Latest news with #ChristianPastor
Sky News
8 hours ago
- Health
- Sky News
'Don't kill the ill' vs 'What a relief': Two terminally ill people on the assisted dying vote
Over the past year, Sky News has been following the journeys of two people who are terminally ill and on opposite sides of the assisted dying debate. Philip, a Christian pastor, views it as suicide and says supporters of the bill need more faith. Clare, a former counsellor, thinks it should be a personal choice, which for her could offer a good death. Philip died two days before Friday's historic vote, which saw MPs vote in favour of assisted dying. "Kill the bill, don't kill the ill," he told Sky News days before he died. Philip said better palliative care can make all the difference. "I still believe it's because of money. It would save millions and millions if they bump off people like me and Clare and others." Philip was resting in a bed in his living room when we spoke to him. Doctors had told him he had just days left. He was struggling to eat and experiencing hallucinations. "Just now, I went to kiss [my wife] Pauline and she's not there." He pointed to a corner of a biscuit he'd been eating over the last three days that's "not even as big as my thumb". "That's the maximum amount of food I can eat because I'm blocked with cancer." "Logically, I should be screaming and ranting and shouting. But I've been organising things like the funeral," he said, explaining that his belief in Jesus means he's at peace with death, however it comes. At times he cries and very often, he winces in pain. Asked what it would mean if the vote was passed, Philip said it would be "a terrible step downwards". Assisted dying would desensitise the British public to death, he explained. "I personally am totally against it, because you're missing out on what God's planned for you. "Because even now, he knows what's going to happen in me, he knows what's going to happen in the other people." He added: "You'll miss the support of people who love you. Because there are people who love you. If you just reach out to them." Philip died on Wednesday morning, two days before the bill's third reading and ascension to the House of Lords. Clare is sitting in her friend's garden in Cirencester, Gloucestershire, surrounded by nature and absorbing the news that the vote has passed. She tells Sky News: "Oh what a relief! Thank goodness. Thank you to all those people who were brave." Clare has breast cancer which has spread to her bones. Her doctors say her lungs have hardened, making it more difficult for her to breathe. "I'm breathless all the time especially if I'm talking. I can't walk very far without being breathless. Now my heart has to work very, very hard to keep my oxygen levels up." Clare has supported the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill from its inception and calls it a "difficult subject". "People are very fearful," she says, before acknowledging that concerns remain for vulnerable people at risk of coercion. "Lots of people have been in controlling relationships, and I really understand how that works. "I've got daughters and I can understand situations where people are thinking, 'oh, I don't want to be a burden on somebody else' and all of that. But I think it's [worth] remembering that this is one choice out of many." Clare is aware it is unlikely the law will change before she dies. "It won't for [be there] me and it hasn't come in time for lots of people, has it?" she says. "All the people that have gone before that would've liked this choice to avoid suffering and indignity." Clare turns 60 this year and is marking her birthday with 60 memorable days. "I'm enjoying life," she says with a big smile. "I don't want to die, but we all have to go."
