All US metropolitan areas enjoyed income gains, first in 26 years

Arizona Democratic Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick has announced that she will be seeking treatment for ’alcohol dependence’ after suffering a serious fall. The congresswoman did not say how long she would be absent from Congress but indicated she has no plans to step aside.

The state of Virginia is on the brink of ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment. Following the ratification, the state will become the 38th overall to have done so. The vote, which will be passed by both of the state’s legislative chambers is a cause of celebration for numerous women’s rights activists.

Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein arrived at a court in New York City on Wednesday. The jury selection in the cases against him has not come to an end yet. Mr. Weinstein faces multiple charges of sexual misconduct, in New York and Los Angeles. The charges against Mr. Weinstein kicked off the #MeToo movement across the globe.

US military security forces detained three civilians suspected of being under the influence of drugs late Tuesday night, for attempting to drive onto a base in Pearl Harbor, with what appeared to be a live mortar round in their car. An Explosive Ordnance Disposal team safely removed the round from the vehicle. No firing device or detonation system was found in the car.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will investigate why an airliner with engine trouble dumped jet fuel over a densely populated area near LA, including elementary schools, while making an emergency landing only minutes after taking off Tuesday. Fuel dumps are sometimes required to for emergency landings but the pilots had said situation was not critical and fuel dump not needed.

China’s President Xi Jinping has reportedly told his US counterpart, Trump, in a letter that he welcomes the signing of phase 1 of the US-China trade deal and wished for better relations between the two countries in the future. Xi said in the letter that the signing of the deal is a testament to the fact that the two countries can resolve their differences and find solutions through dialogue.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) says the Senate will begin debating an organizing resolution to start the Senate trial on Tuesday next week after the holiday break. The GOP leader said Chief Justice John Roberts will swear in senators as jurors this week.

The United States and China signed a ’phase one’ trade deal, which will lead to increased imports of American crops to China and protection for US technology. The agreement, which was described as being ’momentous’ by President Trump, comes after nearly two years of a trade ’war’ between the two largest economies of the world.

Following a California court order last week, homeless women residing illegally in a vacant home were evicted by sheriff’s deputies. Dozens of activists protested as deputies escorted the women, their hands bound by plastic ties. The case has highlighted the state’s severe housing crisis and growing number of homeless people.

A 68 year old woman with dementia went missing on Jan 9th. She was found safe on Jan 15 when a search and rescue helicopter located her vehicle from the air. The vehicle’s tracks were covered in snow, so they couldn’t be followed.

A special forces soldier was killed Tuesday in a routine freefall parachute training exercise in Eloy, Arizona. Free falling is when parachutists jump from an aircraft and delay opening their parachutes. The soldier was identified as Master Sergeant Nathan Goodman, 36, of Hope Mills, North Carolina. He was deployed to Afghanistan, Iraq, Africa, and Kyrgyzstan. The death is under investigation.

The internal messages released by Boeing show that employees were concerned about the 737 MAX model and had said it was ’designed by clowns’. Employees also discussed how they wouldn’t allow their families on a MAX simulator trained aircraft.

A court in Iowa was approached by a Kansas man, who asked the court to grant him permission for a ’trial by combat’. David Ostrom wants to ’rend the souls’ of his ex-wife Bridgette Ostrom and her attorney from their ’corporal bodies’. Ostrom claimed that his ex-wife had ’destroyed him legally’. He has asked the court to give him 12 weeks’ ’lead time’ to source a katana and wakizashi swords.

McGhee Tyson airbase in Tennessee was placed on lockdown Wednesday following reports of suspicious activity at the airbase. The alarm was raised shortly after 11 am when a local student reported seeing a suspicious person who appeared to be armed. Everyone at the base has since been accounted for and the lockdown was lifted by 2:48 p.m. The base is home to the 134th Air Refueling Wing.

A 16-year-old student has been shot and he died of his injuries after a gunman opened fire at Bellaire High School in Houston, Texas. The shooting suspect was arrested after an hour-long search. The student, who was shot on his chest at 4 pm Tuesday, was provided CPR by the medics, but he still succumbed to his injuries. The motive behind the attack is unclear.

A Connecticut man, charged with killing a hotel worker on the Caribbean island of Anguilla, has filed a negligence lawsuit against the resort company that operates the hotel. The lawsuit is filed on behalf of Scott Hapgood against Auberge Resorts. Hapgood is accusing Auberge Resorts of negligence in the hiring the worker, despite his arrest three weeks before his death on a rape charge.

The mother of an infant who froze to death more than three decades ago in a parking lot, is not expected to face charges, according to authorities. Officials say, the case was one of manslaughter, which has a 20-year statute of limitations.

Jack Wilson, the 71 year old who shot the gunman outside a church in Texas was honored with the highest civilian award of the state. Mr. Wilson was felicitated with the Governor’s Medal of Courage by the Governor of Texas, Greg Abbott on Monday, at a ceremony in Austin.

Six New York City jail guards and 15 others were charged with taking thousands of dollars in bribes to smuggle drugs to inmates at Rikers Island jail complex. The scheme had been under investigation since early 2019 and involved guards sneaking a smartphone, marijuana and other drugs into the jail complex. The defendants received thousands of dollars to smuggle the contraband past security.

As per Media Research Center, the Big Three (ABC, CBS and NBC) evening newscasts battered President Trump with 93% negative coverage and promoted impeachment. The analysis covered a period of 100 days since House Democrats began their impeachment push on Sep. 24. 3/4th of the coverage was devoted to impeachment (849 minutes) compared to other issues (economy got 9 minutes) which took a back seat.

A Mississippi dam in Oktibbeha County is on the verge of imminent collapse, and authorities have urged hundreds of residents to evacuate as the region received heavy rains and flash floods. The Oktibbeha County Board has activated an emergency plan which includes the closure of nine highways and the evacuation of 108 structures in the event of a breach.

A group of coal miners and their families in Kentucky blocked a train hauling a large shipment of coal after they claimed that they hadn’t received a month’s paycheck. Working for Quest Energy in Pike County, the miners say they haven’t been paid since December 16th.