Politics and Current
SCOTUS respects mandatory minimum wages for certain drug traffickers
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court ruled Friday that 1000’s of small-time drug dealers are ineligible for reduced prison sentences under a bipartisan Trump-era criminal justice overhaul.
The justices took up the case of Mark Pulsifer, an Iowa man convicted of distributing at the least 50 grams of methamphetamine, to resolve a dispute between federal courts over the meaning of the word “and” in an obscure provision of the 2018 law. First Step Act.
Contained within the law of the so-called The safety valve provision is meant to guard nonviolent, low-level drug dealers who conform to plead guilty and cooperate with prosecutors from facing often longer, mandatory sentences.
Some courts have concluded that the usage of the word actually means “and”, while others have concluded that it means “or”. The defendant’s eligibility for a shorter sentence trusted the end result.
“Today we agree with the government’s view of the criminal record provision,” Justice Elena Kagan wrote for the bulk in a 6-3 decision that didn’t divide the justices along liberal-conservative lines.
In his dissent, Justice Neil Gorsuch described the First Step Act as perhaps “the most important criminal justice reform bill in a generation.” But under the court’s decision, “thousands more people in the federal criminal justice system will be deprived of a chance — simply a chance” at a reduced sentence, wrote Gorsuch, who was joined by Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson and Sonia Sotomayor.
Nearly 6,000 people convicted of drug trafficking in fiscal yr 2021 alone are amongst those that could qualify for reduced sentences, in accordance with data collected by the U.S. Sentencing Commission.
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This provision lists three criteria enabling judges to depart from mandatory minimum sentences, which generally bear in mind the seriousness of previous offenses. Congress wrote this section negatively in order that a judge could exercise sentencing discretion if a defendant “does not have” the three varieties of criminal history.
Before making their decision, the judges considered how one can determine safety valve eligibility – whether any one in every of the conditions was enough to disqualify someone, or whether all three were required for exclusion.
Pulsifer’s lawyers argued that every one three conditions have to be met before an extended sentence might be imposed. The government stated that one condition was enough to acquire the mandatory minimum.
Kagan wrote that the language “creates an eligibility checklist and requires the defendant to meet each of its conditions.”
Two of the three conditions involved Pulsifer. The trial court and the eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, based in St. Louis ruled he was entitled to a mandatory sentence of at the least 15 years. In fact, he received 13 and a half years in prison for unrelated reasons.
Pulsifer, now 61, just isn’t scheduled to be released from prison until 2031, in accordance with federal Bureau of Prisons records.
Congress can still change the law if it decides the court was incorrect.
The case is Pulsifer v. U.S., 22-340.
Politics and Current
Harris is uniquely positioned to combat gun violence in black communities, advocates say
Gun violence is back in the national highlight following Wednesday’s events deadly shooting at highschool in Winder, GeorgiaThe tragedy that struck Apalachee High School in which 4 people were killed and nine injured has Democrats and gun safety advocates renewed calls for stricter gun laws.
“We need to end this epidemic of gun violence in our country once and for all,” Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate, said hours after Wednesday’s shooting at a campaign event in New Hampshire. She added: “It doesn’t have to be this way. It doesn’t have to be this way.”
Supporters see Harris because the one and best candidate who can construct on progress in reducing gun violence, particularly in black communities. Addressing the difficulty is a top concern for black Americans, who’re nearly 3 times as likely to be more likely than white Americans are killed by firearms.
According to a survey by the gun safety group GIFFORDS, 74% of black voters want stronger gun laws. The survey, a part of a $15 million campaign to highlight gun violence ahead of the Nov. 5 general election, also found that half of all black voters are “very concerned” in regards to the prevalence of gun violence in their communities, compared with 24% of the general voting population.
GIFFORDS, founded by former congresswoman Gabby Giffords, who survived a 2011 assassination attempt, has endorsed Harris for president in 2024. Giffords praised Harris’ “steadfast leadership” on the difficulty of gun violence, adding that the Democratic nominee “will save lives.”
McMillan says Harris has been a “key partner” and “gun safety champion,” each as a U.S. senator and now as vice chairman. Harris currently leads the historic White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, which is tasked with implementing provisions of the Biden Safer Communities Act, which allocates $250 million for community violence intervention programs.
