"She then forced the teen to engage in oral and penetrative sex."
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] A social media influencer who sexually assaulted a 14-year-old boy twice in one night has 'no sexual interest in children', a court has been told.
The 46-year-old woman, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was jailed earlier this month for two counts of aggravated sexual intercourse with a child under 16 years old. A jury found she had climbed into bed with the teenager on an evening in mid-2021 and kissed him.
'Don't tell your father about this,' the woman told her victim before taking off his clothes and undressing herself.
She then forced the teen to engage in oral and penetrative sex.
On March 1, Judge Sarah Hopkins sentenced the influencer to at least 18 months in jail with a maximum of three years behind bars.
However, the judge told a NSW District Court on Tuesday she had omitted part of her judgment during sentencing proceedings. She amended the record by clarifying she had relied on expert opinions that the influencer had a 'low risk of reoffending'. Judge Hopkins highlighted the conclusion of forensic psychologist Stephen Woods that there was no evidence the 46-year-old woman had 'pedophilic tendencies'.
'Professor Woods (found) she had no sexual interest in children,' she said.
The influencer was three times older than her victim when she snuck into a bed and raped him in the middle of the night.
Judge Hopkins determined the woman had 'good prospects of rehabilitation' because 'the offences were isolated' and she had committed to abstaining from drugs and alcohol.
During the sentencing, the judge accepted the sexual assailant had been experiencing a 'complex combination of comorbid (mental) disorders' at the time of the rape.
'In all probability, it was symptomatically acute at the time of the offending,' she said.
The court heard the woman had previously sought treatment for an eating disorder, anxiety disorder and adjustment disorder.
'In light of my findings as to the connection between the offending and the offender's mental issues, I accept the offender's moral culpability is reduced,' Judge Hopkins said on Tuesday.
No.
She also found there was justification for a longer parole period due to the onerous conditions of custody for the influencer, who had been subjected to 'threats and harassment' behind bars.
The 46-year-old is likely to remain in protective custody for the remaining length of her sentence due to her profile and the offences she committed. She will be eligible for release in less than a year, on February 26, 2025. Earlier this month, her lawyer confirmed the 46-year-old woman will appeal her conviction.
A few days after sexually assaulting him, the court heard the influencer told the teen to 'just keep this quiet for a bit'.
Yet in a lawfully tapped phone call a year later, the 46-year-old laughingly admitted her attraction towards the 14-year-old boy.
'I started loving you so much (that) I got it confused, like, I started getting attracted to you,' she told him.
'You're a man now. You're not a boy, you're obviously a man.'
A few days after sexually assaulting him, the court heard the influencer told the teen to 'just keep this quiet for a bit'.
Yet in a lawfully tapped phone call a year later, the 46-year-old laughingly admitted her attraction towards the 14-year-old boy.
During the call, the influencer urged the victim several times not to tell his father about the late-night sexual assault.
#5
...What's kinda funny is that when the sun came up Monday morning, the MSM was expecting to see President Trump bankrupted by a tame court in NYC...and instead got P. Diddy becoming an international fugitive (He made a run for it, one of his planes has been tracked to Antigua).
Unfortunately typical behaviour of a small in-group when the hierarchy is embarrassed publicly. The timing of events seems a bit odd, though.
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] A Louisiana deacon says he has been excommunicated from the Roman Catholic church after suing his diocese and a priest who was jailed for sexually assaulting his son.
Scott Peyton resigned from the diaconate in December 2023 after he learned that the priest he served next to had molested his son. However, he was supposed to, sacramentally, remain a deacon. But he now claims he has been punished for speaking out against abusers in the church after the Lafayette diocese excommunicated him on March 13 - the harshest punishment a Catholic can receive.
His son was 16 when he was molested by Father Michael Guidry, now 78, in 2015 - with Guidry giving him alcohol before molesting him while he was drunk. Guidry pleaded guilty to charges of assault and in 2019 was handed a seven-year prison sentence but not before his church honored him with a goodbye luncheon - which it later apologized for.
'I am aware that your family has suffered a trauma, but the answer does not lie in leaving the Most Holy Eucharist,' bishop Douglas Deshotel's letter read, as seen by The Advocate.
Peyton said the actions of the bishop appeared to be an overt attempt to silence him after his family became vocal supporters of a law supporting childhood sex abuse survivors who wanted to seek civil damages from the church.
