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Here’s your daily roundup of all the latest local and national news. (Like our coverage? Please consider making a recurring contribution to the Mercury to keep it comin’!)

In local news:

• Last year, a Supreme Court decision put an end to Oregon’s archaic use of non-unanimous jury felony convictions. But will folks convicted by split juries before then—whom new data shows are disproportionately Black—get to have their cases reconsidered? That’s still an open question.

• Oregon’s vaccine rollout has been far from equitable thus far. For example, the Latinx population currently accounts for 4 percent of total persons vaccinated in the state, while they make up 13 percent of the population and about 34 percent of all COVID cases statewide. But some programs in Portland are attempting to fix that. Read more about Portland’s patchwork system to vaccinate communities of color here.

• A member of local law enforcement leaked damaging allegations about Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty last week—and they turned out to be false. Get more insight into how it all went down in this great story from Willamette Week reporter Tess Riski.

• Portland City Council is delaying a vote to expand where homeless shelters can be built in Portland, after receiving pushback from East Portland residents. The residents’ complaint is that the new policy would disproportionately locate new shelters in East Portland, rather than in other, more affluent parts of the city.

In national news:

• The House approved President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus bill today, meaning we’ll actually be getting those $1,400 checks (assuming you make under the income threshold). Jobless benefits will also be extended. That’s certainly not enough, but it is something, right?

• As the vaccine supply ramps up, some low-population states are finding themselves with all the doses they need. In fact, in Alaska, all residents 16 and older are now eligible for the shot. As I’ve always famously said, “I am an Alaska resident, and I’m here for my vaccine!”

• A Des Moines Register reporter was arrested by police last summer while covering a protest shortly following the police killing of George Floyd. She was charged with two misdemeanors for the crime of doing her job—but the reporter, Andrea Sahouri, was acquitted on all counts in court today.

• The US Senate voted to confirm Merrick Garland—yes, the same Merrick Garland who was snubbed for the Supreme Court by Republican senators—to serve as attorney general in Biden’s administration. It was a 70-30 vote.

And finally, just for fun:

• If you were a kid during the 1990s, it’s going to be hard for you not to enjoy Death of Nintendo, a coming-of-age tale set in early 1990s Manila, the capital city of the Philippines. And you can stream it now as part of the Portland International Film Festival.

• Okay……. you’ve got my attention:

Blair Stenvick is a former news reporter and culture writer for the Portland Mercury.