Latest news with #Dufault
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Yahoo
WA residents arrested in massive nationwide child sex abuse sting
Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Generate Key Takeaways The U.S. Department of Justice has made a nationwide arrest of 205 accused child sexual abuse offenders and rescued 115 children in a coordinated operation. In the Western District of Washington, seven federal cases moved forward with criminal charges, pleas, and/or sentencing of those who target minors for sexual abuse. 'FBI Seattle's Violent Crimes Against Children squad and our partners are hard at work, not only during Child Abuse Prevention Month in April, but also throughout the year,' said W. Mike Herrington, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Seattle field office. 'We are arresting predators, recovering children, and assisting victims through the support of our victim specialists. Just this fiscal year in the Seattle division, we have arrested 122 subjects and identified or located 59 children.' These are the FBI-led child sex abuse cases prosecuted in the Western District of Washington in April 2025: Convicted sex offender Mitchell Francis Dufault, 36, was sentenced April 7, 2025, to ten years in prison and lifetime supervised release. Dufault distributed images of child sexual abuse via an internet platform and communicated with young people about sexually explicit conduct. Dufault has a prior conviction for child molestation. Shante Broady, 37, was arrested April 11, 2025, and charged with sex trafficking through force fraud and coercion and transporting a victim for the purpose of prostitution through coercion and enticement. Broady's alleged sex trafficking involves both adult and juvenile victims. Adam Ronald Ingram, 41, was indicted April 16, 2025, for production of child pornography, enticement of a minor and possession of child pornography. Ingram, a King County resident, communicated with minors in other states and foreign countries to obtain sexually explicit images. Ingram is scheduled for trial in June 2025 and remains detained at FDC SeaTac. Michael L. Gershowitz, 45, a historically registered sex offender, pleaded guilty on April 23, 2025, to possession of images of child sexual abuse. Gershowitz came to the attention of law enforcement when internet service providers reported his username to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) for uploading images of child sexual abuse. Gershowitz is scheduled for sentencing on August 4, 2025. 40-year-old Randy Lee Young was arrested April 24, 2025, following and investigation that revealed he had sexually molested a 13-year-old. Young was identified by law enforcement after he communicated with an undercover officer about having sex with minors. Law enforcement arrested Young when he arrived at a location where he thought the minors would be present. A review of his phone revealed his efforts to entice a 13-year-old for sexual activity. Young filmed the sexual molestation and is now charged with production of child pornography and attempted enticement of a minor. He remains detained at FDC SeaTac. A 54-year-old Kent, Washington resident was indicted April 23, 2025, for possession of images of child sexual abuse. Shaughn P. Lambert was on supervision by Washington State Corrections when his corrections officer found images of child sexual abuse on his phone. A search of Lambert's residence revealed a number of electronic devices that contained images of child sexual abuse. Lambert is scheduled for trial on July 7, 2025, and remains detained at FDC SeaTac. 'Every child deserves to grow up free from fear and exploitation, and the FBI will continue to be relentless in our pursuit of those who exploit the most vulnerable among us,' said FBI Director Kash Patel. 'Operation Restore Justice proves that no predator is out of reach and no child will be forgotten. By leveraging the strength of all our field offices and our federal, state, and local partners, we're sending a clear message: there is no place to hide for those who prey on children.' The operation follows the Department's observance of National Child Abuse Prevention Month in April. The Department urges the public to remain vigilant and report suspected exploitation of a child through the FBI's tipline at 1-800-CALL-FBI (225-5324), or by calling your local FBI field office.
