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Daily Archives: June 1, 2017
Expanded gambling on hold; adding Springfield casino still possible – The State Journal-Register
Posted: June 1, 2017 at 11:05 pm
Mary Hansen Staff Writer @maryfhansen
Expansion of gambling in Illinois is among issues the General Assembly didn't deal with before the spring session deadline Wednesday and will likely return to this summer.
The delay could be good news for a recent proposal to add Springfield to the list of six new casinos, which was not part of the original bill.
Rep. Rita Mayfield, D-Waukegan, said she wouldn't call the expansion bill she is lead sponsor of for a vote on thefinal day of session. The measure the Senateapproved that would allow casinos inChicago, Rockford, Danville, Lake County and the south Chicago suburbs needs further changes before a vote is taken the House, she said.
Prospects for a Springfield license looked bleak over the weekend when a House committee blocked an amendment to tack it on that was introduced by Rep. Tim Butler, R-Springfield.
But Mayfield said the additional license could be included if there isconsensus from the legislators who represent the capital city.
Until theyre all on the same page, we cant add them to the bill, Mayfield said.
Chris Stone, the Springfield developer and lobbyist who introduced the idea of a downtown casino, said the effort has been successful so far in ensuring that Springfield is part of the discussion moving forward.
Tax revenue from a casino with 900 positions, which Stone estimates at $25 million a year, could be used for repairs and upgrades to school facilities, the state fairgrounds and the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.
(The legislators) have to make sure its a good thing for their constituents, Stone said. I think that were building that case.
Questions remain for some local lawmakers.
Rep. Sara Wojcicki Jimenez, R-Leland Grove, said shes heard from Stone and Mayor Jim Langfelder, who supports the idea, but shed like more discussion from residents.
The city is already a popular gambling spot with its abundance of video gaming terminals, and the other communities considered for a new casino license have been discussing the issue for years,noted Wojcicki Jimenez.
There are people on all sides of the issues, she said. Im glad we have more time to study it because it did seem to come out of the blue.
Many city officials have expressed support for the endeavor, with Langfelder and eight of the 10 aldermen signing a letter urging state lawmakers to approve a casino license for Springfield.
-- Contact Mary Hansen: 788-1528, mary.hansen@sj-r.com, twitter.com/maryfhansen.
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Three arrested in gambling business raid – Story – KTAL
Posted: at 11:05 pm
Jeffrey Todd Spraggins arrested following raid on suspected illegal gambling business in Texarkana, TX.
Jeffrey Todd Spraggins arrested following raid on suspected illegal gambling business in Texarkana, TX.
TEXARKANA, TX - Three people are facing charges after police raid a suspected illegal gambling business in Texarkana, Texas.
Detectives arrested Jeffrey Todd Spraggins, 44, of Wake Village Texas, who is believed to be the owner of the business. The manager, Paul Dean Holmes, 69, of Foreman Arkansas, and Melissa Ellajewell Nash, 42, of Texarkana Texas, were also arrested during the raid.
It is believed that the business has been in operation for approximately one month. After learning of the gambling business last week, undercover officers went into the business and paid to play games of chance on eight-liner machines. They observed Spraggins paying patrons in cash when they won.
Spraggins was charged with Keeping a Gambling Place, Possession of Gambling Device, and Promoting Gambling. Holmes charges include Possession of Gambling Device and Promoting Gambling. Nash was charged with Gambling.
The motherboards of the eight-liner machines and an undisclosed amount of cash at the business were seized during the raid.
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India Studying Potential Impact of Gambling Legalization – Casino.org – Casino.Org News
Posted: at 11:05 pm
India is undertaking a comprehensive study of gambling in its current context, to determine whether or not legalization could be in the best interests of the diversenation of 1.3 billion people.
Betting on cricket is illegal in India, but the Law Commission is studying what impacts might be felt if the country reversed its 150-year-old ban on sports wagering, and is asking the public to share their gambling tales. (Image: Inquisitr)
Indias Law Commission, a group charged with thoroughly researching matters subject to legal reform, has been looking closely at how other countries regulate legal gambling, how people in India participate in illegal gambling, and the financial benefit and social concern of both legal and illegal gambling.
The three-person panel is putting together a series of papers to address concerns and understand its impact. The researchcould result in small legal reforms or a total overhaul to Indias gambling laws.
