Rhode Island
Judge rules that gun permit system does not violate 2nd Amendment
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — A federal judge says Rhode Island’s gun permit system, which requires residents to show “a need” to openly carry a firearm throughout the state, does not violate the Second Amendment.
In a ruling handed down Friday, U.S. District Judge William Smith granted Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha’s motion for summary judgment that dismisses a lawsuit filed by a coalition of gun owners in 2023.
The lawsuit stems from a Rhode Island law dictating how the state issues firearms permits.
According to the statute, local officials are required to issue concealed-carry permits to anyone who meets the specific criteria outlined in the statute. However, it also allows the attorney general’s office to issue open-carry permits “upon a proper showing of need.” Unlike municipalities, the attorney general is not required to issue such permits.
The plaintiffs, largely led by Michael O’Neil, a lobbyist for the Rhode Island 2nd Amendment Coalition and a firearm instructor, said in their initial complaint that the attorney general’s office denied all seven of their applications in 2021 for an “unrestricted” firearm permit, allowing both open and concealed carry. Court documents show that the attorney general’s office denied their permits because all of them had been granted “restricted” permits, which only allowed concealed carry.
Smith said in his ruling that unrestricted permits “are a privilege and there is no constitutionally protected liberty interest in obtaining one.”
The plaintiffs had hoped for a similar ruling handed down by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022, where the justices struck down a New York state law that had restricted who could obtain a permit to carry a gun in public.
Similar to Rhode Island, New York’s law had required residents to show an actual need to carry a concealed handgun in public for self-defense.
Yet, notably, Smith said in his ruling that the high court’s 2022 ruling did not declare that the Second Amendment “requires open carry,” but even if it did, Rhode Island’s law “is within the Nation’s historical tradition of regulation.”
Frank Saccoccio, the attorney representing the gun owners, said in an email Monday that they did not believe Smith’s decision was in line with the 2022 SCOTUS decision and would be appealing.
Timothy Rondeau, a spokesperson for the attorney general’s office, said the decision reaffirmed “the constitutionality of Rhode Island’s permitting system for the public carry of handguns.”
Maryland
Owners of cargo ship that crashed into bridge sue company that built vessel
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — The owners of the cargo ship that crashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge are suing the company that built the vessel, alleging negligence in the design of a critical switchboard on the ship.
Grace Ocean Private and Synergy Marine PTE Ltd, the owners of the Dali, filed the lawsuit last week against Hyundai Heavy Industries in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
“As a result of the defectively designed Switchboard, the Vessel suffered a power outage that led to the allision with the Key Bridge,” Grace Ocean Private alleges in the lawsuit.
Grace Ocean Private contends the switchboard was defectively designed in a manner that wiring connections were not secure. The defect, the company alleges, “caused the switchboard and the vessel to be unreasonably dangerous ... when it left HHI’s control.”
“HHI’s defective manufacture of the Switchboard and Vessel caused the signal wiring to come loose in normal operation, resulting in the power outage that led to the allision,” the lawsuit says.
The Dali was leaving Baltimore bound for Sri Lanka on March 26 last year when its steering failed due to the power loss. It crashed into one of the bridge’s supporting columns, destroying the 1.6-mile span and killing six members of a roadwork crew. Baltimore’s port was closed for months, and increased traffic congestion remains a problem across the region.
The Justice Department last year filed a lawsuit seeking to recover more than $100 million that the government spent to clear the underwater debris and reopen the city’s port. The owner and manager of the cargo ship agreed to pay more than $102 million in cleanup costs to settle the lawsuit brought by the government.
In that lawsuit, the Justice Department alleged the owner and manager of the cargo ship recklessly cut corners and ignored known electrical problems on the vessel. In particular, the Justice Department accused the ship owner of failing to address “excessive vibrations” that were causing electrical problems.
The National Transportation Safety Board said in its preliminary report last year that the Dali experienced electrical blackouts about 10 hours before leaving the Port of Baltimore, and yet again shortly before it slammed into the bridge.
