Influence Game: Helmet Bill Stokes Lobbying Effort

NEW YORK — The man accused of lighting a woman on fire on a New York City subway and fanning the flames as she burned to death made his first appearance in court this week, while authorities were yet to publicly identify the victim. Sebastian Zapeta, 33, was arraigned on murder and arson charges on Tuesday afternoon in a Brooklyn court, where he was remanded back to custody.

PHOENIX — Injuries keep loitering in the Nuggets’ locker room. They’re not decimating Denver’s season by any means, not demanding long-term absences from affected players. But they are overstaying their welcome, lingering and quietly looming over most games and unleashing inconvenient warning signs. Like the one Aaron Gordon received from his calf for Christmas.

By Emily Weinstein, The New York Times Happy holidays, everyone! I have a gift for you: five recipes with as little cleanup as possible. I’ve picked one-pot dinners that are nice but also casual — cozy, even — for the lazy days between Christmas and New Year’s Day, when you want to be anywhere but in the kitchen doing the dishes. 1.

By JOSEF FEDERMAN and WAFAA SHURAFA, Associated Press JERUSALEM (AP) — A new round of Israeli airstrikes in Yemen on Thursday targeted the Houthi rebel-held capital of Sanaa and multiple ports, while the World Health Organization’s director-general said the bombardment occurred nearby as he prepared to board a flight in Sanaa, with a crew member injured. “The air traffic control tower, the departure lounge — just a few meters from where we were — and the runway were damaged,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on the social media platform X. He added that he and U.

The parents of a one-month-old baby boy who was found in a car seat in the median of Pecos Street in Adams County on Christmas morning, clad in just a diaper, have been arrested. The Adams County Sheriff’s Office arrested Jarvis Sims, 42, and Christina Thurman, 33, on Wednesday on suspicion of felony child abuse.

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO and HALELUYA HADERO, AP Business Writers Sales rose this year during the holiday shopping season even as Americans wrestled with elevated prices for many groceries and other necessities, according to new data. Holiday sales from the beginning of November through Christmas Eve climbed 3.8%, outpacing the 3.1% increase from a year earlier, according to Mastercard SpendingPulse, which tracks all kinds of payments including cash and debit cards.