Here's a roundup of news trending across the nation and world today.
What to know now:
1. Earl makes landfall: Hurricane Earl made landfall Thursday in Belize, bringing 80 mph winds and heavy rain. Residents are being warned that Earl, the second hurricane of the 2016 Atlantic hurricane season, has the potential to create flooding and landslides.
2. London attack: Six people were attacked in London late Wednesday by a teenager wielding a knife. One woman, an American, died in the attack. Scotland Yard investigators say they believe that mental illness was a factor in the incident. The suspect has been arrested on suspicion of murder. Two of the five people stabbed remain hospitalized.
3. Transgender bathroom ruling: The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that a Virginia high school could block a transgender student from using the men's restroom. The 5-3 ruling came after the Gloucester County School Board banned Gavin Grimm, a senior at Gloucester High School, from using the men's room.
4. Coaches poll: On Wednesday it was the Top 100 in history, on Thursday it's the Top 25 of 2016 that people will be interested in as college football's Amway Coaches Poll is released. With the start of the season just weeks away, the noon announcement will start anew the argument over who is Number 1.
5. The look of ransom: Officials at the Justice Department reportedly objected to the timing of a transfer of $400 million in cash to Iran which took place in January at the same time four Americans were released after being detained in the country. According to the Wall Street Journal, the money was an installment on a $1.7 billion settlement of a failed 1979 arms deal. Officials at the Justice Department reportedly objected to how the transaction would look – as if it were ransom for the release of the four detainees. The State Department overruled the objections of the Justice Department, the story said.
And one more
The grandmother of Denver Broncos wide receiver Demaryius Thomas was one of more than 200 inmates who had their prison sentences commuted by President Obama on Wednesday. Minnie Pearl Thomas, 60, was serving a life sentence for trafficking cocaine. Thomas' mother, Katrina Stuckey Smith, had her sentenced commuted by the president last year after serving 15 years in prison. She and her mother were arrested together on drug charges.
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