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Burnham & Silverglate: Representing unpopular clients amid intolerance

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:19:11 GMT

As experienced criminal defense lawyers, we have often found ourselves arguing to a court that a client’s conduct, although controversial, was not criminal. Such cases arise most often when a statute is vague or overly broad. But we have rarely had a case where the social and political pressure to prosecute has resulted in an indictment as far off the mark as that brought by the District Attorney of Fulton County, Georgia, Fanny Willis, against our client John Eastman, and 18 others, including the former president of the United StatesThe extent of the pressure becomes evident when the crux of the charge is considered. Eastman has been charged under a vague and sprawling law known as the Racketeer-Influenced Corrupt Organization, or “RICO,” statute. In enacting this law, the Georgia legislature copied a similar federal law enacted to enable the Department of Justice to prosecute entire Mafia families. In those cases, it was difficult if not impossible to determine what each member of...

Dear Abby: Divorcee finds another fiscally unfit man

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:19:11 GMT

Dear Abby: I was divorced four years ago after a 27-year marriage. Unbeknownst to me, my ex-husband hadn’t paid taxes for 17 years. We were always pretty strapped as a couple and the parents of four. Money was a constant worry, and I foolishly let him handle it all.I am now on my own and pay everything on time, but my credit is still poor. I have been dating someone for 2 1/2 years. He has no children. He has a college degree but no savings at all, and he’s $80,000 in debt. He lavishes me with gifts for birthdays. He’s madly in love with me and incredibly kind and thoughtful. The sex is good, but I don’t love him as much as he loves me. Our politics are opposite. He loses his temper now and then, and his finances are a mess. I have broken it off seven times.He’s now selling his house and planning on moving in with me. I have an engagement ring, and I’m afraid of what it will do to him if I end it again. I’m also afraid of being alone. We get...

Missing Saratoga County NY girl found safe

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:19:11 GMT

GANSEVOORT, N.Y. — The 9-year-old girl who went missing and was believed to be abducted from Moreau Lake State Park on Saturday evening was found and is safe.“On Oct. 2, through the course of the investigation, State Police identified an individual as being in the area of the Moreau Lake State Park around the time Charlotte (Sena) went missing,” a statement from state police said. “Further investigation led to the search of multiple residences where the individual is known to reside.“Upon the search of those residences, at approximately 6:32 p.m. on Oct. 2, State Police located Charlotte Sena safe and in good health. The suspect was taken into custody. This investigation is a culmination of multiple agencies working together for the common goal of bringing this child home to her loving family.“We cannot emphasize enough how appreciative we are for the support we received from Charlotte’s community, friends and family.”Police added this is still an active investigation.“We are overjo...

Police in pursuit of driver in possibly stolen truck

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:19:11 GMT

Authorities in Orange County initiated the pursuit of a driver in a possibly stolen vehicle that has made its way across county lines into into San Bernardino and Riverside counties. The suspect was seen driving what appears to be a work truck with a ladder on top of the vehicle northbound on Carbon Canyon Road into the Chino area and eventually Ontario. The driver has going through red lights and stop signs with several police cruisers trailing behind. It is unclear if there is more than just the driver inside of the truck. Sky5 is overhead.

San Diego transit agencies to celebrate Free Ride Day

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:19:11 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Riders taking public transit in San Diego County Wednesday will be able to travel for free in honor of California Clean Air Day, officials said. The offer is valid on all Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) buses and trolleys, as well as North County Transit District (NCTD) Coaster and Sprinter trains, Mark Olson with MTS said in a news release Monday.“Conserving our planet is a priority for all of us. Initiatives like Free Ride Day provide an opportunity for residents to reduce carbon emissions and promote sustainability by riding clean transportation options,” said Stephen Whitburn, MTS Board Chair and City of San Diego Councilmember, District 3. “And with record-high gas prices, taking transit not only helps the environment, it can help your wallet too.” Two San Diego-area restaurants among best in the country: Tripadvisor SANDAG also offers free rides with Circuit, BCycle (unlock a BCycle Day Pass for free with code CLEANAIR23) and Bird (unlock two free rides with c...

