Latest news with #Blakey
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Trump commutes federal life sentence for former Gangster Disciples boss Larry Hoover
President Donald Trump has commuted the federal life sentence for infamous Gangster Disciples founder Larry Hoover, abruptly ending Hoover's yearslong quest to win early release under the First Step Act law passed during Trump's first term. The one page order said Hoover's sentence was considered served 'with no further fines, restitution, probation or other conditions,' and directed the U.S. Bureau of Prisons to release him 'immediately,' according to a copy of the document provided by Hoover's legal team. The controversial move — part of a slew of commutations and pardons announced by the White House this week — means Hoover will likely be transferred out of the supermax prison compound in Florence, Colorado, that he's called home for the past two decades. But Hoover isn't going free — he's still serving a 200-year sentence for his state court convictions for murder. Federal prosecutors have vehemently opposed any breaks for Hoover, now 73, arguing he did untold damage to communities across Chicago during his reign on the streets. They argued he has continued to hold sway over the gang's hierarchy while imprisoned, even promoting an underling he'd secretly communicated with through coded messages hidden in a dictionary. Hoover's attorneys, meanwhile, have claimed that decades behind bars have left him a changed man and that prosecutors have unfairly painted him as a puppet master to try to keep him locked up. At a hearing last year, U.S. District Judge John Robert Blakey asked Hoover's defense attorney point-blank: 'How many other murders is he responsible for?' 'I don't know what the methodology is for determining that,' attorney Jennifer Bonjean replied, somewhat taken aback by the unusually blunt query. 'So many we can't count?' Blakey shot back. After Bonjean said she couldn't 'put a number on it,' Blakey went a step further and asked if Hoover himself would like to weigh in. 'He probably has the most knowledge of all,' the judge said. At that hearing, which Hoover attended via a live link from prison, he told the judge he's 'had a chance to reflect on my life and the trouble that my existence has caused in the community.' 'Here in (the supermax) you're locked up at least 21 hours a day. You go away in your cell and reflect on every aspect of your life, and you see things differently,' Hoover said. 'You see things you're proud of and you see things that maybe you're not so proud of, and you realize that life is too short.' If he were released, Hoover said, he would counsel others how to avoid gangs, not join them. 'I just want to say that I would be a credible risk if you were to allow me to go back to the world,' Hoover said. Blakey had not yet ruled on Hoover's motion. Hoover was already serving a 200-year state sentence for the murder of a rival when he was indicted in federal court in 1995 on charges he continued to oversee the murderous drug gang's reign of terror from prison. He was convicted on 40 criminal counts in 1997, and Leinenweber sentenced him to the mandatory term of life. 'I don't always agree with the guidelines,' Leinenweber told Hoover during that hearing. 'Sometimes I think they are too draconian. But in this case, I agree with them 100%.' This is a developing story. Check back for details. jmeisner@
Chicago Tribune
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Chicago Tribune
Trump commutes federal life sentence for former Gangster Disciples boss Larry Hoover
President Donald Trump has commuted the federal life sentence for infamous Gangster Disciples founder Larry Hoover, abruptly ending Hoover's yearslong quest to win early release under the First Step Act law passed during Trump's first term. The one page order said Hoover's sentence was considered served 'with no further fines, restitution, probation or other conditions,' and directed the U.S. Bureau of Prisons to release him 'immediately,' according to a copy of the document provided by Hoover's legal team. The controversial move — part of a slew of commutations and pardons announced by the White House this week — means Hoover will likely be transferred out of the supermax prison compound in Florence, Colorado, that he's called home for the past two decades. But Hoover isn't going free — he's still serving a 200-year sentence for his state court convictions for murder. Federal prosecutors have vehemently opposed any breaks for Hoover, now 73, arguing he did untold damage to communities across Chicago during his reign on the streets. They argued he has continued to hold sway over the gang's hierarchy while imprisoned, even promoting an underling he'd secretly communicated with through coded messages hidden in a dictionary. Hoover's attorneys, meanwhile, have claimed that decades behind bars have left him a changed man and that prosecutors have unfairly painted him as a puppet master to try to keep him locked up. At a hearing last year, U.S. District Judge John Robert Blakey asked Hoover's defense attorney point-blank: 'How many other murders is he responsible for?' 'I don't know what the methodology is for determining that,' attorney Jennifer Bonjean replied, somewhat taken aback by the unusually blunt query. 'So many we can't count?' Blakey shot back. After Bonjean said she couldn't 'put a number on it,' Blakey went a step further and asked if Hoover himself would like to weigh in. 'He probably has the most knowledge of all,' the judge said. At that hearing, which Hoover attended via a live link from prison, he told the judge he's 'had a chance to reflect on my life and the trouble that my existence has caused in the community.' 'Here in (the supermax) you're locked up at least 21 hours a day. You go away in your cell and reflect on every aspect of your life, and you see things differently,' Hoover said. 'You see things you're proud of and you see things that maybe you're not so proud of, and you realize that life is too short.' If he were released, Hoover said, he would counsel others how to avoid gangs, not join them. 'I just want to say that I would be a credible risk if you were to allow me to go back to the world,' Hoover said. Blakey had not yet ruled on Hoover's motion. Hoover was already serving a 200-year state sentence for the murder of a rival when he was indicted in federal court in 1995 on charges he continued to oversee the murderous drug gang's reign of terror from prison. He was convicted on 40 criminal counts in 1997, and Leinenweber sentenced him to the mandatory term of life. 'I don't always agree with the guidelines,' Leinenweber told Hoover during that hearing. 'Sometimes I think they are too draconian. But in this case, I agree with them 100%.'jmeisner@