The Lafayette diocese had even pushed for Louisiana's supreme court to strike down a law that eliminated filing deadlines for lawsuits demanding damages for childhood sexual abuse from years ago. The law, which was struck down on Friday, saw many new cases coming forward against both the institutions and clerics who had worked for Louisiana's Catholic church.
Peyton has described Bishop Deshotel's actions against him as 'very malicious' noting how despite more than 40 priests and deacons being on the organization's list of credibly accused child molesters, none have ever been excommunicated.
Peyton was ordained into the diocese of Lafayette as a deacon in 2012.
But it was in 2018 his faith was shaken after Guidry, whom he worked with at St Peter's church in Morrow, Louisiana, a tiny rural town in St. Landry's Parish, confessed to molesting Peyton's teenage son.
Guidry was arrested by the police and is now serving jail time.
Three years later, the Paytons, consisting of Scott, wife Letitia and son, managed to win a $350,000 from the diocese of Lafayette as part of an out of court settlement as part of a civil lawsuit against the church.
As part of the settlement, the church issued a three-sentence apology acknowledging the victim's credibility while denouncing Guidry's actions.
Yet Guidry has argued Oliver Peyton's son had brought the sexual abuse upon himself. He alleged the teenager had drunk from his own bottle and then guided the priest's hands during a nude massage.
Despite being in jail, disgraced priest Guidry, remains an ordained member of the clergy.
After their success, the Peytons decided to advocate for other victims who had been abused at the hands of the church.
Prior to the law being struck down, it had allowed victims to pursue civil damages in connection with sexual abuse no matter how many years ago assaults had taken place.
Scott and Letitia Peyton founded TentMakers - a non-profit organization designed to support survivors of Catholic clergy sex abuse.
Yet the law was struck down after lawyers for their own diocese argued that having no time limit or 'look back window' made the law unconstitutional.
Peyton then quit after deciding he was no longer a good fit to be serving as a deacon in the diocese.
The Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Maryland which crosses the Patapsco River has reportedly Collapsed within the last few minutes after being Struck by a Large Container Ship; a Mass Casualty Incident has been Declared with over a Dozen Cars and many Individuals said to… pic.twitter.com/SsPMU8Mjph
#14
I don't know enough about harbor operations to grasp the particulars. Was a harbor pilot involved at that stage?
Maersk is not a rinky-dink outfit. I would expect the ship had radar / lidar / GPS. WAas this stuff working.
The cynic in me says we will discover a female convert to pisslam DEI hire was at the helm and couldn't see the bridge pier because her niquab was interfering with her peripheral vision. Inshallah.
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
03/26/2024 9:01 Comments ||
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#15
Hey Pete, how's that transportation infrastructure study going?
#22
You would think the gerbilists would understand. You mess up the gerbil supply chain enough and Americans will become "Buy American" out of necessity.
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
03/26/2024 10:55 Comments ||
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#23
It’s a local that would be piloting the ship. I used to write the insurance for the Savannah and Brunswick Boat Pilot Assoc. Think of it as the designated hitter rule captains, skills have diminished but we need the union dues.
#26
If you lose propulsion, the current has you. If they had ruder control, it would do little good without the prop wash. I did a couple of years as Anav on a tender.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
03/26/2024 11:55 Comments ||
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#27
rank Key Howard (October 25, 1826 – May 29, 1872) (also cited as Francis Key Howard) was an American newspaper editor and journalist. The grandson of Francis Scott Key and Revolutionary War colonel John Eager Howard, Howard was the editor of the Daily Exchange, a Baltimore newspaper sympathetic to the Confederacy. Just after midnight on September 13, 1861, he was arrested without a warrant at his home by U.S. Major General Nathaniel Prentice Banks on the direct orders of General George B. McClellan enforcing the policy of President Abraham Lincoln. (In his book he writes that he was told by the arresting officer that the order had come from Secretary of State William Seward.) The basis for his arrest was the writing of an editorial printed in his newspaper that was critical of Lincoln's suspension of the writ of habeas corpus, of the declaration by the Lincoln administration of martial law in Baltimore, and of the imprisonment without charge of Baltimore mayor George William Brown, sitting U.S. Congressman Henry May, all the police commissioners of Baltimore, and the entire city council.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
03/26/2024 11:56 Comments ||
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#28
Biden's Transportation Secretary Pete Buttgig is in front of this I am sure /sarc.
