Singer R. Kelly faces bail hearing over sex trafficking allegations

U.S. R&B singer R. Kelly faces a bail hearing on Tuesday over federal charges that he ran a racketeering scheme trafficking women and girls for sex.

In indictments unsealed in Brooklyn, New York, and Chicago on Friday, the prosecutors said Kelly, 52, forcibly kept people under his control and then intimidated witnesses and bought their silence.

Kelly, already charged with sexual assault in Illinois, was taken into custody by New York City police detectives and federal agents on Thursday in Chicago.

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California lawmakers approve legislation for $21 billion wildfire fund

California lawmakers approved legislation on Thursday to create a $21 billion fund to help utilities in the state pay for claims arising from future wildfires sparked by their equipment, tackling a top issue for the state.

The approval came after power provider PG&E Corp filed for bankruptcy in anticipation of more than $30 billion in wildfire liabilities.

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House panel to hold hearing on treatment of migrant children

The House Oversight Committee has scheduled a hearing next week on the separation and treatment of immigrant children and has launched an investigation into reports of offensive Facebook posts by border patrol officers, the panel said on Tuesday.

Representative Elijah Cummings, the committee’s Democratic chairman, said the panel had invited Acting Secretary Kevin McAleenan from the Department of Homeland Security and Acting Commissioner Mark Morgan from U.S. Customs and Border Protection to testify on July 12.

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FedEx sues U.S. government over ‘impossible’ task of policing exports to China

U.S. parcel delivery firm FedEx Corp on Monday sued the U.S. government, saying it should not be held liable if it inadvertently shipped products that violated a Trump administration ban on exports to some Chinese companies.

The move came after FedEx reignited Chinese ire over its business practices when a package containing a Huawei phone sent to the United States was returned last week to its sender in Britain, in what FedEx said was an “operational error.” Fears that China would blacklist FedEx as a result sent its shares down 2.7 percent on Monday.

FedEx’s suit and delivery error come against a backdrop of increasing tension between the world’s two biggest economies. The United States and China have been engaged in a trade fight for nearly a year on issues such as tariffs, subsidies, technology, regulations and cyber security.

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