04-25-2024  10:30 pm   •   PDX and SEA Weather
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NORTHWEST NEWS

City Council Strikes Down Gonzalez’s ‘Inhumane’ Suggestion for Blanket Ban on Public Camping

Mayor Wheeler’s proposal for non-emergency ordinance will go to second reading.

A Conservative Quest to Limit Diversity Programs Gains Momentum in States

In support of DEI, Oregon and Washington have forged ahead with legislation to expand their emphasis on diversity, equity and inclusion in government and education.

Epiphanny Prince Hired by Liberty in Front Office Job Day After Retiring

A day after announcing her retirement, Epiphanny Prince has a new job working with the New York Liberty as director of player and community engagement. Prince will serve on the basketball operations and business staffs, bringing her 14 years of WNBA experience to the franchise. 

The Drug War Devastated Black and Other Minority Communities. Is Marijuana Legalization Helping?

A major argument for legalizing the adult use of cannabis after 75 years of prohibition was to stop the harm caused by disproportionate enforcement of drug laws in Black, Latino and other minority communities. But efforts to help those most affected participate in the newly legal sector have been halting. 

NEWS BRIEFS

Mt. Tabor Park Selected for National Initiative

Mt. Tabor Park is the only Oregon park and one of just 24 nationally to receive honor. ...

OHCS, BuildUp Oregon Launch Program to Expand Early Childhood Education Access Statewide

Funds include million for developing early care and education facilities co-located with affordable housing. ...

Governor Kotek Announces Chief of Staff, New Office Leadership

Governor expands executive team and names new Housing and Homelessness Initiative Director ...

Governor Kotek Announces Investment in New CHIPS Child Care Fund

5 Million dollars from Oregon CHIPS Act to be allocated to new Child Care Fund ...

Net neutrality restored as FCC votes to regulate internet providers

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Federal Trade Commission on Thursday voted to restore “net neutrality” rules that prevent broadband internet providers such as Comcast and Verizon from favoring some sites and apps over others. The move effectively reinstates a net neutrality order the...

Biden celebrates computer chip factories, pitching voters on American 'comeback'

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) — President Joe Biden on Thursday sought to sell voters on an American “comeback story” as he highlighted longterm investments in the economy in upstate New York to celebrate Micron Technology's plans to build a campus of computer chip factories made possible in part with...

Missouri hires Memphis athletic director Laird Veatch for the same role with the Tigers

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri hired longtime college administrator Laird Veatch to be its athletic director on Tuesday, bringing him back to campus 14 years after he departed for a series of other positions that culminated with five years spent as the AD at Memphis. Veatch...

KC Current owners announce plans for stadium district along the Kansas City riverfront

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The ownership group of the Kansas City Current announced plans Monday for the development of the Missouri River waterfront, where the club recently opened a purpose-built stadium for the National Women's Soccer League team. CPKC Stadium will serve as the hub...

OPINION

Op-Ed: Why MAGA Policies Are Detrimental to Black Communities

NNPA NEWSWIRE – MAGA proponents peddle baseless claims of widespread voter fraud to justify voter suppression tactics that disproportionately target Black voters. From restrictive voter ID laws to purging voter rolls to limiting early voting hours, these...

Loving and Embracing the Differences in Our Youngest Learners

Yet our responsibility to all parents and society at large means we must do more to share insights, especially with underserved and under-resourced communities. ...

Gallup Finds Black Generational Divide on Affirmative Action

Each spring, many aspiring students and their families begin receiving college acceptance letters and offers of financial aid packages. This year’s college decisions will add yet another consideration: the effects of a 2023 Supreme Court, 6-3 ruling that...

OP-ED: Embracing Black Men’s Voices: Rebuilding Trust and Unity in the Democratic Party

The decision of many Black men to disengage from the Democratic Party is rooted in a complex interplay of historical disenchantment, unmet promises, and a sense of disillusionment with the political establishment. ...

AFRICAN AMERICANS IN THE NEWS

South Africa to mark 30 years of freedom amid inequality, poverty and a tense election ahead

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — As 72-year-old Nonki Kunene walks through the corridors of Thabisang Primary School in Soweto, South Africa, she recalls the joy she and many others felt 30 years ago when they voted for the first time. It was at this school on April 27, 1994 that Kunene joined...

Tennessee lawmakers adjourn after finalizing jumi.9B tax cut and refund for businesses

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee's GOP-controlled General Assembly on Thursday adjourned for the year, concluding months of tense political infighting that doomed Republican Gov. Bill Lee's universal school voucher push. But a bill allowing some teachers to carry firearms in public schools and...

Body-cam footage shows police left an Ohio man handcuffed and facedown on a bar floor before he died

TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio man who was handcuffed and left facedown on the floor of a social club last week died in police custody, and the officers involved have been placed on paid administrative leave. Police body-camera footage released Wednesday shows a Canton police officer...

