AP News in Brief at 12:04 a.m. EDT

Agents search Rep. Omar’s Washington home in criminal probe as she vows she won’t ‘be silenced’

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal agents on Monday searched the home of Democratic U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, a startling escalation in a criminal investigation that brings renewed focus to the frequent target of Trump administration derision in the final weeks of her reelection bid.

The search of the Minnesota congresswoman’s home so close to next month’s midterm contests that will determine control of the House and the Senate was swiftly condemned by top Democrats in Congress, who raised questions about the timing given longstanding Justice Department protocol to avoid overt investigative steps involving political candidates in the direct run-up to an election. Omar, an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump, said she was being targeted as one of the Republican’s “political enemies.”

The scope of the investigation was unclear, though Trump and officials in his administration have repeatedly referred in recent months to the existence of an inquiry into Omar, a Somali-born Democrat whose status as an immigrant to the U.S. and left-wing views have drawn scrutiny from the White House and other Republicans.

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin last month cited an “ongoing investigation” that he suggested was examining potential fraud in her family’s immigration paperwork. “Something’s going to happen,” he said in a potential foreshadowing of the search.

In a statement on X on Monday, Omar called the search an “attempt to target political enemies and weaponize federal law enforcement.”

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What to know about the search of Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar’s home

Federal agents searched Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar’s Washington, D.C. home on Monday, only three weeks before the frequent target of President Donald Trump’s criticism stands for reelection in her congressional district in Minnesota.

Here’s what to know:

Trump has not been shy about wanting to use federal law enforcement to target his perceived political enemies. He’s pushed prosecutions of former FBI Director James Comey and New York’s Democratic Attorney General, Letitia James, following earlier probes the two launched against him. Omar, a left-wing firebrand, has been a longtime target of Trump and Republicans in general.

Omar was born in Somalia and is a naturalized U.S. citizen. Trump has especially targeted Somali immigrants in Minnesota, posting on social media last week that the people of the state must “fight back” against them. The state has reeled from several federal fraud cases sometimes involving Somali-run nonprofits in Minnesota. Many of those cases were filed by former President Joe Biden’s Department of Justice. Omar is not involved in them.

Omar has long criticized Trump, and the president has likewise gone after her repeatedly over the years. Trump late last week alluded to possible action against the congresswoman. At a rally in Tennessee on Saturday, Trump referred pejoratively to Omar as coming from a country of “crime and squalor” and suggested that Vice President JD Vance “and our people” were investigating her.

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Selma Blair accused of attacking 2 flight attendants and assaulting a police officer and nurse

NEW YORK (AP) — Actor Selma Blair was arrested after she was accused of injuring two flight attendants on a trip from Los Angeles to New York. She was also accused of kicking a police officer taking her to the hospital and kicking a nurse once she got there.

She pleaded not guilty Monday night to two counts of assault for state charges involving the officer and the nurse. And she faces separate federal charges based on what happened on the flight, which her representatives say was brought on by a severe medical emergency.

Blair, 54, was detained by police at around 11 p.m. Sunday after the Delta Air Lines jet parked at the gate at John F. Kennedy International Airport, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said in a statement.

Blair and one of the flight attendants were taken to a hospital for evaluation, the Port Authority said.

A police officer taking her to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center said in charging documents that while she was securing Blair to a stretcher, Blair pulled a leg from the straps and kicked her repeatedly around the face, neck and chest, causing serious pain and substantial swelling. Later, a nurse moving Blair said the actor kicked her in the chest, causing substantial pain.

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Emergency help was delayed by confusion after failed execution of Christa Pike, 911 calls reveal

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Emergency help for Christa Pike was delayed by confusion among first responders and Tennessee prison officials following her failed execution last month, according to 911 dispatch recordings.

The recordings, obtained Monday by The Associated Press through a public records request, show that precious minutes elapsed as officials and responders tried to figure out whether a request for emergency help in the execution chamber was legitimate.

The initial 911 call came in at 8:40 p.m. on Sept. 30, just over an hour after the attempted lethal injection got underway. But the caller was unable to provide a code that would help verify the legitimacy of the request.

“Per supervisors here at the DEC (Department of Emergency Communications) we have been informed it is a false call,” a dispatcher says at 9:03 p.m. “There is no medical assistance needed at Riverbend Prison.”

It wasn’t until about half an hour after the initial call — close to 9:11 p.m. — that prison officials affirmed it was real and began letting responders through the gates.

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Six Flags closes 9 rides after 1 person dies in an incident involving a roller coaster in Georgia

Six Flags temporarily closed nine roller coasters across six amusement parks on Monday after one person died and several others were injured in an incident involving a coaster in Georgia.

A spokesperson for the park said they closed attractions similar to the roller coaster involved in the incident at Six Flags Over Georgia “out of an abundance of caution.”

Officials did not confirm how the person died, nor how the others were injured or their conditions after the incident about 15 miles (24 kilometers) northwest of Atlanta.

Detectives with the Cobb County Police Department’s major crimes unit are investigating.

A Six Flags spokesperson said the park and local authorities responded immediately and that they are fully cooperating with local authorities as they investigate.