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Outburst by Washington lawmaker earns him temporary ban from House floor
Rep. Jeremie Dufault, R-Selah, protests the closure of the Yakima Valley School, a facility for people with developmental and intellectual disabilities, April 9, 2025 at the Washington state Capitol, in Olympia. Dufault was blocked from participating in-person in floor proceedings during the final few days of the 2025 session after an outburst in the House chamber on Thursday, April 24. (Photo by Jacquelyn Jimenez Romero/Washington State Standard) A Republican state lawmaker in Washington won't be allowed back in the House chamber this session following his latest outburst during a legislative debate. Rep. Jeremie Dufault, R-Selah, will be participating remotely in the last three days after his latest verbal disruption proved to be 'the last straw' for House leaders. 'What I did was a breach of decorum. I accept the consequences of my action,' Dufault said in a statement Friday. 'But I will also continue to fight for my constituents and stand up to the tyranny of the majority when needed.' Dufault, who represents the 15th Legislative District in central Washington, has been rebuked several times in the course of the 105-day session for making comments in floor debates that run afoul of House decorum. On Thursday, at the outset of debate on a highly controversial bill concerning the rights of public school students and their parents, Democrats denied a Republican lawmaker's motion to reject the version passed by the Senate for not comporting with House rules. When the presiding speaker, Rep. Tarra Simmons, D-Bremerton, issued the ruling, Dufault leapt up and angrily shouted his disagreement. 'It was the last straw. It was more intense,' House Majority Leader Joe Fitzgibbon, D-West Seattle said Friday. 'A lot of members were anxious about his mental state and whether that could be a physical threat.' Lawmakers in both parties said privately that at that moment, they feared Dufault might be armed and something worse might occur. Dufault said in an interview Thursday, he has a permit to carry a concealed weapon but had no weapons on the floor. Following the episode, floor proceedings in the House paused for about two to three hours, and Washington State Patrol officers increased their presence in the chamber. In the House, the Speaker can remove any person creating a disturbance or engaging in disorderly conduct in the chamber. Fitzgibbon said barring Dufault for the rest of the session was a mutual decision with leaders of the House Republican caucus. Minority Leader Drew Stokesbary, R-Auburn, declined requests for comment Thursday. On Friday, a spokesperson sent an email saying Stokesbary 'is not going to comment on internal caucus discussions.' Dufault said Thursday night he learned of the ban in a text from his caucus leader. He said he was working virtually from an office in the legislative building. 'I will always speak passionately. I will always speak directly,' he said. 'I believe that my tone is appropriate and measured.'
Los Angeles Times
06-04-2025
- Business
- Los Angeles Times
Farmers fear tariffs could cost them one of their biggest markets: China
OMAHA — Heading into this year, most U.S. farmers were hoping to break even or maybe record a small profit if they could find a way to limit their sky-high costs. But now they are faced with losing the biggest export market for many of their crops after China retaliated against President Trump's tariffs. 'There's just not any margin for error in the current farm economy,' said Caleb Ragland, a Kentucky farmer and president of the American Soybean Assn. Soybean and sorghum farmers have particular reason to worry because at least half of those crops are exported and China has long been the biggest buyer. China also bought a lot of American corn, beef, chicken and other crops as part of the $24.65 billion it spent on U.S. agricultural products last year. Now with China slapping 34% tariffs on all American products Friday — on top of other tariffs it imposed earlier this year — all of those products will be significantly more expensive in China. Crop prices, much like the stock market, dropped after Trump announced his tariffs on Wednesday. Tim Dufault, whose farm is in northwest Minnesota only about 80 miles south of Canada, said that in a good year soybean farmers might make $50 to $75 an acre. But this isn't a good year because crop prices aren't high enough to cover soaring costs, and the price drop over two days last week cost them about $25 an acre, he said. Dufault said he is worried that these new tariffs might put many farmers out of business, including the young farmers he rented his land to heading into this year as he retired, because they probably won't make anything in 2025. 'I hope to God they can stay in business,' said Dufault, who is active with the Farmers for Free Trade group, which advocates for open markets. One of the biggest long-term concerns is that American farmers and ranchers will lose market share as China turns to Brazil and other countries to buy the soybeans, beef, chicken and other crops it consumes. China will buy lots of sorghum because it is distilled into the drink baijiu — as popular there as whiskey is in the United States — but will get it from other countries. Farmers endured Trump's trade war with China during his first term. But this time, Trump's tariffs extend around the globe, so China probably won't be the last country to retaliate with tariffs of its own. The only way most farmers survived Trump's last trade war was the tens of billions of dollars in government aid payments doled out, but it's not clear he will do that this time. He gave them more than $22 billion in aid payments in 2019 and nearly $46 billion in 2020, though that year also included aid related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins told Fox News last week that right now she doesn't believe massive aid payments will be necessary, although she won't know that for several months. 'But if it is, then this president has always said — and he is resolute in his commitment to our farmers and our ranchers and our great rural communities in America — so we will make sure we're ready if in fact that is necessary,' she said. 