Carter breaks hip, undergoes surgery
ATLANTA -- Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter broke his hip Monday at his Georgia home, underwent successful surgery and was recovering comfortably, a spokesman for the Carter Center said.
Carter was on his way to go turkey hunting, the spokesman, Deanna Congileo, said in a statement. She said that he was treated in Americus, Ga., near his home in Plains and that his wife, Rosalynn, was with him.
In the statement, Congileo said: "President Carter said his main concern is that turkey season ends this week, and he has not reached his limit. He hopes the State of Georgia will allow him to rollover the unused limit to next year."
Carter, 94, disclosed in 2015 that cancer that had been discovered on his liver and had also been found on his brain. He received treatment for seven months until scans showed no sign of the disease.
At the time he revealed the cancer, he said he felt "perfectly at ease with whatever comes."
"I've had a wonderful life," he said. "I've had thousands of friends. I've had an exciting, adventurous and gratifying existence."
In March, Carter surpassed George H.W. Bush as the longest-living president in U.S. history.
U.S. flies migrants to less-crowded areas
EL PASO, Texas -- U.S. authorities have begun using aircraft to move migrants to less-crowded areas for processing, while others are being bused as far north as Colorado to alleviate the strain on overwhelmed shelters along the border in Texas and New Mexico.
Several dozen migrants were bused to Denver overnight with the help of the New Mexico governor's office to help crowded shelters in El Paso and neighboring Las Cruces, N.M., where one shelter reported running low on food.
It's likely the bus trips will continue. In addition, U.S. Customs and Border Protection has scheduled daily flights out of Texas' Rio Grande Valley at least through today for some migrants.
The flights aim to ensure adults don't slip through the cracks as agents scramble to process the increasing number of families crossing the border.
NYC officer's disciplinary trial starts
NEW YORK -- The New York City police officer accused of using a banned chokehold in the July 2014 death of Eric Garner is being made a scapegoat in a politically charged atmosphere, a defense lawyer said Monday.
The start of officer Daniel Pantaleo's long-delayed disciplinary trial sparked protests and evoked emotional reactions from Garner's family as a bystander's video of the confrontation was played in the hearing room. Garner was the unarmed black man whose pleas of "I can't breathe" became a rallying cry against police brutality.
A police watchdog agency says the video shows Pantaleo ignoring his training and using brutal, lethal force that led to Garner going into cardiac arrest. Pantaleo's lawyer and the city's police union say he used a technique that is taught by the department and that he's being made to be a scapegoat.
"His last words, 'I can't breathe,' tell you who caused his death," Civilian Complaint Review Board lawyer Jonathan Fogel said in an opening statement.
Pantaleo's lawyer, Stuart London, countered that the video shows the officer using an approved technique known as a "seat-belt hold" to restrain Garner. He said Pantaleo is seen pulling Garner to the ground because he feared he and the 350-pound Garner would crash through a plate-glass window as they struggled against a storefront.
Pantaleo, 33, who denies any wrongdoing, has been on desk duty since Garner's death. He could face penalties ranging from the loss of vacation days to firing if he is found to have violated department rules.
A ruling last week requires that the police watchdog agency bringing the case prove not only that Pantaleo violated department rules but also that his actions fit the criteria for criminal charges.
Measles cases steadily rise, topping 800
NEW YORK -- U.S. health officials say this year's count of measles cases has surpassed 800, a growing tally that is already the nation's highest in 25 years.
A total of 839 cases were reported as of last week. That's the most since 1994 when 963 were reported for the entire year.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released the latest numbers Monday.
In all, 23 states have reported cases this year. The vast majority of illnesses have been in New York -- most of them among unvaccinated people in Orthodox Jewish communities.
Measles was once common in the U.S. but gradually became rare after vaccination campaigns that started in the 1960s.
-- Compiled Democrat-Gazette staff from wire reports
A Section on 05/14/2019