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☆ Justin Pearson sworn back in to Tennessee House
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Omar Younis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/4] Democratic Tennessee state Representative Justin Pearson who was ousted from the Tennessee House of Representatives along with another young Black colleague for breaking decorum with a gun control demonstration on the House floor, is sworn in before returning to the state legislature after being reinstated in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. April 13, 2023. REUTERS/Kevin WurmNASHVILLE, Tennessee, April 13 (Reuters) - Tennessee state Representative Justin Pearson was sworn in on Thursday morning after he was reappointed to the legislature from which he and another Democratic colleague were expelled for leading a gun protest on the House of Representatives floor. "We've just been expelled, but we're back," Pearson told the crowd. We're going to keep fighting to end environmental racism and injustice," Pearson told reporters after his reappointment. Tennessee House Republicans, who have a supermajority, have said in a statement they will welcome back any expelled state lawmakers returned by county-level governments, so long as those members follow the legislature's rules.

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, April 10 (Reuters) - Tennessee state Representative Justin Jones returned to the state House on Monday, pumping his fist and declaring "power to the people" as a Nashville-area council restored him to office following his expulsion over a gun protest. The Metropolitan Council of Nashville and Davidson County voted 36-0 on Monday to make Jones, 27, the interim representative. REUTERS/Cheney Orr 1 2 3 4 5"I want to welcome the people back to the people's house," Jones said in brief remarks upon being reseated. Addressing supporters before the vote, Jones accused the Republicans of operating "plantation politics" and abuse of power. Before the vote, the spokesperson said the House would seat whomever the county legislatures appoint "as the constitution requires."

☆ Nashville board reinstates Black lawmaker expelled from Tennessee House
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Omar Younis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, April 10 (Reuters) - A Nashville-area county council on Monday voted to reinstate Representative Justin Jones to the Tennessee House of Representatives, reversing Republican lawmakers who ousted Jones and another young, Black legislator last week for staging a gun control protest on the House floor. The Metropolitan Council of Nashville and Davidson County voted 36-0 to make Jones, 27, the interim representative. Before the vote, the spokesperson said the House would seat whomever the county legislatures appoint "as the constitution requires." Jones and Pearson, 28, have both said they hoped to be reappointed and that they would run again in special elections. Republicans also targeted Gloria Johnson, who is white, for expulsion, as she joined Jones and Pearson in the floor protest.

☆ Nashville-area board may return lawmaker expelled from Republican-controlled statehouse
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Daniel Trotta | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

April 10 (Reuters) - A Nashville-area county council meeting on Monday may vote to return to the statehouse one of two Democratic Tennessee lawmakers who were expelled from the chamber last week after participating in a gun control protest. Returning Jones would send a pointed message to the Republicans who expelled him. A Memphis-area board of commissioners plans on Wednesday to consider reappointing Pearson on an interim basis to the seat from which he was removed. U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris flew to Nashville on Friday to support the three Tennessee lawmakers targeted for expulsion. Jones, 27, was elected to Tennessee's House of Representatives last year.

☆ Texas governor seeks pardon of man convicted of murder in Black Lives Matter shooting
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-09 | by ( Rich Mckay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 8 (Reuters) - Texas Governor Greg Abbott said on Saturday he is seeking the pardon of an Uber driver convicted of murder just a day earlier in the July 2020 shooting death of a man at a Black Lives Matter protest in downtown Austin, the state capital. Perry was driving in the city the night of the shooting and turned his Uber vehicle onto a street where a Black Lives Matter crowd was marching, according to media. Protesters told police that they feared they were being assaulted with the vehicle, according to media accounts. Perry was convicted of murder after the jury deliberated for 17 hours in the eight-day trial, according to media accounts. Perry faces life in prison and is due to be sentenced by State District Court Judge Clifford Brown on Tuesday, according to online court records for the 147th District Court in Travis County, Texas.

