NEWS OF THE DAY

_1 Gun control: A federal judge in Boston on Friday dismissed a lawsuit challenging Massachusetts’ ban on assault weapons. U.S. District Judge William Young ruled that assault weapons and large capacity magazines banned by the state in a 1998 law fall outside the scope of the “personal right to ‘bear arms’ under the Second Amendment.” The lawsuit was filed last year by the Gun Owners Action League of Massachusetts and other groups who said the law infringed on their rights.

_2 Teacher protests: The Oklahoma state Senate approved bills Friday designed to generate about $40 million more for public schools, but it was unclear whether it would be enough to placate thousands of teachers on a five-day strike seeking more money for education. Some of Oklahoma’s largest school districts already have canceled classes on Monday. Oklahoma Education Association Executive Director David Duvall said he doesn’t think the measures do enough to bring teachers back to the classroom. Oklahoma is the second state where teachers have gone on strike this year. West Virginia teachers won a 5 percent pay increase after striking for nine days.

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_3 Store explosive: A man was taken into custody after two explosive devices detonated inside a Sam’s Club store in Southern California, police said. No one was injured. Hugo Gonzalez, 49, of Fontana (San Bernardino County), was being questioned by investigators after the explosives went off Thursday inside the store in Ontario, authorities said. Gonzalez led officers on a short pursuit after he was seen leaving the store, but eventually pulled over, said Ontario Police Department spokesman Officer Eliseo Guerrero. After officers searched his car, they found additional materials “similar to those used in the devices” that were found in the store, police said. Investigators are still trying to determine a motive, but they believe Gonzalez acted alone. He appeared to have no connection to Sam’s Club, Guerrero said.

_4 Congressman resigns: Rep. Blake Farenthold, a Texas Republican who represents the Corpus Christi area, resigned Friday, roughly four months after news broke that he had settled a sexual harassment lawsuit with taxpayer money. “I know in my heart it’s time for me to move along and look for new ways to serve,” Farenthold said in a statement. He sent a letter to Republican Gov. Greg Abbott resigning his position effective 5 p.m. Friday. Politico first reported that the Treasury Department had paid $84,000 to settle a sexual harassment lawsuit with Farenthold’s former communications director.

_5 Press relations: President Trump, a constant critic of what he calls “fake news,” will skip the White House Correspondents’ Dinner for a second year in a row. White House Correspondents’ Association president Margaret Talev said in statement Friday that the “White House has informed us that the president does not plan to participate in this year’s dinner.” White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders will attend to represent the administration at the head table.