The Nation in Brief

Oklahoma twister damages casino

NORMAN, Okla. — An overnight batch of severe storms spawned an EF1 tornado that tore part of a casino roof off in central Oklahoma during a concert and downed power lines and trees throughout the state, emergency managers said Sunday.

The twister touched down in Cleveland County, one of several counties where National Weather Service officials were surveying damage after reports of as many as four tornadoes late Saturday.

Other businesses, including a hotel, also were damaged along with cars and trucks, said Keli Cain, a spokesman for the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management.

The worst of the damage appeared to be in central Oklahoma at the Riverwind Casino in Norman, where a possible twister ripped part of its roof off during a Beach Boys concert that Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin attended.

FBI access to data on phones limited

PHILADELPHIA — The FBI hasn’t been able to retrieve data from more than half of the mobile devices it tried to access in less than a year, FBI Director Christopher Wray said Sunday, turning up the heat on a debate between technology companies and law enforcement officials trying to recover encrypted communications.

In the first 11 months of the fiscal year, federal agents were unable to access the content of more than 6,900 mobile devices, Wray said in a speech at the International Association of Chiefs of Police conference in Philadelphia.

“To put it mildly, this is a huge, huge problem,” Wray said. “It impacts investigations across the board.”

The FBI and other law enforcement officials have long complained about being unable to unlock and recover evidence from cellphones and other devices seized from suspects even if they have a warrant, while technology companies have insisted they must protect customers’ digital privacy.

Director accused of sex harassment

LOS ANGELES — Writer and director James Toback, who received an Oscar nomination for writing Bugsy, has been accused of sexual harassment by 38 women in a report published Sunday in the Los Angeles Times.

In the report, many of the women allege that Toback approached them on the streets of New York City and promised stardom. His meetings would often end with sexual questions and Toback masturbating in front of them or dry-humping them, according to the accounts.

The 72-year-old denied the allegations to the Los Angeles Times, saying he never met any of the women, or if he had it “was for five minutes and [I] have no recollection.”

Thirty-one of the women spoke on the record including Louise Post, who is a guitarist and vocalist for the band Veruca Salt, and As the World Turns actress Terri Conn.

The report comes amid the ongoing downfall of producer Harvey Weinstein, who has been accused of sexual harassment and assault by over three dozen women.

A Section on 10/23/2017

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