S.C. governor: Remove Confederate flag
CHARLESTON, S.C. – South Carolina’s governor declared Monday that the Confederate flag should be removed from the Statehouse grounds as she acknowledged that its use as a symbol of hatred by the man accused of killing nine black church members has made it too divisive to display in such a public space.
Gov. Nikki Haley’s about-face comes just days after authorities charged Dylann Storm Roof, 21, with murder. The white man appeared in photos waving Confederate flags and burning or desecrating U.S. flags, and purportedly wrote of fomenting racial violence. Survivors told police he hurled racial insults during the attack.
“The murderer now locked up in Charleston said he hoped his actions would start a race war. We have an opportunity to show that not only was he wrong, but that just the opposite is happening,” Haley said, flanked by Democrats and Republicans, blacks and whites who joined her call.
Utah family killed in murder-suicide
ROY, Utah – A Utah man shot and killed his wife and two young children before turning the gun on himself on Father’s Day, stunning neighbors and relatives who said the family missed an outing that day but otherwise showed no outward signs that anything was amiss.
The wife’s brother found their bodies Sunday night after going to check on the family at their home on a quiet, suburban street in Roy, a city of about 38,000 approximately 30 miles north of Salt Lake City.
Police identified the family as Russell Smith, 29; his wife, Shawna Smith, 26; and their children, 6-year-old daughter Tylee and 2-year-old son Blake.
Police believe Russell Smith shot the others and himself, said Lt. Kevin Smith, who is not related to the family. Investigators talked to family members and were trying to uncover a motive.
Sheila Pruitt, Shawna Smith’s mother, said her son-in-law had hunting weapons, but there were no signs of violence before the deaths. The family was supposed to go over to his parents’ house Sunday but never made it, said Pruitt, who lives in Tacoma, Washington.
Maryland governor suffers from cancer
ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said Monday he has “very advanced” and “very aggressive” cancer of the lymph nodes, but he said he will fight for a full recovery and continue to work as the state’s chief elected official.
Hogan spoke candidly, choking up at times while also managing to keep a sense of humor, as family, friends and his staff filled the governor’s reception room for the announcement. The governor, who has been in office for five months, said the cancer is B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
“Over the coming months, I’ll be receiving multiple, very aggressive chemotherapy treatments,” Hogan said. “Most likely, I’m going to lose my hair. You won’t have these beautiful gray locks. I may trim down a little bit, but I won’t stop working to change Maryland for the better.”
The Republican, who won an upset victory in November in a heavily Democratic state, said he had noticed a painless lump along his jaw earlier this month. He also felt some back pain.
Hogan said his doctors have told him he has a good chance of beating the disease.
7 in balcony collapse remain hospitalized
SAN FRANCISCO – The seven Irish students who survived a deadly balcony collapse in the college town of Berkeley remain hospitalized in varying states of recovery nearly a week later.
All of the students face long physical and mental recoveries, and they probably won’t be returning to Ireland soon, the Rev. Aidan McAleenan of St. Columba Catholic Church in Oakland said Monday.
The students are in three area hospitals. They are Hannah Waters, Aoife Beary, Clodagh Cogley, Niall Murray, Seán Fahey, Jack Halpin and Conor Flynn, said the Rev. Brendan McBride of the Irish Immigration Pastoral Center. Their ages were not immediately available.
Specifics about their injuries have not been disclosed but reportedly included broken bones. McBride said at a Sunday mass that some of them have “life-altering injuries.”
The students were on a balcony that snapped off the fifth floor of an apartment building Tuesday during a birthday party. Five 21-year-old students from Ireland and a 22-year-old from California died.
NYC OKs new rules for app-taxi services
NEW YORK – New York City’s taxi regulatory agency on Monday approved new rules governing how Uber and other app-based car services operate within the five boroughs.
Part of the proposal unanimously passed allows the companies to update their apps without approval from the regulators – a change from the initial proposed rules – a small but important shift that Uber, the multibillion-dollar ride-hailing app that has exploded in New York City in recent years, hailed as a victory. It ensures riders will have the most up-to-date-versions, an Uber spokesman said Monday after the agreement was reached.
“What that means is that every New York City rider would have had a worse version of the app than anywhere else in the world,” spokesman Matt Wing said.
The initial proposed rules would have required companies like Uber and competitor Lyft to submit app updates to the Taxi and Limousine Commission for approval. Uber updates its app regularly and Wing said the proposed rules would have held up even the smallest changes. The proposal drew ire throughout the tech world and sparked an open letter from tech lobbyists representing Google, Amazon and Uber over fears the rules would stifle innovation, cause headaches for New York City riders and ultimately hurt business.
Associated Press
