Federal judge rules on ACLU lawsuit over Michigan's sex offender registry

A federal judge in Detroit has ruled parts of Michigan’s Sex Offenders Registration Act are unconstitutional, ACLU officials of Michigan said Monday.

It said the decision will affect tens of thousands of people and follows two recent rulings by the Michigan Supreme Court, as well as numerous federal court decisions dating back to 2013.

Last Friday, U.S. District Judge Mark Goldsmith ruled on a lawsuit the ACLU filed in February 2022 on behalf of several Michigan sex offenders over the state law, which was first passed in 1994 but changed in 2021. The suit named Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and then-Michigan State Police Commander Col. Joseph Gasper as defendants.

The 2022 lawsuit was the fourth time the organization challenged the state's sex offender registry in the past decade.

—The Detroit News

Missouri will soon vote on legalizing sports gambling. What to know about Amendment 2

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — In the Nov. 5 election, Missouri voters will decide if they want to legalize sports gambling in the state when they vote on Amendment 2. The Show Me State is one of 12 states left where the practice is prohibited.

Retail and/or online sports betting is legal in nearly every neighboring state — Kansas, Illinois, Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee, Iowa and Nebraska.

Legal sports gambling made it to the 2024 ballot after years of failed legislation in Jefferson City. The delays were caused by legislators’ ongoing debate over regulating video lottery terminals — slot machine-like games in gas stations and truck stops that exist in a legal gray area. Amendment 2 does not address video lottery terminals.

In May, a pro-sports gambling coalition submitted 340,000 signatures to get a constitutional amendment on the ballot, with language written by the organization.

—The Kansas City Star

More young women are getting breast cancer, but survival rates continue to rise

Breast cancer rates have risen by 1% annually over the past decade, with the sharpest increase in women under 50, according to a new report released Tuesday by the American Cancer Society.

But breast cancer deaths have declined by 44% since 1989, preventing about 517,900 deaths, according to the report. This is largely because of improvements in treatment and earlier screening.

The American Cancer Society released its biennial update on breast cancer trends Tuesday, marking the start of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

“The encouraging news is breast cancer mortality rates continue to decrease, thanks to advances in early detection and treatment,” said Angela Giaquinto, associate scientist for cancer surveillance research at the American Cancer Society and lead author of the study. “But future progress may be thwarted by increasing incidence, especially among younger women, and consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, such as delayed diagnosis due to interruptions in screening.”

—The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Lebanese people voice anger, sorrow over widening conflict with Israel

SIDON, Lebanon — At noon Tuesday, relatives gathered in a cemetery in this southern Lebanese city to bury some of those killed in an Israeli airstrike on the nearby village of Ain Al-Deleb.

Though the strike — which destroyed two apartment buildings — happened Sunday, rescue crews didn't finish getting all the bodies out until Tuesday. The death toll was at 45, but likely to rise, authorities said.

As the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah exploded further Tuesday, Lebanese people scrambled to stay out of the violence. In recent days, more than 1,000 have been killed nationwide and nearly 1 million displaced.

Israel, which began a ground invasion Tuesday, has launched hundreds of airstrikes and warned residents in numerous cites to evacuate immediately because more were on the way.

—Los Angeles Times