“We know this works in Black and brown communities,” McMillan said.
“She’s not just a symbol of possibility — she’s a powerful force shaping policy to keep our families safe,” said Ferrell-Zabala, who noted that Harris tightened gun safety laws as California’s attorney general and, as a U.S. senator, co-sponsored laws to expand background checks and ban violators from possessing guns.
She added: “She truly understands the devastating reality of this uniquely American crisis that disproportionately affects communities of color, and that we must invest in holistic, local solutions that are created by the communities it impacts.”
In her New Hampshire speech, Harris noted that in her “Fight For Our Freedoms” college tour last fall, she asked students on each campus to raise their hand in the event that they “had to endure a shooting drill at any point between kindergarten and 12th grade.”
“I tell you, every time the room was full, and almost every hand went up,” said the vice chairman.
Harris, together with President Biden, Democrats and advocates, have called on Congress to go further than the Safer Communities Act, which expanded background check requirements and created latest crimes. Gun safety advocates also want to ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines and establish universal background checks.
According to the GIFFORDS poll, 50 percent of black voters attributed the issue to a scarcity of mental health services, while 49 percent blamed the nation’s gun violence epidemic on weak gun laws. Forty-seven percent of black voters cited quick access to guns, while 40 percent blamed loopholes in gun laws.
“If we have a strong economic program that actually lifts black people out of poverty, we will see gun violence in communities go down,” Powell said.
According to data from the Black Census Organization, black voters’ concerns about gun violence are threefold: community violence, white supremacist violence, and police violence.
While gun violence continues to plague the country, there are signs that the Biden-Harris administration’s work is paying off. Data shows gun violence deaths are on the rise downward in 2024. But supporters say they’re fearful about the implications if former President and Republican Party candidate Donald Trump wins the November election.
“What happens to the (White House) Office of Gun Violence Prevention if, God forbid, Donald Trump is re-elected?” McMillan asked. “We know he will be proud not to address this issue or to try to undo the progress we have made through his alliances with the NRA (and) the gun lobbyists.”
On Thursday, Trump’s vice presidential nominee, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance, faced criticism for saying school shootings are a “fact of life.” He also misleadingly claimed that Harris wants to “take guns away from law-abiding citizens.” He and Trump have also called for tighter school security as an answer, although the National Education Association notes that tightening school security doesn’t prevent shootings.
“Donald Trump and JD Vance believe school shootings are a ‘fact of life’ and ‘we have to get over it,’” Harris campaign spokesman Ammar Moussa said, echoing Trump’s earlier remarks after the Iowa school shooting in January.
“Vice President Harris and Governor Walz know that we can take action to keep our children safe and prevent criminals from getting access to guns,” Moussa said. “Donald Trump and JD Vance will always choose the NRA and the gun lobby over our children. That’s the choice in this election.”
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Politics and Current
Kamala Harris Campaign Boosts Voter Registration
Vice President Kamala Harris, who’s headed to the polls in November, continues to have an enduring impact on young black women.
The Atlanta Voice reports that the Harris campaign could also be answerable for the recent events. increase in voter registration amongst young black women. The voter registration rate amongst young black women in 13 of the country’s “key battleground states” has risen to 175%, based on data shared by TargetSmart.
That’s nearly thrice higher than the speed seen in the course of the last presidential election between President Joe Biden and Donald J. Trump in 2020. Overall, the registration rate for Black women increased by 98%, and the general Black voter registration rate jumped to 85%.
Less than 24 hours after Harris was announced to interchange Biden within the November 2024 election, Black women $1.3 million raised for her campaign purposes.
“We are together. We are beautiful, we are strong, we are capable. We are ready. We have incredible power in this group,” said Aimee Allison, a daily participant within the network’s weekly #WinWithBlackWomen phone calls lately. “People were just so hungry for that community and that sense of hope.”
It is very important to notice that interest in civic engagement and activities amongst Black students has increased since Harris took the oath of office to serve the nation as vp in 2021.