'But none of us like that,' said farmer Andy Hineman, who is vice president of the Kansas Grain Sorghum Producers Assn. 'We don't want to live on government handouts. We'd rather sell the crops we grow.' But farmer Bryant Kagay, part owner of Kagay farms in Amity, Mo., said he doesn't 'have a lot of faith that these tariffs — the way they are laid out today — will stick around long term.' He also doesn't like the idea of getting aid from the government. 'I really hate that seems to be the solution that, well, we'll just pay farmers some just off-the-cuff payment to help offset this,' Kagay said. 'I think a federal government that's vastly overspending today, like this is not the way to solve that problem.' The hope for farmers is that Trump's tariffs will lead to negotiations with other countries that will lower tariffs and other trade barriers. 'That's the type of positive development that we can do that's good for everybody involved, and that's what we need to look for,' Ragland said. 'Instead of beating each other up with higher and higher tariffs — it's just like punching each other in the face. We're not going to gain anything from it. It's just going to cause us to hurt. That would be my encouragement to the administration, is to look for opportunities and get some great deals done proactively.' Funk writes for the Associated Press. AP writer Nick Ingram in Missouri contributed to this report.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Farmers fear tariffs could cost them one of their biggest markets in China
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Heading into this year, most U.S. farmers were hoping to break even or maybe record a small profit if they could find a way to limit their sky-high costs. But now they are faced with losing the biggest export market for many of their crops after China retaliated against President Donald Trump's tariffs. 'There's just not any margin for error in the current farm economy,' said Kentucky farmer Caleb Ragland, who serves as president of the American Soybean Association. Soybean farmers have particular reason to worry because half their crop is exported and China has long been the biggest buyer. China has also bought a lot of American corn, beef, chicken, sorghum and other crops as part of spending $24.65 billion on U.S. agricultural products last year. Now with China slapping 34% tariffs on all American products Friday — on top of other tariffs it imposed earlier this year — all of those products will be significantly more expensive in China. Crop prices, much like the stock market, dropped after Trump announced his tariffs earlier this week. Tim Dufault, whose farm is in northwest Minnesota only about 80 miles south of Canada, said in a good year soybean farmers might make $50 to $75 an acre. But this isn't a good year because crop prices aren't high enough to cover soaring costs, and the price drop in the past two days cost them about $25 an acre, he said. Dufault said he is worried that these new tariffs might put many farmers out of business, including the young farmers he rented his land to heading into this year as he retired because they likely won't make anything in 2025. 'I just I hope to God they can stay in business,' said Dufault, who is active with the Farmers for Free Trade group that pushes for open markets. One of the biggest long-term concerns is that American farmers and ranchers will lose market share as China turns to Brazil and other countries to buy the soybeans, beef, chicken and other crops it consumes. China will buy lots of sorghum because it is distilled into the drink baijiu that is as popular there as whiskey is in the United States, but they will get it from other countries. Farmers endured Trump's previous trade war with China during his first term. But this time, Trump's tariffs extend around the globe, so China likely won't be the last country to retaliate with tariffs of its own. Could farmers get government aid? The only way most farmers survived Trump's last trade war was with tens of billions of government aid payments, but it's not clear if he will do that this time. He gave them more than $22 billion in aid payments in 2019 and nearly $46 billion in 2020, though that year also included aid related to the COVID pandemic. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins told Fox News this week that right now she doesn't believe massive aid payments will be necessary, although she won't know that for several months. "But if it is, then this president has always said and he is resolute in his commitment to our farmers and our ranchers and our great rural communities in America, so we will we'll make sure we're ready if in fact that is necessary,' she said. 'But none of us like that,' said farmer Andy Hineman, who is vice president of the Kansas Grain Sorghum Producers Association. 'We don't want to live on government handouts. We'd rather sell the crops we grow.' But farmer Bryant Kagay, part owner of Kagay farms in Amity, Missouri, said he doesn't 'have a lot of faith that these tariffs — the way they are laid out today — will stick around long term.' He also doesn't like the idea of getting aid from the government. 'I really hate that seems to be the solution that, well, we'll just pay farmers some just off-the-cuff payment to help offset this,' Kagay said. 'I think a federal government that's vastly overspending today, like this is not the way to solve that problem.' The hope for farmers is that Trump's tariffs will lead to negotiations with other countries that will lower tariffs and other trade barriers. 'That's the type of positive development that we can do that's good for everybody involved, and that's what we need to look for,' Ragland said. 'Instead of beating each other up with higher and higher tariffs — it's just like punching each other in the face. We're not going to gain anything from it. It's just going to cause us to hurt. That would be my encouragement to the administration, is to look for opportunities and get some great deals done proactively.' ___ Associated Press writer Nick Ingram contributed to this report from Missouri.
