Here are the latest reports from The Washington Posts ‘Post Nation’.
‘It could have been very bad’: Gorilla killed after boy falls into Cincinnati zoo exhibit
A gorilla was fatally shot at an Ohio zoo this weekend after it picked up a young boy who had tumbled into an exhibit, officials said. The encounter at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden occurred Saturday afternoon when the boy crawled through a barrier and fell into a moat at the facility’s outdoor gorilla center, zoo director Thane Maynard told reporters. The boy wasn’t seriously hurt in the fall, Maynard said […]
Chicago to release evidence from 100 investigations into alleged police misconduct
The agency tasked with investigating allegations of police misconduct in Chicago is planning to release evidence from about 100 cases in coming days, according to an official familiar with the plans. This release is set to come months after city officials said they would move to more quickly make public videos and evidence in cases involving police shootings, […]
‘It’s crushing’: World War II-era plane crashes into the Hudson River, killing pilot
A World War II-era fighter plane crashed into the Hudson River on Friday night, killing the pilot, according to New York authorities. Officials said William Gordon, the 56-year-old pilot from Key West, Fla., died in the crash, the Associated Press reported. The P-47 Thunderbolt crashed into the Hudson River near the George Washington Bridge about 7:30 […]
Police make arrest in fatal shooting of aide to New York governor
A Queens man was arrested and charged this week in connection with the shooting death of an aide to New York’s governor. Carey Gabay, 43, was walking in Brooklyn in September when he was shot and critically injured. Police have said they believe Gabay was caught in a shootout involving two groups of gang members. Gabay died the […]
Sheriff indicted in jailhouse peddling of e-cigarettes
A county sheriff in Tennessee has been indicted, along with his uncle and a top deputy, for helping sell e-cigarettes in the jail he ran and then hiding his involvement, authorities said. Robert F. Arnold, 40, the sheriff of Rutherford County, is accused of pocketing nearly $67,000 in a scheme to exploit his official position so […]
Iowa Supreme Court says juveniles can’t be sentenced to life in prison without parole for murder
The Iowa Supreme Court ruled Friday that juveniles convicted of first-degree murder cannot be sentenced to life in prison without parole, arguing that such punishments are “speculative” and don’t properly consider whether a juvenile prisoner can be rehabilitated. This ruling makes Iowa the latest in a growing number of states to back away from the practice. In a […]
Remembering Hiroshima: ‘Stop working. We lost the war.’
On May 27, Barack Obama became the first sitting president to visit Hiroshima, where tens of thousands of Japanese people lost their lives when the United States dropped the first atomic bomb in 1945. In a city 40 miles northeast of Tokyo, my mother was a young patriotic teenager on the verge of a life […]
Louisiana’s ‘Blue Lives Matter’ bill just became law
Louisana Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) signed the “Blue Lives Matter” bill into law Thursday, making the state the first in the nation where public safety workers are considered a protected class under hate-crime law. In many states, hate crime laws call for additional penalties for those convicted of crimes who targeted victims on the basis […]
Mississippi wants to be the 12th state to sue the Obama administration over bathroom guidance
A day after 11 states filed a lawsuit against the Obama administration over bathroom guidance for transgender students, a 12th state says it wants to get involved. Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant (R) said in a statement Thursday that his office had already spoken with Ken Paxton, the Texas attorney general, who is leading the suit. “I […]
Connecticut Supreme Court upholds decision banning death penalty for remaining death-row inmates
The Connecticut Supreme Court on Thursday again said that it would be unconstitutional to execute inmates on the state’s death row, upholding a decision from the same court last year effectively banning the death penalty in the state. In a decision in August, the state’s justices ruled that Connecticut could not execute death-row inmates for crimes committed before the […]
One Texan’s solution to the transgender bathroom battle: ‘All-gender urinals’
There are few national issues as bitterly divisive as the use of public restrooms by transgender people. On one side are those who believe people who identify with a gender that doesn’t correspond with their sex at birth should be free to use the restroom of their choice and see the question as an obvious […]
‘Get real’: Detroit’s tough response to an ‘epidemic’ of accidental child shootings
Mariah Davis found the gun under her grandmother’s pillow. It was loaded — and lethal: The 5-year-old fatally shot herself in the neck with the firearm earlier this month, authorities in Detroit said. #BREAKING PER FAMILY: 5 year old Mariah Davis killed after accidentally shooting herself with grandparents gun pic.twitter.com/tzl5TYgvM0 — Lauren Podell (@Local4Lauren) May […]
Eleven states sue Obama administration over bathroom directive
Eleven states and state officials filed a lawsuit Wednesday challenging the Obama administration over federal guidance directing schools to allow transgender students to use restrooms and other facilities that match their gender identities. The federal lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, states that this guidance “has no basis in […]
Here are the most critical parts of the State Department inspector general report on Clinton’s email use
The State Department’s independent watchdog released an 83-page report Wednesday to lawmakers concluding that Hillary Clinton’s email practices did not comply with department policies. Below are some of the most revealing parts of the findings: 1. The report concludes that Clinton’s use of a personal email account was “not an appropriate method.” This knocks down a […]
