Byron Donalds Wants The Supreme Court To ‘Intervene’ In Trump’s Hush Money Guilty Verdict
Donalds attacked the justice system for supporting the attack of political leaders from opposite sides.
Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) celebrated Father’s Day by expressing his thoughts on wanting the Supreme Court to intervene in former President Donald Trump’s hush money guilty verdict.
Donalds sat in virtually for an episode of NBC’s “Meet the Press” to discuss the “weaponization of the justice system” and called for the high court to hear an accelerated appeal of Trump’s conviction. When interviewer Peter Alexander asked the conservative congressman if he would accept the verdict if it were overturned on appeal, Donalds argued the whole case had political purposes behind it. “This is being done for political purposes. Everybody knows how the court system works in New York,” he stated.
“The only ability for this to be overturned is going to happen two or three years from now; we all know this. That’s why what happened in lower Manhattan was to interfere with an election. Which is why Speaker Johnson, myself included, and many Americans believe the Supreme Court should step into this matter.”
On May 30, Trump was found guilty of 34 felony counts of falsifying business documents in correlation to covering up hush money payments illegally made to adult film star Stormy Daniels to hide an alleged affair before the 2016 election. He has appealed the conviction with the support of Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), who resonated with Donalds’ sentiments and called on the high court to step in.
Before pleading with the Supreme Court, Donalds attacked the justice system for supporting the attack of political leaders from opposite sides of the aisle. According to him, there’s a “gentleman’s agreement” that politicians shouldn’t do that. He went back to 2016 and pointed out that Trump never went after former New York Secretary of State Hilary Clinton. “We have always had this kind of gentleman’s agreement that you do not go after the political leaders of the opposition party,” Donalds said.
“When Donald Trump was president, he didn’t have his attorney generals go after Hillary Clinton. You have Jack Smith, who’s chasing down Donald Trump on violating the Espionage Act, but at the same time, Robert Hur knows that President Biden has violated the Espionage Act.”
The GOP potential vice presidential nominee is one of several conservative lawmakers who believe all levers of power should be used in efforts to overturn the former president’s conviction. According to Axios, some are pushing legislation that would allow the former president, if elected, to move his case from state to federal court. Other legislators proposed cutting federal funding for state and federal prosecutors who have cases against him.
In the meantime, Donalds continues to be one of the faces of Team Trump 2024. While in Detroit on June 15, Trump confirmed that the 45-year-old lawmaker is “very high” on his list of potential vice presidents. Donalds touched on that during the interview, saying he is prepared on day one to serve as commander-in-chief if need be. “I’m actually pretty intelligent. I can sift through issues really, really well,” he said.
“It’s about judgment. It’s about logic streams. It’s about how you make decisions at the end of the day.”
Georgia School Apologizes For Excluding Student With Disabilities At Graduation
The school district superintendent apologized to the student at a June board meeting.
Georgia school officials have apologized to a student with disabilities after excluding her from participating in her high school graduation.
Sprayberry High School in Marietta, Georgia, held its annual commencement ceremony on May 25. However, while many families saw their graduates cross the stage, one mother found out that her daughter would sit out.
Linda Ramirez found out at the ceremony that the special education students would not receive their diplomas with everyone. Instead, they would walk the stage and exit before the official graduation began.
“They call the special needs students one by one [to] walk across the stage and exit out a left hallway, to exit outside behind the building,” explained Ramirez, whose daughter Ashlynn Rose Rich graduated from the Individualized Education Program (IEP) to People. “And by the time they were done, they were just starting the general ed kids commencement ceremony as far as issuing diplomas. I was very upset…I’m like, ‘Why did we even come?’”
She added, “Everybody that had a special needs child got up to go collect their kids,” Ramirez continues. ”And during this, the commencement ceremony is in full; it’s happening. So, our kids missed it all. They didn’t get the turn of the tassel. They didn’t get to see the opening speeches, and they didn’t get that big walkout.”
