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South Carolina jury convicts inmate in first trial involving deadly prison riots

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:54:35 GMT

BISHOPVILLE, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina jurors have found an inmate guilty of charges connected to the death of a fellow inmate during the deadliest U.S. prison riot of the past quarter-century.The Lee County jury deliberated less than an hour on Friday before finding Michael Juan “Flame” Smith guilty of assault and battery by mob, weapon possession and conspiracy for his role in the 2018 violence. Trial Judge Ferrell Cothran Jr. gave Smith a 45-year sentence, although one five-year term issued will run concurrently with the other time, news outlets reported.Seven prisoners were killed and 22 seriously injured in the riot at the maximum-security Lee Correctional Institution in Bishopville, located about 50 miles (80 kilometers) east of Columbia. One inmate described bodies “literally stacked on top of each other, like some macabre woodpile.”Dozens of inmates have been indicted on charges related to the riots that occurred across three dormitories, and a string of defendants began pl...

Police fatally shoot man who officers say charged them with knives in West Texas

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:54:35 GMT

LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Officers investigating a domestic disturbance fatally shot a man who they said ran at them with knives in West Texas, police said Saturday. Manuel Guillen, 34, died at a hospital following the shooting in Lubbock Friday night, police spokesperson Amber Edwards said.Edwards said the officers were responding to a report that Guillen had assaulted and threatened his mother at a home on the city’s north side. The mother escaped the home before the officers arrived.A police sergeant who arrived at the scene told the officers to leave because Guillen was in the home alone and no longer a threat to his family, Edwards said. They were about to depart when Guillen crawled out of a window carrying two knives, she said. Officers commanded him to stop but opened fire when he kept heading in their direction.“He continued to charge at the officers and they employed deadly force,” Edwards said. It was not clear why the officers did not try to arrest Guillen for th...

Joly hosts Mideast ministers in Ottawa to discuss Israel-Hamas war

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:54:35 GMT

OTTAWA — A group of foreign ministers from the Palestinian Authority, Saudi Arabia and Turkey is in Ottawa today for a quietly planned meeting with Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly to discuss attempts to end the Israel-Hamas war.Joly is working with her Middle Eastern counterparts to see how countries such as Canada can help efforts to secure peace for Palestinians and Israelis, after Hamas militants launched a deadly rampage in Israel on Oct. 7.The delegation calls itself the Arab-Islamic Extraordinary Summit and it normally includes Jordan, though Joly’s office says that country needed to send its foreign minister on other business.The group is not a joint peace project with Israel, and says its leaders aim to speak on behalf of Arab and Muslim people following Israel’s bombardment of Gaza in response to the Hamas attack.This is the first visit of Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister to Canada since a diplomatic chill over human rights issues in 2018, when Riyadh...

The State Department approves the sale of tank ammunition to Israel in a deal that bypasses Congress

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:54:35 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Going around Congress, the Biden administration said Saturday it has approved the emergency sale to Israel of nearly 14,000 rounds of tank ammunition worth more than $106 million as Israel intensifies its military operations in the southern Gaza Strip.The move comes as President Joe Biden’s request for a nearly $106 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and other national security is languishing in Congress, caught up in a debate over U.S. immigration policy and border security. Some Democratic lawmakers have spoken of making the proposed $14.3 billion in American assistance to its Mideast ally contingent on concrete steps by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to reduce civilian casualties in Gaza during the war with Hamas.The State Department said it had notified Congress of the sale late Friday after Secretary of State Antony Blinken determined “an emergency exists that requires the immediate sale” of the munitions in the U.S. national...

Israel presses on with bombarding Gaza, including areas it has called safe zones for Palestinians

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:54:35 GMT

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli warplanes struck parts of the Gaza Strip in relentless bombardment Saturday, hitting some of the dwindling bits of land that Israel had described as safe zones when telling Palestinians in the south to evacuate.Frustration was growing with the United States after it vetoed a United Nations Security Council resolution demanding an immediate humanitarian cease-fire, despite wide support, and approved the emergency sale of tank ammunition worth more than $100 million to Israel.Gaza residents “are being told to move like human pinballs — ricocheting between ever-smaller slivers of the south, without any of the basics for survival," U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the council before the vote.Gaza’s borders with Israel and Egypt are effectively sealed, leaving 2.3 million Palestinians with no option other than to seek refuge within the territory 25 miles (40 kilometers) long by about 7 miles (11 kilometers) wide.A day after Israel conf...

