News – Page 1852 – 105.7 WDNY

Trump could still be elected president despite indictment, experts say

March 30, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — Former President Donald Trump, who was indicted by the Manhattan district attorney on Thursday, can still be elected president — even if he is convicted — experts tell ABC News. But there are practical reasons that could make it a challenge, experts say.

Trump said recently at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference that he would “absolutely” stay in the race for president even if he were to be criminally indicted.

“I wouldn’t even think about leaving,” Trump told reporters ahead of his speech on Saturday. “Probably it will enhance my numbers.”

Trump has denied wrongdoing and has characterized the probe as part of a “witch hunt” against him.

The U.S. Constitution does not list the absence of a criminal record as a qualification for the presidency. It says only that natural born citizens who are at least 35 years old and have been a resident of the U.S. for 14 years can run for president.

Constitutional experts also told ABC News that previous Supreme Court rulings hold that Congress cannot add qualifications to the office of the president. In addition, a state cannot prohibit indicted or convicted felons from running for federal office.

“Some people are surprised to learn that there’s no constitutional bar on a felon running for president, but there’s no such bar,” said Kate Shaw, ABC News legal analyst and professor at Cardozo School of Law.

“Because of the 22nd Amendment, the individual can’t have been twice elected president previously,” Shaw said. “But there’s nothing in the Constitution disqualifying individuals convicted of crimes from running for or serving as president.”

Shaw said that while incarceration “would presumably make campaigning difficult if not impossible,” the impediment would be a “practical problem, not a legal one.”

James Sampler, a constitutional law professor at Hofstra University, told ABC News that the Constitution sets the minimal requirements, but leaves the rest up to the voters.

“It depends on the wisdom of the people to determine that an individual is not fit for office,” Sampler said. “So the most fundamental obstacle that President Trump has in seeking office in 2024 is the obstacle that anyone has, but he has it in a different and more pronounced way — which is proving to the voters that the individual deserves the office.”

If Trump were to be indicted or convicted and prevented by law from traveling out of state, Sampler said, that would impose a practical limitation on his ability to travel the country and campaign — but it wouldn’t prohibit him from running.

Sampler also pointed out an irony in the electoral system, in which many states bar convicted felons from voting. According to the Sentencing Project advocacy group, 48 states have laws that ban people with felony convictions from voting.

“It is a sad day for a country that ostensibly values democratic participation and equality, that individuals who’ve been convicted of a felony can be prohibited from participating even as voters in our democracy, but a president convicted of a felony is still allowed,” he said.

Jessica Levinson, a professor of election law at Loyola Law School, agreed.

“You could conceivably have a situation where the president of the United States is not disqualified from being president … but can’t vote for himself,” Levinson told ABC News.

“The interesting thing about the qualifications like you have to be born here, you have to live here for a certain amount of time … all of that is kind of getting at the idea that we want you to be loyal to our country,” Levinson said. “But you could conceivably be convicted of crimes against our country, and still be able to serve as president.”

Jamaal Bowman says Congress is ‘broken’ after spat with Thomas Massie over Nashville shooting

March 30, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — Rep. Jamaal Bowman expanded Thursday on his prior outburst against Rep. Thomas Massie over gun violence, arguing more Americans “should be yelling and screaming” following the mass shooting in Nashville.

Bowman, who was a middle school principal prior to his election to Congress in 2020, argued the “broken” institution of Congress has failed to provide a remedy for the “sick society” that allows gun violence to occur regularly.

“We’re a sick society,” Bowman told reporters outside the Capitol. “We’re the only developed nation where this happens, and we’re sick because this institution (Congress) has been broken for so long.”

“The whole country should be yelling and screaming and marching on these steps to make sure we pass legislation to do something about gun trafficking, assault rifles, and to bring some commonsense gun control,” he added.

The New York Democrat was nearly as passionate as he was a day earlier when he first shouted at reporters to pressure Republicans to take action on gun reform. He said he believes Congress might address gun violence if the media pushed lawmakers “to do more.”

