State briefs

Indictment alleges more food program fraud

LITTLE ROCK — The U. S. Attorney’s office says a sixth person has been accused of defrauding a government program intended to feed the poor.

Prosecutors said Tuesday that 51- year- old Reuben Nims of Little Rock was named in a 10- count indictment. Nims was released after an arraignment Tuesday.

According to the government, a relative of Nims who worked at the state Department of Human Services approved $ 182,000 in funding when no children were actually served.

Nims is the sixth person to face charges related to the feeding program in Arkansas.

An attorney appointed to represent Nims did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment.

The U. S. Department of Agriculture’s Child and Adult Care Feeding Program provides food for children in after- school settings. Prosecutors say Nims operated the “Blessed Thru Success” program.

Silverback gorilla dies at Little Rock Zoo

LITTLE ROCK — A 29- year- old male silverback gorilla that had lived at the Little Rock Zoo for more than two decades has died.

The zoo announced in a news release Tuesday that the gorilla, named Fossey, had died suddenly late Monday afternoon.

Fossey came to Little Rock from the Columbus Zoo in Ohio in 1993.

According to the release, zoo staff saw Fossey chasing two female gorillas between an indoor and outdoor enclosure in the gorilla exhibit. When the chase moved inside, staff members say the male gorilla suddenly collapsed and died.

Staff had not performed a full necropsy as of Tuesday, but say they suspect Fossey died from cardiovascular disease. Zoo officials say the gorilla was diagnosed with the disease in 2008 and was on medication to treat it.

Appeals court formally upholds marriage ruling

LITTLE ROCK — A federal appeals court has upheld a ruling striking down Arkansas’ gay marriage ban, finding that the U. S. Supreme Court decision legalizing same- sex marriage didn’t render the state case moot.

The 8th U. S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday upheld U. S. District Judge Kristine Baker’s decision last year to strike down a 2004 constitutional amendment and earlier state law defining marriage as between a man and a woman.

Arkansas had suggested Baker’s decision was moot after the U. S. Supreme Court struck down gay marriage bans nationwide in June, and asked the appeals panel to vacate her decision. The appeals court rejected the motion to vacate.

Gov. Asa Hutchinson and Attorney General Leslie Rutledge in June said county clerks must issue licenses to same- sex couples following the high court’s ruling.