Trump criticized for making Martin Luther King Jr. holiday about himself, sending pro-gun tweets
President Trump used the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday Monday to tweet about what he personally has done for African Americans and brag about his support for gun ownership on what would have been the 91st birthday of the slain civil rights leader.
“It was exactly three years ago today, January 20, 2017, that I was sworn into office. So appropriate that today is also MLK jr DAY. African-American Unemployment is the LOWEST in the history of our Country, by far. Also, best Poverty, Youth, and Employment numbers, ever. Great!” Trump tweeted at 3 p.m.
An hour later, he tweeted his support for pro-gun advocates rallying in Richmond, Virginia.
“I will NEVER allow our great Second Amendment to go unprotected, not even a little bit!” Trump vowed.
The president’s unique way of celebrating MLK’s birthday did not go over well on Twitter.
“MLK Day is not about you,” wrote Twitter user Morten Overbye.
That sentiment was echoed by several users, including one who wrote, “Translation: ‘me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me.’”
Several social media users shared artist Watson Mere’s 2017 painting of MLK shooshing the president.
Others drew attention to the fact that black and Hispanic unemployment fell far more dramatically under the previous president.
“You’ve got to laugh when Donald Trump makes a play for the Black and Hispanic vote with employment statistics. President Obama took black unemployment from 17% to 7% and Hispanic unemployment from 13% to 5% but Donald Trump tries to fool everyone and take credit,” wrote Christopher Zullo.
Critics of the president also reminded Trump that he’d perpetuated the rumor Obama was born in Kenya, which many regarded as racist. Twitter also lit up with reminders that Trump had called for the execution of five black teens falsely convicted of attacking a white jogger in Central Park in 1989. Those men were later exonerated.
Some users attacked the president for being slow in recognizing the holiday.
“Finally you said something. But it’s too late, you already have tweeted so much today and some of was just pure insults. That was not in the spirit of today,” wrote Steward Beckham.
“Right?” agreed a Twitter user who goes by Mitchie. “I’ve seriously been looking at his tweets wondering just how long it would take before someone insisted that he recognize MLK Day. I didn’t think it was possible for him to be more disappointing. Yet here we are.”
A tweet from the White House’s official page attributed a quote praising King to the president shortly before 10:30 a.m. Trump immediately retweeted that statement from his own account.
Others questioned the president’s choice to support the the Virginia Citizens Defense League rally in Virginia on the holiday.
“Now what could be more appropriate for the US president to do than shamelessly pander to GUN nuts on the day commemorating #MLK who was murdered with a GUN. What a tone-deaf sociopath you are,” wrote filmmaker Andy Ostroy.
The president also had his share of supporters tweeting in his defense Monday.
“MLK is looking down and saying Thank you Mr.President,” tweeted @lisaghlisa, who says she’s a single mom and a registered nurse.
Another user tweeted a Photoshopped picture of Dr. King wearing a MAGA cap, claiming the civil rights leader and the real estate magnate shared a belief in Christianity
“Best President in my lifetime,” wrote a Twitter user whose handle is “Real Defender” and has an American flag and an eagle on his page profile. “I look forward to 4 more years of Trump.”
Conservative commenter Scott Presler tweeted to praise Trump’s position on guns.
“The Second Amendment is the great equalizer,” he wrote “It’s the difference between you fearing the government & the government fearing you.”
Trump paid a surprise visit to King’s memorial Monday afternoon. He was joined by Vice President Pence.
Presidential adviser Kellyanne Conway said Monday morning that she felt MLK would have disapproved of the impeachment trial of President Trump set to begin tomorrow, according to CNN.
King was killed by an assassin’s bullet in Memphis, Tenn. in 1968.
Photo Credit: AP
Tough guy Jason Momoa shows his softer side visiting young patients at a Pittsburgh hospital
Actor Jason Momoa, best known for his tough-guy roles such as Khal Drogo in “Game of Thrones” or Aquaman, showed a different side on Monday that was anything but.
Momoa took a break from shooting his new Netflix thriller to bring smiles to patients’ faces at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.
The hospital tweeted four photos of the actor visiting several patients with their families: “Thanks to actor Jason Momoa, for stopping by this morning to visit the patients and families at UPMC Children’s!”
This isn’t the first time Momoa met with young fans battling illnesses. Last July, the 40-year-old posted a series of photos from his first time volunteering with the Make-A-Wish foundation.
Momoa is in Pittsburgh to shoot “Sweet Girl,” a new Netflix thriller, according to CNN affiliate KDKA. The film will feature Momoa, who is also producing the film, as a father trying to seek justice for his wife’s death while protecting his daughter and company from corruption, according to KDKA.
