Category: Security

  • Fatal LAPD shooting of mentally ill man who threw objects at vehicles was justified, commission rules

    A Los Angeles police oversight body was critical of tactics used by two LAPD officers who fatally shot a mentally ill man holding a scooter part last January, but ultimately ruled that the officers acted within department policy and should not face discipline.

    In a 4-0 vote Tuesday, the Board of Police Commissioners agreed with Chief Michel Moore’s findings that Officers Diego Bracamontes and Christopher Guerrero were justified when they opened fire on 35-year-old Oscar Sanchez after responding to multiple 911 calls that he was throwing metal objects at passing vehicles. One commissioner, William Briggs, was absent from the vote.

    In a report summarizing the findings of an internal investigation, Moore stopped short of saying that Sanchez’s death could have been averted but questioned some of the officers’ tactical decisions leading up to the shooting, suggesting they missed opportunities to defuse the encounter.

    Moore also said the officers should have consulted with the department’s mental health unit before approaching Sanchez. The chief said Sanchez’s decision to forcibly enter a nearby residence — combined with officers’ reasonable belief that he was armed — met the department’s definition of a “barricaded suspect.” Instead of following him inside, Moore said, officers should have retreated and instead summoned the SWAT team and crisis negotiators to the scene.

    Sanchez’s death came amid a string of fatal Los Angeles police encounters involving men of color in the throes of mental health crises at the start of the year. In one incident, schoolteacher Keenan Anderson died several hours after an officer stunned him repeatedly with a Taser during an incident in which body-camera footage showed he was running through traffic and yelling incoherently. In another, police shot and killed Takar Smith, a 46-year-old man with schizophrenia who had barricaded himself inside a kitchen after officers ordered him to drop his knife.

    The Police Commission ruled there were multiple LAPD policy violations in the deaths of Anderson and Smith. The cases drew protests by activists who said the incidents underscored why armed police are ill-suited for dealing with people in distress.

    In the case of Sanchez, the report released Tuesday said officers responded on Jan. 3 to the area of 28th Street and Central Avenue after receiving calls about a man who had wrapped wire from a light pole around a large kitchen knife and thrown objects at passing vehicles. They tried to speak with Sanchez, but he disappeared into a second-story unit of a nearby building. A witness later told police that Sanchez lived there with another person, whose name and relationship to him were redacted from the report.

    The officers said they left without detaining Sanchez because they couldn’t locate a victim and concluded that his “demeanor” suggested that any attempts to engage him would lead to use of force. They were dispatched back to the location about half an hour later when another 911 caller reported a man matching Sanchez’s description had thrown something at his vehicle.

    Sanchez again ignored the officers’ commands, in Spanish and English, and walked back up to the second-story unit. Pacing back and forth on a landing outside, he complained in Spanish about the flashlights being shined on him and yelled, “You’re not going to rob me, idiot.”

    Sanchez began trying to force his way into the unit, prompting a supervisor on the scene, Sgt. Edward Asawesna, to order officers to go in after Sanchez if he managed to get inside. The shooting occurred as officers entered the unit, with Bracamontes and Guerrero each firing three rounds. Almost simultaneously, another officer, Carlos Manzo, shot at Sanchez with a projectile from a 40mm “less lethal” launcher used by police to subdue suspects; it’s unclear whether that round struck him.

    Sanchez was pronounced dead at the scene.

    Bracamontes said in an interview with department investigators that Sanchez was holding what appeared to him to be a “harpoon gun” or a homemade spear with a sharp point, and in what Bracamontes described as a fighting stance.

    Asawesna said he didn’t see any weapons in Sanchez’s hand, according to the chief’s report. Moore was critical of Asawesna’s actions at times during the incident, agreeing with a department force review board in that the sergeant exhibited poor judgment in ordering officers to follow Sanchez onto the narrow landing where they had “limited redeployment options.”

    Moore said he was pleased with the initial tactics employed by Bracamontes and Guerrero, pointing out that they discussed the nature of the call while en route, as officers were trained to do, and conceived a plan before approaching Sanchez. Sgt. Asawesna, he notes, also ensured that all officers present were assigned proper roles.

