- U.S.Yahoo News
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.”
- U.S.Business Insider
An Alaska Airlines flight was forced to land when a passenger threatened to kill everyone on board
An Alaska Airlines flight was forced to turn around and make an emergency landing after a passenger on board became "extremely belligerent and physically aggressive" shortly after takeoff on Saturday. The man was subdued by the flight crew and fellow passengers, including a police officer who happened to be on board. An Alaska Airlines flight was forced to make an emergency landing on Saturday after a passenger became aggressive and threatened to kill all the other passengers on board.
- WorldBBC
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.
- HealthNBC News
Do children spread coronavirus? What doctors say about going back to school
But this doesn't mean classrooms can be exempt from social distancing and other safety precautions, particularly if schools intend to welcome kids back on site in less than two months. "It really shouldn't be a debate of getting kids back to school, but getting kids back to school safely," said Dr. Jennifer Lighter, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at NYU Langone Health in New York. Having kids physically present in schools in the fall as much as possible would be an "ideal situation," Lighter said, but schools will need to implement policies that allow students to maintain some distance indoors and avoid close contact for prolonged periods of time.
- WorldReuters
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.
- WorldThe Independent
Japan furious after dozens of US Marines stationed in country diagnosed with coronavirus in massive outbreak
Dozens of US Marines stationed at two military bases in Japan have been diagnosed with coronavirus in a massive outbreak that has caused fury among local officials. More than 60 of the specialist troops located on the southern island of Okinawa have become infected since 7 July, reports say. The two bases — Marine Corps Air Station Futenma and Camp Hansen — have now been placed into lockdown.
- WorldINSIDER
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.
- PoliticsAssociated Press
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.
- U.S.Military.com
Hundreds of Army and Air Force Recruits Have Tested Positive for COVID-19 Since March
Since the onset of the novel coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. Air Force and Army basic military training programs have seen hundreds of recruits test positive for COVID-19, with the majority of them showing no symptoms, top officials said Friday. Roughly 200 out of 8,700 Air Force recruits have tested positive for COVID-19 since March 15 at Basic Military Training at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas, according to Maj. Gen. Andrea Tullos, Air Education and Training Command's 2nd Air Force commander at Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi. "That's a 2% positive rate over approximately four months of training, and 60% of those positive [cases] have been asymptomatic," Tullos told reporters during a Pentagon briefing.
U.S.Yahoo News VideoCouple who threatened Black Lives Matter protesters with guns once destroyed children's beehives
St. Louis couple Mark and Patricia McCloskey drew national attention in June when they flashed guns at Black Lives Matter protesters walking down their street.
- U.S.The Independent
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.
- U.S.Business Insider
US Surgeon General Jerome Adams says the US can turn coronavirus around in '2 or 3 weeks if everyone does their part'
Surgeon General Jerome Adams says the US could turn around its novel coronavirus infections in two to three weeks if "everyone does their part." "Just as we've seen cases skyrocket, we can turn this thing around in two to three weeks if we can get a critical mass of people wearing face coverings, practicing at least 6 feet of social distancing, doing the things that we know are effective," Adams said. US Surgeon General Jerome Adams says the US could turn around its novel coronavirus infections in two to three weeks if "everyone does their part" by following official recommendations like social distancing and use of face coverings.
- U.S.NBC News
Fire ravages 249-year-old Spanish mission in Southern California
No injuries were reported, and fire officials were trying to determine what caused the fire. Founded in 1771 by Franciscan priest Junipero Serra, from Spain, the San Gabriel Mission is considered a historical landmark for many faithful in Southern California. But Serra's legacy remains a flashpoint for many Native Americans and Latinos who condemn the colonization and brutalization of Indigenous populations in the region.
- LifestyleArchitectural Digest
64 Stunning Kitchen Island Ideas
Bring on the prep space Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
- U.S.Reuters
L.A. and San Diego schools to resume online-only instruction in August
The Los Angeles and San Diego unified school districts announced plans on Monday to resume instruction in August with online teaching only, citing "skyrocketing" coronavirus infection rates in California during the past few weeks. Los Angeles and San Diego rank as the two largest public school districts in California, with about 706,000 students and 88,000 employees combined on more than 1,500 campuses overall. Los Angeles is the second-largest school district in the United States.
