CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The regional bureau of The Associated Press shares 10 things you need to know Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2019. Look for full stories on these late-breaking news items and much more in West Virginia newspapers.
1. TURKEY, KURDS BATTLE FOR KEY SYRIAN BORDER TOWN
Turkey defies growing condemnation from its NATO allies to press ahead with its invasion of northern Syria, shelling suspected Kurdish positions near the border amid reports that Syrian Kurds had retaken a key town.
2. TRUMP TARGETS TURKEY’S ECONOMY
The president announces sanctions aimed at restraining the Turks’ assault against Kurdish fighters and civilians in Syria and plans to dispatch top U.S. officials to Ankara in an attempt to begin negotiations.
3. ‘I CANNOT MAKE SENSE OF WHY SHE HAD TO LOSE HER LIFE’
A white former Fort Worth, Texas, police officer is being held in jail on a murder charge after shooting a black woman through a window of her home, an incident that began with a call about an open front door.
4. WHO IS FACING SCRUTINY AT DEMOCRATIC DEBATE
Joe Biden is facing baseless — but persistent — allegations of wrongdoing overseas; Bernie Sanders is recovering from a heart attack; and Elizabeth Warren is fending off new scrutiny of her biography.
5. WIDE GAPS IN LEGAL PROTECTION OF LGBT WORKERS
An AP analysis finds that half of an estimated 8.1 million LGBT workers live in 28 U.S. states with no state laws prohibiting firing workers because they’re gay or transgender.
6. WHAT HAS POSED A MORAL DILEMMA
In a last-ditch effort to save spotted owls, federal officials are killing hundreds of barred owls in the hopes they can stave off their spotted cousins’ potential extinction, AP learns.
7. AP SOURCE: EX-TRUMP ADVISER OBJECTED TO AMBASSADOR’S FIRING
Fiona Hill, a former White House adviser on Russia, tells House impeachment investigators that she objected to the ouster of former ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch.
8. CALIFORNIA UTILITY CRITICIZED FOR BLACKOUTS
California’s top utility regulator blasts Pacific Gas and Electric for what she calls “failures in execution” during the largest planned power outage in state history to avoid wildfires.
9. FARROW FOUND LITTLE APPETITE FOR WEINSTEIN STORY AT NBC
The journalist says the more evidence he gathered on the Hollywood mogul’s alleged sexual misconduct, the less enthusiastic his bosses seemed to be.
10. NATIONALS ON VERGE OF NL PENNANT
Stephen Strasburg and Howie Kendrick lead Washington past St. Louis 8-1, moving one win from the city’s first World Series appearance in 86 years.