Reuters US Domestic News Summary

08/13/2016 19:51

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Muslim cleric, second man killed in New York shooting

A Muslim imam and a second man were fatally shot on Saturday while walking home from afternoon prayers at a mosque in the New York City borough of Queens, authorities said. The motive for the shooting was not immediately known and no evidence has been uncovered so far that the two men were targeted because of their faith, said Tiffany Phillips, a spokeswoman for the New York City Police Department. But police were not ruling out any possibility, she added.

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.

Ohio fugitives arrested after killing of New Mexico officer

Two men accused of aggravated murder in Ohio have been arrested in southern New Mexico, and one has been charged with shooting and killing a local police officer during a traffic stop, officials said on Saturday. Jesse Hanes, 38, faces one count of willful and deliberate first-degree murder for allegedly shooting a police officer on Friday during a traffic stop near a convenience store in the village of Hatch, New Mexico, said Kelly Jameson, a spokeswoman for the Doña Ana County Sheriff's Department.

Florida woman's hand almost bitten off by alligator

A woman who reached into the water to retrieve an empty soda can while visiting the Florida Everglades was attacked by an alligator that nearly bit her hand off, state wildlife officials said on Saturday. Kimberly Ann Sexton, 49, was airlifted to a local hospital following the incident on Friday evening and underwent immediate surgery, according to a report by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

North Carolina mall cleared after gunfire, no casualties reported - police

Gunshots were fired inside a crowded mall in Raleigh, North Carolina on Saturday afternoon and there were no immediate reports of injuries, police said. Police placed the Crabtree Valley shopping center on lockdown and officers escorted the remaining shoppers out of the mall, Raleigh Police Department dispatchers said.

'Unprecedented' flooding slams U.S. Gulf Coast; at least two 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 two lives across the region. The National Weather Service issued flood watches for parts of eastern Texas early on Saturday and extended its flash flood warning further west in Louisiana, according to its website.

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.

08/13/2016 19:51