US urges Americans to ‘reconsider’ travel to Canada
The U.S. Department of State issued a new warning for people hoping to visit Canada in the near future, urging them to “reconsider” their plans as the country faces a “high level” of infections.
The new Level 3 advisory, which is the second highest on the agency’s scale, says unvaccinated travelers should avoid nonessential travel to Canada or make sure they are fully vaccinated before doing so.
The daily number of new COVID-19 cases in Canada has been on a “strong resurgence trajectory” in recent weeks, according to the country’s Public Health Agency. The national seven-day average of new cases reported daily between Aug. 20 and Aug. 26 was near 2,850, an increase of 29% over the previous week, the agency said in a statement.
The alarming surge involves “primarily” unvaccinated people, with the highly contagious delta variant accounting for the majority of new infections, according to the statement.
In the U.S., meanwhile, multiple states are also facing another wave of new cases and hospitalizations, including Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida and Texas.
Nationwide, the seven-day rolling average of new daily cases was close to 130,000 over the past week, slightly lower than each of the past two weeks but still higher than every week since early February, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
—New York Daily News
Fired tech CEO pleads guilty in US Capitol siege
CHICAGO — A suburban Chicago tech CEO who lost his job after being charged with various offenses related to the Jan. 6 siege of the U.S. Capitol has become the first Illinoisan to be found guilty for his part in the riot.
Bradley Rukstales, 53, of Inverness, pleaded guilty in federal court Tuesday to willfully and knowingly parading, demonstrating and picketing inside the Capitol. The offense carries a maximum penalty of six months imprisonment and a $5,000 fine.
Rukstales was president and CEO of the Schaumburg-based tech company Cogensia. It placed him on leave the day he was charged with violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, and a day later it fired him, saying his actions were inconsistent with the company’s core values.
Rukstales said in a written statement at the time that he followed others into the Capitol to see what was happening, and that he regretted his participation.
Prosecutor Susan Lehr described a chaotic scene in which Rukstales was among a group of rioters who confronted police in the Capitol’s crypt, a circular room beneath the rotunda. She said Rukstales tossed a chair toward officers, though they were in no danger of being struck by it.
When Rukstales refused commands to leave, she said, an officer brought him to the ground, dragged him behind a police line and arrested him.
Rukstales told Judge Carl Nichols that he wasn’t trying to hit anyone with the object.
—Chicago Tribune
COVID-19 more prevalent in Colorado children than adults
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Colorado is experiencing a "rapid rise" in pediatric COVID-19 case rates, a top state health official said Tuesday, with infections for younger children hitting their highest rates of the pandemic thus far.
The highest case rate in the state is among 6- to 11-year-olds, who are not yet eligible to be vaccinated, according to Rachel Herlihy, the state's epidemiologist. While they're eligible for vaccination, 12- to 17-year-olds have Colorado's the second-highest case rate.
Though there's been a slight increase in pediatric hospitalizations for COVID-19, Herlihy said the numbers remain relatively small. Ten children younger than 11 were hospitalized Tuesday, plus seven more between 12 and 17 years old. Pediatric hospital capacity remained stable, said Scott Bookman, the state's incident commander for COVID-19.
Students across the state returned to schools amid some battles over mask mandates. Gov. Jared Polis resisted new classroom restrictions, but the state Department of Public Health and Environment has recommended masks.
A Gazette examination of data published by the state last week indicates that nearly every new K-12 school outbreak in Colorado was in a district that had no mask mandate. A broad coalition of health care organizations in Colorado have come out in support of masking in schools, and Glen Mays, of the Colorado School of Public Health, urged using masks in schools and other high-risk settings.
—The Gazette
Judge grants temporary injunctions against anti-abortion group
AUSTIN, Texas — A Travis County judge on Tuesday blocked a major anti-abortion group from being able to sue several parties for abetting in the abortion process under a new Texas law set to go into effect Wednesday.
The orders were granted the day before legislation goes into effect that would restrict abortion after a fetal heartbeat is detectable — about six weeks into a pregnancy. That legislation, Senate Bill 8, does not carry criminal penalties but is enforceable through civil litigation filed on behalf of private citizens.
Travis County District Judge Amy Clark Meachum specified that the orders do not stop SB 8 from going into effect on Wednesday and only prevent Texas Right to Life and several of its affiliates from suing named plaintiffs: Dallas attorney Michelle Simpson Tuegel, Allison Van Stean and abortion fund The Bridge Collective.
Attorney Elizabeth Myers, who represents those plaintiffs, said the orders granted by Meachum wouldn’t stop Texas Right to Life or other injunctive defendants from suing other parties that abet in abortions when the law goes into effect. TROs were granted for three of the five SB 8 related lawsuits Myers brought on Tuesday morning.
—The Dallas Morning News