Portland police chief placed on leave after being accused of inadvertently shooting friend, lying about it
The chief of police in Portland, Ore., was placed on leave Tuesday amid investigations into whether he inadvertently shot a friend during a vacation last month and covered it up. Mayor Charlie Hales said he had placed Larry O’Dea, the police chief, on administrative leave while the shooting incident is investigated by multiple agencies. “We […]
Justice Department will seek death penalty for accused Charleston church gunman Dylann Roof
Federal prosecutors will seek the death sentence for Dylann Roof, the man accused of killing nine parishioners in a Charleston, S.C., church last year. “Following the department’s rigorous review process to thoroughly consider all relevant factual and legal issues, I have determined that the Justice Department will seek the death penalty,” Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch […]
Two FBI agents shot while serving warrant near Chicago
Two FBI agents were shot and injured while serving a warrant Tuesday morning outside Chicago, and the suspected shooter was later found dead inside the home, according to authorities. The agents suffered wounds that were not considered life-threatening, FBI spokesman Garrett Croon said. They were serving an arrest warrant in Park Forest, Ill., a small village about 35 […]
Bill Cosby ordered to stand trial in felony sex-assault case
The ruling by a judge in Pennsylvania came after Cosby’s attorneys argued that a deposition he gave in a separate matter could not be used as evidence against him. Dozens of women have accused Cosby of sexual assault, but the aggravated indecent assault charge – stemming from an incident more than a decade ago involving […]
Planned Parenthood center in Florida evacuated, several people sickened by cleaning supplies
A Planned Parenthood center in Sarasota, Fla., was evacuated Monday after cleaning chemicals sickened several people in the facility, police said. Seven people were being treated at an area hospital for respiratory symptoms, officials said, but none have life-threatening injuries. Authorities initially evacuated more than three dozen people inside the facility on Monday morning because of what police […]
‘It’s just not fair’: Massachusetts police officer killed, suspected attacker fatally shot after day-long manhunt
A police officer in Massachusetts was fatally shot over the weekend, sparking a day-long manhunt that ended with the suspected attacker dying in a shootout with police. During this confrontation, authorities say Jorge A. Zambrano, 35, who is accused of shooting Officer Ronald Tarentino Jr., also shot and wounded a Massachusetts state trooper. The trooper, who has not […]
‘My sister shot herself’: 5-year-old dies playing with father’s unsecured handgun
They had a day of family fun ahead of them. Eric Moore, a father of three from LaPlace, La., was planning to take his kids out to eat before heading to the movie “Angry Birds.” Before they left the house, police said, Moore jumped in the shower. “The father said he was taking a shower when […]
This state is about to become the first where targeting police is a hate crime
In many states, extra punishment is meted out to those who commit crimes against others because of their race or religion. Such hate-crime laws elevate the heinousness of crimes in which people are targeted because of their identity, their belonging to a group. While hate-crime laws often refer to ethnicity or disability or gender, Louisiana […]
Oklahoma governor vetoes bill that would make it a felony to perform abortions
Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin vetoed a controversial bill Friday that would have made it a felony for doctors to perform abortions, saying she felt the bill was too vague and unable to withstand a legal challenge. Fallin’s decision came a day after lawmakers in the state approved the unprecedented bill, well before a deadline for her to […]
‘An act of barbarism’: Two charged in massacre of six family members in Chicago
The bodies were scattered throughout the house. There was Alexis Cruz, 10 years old, who was found in the basement, the Chicago Tribune reported. Then there was 13-year-old Leonardo Cruz, whose body was located in the living room, according to the Tribune. And 58-year-old Rosaura Martinez. And Noe Martinez Sr., 62, husband to Rosaura. And 38-year-old Noe Martinez Jr. And […]
Oklahoma lethal injection process muddled by ‘inexcusable failure,’ grand jury finds
A grand jury on Thursday sharply criticized state officials charged with carrying out executions in Oklahoma, describing them as responsible for a litany of failures and avoidable errors. The grand jury’s 106-page report, released Thursday, paints these officials as careless and, in some cases, reckless. The missteps described by the grand jury include a pharmacist ordering the wrong drug for executions, multiple state employees failing to notice […]
San Francisco police chief ousted after latest fatal shooting, mayor says
San Francisco Mayor Edwin M. Lee said Thursday that he had removed the chief of his city’s embattled police department, a decision that came hours after a police officer in the city fatally shot a woman. The move came as the city’s police force is facing criticism over fatal shootings as well as a controversy involving […]
Ferguson-related charges dropped against Washington Post and Huffington Post reporters
Missouri’s St. Louis County has agreed to drop charges against a pair of reporters who were arrested in 2014 while covering protests in Ferguson, Mo., concluding a nearly two-year-long drama that unfolded in the aftermath of the fatal police shooting of Michael Brown. Wesley Lowery of The Washington Post and Ryan Reilly of the Huffington […]
Longtime ‘60 Minutes’ correspondent Morley Safer dies at 84
Safer had retired this past week after more than half a century at CBS. CBS News confirmed his death. This is a developing story. It will be updated.