Additionally, the commission is seeking public input to share their stories and views on gambling. Included in the research also is betting, referring to sports and pari-mutuel wagers. India sees these forms of wagers as different from gambling, which covers slots and traditional casino games. But for the sake of this research, the commission said it would be impossible to assess one without considering the other.
At a minimum, the research stands to provide a rather thoroughmodel for assessingthe potential and pitfalls for betting and gambling in the 21st century.
The issue came to the fore with a match fixing scandal in the case of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) vs. Cricket Association of Bihar. That trial touched on sports betting and match fixing and the Supreme Court called on the Law Commission to explore what might be different if the country looked to legalize gambling.
The Public Gambling Act of 1867 set the standard for Indias opposition to public gambling. The law that harkens back 150 years to the days of British rule. Indias constitution, however, does let states make some decisions on their own, which is why Goa, Daman, and Sikkim all have casinos.
But there are many gray areas to the law. For example, horse racing and rummy are defined as games of skill and are legal, while betting on cricket or playing poker is outlawed, except in states where its not.
The appeal for public input seeks to have several opinions and anecdotal testimony that explores both economic and social impacts of legalized gambling and betting.
Though the commission hasnt yet made specific recommendations, they did find the possibility of considering legalization as a way to minimize social harms.
Various media reports time and again point out that betting and gambling, though not legal in India, is practiced across the country clandestinely, the commission said. These reports argue that many families arerendered bankrupt and many people are behind the bars owing to these practices. Strict rules againstbetting and gambling have not necessarily acted as a deterrent.
The commission estimates that India gamblers spend $30 billion annually on illegal forms of betting and gambling that they have found to be run by cartels and gangs.
Will legalizing betting and gambling help in curbing the illegal activities undertaken by the citizens of our country in this regard? they asked. Will licensing such activities help the government earn substantial revenue and generate employment?
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CONSERVATIVE CANDIDATE REAFFIRMS STRONG OPPOSITION … – Island Echo
Posted: at 11:04 pm
Bob Seely, the Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for the Isle of Wight, has made clear that he is opposed to any relaxation or change in the existing laws against euthanasia and assisted suicide.
This comes after last weeks hustings event, at which he was the only parliamentary candidate on the Isle of Wight to express such an unambiguous view: telling the audience that he would emphatically oppose any change in the law. In contrast, the Liberal Democrat, Labour and Green candidates all supported a change to allow what they call assisted dying, whereas the UKIP and Independent candidates sat on the fence. Bob is now urging the other candidates to look at the Care Not Killing website and consider changing their stance.
Speaking after the debate, Bob said:
I strongly oppose euthanasia and assisted suicide. I do not believe it is something that we should be supporting or welcoming on the Island.
Firstly, I think the term dignity in dying used by some people supporting euthanasia is highly misleading. It is a manipulative use of language to hide the reality that such a change in the law would legally allow people to help others to terminate their lives before their natural end.
Secondly, we already have a legal, ethical and caring version of assisted dying in the palliative care pathways that hospices and other organisations offer. These pathways have been developed over years of experience and care by experts dedicated to treating with sensitivity and kindness those people nearing the end of life.
Thirdly, I believe that allowing any form of assisted suicide is a slippery slope to a generalised acceptance of euthanasia. The reality is that laws in Holland and elsewhere that were meant to apply to terminally ill adults of sound mind are being extended to larger sections of the population. This is simply wrong.
A change in the law would place pressure on vulnerable people to end their lives for fear of being a financial, emotional or care burden upon others. This would especially affect people who are disabled, elderly, sick or depressed. We need to care for all those that are living, not create a climate which indirectly pressures them to end their existence.
In response to the stance taken by other candidates, Bob added:
I was disappointed to be in a minority of one on this life-and-death issue at last weeks hustings. When it was most recently voted on in the House of Commons in 2015, the clear majority (330 to 118 votes) opposition to a change in the law came from Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrat, SNP and other MPs including a majority of Conservative and Labour MPs who voted.
This issue is too important for party politics, and I had hoped to see a greater consensus amongst the Islands parliamentary candidates last Thursday. I would strongly encourage the other candidates to read the persuasive case set out on the Care Not Killing website and reflect on whether they wish to change their stance.
Bob has highlighted a contribution made in the 2015 debate by Dr Philippa Whitford, an SNP MP, who was a breast cancer surgeon for 30 years. She said:
I believe that this is not just a tidying up of a small legal anomaly. It is, rather, a crossing of a Rubicon, as was mentioned earlier. It is changing and legalising the killing of one person by another, regardless of the reasons why we would want to carry that out.
