TODAY IN HISTORY
Today’s highlight:
On Feb. 15, 1879, Pres- ident Rutherford B. Hayes signed a bill allowing female attorneys to argue cases before the Supreme Court.
On this date:
In 1898, the U.S. battle- ship Maine mysteriously blew up in Havana Harbor, killing more than 260 crew members and bringing the United States closer to war with Spain.
In 1933, President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt escaped an assassination attempt in Miami that mortally wounded Chicago Mayor Anton J. Cermak; gunman Giuseppe Zangara was executed more than four weeks later.
In 1950, Walt Disney’s animated film “Cinderella” premieres in Boston.
In 1961, 73 people, includ- ing an 18-member U.S. figure skating team en route to the World Championships in Czechoslovakia, were killed in the crash of a Sabena Air- lines Boeing 707 in Belgium.
In 1992, a Milwaukee jury found that Jeffrey Dahmer was sane when he killed and mutilated 15 men and boys. (The decision meant that Dahmer, who had already pleaded guilty to the murders, would receive a mandatory life sentence for each count; Dahmer was beaten to death in prison in 1994.)
In 2003, millions of protesters around the world demonstrated against the prospect of a U.S. attack on Iraq.
In 2020, the U.S. govern- ment said Americans who were on board a cruise ship under quarantine in Japan because of the coronavirus would be flown back home on a chartered flight, but that they would face another twoweek quarantine; about 380 Americans were aboard the Diamond Princess.
Ten years ago: With a blinding flash and a booming shock wave, a meteor blazed across Russia’s western Siberian sky and exploded, injuring more than 1,000 people as it blasted out windows.
Five years ago: The last of the bodies of the 17 victims of a school shooting in Florida were removed from the building after authorities analyzed the crime scene of the violence the day before; 13 wounded survivors were still hospitalized. In response to the shooting, President Donald Trump, in an address to the nation, promised to “tackle the difficult issue of mental health,” but avoided any mention of guns. Nikolas Cruz, the suspect in the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, was ordered held without bond at a brief court hearing.
One year ago: Russian President Vladimir Putin said he welcomed a security dialogue with the West as his military reported pulling back some of its troops near Ukraine. U.S. President Joe Biden said the U.S. had “not yet verified” Russia’s claim and that an invasion still remains a distinct possibility. (Russia would invade Ukraine five days later.) The families of nine victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting agreed to a $73 million settlement of a lawsuit against the maker of the rifle used to kill 20 first graders and six educators in 2012.