PALM BEACH, Florida, April 4 (Reuters) - A subdued former President Donald Trump lashed out on Tuesday at New York prosecutor Alvin Bragg for bringing criminal charges against him and declared himself the victim of election interference without offering evidence. "I never thought anything like this could happen in America," Trump told supporters gathered at his Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach, Florida. Trump accused Manhattan District Attorney Bragg of being out to get him "before he knew anything about me." "Trump should not be held above the law - if he does something wrong he should be held liable like anybody else. Reporting by Nathan Layne and Rich McKay in Palm Beach; Writing by Steve Holland; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Grant McCoolOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

REUTERS/Ricardo ArduengoPALM BEACH, Florida, April 4 (Reuters) - A subdued former President Donald Trump lashed out on Tuesday at New York prosecutor Alvin Bragg for bringing criminal charges against him and declared himself the victim of election interference without offering evidence. "I never thought anything like this could happen in America," Trump told supporters gathered at his Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach, Florida. Trump accused Manhattan District Attorney Bragg of being out to get him "before he knew anything about me." "Trump should not be held above the law - if he does something wrong he should be held liable like anybody else. Reporting by Nathan Layne and Rich McKay in Palm Beach; Writing by Steve Holland; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Grant McCoolOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

REUTERS/Ricardo ArduengoPALM BEACH, Florida, April 4 (Reuters) - Former President Donald Trump said on Tuesday night, hours after being charged in court, that he was the victim of election interference and he lashed out at New York prosecutor Alvin Bragg for bringing criminal charges against him. "I never thought anything like this could happen in America," Trump told supporters gathered at his Mar-a-Lago retreat in Palm Beach, Florida. In a subdued tone, Trump reviewed all the various legal cases against him, from the handling of classified documents that were taken to Mar-a-Lago when Trump moved out of the White House in early 2021, and the election interference case he is facing in Georgia from the 2020 election. "Now, there's massive election interference at a scale never seen," he said. Reporting by Nathan Layne and Rich McKay in Palm Beach; Writing by Steve Holland; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Grant McCoolOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Trump wrote on his Truth Social profile shortly after arriving in New York from Florida on Monday, urging supporters to donate to his campaign. The arraignment, where Trump will be in court to hear charges and have a chance to enter a plea, was planned for 2:15 p.m. (1815 GMT) on Tuesday. Citing a single source briefed on Tuesday's arraignment procedures, Yahoo said none of the charges against Trump were misdemeanors. PROTESTS AND POPULARITYPolice over the weekend began erecting barricades near Trump Tower - where Trump arrived on Monday after flying in from Florida - and the Manhattan Criminal Court building, with demonstrations expected at both sites on Tuesday. On the Manhattan case, Trump in 2018 initially disputed knowing anything about the payment to Daniels.

Trump, the first former U.S. president to face criminal charges, is due to be arraigned, fingerprinted and photographed at the downtown Manhattan courthouse on Tuesday. A court official said the arraignment is planned for 2:15 p.m. (1815 GMT) on Tuesday. Trump then will return to Florida and deliver remarks at Mar-a-Lago at 8:15 p.m. on Tuesday (0015 GMT on Wednesday), his office said. Other courtrooms on the courthouse's higher floors will be shut down ahead of the arraignment as part of the security precautions, a court official said. U.S. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene tweeted an invitation on Sunday to join her at a protest near the courthouse on Tuesday, saying "They’re not coming after President Trump, they’re coming after us, he’s just in their way."

☆ Footage shows police killing Nashville school shooter as investigators seek motive
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Sandra Stojanovic | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department began receiving calls about a shooter at 10:13 a.m., police spokesperson Don Aaron told reporters. Investigators were examining a "manifesto" written by the 28-year-old former student at the Covenant School, hoping to learn what motivated the latest U.S. mass shooting. Monday's violence marked the 90th school shooting – defined as any incident in which a gun is discharged on school property – in the United States this year, according to the K-12 School Shooting Database, a website founded by researcher David Riedman. He said the Covenant School was singled out for attack but that the individual victims were targeted at random. Also shot dead were Mike Hill, 61, a school custodian; Cynthia Peak, 61, a substitute teacher; and Katherine Koonce, 60, listed on the Covenant website as "head of school."

☆ Former Christian school student kills 3 children, 3 staff in Nashville shooting
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Sandra Stojanovic | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

He said the Covenant School was singled out for attack but that the individual victims were targeted at random. [1/5] A still image from surveillance video shows what the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department describe as mass shooting suspect Audrey Elizabeth Hale, 28, entering The Covenant School carrying weapons in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. March 27, 2023. Also shot dead were staffers Mike Hill, 61, a school custodian, Cynthia Peak, 61, a substitute teacher, and Katherine Koonce, 60, listed on the Covenant website as "head of school." "We have to do more to stop gun violence," Biden said at the White House. Monday's violence in Nashville marked the 90th school shooting – defined as any incident in which a gun is discharged on school property – in the U.S. so far this year, according to the K-12 School Shooting Database, a website founded by researcher David Riedman.

