National News
National News
![Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was convicted of murder and manslaughter on April 20 in the 2020 death of George Floyd. Minnesota Department of Corrections/AP](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/ap_21111483920793_custom-bbb5e133d8255d64bd13251f2e390c585ca04395-500x500.jpg)
Derek Chauvin Files For New Trial In George Floyd Murder Case
Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin who was convicted last month of murdering George Floyd filed court documents for a new trial on Tuesday.
![Medical workers with Delta Health Center prepare to vaccinate people in Leland, Miss., last week. In some places, rural hospital workers have been slow to get the vaccine themselves. Spencer Platt/Getty Images](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/gettyimages-1315261816-f74aed3501a4d9eb2c62117617fd39218bfcff55.jpg)
Why Lagging COVID Vaccine Rate At Rural Hospitals ‘Needs To Be Fixed Now’
President Biden on Tuesday is set to announce new steps to reach rural Americans in the push to get as many people as possible vaccinated for the coronavirus, a White House official tells NPR. This emphasis comes as rural hospitals are raising alarms about the pace of vaccination — even among their own employees.
![Pedestrians walk past Mexico's Consulate General in Los Angeles in October, shortly after ex-Mexican Defense Secretary Salvador Cienfuegos Zepeda's arrest at Los Angeles International Airport at the DEA's request. Charges were later dropped. Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/consulado-3e0dafb4b583aaa5e9102da1a7ed67cb6039447e-500x500.jpg)
U.S.-Mexico Efforts Targeting Drug Cartels Have Unraveled, Top DEA Official Says
A senior Drug Enforcement Administration official told NPR efforts to target drug cartels operating inside Mexico have unraveled because of a breakdown in cooperation between law enforcement agencies and militaries in the two countries.
![Madison Kenyon (left), who is cisgender, runs track and cross-country at Idaho State University. She supports Idaho's transgender sports ban. Lindsay Hecox (right) is transgender and hopes to make the women's track and cross-country teams at Boise State University. Alliance Defending Freedom; Joshua Roper/American Civil Liberties Union](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/trans-runners-diptych_wide-649b32fd9cfba9fd1d900a9be9e838af17d6d5e0-500x500.jpg)
Idaho’s Transgender Sports Ban, Basis For Other States’ Bans, Faces A Major Legal Hurdle
Do transgender women and girls have a constitutional right to play on women’s sports teams? That question will be argued before the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday.
![In this July 27, 2018, the Dave Johnson coal-fired power plant is silhouetted against the morning sun in Glenrock, Wyo. A law signed April 6, 2021, by Republican Gov. Mark Gordon creates a $1.2 million fund for an initiative that marks the latest attempt by state leaders to help coal in the state that accounts for the bulk of U.S. coal production, which is down by half since 2008. Wyoming coal production, which accounts for about 40% of the nation's total, has declined as utilities switch to gas, which is cheaper to burn to generate electricity. CREDIT: J. David Ake/AP](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Dave-Johnson-coal-power-plant-coal-Wyoming-072718-CREDIT-J-David-Ake-AP-500x500.jpeg)
Wyoming Doubles Down On Coal With Threat To Sue Other Western States, Including Washington
Last year, Wyoming and Montana — another major coal state — asked the Supreme Court to override a decision by Washington state to deny a permit to build a coal export dock on the Columbia River. The interstate lawsuit followed years of unsuccessful attempts by the dock’s developer, Utah-based Lighthouse Resources, to contest the permit denial in federal court.
![Pope Francis delivers his homily during an ordination mass on April 25, at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. This week, the pope decreed that all bishops and cardinals can be tried if they are suspected of criminal behavior. Alberto Pizzoli/Getty Images](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/gettyimages-1232512942-aaeeff05f72d376864dee326ad4abd43e87dff18-500x500.jpg)
Pope Francis Issues Orders Aimed At Cracking Down On Vatican Corruption
Pope Francis is taking additional steps to crack down on corruption at the Vatican by decreeing that all bishops and cardinals be tried if they are suspected of criminal behavior. This marks the second time in two days that the pope has worked to hold top church officials accountable for their actions.