In 2022, Child Trends reported that Black students were more prone to express an interest in civic engagement and motion than their peers; experiences with racism had a major impact on the information. Additionally, the study found that Black children usually tend to use platforms like social media to advertise political awareness and participation amongst their peers. They also use this avenue to interact in activism.
“As these young girls and women assert their political power, their influence can extend to shaping educational policy, such as more civics education in the classroom, which will primarily benefit black schools and communities,” said Hilary Wilson, a doctoral student in education who’s currently studying at Louisiana State.
January 20, 2021 Harris made history the primary woman, the primary Black American and the primary South Asian American elected to that position, and will well do the identical if she wins the 2024 presidential election against Republican Party candidate Donald Trump.
Politics and Current
White man caught harassing woman over parking space gets surprising response from employer after disclosure
The employer of a young man whose video went viral, who competes with a woman for a parking space, has shared the the explanation why she decided not to fireplace him.
In many cases, people caught on video aggressively engaging in public confrontations face penalties from their employers.
However, Deena Saunders-Green decided to take a special plan of action after seeing a video that went viral featuring her worker, Nigel Ford.
Video footage from Newport Beach, California, shows Ford in a fight with a driver who was parked in a parallel parking space. Ford is seen yelling at the motive force and slamming his body into the front of her automotive.
The driver posted a brief note clip on her TikTok account on Aug. 5 under the username @mmanuelaaaa with the caption: “Tik Tok help me find this and send this to his employer.” Her video has been viewed by about 93,000 people. But well-known content creator @thatdaneshguy reposted it on his platforms, attracting thousands and thousands of views.
Saunders-Green hires Ford at a Long Beach media company that helps financially disadvantaged artists monetize their work.
When she saw the video, she decided not to fireplace Ford over one moment of shock. Instead, she assessed his overall behavior and character as an worker.
She posted a video on her TikTok channel explaining what led to her decision to maintain Ford employed after being bombarded with demands to discipline him.
“Was it bad behavior? Absolutely. Will I fire him as a result? Absolutely not.” – Saunders-Green he claimed“Because she shows up regularly to do the work that is needed to work with Black and Brown artists,” adding that the corporate works with several allies who need to use their privileged class to advocate for systemic change.
@deenasgreen I attempt to stay in my lane and do my part to (hopefully) do something good on this matter. #crazyworld …but so many individuals send private messages and there are #mean I needed to say something! @Danesh yes I do know #NigelFord . #veterans #usmcvet #USMC #iwasafosteryouth #fostercaregraduates #bad #whiteprivilege #MentalHealthAwareness #twomistakesdon’tmakeimprovement ♬ original sound – deenasgreen
She also stressed that the footage only shows the confrontation, not the moments leading as much as it. She told Business Insider that Ford admitted to getting upset when someone rushed right into a parking space he was waiting for.
“People are saying they want to do this to a young man because they saw the end of the movie,” Saunders-Green said of the vile messages she received about Ford, in addition to the death threats he received. “Yeah, it’s not OK. I’m not going to disrupt our operations or (Ford’s) life.”
Her video has been viewed greater than 4 million times, with many individuals praising her response and skill to increase grace.
“THIS IS AN EMPLOYER. This. WOW. You’re amazing,” said one commenter.
“This is the most realistic, humanistic, and honest answer I’ve seen on this app,” one other person commented.
Saunders-Green described Ford as a “gentleman” and “just the nicest guy.”
“We’re just trying to do business in a very different way, the way I would like our society, our culture and other employers to behave,” Saunders-Green said. he saidadding that the corporate puts people before profits. “We are all human.”
She added that Ford immediately apologized for its behavior and that the corporate was handling the matter internally.
“We all struggle. We all have those awful moments where if someone were to film us, we’d look like fucking lunatics,” Saunders-Green said.
“Stay out of my DMs. I’m not firing him,” she continued.
Ford too Published public apology on Instagram, saying he “reacted badly” to the parking situation. To give more context, he emphasized that he only hit the automotive along with his body after the motive force hit him as he was parking. At that time, a female passenger within the vehicle began filming video, capturing his response.
He also condemned Danesh’s portrayal of the situation, saying he distorted the conflict and “created his own narrative that just went viral”, calling his methods “dangerous”.
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