Nation

California

Singer Spears pleads guilty to lesser charge

VENTURA — Britney Spears has avoided jail time in a California driving under the influence case by pleading guilty to a lesser charge through her lawyer. This allowed her to be sentenced to a day in jail that the judge said she served when being booked, a year of probation, a required DUI class, and fines.

Spears was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs following her March 4 arrest in Ventura County, where she lives.

New York

Actors Lively, Baldoni settle legal dispute

NEW YORK — Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni have agreed to end their legal battle over the acrimonious production of their 2024 film “It Ends With Us.”

The two sides settled their legal dispute ahead of a planned trial over Lively’s claims that Baldoni conspired with publicists to preemptively destroy her reputation after she privately accused him of sexually harassing her on the movie set.

World

Germany

Driver plows into shopping area, kills 2

BERLIN — Authorities say a driver has plowed into people in a busy shopping area in the center of the German city of Leipzig, leaving two people dead.

The mayor said another three people were seriously injured on Monday afternoon in what officials believe was a deliberate rampage. The driver, a 33-year-old German citizen, was detained in the car.

Canada

Alberta separatists seek referendum

EDMONTON — Alberta separatists have submitted nearly 302,000 signatures to trigger a referendum on leaving Canada.

The group needed 178,000 signatures to force the province to consider the vote. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has said if the petition is verified, there will be a referendum.