We should support palliative care and we must ensure that it is available to people who are dying, regardless of their illness. We need to change our tone towards the people who live in our society, so that old and vulnerable people no longer feel that they should get out of the way.
Bob added:
I agree with every word that Dr Whitford has said on this matter, and if elected I would work with politicians of all parties to oppose any relaxation in the current law on euthanasia and assisted suicide.
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Two-thirds of doctors oppose ‘assisted dying’ – Scoop.co.nz
Posted: at 11:04 pm
Press Release Euthanasia Free NZ
Members of the Voluntary Euthanasia Society claim in a NZMJ paper that 37% of doctors and 67% of nurses support assisted dying, that is, legal voluntary euthanasia and assisted suicide. Two-thirds of doctors oppose assisted dying according to slammed survey
Members of the Voluntary Euthanasia Society claim in a NZMJ paper that 37% of doctors and 67% of nurses support assisted dying, that is, legal voluntary euthanasia and assisted suicide.
I am skeptical of self-selected online surveys with relatively small sample sizes, with questions based on euphemisms such as assisted dying, says Rene Joubert, executive officer of Euthanasia-Free NZ. The term assisted dying is vague enough to mean different things to different people.
This particular study, the subject of a 2016 TVNZ story, did not even verify that respondents were indeed New Zealand medical professionals or prevent a respondent from completing the survey multiple times. In the May 2016 NZMJ paper on the same study the researchers disclosed that four days of responses were removed due to notice of two faked responses by a TVNZ journalist.
For all we know, the study may have been rigged by Voluntary Euthanasia Society members, says Ms Joubert.
The studys many flaws were analysed by a group of eight experts.
Much of the new paper seems to consist of pro-euthanasia propaganda, says Ms Joubert.
The authors engage in wishful thinking that assisted dying may be legalised in New Zealand soon, likely based on their own bias as members of the Voluntary Euthanasia Society. Any practical and professional support to perform euthanasia or assisted suicide, as recommended by the authors, is ridiculously premature. After extensive media coverage, New Zealanders have clearly expressed their overwhelming opposition to changing the law. Parliaments Health Select Committee received a record number of about 21,435 unique submissions in response to the petition by Maryan Street and 8,974 others.
A full analysis, confirmed by an independent research company, found that 77% of submissions (16,411) are opposed to the legalisation of assisted dying while only 19.5% (4,142 submissions) were in favour.
In January to May 2017 assisted dying bills have been stopped or defeated in eight jurisdictions: In Tasmania, Australia, as well as the US states of Maine, Hawaii, Utah, New Mexico, Nebraska, Minnesota, and Maryland. In several other states, bills were introduced but lacked support to even be debated. The authors presume that under a future New Zealand law both doctors and nurses would be performing euthanasia.
However, there is significant opposition to the medicalisation of assisted dying, the recent article by Ron Jones being a case a point.
A growing list of New Zealand doctors (see doctorssayno.nz) are calling for doctors to be left to focus on healing and providing real care for the dying. They argue that doctors are not necessary for the execution of euthanasia and are drawn into the debate only to provide a cloak of medical legitimacy.
ENDS
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Jeff Sessions & David Shapiro & the Rule of Law | National Review – National Review
Posted: at 11:04 pm
David Shapiros smear of Jeff Sessions in a Chicago Tribune op-ed, suggesting that the attorney generalis a racist, is consistent with other failed partisan efforts to distort and delegitimize the former senators record on race and law enforcement. Apparently, Shapiro missed Sessionss confirmation hearing in which the same smears were attempted only to be refuted one by one by witnesses mostly black who actually know the facts and the man.
Shapiro asserts Sessionss directive to staff on criminal sentencing related to drug crimes is the latest in a series of attempts by the Attorney General to tear down protections for people of color. Mr. Shapiro seems to have forgotten that during the height of the crack epidemic ravaging the black community in the 80s, it was Congressman Charlie Rangel and other members of the Congressional Black Caucus who voted for the Anti-Drug Abuse Act (ADAA), which established the 100-1 sentencing ratio for crack and powder cocaine. Were Rangel and other members of Congress racist?