Associated Press
4 days ago
- Politics
- Associated Press
40 hours of violence and fear as gunman stalks Minnesota politicians
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Violence and fear swept through towns in an arc around Minneapolis for more than 40 hours over the weekend as a man seemingly intent on sowing political devastation killed one Minnesota state lawmaker and left another bleeding from nine bullet wounds. The attacks sparked the largest manhunt in Minnesota history, with heavily armed officers in full combat gear riding armored vehicles through suburban streets and country roads, ending in the arrest of Vance Boelter, a 57-year-old father of five and sometime Christian pastor known for his deeply conservative beliefs — but whose friends never saw him as an extremist. From a state that has long prided itself on political civility, the attacks rippled across the country as frightened political leaders worried that America's divides could cost them their lives. 'This was a political assassination, which is not the word we use very often in the United States, let alone in Minnesota' acting U.S. Attorney Joseph Thompson told reporters Monday. 'It's a chilling attack on our democracy, on our way of life.' Saturday, June 14, 2:06 a.m., Champlin, Minnesota The black SUV's emergency lights were flashing when it pulled up to the brick split-level home in the quiet, middle-class Minneapolis suburb. The maple tree in the front yard was lush with summer leaves. The man got out of the car wearing tactical clothing, body armor and what looked like a police badge. He was carrying a 9 mm Beretta pistol. He knocked loudly and repeatedly shouted, 'This is the police, open the door.' Later, even law enforcement officials said they would have believed he was a police officer. About 2:07 a.m., Champlin The couple who lived at the Champlin home, Democratic state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, opened the door to a flashlight shining in their faces. There had been a report of a shooting in the house, Boelter told them. But when he eventually lowered the flashlight, Yvette Hoffman could see he was wearing a realistic mask that covered his entire head. In the confrontation that followed, he shot both repeatedly. The next morning, nine bullet holes could be seen in their front door. Police responded within minutes, after a 911 call from the Hoffman's adult daughter, who also lives in the house. The legislator and his wife were rushed to a nearby hospital. 2:24 a.m., Maple Grove A little more than 10 miles (16 kilometers) away, security camera footage showed Boelter, still in his mask and tactical clothing, holding a flashlight as he rang the doorbell at the home of someone who authorities have so far only identified as 'Public Official 1.' 'This is the police. Open the door,' he said loudly. 'We have a warrant.' Boelter was traveling with a list of about 70 names, including prominent state and federal lawmakers, community leaders and abortion-rights advocates, according to two law enforcement officials who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss details of the ongoing investigation. The federal affidavit says the list was composed of 'mostly or all Democrats.' No one was at the Maple Grove home. Boelter soon left. But he had plenty of other targets. Boelter had carefully planned his attacks in advance, making notes about targets' families and conducting surveillance on their homes, Thompson said. 'Boelter stalked his victims like prey,' he said. About 2:36 a.m., New Hope Roughly 5 miles (8 kilometers) away, in another suburb just north of Minneapolis, Boelter drove to the home of Democratic state Sen. Ann Rest. By then, law enforcement was starting to worry about local legislators and New Hope police dispatched an officer to do a safety check at Rest's home. That officer found what she thought was a police vehicle already doing a check, parked down the street from the house. When the officer tried to speak to Boelter, he stared straight ahead and didn't respond. The officer then drove to Rest's home, and after seeing no trouble waited for backup and returned to where Boelter had been parked. But by then he was gone. Around 3:30 a.m., Brooklyn Park An off-duty sergeant with the Brooklyn Park police was leaving the station when he heard about the shooting at Hoffman's house. ''Hey, drive by Melissa Hortman's house and just check on the house, would you?' he told a pair of officers, the city's police chief, Mark Bruley, told reporters. Hortman, 55, the former house speaker, had long been one of the state's leading Democrats. Minutes later, Brooklyn Park Boelter, his phony police car parked out front with its lights flashing, was standing at the front door of the large brick home when the real Brooklyn Park officers arrived. 'Moments after their arrival on scene, Boelter fired several gunshots as he moved forward, entering the Hortmans' home,' the federal affidavit states. Moments later, he fired a second set of shots. The officers moved to the house and found a gravely injured Mark Hortman in the doorway. Inside the house, they found Melissa Hortman. She had also been badly shot. Both soon died. Left behind, though, was Boelter's car, with the list of targets and at least five weapons. Nearby, police found the mask Boelter had worn along with the pistol he'd carried. Law enforcement believed he was on foot. About 6:18 a.m. 