“Push us to do more,” he said. “The media is very important in the conversation.”

Addressing more directly what transpired with Massie, Bowman said Thursday that gun violence is personal to him as a former educator.

“I stood in my cafeteria every day at the door just in case someone came in to shoot up my school,” Bowman said.

Massie on Thursday tweeted a screenshot of a text message purportedly from an elementary school teacher voicing support to the Kentucky congressman for arming educators with guns.

“Sometimes I hear: ‘Teachers and administrators don’t want to carry, and they aren’t qualified.’ The reality is it only takes a few individuals like this person (who just texted me) to keep our kids safe, primarily as a deterrent to the psychopaths who choose unprotected targets,” he tweeted.

Bowman said he received calls from Texas, Kentucky and Florida after the video of him sounding off outside the House floor made waves on social media.

Asked whether he’s spoken with Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland, who was tapping Bowman on his back during the incident with Massie in an attempt to de-escalate the situation, Bowman said he didn’t realize Hoyer was trying to get his attention.

“The thing I love about Dem leadership [is that] they allow me to be me,” he said.

As members of Congress exited the House floor on Wednesday, Bowman began screaming about the need for legislative solutions. While most lawmakers shuffled past, Massie stopped and engaged.

“What are you talking about?” he asked.

“I’m talking about gun violence,” Bowman responded.

“You know there’s never been a school shooting in a school that allows teachers to carry,” Massie tried to argue.

“Carry guns! You think– More guns lead to more death!” Bowman retorted.

Massie repeatedly asked Bowman to calm down, to which the Democrat replied, “Calm down? Children are dying! Nine-year-old children!” and “I was screaming before you came and interrupted me.”

Gun reforms are expected to face an uphill battle in the Senate. The current makeup of the upper chamber means 10 Republicans would likely need to join all Democrats to overcome the 60-vote threshold to break a filibuster of the legislation.

Calls to abolish the filibuster to shepherd contentious bills through a polarized Congress have gained the support of many Democrats — including Bowman.

“Are we going to abolish the filibuster to pass gun reform?” Bowman asked. “We should.”

On Thursday afternoon, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy dodged reporters’ questions about what information Republicans need to gather on the Nashville shooting before deciding whether to consider new gun safety legislation.

Trump becomes 1st current or former president to be indicted: Sources

March 30, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — A Manhattan grand jury has indicted former President Donald Trump, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the matter, making him the first current or former president to be indicted.

It’s not immediately clear what the indictment was connected to, or what charges Trump will face. The indictment is under seal.

Trump has been under investigation by the Manhattan district attorney’s office, which has been probing the $130,000 hush money payment made to Stormy Daniels, the adult film actress who has alleged she had an affair with Trump, which he has long denied.

Michael Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer who wrote the check to Daniels in the closing days of the 2016 campaign, went to prison in part over the payment, which federal prosecutors believed amounted to an illicit campaign donation, according to court records.

Prosecutors believe Trump falsified business records because, according to documents associated with Cohen’s federal case, Trump allegedly logged the monthly reimbursement payments he made to Cohen as routine legal expenses.

“This is all about accountability,” Cohen told reporters when he arrived to testify before a Manhattan grand jury earlier this month. Of Trump, he said, “He needs to be held accountable for his dirty deeds.”

Trump has long insisted he did “absolutely nothing wrong” and has called the investigation part of a witch hunt by a Democratic prosecutor. An attorney for Trump has said the payment was not meant to protect the campaign, but to protect Trump’s family.

“He made this with personal funds to prevent something coming out, false, but embarrassing to himself, his family, his young son,” defense attorney Joe Tacopina told George Stephanopoulos two weeks ago on ABC’s Good Morning America.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg last year won a tax fraud conviction against Trump’s namesake company, and its former finance chief, Allen Weisselberg, pleaded guilty to tax evasion — but until now Trump himself had never faced an indictment.

