Two indictments were unsealed in the District of Minnesota charging 30 members and associates of two Minneapolis-based street gangs – the Highs and the Bloods – with racketeering (RICO) conspiracy involving alleged murder, attempted murder, robbery, obstruction of justice, and drug trafficking. Additional charges include the use of a firearm to commit murder and drug […]
U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Congresswoman Elise Stefanik (NY-21) have sent a letter to Chief of the National Guard Bureau, General Daniel Hokanson, demanding answers for an Air National Guardsman’s participation in a recent advertisement on TikTok that appears to serve as a de facto National Guard endorsement of a Chinese-controlled platform. The TikTok advertisement features a […]
A former Patch Elementary School teacher was sentenced to life in prison for sexually abusing four of his former students in Germany, according to the Justice Department. According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Stefan Zappey sexually abused four of his former elementary school students between 2006 and 2010. At the time, Zappey […]
Cinco de Mayo in Mexico is a yearly celebration held on May 5, which commemorates the anniversary of Mexico’s victory over the Second French Empire at the Battle of Puebla in 1862, led by General Ignacio Zaragoza. A national group says it wants to reclaim the significance of Cinco de Mayo. The win for Mexico secured its rights to its own land, […]
A recent report reveals that the mounting financial pressures hospitals in Tennessee and across the country are facing are ultimately affecting access to care. The American Hospital Association found hospital expenses across the board saw double-digit increases in 2022 compared with pre-pandemic levels in categories such as workforce, drugs, medical supplies, and equipment. Aaron Wesolowski, […]
It has been seven months since The Food and Drug Administration announced a nationwide shortage of medications used to treat Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, commonly known as ADHD. While patients in Utah and across the county are still facing challenges with access, experts say there might be alternative options available. Dr. Gregory Mattingly, president-elect, of the American […]
President Biden Jr. is commuting the sentences of the following 31 individuals Chiquita Acker – Pearlington, Mississippi Offense: Possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine (Southern District of Mississippi). Sentence: 120 months of imprisonment, five-year term of supervised release, $5,000 fine (March 16, 2017). Commutation Grant: Sentence commuted to expire on June 30, 2023, with […]
(Missouri Independent) – Transgender legal scholars and advocates say they were relieved to see the Biden administration extend some protections for transgender students’ sports participation at a time when bans are being enacted by multiple states. But they say they remain cautious about the effect on high school and college sports. For two years, the […]
(Missouri Independent) – The Biden Administration Thursday announced the use of processing centers in Colombia and Guatemala to create legal pathways for migrants, in preparation for the ending of a pandemic-era tool used to expel migrants that is expected to cease in May. The migrant processing centers will open shortly and be run by international […]
GOP lawmakers are re-evaluating policies about how and why schools closed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Critics of the effort say it’s a back-handed attempt to weaken teachers’ unions. This week in the U.S. House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic, American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten was called in to testify about the union’s pandemic response. […]
Jonathan Miguel Lopez was sentenced in federal court to 10 years in prison for selling the fentanyl pills that resulted in the fatal overdose of 23-year-old Sherie Gil on September 30, 2021. Lopez pleaded guilty in October 2022. According to the government’s sentencing memo, on the morning of September 30, 2021, law enforcement officials and […]
The Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Indian Affairs Division of Drug Enforcement, the North Central Washington Narcotics Task Force, and other federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement, executed a series of federal search warrants at a number of residential locations in rural Okanogan County, near Oroville, Washington, seizing more than 100 pounds of illegal […]
A suspected drug trafficker faces federal charges after he was caught transporting dozens of pounds of powdered fentanyl, methamphetamine, and other illegal drugs on Interstate 5 near Salem, Oregon. Miguel Cruz-Barrales, 22, whose place of residence is unknown, has been charged by criminal complaint with possessing with intent to distribute fentanyl and methamphetamine. According to […]
(Missouri Independent) – Every public school kid in the United States was eligible for free school meals during the COVID-19 pandemic, regardless of family income, thanks to the federal government. While that’s now ended, a growing number of states across the country are enacting universal school meal laws to bolster child food security and academic […]
(Missouri Independent) – The abortion pill will remain available throughout the United States while a lawsuit over its approval and use works through the appeals process, the U.S. Supreme Court said Friday. The court issued a stay that ensures access to mifepristone nationwide, reversing lower court rulings about when and how the abortion medication should be […]
Public libraries are known for their quiet settings, but in the coming days, staff leaders in South Dakota and elsewhere will be vocal about the threat library systems around the country are facing, in calls for book bans. Monday, April 24 has been designated Right to Read Day by the American Library Association. It marks the anniversary […]
A new report sheds light on what it calls the “mounting financial pressures” hospitals in Arizona and across the country are facing; pressures it said ultimately affect access to care. The American Hospital Association found hospital expenses across the board saw double-digit increases last year compared to pre-pandemic levels in categories like workforce, drugs, medical supplies, and […]
The wives of convicted drug traffickers Pedro Flores and Margarito Flores have each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. Vivianna Lopez, also known as “Mia Flores,” 42, and Valerie Gaytan, also known as “Olivia Flores,” 47, both confirmed in their plea agreements that from December 2008 until March 2020, they […]
(Missouri Independent) – U.S. House Republicans voted Thursday to prohibit transgender student-athletes from competing on girls’ sports teams consistent with their gender identity, at the same time multiple GOP-dominated states are making similar moves. The bill, H.R. 734, which would apply to K-12 schools as well as colleges that receive federal funding, passed on a party-line […]
The Drug Enforcement Administration will host its 24th National Prescription Drug Take Back Day on Saturday, April 22, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. This event offers anonymous disposal of unneeded medications at more than 4,000 local drop-off locations nationwide. For more than a decade, Take Back Day has helped Americans easily rid their homes of […]
