ICE to launch 'Citizens Academy' to teach civilians about 'targeted arrests'

A “Citizens Academy” planned by a branch of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which will include “scenario-based training and exercises,” is spreading alarm among civil liberties and immigration rights organizations — which question why the agency is devoting resources to providing civilians with “firearms familiarization” and instruction in “targeted arrests.” The program, set to begin in Chicago this fall as “a pilot for nationwide implementation,” will be run by ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations branch, which is responsible for detaining and deporting immigrants. A memo from Robert Guadian, the director of ICE ERO's Chicago field office, which was obtained by Yahoo News, describes a six-week program (four-hour sessions held once a week) during which “participants will gain insight into the many facets and responsibilities of ICE/ERO operations” through, among other things, “scenario-based training and exercises conducted in a safe and positive environment, including, but not limited to, defensive tactics, firearms familiarization, and targeted arrests.”

Michigan partygoers test positive for COVID-19 after July 4th lake bash; 43 cases tied to house party

DETROIT – Michigan health officials are calling for attendees of two Fourth of July parties to monitor themselves for symptoms after partygoers tested positive for COVID-19. Several attendees of a Fourth of July party at Torch Lake Sandbar in northern Michigan tested positive for COVID-19, while more than 40 cases in Saline, Michigan, are linked to a holiday house party. The state health department is asking anyone who attended the party at Torch Lake to monitor themselves and seek testing if symptoms develop and self-quarantine.

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  A crowded lake party with hundreds of people has been linked to an outbreak of coronavirus in Michigan

  INSIDER
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  Several people test positive for COVID after 4th of July party on Michigan lake

  TODAY

Judge seeks more details on Trump's clemency for Roger Stone

A federal judge on Monday demanded more information about President Donald Trump's decision to commute the prison sentence of longtime ally Roger Stone. U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson ordered that the parties provide her by Tuesday with a copy of the executive order that commuted Stone's sentence. She also asked for clarity about the scope of the clemency, including whether it covers just his prison sentence or also the two-year period of supervised release that was part of his sentence.

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  Judge in Roger Stone case wants more information about the scope of clemency

  USA TODAY
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  Harmeet Dhillon: Roger Stone was a victim of political prosecution, Trump right to commute his prison term

  FOX News Videos

It’s so hot at Death Valley National Park that cars are breaking down

Having your car break down is never pleasant, but it's probably much worse when it's 128 degrees outside. Some unlucky visitors at Death Valley National Park ran into car trouble Sunday when the extreme heat caused their engines to give out, the park said Monday. Yesterday's excessive heat caused at least three vehicles in the park to break down from overheated engines, which can quickly turn fatal if passengers are stranded in this climate without air conditioning,” Death Valley National Park officials said on Facebook.

'Not a Welcoming Name': Calls to Drop 'Plantation' Gain Steam Nationwide

When Dharyl Auguste was 3 years old, he and his parents packed all of their belongings and left their home in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, to immigrate to the United States. The family settled initially in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, before moving to nearby Sunrise. When it was time for Auguste to attend middle school, he and his parents relocated again, this time to Plantation, Florida.

Ousted U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman: Deal Barr Offered ‘Could Be Seen as a Quid Pro Quo’

Geoffrey Berman, formerly the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, was brought in for a closed-door session of the Judiciary Committee on July 9 to talk about the events surrounding Barr's public announcement on June 19 that Berman had “stepped down” from his post, even though the U.S. attorney made clear to Barr multiple times that he was not stepping down. The next day, Berman said he would leave the job when Barr agreed to let his deputy take over as acting U.S. attorney, as opposed to Craig Carpenito, the U.S. attorney for the district of New Jersey, whom Barr wanted to install in the position until the Trump administration's pick, Securities and Exchange Commission chief Jay Clayton, was confirmed by the U.S. Senate.

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  Former U.S. Attorney says William Barr pushed him to resign

  CBS News Videos
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  Attorney General William Barr was once widely respected. Thanks to Trump, not anymore.

  USA TODAY Opinion

Hamburg sex workers demand Germany's brothels reopen

Prostitutes demonstrated in Hamburg's red light district late on Saturday evening demanding that Germany's brothels be allowed to reopen after months of closure to curb the spread of coronavirus. With shops, restaurants and bars all open again in Germany, where prostitution is legal, sex workers say they are being singled out and deprived of their livelihoods despite not posing a greater health risk. "The oldest profession needs your help," read a notice held up by one woman in a brothel window in the Herbertstrasse, which was flooded with red light after being dark since March.