Rand Paul, AOC on the same side when it comes to TikTok ban

March 30, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — An unusual cross-section of lawmakers has emerged against a TikTok ban, with usual ideological foes employing similar language to denounce what they say would be censorship.

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., is the latest to voice opposition to a total prohibition of the popular social media app — joining the ranks of progressive “Squad” members such as Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Jamaal Bowman and others.

Paul effectively shut down an attempt Wednesday from his Republican colleague Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., to get unanimous consent to ban the Chinese-owned app.

“If you don’t like TikTok or Facebook or YouTube, don’t use them,” Paul said in a 12-minute floor speech. “But don’t think that any interpretation of the Constitution gives you the right to ban them.”

Paul argued a ban would amount to violations of the First Amendment, adding, “The Constitution actually prohibits bills of attainder. You’re not allowed to have a specific bill against a person or a company.”

“So this fails on two egregious points,” he said, cautioning people should “beware of those who peddle fear.”

Hawley argued Paul was advocating for a “right to espionage.”

“I have never before heard on this floor a defense of the right to spy. I didn’t realize that the First Amendment contained a right to espionage,” the Missouri Republican shot back.

TikTok has faced growing bipartisan scrutiny from government officials, with the animosity coming to a head last week in a testy hearing between CEO Shou Zi Chew and House members.

Lawmakers and Biden administration officials have questioned who has access to data stored on the app, with some describing the platform as a threat to national security due to its parent company’s ties to the Chinese Communist Party.

“Every accusation of data gathering that’s been attributed to TikTok could also be attributed to domestic Big Tech companies,” Paul said.

Ocasio-Cortez, Bowman and a handful of other progressives have also argued that a ban on TikTok raises free speech issues and wouldn’t solve the broader problem of data gathering on various Big Tech platforms. Bowman similarly invoked First Amendment concerns when voicing his opposition to a ban.

“The First Amendment gives us the right to speak freely and to communicate freely and TikTok as a platform has created a community and a space for free speech for 150 million Americans and counting,” he said last week.

Ocasio-Cortez offered her defense of the company in her first-ever TikTok video last week. She told viewers a ban “doesn’t really address the core of the issue, which is the fact that major social media companies are allowed to collect troves of deeply personal data about you that you don’t know about without really any significant regulation whatsoever.”

The New York Democrat also noted the United States has never banned a social media app and that Congress hasn’t received a classified briefing — as is normally the case — regarding national security concerns.

There are several attempts to ban the app working their way through Congress, including the DATA Act from House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, and the RESTRICT Act from Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner, D-Va.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said he expects the House will move forward with legislation to address TikTok but didn’t detail when such action would take place.

Why semi-automatic rifles like those used in the Nashville shooting can cause so much damage

March 30, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — The recent mass shooting at Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee, that left six people dead — including three children — was carried out, at least in part, with semi-automatic rifles.

According to Nashville police, the shooter walked into the private Christian elementary school Monday armed with a handgun, but also an AR-15-style rifle and a semi-automatic pistol-caliber carbine.

While handguns have the potential to seriously harm people, sometimes fatally, semi-automatic rifles can cause even more damage.

“Disturbingly, in mass shootings, the AR-15 or the AR-15-style rifle seems to be the weapon of choice,” Dr. Cornelia Griggs, a pediatric and critical care surgeon at Massachusetts General Hospital, told ABC News. “That’s not to say that there aren’t other rifles that can cause quite a lot of damage in the human body, but this type of injury is devastating and unique to many military-grade weapons.”

Trauma specialists explained what the injuries look like, how they’re treated and why they can be even more devastating for a child than an adult.

Wounds from handguns vs. semi-automatic rifles

Traditionally, bullets fired by a handgun will cause clear entrance and exit wounds — both of fairly the same size — and will often travel in a straight line into and out of the body.

“A conventional handgun will typically create a relatively small, round wound that sort of conforms to the size of the bullet,” Dr. Michael Shapiro, chief of trauma and critical care surgery at Northwestern Medicine in Illinois, told ABC News. “If it passes through the patient, the exit wound is typically a little bit larger with the skin edges everted a little bit.”

