Florida gets closer to banning social media for kids under 16

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida is on the verge of passing one of the nation’s most restrictive bans on minors’ use of social media. The state Senate passed a bill Thursday that would keep children under the age of 16 off popular platforms regardless of parent approval. The measure now goes back to the state House, where it is the Republican speaker’s top priority. Critics have pointed to similar efforts in other states that have been blocked by courts. Supporters in Florida hope that if the bill becomes law, it would withstand legal challenges because it focuses on addictive features rather than the content on social media sites. But opponents say parents, not the government, should monitor children’s social media use.

New Hampshire man convicted of killing daughter whose body has not been found

MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — A New Hampshire man has been convicted of second-degree murder in the death of his 5-year-old daughter. Police believe Harmony Montgomery was killed nearly two years before she was reported missing in 2021. A jury returned its verdict Thursday after a two-week trial. Adam Montgomery’s attorneys previously acknowledged his guilt on two lesser charges but said he didn’t kill his daughter. They did not respond to requests for comment Thursday. Adam Montgomery’s estranged wife testified that the body was hidden in various places including a car trunk and a freezer before he disposed of it. The body has not been found..

Texas school legally punished Black student over hairstyle, judge says

ANAHUAC, Texas (AP) — A judge has ruled that a Black high school student’s monthslong punishment by his Texas school district for refusing to change his hairstyle does not violate a new state law prohibiting race-based hair discrimination. Darryl George hasn’t been in his regular classes at his Houston-area high school since Aug. 31 because his school district says he’s violating its policy limiting the length of boys’ hair. George wears his hair in tied and twisted locs on top of his head, and his attorney says his hairstyle is protected by the CROWN Act. State District Judge Chap Cain III on Thursday ruled in favor of the Barbers Hill school district, which argued its policy doesn’t violate the law.

More Alabama IVF providers pause treatment after court ruling

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Two more in vitro fertilization providers in Alabama have paused parts of their treatment after the state Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos are legally considered children. Alabama Fertility Services said in a statement Thursday that has “made the impossibly difficult decision to hold new IVF treatments due to the legal risk to our clinic and our embryologists.” The Center for Reproductive Medicine at Mobile Infirmary also decided to pause IVF treatment because of the ruling. The decisions come a day after the University of Alabama at Birmingham health system said in a statement that it was pausing in vitro fertilization treatments so it could evaluate whether its patients or doctors could face criminal charges or punitive damages for IVF treatments.