AOC suggests NYC crime spike linked to unemployment and parents shoplifting to feed children

New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has insisted that spikes in New York crime are not related to police budget cuts but people needing to pay rent and feed their children. In a virtual town hall meeting on Thursday, reported by The Hill, AOC was questioned about the significant rise in crime in the city. “Do we think this has to do with the fact that there's record unemployment in the United States right now?” she said.

Asian American members of Congress on sustaining allyship long after Floyd protests

Democratic Rep. Judy Chu, chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC), explained that for Asian American lawmakers, allyship on Capitol Hill means utilizing the current nationwide momentum to ensure they don't let “this moment pass without real change. Chu noted that she and the other members of the caucus swiftly came out in support of the Justice in Policing Act, legislation introduced by Rep. Karen Bass, chair of the Congressional Black Caucus.

64 Stunning Kitchen Island Ideas

Bring on the prep space Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest

40% of people infected with COVID-19 are asymptomatic, a new CDC estimate says

The "current best estimate" from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that approximately 40% of people infected with COVID-19 are asymptomatic. CNN reported that the estimate was up from the 30% reported in late May, as the CDC also estimated the chance of transmission from people with no symptoms is 75%. As several states in the South and West of the US recorded significant upticks in the cases and hospitalizations from COVID-19, top agencies including the CDC and the World Health Organization have released updated information on the transmission of the virus.

'I wouldn’t trust you to care for a house plant let alone my child': Pressley slams DeVos on reopening schools

Rep. Ayanna Pressley tore into Betsy DeVos after the secretary of education backed President Donald Trump's demand that schools reopen during the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed more than 135,000 people in the U.S. DeVos appeared on Sunday morning news shows to defend Trump's insistence that schools reopen even as the number of confirmed cases across the county continue to spike.

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  Coronavirus: OC officials to hold special meeting on school reopening plan

  KABC – Los Angeles
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  US debates school reopening, WHO warns 'no return to normal'

  Associated Press

‘Disheveled’ campsite spurs search for missing California woman in national forest

A 54-year-old California woman remains missing in the Sierra National Forest following the discovery of her “disheveled” campsite and crashed Saab, Madera County officials say. Sandra Johnsen Hughes was last in contact with her family June 26, the sheriff's office said in a Facebook post. “She said she was quarantining in the national forest,” said Ashley Macus, her niece, reported Sierra News Online.

Polish president wins 2nd term after bitter campaign

Polish President Andrzej Duda declared victory Monday in a runoff election in which he narrowly won a second five-year term, acknowledging the campaign he ran was often too harsh as he appealed for unity and forgiveness. The close race followed a bitter campaign between Duda and Warsaw Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski that was dominated by cultural issues. The government, state media and the influential Roman Catholic Church all mobilized in support of Duda and sought to stoke anti-Semitism, homophobia and xenophobia in order to shore up conservative support.

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  Conservative Polish President Wins Second Term After Campaign With Homophobic and Anti-Semitic Overtones

  Time Magazine
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  Duda: Polish president loyal to ruling populists

  AFP

Nelson Mandela's daughter Zindzi Mandela dies at 59

Zindzi Mandela, daughter of Nelson Mandela, has died, a spokesperson for the African National Congress said on Monday. She was 59.

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  Zindzi Mandela, daughter of Nelson Mandela, has died - ANC spokesman

  Reuters
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  Mandela's daughter Zindzi dies in South Africa

  AFP

New York mayor 'heartbroken' over shooting death of one-year-old

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio observed a moment of silence and declared himself "heartbroken" on Monday over the death of a 1-year-old boy who was shot in his stroller at a Brooklyn playground, part of a recent surge of gun violence in the city. Toddler Davell Gardner Jr. was killed and three men were wounded on Sunday after two gunmen opened fire at a family cookout in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, New York media reported, citing New York police. The three wounded men were expected to survive.

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  1-Year-Old Boy Shot To Death In Stroller: ‘When Does This Stop?’

  CBS New York - WCBS
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  Community Devastated Over 1-Year-Old Boy's Death

  CBS New York - WCBS

Man, 37, who died from coronavirus had dismissed pandemic ‘hype’ on Facebook

An Ohio man who died of Covid-19 had repeatedly posted on Facebook about his scepticism of the outbreak – and a tweet containing a montage of his posts is now going viral. Richard Rose, 37, died at home in Port Clinton on 4 July just days after he tested positive for Covid-19. The montage of his posts spreading on social media, which has been viewed 3.5 million times, shows that he tested positive and was quarantined on 1 July, when he was already viewing symptoms.

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  Clevelander South Beach Hotel Closing Due To Pandemic

  CBS Miami - WFOR
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  Are you drinking more than usual as a result of the pandemic?