Last week, Maryland officials visited the site where demolition crews are using giant saws, backhoes and other heavy equipment to remove large sections of the remaining pieces of the bridge. Its replacement is expected to open in 2028.
New York
Judge says Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs must stay in jail until sentencing
NEW YORK (AP) — Sean “Diddy” Combs can’t go home from jail to await sentencing on his prostitution-related conviction, a judge said Monday, denying the rap and style mogul’s latest bid for bail.
Combs has been behind bars since his September arrest. He faced federal charges of coercing girlfriends into having drug-fueled sex marathons with male sex workers while he watched and filmed them.
He was acquitted last month of the top charges — racketeering and sex trafficking — while being convicted of two counts of a prostitution-related offense.
In denying Combs’ $50 million bond proposal, Judge Arun Subramanian said the hip hop impresario hadn’t proven that he did not pose a flight risk or danger, nor shown an “exceptional circumstance” that would justify his release after a conviction that otherwise requires detention.
Combs’ arguments “might have traction in a case that didn’t involve evidence of violence, coercion or subjugation in connection with the acts of prostitution at issue, but the record here contains evidence of all three,” the judge wrote.
Prosecutors declined to comment on the ruling. Messages seeking comment were sent to Combs’ lawyers.
The conviction carries the potential for up to 10 years in prison. But there are complicated federal guidelines for calculating sentences in any given case, and prosecutors and Combs’ lawyers disagree substantially on how the guidelines come out for his case.
The guidelines aren’t mandatory, and Subramanian will have wide latitude in deciding Combs’ punishment.
The Bad Boy Records founder, now 55, was for decades a protean figure in pop culture. A Grammy-winning hip hop artist and entrepreneur with a flair for finding and launching big talents, he presided over a business empire that ranged from fashion to reality TV.
Prosecutors claimed he used his fame, wealth and violence to force and manipulate two now-ex-girlfriends into days-long, drugged-up sexual performances he called “freak-offs” or “hotel nights.”
During the trial, four women testified that Combs had beaten or sexually assaulted them. Jurors also watched video of Combs hurling one of his former girlfriends, R&B singer Cassie, to the floor, repeatedly kicking her and then and dragging her down a hotel hallway.
His lawyers argued that the government tried to criminalize consensual, if unconventional, sexual tastes that played out in complicated relationships. The defense acknowledged that Combs had violent outbursts but said nothing he did came amounted to the crimes with which he was charged.
Since the verdict, his lawyers have repeatedly renewed their efforts to get him out on bail until his sentencing, set for October. They have argued that the acquittals undercut the rationale for holding him, and they have pointed to other people who were released before sentencing on similar convictions.
Defense lawyer Marc Agnifilo suggested in a court filing that Combs was the United States’ “only person in jail for hiring adult male escorts for him and his girlfriend.”
Agnifilo also raised concerns about squalor and danger at the Metropolitan Detention Center, the notorious federal lockup where Combs is being held. The judge wrote Monday that those conditions were a “serious” consideration, but he said Combs hadn’t shown that unique circumstances –- such as advanced age or medical issues –- would warrant his release.
The defense’s most recent proposal included the $50 million bond, plus travel restrictions, and expressed openness to adding on house arrest at his Miami home, electronic monitoring, private security guards and other requirements.
Prosecutors opposed releasing Combs. They wrote that his “extensive history of violence — and his continued attempt to minimize his recent violent conduct — demonstrates his dangerousness.”
Georgia
Grand jury declines to indict former police officer in church deacon’s death
ATLANTA (AP) — A grand jury on Monday declined to indict an former Atlanta police officer on manslaughter charges in the death of a church deacon who died in a struggle with the officer following a minor car crash.
After hearing the case, Fulton County grand jurors rejected criminal charges against Kiran Kimbrough, said Jeff DiSantis, a spokesperson for Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.