By Alicia Lee, CNN
Photo Credit: UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh
California man allegedly rammed into another vehicle intentionally, killing 3 teens, police say
A California man is facing murder charges after police say he intentionally rammed his vehicle into another, resulting in the death of three teenage boys.
The incident took place Sunday around 10:30 p.m. (1:30 a.m. ET) about 60 miles southeast of Los Angeles near Corona, when the man, police said, rammed into a 2002 Prius, causing the driver of the vehicle to lose control and hit a tree. There were six teenagers in the car, including an 18-year-old driver, according to CNN affiliate KTLA.
Three passengers were trapped in the car and had to be taken out using the Jaws of Life, according to CNN affiliate KCAL. One of the teens died at the scene, and the other five were taken to a hospital where two more died, a spokesperson with the California Highway Patrol told KCAL. Three of the boys had non-life threatening injuries, said California Highway Patrol Lt. David Yokley.
Anurag Chandra, 42, was taken into custody without incident and was charged with three counts of murder and three counts of attempted murder, Yokley said. It is unclear if Chandra has an attorney.
The initial investigation led authorities to believe it was a hit-and-run incident, however, witnesses came forward after following Chandra to his home and alerting police. Further investigation determined the crash was an intentional act. Authorities are now treating the incident as a homicide investigation, Yokley said.
It is also unclear if Chandra or any of the boys knew each other, Yokley said.
“We really don’t know, obviously there was some sort of contact. We’re looking into those exact same questions of whether or not he was known to the victims,” Yokley said. “There was some sort of contact which led to this incident.”
Yokley said there’s no indication that drugs or alcohol played a factor in this crash.
CNN has reached out to the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office and the Sheriff’s Office.
By Amir Vera, CNN
Photo Credit: fox2now.com
Man who stabbed 10-year-old boy in front of his mother fled while ‘laughing’
A 10-year-old boy was stabbed in front of his mother before the attacker fled the scene while ‘laughing.’
The victim, who reportedly sustained injuries to his neck is being treated at a hospital in Nottingham, is said to be in a stable condition.
He was taken for treatment after a member of the public called emergency services following the attack in Leicester on Saturday afternoon.
His mother, who was present at the incident, sustained no injuries.
Police are looking for information about the man who attacked the young boy around 5:20pm on Belper Street.
His mother was reported to have said yesterday [Sunday]: “I was pressing my hand on the hole of his neck to stop all the blood, he was losing so much and I thought he was going to die.
“It was awful and the images now keep coming in front of my eyes. I was terrified.
“I thought I would lose him and all my clothes and his were wet with his blood.
“The attacker was a stranger, my son didn’t know him, and he had half his face and head covered with a hoodie. After stabbing my son he started laughing.”
Police have urged anyone who was present in the area or has information about the attacker to come forward.
Detective Inspector Tim Lindley from Leicestershire Police said: “Our investigation to find out who was responsible for injuring this child remains ongoing and we continue to appeal to the public to come forward with any information.
“It happened in a residential area at a time of day when there would have been people about, either on foot or driving through.
“The suspect has been described as a light-skinned Asian man, in his mid-20s, around 5ft 10ins tall, chubby build, and wearing a brown coloured jacket.
“Do you know who this man is or do you recall seeing someone matching this description in the area of Belper Street or Catherine Street between the times of 4.30pm and 6.30pm?
“Was a friend or family member out during this time and returned home in an agitated state or behaving out of character?
“We also ask anyone with any dashcam footage or CCTV of the area to get in touch.”
via: https://currently.att.yahoo.com/att/man-stabbed-10-old-boy-200701750.html
Photo Credit: Getty Images
McKenzie Adams’ suicide caused by school’s failure to stop racist, gender-based bullying, lawsuit claims
Multiple Demopolis City Schools officials failed to protect a black Alabama 9-year-old girl from racially and gender-based bullying which led to her death by suicide, according to a federal lawsuit filed against the school system by the girl’s family on Thursday morning.
McKenzie Adams died by suicide in Linden in December 2018. She was a fourth-grader at U.S. Jones Elementary School who had dreams of being a scientist.
A lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama in Selma by Birmingham-based law firm Grant & Eisenhofer states McKenzie faced relentless bullying based on her race and gender by classmates. But the school system officials were indifferent to McKenzie and her family members’ complaints about the bullying, the lawsuit said. Grant & Eisenhofer filed the lawsuit on behalf of McKenzie’s mother, Jasmine Adams, and grandmother, Janice Adams.
