U.S.Yahoo News3 takeaways from the first day of Derek Chauvin’s defense in the killing of George Floyd
Lawyers for former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin began their defense Tuesday by calling an expert witness who testified that the force used on George Floyd was justified. After the prosecution rested its case earlier in the day, Chauvin's attorney Eric Nelson called six witnesses, including a now retired Minneapolis police officer who arrested Floyd in 2019. Throughout the first 12 days of the trial, Nelson has attempted to show, through his line of questioning and opening statement, that Floyd was under the influence of narcotics during his arrest on May 25, 2020, and was combative, resisting police.
WorldBBCUS says troops to leave Afghanistan by 11 September
US President Joe Biden is set to announce that American troops will leave Afghanistan by 11 September, officials have told US media. The US would miss a May deadline for a pull-out agreed with the Taliban by the Trump administration last year. The new deadline would coincide with the 20th anniversary of the terror attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in the US in 2001.
U.S.Associated PressA bitter custody battle and 3 young lives lost in California
Erik Denton was supposed to see his three young children last Sunday, the one day every other week that he was allowed to be with them. Three-year-old Joanna, her 2-year-old brother, Terry, and 6-month-old sister, Sierra, had been staying with their mother — Denton's ex-girlfriend — in Los Angeles. Fearful for their safety, their father had petitioned the court for custody March 1, alleging their mother, Liliana Carrillo, was delusional and had taken the kids and refused to tell him where they were.
U.S.Raleigh News and ObserverNC town to appeal after judge threatens officials with jail — again — over seized cash.
The legal fight over the police seizure of $17,000 in Mooresville took on a Whac-A-Mole quality this week with a judge again holding the town in contempt only to see town officials file another appeal to stop her. On Monday — and for the second time this year — Iredell County District Judge Christine Underwood threatened town leaders and police with jail time for not returning Jermaine Sanders' money. The judge gave officials seven days to comply with her signed order or she would start putting people behind bars.
WorldArchitectural DigestThe World’s 9 Most Expensive Home Listings Currently on the Market
These fantastical houses range from a 64,000-acre Texas ranch to an oceanside estate in the south of France Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
PoliticsReutersBiden administration proceeding with $23 billion weapon sales to UAE
U.S. President Joe Biden's administration has told Congress it is proceeding with more than $23 billion in weapons sales to the United Arab Emirates, including advanced F-35 aircraft, armed drones and other equipment, congressional aides said on Tuesday. A State Department spokesperson said the administration would move forward with the proposed sales to the UAE, "even as we continue reviewing details and consulting with Emirati officials" related to the use of the weapons. The Democratic president's administration had paused the deals agreed to by former Republican President Donald Trump in order to review them.
WorldAssociated PressTurkey to host Afghan peace talks later this month
The United Nations, Turkey and Qatar announced Tuesday that a high-level conference between Afghanistan's warring sides will take place in Istanbul later this month. The meeting is aimed at accelerating peace negotiations and achieving a political settlement to decades of conflict. The three co-conveners said they are “committed to supporting a sovereign, independent and unified Afghanistan.”
U.S.TheGrioCity manager fired after calling for ‘due process’ in police shooting of Daunte Wright
In an emergency meeting Monday, Brooklyn Center Mayor Mike Elliott was given authority over the city's police department. Curt Boganey, city manager of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, has been fired in the wake of the police shooting death of Daunte Wright. At an emergency meeting Monday afternoon, the Brooklyn Center City Council voted 3-2 to give authority over the police department to Mayor Mike Elliott.
WorldThe TelegraphGovernment defeated by Lords over bid for prosecution limit on soldiers for war crimes
The Government has been defeated in the House of Lords over a bid for a prosecution limit on soldiers for war crimes. The Overseas Operations Service Personnel and Veterans) Bill, which has already cleared the Commons, seeks to limit false and historical allegations arising from deployments by introducing a statutory presumption against prosecution, which would make it exceptional for personnel to be prosecuted five years or more after an incident. However the Lords backed by 333 votes to 228, moved to ensure the most serious of offences are not covered by legislation aimed at protecting service personnel from vexatious battlefield claims.
