US Domestic News Roundup: Explosive at Soros' home, Catholic archdiocese, migrant caravan

A former mayor of Allentown, Pennsylvania, was sentenced on Tuesday to 15 years in prison for bribery and related crimes that prosecutors said he carried out to finance an abortive run for the U.S. Senate.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Publicity, transport, food: migrants flock to more caravans after Trump broadsides

For years, an annual caravan of Central American migrants travelling through Mexico to the U.S. border received modest publicity until President Donald Trump condemned it in April, pitching the procession into the glare of the world's media - and into the homes of thousands of potential migrants. Though only a fraction of the 1,500 migrants made it to the United States, coverage of their trek in vehicles and on foot inspired many considering the journey to see caravans as a safer way to travel than the perilous trip many had for years undertaken alone, dozens of migrants told Reuters.

Prosecutors seek to use Robert Durst's movie comments at murder trial

Los Angeles prosecutors sought on Tuesday to use comments made by Robert Durst praising a feature film based on his life as evidence in the murder case against him, saying the remarks represented admissions of his guilt. Durst made the statements to the director of the 2010 film "All Good Things," starring Ryan Gosling and Kirsten Dunst, in conversations that ultimately gave rise to a six-part HBO documentary about his possible involvement in three killings.

Agents trace bomb found in mailbox at Soros' N.Y. home

Federal agents were piecing together on Tuesday how a small bomb ended up in a mailbox outside a New York home owned by billionaire financier George Soros. Soros, one of the world's biggest donors to liberal groups and causes, was not there at the time on Monday.

District of Columbia prosecutors open civil probe of Catholic archdiocese

The District of Columbia has opened a civil investigation into whether the Archdiocese of Washington covered up sexual abuse of minors by Catholic clergy, the D.C. attorney general told local elected officials on Tuesday. At least 13 states and the District of Columbia are conducting civil or criminal investigations into allegations of sexual misconduct or cover up the Catholic Church, Attorney General Karl Racine said, according to his office.

Former Pennsylvania mayor sentenced to 15 years for bribery

A former mayor of Allentown, Pennsylvania, was sentenced on Tuesday to 15 years in prison for bribery and related crimes that prosecutors said he carried out to finance an abortive run for the U.S. Senate. Ed Pawlowski, 53, was convicted on March 1 of 47 counts related to pay-to-play schemes in which he solicited kickbacks from prospective city contractors. Five of the counts were subsequently dropped.

It's all relative: Family blasts Republican running for Nevada governor

A Republican candidate for governor of Nevada ran into some stiff opposition on Tuesday from members of his own family, who urged voters not to pick him as the state's chief executive. Adam Laxalt, the 40-year-old Nevada attorney general and grandson of the late Paul Laxalt - a giant in Nevada politics - handily won the Republican gubernatorial primary and holds a razor-thin lead over Democratic opponent Steve Sisolak in opinion polls, two weeks ahead of the Nov. 6 election. President Donald Trump has endorsed Laxalt.

Trail-blazing retired U.S. Justice O'Connor says she has dementia

Sandra Day O'Connor, a pioneer in the legal profession who made history in 1981 by becoming the first woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court and remained on the bench for a quarter century, announced on Tuesday that she has been diagnosed with dementia. "Some time ago, doctors diagnosed me with the beginning stages of dementia, probably Alzheimer's disease," O'Connor, 88, said in a letter issued by the court. Alzheimer's is an irreversible, progressive brain disorder that gradually destroys memory and thinking skills.

Record $1.6 billion jackpot up for grabs in Tuesday's Mega Millions drawing

A record-setting $1.6 billion prize that would instantly make a single winner one of the richest people in the world will be up for grabs on Tuesday when the Mega Millions holds its drawing. The drawing will be held at 11 p.m. EDT.

Arrests of migrant families at U.S.-Mexico border increase: data

U.S. agents arrested nearly 17,000 members of family units attempting to cross the U.S. border with Mexico in September, a 31 per cent increase over the previous month, according to official statistics released on Tuesday. In a news briefing with reporters on Tuesday, Trump administration officials pointed to the increase in migrant families as evidence of a "border crisis" because those groups are more difficult for immigration enforcement officials to detain and deport because of protections granted by U.S. law to migrant children.

New Jersey viral outbreak leaves six young patients dead, 12 others ill

Six young patients died and 12 others became sick following an outbreak of adenovirus at a rehabilitation centre in Haskell, New Jersey, the state's Health Department said on Tuesday. Adenoviruses frequently cause mild illness, with cold-like symptoms, particularly in young children. But the children affected in this case have compromised immune systems, the health department said.

(With inputs from Reuters)