    But Moore agreed with a majority of the review board, which faulted Bracamontes and Guerrero for failing to recognize this as a barricaded suspect situation. As seasoned officers, they should have known to fall back and call for backup, he said.

    A minority of the board pointed out that officers often respond to radio calls with only vague information to go on, and that disobeying Asawesna’s orders to pursue Sanchez into the building could have been grounds for insubordination.

    Earlier this year, Sanchez’s family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the two officers and the city, contending that officers had no cause to confront Sanchez when he was going into his home and posed no threat to them or anyone else.

    “It’s not clear how they could find that an officer’s use of deadly force was justified in the case when they find that a man was unarmed, that a man was mentally ill and the man was in his own home,” said attorney Christian Contreras, who filed the suit on behalf of Sanchez’s family. “But again it’s not a surprise when this is essentially the police policing themselves.”

    Contreras said that Sanchez’s family is still grieving and that the shooting could have been prevented if the officers hadn’t “agitated” Sanchez and escalated the confrontation. The city has denied any wrongdoing in the civil case, which is set to go to trial in February 2025.

    Bracamontes was involved in another fatal on-duty shooting at the Ford Hotel on July 20, when he and another officer opened fire on a 56-year-old Black man named Billy Stribling who police said raised a knife over his head as he advanced toward the officers. Stribling was also struggling with mental illness.

    The commission’s ruling on the Sanchez case comes amid an ongoing debate about the role police should play in responding to emergency calls involving people suffering from mental illness. Activists have argued that alternative mental health providers would be better equipped to respond to certain calls for help. LAPD officials have agreed in the past but maintained that incidents in which a weapon is present necessitate an armed response.

    The department has sought to expand coverage of its Mental Evaluation Unit — which pairs officers with county social workers trained in de-escalating standoffs with people thought to be mentally ill — but officials have said a shortage of clinicians has made this difficult.

    A separate mobile response team that is made up entirely of unarmed mental health workers continues to expand, most recently to several neighborhoods in the San Fernando Valley. Proponents have long argued that such programs, and more community-led efforts, remain underfunded.

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    © 2023 Los Angeles Times

    Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.



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  • Elon Musk’s new ‘humanoid’ robot revealed

    Tesla has unveiled a new look at its Tesla Optimus robot, highlighting improvements that have been added to its humanoid robot prototype.

    In a video released Tuesday on social media of the second generation of the Optimus robot, Tesla, which is owned by billionaire Elon Musk, claims it has reduced the humanoid robot’s weight by 10kg. The video showcases the artificial intelligence robot gently handling an egg, highlighting the robot’s “tactile sensing on all fingers.” The video also shows the Optimus robot walking around around a Tesla garage with multiple Cybertrucks and and practicing squats in a gym.

    According to Bloomberg, the Optimus robot is part of Tesla’s attempt to develop artificial intelligence. The Tesla robot is trained with a neural network in order to accomplish simple tasks that would normally be performed by humans.

    Tesla’s website notes that the Tesla robot’s purpose is to develop “a general purpose, bi-pedal, autonomous humanoid robot capable of performing unsafe, repetitive or boring tasks. Achieving that end goal requires building the software stacks that enable balance, navigation, perception and interaction with the physical world.”

    Tesla’s website also claims that the company is hiring computer vision, deep learning, controls, motion planning, mechanical, and general software engineers in order to “solve some of our hardest engineering challenges.”

    “We believe that an approach based on advanced AI for vision and planning, supported by efficient use of inference hardware, is the only way to achieve a general solution for full self-driving, bi-pedal robotics and beyond,” the website states.

    READ MORE: Video: Joe Rogan shoots Elon Musk’s cybertruck with an arrow

    A separate video posted on social media in September featured the Optimus robot sorting building blocks “autonomously” by color. Tesla noted that the robot’s neural network is “trained fully end-to-end: video in, controls out.”

    At the time of the September video, Tesla also announced that the Optimus robot was “now capable of self-calibrating its arms and legs.”



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  • Prosecutor seeks 10 years in prison in Absentia for film director over his anti-war stance

    This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.

