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Friday, May 12, 2023

5/12 WAKE-UP CALL: Some Border Counties Declare Disasters


Migrants gathered on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border on Thursday hours before immigration restrictions known as Title 42 expire, with some rushing to cross ahead of tough new asylum rules that will replace a COVID-era order. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has in recent days been holding up to 28,000 migrants at its facilities, far beyond its stated capacity and in what appeared to be a record, two federal officials requesting anonymity and the Border Patrol's union said.

The busiest border detention facilities are in the Rio Grande Valley and El Paso in Texas and two areas in Arizona, according to union President Brandon Judd. This week, the number of people caught crossing illegally topped 10,000 per day. Due to the high volume of arrivals, agents on Wednesday began releasing some migrants without a notice to appear in immigration court where they can make an asylum claim, telling them to report to an immigration office later, Judd said.

On Thursday night, a federal judge in Florida blocked such releases, saying they were similar to a policy previously enjoined in March due to a failure to follow proper regulatory procedures. On average, people are spending nearly three days in custody, Judd said.

In Yuma, Arizona, hundreds of migrants lined up in the chilly hours before dawn at a gap in the towering border fence, waiting to turn themselves in to U.S. agents. Some - like 40-year-old Jovanna Gomez from Colombia - decided to try their luck crossing now after hearing about the U.S. policy change. 'In my country, you hear that immigration will only be allowed until May 11, so we came racing against the clock,' she said. 'It wasn't easy.'

Under Title 42, hundreds of thousands of migrants have been quickly expelled to Mexico. But because Mexico only accepted the return of certain nationalities - mostly their own citizens and Central Americans, and more recently Venezuelans, Cubans, Haitians and Nicaraguans - migrants from other countries have largely been allowed in to pursue their immigration claims.


➤WH REPORTER'S ALLEGATION HAS BEEN DEBUNKED: Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas got into a spat with White House reporter April Ryan on Thursday after she accused the federal government of "whipping" Haitian migrants crossing the U.S. southern border in 2021. After she brought up the old allegations, which the government debunked in an official investigation, Mayorkas corrected her and declared it never happened. The reporter again insisted it did, which prompted Mayorkas to state for the record that her claims at this briefing were "corrected." The exchange took place Thursday at the White House press briefing, during which Mayorkas came out to give the press an appraisal of the chaos ongoing at the U.S.-Mexico border and what the Biden administration plans to do about it.

➤FED JUDGE STRIKES DOWN HANDGUN LAW: A federal judge in Virginia has struck down federal laws that block the sale of handguns to buyers under the age of 21, ruling they violate constitutional rights to possess firearms. The ruling, which the Justice Department is expected to challenge, will not take effect until judge Robert Payne, of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia issues his final order in the coming weeks. The ruling would not affect the 19 states that have their own laws barring handgun sales to anyone younger than 21. Payne's ruling follows on the Supreme Court's significant expansion of gun rights in the past year, which the judge frequently referenced in his ruling issued on Wednesday. "Because the statutes and regulations in question are not consistent with our nation's history and tradition, they, therefore, cannot stand," Payne wrote in his decision.

➤IS TARGET NEXT?: Target's collection for children to celebrate Pride month, which begins on June 1, has sparked an angry backlash by some online. Activist group Gays Against Groomers accused Target of 'indoctrinating' children, calling it 'highly inappropriate and disturbing' and urging a boycott. One former Target customer said the company 'deserves the Bud Light treatment' - a reference to the boycott sparked by Bud Light's decision to partner with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney. The disastrous marketing decision wiped $6 billion off the value of the company and saw sales plummet. Target has supported Pride - celebrated throughout the month of June - every year since 2013.

➤CARROLL MAY SUE TRUMP AGAIN FOR WHAT HE SAID DURING TOWN HALL: E. Jean Carroll threatened to sue Donald Trump for a third time over the 'vile' comments he made during the CNN town hall on Wednesday night. Her latest legal threat came as the former president  formally filed a notice of appeal after he was found liable of sexually abusing and defaming the Elle columnist, and she was awarded $5million in damages. Carroll told the New York Times on Thursday that she was considering filing another defamation suit after Trump told CNN's Kaitlan Collins the story was 'fake' and 'made up'.

➤HUBBY WAS SUSPICIOUS OF WIFE: Eric Richins stayed in his marriage to Kouri Darden Richins for the sake of his children, despite fears that his wife would 'kill him for the money' and suspicions that she had been unfaithful throughout their ten-year union. Greg Skordas, the family attorney and spokesperson said: 'There are three reasons Eric stayed: one is 10 years old; one is nine and the third is six. He lived for his three boys and unfortunately he died for them too.' Kouri was arrested and charged with Richins' murder on Monday, more than a year after his passing on March 4, 2022. He is believed to have died after consuming a fentanyl-laced Moscow Mule cocktail which his wife allegedly mixed for him. Kouri told authorities that she and her husband were celebrating because she had closed on a home for her business, K Richins Reality LLC.

