Top 8 today

Top eight stories for today including Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan decisively beat his opponents in a first round of national elections; The 10th Circuit granted qualified immunity to Wichita State University’s president in a former professor’s sexual harassment complaint; The Supreme Court agreed to decide a redistricting fight ahead of the 2024 elections, and more.

National

Voting maps in South Carolina get Supreme Court review for discrimination

The Supreme Court agreed to decide a redistricting fight ahead of the 2024 elections, taking up a case Monday to decide if South Carolina’s congressional districts are due a redraw for discriminating against Black voters.

U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace speaks with supporters on June 16, 2022, in Charleston, S.C., after defeating the Trump-backed Katie Arrington in South Carolina's 1st District Republican primary. (AP Photo/Meg Kinnard)

Soccer star tied to al-Qaida begins terror trial in US

A former professional European soccer player convicted in Belgium 20 years ago of planning a suicide bombing attack on Americans in Europe appeared in U.S. federal court on Monday to begin his jury trial.

This 2018 photo shows an F-16AM Fighting Falcon, the gate guardian at Kleine Brogel Air Base, Belgium, the subject of an al-Qaida attack plot. (Alf van Beem/public domain via Courthouse News)

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Regional

Staffers injured after attack with bat in Virginia field office of US congressman

Police arrested an individual at the district office of Congressman Gerry Connolly on Monday morning for causing injuries to two members of Connelly's staff.

Rep. Gerald Connolly, D-Va., in Washington on June 28, 2017, during a hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

10th Circuit shields Wichita State president from #MeToo-era harassment case

Reversing a lower court, the 10th Circuit on Monday granted qualified immunity to the president of Wichita State University in a former professor’s sexual harassment complaint.

The Byron White Federal Courthouse in Denver, home of the 10th Circuit. (Amanda Pampuro/Courthouse News)

International

Turkey’s Erdoğan scores election win but faces runoff

In spite of an economic crisis and deep discontent with his authoritarian rule, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was on the path to reelection Monday after he decisively beat his opponents in a first round of national elections.

A person walks past billboards of Turkish President and People's Alliance's presidential candidate Recep Tayyip Erdogan on May 15, 2023, a day after the presidential election in Istanbul. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

Far-right French politician found liable for racist comments on Facebook page

Fining social media users who do not remove racist comments on their profiles is not a violation of their freedom of expression, Europe’s top rights court held on Monday.

The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, France. (Photo by CherryX from Wikipedia Commons via Courthouse News)

EU predicts flattening inflation but slow relief for consumers

The European Union’s spring economic forecast published Monday anticipates steady growth as inflation and energy costs decrease, though relief may be slow to reach the average consumer as core inflation continues to strain household spending.

Euro coins and bills. (Pixabay image via Courthouse News)

Science

Newly created ‘tree of life’ shows butterflies came from America

Scientists believe butterflies are roughly 100 million years old, having evolved from moths when dinosaurs still roamed the earth. And until recently, this evolutionary step, made possible by new nectar-rich flowers that also led to the development of bees, was thought to have first taken place in Southeast Asia. But a new paper, published Monday in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution, points to a different birthplace: North or Central America.

Using the largest butterfly tree of life ever created, scientists have determined where the first butterflies originated and which plants they relied on for food. (Florida Museum photo by Kristen Grace and phylogeny by Hillis, Zwickl, and Gutell via Courthouse News.)

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