Category: News

“I’ve been fighting crooks all my life. I’m fighting crooks again. The only tragedy of it is they have titles from the government, but they are a disgrace.” said Giuliani about the federal raid on his home and office in Manhattan.

Source: Giuliani claims feds raided his NYC home, office because they’re ‘jealous’ of him – New York Daily News

A 16-year-old Filipino American boy was shot and killed by an unidentified gunman after answering the door in their Rainier Beach home in Seattle last week.

 Authorities have yet to find any leads to the shooter’s identity or the motive behind the killing.

Source: https://news.yahoo.com/16-old-shot-killed-answering-175507081.html

Pittsburgh’s finance department “made a mistake” when it didn’t include tax discounts or abatements on thousands of tax bills this year, city Finance Director Douglas Anderson said Thursday.

“The mistake was made,” Anderson said.

It means several thousand taxpayers in Pittsburgh who use programs like the Homestead exemption or the Allegheny County Senior Tax Relief program may have overpaid their park tax bills.

The problem has been corrected, officials said. Anderson said it isn’t known how many people may have been sent a bill for more than they owed and paid it.

The city mailed out more than 90,000 bills in total this year, Anderson said.

“If there was an overcharge, a taxpayer can apply for a refund or apply it to future taxes,” he said.

Those who don’t ask for a refund will have the amount they overpaid automatically applied to future tax bills, he said.

The finance department had to mail separate bills for the new parks tax, which levies an extra $50 for every $100,000 of assessed property value, to property owners.

Read full story from source: Pittsburgh ‘made a mistake’ on thousands of tax bills | TribLIVE.com

(CNN)Five people are dead, including two North Carolina sheriff’s deputies, after a check on a person who did not show up for work ended in gunfire and a 13-hour standoff, authorities said.

Watauga County Sheriff K-9 Deputy Logan Fox died at the scene in the Blue Ridge Mountain town of Boone, and Sgt. Chris Ward died after being flown to a local hospital, the sheriff’s office said in a statement.

The deputies were shot after entering the home. They were responding to a call for a welfare check Wednesday after the homeowner’s employer reported that the person did not show up for work and was not answering their phone, according to the statement.

Source: Boone, North Carolina: An hours-long standoff leaves 5 dead, including two deputies – CNN

Washington (CNN)Federal agencies are investigating at least two possible incidents on US soil, including one near the White House in November of last year, that appear similar to mysterious, invisible attacks that have led to debilitating symptoms for dozens of US personnel abroad.

Multiple sources familiar with the matter tell CNN that while the Pentagon and other agencies probing the matter have reached no clear conclusions on what happened, the fact that such an attack might have taken place so close to the White House is particularly alarming.

Defense officials briefed lawmakers on the Senate and House Armed Services Committees on the matter earlier this month, including on the incident near the White House. That incident, which occurred near the Ellipse, the large oval lawn on the south side of the White House, sickened one National Security Council official, according to multiple current and former US officials and sources familiar with the matter.

In a separate 2019 episode, a White House official reported a similar attack while walking her dog in a Virginia suburb just outside Washington, GQ reported last year.

Those sickened reported similar symptoms to CIA and State Department personnel impacted overseas, and officials quickly began to investigate the incident as a possible “Havana syndrome” attack.

Source: US investigating possible mysterious directed energy attack near White House – CNNPolitics

 (AP) — The estranged wife of former Vice President Joe Biden’s youngest son, Hunter Biden, claims he squandered the couple’s money on drugs, alcohol and prostitutes since the couple separated in 2015.In a court filing last week, Kathleen Buhle Biden asked a Washington, D.C. judge to order Hunter Biden to stop spending the couple’s remaining assets.

“Throughout the parties’ separation, Mr. Biden has created financial concerns for the family by spending extravagantly on his own interests (including drugs, alcohol, prostitutes, strip clubs, and gifts for women with whom he has sexual relations) while leaving the family with no funds to pay legitimate bills,” wrote Rebekah Sullivan, a lawyer for Kathleen.Sarah Mancinelli, an attorney for Hunter Biden, declined to directly address the allegations.

“Hunter and Kathleen have been separated for some time and are in the process of finalizing a divorce,” Mancinelli wrote in an email. “Hunter loves and admires Kathleen as a person, a mother, and a friend. He hopes their privacy can be respected at this time.

