belichick, whose six Super Bowl titles are more than any other coach, is coming off a 4-13 season - the worst of his career - that led to him parting ways with the Patriots less than two weeks ago.

His final season in New England with marred by major issues at quarterback. Mac Jones was benched and Bailey Zappe struggled as well.

The Falcons endured similar problems at the most prominent position on the field, switching back and forth between Desmond Ridder and Taylor Heinicke in a desperate bid by Smith to save his job.

If Belichick comes to Atlanta, it would surely be with an understanding that Blank, CEO Rich McKay and general manager Terry Fontenot are willing to pursue an upgrade at quarterback.

With a career record of 333-178, including the playoffs, Belichick clearly wants to keep coaching as he approaches the late Don Shula's record of 347 victories.

Belichick teamed with quarterback Tom Brady to capture a half-dozen rings over an 18-season span in what many consider the greatest dynasty in NFL history. For good measure, Belichick was a part of two more championship teams while working on the New York Giants' staff under Bill Parcells.

But Belichick's reputation took a big hit after Brady left the Patriots following the 2019 season - and immediately won his seventh Super Bowl ring with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a rival of the Falcons in the NFC South.

The Patriots have had only one winning season since then - a one-and-done playoff appearance in 2021 - while posting a record of 29-38. That's not much better than Atlanta's 25-42 mark over the same span.

In addition to Belichick and Glenn, the Falcons have interviewed Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh, Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald, Cincinnati Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan, San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Steve Wilks, Carolina Panthers defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero, Ravens assistant head coach and defensive line coach Anthony Weaver, and Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Brian Johnson.


# Josh Hader agrees to $95 million, 5-year contract with Astros, AP source says
By **RONALD BLUM**
January 19, 2024. 4:02 PM EST

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Hard-throwing reliever Josh Hader and the Houston Astros agreed to a $95 million, five-year contract on Friday, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal was subject to a successful physical.

Hader will get a $19 million salary in each of the next five seasons, none of it deferred. He gets a full no-trade provision and would receive a $1 million bonus for winning the Mariano Rivera/Trevor Hoffman Reliever of the Year Award.

Hader's deal can be considered the most lucrative for a relief pitcher, even while falling short of the total dollars in Edwin Díaz's $102 million, five-year contract with the New York Mets that began last year. Díaz's deal includes $26.5 million in deferred payments he won't completely receive until 2042 and was valued at $93.2 million for baseball's luxury tax and $88.8 million by the players' association.

A 29-year-old with long, flowing hair, Hader returns to the Astros organization after spending two years in their minor league system from mid-2013 through mid-2015. He figures to take over as closer and push Ryan Pressly back to a setup role in a bullpen that also includes Rafael Montero and Bryan Abreu.

Héctor Neris became a free agent and remains unsigned. Houston reached the agreement three days after announcing reliever Kendall Graveman will miss the season after right shoulder surgery.

Hader became a free agent for the first time last fall after turning down a $20,325,000 qualifying offer from San Diego, which acquired him in a deadline trade from Milwaukee in 2022. Hader made $14.1 million last year.

He was 2-3 with a 1.28 ERA and 33 saves in 38 chances for San Diego in 61 appearances last season, striking out 85 and walking 30 in 56 1/3 innings. He disappointed in his Padres debut season with a 7.31 ERA and seven saves over 19 games down the stretch.

Hader has been picked to the last five National League All-Star teams, starting in 2018, his first full season in the big leagues. During the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, when there wasn't an All-Star Game, Hader had 13 saves to lead the NL for the only time.

He is 20-21 with a 2.50 ERA with 165 saves in 190 chances over 349 appearances with the Brewers and Padres.

A Maryland native, Hader was a 19th-round draft pick out of high school by Baltimore in the 2012 amateur draft. Hader got traded a year later to Houston, which in 2015 sent him to Milwaukee as part of a six-player deal. He made his big league debut in June 2017, and had a 2.08 ERA in 35 appearances the rest of that season.

Because Hader turned down a qualifying offer, San Diego will receive an extra pick in next July's amateur draft. Houston will forfeit a draft selection.


# Murray and Jokic help Nuggets hand Celtics their first loss at home this season, 102-100
By **KYLE HIGHTOWER**
January 19, 2024. 11:31 PM EST

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**BOSTON (AP)** - The Denver Nuggets felt they let a winnable game slip away in the closing minutes during a narrow loss at Philadelphia earlier this week.

They found themselves in a similar situation late against one of the NBA's top teams and made sure not to let it happen again.

Jamal Murray scored 35 points, Nikola Jokic finished with 34 and Denver held on to hand the Boston Celtics their first home loss of the season, 102-100 on Friday night.

"Both teams were countering each other," Murray said. "Both throwing haymakers and we were able to have the final punch."

Jokic added 12 rebounds and nine assists to help the defending NBA champions end the Celtics' streak at 20 home victories. It was the first of two regular-season meetings between teams with sights on representing their respective conferences in the NBA Finals. They play again in Denver on March 7.

Jayson Tatum had a chance to tie it in the closing seconds, but he missed a one-legged fadeaway off the rim that was contested by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. He finished with 22 points and eight rebounds. Derrick White had 24 points and Kristaps Porzingis added 21.

"I think I kind of rushed it, and that's on me," Tatum said. "I had more time than I gave myself."

Jokic, the two-time NBA MVP, feasted on a Celtics defense that opted not to double-team him for most of the game. He was efficient, connecting on 14 of 22 field attempts. It also didn't stop him from finding his teammates, as he had nine of his assists in the first three quarters. Murray also played solid, going 15 of 22 from the field.

Nuggets coach Michael Malone said it was a needed effort against a Boston defense that entered ranked third in the league in defensive efficiency.

"They played for themselves and they played for other people," Malone said. "It was high-level basketball from two All-Star players."

It was even more impressive by Jokic, who was playing in the aftermath of the sudden death of Warriors assistant coach Dejan Milosevic on Wednesday. Milosevic coached Jokic in Serbia.

Murray said Jokic's response on the court while absorbing the emotions of Milosevic's passing have been "amazing."

"The last couple of days, just been supporting him, comforting him, giving him a hug," Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. "Nikola went out there and he honored Dejan's memory and his legacy, by playing at the level he played at. Not easy to do with a heavy heart. But Nikola is a special person."

The game was played with high energy throughout, featuring 13 lead changes and eight ties.

Denver erased a six-point halftime deficit with a 12-4 run to open the third quarter. Boston responded with a 9-0 run to retake the lead and carried an 82-81 lead into the fourth.

Murray hit five of his first six shots in the final period to put the Nuggets in front 95-91. Boston pushed back with a 7-0 run, capped by Brown's driving layup.

Jokic scored coming out of a timeout. Following two empty Boston possessions, he put the Nuggets ahead again with a short hook in the lane.

Jokic missed an awkward stepback 3, but Michael Porter Jr. was there to put it back in. Tatum then got free for a driving dunk to cut Denver's lead to 101-100.

A shot-clock violation gave the ball back to Boston with just over a minute to play.

White misfired on a 3 and Porzingis was called for a foul on the rebound, but Aaron Gordon missed his corner 3-point attempt on the other end. Tatum rebounded, drove the length of the floor and got up a layup that rolled off the rim.

Gordon was fouled and hit his first free throw. A double lane violation was called on his missed second attempt, resulting in a jump ball with 17.1 seconds left.

Boston won the tip and got it to Tatum, who was trapped. But he was able to call a timeout with 13.4 seconds remaining.

The Celtics nearly lost the ball when play resumed before taking another timeout with 4.9 left to set up their final shot.

Boston took a 61-55 edge into the half after a fast-paced opening 24 minutes.

## UP NEXT
Nuggets: Visit the Washington Wizards on Sunday.

Celtics: Open a three-game road trip Sunday at Houston.


# The police response to the Uvalde shooting was riddled with failures, a new DOJ report says
By **ACACIA CORONADO**, **ERIC TUCKER**, **JAKE BLEIBERG**, and **LINDSAY WHITEHURST**
January 18, 2024. 9:56 PM EST

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**UVALDE, Texas (AP)** - Police officials who responded to the deadly Uvalde, Texas, elementary school shooting waited far too long to confront the gunman, acted with "no urgency" in establishing a command post and communicated inaccurate information to grieving families, according to a Justice Department report released Thursday that identifies "cascading failures" in law enforcement's handling of the massacre.

The report, the most comprehensive federal accounting of the maligned police response to the May 24, 2022, shooting at Robb Elementary School, catalogs a sweeping array of training, communication, leadership and technology problems that federal officials say contributed to the crisis lasting far longer than necessary. All the while, the report says, terrified students inside the classrooms called 911 and agonized parents begged officers to go in.

