Reuters US Domestic News Summary

09/01/2016 8:58

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Georgia grand jury charges white ex-policeman with murdering black man

A white former Atlanta police officer was indicted for murder and other charges by a grand jury on Wednesday in the shooting death of an unarmed black man in June, the former officer's attorney said. Criminal charges of aggravated assault, making a false statement and two counts of violating his oath of office were also brought against James Burns, attorney Drew Findling said by telephone.

Hurricane warning issued for parts of Florida; Madeline weakens off Hawaii

Forecasters and public officials urged Floridians to prepare for potentially catastrophic flooding and damaging winds as Tropical Storm Hermine was expected to become a hurricane by the time it reached Florida's northern Gulf Coast on Thursday. A hurricane warning was in effect for the Florida panhandle from the Suwannee River to Mexico Beach as the strengthening storm was expected to sweep across northern parts of the state and then northeast along the Atlantic Coast, the National Hurricane Center said in an advisory.

U.S. resumes scheduled passenger flights to Cuba after more than 50 years

The first scheduled commercial passenger flight from the United States to Cuba in more than half a century landed on Wednesday, opening another chapter in the Obama administration's efforts to improve ties and increase trade and travel with the former Cold War foe. A JetBlue Airways Corp passenger jet arrived from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, in the central Cuban city of Santa Clara. The route may be a commercial challenge, at least initially, but it is the first of a plethora of new flights by various U.S. airlines to destinations on the Communist-ruled island.

Two American climbers missing in northern Pakistan: Alpine Club

Two American climbers have gone missing in Pakistan while attempting to climb a mountain, and bad weather was preventing a rescue, the Alpine Club of Pakistan said on Thursday. The climbers, Kyle Dempster and Scott Adamson, were attempting to summit the 6,960-meter (22,835-feet) Ogre-II peak in the Karakoram mountain range but did not return when they were expected to, said Karrar Haidri, a spokesman for the Alpine Club.

Lawyers for Texas 'affluenza' teen seek his release from jail

Lawyers for the Texas "affluenza" teenager who killed four people while driving drunk are seeking to have him released from a two-year jail term, arguing the judge who sentenced him had no authority to place him behind bars. The attorneys for Ethan Couch claimed in a motion filed late on Tuesday that Tarrant County Judge Wayne Salvant should not have sentenced Couch because the case became a civil matter, and not a criminal one, when it was transferred to the judge from the juvenile system.

White nationalists use Twitter with 'relative impunity': report

White nationalists and self-identified Nazi sympathizers located mostly in the United States use Twitter with "relative impunity" and often have far more followers than militant Islamists, a study being released on Thursday found. Eighteen prominent white nationalist accounts examined in the study, including the American Nazi Party, have seen a sharp increase in Twitter followers to a total of more than 25,000, up from about 3,500 in 2012, according to the study by George Washington University's Program on Extremism that was seen by Reuters.

Obama visits Midway Atoll, a symbol for his climate, Asia legacy

President Barack Obama on Thursday is set to visit Midway Atoll, the remote coral reef that serves as a reminder of both modern global climate challenges and the dominance the United States has held in the Pacific since its World War Two victory there. The island wildlife refuge is described by those who have been there as a kind of "Garden of Eden" where the world's oldest-known albatross returns each year to nest and the electric blue ocean teems with fish.

Stanford sex assault case spurs get-tough rape proposals

Former Stanford University swimmer Brock Turner will be released on Friday after serving three months for sexually assaulting an unconscious woman near a fraternity party, a sentence that has ignited fierce debate over the way California defines and punishes rape. Turner's sentence to months in county jail instead of years in state prison stoked international outrage, leading California lawmakers to call for mandatory prison time for sex assaults involving unconscious victims, and expanding the state's definition of rape.

U.S. urges North Korea to pardon and release American prisoner

The United States on Wednesday urged North Korea to pardon and release on humanitarian grounds an American student serving a sentence of 15 years of hard labor. State Department spokesman John Kirby called for Otto Warmbier's pardon and release during a daily news briefing. Warmbier was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor in March for trying to steal an item with a propaganda slogan, according to North Korean media.

Ex-Air China worker charged by U.S. for smuggling for Chinese military

An ex-Air China Ltd employee was indicted on Wednesday for smuggling packages onto flights from New York to China on behalf of Chinese military personnel stationed at the country's U.N. mission, U.S. prosecutors said. Ying Lin, 46, was also accused in an indictment filed in federal court in Brooklyn of obstructing justice by helping a Chinese national the Federal Bureau of Investigation was investigating to flee the country last year.

09/01/2016 8:58