NPR News Now - NPR News: 05-03-2025 1AM EDT

Episode Date: May 3, 2025

NPR News: 05-03-2025 1AM EDTLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

This is Ira Glass, the host of This American Life. So much is changing so rapidly right now with President Trump in office. It feels good to pause for a moment sometimes and look around at what's what. To try and do that, we've been finding these incredible stories about right now that are funny and have feeling and you get to see people everywhere making sense of this new America that we find ourselves in. This American Life, wherever you get your podcasts. Live from NPR News, I'm Dale Willman. Lawyers say they've reached a settlement in principle

to resolve a lawsuit filed by the family of a woman who was fatally shot by police during the Capitol riot. Ashley Babbitt was killed while trying to climb through a broken window inside the Capitol during the January 6th attack. And Pierce Ryan Lucas reports. The lawsuit filed last year by Babbitt's husband is seeking $30 million over his wife's death.

The case had been heading toward trial until President Trump returned to office in January, prompting the Justice Department to change tack. Now attorneys for both sides say they have reached a settlement in principle to resolve the lawsuit. They did not provide any details and no final deal has been signed. Ashley Babbitt was an Air Force veteran and avid Trump supporter. She was shot by a police officer as she tried to climb through a broken window deep inside

the Capitol during the January 6th attack. Prosecutors investigated and declined to charge the officer. Still, Babbitt's death became a rallying cry for the far right. Ryan Lucas, NPR News, Washington. Employers added more jobs than expected in April despite overall hiring slowing slightly. The Labor Department says US employers added 177,000 jobs last month and NPR's Scott Horsley says there were some surprises in which industries were hiring. Some of the jobs are coming in industries that are pretty well insulated from the ups and downs the

economy like health care. That saw the biggest job gains last month. And, you know, hospitals are generally pretty recession-proof. But restaurants and bars are not recession-proof, and they also added about 17,000 jobs in April. That was not a given, especially after we got some worrisome reports this week about a drop in U.S. sales at restaurants like McDonald's and Domino's Pizza. The unemployment rate, meanwhile, held steady at 4.2%. Police in Inglewood, California say a man believed to be a former employee of a

technical college there shot two school employees Friday afternoon. One of the two women who were shot is listed in critical condition. The suspect is now in custody. Some of the world's fastest horses and their jockeys are preparing for Saturday's Kentucky Derby. It's the first of the Triple Crown races. Louisville Public Media's Amina Elahi has our preview. 19 horses, 2 minutes, 1 and a quarter miles. Every year, the high-speed race on dirt track draws droves of revelers and betters to the historic Churchill Downs race track. Journalism, a three-year-old Bay Colt, is considered the favorite this year, following a recent string of consecutive victories.

For the second year in a row, the race will feature a $5 million purse paid out to the top five finishers. For NPR News, I'm Amina Elahi in Louisville. Tesla sales are down appreciably in several European countries. Figures released on Friday show Tesla sales collapsed in April by more than two-thirds from a year earlier in Sweden the Netherlands and Denmark sales meanwhile are down by more than a third in other countries These countries are the first to report April sales and could indicate major problems for Elon Musk's company around the world You're listening to NPR news

You're listening to NPR News. Former Illinois Governor George Ryan, who put a moratorium on that state's death penalty in 2000, has died. As Alex Degman of Member Station WBEZ reports, Ryan served as governor from 1999 to 2003. That year, Ryan commuted more than 100 death row sentences and put a pause on capital punishment that was never lifted. The Republican later told WBEZ that Anthony Porter of Chicago had inspired him. Porter was accused of killing two people but was found innocent years later. Here's a fellow that spent 16 years on death row and waking up every morning saying, I

wonder if today's the day that they're going to stick the needle in and kill me. And I turned to my wife and said, how does that happen in America? Ryan spent more than five years in prison for his role in a scheme offering driver's licenses for bribes while he was secretary of state. A semi-truck driver who got one of those licenses caused an accident that killed six children in 1994. For NPR News, I'm Alex Degman in Chicago. Israel's air force attacked targets near Syria's presidential palace on Friday.

The strike came just hours after Israel warned Syria not to move toward villages in southern Syria where members of the Druze minority live. Israel also hit targets in southern and central Syria. There's been no word on whether anyone was injured in those attacks. Three U.S. tourists were rescued in Puerto Rico on Friday after they became stranded following heavy rains and flooding. One of the three was swept away by heavy currents along the Gazalendia River, but he was rescued in Puerto Rico on Friday after they became stranded following heavy rains and flooding. One of the three was swept away by heavy currents along the Gazolende River, but he was rescued.

The area is a popular recreational spot for tourists. Flood advisories and flash flood warnings were in place for several cities and towns across the country. I'm Dale Willman, NPR News. Does the idea of listening to political news freak you out? the country. I'm Dale Willman, NPR News.