Reuters US Domestic News Summary

09/22/2016 8:58

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

U.S. appeals court to hear arguments on Virginia's voter ID law

A U.S. appeals court on Thursday will hear Virginia Democrats' challenge to a 2013 Republican-backed state law requiring prospective voters to show approved photo identification before casting their ballots. The Virginia Democratic Party is asking the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Virginia, to overturn the law. A federal judge in May upheld the measure passed by the Republican-led legislature and signed by then-Governor Robert McDonnell, also a Republican.

White House seeks improved tribal relations as pipeline fight lingers

The leaders of hundreds of Native American tribes will meet with President Barack Obama at his eighth and final Tribal Nations Conference at the White House next week, while thousands of activists are encamped on the North Dakota prairie protesting a $3.7 billion oil pipeline. The conference, designed to improve the relationship between Washington and the tribes, offers the last chance for this administration to hear from tribal leaders about the shortcomings of the current consultation system, which has been a source of conflict over the pipeline and other projects.

Corruption charges unveiled in New York

Federal prosecutors on Thursday announced corruption charges against nine defendants, including a former close aide to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, over their roles in alleged bribery and fraud schemes tied to the awarding of large state contracts and other activities. The defendants include Joseph Percoco, a former executive deputy secretary to Cuomo, and Alain Kaloyeros, president of SUNY Polytechnic Institute, prosecutors said.

Trump praises 'stop-and-frisk' police tactic

U.S. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, in remarks at an African-American church on Wednesday, praised "stop-and-frisk" policing methods that have aroused protests and successful legal challenges, for singling out minorities. The anti-crime tactic in which police stop, question and search pedestrians for weapons or contraband, gained traction in New York City under Mayor Rudy Giuliani, now a top Trump supporter.

Charlotte, N.C. in state of emergency after second night of violence

Residents of Charlotte, North Carolina, woke to a state of emergency on Thursday with National Guard troops deployed on the streets after a second night of violent protests over the fatal police shooting of a black man. One person was on life support after being shot by a civilian late Wednesday as riot police used tear gas, rubber bullets and flash-bang grenades to try to disperse demonstrators who looted stores and threw rocks, bottles and fireworks.

Sacramento, California Mayor Johnson hit in the face with a pie: media

Sacramento, California Mayor Kevin Johnson was hit in the face with a pie during a fundraiser at a charter high school on Wednesday by a man who was then arrested for felony assault, local media reported. Johnson, the mayor of California's capital city, was talking to dinner guests when a man grabbed him by the arm and hit him the face with a pie that he brought with him, sources told the Sacramento Bee newspaper.

U.S. to boost Haitian deportations, but Haiti may not take them

The United States, responding to a surge in Haitian immigrants, will end special protections for them dating back to a 2010 earthquake that devastated that nation, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said on Thursday. In a move that could send many back to an impoverished and violent country, the United States would now take steps to deport newly arrived Haitian migrants who do not have a case for seeking asylum, according to Department of Homeland Security officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

California firefighter killed heading to Vandenberg Air Force Base blaze

A firefighter driving a water-tender truck was killed on Wednesday when the vehicle overturned en route to the scene of a 5-day-old blaze that has scorched a large swath of Vandenberg Air Force Base along the Southern California coast. The death of Ventura County Fire Department engineer Ryan Osler, 38, marked the second wildland firefighting fatality in California this year, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire).

Investigators try to determine if accused New York bomber had help

U.S. authorities on Wednesday were looking into whether an Afghan-born American citizen charged with carrying out bombings in New York and New Jersey acted alone or had help as the city's top federal public defender sought access to the suspect. Police in New York City said they had not yet been permitted by doctors to speak to Ahmad Khan Rahami, 28, who was arrested on Monday after being wounded in a gunfight with police in Linden, New Jersey.

Judge dismisses case against North Carolina's gay marriage opt-out law

A federal judge threw out a challenge to a North Carolina law that allows government officials to refuse to perform same-sex marriages if they cite religious objections, claiming the couples who brought the suit failed to establish they were harmed by the law. The six plaintiffs, who include gay couples, argued in the suit filed in U.S. District Court in Asheville that the legislation - Senate Bill 2 - allows magistrates and other officials performing marriages to put their personal beliefs before their sworn constitutional duty.

09/22/2016 8:58