ENTERTAINMENT

Music Review: Jazz pianist Fred Hersch creates subdued, lovely colors on 'Silent, Listening'

Jazz pianist Fred Hersch fully embraces the freedom that comes with improvisation on his solo album “Silent, Listening,” spontaneously composing and performing tunes that are often without melody, meter or form. Listening to them can be challenging and rewarding. The many-time...

Book Review: 'Nothing But the Bones' is a compelling noir novel at a breakneck pace

Nelson “Nails” McKenna isn’t very bright, stumbles over his words and often says what he’s thinking without realizing it. We first meet him as a boy reading a superhero comic on the banks of a river in his backcountry hometown in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Georgia....

Cardi B, Queen Latifah and The Roots to headline the BET Experience concerts in Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Cardi B, Queen Latifah and The Roots will headline concerts to celebrate the return of the BET Experience in Los Angeles just days before the 2024 BET Awards. BET announced Monday the star-studded lineup of the concert series, which makes a return after a...

U.S. & WORLD NEWS

Guatemalan prosecutors raid offices of Save the Children charity

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Guatemalan prosecutors raided the offices of the charity Save the Children on Thursday,...

Charges against Trump's 2020 'fake electors' are expected to deter a repeat this year

An Arizona grand jury's indictment of 18 people who either posed as or helped organize a slate of electors falsely...

Trading Trump: Truth Social's first month of trading has sent investors on a ride

WASHINGTON (AP) — There have been lawsuits, short-selling and rampant speculation. Now, as Trump Media &...

Frustrated with Brazil's Lula, Indigenous peoples march to demand land recognition

BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) — Thousands of Indigenous people marched on Thursday in Brazil's capital, calling on the...

Burkina Faso's army massacred over 200 civilians in a village raid, Human Rights Watch says

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Military forces in Burkina Faso killed 223 civilians, including babies and many children,...

US to pull troops from Chad and Niger as the African nations question its counterterrorism role

WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States will pull the majority of its troops from Chad and Niger as it works to...

By Kristina Sgueglia CNN

 

NEW YORK (CNN) -- With just one day of direct testimony and three witnesses, the defense has rested in the trial of a New York police officer accused of conspiring to abduct women in a cannibalism plot.

Jurors are expected to hear final arguments in the trial of Gilberto Valle on Thursday, with Wednesday devoted to lawyers from both sides and the judge working without the jury present.

Valle, who was suspended without pay after his arrest last fall, is charged with conspiracy to kidnap and accessing a law enforcement database illegally. The government concluded its case Monday, with prosecutors contending that Valle was "deadly serious" about online plans allegedly to kidnap, rape, torture, cook and eat women.

Defense attorneys have argued that their client's conduct was "pure fiction," "make believe" and fantasy role-playing. None of Valle's alleged targets was ever victimized.

Valle did not take the stand during the trial.

Testimony Tuesday underscored the fantasy argument by the defense.

The Russian creator of a website and an online fetish network allegedly frequented by Valle said in a taped deposition that the site he created was for "legal" fetishes and is intended for "fantasy only."

Earlier prosecution testimony centered on Valle's involvement with the site and its network. He carried out extensive e-mail and electronic conversations with users of the site discussing kidnapping and cannibalizing women, according to prosecution witnesses.

Speaking from Moscow on tape and in Russian, with his remarks translated into English for the courtroom, Sergay Merenkov said he created his site of "dark fetishes" because "we saw a niche in the market and we created this website for these people that have this kind of interest -- (for) all fetishes that exist, that are legal."

But on cross-examination, Merenkov admitted he saw discussions of rape and murder on members' pages.

"We wrote the rule so people could distinguish between reality and fantasy," said Merenkov, defending the site and a message he posted on safety.

In the taped deposition, which was recorded last month, Merenkov admitted he has had to kick users off because of conversations they were having through the website, explaining in those cases, "It could have led to something bad."

Merenkov said that photos on the site are supposed to feature models playing out fantasies and not real victims, but he conceded that in some instances there were real photos on the site that users had posted, specifically crime-scene photos.

Alexandra Katz, a paralegal for the defense, testified that she looked up Valle's profile under the screen name "girl meat hunter." On his account she testified she read comments he wrote about himself such as, "I like to push the envelope but no matter what I say it's all fantasy."

Micheal McDermott, who has worked for the NYPD for 24 years, was the defense's final witness. During McDermott's last eight years, he was the union delegate for the Patrolman's Benevolent Association. McDermott testified that it was a very common thing among police officers to give out PBA cards, something the prosecution previously argued Valle did as a ruse to obtain home addresses from his alleged victims.

CNN's Raelyn Johnson contributed to this report.

The Skanner Foundation's 38th Annual MLK Breakfast