A South Carolina cop faces murder charges. Russia hacks the White House. And the city council gets a new look in Ferguson.
It’s Wednesday, and here are the five things to know for your New Day.
S.C. POLICE OFFICER
Murder charge: A South Carolina police officer was charged with murder yesterday after a video surfaced that appears to show him shooting an unarmed man who was running away. North Charleston Police Officer Michael Slager could face life in prison or the death penalty if convicted. The shooting happened Saturday morning after a traffic stop. Slager is white; the man he shot — 50-year-old Walter Scott — was black. But it is unclear at this time if race played a part in the shooting.
WHITE HOUSE HACKED
Russians did it: That’s what U.S. officials think. Hackers have been using vulnerabilities in the State Department’s email system as a perch to gain access to White House computers. Investigators say tell-tale codes and other markers indicate the hackers work for the Russian government. The hackers had access to nonclassified, yet highly sensitive information like nonpublic details of the President’s schedule. The White House first noticed a problem with its computer network in October. The system has been periodically shut down for security upgrades.
AARON HERNANDEZ TRIAL
Jury deliberations: A man with absolutely no reason to kill. A cold, calculating egotist capable of murdering someone over a perceived slight. Those are the two different images of Aaron Hernandez that jurors will wrestle with today as they continue deliberations in the former football star’s murder trial. In closing arguments yesterday, the defense said in nine weeks of testimony no good reason had been given as to why Hernandez would kill his friend, Odin Loyd. The prosecution countered that Hernandez was the kind of person who would lash out violently if he felt disrespected.
FERGUSON ELECTIONS
Results: The Ferguson, Missouri, city council is now half black. That was the result of yesterday’s election, where two black candidates won. They will join another black member on the six-person city council. This was Ferguson’s first election since the Michael Brown shooting and related unrest, including the revelations of systemic discrimination against the city’s blacks by law enforcement and the courts. One of the first orders of business for the new council? Look for alternative sources of revenue to replace the $3 million or so lost from money generated by traffic tickets and fines.
KANSAS ABORTION LAW
First in U.S.: Kansas’ new abortion law bans “dismemberment abortion,” defined as “knowingly dismembering a living unborn child and extracting such unborn child one piece at a time from the uterus.” Supporters of the new law — the first of its kind in the U.S. and signed yesterday by Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback — said it’s a groundbreaking step. But the law’s opponents said it’s dangerous and one of the most restrictive abortion laws in the country. Both sides in the debate seem poised to take the battle to other states and the courts.
Those are your five biggies for the day. Here are a few others that are brewing and have the Internet buzzing.
Big bunny: Meet Darius, the world’s biggest rabbit.
Cats rule: Especially when they battle dogs at the pool.
Gymnasts rule: Best. Seesaw. Game. Ever.
Just plain annoying: These three dogs seem to annoy the heck out of each other — and everybody else.
Sky high five: When you’re in the French Alps, you need a wingsuit to do a high five.