"Had law enforcement agencies followed generally accepted practices in active shooter situations and gone right after the shooter and stopped him, lives would have been saved and people would have survived," Attorney General Merrick Garland said Thursday at a news conference in Uvalde after Justice Department officials briefed family members on their findings. The Uvalde victims, he said, "deserved better."

Even for a mass shooting that has already been the subject of intense scrutiny and in-depth examinations - an earlier report by Texas lawmakers, for instance, faulted law enforcement at every level with failing "to prioritize saving innocent lives over their own safety" - the nearly 600-page Justice Department study adds to the public understanding of how officers failed to stop an attack that killed 19 children and two staff members.

The flawed initial response was compounded in the following days by an ineptitude that added to family members' anguish, according to the report.

One family member spent hours pulling glass out of an injured son's body because some of the surviving children had not been screened for medical care. A county district attorney told families that they would need to wait for autopsy results before death notifications were made, prompting some to yell: "What, our kids are dead? No, no!"

Hospital staff "untrained in delivering painful news" told some family members that their loved ones had died, while in other cases, families received incorrect information suggesting that a child had survived when they had not. At one point, an official told waiting families that another bus of survivors was coming, but that was untrue.

"Mirroring the failures of the law enforcement response, state and local agencies failed to coordinate, leading to inaccurate and incomplete information being provided to anxious family and community members and the public," said Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta.

The law enforcement response was massive, comprising at least 380 personnel from 24 local, county, state and federal agencies.

But the problems began almost immediately with a flawed assumption by officers that the shooter was barricaded, or otherwise contained, even as he continued to fire shots. That "mindset permeated throughout much of the incident response" as police, rather than rushing inside the classrooms to end the carnage, waited more than an hour to confront the gunman in what the report called a costly "lack of urgency."

The gunman, Salvador Ramos, was killed roughly 77 minutes after police arrived on the scene, when a tactical team finally went into the classroom to take him down.

"An active shooter with access to victims should never be considered and treated as a barricaded subject," the report says, with the word "never" emphasized in italics.

In other errors, the report says, police acted with "no urgency" in establishing a command center, creating confusion among police about who was in charge. The then-school district police chief, Pete Arredondo, discarded his radios on arrival, deeming them unnecessary.

Though he tried to communicate by phone with officers in the school hallway, "unfortunately, on multiple occasions, he directed officers intending to gain entry into the classrooms to stop, because he appeared to determine that other victims should first be removed from nearby classrooms to prevent further injury," the report says.

Uvalde, a community of more than 15,000 about 85 miles (140 kilometers) southwest of San Antonio, continues to struggle with the trauma left by the killings and remains divided on the issue of accountability. Uvalde County District Attorney Christina Mitchell has said she's still considering whether to bring criminal charges.

President Joe Biden said in a statement Thursday that the report identified "multiple points of failure that hold lessons for the future" and that "no community should have to go through" what Uvalde did.

In Texas, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott initially praised the officers' courage, saying the reason the shooting was "not worse is because law enforcement officials did what they do" and that they had been brave in "running toward gunfire for the singular purpose of trying to save lives."

But that narrative crumbled under scrutiny, as a report from a panel of state lawmakers and investigations by journalists laid bare how a mass of officers went in and out of the school with weapons drawn but didn't enter the classroom where the shooting was taking place.

"The actions of the responding officers, combined with the 'heroic' storyline that started with (a spokesperson for the Texas Department of Public Safety) and continued the next day during the Governor's and director's news conference, dealt a serious blow to public confidence in local and state law enforcement," the report states.

The city of Uvalde said in a statement that it had requested the federal investigation and fully cooperated with it and had "already implemented changes in leadership, new personnel, new training, and new equipment."

The report intentionally omits the identity of the gunman or any explanation of a possible motive. But it does include page-long remembrances of each of the victims, including 10-year-old Jose Flores Jr., who loved cars and the Houston Astros, and Amerie Jo Garza, who on the morning of the shooting had celebrated her appointment to the honor roll.

And it highlights anguished and panicked quotes from a 911 call by students trapped in the classroom - "Help!" "Help!" "Help!" "I don't want to die. My teacher is dead" - experiencing "unimaginable horror" while officers stood just outside in the hallway.

"I hope that the failures end today," said Kimberly Rubio, whose daughter Lexi Rubio was killed in the shooting. "My child, our children are named in this report because they are dead." Of the officers who failed, she said: "They should be named."

Velma Lisa Duran, whose sister Irma Garcia was one of the teachers killed, said before the release of the report that she was daunted by the prospect of reliving the circumstances of her sister's death and what she really wanted was criminal charges.

"A report doesn't matter when there are no consequences for actions that are so vile and murderous and evil," said Duran. "What do you want us to do with another report? ... Bring it to court," she said.

The federal review was launched just days after the shooting. Since then, how police respond to mass shootings around the country has come under closer scrutiny.

The families of some of the Uvalde victims have blasted police as cowards and demanded resignations. At least five officers have lost their jobs, including two Department of Public Safety officers and the on-site commander, Arredondo.

No one has been charged with a crime.


# Texas prosecutor convenes grand jury to investigate Uvalde shooting, multiple media report
By **ACACIA CORONADO** and **JAKE BLEIBERG**
January 19, 2024. 7:08 PM EST

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**UVALDE, Texas (AP)** - A Texas prosecutor has convened a grand jury to investigate the Uvalde school shooting, multiple newspapers reported Friday, as families of the 19 children and two teachers killed continued their calls for criminal charges against officers involved in the hesitant and haphazard police response to the massacre.

Uvalde County District Attorney Christina Mitchell told the San Antonio Express-News that a grand jury will review evidence related to the May 24, 2022, shooting at Robb Elementary School. She did not disclose what the grand jury will focus on, the newspaper reported. During the attack, police waited more than an hour to confront and kill the gunman in what U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland on Thursday called "a failure that should not have happened."

Mitchell did not immediately respond to emailed questions and calls to her office Friday. The empaneling of the grand jury was first reported by the Uvalde Leader-News.

Relatives of the children and teachers who were fatally shot renewed their demands for the indictment of police officers after the Justice Department on Thursday released a scathing report that again laid bare numerous failures by police during one of the deadliest classroom shootings in U.S. history.

"I'm very surprised that no one has ended up in prison," Velma Lisa Duran, whose sister Irma Garcia was one of the two teachers killed in the shooting, said Thursday. "It's sort of a slap in the face that all we get is a review ... we deserve justice."

The release of the nearly 600-page report - roughly 20 months after the shooting - leaves a criminal investigation by Uvalde County prosecutors as one the last unfinished reviews by authorities into the attack. But the report is deliberately silent on the question that still burns in the minds of many victims' families: Will anyone responsible for the failures be charged with a crime?

President Joe Biden said Thursday that he had not yet read the full findings. "But I don't know that there's any criminal liability," he said.

Since the shooting, at least five officers have lost their jobs, including two from the Texas Department of Public Safety and the on-site commander, then-school district police chief, Pete Arredondo. But no one has been charged in the criminal investigation that was led by the Texas Rangers. The Justice Department report says the FBI has assisted the Rangers but is not doing its own investigation.

The Rangers - part of the Texas DPS, which had more than 90 officers on the scene of the shooting - submitted their initial findings in early 2023. Mitchell initially said she hoped to bring the case to a grand jury by the end of last year, but she pushed back that timeline in December.

"My office continues to methodically and systematically dissect the Texas Rangers investigation of which I have possessed for less than a year," Mitchell told the Leader-News. "I want to ensure that our efforts in this process are careful, deliberate and fair."

The pace of the criminal investigation has long frustrated families of the victims, Uvalde's former Republican mayor and a Democratic state senator who represents the small South Texas town. "It's really a shame where we are now," state Sen. Roland Gutierrez said Thursday, prior to the reports that a grand jury had been empaneled.

In the federal report, the Justice Department detailed "cascading failures" by police, from waiting more than 70 minutes to confront the gunman to repeatedly giving false information to grieving families about what had happened. The document is among the most comprehensive accountings to date of what went wrong. It says training, communication, leadership and technology problems extended the crisis, even as agonized parents begged officers to go in and terrified students called 911 from inside a classroom where the gunman had holed up.

Uvalde is a close-knit city of 15,000 about 85 miles (140 kilometers) southwest of San Antonio. Parents of children killed in the shooting grew up and went to school with some of the officers they now blame, and they feel abandoned by local and state leaders who they see as intent on moving past the massacre.

