Is ISIS linked to the foiled Texas attack? Are so-called “rough rides” part of Baltimore police culture? And can you take a ferry to Cuba?
It’s Wednesday, and here are five things to know for your New Day.
TEXAS SHOOTING
Probe continues: Were the would-be shooters in Garland, Texas a pair of lone wolves or were they being directed by others? U.S. officials are investigating the connections between Elton Simpson and Nadir Soofi, and terrorists abroad. A U.S. official said the incident was “certainly more than just inspiration” by ISIS but that assessment does not mean that the terror group gave the gunmen specific instructions. Simpson appears to have had online ties to a British ISIS recruit in Syria and an American jihadi operating in Somalia.
BALTIMORE
Rough rides: Relative calm has returned to the streets of Baltimore, but the aftershocks from last week’s unrest continue to reverberate. In a case eerily similar to Freddie Gray’s death, the family of another man who died after being paralyzed riding in the back of a Baltimore police van wants a criminal investigation into his case. Dondi Johnson Sr., a Baltimore plumber arrested in 2005 for public urination, died two weeks after he was injured in a “rough ride,” in which a police van is deliberately driven erratically. Johnson’s family sued the police department and in 2010 they were awarded a $7.4 million; the amount they received was much lower, $216,500, because of a legal cap. During the trial, a former Baltimore cop testified that rough rides were an “unsanctioned technique” of the department.
PARAGUAY RAPE
Abortion fight: A pregnant, 10-year-old girl in Paraguay remains at the center of a battle over abortion in the South American country. Authorities say the girl was raped by her stepfather, and the pregnancy stems from that crime. Doctors learned she was pregnant when she went to a hospital on April 21. Her family, and human rights groups such as Amnesty International, want Paraguay to allow her to have an abortion, saying forcing her to continue with the unwanted pregnancy is “torture.” But Paraguay has refused, citing law that bans abortions except in cases where the pregnancy endangers the mother’s life. Government officials say there’s no indication that the health of the girl – now 22 weeks’ pregnant – is at risk. Amnesty International and others say the girl’s young age should be enough to trigger an exception.
U.S.-CUBA RELATIONS
Boat ride: Imagine it: You drive your car onto a ferry in Miami and about nine hours later you’re in Havana. An international traveler’s pipe dream? Perhaps not. Licenses allowing ferry service between the United States and Cuba were recently issued by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Asset Control. The lifting of the ban on ferries comes as President Obama works to thaw relations with Havana. At least two Florida-based lines said they had received licenses to operate ferry routes between ports in Florida and Cuba. But don’t pack your bags just yet. The U.S. ban on tourist travel to the island remains in effect, so as of right now, the ferry service will only benefit those who don’t already need special permission to go to Cuba – Cuban-Americans visiting family, officials on government trips and journalists.
BOSTON MARATHON BOMBING TRIAL
Two outcomes: Observers say Dzhokhar Tsarnaev’s demeanor has changed in court. When his trial began in January, he was quiet and stoic. Almost defiant. But that defiance has given way to resignation. For the most part, Tsarnaev has seemed disengaged, showing little emotion, fidgeting in his seat as if he is bored or perhaps impatient. Tsarnaev – found guilty last month of using a weapon of mass destruction, of conspiracy and of actions that caused the deaths of four people – knows he faces two possible outcomes. He will either get the death penalty or spend the rest of his life in a Supermax prison.
Those are your five biggies for the day. Here are a few others that are brewing and have the Internet buzzing.
Mom’s mad: A dad is having fun with his backyard “volcano” – until Mom comes outside.
Lego wars: Another day, another “Star Wars” video. This time a giant Imperial star destroyer made out of Legos is dropped on a floor.
RIP: Ellen Albertini Dow – the rapping grandma from “The Wedding Singer” – died yesterday at age 101.
‘Price’ is wrong: A “Price is Right” contestant who uses a wheelchair wins a treadmill. AWK-ward.
Gotcha!: A cat goes all out to drive another cat from his yard.