Friday morning news: March 30, 2018

Sacramento protest and funeral » Protests continued in Sacramento, California Thursday after the funeral of Stephon Clark.

He was an unarmed black man— shot at 20 times and killed in his grandmother’s backyard by police officers responding to a vandalism call.

The family— and protesters— are demanding criminal charges against the officers— who are on paid administrative leave.

Sacramento Police Chief Daniel Hahn says he hopes the community can heal as officials try to get to the bottom of what happened.

HAHN: If we don’t get better as a community, as a police department as a result of this, then all it does is stay a tragedy. 

California’s Department of Justice is spearheading an investigation into the shooting.

North Korea/South Korea summit » South Korea has announced President Moon Jae-in will meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on April 27th. 

Discussions for the summit will key on denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula as the North has recently pledged to do.

But Peter Brookes— former deputy assistant secretary of defense— says the North’s price may be too high.

BROOKES: I think they’re going to ask for US forces to leave. They may ask for us to denuclearize to a certain extent, to remove our nuclear umbrella from South Korea and some of those have been in play in the past and they’ve never been acceptable to us.

It would be only the third meeting between leaders of the North and South since the end of the Korean war in 65 years ago and the first since 2007.

President Trump is also tentatively scheduled to meet with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un in May.

Russia to boot US diplomats » Moscow is retaliating after the U-S and other nations expelled Russian diplomats over the poisoning of a former Russian spy in Britain. WORLD Radio’s Sarah Schweinsberg has details. 

It’s an eye-for-an-eye response after two dozen countries kicked out more than 1-hundred-50 Russian diplomats earlier this week.

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says his country will expel the same number of diplomats. That means 60 U.S. diplomats will have to leave.

Moscow is also ordering the U-S to close its consulate in Saint Petersburg in response to the U.S. ordering the Russian consulate in Seattle to close.

Russia denies any involvement in the poisoning of its former spy in Britain earlier this month and has called the expulsion of its diplomats “a swindle.”

Reporting for WORLD Radio— I’m Sarah Schweinsberg.

Tillis visits Brunson » Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina says he met with imprisoned Pastor Andrew Brunson in a Turkish prison on Monday.

Turkey accused Brunson of supporting the failed 2016 coup and has detained the North Carolina native for nearly 18 months. He’d ministered in Turkey for 20 years before his arrest. He now faces 35 years in prison. 

Tillis said Brunson is the victim of false accusations and vowed not to let the U.S. government forget about his predicament. He said Brunson’s faith remains strong but his health has deteriorated as he has lost 50 pounds in prison.

Malala back in Pakistan » Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai returned to her home country of Pakistan on Thursday. It was the 20-year-old’s first time back since 2012, when the Taliban shot her in the head for advocating for girls education.

Yousafzai gave a brief televised speech and vowed to continue the campaign to ensure girls receive education. 

She noted that Pakistan once had a female prime minister— Benazir Bhutto— who was assassinated in 2007.

YOUSAFZAI: Girls can be politicians as well, girls can be leaders as well and I think it’s these examples that we give them that will inspire them.

Yousafzai established a charity that has donated 6-million dollars worth of uniforms and books to school children.

Final Four preview » College basketball’s Final Four showdowns are set for tomorrow night. In the first matchup— 11th seed underdog Loyola takes on third seed Michigan. 

Loyola Coach Porter Moser says his team won’t get caught looking past Michigan.

MOSER: These guys have done an amazing job of just laser-like focus on what’s right in front of them.

Later tomorrow night— a more even contest as number one seeds Villanova and Kansas square off. 

The winners go on to play in the championship game Monday night.

I’m Jim Henry. Straight ahead: Culture Friday with John Stonestreet. And Kristen Flavin takes us to a unique market in Philadelphia. This is The World and Everything in It.

(AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) Protestors block an intersection in downtown Sacramento, Calif., after the funeral for police shooting victim Stephon Clark Thursday, March 29, 2018. Clark, who was unarmed, was shot and killed by Sacramento Police officers, Sunday, March 18, 2018.

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