- U.S.CBS News
California shuts down bars, indoor dining as COVID-19 cases surge
California Governor Gavin Newsom on Monday ordered the closure of indoor businesses across the state, including restaurants, bars, wineries, movie theaters, zoos and museums as coronavirus cases continue to surge. Newsom's announcement comes as California reported 8,460 new cases of COVID-19, according to July 11 data from the state's health department. The state now has a total of 320,804 positive cases.
- U.S.USA TODAY
Online school? In-person? How parents are making their own fall 2020 decisions as COVID-19 squabbles continue
“To exercise an abundance of caution, I'd like to keep my kids home with me where they'll study online,” says Davis, a mother of three from Indian Land, South Carolina, one of countless states where COVID-19 cases have spiked in recent weeks. “Health is the issue, not just for my children, but also school workers," Davis says. Families across the nation are busy making their own calculations about whether to send children back to school.
- WorldAssociated Press
US rejects nearly all Chinese claims in South China Sea
The Trump administration escalated its actions against China on Monday by stepping squarely into one of the most sensitive regional issues dividing them and rejecting outright nearly all of Beijing's significant maritime claims in the South China Sea. The administration presented the decision as an attempt to curb China's increasing assertiveness in the region with a commitment to recognizing international law. It also comes as President Donald Trump has come under growing fire for his response to the COVID-19 pandemic, stepped up criticism of China ahead of the 2020 election and sought to paint his expected Democratic challenger, former Vice President Joe Biden, as weak on China.
- WorldThe Telegraph
German study finds no evidence coronavirus spreads in schools
Schools do not play a major role in spreading the coronavirus, according to the results of a German study released on Monday. The study, the largest carried out on schoolchildren and teachers in Germany, found traces of the virus in fewer than 1 per cent of teachers and children. Scientists from Dresden Technical University said they believe children may act as a “brake” on chains of infection.
- U.S.The Independent
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.
- U.S.BBC
Daniel Lewis Lee: US judge delays first federal execution in 17 years
His case was delayed after courts blocked the death sentence from being carried out. How US death penalty capital changed its mind US government death penalty move draws sharp criticism The Americans volunteering to watch executions "The public is not served by short-circuiting legitimate judicial process," Judge Chutkan, of the district court in Washington DC, said on Monday. Four other federal executions were delayed because of the ruling, which allows further legal challenges against the government's lethal injection protocols to take place.
- U.S.NBC News
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.
- HealthBusiness Insider
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.
- U.S.Reuters
International students denied U.S. entry under new visa rules - court documents
International students have already been denied entry to the United States under new Trump administration rules that bar them from the country if their schools hold all classes online amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to a court document filed on Sunday. The "friend of the court" brief, written by dozens of universities and colleges, was filed in support of a lawsuit brought by Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) seeking to block immigration rules issued on July 6 that blindsided academic institutions across the country. The brief said U.S. immigration authorities were "already preventing returning students from re-entering the country" and cited the case of a DePaul University student returning from South Korea who was denied at San Francisco International Airport.
- U.S.Baltimore Sun
Shooting of man by Baltimore police highlights 'total failure' of city's behavioral health response, agency says
After Baltimore police officers shot a man who pulled a firearm while undergoing a behavioral health crisis last week, the organization that oversees the city's behavioral health services called the current system “a total failure” that needs better integration of mental health professionals with the police. There is no indication that police dispatchers attempted to connect available behavioral health resources with officers on the scene before they shot Ricky Walker Jr. on July 1, said Adrienne Breidenstine, vice president of policy and communications for Behavioral Health System Baltimore. The city has two so-called crisis response teams that handle mental health issues, one inside the police department and another at the nonprofit Baltimore Crisis Response Inc. Breidenstine said the incident highlights how the city has created an unnecessarily complex system to deal with people in crisis.
