10 things you need to know today: May 24, 2016

Bernie Sanders warns the Democratic convention could be "messy," judge acquits Baltimore officer in Freddie Gray case, and more

Bernie Sanders speaks at a campaign rally
(Image credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

1. Sanders warns Democratic convention could get 'messy'

The Associated Press CBS News

2. Baltimore officer acquitted in Freddie Gray case

A judge on Monday acquitted Baltimore police officer Edward Nero on charges of second-degree assault, misconduct, and reckless endangerment in connection with the death of Freddie Gray, a black man who suffered a fatal spinal injury in police custody last April. The judge said there was no credible evidence that Nero, who played a minor role in Gray's detention, intended for any crime to be committed. Six officers have been charged in the case, which touched off citywide protests last year.

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The New York Times

3. Greece begins moving migrants from Idomeni camp

Greece on Tuesday began evacuating hundreds of people from the Idomeni refugee camp near the Macedonian border, where thousands of people have been stranded since countries to the north began blocking migrants from traveling deeper into Europe. Macedonia closed its border in February. Police vehicles and buses are moving migrants to better equipped facilities to the south, near the city of Thessaloniki. Riot police were sent to the scene, but the relocations began smoothly.

BBC TIME

4. TSA replaces security chief as anger grows over long lines

The Transportation Security Administration has replaced its top security official, Kelly Hoggan, in a shake-up as it faces a backlash over long lines at airport checkpoints. Hoggan received $90,000 in bonuses over 13 months starting in late 2013 even though a report said auditors were able to get fake weapons past screeners 95 percent of the time in covert tests. As part of the shake-up, the TSA will also add new leaders in Chicago to improve screening at O'Hare Airport, where travelers have spent hours in lines.

The New York Times

5. Supreme Court finds bias in selection of all-white jury in death penalty case

The Supreme Court ruled Monday that Georgia prosecutors improperly kept African-Americans off the jury that convicted a black Georgia death row inmate, Timothy Tyrone Foster, for the murder of an elderly white woman. Foster's lawyers used Georgia's public records law to obtain the prosecutors' notes, and found that black potential jurors had been marked with a "B" and highlighted in green. The 7-to-1 ruling clears the way for a likely new trial. Justice Clarence Thomas, the court's only African-American, was the lone dissenter.

The Washington Post The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

6. Van der Bellen wins Austrian election, blocking far-right candidate from presidency

Van Der Bellen wins Austria election.

(Image credit: ROLAND SCHLAGER/AFP/Getty Images)

Green Party-backed independent candidate Alexander Van der Bellen was declared the winner of Austria's presidential runoff election on Monday. The weekend vote was too close to call until the last ballots were counted. Van der Bellen's victory blocked the Freedom Party's Norbert Hofer from becoming the European Union's first far-right leader. Hofer's anti-immigrant rhetoric fueled his popularity but prompted comparisons with the rise of the Nazis, which Hofer said was "completely absurd."

BBC News

7. Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe under investigation for possible campaign violations

The FBI is investigating whether Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, a Democrat, accepted illegal contributions to his 2013 campaign. McAuliffe was the chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 2000 to 2005. He also co-chaired Hillary Clinton's 2008 presidential campaign, and once served on the board of the Clinton Global Initiative. Federal officials are looking at overlapping donors to the foundation and McAuliffe's campaign, including those by Chinese politician Wang Wenliang.

CNN NBC News

8. Obama nudges Vietnam on human rights

President Obama on Tuesday urged Vietnam to give its people more freedom after critics of the communist government were prevented from meeting him in Hanoi. The friction came on a trip — Obama's first to the country — otherwise marked by signs of improving relations between the U.S. and Vietnam, former enemies. A day earlier, Obama announced he was lifting a ban on arms sales to Vietnam in what was seen as a bid to counter China's buildup in the contested South China Sea.

Reuters

9. Five die in crash of skydiving plane in Hawaii

Five people were killed Monday when a skydiving plane crashed on the Hawaiian island of Kauai. The pilot, two instructors, and two tandem jumpers were believed to have been on the plane. Four people were pronounced dead at the scene of the crash, and the fifth was pronounced dead after he was rushed to a hospital. The plane, a single-engine Cessna, caught fire after hitting the ground. National Transportation Safety Administration investigators are trying to determine what caused the crash.

The Associated Press

10. Report: NFL officials tried to influence brain research

NFL officials "improperly attempted to influence" a federal government study on brain disease in football players, according to a congressional report released Monday. In 2012, the NFL pledged $30 million to the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health for unconditional use toward research on medical conditions in athletes. The report says the NFL tried to pressure the NIH to transfer a $16 million study on football and brain disease from league critic Robert Stern to more NFL-friendly researchers.

House of Representatives ESPN

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Harold Maass, The Week US

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.