Oklahoma legislature passes bill making it a felony to perform abortions
Lawmakers in Oklahoma approved a bill Thursday that would make it a felony for anyone to perform an abortion and revoke the medical licenses of any physician who assists in such a procedure. This sweeping measure was sent to Gov. Mary Fallin (R) for her signature. Fallin’s office did not immediately respond to a request Thursday about whether […]
Robbery suspect threatened Uber driver with HIV injection, police say
The man got into the unlocked car and sat in the front passenger seat. He had a syringe, and he used it to threaten the driver, telling him to drive away — or “he would inject him … with HIV,” according to a probable cause affidavit from the Boca Raton Police Department. The victim, an […]
Police arrest twin brothers for setting off IEDs in Pennsylvania during college break
They started small. On Dec. 20, twin brothers Caleb and Daniel Tate exploded a mailbox in Pennsylvania’s Chester County, authorities say. Two days later, they set off an improvised explosive device in the woods nearby. Then, they moved on to bigger targets. On Dec. 30, the Tates detonated a pipe bomb in an Amish phone shed, […]
‘He has gun on my kids’: Babysitter accused of taking two children to bank robbery
Police in northern Colorado say a babysitter has been charged after she brought two children with her to rob a bank. Weld County sheriff deputies said Rachel Einspahr, 28, went through a bank drive-thru Friday afternoon in Severance, a tiny town near Fort Collins, and sent a note up the vacuum tube. The note said that there was a man […]
With ex-officer facing murder and civil rights charges, feds to review North Charleston police department
Justice Department officials on Tuesday announced they will conduct a broad review of the practices and policies at the North Charleston Police Department, where a former officer is facing murder and civil rights charges for fatally shooting an unarmed black man who was fleeing during a traffic stop. The review will be conducted by the […]
Former St. Louis police officer charged with murder in fatal 2011 shooting of black man
As Jason Stockley and another officer pursued Anthony Lamar Smith through the streets of St. Louis, their police SUV reached speeds of more than 80 miles per hour, according to a probable cause statement. During that December 2011 chase, Stockley was caught saying “going to kill this [expletive], don’t you know it,” according to the court document, which also claims that Stockley […]
More than 30 states offer online voting, but experts warn it isn’t secure
The popularity of voting online is growing and will be in place for the presidential election in more than 30 states, primarily for voters living overseas or serving in the military. But security experts and some senior Obama administration officials fear there is not enough protection for any ballots transmitted over the Internet. They are […]
Judge to puppy killer: ‘Would I like to put you in a Dumpster? Oh, yeah. I would love to.’
Municipal Court Judge Michael Cicconetti is known for doling out creative — and occasionally humiliating — punishments to the offenders who set foot in his courtroom in Painesville, Ohio. If it had been up to Cicconetti, Michael Sutton would have been the latest recipient of his wrath. “I know what a lot of people would […]
Final suspect arrested in the execution-style killing of a 9-year-old-in Chicago
During a routine traffic stop Saturday, authorities in central Illinois arrested the last of three suspects charged in the execution-style killing of a 9-year-old boy in Chicago. Kevin Edwards, 23, was wanted in the November 2015 killing of Tyshawn Lee, who is believed to have been targeted as part of an ongoing gang dispute. Officials have […]
‘You know there’s a baby on your porch?’ Child left in stolen car discovered outside Detroit home
Dakota Grimes’s father left his young daughter in the running car, while he went into a Detroit store early Monday morning, police said. When he returned, the white Chevrolet Impala was gone, along with the 3-month-old baby inside it. Hours later, Gary Zielinski showed up at the home of Ray Harper, according to the Detroit News. And as Zielinski approached his friend’s house, he nearly tripped over something, the […]
‘We have a problem.’ Homicides are up again this year in more than two dozen major U.S. cities.
