Storm In The Cloud: Why 1 Million U.S. Companies Went Dark Online

ACROSS AMERICA — Good morning! It’s Wednesday, Dec. 8. The workweek is nearly half over, so before you start making weekend plans, be sure to catch up on the headlines you may have missed:

• An Amazon Web Services outage affected nearly 1 million U.S. companies Tuesday.
• A Minneapolis man is accused of harassing the judge in the Kim Potter manslaughter trial.
• A California Republican is leaving Congress to join Donald Trump's new social media company.
• A proposed bill in Illinois would require the unvaccinated to pay for COVID-19 treatment out of pocket.

Amazon Web Services, a widely used cloud computing technology, encountered a major disruption Tuesday, wiping out service to more than 1 million small and midsize U.S. companies.

The outage primarily affected companies on the country’s East Coast.

Among the services reported outage-related issues were Disney’s streaming subscription service, Disney+, Netflix, Slack, Ticketmaster, stock trading app Robinhood, and Coinbase, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the United States, according to a report by CNBC.

The outage also brought Amazon delivery services to a standstill and affected Amazon services including Alexa and Ring. Samuel Caceres, an Amazon driver in Washington state, told CNBC on Tuesday that his delivery facility had been “at a standstill” since 8 a.m. Pacific time. » Amazon Web Services Outages: The Latest, via Across America

Oxford Officials Turn Down AG

The Oxford School District this week declined the Michigan attorney general's offer to lead an independent review of the events leading to the Nov. 30 shooting that killed four students. Attorney General Dana Nessel said she was "extremely disappointed” the school district declined her offer.

"I thought, 'What better agency to conduct a special review than the Michigan Department of Attorney General?'" Nessel said. "We hope that the school district cares as much about the safety of their students as they do shielding themselves from civil liability." » AG 'Extremely Disappointed' Oxford Schools Declined Probe Offer, via Rochester-Rochester Hills, Michigan, Patch

Harassment Of Kim Potter Trial Judge Reported

A Minneapolis man is accused of trying to intimidate the judge presiding over the manslaughter case involving former Brooklyn Center police officer Kim Potter, who is accused of killing 20-year-old Daunte Wright after she allegedly mistook her handgun for her Taser. Authorities said Cortez Rice, 32, was motivated after Hennepin County District Judge Regina Chu ruled that cameras would not be allowed inside the courtroom during Potter's trial. » Man Harassed Judge Overseeing Kim Potter Trial: Charge, via Southwest Minneapolis Patch

Leaving Congress For Trump

California Republican Rep. Devin Nunes, one of former President Donald Trump's most ardent loyalists in Congress, is leaving the House at the end of this year to join Trump's fledgling media company. A statement from the company released Monday said Nunes would serve as chief executive officer beginning in January 2022. The company is preparing to launch a social media platform intended to rival competitors, including Twitter. » CA's GOP Rep. Nunes Leaving Congress For Trump Social Media Firm, via San Francisco Patch

Meow-y Christmas

The Instagrammer known as "Satirical Mommy" brings joy and laughter to her thousands of followers, but recently, she wondered: Could a mom who can find anything on Amazon resolve her toddler vs. kitten dilemma through the retail giant? The answer from Amazon was a resounding "yes." » A 'Silent Night' And Meow-y Christmas For This Instagram Mom, via Across America Patch

More national headlines on Across America and other Patches:

• U.S. Plans Diplomatic Boycott Of Beijing Winter Olympics
• U.S. News Reveals Best U.S. Hospitals To Have A Baby
• Survivors Gather To Remember Those Lost At Pearl Harbor
• Emmett Till Investigation Closed By Feds; No New Charges
• Kyle Rittenhouse, Acquitted For Homicide, Said Visiting Kenosha 'Not Best Idea'

Around ‘The Patch’

High Cost For Unvaccinated: A new bill proposed by Illinois state Rep. Jonathan Carroll would require anyone who is eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine but who chooses not to get one to pay out of pocket if they are hospitalized with the disease, via Chicago Patch

Hoops Star Recovering: Family and friends of Corey Manigault, a high school basketball standout from Virginia, are raising money to help him recover from injuries received during a brutal attack last month in Cyprus, via Fairfax City Patch

More local news:

• Photos: Hawaii Sees Severe Flooding And Snow In 48 Hours, via Honolulu Patch
• Illinois Town Will Pay You To Move There, via Chicago Patch
• Long Island Target Of Violent LGBTQ+ Threats: 'Why Should We Live In Fear? via Sayville-Bayport, New York, Patch
• Texas' 1st Omicron Variant Case Identified In Houston Area, via Houston Patch
• Austin City Limits Music Festival Reveals 2022 Dates, via Austin, Texas, Patch
• Tina Sinatra To Kick Off New Jersey Unveiling Of Frank Sinatra Statue, via Hoboken, New Jersey, Patch
• Man Charged With Murder Over Killing Of Jacqueline Avant, via Beverly Hills Patch
• Central Queens Neighborhood Named Among NYC's Hottest For 2022, via Forest Hills, New York, Patch
• We Learned Bill Belichick's 3 Rules Last Night, via Foxborough Patch
• 2 California Beaches Ranked Among Best In The World, via Manhattan Beach Patch

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This Day In History

In 1980, British musician John Lennon — who rose to fame with the Beatles — was fatally shot by Mark David Chapman in New York City.

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