Virginia’s General Assembly passed a bill banning “no-knock” search warrants Wednesday, clearing the way for it to go to Gov. Ralph Northam’s desk.
“I applaud my colleagues in the General Assembly for supporting HB 5099,” Virginia Delegate Lashrecse Aird, who introduced the bill, said in a statement. “This bill was drafted with significant input from stakeholders from both law enforcement and the criminal justice community, working together towards the goal of protecting more lives in the Commonwealth.”
The bill passed the House of Delegates last month. However, It's just now being reported!
The legislation, in part, is a response to the death of Breonna Taylor in Kentucky earlier this year. She was killed at home after officers entered to serve a no-knock drug warrant connected with a suspect who did not live there and was already in police custody.
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Friday, October 16, 2020
2-year-old girl’s arm ripped off after she reaches into cage of wolfdog
A 2-year-old Michigan girl’s arm was torn off when she reached inside the cage of a wolfdog at her grandmother’s sanctuary and tried to grab its collar, according to reports.
Brenda Pearson, who founded the Howling Timbers Animal Sanctuary in Muskegon, described the horrifying July incident involving Sophia Scraver in a lengthy post on Facebook.
She wrote that she believes her granddaughter “was interested in the shiny collar being worn by one of the wolf dogs. A wolf dog that was friendly, loved to be groomed and preferred human attention over treats.”
Pearson continued: “We believe she grabbed his collar and he pulled to get away. She then got her arm stuck in the fence at the elbow and lost her arm.
Pearson said she was investigated by Child Protective Services officials “who found no wrong doing on my part.”
Last Friday, authorities said they found 47 “illegal” wolfdogs at the facility, in addition to “six red foxes, three coyotes, four eastern box turtles and two fawns,” according to the Mirror.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources said the sanctuary is believed to have been illegally breeding animals, according to the news outlet.
Brenda Pearson, who founded the Howling Timbers Animal Sanctuary in Muskegon, described the horrifying July incident involving Sophia Scraver in a lengthy post on Facebook.
She wrote that she believes her granddaughter “was interested in the shiny collar being worn by one of the wolf dogs. A wolf dog that was friendly, loved to be groomed and preferred human attention over treats.”
Pearson continued: “We believe she grabbed his collar and he pulled to get away. She then got her arm stuck in the fence at the elbow and lost her arm.
Pearson said she was investigated by Child Protective Services officials “who found no wrong doing on my part.”
Last Friday, authorities said they found 47 “illegal” wolfdogs at the facility, in addition to “six red foxes, three coyotes, four eastern box turtles and two fawns,” according to the Mirror.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources said the sanctuary is believed to have been illegally breeding animals, according to the news outlet.
San Francisco may change 'inappropriate' names of 44 city schools, including Washington and Lincoln
At least 44 schools in San Francisco could see their names changed, as officials believe some were named after those with potential connections to slavery, genocide and colonization, according to a report on Thursday.
The San Francisco School Names Advisory Committee researched school names and identified certain ones for renaming. Some Principals and parents questioned the wisdom of devoting energy on this issue when so many children continue to take remote lessons.
Jonathan Alloy, whose children attend one of the schools on the list, criticized the timing. He said kids are already forced to conduct distance learning, which negatively impacts minorities more so than their peers, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
“Principals are devoting resources to this," he said. “We’re not actually helping disadvantaged children by changing the name of the school they can’t attend."
Some of the schools listed under the proposed name changes included Abraham Lincoln High School, George Washington High School, Roosevelt Middle School, and Jefferson Elementary.
According to the paper, certain criteria by the committee included: "Anyone directly involved in the colonization of people, those connected to any human rights or environmental abuses, slave owners or participants in enslavement, and known racists and/or white supremacists and/or espoused racist beliefs."
The San Francisco School Names Advisory Committee researched school names and identified certain ones for renaming. Some Principals and parents questioned the wisdom of devoting energy on this issue when so many children continue to take remote lessons.
Jonathan Alloy, whose children attend one of the schools on the list, criticized the timing. He said kids are already forced to conduct distance learning, which negatively impacts minorities more so than their peers, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
“Principals are devoting resources to this," he said. “We’re not actually helping disadvantaged children by changing the name of the school they can’t attend."