”Kathleen Biden filed for divorce in December and is seeking sole custody of the couple’s 16-year-old daughter, the youngest of their three children. A status hearing is scheduled for March 30.The New York Post reported this week that Hunter Biden, 47, is dating Hallie Biden, 43, the widow of his late brother, former Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden, who died of brain cancer in May 2015. In a statement to the Post, Hunter Biden said the pair was “incredibly lucky” to have found love and support from one another during a difficult time.

Court records indicate that Kathleen Biden asked her husband to leave the couple’s Washington, D.C., home on July 5, 2015, prompted by his actions on the night of July Fourth. The filing doesn’t offer details.

Source: Estranged wife: Biden son wasted money on drugs, prostitutes

An earthquake of magnitude 6 struck India’s rugged northeastern state of Assam on Wednesday, causing cracks in the walls and floors of some structures, but no immediate casualties were reported.

Source: Quake of magnitude 6 strikes India’s Assam, damages some buildings | Reuters

(CNN)President Joe Biden made a sweeping case Wednesday for massive new programs that would transform the government’s role in Americans’ lives, claiming nothing less than the future of the country is at stake as he delivered his first address to Congress.

Coming later than usual, on the eve of his 100th day in office, Biden delivered his speech amid swirling health and economic crises he has spent his term combating.

But his message went beyond simply ridding the country of coronavirus or getting Americans back to work. In Biden’s telling, the results of those efforts could determine whether American Democracy survives at all: a live-or-die proposition that escalated his calls for trillions of dollars in new spending into an existential question for his audience of lawmakers.

His speech was laden with symbolism, from its scaled-down audience to the historic pair of women sitting behind him. It was a speech decades in the making for a president who has waited longer than most to be introduced with the familiar call: “Madam Speaker, the President of the United States.”

Source: 5 takeaways from Joe Biden’s address to Congress – CNNPolitics

The Department of Justice released on Wednesday a group of videos depicting the alleged assault on Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick and other members of law enforcement during the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. The videos have been cited as evidence in the assault and conspiracy cases against two men – Julian Khater, 32, of State College, Penn., and George Tanios, 39, of Morgantown, W. Va.

The videos have been described by prosecutors and played in court, but have not previously been made widely available. The government made the footage available after a coalition of 14 media organizations, including NPR, filed a legal motion in federal court, arguing that the public had a “powerful interest” in seeing the evidence cited in the government’s prosecution of violent crimes committed on Jan. 6. After initially rejecting the media coalition’s requests, citing potential security concerns regarding surveillance footage from the U.S. Capitol, the Department of Justice decided to release the videos.

Source: Jan. 6 Capitol Riot Videos Show Alleged Assault On Police Officer Brian Sicknick : NPR

Washington DC’s Metropolitan Police Department has said its computer network has been breached in a targeted cyber-attack, US media report.

A ransomware group called Babuk is reportedly threatening to release sensitive data on police informants if it is not contacted within three days.

The FBI is investigating the extent of the breach, US media reported, citing the Washington DC police department.

Ransomware is used to scramble computer networks and steal information.

Source: Cyber-attack hackers threaten to share US police informant data – BBC News

(CNN)Federal agents executed search warrants Wednesday at the Manhattan apartment and office of Rudy Giuliani, his attorney said, advancing a criminal investigation by federal prosecutors that has been underway for more than two years.

Giuliani, who served as former President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer, has been the focus of an investigation concerning his activities in Ukraine, including whether he conducted illegal lobbying for Ukrainian officials while he pursued an investigation linked to Trump’s primary political rival, President Joe Biden, CNN has reported. Giuliani hasn’t been charged and has denied wrongdoing.

It is unusual for prosecutors to execute a search warrant on a lawyer, although Manhattan federal prosecutors have done so before, most notably in recent years against another former lawyer for Trump, Michael Cohen.

On Wednesday afternoon, an attorney for Giuliani, Robert Costello, said the warrant described an investigation into possible violation of foreign lobbying laws and that it sought communications between Giuliani and people including a former columnist for The Hill, John Solomon.

Source: Rudy Giuliani: Federal agents execute search warrants on Manhattan home and office – CNNPolitics

The Food and Drug Administration appears likely to move to ban menthol in cigarettes this week — a step, experts say, that has been years in the making and that could have a significant positive impact on the health of Black Americans.