  AccuWeather

French man accused of molesting hundreds of children dies in Indonesia

A French man accused of molesting hundreds of children in Indonesia has died in a suspected suicide, police say. Francois Camille Abello, 65, was found unresponsive in his cell at a detention centre in the capital, Jakarta, last Thursday, said spokesman Yusri Yunus. Mr Abello was pronounced dead on Sunday night after three days of treatment.

New Zealand mosque shooter dismisses lawyers to represent himself at sentencing

The gunman behind New Zealand's Christchurch mosque shootings sacked his lawyers on Monday and opted to represent himself, raising fears he would use a sentencing hearing next month to promote his white-supremacist views. Australian national Brenton Tarrant will be sentenced on August 24 on 51 murder convictions, 40 of attempted murder and one of terrorism arising from last year's massacre, the worst mass shooting in New Zealand's modern history. At a pre-sentencing hearing on Monday, High Court judge Cameron Mander allowed Tarrant's lawyers, Shane Tait and Jonathan Hudson, to withdraw from proceedings at the request of their client.

South Africa's 9 million smokers were faced with cold turkey when the government banned cigarette sales in March as a coronavirus measure. Now Big Tobacco is fighting back.

earlier in July. South Africa's government had also banned the sale of alcohol but has since eased that restriction, which according to an AP report, has led to an increase in "drunken brawls and traffic accidents, putting added strain on hospitals as they deal with the virus." Reuters FITA is also arguing that by banning the legal sale of cigarettes, the South African government is encouraging a black market trade, and putting thousands of jobs at risk.

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  Coronavirus: South Africans divided over second alcohol ban

  BBC
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  South Africa alcohol ban reimposed as coronavirus cases surge

  PA Media: World News

Coronavirus immunity can start to fade away within weeks, according to a new study which puts a 'nail in the coffin' in the idea of herd immunity

Jacques Feeney/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images Coronavirus immunity starts to fade away just weeks after people show symptoms, a new study by UK scientists showed. King's College London research found that the presence of antibodies peaked three weeks after symptoms appeared, before fading away. In some cases, the antibodies were undetectable three months afterward.

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  Coronavirus: Immunity to Covid-19 can vanish in months, study suggests

  The Independent
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  Study Finds Coronavirus Immunity May Only Last a Few Months

  Newsy

Iranian officials urged to unite after nuclear plant blast

Iran's supreme leader has addressed the country's parliament amid growing divisions and unanswered questions over the explosion at the Natanz nuclear facility earlier this month.

Iran blames bad communication, alignment for jet shootdown

A misaligned missile battery, miscommunication between troops and their commanders and a decision to fire without authorization all led to Iran's Revolutionary Guard shooting down a Ukrainian jetliner in January, killing all 176 people on board, a new report says. The report released late Saturday by Iran's Civil Aviation Organization comes months after the Jan. 8 crash near Tehran. Authorities had initially denied responsibility, only changing course days later after Western nations presented extensive evidence that Iran had shot down the plane.

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  Iran agency says chain of errors caused Ukrainian plane crash

  Reuters
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  Iran says misaligned radar led to Ukrainian jet downing

  AFP

Woman races across 4 lanes of traffic, dives into canal to save child, Oregon cops say

An Oregon woman raced across a highway to save a toddler from drowning in a canal, the Redmond Police Department said. The woman, later identified as Bailey Vardanega, pulled her car over, ran across four lanes of traffic to jump into the canal and saved the child from drowning, KTVZ/CNN reported. “My legs were faster than I've ever run, and I swam more aggressive than I ever swam,” Vardanega told KTVZ.

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  2 Assaults On Women Along High Line Canal Under Investigation

  CBS Denver - KCNC TV
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  Aurora Police Are Investigating Two Separate Attacks Along The High Line Canal

  CBS Denver - KCNC TV

Robert Mueller breaks his silence and condemns Trump for commuting Roger Stone's sentence

The former special counsel Robert Mueller made a rare move on Saturday to publicly defend his two-year investigation into allegations of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia in the 2016 election – and to castigate Donald Trump's decision to commute Roger Stone's prison sentence. Mueller wrote an opinion article for the Washington Post [paywall] published under the headline “Roger Stone remains a convicted felon, and rightly so”. “The work of the special counsel's office – its report, indictments, guilty pleas and convictions – should speak for itself,” he wrote.

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  Graham to Call Robert Mueller to Testify after Op-Ed Defending Roger Stone Prosecution

  National Review
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  Robert Ray breaks down Trump’s decision to commute Stone’s prison sentence

  FOX News Videos