Cobb County School District Superintendent Chris Ragsdale apologized to Ramirez and her daughter in response to the incident. He claimed that the decision was “well-intentioned” despite the outcome.
“While I cannot say more about the experience of the Rich family at the Sprayberry ceremony, I can say this,” explained Ragsdale at a board meeting on June 13. “First, on behalf of the district, I apologize to Ashlynn and her family. It does not matter how well-intentioned it appears a decision was made; it should have been a parental decision.”
Rich explained her thoughts on the experience to the board members. She shared that she felt “mistreated and discriminated against” for not being able to take part.
“I felt mistreated and discriminated against because I was not allowed to sit with my classmates. Many of my friends are regular students, and it made me sad that I couldn’t sit with them and experience graduation together.”
The school district also released a statement on the issue. It detailed that families of IEP students allegedly usually decide how to celebrate graduation.
“Some Cobb families choose a full graduation ceremony; some choose to protect their child from noise, stimuli, or attention in a variety of ways. Every child’s needs are discussed individually and confidentially, so that the specific needs of our special needs students are met,” detailed the statement. “This year, although initial reports indicated those choices were offered, we discovered they were not offered to one student at Sprayberry High School. Our expectation, and the parents’, was not fully met.”
While Rich and her mother accepted the apology, a district investigation into the incident is also underway.
All You Need Is A $1 To Access Wu-Tang Clan’s ‘Once Upon a Time in Shaolin’ Album
Hip-hop fans can purchase an NFT of the Wu-Tang Clan album for just $1
The infamous Wu-Tang Clan album that some have not even heard, Once Upon a Time in Shaolin, which was previously owned by disgraced “pharma bro,” Martin Shkreli, has suddenly resurfaced. Now, fans of the Staten Island group can hear the album by purchasing an NFT (non-fungible token) of the sought-after project.
According to Forbes, unlike previous high prices of NFTs, hip-hop fans can purchase an NFT of the Wu-Tang Clan album for $1. This has been put in place by PleasrDAO, the company that bought the album that once belonged to Shkreli but was seized by the government after he was arrested for securities fraud. Initially, Shkreli bought the album for $2 million at an auction in 2015. After he was taken in and then convicted in 2017, the U.S. government seized his assets, which included Once Upon a Time in Shaolin.
When the project was initially bought, there was an alleged contract that restricted the album from being released to the public for 88 years. Because of the purchase price, it was billed as the world’s most expensive album.
In 2021, PleasrDAO allegedly bought the album for $4 million from the government. They have found a way to speed up its release date, which was planned for 2103. Now that it’s in the hands of PleasrDAO, they’ve made arrangements that stipulate that for every sale of an NFT, the 88-year waiting period for the public release of Once Upon a Time in Shaolin will be reduced by 88 seconds.
So fans can access the album for $1 and hear a five-minute sampler. They stated that cryptocurrency is not required to purchase the NFT.
The world’s most expensive album is available for $1.
“Mass replication has fundamentally altered our perception of recorded music,” RZA and producer Cilvaringz said in a press release. “The shift to digital universality and the disappearance of physical media have disrupted our emotional bond with music as an artwork and a personal treasure.”
Proceeds from the NFT sales will go to the Wu-Tang Clan and Cilvaringz, who, along with RZA, produced the album.
Marlon Wayans Responds To ‘Hate Mongers’ Who Unfollowed Him After Celebrating Pride Month, ‘If I Lost You… GOOD’
Wayans did the photo shoot to celebrate his transgender son, Kai.
Marlon Wayans is celebrating Pride Month through a photoshoot done in honor of his transgender son, Kai, and is barking back at the “hateful” people who took issue with his stance.
The actor/comedian took to Instagram on June 14 to share images from a recent photo shoot he did in honor of Pride Month. Sporting silver pants, white Nikes with silver bubbled laces, and a Pride flag, Wayans made it clear what the message of the photo was meant to convey.
