U.S.Associated PressProsecutors defend newer charges against Ghislaine Maxwell
Prosecutors hope to preserve a July trial date for Ghislaine Maxwell by defending a late-hour expansion of charges against her, saying they developed when a woman spoke after Maxwell's arrest about her abuse at the hands of Jeffrey Epstein in the early 2000s. The rewritten indictment lodged against the 59-year-old British socialite on March 29 added sex trafficking charges to allegations that Maxwell recruited three teenage girls from 1994 to 1997 for then-boyfriend Jeffrey Epstein to sexually abuse. Two days after the superseding indictment was returned in Manhattan federal court, defense attorney Bobbi Sternheim called it “shocking, unfair, and an abuse of power," saying the charges were based on evidence prosecutors had in their possession for years.
U.S.ReutersArmed man fires shots in Hawaii hotel, barricades himself inside room - report
A hotel in Honolulu, Hawaii was placed on lockdown after an armed man fired shots through the door of a guest room and barricaded himself inside, but there were no reports of any injuries, Hawaii News Now reported https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2021/04/11/police-surround-kahala-hotel-following-reports-armed-man-barricading-himself-room Saturday. Guests and staff at the Kahala Resort & Hotel were sheltering in place, and guests in rooms near the incident had been evacuated, the news site added. Nobody is injured.
PoliticsThe Week2 different viewpoints on why Biden's Supreme Court commission may be a dud
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) led the charge in criticizing President Biden's newly-minted 36-person bipartisan commission that's been tasked with studying Supreme Court expansion and term limits for justices, among other judiciary reforms. "This faux-academic study of a nonexistent problem fits squarely within liberals' years-long campaign to politicize the Court, intimidate its members, and subvert its independence," he said in a statement Friday, a few hours after Biden ordered the formation of the commission, which has not been charged with delivering a specific recommendation at the conclusion of its report.
PoliticsAssociated PressTrump : The key to Republican success is more Trumpism
Staking his claim to the Republican Party, former President Donald Trump is casting his populist policies and attack-dog politics as the key to future GOP success. In a closed-door speech Saturday night to donors at his Mar-a-Lago resort, Trump also reinforced his commitment to the party, according to prepared remarks obtained by The Associated Press. His appearance came as Republican officials are trying to play down an internal feud over Trump's role in the party, his commitment to GOP fundraising and his plans for 2024.
U.S.ReutersDoctor who performed George Floyd autopsy stands by homicide conclusion
MINNEAPOLIS (Reuters) -The medical examiner who performed the autopsy on George Floyd after last May's deadly arrest explained how he concluded the death was a homicide at the hands of police in testimony on Friday at former Minneapolis policeman Derek Chauvin's murder trial. As jurors studied graphic autopsy photographs, Dr. Andrew Baker, Hennepin County's chief medical examiner, said he stood by the cause of death he determined last year as protests in Floyd's name against police brutality spread around the world. Baker is one of the most important witnesses as prosecutors from the Minnesota attorney general's office wrap up their case against Chauvin, a white man captured on video kneeling on the neck of Floyd, a 46-year-old handcuffed Black man, for nine minutes.
WorldAssociated PressFamed Egyptian archaeologist reveals details of ancient city
Egypt's best-known archaeologist on Saturday revealed further details on a Pharaonic city recently found in the southern province of Luxor. Zahi Hawass said that archaeologists found brick houses, artifacts, and tools from pharaonic times at the site of the 3,000-year-old lost city. It dates back to Amenhotep III of the 18th dynasty, whose reign is considered a golden era for ancient Egypt.
WorldArchitectural DigestWhy We Love a Small Loveseat
Supremely versatile, loveseats work as standalone pieces in studio apartments and as part of a seating arrangement in sprawling living rooms Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
PoliticsThe WeekTrump reportedly targets 'stone cold loser' McConnell in off-the-rails RNC speech
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) appears to have been the primary target in former President Donald Trump's improvised, insult-laden speech Saturday night at a Republican National Committee gathering at his Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida, The Washington Post and Politico report. In a familiar turn of events, Trump, who doesn't get the opportunity to vent his frustrations on Twitter these days, reportedly boasted about tossing his "boring" prepared remarks before tearing into McConnell for several minutes. At one point Trump called him a "dumb son of a b----" for not fighting the Electoral College certification on Jan. 6.
