Michael Casey, Author at The Rapid City Post

Actor Michael Keaton to be honored as Man of the Year by Harvard’s Hasty Pudding theater group

February 5, 2026

Actor Michael Keaton is set to be honored as the 2026 Man of the Year by Harvard University’s Hasty Pudding Theatricals. Keaton will receive his Pudding Pot award at a celebratory roast Friday. Afterward he will attend a performance of Hasty Pudding’s 177th production, “Salooney Tunes.” Hasty Pudding Theatricals dates to 1844 and calls itself the third-oldest theater group in existence. It gives out its Man and Woman of the Year awards to people who have made lasting and impressive contributions to the world of entertainment. Keaton is known for his roles in films such as “Batman,” “Birdman,” “Beetlejuice” and “Spotlight.” Actor Jon Hamm won the award last year.

FILE - Fishing boats are docked in the harbor of Gloucester, Mass., May 11, 2022. (AP Photo/David Goldman, File)

Coast Guard launches search and rescue operation for fishing boat off Massachusetts

January 30, 2026

The U.S. Coast Guard says it found debris and a body after a launching a search for a fishing vessel off Massachusetts. The search began after the Coast Guard said it received an emergency alert from the 72-foot fishing vessel Lily Jean early Friday located about 25 miles off Cape Ann. The Coast Guard said it tried unsuccessfully to contact the vessel and then launched a search that included a MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew, a small boat crew and the Coast Guard Cutter Thunder Bay. It is unclear how many people were on the vessel.

United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio walks down stairs after a meeting during the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

Judge warns Trump administration from changing plaintiffs immigration status in First Amendment case

January 22, 2026

A federal judge ruled that the academics, who are party to a lawsuit alleging U.S. policy singles out noncitizens for detention or deportation over their pro-Palestinian activism on college campuses, can seek relief from the court if their immigration status is changed as retribution for taking part in the case. The ruling from U.S. District Judge William Young Thursday comes in the wake of a trial last year, in which he ruled the Trump administration violated the Constitution when it targeted non-U.S. citizens for deportation solely for supporting Palestinians and criticizing Israel. Young repeatedly chastised the administration for violating the First Amendment rights of the plaintiffs in the case.

FILE - Boards cover the windows of the Gabriel House assisted living facility, where a fire killed multiple people, July 15, 2025, in Fall River, Mass. (AP Photo/Kimberlee Kruesi, File)

Fire that killed 10 at an assisted living facility prompts Massachusetts to enact safety reforms

January 12, 2026

Massachusetts is enacting a series of safety reforms at assisted living facilities including increase inspections following a fire that killed 10 residents last year. Democratic Gov. Maura Healey announced the steps Monday. A commission tasked with looking at the sector has submitted a report to the legislature. It calls for an annual inspection to be signed off by the local fire department, board of health and building inspector. It also calls for an annual update and review of emergency plans and quarterly emergency exercises with all staff and annual evacuation drills. The fire at the Gabriel House in Fall River was the state’s deadliest in over 40 years.

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a press conference, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Judge to temporarily block effort to end protections for relatives of citizens, green card holders

January 9, 2026

A federal judge is expected to temporarily block efforts by the Trump administration to end a program that offered legal protections for more than 10,000 relatives of citizens and green card holders. U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani said Friday during a court hearing that she plans to issue a temporary restraining order but did not say when it would be issued. Plaintiffs want it issued by Jan. 14. That’s when protections end for people from Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti and Honduras who are part of the Family Reunification Parole program. Plaintiffs argue that many of these people have waited years for green cards, with some just weeks away from getting them.

FILE - Pamela Smart answers questions from the defense in her murder conspiracy trial, March 18, 1991, in Rockingham County Superior Court in Exeter, N.H. (AP Photo/Jon Pierre Lasseigne, File)

Pamela Smart seeks to overturn conviction for having teenager murder her husband

January 6, 2026

Pamela Smart, who is serving life in prison for orchestrating the murder of her husband by her teenage student in 1990, is seeking to overturn her conviction over what her lawyers claim were several constitutional violations. The petition for habeas corpus relief was filed Monday in New York, where she is being held, and in New Hampshire where she was sentenced. The move comes about seven month after New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte rejected a request for a sentence reduction hearing. Ayotte said she has reviewed the case and decided it is not deserving of a hearing.