Time of India
19-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Microsoft hosts developer conference as focus grows on AI profits
Live Events Microsoft hosts its annual software developer conference in Seattle on Monday, drawing thousands of coders looking to turn the past years of investments into artificial intelligence into profitable products and services for consumers and Redmond, Washington-based software giant, which is an investor and deep strategic partner with ChatGPT creator OpenAI, and has already spent $64 billion this year, much of it on data centres needed for AI-based services such as Copilot used in its popular Microsoft 365 there are signs that Microsoft -- whose shares are up more than 30% this year, defying a broader Nasdaq decline -- is reworking its relationship with OpenAI and seeking to become a neutral arms dealer in the AI this year, Microsoft allowed OpenAI to branch out and work with Oracle on the massive "Stargate" data centre project in CEO Satya Nadella has argued the company can get expenses down, saying that once it settles on an algorithm and begins to optimize it, Microsoft can obtain 10 times better performance for the same computing for AI services in Microsoft's Azure cloud computing is also continuing to Blakey, an equity analyst with Cantor Fitzgerald, said that the company is increasingly keeping revenue-generating AI services inside its own data centres, where it can continue to tweak them for better shifting to only using outside data centre services such as CoreWeave, which is known as a "neocloud" that focuses on offering AI chips from Nvidia, when Microsoft needs short bursts of extra computing power for specific projects."If they have to flex up in some way, they've been consistently saying that they're going to shift away from buying more data centres and dirt and cement and they're going to leave that to the neoclouds," Blakey told Reuters.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
APS to roll out new career-readiness initiative at these three high schools
May 15—Beginning next school year, all freshmen at three Albuquerque Public Schools will have their courses tailored to a potential career path they select as the district implements a new program to prepare students for life after high school. The initiative will launch a concept called "Career Academies" at Manzano, Cibola and Highland high schools. APS plans to eventually expand the initiative to all the district's major high schools to help students decide on a focused career path. It is "working with business and industry in Albuquerque to determine career pathways," according to information on the district's website. The move comes as part of a broader effort to improve student outcomes and increase college readiness in the largest district in a state which regularly ranks last in the country for education. Some 30.2% of the population above 25 years old has a bachelor's degree or higher, according to U.S. Census data. The career academies were announced Wednesday morning by APS Superintendent Gabriella Blakey to a ballroom full of business leaders and a handful of elected officials at an Economic Forum of Albuquerque event. "It's very hit-and-miss with our students who are engaged in their learning and our students who are disengaged, and really we need to look at how we can re-engage our students," Blakey said. The three schools were selected because they have "well-established school climates and cultures of support and collaboration," according to APS spokesperson Phill Casaus. "We will work with all our comprehensive high schools to look at workforce data trends and needs in Albuquerque and determine next steps for implementing the full academy model at their schools," Casaus wrote in a statement. "You can expect more schools to be incorporated in 2026-27, though at this early juncture it's premature to say which ones." In 2023, the APS Board of Education adopted four goals to improve student outcomes based on community feedback. One of those goals was post-secondary readiness, and Blakey believes the academies can help make that goal attainable. "Having a strategy like this on how to make school relevant for students, how they're learning perseverance, how they're learning to change their mindset of what it means to work hard, is really important," Blakey said. During Wednesday's event, one of the APS board members expressed her support for the initiative. "We have given a task to Gabriella (Blakey) as far as setting our goals, we've given her the task to now implement," said Courtney Jackson, vice president for the APS board and executive assistant for the Economic Forum of Albuquerque. "I think she recognizes that things weren't going very well, and for her to have made these strategic changes, structural changes within Albuquerque Public Schools so quickly has been a testament to her ability to rally the troops, to rally the community." United Way will partner with APS and serve as both a convening and fiscal partner in implementing the academies, according to Rodney Prunty, president and CEO of its North Central New Mexico chapter. He told the Journal on Wednesday afternoon that the organization is aiming to raise $500,000 over the next five years to get the initiative started. "Every single student will have an opportunity to engage in this particular model," Prunty said to the room of business leaders. "So it's not specific to a group of students, but for every single student at every single high school."
