This week in news

From @EricTrump on Twitter
Donald Trump, Republican candidate for president, holds up a picture of a “loyalty pledge” he signed in a tweet from his son, Eric.

Alex Hanson
September 3, 2015

Here is a recap of this weeks biggest news stories you may have missed.

Officers shot and killed

Police nationwide were on high alert this week after the shooting deaths of two police officers earlier in the week.

First, a suburban Houston officer was ambushed while filling his patrol car up with gas last Friday. Deputy Darren Goforth was shot 15 times, the Harris County District Attorney said Monday. A suspect, Shannon J. Miles, was arrested and appeared in court earlier this week.

A massive manhunt is also still underway in Illinois after a Fox Lake officer was shot and killed. The Chicago suburb closed schools and was on edge as three suspects were sought in the shooting. Lt. Joe Gliniewicz, the officer shot and killed, was a 30-year veteran of the police force.

Baltimore

A judge ruled Wednesday that the six officers charged in the police custody death of Freddie Gray would all face separate trials. Dozen of protesters gathered and marched through Baltimore as the hearing was underway.

The death of Gray caused widespread violence in the city of Baltimore earlier this year. Some businesses were burned, stores were looted and cars were set on fire while the chaos was caught and broadcast on television.

Migrant crisis

Thousands of migrants poured into a Hungary train station attempting to flee their home countries looking for a better life in Europe. Videos showed police telling migrants they could not get off trains at a stop in Budapest, Hungary, and showed them wrestling with police to get away from the station.

Online, images of a drowned 3-year-old boy from Syria, showing him laying face down on a coast and later an officer carrying him away, went viral. 

Tallest mountain renamed

Mount McKinley in Alaska will be renamed Denali, the White House announced this past weekend, a day before President Obama traveled to the state to talk about climate change and meet with residents.

For 40 years, the State of Alaska and the federal government have been in a dispute over the name, with Alaska officially calling it Denali, but the federal government refused to change the name.

Trump signs loyalty pledge

Republican front-runner Donald Trump has officially signed a pledge from the Republican National Committee that tays he will ultimately support the Republican nominee for president and will also pledge not to run as a third-party candidate.

“I will be totally pledging my allegiance to the Republican Party and for the conservative principles for which it stands,” Trump said at press conference at Trump Tower in New York.

Trump’s son, Eric, tweeted a photo the of the billionaire businessman holding up the pledge.

Outsiders dominate polls

Candidates for president running as “outsiders” are dominating polls, a new Iowa Poll from the Des Moines Register and Bloomberg Politics showed.

Trump was polling at 23 percent support, while Ben Carson had support from 18 percent. On the Democratic side, Bernie Sanders is within 7 points of front-runner Hillary Clinton with his support currently polling at 30 percent.

Deflategate ruling overturned

A judge ruled Thursday that the four-game suspension of NFL quarterback Tom Brady will be vacated, following months of ongoing battles related to an AFC championship game last year where Patriot footballs were underinflated.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said Thursday that the NFL would appeal the ruling.

Iowa State to set attendance record, Iowa open will be lowest in years

The first ISU football game against the University of Northern Iowa Panthers will be in front of a sold-out crowd, Iowa State’s athletic direction Jamie Pollard said in tweet Wednesday.

In Iowa City, the Hawkeyes are expecting a under-60,000 crowd for the first time in 12 years, the Register reported. Rick Klatt, Iowa’s associate athletic director for external affairs, told the Register that 57,600 tickets have been sold.

Bail for Iowa suspects in Boston denied

Bail for two Iowan’s being held in Boston was denied at a hearing Tuesday, forcing the two to remain in Massachusetts.

Kevin Norton, 18, of Ames and James Stumbo, 27, of Boone were arrested Aug. 20 after security at a convention center reported social media threats to authorities. Posts from the two showed guns lying on the back of their car, and police found a 12-gauge shotgun, an AR-15 rifle and nearly 300 rounds of ammunition during a search.

Ames named healthiest city in the U.S.

A report from 24/7 Wall St. said Ames was the healthiest city in the United States by their measure, with only 6.4% of the city being in poor health. By comparison, the study said 30% of the adult population of Madera, Calif., were in poor health.

The measures were created based on health outcomes such as length and quality of life.