Trial starts for driver who ran down Times Square tourists

NEW YORK (AP) — The man behind the wheel of the car that barreled through crowds of pedestrians in New York City’s Times Square, killing a woman and injuring 22 other people, is finally on trial five years later. A jury heard opening statements Monday in the case of Richard Rojas, a 31-year-old U.S. Navy veteran who told police after his arrest that he had been smoking marijuana laced with the hallucinogenic drug PCP before plowing through helpless tourists in the Manhattan landmark known as “the crossroads of the world.” Eighteen-year-old Alyssa Elsman of Michigan was killed. Rojas pleaded not guilty in 2017.

A Pennsylvania armored car company has settled its lawsuit that accused the San Bernardino County sheriff of illegally seizing over $1 million in cash it was transporting

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. (AP) — A Pennsylvania armored car company has settled its lawsuit that accused the San Bernardino County sheriff of illegally seizing over $1 million in cash it was transporting from medical marijuana businesses. The non-financial settlement reported by the San Bernardino Sun and announced Friday allows Empyreal Logistics to resume services after two of its transports of money were seized by deputies late last year. The company previously reached an agreement in which federal law enforcement agencies agreed to return the money. The company says it sued because it was operating legally.

Weather conditions described as potentially historic are on tap for New Mexico on Saturday and over the next several days

LAS VEGAS, N.M. (AP) — Weather conditions described as potentially historic are on tap for New Mexico on Saturday and over the next several days as the largest fire burning in the U.S. chews through more tinder-dry mountainsides. The blaze already has left many families homeless and thousands of residents have evacuated rural areas of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Forecasters warn that gusts over the weekend could top 50 to 60 mph. Firefighters in preparation have spent days building fire lines and aircraft have dropped fire retardant in strategic spots in an effort to keep flames from reaching the small northeastern city of Las Vegas and villages on the fire’s other fronts.

The U.S. is experiencing a labor shortage that’s partly fueled by a drop-off in immigration, which ground to a halt during the coronavirus pandemic

The U.S. is experiencing a labor shortage that’s partly fueled by a drop-off in immigration, which ground to a halt during the coronavirus pandemic. By some estimates, the U.S. now has an 2 million fewer immigrants than it would have if the pace had stayed the same. That’s helped lead to a desperate scramble for workers in many sectors, from meatpacking to homebuilding. It’s also contributing to supply shortages and price increases. Just 10 miles from the Rio Grande, Mike Helle’s farm in Texas is so short of immigrants that he’s replaced hundreds of acres of labor-intensive leafy greens with crops that can be harvested by machinery. He’s also increased pay for his workers, who are almost exclusively immigrants.

In a pandemic that has seen sharp divides between urban and rural vaccination rates nationwide, Arizona is the only state where rural vaccine rates outpaced more populated counties

PHOENIX (AP) — In a pandemic that has seen sharp divides between urban and rural vaccination rates nationwide, Arizona is the only state where rural vaccine rates outpaced more populated counties according to a recent report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Public health experts believe the unexpected trend was mainly fueled by a group that lost a disproportionate number of lives to COVID-19: Native Americans. The devastating loss — particularly of elders — drove pushing vaccination as an act of selflessness. Arizona’s own data did not include vaccinations conducted through the Indian Health Service, a federal agency. But the CDC’s did.