US Domestic News Roundup: Bad memories of 2018 'shredded' in NYC ahead of New Year; Trump threatens Mexico border closure

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

U.S. medic quarantined in Nebraska for possible Ebola exposure

A U.S. healthcare worker who may have been exposed to the Ebola virus while treating patients in the Democratic Republic of Congo arrived in the United States on Saturday and was put in quarantine in Nebraska. The medic, who is not exhibiting symptoms of Ebola, will remain under observation for up to two weeks at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) in Omaha, Nebraska Medicine said in a statement.

New Year's Eve party in Times Square to cheer for press freedom

Reporters will be the guests of honor at the New Year's Eve party in New York's Times Square on Monday, in what organizers said was a celebration of press freedom after an unusually deadly year for journalists at U.S. news outlets. Two attacks in particular weighed on organizers as they discussed in autumn whom to give the honor of initiating the ceremonial ball drop just before midnight, according to Tim Tompkins, president of the Times Square Alliance.

Trump widens demands in wall standoff, threatens Mexico border closure

President Donald Trump threatened on Friday to close the southern U.S. border with Mexico unless he gets the money he wants for a wall, raising the stakes in a standoff that will present an immediate test next week for the new U.S. Congress. When Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats take control of the U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday, they plan to quickly approve a spending measure meant to end a partial government shutdown that began on Dec. 22, triggered by Trump's demand for $5 billion in funding for his proposed wall.

FEMA reverses decision to stop issuing new flood insurance policies

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) said on Friday it will resume issuing new flood insurance policies during the partial U.S. government shutdown, reversing a decision announced two days ago. FEMA, which oversees the National Flood Insurance Program, said it was rescinding guidance issued on Wednesday that it would not be able to sell new policies during the shutdown unless Congress passes legislation reauthorizing the program.

Family of Lion Air co-pilot sues Boeing in Chicago over fatal crash

The family of the Indonesian co-pilot of a Lion Air flight that crashed in October, killing all 189 on board, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Boeing Co in Chicago, adding to litigation piling up against the manufacturer in its hometown. The lawsuit, filed on Friday in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, alleges that a Lion Air-operated Boeing 737 MAX 8 was unreasonably dangerous because its sensors provided inconsistent information to both the pilots and the aircraft.

Police arrest illegal immigrant suspected in California officer's killing

A suspected illegal immigrant accused of shooting to death a California police officer was arrested on Friday after a two-day manhunt that President Donald Trump cited in his push for building a wall on the border with Mexico, officials said. Gustavo Perez Arriaga, 32, a Mexican national, was arrested in Bakersfield, a city less than 200 miles (320 km) south of Newman where the officer was shot on Wednesday, Stanislaus County Sheriff Adam Christianson said at a news conference.

New York police to use drone for first time at New Year's Eve party

New York City police will use an aerial drone for the first time to monitor the crowds gathered in Times Square on Monday for the New Year's Eve ball-drop celebrations, officials said on Friday, adding there was no known threat to the night's festivities. The camera-carrying drone will be tethered to the roof of a building and will not fly directly over the hundreds of thousands of revelers in the area, but it will add an additional vantage-point alongside the 1,225 fixed video cameras that police will deploy.

Guatemalan boy who died in U.S. custody had the flu: state officials

The 8-year-old Guatemalan boy who died in the custody of U.S. border agents this week had the flu before he passed away but the cause of his death is still unknown, state officials said on Friday. Felipe Gomez Alonzo was the second Guatemalan child to die this month while being held by U.S. authorities, sparking outrage from immigration advocates.

Oregon hotel fires two employees who called police on black guest

A Hilton hotel in Portland, Oregon fired a security guard and a manager after a black guest captured them on video calling the police to report him for trespassing after he had been speaking to his mother by phone in the lobby, the hotel said on Saturday. Police responded to the call and escorted Jermaine Massey out of the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel, where he was staying, on Dec. 22, a law firm representing Massey said in a statement. His attorneys said Massey was doing nothing more than "calling his mother while black."

Bad memories of 2018 'shredded' in NYC ahead of New Year

New York City residents and visitors gathered at a paper shredder in Times Square on Friday to symbolically purge themselves of unpleasant memories of 2018 in the 12th annual Good Riddance Day. The event drew a few dozen participants eager to wipe out documents for everything from high mortgage payments to electricity bills, as well as written statements representing sexual assault and "meanness."