The lawsuit seeks a jury trial and compensatory and punitive damages.
Demopolis City Schools, which is located in Marengo County, and U.S. Jones Elementary School are listed as defendants along with Demopolis City Schools Superintendent Kyle Kallhoff and former U.S Jones Elementary School principal and assistant principal Tori Infinger and Tracy Stewart. McKenzie’s fourth grade teacher, identified as Gloria Mims, is also mentioned in the lawsuit.
As of Thursday morning, Kallhoff said he has not seen a copy of the lawsuit and referred all questions to the school board’s attorney Alex Brasswell. At the time this article was published, Brasswell has not responded to phone calls from Al.com seeking comment about the lawsuit.
The 40-page complaint details the following timeline concerning the bullying McKenzie endured from the time she was enrolled at U.S. Jones Elementary for the 2018-19 school year until she passed away on Dec. 3, 2018. For four months, McKenzie was targeted by a 9-year-old white male classmate who repeatedly called McKenzie “ni**er” and an “ugly a** bit**.”:
- August 2018: Janice Adams called Mims and requested a meeting with the teacher to discuss the white student’s behavior and McKenzie’s state of mind. Adams didn’t receive a phone call from Mims, according to the lawsuit.
- September 2018: Janice Adams contacts Mims again to request a meeting.
- Oct. 1, 2018: Janice Adams received a generic notice saying that there was no need for a teacher-parent meeting. That same month, Janice Adams received McKenzie’s progress report, which showed that McKenzie was failing math, which is the subject that Mims taught. Janice Adams believes McKenzie was struggling in the course because of the emotional toll of being bullied and harassed by her classmate.
- October 12, 2018: Janice Adams went to Mims’ classroom to request a meeting. She also identified the white classmate student, told Mims McKenzie was being bullied by the student and asked the school to address it. Adams left her number for a follow up meeting. The lawsuit states Mims failed to call Adams back. The lawsuit said McKenzie told Mims multiple times about the student who was bullying her. The lawsuit states the teacher told McKenzie multiple times to, “Tell it to the wall because I do not want to hear it.”
- October 24, 2018: The white student passed a note to McKenzie calling her a “bit**” and a “pus** sucker.” According to the lawsuit, Mims contacted Adams after possessing the note and informed Adams that instead of disciplining the white student who passed the note, McKenzie would be disciplined for responding to the harassment.
- October 25: Stewart contacted Adams about the note and told Adams that McKenzie would be disciplined for responding to the bullying. Adams told Stewart that McKenzie was being bullied and had been a target of bullying since the beginning of the school year. In a three-way phone call with Adam’s and Jasmine Adams, McKenzie’s mother, Jasmine Adams expressed concerns about the bullying and the fact that McKenzie was going to be disciplined by the school. Jasmine Adams then told Stewart she was going to contact the Alabama State Department of Education about the persistent bullying. Stewart asked Jasmine Adams not to contact the state department and that the matter will be handled.
- November 5, 2018: McKenzie writes about two boys who were bullying her at school in her diary.
- Dec. 3, 2018: Attorneys representing the McKenzie’s grandmother and mother believe the white student told her that she was better off dead and instructed her on how to taker her own life. McKenzie died the same day in her grandmother’s home in Linden.
The lawsuit states the school system didn’t adhere to both state and federal laws regarding anti-bullying measures. The Jamari Terrell Williams Bullying Prevention Act, which expanded on Alabama’s 2009 anti-harassment law, requires schools to define, control, report and take other measures against bullying. The complaint states officials in both the Demopolis City school system and U.S. Jones Elementary failed to comply.
The complaint also said the school district violated Title IX of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits harassment based on gender, and Title VI, which prohibits discrimination based on race. The lawsuit also accuses the school system of denying Adams equal protection under the 14th Amendment.
McKenzie was one of three Alabama students whose deaths captured headlines and hearts nationwide during the 2018-19 school year. McKenzie passed away about a month after another 9-year-old from Birmingham, Madison “Maddie” Whittset, died by suicide in November 2018. Nigel Shelby was 15 when he died by suicide in Huntsville in April 2019. Bullying was cited by family members in all three deaths.
Diandra Debrosse Zimmerman, Grant & Eisenhofer director and lead attorney on the case, said school officials’ failure to respond to both McKenzie and her family’s complaints led to McKenzie’s death.
