While you were sleeping, we compiled the biggest stories of the day in one place. Each story has a quick and easy summary, so you're prepared for whatever the day brings. Just click on the links if you want to know more!
1. Nikolas Cruz's defense team won't ask for mistrial
Court resumed Wednesday morning for the jury selection in the Nikolas Cruz sentencing trial after the defense team raised concerns about a possible procedural misstep.
Cruz's attorneys stated Wednesday that, at this point, they do not feel like the case suffered any prejudice and will not ask for a mistrial.
However, the defense team said they would like the chance to speak with the 11 jurors that were dismissed Tuesday.
The judge said she will recall the 11 people that were excused but some argue it may be hard to get them all back.
2. Possible tornado in Palm Beach Gardens as Tornado Alley moves South
A team from the National Weather Service in Miami is expected to be in Palm Beach Gardens Thursday.
NWS are required to assess the damage before confirming a tornado, but meteorologists from NWS are saying the videos show "tornadic circulation."
Lately, there have been many tornadoes in places where there normally haven't been.
This is because Tornado Alley is expanding and millions of Americans in the region of the Southeast known as 'Dixie Alley' are now at a greater risk for tornadoes than those in the Midwest.
3. UN Assembly to vote on suspending Russia from rights council
The U.N. General Assembly is voting Thursday on a resolution to suspend Russia from the world organization’s leading human rights body over allegations that Russian soldiers killed civilians while retreating from the region around Ukraine’s capital.
The mayor of the besieged port city of Mariupol has put the number of civilians killed there at more than 5,000.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said said thousands of people are now missing, either dead or deported to Russia.
4. Biden administration extends pause on federal student loan payments
The Biden administration has announced that federal student loan payments will remain paused through Aug. 31, extending a freeze that began in 2020 but was set to end after this month.
The action is meant to help millions of borrowers regain financial footing before they’re back on the hook for payments. It does not cover private loans issued by banks or schools.
The latest federal data show that more than 43 million Americans have student loans amounting to a combined $1.6 trillion.
5. Judge rules against land-use proposal to build Costco in Stuart
The city of Stuart was hit with another setback in its pursuit to build a Costco on South Kanner Highway.
An administrative law judge with the state ruled against the city, saying it didn't correctly assign a future land-use designation for the 49-acre property. The project includes building a gas station, 378 apartments, retail and restaurant space.
Representatives of the city said they were surprised by the decision, but that there are still steps in this process before the issue is decided.
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On This Day In History
On April 7, 1994, violence fuels the launch of what would become the worst episode of genocide since World War II: the massacre of an estimated 500,000 to 1 million innocent civilian Tutsis and moderate Hutus. Following the first wave of massacres, Rwandan forces manage to discourage international intervention with the murder of 10 Belgian peacekeeping officers. The Tutsis, a minority group that made up about 10 percent of Rwanda’s population, received no assistance from the international community, although the United Nations later conceded that a mere 5,000 soldiers deployed at the outset would have stopped the wholesale slaughter.
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