    A prosecutor on December 14 asked a court in Moscow to sentence self-exiled film director Ivan Vyrypayev to 10 years in prison on charges of “discrediting Russian armed forces” involved in Moscow’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

    In April, the Basmanny district court in the Russian capital issued an arrest warrant for Vyrypayev, who is currently outside Russia.

    Vyrypayev publicly condemned the Kremlin’s full-scale aggression against Ukraine launched in February 2022.

    He renounced his Russian citizenship in May 2022 and obtained a Polish passport.



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  • Beijing blasts US report accusing China of economic aggression

    This article was originally published by Radio Free Asia and is reprinted with permission.

    Beijing on Wednesday blasted a U.S. congressional committee report accusing the Chinese Communist Party of pursuing a multi-decade campaign of economic aggression aimed at hollowing out the American economy, calling it “dedicated to attacking and smearing China.”

    The report further accused the party, often called the CCP, of “military-civil fusion,” and warned U.S. investors against “unwittingly” supporting China’s defense industry, emerging technology companies, and human rights abuses.

    Tuesday’s report by the House Select Committee on the CCP called for a “reset” of economic relations with Beijing aimed at ensuring that China abide by its trade commitments.

    Foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told reporters at a press conference in Beijing that the report was “full of prejudice and hostility and can be said to be completely irrational.”

    The report comes amid increasing tensions between the world’s leading superpowers, despite attempts by the U.S. to defuse the tensions with a barrage of diplomatic missions and China’s recent back downs on what was formerly called “wolf-warrior diplomacy.”

    Last month, U.S. President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping met in San Francisco and agreed to restore military communications and to cooperate on better terms.

    It’s unknown whether the select committee’s recommendations will be taken up in Washington, but the strong language suggests that frictions are from over between the two economic titans.

    ‘Gravediggers of capitalism’

    One Taipei political source who asked to be anonymous because of the delicacy of the issue said that China was likely to continue to roll back outright hostility to the United States and that the committee report was unlikely to have much impact.

    “The ‘wolf warrior’ days are over but Xi is not going to outright admit it,” agreed Wu’er Kaixi, a Tiananmen Square student leader and exile, as well as Taiwan parliamentary representative of human rights. “They’ll protest, of course, but it will just be words.”

    The U.S. report accused the CCP of pursuing economic policies aimed at fulfilling Xi’s directive to be the ‘gravediggers of capitalism.’”

    The party has “employed extensive mercantilist and coercive policies to hollow out the American economy and displace American workers and has wielded extensive subsidies at unprecedented levels and market access – in what the former director of the National Security Agency called ‘the greatest transfer of wealth’ in history.”

    American investors, the report added, have “wittingly and unwittingly” supported China’s “defense industry, emerging technology companies, and human rights abuses.”

    The report accused China of not living up to its responsibilities upon accession to the World Trade Organization in 2001 and of “undermining” and “impairing” benefits the U.S. and the world expected from improved trade relations with China.



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  • What are Chinese vessels doing at Ream Naval Base?

    This article was originally published by Radio Free Asia and is reprinted with permission.

    A training course for Cambodian navy staff is underway at the newly built Ream Naval Base in Preah Sihanouk province, according to the base’s social media.  

    On Dec. 7, an on-ship training course led by Chinese instructors opened at Ream for Cambodia’s officers and sailors, the semi-official Ream Naval Base News said on Facebook.

    Satellite data provided by the imaging company Planet Labs show the two Chinese vessels are still docked at the pier as of Thursday, Dec. 14, 2023. They have been there at least since Dec. 1.

    Radio Free Asia was first to report about the arrival of Chinese naval vessels at Ream earlier last week. They are the first foreign ships to have been given access to the newly built base and its deep-draft pier, developed with help from China.

    It is unclear how long the training course would last but “in-port training exchanges can take 5-10 working days, depending on the extent and type of training,” said Carl Schuster, a retired U.S. Navy captain and former director of operations at the U.S. Pacific Command’s Joint Intelligence Center.

    The Ream Naval Base News released some photos of the course’s opening ceremony showing Chinese crew, both in uniform and plain clothed, sitting among Cambodian military staff.

    “These are early days for the Cambodians to be learning about ‘big’ ships, at least compared to what they’re used to – patrol boats,” according to another defense analyst, Tom Shugart.