"We need our community," Brett Cross, who was raising his 10-year-old nephew, Uziyah Garcia when the boy was killed in the shooting, said Thursday. "It is hard enough waking up every day and continuing to walk out on these streets, walk to a (grocery store) and see a cop who you know was standing there when our babies were murdered and bleeding out."

The Justice Department report faults state and local officials with undercutting the public's trust in law enforcement by repeatedly releasing false and misleading information about the police response. That includes Gov. Greg Abbott, who initially praised the officers' courage "running toward gunfire."

As what happened has become clear, Jesse Rizo has been among those left looking for more accountability. Rizo, whose niece Jacklyn Cazares was among the shooting victims, still hopes Mitchell will bring charges, but he has little faith in those in power.

"You hope for the best," he said Thursday, "but the past will tell you basically what your outcome is going to be."


# What to know about the Justice Department's report on police failures in the Uvalde school shooting
By **ALANNA DURKIN RICHER** and **CLAUDIA LAUER**
January 18, 2024. 2:37 PM EST

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A Justice Department report released Thursday details a myriad of failures by police who responded to the shooting at a school in Uvalde, Texas, when children waited desperately for over an hour before officers stormed a classroom to take the gunman down.

The federal review, which was launched just days after the May 2022 shooting, provides a damning look at the missteps by police after a gunman opened fire at Robb Elementary School. It was not a criminal investigation but one of the most exhaustive reviews of law enforcement's failure to stop the attack. Nineteen students and two teachers died in the shooting.

"The victims and survivors of the shooting at Robb Elementary on May 24, 2022, deserved better," Attorney General Merrick Garland told reporters in Uvalde.

Local officials are still weighing whether to bring charges.

Here are some of the major takeaways from the report:

## THE MOST SIGNIFICANT FAILURE
The Justice Department concluded that the chief failure was that police didn't treat the crisis as an active shooter situation and engage the gunman quickly. Initially, several officers did approach the classrooms where students were trapped inside with the gunman, but retreated after he fired at them.

Law enforcement then treated the situation as if the gunman was barricaded, dead or otherwise contained, focusing on calling for more SWAT equipment and evacuating surrounding classrooms instead of engaging the shooter and saving lives.

"First responders on the scene, including those with specific leadership responsibilities, did not coordinate immediate entry into the classrooms, running counter to generally accepted practices for active shooter response to immediately engage the subject to further save lives," the report said.

The report includes excerpts from a 911 call from terrified 9- and 10-year-old children trapped with the shooter while law enforcement waited just outside the classrooms. "I don't want to die. My teacher is dead," one of them said. At that point, the students and their teachers had been trapped in classrooms with the shooter for 37 minutes. It was another 13 minutes after the call ended before survivors were rescued.

There were numerous signs that should have prompted police leaders to send officers in sooner, the report states, including the victims' injuries and the gunman firing about 45 rounds "in law enforcement officer presence."

"For 77 agonizing, harrowing minutes, children and staff were trapped with an active shooter," the report said, "They experienced unimaginable horror. The survivors witnessed unspeakable violence and the death of classmates and teachers."

## THE RECOMMENDATIONS
The report includes a slew of recommendations, including that officers responding to such a crisis must prioritize neutralizing the shooter and aiding victims in harm's way.

"An active shooter with access to victims should never be considered and treated as a barricaded subject," it says. Evacuations should be limited to those who are immediately in danger and "not at the expense of the priority to eliminate the threat," the Justice Department said. And officers must be prepared to engage the shooter "using just the tools they have with them," even if they only have a standard issue firearm, it said.

Garland said if law enforcement had followed best practices, "lives would have been saved and people would have survived."

Other recommendations address coordination between agencies responding to shootings, the release of information to the public, and providing proper support and trauma services.

## ERRORS COMPOUNDING TRAUMA
The Justice Department also outlined failures in communication, including instances of incomplete, inaccurate or disjointed releases of information that led to lingering distrust in the community.

The report cites the county district attorney telling family members that authorities had to wait for autopsy reports before death notifications could be made. Family members who had not been told that children had died, yelled back: "What, our kids are dead? No, no!"

Other examples included injured children, some with bullet wounds, being loaded onto a bus as the building was being cleared; parents spending hours removing glass shards from their children because they had not been screened before being released; an adult victim who was carried to a walkaway outside the school to receive medical attention who then died; and untrained hospital staff telling family members that their loved ones had died.

The report also highlights misinformation from authorities, including blaming a staff member for an open door that allowed the shooter to enter the building - later proving false. Some officers told frantic families that a shooter was in custody when that was not the case.

## WHAT ARE VICTIMS' FAMILIES SAYING?
Family members, many of whom had been briefed on the federal report before its release, had mixed reactions. Some told news outlets they were grateful that the federal investigation supported their criticisms, but many had hoped the report would include a recommendation for federal charges against those criticized most heavily.

President Joe Biden, when asked about the report Thursday, said the federal government would do its best to implement the recommendations, "But I don't know that there's any criminal liability."

Velma Lisa Duran, whose sister Irma Garcia was one of the teachers killed, told The Associated Press Thursday that she was grateful for the federal agency's work but disappointed that local prosecutors have yet to bring any charges.

"A report doesn't matter when there are no consequences for actions that are so vile and murderous and evil," said Duran. "What do you want us to do with another report? ... Bring it to court," she said.


# 2 weeks of winter storms kill dozens and cause cold chaos in parts of the US, but a thaw is coming
By **CLAIRE RUSH**
January 19, 2024. 6:03 PM EST

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**PORTLAND, Ore. (AP)** - Two weeks of storms that have turned roads into icy death traps, frozen people to death from Oregon to Tennessee and caused power outages that could take weeks to fix continued to sock both coasts with another round of weather chaos on Friday.

The rain, snow, wind and bitterly cold temperatures have been blamed for at least 55 deaths in the U.S. over the past two weeks as a series of storms moved across the country. Schools and roads have closed, and air traffic has been snarled

There is hope. The forecast for next week calls for above average temperatures across almost the whole country, according to the National Weather Service.

Heavier-than-forecast snow fell in New York City, Baltimore and Washington, D.C., on Friday and Michigan City, Indiana, received 17 inches (43 centimeters) of lake-effect snow. But the biggest problems remained in places hit hard by storms earlier in the week.

On the West Coast, Oregon's governor declared a statewide emergency Thursday night, nearly a week after the start of a crippling ice storm.

Thousands have been without power since last weekend in parts of Oregon's Willamette Valley because of the freezing rain.

"We lost power on Saturday, and we were told yesterday that it would be over two weeks before it's back on," said Jamie Kenworthy, a real estate broker in Jasper in Lane County.

About 90,000 customers remained without electricity Friday afternoon in the state after back-to-back storms, according to poweroutage.us.

Portland Public Schools canceled classes for the fourth straight day amid concerns about icy roads and water damage to buildings, and state offices in the city were also ordered closed.

Ice was also a problem in the South. Snow and freezing rain added another coat of ice in Tennessee on Thursday. More than 9 inches (22.8 centimeters) of snow has fallen around Nashville since Sunday, nearly twice the yearly average.

Authorities blamed at least 17 deaths in Tennessee on the weather. Several were from traffic wrecks. In Washington County, a patient in an ambulance and a person in a pickup were killed in a head-on crash when the truck lost control on a snowy road.

Exposure to cold was deadly, too. A 25-year-old man was found dead in a mobile home in Lewisburg after a space heater fell over and turned off.

"There was ice on the walls in there," Marshall County Chief Deputy Bob Johnson said.

Kentucky reported five deaths from the freezing weather. A statement from Gov. Andy Beshear didn't provide details.

The cold in Washington state was blamed for five deaths. The people - most of them presumed homeless - died from exposure to cold in just four days last week in Seattle as temperatures plummeted to well below freezing, the medical examiner's office said.

Two people died from exposure as far south as Louisiana, where temperatures in part of the state stayed below freezing for more than two days.

The cold broke so many water mains in Memphis that the entire city was placed on a boil water notice because the pressure was so low, Memphis Light, Gas and Water said. Bottled water was being given out in at least two locations Friday.

In Jackson, Mississippi, law enforcement agencies are investigating whether social media rumors about a potential water outage during the cold snap prompted people to fill bathtubs with tap water. The water system in Mississippi's capital experienced a drop in pressure that temporarily made faucets run dry for thousands of customers Wednesday and Thursday, though service was restored by Friday.