“The behavior of school and district officials was not only morally appalling but also a direct contravention of federal and state law, which require schools to enact and enforce policies against harassment and bullying,” Zimmermann said. “U.S. Jones Elementary, which says its mission ‘is to ensure that students are safe, loved, and provided opportunities to develop,’ tragically failed at all three in McKenzie’s case.”
Photo Credit: From Facebook page of Eddwina Harris
‘White Only’ signs for sale at antiques store spark confrontation
(CNN) — Nicola Shanks was browsing the aisles of an antique store in Cortez, Colorado, last week when she noticed several signs that took her aback.
“Public Swimming Pool — White Only,” one read.
“Colored Seated In Rear,” another read.
“We Serve Colored Carry Out Only,” read a third.
Shanks, a stay-at-home mom with an African-American daughter, was angered by the Jim Crow-era racist signs, she told CNN.
“I think it was disbelief at first, that I was actually seeing these signs in a store. It’s something I would expect to see at the Jim Crow museum, not in a local antique store,” she said.
That anger pushed Shanks to confront a store employee about the signs, and days later, she returned to the store to speak directly to the owner about removing them.
But the store’s owner, Cheryl Dean, refused to back down over the course of a 15-minute conversation, Shanks said. Dean, who did not respond to CNN’s request for comment, said the signs were not racist in nature, according to CNN affiliate KDVR.
“I’ve lived in a small town my whole life. I don’t even know what the word means. There’s been black people in the store and we laugh about it. There’s people that collect that stuff. It has nothing to do with racism. It’s part of history, like, ‘Look how far we’ve come,'” Dean said.
But Shanks said that she believes the historical argument does not hold up.
“The thing that was even more upsetting to me is the fact that they’re not antiques, they’re replicas,” Shanks said.
In the past few days, Dean has faced a torrent of criticism and threats online, she told KDVR. She also said that the signs had sold out, and she did not plan to replace them.
Shanks said she did not condone threats to Dean and that she wanted to find common ground on the issue with the owner.
“My hope confronting her is that she would have a change of heart and hear what people of color have to say and how this affects them, not from me but from information I would share with her,” she said.
Photo Credit: Nicola Shanks
Family’s cat accidentally euthanized during routine vet visit
(CNN) — A Texas family is mourning after their cat was accidentally euthanized during a routine visit to an animal hospital.
Michelle Olson and her husband had taken 8-year-old Sophie to Suburbia North Animal Hospital in Houston, Texas, for her regular checkup and rabies vaccination.
Everything seemed fine, until they received a frightening call on their drive home.
“It was the doctor herself calling saying, ‘Please get Sophie back here immediately, we gave her euthanasia instead of a rabies vaccine,'” Olson told CNN affiliate KTRK.
The couple rushed back to the hospital to try and save their beloved cat.
“I immediately took her out of her cat carrier and I held her, talked to her, because I knew that was going to be the last thing she would remember,” Olson said. “I knew she wasn’t going to come back at that point. I just knew it. She pretty much was dying in my arms.”
Hospital staff gave Sophie oxygen and fluids to try and flush out the deadly drugs, Olson told CNN affiliate KPRC-TV. She died two days later.
Suburbia North Animal Hospital did not return CNN’s request for comment.
Olson said while the hospital staff was extremely sorrowful and apologetic, it was simply an “accident that should have never happened.”
“My main concern is not to bash them at all, just want to make public aware to be vigilant, ask questions that you didn’t think you had to ask of your veterinarian so this doesn’t happen to anyone else,” Olson said.
Photo Credit: Olson family
US Bank employee fired for giving $20 out of her own pocket to struggling customer
An Oregon banker gave $20 out of her own pocket to a struggling customer on Christmas Eve — but her good deed backfired when her employer sacked her days later, according to a new report.
Emily James, a senior banker at a US Bank call center in Portland, got a call on Dec. 23 from customer Marc Eugenio, whose $1,000 paycheck from a new job had been placed on hold — leaving him essentially broke, The Oregonian reported.
The glitch left him unable to buy his kids Christmas presents, and he couldn’t afford living expenses either, KOIN 6 reported.
After some back and forth with a local US Bank branch, Eugenio called James back at the 800 number on Christmas Eve.
“I said, ‘I wish I had just $20 bucks to get home,’” Eugenio told the paper. “And she said ‘Wait, hold on.’”
James — who handled calls from customers across the country and said she rarely spoke to anyone local — decided to personally deliver $20 to Eugenio, who was only about 14 miles away, according to the report.
“I handed him $20 in cash, said ‘Merry Christmas’ and went right back to work,” James said.
But when James returned to work on New Year’s Eve, the bank’s regional service manager fired her for having “an unauthorized interaction with a customer.”
