Reuters US Domestic News Summary

08/14/2016 8:57

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Muslim cleric and associate shot to death on New York street

A Muslim cleric and an associate were fatally shot by a lone gunman on Saturday while walking together following afternoon prayers at a mosque in the New York City borough of Queens, authorities said. The gunman approached the men from behind and shot both in the head at close range at about 1:50 p.m. EDT on a blistering hot afternoon in the Ozone Park neighborhood, police said in a statement, adding that no arrests had been made.

U.S. Democrat Pelosi gets 'obscene and sick' calls after hack

U.S. House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi said on Saturday she has been flooded with "obscene and sick" calls and text messages after a hacker linked to Russia posted personal contact information online for her and hundreds of other Democratic lawmakers and aides. Pelosi sent a letter to colleagues warning them to take precautions and said she was changing her phone number after a hacker identified as "Guccifer 2.0" posted the personal cellphone numbers and email addresses on Friday.

Death toll in Virginia plane crash climbs to six

Six people, including three members of an Indiana family and a German exchange student, were killed on Friday when their small plane plowed into a line of trees after an aborted landing at a northern Virginia airport, authorities said on Saturday. The twin-engine aircraft, identified as a 1969-model Beech 95-B55, crashed at the edge of Shannon Airport outside Fredericksburg, about 55 miles southwest of Washington, D.C.

Reports of gunfire trigger pandemonium at North Carolina mall

Multiple reports of gunfire sent a crowded mall in Raleigh, North Carolina, into chaos on Saturday, and several people were injured trying to flee the shopping center, police said. The Crabtree Valley Mall was placed on lockdown in the early afternoon after several shoppers reported hearing gunfire and took shelter inside shops as police descended on the mall.

Violent protests erupt in Milwaukee after police kill armed suspect

Protesters fired gunshots, hurled bricks and set a gas station on fire in the U.S. mid-western city of Milwaukee on Saturday night, hours after a patrol officer shot and killed an armed suspect who took flight after a traffic stop, authorities said. The 23-year-old suspect, who had a lengthy arrest record, was carrying a stolen handgun loaded with 23 rounds of ammunition when police pulled over the vehicle for unspecified "suspicious activity," authorities said. A second suspect who fled from the vehicle was quickly taken into custody.

'Unprecedented' flooding slams U.S. Gulf Coast; at least three dead

Torrential rainfall along the U.S. Gulf Coast has caused "unprecedented" flooding in parts of Louisiana, Governor John Bel Edwards said on Saturday, while claiming at least three lives. The National Weather Service issued flood watches for parts of southeastern Texas through Sunday evening and extended its flash flood warning further west in Louisiana until Sunday morning, according to NWS meteorologist Andrew Tingler.

Sunoco Logistics sees no impact to Texas terminal ops

A fire on Friday night that injured seven workers had no significant impact on operations at Sunoco Logistics' giant crude oil terminal on the Texas Gulf Coast, a company spokesman said on Saturday. "This hasn't significantly impacted our operations," said Sunoco Logistics spokesman Jeffrey Shields by telephone.

Conviction overturned for case spotlighted in 'Making a Murderer'

A federal judge on Friday overturned the murder conviction of one of two Wisconsin men serving life sentences for the 2005 slaying of a freelance photographer in a case spotlighted in the popular Netflix television documentary "Making a Murderer." Magistrate Judge William Duffin ruled that the guilty verdict returned by a trial jury in 2007 against Brendan Dassey was based on a coerced confession he gave as a 16-year-old youth with a learning disability.

Death tally from Maryland blast rises to three, some still missing

A third body has been found in the rubble from an explosion and fire this week in the Washington suburb of Silver Spring, Maryland, and others remained missing as authorities continued to investigate on Saturday, according to police statements. An explosion and a fire ripped through an apartment complex in Silver Spring on Wednesday night. Police have not yet identified the three victims, Montgomery County Police Department said in a statement on their website posted Friday.

Liz Cheney's Wyoming campaign backed by big names, bigger money

Former Vice President Dick Cheney's eldest daughter, bouncing back from an aborted 2014 U.S. Senate bid, heads into a crowded primary race next week for Wyoming's lone seat in the House of Representatives buoyed by big-name Republicans and wealthy out-of-state donors. Liz Cheney, the apparent Republican front-runner, has commanded a level of fund-raising and A-list party support - including two former presidents and onetime Cabinet members - that is rare, if not unheard of, for a relative newcomer to Wyoming politics.

08/14/2016 8:57