A significant drop in blood donations led Chattanooga, Tennessee-based Blood Assurance to recommend that more than 70 hospitals in five states halt elective surgeries until Wednesday to let the organization rebuild its inventory. In a news release Thursday, the group cited the weather and several massive blood transfusions in the previous 24 hours in its plea to the hospitals in Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina and Tennessee.

Aaron Robison, 62, has been staying at one of Nashville's warming centers and said the cold wouldn't have bothered him when he was younger. But now with arthritis in his hip and having to rely on two canes, he needed to get out of the cold.

"Thank God for people helping people on the streets. That's a blessing," he said.

On Friday, more bitterly cold air was spilling into the Midwest from Canada. Several states were under an advisory as forecasters warned of wind chills dipping to minus 30 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 34 degrees Celsius) could be common through Sunday morning.

Since extreme cold weather set in last week, more than 60 oil spills and other environmental incidents have been reported in North Dakota's Bakken oil fields. Wind chills as low as minus 70 degrees F (minus 56.6 C) have strained workers and equipment, increasing the likelihood of accidents.

Lake-enhanced snow finally moved out of Buffalo, New York, late Thursday after burying parts of the city and some suburbs in five feet of snow in five days. The Buffalo Bills renewed their call for snow shovelers Friday, offering $20 an hour for help digging out Highmark Stadium before Sunday's divisional playoff game against the Kansas City Chiefs.

The West Virginia Legislature left after a brief session Friday because not enough lawmakers could get through snow-covered highways to the Capitol to vote on bills.

In Washington, snow fell softly and the streets around the U.S. Capitol were silent. Schools closed again for the second time in a week, and the government was on a two-hour delay. President Joe Biden still planned to host mayors from around the country on Friday, though, and was heading to his Delaware beach home for the weekend.


# Analysis: Risk of spiraling Mideast violence grows as war in Gaza inflames tensions
By **JON GAMBRELL**
January 19, 2024. 1:38 PM EST

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**JERUSALEM (AP)** - Israel's war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip has raised the temperature on tensions across the Middle East, increasing the risk that other conflicts in the region could spin out of control.

Whether it is assaults on shipping vessels by Houthi rebels in Yemen or tit-for-tat attacks between Iran and Pakistan, a line can be drawn back to the war that was started when Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing some 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostage.

Since then, Israel has killed more than 24,000 Palestinians and displaced nearly 2 million others from their homes, arousing anger throughout the Muslim world.

With no end in sight to the war, tensions in the region are worsening by the day.

## THE HOUTHI THREAT DRAWS IN THE U.S.
The Houthis, a rebel group that has held Yemen's capital since 2014, link their attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden directly back to the war in Gaza. But their targets increasingly have had tenuous - if no links at all - to the war.

The U.S. has retaliated with multiple strikes against the Houthis, the latest coming Friday when Navy fighter jets targeted missile launchers in Yemen.

Armed and supported by Iran, the Houthis have a world view guided by their group's slogan: "God is the greatest, death to America, death to Israel, curse the Jews, victory to Islam."

Yemen, the Arab world's poorest country, is locked in a stalemated war between the Houthis and parties under the banner of a Saudi-led coalition.

Any direct military confrontation with the U.S. bolsters the Houthis' position within Yemen's fractious political scene. It also raises their profile within the so-called "Axis of Resistance," which is made up of Iran and the militant groups it supports, including Hamas and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

The brewing conflict with the U.S. also allows the Houthis to ignore both Arab and international efforts to reach a permanent cease-fire and potential peace deal in Yemen.

The U.S. has a long, complicated history in Yemen. It includes America's relationship with the country's late 33-year strongman president, a yearslong drone-strike campaign against suspected al-Qaida members and struggling to help broker an end to the war as famine threatens the country.

## IRAN FLEXES POWER AND FACES RESISTANCE
On the surface, airstrikes launched this week between Iran and Pakistan may not seem to be connected to the Israel-Hamas war; but they are.

They spring in part from suicide bombings by the Islamic State earlier this month that killed more than 90 people in Iran. It was the deadliest militant attack in Iran since its 1979 Islamic Revolution.

In taking credit for the attack, the Islamic State called on its supporters around the world to avenge the bloodshed in the Gaza Strip by attacking Christians and Jews. But it also criticized Palestinian-aligned militants such as Hamas and Hezbollah for receiving support from Iran.

The Islamic State group follows an extremists' version of Sunni Islam and views Shiites like those in Iran as heretics.

"Iran and its parties were spared from a fierce battle that Gaza is enduring alone from the blood of its children and women," the Islamic State group message said.

The Islamic State attack increased the pressure faced by Iran's theocracy. It has struggled to regain control following women-led mass demonstrations and individual protests sparked by the 2022 death of Mahsa Amini.

Iran hasn't directly intervened in the Israel-Hamas war, despite long describing Israel as its archenemy. But it has faced years of attacks likely carried out by Israel as part of a wider shadow war across the Mideast since the collapse of its nuclear deal with world powers.

Iran first launched strikes this week against targets in Iraq and Syria in response to the Islamic State suicide bombings. The assault drew anger, but no direct response from either nation.

But then Iran launched an attack on what it described as militant hideouts in Pakistan after alleging the suicide bombers passed through the country from Afghanistan. The attack killed two children and immediately raised tensions with nuclear-armed Pakistan, which also maintains a strong conventional military to counter its neighboring rival, India.

Pakistan responded Thursday with its own strikes inside Iran, killing at least nine people.

The U.S., China and the U.N. have urged restraint, and on Friday both countries appeared to signal efforts to tamp down tensions. But the potential for escalation, while low, remains. Iran wants to present itself as a regional Mideast power, while Pakistan's military needs to show it can deter India -- in part, so it can maintain domestic support key to its political power.

## WILL SIMMERING TENSIONS BOIL OVER?
There are risks that crises across the region could spin out of control.

Some hardline members of the Israeli government have called for Palestinians to be expelled from the Gaza Strip into the Sinai Peninsula. That could destabilize Egypt and the longstanding peace between it and Israel.

Syria is still in the midst of a civil war. Neighboring Jordan, a crucial power in Jerusalem, is suspected of launching airstrikes in Syria to disrupt drug smugglers, including one this week that killed nine people.

Still technically at war with Israel since its founding in 1948, Syria has been a launching pad for attacks aimed at the Israel-occupied Golan Heights since the start of the war.

Goaded by Hamas to get into the fight, Hezbollah militants in Lebanon have also launched strikes into Israel since the start of the war in Gaza. Israel has retaliated, but so far the two sides have stopped short of full-scale war along their border.

Even in Afghanistan - where the Taliban hold sway since the fall of Kabul in 2021 - an affiliate of the Islamic State group may yet to take advantage of the Gaza war to launch new attacks amid the extremists' new campaign tied to the conflict.


# At Davos, leaders talked big on rebuilding trust. Can the World Economic Forum make a difference?
By **JAMEY KEATEN**
January 19, 2024. 9:00 AM EST

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**DAVOS, Switzerland (AP)** - Business and political elites descended on the Swiss Alpine snows of Davos to suss out "rebuilding trust" in a splintering world. If there's any takeaway from the World Economic Forum's annual meeting - boldly touting that theme - it's that we still have a long way to go.

From full-blown wars in Ukraine and the Middle East to suspicions that corporate chiefs and tech whizzes are out to make a buck off of displacing workers with artificial intelligence, trust is clearly in short supply.

The Davos gathering wrapped up Friday after a yearly pulse-taking of leading decision-makers. The idea is getting people together, and big announcements are often just a byproduct - not the aim. That's if they come at all.

"It's unrealistic to think that Davos - or any meeting, anywhere in the world - in one meeting can rebuild trust when it's fragmented on so many dimensions," said Rich Lesser, chairman of Boston Consulting Group.

But thousands of conversations between the social, private and public sectors help create "a starting point for rebuilding trust," he said.

A big artistic wall headlined "Rebuilding Trust" that greeted bigwigs from Bill Gates to the Iranian foreign minister was full of phrases like "Growth and Jobs," "Climate Nature Energy" and "Cooperation and Security" - buzzwords that, to some, smack of empty talk.

Critics say the annual meeting, which started more than half a century ago, are a preserve of business chieftains who covet greater wealth and politicians who want to stay in power. The event is hard-wired to foster can-do optimism, but geopolitical gloom weighs heavy.

"What is striking, if not shocking, for me at Davos is this weird commitment on the part of the participants to adopt an optimistic mindset," said Agnès Callamard, secretary-general of Amnesty International.
"But optimism for the purpose of maintaining the status quo and keeping my privilege. That's not optimism."

