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Don Blankenship Calls on the United States Supreme Court to Reign In the Politico-Media Complex

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

The Growing Threat to Democracy Posed by Irresponsible Journalism, Shielded Behind New York Times Co. v. Sullivan (1964)Sullivan Sets the StageThe First Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees that “Congress shall make no law . . . abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press.” Prior to 1964 that guarantee had never shielded the press from being held civilly liable for publishing a defamatory statement. But in 1964, 173 years after the Constitution was written the United States Supreme Court unconstitutionally constitutionalized defamation in the case of New York Times Co. v. Sullivan.  The New York Times had published multiple defamatory claims against the Montgomery Police Department in an advertisement paid for by civil rights activists. Montgomery Police Commissioner L. B. Sullivan sued the newspaper alleging that the libelous publication impugned his character and damaged his reputation as police commissioner. An Alabama jury decided in Sullivan’s favor. The ...

3-year-old on Texas migrant bus dies on way to Chicago

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

By Paul J. Weber | Associated PressAUSTIN, Texas — A 3-year-old child riding one of Texas’ migrant buses died while on the way to Chicago, officials said Friday, the first time the state has announced a death since it began shuttling thousands of migrants from the U.S.-Mexico border last year.Texas authorities confirmed a child’s death in a statement Friday but did not say where the child was from or why they became ill. The Illinois Department of Public Health said the child was 3 years old and died Thursday in Marion County, in the southern part of that state.“Every loss of life is a tragedy,” the Texas Division of Emergency Management said in a statement. “Once the child presented with health concerns, the bus pulled over and security personnel on board called 9-1-1 for emergency attention.”The child received treatment from paramedics and later died at a hospital, according to the agency. The bus departed from the Texas border city of Brownsvil...

Man arrested after deadly shooting at Lake Merritt BART station

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

OAKLAND — A man arrested in a deadly shooting at the Lake Merritt BART station allegedly told an acquaintance he shot the man because he tried to steal his electric scooter, court documents show.Juan Martinez, 45, was taken into custody on Tuesday about an hour and a half after the shooting. Prosecutors have charged him with murder, felony criminal threats and several sentencing enhancements, and he remains held at Santa Rita Jail without bail.The Alameda County Coroner’s Office had yet to identify the man killed in the shooting by Friday afternoon. He was shot in the back and declared dead just minutes after BART police were dispatched, according to court papers.Before the shooting, investigators say the Martinez appeared to spend several minutes arguing with the victim near the BART station’s street-level elevator, according to court documents.Surveillance footage shows Martinez pull a handgun from his backpack and try loading it before putting it back in his bag...

Cameron Smith opens with 66 to lead LIV Golf at Trump Bedminster

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

BEDMINSTER, N.J. (AP) — Cameron Smith bounced back from his worst finish of the year with a 5-under 66 on Friday, giving him a one-shot lead over Charles Howell III at LIV Golf-Bedminster.Smith finished 35th last week at The Greenbrier. He had never been to the Trump National course at Bedminster — Smith joined LIV Golf a month after the event last year at Trump National — but he found the course and his game more to his liking.“Just a really solid round,” Smith said. “Wasn’t out of position much. Maybe missed a few fairways, but found myself on the green most of the times and having a look at birdie. A little bit different to last week, which was the goal, especially today.”Howell had the lead for part of the day until making two bogeys over his last four holes, one of them on a par 5. Howell, like Smith, has one LIV victory this year. He won the season opener at Mayakoba, but has had only two top 10s his last nine starts.Bryson DeChambeau, coming off a 58 on the final day at The G...

Former big league slugger José Bautista signs one-day contract to retire with Blue Jays

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

TORONTO (AP) — Former big league slugger José Bautista signed a one-day contract so he could retire with the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday, one day before his name is added to the team’s level of excellence.The 42-year-old Bautista played for eight teams during 15 seasons in the majors, making his final appearance with Philadelphia in 2018. He hit .247 with 344 homers and 975 RBIs in 1,798 games.“I think everybody knew for a while that I had been retired, but this is a way to make it official,” Bautista said Friday.Pittsburgh’s 20th round pick in the 2000 amateur draft, Bautista made his big league debut in 2004, when he bounced between four teams in one season. The Pirates traded him to Toronto in 2008. In return, Pittsburgh got catcher Robinzon Díaz, who made 43 appearances over two seasons.Bautista, meanwhile, turned into one of the game’s most feared sluggers while playing home games north of the border. The six-time All-Star and three-time Silver Slugger swatted 288 homers during...

