Kim Jong Un praises nuclear progress

Kim Jong Un praises nuclear progress

PYONGYANG, North Korea

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un hailed his country’s recent nuclear test to uproarious applause as he convened the first full congress of its ruling party since 1980, an event intended to showcase the North’s stability and unity in the face of tough international sanctions and deepening isolation.

Kim, who stood to read his opening remarks Friday before more than 3,400 delegates, was interrupted repeatedly by cheers and applause as he laid out accomplishments since he took power in 2011 – including what the government says was its first hydrogen bomb test in January.

Federal officer in custody after fatal shootings in Md.

SILVER SPRING, Md.

A federal security officer suspected in three fatal shootings outside a high school, a mall and a supermarket in the Washington, D.C., area was arrested Friday, police said. Three people also were wounded in the shootings.

Eulalio Tordil, an employee of the Federal Protective Service, which provides security at federal properties, was taken into custody without incident near the supermarket, the scene of the last shooting, authorities said.

Arizona reinstates KidsCare program

PHOENIX

Arizona has joined 49 other states that offer a federal health-insurance program for low-income children after backers of the plan pushed it through the Legislature on Friday and Republican Gov. Doug Ducey almost immediately signed it into law.

Known as KidsCare in Arizona, the state’s version of the federal Children’s Health Insurance Program has been frozen since 2010, when lawmakers closed it because of a state budget crunch.

It’s expected to provide insurance to 30,000 children whose parents earn between 138 and 200 percent of the federal poverty line, and will do so at no cost to the state at least through 2017.

Emma, Noah still tops for baby names

WASHINGTON

When it comes to baby names, Emma and Noah reign supreme.

And don’t name your daughter Isis.

For the second year in a row, Emma and Noah top the annual list of top baby names in the U.S., according to the Social Security Administration.

The administration released its annual list of top baby names Friday, and the top five names for girls and boys in 2015 remained unchanged from the previous year. Noah was followed by Liam, Mason, Jacob and William. Emma was followed by Olivia, Sophia, Ava and Isabella.

One major change was the girls’ name Isis, which had remained steadily in the middle of the pack of the country’s top 1,000 names for the past 15 years.

In 2015, after the name had emerged as an acronym for the extremist group Islamic State, it dropped completely off the list.

Ala. chief justice faces removal

MONTGOMERY, Ala.

Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore – ousted from office more than a decade ago over a Ten Commandments display – now faces removal from the bench over his effort to block gay marriage from coming to that state after the U.S. Supreme Court effectively legalized same-sex marriage nationwide.

The Alabama Judicial Inquiry Commission on Friday filed ethics charges against Moore, saying the state chief justice abused the power of his office and displayed disrespect for the judiciary.

Associated Press