He continued, “As a rule, if you can line up the holes, you’re likely to see a sort of picture of what organs are in between those two wounds and it gives you a pretty good sense of what you need to be concerned about.”

However, the same can’t be said for a wound from a semi-automatic rifle.

Bullets from these firearms do not create the same size entrance and exit wounds, and often one can be much bigger than the other.

“The degree of tissue destruction will be considerably greater, so rather than a bullet simply passing through an organ, it may inflict a more destructive wound to the organ itself,” Shapiro said. “So, you may, instead of seeing a small wound through the stomach, for example, you may see much larger wounds and that’s typically consistent with both with the skin wounds as well.”

“You may see a relatively small entrance wound and a very large, destructive, blown out skin wound on exit,” he added.

Sometimes bullets from AR-15s and AR-15-style weapons can yaw, or tumble, before they hit a person, meaning there is not a linear path through the body.

“Instead of just being sort of point on straight through, there’s more erratic passage of the bullet through the victim so the extent of tissue damage is greater,” Shapiro explained.

What’s more, assault weapons can cause a process called cavitation to occur, meaning it creates a large cavity in the body, destroying tissues and organs.

High-velocity bullets

The size of the bullet doesn’t have much do with the damage a firearm can cause compared to the velocity at which a bullet exits.

This is mostly measured in the form of muzzle energy, or the kinetic energy of a bullet as it is expelled from a firearm’s muzzle.

For example, a 9-millimeter handgun — which the shooter carried into the school — has a muzzle energy of between 300 and 400 foot-pounds of force.

By comparison, an AR-15-style weapon has a muzzle energy of nearly 1,300 foot-pounds of force, meaning a high level of energy resulting in a greater impact.

“The difference with high velocity bullets and military-grade weapons…is the damage they inflict on the human body and our internal organs are much more gruesome and tend to have what is known as a blast effect, because that bullet is carrying so much energy with it as it enters the human body,” Griggs said. “Instead of, for example, if the bullet traveled through the lung, instead of a hole in the lung, we’re looking at an exploded lung.”

Griggs explained that the same holds true if a bullet hits a human bone. A bullet from a handgun that hits a bone might fracture the bone, but a bullet from a semi-automatic rifle might shatter the bone due to the high velocity.

Impact on a child

The doctors told ABC News that while assault-style weapons can injure any human, children will be much more impacted because of their smaller bodies.

Because bullets from these weapons are traveling at a high velocity, they can destroy a significant portion of tissue and are more likely to hit major organs.

“Children, their organs are a lot more compact, and they have a lot less fat surrounding their vital organs,” Griggs said. “And so, you can imagine that a bullet that is causing a blast effect inside their body, inside their abdomen or their torso or their chest, it’s not just going to explode, or tear apart, their lung, but also their heart. Not just going to completely shatter their liver, but also their spleen, causing catastrophic fatal bleeding.”

Griggs said this has been seen in the multiple mass shootings that have occurred in schools across the U.S. including Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, in 2012 and Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, last year.

“When we see a child who has been shot with an AR-15-style rifle, there is often very little hope — depending on where the bullet has hit them in their body — that we can save their life even if they make it to the hospital,” she said. “And devastatingly, the children who were shot in Nashville were dead on arrival to the hospital. There’s nothing that trauma surgery team could do and that is very classic of what we have come to see as the norm.”

Treating a wound from a semi-automatic rifle

The initial triage process of treating victims of handgun wounds and semi-automatic rifle wounds is the same, including making sure breathing, blood pressure and circulation are stable and assessing if there are spinal injuries or other internal injuries.

However, those injured by high velocity weapons, such as AR-15-style rifles, are more likely to have serious injuries.

“We’ve learned that, while shooters often don’t shoot well, the semi-automatic weapons increase the likelihood that someone will be shot multiple times,” Shapiro said. “So, it can be a little bit more confounding to understand the connection of all of the different holes.”

