The Louis Vuitton store in San Francisco’s Union Square was just one of nearly a dozen retail stores hit in the brazen smash-and-grab robbery spree. The Burberry store, Bloomingdale’s, the Jins eyeglasses store, Maxferd Jewelry & Loan and Yves Saint Laurent store were all targeted, police said.

Mayor Breed held a press conference Saturday afternoon to address the incidents the day before. “We’re going to make some changes to Union Square and how cars are able to access. There will be limited access in terms of when you come to this area,” Breed said.

San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin filed felony charges Tuesday against nine people arrested in connection with the retail theft in Union Square and other stores across the city.

“These brazen acts will not be tolerated in San Francisco,” Boudin said in a statement, adding that every person arrested on suspicion of participating in the thefts was charged with felonies.

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Kamala Harris says the verdict “speaks for itself” and shows that America has more to do to make its justice system “more equitable.”

“My impressions about the verdict is that the verdict really speaks for itself. As many of you know I’ve spent a majority of my career working to make the criminal justice system more equitable and clearly there’s a lot more work to do,” she said.

Mr Rittenhouse was found not guilty on all five charges in his homicide trial for shooting dead two men and seriously wounding a third during a night of unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, last summer.

Mr Rittenhouse, 18, began shaking uncontrollably, before his knees appeared to give way and he collapsed to his seat as he learned he would walk out of court a free man.. 

 

The vice-president took a different view on the outcome of the trial than the president, who said that the jury system in the US legal system should be respected.

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NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace says Kyle Rittenhouse would have gotten life in prison if he were Black.

Rittenhouse argued he was attacked by the protesters and was acting in self-defense when he shot the men with his AR-15, while prosecutors tried to frame Rittenhouse as the instigator in the shooting. The protests were taking place over a police shooting of Jacob Blake, who is Black. Rittenhouse faced five charges and was found not guilty on all of them. 

“​​Ha, let the boy be black and it would’ve been life…hell he would’ve had his life taken before the bullsh*t trial.. sad,” Wallace said in a tweet shortly after the verdict. 

Rittenhouse’s trial has divided the country, largely along partisan lines, with conservatives praising the jury’s decision and liberals condemning the decision. 

“Today’s verdict means there is no accountability for the person who murdered our son. It sends the unacceptable message that armed civilians can show up in any town, incite violence, and then use the danger they have created to justify shooting people in the street,” Karen Bloom and John Huber, the parents of Anthony Huber, who was killed by Rittenhouse, said in a statement

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Kyle Rittenhouse, the teenager who killed two people and shot another during unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, was acquitted today of first-degree intentional homicide and four other felony charges.

Rittenhouse, wearing a dark jacket with a burgundy tie and shirt, stood behind the defense table as each not guilty verdict was read. He tried to hold back tears, then sobbed and appeared to collapse forward on the table, where his attorney embraced him.

Rittenhouse's mother gasped after the final verdict was read, her head falling into her hands.

The panel of five men and seven women deliberated more than 25 hours over the past four days in a closely-watched case that polarized an already divided nation. The verdict cannot be appealed.

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The success of the conference will depend on what happens when the delegates go home; whether national, state and local governments address climate change with the vigor and speed science shows is necessary.

This summit secured new agreements to end deforestation. The leaders of more than 100 countries pledged to end deforestation by 2030.

President Biden pledged the United States to partner with vulnerable countries devastated by climate change. To that end, he promised to quadruple the amount of funding for developing countries to help them respond to the climate crisis. It must be noted, however, that to date, the U.S. has not upheld its promises on this front.

China and the U.S. pledged to do more to cut emissions this decade and China committed for the first time to address emissions from methane. The declaration highlights the vital importance of closing the significant gap between current efforts and those needed to achieve the goals of the Paris agreement as soon as possible and outlines cooperative efforts the two countries will undertake to increase climate ambition during this decisive decade.

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A New York man who pleaded guilty to rape and sexual abuse for assaulting four teenage girls during parties at his parents’ home will not face jail time after a judge Tuesday sentenced him to eight years probation.

Niagara County Court Judge Matthew J. Murphy III said he “agonized” over the case of 20-year-old Christopher Belter, who was accused of committing the crimes when he was 16 or 17. Belter pleaded guilty in 2019 to felony charges that included third-degree rape and attempted first-degree sexual abuse, as well as two misdemeanor charges of second-degree sexual abuse.

Although Belter faced a maximum sentence of eight years in prison, Murphy concluded that jail time for the man “would be inappropriate” in a ruling that shocked the courtroom

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The House voted today to censure Paul Gosar. The Arizona Republican is the first member of the House to be formally rebuked in more than a decade. He was also removed from two committees.

The vote was 223 to 207, with just two Republicans, Representatives Liz Cheney of Wyoming and Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, joining Democrats in favor. One other Republican, Representative David Joyce of Ohio, voted “present.”

The vote, and the incendiary, emotional and personal debate leading up to it, laid bare the divisions of the moment, when Democrats say they must speak out against vicious threats and imagery that could give rise to the kind of violence that unfolded during the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol. That attack hung heavily over Wednesday’s debate.

“When a member uses his or her national platform to encourage violence, tragically, people listen,” Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California said, adding that “depictions of violence can foment actual violence, as witnessed by this chamber on Jan. 6, 2021.”

 

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Kansas Republican leaders rejected comparisons of COVID-19 vaccine requirements to the Holocaust last week after a former Kansas City, Kansas, mayoral candidate donned a yellow star to testify on the Legislature’s plans to resist federal rules. 

Protesters rallying against vaccination mandates displayed a swastika and yellow Star of David on Sunday outside the office of New York state Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz, who is Jewish. The rally was organized by Rob Astorino, a Republican candidate for governor.

Complaints leveled against Dr. Justin Buls for spreading misinformation about the COVID pandemic — among other inflammatory comments — have prompted discussions about freedom of speech. At one point, Buls’ profile picture on Facebook displayed a swastika made of syringe needles.

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Rep. Liz Cheney isn’t a Republican anymore, at least according to her state party.

No, Cheney hasn’t actually left the GOP, rather on Saturday, the Wyoming Republican Party’s central committee voted 31-29 to no longer recognize her as a Republican.

It’s the latest example of Western state Republicans punishing politicians for opposing former President Donald Trump following the Jan. 6 attack at the U.S. Capitol, and it shows the extent that deference to Trump continues to define modern Republican identity.

The censure is symbolic, but it’s still been a popular tool for state parties to show their displeasure at Republicans who opposed Trump in federal or statewide office.

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