Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs. U.S. Supreme Court takes no action in Indiana abortion cases

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday took no action on appeals seeking to revive two restrictive Republican-backed abortion laws from Indiana, even as debate rages over a new measure in Alabama that would prohibit the procedure almost entirely. Neither Indiana case was on the list of appeals on which the court acted on Monday morning. The court could next announce whether or not it will hear the cases on May 28. White House does not need a 'strongman,' Hickenlooper says in 2020 policy speech

Former Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper on Monday said there is an "authoritarian mentality" in the White House and the United States does not need its own "strongman," as he delivered the first major foreign policy address among two dozen Democrats vying for the 2020 presidential nomination. "I think history clearly demonstrates that when you have a so-called strongman - a dictator - you don't have rule of law," Hickenlooper said when asked at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs if that was a better approach to foreign policy than multilateralism. Rural Iowans ponder Trump alternatives as China trade war drags on

Democratic U.S. presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg asked a crowd of supporters packed into an Iowa brewery this weekend whether the United States has a plan to win the ongoing trade war with China. "Nooo," was the response. Detroit police deny 'serial killer' rumors sparked by woman's murder

Detroit police on Friday assured residents of the Motor City that despite rumors on social media they were not aware of a serial killer roaming the downtown streets that they had kept secret from the public. The whispers apparently stem from the murder of 26-year-old Elizabeth Candice Nichole Laird, whose body was found in a dumpster outside an apartment building on the city's east side on Wednesday. Missouri governor expected to sign eight-week abortion ban into law

Missouri's Republican governor could sign a law as early as this week banning most abortions in the Midwestern state after the eighth week of pregnancy, part of a wave of restrictions aimed at driving a challenge of abortion to the U.S. Supreme Court. Republican Governor Mike Parson told reporters on Friday he planned to sign the bill, which was approved by the Republican-controlled state legislature last week and would enact one of the United States' most restrictive bans. He has not yet set a date for the signing, a spokeswoman in his office said, but he has until July 14 to do so, according to local media reports. Supreme Court gives Merck another shot to avoid Fosamax lawsuits

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday gave Merck & Co a new opportunity to avoid lawsuits accusing the company of failing to properly warn patients of debilitating thigh-bone fractures from taking its osteoporosis drug Fosamax, throwing out a lower court decision that had revived the litigation. The nine justices unanimously directed the Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to reconsider its decision to let the lawsuits proceed even though the Food and Drug Administration had rebuffed Merck when the company sought to add a warning to Fosamax's label about fracture risk. U.S. Supreme Court sides with Native American elk hunter

The Supreme Court on Monday ruled in favor of a Native American elk hunter, citing an 1868 treaty between his tribe and the U.S. government as it revived his legal challenge to a conviction for hunting out of season in Bighorn National Forest in Wyoming. In a 5-4 ruling, the high court sided with Crow Tribe member Clayvin Herrera. It found that the treaty, which gave tribe members hunting rights on "unoccupied" lands, is still in force even though it was signed before Wyoming became a U.S. state in 1890. Measles outbreak spreads to Oklahoma as U.S. reports 41 new cases

The worst measles outbreak in the United States in 25 years has spread to Oklahoma, federal health officials said on Monday as they reported 41 new cases nationwide, raising the total number sickened this year to 880 people. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported a 4.9% increase in the number of measles cases from May 10 to May 17 in an outbreak that has now reached 24 states. The agency has been providing weekly updates every Monday. U.S. Border agent accused of calling migrants 'savages' before knocking one over

A U.S. Border Patrol agent had called migrants "subhuman" and "savages" in text messages weeks before he knocked over a migrant with a pickup truck, according to federal court documents. Agent Matthew Bowen sent the messages in November 2017, two weeks before he is accused of deliberately knocking over a Guatemalan man with his Border Patrol vehicle in Nogales, Arizona, according to documents filed in U.S. District Court in Tucson. Alabama police arrest suspect in shooting death of officer

A man sought for the shooting death of an Auburn, Alabama, police officer and the wounding of two others was arrested without incident early on Monday after a brief manhunt that had the community on edge, authorities said. Grady Wayne Wilkes, 29, was taken into custody about nine hours after the shooting, which happened on Sunday night when police responded to a report of a domestic disturbance and were met with gunfire, Auburn Police Chief Paul Register said.