U.S.The Week'Highly unlikely' Chauvin trial ends in 'all-out' acquittal, legal analyst predicts
As Minneapolis and the rest of the nation brace for the looming verdict in former police officer Derek Chauvin's murder trial, ABC News' chief legal analyst Dan Abrams said Sunday that he believe it is "highly unlikely" the trial is headed toward an "all-out" acquittal. Closing arguments still have to take place, and Abrams noted that the defense has the benefit of not having to prove that Chauvin did not kill George Floyd by kneeling on his neck during an arrest last May (the burden of proof is on the prosecution and the defense's goal is to show there's reasonable doubt), but, still, he said he and others who have followed the trial closely would be "stunned" if Chauvin was found not guilty on all three of charges — second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter — he faces.
WorldReutersIran identifies suspect behind blast at Natanz nuclear site
"Reza Karimi, the perpetrator of this sabotage... has been identified" by Iran's intelligence ministry, state TV said. It said the suspect had fled Iran before last Sunday's blast that the Islamic Republic has blamed on arch-foe Israel. Officials from the remaining parties to Iran's nuclear deal began a formal meeting in Vienna, suggesting that this round of talks which began on Thursday was wrapping up.
WorldAssociated PressMacron says nations must 'define red lines' with Russia
French President Emmanuel Macron says that while dialogue with Russia is essential, “clear red lines” carrying possible sanctions must also be drawn with Moscow over Ukraine. Referring to a recent buildup of Russian troops on Ukraine's border, Macron said in an interview with American broadcaster CBS News, “We will never accept new military operations on Ukrainian soil.” “And I think after an unacceptable behavior, indeed, we have to sanction,” Macron said when asked about the possibility of sanctions.
U.S.BBCIndianapolis FedEx shooting: Who were the eight victims?
Officials in Indianapolis have released the names of the eight people who were killed when a gunman opened fire at a FedEx warehouse on Thursday night. Among the victims were four members of the local Sikh community - including a mother, a father and two grandmothers. Other victims include two 19-year-olds, a university graduate and a father.
- NewsReuters Videos
At least three killed in Austin, Texas shooting
Austin police, calling the situation "an active shooting incident," said they were searching for a suspect. "While a suspect is still at large, it appears this is a domestic situation that is isolated and there is no risk to the general public," Austin police said on Twitter. The shooting occurred near a popular shopping area in the northwest part of the city, which is the capital of Texas.
U.S.Fort Worth Star-Telegram‘I’m a Christian woman of God.’ Texas school board candidate cited after refusing mask.
A Texas school board candidate near Austin was arrested for assault after an altercation with a Nordstrom Rack employee earlier this month. Video of Kara Bell's arrest has gone viral. It shows the woman arguing with Nordstrom employees inside near the fitting rooms and then with the police outside the store.
PoliticsThe WeekWhite House reassigns Betsy Weatherhead, climate change report coordinator under Trump
The White House has removed Betsy Weatherhead, an experienced atmospheric scientist, from her role leading the U.S. National Climate Assessment and reassigned her to the U.S. Geological Survey, The Washington Post reports. Weatherhead was put in charge of the U.S. government's definitive report on the effects of climate change last November by Kelvin Droegemeier, director of President Trump's White House Office of Science Technology Policy (OSTP). Officials at President Biden's OSTP made the decision to return her to USGS, the Post reports.
WorldAssociated PressJapan seeks release of Japanese journalist held in Myanmar
Japan's government said Monday it is asking Myanmar to release a Japanese journalist who was arrested by security forces in its largest city of Yangon the previous day. Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato told reporters Monday that his government is asking Myanmar authorities to explain the arrest and provide other details while asking for his release as soon as possible. He did not identify the detainee, but Japanese media identified him as Yuki Kitazumi, a former Nikkei business newspaper reporter currently based in Yangon as a freelance journalist.
WorldBBCIndia coronavirus: Delhi announces lockdown as Covid cases surge
Indian capital Delhi has announced a week-long lockdown after a record spike in cases overwhelmed the city's healthcare system. Government offices and essential services, such as hospitals, pharmacies and grocers, will be open during the lockdown which starts on Monday. The city had imposed a weekend curfew but reported its highest single-day spike so far on Sunday - 24, 462 cases.
