Murder Charges for Atlanta Gunman

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ATLANTA, GA - MARCH 17: Mourners visit and leave flowers at the site of two shootings at spas across the street from one another, in memorial for the lives lost, on March 17, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. Suspect Robert Aaron Long, 21, was arrested after a series of shootings at three Atlanta-area spas left eight people dead on Tuesday night, including six Asian women. (Photo by Megan Varner/Getty Images)

by Korva Coleman and Rachel Treisman|NPR News

 

The suspected gunman in three attacks that killed eight people at Atlanta-area spas has been arrested and charged with murder. 

Robert Aaron Long, 21 of Georgia, confessed to the crimes and said he was a patron of the targeted businesses. 

Six of the deceased are women of Asian descent, adding to a surge of hate crimes and other attacks against Asian Americans in the past year. 

U.S. intelligence agencies are warning that the threat posed by domestic extremist groups increased last year and will remain high in 2021. 

According to a report commissioned by President Biden, extremists are being motivated by disinformation about the 2020 election, the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and the coronavirus pandemic, and other conspiracy theories that promote violence.

The IRS and Treasury Department are delaying the tax filing deadline by one month, to May 17. Officials say the extension — which applies to federal income returns and taxes only — is intended to help taxpayers “navigate the unusual circumstances” related to COVID-19. Here are five things to know about filing taxes during the pandemic. 

The Biden administration says it will spend $10 billion on coronavirus testing for the nation’s schools. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will lend technical assistance to state and local health departments to create school testing programs where they aren’t up and running yet. 

Police in Washington, D.C., arrested a Texas man outside Vice President Kamala Harris’s official residence, although she doesn’t yet live at the estate near the U.S. Naval Observatory. 

Police say they recovered a rifle and ammunition from the vehicle of Paul Murray, 31.  He was first detained by the Secret Service, which acted on an intelligence bulletin from Texas, and was formally arrested by Washington police. 

The House has voted to renew the Violence Against Women Act, a law that protects and provides resources for people subjected to sexual and physical abuse and domestic violence. 

It heads next to the Senate, but reauthorization is not guaranteed. Congress failed to act when the law last lapsed in 2018, as Republicans disagreed over new provisions covering guns and transgender issues

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