The number of homicides increased in the first months of 2016 in more than two dozen major U.S. cities, going up in places that also saw rising violence last year, according to statistics released Friday. The increases were small in some areas, and many big cities also had declines. But the numbers were particularly grim for a handful […]
‘Take it off! This is America!’: Man who yanked hijab pleads guilty to religious obstruction
Near the end of his Southwest Airlines flight from Chicago to Albuquerque in December, Gill Parker Payne decided he had to take action. Seated a few rows in front of him was a woman he had never met before. She was wearing a religious headscarf, known as a hijab, which Payne recognized as a Muslim practice. He stood up, walked down […]
Pfizer says it is tightening restrictions on its drugs to keep them from being used in lethal injections
Pfizer, one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world, said Friday that it was tightening restrictions on its drugs to ensure that they are not used in lethal injections, a move that further clamps down on the chemicals states can obtain for executions. While Pfizer had previously said that it had restrictions in place to keep […]
Felon charged with raping woman in park bathroom, 12 hours after he was released from jail
Edgar Alexander Lobos left jail just after midnight on Monday. Twelve hours later, police said, he was in an East Los Angeles park where he put a gun to a woman’s head, forced her into a bathroom and raped her. Lobos, 27, was arrested the following day on suspicion of kidnapping for the purpose of rape. On […]
White House won’t keep funds from North Carolina before court battle over transgender rights is resolved
The Obama administration will not halt federal funding to North Carolina — at least until the looming court battle over the state’s “bathroom bill” is finished, a White House spokesman said Thursday. Press Secretary Josh Earnest told reporters at a regular media briefing that the Justice Department’s decision to sue over the law — which […]
Lawyer: Dennis Hastert won’t appeal conviction and sentence
Former House speaker Dennis Hastert will not appeal his conviction and 15-month sentence, his attorney said Thursday. Hastert, 74, an Illinois Republican who worked as a high school history teacher and wrestling coach before he got into politics, pleaded guilty last year to withdrawing money in amounts meant to dodge federal reporting requirements — itself […]
Proposal to Congress would require police to get de-escalation training, create national use of force standard
Legislation set to be introduced to Congress on Thursday would create a new national standard for when police officers can use deadly force and require police academies to teach officers de-escalation techniques — the latest in a series of proposals to be introduced during the current national conversation on police reform. The bill, called the Preventing […]
Trayvon Martin family attorney: George Zimmerman gun auction ‘insulting and disrespectful’
An attorney for the family of Travyon Martin said Thursday that he and the Martin family are disgusted by the announcement by George Zimmerman that he plans to auction off the gun that he used to kill the 17-year-old in 2012. Zimmerman, who was tried and acquitted of second-degree murder for shooting and killing Martin, […]
Federal appeals court delays Alabama inmate’s lethal injection hours before scheduled execution
Hours before an Alabama inmate was set to die by lethal injection, a federal appeals court on Thursday agreed to delay the execution to let authorities consider arguments about his competency. Vernon Madison was found guilty and sentenced to death for the death of Julius Schulte, a police officer in Mobile, Ala., in 1985. According to police, […]
Former New York State Senate majority leader sentenced to five years in federal prison
The once-powerful Republican majority leader of the New York State Senate was sentenced Thursday to five years in federal prison for pressuring companies that relied heavily on government contracts to give his son nominal but lucrative jobs, authorities said. Dean Skelos, 68, and his 33-year-old son, Adam, were convicted last year of bribery, extortion and […]
Video shows officers punching driver after hour-long police chase through Massachusetts, New Hampshire
An hour-long police chase that began in Massachusetts and stretched into New Hampshire on Wednesday ended with a sudden burst of violence, as video footage showing the conclusion of the pursuit showed at least two officers repeatedly punching the driver as he got out of the car. The brief and violent incident was captured on camera […]
5-year-old girl fatally shoots herself with gun found under grandmother’s pillow
A 5-year-old girl was playing with her baby brother and 3-year-old neighbor early Wednesday when she found a gun, police said. The revolver had been tucked under her grandmother’s pillow in the Detroit home. It was loaded. And while in the hands of the little girl, the weapon went off, hitting her in the neck and killing her, […]
Judge says accused Planned Parenthood gunman not competent to stand trial
A judge in Colorado said Wednesday that the man accused of a bloody rampage at a Planned Parenthood clinic last year is not mentally competent to stand trial. The decision from Judge Gilbert Martinez of Colorado’s Fourth Judicial District will send Robert Lewis Dear Jr. to the Colorado Mental Health Institute at Pueblo for treatment and effectively puts the criminal case against him […]