U.S.Associated PressEx-officer appeals 20-year sentence for killing Black man
A white former police officer serving 20 years in prison for killing an unarmed Black man in South Carolina who ran from a traffic stop said his lawyer never told him about a plea offer from prosecutors that could have cut years off his sentence. Former North Charleston police officer Michael Slager is requesting a new sentence in federal court this week, saying he would have taken the deal and that his lawyer was grossly incompetent for not telling him about it. Prosecutors said Savage's mistake didn't rise above the very high bar of tossing out Slager's sentence and added that the attorney's defense was excellent in almost every other way.
PoliticsKansas City StarDisgraced MO Rep. Rick Roeber calls it quits. Never forget what happened to his kids
Disgraced Missouri state Rep. Rick Roeber announced his resignation Tuesday afternoon, just steps ahead of potential ouster proceedings in the House chamber. Roeber, of Lee's Summit, had been under investigation by the House Ethics Committee for alleged sexual assault of his now-adult child Anastasia, and physical abuse of Samson Roeber, a sibling. Gabrielle Galeano, a sister, said she was aware of Roeber's behavior at the time.
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Brooklyn Center, Minn., police release footage of Daunte Wright shooting, chief says he believes officer mistakenly grabbed gun instead of Taser
During a press conference on Monday, Brooklyn Center, Minn. released bodycam video of the police shooting of Daunte Wright. Police Chief Tim Gannon said he believes the officer who shot Wright intended to use her Taser, but mistakenly grabbed her firearm.
WorldAssociated PressPentagon chief on inaugural tour of Europe to shore up ties
Nearly a year after President Donald Trump ordered thousands of troops to leave Germany, capping a series of setbacks for U.S. relations with major allies, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin began an inaugural tour of Europe to shore up partnerships that are a cornerstone of the post-World War II order. Austin arrived in Berlin on Monday against the backdrop of a newly emerging crisis with Iran, which on Monday blamed Israel for a recent attack on its underground Natanz nuclear facility. Israel has not confirmed or denied involvement, but the attack nonetheless imperils ongoing talks in Europe over Tehran's tattered nuclear deal.
ScienceReutersListen to the music of a spider's web. Tell me what do you hear?
From communication to construction, spiderwebs may offer an orchestra of information, says Markus Buehler, engineering professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, who has been using artificial intelligence to study them. "We have recorded these vibrations from spiders and used artificial intelligence to learn these vibrational patterns and associate them with certain actions, basically learning the spider's language." Buehler and his team of researchers created 3D models of spiderwebs when the arachnids were doing different things - such as construction, repair, hunting and feeding.
WorldBBCTaiwan: 'Record number' of China jets enter air zone
Taiwan has said a record number of Chinese military jets flew into its air defence zone on Monday. The defence ministry said 25 aircraft including fighters and nuclear-capable bombers entered its so-called air defence identification zone (ADIZ) on Monday. The incursion is the largest in a year and comes as the US warns against an "increasingly aggressive China".
U.S.USA TODAYA grieving daughter dropped her toy. A president gave it back.
WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden and congressional leaders paid tribute Tuesday to U.S. Capitol Police Officer William "Billy" Evans during a solemn ceremony in the Capitol Rotunda. Evans, an 18-year member of the force who served on the agency's First Responders Unit, died during an attack at the Capitol earlier this month. His body is lying in honor in the Rotunda, an unusual distinction for a private citizen.
PoliticsAssociated PressIRS chief expects new child payments to start this summer
It's a strain, but the head of the IRS said Tuesday he expects to meet the July 1 deadline in the new pandemic relief law for starting a groundbreaking tax program aimed at reducing child poverty. In testimony at a Senate hearing, IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig said it will cost nearly $400 million and require the hiring of 300 to 500 people to get the new monthly payment system and electronic portal in place for the child tax credit. “We have to create a new structure,” Rettig said, adding that the tax-collecting IRS is “not historically” a benefits agency.
