UPDATE (Monday, March 24, 11:10 am): This story has been updated to include the name of the victim as announced by Newtown Police Department.

* * * * *

Town police are investigating an untimely death — an apparent suicide — discovered on the stage at approximately 7 am Monday, March 24, in the main auditorium at Edmond Town Hall at 45 Main Street.

Newtown Police a few hours later announced that upon arrival, police and paramedics found a 49-year old male. Police have identified the man as Jeremy Richman of Sandy Hook.

Police, Newtown Hook & Ladder volunteer firefighters, Newtown Volunteer Ambulance Corps, and the regional paramedic were among those who responded to the town hall to a call that reported the untimely death.

After it became apparent that Mr Richman was deceased, firefighters left the scene. About a half-dozen police including command staff, patrol officers, and a detective were at the scene to investigate.

Police have confirmed that the death appears to be a suicide, but would not disclose the method nor any other details of the death. They did state that the death does not appear to be suspicious.

The Connecticut State Medical Examiner’s office will conduct an autopsy, Newtown Police announced.

Several police officers were seen investigating the incident on the stage in the auditorium, where a renovation project is underway. The auditorium is a popular venue for film screenings and live performances.

Until 2009, the building served as the local seat of government.

Police will disclose that Jeremy Richman has an office the Edmond Town Hall and is the founder and CEO of The Avielle Foundation. Jeremy was the father of Avielle Richman, one of the children killed on 12/14.

Newtown Police Lt Aaron Bahamonde called the suicide “a heartbreaking event for the Richman family and the Newtown Community as a whole.

“The police department’s prayers are with the Richman family right now, and we ask that the family be given privacy in this most difficult time,” the lieutenant added. 

This story will be updated when additional information becomes available.

Source Article from https://www.newtownbee.com/police-probe-untimely-death-edmond-town-hall/03252019

This week marked 1,000 days since Britain voted to leave the EU. Yet with just one week to go until the planned Brexit date and still no deal in place, Prime Minister Theresa May had to fly to Brussels to beg for more time.

Whereas Winston Churchill led Britain during its finest hour, Theresa May seems to be leading it to national humiliation.

May was requesting the extension despite having pledged on 108 occasions that Britain will leave the EU on March 29. After a tense meeting with EU leaders, she was granted until April 12 to find a new solution if her deal fails and until May 22 to get it ratified if it passes.

The day before that, showing her increasing desperation, May held an unscheduled nationwide broadcast to tell the public that the Brexit impasse was the fault of MPs who had not supported her deal. It was probably not her wisest decision to publicly blame the very people she will need when her deal next gets a vote in Parliament.

The week had started badly when Speaker of the House John Bercow used a Parliamentary rule from 1604 to prevent May bringing her primary legislation to Parliament for a third time. It was deemed not substantially different from when it lost before by 149 votes. Not only is May unable to command a majority in Parliament, she has been barred from getting even a vote. Let’s see if it fares better next week.

Tensions in the country are rising too with many MPs experiencing stern rebukes from their constituents. This led Speaker Bercow to make an astonishing statement of assurance to MPs that “none of you is a traitor.” They have also been advised not to travel alone and to take taxis home for their own safety.

This is serious stuff indeed. Direct action is being planned by lorry drivers to block major highways in protest at the government blocking Brexit, as they see it. A senior Eurosceptic MP, Jacob Rees-Mogg, tweeted, “People versus Parliament continues.” Effectively, Great Britain is no longer operating as a representative democracy.

But had a “Leaver” prime minister, rather than “Remainer” May, been in charge of negotiations, it could have all been so different. Britain would no doubt have still observed the Article 50 protocols to exit after a two-year period, but then would have given the EU a choice between a free or favorable trade agreement or using WTO default tariffs. It is almost guaranteed that such a firm position would have received initial condemnation, but a far better deal outcome.

Instead, May sought to keep Britain as closely aligned to the EU as possible and pay a ransom of $51 billion to get out. She was supported in that by largely “Remainer” civil servants and, at least initially, a complaint media.

One month before the Brexit referendum was held in June 2016, former Prime Minister David Cameron sent a leaflet to households all over the U.K. telling voters, “The Government believes it is in the best interests of the U.K. to remain in the EU.”

The taxpayer-funded pamphlet also stated, “This will be a once in a generation decision,” and it pledged, “This is your decision, the Government will implement what you decide.”

It is thus also no wonder that subsequent talk of second referendums and blocking Brexit has caused so much public outrage.

The pamphlet itself was controversial, as it cost £9 million more to fund than was allowed during the referendum. That’s why Cameron called it a government information leaflet, so that it wouldn’t be counted as an illegal campaign expense. Despite such creative accounting, it failed to sway the electorate. And now the government has also ignored the pledges that it made.

Now the government considers it doesn’t have to abide by next week’s leave deadline. But it is unlikely the public will let that happen quietly.

“Remain” MPs have their own plans afoot to vote on other options to May’s deal next week, including abandoning Brexit altogether. So it will be interesting to see if Speaker Bercow applies his 1604 rule to those issues, many of which have also already been debated.

Andrew Davies is a U.K.-based video producer and script writer.

Source Article from https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/op-eds/brexit-gets-a-lesson-from-1604

This is the letter sent to Congress from Attorney General William Barr summarizing Robert Mueller’s report.

Dear Chairman Graham, Chairman Nadler, Ranking Member Feinstein, and Ranking Member Collins:

As a supplement to the notification provided on Friday, March 22, 2019, I am writing today to advise you of the principal conclusions reached by Special Counsel Robert S. Mueller III and to inform you about the status of my initial review of the report he has prepared.

The Special Counsel’s Report

On Friday, the Special Counsel submitted to me a “confidential report explaining the prosecution or declination decisions” he has reached, as required by 28 C.F.R. § 600.8(c). This report is entitled “Report on the Investigation into Russian Interference in the 2016 Presidential Election.” Although my review is ongoing, I believe that it is in the public interest to describe the report and to summarize the principal conclusions reached by the Special Counsel and the results of his investigation.

The report explains that the· Special Counsel and his staff thoroughly investigated allegations that members of the presidential campaign of Donald J. Trump, and others associated with it, conspired with the Russian government in its efforts to interfere in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, or sought to obstruct the related federal investigations. In the report, the Special Counsel noted that, in completing his investigation, he employed 19 lawyers who were assisted by a team of approximately 40 FBI agents, intelligence analysts, forensic accountants, and other professional staff. The Special Counsel issued more than 2,800 subpoenas, executed nearly 500 search warrants, obtained more than 230 orders for communication records, issued almost 50 orders authorizing use of pen registers, made 13 requests to foreign governments for evidence, and interviewed approximately 500 witnesses.

