10 things you need to know today: February 18, 2015

1. Ukraine pulls out of key town claimed by pro-Russian rebels

Ukrainian soldiers began withdrawing from the strategically important town of Debaltseve, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said Wednesday. Street-to-street fighting there had continued despite a new cease-fire. Pro-Russian separatists had declared that the rail hub linking two rebel-contolled areas is on their turf, not the front lines, and was not covered under the peace deal. Hundreds of Ukrainian troops are still believed to be trapped in the contested town.

Sky News

2. White House says administration will appeal blocking of Obama immigration orders

President Obama on Tuesday said he would abide by a judge's decision to block an executive order delaying the deportations of as many as five million undocumented immigrants. U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen said the ruling was necessary to give 26 states time to challenge Obama's executive action. The White House said Obama's measures were "well within his legal authority," and the ruling "wrongly prevents these lawful, commonsense policies from taking effect." The administration plans to appeal.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

CNN

3. Miss P the beagle wins best in show at Westminster dog show

Miss P, a 15-inch beagle, won Best in Show at the 139th Westminster Kennel Club dog show Tuesday night at New York City's Madison Square Garden. She is the second beagle to take the title of top dog, and the grandniece of the first winning beagle, Uno, 2008's champion. "She's hungry and I'm overwhelmed," said handler Will Alexander of Miss P and himself. Miss P, at least, will get a nice steak at Sardi's on Wednesday.

The New York Times

4. Ray of hope in Greece boosts stocks into record territory

The Standard & Poor's 500 stock index shook off early losses to rise into record territory, closing above 2100 for the first time. The gains were fueled by optimism over news that Greece's new anti-austerity government would ask European creditors to extend the country's bailout. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell six points short of a record, closing up 0.2 percent at 18,047.58.

USA Today

5. Texas probate judge calls gay-marriage ban unconstitutional

A Travis County, Texas, probate judge ruled on Tuesday that the state's ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional. Judge Guy Herman, in a decision on an estate case, said the ban violates the guarantee of due process and equal protection under the law spelled out in the Fourteenth Amendment. Travis County Clerk Dana DeBeauvoir praised the ruling as "a great step toward marriage equality" but said she had not yet been ordered to make the change, so she would not yet start issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

Los Angeles Times

6. Florida high court halts execution pending U.S. Supreme Court ruling

Florida's Supreme Court on Tuesday blocked the execution of Jerry William Correll, who killed four people in Orlando 30 years ago, pending a ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court on the administration of one of the drugs the state uses in its lethal injections. The high court is considering the constitutionality of Oklahoma's use of a sedative that Florida also administers in the first step of its three-step process. Critics say the drug, Midazolam, does not work and subjects condemned inmates to pain.

Orlando Sentinel

7. Haiti cancels third and final day of carnival after deadly float accident

Haiti canceled the last day of its three-day annual carnival celebration and announced three days of mourning after a power line fell on a hip-hop band's float, resulting in at least 16 deaths and 78 injuries. Most of the casualties came as the panicked crowd tried to run away. Witnesses said a singer who goes by the name Fantom hit his head on the high-voltage line, then somebody used a pole to lift it so the float could pass underneath.

Reuters

8. Woman killed after road rage incident had gone looking for other driver

The case of a Las Vegas woman killed last week in front of her home after a road-rage incident went searching for the other driver after the initial confrontation, police said Tuesday. She was accompanied by her 22-year-old son, who had a gun. Initially, investigators said the woman — Tammy Meyers, 44 — and her 15-year-old daughter had gone home and were calling for help when someone pulled up in a car and shot Meyers. She and her son had spotted the other car but decided to return home.

Los Angeles Times

9. Alabama governor apologizes to India for police force against grandfather

Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley (R) has written a letter to the Indian government, apologizing for the actions of two police officers who seriously injured a man visiting from the country. "I deeply regret the unfortunate use of excessive force... and for the injuries sustained by Mr. Patel," Bentley wrote to India's consul general in Atlanta. On Feb. 6, two police officers threw Patel, 57, to the ground, leaving him partially paralyzed. The Indian citizen was in Alabama to care of his young grandson.

Time

10. Alex Rodriguez apologizes to fans for suspension

New York Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez on Tuesday issued a handwritten apology to fans his for yearlong suspension for violating Major League Baseball’s performance-boosting drug policy. The three-time MVP missed out on the entire 2014 season. He was the biggest name among 14 players stained by their association with the now shuttered Biogenesis anti-aging clinic. Rodriquez has maintained that he never used performance-enhancing drugs, calling the MLB investigation a "witch hunt."

The Wall Street Journal