For risking life, Marine gets top medal
WASHINGTON -- A former Marine Corps corporal who was severely wounded when he risked his life to shield a squad mate from a grenade blast in Afghanistan was awarded the nation's highest military decoration Thursday.
William "Kyle" Carpenter, 24, is the eighth living recipient of the Medal of Honor who fought in Iraq or Afghanistan. He received the award from President Barack Obama in a ceremony at the White House.
Carpenter, now a student at the University of South Carolina, was medically retired from the service in July because of his injuries. He was at a rooftop observation post for a patrol base in Afghanistan's Helmand province in November 2010 when it was attacked by Taliban fighters.
During the attack, a grenade landed where he and another lance corporal were in position, according to a Marine Corps account. Carpenter ran toward it, trying to shield the other Marine from the blast. When it detonated, Carpenter's body absorbed most of the explosion, shattering his jaw and other bones, taking his right eye and collapsing a lung.
The Marine saved by Carpenter also was grievously injured and couldn't speak for a year. He is recovering at home in Plymouth, Mass., after treatment at the military medical center in Bethesda, Md., where he met Obama.
Last 3 Detroit mob attackers plead guilty
DETROIT -- Three men pleaded guilty Thursday to assault in a mob attack on a motorist who accidentally struck a boy with his pickup in Detroit, capping a week of plea deals involving all five defendants in a case that raised questions about race and impulsive violence.
Prosecutors dropped charges of attempted murder as part of the deals entered in Wayne County court. The maximum penalty is 10 years in prison, although the sentences likely will be much lower.
Steve Utash, a 54-year-old tree trimmer from Macomb County, was severely beaten after he quickly got out of his pickup to check on the 10-year-old boy who had darted in front of his vehicle April 2.
Utash, who is white, spent several days in a coma and six weeks in hospitals and was released in May. His attackers are black. One of them, a 17-year-old, was charged with ethnic intimidation as part of the attack, although that count was dropped.
Latrez Cummings, 19, James Davis, 24, and Wonzey Saffold, 30, told a judge Thursday that they intended to hurt Utash.
Two others pleaded guilty to assault Monday and Wednesday. The boy who was struck by Utash's pickup wasn't seriously injured.
Presbyterian body: Marriage a union of 2
DETROIT -- The top legislative body of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) voted Thursday to redefine Christian marriage in the church constitution as the union of "two people" instead of only "a man and a woman."
The amendment requires approval from a majority of the 172 regional presbyteries, which will vote on the change over the next year. But in a separate vote that will take effect immediately, the Presbyterian General Assembly allowed ministers to preside at gay weddings in states where gay marriage is legal. Nineteen states and the District of Columbia recognize same-sex marriage.
In 2011, the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) had eliminated barriers to ordaining clergymen with same-sex partners, but did not recognize gay marriage.
Since the 2011 vote on gay ordination, 428 of the denomination's more than 10,000 churches have left for other more conservative denominations or have dissolved. The church now has about 1.8 million members. Still, some theological conservatives have remained within the denomination as they decide how to move forward. The conservative Presbyterian Lay Committee decried the votes in Detroit as an "abomination."
High river threatens flooding in 3 states
SIOUX CITY, Iowa -- Record Big Sioux River flooding prompted residents in three states to hurriedly prepare for the rising water Thursday, with people lining up for sandbags and moving museum artifacts and other items to higher ground.
The fast-moving Big Sioux has been swollen by days of thunderstorms and is expected to crest today more than a foot above the previous record level set in 1969, threatening homes and businesses in Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota.
-- COMPILED BY DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE STAFF FROM WIRE REPORTS
A Section on 06/20/2014