Nightly Brief

Your Wednesday night briefing from the staff of Courthouse News

Top CNS stories for today including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo securing the release of three American detainees from North Korea; Gina Haspel, President Donald Trump’s nominee to head the Central Intelligence Agency, telling lawmakers that if confirmed, she would disobey directives she found immoral; six candidates for California governor face off against each other as the race to helm the Golden State intensifies ahead of the June 5 primary; a new report by Moody’s says legalization of marijuana efforts could create “opportunity” for spirits companies; a French court rules the Cannes Film Festival can screen Terry Gilliam’s “The Man Who Killed Don Quixote,” despite a request from the film’s producer that the showing be blocked, and more.

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**National **

1.) Secretary of State Mike Pompeo secured the release of three American detainees from North Korea Wednesday, saying they “seem to be in good health.”

2.) Gina Haspel, President Donald Trump’s nominee to head the Central Intelligence Agency, told lawmakers Wednesday that if confirmed, she would not pledge a loyalty oath to Trump and would disobey directives she found immoral.

3.) President Donald Trump’s nominee to the Ninth Circuit apologized  on Wednesday for the “overheated, overbroad” rhetoric in several op-eds he wrote about campus diversity efforts and racial issues while he was an undergraduate student at Stanford.

**Regional **

4.) Alabama’s disgraced former governor Robert Bentley conspired with other state employees to defame a former finance official who was tasked with finding and delivering Bentley’s emails in response to a subpoena, the former official said in a lawsuit Tuesday.

**Science **

8.) At face value, the Baltic Sea seems insignificant to the research pursuits of scientists investigating global ocean topics. It’s comparatively shallow, has a narrow connection to the North Atlantic and a low salinity. But these factors obscure the Baltic Sea region’s value as a model for future changes in the ocean, according to a study published Tuesday in the journal Science Advances.

**Research & Polls **

9.) Dispelling concerns that America’s embrace of marijuana will hurt alcohol sales, a new report by Moody’s says legalization efforts could create “opportunity” for spirits companies here.

**International **

10.) A French court on Wednesday ruled the Cannes Film Festival can screen Terry Gilliam’s “The Man Who Killed Don Quixote,” despite a request from the film’s producer that the showing be blocked.