Reuters US Domestic News Summary
Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.
N.Y. man admits planning Islamic State-inspired New Year's Eve attack
A New York man pleaded guilty on Thursday to planning a New Year's Eve attack last year inspired by Islamic State, the U.S. Department of Justice said, and faces up to 20 years in federal prison when he is sentenced in November. Emanuel Lutchman, 25, of Rochester, pleaded guilty to conspiring to provide material support to Islamic State.
Washington policeman charged with Islamic State aid ordered held
A Washington transit police officer charged with attempting to help the Islamic State militant group was ordered held pending trial, U.S. court documents showed on Thursday. The suspect, Nicholas Young, 36, of Fairfax, Virginia, was arrested this month in an FBI sting operation. He is the first U.S. police officer to face such charges involving a group on the government's terrorism list.
Colorado clinic shooter still mentally incompetent to stand trial: hospital
A man accused of killing three people at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado last year who was ruled incompetent to stand trial remains mentally unfit, according to a report from a mental hospital, a court official said on Thursday. At a brief hearing in El Paso County District Court, the judge presiding over the murder case read from the report that said Robert Lewis Dear, 58, has not been restored to competency, said Rob McCallum, spokesman for the Colorado Judicial Branch.The report cited by El Paso County District Court Judge Gilbert Martinez from the state hospital where Dear is being held means that criminal proceedings against him remain on hold.
Trump settles legal dispute with former campaign aide
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's campaign has settled a legal dispute with former aide Sam Nunberg, according to a court document filed in New York on Thursday. Trump had sought $10 million in damages from Nunberg in arbitration proceedings. Trump accused Nunberg, who was fired in 2015, of violating a confidentiality agreement.
Convicted spy Pollard loses challenge to U.S. parole conditions
Jonathan Pollard, a former U.S. Navy intelligence officer convicted of spying for Israel, on Thursday lost a bid to overturn restrictive probation conditions imposed when he was released in November after serving 30 years in prison. U.S. District Judge Katherine Forrest in Manhattan denied a challenge by Pollard to requirements imposed by the U.S. Parole Commission that he wear an electronic tracking device and submit his work computer to monitoring.
Florida officer who killed retiree accused of prior excessive force
A Florida police officer who mistakenly killed a 73-year-old woman during a role-play exercise this week has been the subject of excessive force complaints in the past, according to a police official and media reports. Punta Gorda Police Officer Lee Coel is on administrative leave after firing a live round that struck and killed Mary Knowlton on Tuesday night at an event hosted by the police department for about 35 members of the community.
Tyson fires 10 U.S. workers after video captures chicken abuse
Tyson Foods Inc said it has fired 10 workers who were captured abusing breeder chickens in Virginia in a secretly recorded video released by an animal rights group on Thursday. The company also said it will retrain workers who handle live poultry on animal welfare policies after the latest instances of abuse came to light.
Lawsuit calls New Jersey stun gun ban unconstitutional
A gun rights group filed a federal lawsuit on Thursday challenging a New Jersey law that bans private individuals from owning stun guns, Tasers and other electronic weapons as unconstitutional. The complaint, filed by the New Jersey Second Amendment Society in U.S. District Court for New Jersey, cited a U.S. Supreme Court decision in March that suggested possessing such arms was protected by the U.S. Constitution.
Boy hurt on Pennsylvania roller coaster, week's third amusement park injury
A boy was injured while riding a roller coaster on Thursday and rushed to a Pittsburgh hospital, emergency services and park officials said, in the third accident this week involving children hurt on U.S. amusement park rides. The child, whose age and identity were not released, was flown to Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh from Idlewild and SoakZone theme park about 50 miles (80 km) west in Ligonier, Pennsylvania, a spokeswoman for Westmoreland County Emergency Services said.
Family lawyer calls black man's accused shooter 'George Zimmerman 2.0'
A lawyer for the family of a man shot and killed in North Carolina called his accused killer "George Zimmerman 2.0" as the dead man's mother pleaded on Thursday for an end to gun violence in the United States. Chad Copley, who is white, is accused of firing a shotgun from inside his garage into a crowd of people in front of a nearby home on Sunday and killing 20-year-old Kouren Thomas, who was black. Raleigh police arrested Copley, 39, on a murder charge.
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