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Authorities name the attacker and most of the 8 victims in last week’s Erie mass shooting

A coroner on Monday released the names of the gunman and six of the eight people he shot and killed at a home in Erie, Pennsylvania, including seven of his relatives.

The shooter in Friday’s attack was Matthew Stone Sr., 45, according to Erie County coroner Lyell Cook. Stone took his own life at the home, Erie Police Chief Rick Lorah said.

According to Cook, the adult victims were Michelle Stone, 44; Angelina Stone, 24, who was due to give birth Monday; Jonathan Stone, 19; Matthew Stone, 21, and two women who lived at other addresses: Lora Roberts, 37, and Twila Tanner, 51. He said a 5-year-old boy and a 1-year-old girl also died, but that state law prevented him from releasing their names.

At a memorial to the victims, Julius Windham said his daughter Amarianna was the toddler who was killed. The girl’s mother was Angelina Stone, who was also the mother of the boy who died, he said, noting that attacker was a grandfather and the family patriarch.

Family friend Nicole Eller said Roberts frequently went to the house to help during the pregnancy of her niece and neighbor, Angelina Stone.

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Storms leave 2 dead in Mexico as flood risk from Rachel eases in southwestern US

ENSENADA, México (AP) — Hurricane Simon pounded western Mexico with more wind and rain Monday after tropical weather systems caused two deaths and damage in Pacific coastal towns and resorts.

The eye of the Category 2 hurricane remained offshore as its outer bands of winds and rain slammed communities between the Sierra Madre and the Pacific Ocean near Puerto Vallarta.

Flood advisories were mostly lifted in the southwestern U.S. after the remnants of Tropical Storm Rachel caused weekend flooding in Las Vegas.

In Mexico’s Baja California state, rescuers on Monday combed parts of the coastal city of Ensenada where floodwaters swept away vehicles and damaged homes.

Resident Johana Nuriulu said the flooding began during the night, shortly after heavy rain knocked out electricity. “We heard a loud noise that sounded like ocean waves, but really loud,” she said.

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Pacific hurricane region sets record for big, long-lasting storms thanks to El Niño

The drumbeat of monster hurricanes in the Pacific has broken a record for nasty long-lasting storms east of the international date line, turbocharged by nature’s supersized El Niño, scientists said.

“Since September 20th, when Odalys formed, it’s been berserk,” said Colorado State University researcher Phil Klotzbach, who forecasts and studies storm activity. “This year just everything that forms is just lasting a long time and getting really powerful.”

One of the key measurements meteorologists use to judge hurricane seasons is called accumulated cyclone energy, or ACE, which includes a storm’s wind speed and longevity. On Sunday, a section of the Pacific east of the date line, which brews storms headed for Hawaii, Mexico and the U.S. West Coast, passed the old mark set in 2018. The area is still going strong with Hurricane Simon and appears on the verge of spawning another one that will really ramp up in strength, Klotzbach said.

On Tuesday, the Pacific will tie a record for most days with a hurricane spinning and is likely to break it soon after that, Klotzbach said.

“It feels like almost everything that can spin up does spin up,” said University of Arizona atmospheric scientist Kim Wood.

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FACT FOCUS: Posts falsely claim Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico was at a mental facility

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Republican officials and conservative social media users spread unfounded rumors in recent days that state Rep. James Talarico, the Democratic nominee in a competitive Texas Senate race, had suffered a mental health crisis.

Questions about Talarico’s whereabouts began spreading after the candidate was not seen in public for nine days. But he and his campaign have repeatedly attributed his absence to the flu.

Here’s a closer look at the facts.

CLAIM: Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico was being treated in an Ohio mental health facility last week.

THE FACTS: This is false. The facility where he was said to have been treated has denied he was ever a patient there. Both he and his campaign have said he was recovering from the flu. Talarico has type 1 diabetes, which means he has a higher risk of developing complications from the flu. Regardless, Talarico’s schedule doesn’t align with what was presented as evidence of his stay at the mental health facility and images reviewed by The Associated Press showed Talarico at home over several days last week.

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Federal judge orders Trump administration to halt work for a day on historic DC golf course

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes on Monday ordered a 24-hour halt to tree-cutting at the East Potomac Golf Course, a historic D.C. course that has been part of President Donald Trump’s plans to remake the city.

Reyes issued the order following a tense three-hour hearing in which she harshly criticized the government for having deceived her with its actions over the holiday weekend.

Reyes said the 24-hour temporary order could be extended to 14 days if necessary. It was limited to one day while the government tries to find a key Trump administration official to discuss why a massive tree-cutting at the park needed to occur over the holiday weekend, with little notification to plaintiffs in a lawsuit trying to halt renovation plans or the judge.

It’s the latest example of the erosion of trust between the government and the independent judiciary, as the Trump administration tries to steamroll scrutiny of its actions, from the White House ballroom to immigration enforcement.

The hearing started with a blistering 15-minute statement from Reyes, who has declined repeated motions from the plaintiffs to halt work by the administration out of concern that its strategy has seemed to be move ahead on projects despite court actions.