Ala. judge rejects licenses, is suspended
Alabama’s top judge was suspended from the bench without pay for the remainder of his term, the state’s Court of the Judiciary said Friday.
This is the second time Roy Moore, chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, has been effectively pulled from office, following his ouster in 2003 over his refusal to obey judicial rulings ordering him to remove a Ten Commandments statue from the Alabama Judicial Building.
A complaint was filed by the Alabama Judicial Inquiry Commission charging Judge Moore with violating judicial ethics in issuing an order in January stating that probate judges in the state “have a ministerial duty not to issue” marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
In a 50-page judgment Friday, two days after Judge Moore appeared for a hearing in the case, Alabama’s Court of the Judiciary found him guilty of failing to comply with the law, uphold the integrity of the court and “perform the duties of his office impartially.”
Puerto Rico’s finances
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — A federal control board on Friday took over Puerto Rico’s finances and several government agencies for the first time in the U.S. territory’s history in a bid to haul the island out of an acute economic crisis.
The seven-member board met in New York and was briefly interrupted by protesters who yelled, “This is slavery!” and “Stop pillaging Puerto Rico!”
The meeting was livestreamed over the internet following pledges that the board would operate with transparency.
It ordered Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla to produce a fiscal plan in two weeks and submit weekly and monthly revenue reports that detail how the government is adhering to its budget.
Members also voted on which Puerto Rico government agencies would come under the board’s oversight.
Hurricane intensifies
MIAMI — Hurricane Matthew intensified to a powerful Category 4 storm Friday afternoon as it continued pushing toward Jamaica.
In their 5 p.m. EDT advisory, National Hurricane Center forecasters said sustained winds in Matthew had reached a fierce 140 mph, a rapid intensification forecasters called “remarkable.” The storm was located about 465 miles southeast of Kingston, Jamaica, and had slowed to 7 mph.
The storm could dump up to 20 inches of rain in parts of Jamaica, raising the risk of dangerous landslides on the mountainous island. Haiti, where far less dangerous storms can trigger fatal mudslides, could begin feeling tropical storm-force winds by Sunday.
Universal Studios outage
ORLANDO, Fla. — Power went out for more than an hour and a half at Universal Studios in Orlando, forcing passengers to be evacuated from the Men in Black and Transformers rides.
Universal spokesman Tom Schroder said the cause of the outage Friday was being investigated. There were no injuries.
He said guests coming to Universal Studios were diverted to its sister theme park next door, Islands of Adventure, which never lost power.
The Orlando Fire Department was called to assist with the evacuations. Orlando Fire Department spokeswoman Ashley Papagni said there were no reports of ride passengers in distress.
Firefighters also checked elevators to make sure no one was stuck.