☆ Three children, 2 adults killed in Nashville school shooting, suspect dead
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 27 (Reuters) - At least three children and two adults were killed in a shooting at a private Christian school in Nashville, Tennessee, on Monday morning. Police "engaged" the suspected attacker, leaving the suspect dead, local officials said. The shooting happened at The Covenant School, where the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department said in a statement that the suspect was dead but did not specify what led to the death. Three children were pronounced dead after arriving at Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt with gunshot wounds, John Howser, a hospital spokesperson, said in a statement. The Covenant School, founded in 2001, is a ministry of Covenant Presbyterian Church in Nashville with about 200 students, according to the school's website.

☆ Three children, 3 adults shot dead by ex-student at Tennessee Christian school
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Kevin Wurm | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, March 27 (Reuters) - A heavily armed 28-year-old fatally shot three children and three adult staffers on Monday at a private Christian school the suspect once attended in Tennessee's capital city before police killed the assailant, authorities said. Drake said the school was singled out for attack but the individual victims were targeted at random. [1/6] Students from The Covenant School hold hands after getting off a bus to meet their parents at the reunification site following a mass shooting at the school in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S., March 27, 2023. Reacting in Washington to the latest school shooting, U.S. President Joe Biden urged the U.S. Congress again to pass tougher gun reform legislation. Nashville Mayor John Cooper expressed sympathy for the victims and wrote on social media that his city "joined the dreaded, long list of communities to experience a school shooting."

Politico reported that a grand jury was preparing to indict Trump, the front-runner for the Republican 2024 nomination. DeSantis has not declared a presidential run but is widely expected to do so and is by far Trump's most formidable Republican challenger. At a press conference DeSantis criticized Bragg but did not dismiss the case against Trump outright. "I don't know what goes into paying hush money to a porn star to secure silence over some type of alleged affair, I just, I can't speak to that," he said. Other than Pence and DeSantis, most major declared and prospective Republican presidential candidates have remained silent on the issue.

REUTERS/Karen Pulfer FochtMarch 17 (Reuters) - The family of a Black man who died while in a Memphis jail on Friday called on authorities to identify the correctional officers involved in the altercation that killed him and to hold them accountable. Gershun Freeman, 33, died on Oct. 2 at the Shelby County, Tennessee, jail after being beaten by guards and held prone on the ground with a knee on his back for more than five minutes while handcuffed. More than five months after his death, the family is still seeking answers and justice, his mother, Kimberly Freeman, said at a press conference outside the county jail where her son was held. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is investigating the incident, while the Shelby County District Attorney office handed the case over to the Nashville District Attorney Office to avoid a conflict of interest. Released earlier this month, 14 minutes of video show the violent altercation between jail guards and Freeman that ended with his death.

☆ French bulldog claims title of top US purebred, dethroning Labrador retriever
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Rich Mckay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

2 spot the previous year, according to the club, which maintains the largest registry of purebred dog pedigrees in the country. They're great companions, cute and show great affection," said breeder Johnny Danley Jr., of Atlanta. But we sell to blue-collar, 9-to-5 people who want to spend a little for a great companion," Danley said. The breed's rising popularity - and price tag - has led to a surge in French bulldog thefts in recent years, according to the club. The former top dog, the even-tempered Labrador retriever, still has plenty of fans, as it slipped a notch to the No.

The Nor'easter left about 190,000 homes and businesses in New York and New England without power as of Wednesday morning, according PowerOutage.com, a tracking service. In California, about an equal number of customers had no electric service on Wednesday in the wake of the latest in a series of atmospheric river storms to churn through the state this winter. [1/3] A California plate is seen at an area affected by floods after days of heavy rain in Pajaro, California, U.S., March 14, 2023. Along California's coast and lower inland areas, the heavy rain and melting alpine snow triggered renewed flooding from rain-swollen rivers and streams, compromising levees. "It's a little too soon to say for sure if it's another atmospheric river, but the storm is coming," he said.

