Top 8 today

Top eight stories for today including a Michigan judge entered a preliminary injunction barring enforcement of a 1931 abortion ban; The Justice Department was ordered to release a memo advising the attorney general what to do after special counsel Robert Mueller concluded his 2016 election investigation; Heavy fighting and the shelling of cities were reported across the war zone in Ukraine, and more.

National

Court shines light on how Trump averted obstruction charges after Mueller probe

The Justice Department must release a full copy of an internal memo that advised the attorney general what to do after special counsel Robert Mueller concluded his 2016 election investigation, the D.C. Circuit ruled on Friday.

Attorney General William Barr speaks during an Oct. 15, 2020, roundtable discussion on Operation Legend, a federal program to help cities combat violent crime in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)

Federal judge permanently blocks Biden pause on oil and gas leases

One day after the Biden administration prevailed in a Fifth Circuit order upholding its suspension of new oil and gas leases on public land, a federal judge whose preliminary injunction was vacated by the appeals court issued a permanent block on the pause.

An oil rig and supply vessel are pictured in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Louisiana in April 2011. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)

After four weeks of gains, market pulls back slightly

Wall Street took a breather from four straight weeks of gains as indices fell slightly on the heels of a few reports showing declines in manufacturing and producer sentiment.

FILE - A screen displays market data at the New York Stock Exchange in New York (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

Regional

Michigan judge blocks county prosecutors from enforcing 1931 abortion ban

A Michigan judge entered a preliminary injunction Friday morning barring enforcement of the state’s 91-year-old ban on abortions, preventing county attorneys from seeking felony penalties for women who receive them.

Abortion rights protesters demonstrate outside the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing on June 24, 2022, after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the federally protected right to abortion. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)

Democrats hope Florida primary sets the stage for blue wave

In one of the nation’s last primaries, Florida voters head to the polls on Tuesday to solidify a general election that could set the tone for the second half of President Joe Biden’s term and the political landscape leading into the 2024 presidential election.

U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist, D-St. Petersburg, gestures during a campaign rally as he announces his run for Florida governor in St. Petersburg on May 4, 2021. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara, File)

Judge blocks Utah ban on transgender youth playing in girls’ sports

A Utah judge blocked a state law banning transgender youth from participating in girls' athletics, months after the state's conservative political base joined the growing trend among red states.

The Utah Capitol building in Salt Lake City. (Pixabay image via Courthouse News)

International

Ukrainian front lines and nuke plant engulfed in fighting

Heavy fighting and the shelling of cities were reported Friday across the war zone in Ukraine and military and political battles raged over control of a nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine, raising the specter of a nuclear disaster.

Smoke rises over the site of explosion at a Russian army ammunition storage facility near the village of Mayskoye, Crimea, on Tuesday, Aug. 16, 2022. (AP Photo)

Science

Boosting neuron formation may restore memory in Alzheimer’s patients

Increasing the formation of neurons in the hippocampus restored memory function in mice with familial Alzheimer’s disease.

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