D.C.'s chief judge accuses Justice Dept of "fostering confusion" with low-level pleas in January 6 prosecutions
CBSN
Washington – The government's prosecution of those accused of participating in the January 6 assault on the Capitol has a host of critics that includes former President Trump and his allies, and on Thursday, they were joined by a surprising voice — D.C. Chief District Judge Beryl Howell.
Albeit for different reasons than Trump, Howell criticized prosecutors and accused them of "fostering confusion" among the public that could lead to the perception that the rioting and breach of the Capitol just over a year ago was a legitimate political protest, rather than a dangerous, deadly event.
"The government has opted...to charge the parading, demonstrating, or picketing charge," Howell said, as she sentenced defendant Brian Stenz for a Class B misdemeanor that amounts to protesting in a restricted area and carries a maximum penalty of a mere six months in prison. Making these deals for petty offenses — which often involve dismissing more serious charges — risks minimizing what happened, Howell argued.
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The United States does not plan to stop distributing foreign aid around the world but needs to do a better job explaining and defending programs receiving assistance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told U.S. diplomats behind closed doors Wednesday.
Police in Sierra Leone have said they are hunting a Dutch drug trafficker who is one of Europe's most-wanted fugitives and believed to be hiding out in the west African country.
More than 2 million federal employees face a looming deadline: By midnight on Thursday, they must decide whether to accept a "deferred resignation" offer from the Trump administration. If workers accept, according to a White House plan, they would continue getting paid through September but would be excused from reporting for duty. But if they opt to keep their jobs, they could get fired.
The CIA confirmed Wednesday that it offered buyouts to employees who volunteer to resign, the latest group of federal workers to receive such a proposal as President Trump pushes to transform the federal government.
More employees of the Environmental Protection Agency were informed Wednesday that their jobs appear in doubt. Senior leadership at the EPA held an all-staff meeting to tell individuals that President Trump's executive order, "Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing," which was responsible for the closure of the agency's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion office, will likely lead to the shuttering of the Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights as well.
Democrats on Capitol Hill, and sources familiar with the situation, said the White House's Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, has been inside the offices of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
At least four cattle herds in Nevada have tested positive for a strain of H5N1 bird flu never before seen in cows, state agriculture officials confirmed Wednesday, and respiratory symptoms like coughing and sneezing have been reported.
In her first hours as attorney general, Pam Bondi issued a broad slate of directives that included a Justice Department review of the prosecutions of President Trump, a reorientation of department work to focus on harsher punishments, actions punishing so-called "sanctuary" cities and an end to diversity initiatives at the department.
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Washington — A federal judge in Maryland on Wednesday temporarily blocked President Trump's executive order seeking to end birthright citizenship from taking effect nationwide, becoming the second to rule against the president amid a rush of legal challenges to his directive.