U.S.The State‘No one was driving’ Tesla before fatal fiery crash that kept reigniting, Texas cops say
It appears no one was driving a Tesla Model S when it crashed into a tree and burst into flames, killing the two people in the car, Texas police say. The crash happened around 9 p.m. in a Spring subdivision, KTRK reported. Mark Herman, Harris County Constable for Precinct Four, said the two passengers in the car were pronounced dead at the scene, KHOU reported.
U.S.Business InsiderSen. Ted Cruz accused Rep. Maxine Waters of 'actively encouraging riots and violence' after she protested the police killing of Daunte Wright
Sen. Ted Cruz accused Rep. Maxine Waters of inciting violence at protests against police brutality. Waters rallied against recent police killings of Black men, telling demonstrators to remain in place. "Democrats actively encouraging riots & violence," Cruz tweeted in response to Waters' remarks.
WorldAssociated PressHigh-ranking Iranian general dies of heart disease at 65
A high-ranking general key to Iran's security apparatus has died, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced on Sunday. Brig. Gen. Mohammad Hosseinzadeh Hejazi, who died at 65, served as deputy commander of the Quds, or Jerusalem, force of Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard. The unit is an elite and influential group that oversees foreign operations, and Hejazi helped lead its expeditionary forces and frequently shuttled between Iraq, Lebanon and Syria.
WorldReutersAustralia, largely free of COVID-19, in no hurry to reopen borders - PM
Australia is no hurry to reopen its international borders and risk the country's nearly coronavirus-free lifestyle, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Sunday. Australia closed its borders to all non-citizens and non-residents in March 2020 and has been permitting only limited international arrivals in recent months, mainly its citizens returning from abroad. The border closure, together with snap lockdowns, swift contact tracking and high community compliance with health measures, have made Australia one of the world's most successful countries in curbing the pandemic, limiting coronavirus cases to under 29,500 infections and 910 deaths.
U.S.INSIDERThe head of the Chicago Police Union called the officer who shot 13-year-old Adam Toledo 'heroic'
The Chicago Police Union head said Thursday that the fatal shooting of Adam Toledo was "justified." A video released this week shows Toledo running down an alley and raising his hands before he was shot. Toledo appeared to have a gun but dropped it before officer Eric Stillman shot him once in the chest.
PoliticsAssociated PressGeorgia's Abrams navigates voting law fight with eye on 2022
President Joe Biden called Georgia's new voting law an “atrocity.” “These are laws that respond to an increase in voting by people of color,” Abrams told The Associated Press recently. The approach demonstrates how Abrams, a former and potentially future candidate for governor, is navigating the politics in the new battleground.
WorldReutersRussia beefs up warship presence in Black Sea as Ukraine tensions simmer
Two Russian warships transited the Bosphorus en route to the Black Sea on Saturday and 15 smaller vessels completed a transfer to the sea as Moscow beefs up its naval presence at a time of tense relations with the West and Ukraine. The reinforcement coincides with a huge build-up of Russian troops near Ukraine, something Moscow calls a temporary defensive exercise, and follows an escalation in fighting in eastern Ukraine between Russian-backed separatists and Ukrainian government forces. Russia's relations with Washington, which cancelled the deployment of two of its own warships to the Black Sea last week after fierce Russian protests, are at a post-Cold war low.
U.S.INSIDERA Minnesota man attacked a store employee over a mask policy then dragged a police officer with his vehicle and struck him with a hammer, police say
A 61-year-old Minnesota man has been charged with assaulting a store employee and a police officer. Police say Luke Oeltjenbruns attacked an employee with lumber over the store's mask policy. Oeltjenbruns then dragged a police officer from his truck and struck him with a hammer, police said.
WorldAssociated PressRefugees win rare victory in landmark Serbia pushback ruling
Hamid Ahmadi still can feel the cold of the February night when Serbian police left him and two dozen other refugees in a forest. Crammed into a police van, the refugees from Afghanistan thought they were headed to an asylum-seekers' camp in eastern Serbia. Instead, they were ordered out near the country's border with Bulgaria in the middle of that night four years ago.