While Wayans is “STRAIGHT… well, according to my child CISGENDER male,” he wrote in his caption, the White Chicks star just wanted to express his “love and support my peoples.”
Soon after sharing his Pride Month post, Wayans returned with another photo from the shoot that seemingly responded to the criticism he started to receive from some of his followers who took issue with the comedian showing support to the LGBTQ+ community.
“Yeah and just for the HATE MONGERS … I’m posting ANOTHER,” he wrote in his caption.
The Scary Movie star went on to explain his reasoning in publicly supporting Pride Month as a nod to child who is a member of the LGBTQ+ community. He also appeared to address the people who unfollowed him as a result of his Pride post.
“As a father of a child in the LGBTQ+ community I show my support. Zero fu*ks what people think,” Wayans quipped.
“If i lost you… GOOD! Your hateful ass never loved me in the first place. How can you love anyone when you’re too busy judging. Some of y’all funny. I’m a troll. I’ll post all day. HAPPY PRIDE to all my friends, fam, fans and loved ones. I am happy you’re happy… period.”
But Wayans wasn’t done. Once the actor and standup comic started to see a drop in followers and experience homophobic backlash, he shared more images from the photo shoot, which showed him wearing a rainbow face mask along with Pride pins that read “Love Wins” and more.
“You mad?! 😡 I can do this shit ALL DAY… but instead I think I’ll do it ALL MONTH. HAPPY PRIDE 🌈💕,” he wrote. “Love and Laughter will always drown hate.”
“Do i look like I really give a f**k?! Happy PRIDE month,” he continued in a follow-up post. “Especially to all the hateful dudes out there mad because I’m supporting family and friends.”
“For people to be that homophobic wreaks of repressed feelings/desires. Bruh, don’t live like that. Come on out. Be you. That’s what PRIDE is all about… acceptance. I swear i got soooo many more pics,” he added.
Wayans also made sure to promote his latest comedy special Good Grief in each of his captions. He shared a screenshot in a separate post of an explicit comment he wrote in response to one critic who told him that he “failed as a father.”
“I’m not regular… don’t come for me. Just quietly unfollow and fu*k off,” Wayans exclaimed. “I will make you question your life and its pitiful existence. On my platform i support what the f*ck I choose. Di*kheads like this try to bully and I’m not that guy. And again…”
The Sextuplets star’s Pride Month rant comes months after a November 2023 appearance on The Breakfast Club where he announced his son’s transition.
“I have a daughter that transitioned into a son,” he said. “My daughter Amai is now Kai,” he shared.
Amazing!
Being a good parent is of utmost importance. Being a good parent to a transgender son or daughter is equally important.
This is such touching commentary by Actor and comedian Marlon Wayans.
You may know Wayans from “White Chicks,” “Scary Movie,” or “Marlon.”
New York AG Concerned City Of Saratoga Springs Is Retaliating Against Saratoga BLM
After concerns that the City of Saratoga Springs is engaging in a pattern of retaliatory behavior against the group's co-founder Lexis Figureo and Saratoga BLM protests.
The conflict between the Saratoga Black Lives Matter movement and the City of Saratoga Springs has reached the New York State Attorney General’s Office. After concerns that the city is allegedly engaging in a pattern of retaliatory behavior against the group’s co-founder Lexis Figuereo and Saratoga BLM protests, Letitia James’s office requested that the city turn over all documentation about two citations it issued against Figuereo in May.
As the Daily Gazette reported, Rick Sawyer, a section chief with the Attorney General’s Civil Rights Bureau, sent a letter to the city’s attorneys on June 13, the same day Figuereo appeared in court for the citations. According to its reporting, the letter references incidents of former city officials violating the rights of protesters during the summer of 2021.
“The OAG has reviewed troubling reports that, in May 2023, the SSPD issued desk appearance tickets to a protest organizer in connection with two non-violent protests,” the letter stated. “Those tickets allege violations of Saratoga Springs ordinances that purportedly require individuals to give notice to the city before engaging in First Amendment-protected activity. Given the findings of the OAG’s report, which described retaliatory arrests against the same individual, the OAG is concerned that the city of Saratoga Springs has resumed its unconstitutional retaliation against protestors.”
