NEWPORT, R.I. (AP) — An alleged dispute has split the "Black Ships" festival into two in Rhode Island this year.

The Newport Daily News reports the city of Newport has hosted the Black Ships Festival with the Japan-America Society for over three decades. The festival celebrates Newport's Japanese sister city, Shimoda, along with Commodore Matthew Perry's 1853 visit to Japan.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — The Coast Guard is suspending its search for a kayaker reported overdue from a trip on the Providence River.

Matthew Perry left in a 10-foot kayak around noon Friday near Conimicut Point in Warwick and was expected to be on the water for an hour. When he didn't return as planned, his wife called 911.

BOWIE, Md. (AP) — Authorities are seeking answers after a father and son on a bird-spotting walk found four beavers shot dead with a bow and arrow.

The Capital reports that Bowie residents Matthew and Chris Perry were participating in an Audubon Society bird count on New Year's Day when they came across the slain rodents on a frozen pond.

JACKSON, Ga. (AP) — Two brothers were swept over the falls at a Georgia park, leaving one boy dead.

News outlets reports that 12-year-old Christian Burdette drowned Tuesday morning at High Falls State Park after the about 20-feet (6.1-meter) fall. Monroe County Emergency Management Director Matthew Perry says responding crews saw 17-year-old James Burdette in a shallow area on a rock.

FORSYTH, Ga. (AP) — A 12-year-old boy died and his 17-year-old brother had to be rescued after an accident at a Georgia waterfall.

Monroe County Emergency Management Director Matthew Perry says the 911 call came in about 11:30 a.m. Tuesday that the two boys had been swept over the falls and plummeted about 20 feet.

WINSLOW, Maine (AP) — The original owner of a dog that Maine Gov. Paul LePage has tried to save from a death sentence is unhappy over comments the governor made about the case during a radio appearance.

The Republican governor issued a pardon for Dakota, a 4-year-old husky, but a judge ignored the pardon, and the Maine Supreme Judicial Court is expected to eventually hear the case.

Dakota was deemed dangerous after separate attacks on two dogs, killing one.

NORTH BEND, Ore. (AP) — Spending three days on a research ship was a dream come true for North Bend High School senior Matthew Perry.

He stayed on the Research Vessel (RV) Oceanus with Oregon State University after submitting an essay that earned him one of five student spots. He helped place buoys in the ocean, looked for marine mammals and sea birds and recorded them onto data sheets.