![NASA astronauts Shannon Walker (left), Victor Glover, and Mike Hopkins, along with Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Soichi Noguchi, are seen inside the SpaceX Crew Dragon Resilience spacecraft onboard the SpaceX GO Navigator recovery ship shortly after landing in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Panama City, Fla., on Sunday. CREDIT: Bill Ingalls/AP](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/ap21122292306558-a3cd3f2d7a61370c92b0daa70f2275bd256f9436-500x500.jpg)
4 Astronauts Splash Down In SpaceX Dragon Capsule After 6 Months In Orbit
Four astronauts who’ve spent the past six months aboard the International Space Station as part of the first operational mission of SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule are back on Earth after splashing down safely on Saturday in the Gulf of Mexico.
![Serious cases of COVID-19 have grown in recent weeks in Americans 50 and younger. Tempura/Getty Images](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/gettyimages-1281063031_custom-406154c92bafdcda3b4384cc26fe767d7649f24b-500x500.jpg)
COVID ‘Doesn’t Discriminate By Age’: Serious Cases On The Rise In Younger Adults
After spending much of the past year tending to elderly patients, doctors are seeing a clear demographic shift: young and middle-aged adults make up a growing share of the patients in COVID-19 hospital wards.
![Travelers wear face masks in the main terminal of Denver International Airport on Dec. 31, 2020. Starting Feb. 1, travelers will be required to wear face masks on nearly all forms of public transportation. CREDIT: David Zalubowski/AP](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/ap20366858459284-08350640980fb311b0039dc6cc0b34bd0355163a-500x500.jpg)
TSA Extends Mask Mandate Aboard Flights Through Summer As Travel Increases
The federal mask mandate, which was set to expire on May 11, will remain in effect through Sept. 13, according to updated guidance issued by the Transportation Security Administration on Friday.
![A worker passes a Dominion Voting Systems ballot scanner during Georgia's runoff Senate elections in January in Gwinnett County outside Atlanta. Former President Donald Trump and his allies spread falsehoods about the company's role in the 2020 election, leading to a slew of defamation lawsuits. Ben Gray/AP](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/ap_21004794069447_slide-c11583b3f2774e25f56320b8e4bf351c722f703b-500x500.jpg)
Newsmax Issues Retraction, Settles With Dominion Employee Over False Election Fraud Stories
The far-right media outlet Newsmax, which amplified former President Donald Trump’s false allegations of election rigging and widespread voter fraud, said on Friday there is no evidence that Dominion Voting Systems and one of its top employees, Eric Coomer, manipulated election results in 2020.
![Funeral pyres burn in a disused granite quarry repurposed to cremate the dead due to COVID-19 on Friday in Bengaluru, India. The U.S. is set to impose new travel restrictions against travelers from the country. CREDIT: Abhishek Chinnappa/Getty Images](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/gettyimages-1315457572-1-72dcae986bea08f6b37dfa85731a937a973670e4-500x500.jpg)
U.S. Will Impose New Ban On Travel From India As Coronavirus Rages
The Biden administration is set to enact a travel ban on any non-U.S. citizens or permanent residents coming to the country from India as multiple coronavirus variants have driven India’s COVID-19 outbreak to troubling new heights. The policy will take effect starting on Tuesday, the White House said.
![ANAHEIM, CA - APRIL 26: In this handout photo provided by Disneyland Resort, a view of Sleeping Beauty Castle in Disneyland Park illuminated during a special live streamed moment to welcome Cast Members back to the resort on April 26, 2021 at Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. Disneyland Resort theme parks will reopen to guests on Friday, April 30, 2021. (Photo by Christian Thompson/Disneyland Resort via Getty Images)](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/disneyland-california_wide-ea18b467a2d3f86c41a1c9fcf144a1fc61f456ba-500x500.jpg)
Return For Mickey, Stay For The Churros: Disneyland Reopens After 13 Months
The gates of Disneyland are opening again Friday, to welcome customers for the first time since the resort was closed at the start of the global pandemic. Only California residents will be allowed to visit, and daily crowd sizes will be limited due to safety protocols.