    The scope of training may be limited as “at this point I think most of the logistical facilities are still under construction,” said Shugart, an adjunct senior fellow with the Defense Program at the Center for a New American Security.

    “The ships do not seem to have gone to sea. So I suspect the training consisted of in port training, equipment familiarization and bi-lateral discussions, classes, etc.,” said Schuster, who added “all port visits have a political element.”

    “Allowing ship tours to visitors from the town, working with local naval forces and meeting with local officials often are more important than the training activities,” the analyst explained. 

    Visiting Vietnam

    Meanwhile, the new commander of Cambodia’s Ream Naval Base, Rear Adm. Mey Dina, has visited Vietnam “to promote bilateral cooperation,” the Vietnamese Navy said.

    Mey Dina, who used to act as the base’s spokesperson, has recently taken over from Adm. Ouk Seiha. 

    The Navy’s newspaper said the commander and his delegation arrived in Phu Quoc, home of the Navy’s 5th Region Command, on Dec. 12.

    The rear admiral met with his counterpart and co-chaired a workshop to review Cambodia-Vietnam joint naval patrols in the Gulf of Thailand. He left in the afternoon on Dec. 13.

    Vietnam, whose Phu Quoc island lies less than 30 km (18.6 miles) from Ream, has not officially reacted to the news of the Chinese ships but Vietnamese officials have maintained that “the cooperation between countries should contribute positively to peace, security, stability and prosperity in the region as well as across the world.”

    A Vietnamese maritime observer who wishes to stay anonymous because of the sensitivity of the issue said “almost certainly Rear Adm. Mey Dina and his Vietnamese host spoke about the Chinese ships’ presence at Ream.”

    Vietnam and China are part of an ongoing territorial dispute in the South China Sea and China’s gaining a foothold in the Gulf of Thailand so close may play to Vietnam’s great disadvantage, the observer added.

    In June 2021 China and Cambodia began developing the Ream Naval Base, in Preah Sihanouk province, with Beijing’s funding. 

    The base appears to be almost complete after two years of construction, with a modern deep-draft pier that can accommodate aircraft carriers.

    Cambodia has repeatedly denied that China is being given exclusive military access to the base, saying that would be in contradiction to the country’s constitution. If operating from the base, this would be China’s second foreign naval staging facility in the world after the one in Djibouti.

    A U.S. State Department’s spokesperson told Reuters on Dec. 6 that Washington has “serious concerns about the PRC’s plans for exclusive control over portions of Ream Naval Base,” calling China by its former name, People’s Republic of China.



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  • Camden Toy, actor known for ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ and ‘Angel,’ dies at 68

    Actor Camden Toy, whose credits included the television series “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “The Bay” and “Angel,” has died.

    In a press release shared Wednesday, Toy’s publicist Matt Chassin said the actor died Monday after a two-year battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 68.

    “Those who knew him, remember the kindness, the sweetness and his infectious smile, and great sense of humor,” the statement read. “He relished in making people laugh.”

    Days before Toy’s death, his long-term partner, Bea Henderson, detailed the actor’s cancer battle on Facebook. She wrote that he was diagnosed in February 2022 after he experienced “mysterious pain.” She continued her Dec. 7 post, writing, “it looks like we’ve reached the end of the road with the doctor’s treatments.”

    “His condition has declined a lot in the last 2 months and tremendously in the last several days,” she continued. “He chose, for many reasons, not to announce his illness publicly, and so, unfortunately, this may be new and shocking news to many of his fans.”

    Actor and contortionist Doug Jones remembered the memories he shared with his “Buffy” co-star in an Instagram tribute posted Wednesday. Together, they portrayed a couple of suit-wearing demons known as Gentlemen. Jones posted a photo of their time on set, writing that their meeting then was the beginning of a decadeslong friendship.

    “It’s rare to find a man so joyful, smiley, smart, talented, giggly, huggie, good at listening with his heart, and accessible always to anyone he knew, including his many fans,” Jones wrote. “May he rest in God’s peace.”