FILE - New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs (8) leaves the field following an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Sunday, Nov 23, 2025, in Cincinnati, Ohio. (AP Photo/Peter Joneleit, File)

Patriots star receiver Stefon Diggs faces strangulation charge, denies allegations

December 30, 2025

New England Patriots star wide receiver Stefon Diggs is facing strangulation and other criminal charges in connection with a dispute with his former private chef. News of the charges emerged after a court hearing Tuesday in Dedham, Massachusetts. Diggs’ lawyer said in an emailed statement that Diggs “categorically denies these allegations.” According to police, the chef told investigators that Diggs hit her and tried to choke her during a discussion about money. The 32-year-old NFL veteran joined New England this season after a trade from Houston. Diggs has been a standout player for the Patriots this season, helping his team clinch the AFC East title.

FILE - Attendees visit the Meta booth at the Game Developers Conference 2023 in San Francisco on March 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)

Massachusetts court hears arguments in lawsuit alleging Meta designed apps to be addictive to kids

December 5, 2025

Massachusetts’ highest court heard oral arguments Friday in the state’s lawsuit arguing that Meta designed features on Facebook and Instagram to make them addictive to young users. The lawsuit filed in 2024 by state Attorney General Andrea Campbell alleges that Meta did this to make a profit and that its actions affected hundreds of thousands of teenagers in Massachusetts who use the social media platforms. The lawsuit is among a growing number that have been filed in federal and state court against Meta, which argues it has taken a number of steps to keep children safe online.

Voters sign-in at a polling site, in New York, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Justice Department expands legal action against states that have refused its demands for voter data

December 2, 2025

The U.S. Justice Department is suing six more states in its ongoing campaign to obtain voter data and other election information. The department late Tuesday announced it had sued Delaware, Maryland, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington over their “failure” to produce statewide voter registration lists. Some Democratic officials have raised concerns over how the data will be used and whether the department will follow privacy laws in protecting it. Federal law protects the sharing of individual data with the government. The lawsuits also signal the transformation of the Justice Department’s involvement in elections under President Donald Trump.

Brian Walshe enter the courtroom clutching papers and a rosary. Opening statements in the Brian Walshe murder trial in Norfolk Superior Court, Dedham, Mass., Monday, Dec. 1, 2025 (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)

Massachusetts man goes on trial in death of wife who disappeared more than 2 years ago

December 1, 2025

A Massachusetts man has gone on trial in the death of his wife, Ana Walshe, who disappeared over two years ago. Her body has never been found. Prosecutors say Brian Walshe faces a first-degree murder charge. He previously agreed to plead guilty to misleading police and handling a human body illegally. Investigators say he made online searches about dismemberment and disposing of a body. Surveillance video showed a man resembling him throwing heavy trash bags into a dumpster. Authorities found items linked to Ana Walshe, including a hacksaw and her vaccination card. She had taken out a $2.7 million life insurance policy naming him as the beneficiary.

FILE - Karen Read speaks after she was found not guilty of second-degree murder on June 18, 2025, in Dedham, Mass. (AP Photo/Josh Reynolds, File)

Karen Read files lawsuit alleging ‘gross misconduct’ by state police shielded real killers

November 18, 2025

Karen Read, who was found not guilty of charges related to death of her boyfriend, has filed a lawsuit accusing members of the Massachusetts State Police and several others of targeting her and failing to investigate the real killers. Read walked out of court earlier this year after more than three years and two trials over the death of her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O’Keefe, who was found on the lawn of a fellow officer’s home after a night of heavy drinking. The lawsuit filed in Bristol Superior Court Monday makes many of the claims her defense team made during the trial, namely that O’Keefe was in fact killed by colleagues, followed by a vast cover-up.

FILE - Cleveland Guardians' Luis Ortiz pitches in the first inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins, in Cleveland, April 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki, File)

Cleveland ‘s Luis Ortiz to appear in court over allegations he took bribes to rig pitches

November 10, 2025

Cleveland Guardians pitcher Luis Ortiz is due in court on charges accusing him and teammate Emmanuel Clase of taking bribes to help bettors in their native Dominican Republic win prop bets placed on pitches they threw. According to the indictment against the two, the highly paid hurlers took several thousand dollars in payoffs to help two unnamed gamblers in their home country win at least $460,000 on bets placed on the speed and outcome of certain pitches. Ortiz was arrested Sunday by the FBI in Boston while Clase wasn’t immediately taken into custody. Lawyers for the pitchers said their clients are innocent. MLB and the Guardians say they are cooperating with the federal investigation.

