April Miller and Karen Roberts hugged as the news flashed across their television screen, and their hug turned into a brief slow dance across the living room rug.
A federal appeals court had just upheld a ruling ordering the clerk in their rural Kentucky county to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
For two months since the United States Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage across the country, Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis has refused to issue any marriage licenses, citing her Christian faith and constitutional right to religious freedom. On Thursday, her office refused to issue a marriage license to another couple, William Smith Jr. and James Yates. It was their third attempt to get a license.
Same-sex couple cheers gay marriage ruling in Kentucky
Autopsy indicates officer shot unarmed teen William Chapman from distance
An unarmed black 18-year-old was fatally shot in the face by a police officer from several feet away during their confrontation outside a supermarket in Virginia earlier this year, the findings of his autopsy indicate.
The typical signs of a close- or body-contact shooting were not found around the bullet wounds William Chapman sustained in the head and chest when he was killed by Officer Stephen Rankin in the parking lot of a Walmart in Portsmouth on 22 April. Chapman was the second unarmed man to be shot dead by Rankin.
Cuba dissidents won't attend US Embassy event
The Obama administration doesn't plan to invite Cuban dissidents to Secretary of State John Kerry's historic flag-raising at the U.S. Embassy in Havana on Friday, vividly illustrating how U.S. policy is shifting focus from the island's opposition to its single-party government. Instead, Kerry intends to meet more quietly with prominent activists later in the day, officials said.
The Cuban opposition has occupied the center of U.S. policy toward the island since the nations cut diplomatic relations in 1961. The Cuban government labels its domestic opponents as traitorous U.S. mercenaries. As the two countries have moved to restore relations, Cuba has almost entirely stopped meeting with American politicians who visit dissidents during trips to Havana.
Alabama officer kept job after proposal to murder black man and hide evidence
A police officer in Alabama proposed murdering a black resident and creating bogus evidence to suggest the killing was in self-defence, the Guardian has learned.
Officer Troy Middlebrooks kept his job and continues to patrol Alexander City after authorities there paid the man $35,000 to avoid being publicly sued over the incident. Middlebrooks, a veteran of the US marines, said the man “needs a god damn bullet” and allegedly referred to him as “that nigger”, after becoming frustrated that the man was not punished more harshly over a prior run-in.
After Facing Conservative Backlash, AP U.S. History Course Revised
After facing months of intense scrutiny over a new Advanced Placement U.S. History (APUSH) course outline that some conservatives perceived as containing anti-American biases, the College Board released a new framework for the class Thursday morning.
This structure places more of an emphasis on concepts surrounding American national identity, the country's founding leaders and documents and the effective role of free enterprise in U.S. history.
Cincinnati officer indicted for murder over death of unarmed black driver
A University of Cincinnati police officer who shot dead a motorist after pulling him over for a missing front license plate has been indicted on murder.
Hamilton County prosecutor Joe Deters said Ray Tensing “purposely killed” 43-year-old Samuel DuBose, a black man who was unarmed at the time of the incident. Tensing “should never have been a police officer,” Deters added.
Boy Scouts to lift ban on gay adult leaders
The Boy Scouts of America is expected to end its ban on gay adult leaders on Monday, dismantling a policy that has deeply divided the membership of the 105-year-old Texas-based organization.
The Boy Scouts National Executive Board will consider a resolution that was unanimously approved by the organization’s executive committee on July 13. The organization is urging an end to the ban because of a "sea change in the law with respect to gay rights."
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