The Atlanta City Council approved a $1 million settlement to the widow of Rayshard Brooks, the 27-year-old Black man who was shot and killed by Atlanta police in a Wendy's parking lot in 2020.
Why it matters: The fatal shooting of Brooks sparked protests and fueled awareness and activism about the police's treatment of Black people and systemic racism.
Driving the news: A federal jury convicted Riley Williams, 23, on six of the eight counts against her but deadlocked on the two charges that carried the most weight in the case: aiding and abetting in the theft of a laptop from Pelosi's office as well as obstruction of Congress' official proceedings.
The House Ethics Committee is investigating whether Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) improperly solicited invitations to the Met Gala, a newly released report reveals.
Maloney, who is leaving Congress in January after losing her August primary, is currently chair of the House Oversight Committee.
Driving the news: According to the report, Maloney made a call to an unidentified former Metropolitan Museum of Art president in 2016 to request an invitation to that year's Met Gala after she had been left off an invitation list. It also cites evidence that suggests she may have requested an invite in 2020. (The 2020 event was canceled because of the Covid-19 pandemic.)
The report details Maloney's long-running connection to the Met, including steering grants and federal funds towards it and other museums and even pressing redistricting officials to keep it within her district's lines.
In an interview with the OCE, Maloney said that "from 2015 to present, she did not recall a year in which she was not invited to the Met Gala," according to the report, but the Met turned over a document that showed her name crossed off the 2016 list of invited political figures.
The OCE board voted unanimously to refer the matter to the Ethics Committee, which is the only body empowered to take disciplinary action against members of Congress.
What they're saying: "These efforts to gain free attendance may implicate the prohibition on solicitation of gifts under federal law and House rules," the report says.
The other side: Maloney's attorneys, in a response to the Ethics Committee, denied that she explicitly asked for an invitation in 2016, arguing the evidence only shows she expressed her displeasure and "confusion" at not being invited.
Regarding the 2020 Met Gala, the attorneys wrote that Maloney was trying to clarify whether the event was canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
They also argued her attendance at the Met Gala falls under an exception to House rules concerning gifts to members of Congress for "widely attended" events.
What's next: The Ethics Committee is continuing to review the matter, according to a press release from the panel.
The Supreme Court agreed Monday to hear a dispute between Jack Daniel's and a dog toy company that sells chewable "Bad Spaniels" whiskey bottles.
Why it matters: The case carries implications for trademark law — and a number of companies, like Levi Strauss and the makers of Campbell Soup, have filed amicus briefs on the topic, AP notes.
The suspect in the deadly Colorado Springs LGBTQ night club shooting is facing multiple murder and hate crime charges, according to Max D’Onofrio, a city spokesperson.
Driving the news: The suspect was arrested on five counts of first-degree murder and five charges of committing a bias-motivated crime.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's (R-Ga.) personal Twitter account was reinstated on the platform on Monday, more than 10 months after being permanently suspended for "repeated violations" of the platform's COVID misinformation policy.
The Department of Education has begun alerting student loan forgivenessapplicants that they have been approved for relief under the Biden administration's plan.
The big picture: The update comes after the Biden administration last week urged the Supreme Court to lift a lower court ruling that blocked the student loan relief program.
Why it matters: They are calling on companies to stop advertising on the social media platform as Musk's chaotic takeover continues to bring a host of changes and upheaval to the platform.
Hundreds of mourners gathered at a Colorado Springs church for a vigil on Sunday night honoring the five people killed in a mass shooting at a nearby LGBTQ nightclub.
The big picture: Club Q co-owner Matthew Haynes said at the vigil in All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church that, when the club opened 20 years ago, "you were not guaranteed any rights" if you were gay and it became a "safe haven," per Colorado Public Radio. "We've lost our family."