"That's craziness, frankly, and it's battering our poor world," she added.

The general conclusion, attendees said, was that the global economic picture is a bit brighter than might have been thought - interest rates and inflation seem to have peaked in the richest markets - but it's still anybody's guess where intractable wars and looming elections in places like the U.S., India, the European Union and South Africa will redirect the world.

Here are some takeaways from Davos and the work that still lies ahead:

## UKRAINE NEEDS MORE MONEY
Long before Russia's war, Ukraine staked out prime real estate on the Davos Promenade main drag to promote its development and efforts to turn westward. Over the last two years, authorities in Kyiv have used the event to call for more support for their fight.

In 2022, months after Russia's invasion, that was an easier ask. This year, Ukraine war fatigue in Europe and the U.S. have set in.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy headlined Tuesday's action, pleading for more support from Western allies as billions in new funding from the United States and European Union remain locked up by homegrown political squabbles.

"Please, strengthen our economy, and we will strengthen your security," Zelenskyy urged.

Britain, for its part, played up its recent 2.5-billion pound ($3.2 billion) contribution to Kyiv and urged allies to follow suit.

## AI: THE FUTURE AND THE RISK
Concerns about the economy that dominated last year have given way to hope - at least from business execs - that generative AI could boost productivity and cut down on rote tasks.

But naysayers fear explosive growth of the technology is going too fast for regulators, threatens to push people out of their jobs and could foment greater misinformation than is already found on social media.

Some say humans have to maintain control, not allow technology to make crucial decisions on its own.

"No matter how much AI can do, humans are still the deciding factor. So we have to focus on the training of human resources, especially the highly skilled workers," Pham Minh Chinh, Vietnam's prime minister, said on a Davos panel.

## THE CLIMATE OF FEAR ...
The plight of Israeli hostages held by Hamas and fears about Israel's long-term security were on people's lips, as was what some critics of Israel call genocide in Gaza - an accusation that Israeli leaders, whose people were massacred in the Holocaust, vociferously deny.

Renewed talk of the creation of a Palestinian state - an idea rejected by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu again this week - animated discussions with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and others, as did hopes for a normalization of Israel's ties with the Arab world, especially Saudi Arabia. Both seem unlikely in the near future.

Fears raged about how many more Palestinians will die or be injured, whether Israeli hostages will survive captivity and whether the conflict will spill over to even more of the Middle East.

Iran and its proxies, for instance, have stepped up military action in several parts of the region, and it's triggered retaliatory strikes from the likes of Pakistan, the U.S. and Britain.

## ... AND FEAR ABOUT THE CLIMATE
An unusually rainy Thursday - snow is far more often the norm in Davos this time of year - sent tongues wagging about another possible, if temporary, sign of climate change that future-minded CEOs and political leaders want to address.

The gabfest at the Swiss ski resort, just a month after the latest U.N. climate conference, wasn't likely to push forward the effort to battle global warming. But corporate leaders shared ideas about how they're trying to help.

The U.N. chief, citing the hottest year on record in 2023 and fears that it could be hotter still in coming years, said countries are not doing enough.

"In the face of the serious - even existential threats - posed by runaway climate chaos and the runaway development of artificial intelligence without guardrails, we seem powerless to act together," Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in Davos. "As climate breakdown begins, countries remain hellbent on raising emissions."

But "the phaseout of fossil fuels is essential and inevitable" he added. "No amount of spin or scare tactics will change that."


# A probe into a Guyana dormitory fire that killed 20 children finds a series of failures
By **BERT WILKINSON**
January 19, 2024. 9:37 PM EST

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**GEORGETOWN, Guyana (AP)** - A government commission in Guyana tasked with investigating a fire that killed 20 children at an Indigenous boarding school found multiple errors and systematic failures.

Calling for reforms to avoid a repeat of the deadly 2023 fire, the report presented to President Irfaan Ali late Friday found there was a delay in seeking help and contacting the fire station, and that when help arrived, there were issues with crowd control and access to the dormitory located in the town of Mahdia near the border with Brazil.

The report also noted there was a lack of water supply and found "inadequacies" in the fire service and firefighting equipment.

"These factors assisted with the speed of the conflagration," said Brig. Gen. Joseph Singh, commission chair and retired army chief of staff.

The report confirmed that the May 2023 fire was intentionally set by a 15-year-old student, who was later arrested and charged with multiple counts of murder. Nineteen students and the infant son of the dormitory manager died. At least 14 other students younger than 18 were rescued from the blazing, one-story building.

Investigators found that many of the dormitory's windows had iron grills to keep out unwanted adult visitors, and panicked dorm officials were unable to find the keys to five doors that had no grills in time to save people.

The report cited "human failure" amid "chaotic and fiery circumstances."

Police have explained that grills were placed on windows to prevent some of the teenage girls from escaping at night and on weekends to socialize with miners who flash gold, diamonds and cash in attempts to groom girls for sexual favors. The commission contended that such culture needs to change given that the acts occur "with the tacit support of family members who benefit financially from such arrangements."

President Ali echoed calls for a culture change among students and adults, noting that education officials and other authorities face "tremendous difficulties in the behavioral pattern and changes in many schools, and we now have to work and see how we incorporate a higher degree of discipline through a systemic intervention."

Guyana's government builds dormitory schools to house students from rural communities while their parents carry out daily chores such as hunting and farming. Months after the fire, government officials said they would pay $25,000 to the parents of each of the children who died in the fire as part of a settlement.


# North Korea says it tested a nuclear-capable underwater drone in response to rivals' naval drills
By **KIM TONG-HYUNG**
January 19, 2024. 1:40 PM EST

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**SEOUL, South Korea (AP)** - North Korea said Friday it has tested a nuclear-capable underwater attack drone in response to a combined naval exercise by South Korea, the United States and Japan this week, as it continues to blame its rivals for raising tensions in the region.

The test of the drone, purportedly designed to destroy naval vessels and ports, came days after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un declared he is scrapping his country's long-standing goal of a peaceful reunification with South Korea and that his country will rewrite its constitution to define South Korea as its most hostile foreign adversary.

Tensions on the Korean Peninsula have risen to their highest point in years, with Kim accelerating his weapons testing and threatening nuclear conflict. The United States and its Asian allies have responded by strengthening their combined military exercises, which Kim calls rehearsals for an invasion.

The underwater drone, which North Korea said it first tested last year, is among a broad range of weapon systems demonstrated in recent years as Kim expands his arsenal of nuclear-capable weapons. South Korea's military says North Korea has exaggerated the capabilities of the drone.

North Korea's military said it conducted the test in the country's eastern waters in response to a naval drill by the U.S., South Korea and Japan which ended Wednesday in waters south of Jeju island. It did not say when the test occurred.

"Our army's underwater nuke-based countering posture is being further rounded off and its various maritime and underwater responsive actions will continue to deter the hostile military maneuvers of the navies of the U.S. and its allies," North Korea's Defense Ministry said in a statement.

"We strongly denounce the U.S. and its followers for their reckless acts of seriously threatening the security of (North Korea) from the outset of the year and sternly warn them of the catastrophic consequences to be entailed by them," it said.

South Korea's Defense Ministry denounced North Korea's recent tests as a violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions and a threat to "peace in the Korean Peninsula and the world." It said in a statement that the U.S. and South Korean militaries were maintaining a firm defense posture against possible North Korean provocations.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is very concerned about the current situation on the Korean peninsula, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. Guterres reiterated his call "for de-escalation, the full implementation of Security Council resolutions and for the creation of an environment that's conducive to dialogue and the resumption of diplomatic talks which are frankly the only possible path forward," Dujarric said.

North Korea in recent months has tested various missile systems designed to target the United States and its Asian allies, and announced an escalatory nuclear doctrine that authorizes the military to conduct preemptive nuclear strikes if North Korea's leadership is under threat.

North Korea conducted its first ballistic missile test of 2024 on Sunday. State media described it as a new solid-fuel, intermediate-range missile tipped with a hypersonic warhead, likely intended to target U.S. military bases in Guam and Japan.

At an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council on Thursday, South Korea urged the council "to break the silence" over North Korea's escalating missile tests and threats. Russia and China, both permanent members of the Security Council, have blocked U.S.-led efforts to increase sanctions on North Korea over its recent weapons tests, underscoring a divide deepened over Russia's war on Ukraine. South Korea is serving a two-year term on the council.


# Flexible underpinnings of new big Stellantis vehicles will help company navigate political changes
By **TOM KRISHER**
January 19, 2024. 12:15 PM EST

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**DETROIT (AP)** - On the surface, you wouldn't think the platform beneath a new generation of automobiles has anything to do with politics and elections.