'Dad went to war last night,' said a message Boelter sent on a family group text, which his wife eventually shared with authorities. Police had found her by tracking her cellphone. They found her in a car with her children, along with two handguns, about $10,000 in cash and passports, the affidavit said. Boelter had apparently urged her to leave. 'Words are not going to explain how sorry I am,' he said in another message. 'there's gonna be some people coming to the house armed and trigger-happy and I don't want you guys around.' He also reached out to two roommates with whom he sometimes stayed in Minneapolis. 'May be dead shortly, so I just want to let you know I love you guys both and I wish it hadn't gone this way,' Boelter wrote, according to Paul Schroeder, who has known Boelter for years. Friends said Boelter had been struggling financially in recent years. In 2023, he began working for a transport service for a funeral home, mostly picking up bodies from assisted-living facilities. That job ended about four months ago. Later Saturday morning, Brooklyn Park Within hours of the Hortman shooting, hundreds of police officers, sheriff deputies and FBI agents were roaming the streets near the scene. Cellphones in the area pinged an alert, urging people near the Hortmans' neighborhood to take shelter. 'Police are still looking for a suspect in multiple targeted shootings who is armed and dangerous,' the alert said, giving a description of Boelter. 'Do not approach.' A series of roadblocks was also set up, with law enforcement searching every vehicle as it left, fearing Boelter could try to escape by hiding in a car. About 7 a.m., bus stop in north Minneapolis Carrying two duffel bags, Boelter approached a man he didn't know at a Minneapolis bus stop roughly 7 miles (11 kilometers) from the Hortmans' home and asked to purchase his electric bike. After taking the bus together to the man's home, Boelter agreed to buy the bike and the man's Buick sedan. They then drove the Buick to a bank branch in nearby Robbinsdale, where Boelter, who can be seen in security footage wearing a cowboy hat, withdrew $2,200, emptying his bank account. He paid the man $900. Sunday, June 15, about 2:30 a.m., Green Isle Law enforcement received a report of someone riding an e-bike on a country road outside the small town of Green Isle, about an hour from downtown Minneapolis. The cyclist was not found, but Boelter's family lives not far away, in a sprawling 3,800-square-foot house they bought in 2023 for more than $500,000. Later Sunday morning The Buick was found, abandoned, near where the cyclist had been spotted. Worried about explosives, law enforcement initially used a robot to check the car. Inside, they found the cowboy hat that Boelter appeared to be wearing in the bank. There was also a handwritten letter addressed to the FBI in which Boelter said he was 'the shooter at large in Minnesota involved in the 2 shootings.' Sunday night, Green Isle Law enforcement set up a large perimeter near Green Isle after a police officer thought he'd seen Boelter running into the woods. Twenty tactical teams were called in for an intensive search. For hours, heavily armed men, some with dogs, walked the roads and fields of rural Sibley County. A helicopter was called in to help. Boelter was spotted shortly before nightfall, and officers surrounded him. He soon surrendered, crawling to officers who handcuffed him and took him into custody. Monday, St. Paul Boelter now faces a series of state charges, including murder and attempted murder. Federal prosecutors announced they had charged him with murder and stalking, which could result in a death sentence if he is convicted. At a federal court hearing Monday in St. Paul, Boelter said he could not afford an attorney. A federal defender was appointed to represent him. He was ordered held without bail ahead of a court appearance next week. Across the U.S., local and state politicians rushed to scrub home addresses from websites and began debating whether security should now be provided for politicians like state senators. U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar shared a text from Yvette Hoffman, whose recovery came quicker than her husband's. 'John is enduring many surgeries right now and is closer every hour to being out of the woods,' Yvette Hoffman said Saturday in a text that Klobuchar posted on social media. 'He took 9 bullet hits. I took 8 and we are both incredibly lucky to be alive. We are gutted and devastated by the loss of Melissa and Mark.' ___ Associated Press reporters Alanna Durkin Richer, Michael Biesecker, Mike Balsamo and Eric Tucker in Washington; Jim Mustian in New York; John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio; John Hanna in Topeka, Kansas; Rio Yamat in Las Vegas; Giovanna Dell'Orto in Champlin; Obed Lamy in St. Paul and Margery Beck in Omaha, Nebraska, contributed to this report. ___ This story was compiled from federal and state legal documents, interviews with law enforcement officials, political officials and people who knew Boelter and the victims.
