US Domestic News Roundup: Brittney Griner's return reignites debate about prisoner swaps; U.S. sportswriter Wahl dies suddenly while covering World Cup and more

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Brittney Griner's return reignites debate about prisoner swaps

Thursday's release of U.S. basketball star Brittney Griner in exchange for a convicted Russian arms dealer has resurfaced an old question: Do prisoner swaps do more harm than good? Amid the celebrations following Griner's return some critics, including members of Congress and federal law enforcement, argued such trades only encourage foreign states to target Americans to gain leverage over the United States.

U.S. sportswriter Wahl dies suddenly while covering World Cup

Well-known U.S. soccer journalist Grant Wahl died suddenly on Friday after collapsing while covering a match at the World Cup in Qatar, his agent said. U.S. Soccer said it was "heartbroken to learn" of Wahl's death. His wife responded to the U.S. Soccer statement on Twitter, saying she was "in complete shock".

Hawaii volcano alert level lowered to watch - USGS

Lava and volcanic gas emissions at Hawaii's Mauna Loa, the world's largest active volcano, declined on Saturday, the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said. As a result, the Observatory downgraded the alert level for the volcano to a watch from the previous level of warning, with lava confined to a small area.

Russian arms dealer says he wished Griner good luck at prisoner exchange

Viktor Bout, the arms dealer freed in a prisoner swap for U.S. basketball star Brittney Griner, said he wished her good luck on the tarmac in Abu Dhabi where they were exchanged. Bout, who spent 14 years in U.S. jail for arms trafficking, money laundering and conspiring to kill Americans, was swapped on Thursday for the basketball star, jailed this year for bringing cannabis vape oil when arriving to play for a Russian team.

Election denier Kari Lake sues Arizona elections officials

Defeated Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake sued Arizona elections officials on Friday to challenge the counting and certification of the November electoral contest and ask to be declared the winner despite a lack of evidence of voter fraud. The suit targets Lake's Democratic opponent, Governor-elect Katie Hobbs, currently Arizona's secretary of state, along with top officials in Maricopa County, according to the filing on Friday with the Maricopa County Superior Court.

U.S. says working on 'next steps' to secure release of Whelan from Russia

Biden administration officials will meet early Monday to discuss next steps in securing the release of former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, who was jailed in Russia in 2020 on spying charges, President Joe Biden's top hostage negotiator said on Sunday. Hostage affairs envoy Roger Carstens told MSBNC that the president and Secretary of State Antony Blinken were personally focused on the effort to free Whelan. He told CNN the administration could soon roll out fresh sanctions under a presidential executive order signed last summer.

TC Energy says has not found cause of Keystone oil pipeline leak

Canada's TC Energy said on Sunday it has not yet determined the cause of the Keystone oil pipeline leak last week in the United States, while also not giving a timeline as to when the pipeline will resume operation. TC shut the pipeline after more than 14,000 barrels of crude oil spilled into a creek in Kansas on Wednesday, making it one of the largest U.S. crude spills in nearly a decade.

NASA's Orion capsule returns to Earth, capping Artemis I flight around moon

NASA's Orion capsule barreled through Earth's atmosphere and splashed down in the Pacific ocean on Sunday after making an uncrewed voyage around the moon, winding up the inaugural mission of the U.S. agency's new Artemis lunar program 50 years to the day after Apollo's final moon landing. The gumdrop-shaped Orion capsule, carrying a simulated crew of three mannequins wired with sensors, plunked down in the ocean at 9:40 a.m. PST (1740 GMT) off Mexico's Baja California peninsula, demonstrating a high-stakes homecoming before NASA flies its first crew of Artemis astronauts around the moon in the next few years.

Kansas residents hold their nose as crews mop up massive U.S. oil spill

Residents near the site of the worst U.S. oil pipeline leak in a decade took the commotion and smell in stride as cleanup crews labored in near-freezing temperatures, and investigators searched for clues to what caused the spill. A heavy odor of oil hung in the air as tractor trailers ferried generators, lighting and ground mats to a muddy site on the outskirts of this farming community, where a breach in the Keystone pipeline discovered on Wednesday spewed 14,000 barrels of oil.

U.S. opioid crackdown hits some patients' access to psychiatric drugs

A crackdown by U.S. drug wholesalers in response to the opioid crisis is preventing some pharmacists from dispensing a combination of stimulants and sedatives routinely prescribed by psychiatrists to help patients manage conditions like anxiety and ADHD. The three main U.S. pharmaceutical wholesalers - amerisourceBergen Corp, Cardinal Health Inc and McKesson Corp - tightened monitoring of suspicious orders from pharmacies in July as part of a $21 billion nationwide opioid settlement with attorneys general from 46 states, the District of Columbia, and five territories.