A southern rockhopper penguin at the New England Aquarium in Boston, on Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

Much like a nursing home, penguins at a Boston aquarium can age with dignity

November 3, 2025

Lambert, a critically endangered African penguin, has moved to a special geriatric island at the New England Aquarium in Boston. The island was created for Lambert and six other older penguins to ensure they age safely while staying with their friends. The idea started as a joke, but became a reality after staff noticed the penguins’ physical limitations. The island features flatter terrain and a carpeted path to help the penguins navigate. The older birds receive more frequent checkups and treatments for ailments like arthritis and glaucoma. The aquarium aims to provide a comfortable environment for these long-lived penguins.

FILE - Joan Kennedy smiles following an interview in Boston, Dec. 5, 1979. (AP Photo/Dave Tenenbaum, file)

Joan Kennedy, first wife of Sen. Edward Kennedy, has died

October 8, 2025

The first wife of the late Sen. Edward Kennedy, Joan Kennedy, died Wednesday at the age of 89. She endured the assassinations of two brothers-in-law and stood by her husband through the Chappaquiddick scandal as well as through his failed 1980 run for president. The couple divorced in 1982. She worked for the mentally challenged and other causes but also struggled with mental health issues and alcoholism herself for much of her life, including several drunk driving arrests. Her son Patrick Kennedy praised her as a classically trained pianist and advocate for addiction recovery who helped break stigma and inspired others to seek help.

President Donald Trump gestures as he arrives at the White House, Friday, Sept. 26, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Federal appeals court rules Trump administration can’t end birthright citizenship

October 3, 2025

A federal appeals court in Boston has ruled the Trump administration cannot withhold citizenship from children born to people in the country illegally or temporarily. A three-judge panel of the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday became the fifth federal court since June to either issue or uphold orders blocking the president’s birthright order. The order would end automatic citizenship for children born in the US to people who are here illegally or temporarily. The issue is expected to move quickly back to the U.S. Supreme Court, which restricted the power of lower-court judges to issue nationwide injunctions in a ruling in June.

Buddy Anthony surveys the remnants of his home on Thursday, Aug. 14, 2025, in Tylertown, Miss. (AP Photo/Sophie Bates)

Judge rules feds can’t require states to cooperate on immigration to get disaster money

September 24, 2025

A federal judge has ruled that it’s unconstitutional to require states to cooperate on immigration enforcement actions to get funding for disasters. A coalition of 20 state Democratic attorneys general in May filed a federal lawsuit claiming that the Trump administration is threatening to withhold billions of dollars of disaster-relief funds unless states agree to certain immigration enforcement actions. In a ruling Wednesday, U.S. District Judge William Smith found that the “contested conditions are arbitrary and capricious” and that the actions are unconstitutional because they are “coercive, ambiguous, unrelated to the purpose of the federal grants.”

FILE - Audience members launch paper airplanes during a performance at the Ig Nobel Prize ceremony, in Cambridge, Mass., Thursday, Sept. 17, 2015. The Ig Nobel prize is an award handed out by the Annals of Improbable Research magazine for silly sounding scientific discoveries that often have surprisingly practical applications. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)

Does painting cows with stripes prevent fly bites? Researchers who studied this wins Ig Nobel prize

September 18, 2025

A researcher who studied fingernail growth and a group that explored whether painting zebra-like stripes on cows reduced fly bights are among the winners of this year’s Ig Nobels. Held less than a month before the actual Nobel Prizes are announced, Thursday’s 35th annual Ig Nobel prize ceremony was organized by the Annals of Improbable Research, a digital magazine that aims to make people laugh and think. The hand-crafted prize is awarded to comical scientific achievement in 10 categories. Last year’s winners included a study that explores the feasibility of using pigeons to guide missiles.