The Independent
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Independent
40 hours of violence and fear as gunman stalks Minnesota politicians
Violence and fear swept through towns in an arc around Minneapolis for more than 40 hours over the weekend as a man seemingly intent on sowing political devastation killed one Minnesota state lawmaker and left another bleeding from nine bullet wounds. The attacks sparked the largest manhunt in Minnesota history, with heavily armed officers in full combat gear riding armored vehicles through suburban streets and country roads, ending in the arrest of Vance Boelter, a 57-year-old father of five and sometime Christian pastor known for his deeply conservative beliefs — but whose friends never saw him as an extremist. From a state that has long prided itself on political civility, the attacks rippled across the country as frightened political leaders worried that America's divides could cost them their lives. 'This was a political assassination, which is not the word we use very often in the United States, let alone in Minnesota' acting U.S. Attorney Joseph Thompson told reporters Monday. 'It's a chilling attack on our democracy, on our way of life.' Saturday, June 14, 2:06 a.m., Champlin, Minnesota The black SUV's emergency lights were flashing when it pulled up to the brick split-level home in the quiet, middle-class Minneapolis suburb. The maple tree in the front yard was lush with summer leaves. The man got out of the car wearing tactical clothing, body armor and what looked like a police badge. He was carrying a 9 mm Beretta pistol. He knocked loudly and repeatedly shouted, 'This is the police, open the door.' Later, even law enforcement officials said they would have believed he was a police officer. About 2:07 a.m., Champlin The couple who lived at the Champlin home, Democratic state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, opened the door to a flashlight shining in their faces. There had been a report of a shooting in the house, Boelter told them. But when he eventually lowered the flashlight, Yvette Hoffman could see he was wearing a realistic mask that covered his entire head. In the confrontation that followed, he shot both repeatedly. The next morning, nine bullet holes could be seen in their front door. Police responded within minutes, after a 911 call from the Hoffman's adult daughter, who also lives in the house. The legislator and his wife were rushed to a nearby hospital. 2:24 a.m., Maple Grove A little more than 10 miles (16 kilometers) away, security camera footage showed Boelter, still in his mask and tactical clothing, holding a flashlight as he rang the doorbell at the home of someone who authorities have so far only identified as 'Public Official 1.' 'This is the police. Open the door,' he said loudly. 'We have a warrant.' Boelter was traveling with a list of about 70 names, including prominent state and federal lawmakers, community leaders and abortion-rights advocates, according to two law enforcement officials who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss details of the ongoing investigation. The federal affidavit says the list was composed of 'mostly or all Democrats.' No one was at the Maple Grove home. Boelter soon left. But he had plenty of other targets. Boelter had carefully planned his attacks in advance, making notes about targets' families and conducting surveillance on their homes, Thompson said. 'Boelter stalked his victims like prey,' he said. About 2:36 a.m., New Hope Roughly 5 miles (8 kilometers) away, in another suburb just north of Minneapolis, Boelter drove to the home of Democratic state Sen. Ann Rest. By then, law enforcement was starting to worry about local legislators and New Hope police dispatched an officer to do a safety check at Rest's home. That officer found what she thought was a police vehicle already doing a check, parked down the street from the house. When the officer tried to speak to Boelter, he stared straight ahead and didn't respond. The officer then drove to Rest's home, and after seeing no trouble waited for backup and returned to where Boelter had been parked. But by then he was gone. Around 3:30 a.m., Brooklyn Park An off-duty sergeant with the Brooklyn Park police was leaving the station when he heard about the shooting at Hoffman's house. ''Hey, drive by Melissa Hortman's house and just check on the house, would you?' he told a pair of officers, the city's police chief, Mark Bruley, told reporters. Hortman, 55, the former house speaker, had long been one of the state's leading Democrats. Minutes later, Brooklyn Park Boelter, his phony police car parked out front with its lights flashing, was standing at the front door of the large brick home when the real Brooklyn Park officers arrived. 'Moments after their arrival on scene, Boelter fired several gunshots as he moved forward, entering the Hortmans' home,' the federal affidavit states. Moments later, he fired a second set of shots. The officers moved to the house and found a gravely injured Mark Hortman in the doorway. Inside the house, they found Melissa Hortman. She had also been badly shot. Both soon died. Left behind, though, was Boelter's car, with the list of targets and at least five weapons. Nearby, police found the mask Boelter had worn along with the pistol he'd carried. Law enforcement believed he was on foot. About 6:18 a.m. 