Category: Opinion

A 16-year-old girl is missing after getting swept away by rising floodwaters in Arizona. The teen was nearly rescued when her car became stranded in the knee-high water. Rescuers were minutes away from reaching her when the current became too strong and dragged her downstream.

Faith Moore had called 911 at around 9:30 p.m. after her vehicle got stuck in a low water crossing in Cottonwood, the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office said Sunday. Officials estimated that the water only reached to Moore’s knees at the time she called for help but rose to over 8 feet within an hour.

“The two feet of water was enough to initially push the car from where the initial call came from so when you think of water to your knees, it can be deceiving but that’s a lot of pressure and a lot of energy behind that moving water,” Verde Valley Fire District Chief David Johnson told reporters Sunday.

Search teams were immediately dispatched downriver to help locate the teen. However, air support was not available for several hours due to active storms in the area. Verde Valley firefighters were also conducting numerous active rescues at the time.

“The fact that they do have strong ties to this community, and a lot of the firefighters that were on the initial rescue worked for Joe and worked for the family, so you can understand that’s going to have an emotional effect not only on his physical family but on the fire department and public safety family because they are so entwined in this community,” he said.

The search continued through the weekend, with over 100 volunteers, several law enforcement agencies, drone teams, and K-9 units exhausting every effort to find the missing teen.

#BREAKING
The Verde Valley Fire District has identified the 16-year-old girl missing after being swept away in a Cottonwood wash. https://t.co/PRo6A99GrQ pic.twitter.com/bR70owOaji

— azfamily 3TV CBS 5 (@azfamily) July 25, 2021

The search is expected to continue this week. As of Sunday night, only Moore’s cellphone and some other personal belongings were found in the wash.

Former police officer Kim Potter, 48, has been accused of “culpable negligence” in the fatal accidental shooting of 20-year-old Daunte Wright. Potter has been arrested in the early hours of Wednesday and charged with second-degree manslaughter.

Daunte Wright’s accidental killing has ignited racial tensions once more as hundreds of Black Lives Matter supporters erupted into violence over the last few nights. More than 70 arrests have been made following clashes with the local law enforcement.

“Kimberly Ann Potter caused the death of Daunte Demetrius Wright, by her culpable negligence, whereby Kimberly Potter created an unreasonable risk and consciously took a chance of causing death or great bodily harm to Daunte Demetrius Wright,” state prosecutors stated in the complaint, filed in court on Wednesday.

Agents from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension arrested a former Brooklyn Center police officer, Kim Potter, in connection to the killing of Daunte Wright. https://t.co/GsbBtN3Umu

— WKOW 27 News (@WKOW) April 14, 2021

Kim Potter, a 26-year veteran of the Brooklyn Center Police Department, will stay in jail until her first court appearance Thursday. The charges against Potter carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison under Minnesota law. Ms. Potter along with the city’s police chief, Tim Gannon, resigned Tuesday following the violence in the city.

Police initially described the shooting of Mr. Wright as accidental. Explaining that Potter mistook her gun for a Taser. The body-camera footage below shows former officer Potter yelling “Taser-Taser-Taser” before firing her gun, once, at the suspect.

A state investigator who examined her duty belt after the shooting said the Taser was on her left side and her handgun on the right.

“Officer Potter abrogated her responsibility to protect the public when she used her firearm rather than her Taser,” said Imran Ali, the assistant criminal division chief in the Washington County Attorney’s office, in a statement. “Her action caused the unlawful killing of Mr. Wright and she must be held accountable.”

Body-camera footage shows Wright struggling with police when a female officer shouts, “I’ll Tase you! I’ll Tase you! Taser! Taser! Taser!” She draws her weapon after the man breaks free from the police and gets back into the car. After firing a single shot, the car speeds away, and Potter says, “Holy (expletive)! I shot him.”

Ben Crump, a renowned civil rights attorney, claimed in a statement that the Potter shooting was “no accident,” as “driving while Black continues to result in a death sentence.”

“While we appreciate that the district attorney is pursuing justice for Daunte, no conviction can give the Wright family their loved one back. This was no accident. This was an intentional, deliberate, and unlawful use of force.  Driving while Black continues to result in a death sentence,” Crump proclaimed in a joint statement.

“A 26-year veteran of the force knows the difference between a taser and a firearm. Kim Potter executed Daunte for what amounts to no more than a minor traffic infraction and a misdemeanor warrant,” the statement continued. “Daunte’s life, like George Floyd’s life, like Eric Garner’s, like Breonna Taylor’s, like David Smith’s meant something. But Kim Potter saw him as expendable. It’s past time for meaningful change in our country. We will keep fighting for justice for Daunte, for his family, and for all marginalized people of color. And we will not stop until there is meaningful policing and justice reform and until we reach our goal of true equality.”