But at Stellantis, new large vehicle underpinnings announced Friday are key to the company's ability to adjust to European and U.S. government electric vehicle requirements that could change depending on this year's elections.

CEO Carlos Tavares says the company's new large platform is flexible enough to handle batteries and electric motors, gas-electric hybrids and internal combustion engines. The company also can build midsize to large vehicles on those underpinnings, including sedans, crossover vehicles, SUVs and even off-road Jeeps.

That flexibility is important, he said, because policies promoting EVs as a way to fight climate change could be rescinded depending on who is elected U.S. president or to European parliaments this year.

Tavares often says that EVs for 40% more to make than vehicles with combustion engines, boosting prices beyond what the middle class can afford. Governments have tried to promote EV sales with subsidies and tax credits, but some countries are starting to rethink those.

"As soon as you do not fix the affordability issue by giving me a significant subsidy that will fix it, then I stop buying," Tavares said of consumers. "That message is loud and clear."

Electric vehicle sales growth already is slowing in many countries with consumers balking at the added cost as well as limited range and too few charging stations. On Friday, Ford said it was cutting production of the F-150 Lightning electric pickup after weaker-than-expected electric vehicle sales growth.

Some politial candidates, including GOP front-runner Donald Trump in the U.S., have criticized the move to EVs, indicating they would end policies to promote them.

Stellantis, maker of Jeep, Ram, Dodge and other vehicles, has plans for two scenarios, one if populist candidates who are against EVs win, the other if EV-friendly candidates are elected, Tavares said. "One is to accelerate (EVs), the other one is to slow down," he said. "Not necessarily stop. We need to fix the global warming issue."

Tavares said in some European countries, governments are imposing electric vehicles on consumers who can't afford them. So many are keeping their current vehicles longer, raising the average vehicle age, which he said is a "disaster" for the planet.

Stellantis, he said, makes money on its EVs now, unlike many competitors. Those who can't get strong prices for their vehicles won't have money to invest in lower-cost new ones, and could wind up being consolidated into another company or going out of business, he said.

If companies keep cutting EV prices to attract buyers and don't make money, there could be a "bloodbath" in the industry, Tavares said.

Stellantis said vehicles built off the new large platform will be built at multiple North American and European factories. In North America, it's likely that the first new vehicles to come out will be a replacement for the Dodge Charger muscle car and a new version of the Jeep Wagoneer S.

The platform can handle front wheel drive, all wheel drive and rear wheel drive vehicles, the company said. The first will reach the market this year, with eight vehicles from Jeep, Dodge, Chrysler, Alfa Romeo and Maserati on sale by the end of 2026.

The company can vary the length and width of vehicles and differentiate them from each other with ride and handling changes as well as infotainment and other interior features. Use of a platform for both battery and gasoline powertrains is unique to the industry, with many competitors building different chassis for each type of propulsion.

"The flexibility and agility of this platform is its hallmark and will be a driving force for our success in the shift to electrification in North America," Tavares said.

A midsize vehicle platform announced by the company last year has similar flexibility, the company said. It's also planning a new small-vehicle platform.


# 2023 was slowest year for US home sales in nearly 30 years as high mortgage rates frustrated buyers
By **ALEX VEIGA**
January 19, 2024. 5:28 PM EST

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**LOS ANGELES (AP)** - Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes sank in 2023 to a nearly 30-year low, as sharply higher mortgage rates, rising prices and a persistently low level of homes on the market combined to push homeownership out of reach for many Americans.

The National Association of Realtors said Friday that existing U.S. home sales totaled 4.09 million last year, an 18.7% decline from 2022. That is the weakest year for home sales since 1995 and the biggest annual decline since 2007, the start of the housing slump of the late 2000s.

The median national home price for all of last year edged up just under 1% to record high $389,800, the NAR said.

Last year's home sales slump echoes the nearly 18% annual decline in 2022, when mortgage rates began rising, eventually more than doubling by the end of the year. That trend continued in 2023, driving the average rate on a 30-year mortgage by late October to 7.79%, the highest level since late 2000.

The sharply higher home loan borrowing costs limited home hunters' buying power on top of years of soaring prices. A dearth of homes for sale also kept many would-be homebuyers and sellers on the sidelines.

Still, a pullback in mortgage rates since late last year, and forecasts calling for a further rate declines this year, is fueling hopes that home sales will begin to bounce back from their dismal showing in 2023.

"The latest month's sales look to be the bottom before inevitably turning higher in the new year," said Lawrence Yun, the NAR's chief economist. "Mortgage rates are meaningfully lower compared to just two months ago, and more inventory is expected to appear on the market in upcoming months."

Mortgage rates have been mostly easing since November, echoing a pullback in the 10-year Treasury yield, which lenders use as a guide to pricing loans. The yield has largely come down on hopes that inflation has cooled enough for the Federal Reserve to shift to cutting interest rates this year.

The average rate on a 30-year home loan was 6.6% this week, according to mortgage buyer Freddie Mac. If rates continue to ease, as many economists expect, that should help boost demand heading into the spring homebuying season, which traditionally begins in late February.

Still, the average rate remains sharply higher than just two years ago, when it was 3.56%. That large gap between rates now and then has helped limit the number of previously occupied homes on the market by discouraging homeowners who locked in rock-bottom rates from selling.

"Prospective homebuyers have been shut out of the market by a lack of inventory," said Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist at Bright MLS. "If there had been more listings on the market in 2023, we would have had more home sales."

At the end of December, there were just 1 million homes on the market, the NAR said. While that's a 4.2% increase from a year earlier, the number of available homes remains well below the monthly historical average of about 2.25 million.

The available inventory at the end of last month amounts to a 3.2-month supply, going by the current sales pace. That's down 3.5% from the previous month, but up from 2.9% from December 2022. In a more balanced market between buyers and sellers, there is a 4- to 6-month supply.

That means homebuyers are likely to face intense competition for the relatively few homes on the market, which should keep pushing up prices.

"There will still be a demand-supply imbalance in the housing market well into 2024," Sturtevant said.

Despite easing mortgage rates, home sales in December declined after rising the previous month. Existing home sales fell 1% from November to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.78 million, the slowest sales pace since August 2010, the NAR said.

Sales fell 6.2% from a year earlier. Last month's sales pace is short of the roughly 3.83 million that economists were expecting, according to FactSet.

Home prices rose for the sixth straight month in December. The national median home sales price rose 4.4% from a year earlier to $382,600, the NAR said.

Homebuyers continued to face a competitive market due to the shortage of homes for sale.

Homes sold last month typically within just 29 days after hitting the market, and 56% of properties that sold in December were on the market for less than a month, the NAR said.

First-time homebuyers who don't have any home equity to put toward their down payment continued to have a tough time getting into the housing market. They accounted for just 29% of all homes sold last month, down from 31% in November and December 2022. They've accounted for 40% of sales historically.

"Renters, potential first-time buyers (are) really struggling to get into the market," Yun said.


# Apple offers rivals access to tap-and-go payment tech to resolve EU antitrust case
January 19, 2024. 7:39 AM EST

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**LONDON (AP)** - Apple has promised to open up its tap-and-go mobile payment system to rivals, the European Union said Friday, as the U.S. tech company seeks to resolve an antitrust case and avoid a fine that potentially could be worth billions.

Apple proposed letting third-party mobile wallet and payment service providers access the contactless payment function on its iOS operating system, the EU said. The 27-nation bloc now is seeking feedback from "all interested parties" on the changes before making a decision on the case.

The European Commission, the bloc's executive arm and top antitrust enforcer, accused Apple in 2022 of abusing its dominant position by limiting access to its mobile payment technology.

Brussels has been using antitrust cases and new digital laws to rein in the power of Apple and other tech giants and protect consumers.

The commission alleged that Apple was restricting competition by blocking developers of rival mobile wallet apps from accessing the near-field communication, or NFC, technology used by its Apple Pay system. That prevents those developers from offering competing services on Apple devices, the EU said.

Breaches of EU competition law can draw fines worth up to 10% of a company's annual global revenue, which in Apple's case, could amount to tens of billions of euros (dollars).

The changes Apple is proposing to ease EU antitrust concerns would last for a decade and apply to rival mobile wallet makers as well as iOS users in the bloc's 27 countries, plus Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein, the commission said.

Apple said that through "ongoing discussions" with the commission, it offered to provide developers of payment, banking and digital wallet apps with an option for their users to "make NFC contactless payments from within their iOS apps, separate from Apple Pay and Apple Wallet."