(Win McNamee/Getty Images) U.S. Attorney General William Barr departs his home March 22, 2019 in McLean, Va.

The Special Counsel obtained a number of indictments and convictions of individuals and entities in connection with his investigation, all of which have been publicly disclosed. During the course of his investigation, the Special Counsel also referred several matters to other offices for further action. The report does not recommend any further indictments, nor did the Special Counsel obtain any sealed indictments that have yet to be made public. Below, I summarize the principal conclusions set out in the Special Counsel’s report.

Russian Interference in the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election. The Special Counsel’s report is divided into two parts. The first describes the results of the Special Counsel’s investigation into Russia’s interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. The report outlines the Russian effort to influence the election and documents crimes committed by persons associated with the Russian government in connection with those efforts. The report further explains that a primary consideration for the Special Counsel’s investigation was whether any Americans -including individuals associated with the Trump campaign – joined the Russian conspiracies to influence the election, which would be a federal crime. The Special Counsel’s investigation did not find that the Trump campaign or anyone associated with it conspired or coordinated with Russia in its efforts to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential election. As the report states: “[T]he investigation did not establish that members of the Trump Campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities.”

[Footnote from letter: In assessing potential conspiracy charges, the Special Counsel also considered whether members of the Trump campaign “coordinated” with Russian election interference activities. The Special Counsel defined “coordination” as an “agreement-tacit or express-between the Trump Campaign and the Russian government on election interference.”]

The Special Counsel’s investigation determined that there were two main Russian efforts to influence the 2016 election. The first involved attempts by a Russian organization, the Internet Research Agency (IRA), to conduct disinformation and social media operations in the United States designed to sow social discord, eventually with the aim of interfering with the election. As noted above, the Special Counsel did not find that any U.S. person or Trump campaign official or associate conspired or knowingly coordinated with the IRA in its efforts, although the Special Counsel brought criminal charges against a number of Russian nationals and entities in connection with these activities.

The second element involved the Russian government’s efforts to conduct computer hacking operations designed to gather and disseminate information to influence the election. The Special Counsel found that Russian government actors successfully hacked into computers and obtained emails from persons affiliated with the Clinton campaign and Democratic Party organizations, and publicly disseminated those materials through various intermediaries, including WikiLeaks. Based on these activities, the Special Counsel brought criminal charges against a number of Russian military officers for conspiring to hack into computers in the United States for purposes of influencing the election. But as noted above, the Special Counsel did not find that the Trump campaign, or anyone associated with it, conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in these efforts, despite multiple. offers from Russian-affiliated individuals to assist the Trump campaign.

(Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images) Special counsel Robert Mueller walks with his wife Ann Mueller, March 24, 2019, in Washington, D.C. Mueller has delivered his report on alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election to Attorney General William Barr.

Obstruction of Justice. The report’s second part addresses a number of actions by the President – most of which have been the subject of public reporting – that the Special Counsel investigated as potentially raising obstruction-of-justice concerns. After making a “thorough factual investigation” into these matters, the Special Counsel considered whether to evaluate the conduct under Department standards governing prosecution and declination decisions but ultimately determined not to make a traditional prosecutorial judgment. The Special Counsel therefore did not draw a conclusion – one way or the other – as to whether the examined conduct constituted obstruction. Instead, for each of the relevant actions investigated, the report sets out evidence on both sides of the question and leaves unresolved what the Special Counsel views as “difficult issues” of law and fact concerning whether the President’s actions and intent could be viewed as obstruction .. The Special Counsel states that “while this report does not conclude that the President committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him.”

The Special Counsel’s decision to describe the facts of his obstruction investigation without reaching any legal conclusions leaves itto the Attorney General to determine whether the conduct described in the report constitutes a crime. Over the course of the investigation, the Special Counsel’s office engaged in discussions with certain Department officials regarding many of the legal and factual matters at issue in the Special Counsel’s obstruction investigation. After reviewing the Special Counsel’s final report on these issues; consulting with Department officials, including the Office of Legal Counsel; and applying the principles of federal prosecution that guide our charging decisions, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and I have concluded that the evidence developed during the Special Counsel’s investigation is not sufficient to establish that the President committed an obstruction-of-justice offense. Our determination was made without regard to, and is not based on, the constitutional considerations that surround the indictment and criminal prosecution of a sitting president.

[Footnote from letter: See A Sitting President’s Amenability to Indictment and Criminal Prosecution, 24 Op. O.L.C. 222 (2000).]

(Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images) President Donald Trump speaks to the press before boarding Marine One as he departs from the South Lawn of the White House, March 22, 2019.

In making this determination, we noted that the Special Counsel recognized that “the evidence does not establish that the President was involved in an underlying crime related to Russian election interference,” and that, while not determinative, the absence of such evidence bears upon the President’s intent with respect to obstruction. Generally speaking, to obtain and sustain an obstruction conviction, the government would need to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that a person, acting with corrupt intent, engaged in obstructive conduct with a sufficient nexus to a pending or contemplated proceeding. In cataloguing the President’s actions, many of which took place in public view, the report identifies no actions that, in our judgment, constitute obstructive conduct, had a nexus to a pending or contemplated proceeding, and were done with corrupt intent, each of which, under the Department’s principles of federal prosecution guiding charging decisions, would need to be proven beyond a reasonable doubt to establish an obstruction-of¬justice offense.

37,040-41 (July 9, 1999). As I have previously stated, however, I am mindful of the public interest in this matter. For that reason, my goal and intent is to release as much of the Special Counsel’s report as I can consistent with applicable law, regulations, and Departmental policies.

Based on my discussions with the Special Counsel and my initial review, it is apparent that the report contains material that is or could be subject to Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 6( e ), which imposes restrictions on the use and disclosure of information relating to “matter[ s] occurring before [a] grand jury.” Fed. R. Crim. P. 6(e)(2)(B). Rule 6(e) generally limits disclosure of certain grand jury information in a criminal investigation and prosecution. Id. Disclosure of 6( e) material beyond the strict limits set forth in the rule is a crime in certain circumstances. See, e.g., 18 U.S.C. § 401(3). This restriction protects the integrity of grand jury proceedings and ensures that the unique and invaluable investigative powers of a grand jury are used strictly for their intended criminal justice function.
Given these restrictions, the schedule for processing the report depends in part on how quickly the Department can identify the 6( e) material that by law cannot be made public. I have requested the assistance of the Special Counsel in identifying all 6( e) information contained in the report as quickly as possible. Separately, I also must identify any information that could impact other ongoing matters, including those that the Special Counsel has referred to other offices. As soon as that process is complete, I will be in a position to move forward expeditiously in determining what can be released in light of applicable law, regulations, and Departmental policies.

