America Today Staff 
CHICAGO — Frigid temperatures and icy water didn’t deter thousands of participants from diving into Lake Michigan on Sunday morning for the 26th annual Polar Plunge at North Avenue Beach. The event benefits Special Olympics Illinois and serves as the largest fundraiser of the year for Special Children’s Charities, which supports inclusive programs for children … Read more
CHICAGO — A man was killed and two others were wounded in a shooting Saturday afternoon in the city’s Albany Park neighborhood, according to the Chicago Police Department. Police said a 24-year-old man and a 29-year-old man were inside the basement of a home in the 4900 block of North Harding Avenue just before 3 … Read more
SUMMERS COUNTY, W.Va. — Healthcare officials are alerting residents to a powerful synthetic opioid known as cyclorphine that has recently been identified in Kentucky and linked to overdose deaths in neighboring states. According to a social media post from the Summers County location of Appalachian Regional Healthcare, cyclorphine is reportedly up to 10 times stronger … Read more
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — After a decades-long career in the fight for civil rights, the Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. returned Monday to his home state of South Carolina to lie in state at the South Carolina Statehouse. The full state honors mark a powerful contrast to Jackson’s childhood in segregated Greenville. In 1960, he and … Read more
JEFFERSON, W.Va. — A woman was injured Sunday afternoon after being struck by a train at a railroad crossing in Kanawha County, authorities said. The incident was reported just after 3 p.m. at the crossing on Avesta Drive near Kanawha Turnpike in Jefferson, according to a Metro 911 alert. The Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office said … Read more
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia Delegate Larry Kump, R-Berkeley, died Saturday at the age of 78, state officials confirmed. Kump, who represented the 94th District in the West Virginia House of Delegates, first took office in 2010. He served from 2010 to 2014 and again from 2018 to 2020. After being elected a third time … Read more
A Boone County judge sentenced Julie Miller to 15 years to life in prison in the starvation death of her 14-year-old daughter, Kyneddi Miller, marking a pivotal moment in a case that has drawn widespread outrage across West Virginia. Here are five major developments from the hearing: 1. Miller Received the Maximum Sentence Allowed Under the … Read more
Thirty years after the original Scream debuted, “Scream 7”delivered a franchise-best opening weekend, pulling in $64.1 million domestically, according to studio estimates Sunday. The strong launch marks the biggest debut of 2026 so far and a major win for Paramount Pictures, which recently announced plans to merge with Warner Bros. Discovery under its parent company, … Read more
Investigators are examining whether the suspect in a deadly mass shooting in Austin, Texas, was motivated by recent U.S. and Israeli military strikes on Iran, multiple law enforcement officials said, cautioning that it is too early to determine a definitive motive. Two people were killed and 14 others wounded early Sunday in Austin’s busy Sixth Street … Read more
A man was shot and killed by a Virginia state trooper Sunday after allegedly stabbing four people — including a woman who later died — during a road rage incident on Interstate 495 near Washington, D.C., authorities said. The violent confrontation unfolded Sunday afternoon on the southbound lanes of the Capital Beltway in Fairfax County, … Read more