Raiders defense forces multiple interceptions from Purdy, other 49ers QBs

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — Raiders linebacker Robert Spillane played the previous four seasons for the Pittsburgh Steelers and knows as much as anyone what a strong defense looks like.He came to Las Vegas in the offseason to play for a defense that is … well, it’s not the Steelers.But after the Raiders spent Thursday and Friday creating takeaways and giving the San Francisco 49ers’ offense plenty of problems, maybe their defense isn’t quite what it has been.Spillane said he sees the same kind of passion with the Raiders’ defense that he experienced in Pittsburgh.“We’ve got guys who don’t want to be known as the 30th defense in the league,” Spillane said. “We want to be up there with the best, and we just go day by day getting better each day. It’s a continual process throughout the season.”The season will be the ultimate determinator if whether Las Vegas’ defense has improved and by how much. Two practice days in August, even against one of the ...

Deaths from Maui wildfires rise to 67 as survivors begin returning home

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) — The death toll in Maui rose to 67 on Friday as officials confirmed another 12 fatalities from a massive blaze that turned large swaths of a centuries-old town into a hellscape of ashen rubble.Maui County officials said in an online statement that firefighters continued to battle the blaze, which was not yet fully contained. Meanwhile, residents of Lahaina were being allowed to return home for the first time to assess the damage.Associated Press journalists witnessed the devastation, with nearly every building flattened to debris on Front Street, the heart of the Maui community and the economic hub of the island. The roosters known to roam Hawaii streets meandered through the ashes of what was left, including an eerie traffic jam of the charred remains of dozens of cars that didn’t make it out of the inferno.Incinerated cars crushed by downed telephone poles. Charred elevator shafts standing as testaments to the burned-down apartment buildings they once served....

Misdemeanor charges filed against prominent Miami real estate broker in Boca Chita boat crash that killed teen

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

Charges were filed against a prominent Miami real estate broker who is accused of causing a boat crash in Boca Chita that claimed the life of a young woman and injured several others on Labor Day of 2022.The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office on Friday charged 52-year-old George Pino with two counts of careless operation of a vessel causing death and serious bodily injury, which are second-degree misdemeanors.Pino was at the helm of a 29-foot boat with his wife and 12 teenage girls on board when the vessel collided with a channel marker near the Upper Keys in Biscayne Bay.Everyone on board was ejected on impact. Good Samaritan Pedro Fernandez spoke with 7News about the incident during a phone interview.“We board a girl, I start doing some CPR, talking with 911,” he said, “and she caught a lot water. For me, she was doing good, but she was unconscious.”Seventeen-year-old Luciana Fernandez died at the scene.“The whole class is grieving right now, li...

When coming up with ideas for new album, Jason Mraz says his mom had some sound advice

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

He hasn’t recorded new music in three years, but Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Jason Mraz is back. His eighth album features a new sound and vibe, inspired by someone very close to his heart.Jason Mraz (singing): “My kind of magic, it’s automatic.”Jason Mraz returns to his pop roots with his new album, “Mystical Magical Rhythmical Radical Ride.”Jason Mraz “I hear ‘mystical, magical, rhythmical, radical ride,’ I think of life, so to think that life is a mystical, magical, rhythmical, radical ride is – makes me want to enjoy the ride and live gratefully and live present and aware and awake.”Jason Mraz (singing): “If you need fire, I am your match. If you’ve got an itch, I’ll be your scratch. Whatever you want, I want for you.”Jason Mraz “I really loved how this came out. It’s not all just done on drum machines and computers, you know?”When it came to figuring out what songs t...

Fire breaks out at Brockton recycling plant

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

Fire crews from several Massachusetts communities rushed to a recycling plant in Brockton on Friday after a fire broke out.A large plume of black smoke could be seen rising into the air above the facility.There were no reported injuries and fire officials say there is no threat to the area.The cause of the fire remains under investigation.This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.