    Gregori J. Martin, the creator of the drama series “The Bay,” also honored Toy, who appeared as Igor Chambers. In an Instagram story posted Wednesday, Martin wrote, “Sleep in peace sweet friend … you will be missed.”

    Toy’s first acting credits included minor roles in early 2000s films, “The Genius,” “My Chorus” and “Backgammon.” In addition to a handful of episodes on “Buffy,” the actor’s television career also included parts on “Buffy” spinoff “Angel,” “The Mentalist” and “Goodnight Burbank.”

    His most recent credits were roles in the video game “Call of Duty: Vanguard,” TV series “Geeking Out With Al and Candace” and horror film “Boogey-Man,” according to IMDb.

    Toy is survived by Henderson, his mother and his sister. A celebration of life is being planned for January, the press release said.

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    © 2023 Los Angeles Times

    Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.



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  • Hunter Biden threatens to flee US: Report

    A new report claims that Hunter Biden has expressed concerns to family friends that he may have to flee the country if former President Donald Trump wins the 2024 presidential election.

    According to Politico’s Jonathan Lemire, two sources recently shared that President Joe Biden’s son has informed friends of the Biden family that he anticipates receiving additional scrutiny by Republicans during the 2024 presidential election cycle. Additionally, the president’s son has indicated that he may be forced to flee the country if Trump wins the election.

    Last week, a federal grand jury brought a nine-count indictment against Hunter Biden, including six misdemeanor tax charges and three felony tax charges.

    A press release by the Justice Department stated, “According to the indictment, Hunter Biden engaged in a four-year scheme in which he chose not to pay at least $1.4 million in self-assessed federal taxes he owed for tax years 2016 through 2019 and to evade the assessment of taxes for tax year 2018 when he filed false returns.”

    The Justice Department’s press release explained that Hunter Biden could face a “maximum penalty” of up to 17 years in prison if he is convicted on the latest charges.

    READ MORE: Hunter Biden judge dismisses gun charge as indictment looms

    According to Breitbart, Hunter Biden also faces up to 25 years in prison if he is convicted on the gun charges brought by Special Counsel David Weiss.

    During a recent podcast video released on YouTube, Hunter Biden argued that Republicans, particularly members of the House Oversight Committee who have been investigating the connection between Joe Biden and Hunter Biden’s business dealings, are attempting to use him to “destroy” Joe Biden’s presidency.

    “What they’re trying to do is they’re trying to kill me, knowing that it will be a pain greater than my father could be able to handle — and so therefore destroying a presidency in that way,” Hunter Biden stated.

    Politico reported that sources close to the president have noted that Biden is very “worried” about the potential for his son to revert back to his previous lifestyle of addition due to the pressures of his current legal situation and the upcoming presidential campaign.

    “You can see it in his eyes, and you can see his shoulders slump,” an anonymous source told Politico. “He’s so worried about Hunter. And we’re worried it could consume him.”



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  • Poison center calls related to injected weight-loss drugs up 1,500%

    America’s Poison Centers reported nearly 3,000 calls this year involving the weight loss drug semaglutide — a 15-fold increase since 2019, according to CNN.

    Some of the people calling described symptoms related to accidental overdose. Those who needed to be hospitalized usually recovered once they received fluids and nausea meds.

    Approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2017, semaglutide is sold as Ozempic to treat diabetes and as Wegovy for weight loss.

    Once celebrities started touting the drug’s weight loss effectiveness on social media last year, the public’s demand for semaglutide caused a shortage of the drug nationwide.

    This shortage led the FDA to allow some pharmacies to make compounded versions of the drug, which often were different from the patented version, CNN reported. Many contained semaglutide salts and were not tested or approved as safe and effective.

    Despite this, the knock-offs are in demand because they’re less expensive.

    Although there is no way for them to know for sure if the poison center calls stemmed from the patented drug or the knock-offs, many state poison center directors told CNN they believed the compounded versions are to blame.

    But how did people accidentally overdose?

    Apparently, Ozempic and Wegovy arrive in safeguarded, prefilled pins. You dial to the correct dose then click to inject the medicine.

    The compounded versions, however, often arrive in multidose vials and the medicine must be drawn into a syringe.

    “This is where we see a lot of errors. They end up drawing too much,” said Dr. Joseph Lambson, director of the New Mexico Poison and Drug Information Center.

