Maui County, Hawaii has filed a lawsuit against Hawaiian Electric Co. (HECO) alleging that their failure to shut off power despite warnings of high winds and dry conditions was responsible for the devastating fires that destroyed Lahaina earlier this month. The lawsuit seeks damages and “just compensation” for the destruction of public property and infrastructure, as well as natural resources. HECO has not yet responded to the lawsuit, but is working to improve its emergency response protocols and has implemented additional safety measures to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.
News Mash
Former President Donald Trump was booked in the Fulton County jail in Atlanta, Georgia, on Thursday evening on felony charges related to his efforts to overturn the 2020 election. He was released on a $200,000 bond after being processed, and a mugshot was taken, marking the first time a mugshot has been taken of a former president. The charges are part of a larger indictment against 19 people, including Trump's lawyers and former chief of staff, and all defendants must put up 10% of the bail amount. This is Trump's fourth indictment this year.
A preliminary U.S. intelligence assessment has found that the plane crash presumed to have killed Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin was intentionally caused by an explosion. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has commented on the incident, noting the pattern of deaths and dubious suicides in Putin's Russia. President Joe Biden had previously commented on the incident, saying he was not surprised and that there is not much that happens in Russia that Putin is not behind.
Former President Donald Trump and 18 co-defendants are set to stand trial on October 23, 2023 for attempting to overturn the 2020 Georgia election results. Kenneth Chesebro, one of the defendants, invoked the state's speedy trial law to rush his case to trial, and Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis responded by requesting a trial start date in October. This is the first case of its kind in the United States, and the trial is expected to attract significant attention.
The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against SpaceX, accusing the company of "routine, widespread, and longstanding" discrimination against people with asylum or refugee status. The lawsuit seeks to end the alleged discrimination and provide monetary damages to those affected. SpaceX has yet to comment on the lawsuit, but has previously said that it complies with all applicable laws and regulations.
Former President Donald Trump and 18 others have been indicted by a grand jury in Georgia on a variety of charges related to an alleged scheme to overturn the state’s 2020 presidential election results. The indictment includes thirteen counts and involves close allies of Trump such as Rudy Giuliani and Mark Meadows, who have both been booked and released on bond. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has given all 19 defendants until noon on Friday to surrender, or she will seek arrest warrants for them. Trump has denied any wrongdoing and has called the charges “baseless.”
The first Republican primary debate of the 2020 cycle was held in Milwaukee on Wednesday night, attracting 11 million viewers on Fox News. Candidates scrambled to reach the RNC's thresholds to make the stage, and a mad dash for donors and a flurry of last-minute polls marked the days leading up to the event. The average viewership for Democratic debates in the 2020 cycle was 11.5 million viewers, compared to 8 million viewers in 2015 and 2016. This indicates the level of interest in the upcoming election and will be interesting to see how the viewership of the debates changes as the election draws closer.
Three people were killed and six more were injured in a shooting at Cook's Corner, an iconic biker bar in Orange County, California. The suspect, 59-year-old John Snowling, was a retired police officer and was killed by multiple deputies at the scene. The identities of the victims have not yet been released.