Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Breyer, at 83 the court's oldest member, officially retired on Thursday. U.S. Supreme Court throws out rulings that invalidated abortion laws The U.S. Supreme Court, in the aftermath of its decision last week to overturn the landmark Roe v.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

U.S. probes New York City police unit over 'gender-biased policing'

The U.S. Justice Department said it has opened a probe into a division of the New York City Police Department looking at whether it engages in gender-biased policing, including how it handles investigations of sexual assault and treatment of survivors. The Justice Department said in a statement on Thursday that it had received information alleging deficiencies at the NYPD's Special Victims Division (SVD) that have "persisted for more than a decade."

Explainer-Will U.S. Supreme Court EPA ruling rein in federal regulators?

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday curtailed the Environmental Protection Agency's ability to restrict greenhouse gas emissions from power plants in a 6-3 ruling that some legal experts said would more broadly curb the federal government's regulatory power. Below is an explanation of the court's decision and its wider impact: WHAT DID THE COURT SAY IN THE EPA CASE?

U.S. Supreme Court rejects American Axle case on patent eligibility

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday declined to hear American Axle & Manufacturing Inc's bid to revive its patent on technology for quieting driveshaft noise, turning away a case that may have clarified the circumstances under which inventions warrant a patent. The justices rejected American Axle's appeal of a lower court ruling that invalidated the Detroit-based company's patent in a legal fight with Farmington Hills, Michigan-based rival Neapco Holdings. Critics have said court precedent on patent eligibility has produced unpredictable decisions and undermined the U.S. patent process.

Ketanji Brown Jackson sworn in as first Black woman on U.S. Supreme Court

Ketanji Brown Jackson was sworn in on Thursday as a U.S. Supreme Court justice, making history as the first Black woman on the nation's top judicial body while joining it at a time when its conservative majority has been flexing its muscles in major rulings. Jackson, 51, joins the liberal bloc of a court with a 6-3 conservative majority. Her swearing in as President Joe Biden's replacement for retiring liberal Justice Stephen Breyer came six days after the court overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade landmark that legalized abortion nationwide. Breyer, at 83 the court's oldest member, officially retired on Thursday.

U.S. Supreme Court throws out rulings that invalidated abortion laws

The U.S. Supreme Court, in the aftermath of its decision last week to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion nationwide, on Thursday threw out lower court rulings that invalidated three abortion laws at the state level.

All three laws - from Arizona, Arkansas and Indiana - were blocked by lower courts based on Roe and the subsequent 1992 ruling that reaffirmed it. That decision, Planned Parenthood v. Casey, was also overturned as part of the court's June 24 ruling that upheld a law in Mississippi that bans abortion after 15 weeks.

Suspected truck driver in Texas migrant deaths was on meth, lawmaker says

The suspected driver of a truck packed with dozens of migrants who died in blazing heat during a Texas smuggling attempt was allegedly under the influence of methamphetamine when police encountered him, a U.S. lawmaker told Reuters, citing information from law enforcement. San Antonio police officers found Homero Zamorano Jr, a Texas native, hiding in brush near the abandoned tractor-trailer on Monday, according to documents filed in federal court on Thursday. Fifty-three migrants lost their lives, making it the deadliest such trafficking incident on record in the United States.

U.S. Supreme Court rebuffs challenges in Texas 'qualified immunity' cases

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday refused to revive civil rights lawsuits against jail staff and police in two cases from Texas in which these officials were granted a protection called "qualified immunity" after being accused of misconduct. One case involved a suit by the family of an inmate who died in 2017 after strangling himself in a cell with a telephone cord while the on-duty guard stood by in a small-town Coleman County jail. The other involved a suit by the family of a man who erupted in flames and died after police in the city of Arlington shot him with a stun gun after he doused himself with gasoline.

Analysis-Back to the drawing board: U.S. Supreme Court upends Biden climate agenda

The U.S. Supreme Court's decision to limit the powers of the nation’s top environmental regulator to curb carbon emissions will force the Biden administration to take more creative measures to reach its ambitious goals to combat climate change. The conservative court's 6-3 ruling restricted the Environmental Protection Agency's authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from existing coal- and gas-fired power plants under the Clean Air Act anti-pollution law.

Uvalde schools police chief misses second city council meeting since shooting

Uvalde schools police chief Pete Arredondo, who is also a member of the city council, missed a second council meeting on Thursday at which he was to face questions from the many critics of his response to the May 24 mass shooting at an elementary school that killed 19 children and two teachers. If Arredondo misses a third straight meeting, the council could declare his seat vacant.

Surge in U.S. demand for Dutch abortion pills after Roe v. Wade decision

Demand for a Dutch service offering abortion pills surged more than fourfold after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade, a women's rights campaigner said on Thursday. Requests for help via the Aid Access website, which offers abortion consultations remotely and ships medication from overseas to women in the United States, jumped from roughly 600 to 700 to more than 4,000, Rebecca Gomperts, a physician, told Reuters in an interview.