As I observed in my initial notification, the Special Counsel regulations provide that “the Attorney General may determine that public release of’ notifications to your respective Committees “would be in the public interest.” 28 C.F.R. § 600.9(c). I have so determined, and I will disclose this letter to the public after delivering it to you.

Source Article from https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/mueller-report-read-entire-letter-attorney-general-william/story?id=61911530

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Leading Democrats repeatedly lied about President Trump colluding with Russia and now have to answer to the American people, according to former House Oversight Committee Jason Chaffetz.

Chaffetz savaged Democrats during an interview on “Fox & Friends” Monday morning, in the wake of Attorney General William Barr released the “principal conclusions” of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s completed Russia probe in a bombshell four-page letter to Capitol Hill lawmakers.

The letter stated definitively that Mueller did not establish evidence that President Trump’s team or any associates of the Trump campaign had conspired with Russia to sway the 2016 election — “despite multiple offers from Russian-affiliated individuals to assist the Trump campaign.”

WATCH FOX NEWS’ LIVE COVERAGE AFTER THE RELEASE OF AG BARR’S LETTER OF ‘PRINCIPAL CONCLUSIONS’ FROM MUELLER’S RUSSIA PROBE

Not only did the president not collude… it is so totally polar opposite of what Nadler and other Democrats said

— Jason Chaffetz on “Fox & Friends”

“The president is stronger politically than he has ever been right now. It was a cloud, it gave a talking point to every Democrat… now people can go back and look at it and say, ‘you all lied to us for two years’,” Chaffetz said.

“The team that Mueller put together, these weren’t friends of the president, they were friends of the president — you had people from the Clinton camp on the team. If they were going to get him, they would have.”

The ex-Utah congressman then singled out House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and  House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., for criticism.

READ THE MUELLER REPORT FINDINGS

“Adam Schiff has essentially just lied to the American people time and time again… under the guise he had supposed classified information,” he said.

“Not only did the president not collude… it is so totally polar opposite of what Nadler and other Democrats said.

“They said they were going to fully accept the conclusions of Mueller, over and over again, and now there aren’t.”

WHITE HOUSE CELEBRATES RELEASE OF MUELLER REPORT SUMMARY: ‘NO COLLUSION!’

Chaffetz’s comments came after President Trump told reporters Sunday that the release of a summary of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe findings represented a “complete and total exoneration,” calling it “an illegal takedown that failed.”

“So after a long look, after a long investigation, after so many people have been so badly hurt, after not looking at the other side, where a lot of bad things happened, a lot of horrible things happened, lot of very bad things happened for our country, it was just announced there was no collusion with Russia, the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard,” Trump said as he prepared to board Air Force One to return to Washington from his Mar-A-Lago estate in Florida.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Trump’s legal team, led by former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Jay Sekulow said in a statement that the report’s findings were “a complete and total vindication of the President.”

Source Article from https://www.foxnews.com/politics/democrats-lied-to-the-american-people-over-mueller-probe-now-have-to-answer-to-american-people-chaffetz

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Image caption

Israeli officials say the house in Mishmeret caught fire after being hit by the rocket

Seven people have been injured after a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip hit a house in central Israel, police say.

The rocket came down at 05:25 local time (03:25 GMT) in Mishmeret, 20km (12 miles) north of the city of Tel Aviv.

This is the furthest a Palestinian rocket has reached in Israel since the 2014 conflict with militants in Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is cutting short a trip to the US over the incident, has vowed to respond with force.

So far no-one has said they carried out the attack. But an Israeli military spokeswoman has accused the militant group Hamas, which controls Gaza.

A week and a half ago, two rockets were launched towards Tel Aviv and nobody was hurt. The Israeli military responded with dozens of air strikes across Gaza, which injured four people.

Hamas and Israeli officials later said those rockets had been fired “by mistake”.

What happened on Monday?

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the rocket that hit the house in Mishmeret was launched from Rafah in southern Gaza, about 120km (75 miles) away.

The explosion from the rocket severely damaged the house and set it on fire.

Israel’s Magen David Adom ambulance service said it had treated two women who were moderately wounded and five other people, including an infant, a three-year-old boy and a 12-year-old girl, who had minor wounds.

The blast also caused damage to at least one nearby home and several vehicles.

“We heard the siren and we didn’t think it was anything, but my daughter made us go into the reinforced room,” Smadar Castelnovo, who lives opposite the house that was hit by the rocket, told Reuters news agency.

“My daughter was upset because we had left the dog out. We went out to get the dog and as soon as we went back in there was a very loud boom.”

Although the rocket triggered sirens in the Sharon and Emek Hefer regions, Israel’s Iron Dome missile defence system did not appear to have been activated.

Who was behind the attack?

IDF spokeswoman Major Mika Lifshitz blamed Hamas.

“It’s a Hamas rocket, itself made by Hamas,” she said. “It has an ability to reach more than 120km.”

“We see Hamas as responsible for all that happens in the Gaza Strip,” she added.

Image copyright
Reuters

Image caption

Cars parked near the house were damaged by fragments from the rocket

Maj Lifshitz said the IDF was deploying two additional brigades to the area surrounding Gaza, and that there was a “very limited” calling up of reservists.

The Israeli authorities have also closed the Kerem Shalom and Erez border crossings with Gaza.

Prime Minister Netanyahu said in a statement: “There was a criminal attack on the State of Israel, and we will respond forcefully.”

Hamas has so far not commented, but its leader Yehiya Sinwar reportedly cancelled a public meeting scheduled for Monday afternoon.

But Islamic Jihad, another militant group, said: “We warn the Zionist enemy from committing an aggression against the Gaza Strip.”

Could the situation escalate?

The timing of this rocket launch comes at a very sensitive time.

The Israeli prime minister is fighting a close election campaign in which he is brandishing his security credentials. He had just arrived in Washington, where he was due to meet President Trump twice and give a speech.

He will now go once to the White House and then says he will return home “to manage our actions from close at hand”.

Already fears of an escalation were high with this week’s anniversary of the start of protests at Gaza’s boundary fence with Israel.