#30
IIRC, if a pilot is aboard and in control, he (or she) is responsible for the navigation. On the other hand, as several people have pointed out:
1) If a ship has lost power, it can no longer steer
2) Even if the ship is going 10 knots or so, it will take a long time and distance to come to a stop
3) At 95,000 tons, it has a LOT of momentum, even at slow speeds. Momentum is probably what brought the bridge down.
4) With no power, a ship has no brakes (or steering wheel, really),so it can't stop on a dime
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia ||
03/26/2024 12:29 Comments ||
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#31
Local TV coverage stated 6 still missing. Water temp near the bridge was 47 deg F. Found the following at a USCG info web site:
In 50 to 60 degree water, your survival time is six hours. In 40 to 50 degrees, survival time is half that -- three hours. You'll survive for one to1 1/2 hours in 35 to 40 degree water. In water less than 35 degrees, you'll succumb fast.
#32
#26 If you lose propulsion, the current has you. If they had ruder control, it would do little good without the prop wash. I did a couple of years as Anav on a tender.
Posted by Super Hose 2024-03-26 11:55|| 2024-03-26 11:55|| Front Page || Comments Top
SH,
There's also the issue of the wind - I've had a couple of former USN officers state that the wind was enough that when Dali lost steerage, those containers would have acted as a uncontrollable sail.
With a population of roughly 15,000 people and about a five-hour drive from the rapidly growing Atlanta metro area, Brunswick, Georgia, might seem like an unlikely place for automotive shipping to flourish.
But flourish it has: behind only the Port of Baltimore, the Port of Brunswick ranks as the nation’s second-busiest port for wheeled cargo — known within the industry as “roll-on/roll-off” cargo, or simply “ro-ro.”
Having processed more than 700,000 units (primarily automobiles, but also some heavy machinery) in 2023 and grown its cargo volumes by 18% in the last fiscal year, the Port of Brunswick may well be on track to surpassing the Port of Baltimore — which Georgia Ports Authority president and CEO Griff Lynch has said will happen within five years.
Capable of handling up to three ro-ro ships at once, the Port of Brunswick is planning to add a fourth berth by 2026.
So, what explains the port’s success? The No. 1 reason, according to Lynch, is the Southeast region’s rapid population growth.
According to Pew, the Southern U.S. is growing faster than any other part of the country, with nearby Florida ranking as the fastest-growing state.
#37
Traffic was being blocked per todays press conference after receiving a mayday and warnings from the harbor pilots of the Dali 4 minutes before impact.
#40
The video and a site that had a parallel video showed the channel very close to the bridge pier that was key to the entire span's collapse. The power loss occurs 4-6 minutes before the impact. The on-board Harbor pilot immediately radios the MAYDAY, and initiated the anchor drop. When power was briefly restored several minutes later the tried emergency backing and you could see the bow start to track left, then power fails again and impact quickly follows. The crux of the tragedy appears to be the mechanical failure and the absurdly close channel proximate to the critical bridge pier that sustained to centerpoint of the span load tension. The investigation will determine if it was equipment failure or human error in the engineering spaces, not the bridge.
#42
Story is it lost power while in the channel. Power came back but it was too late. Being driven by local pilot. A couple of years ago, same ship had a 'lost power' incident at Wilhamshaven, and smacked the wharf.
Posted by: ed in texas ||
03/26/2024 15:17 Comments ||
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#43
Harbor authority say all incoming ships (currently 10) must go elsewhere, and everybody in port is stuck there until further notice.
Posted by: ed in texas ||
03/26/2024 15:23 Comments ||
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Posted by: M. Murcek ||
03/26/2024 15:31 Comments ||
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#46
Bridge seemed to lack more modern standards. 80% concrete not normal for today's new constructions. Wind and earthquake designed but being hit was not as big of concern. Back to the drawing board.
#47
Biden had a presser and said he'd rode the train across the Key Bridge many times. There's never been a train line on the Key Bridge.
I hear they're going to replace it with the Joe Biden Pontoon Bridge; that won't work, but then, neither does he.
Posted by: ed in texas ||
03/26/2024 16:45 Comments ||
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#48
Why not call back the ones sent to build Gaza pier?
#49
I predict they won't have a shipping channel open before the end of the summer and no replacement bridge will ever be built.
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
03/26/2024 17:54 Comments ||
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#50
I'm sure Mayor Pete will get right on it. After he's done chestfeeding.
On the other hand, this should cut down on emissions. Ships put out a lot of pollution.
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia ||
03/26/2024 18:06 Comments ||
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#51
It's going to affect the economy leading up to the election. Basically moots any help Joe could expect from messing with gas prices or the FED jiggering interest rates.
