AG: Woman misused funds raised in Philando Castile's name
A St. Paul professor who led a viral crowdfunding campaign to pay off student lunch debts in Philando Castile’s name spent less than half of the $200,000 she raised on the intended purpose, Minnesota’s attorney general said Thursday. The Star Tribune reported that Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison’s office filed a civil enforcement action in Ramsey County District Court against Pamela Fergus, alleging a breach of charitable trust, deceptive solicitation of charitable contributions, failure to maintain proper records and unregistered solicitation of contributions. “Philando Castile cared deeply about the children he served and the children loved Mr. Phil right back,” said Ellison, calling Castile a “hero” in his lunchroom.
news.yahoo.comDiverse jury raises activists' hopes for ex-cop's trial
African Americans bring “an institutional memory of the police” to jury rooms that whites and even other people of color don’t share, he said. AdDerek Chauvin is charged with murder and manslaughter in Floyd's death May 25. When they do, recent history suggests a more diverse jury increases the odds for conviction, although the record is mixed. During questioning for Chauvin's jury, some people in the pool were strikingly direct about how the color of their skin affected their view of Floyd's death. A Black man in his 30s who immigrated to America more than 14 years ago said he talked with his wife about the case.
Floyd family sues Minneapolis officers charged in his death
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump wears a face mask with the words "Where's the love?" after announcing Wednesday, July 15, 2020 in Minneapolis the filing of a civil lawsuit against the city of Minneapolis and the officers involved in the death of George Floyd. Floyd died at the hands of police during an arrest on Memorial Day. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)
Floyd family to announce lawsuit against Minneapolis
MINNEAPOLIS Attorneys for George Floyd's family plan to announce a lawsuit Wednesday against the city of Minneapolis and the police officers who are charged in his death. Attorney Ben Crump planned a late-morning news conference in Minneapolis to detail the lawsuit. Chauvin is charged with second-degree murder, third-degree murder and manslaughter. Floyd's death also sparked calls to abolish the Minneapolis Police Department and replace it with a new public safety department. According to documents in state probate court, Floyd is survived by 11 known heirs, including five children and six siblings.
US police registry would fail without changes in states
Without major changes in almost every state, a national police misconduct database like what the White House and Congress have proposed after George Floyd's death would fail to account for thousands of problem officers. But states and police departments track misconduct very differently, and some states currently don't track it at all. In the wake of Floyd's death, lawmakers in several states have proposed bolstering their states' powers to identify and remove problem officers. Most states can decertify an officers license to prevent a bad one from working in law enforcement. Neither does the federal government for most of its estimated 130,000 law enforcement officers, including agents in the FBI, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the U.S. Border Patrol.