Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs. U.S. prosecutors recommend dropping case against MIT professor over China ties -source Prosecutors have recommended that the U.S. Justice Department drop charges against a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor accused of concealing his ties to China when seeking federal grant money, a person familiar with the matter said Friday.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

U.S. prosecutors recommend dropping case against MIT professor over China ties -source

Prosecutors have recommended that the U.S. Justice Department drop charges against a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor accused of concealing his ties to China when seeking federal grant money, a person familiar with the matter said Friday. Federal prosecutors in Boston decided to seek dismissal of the case against Chinese-born mechanical engineer and nanotechnologist Gang Chen. It was the latest setback for a crackdown on Chinese influence within U.S. research.

Exhausted parents navigate a patchwork of U.S. school COVID-19 policies

Jennifer Pierre speaks for millions of American parents when she sums up how it feels to navigate a patchwork of school COVID-19 policies as the pandemic enters a third year. "It's so exhausting," the Sacramento, California, mother said this week.

Proud Boys leader freed from Washington jail, served time for burning banner at Black church

A leader of the right-wing Proud Boys group, Enrique Tarrio, was released from jail on Friday after serving four months and a week for burning a Black Lives Matter banner at a historic African American church in Washington in December 2020.

Tarrio was among a group of Proud Boys who stole the banner during a demonstration in Washington on Dec. 12, 2020. Tarrio then set it on fire, according to comments he made afterward. He pled guilty in July, was sentenced in August and began serving his jail sentence in September.

DirecTV loss could cripple rightwing One America News

The largest satellite provider in the United States said late Friday it will drop One America News, a move that could financially cripple the rightwing TV network known for fueling conspiracy theories about the 2020 election. The announcement by DirecTV, which is 70% owned by AT&T, comes three months after a Reuters investigation revealed that OAN’s founder testified that AT&T inspired him to create the network. Court testimony also showed that OAN receives nearly all of its revenue from DirecTV.

U.S. CDC urges Americans to wear 'most protective mask you can'

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Friday revised its guidance for Americans on wearing masks to protect against COVID-19, recommending donning "the most protective mask you can" while stopping short of advocating nationwide usage of N95 respirators. The CDC, an agency critics have accused of offering shifting and confusing guidance amid the pandemic, clarified on its website "that people can choose respirators such as N95s and KN95s, including removing concerns related to supply shortages for N95s."

Maxwell sentencing set for June, as U.S. judge weighs request for new trial

The judge in British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell's sex abuse trial on Friday set a sentencing date of June 28 but said she is still weighing Maxwell's request to overturn her conviction because of concerns about a juror's conduct. Maxwell, 60, was convicted https://www.reuters.com/world/us/maxwell-jury-resume-deliberations-after-judge-warns-omicron-risk-2021-12-29 on Dec. 29 on five counts of sex trafficking and other charges for recruiting and grooming teenage girls for the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein to abuse between 1994 and 2004. Maxwell faces up to 65 years in prison when she is sentenced by U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan in New York.

U.S. Supreme Court to hear dispute over football coach's on-field prayers

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear an appeal by a Christian former high school football coach who was suspended from his job at a high school in Washington state for refusing to halt his practice of praying at mid-field after games - a case that could expand the religious rights of employees of public institutions. The justices took up an appeal by Joseph Kennedy, who served as an assistant football coach in the city of Bremerton, of a lower court ruling that rejected his claims that the school district's actions violated his free speech and religious rights under the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment.

Baltimore prosecutor asserts innocence after perjury indictment

Baltimore's top prosecutor, Marilyn Mosby, said on Friday she was innocent of wrongdoing, a day after she was indicted on federal charges of perjury and filing false loan applications related to the purchase of two Florida vacation homes. Mosby, elected state's attorney in 2015, said she was the victim of a "ploy" by political adversaries seeking to unseat her and was determined to "fight with every ounce in my being and to clear my name."

Police respond to 'hostage situation' at Texas synagogue

Police were negotiating with a man believed to have taken people hostage at a synagogue in Colleyville, Texas, during a religious service on Saturday that was being broadcast online. The Colleyville Police Department said it had evacuated residents from the area around the Congregation Beth Israel as it deployed SWAT teams after responding to an emergency call at 10:41 a.m. FBI crisis negotiators from the nearby Dallas field office were speaking to the man, police said. No injuries have been reported and it remained unclear what weapons, if any, the man had.

U.S. judge bars Martin Shkreli from drug industry, orders $64.6 million payment

A U.S. judge on Friday barred Martin Shkreli from the pharmaceutical industry for life and ordered him to pay $64.6 million after he famously raised the price of the drug Daraprim and fought to block generic competitors. U.S. District Judge Denise Cote in Manhattan ruled after a trial where the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and seven states had accused Shkreli, the founder of Vyera Pharmaceuticals, of using illegal tactics to keep Daraprim rivals out of the market.