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
03/26/2024 18:08 Comments ||
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#52
My in-laws live in the area, the 695 exit before the bridge. It will inconvenience many people but there are alternative routes.
Mike, the freeboard is a big issue. I don’t know where the wind was or the state of the current. The propeller will also not be as effective with a backing bell on because of set up. I don’t think the main engine would turn at more than a slow rotation on the emergency generator. I would think that the bow thrusters could be used and the rudder. It looks like they were able to drop the port anchor. That would have only have stopped the vessel if it was dropped pretty far up the channel as the weight of the chain is what holds a ship in place. If it was dropped late the force have tended to rotate the ship to port and the stern to starboard.
The ship that I navigated was the Yellowstone- much less tonnage but similar handling. To me it looks like they did everything they could do.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
03/26/2024 18:34 Comments ||
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#53
If the ship lost power I would think that's a maintenance issue and that's just as bad as a pilot issue if not worse. Somebody needs to be in charge of making sure the ship does not lose power in close quarters like that and I would not want to be that person.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
03/26/2024 18:35 Comments ||
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#54
Good video, NoMoreBS.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
03/26/2024 18:44 Comments ||
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They have to somehow make up for being forced by Medicare/Medicaid and insurance companies to undercharge for treatments, not to mention all the illegals who pay nothing whatsoever. The alternative is closing their doors.
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news]
US hospitals are charging unsuspecting outpatients hundreds of dollars in facility fees to offset the cost of running their central organizations
Patients across the country whose providers have been bought out by major hospital systems are being punished to the tune of hundreds of dollars per visit
In states like Ohio, four out of five medical bills sent to the state's largest insurer for heart examines now include a facility fee
Anyone found 'pacing' the grounds?
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] Windsor Castle made history over the weekend by hosting its first-ever Ramadan event.
For the first time in British history, the royal estate in Berkshire welcomed guests for lftar after sunset on the castle grounds.
Before the Iftar, which is the fast-breaking evening meal for Muslims during the ninth month called Ramadan, guests enjoyed a tour of the State Apartments at Windsor Castle.
Co-hosted by Royal Collection Trust and Ramadan Tent Project, they welcomed guests of any faith to join in.
'Break fast with us this Ramadan at Windsor Castle. Open to people of all faiths and none, join us for a visit to the majestic State Apartments, followed by a meal after sunset in the castle grounds,' the website read.
Windsor Castle made history on Sunday by hosting its first Iftar event (pictured) in collaboration with Ramadan Tent Project
Windsor Castle made history on Sunday by hosting its first Iftar event (pictured) in collaboration with Ramadan Tent Project
The website continued: 'Your visit will begin with a self-guided tour of the breathtaking State Apartments at Windsor Castle, where you can admire the extraordinary interiors and beautiful artwork on display.
'After sunset, once the castle has closed to the public, we will invite you to join us in the castle grounds for a very special Iftar meal.
'We are thrilled to be collaborating with the Ramadan Tent Project for this exciting event.'
After the event, the founder of the Ramadan Tent Project, Omar Salha, took to X, formerly Twitter, to share photographs.
He wrote: 'An unforgettable experience touring the majestic grounds of Windsor followed by #iftar showcasing heritage, tradition and unity.'
In one image, rows of guests enjoyed a meal with one another, with coconut water and dates on the tables.
In other snaps, Omar showcased Windsor Castle before dusk and an image of a guard outside the royal residence.
Ramadan Tent Project is a charity that strives to unite communities and 'spread the spirit of Ramadan through various initiatives', according to its website.
[GEO.TV] Dave Calhoun, Boeing’s current CEO, will reportedly resign by December after scandals regarding the quality of the airline's safety, BBC reported.
This development is in line with the six month term given to Stan Deal, who serves as the commercial airlines division head, and Larry Kellner who has no intention of running for the chairman seat.
The aviation major faces scrutiny after a potential issue in January when old door blown off a Boeing 737 Max shortly after the take-off, which compared to renewed inspections of the company's safety and quality standards.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/26/2024 2024-03-26 01:26 ||
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Link ||
[173 views]
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#1
He stepped down because the Boeing Facebook page has thousands and thousands of comments accusing him of contracting out a hit job on a whistleblower.
#3
Sound of a aircraft panel hitting the ground - Boeing, boeing, boeing.