➤SUPREME COURT UPHOLDS ANIMAL RIGHTS CASE: The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld a California law that bars the sale of pork produced in other states by pig farms that do not allow free movement by the sows being bred. Constitutional law experts say that the case could have wide significance as it affirms a state’s right to hold other states to its own standards. Pork producers argued that the law is a burden on interstate commerce.

➤MAN SHOOTS TEENAGE NEIGHBOR IN HEAD: A Louisiana man has been arrested after he shot a 14-year-old neighbor in the head this week. The girl was running away from his home while playing hide and seek with other children in the neighborhood. David Doyle, age 58, of Calcasieu Parrish, said he grabbed his gun and fired after seeing shadows in his yard. The child was hospitalized but her injuries are said to be non-life-threatening.

➤PACWEST BANK TROUBLES REVEALED: Another regional bank is increasingly in trouble. PacWest reported it lost 9.5 percent of its cash deposits last week alone. Customers have been worried about the safety of their money since the failure of Silicon Valley Bank in March even though its customers didn’t lose any of their deposits in the end.

➤ADDIDAS WILL RESUME SALE OF YEEZY PRODUCTS: The sportswear company Adidas has decided to sell some of its vast store of Yeezy products and donate some of the proceeds to charity. The company has had the goods in storage since it ended its partnership with rapper Kanye West due to his anti-Semitic comments. Yeezy shoes have become collectors’ items in the resale market.

🏀NBA PLAYOFFS: JaysonTatum rewarded his coach's love with decisive 3-pointers straight through the heart of a Philadelphia comeback that pushed the Celtics past the 76ers 95-86 on Thursday night to send the Eastern Conference semifinals back to Boston for Game 7. The defending conference champs are in familiar territory. Boston trailed 3-2 last season in the second round against Milwaukee before it won Game 6 on the road and the clincher at home. Game 7 is Sunday. The winner of the Miami-New York semifinal awaits the Celtics or 76ers. 

The Denver Nuggets are headed to the Western Conference finals. Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets dominated the Phoenix Suns 125-100 to win their playoff series 4-2 and advance to the conference championship. Jokic had a 32-point, 12-assist, 10-rebound triple-double in the series-clinching win. Jamal Murray, who played through a non-COVID illness, tallied 26 points.  
🏒NHL HOCKEY: Carolina Hurricanes move on to the NHL Eastern Conference Finals after defeating the New Jersey Devils 3-2 in overtime to win the series 4-1. Dallas Stars push the Seattle Kraken to the brink of elimination winning 5-2 on home ice to set up a do-or-die Game 6 in Seattle on Saturday

🏈NFL SKED RELEASED: Patrick Mahomes and the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs will kick off the NFL season against the upstart Detroit Lions in a matchup of high-powered offenses and will host Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles in a Super Bowl rematch on 'Monday Night Football' in Week 11. Aaron Rodgers will make his New York Jets debut in the first Monday night game of the season against the Buffalo Bills and later faces the Miami Dolphins in the NFL's first Black Friday game on Nov. 24. Thanks to Rodgers' arrival in the Big Apple, the Jets will have six nationally televised games, including their first Sunday night game since 2011 when they take on the Chiefs on Oct. 1. That'll be the first ever Mahomes-Rodgers matchup.

🏈TOM BRADY TO BE HONORED AT PATRIOTS’ HOME OPENER: Retired quarterback Tom Brady will briefly return to the New England Patriots for their 2023 opening game. Team owner Robert Kraft said he wanted to “let the fans in New England thank him.” Brady spent 20 seasons with the Patriots before moving to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for his final two seasons.

🏈EAGLES’ JALEN CARTER NAMED IN LAWSUIT: Jalen Carter, who was just selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFL Draft, has been named in a $40 million lawsuit related to a car crash that killed his University of Georgia teammate Devin Willock and university staffer Chandler LeCroy in January. Willock’s father filed the complaint against Carter as well as the university’s athletic association and LeCroy’s estate. At the time of the crash, LeCroy had twice the legal blood alcohol concentration and was driving up to 104 miles per hour, according to police. Carter reportedly had been racing LeCroy’s vehicle in another car but drove away before the one-car crash occurred.

⚾MLB RAYS FOR REAL: Yankees fall to defeat 8-2 as league-leading Tampa Bay Rays become the first team to open 30-9 since the 2001 Seattle Mariners, while Mets lose their FIFTH series in a row for the first time in a decade.



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