NEWS OF THE DAY
Fetal death: Lawyers defending an Alabama woman indicted for manslaughter after a gunshot wound to the stomach killed her fetus argued Monday that the charges are “completely unreasonable and unjust” and should be dismissed. Marshae Jones was arrested last week after a grand jury issued an indictment saying she intentionally caused the death of her fetus by starting a fight while fivemonths pregnant. Attorneys representing Jones filed a motion to dismiss in a Birmingham court. The filing argues the idea Jones “intentionally” caused the death of her fetus “defies the most basic logic and analysis.” They also argue that Alabama law doesn’t permit the prosecution of a woman with respect to her unborn child.
Clergy abuse: The Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, R.I., on Monday released a list of clerics it says have been credibly accused of sexually abusing children. The list of 50 names includes 19 priests and deacons who are still alive, although nearly all have been removed from ministry. One priest resigned. The diocese reviewed files dating to 1950. Bishop Thomas Tobin, in a letter accompanying the list, calls its release “a difficult but necessary moment” in the history of the church. The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests called on Rhode Island’s attorney general to independently investigate.
First responder: A funeral will be held Wednesday for a former New York City police detective who was a leader in the fight for the Sept. 11 Victim Compensation Fund. Detective Luis Alvarez appeared with former “Daily Show” host Jon Stewart last month to plead with Congress to extend the compensation fund. Alvarez, who died Saturday of colorectal cancer, was admitted to a hospice within days of his testimony. His funeral will be held in the Astoria neighborhood of Queens. Alvarez spent three months in the World Trade Center rubble after the 2001 attacks. The bill to replenish the fund that provides compensation to responders passed a congressional committee unanimously.
Freeway shooting: A man from Southern California has been arrested in a freeway shooting north of Green Valley, Ariz., that left one woman dead and a man and his baby daughter injured. Mateo Zavala, 21, of Santa Ana, was taken into custody over the weekend, police said. He was booked into jail on suspicion of murder, aggravated assault and driveby shooting. Authorities identified the woman who died as Marilynn Patricia Pacheco, 25, of Tucson. They said Zavala and Pacheco knew each other, but didn’t elaborate.
Racist threat: A white man is facing federal charges in a 2017 cross burning outside the home of African Americans in the small Mississippi town of Seminary. Graham Williamson is charged with intimidating and interfering with fair housing and conspiring to use fire or explosives to commit a felony. The U.S. Attorney for southern Mississippi says Williamson and another person built a wooden cross and burned it “with the intention of intimidating and frightening” black residents. Chronicle News Services