February 7 top stories
It is February 7. Here are today’s top stories.
Mom of MI school shooter found guilty
We shared this story last week about the very first parent, Jennifer Crumbley, in the United States to face a manslaughter trial for a child’s mass shooting. The jury has reached a verdict in her trial Tuesday.
A Michigan jury found Jennifer Crumbley guilty of four involuntary manslaughter counts – one for each student slain at Oxford High School. The verdict has made her the first parent in the US to be held responsible for a child carrying out a mass school attack.
Prosecutors say Jennifer had a duty under state law to prevent her son, who was 15 at the time, from harming others. She was accused of failing to secure a gun and ammunition at home and failing to get help to support Ethan Crumbley’s mental health.
Jennifer Crumbley, 45, looked down and shook her head slightly after the verdicts were read.
House GOP vote to impeach Mayorkas fails
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas narrowly avoided impeachment Tuesday.
House Republicans failed to pass articles of impeachment for Mayorkas over his handling of the border. The two articles of impeachment against Mayorkas charge him with “willful and systemic refusal to comply with the law” and a “breach of public trust.”
For a moment, the vote was tied at 215-215 before a Republican congressman from Utah switched his vote from “yes” to “no” in the last moments before voting closed.
The impeachment failed on a 214-216 vote, with only House Majority Leader Steve Scalise absent due to treatment for blood cancer. Four Republicans defected and joined all Democrats present in opposing the measure. The House has not impeached a member of a president’s cabinet in nearly 150 years.
Even though House Republicans suffered a defeat and failed to impeach Mayorkas on Tuesday, GOP leadership said they plan to bring up the vote again when Majority Leader Scalise returns.
Pod of orcas trapped by thick sea ice
The stranded orcas were spotted by a fisherman earlier this week, almost a half mile away from the shores of Hokkaido in Japan.
A pod of killer whales appeared to have become stuck in drift ice. Drone footage shows a group of at least 10 orcas packed closely together and appear to be sticking their heads out of the water to breathe.
Japanese officials said orcas, unlike other large whales, can’t remain underwater for too long and need to resurface every few minutes. That sparked an official response – with officials traveling to the seaside town to monitor the whales.
But the coast guard is unable to launch a rescue operation as the ice is too thick, local Japanese officials told news outlets.
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On Wednesday, officials reported back saying their latest monitoring trip appeared to show the whales had moved away from the area. “We believe they were able to escape safely,” they continued. They speculated that the whales may have made their way out between gaps in the ice.
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Tucker Carlson to interview Putin
Multiple sources reported that Tucker Carlson said he is interviewing Vladimir Putin during a visit to Moscow, making him the first member of the U.S. media to be granted an interview with Russia’s president since that country’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Carlson, a far-right commentator and former Fox News star, said in a Tuesday video posted on X from Moscow, “Most Americans have no idea why Putin invaded Ukraine or what his goals are now…Americans have a right to know all they can about a war they’re implicated in and we have the right to tell them about it.”
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Tucker questioned American aid for the war effort. He also falsely claimed that Ukrainian president Zelensky is an authoritarian leader. “Zelensky has no interest in freedom and democracy. He is a dictator. He is a dangerous authoritarian who used a hundred billion in U.S. tax dollars to erect a one-party police state in Ukraine,” Carlson said in 2022.
His interview with Putin will be released on X and TuckerCarlson.com.
Alex has a news story to share about a federal appeals court’s decision on Trump’s immunity. Here you go.
Federal Appeals Court Rejects Trump’s Claim of Absolute Immunity
Thanks, Callie.
On Tuesday, a federal appeals court said former President Donald Trump can face criminal prosecution on charges of conspiring to subvert the results of the 2020 election.
Trump and his legal team tried to argue that they were immune, that the actions that Trump did were shielded by the office of the presidency.
The appeals court said “we cannot accept that the office of the presidency places its former occupants above the law for all time thereafter.”
Trump will likely appeal this case to the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court is already slated to hear a separate Trump-related case that I talked about yesterday, the Colorado ballot issue.
Trump is the first former president in history to be indicted so all the questions and answers on how to handle this are new.
Thanks for that story. That is all the news stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light!
Mom of MI school shooter found guilty:
House GOP vote to impeach Mayorkas fails:
https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2024/02/06/congress/mayorkas-impeachment-fails-00139994
Pod of orcas trapped by thick sea ice:
https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/4452176-pod-of-orcas-appear-trapped-by-sea-ice-in-japan/
Tucker Carlson to interview Putin:
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/06/world/europe/tucker-carlson-putin-interview.html
https://x.com/TuckerCarlson/status/1754939251257475555?s=20
Federal Appeals Court Rejects Trump’s Claim of Absolute Immunity:
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/06/us/politics/trump-immunity-appeals-court.html