The decision to throw out the mandate was made as cases have risen over 20 percent over the past two weeks, with an average of over 4,000 hospitalizations per day, which is a 55 percent increase since the middle of November. The Associated Press reported Thursday that nursing homes and some hospitals are overwhelmed due to the increase in cases and staff shortages. The state Supreme Court upheld a lower court ruling that said the state’s acting health secretary Alison Beam didn’t have the authority to require masks without an existing disaster emergency declaration from the governor, a decision Gov....

Turkeys only live between one and three years, provided they even make it past their first year. But Pennsylvania experts have found one that defied all odds. “To tell you the truth, this hen should not be alive,” turkey biologist at the Pennsylvania Game Commission, Mary Jo Casalena, told hunting brand Mossy Oak. “She’s defying all of our longevity records that we’ve ever had in Pennsylvania.” Scientists at the Pennsylvania Game Commission first trapped this turkey in 2012, and fitted a band to her leg....

Officers from the Chambersburg Police Department detained Kristen Lee-Ann Robbins, 30, last Thursday on a DUI charge. “Robbins was found to be intoxicated,” officials said in the release. “Officers investigated and found that Robbins had driven to the area and parked her vehicle along Central Avenue before walking to the police station. Robbins was then arrested for DUI.” The Pennsylvania police department did not release the partner’s identity, and it was not immediately clear if Robbins was accused of being under the influence of alcohol or drugs....

The Pentagon official pointed to the nuclear threats posed by Russia, China, North Korea and Iran. His comments come as an Iranian opposition group told Newsweek that Tehran will not abandon its plans to obtain a nuclear bomb even as talks resumed in Vienna on Friday over the country’s atomic program. Kahl said on Friday that curbing a nuclear arms race was its most challenging since the end of the Cold War....

Earth is surrounded by space rocks. The vast circle of asteroids known as the asteroid belt that sits between Mars and Jupiter is estimated to contain millions of them, and that’s not even counting the wayward asteroids that circle the sun in other orbits. Plus, scientists are currently aware of nearly 29,000 individual asteroids that are classed as Near-Earth Asteroids. All of these objects have one thing in common, though....

With 2:06 remaining, Eli Manning found Odell Beckham Jr. in the end zone from five yards out. Malcolm Butler, the hero of last season’s Super Bowl when he intercepted Russell Wilson, knocked the ball out of Beckham’s hands, but the officials ruled the play a catch. After the obligatory video review for a scoring play, however, referee Ed Hochuli ruled that it was not a catch, because Beckham lost the ball before he became a runner....

My first response after the head shake was: “Dude, do you know how many Latino franchise players there are in the majors?” My second was: “Talking beisbol does the job just as well.” The point has been made repeatedly the past two days, but it needs to be made again: The “language barrier” — the dog whistle Schmidt blew in his interview — didn’t prevent Herrera from leading the Phils with a 4....

Bruins fans hate the Canadiens — particularly P.K. Subban last night. Subban is black, great at hockey and sort of a pain in the ass, if you're not a teammate or a Habs fan. Also, someone at TD Garden threw bottles at him. These are all facts. So, it should surprise exactly nobody — unless you're into denying any of that, which would be dumb — that enough Bruins fans responded to Subban's goal with gross, racist nonsense for the team to deem necessary a statement of condemnation....

Last week Allen Questrom, Federated’s ambitious chairman, said he had bought rights to a big–$449.3 million–chunk of Macy’s debt and wants to buy the company itself as it emerges from bankruptcy. Such a deal would create a $13 billion department store behemoth, the nation’s largest. it would also represent a neat triumph for Federated, which went bankrupt itself in 1990 and was forced to sell some of its treasures to Macy’s....

Mari-Louise Messuri, Billerica, Mass. A: You’re right about private industry. Once a worker is vested in a pension, a spouse of more than one year can’t be dropped without his or her written consent, says attorney Marcia Fidis of Pasternak & Fidis in Bethesda, Md. But the Retirement Equity Act that took effect in 1985 doesn’t cover federal, state and local government pensions, which may have different rules. No one will ever know why your dad cut out your mom, or whether he realized he was doing so....

The biker, who has only been identified by his first name Todd, said the challenging trails provide him the perfect distraction from his stressful job as a corrections officer. Mountain biking is also a therapeutic pastime for Jesse Coenen, an ER doctor working out of Hayward, Wisconsin. About a week ago Todd, an experienced biker, fell off his mountain bike near the ravine off the trail. He remembers landing hard on his stomach and feeling the impact in his chest....

A police timeline of events shows that Hurley killed 59-year-old Ronald Troyke shortly after he shot and killed Officer Gordon Beesley in Olde Town Arvada. An officer responding to the scene then fatally shot Hurley, who was holding Troyke’s AR-15 assault rifle at the time. Investigators say that they found a four-page letter from Troyke that described his hatred for police and his intention to hurt Arvada police officers after the incident....

Brighton’s defence better than Chelsea? Goal understands the Seagulls beat off competition from Aston Villa to land the talented 21-year-old. Akpom enjoyed a loan spell with Hull City last season, helping them gain promotion to the Premier League, and will be hoping to repeat that feat with Chris Hughton’s side. The Brighton boss says he is thrilled to bring in a player of Akpom’s quality and believes his pace can trouble Championship defences....

A 57-year-old man named John Tiedjen married Crystal Straus this last weekend at his Cleveland home. In 1987, Tiedjen was convicted of killing Straus’s brother, Brian McGary. However, after serving 32 years behind bars, Tiedjen’s defense attorney submitted dozens of crime photos and police reports that went unseen in his original trial, WBAY reported. In late June, Cuyahoga County Judge Dick Ambrose threw out Tiedjen’s original conviction and ordered a retrial, set for August 31....

Ohio State will be among the favorites to win the Big Ten East Division and perhaps make a run at a third berth in the College Football Playoff. The Buckeyes made some coaching changes — including the hiring of former Indiana coach Kevin Wilson as offensive coordinator and Ryan Day as quarterback coach — after a 31-0 loss to Clemson in the PlayStation Fiesta Bowl. The offense can thrive around J....

Ohio State and Notre Dame both just missed making the College Football Playoff, so this is in essence a consolation game. Some will argue that Ohio State is still one of the four best teams in the country but a loss in its biggest game of the year, to Michigan State, has the Buckeyes on the outside looking in. Notre Dame has two close losses to top five teams Clemson and Stanford....

While the point spread has bounced between the opening line of Oregon -7 and -6.5, and the total has risen to 75 at most Vegas shops, bettors can also wager on props such as first score the game and longest touchdown, or individual accomplishments by key players on both sides. There will be a heavy focus on each team’s quarterback leading up to kickoff, which is reflected in the prop offerings....

The Buckeyes enter Saturday’s conference title game as a 15.5-point favorite—the second-largest spread of any of the championship games, except for the ACC title decider in which Clemson is a 28-point favorite—to defeat Wisconsin for the second time in six weeks and win the Big Ten championship for the third straight season. As the below graphic provided by Statista shows, the Buckeyes remained top of the College Football Playoff rankings for the second consecutive week on Tuesday and a win on Saturday will in all likelihood see them confirmed as the top-ranked team in the nation on Selection Sunday....

Wide receiver Michael Thomas announced Tuesday on Twitter that he will forgo his senior season to enter the 2016 NFL Draft. MORE: Best draft picks ever by each team | Worst draft picks ever by each team “This was a very hard decision for me honestly because I genuinely love Ohio State/Urban Meyer and everything this institution has to offer. It’s hard to say goodbye, but this is an opportunity of a lifetime I can’t pass up,” Thomas wrote....