In California, lightning from a summer thunderstorm sparked several small fires in Northern California while exacerbating a large wildfire in Tahoe National Forest. The intensity of the blaze, which has burned 45 square miles and led to evacuations, has also caused rare fire tornados. Meanwhile, the Lake Fire in Southern California has burned more than 18,000 acres with 4,500 structures currently threatened by the blaze.
Chelsey Nelson challenged a Louisville, Ky., law that would have forced her to compromise her religious beliefs and photograph a same-sex wedding. Alliance Defending Freedom, which represented the Christian photographer, announced on Friday that a federal court temporarily blocked the city from enforcing its law against Nelson. “The city has no right to eliminate the editorial control she has over her own photographs and blogs,” ADF senior counsel Jonathan Scruggs said.
WASHINGTON—Rhode Island previously required two witnesses to certify mail-in ballots. But due to the coronavirus pandemic, Gov. Gina Raimondo, a Democrat, eliminated that rule for the state’s presidential primary in June. The U.S. Supreme Court in a 6-3 decision on Thursday rejected an appeal by the Republican National Committee to reinstate the requirement. Republicans contended that ballot witnesses stopped potential fraud, while Democrats and the American Civil Liberties Union argued it was impractical during the pandemic.
Supreme Court | Pro-lifers, conservatives praise Trump’s third SCOTUS pick
