Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

U.S. watchdog agency says coronavirus whistleblower should be reinstated

A U.S. government watchdog agency has recommended the temporary reinstatement of a whistleblower who says he was removed as director of a government research office because he raised concerns about coronavirus preparedness, his lawyers said on Friday. The U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) made a "threshold determination" that the Trump administration unlawfully sidelined disease expert Rick Bright because he "made protected disclosures in the best interest of the American public," Bright's lawyers said in the statement.

Coronavirus inflicts huge U.S. job losses; Pence aide infected

The coronavirus pandemic triggered the steepest monthly loss of U.S. jobs since the Great Depression, data showed on Friday, as a second White House aide was diagnosed with the respiratory infection, raising doubt that the highest levels of government are well protected. A day after the White House confirmed that the personal valet of President Donald Trump had tested positive, Trump told reporters the virus had also infected Katie Miller, press secretary to Vice President Mike Pence. She is married to senior Trump aide and immigration policy hard-liner Stephen Miller and travels frequently with Pence.

Protesters decry delay in arrests of two white men in shooting of black Georgia jogger

Hundreds of protesters gathered in front of a Georgia courthouse on Friday to decry the killing of an unarmed black man in February and the delay in charging two white men in a shooting captured on video that was released earlier this week. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) arrested a former police officer, Gregory McMichael, 64, and his son Travis, 34, on Thursday and charged with them with aggravated assault and murder in the Feb. 23 killing of Ahmaud Arbery, 25, in the coastal Georgia town of Brunswick.

Special Report: For cops who kill, special Supreme Court protection

Sick with pneumonia, agitated and confused, Johnny Leija refused to return to his hospital room. Moments later, with three police officers pinning him on the floor, Leija was dead at age 34.

New York governor says 5-year old died from rare COVID-related complications

A 5-year old boy has died in New York from a rare inflammatory syndrome believed to be linked to the novel coronavirus, highlighting a potential new risk for children in the pandemic, Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Friday. Cuomo told a daily briefing that the boy died in New York City on Thursday and that health officials were looking at other deaths involving children under similar circumstances to see if there is a link to COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus.

Lori Loughlin, other parents lose bid to dismiss U.S. college scam charges

A federal judge on Friday declined to dismiss the charges against "Full House" actress Lori Loughlin and other wealthy parents awaiting trial in the U.S. college admissions scandal after they accused investigators of fabricating evidence. U.S. District Judge Nathaniel Gorton in Boston accepted the explanations prosecutors provided to counter allegations by defense lawyers that investigators pushed a cooperating witness to lie and trick parents into making incriminating statements.

Pence spokeswoman, married to top Trump adviser, diagnosed with coronavirus

U.S. Vice President Mike Pence's press secretary, the wife of one of President Donald Trump's senior advisers, has tested positive for the coronavirus, raising alarm about the virus' potential spread within the White House's inner most circle. The diagnosis of Katie Miller, who is married to White House immigration adviser and speech writer Stephen Miller, was revealed by Trump in a meeting with Republican lawmakers on Friday, a day after news that Trump's personal valet had tested positive for the virus.

Acting U.S. spy chief overhauls agency in defiance of congressional concerns

Defying congressional oversight concerns, U.S. President Donald Trump’s acting director of national intelligence on Friday unveiled organizational changes to his agency. Richard Grenell, who is expected to be replaced in coming months by Trump's full-time nominee, said the changes were the result of a lengthy review and would make more efficient use of funds and enhance intelligence support for the Pentagon.

White House's Birx to take key role in coronavirus drug distribution

U.S. coronavirus task force response coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx will have a leading role in how the first drug to demonstrate a benefit in treating COVID-19 patients will be distributed to hospitals, the White House said on Friday. Birx, who has been a fixture in televised task force media briefings, will be one of the chief consultants on how Gilead Sciences Inc's remdesivir will be supplied, White House spokeswoman Kayleigh McEnany told reporters.

`I'm never going to be the same': Medics grapple with mental trauma on COVID-19 front line

Anne Messman, a veteran emergency room physician in Detroit, knew something was wrong when she developed insomnia and became unusually irritated with people she loved. She began experiencing persistent sleepless nights in late March, around the time seven COVID-19 patients died in a single nine-hour shift. But she did not think her insomnia was due to the dramatic one-day death toll. As an ER doctor, death was no stranger to her.