At least two with Charleston connections currently in the area around a catastrophic earthquake in Nepal are confirmed to be OK. The death toll from the quake, which was centered just outside Katmandu, is nearing 4,000. Source: P&C, The State, NYT
The U.S. Supreme Court will hold an extended oral arguments on Tuesday for same-sex marriage cases that hinge on the same issues as a pending appeal by State Attorney General Alan Wilson that will seek to uphold the state’s constitutional ban on gay marriage. Wilson also filed a friend of the court brief to allow states to decide whether to issue marriage licenses. Source: The State
It was announced late Friday that the state Department of Health and Environmental Control chose attorney Catherine Heigel, who previously served as president of Duke Energy’s S.C. operations and currently sits on the board of Gov. Nikki Haley’s charity, to be the next director of the regulatory agency. Source: Columbia Biz Report, AP, P&C
City Paper Contributor Barton Swaim, who served on Mark Sanford’s communications staff while he was governor, is publishing a new book on his time working for the luv guv. “The Speechwriter: A Brief Education in Politics,” comes out in July. Source: The State
Newly-confirmed U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch will inherit several civil rights investigations stemming from incidents in North Charleston and other cities looking into whether police used excessive force against minorities. Source: Reuters
A new lawsuit filed, the second since the Walter Scott shooting, alleges that local police used excessive force during a 2013 incident in North Charleston and West Ashley and the alleged misconduct went ignored. Source: P&C
Meanwhile prosecutors are recommending jail-time for two officers involved in the 2013 Tasing incident involving a mentally deisabled woman in Marion, South Carolina. Source: AP
Oregon-based brewer Deschutes its reportedly considering several cities in North and South Carolina, including Charleston, for a new East Coast brewery. Source: Greenville News
Public and company officials will be on hand today for the groundbreaking on the new $101 million, eight story Bennett Hospitality hotel planned for King Street alongside Marion Square. Source: Live 5