From the Trenches World Report
Enforce our Bill of Rights
The case against indicted FBI agent W. Joseph Astarita rests on officer accountability, a federal prosecutor told jurors Wednesday.
Astarita stands accused of falsely denying that he fired two shots at the truck of Robert “LaVoy” Finicum, the spokesman for the 2016 armed takeover of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in southeastern Oregon. Continue reading “Prosecutor says case against indicted FBI agent is all about ‘integrity’”
BOSTON (Reuters) – A federal appeals court on Wednesday weighed whether the U.S. Constitution guarantees a right to carry guns in public for self-defense in a lawsuit challenging the firearm licensing policies of two Massachusetts municipalities including Boston.
The arguments before the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston marked the latest instance in which a federal appeals court has weighed the extent the Constitution’s Second Amendment protects the right to carry firearms outside of a person’s home. Continue reading “U.S. court weighs challenge to Boston gun restrictions”
A Trader Joe’s employee killed during a crime-spree in Los Angeles last weekend was struck by a police bullet — not the suspect’s bullet — Los Angeles Police Department Chief Michel Moore said at a news conference Tuesday.
Moore said the officers are “devastated” that Trader Joe’s employee Melyda Corado, 27, died from their efforts to stop the gunman. Continue reading “Slain Trader Joe’s employee was hit by police bullet during suspect’s crime-spree: ‘I am truly sorry,’ says police chief”
Israel has shot down a Syrian fighter jet that penetrated Israeli airspace on Tuesday, the Israeli army said. According to the IDF spokesperson, the Russian-made Sukhoi was under surveillance when it entered some two kilometers into Israeli airspace and was shot down by two Patriot missiles. Continue reading “Israel Shoots Down Syrian Fighter Jet”
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) said Monday that he pardoned seven people under threat of deportation to protect his state’s immigrant communities as President Trump continues to “ramp up deportation of New Yorkers to advance his political agenda of hate and division.”
“At a time when President Trump and the Federal government are waging a war on our immigrant communities, New York stands firm in our belief that our diversity is our greatest strength,” Cuomo said in a statement obtained by ABC News. Continue reading “Cuomo pardons seven people under threat of deportation”
CLEARWATER, Fla. (WFLA) – An argument about a handicapped parking space led to a deadly shooting outside a Clearwater convenience store Thursday that was witnessed by the deceased man’s 5-year-old son.
No arrests have been made in connection with the shooting. Detectives are investigating to determine if the case meets the criteria of Florida’s Stand Your Ground law. Continue reading “Stand Your Ground? Handicapped parking feud leads to deadly Clearwater shooting”
WATFORD CITY, N.D. – A newborn baby was killed and more than two dozen people were injured when a tornado whipped through a North Dakota oil patch city overnight, overturning recreational vehicles and demolishing more than 100 structures, officials said Tuesday.
The storm moved through Watford City, in the northwestern part of the state, shortly after midnight, hitting an RV park the hardest, according to sheriff’s officials. About 20 of the reported 28 injured were staying at the Prairie View RV Park where high winds overturned some campers and damaged mobile homes. Continue reading “Baby killed, dozens hurt when tornado hits North Dakota city”
President Donald Trump on Tuesday commuted the sentences of two eastern Oregon ranchers serving time in federal prison for setting fire to public land in a case that inflamed their supporters and gave rise to the armed takeover of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.
The decision will free Dwight Hammond Jr., 76, and son Steven Hammond, 49, convicted in 2012 of arson on Harney County land where they had grazing rights for their cattle. They were ordered back to prison in early 2016 to serve out five-year sentences. Continue reading “President Trump pardons Oregon ranchers whose plight led to refuge occupation”
The bizarre “sonic attacks” against diplomats began in Cuba, but have now spread to other countries with over 200 illnesses reported. It all started in the fall of 2016 when diplomats at the United States Embassy in Cuba reported some hearing loss and mild brain damage after hearing unusual and puzzling sounds.
SHTFPlan originally detailed the symptoms experienced by US diplomats in Cuba back in September of 2017. Continue reading “Strange ‘Sonic Attacks’ Against Diplomats Reach Epic Proportions”
Washington Times – by Stephen Dinan
Every illegal immigrant parent whose child was separated at the border has now been able to at least speak by telephone, the government said in a new court filing Friday.
