Top Eight

Your Friday night briefing from the staff of Courthouse News

Top eight CNS stories for today including the former Minneapolis police officer seen on video kneeling on George Floyd’s neck was arrested; A newly qualified California ballot initiative would reform the state’s landmark property tax code to raise billions for cash-strapped schools and counties; President Donald Trump announced the United States is ending its relationship with the World Health Organization, and more.

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National

1.) The former Minneapolis police officer seen on video kneeling on George Floyd’s neck was arrested Friday on murder and manslaughter charges, three days after Floyd’s death sparked nationwide protests and riots. 

2.) President Donald Trump announced the United States is ending its relationship with the World Health Organization on Friday, accusing it of bowing to pressure from China and resisting reforms related to its handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

3.) Twitter, Reddit and a lobbying group for internet companies are supporting filmmakers in a lawsuit challenging a policy that requires visa applicants to register their social media handles with the U.S. government.

Regional

4.) While wineries across California can reopen if they also offer dine-in meals to guests, a 1990 ordinance bars Napa County wineries from selling food in tasting rooms. Now one prestigious vintner has sued the state claiming unfair treatment.

5.) The coronavirus pandemic and California’s shattered finances have injected urgency into an initiative that qualified for the November ballot Friday which — if passed — would reform the state’s landmark property tax code to raise billions for cash-strapped schools and counties.

6.) Running for mayor in a city wracked by violence and dysfunction, three candidates — none of them the incumbent — are running even in the race to lead Baltimore.

International

7.) With the coronavirus pandemic spreading faster in the developing world, the World Health Organization and national leaders on Friday launched a plea to ensure patents for drugs and vaccines developed to combat Covid-19 are shared around the world to ensure even the poorest can be treated.

8.) The European Court of Human Rights issued its second-ever advisory opinion Friday in the prosecution of a former Armenian president, saying a national court should decide whether the law he is charged under is more severe than the one it replaced.