Johnny Hollman Sr. died in August 2023 after he refused to sign a citation following a wreck. Family members said the 62-year-old Hollman was driving home from Bible study at his daughter’s house and taking dinner to his wife when he collided with another vehicle while turning across a busy street just west of downtown.
Body camera video of Hollman’s arrest shows Kimbrough repeatedly demanding that Hollman sign the citation, while Hollman insists he did nothing wrong. The two men tussled and Hollman ended up face down on the ground with Kimbrough over him, pressing him down. Holloman repeatedly says “I can’t breathe,” and Kimbrough uses a Taser to shock him repeatedly. The video also shows a tow truck driver helping Kimbrough.
Hollman became unresponsive and was declared dead at a hospital. An autopsy determined the death was a homicide, with heart disease also a contributing factor.
Lance LoRusso, who represents Kimbrough, said prosecutors sought to indict his client for one count of manslaughter, one count of simple battery and three counts of violating his oath of office. Kimbrough testified before the grand jury, as is an officer’s right under state law, LoRusso said.
“While Johnny Hollman’s death was tragic, in no way did Kiran Kimbrough cause the death,” LoRusso said in a statement Monday. “Johnny Hollman’s death was caused by medical complications and his felonious, unlawful resistance of a uniformed officer performing his lawful duties.”
DiSantis said Willis is conferring with prosecutors and investigators about whether to ask a new grand jury to indict Kimbrough.
Hollman’s family members have repeatedly called for the former officer to be criminally charged.
Atlanta officials fired Kimbrough, saying he should have agreed to Hollman’s request to speak to a supervisor. A civil service board upheld the firing, and the Atlanta City
Council agreed to settle a lawsuit by Hollman’s family alleging excessive force for $3.8 million. The family also sued the tow truck driver and his employer, saying the driver straddled Hollman’s head and neck for at least 20 seconds and appeared to “sit with his full body weight” on Hollman’s head and neck while Kimbrough handcuffed Hollman.
Atlanta and some other police departments have enacted policies saying that officers should no longer arrest people who refused to sign citations.
Judge rules that gun permit system does not violate 2nd Amendment
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — A federal judge says Rhode Island’s gun permit system, which requires residents to show “a need” to openly carry a firearm throughout the state, does not violate the Second Amendment.
In a ruling handed down Friday, U.S. District Judge William Smith granted Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha’s motion for summary judgment that dismisses a lawsuit filed by a coalition of gun owners in 2023.
The lawsuit stems from a Rhode Island law dictating how the state issues firearms permits.
According to the statute, local officials are required to issue concealed-carry permits to anyone who meets the specific criteria outlined in the statute. However, it also allows the attorney general’s office to issue open-carry permits “upon a proper showing of need.” Unlike municipalities, the attorney general is not required to issue such permits.
The plaintiffs, largely led by Michael O’Neil, a lobbyist for the Rhode Island 2nd Amendment Coalition and a firearm instructor, said in their initial complaint that the attorney general’s office denied all seven of their applications in 2021 for an “unrestricted” firearm permit, allowing both open and concealed carry. Court documents show that the attorney general’s office denied their permits because all of them had been granted “restricted” permits, which only allowed concealed carry.
Smith said in his ruling that unrestricted permits “are a privilege and there is no constitutionally protected liberty interest in obtaining one.”
The plaintiffs had hoped for a similar ruling handed down by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022, where the justices struck down a New York state law that had restricted who could obtain a permit to carry a gun in public.
Similar to Rhode Island, New York’s law had required residents to show an actual need to carry a concealed handgun in public for self-defense.
Yet, notably, Smith said in his ruling that the high court’s 2022 ruling did not declare that the Second Amendment “requires open carry,” but even if it did, Rhode Island’s law “is within the Nation’s historical tradition of regulation.”
Frank Saccoccio, the attorney representing the gun owners, said in an email Monday that they did not believe Smith’s decision was in line with the 2022 SCOTUS decision and would be appealing.
