Top eight today

Top eight stories for today including the U.S. is closing its embassy in Ukraine amid a buildup of Russian forces on the border; A federal judge said he would dismiss Sarah Palin’s defamation case against The New York Times for insufficient evidence; Democrats and the ACLU filed lawsuits claiming Kansas’ new congressional map is a partisan gerrymander, and more.

National

Threat of Russian invasion pushes US to pull embassy officials out of Kyiv

The U.S. is closing its embassy in Kyiv and moving officials to the western city of Lviv "due to the dramatic acceleration in the buildup of Russian forces," Secretary of State Anthony Blinken announced Monday.

A woman walks past the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Monday, Jan. 24, 2022. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

Green roofs laying roots in mainstream

Living roofs are a buffer against pounding hail, flooding rain and extreme heat. And done right, one expert says, they pay homage to their regions’ pre-concrete landscapes.

Cactus in POST-Houston's rooftop park. (Cameron Langford/Courthouse News)

Ex-Marine sentenced to 210 years in sexual abuse of girls in Cambodia

A federal judge sentenced a retired U.S. Marine captain to 210 years in prison for drugging and raping underage girls as young as nine he "bought" from their mothers in Cambodia.

(Image by Jody Davis from Pixabay via Courthouse News)

Affordable broadband program making a dent in the digital divide

More than 10 million low-income households have lower internet costs thanks to the latest rollout of a program tied to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Vice President Kamala Harris announced Monday.

Vice President Kamala Harris announces the enrollment of 10 million households in the Affordable Connectivity Program, which reduces the cost of internet for low-income households, during a speech on Feb. 14, 2022. (Screenshot via Courthouse News)

Regional

New York judge to toss out Sarah Palin’s libel case, again

Even if she wins, she loses. A federal judge said Monday he would dismiss Sarah Palin’s defamation case against The New York Times for insufficient evidence as soon as the jury returns with its verdict, regardless of how they rule.

Reporters gather as Sarah Palin leaves the Southern District of New York courthouse on Feb. 4, 2022. (Nina Pullano/Courthouse News)

Kansas Republicans sued on claims of partisan gerrymandering

Democrats and the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas filed lawsuits against the Kansas secretary of state Monday claiming the state’s new congressional map is a partisan gerrymander.

Kansas Capitol building in Topeka. (Pixabay image via Courthouse News)

Release of employer coronavirus data debated at Wisconsin Supreme Court

Lawyers for the Wisconsin state government, the state’s largest business lobby and press freedom advocates argued before the Wisconsin Supreme Court on Monday over whether the state can release records requested by a newspaper showing how many employees at some businesses contracted Covid-19 or had contact with someone who tested positive.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court room at the state Capitol building in Madison. (Royalbroil/Wikipedia Commons via Courthouse News)

International

Ugandan warlord urges court to overturn sentence for human rights abuses

Lawyers for a former child soldier convicted of keeping sex slaves and forcing them to bear his children are asking the International Criminal Court to overturn his conviction.

Dominic Ongwen, a former senior commander in the Ugandan rebel group Lord's Resistance Army, appears at the International Criminal Court for a hearing confirming the charges against him on Jan. 21, 2016. (ICC via Courthouse News)

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