Sioux tribe receives $10K in pipeline fight
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. — The Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma has donated $10,000 to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in North Dakota to support its fight against the Dakota Access Pipeline.
The Cherokees say they presented a check last week in addition to providing three truckloads of firewood for those camping out to protest construction of the pipeline.
The Standing Rock Sioux wants construction to stop on the $3.8 billion pipeline, saying it could contaminate the water supply and encroach on tribal burial sites. Protests supporting the tribe have been going on for months and have drawn thousands of people to the area where Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners is trying to finish building the 1,200-mile pipeline.
Officials say Dakota Access pipeline protesters created two separate roadblocks in southern North Dakota, one of which has been taken down.
Pentagon demands refund
Short of troops to fight in Iraq and Afghanistan a decade ago, the California National Guard enticed thousands of soldiers with bonuses of $15,000 or more to re-enlist and go to war.
Now the Pentagon is demanding the money back. Nearly 10,000 soldiers, many of whom served multiple combat tours, have been ordered to repay large enlistment bonuses — and slapped with interest charges, wage garnishments and tax liens if they refuse — after audits revealed widespread overpayments by the California Guard at the height of the wars last decade.
Chemical spill devastates
ATCHISON, Kan. — More than 60 people sought medical attention after a chemical spill at a distilling plant that released a noxious cloud in northeast Kansas.
The Kansas Department of Emergency Management says the cloud occurred Friday morning when two chemicals were mistakenly combined at the MGP Ingredients plant in Atchison. The department says people were allowed back into their homes after the cloud dissipated a few hours later.
Airbnb files lawsuit
NEW YORK — Hours after Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo of New York signed a bill that would impose steep fines on Airbnb hosts who break local housing regulations, Airbnb filed a federal lawsuit contending the new law would cause it “irreparable harm.”
The heightened battle in New York follows lawsuits that Airbnb has filed against its hometown San Francisco and in Santa Monica, Calif., which have both moved to fine the company for illegal listings.
No disciplinary action
Two Minneapolis Police officers who shot and killed an unarmed black man during a Nov. 15, 2015 scuffle outside a house party won’t face disciplinary charges, Minneapolis Police announced on Friday.
The announcement came seven months after officers Mark Ringgenberg and Dustin Schwarze learned they wouldn’t be held criminally liable for killing Jamar Clark.
Also in the nation ...
A judge who sentenced a Montana man to 60 days in jail for incest with his 12year-old daughter is facing a firestorm of criticism and an impeachment effort by those who view the sentence as far too light . ... Six months after he was fired by ESPN for sharing controversial takes on social and political topics, Curt Schilling reportedly is joining Breitbart, getting a national outlet as he edges closer to deciding whether to challenge Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren in 2018.