Egyptian security officials – who’ve been trying to broker a longer-term ceasefire between Israel and Hamas – were due in Gaza this morning. Now, their efforts to bring quiet are in jeopardy.

Source Article from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-47689684

A full unofficial count of Sunday’s vote is not expected until late this week.

Uttama Savanayana, Palang Pracharat’s party leader, said in a news conference on Monday afternoon that “we have stated from the beginning that any party that gets the most votes is able to form a government.”

On Friday, Mr. Prayuth, a former army chief with an ambivalent attitude toward democracy, spoke of his commitment to his homeland. “I love Thailand, and I would die for this country,” he said at a political rally.

On Monday afternoon, the Election Commission delayed for the third time releasing its unofficial count of Sunday’s polls. Such postponements have never occurred before, Thai election experts say.

Before the voting began, the Election Commission, which was appointed by the junta, said it would have preliminary results counted by around 8 p.m. Sunday. But late that evening, Ittiporn Boonprakong, the chairman of the Election Commission, said that counting would stop for the night and that the results would be released at 10 a.m. Monday.

“I don’t have a calculator,” he said in response to queries about the intricacies of the balloting.

That deadline was later changed to 2 p.m. Then the Election Commission said results would be published at 4 p.m., but only for 350 of the 500 Lower House seats.

Winners of the other 150 seats may be announced on Friday, Nut Laosisavakul, the commission’s deputy secretary general, said on Monday afternoon.

Source Article from https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/25/world/asia/thailand-election-results-military.html

Rudy Giuliani, President Trump’s lawyer who called for a “complete investigation” on the origins of the Russia collusion investigation, took to Twitter early Monday and called on Democrats who “went too far” in their attacks and false claims against the president during the probe to admit their mistakes so the country can “heal.”

Giuliani made the comments just hours after Attorney General Willaim Barr declared that special counsel Robert Mueller did not find evidence that the Trump campaign “conspired or coordinated” with Russia in hopes  to influence the 2016 presidential election.

Trump cheered the outcome but also laid bare his resentment after two years of investigations that have shadowed his administration. “It’s a shame that our country has had to go through this. To be honest, it’s a shame that your president has had to go through this,” he said.

Giuliani took to Twitter to ask if Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif.; House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., and others will apologize “for their now false claims of collusion.”

“If they care about our country,  they should be relieved they were wrong. Are they?” he asked.

He called on news outlets like CNN and MSNBC and said he hopes they can “realize their overreactions” and hopes for fairer treatment in the future.

READ THE MUELLER REPORT FINDINGS

It appears Democrats are seizing on the part of the report that focuses on the obstruction of justice. Mueller stated that “while this report does not conclude that the President committed  a crime, it also does not exonerate him.”

Some Democrats say that line leaves open the possibility of wrongdoing.

Nadler said, “The job of Congress is much broader than the job of the special counsel. The special counsel is looking and can only look for crimes. We have to protect the rule of law, we have to look for abuses of power, we have to look for obstructions of justice, we have to look for corruption in the exercise of power which may not be crimes.”

Alan M. Dershowitz, the attorney and Harvard Law professor emeritus, slammed Mueller on Sunday, saying the special counsel engaged in a “cop out” by stating that his report neither exonerated Trump nor concluded he’d committed a crime related to obstruction of justice.

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Dershowitz said Mueller seemed to try having it both ways. “It sounds like a law-school exam,” he said, adding that the report sounded wishy-washy. “Shame on Mueller.”

Fox News’ Frank Miles contributed to this report

Source Article from https://www.foxnews.com/politics/giuliani-wants-dems-who-went-too-far-in-attacks-on-trump-to-admit-mistakes

Notably, Mr. Trump’s lawyers have taken the position that Congress lacks the authority to constrain in any way how the president exercises his constitutional powers to oversee the executive branch, including deciding whether to direct the Justice Department to close an investigation, to fire a subordinate and to pardon someone. Mr. Barr himself endorsed that view in his June 2018 memo for the Trump administration, when he was still a lawyer in private practice.

Under that view, even if a president abuses his power by acting for corrupt reasons, it would be unconstitutional for Congress to make that a crime. Many legal scholars dispute that view, but the Supreme Court has never addressed the issue.

It was hard to know from Mr. Barr’s letter what gave Mr. Mueller pause, noted Samuel Buell, a former federal prosecutor who now teaches white-collar criminal law at Duke University. Without seeing Mr. Mueller’s underlying report, he said, it was impossible to evaluate the merits of both Mr. Mueller’s demurral and Mr. Barr’s decision to make a definitive statement in favor of Mr. Trump.

“We really need to see what this report says — we need to see the analysis,” he said, adding: “How much of this is Mueller and how much of this is Barr? And certainly it seems a relevant fact to consider that Barr just happens to be someone who, before he became attorney general, had gone on record as someone who was skeptical of the obstruction issue.”

Mr. Mueller’s refusal to make any conclusion about obstruction was coupled with a more definitive finding that “the evidence does not establish that the president was involved in an underlying crime related to Russian election interference.”

While acknowledging one can be guilty of obstruction of justice even without an underlying crime, Mr. Barr wrote that he and Mr. Rosenstein nevertheless took into account that separate exoneration of Mr. Trump when deciding how to interpret Mr. Trump’s intent with respect to obstruction where the evidence Mr. Mueller had gathered.

Obstruction cases are notoriously difficult to prove beyond a reasonable doubt because prosecutors have to prove that the defendant was acting with a corrupt intent, and the evidence is often ambiguous.

Source Article from https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/24/us/politics/mueller-trump-obstruction-of-justice.html

Special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation “did not establish that members of the Trump Campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities” during the 2016 campaign, he wrote in his final report. Attorney General William Barr summarized the report’s findings in a letter to lawmakers Sunday.

President Trump declared victory shortly after the summary was released, claiming it was a “complete and total exoneration.”

“This was an illegal takedown that failed and, hopefully, somebody’s going to be looking at the other side,” Mr. Trump told reporters in Florida before boarding Air Force One.

In his letter, Barr said Mueller described the facts surrounding his investigation into allegations of obstruction of justice but made no determination as to whether Mr. Trump committed a crime, deferring the question to Barr. The report “does not conclude that the President committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him,” Barr quotes Mueller as writing.

But Barr said he and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein determined the available evidence was insufficient to establish Mr. Trump had obstructed justice.

Democrats reacted angrily to Barr’s summary, with congressional leaders demanding Barr make the full report underlying investigatory documentation.

