Honoring the fallen
We here at JohnKnoxVillage in Weslaco joined the nation in remembering our fallen on Memorial Day. Following wreath ceremony, we joined our nation in Taps Across America at exactly 3 p.m. in playing taps, remembering and honoring all those who gave their lives in defending our freedom and liberties. Some progressives quickly reacted to equate the Uvalde massacre to George Floyd’s death. We know how “trained” law enforcement personnel reacted to my question in a recent Texas mass school massacre. He got called out for “proposing big increase in public spending” and raising taxes on large corporations.
myrgv.comHow Biden, cops and advocates forged deal on police and race
Jim Pasco, the executive director for the Fraternal Order of Police, was watching football on a Sunday afternoon when he got a call from Susan Rice, the top domestic policy adviser at the White House. Negotiations over an executive order to address racism and policing were in danger of breaking down after a draft was leaked that law enforcement groups believed was too harsh toward officers. Now Rice was looking to get things back on track.
news.yahoo.comBiden orders police reforms two years after Floyd killing
Biden orders a national accreditation system for police departments and a database of offending officers. Seeking to balance the concerns of police groups and Black activists, Biden acts two years after the killing of George Floyd.
washingtonpost.comTwo years after Floyd murder, racial trauma permeates US
Wednesday marks the second anniversary of the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, which sparked a global protest movement and calls for a racial reckoning to address structural racism that has created long-standing inequities impacting generations of Black Americans.
White House to issue policing order on anniversary of Floyd’s death
Choose your plan ArrowRight The White House has scheduled a signing ceremony at 4 p.m. Wednesday at which the president will be joined by Floyd’s family members, civil rights advocates and law enforcement officials. The executive order also will instruct federal law enforcement agencies to update their use-of-force policies. It will set new restrictions on the sale of military equipment to local law enforcement agencies, the people familiar with the document said. Biden, who is returning from a trip to Asia on Tuesday, will issue the highly-anticipated executive order amid a rise in violent crime and concern among civil rights groups that the White House has lost a sense of urgency around police reform. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
washingtonpost.comAre police consent decrees an asset? Depends on who you ask
The Minneapolis Police Department will face the scrutiny of a federal program after a state investigation concluded that its officers stop and arrest Black people more than white people, use force more often on people of color and maintain a culture in which racism is tolerated.
Former Minneapolis officer pleads guilty to manslaughter in George Floyd’s death
Choose your plan ArrowRight Thomas K. Lane entered his guilty plea early Wednesday before Hennepin County District Court Judge Peter A. Cahill. AdvertisementLane, Kueng and Thao are awaiting sentencing in the federal case. Jury selection in that trial is scheduled to begin June 13 — though Lane’s guilty plea is certain to spark speculation about other potential pleas in the case. “That deadline has passed.”It was not immediately clear what led to Lane’s guilty plea. Attorneys for Kueng and Thao did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Lane’s guilty plea or whether their clients are engaged in plea discussions.
washingtonpost.comEx-cop pleads guilty to manslaughter in George Floyd killing
A former Minneapolis police officer pleaded guilty Wednesday to a state charge of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter in the killing of George Floyd. As part of the plea deal, Thomas Lane will have a count of aiding and abetting second-degree unintentional murder dismissed. Lane, along with J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao, has already been convicted on federal counts of willfully violating Floyd's rights during the May 2020 restraint that led to the Black man's death.
news.yahoo.comSame stunt for Abbott
Thousands of dollars of produce have been spoiled and that is money out of Texans’ pockets, all for a publicity stunt. It shows that Greg Abbott does not really care for the welfare of his constituents, but wants headlines so he can run for president. It seems the federal inspectors do their jobs adequately and when drugs do get through, it is really our fault. As many of us also remember, Mr. Floyd, who did not resist the same malicious officer’s arrest, was pleading for his life when that horrible incident took place. Robert LopezMcAllenLeador leaveMr. President, Mrs. Vice President, lead, follow, or get the hell out of the way.
myrgv.comJudge overseeing Derek Chauvin civil rights case accepts plea deal
The judge overseeing the federal civil rights cases of four ex-Minneapolis police officers in the killing of George Floyd said that he has accepted the terms of Derek Chauvin's plea agreement and will sentence him to 20 to 25 years in prison.
news.yahoo.comJudge overseeing Chauvin civil rights case accepts plea deal
The judge overseeing the federal civil rights cases of four former Minneapolis police officers in the killing of George Floyd said Wednesday that he has accepted the terms of Derek Chauvin's plea agreement and will sentence him to 20 to 25 years in prison. Chauvin pleaded guilty Dec. 15 to violating Floyd’s civil rights, admitting for the first time that he kept his knee on Floyd’s neck — even after he became unresponsive — resulting in the Black man’s death on May 25, 2020. The white former officer admitted he willfully deprived Floyd of his right to be free from unreasonable seizure, including unreasonable force by a police officer.
news.yahoo.comMinnesota Human Rights department alleges Minneapolis police engaged in a pattern or practice of race discrimination
The investigation, announced after the murder of George Floyd in May 2020, examined whether the city and the police department were using racially discriminatory practices and policies.
cbsnews.comPlea deal rejected by 3 ex-officers in George Floyd's death
Prosecutors revealed Monday evening that they offered plea deals to three former Minneapolis police officers charged with aiding and abetting the murder of George Floyd, but said at a hearing that the defendants rejected them. Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill held the hearing mostly to consider whether he has the authority to allow live video coverage of the upcoming trial set to begin in June for former Officers Tou Thao, Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng. They're charged with aiding and abetting both manslaughter and murder when former officer Derek Chauvin used his knee to pin Floyd, a Black man, to the pavement for 9 1/2 minutes on May 25, 2020.
news.yahoo.comBoerne man, self-described member of ‘Boogaloo Bois’ sentenced for shooting during Floyd protest
A Texas man who says he is affiliated the anti-government “boogaloo” movement has been sentenced to more than four years in prison for opening fire on a Minneapolis police station during civil unrest over the 2020 death of George Floyd.
Sentence, state trial loom for ex-cops in Floyd's killing
Three former Minneapolis police officers convicted of violating George Floyd’s civil rights now face federal sentences that one expert says could range from less than five years in prison to as much as the 25 years prosecutors are seeking for Derek Chauvin.