Tuesday, April 5 top stories
It is Tuesday, April 5. Here are today’s top stories.
Parkland school shooter to face trial
Nikolas Cruz, who pleaded guilty to killing 17 people and wounding 17 others at a high school in Parkland, Florida on Valentine’s Day four years ago, is now on trial as of Monday. It is currently in the jury selection phase and the final selection of jurors will decide whether he receives life in prison or the death penalty.
The jury selection process is expected to take weeks. The process is difficult because nearly everyone in Florida, especially in southern Florida, is aware of what happened and have already formed strong opinions about Cruz.
Prosecutors want Cruz to get the death penalty, while the defense is asking for life in prison. Analysts said that once the jury selection process is over, the trial could take four to six months.
Tiger Woods plans to play Masters
Tiger Woods announced this morning that he feels like he is healthy enough to play in the Masters golf tournament that is set to begin this Thursday. He will make his final decision on Wednesday after his final practice round.
If Tiger plays, it will be a big comeback from serious injuries to his right leg and foot sustained in a single-car crash on February 23, 2021 in Southern California.
Zelensky: Over 300 tortured and killed
Ukrainian President Zelenskyy said he’s visited three cities in the Kyiv region that they’ve liberated from Russian occupiers and that the cities are “simply ruined.” He said there were over 300 people who were tortured and killed in Bucha, which is in the Kyiv region. Zelenskyy said Ukrainian authorities have removed the bodies of those who were killed from streets but that there are many more that remain in homes and yards. He vowed to do everything possible to identify the Russian military involved in these crimes and to punish them with the International Criminal Court.
Russian officials have claimed that Ukrainian forces staged the corpses or killed civilians themselves. Zelenskyy said he welcomes thousands of journalists to come and see the evidence for themselves.
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Biden to end pandemic restrictions at border
The Biden administration announced that on May 23, the U.S. will end pandemic-related rules and restrictions that blocked many migrants from entering the U.S.
Former President Donald Trump started the pandemic restrictions, called Title 42. CNN explained that the U.S. turned away migrants more than 1.7 million times since then using Title 42.
The Biden administration said the rules are no longer necessary because there is increased availability of tools to fight Covid-19.
There is opposition to this change and now three Republican-led states are suing the Biden administration seeking to continue Title 42. The three states, Missouri, Arizona, and Louisiana, said ending the restrictions would cause “unmitigated chaos and catastrophe” at the border.
The White House said they do predict an increase in migrants at the border and that’s why they are waiting until May 23 to give border authorities time to prepare.
Research: 7,000 steps a day increases lifespans
The Lancet medical journal published a study that found those aged 60 and older could significantly increase their lifespans by increasing daily steps from 3,000 to 7,000. Their mortality risk was reduced by 50%. The study said “walking benefits nearly every cell in the body.” The study said it is commonly thought that 10,000 steps is the ideal goal for top health, but that only 7,000 steps is needed for the maximum benefits from walking and that the benefits plateau after 9,000 steps. This means you get the most health benefits at 7,000 steps and if you walk more than that, you can, but it won’t have as much impact as the first 7,000. You can track your daily steps using a phone app or with a fitness watch.
Obama returns to White House
Former president Barack Obama returned to the White House today for the first time since he left January 2017. The occasion is to mark the 12th anniversary of the Affordable Care Act, as known as Obamacare. President Biden said he’s going to continue to expand the ACA and provide health insurance coverage for Americans.
That is all the top stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light.
https://www.cnn.com/2022/04/01/politics/immigration-title-42-repeal-cdc/index.html
https://www.espn.com/golf/story/_/id/33675853/tiger-woods-says-now-plans-play-mastersav
https://www.axios.com/walking-exercise-10000-steps-c714bf7b-8528-496c-9981-67bc566b1b81.html
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpub/article/PIIS2468-2667(21)00302-9/fulltext#seccestitle140
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/04/us/parkland-gunman-jury-selection-sentencing.html