NEWS OF THE DAY
From Across the Nation
_ Military to border: President Trump said Tuesday that he planned to order the military to guard parts of the southern border until he can build a wall and tighten immigration restrictions, proposing a remarkable escalation of his efforts to crack down on migrants entering the country illegally. Trump said he was consulting with Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis about resorting to military deployments. The active-duty military is generally barred by law from carrying out domestic law enforcement functions.
2 Cosby trial: The judge in Bill Cosby’s sexual assault retrial in Norristown, Pa., gave his legal defense a huge boost Tuesday, ruling his lawyers can call a witness who says the accuser talked about framing a celebrity before she went to police in 2005 with allegations about the comedian. Judge Steven O’Neill also helped the defense case by ruling that jurors can hear how much Cosby paid accuser Andrea Constand in a 2006 civil settlement. O’Neill ruled that Marguerite Jackson can take the witness stand after he blocked her from testifying at the first trial — which ended in a hung jury — saying her testimony would be hearsay. Jackson’s testimony is crucial to a defense plan to portray Constand as a greedy liar.
3 Visa changes: A push to save and expand a visa program unique to the Northern Mariana Islands is hitting skids after recent cases of labor abuse and visa fraud, delivering a major blow to the U.S. commonwealth’s economy, which relies heavily on foreign workers. The visa classification, known as CW-1, allows employers to seek permission to hire foreign workers and is aimed at alleviating a labor shortage among the Pacific islands’ population of roughly 52,000. The program was launched about a decade ago and has brought in nurses, teachers, hotel maids, bakers and more.
4 Disney cruise: Disney Cruise Lines prevented a Missouri woman from boarding one of its ships because she is 25 weeks pregnant. Emily Jackson and her family arrived in Miami last week after her doctor had cleared her to vacation aboard Disney Magic. But the line does not allow women who are more than 24 weeks pregnant to sail out of safety concerns, and a doctor’s note is not accepted. An armed police officer escorted the family from check-in. Jackson said: “We had a terrible Disney experience.”
5 Supermarket wedding: Attention all shoppers: wedding in aisle 13. A Pennsylvania couple who met at a supermarket have tied the knot there with canned carrots and peas among their wedding guests. The Valley News Dispatch reported 69-year-old Larry Spiering and 61year-old Becky Smith married Sunday at the Community Supermarket in Lower Burrell, where they met 10 years ago. Smith said she was working at the supermarket when Spiering walked up and gave her a piece of paper with his name and phone number on it. She said it was only fitting that they married in the aisle where they met.
Chronicle News Services