Scapegoating. - Nope
If QA is problem on the line, you move your desk to the floor and work there walking the line, not sit at your desk 2000 miles away. It's real hard for first and second line managers to send glad and happy reports when you are there physically.
#5
When Boeing moved its headquarters to Chicago from Seattle, it was speculated that quality would go down since they would be more concerned about cash flow than engineering.
#6
Boeing move to Chiraq was all about nicer amenities for the head office people. Nice restaurants. Theater. Opera. Shopping.
You know, stuff to take your mind off of issues at work. "Talent retention" the HR geeks call it...
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
03/26/2024 9:54 Comments ||
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#7
Ok, my two cents. I was at Boeing when he took over. Lived a couple years under his plans. When he took over I commented that when a CFO type takes over an engineering company, which Boeing is, it spells the slow death of the company. We saw this freight train derail years ago where engineering does not lead the decisions, but the balance sheet and making margins rules the day. The outsourcing, commodity managing of parts, selling off manufacturing capability and then contracting it back all spell loss of control, engineering control, for a lower price to the company bottom line.
The real answer will be in who they replace him with on a permanent basis. If they put another CFO type into the top seat, the company will be lost.
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
03/26/2024 13:36 Comments ||
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#8
The 'mounting safety crisis' is the possibility of jail time for the bosses, like say, Enron?
Posted by: ed in texas ||
03/26/2024 16:48 Comments ||
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#9
Enron was about financial mal and misfeasance. Plain old incompetence isn't in and of itself criminal.
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
03/26/2024 16:57 Comments ||
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#1
When football players are making millions whether they are playing or on injured reserve, the sport is no longer legitimate. It is not about preventing injury, it is about preventing financial loss to the owners.
#7
Bo Jackson was also injured that way and never returned to sports.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
03/26/2024 11:47 Comments ||
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#8
Football is a world sport that does not cause as many brain damage. A person who cares about his children would not allow them to play American Oval Ball.
Posted by: Old Salty ||
03/26/2024 12:11 Comments ||
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#9
Oh, I get it. You're talking about fruity foreigner kickball. Pretty funny Old Salt!
Posted by: Regular joe ||
03/26/2024 15:30 Comments ||
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Democrat voter or not.
At some point after so many arrests and convicts the person should be required to submit to a 2 week confined psychiatric review.
[FoxNews] A guest on MSNBC Monday became infuriated by the judges' ruling in decreasing former President Trump's bond payment in the New York civil fraud case, and claimed Trump had his "own private system of justice."
Tristian Snell, the former New York assistant attorney general, was asked during MSNBC's "José Díaz-Balart Reports" about what the process might have looked like in a courtroom.
"Do we even need to ask? Honestly, this is so infuriating I don’t even know what to do. I don’t even know if I care what the process is that these judges are arriving at. Whatever it is, it’s flawed. I can tell you that much," Snell said. "This is a different process for this person. We have decided that he gets his own private court of justice.
"He has a private plane," he continued. "He has private clubs that he lives in. He basically has fashioned himself his own private militia to try to take over the Capitol. Now he’s getting his own private system of justice. This is an absolute travesty. It would not happen for anybody else, anybody else. It would be like, sorry, buddy, you lost. Pay up. For him, he gets his own set of rules."
Snell was also asked about how the judge arrived at the decision legally, and argued bluntly that it was a "gross miscarriage of justice."
#3
Once again MSNBC clearly has indicated it has problems with the US Constitution and the Bill Of Right when it does not follow or benefit their political narrative and agenda.
Eg.
The 6th Amendment provides an individual accused of a crime, the right to a fair and speedy trial by a local and impartial jury.
The 8th Amendment protects people from having bail or fines set at an amount so high that it would be impossible pay.
#4
The Left clearly hates the Constitution. The Left worships power. They only have need of the 8th Amendment when it effects them not when it obstructs them.
#7
Tristan Snell
@TristanSnell
Trump has never had the scrutiny of the public stock market. Ever. Until now. Truth Social is an extremely high risk venture — both for him and for anyone crazy enough to invest in it.
9:10 AM · Oct 21, 2021
All you need to know about the book, and the author -- "An indispensable must-read. This is THE book to read to understand what’s going on in the cases against Trump.” — Joy Reid, MSNBC News anchor and host of The ReidOut
Posted by: Bobby ||
03/26/2024 10:39 Comments ||
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[Bloomberg] Trump Vows to Pay Fraud Trial Bond Cut by 68% to $175 Million
Donald Trump vowed to post a $175 million bond in New York’s civil fraud lawsuit after an appeals court slashed it by more than two thirds and handed him a crucial financial lifeline as state authorities were preparing to start seizing his assets.