President Joe Biden said Thursday that although he has Irish roots he’s“not stupid” then proceeded to call his wife’s father by her grandfather’s name.

“I just want you to know, I may be Irish, but I’m not stupid,” Biden said while speaking at the Annual Friends of Ireland Luncheon. “I married Domenic Giacoppo’s daughter.”

First Lady Jill Biden’s parents were Donald Carl Jacobs and Bonny Jean Jacobs. Her grandfather, Domenico Giacoppo, was from the tiny village of Gesso in Sicily. When Giacoppo was two, his family left Italy to go to Ellis Island before settling in New Jersey.

Biden attended the annual dinner to promote relations between the U.S. and Ireland. Micheal Martin, Ireland’s leader, was in attendance as well and that afternoon tested positive for COVID-19. Biden and Martin were not in close contact during the event according to a spokesperson for the president.

Biden met with Martin virtually Thursday after he tested positive, with Martin saying he is“doing good” and that it reminds him“vaccines prevent severe illness.”

A reception is planned for Thursday evening. Martin will not attend the event as originally planned.

Elon Musk’s daughter says she wants nothing to do with her father and has filed legal docs to drop his famous last name. She’s actually changing her full name, and legally declaring her gender identity.

The papers were filed in L.A. County under her birth name, Xavier Musk but having turned 18 in April, she wants to change her name to Vivian Jenna Wilson.

In the documents, Vivian lists her reason for the name change as “Gender Identity and the fact that I no longer live with or wish to be related to my biological father in any way, shape or form.”

In the past, neither Elon nor Vivian has said anything publicly about their relationship or her transition. Ironically, in December 2020, Elon tweeted that he supports the transgender community but added … “All these pronouns are an esthetic nightmare.”

Vivian has a twin brother, Griffin, and the last name Wilson comes from their mother, Canadian author Justine Wilson. She was married to Elon from 2000 to 2008.

Vivian’s hearing on the name change is set for Friday.

Florida authorities were already in a dangerous standoff with an armed suspect when a woman cruised onto a crime scene in a golf cart wearing nothing but her birthday suit. According to reports, Jessica Smith, 28, had “a distinct odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from her person, and she was completely nude.”

Police in Dunedin had several Pinellas County sheriff’s office vehicles surrounding a tense standoff with an armed 18-year-old suspect when Smith allegedly cruised past the law enforcement vehicles oblivious to what was happening around her.

Smith allegedly ignored the officer’s instructions to leave the area, then later she refused to get out of the golf cart when officers approached her. Smith was pulled from the cart, arrested, and charged with resisting an officer without violence.

“The defendant’s actions and inability to follow directions put multiple deputies at risk for potentially getting shot at,” investigators wrote in the affidavit.

Authorities said Smith had no involvement in the situation with the armed suspect who allegedly fired a gun at people in the area then ran from responding officers and climbed up onto a roof of the house where the standoff took place.

Abbott had originally been seen with two other suspects who were later arrested one of which was charged with grand theft of a firearm, carrying a concealed firearm, and felon in possession of a firearm. The juvenile was arrested on weapons charges.

Republicans everywhere still express their support of former President Donald Trump and that includes Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

During an interview, DeSantis talked about his relationship with Trump and attributed any notion to the contrary to the media spinning stories.

“Donald Trump’s a friend of mine. He is proud when people do well, and it’s not just me, but obviously he’s a Florida resident, and he appreciates the job that we’ve done. He’s told me that many times, not only with helping with the election, but just how we govern the state.”

“He wants to see Republicans doing well,” DeSantis continued. “And I think when media is trying to act like he’s upset at me for doing well, I think that’s total bunk. I think they’re just making it up. And I think he’s somebody that wants to see, you know, not just Republicans do well, but people that are actually going to stand and fight do well across the board. Obviously, Florida is an important state, the third-largest state in the country, and really us and Texas are the two biggest states that have sizable Republican footprints, and so we’re proud of that, and we’re going to keep it going.”

DeSantis wouldn’t confirm whether he intended to take on Trump in 2024 and said sources close to Trump claiming he has a “dull personality” could be due to Democrats and the media trying to create a divide within the Republican Party in order to re-elect President Biden.

“No. I mean, look, I think that what they’re trying to do is they’re Biden. They did all they could to get Biden elected. OK. They lied about Trump for four years. They did everything they could to get Biden elected, the guy who campaigned from his basement. They never asked any questions about that. Well, now he gets in. And he had a disastrous first year as president said the worst first year president of any president since the 1800s. People compare him to Jimmy Carter. Carter was much more successful his first year than Biden has been,” DeSantis said.