U.S.INSIDERThe Kenosha police officer who shot Jacob Blake in the back has returned to active duty without being disciplined or charged
Rusten Sheskey, the Wisconsin police officer who shot Jacob Blake, returned from administrative leave on March 31. Blake was shot seven times in the back, and Blake's father said his son was paralyzed from the waist down after the incident. Officer Rusten Sheskey, the Kenosha, Wisconsin, police officer who shot 29-year-old Jacob Blake in the back in August 2020 will not be charged or disciplined, the police department said on Tuesday.
WorldBBCIndia coronavirus: Can its vaccine producers meet demand?
With India attempting to ramp up vaccinations as Covid infections rise, the authorities have said they will fast track emergency approval for foreign-made vaccines. The Russian-developed Sputnik V has been given approval, as India's main domestic vaccine maker struggles to meet demand at home and globally. Can India meet its domestic needs?
TechnologyCBS NewsSoftware fix planned for Mars helicopter
The long-awaited maiden flight of an experimental $80 million mini helicopter carried to Mars by the Perseverance rover is on hold while engineers test software to resolve a glitch that cropped up Friday during a pre-flight test, NASA announced Monday. If all goes well, the team hopes to determine a new flight date next week. Engineers initially expected to clear the Ingenuity helicopter for launch Sunday on a 30-second up-and-down flight to verify the 4-pound drone can, in fact, autonomously lift off, hover and land in the ultra-thin atmosphere of Mars.
PoliticsUSA TODAYFact check: False claim that President Joe Biden's approval rating lowest in American history
The claim: President Joe Biden's approval rating is at 11%, the lowest of any president in American history President Joe Biden already has tangled with members of both parties over the U.S. response to the COVID-19 pandemic, immigration and infrastructure since his inauguration less than three months ago. But his approval rating is not at an historic low, as a viral social media post suggests. The post, originally from a Twitter account on March 29, attributes Biden's supposed 11% approval rating to a Gallup poll, as reported by the Daily Caller.
U.S.INSIDERMinnesota mayor says police officer who fatally shot Daunte Wright should be fired and face 'full accountability'
Daunte Wright, 20, was fatally shot by a police officer in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, on Sunday. Brooklyn Center Mayor Mike Elliott says the officer who shot Wright should be fired. Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, Mayor Mike Elliott says the police officer who fatally shot 20-year-old Daunte Wright on Sunday should be fired and face "full accountability" in the shooting.
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Fauci: Breakthrough infections after vaccinations 'inevitable'
It is inevitable that some people who have been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus will still get a "breakthrough" infection because no vaccine is 100 percent effective, Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Monday.
U.S.Business InsiderMatt Gaetz's indicted associate Joel Greenberg has been cooperating against him since last year, report says
Joel Greenberg has been cooperating against Rep. Matt Gaetz since last year, NYT reported. Greenberg reportedly told investigators that he and Gaetz had interactions with women who were given cash or gifts in exchange for sex. Gaetz has been embroiled in a political firestorm since The Times reported that he was being investigated over whether he broke sex trafficking laws.
WorldThe IndependentBiden tells Putin to de-escalate troop build-up on Ukraine border and invites him to summit
Joe Biden called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to deescalate tensions at the Ukraine-Crimea border, where he has been amassing troops since March. According to White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, there are more Russian troops on the border of Ukraine than there were ahead of Russia's invasion and eventual annexation of Crimea in 2014. Mr Biden and Mr Putin spoke on the phone on Tuesday about a "number of regional and global issues" according to a White House synopsis of the call.
“There’s no ‘both sides of the debate’ when it comes to active voter suppression.”
“Companies that do this ooze contempt for their own customers and employees who are not in the leftmost quarter of opinion.”
“The truth is that Fortune 500 companies were never taking moral stances from the goodness of their corporate hearts.”
“The truth is, the companies hold the cards…If companies stick to their guns, Georgia is likely to back down as well.”
“When a company folds to the unfounded outrage of a few misinformed nuts, they are forever at the mob’s beck-and-call.”