The decision Monday was delivered as Trump faced a deadline to either pay the full $454 million verdict or post a standard bond for 120% of the judgment to put it on hold while he appeals. That would have amounted to nearly $545 million dollars, more cash than Trump said he had on hand.
The former president, who is campaigning to return to the White House, said he’ll post the smaller bond within a 10-day deadline set by the court. The appeals court in Manhattan did not offer any explanation behind its decision.
The bond decision was handed down as Trump sat in a Manhattan courtroom in a separate criminal case accusing him of falsifying business records to conceal a hush-money payment to a porn star before the 2016 election. The judge in that case set a trial for April 15 after rejecting Trump’s claim that the case should be tossed out because some evidence had been handed over late by prosecutors.
The billionaire real estate mogul had sought to waive the bond entirely or post a smaller one of just $100 million, claiming he’d have to sell properties at a loss to raise cash after insurance companies that arrange them refused to take his real estate as collateral. Trump’s commitment to pay the bond means he’ll be able to push ahead with his appeal without the risk of New York Attorney General Letitia James seizing his assets seized for lack of payment.
James had said she was prepared to seize assets including Trump’s skyscrapers in Manhattan and golf courses to pay the judgment if he didn’t post a bond.
Trump held a press conference in the lobby of his 40 Wall Street skyscraper and reiterated how the ruling had spared him from being forced to sell assets and left more money on the table to spend on his campaign.
The total damages in the civil fraud case are $464 million dollars, including about $10 million dollars in penalties against Trump’s sons Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. as well as the Trump Organization’s former chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg.
The ruling is a major setback for James, who had argued that Trump should be ordered to post a bond for the full amount because he couldn’t be trusted to pay what he owes if his appeal fails. Trump could still appeal the bond ruling to New York’s highest court to seek a further reduction.
The former president had asked to post a smaller bond or no bond at all to ease the financial pressure on him while he campaigns to return to the White House. But his legal woes remain. He’s also challenging an $83.3 million verdict in another civil trial he lost this year and faces four criminal prosecutions.
Before the two verdicts, Trump had a net worth of about $3.1 billion, the Bloomberg Billionaires Index estimates, and since then he hasn’t said how much cash he has on hand. But his recent court filing said the Manhattan-based Trump Organization would be forced to hold a “fire sale” of properties to raise enough cash for a bond.
Trump, who is the presumptive Republican nominee for the November election, said in a March 18 filing that 30 insurance companies capable of providing large appeal bonds refused to accept his real estate as collateral, citing an industry standard to only accept cash or cash equivalents. His lawyers said he doesn’t have enough cash.
[GEO.TV] South African prosecutors announced their intention on Monday to charge the parliamentary speaker with corruption, alleging that she accepted $135,000 (£107,000) and a wig in bribes during her tenure as defence minister over a span of three years.
Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, the present Speaker of the National Assembly, has not been yet been handed to the police or formally charged with the colonel Dlamini-Zuma issue.
During a trial hearing prosecutors put forward their allegations, which Mapisa-Nqakula challenged on the grounds that the enforcement staff failed to communicate the accusations to her in good time or to adhere to the rightful procedures.
To add to that, she was also accused of another bribe of amount $105 thousand but was not received. While mentioning one specific case of the papers, it is about Mapisa-Nqakula receiving $15,000 and wig inside the country's major international airport (January 2019).
Posted by: Fred ||
03/26/2024 2024-03-26 01:11 ||
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Link ||
[111 views]
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#1
she accepted $135,000 (£107,000) and a wig in bribes during her tenure as defence minister over a span of three years.
Bargain basement country. I wonder how much Iran payed them to go to ICJ?
[HotAir] Bags of dead mice dropped on a campus sidewalk. Scratches from rabid animals. Unknown viral samples. Infected blood splashing into researchers' faces.
These are just a few of the myriad examples of biosafety breaches that have occurred at a premier biological research lab on the Colorado State campus.
The information obtained through FOIA demands from The White Coat Waste Project is really disturbing, as is the fact that Colorado State is building a facility to do bat research along with the EcoHealth Alliance, likely parent of the COVID-19 virus.
WCW has uncovered an alarming pattern of recent animal lab accidents at Colorado State University, which is working with the notorious EcoHealth Alliance and the NIH to build a new bat lab and breeding colony.
