CHICAGO — Several new state laws affecting education take effect this month, highlighting the rights of immigrant students and the growth of artificial intelligence in schools.

Here’s what you need to know.

Expansion of student rights regardless of immigration status

An amendment to the Illinois School Code prohibits public schools from ...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — Floridians were enraged last summer when a viral video showed men offshore Panama City capturing a giant manta ray, a federally threatened species, and hoisting the animal onto their boat.

That anger only skyrocketed when it became clear that Florida’s wildlife agency had approved the capture: The Florida Fish and Wildlife ...Read more

SEADRIFT, Texas — Aboard an aluminum skiff or one of her five kayaks, fourth-generation shrimper and fisherwoman Diane Wilson often plies the coastal bays and streams near her tiny hometown of Seadrift, Texas.

But instead of fishing for shrimp, black drum or blue crabs, these days the 77-year-old is an environmental activist looking for “...Read more

Thousands marched Saturday in Minneapolis to the site where a federal agent shot and killed Renée Nicole Good during a confrontation, heightening political divisions around the Trump administration’s immigrant crackdown.

For a fourth day since the Wednesday shooting, people in south Minneapolis marched, chanting and bearing signs, some with ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — A man accused of ambushing and fatally stabbing his ex-girlfriend's new boyfriend has been extradited to Orange County to face a murder charge after eight years on the run in Mexico, authorities said.

Humberto Rodriguez Martinez, 39, is accused of working with a friend to kill his romantic rival outside his ex-girlfriend's ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — As the Trump administration increases the presence of federal agents in U.S. cities, a local group identifying as part of the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense has become more active in Philadelphia.

The group says it is a resurgence of the militant Black power group dating back to the 1960s, and has been trained by some of ...Read more

Venezuela continued releasing political prisoners on Saturday, including a member of opposition leader María Corina Machado’s party, a week after President Nicolás Maduro was captured by U.S. forces.

Venezuelan authorities released at least five people, including Virgilio Laverde, youth coordinator for Machado’s Vente Venezuela party in ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — The city of Los Angeles violated the state's open meeting law when council members took up a plan to clear 9,800 homeless encampments behind closed doors, a judge ruled this week.

In a 10-page decision, L.A. County Superior Court Judge Curtis Kin said the City Council ran afoul of the Ralph M. Brown Act by approving the ...Read more

NEW YORK — Mayor Zohran Mamdani has two words for New Yorkers hoping for more public bathrooms across the city as he announced Saturday he’s investing $4 million into the very pressing initiative: “Let’s go!”

Mamdani, alongside other city officials, announced a new program to increase the number of public restrooms in the city and for...Read more

ST. PAUL, Minn. — With U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations increasing in Minnesota, and following the killing of Minneapolis resident Renee Good, child care providers say learning and nurturing are being interrupted.

“We are all used to in Minnesota snow days, but we are now having ICE days, meaning that our kids are not ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — A 24-year-old woman turned herself in to Long Beach police this week following two fatal collisions that occurred months apart, authorities said.

Ahkeyajahnique Owens was wanted by police after she allegedly struck a bicyclist with her car in downtown Long Beach in October, according to police. The victim, identified as Raul ...Read more

BALTIMORE — The 2026 Maryland legislative session will open Wednesday with a projected $1.4 billion budget deficit and rising energy costs, alongside debates over affordability, education, immigration, and health care.

The Baltimore Sun reached out to all 188 members of the Maryland General Assembly. 25 lawmakers responded by email or phone ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Sheriff Rochelle Bilal has garnered national headlines and condemnation for calling U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement “fake, wannabe law enforcement” and sending a blunt warning to immigration officers who commit crimes in Philadelphia.

“If any [ICE agents] want to come in this city and commit a crime, you will not...Read more

NEW YORK — When Mayor Zohran Mamdani tapped Kamar Samuels to lead New York City’s public schools, the chancellor could’ve expected his new gig would involve putting out fires — metaphorically.

Intsead, two five-alarm fires broke out in the Bronx and Queens on the first couple of days of classes after the winter break. The blazes sent ...Read more

BOISE, Idaho — The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments Tuesday on a challenge to Idaho’s law banning transgender women and girls from participating in sports that align with their gender identity.

Idaho in 2020 became the first state in the country to categorically bar trans women and girls from women’s and girls sports teams after Gov...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Two people allegedly used $100 counterfeit bills at dozens of In-N-Out Burger restaurants in Southern California in a wide-reaching scam.

Glendale police officials said in a statement Friday that 26-year-old Tatiyanna Foster of Long Beach was taken into custody last month. Another suspect, 24-year-old Auriona Lewis, also of Long...Read more

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California cities may be forced to close homeless shelters next year if the Legislature approves Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposed budget.

The $349 billion budget, which Newsom released Friday, would omit a large homelessness grant that cities and counties have relied on each year to address the severe crisis since Newsom ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Large, organized protests condemning the ongoing immigration operation in Minnesota are continuing this weekend following Wednesday’s fatal shooting of Renee Good by ICE agent Jonathan Ross.

A large gathering was assembling the afternoon of Jan. 10 calling for justice for Good and for ICE to leave Minnesota.

The ICE operation...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — A clash between U.S. Border Patrol agents and protesters at Roosevelt High School in south Minneapolis on Jan. 7 has attracted national attention and social media commentary, and led former Gov. Jesse Ventura, a Roosevelt graduate, to condemn the federal agents’ actions in a viral video.

The confrontation occurred less than 3 ...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — The U.S. capture of Nicolás Maduro is being felt far beyond Venezuela.

In Florida, communities with ties to other authoritarian-led nations in Central and South America say the move to arrest Venezuela’s president could reshape immigration and regional stability.

Those like Jaime Arellano, who have firsthand experience with ...Read more