PoliticsAssociated PressLawyers: DOJ defense in Trump defamation suit is 'dangerous'
The U.S. Justice Department made a “wrong and dangerous” argument in seeking to defend former President Donald Trump against a former advice columnist's claim that he defamed her when he denied her allegation of rape, her lawyers have told a court. During Trump's presidency, the Justice Department sought to make the United States, not him personally, the defendant in E. Jean Carroll's lawsuit — a move that would put U.S. taxpayers on the hook if she got a payout in the case. The Justice Department has argued that the statements he made about Carroll, including that she was “totally lying” to sell a memoir and that “she's not my type," fell within the scope of his job as president.
HealthReutersChina trials mixing of COVID-19 vaccines from CanSinoBIO and Zhifei Longcom: data
Chinese researchers are testing mixing two COVID-19 vaccines developed by CanSino Biologics and a unit of Chongqing Zhifei Biological Products respectively, according to clinical trial registration data. Earlier this month, the director of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention said the country was "formally considering" giving people COVID-19 vaccines developed with different technologies as a way of further boosting vaccine efficacy. A trial expected to involve 120 participants will test the safety and ability to trigger immune response of a dose of CanSinoBIO's Ad5-nCoV treatment, followed by a dose of ZF2001 from Anhui Zhifei Longcom Biopharmaceutical, at 28-day or 56-day interval, according to clinical trial record site ClinicalTrials.gov maintained by a department under the National Institute of Health of the United States.
WorldINSIDERNeighbor who tossed an elderly Jewish woman off a balcony while yelling 'Allahu Akbar' avoids trial because he smoked weed
Kobili Traoré killed an Orthodox Jewish woman in 2018 by throwing her off her balcony in Paris. France's top court has ruled that he will not go on trial because he was in a drug-induced psychosis. Cannabis was found in Traoré's blood after he was taken into custody for the killing.
CelebrityThe TelegraphRoyal summit to decide future of monarchy to be led by Prince Charles and Prince William
The Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge will hold a summit to decide the future of the monarchy over the next two generations following the death of the Duke of Edinburgh. In consultation with the Queen, Britain's next two kings will decide how many full-time working members the Royal family should have, who they should be, and what they should do. The death of Prince Philip has left the Royal family with the immediate question of how and whether to redistribute the hundreds of patronages he retained.
WorldAssociated PressIndia's electric vehicles face practical, technical hurdles
H.S. Panno, an independent contractor living in a spacious two-story penthouse in New Delhi, had his doubts when he bought his first electric car in September. EVs are a rarity in India, where more than 300 million vehicles, most of them scooters and three-wheel motorized rickshaws, jam the highways. The country is now making an ambitious push for what it calls “electric mobility,” to reduce smog.
PoliticsTheGrioMarjorie Taylor Greene stops ‘America First’ caucus amid criticism from GOP
Conservative Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia has scrapped the planned launch of the “America First” caucus, which called for “common respect for uniquely Anglo-Saxon political traditions” and election integrity. CNN reported that Greene received pushback from fellow Republican leaders after a spokesperson from her team confirmed the launch on Friday. Nick Dyer, Greene's spokesperson, told CNN in an email on Saturday that she is not “launching anything.”
U.S.The IndependentPolice officer’s powerful TikTok message on Daunte Wright goes viral
A US police officer has demonstrated the “huge difference” between a gun and a Taser in a viral TikTok video, describing how it is difficult to confuse the two items in an officer's arsenal, in the wake of Daunte Wright's death. The video posted from the account of a man named Brian B had about 6 million views and 1.4 million likes before the account was taken down after it became viral and triggered an extensive online conversation. The officer, appearing in his police uniform in the Tiktok video, can be seen loading his belt with both Taser and pistol before tapping the pistol as “dominant” and Taser as “not so dominant.”
“High-speed rail is bold and attention-grabbing, but the scale of the project makes it near impossible.”
“While a long, slow train ride across the country can be a great thing, the US needs real high-speed rail too.”
“Liberals are right that America has a car problem — but it's commutes, not road trips, that suck.”
“Investments into a high-speed rail system wouldn’t just improve the railroads — automobile traffic could also see some relief.”
“Big cities that are reasonably close together is pretty much a prerequisite for high-speed rail.”