“Attorney General Barr’s letter raises as many questions as it answers. The fact that Special Counsel Mueller’s report does not exonerate the president on a charge as serious as obstruction of justice demonstrates how urgent it is that the full report and underlying documentation be made public without any further delay,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a statement.

“Given Mr. Barr’s public record of bias against the Special Counsel’s inquiry, he is not a neutral observer and is not in a position to make objective determinations about the report,” the leaders said.

Barr’s letter was addressed to the top Democrats and Republicans on the House and Senate Judiciary Committees. Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler, the chairman of the House committee, vowed to call Mueller to testify before lawmakers “in the near future.” Nadler said there were “very concerning discrepancies and final decision making at the Justice Department following the Special Counsel report.”

Source Article from https://www.cbsnews.com/live-news/mueller-report-summary-william-barr-trump-russia-investigation-latest-updates-today-2019-03-24/

After a second Parkland shooting survivor died by suicide in a week’s span, Florida’s emergency chief is calling for the state Legislature to dispatch more mental health resources for the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School community.

On Saturday night, a Parkland sophomore took his own life, according to Coral Springs police. A week before, a former student whose best friend died in last year’s massacre took her life.

“Now is the time for the Florida Legislature to help,” said Jared Moskowitz, Florida’s emergency management director and a former state representative from Parkland.

“Mental health is a bipartisan issue,” he posted on Twitter.

Meanwhile, local leaders are taking steps of their own.

On Sunday afternoon, more than 60 school, county, city, child services and law enforcement officials, as well as mental health specialists, teachers and parents, met for an emergency meeting.

Parents who attended the meeting said the Broward County School Superintendent’s Office is working to reach every parent in the district via text, email, social media and robo calls.

“They will be asking parents to take this issue seriously,” said Ryan Petty, father of Alaina Petty, a 14-year-old freshman who was one of 17 people murdered on Feb. 14. 2018. “Parents cannot be afraid to ask their kids the tough questions.”

Petty said the school district will be giving parents the “Columbia Protocol,” a set of six questions to ask their children. Based on their answers, they will be given several emergency resource options. Several nonprofits are also dispatching therapy groups that will offer free services.

“During the Spring break, I encourage you to take time to speak with your children every day. Dinners are a great time for family conversation,” said Superintendent Robert Runcie. “We need to remove the stigma from talking about suicide.”

Helen Aguirre Ferré, the communications director for Gov. Ron DeSantis’ press office, said the governor is aware of the reports of suicides and is monitoring the situation. DeSantis has established relationships with several parents who lost children in the shooting last year, and has had conversations with the families.

“He and the first lady are concerned,” Ferré said.

But the situation is, for now, in the hands of local officials, she said, and there has been no request for the state to intervene.

Before the state activates emergency resources, local leaders would have to agree they need the help.

Last year, after 17 people were murdered in the Feb. 14 shooting on the Stoneman Douglas campus, the state Legislature passed a gun-control and mental-health bill that restricted some sales of guns and accessories, gave the courts the ability to take guns away from people with mental health issues and set aside money to hire and train school faculty.

State Rep. Shevrin Jones, of West Park, said he would “be the first person to co-sponsor something to deal with mental health in our schools and our communities.”

Amid the new Parkland pain, Sunday marked the one-year anniversary of the March For Our Lives, a student-led protest of the country’s gun laws that drew hundreds of thousands of people to Washington and to other marches around the world.

The news of the two suicides comes just as students are out of school this coming week for spring break, worrying some that students may not get the help they need..

Investigators told the Miami Herald that the male student died in “an apparent suicide” on Saturday night. He was in 10th grade and attended Stoneman Douglas last year at the time of the Feb. 14 shooting.

It isn’t known whether his death can be linked to the school shooting, police said. They did not release his name.

The death follows the suicide of a recent Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School graduate, Sydney Aiello, who took her life after being diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The Broward County Medical Examiner’s Office said Aiello died from a gunshot wound.

“How many more kids have to be taken from us as a result of suicide for the government / school district to do anything? Rip 17 + 2,” former Stoneman Douglas student and gun-control activist David Hogg said Sunday on Twitter.

If you are in crisis, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741.

You can also dial: 2-1-1 or 954-740-6731. If you prefer not to call, you can text “FL” to 741741 for a live counselor.

Ryan Petty, who has been in close contact with local and state officials, told the Miami Herald the student who died Saturday also died from a gunshot.

Petty founded a suicide prevention foundation called the Walk Up Foundation after his daughter’s death. He said “the issue of suicide needs to be talked about.”

“This is another tragic example,” Petty said, who has partnered with Columbia University and The Columbia Lighthouse Project for his Foundation.

Kelly Posner, a professor of psychiatry at Columbia and the founder and director of The Columbia Lighthouse Project, said the Columbia protocol — the series of questions that local officials are urging parents to ask their children — “is the most evidence-supported tool of its kind that anyone can use anywhere in the world to prevent suicide.”

“Suicide is the No. 1 cause of adolescent deaths. Fifty percent of suicidal people see their primary care doctor the month before they die,” Posner said. “This is an urgent memo, the Columbia protocol needs to be in everybody’s hands, this includes parents, the coaches, the peers, the janitors, the librarians. In the past, nobody knew what questions to ask and what to do when they got the answers. Now we know.”

The list of questions uses plain and direct language, which Posner says is most effective in eliciting honest and clear responses. For example, the questionnaire may ask:

“Have you wished you were dead or wished you could go to sleep and not wake up?”

“Have you been thinking about how you might kill yourself?”

“Have you taken any steps toward making a suicide attempt or preparing to kill yourself (such as collecting pills, getting a gun, giving valuables away, or writing a suicide note)?”

Based on the responses, the questioner can establish criteria or thresholds that determine what to do next for each person assessed like hospitalization, counseling, referrals, and other actions.

Posner, who was awarded with the Secretary of Defense medal for exceptional public service for her suicide prevention work in the Marine Corps, said only one percent of people who ask the questions end up with a high-risk response.

“We know, point blank, as clear as day, that these questions help identify people who are suffering in silence and will help us save lives,” she said.

Since the Valentine’s Day shooting traumatized an entire student body, students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School regularly report to trauma counselors after breaking down in tears. They panic when fire alarms drag on even moments too long. Reports of widespread absences are common.

As spring break starts, faculty at the Parkland school worry that their students may not be receiving the help they need away from campus. They also are concerned that recent changes at the school may be negatively affecting kids.