Timothy Rondeau, a spokesperson for the attorney general’s office, said the decision reaffirmed “the constitutionality of Rhode Island’s permitting system for the public carry of handguns.”
Maryland
Owners of cargo ship that crashed into bridge sue company that built vessel
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — The owners of the cargo ship that crashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge are suing the company that built the vessel, alleging negligence in the design of a critical switchboard on the ship.
Grace Ocean Private and Synergy Marine PTE Ltd, the owners of the Dali, filed the lawsuit last week against Hyundai Heavy Industries in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
“As a result of the defectively designed Switchboard, the Vessel suffered a power outage that led to the allision with the Key Bridge,” Grace Ocean Private alleges in the lawsuit.
Grace Ocean Private contends the switchboard was defectively designed in a manner that wiring connections were not secure. The defect, the company alleges, “caused the switchboard and the vessel to be unreasonably dangerous ... when it left HHI’s control.”
“HHI’s defective manufacture of the Switchboard and Vessel caused the signal wiring to come loose in normal operation, resulting in the power outage that led to the allision,” the lawsuit says.
The Dali was leaving Baltimore bound for Sri Lanka on March 26 last year when its steering failed due to the power loss. It crashed into one of the bridge’s supporting columns, destroying the 1.6-mile span and killing six members of a roadwork crew. Baltimore’s port was closed for months, and increased traffic congestion remains a problem across the region.
The Justice Department last year filed a lawsuit seeking to recover more than $100 million that the government spent to clear the underwater debris and reopen the city’s port. The owner and manager of the cargo ship agreed to pay more than $102 million in cleanup costs to settle the lawsuit brought by the government.
In that lawsuit, the Justice Department alleged the owner and manager of the cargo ship recklessly cut corners and ignored known electrical problems on the vessel. In particular, the Justice Department accused the ship owner of failing to address “excessive vibrations” that were causing electrical problems.
The National Transportation Safety Board said in its preliminary report last year that the Dali experienced electrical blackouts about 10 hours before leaving the Port of Baltimore, and yet again shortly before it slammed into the bridge.
Last week, Maryland officials visited the site where demolition crews are using giant saws, backhoes and other heavy equipment to remove large sections of the remaining pieces of the bridge. Its replacement is expected to open in 2028.
New York
Judge says Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs must stay in jail until sentencing
NEW YORK (AP) — Sean “Diddy” Combs can’t go home from jail to await sentencing on his prostitution-related conviction, a judge said Monday, denying the rap and style mogul’s latest bid for bail.
Combs has been behind bars since his September arrest. He faced federal charges of coercing girlfriends into having drug-fueled sex marathons with male sex workers while he watched and filmed them.
He was acquitted last month of the top charges — racketeering and sex trafficking — while being convicted of two counts of a prostitution-related offense.
In denying Combs’ $50 million bond proposal, Judge Arun Subramanian said the hip hop impresario hadn’t proven that he did not pose a flight risk or danger, nor shown an “exceptional circumstance” that would justify his release after a conviction that otherwise requires detention.
Combs’ arguments “might have traction in a case that didn’t involve evidence of violence, coercion or subjugation in connection with the acts of prostitution at issue, but the record here contains evidence of all three,” the judge wrote.
Prosecutors declined to comment on the ruling. Messages seeking comment were sent to Combs’ lawyers.
The conviction carries the potential for up to 10 years in prison. But there are complicated federal guidelines for calculating sentences in any given case, and prosecutors and Combs’ lawyers disagree substantially on how the guidelines come out for his case.
The guidelines aren’t mandatory, and Subramanian will have wide latitude in deciding Combs’ punishment.
The Bad Boy Records founder, now 55, was for decades a protean figure in pop culture. A Grammy-winning hip hop artist and entrepreneur with a flair for finding and launching big talents, he presided over a business empire that ranged from fashion to reality TV.
Prosecutors claimed he used his fame, wealth and violence to force and manipulate two now-ex-girlfriends into days-long, drugged-up sexual performances he called “freak-offs” or “hotel nights.”
