Minnesota senator confronts colleague for ‘terrible' post on shooting
Less than 72 hours after the murder of a state representative, Sen. Tina Smith of Minnesota sat in the Senate chamber, waiting for one of her colleagues.
In a post Sunday, Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), appeared to blame the assassination of Smith's friend, Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman, on the political left. 'This is what happens,' Lee wrote in on social media. 'When Marxists don't get their way.'
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Yahoo
16 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Australian mushroom murder suspect told 'lies upon lies': prosecutor
An Australian woman told "lies upon lies" to cover up her murder of three lunch guests with a toxic mushroom-laced dish, the lead prosecutor said Tuesday. Erin Patterson, 50, is charged with murdering her estranged husband's parents and aunt in July 2023 by spiking a beef Wellington with death cap mushrooms. She is also accused of attempting to murder a fourth guest -- her husband's uncle -- who survived the lunch after a long stay in hospital. Patterson has denied all charges in a seven week-long trial that has made headlines worldwide. She said the traditional English dish, which she cooked in individual portions, was poisoned by accident. Prosecutor Nanette Rogers summed up her case saying Patterson told "lies upon lies" because she knew the truth would implicate her. She accused Patterson of lying to her in-laws to lure them to the lunch, telling them she wanted to discuss a serious health issue and then falsely claiming to have cancer. - Intent to kill - Patterson also provided police with a "dummy" mobile phone and concealed her main mobile, which authorities never recovered, the prosecutor said. She also initially lied to police about never owning a food dehydrator. But security footage then captured her dumping one at a rubbish facility days after the lunch, Rogers said. It later tested positive for traces of death cap mushrooms. Jurors should "reject" Patterson's claim that she accidentally picked death cap mushrooms, Rogers said, adding that all the evidence pointed to her "deliberately" seeking out the fatal fungi. Patterson intended to kill all her guests by serving them death cap mushrooms secreted into the meal, she charged. - 'No reason at all' - Patterson's defence lawyer Colin Mandy told the jury they needed to consider two key issues in the case: firstly, if there was a reasonable possibility that the death cap mushrooms were accidentally placed in the meal. Secondly, if there was a reasonable possibility that Patterson did not intend to kill or cause serious injury to the lunch guests. If either of those statements were true, the jury must find her not guilty, he said. Patterson was in a good place in her life: she was financially comfortable, had a beautiful home she shared with her two children, hoped to return to study and had plans to do something about her body image -- which she had long struggled with, her defence said. Patterson loved her parents-in-law as they had always been kind and understanding towards her. They were the only grandparents her children had, Mandy said. "There was no reason at all to hurt them in any way," he said. Patterson never planned to kill anyone, but when her guests got sick, she "panicked" because the spotlight would inevitably turn to her. "She never intended this to happen," he said. - Rejected lunch invitation - The accused originally invited her estranged husband Simon to join the family lunch at her secluded home in the farm village of Leongatha in Victoria state. But he turned down the invitation on the eve of the meal, saying he felt uncomfortable going, the court heard earlier. The pair were long estranged but still legally married. Simon Patterson's parents Don and Gail, and his aunt Heather Wilkinson, attended the lunch. All three were dead within days. Heather Wilkinson's husband Ian fell gravely ill but eventually recovered. The trial in Morwell, southeast of Melbourne, is in its final stages. lec/djw/dhw
CNN
22 minutes ago
- CNN
Judge extends order suspending Trump's block on Harvard's incoming foreign students
