Ep 47:
Luis Alvarez, a former New York City Police detective who was one of the first responders on 9/11, has died after a battle with colon cancer. Alvarez became a symbol of 9/11 first responder's struggle to secure extended federal funding when he testified before Congress earlier this month alongside comedian Jon Stewart. Alvarez had undergone 69 rounds of chemotherapy before his doctors told him there was nothing more they could do one day after his emotional testimony.
Charlottesville, Virginia (CNN) James A. Fields Jr., the man who drove into a crowd of counterprotesters in Charlottesville's "Unite the Right" rally two years ago, leaving one woman dead, was sentenced Friday to life in prison in his federal hate crimes case. Fields plead guilty to 29 federal hate crimes in March as part of an agreement that eliminated the death penalty as a possible punishment. Under the punishment imposed by US Judge Michael F. Urbanski, Fields will serve his sentence without the possibility of parole.
'Straight Pride Parade' organizers say they received suspicious envelopes in the mail. They were full of glitter...
An electrical enginee r faces up to 219 years in federal prison after being found guilty of conspiring to smuggle military-grade semiconductor chips to China. On Tuesday, the US Department of Justice (DoJ) said that Yi-Chi Shih, a part-time Los Angeles resident, attempted to secure semiconductor chips used in US military applications in order to transfer them to Chinese associates.
(Reuters) - Ten U.S. states and Washington, D.C. sued the Environmental Protection Agency to begin working on rules to tighten oversight of asbestos, and reduce the health risks that the substance poses to the public. The attorneys general from California and Massachusetts, Xavier Becerra and Maura Healey, said on Monday they are leading the case, after the EPA denied the states’ petition that it collect more data on asbestos. A spokesman for the EPA and its administrator, Andrew Wheeler, said the agency does not discuss pending litigation.
(Reuters) - A federal appeals court on Wednesday ruled against Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) in a case that could expose the online retailer to lawsuits from customers who buy defective products from third-party vendors through its website. Numerous other courts, including two federal appeals courts, have held that Amazon cannot be held liable as a seller of products from third-party vendors. The new ruling from the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia, which reversed a lower court decision, appeared to be the first to buck that trend.
Uber co-founder buys record-breaking LA mansion for $72.5m as drivers fight for wages. On Monday, Variety reported that the Uber co-founder Garrett Camp and his partner Eliza Nguyen have purchased a Beverly Hills mansion for a record-breaking $72.5m, in what is believed to be the largest-ever sale of a home in the neighborhood.
(Reuters) - Facebook Inc will ban ads that discourage people from voting ahead of the 2020 U.S. presidential election, according to its second annual Civil Rights Audit published on Sunday. Facebook pledged to put its new “don’t vote” policy prohibition into effect in the fall, before the 2019 U.S. elections on Nov. 5, Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg said in a blog post announcing the report.
Trump meets Kim Jong Un, becomes first sitting U.S. president to step into North Korea. Taking an unprecedented step onto North Korean soil, President Donald Trump announced Sunday that Washington and Pyongyang will relaunch stalled nuclear talks. The statement came during an extraordinary last-minute meeting with Kim Jong Un, the North Korean leader.
MIAMI SHORES, Fla. (AP) — A Miami-area couple whose front-yard vegetable garden prompted a 6-year legal battle with their village has held a ceremonial replanting of veggies under a new Florida law legalizing such gardens statewide. Sixty-three-year-old Hermine Ricketts and her 60-year-old husband Tom Carroll planted jalapenos, green bell peppers and other vegetables on Monday when the bill went into effect. Miami Shores previously made such front yard gardens punishable by a daily fine of $50 on grounds they were unsightly and violated zoning codes.