[1/7] Floodwaters from the Pajaro River are seen flowing under Highway 1, currently closed by officials, in Monterey County, California, U.S. March 14, 2023. read moreNine atmospheric rivers already lashed California in rapid succession from late December through mid-January, triggering widespread flooding, levee failures, mudslides and punishing surf. Massive flooding from failed levees on the Pajaro River in Monterey County this weekend prompted hundreds of evacuations and dozens of water rescues. Mandatory evacuation orders remained in effect for residents in 10 California counties on Tuesday, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta and Nathan Frandino in Monterey County, California; Editing by Aurora EllisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Atlanta police arrest 23 on terrorism charges after protest at training site
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( Rich Mckay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

ATLANTA, March 6 (Reuters) - Two dozen people face domestic terrorism charges in Atlanta after they were arrested during violent clashes between officers and protesters at a police training center construction site, authorities said on Monday. The 23 people who face charges were part of a group detained on Sunday by police who said they launched bricks, rocks, Molotov cocktails and fireworks at officers after they breached the construction site, where a new Atlanta Public Safety Training Center is being built. Opponents of the site say they want to save an important green space near the greater Atlanta metropolitan area of 6 million people. The site was subject to a protest in January that briefly turned violent as demonstrators set a police car on fire and smashed windows of buildings. Demonstrators at that time gathered to protest the law enforcement killing of an activist during a raid to clear the construction site.

☆ Southern California delights in rare snowfall as winter blast lingers
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Rich Mckay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] The Hollywood sign is seen through clouds during rare cold winter weather, in Los Angeles, California, U.S., February 24, 2023. The storm was expected to strengthen on Friday and linger over California through Saturday, the National Weather Service said. In Southern California, "this is a rare case of a cold, significant storm event," Jackson said. SEVEN FEET OF SNOW IN SOME SPOTSEven before the latest storm in California, much of the state has experienced an unusually rainy, chilly winter. Heavy rain will inundate many parts of California through Saturday, the weather service said.

☆ Massive snowstorm closes schools, grounds flights in U.S. heartland
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Brendan O'Brien | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The storm hit California on Tuesday and was expected to continue through the end of the week. In Central California, the weather iced over roadways, the weather service reported. More than 100,000 homes and businesses were without power, largely in Central California, according to the tracking site Poweroutage.us. Among the hardest-hit cities was Minneapolis, where some 20 inches (50 cm) of snow and 45-mph (72-kph) winds were expected to create whiteouts. The storm wreaked havoc on morning air travel as hundreds of flights were delayed or canceled across the nation.

☆ Winter storm threatens record snowfall in parts of US
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Brendan O'Brien | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/5] Waves come to shore along the coastline as a winter storm approaches Oceanside, California, U.S., February 21, 2023. REUTERS/Mike BlakeCHICAGO, Feb 21 (Reuters) - A winter storm spreading across the U.S. West into the Northern Plains and Midwest on Tuesday could produce blizzards, brutal cold, and record snowfall, making roads treacherous and disrupting air travel. The National Weather Service issued winter storm, blizzard and high-wind advisories for large parts of the western and north-central United States. The agency said these areas will also be under a winter storm warning until Friday and advised people against traveling. Although the snow storm could wreak havoc on daily life, it was welcomed by skiers.

☆ Huge winter storm churns across northern U.S., threatening record snowfall
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Brendan O'Brien | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

CHICAGO, Feb 21 (Reuters) - A massive winter storm spreading across the U.S. West into the Northern Plains and Midwest on Tuesday could produce blizzards, brutal cold, and record snowfall, making road travel treacherous and disrupting air travel. The National Weather Service issued winter storm, blizzard and high-wind advisories for a broad swath of the western and north-central United States. Some spots in the South may have temperatures that are over 100 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than some places in the Northern Plains, the forecast showed. While the U.S. East has experienced a relatively mild winter, the Northern Plains has had an extreme winter in terms of snowfall and temperatures, NWS meteorologist Matthew Bunkers in South Dakota said. Although the snow storm could wreak havoc on daily life, it was welcomed by skiers.

Early on Friday, the core of the cold air mass, driven from Arctic Canada into the United States by high-altitude air currents, was centered over the U.S. Plains, said weather service forecaster Bob Oravec. International Falls, Minnesota, was the coldest spot as of 7 a.m., with temperatures hovering around -36 F (-38 C). "It's moving into the Northeast" and temperatures will drop throughout the day on Friday, he said. By comparison, air temperatures in Eureka, Canada's northernmost Arctic weather station, were hovering at -41 F (-41 C) on Friday morning. Boston was about 22 above zero F (-6 C) on Friday morning, with temperatures expected to plummet throughout the day and hit -3 F (-19 C) by midnight.

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