Daily Briefing: 'This sort of violence will not stand'

A man is in custody after a girl and her parents were shot in the latest incident in which an everyday mistake in the United States led to a shooting. Also in the news: House Republicans passed a bill blocking transgender girls and women from female school athletic programs, and skywatchers in Australia had a rare celestial treat – a "ring of fire" solar eclipse.

👋 It's Jane Onyanga-Omara and Steve Coogan, Daily Briefing authors. What if we all embraced clean energy? We imagined what a green U.S. could look like in 2050.

Now, here's Friday's news.

Girl and parents shot after ball rolls into yard; man in custody

A 24-year-old man was in custody Thursday in connection with the shooting of a 6-year-old girl and her parents in North Carolina earlier this week, police said. Robert Louis Singletary allegedly shot the family after their basketball rolled into his yard and they went to retrieve it, according to local WBTV and WSOC-TV. Singletary turned himself in to police in Tampa, Florida, on Thursday afternoon after a search. "This sort of violence will not stand," Police Chief Stephen Zill said. The shooting follows incidents of gun violence in Missouri, New York and Texas in which everyday mistakes led to shootings. Read more

• White homeowner released on bond in connection with shooting of Kansas City teen Ralph Yarl.

• New York woman driven to wrong address fatally shot by homeowner, sheriff says.

• "A horrific incident": Two teen cheerleaders shot in Texas after getting into wrong vehicle.

• Voices: My client was shot after ringing the wrong doorbell. Now he faces a lifetime of trauma.

House passes GOP bill blocking transgender girls and women from participating in school sports

House Republicans passed a GOP-backed bill blocking transgender girls and women from participating in school athletic programs for females. The legislation, called the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, makes it a violation of Title IX for federally funded education programs to allow people assigned male at birth to participate in athletic programs designated for women. The legislation comes at a time when numerous states are passing similar laws banning transgender students from participating on sports teams that align with their gender identity as the GOP continues to champion "culture war" issues. Read more

• Read DOE's proposed Title IX rule for transgender sports participation.

• Opinion: GOP lawmakers don't care about women's sports or the athletes who play them.

More news to know now

• White House says McCarthy debt ceiling plan would kill thousands of green jobs in GOP districts.

• 5th person charged with murder in mass shooting at Alabama Sweet 16 party.

• BuzzFeed News is shutting down, CEO says, as company cuts 15% of workforce.

• "Shut that baby up": Southwest passenger throws tantrum over crying child.

• Great news! Your inbox is about to get a whole lot happier. USA TODAY's positive news brand Humankind is launching a weekly newsletter. Read more about it here or just skip to the good part and sign up here!

• On today's 5 Things podcast, USA TODAY Health Reporter Karen Weintraub talks through some major advancements in cancer treatment. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your smart speaker.

What's the weather today? Check your local forecast here.

SpaceX Starship launches from Texas, explodes over Gulf of Mexico

SpaceX's Starship launched on its first integrated test and became the most powerful rocket in history Thursday morning. But it met a fiery end shortly after liftoff near Brownsville, Texas. After it became apparent the first-stage Super Heavy booster and second-stage Starship vehicle weren't going to separate as planned, the combined 400-foot stack broke apart and crashed into the Gulf of Mexico. It also appeared three of the rocket's 33 Raptor engines failed to ignite at liftoff. Despite the hardware failures, Elon Musk's company SpaceX considered the mission largely a success. Read more

• See the graphics: SpaceX Starship, larger and more powerful than Artemis SLS, explodes on first launch attempt.

• A Netflix live reunion, Dominion lawsuit and the NFL. What happened in this week's news? Take our quiz!

Charges against Alec Baldwin in fatal 'Rust' shooting to be dropped (for now?)

Charges against Alec Baldwin in the 2021 shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the New Mexico set of the film "Rust" have been dropped. Baldwin's attorneys confirmed to USA TODAY in a statement Thursday that prosecutors plan to drop an involuntary manslaughter charge against the actor, who was holding the prop gun that killed Hutchins. "New facts were revealed that demand further investigation and forensic analysis," two special prosecutors said in a statement. They added their decision "does not absolve Mr. Baldwin" and "charges may be refiled." "Rust" will soon resume filming at its new location in Montana. Read more

• "Rust" to restart filming after death of Halyna Hutchins: Alec Baldwin will continue his involvement as an actor and coproducer.

• Baldwin settlement in fatal shooting sealed: Judge cites privacy concerns over son of Halyna Hutchins.

• Moment by moment details: How fatal "Rust" shooting unfolded.

Just for subscribers:

• Phoenix bank employee's 911 call adds to questions about role of race in reporter's detention.

• He gave his brother his kidney. Then he needed a new kidney himself.

• Disenchanted with old-school whiskey culture, blender Eboni Major forges her own path.

• How to stop jealousy from destroying your relationship.

These articles are for USA TODAY subscribers. You can sign up here. 

NBA playoffs: 76ers beat Nets despite Harden's 'unacceptable' ejection

The Philadelphia 76ers took a commanding 3-0 series lead over the Brooklyn Nets after their road win Thursday night, but the game featured two ejections as action was chippy throughout. Early in the matchup, 76ers star Joel Embiid and the Nets' Nic Claxton got in a dust-up that led to a flagrant one foul for Embiid. In the third quarter, 76ers star James Harden was assessed a flagrant foul two and tossed from the game after he appeared to strike the Nets' Royce O'Neale in the groin area. After the contest, Harden called his ejection "unbelievable" and "unacceptable." Read more

• "They say Draymond's got a history, so do we": Curry leads Warriors to win over Kings without Green.

• Former Kentucky players are everywhere in NBA playoffs: Here's how they are faring.

• Postseason award winners: Celtics' Brogdon wins Sixth Man of the Year | Kings' Mike Brown is NBA Coach of the Year.

One more thing

• Becky G gets emotional with regional Mexican award at Latin AMAs: "My Mexican blood is everything."

• "Marriage is hard": Michelle Obama opens up about 30 years with former President Barack Obama.

• Chicago White Sox closer Liam Hendriks announces he's cancer free: "REMISSION. It's official."

• Will he make it? With a putter positioned in his mouth, Labrador retriever attempts to sink a golf ball.

• Why not do your Earth Day duty? Even this border collie knows how to clean up litter!

Photo of the day: Rare solar eclipse reveals 'ring of fire'

Skywatchers witnessed a rare total solar eclipse and "ring of fire" in Australia on Thursday. The spectacle plunged part of Australia’s northwest coast into brief midday darkness under a cloudless sky while in Indonesia’s capital, hundreds went to the Jakarta Planetarium to see the partial eclipse that was obscured by clouds.

NASA astronomer Henry Throop was among those at Exmouth, Australia, cheering loudly in the darkness. "Isn’t it incredible? This is so fantastic. It was mind-blowing," he said.

Click here to see more photos of Thursday's eclipse. A total solar eclipse in North America is one year away. Get ready now!

Support journalism like this – subscribe to USA TODAY here.

Contributing: The Associated Press

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: North Carolina family shot over ball: Daily Briefing