NPR News Now - NPR News: 04-18-2025 9PM EDT

Episode Date: April 19, 2025

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This is out of her glass. In Lily's family, there's a story everybody knows by heart. If this story had never happened... All of us wouldn't be here right now. Sammy wouldn't be here. Nina wouldn't be here. Wally wouldn't be here. Anyone that we know wouldn't be here. So what happens when Lily's mom tells her this story is not true?

This American Life, surprising stories every week. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Louise Schiavone. A federal judge has once again blocked Doge staffers who are operating inside the Social Security Administration from accessing sensitive personal information. NPR's Stephen Fowler has more. U.S. District Judge Ellen Lipton-Hollander wrote late Thursday that the legal issue isn't with the work that Doge wants to do inside the Social Security Administration, but rather how they want to do the work. Last month, Hollander issued a temporary restraining order blocking Doge staffers from sensitive

Social Security databases because they couldn't explain why they needed unfettered access to personally identifiable information. In granting the preliminary injunction, the judge said that's a question the Trump administration still can't answer. Stephen Fowler, NPR News. Kilmar Abrego-Garcia, the man mistakenly sent to a maximum security prison in El Salvador where he expressed concerns for his security, has been moved to a different facility. Senator Chris Van Hollen related the news to reporters upon returning from El Salvador and a visit with Abrego Garcia.

He called on the Trump administration to return the man to the U.S. to receive due process. Five ACLU affiliates have filed a class action lawsuit to try to stop the federal government from revoking student visas without cause and required notice. Olivia Eberts of Member Station, The Public's Radio, reports. The ACLU affiliates say over 100 student visas have already been revoked in New England. Stephen Brown is the executive director of the ACLU of Rhode Island. He says the lawsuit is meant to stop the federal government from upending these students' lives.

We have students here suddenly find themselves unable to continue with their education based on a completely arbitrary determination made by federal agencies. The lawsuit comes as higher education officials say hundreds of international college students and professors across the country are losing their legal status and possibly facing deportation. For NPR News, I'm Olivia Eberz in Providence. Officials at the Department of Veterans Affairs appear to be backing off an order requiring all mental health providers return to the office due to concerns that therapists might not have privacy due to overcrowding in facilities.

NPR's Katie Riddle reports. Katie The memo appears to mandate that VA therapists have private spaces. It follows reporting from NPR suggesting clinicians at the VA would have to conduct telehealth therapy sessions with headsets in shared offices. Lynn Buffka is with the American Psychological Association. The organization has raised alarm about the policy. Lynn Buffka They're seeking psychotherapy about things that are very personal that they don't necessarily want to reveal to just anyone, even if it's another clinician who might be nearby and

could overhear, right? The VA has said repeatedly that veterans will be guaranteed private therapy sessions. Katie Arrettl, NPR News. This is NPR News in Washington. U.S. officials will not move 21 prisoners off Federal death row in Indiana for at least another month in response to a lawsuit. George Hale of member station WFIU has this report. The ACLU is representing prisoners whose federal death sentences former President Biden commuted to life without parole last year.

They say the Trump administration is getting even with the plan to ship them off to ADX federal death sentences, former President Biden commuted to life without parole last year. They say the Trump administration is getting even with the plan to ship them off to ADX Florence, the harshest prison in the federal system. Robert Dunham teaches death penalty law at Temple University. I'm not aware of any circumstance in which the reduction of a prisoner's sentence has resulted in them being housed in more restrictive circumstances. The relocation push follows President Trump's Day One Executive Order instructing justice officials to ensure confinement conditions for clemency

recipients align with the quote, monstrosity of their crimes and the threats they pose. For NPR News, I'm George Hale in Bloomington, Indiana. There's some good news about sea turtles and a global study from a Colorado Environmental Consulting Group called Ecolibrium. Endangered sea turtles are showing signs of recovery in a majority of places where they're found worldwide. Turtle advocates have been aggressive in conservation efforts. The report examined 48 populations of sea turtles around the world. It found endangered sea turtles are recovering in a majority of places with threats from hunting, pollution, coastal development, and climate change declining overall. Atlantic Ocean sea turtles are showing the most encouraging results with leatherback

turtles still struggling. I'm Louise Schiavone, NPR News, Washington. This message comes from WISE, the app for doing things and other currencies. I'm Louise Schiavone, NPR News, Washington.