Some of the schools listed under the proposed name changes included Abraham Lincoln High School, George Washington High School, Roosevelt Middle School, and Jefferson Elementary.
According to the paper, certain criteria by the committee included: "Anyone directly involved in the colonization of people, those connected to any human rights or environmental abuses, slave owners or participants in enslavement, and known racists and/or white supremacists and/or espoused racist beliefs."
Notre Dame colleagues call on Amy Coney Barrett to halt Supreme Court confirmation
Eighty-eight faculty members at the University of Notre Dame have penned an open letter to colleague and Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett, asking her to halt the confirmation process until after the presidential election.
The group — which does not include any instructors at Notre Dame Law School, where Barrett, 48, teaches — called on her to “take this unprecedented step” in light of three considerations.
“First, voting for the next president is already underway,” the letter read. “According to the United States Election Project, more than seven million people have already cast their ballots, and millions more are likely to vote before election day.
“The rushed nature of your nomination process, which you certainly recognize as an exercise in raw power politics, may effectively deprive the American people of a voice in selecting the next Supreme Court justice.”
The group — which does not include any instructors at Notre Dame Law School, where Barrett, 48, teaches — called on her to “take this unprecedented step” in light of three considerations.
“First, voting for the next president is already underway,” the letter read. “According to the United States Election Project, more than seven million people have already cast their ballots, and millions more are likely to vote before election day.
“The rushed nature of your nomination process, which you certainly recognize as an exercise in raw power politics, may effectively deprive the American people of a voice in selecting the next Supreme Court justice.”
Critics pan NBC town hall, Savannah Guthrie for 'debating' Trump, ABC for giving 'softballs' to Biden
Critics piled on NBC News for devoting its town hall to what appeared to be a "debate" between President Trump and moderator Savannah Guthrie, while Democratic nominee Joe Biden was lobbed "softballs" at his ABC News town hall.
Viewers who tuned into the Peacock Network expected to hear questions from voters. However, Guthrie spent most of the first 20 minutes grilling Trump on masks and White supremacy.
That didn't sit well with many observers.
"How long will NBC go before giving an actual voter the chance to ask a question?" asked pollster Frank Luntz, who later called the "town hall" descriptor of the program "false advertising."
"A third of the way into the NBC town hall and NO questions from the PEOPLE!!!" White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany exclaimed.
"Savannah Guthrie posture toward Trump compared to Lester Holt’s toward Biden is night and day," The Hill media reporter Joe Concha wrote, recalling a previous NBC town hall with the former VP.
"Trump went from debating Biden to Guthrie! Not sure whether this is good or bad yet ... but he's definitely debating tonight," CNN commentator Scott Jennings said.
Viewers who tuned into the Peacock Network expected to hear questions from voters. However, Guthrie spent most of the first 20 minutes grilling Trump on masks and White supremacy.
That didn't sit well with many observers.
"How long will NBC go before giving an actual voter the chance to ask a question?" asked pollster Frank Luntz, who later called the "town hall" descriptor of the program "false advertising."
"A third of the way into the NBC town hall and NO questions from the PEOPLE!!!" White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany exclaimed.
"Savannah Guthrie posture toward Trump compared to Lester Holt’s toward Biden is night and day," The Hill media reporter Joe Concha wrote, recalling a previous NBC town hall with the former VP.
"Trump went from debating Biden to Guthrie! Not sure whether this is good or bad yet ... but he's definitely debating tonight," CNN commentator Scott Jennings said.
Biden campaign ‘glad’ Twitter, Facebook censored Post’s Hunter Biden exposé
Joe Biden’s campaign on Thursday said they had no problem with Twitter and Facebook’s unprecedented censoring of The Post’s bombshell reporting on Hunter Biden’s business dealings, even admitting they were “glad” it happened.
Biden campaign National Press Secretary Jamal Brown went so far as to claim that the gagging of one of America’s largest newspapers “made clear” that The Post’s reporting on Ukraine- and China-related documents from a Hunter Biden hard drive were untrue.