WorldReutersSouth African variant can 'break through' Pfizer vaccine, Israeli study says
The coronavirus variant discovered in South Africa can "break through" Pfizer/BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine to some extent, a real-world data study in Israel found, though its prevalence in the country is low and the research has not been peer reviewed. The South African variant, B.1.351, was found to make up about 1% of all the COVID-19 cases across all the people studied, according to the study by Tel Aviv University and Israel's largest healthcare provider, Clalit. But among patients who had received two doses of the vaccine, the variant's prevalence rate was eight times higher than those unvaccinated - 5.4% versus 0.7%.
WorldAssociated Press'Suspicious' blackout strikes Iran's Natanz nuclear site
Iran's underground Natanz nuclear facility lost power Sunday just hours after starting up new advanced centrifuges capable of enriching uranium faster, the latest incident to strike the site amid negotiations over the tattered atomic accord with world powers. As Iranian officials investigated the outage, many Israeli media outlets offered the similar assessment that a cyberattack darkened Natanz and damaged a facility that is home to sensitive centrifuges. While the reports offered no sourcing for the evaluation, Israeli media maintains a close relationship with the country's military and intelligence agencies.
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Medical examiner testifies George Floyd’s death was caused by the neck restraint from police
During the trial of former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin on Friday, Dr. Andrew Baker, the medical examiner for Hennepin County, Minn. said George Floyd's cause of death was “cardio-pulomonary arrest, complicating law enforcement subdual restraint and neck compression.
U.S.Miami HeraldSouth Florida’s Sunday started sunny. Here’s when the storms are supposed to come
A Sunday morning made for get up and go in South Florida is forecast to turn into a Sunday afternoon made for stay in and (channel) surf. The National Weather Service predicts severe thunderstorms coming from the north to hit Palm Beach County, Broward County and possibly Miami-Dade County Sunday afternoon or early evening. The NWS puts rain chances for Sunday afternoon at 60% for Miami Beach and 80% for Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale and inland Miami-Dade.
U.S.INSIDERA Proud Boys leader is arguing he shouldn't be sent back to jail, since other accused Capitol rioters are being beaten and threatened by guards
Lawyers for a self-proclaimed "Sergeant of Arms" of the far-right Proud Boys asked a federal judge to keep his client out of jail, in part because other accused Capitol rioters have alleged abuse and mistreatment behind bars. In a court filing on April 8, which was first reported by Law and Crime, lawyers for 30-year-old Ethan Nordean cited a recent Politico article describing alleged violence other Capitol siege defendants have experienced from guards. According to the article, one defendant told a judge that another defendant "was severely beaten by correctional officers, [is now] blind in one eye, has a skull fracture and detached retina."
WorldAssociated PressJordanian prince makes first public appearance since arrest
Jordan's Prince Hamzah on Sunday made his first public appearance since he was placed under house arrest last week, reciting Quranic verses together with King Abdullah II at the graves of their forefathers. Abdullah has attempted to signal in recent days that the situation is under control. The conflict had escalated into the most serious public rift in the ruling family in decades, although Hamzah has denied any wrongdoing.
PoliticsKansas City StarHey, Bob’s uncle’s sister’s cousin: The Kansas GOP wants you to verify voter fraud
One of your state senators has proposed making it a felony for anyone to impersonate the secretary of state or a county election clerk. Proposed by state Sen. Caryn Tyson, a Republican from Parker, the felony for impersonating the secretary of state is now part of a bill that state Sen. Larry Alley was not joking about when he said it “would make it easy for everyone to vote.” It would be mixing holiday metaphors to wish that this March 31 discussion was some sort of elaborate prank on the people of Kansas (you can see for yourself, starting around 5:57 in the video).
WorldBBCCovid-19: India vaccination crosses 100 million doses
India says it has become the "fastest country in the world" to administer more than 100 million doses of coronavirus vaccines, amid a deadly second wave of infections. It achieved the feat in 85 days, whereas the US took 89 days and China 102 days, the health ministry said. But the country reported a record daily increase of over 150,000 cases - and more than 800 new deaths - on Sunday.
U.S.INSIDERFlorida cops who responded to a noise complaint at house party 'cowered away' after finding out their boss was a guest
Florida cops backed off a noise complaint at a party after they found out their boss was a guest. The officers "cowered away" when partygoers told them the sheriff was inside the house. Florida police officers were in for a big surprise after responding to a noise complaint at a house party last Saturday, only to find that a guest at the event was their own boss.
