Top 8 today

Top eight stories for today including the 156th day of war in Ukraine was marked by a gruesome attack on a prison; The Second Circuit rejected a challenge to New York’s medical exemption requirements for the measles vaccine; Wall Street rallied to end the week on a positive note despite recession fears, and more.

National

Lawyer who defended abortion clinic in Dobbs tapped for 1st Circuit

One month after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, President Joe Biden on Friday nominated the lawyer who argued on behalf of abortion providers in the high-court case that eliminated the right to an abortion to join the First Circuit.

This artist sketch depicts Center for Reproductive Rights Litigation Director Julie Rikelman speaking to the Supreme Court, Wednesday, Dec. 1, 2021, in Washington. Seated to Rikelman's right is Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar. (Dana Verkouteren via AP)

Markets race past dropping GDP and higher inflation

Investors got some bad news this week, as the U.S. economy shrunk for the second quarter in a row, inflation continued to rise, and interest rates were hiked again. But they rallied anyway.

A news conference held by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is displayed at the New York Stock Exchange in on July 27, 2022, as traders work and watch. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Regional

Foul fowl: Hawaii locals overwhelmed by wild chickens

Although some may consider them a charming island quirk, many Hawaii residents say feral chickens are nothing to crow about.

Flocks of chickens roam Kapiolani Beach Park on Oahu. (Candace Cheung/Courthouse News)

New York’s measles vaccine rules get green light

Ruling that New York has a public interest in requiring schoolchildren to get the measles vaccine, the Second Circuit rejected a challenge Friday to the state’s medical exemption requirements.

A vaccine against measles, mumps and rubella is administered at the Rockland County Health Department in Pomona, N.Y., north of New York City, on March 27, 2019. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, file)

Activists demand carbon-free California by 2035

The effects of climate change are the talk of California’s plan to reach carbon neutrality by 2045. That’s not soon enough for many, as was evident during a packed meeting of the California Air Resources Board on Thursday evening.

Activists gathered outside a California Air Resources Board meeting to voice their disapproval of a new climate change plan. (Kevin Winter/Courthouse News)

International

Dozens of Ukrainian war prisoners killed in blast

The war in Ukraine turned particularly gruesome on Friday after more than 50 Ukrainian prisoners of war were killed and dozens more were wounded when a prison was struck by rocket fire during the night.

A view of a destroyed barrack at a prison in Olenivka, in an area of eastern Ukraine controlled by Russian-backed separatist forces, on Friday, July 29, 2022. (AP Photo)

UK unions float general strike as inflation soars

The United Kingdom is on course for a wave of industrial unrest later this year, after both candidates seeking the country’s top job of prime minister have pledged to introduce legislation that would undermine the ability to strike.

Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union stand on the picket line outside Bristol Temple Meads train station in Bristol, England, on Wednesday July 27, 2022. (Ben Birchall/PA via AP)

Faroe Islands hold on to restrictive abortion laws

In light of the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and the ensuing debate on American women’s right to abortion, the Danish media and public have reignited a discussion over restrictive abortion laws on the Faroe Islands.

The Faroese Parliament buildings in Tórshavn are called "Tingenes" and they are located just by the sea. (Mie Olsen/Courthouse News)

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