AP News Digest 3:30 a.m.

Here are the AP’s latest coverage plans, top stories and promotable content. All times EST. For up-to-the minute information on AP’s coverage, visit Coverage Plan.

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TOP STORIES

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MURDAUGH-KILLINGS — South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh has been convicted of murder in the shooting deaths of his wife and son in a case that chronicled the unraveling of a powerful Southern family with tales of privilege, greed and addiction. By Jeffrey Collins and James Pollard. SENT: 930 words, photos. SENT: 1,000 words, photos, video, audio. With MURDAUGH-KILLINGS-CRIME-SCENE-EXPLAINER — Why do juries view crime scenes like the Murdaugh estate? (sent)

ELECTION 2024-BIDEN — President Joe Biden has constantly touted his administration’s legislative accomplishments. He got unruly Republicans heckling his State of the Union to decry cutting federal entitlements, and he swept in and out of Ukraine. These are all likely to be centerpieces of an expected reelection campaign. But could they just as easily be seen as legacy cementing steps, if Biden shocks everyone and opts not to run again? By Will Weissert. SENT: 1,090 words, photos.

UNITED STATES-GERMANY — German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visits the White House for a private meeting with President Biden as both allies become increasingly vocal about their concerns that China may step off the sidelines and supply weapons to Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. By Chris Megerian and Frank Jordans. SENT: 710 words, photo. UPCOMING: 900 words after 2 p.m. meeting.

CAPITOL RIOTS-LAWSUITS — Former President Donald Trump can be sued by injured Capitol Police officers and Democratic lawmakers over the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, the Justice Department says in a federal court case testing Trump’s legal vulnerability for his speech before the riot. By Eric Tucker and Alanna Durkin Richer. SENT: 880 words, photos, video, audio

RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR-THE-MISSING — The freshly exhumed remains of three men lie in black body bags on the edge of the small cemetery in a town not far from Ukraine’s capital, waiting to be taken to a morgue. None has yet been identified. Ukrainian authorities are still unearthing people who were hastily buried in makeshift graves during Russia’s brief but brutal occupation of villages and towns near Kyiv. By Elena Becatoros. UPCOMING: 550 words, photos by 4 a.m.

CAMBODIA-POLITICS — A court in Cambodia has found Kem Sokha, leader of the dissolved Cambodia National Rescue Party, guilty of treason and sentenced him to 27 years imprisonment to be served under house arrest. By Sopheng Cheang and Grant Peck. SENT: 920 words, photos.

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MORE ON RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR

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RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR — The Kremlin accused Ukrainian saboteurs of crossing into western Russia and firing on villagers. Ukraine denied the claim and warned that Moscow could use the allegations to justify stepping up its own attacks in the ongoing war. The exact circumstances of the alleged attack reported in the Bryansk region were unclear. By Susie Blann. SENT: 930 words, photos, videos.

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MORE NEWS

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PENTAGON-PAPERS-ELLSBERG-CANCER — Daniel Ellsberg, who copied and leaked documents that revealed secret details of U.S. strategy in the Vietnam War and became known as the Pentagon Papers, has announced he has terminal cancer and months to live. SENT: 410 words, photos.

COLOMBIA-HIPPO-RELOCATION — Colombia is proposing transferring at least 70 hippopotamuses that live near Pablo Escobar’s former ranch - descendants of four imported from Africa illegally by the late drug lord in the 1980s – to India and Mexico as part of a plan to control their population. SENT: 480 words, photo.

MOUNT-WASHINGTON-AVALANCHE-VIDEO — An onlooker managed to shoot video of a snowboarder narrowly escaping an avalanche in New Hampshire's Tuckerman Ravine on Mount Washington. SENT: 400 words, photos, video.

VETERANS-PRISON — Two former Iraq and Afghanistan War-era defense secretaries are recommending that the government consider new ways to ensure that military service is taken into account when courts prosecute former service members. SENT: 620 words, photos.

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WASHINGTON/POLITICS

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MEDAL OF HONOR — Nearly 60 years after he was first recommended for the nation’s highest award for bravery during the Vietnam War, retired Col. Paris Davis, one of the first Black officers to lead a Special Forces team in combat, will receive the prestigious Medal of Honor. SENT: 810 words, photos, video, audio.

SANTOS-ETHICS — The House Ethics Committee is launching an investigation into embattled Rep. George Santos, the New York Republican whose lies and embellishments about his resume and personal life have drawn deep scrutiny in Congress. By Lisa Mascaro and Michael R. Sisak. SENT: 730 words, photos.

CROSSOVER-VOTING-WYOMING — Switching political parties to be able to choose the primary in which a voter wants to cast a ballot is an old Wyoming tradition, one that has faced growing scrutiny as the state’s Democrats increasingly struggle to field strong candidates and Republican primaries often all but decide who eventually wins office. SENT: 890 words, photos.

HOUSE-DEMOCRATS — A new generation of House Democratic leaders taking over for Nancy Pelosi debuted at the party’s annual retreat, feisty and fired up to brag about their accomplishments with President Joe Biden and counter Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s new Republican majority. SENT: 880 words, photos.

ELECTION 2024-PENCE — Former Vice President Mike Pence declines to say whether he would back Donald Trump if his former boss were to win the 2024 Republican presidential nomination. Pence is widely expected to launch his own bid. SENT: 460 words, photos.