'Dad went to war last night,' said a message Boelter sent on a family group text, which his wife eventually shared with authorities. Police had found her by tracking her cellphone. They found her in a car with her children, along with two handguns, about $10,000 in cash and passports, the affidavit said. Boelter had apparently urged her to leave. 'Words are not going to explain how sorry I am,' he said in another message. 'there's gonna be some people coming to the house armed and trigger-happy and I don't want you guys around.' He also reached out to two roommates with whom he sometimes stayed in Minneapolis. 'May be dead shortly, so I just want to let you know I love you guys both and I wish it hadn't gone this way,' Boelter wrote, according to Paul Schroeder, who has known Boelter for years. Friends said Boelter had been struggling financially in recent years. In 2023, he began working for a transport service for a funeral home, mostly picking up bodies from assisted-living facilities. That job ended about four months ago. Later Saturday morning, Brooklyn Park Within hours of the Hortman shooting, hundreds of police officers, sheriff deputies and FBI agents were roaming the streets near the scene. Cellphones in the area pinged an alert, urging people near the Hortmans' neighborhood to take shelter. 'Police are still looking for a suspect in multiple targeted shootings who is armed and dangerous," the alert said, giving a description of Boelter. 'Do not approach.' A series of roadblocks was also set up, with law enforcement searching every vehicle as it left, fearing Boelter could try to escape by hiding in a car. About 7 a.m., bus stop in north Minneapolis Carrying two duffel bags, Boelter approached a man he didn't know at a Minneapolis bus stop roughly 7 miles (11 kilometers) from the Hortmans' home and asked to purchase his electric bike. After taking the bus together to the man's home, Boelter agreed to buy the bike and the man's Buick sedan. They then drove the Buick to a bank branch in nearby Robbinsdale, where Boelter, who can be seen in security footage wearing a cowboy hat, withdrew $2,200, emptying his bank account. He paid the man $900. Sunday, June 15, about 2:30 a.m., Green Isle Law enforcement received a report of someone riding an e-bike on a country road outside the small town of Green Isle, about an hour from downtown Minneapolis. The cyclist was not found, but Boelter's family lives not far away, in a sprawling 3,800-square-foot house they bought in 2023 for more than $500,000. Later Sunday morning The Buick was found, abandoned, near where the cyclist had been spotted. Worried about explosives, law enforcement initially used a robot to check the car. Inside, they found the cowboy hat that Boelter appeared to be wearing in the bank. There was also a handwritten letter addressed to the FBI in which Boelter said he was 'the shooter at large in Minnesota involved in the 2 shootings.' Sunday night, Green Isle Law enforcement set up a large perimeter near Green Isle after a police officer thought he'd seen Boelter running into the woods. Twenty tactical teams were called in for an intensive search. For hours, heavily armed men, some with dogs, walked the roads and fields of rural Sibley County. A helicopter was called in to help. Boelter was spotted shortly before nightfall, and officers surrounded him. He soon surrendered, crawling to officers who handcuffed him and took him into custody. Monday, St. Paul Boelter now faces a series of state charges, including murder and attempted murder. Federal prosecutors announced they had charged him with murder and stalking, which could result in a death sentence if he is convicted. At a federal court hearing Monday in St. Paul, Boelter said he could not afford an attorney. A federal defender was appointed to represent him. He was ordered held without bail ahead of a court appearance next week. Across the U.S., local and state politicians rushed to scrub home addresses from websites and began debating whether security should now be provided for politicians like state senators. U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar shared a text from Yvette Hoffman, whose recovery came quicker than her husband's. 'John is enduring many surgeries right now and is closer every hour to being out of the woods,' Yvette Hoffman said Saturday in a text that Klobuchar posted on social media. 'He took 9 bullet hits. I took 8 and we are both incredibly lucky to be alive. We are gutted and devastated by the loss of Melissa and Mark.' ___ Associated Press reporters Alanna Durkin Richer, Michael Biesecker, Mike Balsamo and Eric Tucker in Washington; Jim Mustian in New York; John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio; John Hanna in Topeka, Kansas; Rio Yamat in Las Vegas; Giovanna Dell'Orto in Champlin; Obed Lamy in St. Paul and Margery Beck in Omaha, Nebraska, contributed to this report. ___ This story was compiled from federal and state legal documents, interviews with law enforcement officials, political officials and people who knew Boelter and the victims.