FILE - Employees work inside a franchise of "Sabor Venezolano," one of 18 businesses owned by Wilmer Escaray which employ scores of Venezuelan immigrants with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) in Doral, Fla., May 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell, File)

Appeals court rules Trump administration can end legal protections for more than 400,000 migrants

September 12, 2025

A federal appeals court has ruled the Trump administration can end legal protections for around 430,000 migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela. The ruling Friday by the three-judge panel of the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is the latest twist in a legal fight over Biden-era policies that created new and expanded pathways for people to live in the United States, generally for two years with work authorization. The Trump administration announced in March it was ending the humanitarian parole protections. A district court granted a stay in April halting that decision, but the Supreme Court lifted the lower court order in May.

FILE - Workers adjust floating booms while wet harvesting cranberries at Rocky Meadow Bog, Nov. 1, 2024, in Middleborough, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, file)

Massachusetts cranberry bogs are being given a second life as vibrant wetlands

August 28, 2025

A growing number of cranberry bogs in Massachusetts are being converted back to nature as farmers get out of the business. The shift comes as the industry is being hit by lower prices for the pinkish crimson berries used in sauce and juice along with rising costs of producing the larger, hybrid varieties are popular. Farmers also are seeing the effects of climate change which is bringing unpredictable weather like droughts and warmer fall conditions that can influence the color of berries. Farmers have in the past considered options like selling the land for development or solar farms are now getting paid through state and federal funds to conserve the land.

FILE - Demonstrators holds up a banner during a citizenship rally outside of the Supreme Court in Washington, May 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)

Judge blocks Trump’s birthright citizenship restrictions in third ruling since high court decision

July 25, 2025

A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from ending birthright citizenship for the children of parents who are in the U.S. illegally. U.S. District Judge Leo Sorokin’s decision Friday is the third court ruling blocking the birthright order since a Supreme Court decision in June that restricted the power of lower-court judges to issue nationwide injunctions. Sorokin said a nationwide injunction he granted months ago remains in place, under an exception to the Supreme Court’s decision. The judge is overseeing a lawsuit by more than a dozen states that argue the citizenship order is blatantly unconstitutional. The Supreme Court will likely be considering the issue again soon.

Boston Municipal Court Chief Justice Tracy -Lee Lyons during court proceedings to dismiss cases in which the defendant has been unrepresented for more than 45 days Tuesday, July 22, 2025, in Boston. (Jonathan Wiggs/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool)

Charges dropped against more than 120 defendants in Massachusetts because they can’t get attorney

July 22, 2025

More than 120 defendants in Massachusetts have had their charges — ranging from assault to drug possession — dropped after public defenders refused to take new cases over a long-running pay dispute. The dismissals Monday in Boston were the result of a court ruling that requires they be dropped if a defendant has not had representation for 45 days. Earlier, scores of suspects in jail were released under the same rule, known as the Lavallee protocol, if they have been held without an attorney for at least seven days. Public defenders started refusing new cases after their calls for a raise were rebuffed by state lawmakers.

FILE - Mairelise Robinson, a U.S. citizen who is 6 months pregnant, attends a protest in support of birthright citizenship, outside of the Supreme Court in Washington, May 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

Trump’s birthright citizenship order remains blocked as lawsuits march on after Supreme Court ruling

July 18, 2025

A federal judge’s order blocking former President Donald Trump’s attempt to end birthright citizenship has taken effect. U.S. District Judge Joseph LaPlante in New Hampshire issued the ruling last week, and with no appeal filed, it is now enforceable nationwide. The order protects children of undocumented immigrants from losing citizenship. Meanwhile, a Boston judge heard arguments from states opposing Trump’s policy, calling it unconstitutional. The judge has not ruled yet but appears likely to side with the states. The issue could return to the Supreme Court, which has not ruled on the policy’s constitutionality. The Justice Department has not commented.

People show their support for a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration's policy of targeting students for deportation who took part in pro-Palestinian demonstrations on Monday, July 7, 2025, at the federal courthouse in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Casey)

A recap of the trial over the Trump administration’s crackdown on pro-Palestinian campus protesters

July 10, 2025

University associations are challenging in a lawsuit the Trump administration’s campaign of arresting and deporting college faculty and students who participated in pro-Palestinian demonstrations. During the first four days of the trial, plaintiffs put several noncitizen scholars on the stand to talk about how the crackdown prompted led them to limit their travel and stay away from protests. And an official with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement testified that a special group was formed to investigate protesters. He said it looked at as many as 5,000 people and estimated that it compiled reports on about 200.

