The nation in brief

U.K. tourists ID'd as canyon copter's dead

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. -- A helicopter crash that killed three Britons and left four others critically injured happened on tribal land in northwestern Arizona where air tours are not as highly regulated as those inside the boundaries of Grand Canyon National Park.

The victims of Saturday's crash were identified Monday as veterinary receptionist Becky Dobson, 27; her boyfriend Stuart Hill, a 30-year-old car salesman who lived in Worthing in Southern England; and his brother, Jason Hill, a 32-year-old lawyer in Milton Keynes, north of London. They were in Las Vegas to celebrate Stuart Hill's birthday and took a helicopter for a sightseeing tour of the Grand Canyon on the Hualapai reservation, family and friends said.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating what led to the crash at Quartermaster Canyon where rescuers had to fly in, hike to the site and use night vision goggles to find their way around, Hualapai Nation police Chief Francis Bradley said.

Air tours on the reservation aren't subject to federal regulations that restrict routes, impose curfews and cap the amount of flights. Most of the flights over the reservation originate from Las Vegas. The pilots can fly between canyon walls and land at the bottom next to the Colorado River on the reservation -- something that isn't allowed at the national park other than for search and rescue operations.

Kentucky governor backs T-shirt refusal

FRANKFORT, Ky. -- Kentucky's Republican governor is urging the state's highest court to rule in favor of a company whose owner refused to print T-shirts for a gay-rights festival because of his Christian beliefs.

Attorneys for Gov. Matt Bevin have asked to file a brief with the Kentucky Supreme Court in the case involving Hands-On Originals. The company refused an order in 2012 from Lexington's Gay and Lesbian Services Organization for T-shirts in advance of the city's Gay Pride Festival.

The Lexington Human Rights Commission ruled the company violated a city ordinance banning discrimination based on sexual orientation. A state judge and the Court of Appeals both reversed those rulings. The Kentucky Supreme Court has agreed to hear the case.

Bevin argues Kentucky should protect the right of citizens to act according to their conscience.

Under-the-hood gun search ruled illegal

BOSTON -- Massachusetts' highest court has ruled a police search under a car's hood and air filter that produced a bag of guns is unconstitutional because officers were given permission only to search the interior of the vehicle.

On Monday, the Supreme Judicial Court ruled in the case of Anthony Ortiz, who was arrested after he was pulled over by Holyoke officers in 2015. Ortiz told the officers they could check when he was asked if there were any drugs or guns in the vehicle.

Officers raised the hood after nothing was found in the passenger areas of the car. They removed the air filter and found a bag with two guns.

The high court says the permission given to officers to search the car didn't extend to the area under the hood.

Fee dispute scraps Ohio alt-right speech

CINCINNATI -- A white nationalist's plan to speak on the University of Cincinnati campus during spring break has been scuttled by a legal standoff over the Ohio school's demand for a security fee of nearly $11,000, an attorney for Richard Spencer said Monday.

Attorney Kyle Bristow said that Spencer's tour organizer, Cameron Padgett, is now hoping that the appearance can be rescheduled for summer or fall.

The University of Cincinnati president confirmed in a message Monday to the school community that the March 14 date proposed was no longer an option. He said couldn't speculate on any potential future date or on the outcome of the lawsuit filed against the school over the fee. University President Neville Pinto said the school's public safety department requires at least six weeks to prepare for the safety needs for such an event.

He added that the university has "historically" charged security fees and costs of the rental of any of its facilities by an outside entity.

When the university asked for rental and security fees, Bristow responded with a Jan. 9 federal lawsuit seeking a "reasonable fee."

Spencer was a scheduled speaker at a "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Va., last August that led to deadly violence when a man struck and killed a counter-protester with his car.

Spencer has popularized the term "alt-right" to refer to a fringe movement that's a mix of white nationalist, white supremacist, anti-Semitic and anti-immigrant beliefs.

A Section on 02/13/2018

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