US Domestic News Roundup: U.S. Steel to idle Indiana plant, 150 jobs at risk; Popeyes spicy chicken sandwich launch heats up social media

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

U.S. Justice Ginsburg treated for pancreatic cancer

Liberal U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has completed a three-week course of radiation therapy to treat a cancerous tumor on her pancreas, a court spokeswoman said on Friday. The 86-year old justice, who has had previous cancer scares, tolerated the therapy well and no further treatment is required, spokeswoman Kathy Arberg said in a statement.

Florida man gets 15 months for threatening to kill Bernie Sanders

A Florida man was sentenced to 15 months in prison on Friday for threatening to behead U.S. Senator and Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders, federal prosecutors said. The man, 58-year-old Robert Pratersch of Kissimmee, in September 2018 left three voicemail messages at Sanders' Vermont office where he made anti-Semitic threats and threatened to kill Sanders by beheading him in an "ISIS-style" video.

Psychologist approved Jeffrey Epstein's removal from suicide watch

A psychologist at the federal detention center in New York City where financier Jeffrey Epstein was jailed on sex-trafficking charges had approved his removal from suicide watch before he killed himself, the U.S. Justice Department said on Friday. The disclosure came in a letter dated on Thursday from Assistant Attorney General Stephen Boyd and addressed to the leaders of the Judiciary Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives, seeking details about the circumstances surrounding Epstein's death earlier this month.

Kentucky clerk who refused same-sex marriage licenses can be sued

The Kentucky county clerk who in 2015 gained widespread attention for refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples may be sued for damages by two of those couples, a federal appeals court ruled on Friday. In a 3-0 decision, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati said Kim Davis can be sued in her individual capacity, though sovereign immunity shielded her from being sued in her former role as Rowan County Clerk.

U.S. Steel to idle Indiana plant, 150 jobs at risk

U.S. Steel said on Friday it will idle a plant in Indiana by mid-November as part of the consolidation of its till mill operations in the United States, a move which could result in lay-offs for nearly 150 employees. The news comes days after the Pittsburgh-based company revealed its plans to let go of up to 200 workers at its Great Lakes facility in Michigan.

Popeyes spicy chicken sandwich launch heats up social media

A sign posted inside a Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen in the Queens borough of New York on Friday said the restaurant was out of its newly launched fried chicken sandwich. Other outlets in the city were also sold out. "Be back soon," one sign read.

Avowed Trump supporter from Mexico convicted of alien voter fraud

An avowed Republican activist and supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump, who was born in Mexico but lived in the United States illegally for more than 20 years, was found guilty on Friday of identity theft and five counts of alien voter fraud. A federal court jury in Sacramento, California, returned the guilty verdict against Gustavo Araujo Lerma, 64, after several hours of deliberation, capping a five-day trial in which defense lawyers presented letters of thanks from Trump and top Republican Party officials.

Christian couple can sue over Minnesota same-sex marriage video law

A federal appeals court on Friday revived a lawsuit by a Minnesota couple challenging a state law requiring that their video production company film same-sex weddings, which they say violates their Christian beliefs. In a 2-1 decision, the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Paul, Minnesota, said Angel and Carl Larsen can try to show that the law violates their rights to free speech and to freely exercise their religious beliefs under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

Former police officer charged with murder for botched Houston raid

Prosecutors charged a former Houston police officer on Friday with two counts of murder and another ex-officer with evidence tampering, in connection with a deadly drug raid that was based on bogus information, officials said. The filing of criminal charges in the case comes as federal and local authorities investigate the January police raid at a house, which resulted in the shooting deaths of a couple who lived there and the wounding of four officers who took part in the operation.

CDC flags one death and nearly 200 cases of lung illnesses in U.S, possibly tied to vaping

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday it had identified 193 potential cases of severe lung illness tied to vaping in 22 states as of Aug. 22, including one adult in Illinois who died after being hospitalized. The CDC has been investigating a "cluster" of lung illnesses that it believes may be linked to e-cigarette use, although it has not yet been able to establish whether they were in fact caused by vaping.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)