FILE - A crowd gathers in Foley Square, outside the Manhattan federal court, in support of Mahmoud Khalil, March 12, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah, File)

Trump administration’s crackdown on pro-Palestinian campus activists faces federal trial

July 6, 2025

A federal bench trial is set to begin over a lawsuit that challenges Trump administration efforts of arresting and deporting faculty and students who participated in pro-Palestinian demonstrations. The lawsuit, filed by several university associations against President Donald Trump and members of his administration, would be one of the first to go to trial. Plaintiffs want U.S. District Judge William Young in Massachusetts to rule that the policy violates the First Amendment and the Administrative Procedure Act. Since Trump took office, the U.S. government has used its immigration enforcement powers to crack down on international students and scholars at several American universities.

Historian Jennifer Cromack points out the word "Slavery" on a recently found, 178-year-old anti-slavery scroll at Grotonwood, the home mission of The American Baptist Churches of Massachusetts, Thursday, June 26, 2025, in Groton, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Anti-slavery document from 1847 reveals American Baptists’ commitment to abolition

July 2, 2025

A volunteer searching the archives of the American Baptist in Massachusetts has found a nearly 180-year-old document shedding light on the church’s support for ending slavery. The 5-foot-long scroll is a handwritten declaration signed by 116 New England ministers saying they “disapprove and abhor the system of American slavery.” The document was signed two years after the issue of slavery prompted Baptists in the south to break away and form the Southern Baptist Convention. Church officials consider the scroll one of the most important abolitionist-era Baptist documents. It was discovered in a storage room in Groton, Massachusetts.

President Donald Trump speaks to the media in the Oval Office at the White House, Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in Washington, as Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Director of the Office of Management and Budget Russell Vought and Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, look on. ( (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Lawsuit challenges billions of dollars in Trump administration funding cuts

June 24, 2025

Attorneys general from more than 20 states have filed a federal lawsuit challenging billions of dollars in cuts made by the Trump administration that would fund everything from crime prevention to food security. The lawsuit filed in Boston is asking a judge to limit the Trump administration from relying on a provision in the federal regulation to cut grants that don’t align with its priorities. Since January, the lawsuit argues, the federal Department of Government Efficiency has used that provision to cancel thousands of grants previously awarded to states and grantees.

FILE - U.S. passports are arranged for a photograph in Tigard, Ore., on Dec. 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File)

Judge says government can’t limit passport sex markers for many transgender, nonbinary people

June 17, 2025

A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from limiting passport sex markers for many transgender and nonbinary Americans. The ruling covers transgender and nonbinary Americans who are without a valid passport or need to apply for a new one within a year. In an executive order signed in January, the president used a narrow definition of the sexes instead of a broader conception of gender. The order says a person is male or female and it rejects the idea that someone can transition from the sex assigned at birth to another gender.

Yurong "Luanna" Jiang, center, who delivered a speech at her Harvard University commencement, jokes with her college friends Helen Ji, left, and Cynthia Luo, Friday, May 30, 2025, in Cambridge, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Chinese student struck a chord emphasizing humanity during Harvard commencement speech

May 30, 2025

A day after her emotional speech at Harvard University’s commencement, Yurong “Luanna” Jiang kept running into classmates who praised her for recognizing everyone’s humanity. The master’s student from China addressed the crowd as the Trump administration expands its criticism of the Ivy League school into a nationwide campaign to control higher education by restricting the enrollment of international students. Jiang tells The Associated Press that she had hoped to remain in the United States, but now may go overseas to work in international development. She says it’s difficult to say what will happen in her immediate future.

Omer Shem Tov, center, an Israeli hostage who survived over 500 days in Hamas captivity, celebrates while being welcomed during his arrival at Logan Airport, Thursday, May 15, 2025, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Feted by school children, tossing out a first pitch: Former Israeli hostage grapples with celebrity

May 22, 2025

Former Israeli hostage Omer Shem Tov is visiting Boston with a message — don’t forget those who are still being held in Gaza. Shem Tov, who was abducted from the Tribe of Nova music festival with two of his friends, spent 505 days in captivity, much of it underground. He was released in February and is visiting Boston and New York to share his story and urge people to continue calling for the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza. He was greeted by a group of singing school children on his arrival in Boston and threw out the first pitch at a Boston Red Sox game.

Michael Casey.