He continued. “We’ll see people who come in not with one hole or two holes but with six, eight, 10 holes and trying to sort of piece that out to figure out what organ systems might be injured based on the trajectory, just trying to determine what that trajectory is can be significantly more complicated.”

Multiple wounds often mean identifying which injuries are the most severe and need to be treated first, but unfortunately not all patients can be saved.

“In general, I would expect the prognosis for someone who’s been shot with a military-grade weapon to be much worse, the likelihood of getting them out of the trauma bay to the operating room to survive the hospital stay, I would be much less optimistic,” Griggs said.

Biden officials condemn ‘in strongest possible terms’ Russian detention of US journalist

March 30, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — Russia’s detention of an American journalist is sparking sharp condemnation from the Biden administration and Capitol Hill.

Evan Gershkovich from The Wall Street Journal was detained in Ekaterinburg, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said Thursday. The intelligence agency has accused Gershkovich of spying and collecting “state secrets.” The Kremlin took a sharper tone, saying Gershkovich was caught “red-handed.”

Gershkovich has pleaded not guilty.

The American faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted. His case is marked “top secret.”

“In the strongest possible terms, we condemn the Kremlin’s continued attempts to intimidate, repress, and punish journalists and civil society voices,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.

The White House said Thursday it was in contact with the Wall Street Journal and Gershkovich’s family, and that the State Department has been in touch with the Russian government and is working to secure consular access to Gershkovich.

“The targeting of American citizens by the Russian government is unacceptable,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.

Both Blinken and Jean-Pierre reiterated guidance that Americans not travel to Russia.

President Joe Biden has been briefed on the situation, White House spokesperson John Kirby said.

Gershkovich covers Russia and Ukraine for the WSJ. The newspaper “vehemently denies” the spying allegations brought against their reporter and is seeking his immediate release.

The U.S. has previously negotiated to secure the release of wrongfully detained Americans abroad. Last year, WNBA star Britney Griner was released in a prisoner exchange with Russia following a monthslong saga after her detention on drug charges.

But Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov downplayed any suggestion of an exchange, saying it’s too early for such talks.

“I wouldn’t raise a question on this now, because you yourself understand that some exchanges that took place in the past took place for people who were already serving sentences,” Ryabkov told reporters.

Gershkovich’s arrest comes amid the worsening relationship between Russia and the United States.

Asked if there were any indication that this was retaliation by Russia, Kirby said he couldn’t say as an investigation is ongoing.

“We do not know right now,” he said. “We are still trying to gain as much information and context as we can. It’s early hours, so I can assure you we’re all working as hard as we can, but we don’t know any more than what I’ve been able to share with you in my opening statements.”

When asked Thursday if he was concerned the reporter’s detention was an escalation on Russia’s part, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said yes.

“Putin plays all these little games with bluffing and brinkmanship and this is another,” Schumer said in a press conference. “To have an innocent journalist held hostage for that is really despicable. I am urging the administration to do everything they can to get him free.”

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, R-Md., responded to Gershkovich’s detention by stating a free press is “absolutely essential.”

“The Russian people need to know the truth, which is why they want to arrest reporters who tell people — they would not be for this carnage that Putin and his dictatorship has affected and the tragedy and war crimes that are being committed,” Hoyer told reporters.

ABC News’ Patrick Reevell, Joseph Simonetti and Molly Nagle contributed to this report.

Seattle law grants most gig workers paid sick leave

March 30, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(SEATTLE) — Seattle will provide paid sick and safe leave for most gig workers under a new law, becoming the first U.S. city to guarantee such benefits on a permanent basis for app-based employees.

Workers who perform tasks for companies like Instacart, Postmates and DoorDash will accrue a day of paid sick leave for every 30 days they do work in Seattle. While on leave, workers will receive pay based on their average daily compensation.

