White Bear Lake’s free, outdoor summer concert series Music on the Lawn returns this year at White Bear Lake United Methodist Church.

Organized by contemporary music director John Koziol, performances are on the first Sunday of each month — June through September. They will take place on an outdoor stage at 4 p.m. on the church’s north lawn at 1851 Birch Street. Performances will be indoors in cases of bad weather.

“The Music On the Lawn outdoor concert series has become an important part of our community outreach, a way to invite people to get to know more about us, and for us to celebrate music and the great outdoors together,” Koziol said.

On June 1, The Craig Clark Band will perform. On July 6, the event will feature Jennifer Grimm and Joe Cruz, a duo that plays jazz, R&B, and Latin standards. On Aug 3 Hitchville, a Midwest country band featuring Heidi Owens and Matt Kneefe, will play. And, on Sept. 7 the event will feature The Beatles Ensemble, a quintet of local musicians playing music by The Beatles.

For more information contact the church at office@wblumc.org or visit wblumc.org.

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By KATHY McCORMACK

A federal judge in Vermont on Wednesday released a Russian-born scientist and Harvard University researcher from immigration custody as she deals with a criminal charge of smuggling frog embryos into the United States.

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Colleagues and academics also testified on Kseniia Petrova’s behalf, saying she is doing valuable research to advance cures for cancer.

“It is excellent science,” Michael West, a scientist and entrepreneur in the biotech industry, testified on Petrova’s research papers. He said he does not know Petrova, but has become acquainted with her published work, citing one in which she explains that “by mapping embryonic development, novel ways of intervening in the biology of regeneration and aging.”

West said that Petrova’s medical research skills are highly sought after and that he himself would hire her “in a heartbeat.”

Petrova, 30, is currently in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service in Louisiana. She is expected to be brought to Massachusetts as early as Friday in preparation for a bail hearing next week on the smuggling charge, lawyers said in court.

Petrova had been vacationing in France, where she stopped at a lab specializing in splicing superfine sections of frog embryos and obtained a package of samples to be used for research.

As she passed through a U.S. Customs and Border Protection checkpoint in Boston Logan International Airport in February, Petrova was questioned about the samples. She told The Associated Press in an interview last month that she did not realize the items needed to be declared and was not trying to sneak anything into the country. After an interrogation, Petrova was told her visa was being canceled.

After being detained by immigration officials, she filed a petition in Vermont seeking her release. She was briefly detained in Vermont before she was brought to Louisiana.

Petrova was charged with smuggling earlier this month as U.S. District Judge Christina Reiss in Burlington set the hearing date on her petition. Reiss ruled Wednesday that the immigration officers’ actions were unlawful, that Petrova didn’t present a danger, and that the embryos were non-living, non-hazardous and “posed a threat to no one.”

Petrova’s lawyer, Gregory Romanovsky, had asked Reiss to issue an order to stop the possibility of ICE re-detaining her if she is also released from detention in Massachusetts.

Reiss said she was reluctant “to enjoin an executive agency from undertaking future actions which are uncertain” and would rely on U.S. Department of Justice attorney Jeffrey Hartman’s comments that the government has no intention at this time to re-arrest Petrova.

Romanovsky had said Customs and Border Protection officials had no legal basis for canceling Petrova’s visa and detaining her.

The Department of Homeland Security had said in a statement on the social media platform X that Petrova was detained after “lying to federal officers about carrying substances into the country.” They allege that messages on her phone “revealed she planned to smuggle the materials through customs without declaring them.”

Harvard had said in a statement that the university “continues to monitor the situation.”

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve officials agreed earlier this month to hold off on any interest-rate moves while they evaluated the impact of President Donald Trump’s tariffs on inflation, unemployment, and the broader economy.

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According to minutes from their May 6-7 meeting, released Wednesday, “almost all” of the 19 officials that participate in the Fed’s meetings on policy saw a risk that “inflation could prove to be more persistent than expected.” The policymakers showed greater concerns about higher inflation than rising unemployment, the minutes showed, a key reason they left rates unchanged.

Their decision flew in the face of Trump’s repeated calls to reduce borrowing costs because, in his view, there is “NO INFLATION.” The central bank cut its key rate three times last year to about 4.3%. Federal Reserve staff economists said during the meeting that inflation “remained elevated,” the minutes showed.

Trump’s tariffs have created a dilemma for the Fed because the duties could both raise inflation — which the Fed would typically fight with higher interest rates — and slow the economy and push up unemployment, which the central bank usually tries to counter with lower rates.

Officials “judged that downside risks to employment and … upside risks to inflation had risen, primarily reflecting the potential effects of tariff increases,” the minutes said.

Since the meeting, many officials have underscored that the Fed may have to wait for some time before making any further moves with interest rates.

Policymakers said there was “considerable uncertainty surrounding the evolution of trade policy” and its impacts on the economy, the minutes said.

“Taken together, (officials) saw the uncertainty about their economic outlooks as unusually elevated,” the minutes said.

By ADITHI RAMAKRISHNAN

NEW YORK (AP) — People with darker skin still need to wear sunscreen — for more reasons than one.

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Too much ultraviolet exposure from the sun can lead to sunburn, dark spots and wrinkles, and increased risk of skin cancer.

The melanin in darker skin offers some extra protection from the sun, but dermatologists say that isn’t enough on its own.

“Everyone needs sunscreen. But the reasons that one might be reaching for sunscreen may differ depending on your skin tone,” said Dr. Jenna Lester, who founded the Skin of Color Clinic at the University of California, San Francisco.

Do darker-skinned people need sunscreen?

White people are overall more likely to get skin cancer compared to Black and Hispanic people. But Black and Hispanic people are less likely to survive the most dangerous kind of skin cancer called melanoma, according to the American Cancer Society.

Black patients more commonly get melanoma on their hands and feet — places that are more shielded from the sun. Still, sunscreen is an additional protective layer that helps prevent a host of other problems including sunburns, hyperpigmentation after acne, rosacea and dark patches on the face.

Dr. Oyetewa Asempa at Baylor College of Medicine often reminds her darker-skinned patients: “All of the problems that you’re coming to see me for are caused or worsened by the sun.”

How much sunscreen do people of color need?

To stay safe in the sun, it’s important to grab sunscreen with a sun protection factor or SPF of at least 30 and reapply every two hours. People headed for the pool or beach should put on sunscreen beforehand, remembering to reapply liberally and after getting out of the water.

Most people don’t wear enough sunscreen when they apply, Lester said. Make sure to put two long fingers’ worth on the face and a hefty blob for the body.

Look for chemical-based sunscreens to avoid ashy white cast. Two key ingredients in mineral-based products — zinc oxide and titanium oxide — are the culprits for that pesky discoloration on dark skin.

Tinted sunscreens contain pigments that block visible light from the sun, offering additional protection against dark spots. And wearing a hat or sun-protective clothing with an ultraviolet protection factor or UPF grading can provide an extra safety boost.

Whatever the sun protection routine, it’s important to keep it up, Lester said. Some UV rays can climb right through car and house windows to cause sun damage even when indoors, making it even more important to take care of the skin while the sun shines.

“It’s about trying to make it a daily habit,” she said. “Consistency over intensity.”

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.