Reuters US Domestic News Summary

09/12/2016 19:51

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Mosque where Florida nightclub shooter worshiped set on fire

The Florida mosque where Omar Mateen, who committed the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history, prayed was badly damaged on Monday in an arson attack, investigators said. Mateen was killed by law enforcement officials after killing 49 people and wounding 53 others in a gay nightclub in Orlando in June.

Miss Arkansas crowned Miss America 2017 in pageant's 96th year

Savvy Shields, a college student from Arkansas, won the annual Miss America pageant on Sunday after impressing judges with a jazz dance routine and her answer to a question about her take on presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Shields, a native of Fayetteville and student at the University of Arkansas, was one of seven finalists given 20 seconds to answer highly topical questions on some controversial issues, such as immigration and Clinton rival, Donald Trump.

Grand jury to probe possible police cover-up in Chicago teen's death

A grand jury will hear evidence of whether Chicago police officers lied to justify the 2014 shooting death of a black teenager by a white officer, local media reported on Monday. Patricia Brown Holmes, a special prosecutor appointed by Cook County Judge LeRoy Martin Jr. in July, motioned for a grand jury on Monday after looking at preliminary information. She did this so that "people would know there was fairness" in the process, she told Reuters.

West Virginia man avoids prison in hoax to blow up Statue of Liberty

A West Virginia man was sentenced on Monday to time served after he pleaded guilty to making a hoax threat to blow up the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor last year that led to the evacuation of 3,200 people. Jason Smith, 43, was spared prison but sentenced to three years supervised release by U.S. District Judge Vernon Broderick in Manhattan, who cited among other reasons Smith's need for mental health treatment.

Monday Night Football shines spotlight on national anthem protests

He may be listed as backup quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers lineup, but all eyes will be on Colin Kaepernick when the national anthem plays for the team's first Monday night football game of the season, at home against the Los Angeles Rams. Kaepernick has ignited a National Football League controversy by refusing to stand during "The Star-Spangled Banner" at the start of the team's preseason games to protest what he has called racial injustice and police brutality.

Obama would veto bill allowing 9/11 families to sue Saudi Arabia

President Barack Obama would veto a bill passed by both houses of Congress that would allow survivors and families of victims of the Sept. 11 attacks to sue the government of Saudi Arabia for damages, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said on Monday. "It's not hard to imagine other countries using this law as an excuse to haul U.S. diplomats or U.S. service members or even U.S. companies into courts all around the world," Earnest told reporters in a daily briefing.

Up to $3.5 billion of airport bonds clear Chicago council committee

Chicago would sell up to $3.5 billion of revenue bonds this year for its O'Hare International Airport under proposals approved on Monday by the city council's finance committee. With no discussion and on a voice vote, the committee sent the bond measures to the full city council, which meets on Wednesday. The committee on Friday postponed voting after some aldermen raised concerns about low minority-owned firm participation in airport bond deals and construction contracts, according to local media reports.

Berkshire is accused in New York lawsuit of workers' compensation 'siphoning'

Berkshire Hathaway Inc has been sued by a New York bicycle courier company over an alleged illegal scheme to cheat employers buying workers' compensation policies. The complaint, filed late Friday by Breakaway Courier Systems, came as Berkshire's Applied Underwriters unit faces scrutiny over its workers' compensation policies, including some that have been banned by California, Vermont and Wisconsin.

Israeli charged in New York over alleged kidnapping plot

An Israeli citizen who serves as a divorce mediator within an Orthodox Jewish community in New York has been arrested and charged with conspiring to kidnap a man who had refused to grant his wife a religious divorce. Binyamin Gottlieb, 33, was arrested by the FBI at John F. Kennedy International Airport on Sunday as he prepared to board a Ukraine-bound flight, four days after charges were announced against an Israeli rabbi and another man over the same alleged scheme.

Islamic State-linked cases in U.S. number 110 since 2013: Justice Department

U.S. Assistant Attorney General John Carlin said on Monday that more than 110 people have been publicly charged in federal court since late 2013 on counts related to the Islamic State militant group that has overrun much of Syria and Iraq. Carlin said the U.S. Justice Department needs the American public to be more proactive about alerting federal authorities when they witness someone showing support for foreign terrorist organizations, such as Islamic State, in remarks to reporters at the U.S. Justice Department.

09/12/2016 19:51