Reuters US Domestic News Summary

The research found 1,000 more book bans than were documented in the group's initial April report. Maryland judge vacates murder conviction of 'Serial' podcast subject Syed A Maryland judge on Monday vacated the 2000 murder conviction of Adnan Syed after prosecutors said there were grave problems with his trial, including two other possible suspects in the killing of his former girlfriend who were never disclosed to the defense.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Planned Parenthood, others urge Indiana judge to block abortion ban

A Planned Parenthood affiliate and other abortion rights groups and providers on Monday urged an Indiana judge to block the state's ban on most abortions, which took effect last Thursday. Kenneth Falk, a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana, told Judge Kelsey Hanlon in Indianapolis that the ban ran afoul of privacy and liberty rights Falk said were guaranteed by the state's constitution. The ACLU sued to challenge the law alongside Planned Parenthood Great Northwest, Hawai'i, Alaska, Indiana, Kentucky and others.

Explainer-Biden said the pandemic is over. Is it?

What is the status of COVID-19 now that President Joe Biden has told the CBS 60 Minutes news program the pandemic is over in the United States? HAS THE U.S. FORMALLY DECLARED THE END OF THE PANDEMIC?

Justice Dept files proposed agenda for special master in Trump documents case ahead of Tuesday hearing

The U.S. Justice Department on Monday laid out the list of topics prosecutors hope to discuss at a Tuesday hearing in Brooklyn, New York, before Judge Raymond Dearie, who was appointed last week as special master to review all of the records the FBI seized from former President Donald Trump's Florida estate. The proposed agenda is mostly logistical in nature, including a recommendation to hire a third-party vendor to scan documents.

U.S. Senate will vote this week on election transparency bill -Schumer

U.S. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said on Monday that the chamber would vote this week on the DISCLOSE Act, which he said would require super PACs and certain other groups to disclose donors who contributed $10,000 or more to them during an election.

U.S. OKs new American Airlines, JetBlue flights to Havana

The Biden administration will expand U.S. flights to Havana, adding 13 weekly American Airlines departures from Miami and a weekly JetBlue departure from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, the Transportation Department said on Monday. That is on top of the typical six daily American Airlines flights and three JetBlue flights weekdays to Havana from the Florida airports.

Jan. 6 attack prompts U.S. House to launch makeover of 1887 law

A 135-year-old federal election law will start getting a makeover in Congress this week in response to the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol by then-President Donald Trump's supporters trying to stop certification of Joe Biden's victory.

Democrat Zoe Lofgren and Republican Liz Cheney, members of the U.S. House of Representatives, on Monday unveiled proposed changes in the 1887 Electoral Count Act that authorizes the House and U.S. Senate to meet every four years, in early January, following November presidential elections.

Trump ally Mike Lindell must face defamation suit over election-rigging claims

MyPillow Inc Chief Executive Mike Lindell must face a defamation lawsuit brought by a voting machine company that the Trump ally falsely accused of rigging the 2020 U.S. election, a Minnesota federal judge ruled on Monday. Judge Wilhelmina M. Wright denied Lindell and MyPillow's motion to dismiss the lawsuit by Smartmatic USA Corp, finding ample evidence that Lindell ignored publicly available information that contradicted his theories.

Trump may be called to testify at ally's foreign agent trial, judge says

Former President Donald Trump may be called as a witness at the criminal trial of Thomas Barrack, a private equity investor and former Trump fundraiser charged with acting as an unregistered agent for the United Arab Emirates, a U.S. judge said on Monday. U.S. District Judge Brian Cogan in Brooklyn told several prospective jurors for Barrack's trial about the prospect of Trump testifying to gauge whether they might be biased against the defendant.

U.S. school book bans on the rise due to advocacy groups, report says

Book bans accelerated across the United States during the 2021-2022 school year, largely because of advocacy groups that called on public schools to remove more than 1,600 titles, the writers' group PEN America said on Monday. There were 2,532 separate book bans affecting 1,648 titles at 5,000 schools with 4 million students, according to the report. The research found 1,000 more book bans than were documented in the group's initial April report.

Maryland judge vacates murder conviction of 'Serial' podcast subject Syed

A Maryland judge on Monday vacated the 2000 murder conviction of Adnan Syed after prosecutors said there were grave problems with his trial, including two other possible suspects in the killing of his former girlfriend who were never disclosed to the defense. The case gained national attention when the podcast "Serial" raised doubts about his guilt. Syed, now 42, has always said he was innocent and did not kill Hae Min Lee, who was 18 when she was strangled and buried in a Baltimore park in 1999.

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