The FDA’s decision would not ban menthol immediately, but rather kick off the rule-making process to do so, which could take years.

“The winds are definitely in our favor,” said Delmonte Jefferson, executive director of the Center for Black Health & Equity, citing both the decades of data that show that the cooling flavor in cigarettes makes it easier to start smoking combined with the current cultural momentum toward improving the lives of Black Americans.

Source: FDA poised to ban menthol cigarettes this week, experts predict

The first-ever U.S. release of genetically engineered Aedes aegypti mosquitoes this week in the Florida Keys and residents are furious over the ‘live experiment’ saying it is terrorism.

Source: Florida residents say release of a BILLION genetically engineered mosquitos in Keys is TERRORISM | Daily Mail Online

The president’s “American Families Plan,” which he will detail this week, will be offset in part by a tax enforcement effort that administration officials believe will raise 700 billion dollars over a decade.

Source: Biden Seeks $80 Billion to Beef Up I.R.S. Audits of High-Earners – The New York Times

More than 20 House Republicans are calling on President Joe Biden’s nominee to lead the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives to investigate the Hunter Biden for allegedly falsifying information in order to obtain a firearm.

“I write to ask that you publicly commit to investigate allegations that Hunter Biden falsified information during a background check in order to illegally obtain a firearm should you be confirmed by the U.S. Senate as the Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF),” Rep. Bob Good (R-VA) wrote in a letter to Biden’s nominee for ATF Director.

The letter, which was obtained by the Daily Caller, was signed by 23 other House Republicans.

Source: Hunter Biden could face federal probe for allegedly illegally buying firearm if GOP’s demands come true | Fox News

Police said no further details would be released until identification and notifications were made.

Agencies on the scene include Conewango Township Police, Pennsylvania State Police, Warren County DA’s office, Warren County coroner’s office, Starbrick Volunteer Fire Department, and Glade Fire Department.

Search and rescue crews are on the north side of the river from the Irvine Distribution Center.

Police and firefighters responded to reports of a body found in the Allegheny River Sunday afternoon.

“We were notified by a fisherman of a possible body in the water,” Conewango Twp. police officer Charlie Andersen said.

Source: Body found in Allegheny River | News, Sports, Jobs – Times Observer

PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh police are searching for a gunman wearing all black and a red ski mask who shot another man at a Carrick gas station.

The victim was shot beside Pump #1 at the BP gas station in the 1900 block of Brownsville Road around 2:45 p.m.

A private vehicle took the victim to the emergency room at UPMC Mercy and dropped him off. The victim is reported to be in stable condition.

Source: Pittsburgh police searching for gunman after man shot at gas station – WPXI

Proponents of the effort to remove Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom of California from office have collected enough valid signatures for a recall election, the California secretary of state’s office announced Monday.

The announcement kicks off a 30-business-day period in which those who signed the recall petition may withdraw their names. County election officials will then have 10 business days to report how many signatures have been withdrawn. If the threshold is still met, a recall election would take place after a budgetary review and scheduling process expected to last several months.

The recall drive began in June 2020, and a court extended the deadline for collecting signatures because of the coronavirus pandemic. The group running the signature drive — Recall Gavin 2020 — posted a lengthy list of grievances against the governor on its website: “Unaffordable housing. Record homelessness. Rising crime. Failing schools. Independent contractors thrown out of work. Exploding pension debt. And now, a locked down population while the prisons are emptied. Hold Gavin Newsom accountable.”

Newsom and other Democrats have said the effort is led by extremists and pro-Trump Republicans. An Emerson College poll in mid-March showed that a narrow plurality of California voters would keep Newsom in office: 42%, versus 38% who said they would vote to remove him, with 14% undecided. Six percent answered they would not vote in a recall election.

Source: Effort To Remove Calif. Gov. Newsom Collects Enough Signatures To Force Recall Vote : NPR

HBO’s Bill Maher on Friday mocked Caitlyn Jenner’s bid for California governor after the former Olympian and transgender activist announced her GOP campaign.

“I know that you think of her as a reality show star, but come on. People change,” Maher said on his show. “She is trans, rested and ready. She’s got a great slogan: ‘Take the sack out of Sacramento.'”