WorldAssociated PressOfficial: Chinese vaccines' effectiveness low
In a rare admission of the weakness of Chinese coronavirus vaccines, the country's top disease control official says their effectiveness is low and the government is considering mixing them to get a boost. Chinese vaccines “don't have very high protection rates,” said the director of the China Centers for Disease Control, Gao Fu, at a conference Saturday in the southwestern city of Chengdu. Beijing has distributed hundreds of millions of doses abroad while trying to promote doubt about the effectiveness of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine made using the previously experimental messenger RNA, or mRNA, process.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderVice President Mike Pence pleaded with the acting defense secretary to 'clear the Capitol' as pro-Trump rioters overran the building, report says
The Associated Press obtained an internal Pentagon document about the Capitol riot on January 6. According to the outlet, Vice President Mike Pence placed an urgent call to the acting defense secretary. "Clear the Capitol," Pence said after the mob had been in the building for hours.
U.S.USA TODAYVirginia cops pepper-sprayed Black and Latino Army officer who had hands raised during traffic stop, video shows
A U.S. Army officer is suing two Virginia police officers after a December traffic stop in which the officers drew and pointed their weapons, pepper-sprayed him and used a slang term to suggest he would face execution as he purposefully held both hands aloft in attempts to defuse the situation. Police in Windsor, in southeast Virginia, have yet to issue any comment about the incident involving second lieutenant Caron Nazario, a Black and Latino man who was in uniform when officers ordered him to exit his Chevrolet Tahoe as he held his hands up through the driver's side window outside a local gas station. The lawsuit, filed earlier this month in U.S. District Court in Norfolk and obtained by The Washington Post, alleges the officers violated Nazario's constitutional rights during the stop and that the officers further threatened to destroy the lieutenant's military career "with a series of baseless criminal charges" if he reported them for misconduct.
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Two sheriff deputies shot in Utah
Both deputies were shot in the face while on patrol outside the jail complex, Rivera said. The suspected gunman, whose identity was not immediately known, was killed during the gunfire exchange. Both deputies were taken to the hospital.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderTrump spent several minutes insulting 'dumb son of a b---h' Mitch McConnell during a rambling speech to GOP donors at Mar-a-Lago, say reports
Former President Donald Trump insulted Mitch McConnell during a speech to donors at Mar-a-Lago. Trump referred to the Senate Minority Leader as a "dumb son of a b---h," Politico reported. Former President Donald Trump derided Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell during a 50-minute speech at his Mar-a-Lago resort, Politico reported.
U.S.Business InsiderA 'Boogaloo' extremist group destroyed evidence from an investigation into one of their members who allegedly killed a police officer
Members of the "boogaloo" movement tried to cover up evidence in a federal probe, officials said. A member of a California group was arrested and charged with killing a federal officer. Members of the "Boogaloo" extremist movement were charged with conspiring to destroy evidence tied to the investigation of a fatal shooting of a federal officer, authorities said on Friday.
U.S.USA TODAYNearly 40% of Marines decline COVID vaccine, prompting some Democrats to urge Biden to set mandate for military
Nearly 40% of United States Marines who have been offered the COVID-19 vaccine have declined it, according to the Pentagon. Of the 123,500 Marines that have had access to the vaccine, 75,500 Marines are either fully vaccinated or have only received one dose while about 48,000 have declined it, Communication Strategy and Operations Officer Capt. Andrew Woods told USA TODAY. Woods said service members may have declined the offer for any one of a variety of reasons, including wanting to allow others to get the vaccine before them; having already received the vaccine through other channels; or waiting until the military makes receiving the vaccine mandatory, which it has yet to do.
WorldAssociated PressSon says Philip's death has left 'huge void' in queen's life
The death of Prince Philip has left a “huge void” in Queen Elizabeth II's life, their son Prince Andrew said Sunday, as well-wishers continued to leave floral tributes outside the gates of royal residences in memory of the monarch's husband. Andrew, the third of the couple's four children, attended church at the Royal Chapel of All Saints in Windsor along with other members of the royal family, two days after the 99-year-old Philip died at Windsor Castle. Andrew said his mother “described it as having left a huge void in her life.
“Without modern infrastructure, the US cannot create decent jobs, social justice or climate safety.”
“The plan itself is really a big bait-and-switch...A fraction of the spending is actually devoted to traditional infrastructure projects.”
“Focusing on the size of the investment is misleading when you consider the high cost of not making it.”
“Rather than spending $2 trillion, we should privatize infrastructure where feasible and cut taxes and regulations on the rest.”
“Public investment can also be a major source of jobs and growth, helping to pull us out of the stagnation trap.”