Jan 17, 2019

3 Chicago officers acquitted of covering up Laquan McDonald's killing

Still image taken from a Chicago Police Department dash-cam video of the October 2014 fatal shooting of Laquan McDonald. Photo: Chicago Police Department via Getty Images

A judge acquitted three Chicago police officers on charges of trying to cover up the 2014 shooting of 17-year-old black teenager Laquan McDonald, which sparked nationwide protests, the AP reports.

Details: Judge Domenica Stephenson ruled that the evidence prosecutors presented, including a now-infamous police dashcam video of the shooting, was weak and that witnesses did not provide sufficient proof that officers Thomas Gaffney, Joseph Walsh and David March attempted to cover up the killing. The ruling comes more than three months after Jason Van Dyke, the officer who shot McDonald 16 times, was found guilty of second-degree murder. He will be sentenced on Friday.

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Dave Lawler
Updated 11 mins ago - World

Massive explosion rocks Beirut

Photo: Anwar Amro/AFP via Getty Images

A major explosion has slammed central Beirut, Lebanon, damaging buildings as far as several miles away and injuring scores of people.

Driving the news: The cause of the explosion is unknown. It's also unclear how many people were killed or wounded, but the Lebanese Red Cross has told AP that casualties number in the hundreds. Reuters reports that at least 10 people have been killed, citing security sources.

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Axios
Updated 47 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

  1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 1 p.m. ET: 18,349,260 — Total deaths: 695,550 — Total recoveries — 10,951,112 — Map.
  2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 1 p.m. ET: 4,732,418 — Total deaths: 155,942 — Total recoveries: 1,513,446 — Total tests: 57,543,852 — Map.
  3. States: New York City health commissioner resigns in protest of De Blasio's coronavirus response.
  4. Public health: 40% of Americans continue to put off medical care.
  5. Politics: Trump tells "Axios on HBO" that pandemic is "under control," despite surges in infections and uptick in deaths.
  6. Business: Low-income households are struggling to pay energy bills — Construction spending falls for 4th straight month.
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Miriam Kramer
Updated 56 mins ago - Science

The U.S. is at risk of attacks in space

Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios

Other nations are catching up to U.S. capabilities in space, potentially putting American assets in orbit at risk.

Why it matters: From GPS to imagery satellites and others that can peer through clouds, space data is integral to American national security.

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