# Stock market today: Wall Street hits record high following a 2-year round trip scarred by inflation
By **STAN CHOE**
January 19, 2024. 5:12 PM EST

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**NEW YORK (AP)** - Wall Street returned to record heights Friday to cap a punishing, two-year round trip dogged by high inflation and worries about a recession that seemed inevitable but hasn't arrived.

The S&P 500, which is the centerpiece of many 401(k) accounts and the main measure that professional investors use to gauge Wall Street's health, rallied 1.2% to 4,839.81. It erased the last of its losses since setting its prior record of 4,796.56 at the start of 2022. During that time, it dropped as much as 25% as inflation soared to levels unseen since Thelonious Monk and Ingrid Bergman were still alive in 1981.

Even more than high inflation itself, Wall Street's fear was focused on the medicine the Federal Reserve traditionally uses to treat it. That's high interest rates, which press the brakes on the economy by making borrowing more expensive and hurting prices for stocks and other investments. And the Fed rapidly hiked its main interest rate from virtually zero to its highest level since 2001, in a range between 5.25% and 5.50%.

Historically, the Fed has helped induce recessions through such increases to interest rates. Coming into last year, the widespread expectation on Wall Street was that it would happen again.

But this time was different, or at least it has been so far. The economy is still growing, the unemployment rate remains remarkably low and optimism is on the upswing among U.S. households.

"I don't think this cycle is normal at all," said Niladri "Neel" Mukherjee, chief investment officer of TIAA's Wealth Management team. "It's unique, and the pandemic introduced that element of uniqueness."

After shooting higher as snarled supply chains caused shortages because of COVID-19 shutdowns, inflation has been cooling since its peak two summers ago. It's eased so much that Wall Street's biggest question now is when the Federal Reserve will begin moving interest rates lower.

Such cuts to rates can act like steroids for financial markets, while releasing pressure that's built up on the economy and the financial system.

Treasury yields have already relaxed significantly on expectations for rate cuts, and that helped the stock market's rally accelerate sharply in November. The yield on the 10-year Treasury slipped Friday to 4.13%, and it's down sharply from the 5% that it reached in October, which was its highest level since 2007.

Of course, some critics say Wall Street has gotten ahead of itself, again, in predicting how soon the Federal Reserve may begin cutting interest rates.

"The market is addicted to rate cuts," said Rich Weiss, chief investment officer of multi-asset strategies at American Century Investments. "They just can't get enough of it and are myopically focused on it."

Repeatedly since the Fed began this rate-hiking campaign early in 2022, traders have been quick to forecast an approaching easing of rates, only to be disappointed as high inflation proved to be more stubborn than expected. If that happens again, the big moves higher for stocks and lower for bond yields may need to revert.

This time around, though, the Fed itself has hinted that rate cuts are coming, though some officials have indicated they may begin later than the market is hoping for. Traders are betting on a nearly coin flip's chance that the Fed will start cutting in March, according to data from CME Group.

"The truth is likely somewhere between what the Fed is saying and what the market is expecting," said Brian Jacobsen, chief economist at Annex Wealth Management. "That will continue to cause dips and rips" for financial markets "until the two reconcile with each other."

Some encouraging data came Friday after a preliminary report from the University of Michigan suggested the mood among U.S. consumers is roaring higher. It said sentiment jumped to its highest level since July 2021. That's important because spending by consumers is the main driver of the economy.

Perhaps more importantly for the Fed, expectations for upcoming inflation among households also seem to be anchored. A big worry has been that such expectations could take off and trigger a vicious cycle that keeps inflation high.

Friday's lift for Wall Street came with a big boost from technology stocks, something that's become typical in its run higher.

Several chip companies rose for a second straight day after heavyweight chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. delivered a better forecast for revenue this year than analysts expected. Broadcom rose 5.9%, and Texas Instruments climbed 4%.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 58.87 points to its record. The Dow Jones Industrial Average set its own record a month earlier, and it gained 395.19, or 1.1%, Friday to 37,863.80. The Nasdaq composite jumped 255.32, or 1.7%, to 15,310.97.

Last year, a select few Big Tech companies were responsible for the wide majority of the S&P 500's gains. Seven of them accounted for 62% of the index's total return, according to S&P Dow Jones Indices.

Many of those stocks - Microsoft, Apple, Alphabet, Nvidia, Amazon, Meta Platforms and Tesla - rode a furor in the market around technology related to artificial intelligence. The hope is AI will lead to a boom in profits, both for companies using it and for companies providing the hardware for it.

Investors may have wished they had stayed in just those stocks, which got the nickname of "the Magnificent 7." But some of them remain below their record highs, such as Tesla. It's still down 48% from its all-time high set in November 2021.

Friday's return of the S&P 500 to a record serves as another example that investors who stay patient and spread their investments across the U.S. stock market end up making back all their losses. Sometimes it can take a long time, like the lost decade of 2000 through 2009 when the S&P 500 tumbled through the dot-com bubble bust and the global financial crisis. But the market has historically made investors whole again, given enough time.

Including dividends, investors with S&P 500 index funds already returned to break-even a month ago.

Of course, risks still remain for investors. Besides uncertainty about when the Fed will begin cutting interest rates, it's also still not a sure thing that the economy will avoid a recession.

Hikes to interest rates take a notoriously long time to make their way fully through the system, and they can cause things to break in unexpected places within the financial system.


# The largest great ape to ever live went extinct because of climate change, study finds
By **CHRISTINA LARSON**
January 10, 2024. 7:24 PM EST

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**WASHINGTON (AP)** - An ancient species of great ape was likely driven to extinction hundreds of thousands of years ago when climate change put their favorite fruits out of reach during dry seasons, scientists reported Wednesday.

The species Gigantopithecus blacki, which once lived in southern China, represents the largest great ape known to scientists - standing 10 feet tall (3 meters) and weighing up to 650 pounds (295 kilograms).

But its size may also have been a weakness.

"It's just a massive animal - just really, really big," said Renaud Joannes-Boyau, a researcher at Australia's Southern Cross University and co-author of the study published in the journal Nature. "When food starts to be scarce, it's so big it can't climb trees to explore new food sources."

The giant apes, which likely resembled modern orangutans, survived for around 2 million years on the forested plains of China's Guangxi region. They ate vegetarian diets, munching on fruits and flowers in tropical forests, until the environment began to change.

The researchers analyzed pollen and sediment samples preserved in Guangxi's caves, as well as fossil teeth, to unravel how forests produced fewer fruits starting around 600,000 years ago, as the region experienced more dry seasons.

The giant apes didn't vanish quickly, but likely went extinct sometime between 215,000 and 295,000 years ago, the researchers found.

While smaller apes may have been able to climb trees to search for different food, the researchers' analysis shows the giant apes ate more tree bark, reeds and other non-nutritious food.

"When the forest changed, there was not enough food preferred by the species," said co-author Zhang Yingqi of China's Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology.

Most of what scientists know about the extinct great apes comes from studying fossil teeth and four large lower jaw bones, all found in southern China. No complete skeletons have been found.

Between around 2 million and 22 million years ago, several dozen species of great apes inhabited Africa, Europe and Asia, fossil records show. Today, only gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobos, orangutans and humans remain.

While the first humans emerged in Africa, scientists don't know on which continent the great ape family first arose, said Rick Potts, who directs the Human Origins Program at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History and was not involved in the study.


# Ancient human DNA hints at why multiple sclerosis affects so many northern Europeans today
By **LAURAN NEERGAARD**
January 10, 2024. 7:55 PM EST

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**WASHINGTON (AP)** - Ancient DNA helps explain why northern Europeans have a higher risk of multiple sclerosis than other ancestries: It's a genetic legacy of horseback-riding cattle herders who swept into the region about 5,000 years ago.

The findings come from a huge project to compare modern DNA with that culled from ancient humans' teeth and bones - allowing scientists to trace both prehistoric migration and disease-linked genes that tagged along.

When a Bronze Age people called the Yamnaya moved from the steppes of what are now Ukraine and Russia into northwestern Europe, they carried gene variants that today are known to increase people's risk of multiple sclerosis, researchers reported Wednesday.

Yet the Yamnaya flourished, widely spreading those variants. Those genes probably also protected the nomadic herders from infections carried by their cattle and sheep, concluded the research published in the journal Nature.

"What we found surprised everyone," said study co-author William Barrie, a genetics researcher at the University of Cambridge. "These variants were giving these people an advantage of some kind."

It's one of several findings from a first-of-its-kind gene bank with thousands of samples from early humans in Europe and western Asia, a project headed by Eske Willerslev of Cambridge and the University of Copenhagen who helped pioneer the study of ancient DNA. Similar research has traced even earlier cousins of humans such as Neanderthals.