Attorney General Sessions wasnt in the Senate at the time the ADAA passed, but he was in the Senate in 2010 and co-sponsored the Fair Sentencing Act, which reduced the crack-to-powder ratio. If Sessions were a racist why reduce the crack-to-powder ratio, let alone co-sponsor the Fair Sentencing Act?
The rest of Shapiros piece is character assassination of the worst kind. As U.S. attorney for Alabama, Sessions successfully sought the death penalty for Klan members. He defended black voting rights. He hired blacks for prominent positions. As a member of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, Ive known and worked with Jeff Sessions for years and consider him the most principled and decent person in Washington, a man of the highest integrity.
Shapiros complaint seems to be that Attorney General Sessions is actually doing his job enforcing the law as Congress passed it. In contrast, former attorneys general Holder and Lynch, under the veil of prosecutorial discretion, failed to enforce the law. Select immigration and sentencing laws were simply ignored, virtually wholesale. Thats not the role of the attorney general, whether his name is Holder or Sessions. Such a sweeping use of prosecutorial discretion effectively nullifies or rewrites federal law. If drug laws need to be changed, Congress needs to change them. Holders and Lynchs actions were a plain derogation, if not usurpation, of legislative authority. That Attorney General Sessions is being criticized for restoring both the rule of law and the Justice Department to their proper roles is an indication of how debased respect for the rule of law has become.
Shapiro suggests blacks are disproportionately harmed by enforcement of drug-sentencing laws, but its other blacks who are disproportionately harmed by drug crimes. I live in inner-city Cleveland where the possession, sale, and trafficking of drugs arent victimless crimes. Nothing esoteric here. Neighborhoods decay, people sink into addiction, families are ripped apart, children are neglected, turf wars break out, and innocent people are destroyed. Clearly, there are good reasons why our current drug laws should be revised, but it takes a certain...mentality...to assert that those who enforce drug laws as written possess nefarious motives. And with the country in the grip of an opioid crisis that dwarfs the crack epidemic, a crisis that doesnt discriminate on the basis of race, uniform enforcement of the law is anything but racist.
Shapiro admits that there is no hard evidence of Sessionss racism, yet nonetheless accuses him of having a single-minded focus to attack people of color. Somewhere a Red Queen is smiling.
Jeff Sessions prioritizes the rule of law and the well-being of the victims of crime, not the well being of criminals. On the evidence, Jeff Sessions has a single-minded focus to act the way the attorney general of the United States is supposed to act. And Americans regardless of color are better off for that.
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Yanez Trial: Jury selection ‘a numbers game’ – KARE
Posted: at 11:04 pm
Lou Raguse, KARE 6:34 PM. CDT June 01, 2017
Officer Jeronimo Yanez outside court during a break Tuesday. (Photo: KARE)
ST. PAUL,Minn. - Jury selection passed the halfway point by the time court dismissed Thursday in Ramsey County in the trial of the officer accused of killing PhilandoCastile.
So far 14 jurors have been approved, meaning nine more need to be approved before the pool can be narrowed down to the 12 jurors and three alternates who will decide the Officer Jeronimo Yanez's fate.
One juror approved raised a challenge by the defense, because the man, who is white, said he attended a vigil for Philando Castile in the days following the shooting and cried. The man, a scientist at a local college, admitted he has a bias against Officer Yanez based on what he's heard so far about the case. But he said he could set aside those feelings and make a decision based on the evidence.
Judge William Leary rejected the challenge and allowed the man to pass onto the next round, saying, "The totality of the questioning shows he is suitable to serve. Attending a vigil in and of itself is not a point for disqualification."
Another potential juror raised a challenge from the defense, because the woman didn't understand much about the U.S. Criminal Justice System. Under questioning by attorney Earl Gray, the 18-year-old woman who immigrated from Ethiopia admitted not knowing the meaning of "negligence," "credibility," or even what the U.S. Criminal Justice System is.
Judge Leary again rejected the challenge, stating that not many 18-year-olds would be able to answer those questions.
Jury selection, in effect a process of elimination, begins with questioning of the initial pool of 50 jurors. If a potential juror appears to be too biased, or has extenuating circumstances in their life, the judge dismisses them from the pool. When a total of 23 jurors are approved to move to the next phase of the selection process, the defense will strike (eliminate) five of them, and the prosecution will strike three, leaving the 15 who will hear the case.
