10 things you need to know today: December 29, 2015

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1. Grand jury decides not to indict officers for Tamir Rice shooting
2. Belgium arrests two for alleged New Year's terror plot
3. 'Affluenza' teen reportedly detained in Mexico
4. Israeli court reduces Olmert's corruption sentence
5. Sharpton calls for Rahm Emanuel to step down after Chicago police shootings
6. Holiday spending up as online sales rise
7. Drowned Syrian toddler's relatives arrive in Canada
8. Security expert says 191 million voters' data potentially exposed
9. President Obama and Hillary Clinton top lists of most admired people
10. Motörhead lead singer Lemmy Kilmister dies at 70

published 29 December 2015

1. Grand jury decides not to indict officers for Tamir Rice shooting

A grand jury has declined to indict two Cleveland police officers for the fatal 2014 shooting of Tamir Rice, a 12-year-old black boy, Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Timothy McGinty said Monday. Timothy Loehmann shot Rice in a park after responding to a 911 call with another officer. Loehmann has said he believed Rice's toy gun was real. McGinty had recommended no charges against police. He called the shooting a "perfect storm of human error," but maintained that it was a "tragic accident," not a crime.

Belgian officials have arrested two people on suspicion of plotting a New Year's Eve terror attack in Brussels, prosecutors said Tuesday. Four other people were detained for questioning but released. The arrests came during house searches Sunday and Monday in Brussels, Liege, and Flemish Brabant in which investigators found military-style clothing, Islamic State propaganda and recruitment material, but no weapons. The investigation was not connected to the Nov. 13 Paris terror attacks.

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Mexican authorities have detained Ethan Couch, the so-called affluenza teen, and his mother near the Pacific resort town of Puerto Vallarta, CNN reported Monday. Couch, 18, is serving a 10-year probation manslaughter sentence for a drunken driving accident in which four people died. The case attracted national attention after a defense witness said Couch suffered psychological problems stemming from his family's wealth. Couch went missing earlier this month in Texas. His probation officer was unable to reach him after a video surfaced appearing to show him at a party where alcohol was being consumed, indicating a potential probation violation.

Israel's High Court of Justice on Tuesday reduced former prime minister Ehud Olmert's prison sentence to 18 months from six years, after throwing out a major part of his corruption conviction. By partially upholding part of Olmert's March 2014 conviction for taking bribes from property developers while serving as mayor of Jerusalem, however, the court cleared the way for him to become the first Israeli leader to serve jail time. Olmert, whose sentence starts Feb.15, said he never accepted bribes, but that he respected the court's decision.

On Monday Al Sharpton joined activists calling for Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel's resignation following a string of fatal shootings of black Chicagoans by police. "He's gone beyond the point where he can govern with the trust of the people," the civil rights activist said on Morning Joe. On Saturday, an officer responding to a domestic violence call fatally shot Quintonio LeGrier, a black 19-year-old man and his father's 55-year-old neighbor. Emanuel was already facing criticism for the delayed release of police video of the shooting of another teen, Laquan McDonald.

Holiday shoppers spent 7.9 percent more this year than they did a year ago, according to the MasterCard SpendingPulse report released Monday. Shoppers still spend most of their money at brick-and-mortar stores. Online purchases, however, accounted for the season's gains, increasing by 20 percent over the 2014 holiday season. The trend has encouraged retailers to improve their websites and provide faster, often free, shipping.

Relatives of Alan Kurdi, the drowned Syrian toddler whose photo galvanized support for refugees fleeing the war-torn nation, arrived in Canada on Monday.Tima Kurdi, the sister of the boy's uncle, Mohammad Kurdi, met the child's uncle, aunt, and five cousins of the boy at the Vancouver airport. Tima Kurdi raised money to sponsor the family in their bid for asylum in Canada. The family said it was grateful for Canada's generosity but still grieving for lost relatives and others unable to leave Syria.

An independent computer security researcher said Monday that he had found a poorly configured voter database that has left personal information on 191 million people exposed on the open internet. The researcher, Chris Vickery of Texas, said the database includes the names, addresses, birth dates, party affiliations, phone numbers, and emails of voters in every state and Washington, D.C.Vickery said he found the database while searching for exposed information to call attention to data leaks, but could not tell whether or not hackers had accessed it.

President Obama and 2016 Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton led the annual Gallup Poll for most admired man and woman. It was Obama's eighth time on top of the male list, and Clinton's record 20th year leading the female side. Clinton — a two-time presidential candidate, and former secretary of state, senator, and first lady — is far ahead of history's second biggest winner, Eleanor Roosevelt, who topped the list 13 times. Behind Obama this year an unlikely pair tied for second — Pope Francis and Donald Trump. Malala Yousafzai was second among women.

Ian "Lemmy" Kilmister, the lead singer of the iconic British heavy metal band Motörhead, died Monday. He was 70. On Facebook, Motörhead announced that Kilmister was diagnosed with an "extremely aggressive" form of cancer on Dec. 26, and died at home. The band asked that fans "play Lemmy's music LOUD. Have a drink or few. Share stories. Celebrate the LIFE this lovely, wonderful man celebrated so vibrantly himself."

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Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.