Deadly Texas fertilizer plant fire in 2013 was intentionally set, ATF says
The deadly fire that preceded a massive 2013 explosion at a fertilizer plant in West, Tex., killing more than a dozen people and injuring hundreds, was intentionally set, federal authorities said Wednesday. Officials from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Texas State Fire Marshal’s office announced this finding at a news conference Wednesday, more […]
What happened when a room full of Texas parents took on transgender bathrooms
FORT WORTH — On Tuesday, the first scorching day of a Texas spring, hundreds stood in line in the late afternoon sun, waiting to enter the meeting hall of the Fort Worth School Board. The impassioned throng was the largest in more than three decades of school board meetings here, officials said. The issue: school […]
Former South Carolina police officer who fatally shot Walter Scott indicted on federal civil rights violation
The former South Carolina police officer who shot and killed Walter Scott as he fled a traffic stop last year was indicted by a federal grand jury that charged him with a civil rights violation. In the indictment filed Tuesday, the grand jury accuses Michael Slager, a former North Charleston police officer, of depriving Scott of […]
Four people stabbed at mall, home in Mass.; attacker shot by off-duty law enforcement officer
Four people were stabbed Tuesday in separate but related attacks at a shopping mall and a home in Massachusetts, police said. The stabbings occurred Tuesday in Taunton, a city about 40 miles south of Boston. Two people were stabbed at a home, and two others at the Silver City Galleria Mall, according to Trooper Paul […]
For the two women battling North Carolina law, prejudice is a personal issue
On Monday, there was a remarkable moment at the Department of Justice: two women of color who had personally experienced the pain of prejudice walked to the podium to announce the Justice Department’s discrimination lawsuit against the state of North Carolina. The two top Justice Department officials – one the daughter of Indian immigrants and the […]
Why a South Carolina man got bail after he shot, buried and ‘slow-cooked’ two people
Early in the morning on March 5, James Edward Loftis found himself facing two men in his South Carolina home. The men were demanding cab fare for the ride Loftis had just received. “I’ll get your money,” he told them, according to his own account given to police and recorded in an arrest warrant soon after. Instead, the warrant said, Loftis retrieved a […]
‘He was a little speechless’: Escaped inmate captured after more than 40 years on the lam
Almost 50 years ago, Robert Stackowitz slipped away from a prison work camp in Georgia, according to the state’s Department of Corrections. He escaped on Aug. 22, 1968, while serving a 17-year sentence for robbery by force, a crime for which he was convicted in April 1966. Decades later, though, authorities finally tracked him to a home in Sherman, Conn. Now, nearly 48 […]
Fort Worth superintendent rejects call to resign over transgender bathroom guidelines
The Fort Worth school superintendent said Tuesday he will not heed Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s request for his resignation over school district guidelines that allow transgender students to use the bathroom that aligns with their gender identity, according to a report from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Patrick on Monday called for Superintendent Kent Scribner to resign over a newly adopted policy that […]
Colorado court set to consider accused Planned Parenthood gunman’s competency again
The man accused of killing three people during a rampage at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado last year is returning to court Tuesday for another hearing to determine if he is competent to stand trial. This comes nearly two weeks after a day-long hearing ended with no official determination about whether Robert Lewis Dear […]
Charlotte grapples with fallout over North Carolina ‘bathroom law’
CHARLOTTE — Shahrzad McNaughton is proud to be from North Carolina — the first tattoo she ever got was an interpretation of this city’s crown logo surrounded by dogwood branches, representing the state tree. But ever since North Carolina passed a law that rolled back rights for gay, lesbian and transgender people, she has soured […]
‘I didn’t even get to see him’: Man killed in New Orleans during wedding-planning trip with fiancee
A photo posted by De Smet Jesuit High School (@desmetjesuiths) on May 9, 2016 at 11:00am PDT Thomas Rolfes went to New Orleans to plan his wedding. His fiancee, who arrived on a separate flight, stayed in while Rolfes went out on the town Friday to meet up with friends. But the Missouri native never […]
ACLU files lawsuit challenging Mississippi law letting businesses refuse to serve gay people
The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Mississippi filed a lawsuit Monday on behalf of a gay couple challenging a Mississippi bill that lets certain businesses refuse to serve gay couples based on religious objections. This lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi calls the bill “unconstitutional on its […]
North Carolina files lawsuit against the federal government over ‘bathroom bill’