Grief therapists working with Parkland families mobilized Sunday to figure out the best way to provide help. They also are concerned that students will be off this week.

Professionals United for Parkland, a group of private trauma-trained therapists who are volunteering their services, told the Herald the “suicides were expected after the shooting’s one year anniversary.”

“These deaths could have been prevented. Contagion in high school suicidal behavior is common. We have to stop it now and draw attention to suicide prevention,” said Les Gordon, who sits on the board of the group and works as a trauma therapist in Boca Raton.

Gordon said the group’s Facebook Page is constantly publishing available resources and that the Coral Springs Museum of Art will be hosting a group of available therapists from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. this week.

The Broward County Resiliency Center at Pines Trail Park Amphitheater, will also have clinicians available from noon to 7 p.m. daily until April 1. Eagles’ Haven, 5655 Coral Ridge Drive, will be open as well.

“Our community needs to pull together in a cohesive manner. We pledge to provide resources, assist other organizations, make referrals for proper trauma treatment and to support the therapeutic community who are on the frontlines,” he said.

Greg Pittman, an American History teacher at Stoneman Douglas said the reassignment of the high school’s three assistant principals and a security specialist, administrators who were with the school during the mass shooting, has affected the mental health of the students who need help the most.

“The kids need help and many of them that do need help are not getting any,” Pittman said Sunday. “They want to talk to people that were there.”

Pittman, who taught Sydney Aiello, said he has spoken with students directly about their concerns over the changing structure of their school. He said more mental health resources may be needed.

“Many of them think that they don’t need help,” he said. “That only their friends who were there understand. More resources probably would help, but also the resources that knew them [are] leaving.”

During a meeting Friday between the district and the faculty, Pittman said Broward Chief Officer of School Performance and Accountability Valerie Wanza acknowledged it was a mistake to remove the administrators students had grown accustomed to seeing.

“I thought it was a mistake then and even more so now,” he said.

He said his students are under “tremendous pressure,” some having seen their friends die or seeing their bodies on the floor after the shooting.

Pittman, who was at the school during the shooting, regularly sees a therapist and takes medication for emotional distress.

“I didn’t witness it, but many of these kids had to witness their friends dying,” he said. “What they have seen, I’m concerned we’re gonna see more.”

On Twitter Sunday, Ryan Petty posted “17 + 2” with a breaking heart emoji, a somber reminder of the growing tally of the massacre.

“I’m afraid that Sydney did it, and now this other kid has done it…” Pittman said. “I don’t know how long it will take but we need more help.”

Miami Herald staff writers Martin Vassolo and David Smiley contributed to this report.

Superintendent Robert W. Runcie will hold a press conference to provide a progress report on recommendations for school districts outlined in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission’s initial report

Source Article from https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/broward/article228350134.html

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Seattle (CNN)Pilots from the three American carriers that fly Boeing 737 MAX planes tested software changes developed by Boeing to a key stabilization system on Saturday, a person briefed on the tests said.

Source Article from https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/24/politics/boeing-software-737-max/index.html

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Source Article from https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/24/middleeast/jacinda-ardern-burj-khalifa-scli-intl/index.html

A stricken luxury cruise ship that set sail with almost 1,400 passengers and crew on board has arrived at the port, after it narrowly escaped a major disaster when its engines failed during a storm. 

The Viking Sky sent out a mayday signal on Saturday as it drifted in rough, shallow waters in the Norwegian Sea to within 100 metres from rocks.

Rescue services airlifted 479 people, including many senior citizens, hoisting them one-by-one on to helicopters, before the weather subsided on Sunday and a tow could begin. 


A total of 1,373 people had started the voyage and about 900 people were still on board as the ship arrived on Sunday afternoon at the port of Molde on Norway’s west coast. 

“It was very nearly a disaster. The ship drifted to within 100 metres of running aground before they were able to restart one of the engines,” police chief Hans Vik, who heads the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre for southern Norway, told the TV2 broadcaster. 

“If they had run aground we would have faced a major disaster.”

Some 20 injured passengers had been taken to hospital, Viking Cruises said, while others had only minor injuries.

“Many have also been traumatised by the experience and need care when they arrive on shore,” the Norwegian Red Cross said.

“I have never seen anything so frightening,” said Janet Jacob, who was rescued.

“I started to pray. I prayed for the safety of everyone on board,” she told the NRK television channel.

Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg expressed her gratitude to those who responded to what she called a “dramatic day”.

“Thank you to the talented rescuers, volunteers and others who have made an invaluable effort in demanding conditions,” she wrote on Twitter.

Window panes were broken and water came in’ 

Stormy weather conditions had improved by Sunday afternoon, with winds halved to 12 metres per second, according to the Norwegian Meteorological Institute.

Images and video posted by passengers on social media showed furniture sliding around and panels falling from the ceiling as the vessel drifted in waves of up to eight metres.

“We were having lunch when it began to shake,” John Curry, a passenger from the United States, told public broadcaster NRK.

“Window panes were broken and water came in. It was just chaos. The trip on the helicopter, I would rather forget. It was not fun.” 

British passenger Derek Brown told newspaper Romsdal Budstikke: “I was a bit alarmed saying help, what’s going to happen to the boat? What’s going to happen to all of our possessions … is the boat liable to capsize, sink or what? We didn’t know so we were quite frightened.”

Torstein Hagen, the founder and chairman of Viking Cruises, met some of those who had been airlifted.

“We all want to know how this could have happened,” the Norwegian billionaire said.

“I’m sure there will be plenty of time to point fingers at what could and should have been done, but that’s for later.”

“Something like this shouldn’t happen, but it has.”

The stretch of water known as Hustadvika and surrounding areas are known for fierce weather and shallow waters dotted with reefs.


Source Article from https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/03/viking-sky-arrives-norway-port-disaster-190324171006752.html

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Washington (CNN)Robert Mueller is done.

    Source Article from https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/22/politics/robert-mueller-report/index.html

    Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into possible collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign concluded with the final report submitted to the Justice Department this past Friday. In a letter released Sunday, Attorney General William Barr publicly revealed the “principal conclusions” and more about the under-wraps investigation.

    Just months after President Trump was inaugurated into office, Mueller was appointed to the special counsel’s office on May, 17 2017. In total, it lasted close to two years — 675 days, or one year, 10 months and six days, to be exact.

    READ THE MUELLER REPORT FINDINGS

    The intent of the investigation was to determine whether Trump and his campaign illegally worked with Russia to sway the 2016 presidential election. The special counsel’s office determined that it “did not find that the Trump campaign or anyone associated with it conspired or coordinated with Russia.”