Source: Maher mocks Caitlyn Jenner over California governor bid | TheHill

The United States will make more medical aid available to India in an effort to fight an alarming spike in COVID-19 cases. The pledge came during a phone call between White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan and Indian national security adviser Ajit Doval on Sunday, as India has become the epicenter of the global coronavirus pandemic and the country’s health system is collapsing.

“Just as India sent assistance to the United States as our hospitals were strained early in the pandemic, the United States is determined to help India in its time of need,” National Security Council Spokesperson Emily Horne said in a statement, which went on to say that the U.S. will allow for the export of certain raw material urgently needed for vaccine production, as well as sending test kits, ventilators and personal protective equipment, among other aid.

Source: U.S. Pledges Medical Aid To India, Where COVID-19 Is Overwhelming Hospitals : NPR

FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) — A white state trooper who was seen on video telling a Black driver “you are going to get your a—whipped” and yanking him out of the car by his neck is no longer with tha State Police, a spokeswoman said.

The Washington Post reports that spokeswoman Corinne Geller said state police were prohibited from releasing additional detail about Charles Hewitt, the trooper seen in a viral video of a 2019 traffic stop. Joshua Erlich, an attorney for driver Derrick Thompson, said he was told during the settlement of a federal lawsuit over the incident that Hewitt was fired for cause in February, months after the video became public.

Source: Virginia trooper off force after traffic stop viral video

By Matina Stevis-Gridneff

BRUSSELS — American tourists who have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 will be able to visit the European Union over the summer, the head of the bloc’s executive body said in an interview with The New York Times on Sunday, more than a year after shutting down nonessential travel from most countries to limit the spread of the coronavirus.

The fast pace of vaccination in the United States, and advanced talks between authorities there and the European Union over how to make vaccine certificates acceptable as proof of immunity for visitors, will enable the European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union, to recommend a switch in policy that could see trans-Atlantic leisure travel restored.

Source: Vaccinated American Tourists May Soon Travel to Europe – The New York Times

A Ring doorbell captured footage of a police officer in Vacaville, California, throwing a 17-year-old to the ground and punching him in the face on Wednesday, according to the teen’s father. The teen’s father posted the now viral video of the incident on Facebook, saying that his son, Preston, has autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and that “he looks and acts younger than he is.”

The incident occurred Wednesday afternoon, Adam Wolf wrote on Facebook, when Preston was “aggressively approached” by a Vacaville police officer. The video shows Preston standing with his scooter on a sidewalk in a suburban neighborhood when a police officer exits his vehicle and approaches him while aggressively yelling at him to sit down. Preston complies and sits down with his legs crossed. The officer then appears to yell at the teenager to put his legs out, and when he does not immediately do so, the officer picks up his scooter and throws several feet away. It appears as though the officer attempts to grab the boy, at which point Preston flinches and leans back, seemingly scared. A few moments later, Preston attempts to run away, and the officer grabs him by the arm and slams him onto the street.

Source: Doorbell video captures police officer punching and throwing teen with autism to the ground – CBS News

(CNN)An unarmed man was shot by a Virginia sheriff’s deputy about an hour after the same deputy gave the man a ride home, Virginia State Police confirmed to CNN.

An attorney for Isaiah Brown, 32, said his client was shot while on the phone with 911 after the deputy — who had returned to respond to a “domestic incident,” per state police — mistook a phone for a gun.

Brown was taken to a local hospital after the shooting early Wednesday with serious but non-life-threatening injuries, according to statements from the Virginia State Police, which said its Bureau of Criminal Investigation’s Culpeper Field Office Police Shooting Investigation Team was investigating at the request of the Spotsylvania County Sheriff’s Office.

The shooting took place after a Spotsylvania County Sheriff’s deputy responded to a call about a “disabled motorist” and gave Brown a ride home from a gas station, state police said.

Asked if the deputy who shot Brown was the same who had given him a ride home earlier, VSP spokesperson Corinne Geller confirmed to CNN it was the same deputy.

The body camera video and 911 audio were released late Friday, after the sheriff’s office said Brown’s family had reviewed both at the invitation of the sheriff’s office and a special prosecutor in the case, the Fredericksburg Commonwealth’s Attorney.

Source: An unarmed man was shot by a Virginia deputy who gave him a ride home an hour earlier – CNN