North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory filed a lawsuit Monday against the U.S. Department of Justice, asking a federal court to rule that its so-called “bathroom law” is not discriminatory. In his complaint, McCrory (R) accused the federal government of “baseless and blatant overreach.” The lawsuit came hours before a deadline the Justice Department set for McCrory to say that he […]
‘A wall of fire and heat’: Maine fire chief arrested for starting 42-acre blaze
It took more than 100 firefighters to fight back the flames that consumed more than 40 acres of grass and marsh in Maine last month. Now officials say it was one of their own who started it. Around 2 a.m. Saturday, authorities took Old Orchard Beach Fire Chief Ricky Plummer into custody on an arson charge in connection to the April 15 […]
Alabama’s top judge is suspended, and may lose job, after blocking gay marriage
Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore already lost his job once. Now he’s at risk of losing it again. A state commission on Friday suspended Moore from the bench, alleging that the top-ranking state judicial official disregarded “clear law” this year when he instructed state judges to ignore the landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling last summer that established nationwide same-sex marriage rights. “Chief Justice Moore […]
Chicago residents think kids growing up there are as likely to be violent-crime victims as college graduates
In Chicago, a city confronting a staggering increase in homicides and patrolled by an embattled police department, 3 out of 4 four residents — and a higher share of black residents — say they are worried that things are heading in the wrong direction. People are also displeased with Mayor Rahm Emanuel (D) and uneasy with the job being […]
Florida weighs whether to overturn death sentences for nearly 400 inmates
Florida has more death row inmates than nearly any other state in the country, and it remains a bastion of capital punishment as fewer executions are carried out nationwide. But after a frantic few months that saw Florida’s system of imposing death sentences struck down and rewritten, it remains an open question what will happen to the hundreds […]
President Obama just commuted the sentences of 58 people. Here are their names.
President Obama commuted the sentences of 58 inmates Thursday as part of his ongoing initiative to release federal prisoners who have received severe mandatory sentences for non-violent drug offenses. With this latest round of commutations, Obama has granted clemency to a total 306 inmates, 110 of whom were serving life sentences. Obama has said he […]
What’s next for North Carolina’s ‘bathroom bill’ as the Justice Department’s deadline looms
Facing a tight deadline from the Justice Department to abandon their state’s controversial “bathroom bill,” leaders in North Carolina said Thursday that they were continuing to review their options in what seems to be another dispute over transgender rights that is headed for a courtroom showdown. A day after telling Gov. Pat McCrory (R) that […]
Search for escaped inmate, a convicted baby killer, continues in New Jersey
The search continued Thursday for an escaped New Jersey inmate who had previously served time for the death of a 10-month-old girl. Authorities discovered on Tuesday morning that Arthur Buckel was missing from a minimum-security unit of Bayside State Prison, known as Ancora, Syed Hassan, a spokesman for the New Jersey Department of Corrections, told The Post. Authorities are still investigating how Buckel escaped, Hassan said. He was just weeks […]
L.A.’s ‘Grim Sleeper’ convicted of 10 murders in decades-long killing spree
A Los Angeles jury on Thursday convicted the man accused in the “Grim Sleeper” serial killings that began decades ago and left at least nine women and a teenager dead. Lonnie Franklin Jr., 63, who pleaded not guilty to 10 counts of murder and one count of attempted murder, could face the death penalty, the Associated Press […]
Chicago prosecutor withdraws from Laquan McDonald shooting case, asks for special prosecutor
In a surprising move, the prosecutor who announced murder charges against the Chicago police officer who fatally shot Laquan McDonald said Thursday that she would withdraw from the case. Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez, who lost her reelection bid earlier this year in the Democratic primary, said she was asking the court to appoint a special prosecutor in […]
‘Active shooter’ was actually a man protesting Target’s transgender bathroom policy, police say
On Monday afternoon, police in Bradley, Ill., responded to a Target store after dispatchers received a call about an active shooter. A man was taken into custody outside the store after what a local newspaper, the Daily Journal, called a “dramatic, full court press by dozens of police officers.” But the man wasn’t armed, and there wasn’t any indication that he […]
Alabama city recalls ‘bathroom bill’ that would have punished violations with up to six months in jail
A week after a small city in Alabama passed its own bathroom ordinance that threatened violators with up to six months in jail, officials there backed away from the measure and recalled it during a meeting Wednesday. While debates over “bathroom bills” restricting who can use public restrooms have cropped up across the country, spurred on by […]
Yes, hospitals do abortions. This Washington doctor says her hospital forces her to keep it quiet.
