National News
National News
![syringe going into a vial of COVID-19 vaccine](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/jj-vaccine_enl-8fa0ad070db7cfd0851f479bee3cc05bcd8e0755-500x500.jpg)
What You Need To Know: 6 Reported Blood Clot Cases In 7 Million From Johnson & Johnson Vaccine
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the blood clots are extremely rare but that it is reviewing the cases. The agency says it expects this pause to last for “a matter of days.”
![Barry Brodd, a use-of-force expert, testifies Tuesday in former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin's trial. Brodd said the position in which George Floyd was restrained — facedown on the ground — was safest for officers and the suspect. CREDIT: Court TV/Pool via AP](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/ap_21103694734073-f0daabbed4fc9ec06f095f3f5e16053944e2814d-500x500.jpg)
Derek Chauvin Trial Continues As Defense Witness Testifies Ex-Officer’s Actions Were Justified
A use-of-force witness gave a new point of view to former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin’s trial on charges of murder and manslaughter. The defense witness said Tuesday that Chauvin and three other officers’ actions were justified during the arrest that ended in George Floyd’s death and that they used an appropriate amount of force.
![Galen Rupp of Portland qualified for his fourth Olympics by winning the U.S. Olympic Marathon Team Trials last year. Here he is at the 2016 Olympic Track and Field Team Trials. CREDIT: Tom Banse/N3](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Galen-Rupp-runner-Olympics-track-and-field-sports-CREDIT-Tom-Banse-N3-500x500.jpg)
100-Day Countdown To Tokyo Olympics Begins, And Northwest Athletes Are Ready To Go
The 100-day countdown to the opening ceremony of the rescheduled 2020 Tokyo Olympics begins Wednesday. Yes, the summer games are proceeding amid an ongoing global pandemic. Olympic hopefuls and Pacific Northwest athletes already picked for Team USA invariably said they are eager to go.
![Katie Wright, mother of Daunte, broke into tears Tuesday recounting her last conversation with her son, who called her for advice after being pulled over by police. An officer shot him shortly after. CREDIT: Stephen Maturen/Getty Images](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/katie-wright-tuesday_slide-f199708930519a85c8c63e23ec418fa9ac7f946d-500x500.jpg)
‘I Never Imagined This’: Daunte Wright’s Family Calls For Accountability
In their first public press conference, the family of Daunte Wright, the 20-year-old Black man shot and killed by police in Brooklyn Center, Minn., expressed grief and anger, called for accountability, and questioned why police felt the need to use any force on their son.
![The Chieftains mascot at Columbia River High School in Vancouver, Washington, is on the way out following a unanimous vote of the school board. CREDIT: Molly Solomon/OPB](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Columbia-High-School-Vancouver-Wa-Chieftans-mascot-CREDIT-Molly-Solomon-OPB-2019-500x500.jpg)
Washington Lawmakers Approve Ban On Native American Mascots With Some Exceptions
The Washington Legislature has approved a measure to ban the use of Native American names, symbols and images as school mascots, logos and team names at most public schools in Washington.
![Marine Gen. Frank McKenzie, (center) is shown visiting Kabul, Afghanistan in January 2020. The Biden administration said it plans to complete a draw down of U.S. troops in the country by Sept. 11. CREDIT: Lolita Baldor/AP](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/ap_21097786513075-53822a81dc5c0e3d246db9e4040c78537ee9f7dc-500x500.jpg)
President Biden Says U.S. Troops To Withdraw From Afghanistan By Sept. 11 – 20 Years After Attack
President Biden will withdraw all remaining U.S. troops from Afghanistan by Sept. 11, the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks that prompted America’s involvement in its longest war, a senior administration official told reporters on Tuesday.
![The casket of the late U.S. Capitol Police officer William "Billy" Evans arrives for a memorial service in the Rotunda at the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday. CREDIT: Drew Angerer/Pool/AFP via Getty Images](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/gettyimages-1232286818_custom-1dd3ebefb7cd35e96aa6db3bb0910aeea63d0dd6-500x500.jpg)
Officer Billy Evans Is Honored At U.S. Capitol Where He Served And Was Killed
U.S. Capitol Police Officer William “Billy” Evans on Tuesday is lying in honor at the Capitol, where he served for 18 years and lost his life in the line of duty earlier this month.
![The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have recommended a pause in the use of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, shown here in a hospital in Denver. CREDIT: David Zalubowski/AP](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/ap21065661043422-c7d09feb7a545d0f9a49a14bcd59e3d7043d055d-500x500.jpg)
U.S. Recommends Pausing Use Of Johnson & Johnson Vaccine Over Blood Clot Concerns
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration said Tuesday they are recommending a “pause” in the use of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine out of an “abundance of caution” while a review of reports of rare, potentially dangerous blood clots is conducted.
![A healthcare worker displays a COVID-19 vaccine record card at the Portland Veterans Affairs Medical Center in December. CREDIT: Nathan Howard/Getty Images](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/gettyimages-1230169189-69976b3d2e82bd78f9821f325899c23c446b47d5-500x500.jpg)
Poll Finds Republicans Particularly Opposed To ‘Vaccine Passport’ Messaging
A poll shows the idea of a document, sometimes called a “passport,” showing proof of vaccination is unpopular with that group as well. Forty-seven percent of Trump voters oppose this type of document, compared with 10% of Biden voters, the survey shows.
![Protests lasted for hours in Brooklyn Center, Minn., where 20-year-old Black man Daunte Wright died after being shot by police Sunday. CREDIT: Evan Frost/MPR News](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/20210411-dauntewrightprotest-frost-news9-28b8dc135123add7a3954fdb88d4749677d1246e-500x500.jpg)
Police Say ‘Accidental Discharge’ Of Gun Led To Daunte Wright’s Death In Minneapolis Suburb
Mayor Mike Elliott announced Monday afternoon that the City Council had given him direct control over police operations. Later Elliott said he had relieved the city manager of his duties and assigned them to the deputy mayor.
![Environmental justice activist and 2020 MacArthur Fellow Catherine Coleman Flowers speaks at a "Fire Drill Fridays" event, part of a movement that seeks to draw attention to the global "climate emergency." Courtesy of Catherine Coleman Flowers](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Environmental-Justice-Activist-Catherine-Coleman-Flowers-500x404.jpg)
Wastewater Is The Infrastructure Crisis ‘People Don’t Want To Talk About’
Some infrastructure concerns go far less discussed than others including, notably, the issue of wastewater and sanitation. According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, the country’s wastewater treatment plants are functioning at an average of “81 percent of their design capacities,” and 15 percent have “reached or exceeded” that capacity. Drinking water service disruptions and flooding from sewer backups and other infrastructure failures cost U.S. households $2 billion in 2019.
![Mayor-elect Tishaura Jones says race will no longer be an afterthought under her incoming administration. Jeff Roberson/AP](https://www.nwpb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/ap20218816701945-83c37e1309a5d81d76d529d41c9e115b9448606c-500x500.jpg)
Long Marred By Racism, St. Louis Elects 1st Black Female Mayor
Voters in St. Louis last week delivered a historic victory for Tishaura Jones, the first Black woman elected mayor and the latest triumph for progressive candidates in the St. Louis region.