“She said, ‘We’re sorry, we cannot keep your employment,’” James told the paper.
“They were worried about my safety,” the banker said. “He could have kidnapped me or shot me. But I wouldn’t have left or even tried to ask if that was OK if I thought that this person would hurt me.”
Eugenio called the decision “ridiculous.”
“It was one of the saddest Christmases,” he said. “Promissory notes for Christmas gifts. And I can’t believe [James] lost her job over it. The only one who seemed to care was Emily, and she got fired for that.”
At this point, James said she’s not sure she even wants her job back.
“I can’t change the world but I can change the world for that one person,” she told KOIN 6. “I would rather my morals align with someone who’s more willing to support someone like that than someone who’s willing to throw away two-and-a-half years and a lot of dedication.”
In a statement, a US Bank spokesperson explained the company’s decision to fire James.
“At US Bank, we have policies and procedures in place to protect our customers and employees,” the spokesperson said. “Ms. James was terminated following an internal investigation into her interactions with a customer. During this review it was determined Ms. James did not use the available solutions to remedy the customer’s situation and instead put herself and the bank at risk with her actions.”
via: https://nypost.com/2020/01/17/us-bank-employee-fired-for-giving-20-to-struggling-customer/
Photo Credit nypost.com
Hoverboarding dentist found guilty after bizarre tooth extraction caught on tape
No, it isn’t the nitrous oxide — that dentist is really riding a hoverboard.
An Alaska dentist has been found guilty on dozens of charges for pulling a patient’s tooth as he rode on the two-wheeled gadget and other unsavory acts.
Seth Lookhart, 34, was convicted Friday in Anchorage on 46 counts that included reckless endangerment, illegally practicing dentistry and medical assistance fraud.
Witnesses in the case included Veronica Wilhelm, who was sedated when the dentist pulled her tooth in July 2016 as he rode on a hoverboard, news station KTUU reported.
Lookhart allegedly texted a video of the procedure to at least eight people, joking that it was a “new standard of care,” NBC News reported.
The video shows the dentist triumphantly throwing his hands in the air while scooting off from the wheel-y stupid stunt, then spinning around to grin at the camera.
During the trial, Lookhart’s attorney apologized for his client’s “idiotic” behavior.
“I want you to know that as his lawyer, I apologize for what he did on that hoverboard,” defense attorney Paul Stockler said, according to the Anchorage Daily News.
“It’s unacceptable and you can be assured that when I agreed to represent him, I got in his face and told him what I thought about him for doing this, which I think needed to be done.”
But that was hardly the only thing he did wrong.
Prosecutors say Lookhart also defrauded the Alaska Medicaid program by offering more-costly intravenous sedation to Medicare patients instead of anesthesia.
Anchorage Superior Court Judge Michael Wolverton issued the guilty verdict after a five-week trial, calling the state’s evidence “simply overwhelming.”
The judge noted that Lookhart’s own text conversations were incriminating. One message included the dentist explaining to a pal how he pulled off some of his crimes.
“Dr. Lookhart responded, in effect, that unless someone was standing right next to him at the time, no one would ever know,” Wolverton wrote.
Lookhart is scheduled to be sentenced April 30.
Photo Credit: nypost.com
Woman injures 2 after allegedly driving into traffic as a test of faith
A woman in Pennsylvania allegedly drove her car into oncoming traffic as a test of her faith in God and showed no remorse for her actions, according to authorities.
The incident occurred on Jan. 7 near Weatherly, Pennsylvania when 31-year-old Nadejda Reilly drove into oncoming traffic on Route 93, according to ABC News’ Pittsburgh affiliate station WTAE.
An investigator who spoke to Reilly said that she told him she had been driving around for several hours waiting for a calling from God when she decided to take action into her own hands and drive into an oncoming vehicle.
“Reilly related God took care of her by not having her injured,” wrote Trooper Bruce Balliet in an arrest affidavit. “Reilly expressed no concerns or remorse for the victims. Reilly also stated she did not care if the other people were injured because God would have taken care of them.”
Reilly, from Drums, Pennsylvania, had her $50,000 bail revoked and was charged with aggravated assault and other offenses over allegations that she purposely caused the accident that injured two people in the vehicle that she collided with.
The two people in the car that Reilly collided with were taken to hospital and treated for their injuries.
Reilly’s lawyer, Andrew Theyken Bench, filed a notice with the Carbon County court saying that Reilly planned to waive her formal arraignment but declined to offer further comment on Friday.
Photo Credit: currently.att.yahoo.com