And some parents have already been moved to new detention facilities to put them closer to where their children are being held, preparing for final unification and, in many cases, release from custody. Continue reading “ICE to set free illegal immigrants to comply with judge’s family reunification order”
Donald Trump’s personal driver for more than 25 years says the billionaire real estate developer didn’t pay him overtime and raised his salary twice in 15 years, clawing back the second raise by cutting off his health benefits.
Noel Cintron, who is listed in public records as a registered Republican, sued the Trump Organization for about 3,300 of overtime that he says he worked in the past six years. He’s not allowed to sue for overtime prior to that due to the statute of limitations. Continue reading “Trump’s Personal Driver for 25 Years Sues for Unpaid Overtime”
Herald & News – by Tess Novotny
FORT KLAMATH — The Oregon Department of Transportation revoked a permit it gave to the Civic Improvement Club of Fort Klamath to display American flags along the town’s highway.
The revocation includes a grace period for flags to stay up until July 25. It follows a clash among community members over whether placement of the flags was appropriate. Continue reading “Flag Flap: ODOT pulls flag permit for Fort Klamath”
LAS VEGAS (AP) — A judge’s decision not to let federal prosecutors reopen the criminal case against Cliven Bundy, his sons and supporters in a 2014 armed standoff with government agents could amount to the final act in the case, a lawyer for the Nevada rancher and states’ rights activist said Friday.
“It’s the final nail in the coffin, and completely expected,” attorney Bret Whipple said of the ruling in the criminal case that was filed in 2016 against 19 defendants and collapsed last December in a mistrial due to “flagrant misconduct” by prosecutors. Continue reading “Judge Rejects Government Bid to Reopen Activist Rancher Case”
While the headline prints in today’s jobs report were solid with the exception of hourly earnings, which disappointed consensus expectations on both a monthly and annual basis, however not too dramatically earning the report a “goldilocks” name, a look below the surface reveals at least one ugly side to today’s jobs report: all the job gains were for part-time workers, while full-time employment dipped modestly.
In June, the number of part-time workers rose by 145K to 27.028MM, while the full-time workers declined by a modest 89K to 128.658MM. Continue reading “June Jobs Increase: All Part-Time Workers As Full-Time Jobs Drop”
A Connecticut man who was assaulted by three juveniles while at work has been sentenced to prison for stabbing one of the attackers.
The Connecticut Post reports 21-year-old Jeffrey Sumpter of Bridgeport received 18 months in jail Monday at a Stamford courthouse. Continue reading “Connecticut assault victim gets 18 months in jail for stabbing attacker”
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — The Associated Press has learned that the U.S. Army has moved in recent weeks to discharge immigrant recruits and reservists who enlisted through a program that promised them a path to citizenship.
Some of these service members say they weren’t told why they were being discharged. Others say the Army told them they’d been labeled as security risks because they have relatives abroad or because their background checks were pending. Continue reading “US Army quietly discharging immigrant recruits”
In the ongoing saga between the United States and Chinese telecom giant ZTE, President Donald Trump has directed Secretary Wilbur Ross and the U.S. Department of Commerce to grant a temporary, 30-day reprieve for ZTE, enabling it to procure vital American parts and software so it may resume its operations.
In essence, this latest action is nothing less than a stay of execution. The seven-year export ban imposed by the Commerce Department’s Security and Enforcement Bureau on April 18 plunged the company into crisis resulting in the immediate shutdown of its assembly lines and curtailment of its operations. Continue reading “Trump gave the giant Chinese cellphone maker a stay of execution”
JAKARTA (Reuters) – The captain of a sinking Indonesian ferry managed to steer his ship onto a reef to enable the evacuation of more than 100 passengers, but 31 people drowned as the vessel floundered in stormy seas, officials said on Wednesday.
The latest ferry disaster in Indonesia, which happened on Tuesday near Sulawesi island, came two weeks after an overcrowded ferry sank on Lake Toba in Sumatra, one of the world’s deepest volcanic lakes, with the death of more than 200 people. Continue reading “Captain of sinking Indonesian ferry sails onto reef; 31 dead”
FOUNTAIN HILLS, AZ — When a 72-year-old Fountain Hills man tried to put his 92-year-old mother in an assisted living home, she pulled out a pistol hidden in her robe and shot him to death, authorities said. Now, she’s been charged with first-degree murder.
After learning of her son’s plans, Anna Mae Blessing hid a pair of handguns in her robe and confronted him in his bedroom at their home Monday, the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office said in a release. The home is located near North La Montana Drive and East El Lago Boulevard. Continue reading “Arizona Mom, 92, Kills Son Over Nursing Home Plans: Authorities”