Putin offering
troop pullback
and diplomacy
President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that Russia would “partially pull back troops” deployed near Ukraine and was seeking a “diplomatic path” to resolving a tense standoff with the West, while President Joe Biden welcomed further negotiations but warned that a Russian invasion “remains very much a possibility.” It was the second day in a row that Moscow appeared to swerve away from confrontation over Ukraine, after its declaration Monday that diplomatic options were “far from exhausted.” Biden vowed to “give the diplomacy every chance” to prevent a Russian invasion but cautioned that Russian forces remain “in a threatening position.”
Sandy Hook families settle with gunmaker for $73M
The families of nine Sandy Hook school shooting victims settled a lawsuit for $73 million Tuesday against Remington, maker of the AR-15-style rifle used in the massacre, in what is believed to be the largest payout by a gun manufacturer in a mass shooting case. The lawsuit worked around the federal law protecting gun companies from litigation by arguing that the manufacturer’s marketing of the weapon had violated Connecticut consumer law. The families argued Remington promoted sales of the weapon that appealed to troubled men like the killer who stormed into Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, on Dec. 14, 2012, killing 20 first graders and six adults.
A woman is cured of HIV using a novel treatment
A woman of mixed race appears to be the third person to be cured of HIV, using a new transplant method involving umbilical cord blood that opens up the possibility of curing more people of diverse racial backgrounds than was previously possible, scientists announced Tuesday. Cord blood is more widely available than the adult stem cells used in the bone marrow transplants that cured the previous two patients, and it does not need to be matched as closely. Most donors are of Caucasian origin, so allowing for only a partial match has the potential to cure dozens of Americans who have both HIV and cancer each year, scientists said.
Senate confirms Califf as FDA chief
in tight vote
The Senate on Tuesday narrowly confirmed Dr. Robert Califf as commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, a key federal agency that has been without a permanent chief for more than a yearlong stretch of the coronavirus pandemic. The vote was 50-46, with six Republicans crossing the aisle to support him while five senators who caucus with Democrats opposed him. One senator voted present. Califf, who is 70, is expected to be sworn in this week. He faces a looming flurry of decisions — including intense scrutiny of a coronavirus vaccine for children under 5 and reviews of e-cigarette applications like Juul’s bid to stay on the market.
Jan. 6 inquiry subpoenas 6 tied to false pro-Trump elector effort
The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol subpoenaed two of Donald Trump’s campaign aides and Republican Party officials from battleground states Tuesday as it dug deeper into a plan to use false slates of electors to help the former president stay in office after he lost the 2020 election. Among those subpoenaed Tuesday were Michael A. Roman and Gary Michael Brown, who served as the director and deputy director of Election Day operations for Trump’s campaign; Doug Mastriano, a Pennsylvania state senator; Laura Cox, former chair of Michigan’s Republican Party; Mark W. Finchem, an Arizona state legislator; and Kelli Ward, chair of Arizona’s Republican Party.
Ex-president of Honduras detained
in drug case
Honduran authorities detained former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández on Tuesday to potentially face extradition and drug charges in the United States, capping a spectacular downfall for one of Central America’s most powerful men. Hernández, stepped down less than a month ago, was escorted by security officers from his home. “I’m ready to present myself voluntarily and defend myself in accordance with the law,” he said on Facebook. Fireworks exploded around the Honduran capital of Tegucigalpa almost immediately after Hernández was led away from his home, and about 100 protesters gathered around his residence to celebrate his detention.
Rape scandal ends
in prison for teacher in Indonesia
The owner of an Islamic boarding school in Indonesia was convicted Tuesday of raping 13 of his underage students — fathering nine children with his victims — and was sentenced to life in prison. A court in the city of Bandung on the island of Java found Herry Wirawan, 36, guilty of raping the girls, ages 11 to 16, repeatedly and systematically over a period of five years. The three-judge panel decided against imposing the death penalty and chemical castration, as the prosecution had sought.
Family of slain cinematographer sues Alec Baldwin and ‘Rust’ producers
The family of Halyna Hutchins, the cinematographer fatally shot by Alec Baldwin on the set of the movie “Rust” last year, filed a wrongful-death lawsuit Tuesday in New Mexico against crew members and producers, including Baldwin. The suit, filed by Hutchins’ widower, Matthew Hutchins; her 9-year-old son; and the personal representative of Hutchins’ estate, accused Baldwin and the other defendants of reckless conduct and cost-cutting measures that endangered the crew, including failing to follow industry standard safety checks and gun safety rules. Hutchins, 42, was shot Oct. 21 while the production was lining up camera angles for a scene in which Baldwin draws an old-fashioned revolver from a holster.
By wire sources
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