    One of the calls Lambson’s team received was from a 37-year-old woman who accidentally gave herself 1 milliliter instead of 0.1 millilter — 10 times the recommended amount — as her first dose for weight loss, CNN reported.

    With the name-brand versions, the dosage starts low and increases, so your body can get used to it.

    That doesn’t mean they’re fool-proof, however. Julie Weber, director of the Missouri Poison Center, told CNN the center received a call from a woman who misunderstood how the pen worked.

    “They did not know how to use it properly and dialed it up too (high) and took, like, the whole pen instead of just the dose that was supposed to happen,” she said. A pen is designed to last a month.

    According to the center, signs of a semaglutide overdose include:

    •Feeling lightheaded or dizzy

    •Feeling shaky or jittery

    •Sweating, chills and clamminess

    •Irritability or impatience

    •Headache

    •Weakness

    •Fatigue

    •Nausea and/or vomiting

    •Seizures

    •Confusion

    •Passing out

    Whether you take the patented or the knock-off version, if you experience any of these symptoms, call your local poison control center.

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    © 2023 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

    Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.



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  • Navy vet beheads Satanic statue in gov’t building

    The Satanic Temple’s controversial display in the rotunda of the Iowa Statehouse was destroyed Thursday by Michael Cassidy, who is a Christian U.S. Navy veteran.

    An Iowa State Police spokesperson confirmed to Fox News that 35-year-old Cassidy was arrested Thursday and charged with 4th-degree criminal mischief for allegedly destroying the Iowa Satanic Temple’s Baphomet display in the Iowa Statehouse.

    Cassidy also confirmed to Fox News that he destroyed The Satanic Temple’s display in the Iowa Statehouse rotunda. Asked why he tore down the statue, Cassidy told Fox News, “It was extremely anti-Christian.

    Photos posted on social media show the remains of the Satanic Temple’s display after Cassidy allegedly beheaded the Satanic statue.

    Cassidy describes himself on his X account as Christian, an “America First Conservative,” a Navy Reserve instructor pilot, and a test pilot. According to Fox News, Cassidy also ran for office in 2022 against Rep. Michael Guest (R-Miss.).

    In addition to Cassidy’s statement to Fox News, he tweeted, “1 Peter 5:8 KJV Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.”

    READ MORE: Video: Satanic display featured at Iowa Statehouse

    After Cassidy destroyed the display at the Iowa Statehouse Thursday, The Satanic Temple of Iowa posted a statement on Facebook, saying, “This morning, we were informed by authorities that the Baphomet statue in our holiday display was destroyed beyond repair.”

    Prior to the destruction of the statue Thursday, Lucien Greaves, co-founder of The Satanic Temple, told KCCI Des Moines that the Satanic display would be featured in the Iowa Statehouse for two weeks.

    “We’re going to really relish the opportunity to be represented in a public forum. We don’t have a church on every street corner,” Greaves said. “My feeling is if people don’t like our display in public forums, they don’t have to engage with them. They don’t have to view them.”

    As Cassidy faces a charge of 4th-degree criminal mischief, conservatives such as Charlie Kirk, Matt Walsh, and Jack Posobiec have quickly worked to raise awareness and money for his legal defense fund. Alongside a photo of Cassidy and a photo of the destroyed statue, Kirk posted on social media, “Turning Point USA is proud to pledge $10,000 to his legal defense fund.”

    In response to the outpouring of support by Christian conservatives, Cassidy released a statement Thursday on social media, saying, “Truly humbled by y’alls support. We raised the $20k we were looking for in just a couple hours. I directed the campaign to be paused – we have enough for now.”



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  • Ukraine declares third air raid alert on the same day amid reports of explosions in Kyiv region

    This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.

    A large-scale air alert was announced across Ukraine for the third time on December 14 amid reports of explosions near the capital, Kyiv.

    The cause of the explosions was not immediately clear.

    “All of Ukraine is under the threat of missile attacks,” the Ukrainian Air Force reported, adding that Russian fighter jets were airborne.

    Two previous major air raid alerts were sounded after 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. local time.

    No further details were immediately available.



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