U.S.
Teen Gunman Kills Three Children and a Teacher at Bend, Oregon, Elementary School Before Armed Parent Fatally Shoots Him
Police say the 16-year-old shooter is a former Silver Rail Elementary student who used a shotgun his mother bought in August. Two people wounded in the attack, a 7-year-old girl and a 54-year-old teacher, are expected to survive, according to police and family.
Norte Fire Damages or Destroys Seven Homes in San Juan Capistrano; All Evacuation Orders Lifted as Containment Reaches 25%
The 570-acre fire started Friday in San Clemente during hot Santa Ana winds. By Saturday night officials had lifted every evacuation order for about 16,000 people, but residents of one damaged street could not stay overnight. The cause is under investigation.
Trump Waives Russia Sanctions and Tariffs in Graham Act Two Days Before They Were Due to Start, Citing U.S. National Interest
Republican Sens. John Cornyn and Thom Tillis and Democratic leader Chuck Schumer criticized the order. The White House said enforcing the measures now would hurt peace talks. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky tied the move to a large Russian strike on Ukraine's power grid.
Boy, 6, and Man, 35, Killed and 11 Hospitalized After Pickup Truck Drives Onto Youth Soccer Field in Wichita, Kansas
Wichita police say the driver, a 34-year-old Garden City woman, stayed at the scene and is in custody. Police have not said whether the crash was intentional, and no charges had been announced as of Oct. 18, 2026.
'No Kings: Vote Early' Events Set for Saturday at More Than 2,500 Sites in All 50 States
A coalition including Indivisible, MoveOn, the ACLU, the League of Women Voters and unions calls the Oct. 17 events nonpartisan voter outreach before the Nov. 3 midterms; the White House and conservative critics call the effort an anti-Trump turnout drive for Democrats.
Justice Department Asks Supreme Court to Limit Courts' Power to Set Aside Federal Rules Nationwide Under the APA
In a petition filed Oct. 14 in HHS v. Texas Medical Association, the government argues that a court's relief under the Administrative Procedure Act should cover only the parties who sued. Defenders of the current practice call nationwide 'vacatur' a long-standing and necessary remedy.
Federal Judge in Brooklyn Dismisses Justice Department Lawsuit Against New York City's Sanctuary Laws
Judge Ramón Reyes Jr. ruled on Oct. 15 that the government lacked standing to challenge the city's ban on holding people for ICE, and that federal information-sharing laws cannot be used to force the city to share information. The Justice Department has lost similar suits in several other states and cities.
Cornell Found Students Responsible in 16 Sexual Assault Cases From 2020 to 2024 and Expelled Two, CNN Reports, as Yates Review and State Inquiry Proceed
Cornell's own data show the sanctions it gave over four years, while a gang-rape lawsuit has led to a faculty no-confidence debate, an outside review led by Sally Yates, and a state criminal inquiry run by Attorney General Letitia James.
Three-Judge Appeals Panel Questions Both Sides Over Trump's 14-Month D.C. National Guard Deployment
On Oct. 14 the D.C. Circuit heard the Trump administration's appeal of a November 2025 ruling that the president cannot use the D.C. Guard for crime control on his own. The judges asked how the government's view fits with the Posse Comitatus Act, and they also tested the District's claims. No ruling has been issued.
Kimberly Guilfoyle Resigns as U.S. Ambassador to Greece After White House Asks Her to Leave; She Denies Wall Street Journal Misconduct Reports
On Oct. 13, the new White House press secretary said Guilfoyle had been asked to resign. The move followed Wall Street Journal reports about her conduct in Athens and a donor's claim that she asked him to pay a $100,000 credit-card bill. Guilfoyle calls the allegations false.
Ninth Circuit Panel Unanimously Orders Injunction Against California's ID Law as Applied to Federal Agents
The panel ordered a preliminary injunction against the identification section of California's 'No Vigilantes Act,' finding that the Supremacy Clause bars states from directly regulating federal officers. The same judges had already blocked the law in April while the appeal went on.
Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Trump Administration's Appeal in CREW's Lawsuit Seeking DOGE Records
The justices will decide how far trial courts may order discovery, including a sworn deposition, into the Department of Government Efficiency while a FOIA suit tests whether it is an agency or a presidential advisory body exempt from the law.