The Advertiser
11-05-2025
- Sport
- The Advertiser
Bombers' Merrett cleared, stays eligible for Brownlow
Essendon captain Zach Merrett remains in Brownlow Medal contention after he was cleared by the AFL over his high contact with Sydney's Nick Blakey. Blakey passed a head injury assessment after he was struck in the head by Merrett as the players contested a loose ball in the Bombers' win over the Swans on Saturday night. The match review assessment on Sunday was that Merrett had his eyes on the ball and did not breach his duty of care to Blakey. "Merrett and Blakey approach the ball from opposite directions and with his eyes on the ball, Merrett attempts to tap the ball over Blakey's head and after making contact with the ball, Merrett makes high contact with Blakey," the AFL said. "It was the view of the match review officer that Merrett made a genuine attempt at the ball and that his actions did not constitute a breach of the duty of care he owed to Blakey." As of Sunday night, Merrett was fifth-favourite in Sportsbet's Brownlow market. Merrett attempted to hit the ball forward, but also made high contact with Blakey. The Swans defender then went off in the final minutes of the match and did not return. "I thought I tapped all ball; I was about to kick the goal," Merrett told Fox Footy after the match. "I haven't seen it, but I don't think there's anything to worry about." Sydney coach Dean Cox agreed there wasn't any malice on Merrett's part. "I think both players were just going at the ball," Cox said. "The timing … that's probably all I can say from watching it live. "I didn't have time to look at it after that. I was trying to get the result we needed." Adelaide defender Mark Keane, who took a game-saving mark in Saturday night's Showdown, was cleared of a match-day report for kicking Port Adelaide forward Jeremy Finlayson. Essendon's Will Setterfield was fined for tripping. Essendon captain Zach Merrett remains in Brownlow Medal contention after he was cleared by the AFL over his high contact with Sydney's Nick Blakey. Blakey passed a head injury assessment after he was struck in the head by Merrett as the players contested a loose ball in the Bombers' win over the Swans on Saturday night. The match review assessment on Sunday was that Merrett had his eyes on the ball and did not breach his duty of care to Blakey. "Merrett and Blakey approach the ball from opposite directions and with his eyes on the ball, Merrett attempts to tap the ball over Blakey's head and after making contact with the ball, Merrett makes high contact with Blakey," the AFL said. "It was the view of the match review officer that Merrett made a genuine attempt at the ball and that his actions did not constitute a breach of the duty of care he owed to Blakey." As of Sunday night, Merrett was fifth-favourite in Sportsbet's Brownlow market. Merrett attempted to hit the ball forward, but also made high contact with Blakey. The Swans defender then went off in the final minutes of the match and did not return. "I thought I tapped all ball; I was about to kick the goal," Merrett told Fox Footy after the match. "I haven't seen it, but I don't think there's anything to worry about." Sydney coach Dean Cox agreed there wasn't any malice on Merrett's part. "I think both players were just going at the ball," Cox said. "The timing … that's probably all I can say from watching it live. "I didn't have time to look at it after that. I was trying to get the result we needed." Adelaide defender Mark Keane, who took a game-saving mark in Saturday night's Showdown, was cleared of a match-day report for kicking Port Adelaide forward Jeremy Finlayson. Essendon's Will Setterfield was fined for tripping. Essendon captain Zach Merrett remains in Brownlow Medal contention after he was cleared by the AFL over his high contact with Sydney's Nick Blakey. Blakey passed a head injury assessment after he was struck in the head by Merrett as the players contested a loose ball in the Bombers' win over the Swans on Saturday night. The match review assessment on Sunday was that Merrett had his eyes on the ball and did not breach his duty of care to Blakey. "Merrett and Blakey approach the ball from opposite directions and with his eyes on the ball, Merrett attempts to tap the ball over Blakey's head and after making contact with the ball, Merrett makes high contact with Blakey," the AFL said. "It was the view of the match review officer that Merrett made a genuine attempt at the ball and that his actions did not constitute a breach of the duty of care he owed to Blakey." As of Sunday night, Merrett was fifth-favourite in Sportsbet's Brownlow market. Merrett attempted to hit the ball forward, but also made high contact with Blakey. The Swans defender then went off in the final minutes of the match and did not return. "I thought I tapped all ball; I was about to kick the goal," Merrett told Fox Footy after the match. "I haven't seen it, but I don't think there's anything to worry about." Sydney coach Dean Cox agreed there wasn't any malice on Merrett's part. "I think both players were just going at the ball," Cox said. "The timing … that's probably all I can say from watching it live. "I didn't have time to look at it after that. I was trying to get the result we needed." Adelaide defender Mark Keane, who took a game-saving mark in Saturday night's Showdown, was cleared of a match-day report for kicking Port Adelaide forward Jeremy Finlayson. Essendon's Will Setterfield was fined for tripping.