Never-before-seen records obtained by WCW show that from 2020 to 2023, dozens of animal lab accidents with bats, cats, hamsters, and mice exposed CSU staff to coronaviruses, Zika, rabies, Tuberculosis, and other dangerous pathogens that can cause deadly outbreaks.
Last year, WCW exposed how $12 million of taxpayers’ money is being wasted by CSU and EcoHealth to build a new lab and import hundreds of bats from Asia to establish a new breeding colony and infect them with deadly viruses, including Ebola and Nipah
The new bat lab at CSU is now scheduled to be completed in December 2024
The list of mishaps is long and at times scary (infected mice just dropped on a sidewalk for anybody to pick up?), as is the fact that nobody in the larger community has been informed about almost any of them. It has taken the dogged work of activists to pry this information out of the lab.
Previously released records show that even before 2020, CSU had a history of laboratory accidents with dangerous, deadly, and contagious pathogens like the ones above and others including plague, Brucella, chikungunya, Valley Fever, and Q Fever. CSU’s bat labs have also been fined for violations of federal animal welfare laws.
Biologists have called CSU and EcoHealth’s plan to import bats “utterly irresponsible” and warned that if any of these non-native bats escaped from CSU it could be disastrous.
CSU’s current bat experiments are receiving millions in taxpayer funding through NIH as well as the National Science Foundation, Department of Energy, Department of Interior, and the Department of Defense’s “Combatting Weapons of Mass Destruction” account.
#1
Speaking engagements, golf, foreign travel, book writing? No, Soetoro stays pretty close to his D.C. residence and his STU-III secure coms link. These are busy times, busy times indeed.
#3
/\ Hunter was unavailable to make the trip. Soetoro dropped off dip pouch, stayed for an hour and returned to D.C. The POMs are kryptonite for Soeotoro.
#6
Not sure I want to know who pulls his strings, but a consortium of Chinese, Iranian, Assorted Muslim Groupings, Union, Gay, WEC, Hollywood, and Billionaire Boys Club Donors tells him what to do via cut-outs.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited. by Malek Dudakov
[REGNUM] Washington is mired in budget wars. For more than six months, since September 2023, the American Congress has not been able to cope with its basic responsibility - the adoption of federal budgets. Battles over funding the US government have already cost one Speaker of the House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, his seat. Now current Speaker Mike Johnson is at risk of following in his footsteps. And this will plunge the US political system into hardware paralysis on the eve of the elections.
Since last fall, American lawmakers have had to live literally paycheck to paycheck.
The poor darlings.
They accepted only short-term budgets for one or two months in advance; they did not have enough capacity for more. After all, the split between Republicans and Democrats, and within both parties, is now stronger than ever.
There is a right wing of Republicans, which in every possible way demands that its leadership sharply reduce government spending; they are panicking because of the rapid growth and deficit of the US budget and the American national debt. In 2023, the deficit was $2 trillion; in 2024 it will approach three trillion. The national debt increases by 1 trillion every three to four months.
It would seem that it’s not a problem, because America can always print more unsecured dollars. But from the spring of 2022, the United States had to tighten the screws on inflation, stop the uncontrolled emission of money and sharply increase the key rate. Therefore, now the growing public debt has begun to put very painful pressure on the budget. Let's say that last year it took $1 trillion to pay interest on the national debt - this is already more than America spends on all its military expenses.
Among the Republicans there are those who demand that spending on social services and military services be reduced at the same time. There are hawks for whom the military budget is sacred and cannot be encroached upon. And in the camp of Democrats they really want to spend as much as possible on everything at once.
It is very difficult for these groups to come to a compromise, which is why US budget policy is so stalled. This has also manifested itself against the backdrop of the current battles. By March 22, lawmakers had to urgently pass a budget to avoid a shutdown or suspension of the US government. It will last for six months, until the end of September, which is also not a long period.
Republicans managed to include some of their symbolic initiatives in the $1.2 trillion budget proposal. For example, they forced the State Department to ban the display of rainbow flags on its embassy buildings around the world. And also the FBI budget is being cut by about 6% - this is a kind of retaliatory measure in defiance of the feds, whom Republicans are now accusing of persecuting Donald Trump.
The US military budget will be $825 billion and will grow by only a couple of percent, which is below inflation. It allocates only $300 million to resume arms purchases to replace what was spent in Ukraine. The numbers are very small and are much lower than the 60 billion requested by the White House.