ACLU to represent NRA in NY free speech challenge

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:54:35 GMT

(The Hill) — The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is representing the National Rifle Association in a free speech case against New York’s Department of Financial Services.“We’re representing the NRA at the Supreme Court in their case against New York’s Department of Financial Services for abusing its regulatory power to violate the NRA’s First Amendment rights,” the ACLU said in a post in Saturday thread on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. “The government can’t blacklist an advocacy group because of its viewpoint.”Despite their representation of the gun rights group, the ACLU said it does not “support the NRA's mission or its viewpoints on gun rights, and we don’t agree with their goals, strategies, or tactics” in another post in the thread. “But we both know that government officials can't punish organizations because they disapprove of their views,” the ACLU continued.Back in November, the Supreme Court said it would hear the NRA’s case against a former New Yor...

Denver men’s soccer midfielder Sam Bassett named second-team All-American

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:54:35 GMT

Sam Bassett now has an accolade that his older brother Cole, a Colorado Rapids midfielder, can’t one up him on: Being an All American.The University of Denver junior midfielder was named second-team All American by the United Soccer Coaches on Friday for his performance over the course of the 2023 season. Bassett is only the third Pioneer to earn the distinction and is the first since 2018, when former Rapids player Andre Shinyashiki got the honor.Bassett stepped up in the attacking midfield role this season as he helped lead the Pioneers to the second round of the men’s NCAA Tournament for a third consecutive season. He scored a career-high eight goals and added seven assists, as the program finished with a 12-3-5 record. Internally, the program was expected to be a national title contender, but injuries to three pre-season watchlist players, Trevor Wright, Ben Smith and Ronan Wynne, played a key factor in not making a deep run.Still, Bassett told The Post on Friday he ...

Part of Ventura County community evacuated due to brush fire

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:54:35 GMT

An evacuation order has been issued for a part of northern Ventura County following a brush fire breaking out near the community of Somis. Ventura County Fire Department officials are working to contain the brush fire, which broke out around 10:30 a.m. Saturday west of South Mountain.  Strong winds trigger Red Flag Warning for parts of SoCal As of 11:30 a.m. Saturday, the evacuation order was issued for: North of East La Loma Avenue and West La Loma Avenue South of East Los Angeles Avenue East of Aggen Road West of La Vista Avenue  El Niño predicted to flood both coasts: Here’s where risk is highest According to the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department’s emergency incident dashboard, up to 45,000 people could be affected by Public Safety Power Shutoffs as the wind event continues through the weekend. "Please use alternate routes and avoid traveling on State Route 118 west of Moorpark in the Somis area," Caltrans District 7 said on X, formerly Twitter, jus...

Two people attempting auto theft arrested in Piedmont 

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:54:35 GMT

(KRON) – Two people attempting to commit auto theft were arrested, the Piedmont Police Department announced on Tuesday. Piedmont police dispatch received a report of a black Cadillac with no license plates following an Amazon delivery truck in the 800 block of Kingston Ave around 4:45 p.m. on Dec. 5.  Five suspects wanted for allegedly stealing Upon officers’ arrival, they observed two subjects attempting to steal a black 2003 Chevrolet Tahoe. Officers then attempted to contact the subjects. However, the subjects fled the scene in the Cadillac at a high speed, police said. According to police, the Cadillac hit another vehicle when attempting to flee. The Cadillac then eventually collided with a police vehicle on Piedmont Avenue before stopping. After police detained the suspects, the passenger revealed that she had a loaded handgun in her waistband, police said. Police conducted a vehicle search, where they found burglary tools and drug paraphernalia. The two suspec...

San Jose residents are unhappy homeowners

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:54:35 GMT

(BCN) -- San Jose is one of the worst U.S. cities for someone looking for the most bang for their buck on housing.According to a report from All Star Home, San Jose ranks second worst when it comes to homeowners' happiness with their homes and neighborhoods, compared to the price they pay to live there. San Francisco ranked the worst and Seattle came in third out of 25 cities from the American Housing Survey. On the other end, Detroit ranked No.1 for best housing value, with Rochester, New York in second and Birmingham, Alabama in third. San Jose, San Francisco rank last in ‘housing happiness’ study The report used data from the survey, where residents rated their home and neighborhood, and averaged those responses to assign happiness ratings for each location. That was then divided by the region's median home value. All Star Home also surveyed residents across the nation and found some of the top reasons for disliking a neighborhood included "weird people," noise levels and housi...