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The American economy created 280,000 jobs in May, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. It was a solid showing, especially after the drop in March, which ended a long run of over 200,000 per month. The unemployment rate also ticked up slightly to 5.5 percent, from 5.4 percent.
2. Woman says her late brother was sexually abused by Dennis Hastert
In an interview with ABC News, Jolene Reinboldt said her brother was sexually abused by Dennis Hastert, the former speaker of the House who was indicted last week for reportedly trying to cover up hush money paid to a victim. Steve Reinboldt was the student equipment manager for a high school wrestling team that Hastert was coaching when the alleged abuse took place; he died in 1995. Jolene Reinboldt's interview is the first time an alleged victim of Hastert's has been named. The former speaker is due in court next week.
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
3. Obama to eulogize Beau Biden at Delaware funeral
Vice President Joe Biden will bury eldest son Beau Biden in Wilmington, Delaware, on Saturday, a week after he died of brain cancer. President Barack Obama is set to eulogize the former Delaware attorney general. Obama's family, the Clintons, and Gen. Ray Odierno, the former top U.S. commander in Iraq, will also be on hand to pay their respects. The funeral ends three days of public mourning for the Biden family.
4. LAPD: Officers justified in fatally shooting mentally ill black man
The Los Angeles police chief and inspector general determined two officers were justified in fatally shooting Ezell Ford, a mentally ill black man, the Los Angeles Times reports. Sources say DNA evidence suggests Ford, diagnosed with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, fought for control of one officer's gun. Sharlton Wampler and Antonio Villegas stopped Ford, 25, walking near his home Aug. 11, reportedly because they believed he was trying to discard narcotics. The shooting triggered protests over police brutality.
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5. Two friends of Boston Marathon bomber sentenced to prison
Two college friends of Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev were sentenced to federal prison Friday for their roles in removing items from Tsarnaev's University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth dorm room after the incident. Robel Phillipos, 21, was sentenced to three years for lying to federal agents about whether he went to the dorm room. Azamat Tazhayakov, also 21, was sentenced to 42 months for taking a backpack with hollowed-out fireworks from Tsarnaev's room during the April 2013 manhunt following the attack along with Dias Kadyrbayev, who was sentenced Tuesday.
6. Greece delays IMF payment, sparking fears of a eurozone exit
The Greek government has announced that it will delay a scheduled payment of €300 million to the International Monetary Fund, raising fears that it may default and leave the eurozone. Greece and its European creditors are at an impasse over new austerity negotiations, with the creditors demanding more austerity and Greece's governing Syriza Party demanding less.
Guam's chief federal judge struck down the ban on same-sex marriages Friday in the first ruling of its kind for a U.S. territory. Chief Judge Frances Tydingco-Gatewood ruled restrictions on marriage to opposite-sex couples unconstitutional, citing a previous decision from a circuit court that has jurisdiction over Guam.
8. Pope encourages reconciliation in Bosnia-Herzegovina
Pope Francis encouraged Muslim, Orthodox, and Catholic people in Bosnia-Herzegovina to work together toward peace in a speech to 65,000 gathered in Sarajevo on Saturday. "War never again!" he said, referencing the three-way war of the 1990s. The pope asked for Bosnians of different faiths to make peace daily through their "actions, attitudes and acts of kindness, of fraternity, of dialogue, of mercy."
9. Duggar girls forgave brother after sexual abuse
(Image credit: Fox News/Getty Images)
Jill Dillard and Jessa Seewald, two sisters on TLC's 19 Kids and Counting, have forgiven their older brother Josh Duggar for sexually abusing them, they told Fox's Megyn Kelly on Friday. Last month In Touch Weekly published a police report indicating Duggar had inappropriately touched five underage girls as a teenager, including several of his sisters. "He was a boy, a young boy in puberty, and a little too curious about girls," Seewald said. "And that got him into some trouble."
10. Video game hall of fame announces first nominee class
The Strong World Video Game Hall of Fame, based in upstate New York, announced its inaugural class of nominees this week. The favorites tapped for the international honor are Pong, Pac-Man, Super Mario Bros., Tetris, Doom, and World of Warcraft. To be selected, the Strong Museum said games must show extended popularity and influence on other video games and pop culture.
Julie Kliegman is a freelance writer based in New York. Her work has appeared in BuzzFeed, Vox, Mental Floss, Paste, the Tampa Bay Times and PolitiFact. Her cats can do somersaults.