Earlier Thursday morning, three additional jurors were approved, bringing the total of those approved to nine. The first was a woman in her 60s who knows little of the case, and what she does know is based on the initial coverage of the shooting of Philando Castile. In a rare moment of levity when asked why she enjoys watching Judge Judy (she confessed to that fact on her questionnaire) the woman responded "I like how she doesn't fool around. She makes a decision and that's it."
The second juror moved to the next round of selection was a 24-year-old Caucasian woman who told attorneys "I honestly don't know anything about the case at all. Questioning for the woman lasted 30 to 40 minutes, significantly shorter than all previous jurors.
Prosecutors and the Yanez defense team also approved a third juror, a white male in his 40s who recently moved to Minnesota from Colorado. He said the first he heard of the shooting of Castile was when the judge spoke of it. The only topic of concern for attorneys was that the man seems to have feelings about the criminal justice system where what he called "victimless crimes" are prosecuted far too often. He also said he believes marijuana should be legalized, a view that could concern the Yanezteam as they plan to make an issue of the fact Castile had allegedly used marijuana before the fatal interaction with the officer.
Two jurors, both who admitted knowing a lot about the case, were excused.
A white woman in her early 20s began crying while she was being questioned by Judge Leary. She said, I've been struggling really hard with the possibility of taking on that role. I don't think I could be an impartial juror."
And a white man in his 50s or 60s said he under normal circumstances he would be able to be an impartial juror, but current family financial issues would cause too much of a distraction during the trial.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 31
Jury questioning is proceeding at a very slow pace in the trial ofJeronimoYanez, the St. Anthony Police officer who fatally shot motoristPhilandoCastile.
After court dismissed Wednesday, 40 of the 50 potential jurors remain to be questioned. Five jurors have been dismissed for various reasons. And five will remain in the final pool from which the jury will be selected.
The first juror to be dismissed was a woman who is a relative ofYanez. She was excused Tuesday. On Wednesday morning a pregnant woman with five children was allowed to go home, and a middle-aged woman who runs her own business and cares for her sick husband was excused as well.
The first juror to be dismissed was a woman who is a relative ofYanez. She was excused Tuesday. On Wednesday morning a pregnant woman with five children was allowed to go home, and a middle-aged woman who runs her own business and cares for her sick husband was excused as well.
RELATED: Yaneztrial: How we got here
Five people have been passed for cause, meaning they still have a chance to make the final jury unless the prosecution or the defense uses a strike to eliminate them later this week.
Perhaps the most surprising development in the jury selection process is how little potential jurors say they know about this high-profile case involving the death of an African American motorist. One potential juror, a black man in his20s, remembered hearing about the shooting when it happened but said he can't recall many details. He incorrectly assumed Diamond Reynolds is a minor.Yanezattorney Tom Kelly extensively questioned the man about his feelings on officer-involved shootings, particularly shootings of unarmed black men.
RELATED:What potential jurors are being asked
"I think, 'How does this happen? He was unarmed,'" the man said about another case he had heard about. "But it's not something you could put against every cop."
The man admitted he sometimes feels people with money or power "get off" by hiring high-priced attorneys but he said he wouldn't hold againstYanezthe fact he's hired three lawyers in this case.
The second juror kept in the pool was a middle-aged white woman who said she hasn't heard a thing about the shooting ofPhilandoCastile. "Not a word," she said. "I don't watch the news." The potential juror did admit she knew of protests that took place on the freeway following the shooting of Castile, but did not know what those protests were for. "There were protesters who walked out onto the freeway and stopped traffic."
During questioning the woman told attorneys she has served on a jury in a previous criminal trial in Ramsey County, and that they found the defendant guilty on one charge and not guilty on four others.
After a short break prosecutors asked the judge to dismiss the potential juror from White Bear Lake, saying they found posts on her Facebook page expressing support for law enforcement. Prosecutors did not object to the tone of the posts, but the fact that the woman under oath she had not shared posts of that nature on her social media accounts. "The only thing I share on Facebook is recipes," she was quoted as saying.
When confronted with printouts of the posts the woman said she didn't remember sharing them but agreed that she must have. Still, the judge denied the motion to excuse her for cause, meaning she could still end up on the jury.
The third potential juror to be questioned, an African American woman in her40s, knew a lot more about the Castile shooting than the two people who came before her. "I think the police officer was careless when he opened fire. That wasn't right," she wrote in her juror questionnaire. "The shooting wasn't fair plus there was a a woman and child who could have been injured." Despite her opinions, the woman told Judge William Leary III she believed she could be fair and impartial if seated on the jury.
