Trump arrives

in Beijing

BEIJING (AP) — The welcoming ceremony for U.S. President Donald Trump as he arrived in Beijing for a summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping has included a military honor guard, a military band and hundreds of Chinese youths waving flags and chanting, “Warm welcome!” The youth greeters Wednesday were decked out in white and robin’s egg blue outfits that matched the paint job of the iconic presidential plane.

The meat of the summit doesn’t start until today, when Trump and Xi hold bilateral talks, visit the Temple of Heaven and take part in a formal banquet. The talks are expected to focus on the Iran war, trade and U.S. arms sales to Taiwan.

Prosecutors to

retry Murdaugh

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Alex Murdaugh’s murder convictions and life sentence for the deaths of his wife and son have been overturned by the South Carolina Supreme Court because the court clerk at his trial suggested he was guilty. But the disgraced lawyer won’t be leaving prison anytime soon.

Prosecutors say they plan to retry Murdaugh, which likely means there will be another lengthy trial for the case that because of the combination of money, power, Southern accents and treachery has become a true crime sensation with several streaming miniseries, best selling books and dozens of true crime podcasts.

Murdaugh will remain in prison. He pleaded guilty to stealing around $12 million from his clients and currently is serving a 40-year federal sentence.

France confines

passengers

PARIS (AP) — French authorities have ordered over 1,700 passengers and crew on a British cruise ship to stay on board due to a gastrointestinal illness outbreak.

The Ambition, on a 14-night cruise from Belfast and Liverpool, reached Bordeaux on Tuesday. Up to 50 passengers showed symptoms, and those affected were isolated. A medical team is investigating the cause. The outbreak is not linked to a recent hantavirus incident on another ship.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes a rise in cruise ship outbreaks, mostly due to a new norovirus strain.

Kouri Richins

sentenced

PARK CITY, Utah (AP) — A Utah mother who wrote a children’s book about grief after her husband’s death will serve life in prison without parole for his murder. Kouri Richins was convicted in March of poisoning her husband, Eric, with fentanyl in 2022.

A jury also found her guilty of insurance fraud, forgery, and attempted murder for a previous poisoning attempt. Prosecutors said she was in debt and had taken out life insurance policies on her husband.

Her sons, now in the care of relatives, expressed fear of her release. Richins maintains her innocence and plans to appeal the conviction.