May 2nd
Today in1890, the territory of Oklahoma was created.
Today in1927,the U.S. Supreme Court, in Buck v. Bell,upheld 8-1 a Virginia law allowing the forced sterilization of peopleto promote the “health of the patient and the welfare of society.”
Today in 1970,student anti-war protesters at Ohio's Kent State University burned down the campus ROTC building. As a result, the National Guard took control of the campus –and two days later, four students were killed and nine more were injured.
Today in 1974,months after his resignation from officer, former Vice President Spiro T. Agnew was disbarred by the Maryland Court of Appeals, effectively preventing him from practicing law anywhere in the United States. Agnew was the second Vice President in United States history to resign(the other beingJohn C. Calhoun), and the only one to do so because of criminal charges. Nearly ten years after leaving office, Agnew paid the state of Maryland nearly $270,000 as a result of a civil suit that stemmed from the bribery allegations. Critics have cited Agnew as being one of the worst Vice Presidents in American history.
Today in1983, a7-earthquake injured nearly 500 in Coalinga, California
Today in 1992,Los Angeles began to recover from rioting that had erupted in the wake of the Rodney King-taped beating acquittals; about 2800 National Guard troops patrolled the city while 3200 others stood by.
Today in 2006,a jury suggested that 9/11 collaborator Zacarias Moussaoui should spend the rest of his life in prison. A French citizen who pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiring to kill citizens of the United States as part of the September 11 attacks, a judge later agreed to the sentence.
Today in 2008,Mildred Loving, the black woman whose challenge to Virginia’s ban on interracial marriage led to a landmark Supreme Court ruling striking down such laws across the United States,died in Milford, Virginia, at the age of 68.
Today in 2013,Rhode Islandbecame the tenth state in the United States to legalize gay marriage, signed by Governor Lincoln Chafee. Gay rights activists and supporters celebrated and the first weddings were scheduled for August first, once the law came into effect.
Today in2017,Michael Slager, a white former police officer whose killing of Walter Scott, an unarmed black man running from a traffic stop, was captured on cellphone video,pleaded guilty to federal civil rights charges in Charleston, South Carolina. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison the following December.
Today in 2018,coli outbreak linked to Romaine lettuce grown in Yuma, Arizona,reported the first fatality with 121 cases across 25 US states.