The law permanently enshrines a temporary measure that mandated paid sick and safe leave for some food delivery workers in Seattle during the pandemic, when many customers stuck at home came to depend on delivery services. That measure was set to expire on May 1.

“A healthy workforce leads to a healthy community, and no one should have to choose between taking a sick day to care for themselves — or their families — and making rent,” Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell said in a statement.

“Gig workers stepped up to serve our city during the pandemic and are an essential part of our workforce and economy, and this important legislation ensures the rights of our app-based workers remain protected,” Harrell added.

The new law expands the type of workers covered from food delivery employees to those working for a slew of apps covering a range of “on-demand” tasks. Gig workers who set their own pay will not be covered.

App-based drivers for Uber and Lyft are already guaranteed paid sick days under state law, according to a press release from the mayor’s office.

Workers protected by the law will be allowed to take time off to care for their own health or that of a loved one, go to a doctor’s appointment or pick up a child in the event of a school closure, among other activities, the mayor’s office said.

The legislation marks the latest advance for gig workers as some city, state and federal officials push for some app-based workers to either be classified as employees or receive benefits akin to those that companies must offer part-time or full-time staff.

In a statement, Instacart said it is open to collaboration with lawmakers on enhanced worker protections but that the new law could lead to higher prices for its customers.

“Instacart is committed to providing shoppers what they need to earn on their terms, and we continue to make shopper health and safety a top priority,” the company said. “Instacart is willing to work with any policymaker that prioritizes the health and safety of shoppers who choose to earn income through our platform.”

“However, at a time of high inflation and tightening household budgets, it is critical that policymakers also take into account the rising financial burden their misguided policy proposals could have on their constituents,” the company added.

In 2022, the Biden administration proposed a rule change that would make it easier for gig workers to be classified as employees, giving them access to minimum wage protections and other benefits.

Meanwhile, over the past five years, legislators in nine states have proposed laws that would guarantee portable benefits for gig workers that would travel with them from one app-based company to the next, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

At the outset of 2020, California implemented a measure called Assembly Bill 5, which eased the standards used for classifying gig workers as full-time employees, affecting at least one million workers.

Months later, a state referendum approved by California voters excluded Uber and Lyft workers from the new standards, returning them to the category of independent contractors.

In Seattle, gig worker advocates celebrated the new legislation guaranteeing paid sick and safe days.

“The gig economy is booming thanks to workers,” Danielle Alvarado, the executive director of the nonprofit Working Washington, said in a statement.

“We are proud that Seattle has recognized the importance of making sure gig workers can stay home when they are sick or need to take care of a loved one,” Alvarado added. “When gig workers are protected, we all are.”

DeSantis to visit gun store on book tour, days after Nashville shooting; Dems call it ‘beyond the pale’

March 30, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(ATLANTA) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will travel to Cobb County, Georgia, on Thursday to visit a popular gun store as part of his ongoing book tour ahead of what is expected to be a presidential campaign announcement this summer.

The previously scheduled trip happens to come days after a shooter killed six people at a private school in Nashville, Tennessee, which Georgia Democrats noted in criticizing DeSantis, who is seen as a rising Republican star after easily winning reelection in November.

The governor is continuing a tour pegged to his new memoir and promoting what he calls Florida’s “blueprint” for the rest of the country, believing it can serve as a model for governing and politics nationwide.

The gun store in suburban Atlanta, Adventure Outdoors, has been a campaign stop for other Republicans, including Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and Herschel Walker, who unsuccessfully sought to unseat Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock last year.

Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and three other local lawmakers went to Adventure Outdoors earlier this week to criticize what the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives reportedly called a routine, random inspection. Greene claimed it was “unusual and unnecessary.”

Democrats in Georgia have called out DeSantis for holding an event at the gun store in the wake of the Nashville shooting and have said he should cancel the event.