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NATIONAL

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LENT-INTERACTIVE-FISH — The Lenten fish fry is a popular tradition in many Catholic communities. In Pittsburgh and the towns around it, people looking for fish fries between Ash Wednesday and Easter have a very modern tool to find their fish fix — an interactive map. It’s done by volunteer coders who want to foster community engagement, and it points the way to fish fries at churches, in fire halls and in restaurants. By National Writer Ted Anthony. SENT: 1,230 words, photos.

TRAIN-DERAILMENT-OHIO — Residents who say they’re still suffering from illnesses nearly a month after a train carrying toxic chemicals derailed in Ohio confronted the railroad’s operator Thursday at a town forum, demanding to know whether they’d be relocated from homes they’re afraid to live in. SENT: 890 words, photos.

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INTERNATIONAL

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PALESTINIANS-INDEPENDENT MILITANTS — Small groups of disillusioned young Palestinians in the West Bank are taking up guns against Israel’s open-ended occupation, defying Palestinian political leaders they scorn as Israeli collaborators. Israel has sought to crush the fledgling militants in near-daily arrest raids over the past year, leading to a surge of violence and deaths unseen in nearly two decades. SENT: 1,140 words, photos.

KOREAS-TENSIONS — The South Korean and U.S. militaries has said they’ll go ahead with large-scale annual military drills later this month despite North Korea’s threats to take “unprecedently” strong action against such training. SENT: 500 words, photos.

CHINA-HONG-KONG-PUBLISHER-RELEASED — A Hong Kong-based publisher who was arrested while preparing to release an unauthorized biography of Chinese leader Xi Jinping has been freed after serving a 10-year sentence in a south China prison. SENT: 720 words, photo.

INDIA-QUAD-CHINA — The top diplomats of Australia, India, Japan and the United States said Friday their Indo-Pacific-focused bloc is not aimed at countering China but released a statement littered with buzzwords and phrases that reflect growing unease over China’s influence in the region. SENT: 640 words, photos.

HONG-KONG-FIRE — Hong Kong authorities were investigating the cause of a huge blaze that broke out overnight at a construction site in a popular shopping district and forced 170 people in nearby buildings to evacuate. SENT: 430 words, photos, video.

SINGAPORE-POLITICS — The brother of Singapore’s prime minister is accusing government authorities of persecuting his family after it emerged that he and his wife were under official investigation. SENT: 390 words, photo.

MALAYSIA-NAJIB — Malaysian former Prime Minister Najib Razak was acquitted Friday in the latest trial in response to the multibillion-dollar looting of the 1Malaysia Development Berhad state fund. 360 words, photos.

NICARAGUA-KILLINGS — A U.N. human rights groups has said the government of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega executed at least 40 people and ordered hospitals not to treat demonstrators wounded in antigovernment protests. SENT: 220 words, photo.

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HEALTH & SCIENCE

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SPACEX-CREW-LAUNCH — A new crew arrived at the International Space Station for a six-month mission, after overcoming trouble with one of the capsule’s docking hooks. SENT: 430 words, photos, video.

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BUSINESS/ECONOMY

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FINANCIAL MARKETS — Asian stock markets followed Wall Street higher Friday after a Federal Reserve official raised hopes the U.S. central bank might not step up its anti-inflation fight as much as feared. SENT: 620 words, photos.

CHINA-CONGRESS-ECONOMY — China’s vast real estate industry is recovering from a slump triggered by tighter debt controls, a deputy central bank governor says, after a wave of defaults by developers rattled global financial markets. SENT: 480 words, photos.

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ENTERTAINMENT

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OSCARS-THE-QUIET-GIRL — Though gently restrained and delicately crafted, “The Quiet Girl” has managed to make plenty of noise. Colm Bairead’s modestly scaled drama, his narrative directorial debut, is the highest-grossing Irish-language film of all time. It bested “Belfast” at the Irish Film & Television Awards. And it’s nominated for best international film at the Academy Awards, a first for Ireland. SENT: 550 words, photos.

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SPORTS

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BKC--NCAA SCORING RECORD-DAVIS — Antoine Davis outscored them all – except for “Pistol” Pete. Detroit Mercy’s star guard finished four points shy of surpassing Pete Maravich as the NCAA career scoring leader on Thursday night, scoring 22 in a gritty 71-66 loss to Youngstown State in the Horizon League tournament. SENT: 775 words, photos.

FBC--GEORGIA-CARTER-CHARGED — Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter returned to the NFL scouting combine on Thursday after turning himself in to Athens police Wednesday night and posting a combined bond of $4,000 on charges of reckless driving and racing in relation to a fatal crash that killed a teammate and team staffer. By Charles Odum. SENT: 700 words, photos.

BKN—LAKERS-JAMES INJURY — LeBron James is expected to miss most of March with an injured tendon in his right foot, the Los Angeles Lakers said on Thursday. If that timetable holds, the Lakers will have to find a way to stay in the playoff race without the league’s all-time scoring leader. SENT: 400 words, photos.

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HOW TO REACH US

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At the Nerve Center, Vincent K. Willis can be reached at 800-845-8450 (ext. 1600). For photos, (ext. 1900). For graphics and interactives, ext. 7636. Expanded AP content can be obtained from AP Newsroom. For access to AP Newsroom and other technical issues, contact apcustomersupport@ap.org or call 844-777-2006.