The fourth juror, a white man in his50s, also said he hadn't heard about theYanezcase until he read a newspaper article about it Tuesday night. The judge earlier on Tuesday had asked jurors to avoid news coverage of the case. The juror had gone through a firearm training course and was enthusiastic about the chance to serve on the jury. The judge allowed him to remain in the pool.
Juror #6 is a white man in his60swho is allowed to remain in the pool. He is a gun owner, has heard very little about the case, and respects law enforcement.
Juror #7 was a white man in his40sor50swho was dismissed after he told the just there is no way he can giveJeronimoYaneza fair trial. "To unload a gun into a car with a child inside, there's just no reason, in my mind," the man said.
Prosecutors and theYanezdefense team will select 12 jurors and 3 alternates to hear the manslaughter case.
Jury selection will resume Thursday at 9 a.m.
2017 KARE-TV
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SD Attorney General Foiled in Bid to Prosecute Tribal Marijuana … – The Daily Chronic
Posted: at 11:04 pm
Phillip Smith | May 31, 2017
South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley (R) thought he had the perfect case to help burnish his tough-on-pot prosecutorial credentials as he eyes the governorship in the socially conservative state. It didnt work out that way, though.
Eric Hagen, who was set to be sacrificed on the altar of Jackleys ambitions, walked free last week after a jury in Flandreau refused to convict him of a marijuana trafficking conspiracy for his companys efforts to advise the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe on a marijuana cultivation operation and resort.
The tribe last year had announced plans for the operation after tribes across the country received an unsolicited okay from the federal government to pursue marijuana operations and hired Hagens Colorado-based Monarch America to help get the operation up and running. But facing mixed signals including threats of possible raids from federal officials and staunch opposition from state and local officials, the tribe tore up its plants last fall.
State officials got what they wanted, the tribe gave up its plans, Monarch America closed up shop on the reservation, and the matter appeared to be settled. But nine months later, as Jackley geared up for his 2018 gubernatorial run, he brought marijuana trafficking charges against Hagen and Monarch Vice President Jonathan Hunt.
The move came even though state attorneys general cant prosecute non-Indians for crimes on reservations. In a novel move, Jackley argued that his office did have jurisdiction to prosecute victimless crimes committed by non-Indians.
Facing up to ten years in state prison, Hunt copped to one count of conspiracy in August and agreed to testify against his business partner, but Hagen decided to fight and went to trial beginning last Friday. As a witness, Hunt testified that he did not think he was really guilty of crime, but accepted a plea bargain because he didnt want to risk a prison sentence.
At the trial, jurors had to decide whether Hagen possessed or intended to possess marijuana and whether he engaged in a conspiracy. The states case took a blow when Santee Sioux tribal officials, including Chairman Tony Reider, testified that it was the tribes marijuana, not Hagens, and that Hagen and Hunt were merely consultants.
Defense attorney Mike Butler also successfully challenged the conspiracy claim, noting in arguments and questions to witnesses that there was nothing secret about the tribes plans. As Butler noted, the tribe and Monarch America had been very open about their plans and had invited media, lawmakers, and even the FBI to tour the grow operation.
Butler also alluded to the political subtext behind Jackleys prosecution of the consultants. My client and Mr. Hunt are collateral damage, he said.
The jury agreed, finding Hagen not guilty after only two hours of deliberation Wednesday.
Hagen is a free man, but his company must now be rebuilt, and the Sioux Falls native is calling out Jackley for attempting to ride to higher political office on his back.
He tanked our company by spreading lies and rumors, Hagen said. It was 100% politically motivated. This was simply a media ploy for Jackley because hes running for governor in 2018.
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SD Attorney General Foiled in Bid to Prosecute Tribal Marijuana ... - The Daily Chronic
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Elate’s Revival of Ayn Rand’s NIGHT OF JANUARY 16TH Opens 6/3 – Broadway World
Posted: at 11:04 pm
Veteran stage actor and play director Darryl Maximilian Robinson, who received a 2015 / 2016 Elate Season Ticket Holder Award Nomination as Best Actor for his performance as the debonair, but aging, leading man Ernest in Tad Mosel's "Impromptu" as part of the Elate staging of four one-acts entitled "Just 4 Fun," returns to the stage of the Lincoln Stegman Theatre of North Hollywood to play District Attorney Flint, a prosecutor deeply involved in the case of "The People of The State of New York vs. Karen Andre" in The Emmanuel Lutheran Actors Theatre Ensemble - ELATE revival of Russian-American author and playwright Ayn Rand's 1935 classic Broadway courtroom drama "Night Of January 16th."
