NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-24-2024 1AM EST

Episode Date: December 24, 2024

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Joel Rose, NPR News, Washington. Hi, surf warnings continue along the California coast following a city pier collapse on Monday in Santa Cruz. Two engineers who had been working at the site were rescued while a third swam to safety. Santa Cruz Mayor Fred Keeley says 150 feet of the wharf is gone, but he fears there could be even more damage. We have not had a thorough inspection of all of this. I'm giving you a first impression is that perhaps

the rest of the wharf may do better, but we are thinking that we could, in fact, sustain greater damage. Keeley says the public is advised to avoid the area. Meanwhile, the National Weather Service had predicted dangerous surf conditions and waves up to 30 feet from the central Oregon coast through southwestern Washington state. President Biden has vetoed legislation

calling for 66 new federal judgeships. The measure would have given three presidential administrations and six congresses the opportunity to appoint the new trial court judges, but Biden says the proposal did not address questions about how long those judges could remain on the bench. The proposal was introduced in the House and swiftly approved by both chambers of Congress after last month's election. A Palestinian Authority guard has been killed

in clashes with militants in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. As NPR's Emily Fang reports, it was the second such death there in as many days amid fighting between competing Palestinian factions. The Palestinian security authorities have been trying to firmly police the West Bank and demonstrate their capabilities. This month, they've mounted raids against other Palestinians, most decisively against

armed groups in the Jenin refugee camp, long known as a hub for militants. In the fighting, Palestinian authorities said a second security officer had been killed by Islamist militants. This crackdown on militants has been unpopular among Jenin residents in the West Bank, but the US-trained Palestinian security forces are trying to show they have a functional police force and could be trusted to govern Gaza after the war against Israel ends. Emily Fang, NPR News, Tel Aviv, Israel. This is NPR News.

The suspect in the killing of a New York subway passenger early Sunday has been charged with murder and arson. Thirty-three-year-old Sebastian Zepeda-Calil is charged with setting fire to a woman who had been sleeping on a train that was parked at a station on Coney Island. Investigator says Zepeda-Calil is a militant from Guatemala who entered the U.S. illegally after being deported in 2018. Police say that the victim appeared to have been homeless. A new elected West Virginia legislator

has made his first appearance in court since being charged with threatening to kill several state lawmakers. Jack Walker with member station WVPB was also in court on Monday. At the pre-trial hearing, a magistrate court judge granted De Soto's move to home incarceration, and decreased his bail by $150,000. De Soto faces a felony charge of making threats of terrorist acts.

A criminal complaint alleges he threatened to kill several lawmakers after a conflict in the state's Republican House caucus. De Soto was elected to represent Berkeley County this November, and hasn't been sworn in. If convicted, he could face up to three years in jail. Defense counsel said De Soto will return to his Berkeley County residence by end of day Monday. The defense also said it could take up to 60 days to hold De Soto's preliminary hearing. For NPR News, I'm Jack Walker in Martinsburg, West Virginia. US futures are flat and after hours trading on Wall Street. After Monday's gains,

the Dow added 66 points, the Nasdaq rose 192 points. This is NPR News.