In the news
■ Antonio Stagliano, bishop of the Italian Roman Catholic diocese of Noto, said he was trying to stress the true meaning of Christmas and not dash the dreams of youngsters after a diocese spokesman apologized to parents because Stagliano told a group of children that Santa Claus doesn’t exist.
■ Matthew Hancock, 39, faces felony terroristic threatening and other counts after being accused of driving a limousine onto aircraft ramps at the Las Vegas airport, donning a clown mask and declaring that he had a bomb, then later surrendering to authorities.
■ Donnie Arant, a manager for a Delaware highway construction company, said a new exit sign for “Delaware Ave.” on Interstate 95 has gone up to replace a temporary one that misspelled it “Delware,” which is how many locals pronounce the state name.
■ Markus Hinterhauser, artistic director of Austria’s Salzburg Festival, said that after two years of limited offerings because of the coronavirus pandemic, the festival is planning for a full 2022 schedule of 228 performances over 45 days beginning on July 18.
■ Arthur Gregory, an Oklahoma City police captain, said an air marshal detained a passenger, later cited for disorderly conduct and public drunkenness, after the person assaulted a flight attendant during a trip from Washington, D.C., to Los Angeles and the plane was diverted to Oklahoma.
■ Scott Cain, police chief of Kensington, N.H., said officers investigating an accidental shooting at a home encountered an “overwhelming odor” and found more than 70 cats in the house, which was “covered in feline feces and urine” and was immediately condemned.
■ Christy Bartholomew, 39, of Hattiesburg, Miss., who pleaded guilty to embezzling more than $650,000 while working for two different companies in Louisiana, was sentenced to six years in prison, federal prosecutors said.
■ Jade Jones, a school spokesman in Montgomery, Ala., said a high school student and a middle school student were taken into custody on two separate days after tips led security officers to discover that they had taken firearms to their respective schools.
■ Jason Harris of Davison, Mich., convicted of killing his wife in 2014 by spiking her cereal with heroin, was sentenced to life in prison after a jury rejected claims that the death was caused by an accidental overdose, authorities said.