“What is your campaign’s response to this article and do you think that Twitter is doing the right thing here?” a Cheddar anchor asked Brown of the forming political maelstrom.
“I think Twitter’s response to the actual article itself makes clear that these purported allegations are false and they’re not true and glad to see social media companies like Twitter taking responsibility to limit misinformation,” Brown said.
Biden campaign National Press Secretary Jamal Brown went so far as to claim that the gagging of one of America’s largest newspapers “made clear” that The Post’s reporting on Ukraine- and China-related documents from a Hunter Biden hard drive were untrue.
“What is your campaign’s response to this article and do you think that Twitter is doing the right thing here?” a Cheddar anchor asked Brown of the forming political maelstrom.
“I think Twitter’s response to the actual article itself makes clear that these purported allegations are false and they’re not true and glad to see social media companies like Twitter taking responsibility to limit misinformation,” Brown said.
Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans on Thursday said they will hold a hearing next week to compel Twitter’s chief executive to testify and have invited Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to do the same.
ABC's George Stephanopoulos avoids explosive Hunter Biden report during Biden town hall
ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos failed to ask Joe Biden any questions about the explosive New York Post report about his son Hunter Biden.
The Post rocked the political world on Wednesday with a report that revealed a 2015 email Hunter Biden allegedly received from a member of the Ukrainian energy company Burisma, who appeared to thank him for "giving an opportunity" to meet his father, then-Vice President Biden. The Democratic nominee has previously said he has "never spoken to my son about his overseas business dealings."
While the Biden campaign previously denied that the former VP had any scheduled meetings with the Burisma adviser at the time, the Democratic nominee received a pass from Stephanopoulos during the 90-minute town hall.
NewsBusters managing editor Curtis Houck concluded that the omission is "another example of censorship and collusion."
While the Biden campaign previously denied that the former VP had any scheduled meetings with the Burisma adviser at the time, the Democratic nominee received a pass from Stephanopoulos during the 90-minute town hall.
NewsBusters managing editor Curtis Houck concluded that the omission is "another example of censorship and collusion."
New Jersey high schooler says teacher ordered him to take down Trump banner at home before virtual class
A New Jersey teen said a teacher ordered him to take down a Donald Trump banner hanging behind him in his home during a virtual class last week, according to local reports.
Anthony Ribeiro, a 17-year-old student at Toms River North High School said the teacher saw the banner and told him to remove it before class.
“He said, 'Anthony take the sign down right now' and I looked up, seeing class hasn't started yet,” the teen told NBC New York. “I was on my phone. I looked up at him and kind of just looked back down like I didn't hear him.”
But the teacher repeated the request and said Ribeiro would have to leave if he refused.
“I waved goodbye, and I was gone,” the teen said.
District officials told the outlet they were addressing the incident and that Ribeiro “was not in violation of any general code of conduct or any policy specifically related to virtual learning.”
The teen’s mother, Tara Jost, told NJ Advance Media the incident shocked her.
“My son takes his academics very seriously, and for this teacher to kick him out of learning that day for something that was in my home…I don’t think he should’ve been kicked out of class for that,” she said.
The family told the outlet that students were given instructions on behavior during virtual classes, including no pajamas and no taking part while in bed – but not about keeping political signs away from cameras.
Anthony Ribeiro, a 17-year-old student at Toms River North High School said the teacher saw the banner and told him to remove it before class.
“He said, 'Anthony take the sign down right now' and I looked up, seeing class hasn't started yet,” the teen told NBC New York. “I was on my phone. I looked up at him and kind of just looked back down like I didn't hear him.”
But the teacher repeated the request and said Ribeiro would have to leave if he refused.
“I waved goodbye, and I was gone,” the teen said.
District officials told the outlet they were addressing the incident and that Ribeiro “was not in violation of any general code of conduct or any policy specifically related to virtual learning.”
The teen’s mother, Tara Jost, told NJ Advance Media the incident shocked her.
“My son takes his academics very seriously, and for this teacher to kick him out of learning that day for something that was in my home…I don’t think he should’ve been kicked out of class for that,” she said.
The family told the outlet that students were given instructions on behavior during virtual classes, including no pajamas and no taking part while in bed – but not about keeping political signs away from cameras.