Mr. Robinson, a Chicago Joseph Jefferson Citation Award Winner as Outstanding Actor In A Principal Role In A Play ( for his performance as Sam Semela in Athol Fugard's "Master Harold...And The Boys" ), and who for 15 years served as The Founder, Artistic Director and Producer of the multiracial, non-Equity professional, classical and contemporary chamber theatre, The Excaliber Shakespeare Company of Chicago, has played numerous roles in courtroom dramas during the course of his 43-season stage career including: The Angry Man in Director / Producer Ray Hayman's 1980 staging of The At Random Players' production of C. B. Gilford's "The Jury Room" presented at Chicago's McCormick Inn; The Professor in Director Jonathan Wilson's 1998 staging of The Pegasus Players' Jeff Citation Award-winning world premiere production of Robert Myers' "The Lynching of Leo Frank" performed at Chicago's O'Rourke Center For The Performing Arts; and The Reverend Sykes in Director Diedra Celeste Miranda's 2011 staging of The Glendale Centre Theatre's five-time Stage Scene L A "Scenie" Award-winning production of playwright Christopher Sergel's adaptation of Harper Lee's "To Kill A Mockingbird." However, Ayn Rand's "Night Of January 16th" marks the first time Mr. Robinson has appeared as a lawyer onstage since he played the role of Sir Thomas More, the condemned Lord Chancellor of England, in Director John Grassilli's 1984 staging of The University Players' revival production of Robert Bolt's "A Man For All Seasons" presented at Benton Hall Theatre of The University of Missouri-St. Louis ( UMSL).
Co-Produced by long-time ELATE Members Norma Burgess and Deb Sadlouskos, Ayn Rand's "Night Of January 16th" reunites Mr. Robinson with his "Impromptu" director Jeff Zimmer. A multiple Emmy Award-nominated television producer ( noted for his work on such programs nas "The Doctors" and "America's Funniest Home Videos" ), Mr. Zimmer will stage Rand's 82-year-old Broadway success "Night" in modern dress attire, and add a few touches to make the piece resemble a slightly more recent "Trial of The Century."
This includes casting several talented actresses in roles traditionally played by males including: Gerrie Wilkowski as Judge Heath; Therese Hawes as the writing expert, Chandler; and Lisa Cicchetti as the medical examiner, Dr. Kirkland. Mr. Robinson's District Attorney Flint prosecutes his case opposite experienced actress and Co-Producer Ms. Burgess as Defense Attorney Stevens, the legal counsel of accused murder suspect Karen Andre. The pivotal role of The Defendant Andre is played by Erin Cote', who earned a 2015 / 2016 Elate Season Ticket Holder Award Nomination as Best Actress for her performance as Jane in Elate playwright Stan Brown's "Ride Share," another of the four one-acts of "Just 4 Fun". MR. Brown, who won two 2015 / 2016 Elate Season Ticket Holder Awards for Best Actor and Best Director ( shared with Mr. Zimmer ) for his work in "Ride Share" as part of "Just 4 Fun," appears in the revival production of "Night," as the multimillionaire and philanthropist, John Graham Whitfield.
Other performers featured in ELATE'S revival of "Night January 16th" include: Rod French as the elderly night watchman, Mr. Hutchins; Judith Miller as the Swedish housekeeper, Magda Svenson; Tom Reilly as the private investigator, Homer Van Fleet; Terry Bratcher as Police Inspector Sweeney, Tim Aberdeen as accountant Siegurd Jungquist, Mr. Zimmer in the blended roles of The Bailiff and The Court Clerk; and ELATE newcomer Lauren Waites as Nancy Lee Faulker, beautiful young widow of murder victim Bjorn Faulkner, and only daughter of John Graham Whitfield. The role of love-smitten gangster Lawrence "Guts" Regan ( a part that revitalized the stage and screen acting career of Hollywood Legend Walter Pidgeon during the original 1935 Broadway production ) will be played in this new revival by Elate audience favorite Tony Cicchetti.
The ELATE revival will be staging Ayn Rand's final, 1968 definitive version of her script, and utilize the device that made it a hit in 1935 on Broadway: At every performance audience members will be asked to participate as Jury Members and, by their verdict, determine one of two endings of the play!
