Court rejects prayer at California school board

SANFRANCISCO — A federal appeals court decided Wednesday that a California schoolboard’s meetings may not include prayers, proselytizing or the citing of Christian Scripture.

A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a 2016 injunction against the religious practices, which the court said dated back to at least 2010. In its appeal, the Chino Valley Unified School District board argued that it was covered by an exception for traditional prayer at the start of state legislatures, Congress and town hall meetings.

The 9th Circuit disagreed, noting that the school board meetings include children and teenagers who are more vulnerable than adults to outside influence and who have been obligated to attend to give presentations, perform or receive awards.

DeVos’ debt proposal

WASHINGTON— Students who are defrauded by their schools would have a harder time getting their federal loans erased under new rules proposed by the Trump administration Wednesday.

Under Education Secretary Betsy DeVos’ proposal, students would be eligible for loan relief if they can prove their schools knowingly misled them with statements or actions that directly led them totake out loans or enroll at the school. The borrower defense rules finalized under Barack Obama in 2016 allowed relief in a wider range of cases dealing with breach of contract.

9/11 victim identified

NEW YORK — The remains of a 26-year-old securities analyst who worked at the World Trade Center on 9/11 have been identified nearly 17 years after the attacks.

The New York City medical examiners’ office on Wednesday identified the victim as Scott Michael Johnson, an employee at the investment banking company Keefe, Bruyette& Woods. The medical examiner said he was identified through improved DNA retesting of remains originally recovered in 2001.

Nassar assaulted in prison

LANSING, Mich. — Larry Nassar’s attorneys say the disgraced former sports doctor was assaulted within hours of being placed in the general population at the federal prison in Arizona where he is serving a 60-year sentence for child pornography possession.

In motions filed Tuesday seeking to have the former Michigan State University and USA Gymnastics doctor resentenced in the first of two cases in which he pleaded guilty to molesting women and girls who sought treatment, lawyers Jacqueline McCann and Malaika Ramsey-Heath partly blamed the May prison attack on the rhetoric of the judge during that sentencing hearing.

During the seven-day sentencing in January at which at least 169 women and girls provided statements, Ingham County Circuit Judge Rosemarie Aquilina described Nassar as a “monster.” She said she would allow someone “to do to him what he did to others” if the Constitution allowed.

Milwaukee officer killed

MILWAUKEE— The Milwaukee chief confirmed Wednesday that an officer died after being shot and thata suspect was in custody.

Police Chief Alfonso Morales announced the officer’s death at a press briefing. The chief said the officer, a 17-year police veteran, was also a friend of his.

The suspect was wanted on gun and drug violations, Chief Morales said.