“Holding a campaign event at a gun store days after another horrific school shooting where innocent children were murdered should be beyond the pale, but Ron DeSantis seems to not care,” Rep. Nikema Williams, the Democrats’ state chair, said in a statement on Tuesday. “DeSantis is showing Georgians exactly where his priorities lie as he advocates for an extreme MAGA agenda that could make it easier for criminals to carry guns in Florida and puts the gun lobby ahead of our children’s lives. DeSantis should cancel this event immediately.”

A spokesperson for DeSantis did not immediately respond to a request for comment on his visit.

He has called the Nashville shooting “senseless” and directed flags flown at half-staff in Florida in light of President Joe Biden’s declaration ordering the same.

DeSantis’ stop in Georgia adds to the list of his appearances in battleground and early nominating states ahead of his widely expected announcement that he’ll run for president in 2024.

In April, he’s scheduled to go to Michigan, Pennsylvania and Ohio.

After his trip to Georgia, DeSantis was initially set to travel to Franklin, Tennessee, on Monday, where he would meet with Gov. Bill Lee. However, that event has now been postponed, according to Eventbrite, where it was being advertised.

In Florida, lawmakers are taking up new gun-related legislation: Republicans are working to pass a law allowing people to carry a concealed weapon without a permit with exceptions such as on school property.

The final vote on the bill is set to happen as early as Thursday and will almost certainly pass, given Republicans have a supermajority in the state Legislature. The proposal would then head to DeSantis’ desk.

It would make Florida the 26th state in the country with a permitless carry law.

Indictments obtained in drugging deaths of two men in New York City: Sources

March 30, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Prosecutors have obtained indictments in the case of two men who took tainted drugs at gay night clubs in New York City and then were assaulted, multiple sources familiar with the case told ABC News.

Last year’s deaths of John Umberger and Julio Ramirez were deemed homicides earlier this month and prosecutors obtained indictments last week from a grand jury last week for six people believed to be connected to the cases, sources said.

Police are now looking for the men allegedly involved in the deaths, with plans to charge at least two of them with second degree murder. Other charges would include robbery, identity theft, grand larceny and conspiracy, according to ABC News’ sources.

The Manhattan District Attorney’s office declined to comment. Indictments will remain sealed until the defendants are arrested and appear in court.

At least 43 incidents of drugging have been linked to robberies in and around Manhattan clubs dating back to September 2021. Seven of the drugging incidents resulted in fatal overdoses, including the cases of Umberger and Ramirez. Although the patterns first gained public attention after the April and June deaths connected to gay bars in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood, the patterns involve a mix of both straight and gay bars, and of both heterosexual and LGBTQ people.

Multiple suspects are still being sought in the two patterns of drugging that officials have established, which appear to be unrelated.

The patterns involve loosely knit robbery crews and no one person is believed involved in all incidents, according to police sources.

Police linked 17 drug-aided robberies between Sept. 19, 2021 and Aug. 28, 2022 to the method used against Umberger and Ramirez. In those cases, drunk victims were offered tainted narcotics or marijuana at a bar. Once the drugs took effect, they were robbed of their cellphones and large amounts of money were transferred from the victims’ bank accounts.

Another 26 robberies between March 18, 2022 and Dec. 8, 2022 are linked to a similar but separate pattern, sources say. This pattern involves a more violent method, with suspects offering tainted drugs to victims in clubs before stealing money, jewelry and cellphones for money transfers.

Some of the robberies in that pattern have been perpetrated through brute force outside or near clubs for jewelry and cash.

Ramirez, 25, was found dead in the back of a taxi and his bank accounts were drained after a night out at Ritz Bar and Lounge in April 2022.

Umberger, 33, was found dead inside an apartment where he had been staying after arriving in New York for business in June 2022.

The 2022 deaths of the two men were ruled homicides after they were given drugs tainted with fentanyl.

Officials are also looking for the perpetrators behind the death of fashion designer Kathryn Marie Gallagher, who was discovered dead in her Lower East Side home last July. Her death was ruled a homicide last week and is connected to one of the drugging patterns seen by authorities.

