National News
National News
![Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/gettyimages-1231087409-1-_wide-0f82d0cac88117f403a0b8ec0f8bfc72f55d25aa-500x500.jpg)
Military Panel Urges Taking Sexual Assault Cases Out Of Commanders’ Control
A special Pentagon panel is recommending a seismic shift in how the U.S. military handles sexual assault cases, saying independent judge advocates, not commanding officers, should decide whether to pursue legal charges in such cases.
![Bottles of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine await transfer into syringes for administering last month in Los Angeles. CREDIT: Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/gettyimages-1232291997-e430e6dd75a3ab6676c30979c09e6f3dfddfcdaf-500x500.jpg)
U.S. Lifts Pause In Use Of J&J Vaccine After Vote By Expert Panel
The Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Friday after the panel voted that the vaccine is safe and effective at preventing COVID-19, and its benefits outweigh the known risks.
![On Jan 6, 2021, a group of pro-Trump supporters breached a security gate at the Governor's executive residence in Olympia. The next capital construction budget includes money for security upgrades to the residence. CREDIT: Austin Jenkins/N3](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Washington-Governors-residence-security-breach-January-6-042321-500x500.jpg)
After Jan. 6 Breach, Washington Governor’s Residence To Get Security Upgrades
The state of Washington will beef up security around the governor’s executive residence following a major breach of security on January 6, the same day a mob stormed the U.S. Capitol.
![Levar Burton in a tuxedo](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/gettyimages-1189015473_wide-71b5d6c49101d391f9b063cf0868e65d122b53da-500x500.jpg)
An ‘Overjoyed’ LeVar Burton Welcomes Chance To Guest-Host ‘Jeopardy!’
LeVar Burton will host a week of Jeopardy! this summer, after nearly 250,000 people signed a petition backing the actor and director’s long-held aspiration to try out for the job that was left vacant by Alex Trebek, who died last year.
![An Asian American-owned ramen restaurant in San Antonio, Texas, pictured vandalized in March. Courtesy Tyler Price/214 Digital](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/20210416-asian-businesses-3x2-1200x800-1-500x500.jpg)
Asian-Owned Businesses Say They’re Reeling From Hate And Violence, Operating In Fear
While the issue has pervaded communities for decades, the pandemic has brought renewed attention to the issue, as groups like Stop AAPI Hate have documented upwards of 3,800 incidents — more than a third of which occurred at businesses.
![The Emergent BioSolutions Bayview Campus plant in Baltimore has stopped producing vaccine material following an FDA inspection that found numerous problems. The plant was slated to become part of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine production process. Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/emergent-biosolutions-5498b14c8ca2c1141a6ea0dc1c77114db12a3640.jpg)
FDA Inspection Finds Numerous Problems At Facility Intended To Make J&J Vaccine
Peeling paint. Cracked buckets. Employees dragging unsealed bags of medical waste. Procedures ignored. Inadequately trained staff. All of these were problems noted by U.S. Food and Drug Administration inspectors at the Emergent BioSolutions factory in Baltimore – a facility that is intended to produce materials for the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine.
![House Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaks alongside members of the Congressional Black Caucus on Tuesday following the verdict against former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd. Jose Luis Magana/AP](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/ap21110785329637-c03259974bd73c423383e622ec51cf5bd9e6a651-500x500.jpg)
Where Efforts To Overhaul Policing Stand In Congress After Derek Chauvin Verdict
With the verdict against former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin now in for the murder of George Floyd, attention is turning to Congress and whether lawmakers can meet the growing demand from across the nation for meaningful changes to policing.
![Rogue Waste System’s Scott Fowler (left) and Laura Leebrick (center) have nowhere to send about 2,000 tons of baled and stacked of co-mingled recycling. CREDIT: JES BURNS](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/news_20171121_rogue_waste_recycling_problem_stack_jb_u11m9i-500x371.jpg)
WATCH: Is Recycling Worth It Anymore? People On The Front Lines Say Maybe Not
Recycling works, but it’s not magic. As America continues to lead the world in per capita waste production, it’s becoming more and more clear that everybody – manufacturers and consumers — “over-believes” in recycling.
![Picture of John Sullivan](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/ap_20167330370638-f3cedc5f04bc9586653419dac07a24758128da90-500x500.jpg)
U.S. Ambassador To Russia Returns To Washington As Relations Sour Further
The American ambassador to Russia is returning to Washington, D.C., for “consultations” after President Biden imposed a new round of sanctions on Moscow last week, including the expulsion of 10 diplomats — a move quickly followed by reciprocal measures from the Kremlin.
![Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin listens to his defense attorney make closing arguments on Monday during his trial in the death of George Floyd. Court TV via AP](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/ap_21109604855161-722286e201da0400f8c7c82d899c1b9549f2905c-500x500.jpg)
Derek Chauvin Found Guilty On All Charges Of Murder Against George Floyd
The jury has found former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin guilty on all the counts he faced over the death of George Floyd. The trial has been one of the most closely watched cases in recent memory, setting off a national reckoning on police violence and systemic racism even before the trial commenced.
![U.S. State Department logo and podium](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/gettyimages-77646654-865fc7d5e8eb7894e71e2d3a58eedc9cae94b180-500x500.jpg)
State Department To Issue Travel Warnings Amid ‘Unprecedented’ COVID-19 Risks
The U.S. State Department announced plans to expand travel advisories, urging U.S. citizens to stay home as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to pose “unprecedented risks” around the globe.
![Former Vice President Walter Mondale, left, and former President Jimmy Carter appeared together in 2018, marking Mondale's 90th birthday. CREDIT: Star Tribune via Getty Images](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/gettyimages-1306608923_wide-29b015f238cb66bde7de9263c03de7651f3cb17d-500x500.jpg)
Former Vice President And 1984 Democratic Presidential Nominee Walter Mondale Dies At 93
Walter Mondale, who was known to his friends as “Fritz,” endured a landslide loss when he challenged incumbent President Ronald Reagan in 1984. But his most lasting mark may be left on the vice presidency, an office with little stature until Mondale redefined it while serving as former President Jimmy Carter’s influential number two.