Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Charleston mass shooting victims can sue U.S. over gun purchase: court

Survivors of a 2015 mass shooting at a South Carolina church can sue the U.S. government over its alleged negligence in allowing Dylann Roof to buy the gun he used to kill nine African-Americans, a federal appeals court said on Friday. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the government was not immune from liability under either the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) or the Brady Act to prevent handgun violence.

Oklahoma hospital used dirty gastroscopes on almost 1,000 patients; no infections reported

An unnamed hospital in Oklahoma used contaminated gastroscopes in procedures performed on nearly a thousand patients in recent months, device maker Pentax Medical told U.S. regulators last month, putting the patients at risk of exposure to bacteria that can cause infections. In a July 22 report https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfMAUDE/detail.cfm?mdrfoi__id=8811666&pc=FDS that only recently became public and was reviewed by Reuters, Pentax told the Food and Drug Administration that a hospital used up to four gastroscopes contaminated with bacteria in 998 procedures performed sometime last year through June 2019, when the problem was discovered. Pentax, a unit of Tokyo-based Hoya Corp, said it was not aware of any patient infections thus far.

Democratic National Committee opposes Iowa, Nevada vote-by-phone plans

Democratic National Committee officials on Friday rejected plans to let people participate in Iowa's and Nevada's early caucuses by phone because of security concerns, drawing fire from at least one candidate for leaving voters out of the party's presidential contest. Each U.S. state party hosts nominating contests ahead of the 2020 election. Iowa's caucus is the first in the nation, on Feb. 3, and Nevada's follows later that month.

Convicted RFK assassin Sirhan Sirhan stabbed in California prison: reports

Sirhan Sirhan, the Palestinian refugee found guilty of shooting U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy to death in 1968, was wounded in a stabbing at a California prison on Friday, according to media reports. Celebrity website TMZ, citing unnamed sources, was first to report that Sirhan, 75, had been stabbed.

CDC, FDA report 215 cases of respiratory illness possibly tied to vaping

(Reuters) - U.S. public health officials on Friday reported a rise in the number of cases of respiratory illness possibly related to the use of e-cigarettes from across 25 states. The number of cases rose to 215 as of Aug. 27, from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) last update of 193 cases last week.

Hurricane Dorian gains strength as Florida braces for direct hit

Hurricane Dorian is expected to strengthen into a dangerous Category 3 storm on Friday with winds of at least 111 mph (178 km/h) as it heads towards Florida's Atlantic coast. Dorian is forecast to swell later into a powerful Category 4 storm with violent winds topping 130 mph (210 km/h) before it makes landfall on Labor Day.

U.S. gymnast Simone Biles' brother arrested as accused shooter in triple murder

The brother of U.S. gymnastics star Simone Biles has been arrested and charged with murder, accused of shooting and killing three people at a New Year's Eve party in Cleveland, law enforcement agencies said on Friday. Tevin Biles-Thomas, 24, of Cleveland, was being held at the Liberty County Jail in Hinesville, Georgia on six counts of murder, three of voluntary manslaughter, five of felonious assault and a single count of perjury, according to a joint statement from the Cleveland Division of Police and Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's Office.

As Dorian nears, Florida nursing homes face heat for lacking generators

One in five Florida nursing homes on Friday were counting on temporary generators to be delivered before Hurricane Dorian hits, according to the state agency charged with ensuring their residents will have air conditioning if power is knocked out. The state legislature passed the law requiring generators after a dozen people died in a sweltering nursing home after 2017's Hurricane Irma. State officials are also racing to check some 120 nursing homes and assisted living facilities where they are unsure if generators or contingency plans are in place, Governor Ron DeSantis told a news conference.

Tourists scatter as Hurricane Dorian hurls toward Bahamas

Tourists scrambled to leave the Bahamas on Friday as Hurricane Dorian approached its northwestern islands of Grand Bahama and Abaco, eager to take off before the international airport was to shut down at 10 p.m. The Miami-based National Hurricane Center said in a statement at 8:30 p.m. EDT Friday (0030 GMT Saturday) that Dorian had strengthened into an "extremely dangerous" category 4 hurricane, packing maximum sustained winds of 130 mph (215 km/h).

Fliers can sue over airport screener abuses: U.S. appeals court

A federal appeals court on Friday handed a victory to travelers who object to invasive screenings at U.S. airport security checkpoints, saying screeners are not absolutely immune from lawsuits accusing them of abusive conduct. In a 9-4 decision, the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia said Transportation Security Administration screeners were "investigative or law enforcement officers" for purposes of searching passengers, waiving the government's usual immunity from lawsuits.