Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Not only was Bal a licensed esthetician with no need for instruction, she argued that the trainings were specific to the shop and low quality. U.S. security officials worry about homegrown election threats Domestic disinformation campaigns and homegrown threats to poll workers are emerging as bigger concerns ahead of the Nov. 8 U.S. congressional elections than foreign interference, according to U.S. cybersecurity and law enforcement officials.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Kevin Spacey denies Anthony Rapp abuse claim, regrets apology

Kevin Spacey said in court on Monday that he regretted apologizing to actor Anthony Rapp over claims that the Oscar winner made an unwanted sexual advance in 1986 when Rapp was 14.

Rapp, now 50, sued Spacey in 2020 for battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress, and testified earlier this month that an intoxicated Spacey - then 26 and acting on Broadway - climbed on top of him at a party at his Manhattan apartment. Rapp, at the start of his own Broadway career at the time, said he was able to "swerve my way out" but that the experience scarred him.

Dismembered remains found in Oklahoma river identified as 4 missing men

Dismembered bodies found in the Deep Fork River in Oklahoma have been identified as those of four men reported missing last week, the local police chief said on Monday, adding: "This is now a murder investigation." Investigators found the first remains on Friday and determined over the weekend that the victims died from gunshot wounds before they were cut up and dumped into the river, Okmulgee Police Chief Joe Prentice told a news conference.

Kanye West agrees to buy social media app Parler

American rapper Kanye West, who now goes by Ye, has agreed in principle to buy Parler, the social media platform popular among U.S. conservatives, parent company Parlement Technologies said on Monday. Nashville-based Parler, which has raised about $56 million to date, said it expects the deal to close during the fourth quarter of 2022. It did not give a deal value.

Trump ally Clark asks U.S. court to block disciplinary charges against him

Former Justice Department attorney Jeffrey Bossert Clark asked a federal court on Monday to intervene in a legal disciplinary case pending against him over his efforts to help former President Donald Trump overturn his 2020 election loss. In his lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Clark argues that the District of Columbia Court of Appeals and the local bodies of the D.C. Bar responsible for filing and adjudicating disciplinary proceedings against attorneys do not have the jurisdiction to bring ethics charges against him.

More U.S. companies charging employees for job training if they quit

When a Washington state beauty salon charged Simran Bal $1,900 for training after she quit, she was shocked. Not only was Bal a licensed esthetician with no need for instruction, she argued that the trainings were specific to the shop and low quality.

U.S. security officials worry about homegrown election threats

Domestic disinformation campaigns and homegrown threats to poll workers are emerging as bigger concerns ahead of the Nov. 8 U.S. congressional elections than foreign interference, according to U.S. cybersecurity and law enforcement officials. Russia and Iran, accused of meddling in past U.S. elections using disinformation campaigns, are enmeshed in their own crises - the Russian invasion of Ukraine and Iranian mass protests - and have not yet been found to have targeted this election, said two senior U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity. According to information disclosed as part of criminal cases, Russian and Iranian intelligence units deployed hackers and fake social media accounts in recent U.S. elections to try to influence the vote and sow discord. Election integrity has been a contentious issue in the United States, particularly in the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election. Republican former President Donald Trump continues to make false claims that the election was stolen from him by Democrat Joe Biden through widespread voting fraud. "At this time, we are not aware of any specific or credible threats to compromise or disrupt election infrastructure," top U.S. cybersecurity official Jen Easterly told reporters last week during a video conference on election security. "That said, the current election threat environment is more complex than it has ever been," added Easterly, who heads the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). Republicans are aiming to win back control of the Senate and House of Representatives from Biden's fellow Democrats in the midterm elections, a development that would imperil major parts of his legislative agenda. Since 2020, there have been numerous reported incidents of poll workers being threatened, harassed or assaulted by Trump supporters, as detailed by Reuters. Opinion polls have shown that a large majority of Republican voters believe Trump won that election. "There is a lot of rhetoric about violence against poll workers," said one of the U.S. officials, who is involved in efforts to prevent the spread of election-related disinformation. "So we have made it a point ... to aggressively investigate all of those threats." The official noted that the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment safeguard for free speech would protect certain types of comments. "First Amendment-protected is, 'Oh, I wish so-and-so can die.' However, if you say, 'I'm going to come to his house and kill so-and-so,' then we can open an investigation. Even though it's a small minority of people who are putting out all of this type of language, it gets amplified on social media. So I would say that is kind of my biggest concern," the official added.

Planned Parenthood asks North Carolina court to let more health workers provide abortions

North Carolina abortion providers on Monday asked a state court to allow health professionals other than physicians to provide medication abortions, as clinics struggle to accommodate an influx of abortion patients from across the U.S. South. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic and SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective filed a motion seeking temporary relief from a state law that bans "advanced practice clinicians," including nurse practitioners and physician assistants, from providing abortions.

Explainer-U.S. midterm elections: How America casts and counts its votes

Misinformation online and false claims of election fraud by former President Donald Trump and his allies have sharply eroded public trust in the integrity of U.S. elections. How Americans vote — and the equipment they use — varies widely, and some methods are more vulnerable to efforts to shake that trust.

Heading into the 2022 midterms, election experts say the move in most states to hybrid voting systems – paper ballots tallied by electronic machines – could give voters greater confidence.

U.S. urges 6-month sentence for ex-Trump adviser Bannon over contempt conviction

The U.S. Justice Department on Monday asked a federal judge to sentence former President Donald Trump's adviser Steve Bannon to six months behind bars, saying he pursued a "bad faith strategy of defiance and contempt" against the congressional committee probing the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. Bannon, 68, an influential far-right political figure, was convicted in July on two counts of contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena.

Starbucks sued for accusing unionized workers of assault, kidnapping

Starbucks Corp was sued on Monday by eight employees at a unionized South Carolina store who said the company falsely accused them of criminal conduct after they demanded a raise from their manager. The workers filed a lawsuit in South Carolina state court against Starbucks and the manager at the store in Anderson, a few miles from Clemson University. They claimed the manager urged police to charge them with assault and kidnapping after the workers pressed her for a raise in August.

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