    The president on Sunday responded to Mueller’s report in two different ways. Speaking to reporters, Trump called the investigation “an illegal takedown that failed.”

    He also tweeted: “No Collusion, No Obstruction, Complete and Total EXONERATION. KEEP AMERICA GREAT!” It was Trump’s 78th tweet regarding the probe, excluding retweets.

    In total, 19 attorneys worked with the special counsel’s office at some point during the nearly two-year-long probe, which, between May 2017 and September 2018, spent $25.2 million. Of that, $12.3 million was direct spending, while $12.9 million was spent on “indirect” component expenses for the Justice Department.

    The special counsel’s office has said that the indirect expenses don’t amount to additional taxpayer expenditures since those resources — especially personnel, such as employees of the FBI or other agencies — would have been devoted to other cases had there been no special-counsel investigation.

    During the investigation, at least 42 people were interviewed by Mueller or his team or testified before a grand jury, and 34 people — in addition to 3 companies — either have been indicted or have pleaded guilty in connection to the probe.

    Of the 34, 6 were former advisers or associates of Trump, while 2 were not considered Trump advisers or associates. Additionally, 26 Russians have been charged.

    Mueller’s office worked with a team of “approximately 40 FBI agents, intelligence analysts, forensic accountants, and other professional staff” during the investigation.

    CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

    Ultimately, the special counsel’s office “issued more than 2,800 subpoenas, executed nearly 500 search warrants, obtained more than 230 orders for communication records, issued almost 50 orders authorizing use of pen registers, made 13 requests to foreign governments for evidence, and interviewed approximately 500 witnesses,” according to Barr’s letter.

    On Friday evening, Mueller submitted his report to Barr, marking the end of the politically explosive probe and the beginning of a new battle over its contents and implications.

    Source Article from https://www.foxnews.com/politics/robert-mueller-russia-investigation-by-the-numbers

    For months, the president and his lawyers have waged as much of a public-relations campaign as a legal one — trying to discredit the Mueller investigation to keep public opinion from swaying lawmakers to move against Mr. Trump.

    The Justice Department regulations governing the Mueller inquiry only required the special counsel to give a succinct, confidential report to the attorney general explaining his decisions to either seek — or decline to seek — further criminal charges. Mr. Mueller operated under tighter restrictions than similar past inquiries, notably the investigation of President Clinton by Ken Starr, who ended up delivering a 445-page report in 1998 that contained lascivious details about an affair the president had with a White House intern.

    Mr. Mueller was still given a wide mandate — to investigate not only Russian election interference but “any matters that may arise directly from that investigation.” Mr. Mueller has farmed out numerous aspects of his inquiry to several United States attorneys’ offices, and those investigations continue.

    Mr. Mueller will not recommend new indictments, a senior Justice Department official said on Friday, ending speculation that he might charge some of Mr. Trump’s aides in the future. The Justice Department’s general practice is not to identify the targets of its investigations if prosecutors decide not to bring charges, so as not to tarnish their reputations. Rod J. Rosenstein, the deputy attorney general, emphasized this point in a speech last month.

    “It’s important,” Mr. Rosenstein said, “for government officials to refrain from making allegations of wrongdoing when they’re not backed by charges that we aren’t prepared to prove in court.”

    Source Article from https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/24/us/politics/mueller-report-summary.html

    A cruise ship reached the Norwegian port of Molde on Sunday a day after the crew issued a mayday call that led to hundreds of passengers being airlifted to safety.

    The Viking Sky limped into the port on Sunday accompanied by tug boats after the harrowing ordeal that sent furniture in the vessel smashing into walls, glass flying, pieces of the ceiling crashing down as passengers and crewmembers held on while the ship rocked side to side.

    The ship was carrying 1,373 passengers and crew members when it had engine trouble in an unpredictable area of Norway’s western coast known for rough, frigid waters. The crew issued a mayday call Saturday afternoon.

    ROYAL CARIBBEAN PASSENGER SUING FOR $10 MILLION AFTER BREAKING PELVIS DURING 20-FOOT TRAMPOLINE FALL

    Rescuers couldn’t use lifeboats or other vessels to evacuate the passengers due to the conditions that included wind gusts at 43 mph and waves reaching over 26 feet high. Five helicopters were deployed and worked through the night to take passengers from the vessel to land. Helicopters were stopped removing passengers by Sunday morning when the ship was ready to sail to the shore.

    Passengers on board the Viking Sky, were waiting to be evacuated after the vessel encountered bad conditions off the coast of Norway on Saturday.
    (AP)

    Viking Ocean Cruises, the company that owns and operates the ship, said 479 passengers were airlifted to land, leaving 436 passengers and 458 crew members onboard by the time the ship made its journey to the port.

    “We understand 20 people suffered injuries as a result of this incident, and they are all receiving care at the relevant medical centers in Norway, with some already having been discharged,” the company said.

    Passengers said they suffered cuts on their hands and faces from flying glass. Rodney Horgen, a Minnesota native who was on the cruise, recalled to The Associated Press how his wife was “thrown across the room.”

    Passengers are helped from a rescue helicopter in Fraena, Norway, Sunday.
    (AP)

    “When the windows and door flew open and the 2 meters of water swept people and tables 20 to 30 feet, that was the breaker. I said to myself, ‘This is it,'” Horgen said. “I grabbed my wife but I couldn’t hold on. And she was thrown across the room. And then she got thrown back again by the wave coming back.

    NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINE TO PAY $2 MILLION TO PASSENGER WHO SUFFERED HEART ATTACK

    “I did not have a lot of hope. I knew how cold that water was and where we were and the waves and everything. You would not last very long. That was very, very frightening,” he added.

    Carolyn Savikas, from Pennsylvania, recalled a “really huge wave” crashing into the cruise ship’s restaurant and shattering a door.

    “We were in the restaurant when a really huge wave came and shattered a door and flooded the entire restaurant,” Savikas told Norwegian publication VG newspaper. “All I saw were bones, arms, water and tables. It was like the Titanic – just like the pictures you have seen from the Titanic.”

    The cruise ship Viking Sky arrives at port off Molde, Norway on Sunday.
    (AP)

    Viking Cruises chairman Torstein Hagen praised Norwegian authorities and the ship’s crew for the rescue operation.

    “I’m very proud of our crew,” Hagen told VG.

    CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

    The ship was visiting the Norwegian towns and cities of Narvik, Alta, Tromso, Bodo and Stavanger before its scheduled arrival Tuesday in the British port of Tilbury on the River Thames. The passengers mostly were a mix of American, British, Canadian, New Zealand and Australian citizens.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

    Source Article from https://www.foxnews.com/travel/cruise-ship-stranded-off-norways-coast-reaches-port-after-harrowing-helicopter-rescues

    Parkland is feeling more pain.

    A week after the suicide of a former student, a Marjory Stoneman High School student has taken his life, Coral Springs police confirmed Sunday.

    The news of the double tragedy comes just as students are out of school this week for spring break.

    Investigators told the Miami Herald that the male student died in “an apparent suicide” on Saturday night. He was a sophomore and attended Stoneman Douglas last year at the time of the Feb. 14 shooting that claimed 17 lives on campus.

    It isn’t known whether his death can be linked to the school shooting, police said. They did not release his name.

    The death follows the suicide of a recent Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School graduate, Sydney Aiello, who took her life after being diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The Broward County Medical Examiner’s Office told NBC News that Aiello died from a gunshot wound to the head.

    “How many more kids have to be taken from us as a result of suicide for the government / school district to do anything? Rip 17 + 2,” former Stoneman Douglas student and gun-control activist David Hogg said Sunday on Twitter.

    If you are in crisis, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741.

    Ryan Petty, father of Alaina Petty, a 14-year-old freshman who was one of 17 people murdered on Feb. 14. 2018, told the Miami Herald the student who died Saturday also died from a gunshot wound to the head.

    Petty founded a suicide prevention foundation called the Walk Up Foundation after his daughter’s death. He said “the issue of suicide needs to be talked about.”

    “This is another tragic example,” Petty said, who has partnered with Columbia University for his Foundation.

    Since the Valentine’s Day shooting that killed 17 and traumatized an entire student body, students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School regularly report to trauma counselors after breaking down in tears. They panic when fire alarms drag on even moments too long. Reports of widespread absences are common.

    But with news emerging of two suicides in the past week involving a sophomore boy and a recent graduate, just as students leave campus for spring break, faculty at the Parkland school worry that their students may not be receiving the help they need away from campus. They also are concerned that recent changes at the school may be negatively affecting kids.

    Grief therapists working with Parkland families are mobilizing on Sunday to figure out the best way to provide help. They also are concerned that students will be off this week.

    “I’m afraid there will be more [suicides] to come,” said Greg Pittman, an American History teacher at MSD. “I’m just kind of concerned that they’re away from their support to a degree.”

    He said the reassignment of the high school’s three assistant principals and a security specialist, administrators who were with the school during the mass shooting, has affected the mental health of the students who need help the most.

    “The kids need help and many of them that do need help are not getting any,” Pittman said Sunday. “They want to talk to people that were there.”

    Pittman, who taught Sydney Aiello, said he has spoken with students directly about their concerns over the changing structure of their school. He said more mental health resources may be needed.

    “Many of them think that they don’t need help,” he said. “That only their friends who were there understand. More resources probably would help, but also the resources that knew them [are] leaving.”

    During a meeting Friday between the district and the faculty, Pittman said Broward Chief Officer of School Performance and Accountability Valerie Wanza acknowledged it was a mistake to remove the administrators students had grown accustomed to seeing.

    “I thought it was a mistake then and even more so now,” he said.

    He said his students are under “tremendous pressure,” some having seen their friends die or seeing their bodies on the floor after the shooting.

    Pittman, who was at the school during the shooting, regularly sees a therapist and takes medication for emotional distress.

    “I didn’t witness it, but many of these kids had to witness their friends dying,” he said. “What they have seen, I’m concerned we’re gonna see more.”

    On Twitter Sunday, Ryan Petty posted “17 + 2” with a breaking heart emoji, a somber reminder of the growing tally of the massacre.

    “I’m afraid that Sydney did it, and now this other kid has done it…” Pittman said. “I don’t know how long it will take but we need more help.”

    This article will be updated as more information becomes available.

    Superintendent Robert W. Runcie will hold a press conference to provide a progress report on recommendations for school districts outlined in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission’s initial report

    Source Article from https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/broward/article228350134.html

    <!– –>

    The Powerball jackpot just won’t quit.

    After no one hit all winning numbers in Saturday night’s drawing, the top prize has jumped to a whopping $750 million. And while players daydream about what they’d do with such a windfall, they should remember they wouldn’t really end up with the advertised amount.

    Whether you take the prize as an annuity spread out over three decades or as an immediate, reduced lump sum, 24 percent of your win is withheld for federal taxes. Yet the top marginal tax rate of 37 percent means you’d owe a lot more at tax time. And state taxes typically are due as well.

    “The big impact on winnings is taxes,” said certified financial planner Dan Routh, a wealth advisor at Exencial Wealth Advisors in Oklahoma City. “If you win, just realize how big the tax bill can be and make sure you’re ready to handle it.”

    The Powerball jackpot, which now marks the fourth-largest U.S. lottery prize ever, has been climbing since late December with twice-weekly drawings yielding no top-prize winner. It’s little wonder — your chance of matching all six numbers is about 1 in 292 million.

    For Wednesday night’s drawing, the cash option — which most winners go with — is $465.5 million. The 24 percent federal withholding would reduce that amount by $111.7 million.

    Assuming you had no reduction to your taxable income, another 13 percent, or $60.5 million, would be due to the IRS. That’s $172.2 million in all going to Uncle Sam.

    After federal taxes, you’d be left with $293.3 million. Then there are state taxes, which range from zero to more than 8 percent depending on where the ticket was purchased and where the winner lives.

    In other words, you could end up paying more than 45 percent in taxes.

    Given the sheer size of the jackpot, experts say it would be crucial to assemble a team of experienced professionals to help navigate the windfall: an attorney, a tax advisor and a financial advisor.

    “There’s a big responsibility that goes with having such a large sum of money,” Routh said. “It would be important to surround yourself with a quality team that’s working in your best interest.”

    More from Advisor Insight:
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    Source Article from https://www.cnbc.com/2019/03/24/if-you-hit-the-750-million-powerball-jackpot-heres-your-tax-bill.html

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    (CNN)As Robert Mueller exits stage left, the Justice Department will continue to pursue a handful of investigations—and potentially more prosecutions — that began with or were bolstered by the special counsel’s work. And a significant group of them still focus around President Donald Trump.

      Source Article from https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/24/politics/ongoing-investigations-manafort-gates-cohen/index.html