Performances of ELATE's revival of Ayn Rand'S "NIGHT OF JANUARY 16th" will take place Saturday June 3rd at 8pm., Sunday June 4th at 2pm., Saturday June 10th at 8 pm., Sunday June 11th at 4pm., Saturday June 17th at 8pm., and Sunday June 18th at 2pm. All performances are onstage at The Lincoln Stegman Theatre, 6020 Radford Ave., North Hollywood, CA. 91606. For Tickets and Reservations Information as well as to request special "Jury Box" ( premium view ) seats call ELATE at ( 818 ) 509-0882.
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Elate's Revival of Ayn Rand's NIGHT OF JANUARY 16TH Opens 6/3 - Broadway World
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Review: ‘I, Daniel Blake’ – Silicon Valley’s Metro
Posted: at 11:04 pm
Ken Loach's bruising neo-realist I, Daniel Blake ponders the way poor-shaming is built into the system. Fifty-nine-year-old widower Daniel (Dave Johns, who looks like an older, sadder Bill Burr) was a carpenter before he had a heart attack that knocked him right off his scaffold. Over the titles, he's interrogated by phone by the British equivalent of workers' comp, being asked personal questions about his health, his continence and his ability to type.
Ultimately, he only has 12 out of the 15 points necessary to get disability.
On to Job Seeker's Allowanceunemployment insurance. The money is contingent on his seeking a desk job in one of England's worst job markets, the former shipbuilding town of Newcastle upon Tyne. Daniel is digitally useless: "With computers, I'm dyslexic." While entering his information the only way it can be accepted, as an online form, Daniel swears at the keyboard: "Cursor! Fucking apt name for it."
He goes through a risible yet mandatory job resume workshop, led by a suit-clad salespersonJohn Sumner, comic as one of those Dwight Schrute types who like to precede every statement with a shouted out "FACT!" Daniel befriends a new neighbor in the same boat, Katie (Hayley Squires). She was kicked out of her soon-to-be-privatized public housing in London, 250 miles away. London councils have been shipping public housing denizens north to cities where the real estate market is less hot.
Katie is a believable kind of single mom, wary of being indebted to anyone, even someone as harmless as Daniel. He eases her mind, watching her children. He shows her a few poor-person tricks: a flower pot and candle turned into a room heater, taped up bubble-wrap insulation for when the heat's turned off because of an unpayable 391 bill.
This neo-documentary film is at its keenest depicting Katie's shame when she goes to a food bank. A helper's "Anything else you want?" is pronounced in a way that means, "You've taken your share already." Katie helplessly rips into a can of foodshe's starving from having skipped meals so her kids could eat. Daniel tries to calm her when she breaks down in tears, reminding her that it's not her fault that she's poor.
In America, we feel it is indeed your fault. And in this valley, there's little patience with people who can't seem to become computer literate: tough for them. Even a movie this lucid might not convince conservatives, and some scenes simplify Daniel and Katie's plight into melodrama. Circumstances propel Katie into some very unpleasant work, and she's caught at it by her new friend. I didn't believe this development for a second. In a funeral scene we're reminded of the nature of the tragedy, as if we hadn't just seen it played out before us.
Blake's north British gentleness makes this rough to watchit's like seeing Wallace from the Aardman cartoons being put through the wringer by cold bureaucrats. But the meekness and kindness and details of conversational British language give you hope. Keenest of all is a moment of triumph, a great laugh when Blake finally rebels against his austerity-minded torturers. He gets some public revenge for all the hours he spent on hold on a pay-as-you-go mobilel phone, listening to stupid fiddling Vivaldi. (Hold music will teach you to loathe "The Four Seasons.") Revelers and passersby cheer Daniel on as, perhaps for the first time in his life, the old man breaks the law.
George Orwell once commented "to see what is in front of your nose requires constant struggle". That struggle is easier, these days. Governmental attacks on the poor are so obvious that even the slickest Ayn Rand bamboozlers in Congress fail to blind their victims.
Seeing what's in front of your nose is one problem. Loach's problem is slightly different: how do you dramatize something that happens every day, so that it'll look, believably, like something that happens every day? Loach's half-century long efforts in his many films about the working class haven't always succeeded, but he's always tried. For the most part, this time he's succeeded beautifully.
I, Daniel Blake Unrated, 100 min. Opens Friday at the Camera cinemas
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