US Domestic News Roundup: Minnesota jury to decide if Chauvin's colleagues had duty to stop deadly Floyd arrest; U.S. Congress subpoenas two far-right leaders in Capitol attack probe and more

Vallejo is scheduled to appear before an Arizona judge at 2:45 p.m. Mountain Standard Time (1945 GMT) for a detention hearing. U.S. Supreme Court spurns Trump bid to keep Capitol attack records secret The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected former President Donald Trump's request to block the release of White House records sought by the Democratic-led congressional panel investigating last year's deadly attack on the Capitol by a mob of his supporters.


Reuters | Updated: 20-01-2022 18:51 IST | Created: 20-01-2022 18:28 IST
US Domestic News Roundup: Minnesota jury to decide if Chauvin's colleagues had duty to stop deadly Floyd arrest; U.S. Congress subpoenas two far-right leaders in Capitol attack probe and more
Representative Image Image Credit: Flickr

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Minnesota jury to decide if Chauvin's colleagues had duty to stop deadly Floyd arrest

The federal prosecution of three former Minneapolis police officers who took part in the deadly arrest of George Floyd begins on Thursday in a trial that turns on when an officer has a duty to intervene in a colleague's excessive use of force. Tou Thao, J. Alexander Keung and Thomas Lane are charged with violating Floyd's civil rights during the arrest on a road outside a Minneapolis grocery store in May 2020.

U.S. Congress subpoenas two far-right leaders in Capitol attack probe

The congressional committee probing the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol issued subpoenas on Wednesday to two far-right leaders who had joined former President Donald Trump's unsuccessful attempt to overturn his election defeat. The House of Representatives committee said it believed Nicholas J. Fuentes and Patrick Casey have information about the planning, coordination and funding of events that preceded the attack.

Maxwell formally requests new trial after lawyers raise concern about juror

Ghislaine Maxwell's lawyers late on Wednesday formally asked for a new trial after the British socialite's lawyers raised concern about a juror's possible failure to disclose before the trial that he was sexually abused as a child. Maxwell, 60, was convicted on Dec. 29 on five counts of sex trafficking and other crimes for recruiting and grooming teenage girls to have sexual encounters with the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Maxwell faces up to 65 years in prison.

'Our work's not done' Biden says at one-year mark

President Joe Biden acknowledged Americans' frustration as his first year in office came to an end on Wednesday, but said the United States was on track to meet considerable challenges from the coronavirus pandemic and inflation. "Our work's not done," he told a rare solo White House news conference about the economic and health recovery from the pandemic. The president added that he thought his administration could have done more on COVID testing.

Bills targeting Big Tech to go before U.S. Senate panel

The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee is set to decide Thursday whether the full Senate should vote on two bills aimed at reining in tech giants like Alphabet's Google and Meta's Facebook. Lawmakers are expected to consider an amended version of a bill introduced by Senators Amy Klobuchar, a Democrat, and Chuck Grassley, a Republican, that would bar tech platforms like Amazon from giving preference to their own businesses on their websites.

Oath Keepers member charged with U.S. Capitol riot sedition to seek release

A member of the far-right Oath Keepers group charged with seditious conspiracy over allegations he helped plan the deadly Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol will ask a judge on Thursday to release him while he awaits trial. Edward Vallejo is one of 11 people prosecutors have linked to the Oath Keepers and accused of seditious conspiracy, a relatively rare charge. Vallejo is scheduled to appear before an Arizona judge at 2:45 p.m. Mountain Standard Time (1945 GMT) for a detention hearing.

U.S. Supreme Court spurns Trump bid to keep Capitol attack records secret

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected former President Donald Trump's request to block the release of White House records sought by the Democratic-led congressional panel investigating last year's deadly attack on the Capitol by a mob of his supporters. The decision means the documents, held by a federal agency that stores government and historical records, can be disclosed even as litigation over the matter continues in lower courts.

U.S. Senate Democrats fail in bid to pass voting rights bill

President Joe Biden and congressional Democrats suffered twin legislative defeats late on Wednesday in their push to toughen voting rights protections in the run-up to this November's mid-term elections that will determine control of Congress in 2023. In back-to-back votes late on Wednesday, Senate Republicans first blocked Democrats' move to advance the voting rights legislation toward passage. It was the fifth time in less than a year that they did so.

FBI searches home of prominent Texas Democratic congressman Cuellar - reports

FBI agents on Wednesday searched the home in Texas of prominent Democratic Representative Henry Cuellar, media reported, with the bureau confirming it had conducted "court-authorized law enforcement activity" in the area. Cuellar said in a statement that he "will fully cooperate in any investigation. He is committed to ensuring that justice and the law are upheld."

University of Michigan agrees to $490 million sexual-abuse settlement

The University of Michigan said it would pay $490 million to 1,050 people to resolve claims of sexual assault against a former sports doctor, in a settlement spanning decades and involving mostly male athletes as victims. The university said the deal, the culmination of two years of negotiations with attorneys for the victims, would settle all claims of abuse by the late Dr. Robert Anderson, pending approval by the school's Board of Regents and the courts.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Give Feedback