Midday Roundup: Violent offender charged in grisly family murder

In custody. The man accused of murdering six family members execution-style in a Houston suburb on Wednesday wanted to find his ex-wife, the sister of one of his victims. Ronald Lee Haskell is charged with killing Katie Stay, 33, her husband Steven, 39, and four of their five children, ages 4-14. Fifteen-year-old Cassidy Stay survived the attack by playing dead, family members said. After Haskell left the home, she called 911 and alerted authorities that he was headed to her grandparents’ house. Police cut him off and arrested him after a three-hour standoff. He faces capital murder charges.

Disappointing results. HIV has resurfaced in the body of a child who was thought to have been cured. The 4-year-old girl received aggressive HIV treatment in her first 18 months of life, then doctors lost contact with her for 10 months. After finding her again last year, they were amazed her body still showed no signs of HIV even though she hadn’t been taking the medications. But last week, she tested positive for HIV, causing scientists to rethink their hopes for a long-lasting cure and to reconsider a larger study of the effects of stopping treatment in children with similar cases.

Just married, sort of. Conflicting court rulings in Colorado have created a confusing legal state as rogue county clerks issue same-sex marriage licenses despite state law. The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found Utah’s gay marriage ban unconstitutional two weeks ago, but stayed the ruling pending U.S. Supreme Court review. In response to that decision, a state judge ruled Colorado’s legal definition of marriage (between one man and one woman) unconstitutional, but also stayed his ruling. But a judge in Boulder County ruled Thursday that the clerk there could continue issuing marriage licenses to gay couples. Shortly after that ruling, clerks in Denver and Pueblo opened their doors to same-sex couples. The result? Hundreds of couples have wed in a state that does not recognize their marriages as legitimate.

Immigration allowance. Congressional Republicans are declining President Barack Obama’s request for $3.7 billion dollars to deal with the surge of child immigrants overwhelming the southern border. Congress instead plans to dole out additional immigration funding a piece at a time through normal spending bills. The extra funds could come at a cost. Republicans want to see speedier child deportations as a tradeoff for the extra appropriations, Businessweek reported.

Chilling out. Remember the “polar vortex” that kept creeping down from Canada last winter, freezing much of the country nearly to death? Meteorologists predict it will make an off-season comeback next week. Much of the Midwest could get temperatures in the mid-70s—a welcome change in mid-July.