NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-17-2024 2AM EST

Episode Date: December 17, 2024

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Support for this podcast and the following message come from Autograph Collection Hotels, with over 300 independent hotels around the world, each exactly like nothing else. Autograph Collection is part of the Marriott Bonvoy portfolio of hotel brands. Find the unforgettable at autographcollection.com. Live from MPR News in Washington, I'm Shae Stevens. Authorities in Wisconsin have identified the teenage girl who they believe fatally shot two people and wounded six others at a private Christian school in Madison. But NPR's Giles Snyder reports that they're still working to determine a motive for Monday's

attack. Madison Police Chief Sean Barnes identified the 15-year-old who used a handgun in the shooting at the Abundant Life Christian School as Natalie Rupnell. She was a student at the school and evidence suggests she died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Barnes said Rupnell died while being taken to a hospital. He said family members are cooperating with the investigation. A teacher and an Abundant Life student were killed of the six wounded, Barnes said. Two students are in critical condition. Over the summer, Surgeon General Vivek Murthy declared firearm violence a public health crisis,

saying in an advisory that in 2020, guns overtook motor vehicle crashes, cancer, drug overdose, and poisoning as the leading cause of death among children and teens. Trial Snyder, NPR News. House Democrats have moved to oust Georgia Congressman David Scott from the top post on the Agriculture Committee. As WABE's Sam Greenglass reports from Atlanta, Democrats are replacing several aging chairs

as they gear up to battle the Trump administration. Agriculture is Georgia's top industry, and the committee's ranking member will help shape the crucial farm bill, which is expiring this year. The Democratic Steering Committee ultimately voted to recommend 52-year-old Minnesotan Angie Craig for the post. The full caucus weighs in next. Scott chaired the committee in 2021 and 2022 and was elected to a 12th term in Congress this fall, but the 79-year-old has experienced

health issues in recent years. House Democrats are also poised to have new ranking members on judiciary and natural resources. For NPR News, I'm Sam Greenglass in Atlanta. SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Sand is pledging $100 billion investment in the United States over the next four years. As NPR's Bobby Allen reports, Sand is the latest tech mogul offering to spend big in order to court President-elect Donald Trump. Masayoshi's son SoftBank, a Japanese financial juggernaut, hasn't explained where the $100

billion will come from, but he has said it will be spent on investments in AI startups and other ventures. It comes just as other tech executives like Metta's Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon's Jeff Bezos and OpenAI's Sam Altman have all announced million dollar donations to Trump's inaugural fund. Silicon Valley historian Margaret O'Mara says tech companies have donated to inaugural funds before, but this time is different. We're giving lots of money and we're making it very clear how much we're giving

and who we're giving it to and why. That's something that was a departure from past forms. Homera says for some tech executives like Zuckerberg and Bezos who have clashed with Trump, the publicity over the donations could be fodder for a fresh start. Bobby Allen, NPR News. This is NPR. The George Floyd case is getting another review as defense attorneys seek to reverse the conviction of the ex-police officer sent to prison for killing him. As Matt Sepick of Minnesota Public Radio reports, a judge says the lawyers may examine Floyd's heart tissue.

In 2021, a state jury convicted Derek Chauvin of murder. He later pleaded guilty to federal counts of using excessive force on George Floyd. Chauvin is serving concurrent sentences of around 20 years. Chauvin argues that his original defense attorney failed to tell him about an email from a Kansas pathologist who believes Floyd died of a heart condition, not from the pressure of Chauvin's knee on his neck. Federal Judge Paul Magnuson is letting defense experts examine preserved samples of Floyd's heart tissue and bodily fluids. The Justice Department contends that because a jury already rejected a similar medical

opinion, Chauvin's conviction should stand. For NPR News, I'm Matt Sepick in Minneapolis. The Pentagon says around 30 North Korean troops were killed in combat with Russian forces near the Ukraine border. The casualties reportedly occurred around three villages in the Kursk region, where Russia has been trying to quash a Ukrainian incursion. The U.S. and Ukraine estimate that North Korea has sent up to 12,000 forces to Russia to aid that nation's war against Ukraine.

Police in the north-west Pakistani city of Shangla say at least two officers are dead and three others are injured following an attack on a police post there. Authorities say the militants on a motorcycle opened fire before fleeing the scene. There has been no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack. This is NPR News.