The Hill
04-04-2025
- Business
- The Hill
Farmers fear tariffs could cost them one of their biggest markets in China
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Heading into this year, most U.S. farmers were hoping to break even or maybe record a small profit if they could find a way to limit their sky-high costs. But now they are faced with losing the biggest export market for many of their crops after China retaliated against President Donald Trump's tariffs. 'There's just not any margin for error in the current farm economy,' said Kentucky farmer Caleb Ragland, who serves as president of the American Soybean Association. Soybean farmers have particular reason to worry because half their crop is exported and China has long been the biggest buyer. China has also bought a lot of American corn, beef, chicken, sorghum and other crops as part of spending $24.65 billion on U.S. agricultural products last year. Now with China slapping 34% tariffs on all American products Friday — on top of other tariffs it imposed earlier this year — all of those products will be significantly more expensive in China. Crop prices, much like the stock market, dropped after Trump announced his tariffs earlier this week. Tim Dufault, whose farm is in northwest Minnesota only about 80 miles south of Canada, said in a good year soybean farmers might make $50 to $75 an acre. But this isn't a good year because crop prices aren't high enough to cover soaring costs, and the price drop in the past two days cost them about $25 an acre, he said. Dufault said he is worried that these new tariffs might put many farmers out of business, including the young farmers he rented his land to heading into this year as he retired because they likely won't make anything in 2025. 'I just I hope to God they can stay in business,' said Dufault, who is active with the Farmers for Free Trade group that pushes for open markets. One of the biggest long-term concerns is that American farmers and ranchers will lose market share as China turns to Brazil and other countries to buy the soybeans, beef, chicken and other crops it consumes. China will buy lots of sorghum because it is distilled into the drink baijiu that is as popular there as whiskey is in the United States, but they will get it from other countries. Farmers endured Trump's previous trade war with China during his first term. But this time, Trump's tariffs extend around the globe, so China likely won't be the last country to retaliate with tariffs of its own. Could farmers get government aid? The only way most farmers survived Trump's last trade war was with tens of billions of government aid payments, but it's not clear if he will do that this time. He gave them more than $22 billion in aid payments in 2019 and nearly $46 billion in 2020, though that year also included aid related to the COVID pandemic. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins told Fox News this week that right now she doesn't believe massive aid payments will be necessary, although she won't know that for several months. 'But if it is, then this president has always said and he is resolute in his commitment to our farmers and our ranchers and our great rural communities in America, so we will we'll make sure we're ready if in fact that is necessary,' she said. 'But none of us like that,' said farmer Andy Hineman, who is vice president of the Kansas Grain Sorghum Producers Association. 'We don't want to live on government handouts. We'd rather sell the crops we grow.' But farmer Bryant Kagay, part owner of Kagay farms in Amity, Missouri, said he doesn't 'have a lot of faith that these tariffs — the way they are laid out today — will stick around long term.' He also doesn't like the idea of getting aid from the government. 'I really hate that seems to be the solution that, well, we'll just pay farmers some just off-the-cuff payment to help offset this,' Kagay said. 'I think a federal government that's vastly overspending today, like this is not the way to solve that problem.' The hope for farmers is that Trump's tariffs will lead to negotiations with other countries that will lower tariffs and other trade barriers. 'That's the type of positive development that we can do that's good for everybody involved, and that's what we need to look for,' Ragland said. 'Instead of beating each other up with higher and higher tariffs — it's just like punching each other in the face. We're not going to gain anything from it. It's just going to cause us to hurt. That would be my encouragement to the administration, is to look for opportunities and get some great deals done proactively.'