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner on Friday ruled her death a homicide from the combined effects of fentanyl, p-fluorofentanyl and ethanol.

Two other fatal drugging victims include 29-year old-Nurbu Shera, who was found in front of an East Village building in March 2022, and 26-year-old Ardijan Berisha, who was found in front of a Lower East Side building in July 2022.

Amid shortage of generic Adderall, frustration builds as demand increases

March 30, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Months after the Food and Drug Administration first indicated that there was a shortage of ADHD drugs, suppliers are warning that those shortfalls could continue throughout the year — a source of frustration amid increased demand and diagnoses.

Amphetamine mixed salts, commonly referred to by the brand name Adderall, is a stimulant medication that can treat ADHD. It requires a prescription and as a controlled substance, supply is strictly monitored, and distribution is limited.

According to the FDA, Adderall is no longer in shortage, but generic versions are still impacted.

The FDA told ABC News that the shortage started with a delay from a manufacturer, which has since resolved, and is now demand-driven.

A CDC report released Thursday estimates that prescription fills for stimulant drugs — which are primarily used to treat ADHD — grew by more than 11% among adults ages 25-44 during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Notable increases were also seen for adolescent females, as prescriptions increased more than 8% for those ages 10-14, and over 15% for those ages 15-19.

Suppliers are echoing demand issues, with Sandoz Pharmaceuticals, a division of Novartis, telling ABC News they expect the product to remain in tight supply for the entirety of 2023.

“At this time we are meeting current customer orders but have not been able to fill increased demand due to the initial quota in 2023 given to us by the DEA… We submitted our requests to the DEA for an increase in volume in 2023, but have not been granted our full request,” Leslie Pott, vice president of corporate affairs at Sandoz told ABC News.

Each year, the DEA sets a limit for the amount of active ingredient in controlled substances that can be produced by manufacturers.

Teva, the largest manufacturer of generic and brand name Adderall in the U.S, told ABC News that while the company is not currently experiencing manufacturing issues or shortages, “they are still seeing unprecedented demand which may cause intermittent delays for some pharmacies or patients.”

Alvogen and Teva have reported to the FDA that demand increases are behind the shortages, while Epic Pharma and US Pharma Windlas (a new manufacturer) have reported a shortage of the active ingredient.

Aurobindo Pharma and SpecGX are predicting supply issues through April 2023, according to the shortage database.

Dr. Anish Dube, chair of the American Psychiatric Association’s Council on Children, Adolescents and their Families told ABC News that there may be an increase in diagnoses due to increased awareness.

“I think there’s been a lot more awareness and knowledge and folks are getting assessed more frequently for ADHD and this could be a cause for increased diagnosis and treatment,” says Dube.

While people of all ages are affected by the shortage, school-age children and families are especially feeling the constraints.

Millions of US children rely on the medication. The latest estimates suggest that roughly 10% of US children ages 3-17 have been diagnosed with ADHD, according to the Center for Disease Control and Protection, and these numbers may have increased since 2019.

“Especially for children who are in school, or that are still doing any kind of virtual options, having to be in front of the screen for extended stretches of time, it can be particularly challenging for them to be sitting still or to be stationary for extended periods,” says Dube.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends medication, in combination with parent training in behavior management and behavioral classroom interventions for those in a classroom setting for children and adolescents ages 6-18 with an ADHD diagnosis.

Parents who are struggling to obtain their child’s medication and feel they’ve exhausted all options, should call their pharmacist or doctor to discuss a plan.

“It’s important that parents have a contingency plan with their prescribing physician… At least temporarily, you might be looking at other treatment options to help the young person to manage those symptoms,” says Dube.

The FDA says they recognize the potential impact that increased demand of certain products may have on health care providers and patients, and are working to alleviate constraints.

“The FDA is working closely with numerous manufacturers, agencies, and others in the supply chain to understand, mitigate and prevent or reduce the impact of intermittent or increased demand of certain products,” an agency spokesperson told ABC News.

+ More