How Russia Is Getting Cut off the Global Internet - TechAltar

Putin's assault in eastern Ukraine falling behind schedule, according to U.S. officials - CNBC

Stanford nurses go on strike over wages, mental health - ABC News

East Texas sheriff to resign following arrest, indictment

CANTON, Texas -- An East Texas sheriff said he will resign following his arrest and indictment on allegations that he lied to investigators about witnessing one of his deputies punch a handcuffed inmate in the face.

Van Zandt County Sheriff Steve Hendrix said in a resignation letter that he will step down May 14 after about 18 months on the job, KYTX reported Friday.

Hendrix, along with Chief Deputy Jerry Wood and Sgt. Blake Snell were indicted last month for giving a false statement to a peace officer about the actions of former Chief Deputy Craig Shelton, according to the Van Zandt County District Attorney's Office.

In January, Shelton admitted to the Texas Rangers he hit Nicholas Crouch in September without any justification.

Giving a false statement to a peace officer is a misdemeanor with a jail sentence of up to six months if convicted.

Read more: https://www.texarkanagazette.com/news/2022/apr/29/east-texas-sheriff-to-resign-following-arrest/

Greg Abbott and Dan Patrick want Texas' Supreme Court to take up Ken Paxton's whistleblower appeal

Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s are asking the Texas Supreme Court to consider Attorney General Ken Paxton’s legal push to have a whistleblower lawsuit against him tossed.

“It was interesting to see them weigh in on this,” said Texas Tribune political reporter James Barragán. “They said they want the Supreme Court to take it up and give their consideration and decision on whether that lawsuit should be thrown out or go forward.”

Several of Paxton’s top aides were fired or resigned after alleging the attorney general used his office for political gain. They ultimately sued Paxton, saying they were forced out of the office for speaking up, and a lower court ruled against Paxton’s bid to have the suit against him thrown out.

“Interestingly,” Barragán notes, Abbott and Patrick “didn’t say whether they are on the side of Ken Paxton. They left it very vague and just said that it is a statewide administrative issue that deals with an executive and with statewide issues – and it should be dealt with by a statewide court and not these lower courts.”

https://www.texasstandard.org/stories/greg-abbott-and-dan-patrick-want-texas-supreme-court-to-take-up-ken-paxtons-whistleblower-appeal/
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Migrants apprehended under Operation Lone Star sue Gov. Abbott

A group of migrants apprehended under Operation Lone Star have filed a lawsuit against Gov. Greg Abbott, claiming the governor’s controversial border mission is unconstitutional.

The migrants were arrested and charged with criminal trespass in Kinney County, but claim they were held in custody even after posting bond or having their charges dismissed.

Angelica Cogliano, an attorney representing the plaintiffs, told The Texas Newsroom her clients’ experiences show Operation Lone Star is unconstitutional.

“And the way you know that is because (the migrants) are being prosecuted for that state-level crime differently than anybody else in the state gets prosecuted for that state-level crime,” Cogliano said.

Read more: https://www.kut.org/news/2022-04-29/migrants-apprehended-under-operation-lone-star-sue-gov-abbott

Fed up Jamie Raskin DEMOLISHES Marjorie Taylor Greene in must-see smackdown - Brian Tyler Cohen

Beau of the Fifth Column: Let's talk about Madison Cawthorn, a rumor, and North Carolina....

Federal judge denies Bart Reagor's motion for continued release

An Amarillo federal judge this week denied Bart Reagor's continued release on bond, saying the former auto group CEO failed to show that his appeal raised an issue that could cast doubt on his conviction.

Reagor, the former CEO of the Reagor-Dykes Auto Group, was sentenced in March to 14 years in prison after a jury in October convicted him of one count of making a false statement to a bank. However, they acquitted him of two counts of wire fraud.

The verdict came after two-days of deliberation, during which the court issued as Allen Charge to encourage jurors, who said they were deadlocked, to come up with a verdict.

Reagor faced up to 30 years in prison after a federal jury in October found him guilty of making a false statement to a bank, finding that he fraudulently obtained a $10 million business loan in 2017 for his auto dealerships from Oklahoma-based International Bank of Commerce.

Read more: https://www.lubbockonline.com/story/news/courts/2022/04/28/federal-judge-denies-bart-reagors-motion-continued-release/9574947002/

Reagor received a 14 year sentence for making the false statement to IBC. He is trying to remain on continued release since he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2020.


And in related news...


Reagor’s wife sues bank, seeks up to $22.3 million

LUBBOCK, Texas — Annette Reagor, wife of Bart Reagor, filed a lawsuit against FirstCapital Bank of Texas on April 22. The lawsuit asked for at least $2.3 million and up to $22.3 million in damages from the bank.

The lawsuit, filed in the 97th Judicial District of Texas, claimed that FirstCapital defrauded the Reagor’s. Specifically, the lawsuit claimed the Reagor’s pledged $2.3 million in assets to FirstCapital in August 2018 for financing.

“Unbeknownst to the dazed Mr. Reagor, however, FirstCapital’s promise of refinancing was knowingly false and merely a ‘money-grab’ by the greedy Defendant,” the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit said FirstCapital also worked with former Reagor Dykes Auto Group CFO Shane Smith to defraud the Reagor’s. Smith was sentenced to seven years in prison in January 2022 after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

Read more: https://www.everythinglubbock.com/news/local-news/reagors-wife-sues-bank-seeks-up-to-22-3-million/

FAA delays SpaceX study again

The Federal Aviation Administration has pushed the release date of its final Programmatic Environmental Assessement of SpaceX’s Starship development program at Boca Chica/Starbase.

The new date is May 31. The original deadline was Dec. 31, 2021, though the FAA has pushed back the date multiple times since. Depending on the outcome of the final PEA, SpaceX may or may not be granted permission by the FAA for the first orbital launch of its Starship/Super Heavy prototype, which the company has been planning to launch from Boca Chica.

“The FAA is working toward issuing the final (PEA) for the SpaceX Starship/Super Heavy on May 31, 2022,” the agency said in a statement Friday morning. SpaceX made multiple changes to its application that require additional FAA analysis. The agency continues to review around 18,000 general public comments.

“The completion of the PEA will not guarantee that the FAA will issue a launch license. SpaceX’s application must also meet FAA safety, risk and financial responsibility requirements.”

https://myrgv.com/local-news/2022/04/29/faa-delays-spacex-study-again/
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