NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-23-2024 12PM EST

Episode Date: December 23, 2024

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All this year, NPR traveled the country, hearing from voters not just about the issues, but about their hopes for the country's future. We should be able to disagree with each other without bullying each other into submission. And what it means to be a part of a democracy. Invest in coverage that moves us forward together by giving today at donate.npr.org. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Windsor Johnston. The House Ethics Committee has released its long-awaited report of its investigation into former Congressman Matt Gaetz.

The panel concluded that the Florida Republican had violated House rules by engaging in sexual misconduct and illegal drug use. The panel also accuses Gates of sex with an underage girl in 2017 in violation of Florida law. Gates had repeatedly denied the accusations and had filed a last-minute lawsuit to prevent the committee from releasing its report. The man accused of fatally shooting, the CEO of United Healthcare, has pleaded not guilty. Luigi Mangione was arraigned in New York City today. NPR's air of entry reports the 26-year-old is facing numerous counts, including first-degree murder and

illegal weapons charges. In a brief court appearance, Mangione pleaded not guilty to all 11 charges. His attorney, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, said during the hearing that she's concerned about Mangione's right to a fair trial. He was on display for everyone to see in the biggest staged perp walk I've ever seen in my career. There was no reason for the NYPD and everybody to have these big assault rifles that frankly I had no idea was in their arsenal. And what was the New York City mayor doing at this press conference? If he's found guilty in the state case, the 26-year-old faces life in prison without the

possibility of parole. Mangione has also been charged with four federal counts, including murder through the use of a firearm, which is eligible for the death penalty. Sarah Ventry, NPR News, New York. President Biden has commuted the sentences of 37 people on federal death row. The prisoners will now serve life in prison without the possibility of parole. Three federal death row inmates still face execution for terrorism and hate-motivated mass murders.

When a major medical payment processing company got hit by a cyberattack last year, pharmacies, clinics, and hospitals across the nation sprung into crisis mode. For that company, the bad news isn't over just yet. NPR's Jenna McLaughlin has an update. Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers recently announced that his office was filing a lawsuit against a top health care payment company for failing to protect Nebraskans' data. Last February, Change Healthcare was hit by a ransomware attack, stalling medical procedures, insurance claims, prescription fulfillments, and payments to medical providers across the

country. The outage even forced some clinics to shut down. The cybercriminals also had access to reams of sensitive personal data that could be used for identity theft or extortion. The Nebraska Attorney General's office says they want to hold change health care accountable for failing to put basic security protections in place. Jen McLaughlin, NPR News. This is NPR. Thousands of Amazon workers remain on strike two days before Christmas. Delivery drivers and other employees walked off the job last week in a number of cities across four states, including California, New York, and Georgia. The Teamsters Union says it's pushing Amazon to recognize them as unionized employees represented

by the Teamsters. The online retailer argues that they're third-party employees. New data from a sampling of American cities show the rate of carjacking crimes may be falling. NPR's Martin Costey reports this comes after a post-p been working on the issue of car theft. The U.S. Department of Justice has been working on the issue of car theft. Carjacking is not one of the index crimes tracked nationally by the FBI, but several cities count carjackings as a distinct category.

And researcher Ernesto Lopez of the Council on Criminal Justice has taken a closer look at their numbers. The most up-to-date thing we can say is that the carjacking rate during the first half of 2024 was 26 percent lower on average than during the same period in 2023. Those carjacking rates are still quite a bit higher than they were right before the pandemic, though they're far lower than they were back in the 1990s when crime rates in general were higher. Martin Costi, NPR News. A NASA spacecraft has started its approach to the sun. The plan is for the Parker Solar

probe to get closer to the sun's surface than any other human-made object ever has. On Wall Street, the Dow is down 211 points. This is NPR News from Washington.