Of all the medical services carried out at the nation’s hospitals, one procedure is unlikely to end up in many glossy brochures: abortion. About 4 percent of the nation’s pregnancy terminations take place in hospitals, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive rights think tank, and hospitals comprise more than a third of the nation’s abortion […]
In massive bust, feds nab police officer who they say doubled as a gang member
Federal prosecutors in Tennessee and Georgia on Tuesday unsealed charges against dozens of members of the Gangster Disciples — an exceptionally well-organized criminal organization whose ranks allegedly included a local police officer. Vancito Gumbs, a DeKalb County, Ga., officer, admitted he had killed people as a “hit man” for the gang, and he also once […]
‘Disgruntled’ ex-employee kills co-worker, himself at Houston-area business after being fired
A man who was fired from his job on Wednesday returned to his office outside Houston and killed a former co-worker before taking his own life, police said. Authorities had been called to an office in the vicinity of Katy, Tex., after receiving reports of an active shooter at a facility near multiple school buildings. When they went […]
Florida has nearly 400 death-row inmates. Will the state overturn all of their death sentences?
Florida has hundreds of inmates on its death row and is among the states most persistent with capital punishment. But a group of former Florida Supreme Court justices, elected officials, prosecutors and a federal judge said this week that the state needs to overturn every one of those death sentences and replace them with life in […]
Ex-FBI agent admits to stealing thousands of dollars to buy cars, cosmetic surgery
A former FBI special agent pleaded guilty this week to stealing more than $100,000 that was initially seized during investigations — money that he admitted was used to buy cars and cosmetic surgery. Scott M. Bowman, of Moreno Valley, Calif., pleaded guilty Monday to a handful of charges, including obstruction of justice and falsification of records, the Department […]
Former New York Assembly speaker sentenced to 12 years in prison in corruption case
Former New York State Assembly speaker Sheldon Silver was sentenced Tuesday to 12 years in prison in a federal corruption case that prosecutors said “struck at the core of democratic governance” and polluted the institution where he wielded immense power. Silver, 72, was convicted last year of taking millions of dollars in bribes and kickbacks […]
Supreme Court Justice Breyer: California embodies the death penalty’s ‘fundamental defects’
California is not the first state that springs to mind when considering the country’s death penalty, perhaps owing to how infrequently inmates there are executed. The last execution in California took place in 2006, when the state executed 76-year-old Clarence Ray Allen for three counts of first-degree murder. Even before the current decade-long hiatus — prompted by concerns over […]
‘I’m ready bro!’: Florida man charged with plotting to blow up a Miami-area synagogue
A Florida man was arrested last week for intending to use “a weapon of mass destruction” at a synagogue near Miami, according to federal authorities. The FBI says the man never possessed an actual explosive weapon, but instead got an inert device from a bureau employee working undercover after a weeks-long probe. Officials said that they began investigating James Gonzalo […]
‘Now it’s your hands that are tied’: Woman uses courtroom to confront the man who raped her
From the moment James Johnson encountered his victim carrying groceries outside her New Orleans home, he tried to take control. It started, police said, when he asked her for directions, catching the woman off guard so he could force his way inside, according to the Times-Picayune. Once in the woman’s home, he took what little […]
Senior L.A. county sheriff’s official resigns over ‘deeply troubling’ emails making fun of Mexicans, Muslims and others
A senior official with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department resigned Sunday after a series of emails he sent mocking Muslims, Mexicans, black people and women during a previous job were released publicly. Sheriff Jim McDonnell said he had accepted the resignation of Tom Angel, the department’s chief of staff, after learning that Angel “shared inappropriate and […]
Six children orphaned after both parents die 24 hours apart
When Jennifer Norsworthy was unexpectedly killed by a blood clot in the early morning on April 22, her family was devastated. She was 40 years old, and she left behind six children and one devoted, grief-stricken husband, according to CBS affiliate WHNT. “Toby loved Jennifer,” Ricky Self, an associate pastor at the couple’s church, told […]
‘He started crying like a little baby’: 11-year-old brags about shooting suspected home invader
Chris Gaither was home alone “petting the dogs” on Wednesday morning when he heard a noise upstairs. The 11-year-old boy from Talladega, Ala., told NBC affiliate WVTM-TV that he was scared, so he grabbed a knife and steadied himself. Chris said that a man appeared on the stairwell, but when confronted, he ran back up upstairs. When […]
Florida officer fired and arrested after video shows him beating handcuffed woman
Her kicks seem to hardly connect. But his punches certainly do. The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office in Florida said it fired and arrested one of its own this week after the officer repeatedly struck a handcuffed woman in a jail, an incident authorities caught on film. Probationary patrol officer Akinyemi Borisade, 26, had been with the sheriff’s office for just over a year when the […]
