How voting for judges erodes democracy
Throughout history, authoritarian rulers have done all they can to bring judiciaries to heel. In Latin America, the governments of El Salvador, Bolivia and Nicaragua have moved to take over the courts. In Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan has purged thousands of judges and prosecutors. Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines removed his country's chief justice and packed the Supreme Court with his allies. President Emmerson Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe gave himself unchecked authority to appoint the most senior judges in the country. In Hungary, Viktor Orban took control over judicial appointments.
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Associated Press
2 hours ago
- Associated Press
Prosecutor says suspect in Liverpool soccer parade ramming used vehicle as a weapon
Updated [hour]:[minute] [AMPM] [timezone], [monthFull] [day], [year] LONDON (AP) — The ramming suspect in Liverpool deliberately used his vehicle as a weapon when he plowed his car into a crowd of soccer fans celebrating their team's Premier League championship, a prosecutor said Friday. Paul Doyle, wearing a black suit, white shirt and gray tie, looked emotional and hung his head during his initial court appearance in Liverpool Magistrates' Court. Doyle, 53, is charged with dangerous driving and six serious assault charges alleging that he caused or tried to cause grievous bodily harm to the two children and four adults who suffered the worst wounds among the 79 people injured, prosecutor Philip Astbury said. 'He used his vehicle deliberately as a weapon to injure those individuals,' Astbury said. Doyle, who spoke only to confirm his name, address and birth date, did not enter a plea. The charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison if he is convicted. Doyle's case was transferred to Liverpool Crown Court, where a different judge scheduled an Aug. 14 hearing for him to enter pleas to the charges. His trial date was tentatively scheduled for Nov. 24 and was expected to last three to four weeks. Doyle's defense lawyer did not ask for bail and he was returned to jail. District Judge Paul Healey ordered that the victims' names not be published. The city had been celebrating Liverpool's record-tying 20th title when the Doyle allegedly turned down a street full of fans and joy quickly turned to tragedy. Police said they believed Doyle got past a road block by following an ambulance that was trying to reach a possible heart attack victim. Videos showed the car hit and toss a person wrapped in a red Liverpool flag into the air and then swerve into a sea of people packed on the side of the road. At least four people, including a child, had to be freed from beneath the vehicle when it came to a halt. The victims ranged in age from 9 to 78, police said. Seven people remained hospitalized Thursday. The suspect was believed to have acted alone and terrorism was not suspected, Merseyside Police said. They have not disclosed an alleged motive for the act.
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Trial scheduled for man accused of intentionally setting fire, causing explosion at Jamestown home
May 31—JAMESTOWN — A felony jury trial has been scheduled for a Nancy, Kentucky, man who is accused of intentionally setting a fire in September that extensively damaged his home and adjacent property, according to court documents. John Patrick Quinlan, 55, faces charges of endangering by fire or explosion, a Class B felony, two counts of endangering by fire or explosion, a Class C felony, and failure to control or report a dangerous fire, a Class A misdemeanor. He pleaded not guilty to the charges on Feb. 25 in Southeast District Court in Jamestown. A felony jury trial is scheduled for Sept. 30. A Class B felony is punishable by 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine. A Class C felony is punishable by five years in prison and a $10,000 fine. A Class A misdemeanor is punishable by 360 days in prison and a $3,000 fine. Quinlan is accused of placing other people in danger of death under circumstances manifesting an extreme difference to human life, intentionally starting or maintaining a fire or causing an explosion that placed any part of a building or inhabited structure of another in danger of destruction, intentionally starting or maintaining a fire or causing an explosion that damaged property of another constituting pecuniary loss of more than $2,000, and failing to either take reasonable measures to put out or control the fire when he could do so without substantial risk to himself or to give a prompt fire alarm from Sept. 11-12. The Jamestown Fire Department responded to multiple reports of a possible house explosion at 545 1st St. W at about 1:35 a.m. on Sept. 12. When firefighters arrived, the garage was fully involved, The Jamestown Sun reported. The fire started in a detached one-stall garage at that address and spread to the house and the next-door neighbor's one-stall garage, The Sun reported. First responders located a 55-year-old resident, identified as Quinlan in court documents, who had severe burns but was outside the home and coherent, The Sun reported. Quinlan was transported to Jamestown Regional Medical Center and later airlifted for life-threatening injuries to a Minneapolis hospital. According to his brother-in-law, Quinlan was released from the Minneapolis hospital in October and was with family members in Kentucky healing from the fire, court documents say. The house at 545 1st St. W was Quinlan's residence at the time of the fire, according to a declaration in support of probable cause written by Troy Kelly, special agent with the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation. Court documents say Quinlan was not one of the individuals who called 911. Court documents say individuals on the scene told Jamestown police officers that Quinlan made statements about "burning his house down and blowing the place up." The officers on scene reported that Quinlan had received significant burns, and he made statements to them that he woke up and smelled gasoline. "JOHN QUINLAN stated he went outside to smoke and 'the whole place blew up' and commented 'I probably ignited it,'" court documents say. Staff at the hospital reported Quinlan's clothing smelling like "chemicals," court documents say. A police officer's report indicated that he could smell gasoline coming from Quinlan's boots and jeans while logging the items into evidence. During the initial assessment of the scene with the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation, Jamestown Police Department, deputy fire marshal and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, officers observed that the fire spread from the unattached garage at 545 1st St. W to the unattached garage at 543 1st St. W, the neighbor's property and ultimately to the main residence at 545 1st St. W., court documents say. Court documents say the main residence and the unattached garage smelled like gasoline. Videos from security cameras around the house at 545 1st St. W showed Quinlan carrying two containers into the residence at about 10 p.m. on Sept. 11, court documents say. The AC power was lost and the control panel started running on battery at about 10:10 p.m., court documents say. The insurance company's investigator also reviewed videos from the camera system and informed Kelly that an empty 1-gallon Shell Rotella oil container was located at the foot of the bed on the second level of the residence, court documents say. The insurance company's investigator also indicated that the container looked like one that Quinlan carried into the house in a video. After a search warrant was obtained for Otter Tail Power Co.'s records related to the house, Kelly observed that there was no power outage to the residence prior to the fire, indicating that the power to the AC system was manually turned off, court documents say.
Washington Post
3 hours ago
- Washington Post
Turkish authorities escalate crackdown on opposition-run Istanbul municipality
Istanbul — Turkish authorities escalated their crackdown on the opposition-run Istanbul municipality Saturday over alleged corruption charges, detaining 30 people. Those held include a former MP of the main opposition Republican People's Party, or CHP, and the mayors of three CHP-run districts of Istanbul. State-run Anadolu Agency reported that the detentions were part of four separate corruption investigations involving the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. Saturday's detentions are the fifth wave of a legal crackdown against the Istanbul administration since March 19, when Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu was arrested on corruption charges. The arrest of Imamoglu, who is seen as the most viable challenger to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's 22-year rule, sparked widespread demonstrations calling for his release and an end to Turkey's democratic backsliding under Erdogan. The opposition and its supporters claim his arrest, and the subsequent arrest of dozens more from the CHP, are politically motivated. 'This time the coup didn't come with boots and tanks, but with prosecutor's robes,' said CHP chairman Ozgur Ozel on Saturday before a crowd of supporters in the northwestern city of Duzce. However, the government insists Turkey's judiciary is independent and free of political influence. The second crackdown on CHP-run municipalities and districts occurred in late April, and the third and fourth waves were in late May, resulting in dozens of detentions.