Using the new gene bank to explore MS was a logical first step. That's because while MS can strike any population, it is most common among white descendants of northern Europeans and scientists have been unable to explain why.

The potentially disabling disease occurs when immune system cells mistakenly attack the protective coating on nerve fibers, gradually eroding them. It causes varying symptoms - numbness and tingling in one person, impaired walking and vision loss in another - that often wax and wane.

It's not clear what causes MS although a leading theory is that certain infections could trigger it in people who are genetically susceptible. More than 230 genetic variants have been found that can increase someone's risk.

The researchers first examined DNA from about 1,600 ancient Eurasians, mapping some major shifts in northern Europe's population. First, farmers from the Middle East began supplanting hunter-gatherers and then, nearly 5,000 years ago, the Yamnaya began moving in - traveling with horses and wagons as they herded cattle and sheep.

The research team compared the ancient DNA to about 400,000 present-day people stored in a UK gene bank, to see the MS-linked genetic variations persist in the north, the direction the Yamnaya moved, rather than in southern Europe.

In what is now Denmark, the Yamnaya rapidly replaced ancient farmers, making them the closest ancestors of modern Danes, Willerslev said. MS rates are particularly high in Scandinavian countries.

Why would gene variants presumed to have strengthened ancient immunity later play a role in an autoimmune disease? Differences in how modern humans are exposed to animal germs may play a role, knocking the immune system out of balance, said study co-author Dr. Astrid Iversen of Oxford University.

The findings finally offer an explanation for the north-south MS divide in Europe but more work is needed to confirm the link, cautioned genetic expert Samira Asgari of New York's Mount Sinai School of Medicine, who wasn't involved with the research, in an accompanying commentary.


# How to stay warm in layered clothing and avoid frostbite this winter
By **TRISHA AHMED** and **MARK VANCLEAVE**
January 19, 2024. 1:25 PM EST

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**MINNEAPOLIS (AP)** - As a bout of bitter and deadly cold sweeps the U.S., millions of Americans are being told to dress in layers if they must go outside.

In places that rarely experience bone-chilling temperatures, that advice can be confounding. What does it mean to layer up? Is it different from just putting on a coat? Is there a way to do it wrong?

People in Minnesota, a state that is no stranger to the cold, have wisdom to share.

## WHAT IS LAYERING?
Layering means wearing multiple pieces of clothing to keep your body comfortable in cold weather. Each layer creates an insulating pocket of air that protects you better than just wearing a big jacket, and layering helps move sweat and moisture away from your skin.

No matter how cold it is, you're probably going to sweat when you go outside and start moving, said Claire Wilson, executive director of The Loppet Foundation - a nonprofit that promotes winter recreation and activities in Minneapolis.

If you're wearing the correct layers, you can feel perspiration wick away from your body, she said. The idea is to add another layer if you get cold, or take off a layer when you get hot or wet.

## AVOID COTTON AND WETNESS
Wilson said she loves to shop at thrift stores for layers that won't break the bank.

"Just look for things that aren't cotton," she said.

Cotton absorbs moisture, so it stays wet longer, Wilson explained. Cotton socks can get wet in your boots or shoes if you walk in the snow, and a cotton shirt under your jacket can get wet with sweat. Cotton won't dry quickly, so you'll get colder, she said.

Instead, choose wool socks and fabrics made of fleece, polyester or polypropylene, she said. You can also repurpose old vests and shirts, which are great at keeping your core warm. Many of these items might also already be in your closet; layering up doesn't have to cost a fortune.

## THINK OF THREE MAIN LAYERS
Wilson recommends starting with a base layer, then a mid layer, and then an outer layer.

The base layer is closest to your skin, so it's important for the fabric to wick away moisture, she said. Choose polyester over cotton for this. Then, wear a mid layer - a vest or a shirt - to keep your core warm. Some people choose to wear more than one mid layer. Finally, wear a traditional winter jacket that breaks the wind a little but also insulates you, Wilson said.

## DRESS TO PREVENT FROSTBITE
Frostbite - a painful injury in which skin freezes, blood flow decreases and tissue gets damaged - can happen within minutes in cold weather when skin is not adequately covered.

"We see people with frostbite inside their shoes and gloves all the time," said Dr. James Miner, chief of emergency medicine at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis.

Symptoms include blistering of the skin because it's damaged, along with bruising and swelling. Frostbite can even result in the loss of a limb, if it's not properly treated.

The hospital sees about a dozen people a day with frostbite when temperatures hover near zero (minus 18 degrees Celsius), Miner said.

Layering up can prevent frostbite because it traps a bit of insulating air between each layer of fabric, Miner said. It's more effective than simply wearing a big coat because layers "tend to keep the moisture from outside - or the moisture from your body - from traveling as far as it gets trapped" by the air within each layer.

Miner recommends a waterproof outer layer, like a raincoat, to keep the lower layers dry.

Children typically require one more layer than adults, said Toni Hauser, supervisor of emergency preparedness and response for the Minneapolis Health Department. Hauser suggests keeping extra clothing or blankets in your car as well, in case you run out of gas or your car breaks down and you need to be outside.

## PROTECT SPECIFIC BODY PARTS
"Three words: Cover Your Bum (CYB)!" the city of Minneapolis says in a blog post about staying warm in cold weather. In other words, wear a winter jacket that falls closer to your knees than your hips.

The post also recommends keeping your legs warm with fleece-lined leggings or a pair of long underwear under your pants. Woolen socks and winter boots are a big help, too. Fur-lined gloves or mittens can also keep your hands warm and prevent dry skin. And keep your ears cozy with ear muffs or a hat.


# Prince Harry drops libel case against Daily Mail after damaging pretrial ruling
By **BRIAN MELLEY**
January 19, 2024. 2:52 PM EST

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**LONDON (AP)** - Prince Harry dropped his libel lawsuit Friday against the publisher of the Daily Mail tabloid following a punishing ruling in which a judge suggested he might lose at trial.

Lawyers for the Duke of Sussex notified the High Court in London that he would not continue the suit against Associated Newspapers Ltd., one of several cases he had pending in his high-profile battle with the British press.

No reason was given, but it came the day he was due to hand over documents in the case and after a punishing ruling last month in which a judge ordered Harry to pay the publisher nearly 50,000 pounds (more than $60,000) in legal fees after he failed to achieve victory without going to trial.

The action will leave him on the hook to pay the publisher's legal fees, which the Daily Mail reported to be 250,000 pounds ($316,000). A spokesperson for the duke said it was premature to speculate about costs.

Harry, 39, the estranged younger son of King Charles III, has broken ranks with the royal family in his willingness to go to court and it has become the main forum in his efforts to hold the news media accountable for hounding him throughout his life.

Associated Newspapers is one of three tabloid publishers he has sued over claims they used unlawful means, such as deception, phone hacking or hiring private investigators, to try to dig up dirt on him. That case against Associated and another against the publisher of The Sun are headed for trial.

In the sole case that has gone to trial, Harry scored a big victory last month against the publishers of the Daily Mirror when a judge ruled that phone hacking was "widespread and habitual" at Mirror Group Newspapers, and executives at the papers covered it up. He was awarded 140,000 pounds ($177,000).

The libel case involved a Mail on Sunday article that said Harry tried to hide his efforts to retain publicly funded protection in the United Kingdom after walking away from his role as a working member of the royal family.

Harry's lawyers claimed the article attacked his honesty and integrity by purporting to reveal that court documents "contradicted public statements he had previously made about his willingness to pay for police protection for himself and his family" while in the U.K. He said the article would undermine his charity work.

The publisher argued the article expressed an honest opinion and caused no serious harm to his reputation.

In March, Harry sought summary judgment - to win the case without going to trial - and tried to knock out the Mail's defense but a judge didn't buy it.

Justice Matthew Nicklin ruled on Dec. 8 that the publisher was more likely to prevail in its defense showing that statements issued on Harry's behalf were misleading and that the February 2022 article reflected an "honest opinion" and wasn't libelous.

"The defendant may well submit that this was a masterclass in the art of 'spinning,'" Nicklin wrote, in refusing to strike the honest opinion defense.

Harry also has a lawsuit pending against the government's decision to protect him on a case-by-case basis when he visits Britain. He claims that hostility toward him and his wife on social media and relentless hounding by the news media threaten their safety. He cited media intrusion for his decision to leave life as a senior royal and move to the United States

Harry's spokesperson said his focus remains on that case and his family's safety.