“So they know that, they know the Democrats are in for a shellacking in 2022. So they’re trying to change the topic, and they’re trying to drive dissension among Republicans. And so my message to people is, don’t take that bait. Understand what they’re trying to do. We need to be united and say we don’t like what the Biden administration’s doing. We offer a better course in Florida. I think other Republican states are offering a better vision in their states as well. And let’s go into ‘22 with a full head of steam with everybody united on the same team.”

Hunter Biden had a single message to any critics of his newly founded art career who accused the U.S. president’s son of exploiting his father’s position to enrich himself in the art world in a podcast posted late last week.

It seems to be a clear case of Biden just playing off of his father’s fame to establish himself with more funds. The New York City gallery this fall will be showing around a dozen pieces created by Hunter Biden with an estimated worth of between $75,000 to $500,000.

Established art critics within the scene have called the works for what they are, which are overpriced junk given the artist’s lack of experience.

Hosts of the podcast “Nota Bene,” whose Thursday episode featured Biden, asked the artist to respond to the said criticisms.

Hunter Biden on what he has to say to people questioning his art selling scheme: "Other than f*** 'em?" pic.twitter.com/3CzoJFGWY2

— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) July 30, 2021

“What’s your response to the people who are coming after the prices of the work?” the hosts inquired.

“Other than fuck ‘em?” Biden responded.

Addressing another popular critique, Biden conceded that his surname might have been a factor in determining his works’ prices.

“It’s been an unfair advantage of my whole life,” the president’s son noted. “It’s a hell of a lot easier to get noticed, not only by the cop who pulls you over for speeding but also by the school or whatever the endeavor may be.”

He also claimed that he did not play a part during the appraisal of his art, adding that he would “be amazed if my art had sold for $10.”

According to an attendee at the 60th birthday party for former President Barack Obama on Martha’s Vineyard Saturday night, they were forced to remove all of the Instagram photographs they uploaded during the party due to the event’s photography ban.

According to screenshots of the postings, rapper Trap Beckham and manager TJ Chapman were able to sneakily snap some photos of the event’s high-end food, drink, and swag offers as the party progressed. The recording artist and his manager both uploaded photos of themselves using marijuana, which is legal in Massachusetts.

Despite the fact that Questlove was tasked with coordinating a meat-free dinner, photographs revealed that steak, chicken, and shrimp were still available, along with rice, vegetables, and potatoes.

Embroidered on napkins in gold print was the logo “44×60,” a tribute to the 44th president’s 60th birthday. The big shiny numbers were also seen on some of the backstage crew’s clothes and on toiletries.

Beckham allegedly performed his single “Birthday B—h” during the president’s celebration; Alicia Keys and John Legend also sang to him at the party, which he subsequently described in a post on Instagram.

“Had to delete everything due to the rules,” Beckham reportedly explained. “It was epic for sure. If any videos surface it’s going viral. He danced the whole time. Nobody has ever seen Obama like this before.”

The celebration ended about 1 a.m. causing traffic gridlock on the resort island.

There were several alleged celebrity attendees at the seaside event, including rapper Erykah Badu, actor/comedian Steven Colbert, and U.S. Senator John Kerry.

After being released from jail just one week earlier for a family assault an Alaska teen shot four family members, including two young children.

The teen, Malachi Maxon, is suspected of opening fire at his cousin, 18-year-old Cody Roehl. Minutes later authorities received a call saying there had been a suicide at the house and Cody was found wounded.

Maxon then fled the home, stole a vehicle and semiautomatic Glock, and headed to his aunt’s home where he broke into the residence. According to police reports, he shot his aunt and two cousins  7-year-old Ellison and 10-year-old Sienna.

First responders found the two deceased children and the aunt died at the hospital.

Two other children were also at the home at the time of the shooting one of which a just 6-years-old only referred to as “AB” whose life was spared because of defective bullets.

“The scene revealed spent cartridge casings outside the broken front window, and the number of bullets fired at each person appeared to be about the same, with the exception of Ellison,” according to reports. “In the bed where Ellison and AB were found, there were several more bullet defects than there were with the other bodies that indicated Maxon was likely trying to shoot AB, who was sleeping near the wall.”

He was later arrested when state troopers pulled over the stolen vehicle. Maxon tried to escape custody and attempted to take a trooper’s holster but was subdued.

Troopers found cuts and other wounds on the teen’s legs while he was being photographed following his arrest. These lacerations appeared to be from broken glass. In an audio recording from surveillance footage in the home sounds of shooting and glass breaking can be heard. Documents also allege that Maxon can be heard walking over the broken glass as he left the scene.

The teen faces four first-degree murder charges, one count of attempted first-degree murder, first-degree vehicle theft, third-degree assault, and first-degree attempted escape.

The National Guard has been deployed to Minneapolis in response to riots and looting following the death of a Black homicide suspect who shot himself in the Nicollet Mall as officers closed in.

Governor Tim Walz said he was calling in the Minnesota National Guard but did not comment on how many troops would be on the ground.