The voting results in Congress are indicative: in the lower house, 130 Republicans, or 60% of their faction, opposed it. It was possible to pass the budget bill only due to the votes of the Democrats. Many Republicans were unhappy with their speaker's deal with the Democratic Party, wanting to cut government spending much more. Some legislators were not even at all against arranging a shutdown of Joe Biden's government.
The first reaction to the budget approval was a petition for the speaker's resignation on behalf of Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, an influential Trump supporter. The procedure for recalling the speaker has been greatly simplified since 2023: only the signatures of five congressmen are enough, and it is put to a vote. And then, if even 3-5 right-wing Republicans, along with the Democrats, vote against Speaker Johnson, he will automatically lose his post.
There are no plans to vote on this petition any time soon. But Marjorie Taylor Greene intends to use it as a real sword of Damocles over her own speaker. This could be very useful to her in the near future. Right now, Congress is going on another two-week recess before returning after April 9th. Then legislators will have two working weeks, when the already sore issue of Ukrainian trenches will be on the agenda.
The White House continues to insist on the allocation of $95 billion, of which 60 will go to Ukraine and the rest will be divided between Israel and Taiwan. Approximately 12 billion will be provided in the form of new tranches to Kyiv, and the rest of the money will go to the Pentagon to produce new weapons to replace those lost on the Ukrainian front.
Hawks among Republicans, such as Senator Lindsey Graham, who recently visited Kiev, are proposing to allocate this 12 billion in the form of a loan. This is how they try to cajole their electorate, which is already tired of the war in Ukraine and demands not to spend money on it. Everyone understands that Kyiv will never repay these loans. Therefore, it is proposed to issue them on the security of Russian assets in the United States, amounting to $30–40 billion, in order to then begin to seize them after the defeat of Ukraine.
But even such “schematas” do not please the right wing of the Republicans, who play on the growth of isolationism among voters. After all, the majority of Americans - and two-thirds of ordinary Republicans - do not consider it necessary to allocate new tranches to Kyiv. The Ukrainian agenda is becoming increasingly toxic in the face of constant failures and retreats of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Therefore, now the Trumpist Republicans under the leadership of Marjorie Taylor Greene will literally blackmail their speaker. If he puts a bill with Ukrainian-Israeli tranches to a vote, he will be subject to a recall procedure. And they will simply be thrown out of office, as happened with previous Speaker McCarthy in September.
Mike Johnson found himself in a very difficult position.
For now, he promises to prioritize migration issues and try to strengthen the security of the US southern border, which is being stormed by hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants. And only then take on the issue of Ukraine. The speaker may propose to allocate a small symbolic amount in support of Kyiv, which the White House will definitely not accept.
Isolationists hope to continue to delay the procedure for allocating tranches in Congress. After April 23, lawmakers will go on vacation again, and they will have few working days in May. With the November elections ahead, congressmen and senators are spending most of their time “in the field,” working with voters. This will take the lion's share of the summer months.
Only in September will Congress work more actively, when the next round of budget sharing is on the agenda. But the closer the elections are, the less appetite legislators will have to allocate tranches to the Ukrainian conflict, which has become unpopular in the United States.
If Speaker Johnson is nevertheless overthrown, then Congress will plunge into real administrative chaos. It is quite possible that a new speaker will not be chosen until after the elections. And there will no longer be time for Ukrainian trenches - all the work of the Congress will be completely paralyzed.
Well, one person becomes the beneficiary of the situation - Donald Trump. He, through his supporters, launched the processes of controlled chaos in Congress and is reaping the benefits. It is now much easier for Trump to conduct campaigns criticizing the “Washington swamp,” which is incapable of governing the country. And at the same time, it complicates the situation for Ukraine with the blocking of trenches. After all, if the Ukrainian front begins to crumble in the summer and autumn, then it will bury the entire Biden presidency with it.
#1
The last paragraph is not entirely believable, but I hope his 'bury Biden' conclusion is plausible.
Posted by: Bobby ||
03/26/2024 10:32 Comments ||
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#2
^^^ The part about the Washington swamp being unable to run the country is certainly true.
I like Elon Musk's precedent of firing 80% of the staff at Twitter/X. It seems to have worked out pretty well. Donald, please do the same in Washington!
Posted by: Tom ||
03/26/2024 15:54 Comments ||
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#3
^ If it were only so simple.
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
03/26/2024 16:28 Comments ||
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
[PressHerald] Team owners voted Monday to ban the technique, which resulted in 15 players missing time with injury last season. 