Donald Trump Student lifeFacebookTweetLink Follow President Donald Trump's order to block incoming foreign students from attending Harvard University will remain on hold temporarily following a hearing Monday, when a lawyer for the Ivy League school said Trump was using its students as 'pawns.' US District Judge Allison Burroughs in Boston extended a temporary restraining order on Trump's proclamation until June 23 while she weighs Harvard's request for a preliminary injunction. Burroughs made the decision at a hearing over Harvard's request, which Trump's Republican administration opposed. Burroughs granted the initial restraining order June 5, and it had been set to expire Thursday. Trump moved to block foreign students from entering the US to attend Harvard earlier this month, citing concerns over national security. It followed a previous attempt by the Department of Homeland Security to revoke Harvard's ability to host foreign students on its campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Burroughs has temporarily blocked that action, too, and is weighing whether it should remain on hold until the case is decided. Ian Gershengorn, a lawyer for Harvard, told Burroughs on Monday that Trump was 'using Harvard's international students as pawns' while arguing the administration has exceeded its authority in an attempt to retaliate against the school for not agreeing to the president's demands. 'I think there is no finding that Harvard is dangerous,' he said. Trump has been warring with Harvard for months after it rejected a series of government demands meant to address conservative complaints that the school has become too liberal and has tolerated anti-Jewish harassment. Trump officials have cut more than $2.6 billion in research grants, ended federal contracts and threatened to revoke its tax-exempt status. Foreign students were brought into the battle in April, when Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem demanded that Harvard turn over a trove of records related to any dangerous or illegal activity by foreign students. Harvard says it complied, but Noem said the response fell short, and on May 22 she revoked Harvard's certification in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program. The sanction immediately put Harvard at a disadvantage as it competed for the world's top students and harmed Harvard's reputation as a global research hub, the school said in its lawsuit. 'Without its international students, Harvard is not Harvard,' the suit said. The action would have upended some graduate schools that recruit heavily from abroad. Some schools overseas quickly offered invitations to Harvard's students, including two universities in Hong Kong. While Harvard's legal team on Monday said the federal government was unfairly and illegally singling the university out in Trump's proclamation, Department of Justice attorney Tiberius Davis countered that the administration has scrutinized dozens of universities over the past two months. 'The power is within Harvard to fix this,' Davis said, adding that currently the federal government believes 'other universities might be better' to host foreign students. Davis was the sole attorney to attend and defend the Trump administration during Monday's hearing compared with the six Harvard attorneys, a contrast that Burroughs commented on repeatedly. 'Not only do you have this case but you have it alone,' she said. Harvard President Alan Garber previously said the university has made changes to combat antisemitism. But Harvard, he said, will not stray from its 'core, legally-protected principles,' even after receiving federal ultimatums.
Fox News
22 minutes ago
- Fox News
Suspect in shooting of Minnesota lawmaker charged with murder, stalking; faces life in prison or death
MINNEAPOLIS – Minnesota lawmaker shooting suspect Vance Luther Boelter, 57, has been hit with new federal charges after officials captured him in Sibley County on Sunday night in what police described as the "largest manhunt" in the state's history. He is charged with two counts of stalking, two counts of murder and two counts of firearm-related crimes in federal court. In addition to the federal charges, Boelter is facing second-degree murder charges filed in Hennepin County, where he is accused of killing former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, early Saturday morning at their Brooklyn Park home in Minneapolis, and of shooting State Sen. John Hoffman, also a Democrat, and his wife, Yvette, in their nearby Champlin home in a related attack. The Hennepin County Attorney's Office on Monday announced that it intends to file first-degree murder charges against the suspect. A federal source confirmed to Fox News that Boelter is no longer in Hennepin County or Minneapolis. It's believed that he's being held in Sherburne County, northwest of Minneapolis. Online records showed he arrived there on Monday. Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson described Boelter's alleged actions as "chilling" during a Monday news conference, saying the suspect first arrived at the Hoffmans' home wearing a police-like uniform in a black SUV with emergency lights turned on and a license plate that read "police." HEAR THE DISPATCH CALL: "Boelter wore a black tactical vest and body armor. He carried a flashlight and a Beretta 9 mm handgun," Thompson said. "He also wore a hyperrealistic silicon mask. Sen. Hoffman had a security camera. I've seen the footage from that camera, and it is chilling. Boelter knocked on Sen. Hoffman's front door and repeatedly shouted, 'This is police. Open the door.'" "It's no exaggeration to say this is the stuff of nightmares." When they opened the door, Boelter shined a light in their faces, and the Hoffmans soon realized the suspect was not a police officer. The suspect then shot the Hoffmans and fled the scene, and their daughter called 911, Thompson said. Following the shooting at the Hoffmans' residence, Boelter traveled to the home of another Minnesota state representative in the Maple Grove neighborhood. Read the complaint: Around 2:24 a.m. on Saturday, he knocked on the unnamed state lawmaker's door wearing the same silicon mask and police uniform. He knocked on the representative's door, but no one answered as the lawmaker and his wife were on vacation. Thompson described the security footage as "haunting." "Boelter planned his attack carefully." Around 2:36 a.m. on Saturday, Boelter traveled to another state senator's home in New Hope. Boelter parked on the street in his black SUV. New Hope police dispatched an officer to the state senator's home for a wellness check. Upon arrival, an officer saw Boelter's SUV parked on the block with its lights on, according to the U.S. Attorney. "The New Hope police officer pulled up next to Boelter … rolled down her window and attempted to speak with him. Boelter did not respond," Thompson said. "The New Hope police officer proceeded to the state senator's home, and she waited for law enforcement to arrive. … By the time they did, Boelter had left the scene. Boelter then traveled to the Hortmans' home in Brooklyn Park, where he allegedly shot Melissa and Mark, wearing the same police uniform and mask. Boelter is currently charged with two counts of second-degree murder for the deaths of Victims 1 and 2 – identified as Melissa and Mark Hortman – and two counts of attempted second-degree murder for the shootings of Victims 3 and 4 – identified as John Hoffman and Yvette Hoffman – in Hennepin County. Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said Monday that those were the charges they could file via complaint on Sunday so they could take Boelter into custody at an early point in their investigation into the suspect's alleged actions. All charges are felonies and each carries a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison, with a mandatory minimum of three years due to the use of a firearm. The Sibley County Sheriff's Office told Fox News that Boelter "verbally" identified himself to authorities searching for him in the area on Sunday evening. Sibley County resident Kevin Effertz, who owns the property where Boelter was arrested, told Fox News Digital on Monday that a friend who stopped by his home Sunday saw something suspicious. "She saw this guy out in the field that was by himself, dressed in black, just with his back towards her," Effertz said. "When she started coming down the driveway, he ducked down, which made her kind of suspicious." The friend then "waved down" a police officer nearby, who told her to go to a safe area. "Within 20 minutes, she called me back and said they already had him," Effertz said. WATCH: Minnesota resident speaks at spot where Boelter was nabbed Authorities uncovered an arsenal in Boelter's possession, documents said. Inside his vehicle, registered to him, police found three AK-47 assault rifles, a 9 mm handgun and a list of names and addresses of other public officials. His bail was set at $5 million. Democrat Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar shared a message from Hoffman's wife on Sunday, saying the state senator was shot nine times and she was shot eight times. "John is enduring many surgeries right now and is closer every hour to being out of the woods," Yvette wrote. "He took [nine] bullet hits. I took [eight] and we are both incredibly lucky to be alive. We are gutted and devastated by the loss of Melissa and Mark. There is never a place for this kind of political hate." Randolph Rice, a former prosecutor and a partner at Rice Law in Baltimore, told Fox News Digital that the federal charges filed against Boelter "significantly changes" with "the legal landscape for the accused, Vance Boelter." "Minnesota abolished the death penalty more than a century ago, so if this case were prosecuted solely at the state level, capital punishment would not be on the table," Randolph said. "However, these federal charges open the door to the possibility of the death penalty if the Department of Justice decides to pursue it. Moreover, the resources and experience of the U.S. Attorney's Office will ensure a thorough and vigorous prosecution."