Stock market today: Asian markets sink, with Hong Kong down 3% on heavy selling of property stocks

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:19:11 GMT

BANGKOK (AP) — Asian markets declined Tuesday following a mixed session on Wall Street, where buying was pressured by rising bond yields. U.S. futures fell and oil prices also were lower. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped more than 3% as investors unloaded property shares. However, China Evergrande was up nearly 16%, resuming trading after its shares were suspended last week as the troubled real estate developer announced that its chairman was under investigation. Earlier in the session it’s shares soared more than 60%.By midday, the Hang Seng was down 3% at 17,278.37. Markets in mainland China and South Korea remained closed for holidays. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index fell 1.5% to 31,282.32, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 skidded 1.1% to 6,953.60. India’s Sensex declined 0.7% to 65,408.18.Bangkok’s SET was down 1.5% and Taiwan’s Taiex fell 0.3%. On Monday, the S&P 500 ended little changed at 4,288.39, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped ...

Panda Diplomacy: The departure of DC’s beloved pandas may signal a wider Chinese pullback

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:19:11 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Wearing a “I Love Pandas” t-shirt and clutching a panda-covered diary, Kelsey Lambert bubbled with excitement as she glimpsed the real thing. She and her mother, Alison, had made a special trip from San Antonio, Texas, just to watch the National Zoo’s furry rock stars casually munching bamboo and rolling around on the grass. “It felt completely amazing,” Kelsey, age 10, said Friday. “My mom has always promised she would take me one day. So we had to do it now that they’re going away.”The National Zoo’s three giant pandas — Mei Xiang, Tian Tian and their cub Xiao Qi Ji — are set to return to China in early December with no public signs that the 50-year old exchange agreement struck by former President Richard Nixon will continue. National Zoo officials have remained tight-lipped about the prospects of renewing or extending the agreement, and repeated attempts to gain comment on the state of the negotiations did not receive a response. However, the ...

Things to know about the Vatican’s big meeting on the future of the Catholic Church

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:19:11 GMT

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis on Wednesday is opening a global gathering of bishops and laypeople to discuss the future of the Catholic Church, including some hot-button issues that have previously been considered off-limits for discussion.For the first time, women and laypeople can vote on specific proposals alongside bishops, a radical change that is evidence of Francis’ belief that the church is more about its flock than its shepherds.Here is some background on the Oct. 4-29 Synod of Bishops, which will be followed by a second session this time next year. That session is expected to put forward specific proposals for Francis to consider in a future document.WHAT’S ON THE AGENDA?The working document for the meeting was compiled by a committee after an unprecedented two-year canvassing of rank-and-file Catholics around the globe.The final product is meant to stimulate debate and poses agenda items in the form of questions. But some of the questions also make clear a certai...

Court reviews gun-carry restrictions under health order in New Mexico, as states explore options

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:19:11 GMT

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Restrictions on carrying guns in public that are tied to an emergency public health order are going under the legal microscope Tuesday in New Mexico, where the Democratic governor is testing the boundaries of her authority and constitutional law in response to violent crime in the state’s largest metro area.The standoff is one of many in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court decision last year expanding gun rights, as leaders in politically liberal-leaning states explore new avenues for restrictions.A court hearing is scheduled for the morning on legal challenges to the public health order from Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham that suspends the right to carry firearms in most public parks and playgrounds in and around Albuquerque. Advocates for gun rights have filed a barrage of challenges to the 30-day health order, which originally included broad restrictions on carrying guns in public. The governor will reissue orders on gun violence and drug abuse for an additio...

Columbia Journalism Review editor leaving to encourage news outlets to devote more time to climate

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:19:11 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Saying that journalism isn’t showing enough urgency in covering climate change, the editor of the Columbia Journalism Review is leaving his job to devote his time to try and change that.Kyle Pope, who has been editor and publisher of the magazine and website for journalists since 2016, said Tuesday that he is leaving to join Covering Climate Now, an organization he helped launch with Mark Hertsgaard, environment correspondent for The Nation.Covering Climate Now works with newsrooms to prioritize coverage and train reporters, and is trying to convince more meteorologists to make the connection between climate change and their weather reports.Pope said journalists need to bring the same focus to covering climate that they did to COVID-19 in the early days of that pandemic — perhaps not in the volume of stories but the sense that reporters on various beats need to be mindful of how climate change affects what they’re following.“Journalism still isn’t d...