‘Brutal, shocking and cruel’: Woman gets 100 years for cutting fetus from another woman’s womb
More than a year after she was sliced open, robbed of her unborn daughter, Aurora, and left for dead, Michelle Wilkins is getting justice. A Colorado judge on Friday sentenced her attacker to 100 years in prison. In issuing the ruling, Boulder County District Court Judge Maria Berkenkotter called the sentence justified, citing the “brutal, shocking and cruel” […]
Friend of accused Charleston church shooter pleads guilty
A friend of the man accused of killing nine black church members in a mass shooting in Charleston, S.C., pleaded guilty in federal court Friday to lying to the FBI and concealing his knowledge of the crimes, authorities said. Joey Carlton Meek, 21, of Lexington, S.C., faces up to eight years in prison for the […]
Former Alabama governor Don Siegelman sent to solitary confinement
Former Alabama governor Don E. Siegelman was sent to solitary confinement this week at the Louisiana facility in which he is imprisoned on political corruption charges, according to his son Joseph Siegelman. Siegelman, 70, was quoted extensively in a Washington Post article this week on former Virginia governor Robert F. McDonnell, whose 2014 conviction on public […]
Alabama’s top judge blames ‘atheists, homosexuals and transgender’ people for legal complaint
Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore, famous for his embrace of religion in the courtroom, says he’s under attack, again. Moore this week accused the civil rights organization the Southern Poverty Law Center and “atheists, homosexuals and transgender individuals,” of filing politically motivated charges that he violated judicial ethics, AL.com reports. “For months, I’ve sat back while complaint after complaint has been filed by persons […]
Grandmother accused of accidentally bottle-feeding methadone to 14-month-old boy
A grandmother is facing child abuse charges after she accidentally bottle-fed methadone to her 14-month-old grandson, nearly killing him, authorities in Nebraska said. Rose Rej, 48, who was visiting relatives in Lincoln, Neb., was storing liquid methadone in baby bottles inside the apartment, police told The Washington Post. When the baby started to cry in the early hours Tuesday morning, police […]
Loyal to a ‘monster’: Whitey Bulger’s girlfriend chooses prison over cooperation with feds
How exactly gangster James “Whitey” Bulger managed to elude law enforcement during his 16 years on the run is a question investigators are still trying to answer. Authorities believe Bulger’s longtime girlfriend, Catherine Greig, may be able to help them piece that answer together. But she has refused to cooperate, remaining unflinchingly loyal to the […]
FBI arrests brother of San Bernardino attacker and two other relatives, charges them with marriage fraud
Authorities in California on Thursday arrested three people tied to one of the San Bernardino attackers on charges of marriage fraud, conspiracy and lying under oath. None of these charges directly relates to the terrorist attack last year, but the FBI says these counts stemmed from the investigation into the Dec. 2 shooting carried out by Syed Rizwan Farook […]
Competency hearing set for accused Planned Parenthood gunman
A competency hearing on Thursday could help determine if the man accused of killing three people and injuring nine others during a shooting rampage at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs last year will stand trial. This hearing is set to occur just weeks after Colorado court authorities released documents stating that Robert Lewis Dear Jr., 57, […]
‘Don’t do it!’: Dramatic video shows officer tackling suicidal man
Sgt. Greg Bogert got the dispatch call around 11:30 a.m. Multiple people had reported seeing a man walking in and out of traffic on a busy highway in New Jersey. When Bogert arrived at the tense scene Monday, he saw a man standing by a car, “crying and in obvious distress,” according to a news […]
An Alabama city now says people who violate its bathroom ordinance could face jail time
In recent weeks, fights have raged in North Carolina and beyond over “bathroom bills” mandating that people use restrooms matching the gender on their birth certificates. One small city in Alabama just jumped into the fray and, in what may be a first, added what may be a new feature to its bathroom measure: jail time. […]
‘The federal government has failed’: Kansas Gov. Brownback backs out of refugee program
For months, Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback (R) has had questions about the federal government’s refugee resettlement program. And, for months, he says he has failed to get satisfactory answers. So, this week, he announced that he’s pulling out of the program altogether. “Because the federal government has failed to provide adequate assurances regarding refugees it is settling in Kansas, […]
Charles Manson says he has undiscovered victims. Police want to know if this teenager is one of them.
For nearly half a century, she has been known simply as “Jane Doe No. 59.” Her body was discovered by a birdwatcher Nov. 16, 1969, hidden in tangled brush down an embankment off Mulholland Drive in Los Angeles. A white woman in her early 20s, she was tall and slender with brown hair, green […]
Be the first to comment on "Perspective: Latest Reports from The Washington Posts ‘Post Nation’"