During the trial, four women testified that Combs had beaten or sexually assaulted them. Jurors also watched video of Combs hurling one of his former girlfriends, R&B singer Cassie, to the floor, repeatedly kicking her and then and dragging her down a hotel hallway.
His lawyers argued that the government tried to criminalize consensual, if unconventional, sexual tastes that played out in complicated relationships. The defense acknowledged that Combs had violent outbursts but said nothing he did came amounted to the crimes with which he was charged.
Since the verdict, his lawyers have repeatedly renewed their efforts to get him out on bail until his sentencing, set for October. They have argued that the acquittals undercut the rationale for holding him, and they have pointed to other people who were released before sentencing on similar convictions.
Defense lawyer Marc Agnifilo suggested in a court filing that Combs was the United States’ “only person in jail for hiring adult male escorts for him and his girlfriend.”
Agnifilo also raised concerns about squalor and danger at the Metropolitan Detention Center, the notorious federal lockup where Combs is being held. The judge wrote Monday that those conditions were a “serious” consideration, but he said Combs hadn’t shown that unique circumstances –- such as advanced age or medical issues –- would warrant his release.
The defense’s most recent proposal included the $50 million bond, plus travel restrictions, and expressed openness to adding on house arrest at his Miami home, electronic monitoring, private security guards and other requirements.
Prosecutors opposed releasing Combs. They wrote that his “extensive history of violence — and his continued attempt to minimize his recent violent conduct — demonstrates his dangerousness.”
Georgia
Grand jury declines to indict former police officer in church deacon’s death
ATLANTA (AP) — A grand jury on Monday declined to indict an former Atlanta police officer on manslaughter charges in the death of a church deacon who died in a struggle with the officer following a minor car crash.
After hearing the case, Fulton County grand jurors rejected criminal charges against Kiran Kimbrough, said Jeff DiSantis, a spokesperson for Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.
Johnny Hollman Sr. died in August 2023 after he refused to sign a citation following a wreck. Family members said the 62-year-old Hollman was driving home from Bible study at his daughter’s house and taking dinner to his wife when he collided with another vehicle while turning across a busy street just west of downtown.
Body camera video of Hollman’s arrest shows Kimbrough repeatedly demanding that Hollman sign the citation, while Hollman insists he did nothing wrong. The two men tussled and Hollman ended up face down on the ground with Kimbrough over him, pressing him down. Holloman repeatedly says “I can’t breathe,” and Kimbrough uses a Taser to shock him repeatedly. The video also shows a tow truck driver helping Kimbrough.
Hollman became unresponsive and was declared dead at a hospital. An autopsy determined the death was a homicide, with heart disease also a contributing factor.
Lance LoRusso, who represents Kimbrough, said prosecutors sought to indict his client for one count of manslaughter, one count of simple battery and three counts of violating his oath of office. Kimbrough testified before the grand jury, as is an officer’s right under state law, LoRusso said.
“While Johnny Hollman’s death was tragic, in no way did Kiran Kimbrough cause the death,” LoRusso said in a statement Monday. “Johnny Hollman’s death was caused by medical complications and his felonious, unlawful resistance of a uniformed officer performing his lawful duties.”
DiSantis said Willis is conferring with prosecutors and investigators about whether to ask a new grand jury to indict Kimbrough.
Hollman’s family members have repeatedly called for the former officer to be criminally charged.
Atlanta officials fired Kimbrough, saying he should have agreed to Hollman’s request to speak to a supervisor. A civil service board upheld the firing, and the Atlanta City
Council agreed to settle a lawsuit by Hollman’s family alleging excessive force for $3.8 million. The family also sued the tow truck driver and his employer, saying the driver straddled Hollman’s head and neck for at least 20 seconds and appeared to “sit with his full body weight” on Hollman’s head and neck while Kimbrough handcuffed Hollman.
Atlanta and some other police departments have enacted policies saying that officers should no longer arrest people who refused to sign citations.
