Top eight today

Top eight stories for today including Poland and Hungary are fighting to keep collecting EU funds even when increasingly undemocratic attitudes put them in conflict; A Wyoming coroner revealed Gabby Petito died by strangulation; The fate of the nation’s most restrictive abortion law is again in the hands of the Fifth Circuit, and more.

National

Coroner: Gabby Petito’s murderer strangled her

Gabby Petito, the 22-year-old cross-country traveler and YouTuber whose disappearance captured the attention of national media and fueled a frenzy among internet sleuths, died by strangulation, a Wyoming county coroner revealed Tuesday.

This combo of photos provided by FBI Denver via @FBIDenver shows missing person Gabrielle "Gabby" Petito. (Courtesy of FBI Denver via AP)

Justice Department again tries to block near-total abortion ban in Texas

The fate of the nation’s most restrictive abortion law is again in the hands of the Fifth Circuit after the Biden Justice Department asked the court to lift a stay “as quickly as possible” days after a federal judge blocked enforcement of the Texas law.

People participating in the Houston Women’s March against the Texas abortion ban walk from Discovery Green to City Hall on Oct. 2, 2021. (Melissa Phillip/Houston Chronicle via AP)

Criminal trial of Giuliani’s Ukrainian cronies kicks off with jury selection

Jury selection began Tuesday in a campaign-finance trial that the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic stopped from contributing bad press to former President Donald Trump during the 2020 election.

Lev Parnas provided this undated photo of him and Rudy Giuliani to House lawmakers who were part of an 2020 impeachment probe against President Donald Trump. (House Judiciary Committee via AP)

Regional

Planned Parenthood shooting spurs trial on lax security claims

Victims of a 2015 mass shooting at a Planned Parenthood in Colorado brought their premises liability case to trial Tuesday, claiming the nonprofit failed to provide security measures that could have prevented the attack.

Turning away Puerto Ricans, justices leave cockfighting ban in place

Leaving a ban on cockfighting in place, the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday decided not to take up a challenge over a federal law that prohibits the practice in Puerto Rico.

International

Poland and Hungary tell EU to sever ever-tightening purse strings

The EU’s top court wrapped up two days of hearings Tuesday into Poland and Hungary's complaint about a new measure that would allow the bloc to withhold funds from countries that fail to follow the rule of law.

Supporters of Hungary's political opposition display a banner during a 2017 anti-government protest at Budapest University of Technology and Economics. (Balazs Mohai/MTI via AP)

Rights court: Vatican can’t be sued in European courts by sex abuse victims

Vatican City cannot be sued in European courts because it is a sovereign state, the European Court of Human Rights ruled on Tuesday, delivering a blow to victims of clergy sexual abuse seeking to bring claims against the Catholic Church's highest authorities.

Pope Francis holds the pastoral staff as he celebrates a mass in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican on Oct. 10, 2021. (Gregorio Borgia/AP)

UN high court rules for Somalia in maritime border dispute with Kenya

Judges at the United Nations’ top court handed a stretch of the Indian Ocean over to Somalia on Tuesday.

Map shows the Kenya-Somalia coastline and disputed area.

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