The letter states that the documents will be turned over to the Attorney General’s office by July 8. Figuereo, meanwhile, told the Daily Gazette that he feels “justified” by the contents of the letter, saying that it constitutes proof of his group’s claims. “This is what we’ve been saying the whole time,” Figuereo told the outlet. Figuereo also maintained that he wants to see the City of Saratoga Springs adopt the guidelines laid out by the Attorney General’s office, which requires the city to protect First Amendment rights. The guidelines also mandate that the city’s police department adopt policies that prevent officer misconduct.
Figuereo was issued two citations in May, the first regarding a May 1 demonstration organized by Saratoga BLM and the Skidmore Coalition for Palestine, the Palestinian Rights Committee of Albany, and the Party for Socialism and Liberation that called for a ceasefire in Gaza and a free Palestinian state. Public Safety Commissioner Tim Coll issued the second citation after a May 25 gathering to honor the memory of George Floyd. Figuereo, however, did not participate in the gathering; only held a press conference preceding the gathering.
According to a statement released by Coll on June 14, the city has received the letter, and Coll’s department, in particular, is “fully cooperating.” Coll’s statement continued, “Since the matter with the OAG is pending and involves ongoing negotiations, I am constrained from responding further. However, upon resolution, DPS will provide a complete accounting of the facts to the public.”
Figuereo appeared in court for the citations on May 13, but the case was postponed until Aug. 1 due to his lawyer, Mark Mishler, arguing that the city did not provide him the “proper legal accusatory instruments.” In a statement issued on June 14, Mishler argued that the city is continuing its efforts to “single out and penalize” Figureo for utilizing his First Amendment right to protest.
“We are gratified that the AG’s office sees the most recent acts by the City — attempting to single-out and penalize Lexis Figuereo for ‘organizing’ two peaceful and constitutionally protected rallies — for what they are, blatant infringements on the constitutional rights of Mr. Figuereo, all Saratoga BLM activists and leaders, and, in fact, all who believe in the necessity of speaking out against injustice.”
In addition to Mishler, Figuereo addressed the actions of Saratoga Springs officials in his own statement, given to CBS 6 News.
“What this is, is exactly what we knew it was going to be, retribution for the Attorney General’s report that they don’t like, retribution for the lawsuits against Saratoga Springs, that they continue to bring upon Saratoga Springs, this is retribution for all of that. In the AG’s report it says you are not allowed to make an arrest because of protests, so since they can’t make an arrest for protests, now they’re going to do violations for protests. They’re going to try to figure out something to do. Once again, it’s the old playbook; it’s nothing new. People of Saratoga Springs who are sick of hearing us scream for our Black lives wanted them to come here and do exactly what they said they were going to do before, which was get rid of and dismantle BLM. We refuse to do so. We’re going to keep our eyes on the real enemy inside this building.”
Analysis: Why We’re All Getting Ill More Often After COVID
There has also been a dip in childhood vaccinations.
According to an analysis from Bloomberg News and Airfinity Ltd., at least 13 diseases have been surging in the post-pandemic era. Although scientists do not yet have an explanation, they do believe that the way that COVID-19 has shifted baseline immunity plays a role.
As Bloomberg reported, one popular theory that has emerged is immunity debt, this basically sets forth that people’s immune systems were insulated due to lockdowns, but once the world opened back up, people were more vulnerable to diseases, particularly young people who were not able to be exposed to illnesses in settings like public schools. As Cindy Yuan, a doctor of internal medicine at a clinic in Shanghai, told Bloomberg, “It’s like the walls of the immune system are broken, so all kinds of viruses can easily get in,” Dr. Yuan said. She told the outlet that in some months her patient load has doubled from pre-COVID levels. “It’s nonstop. From last autumn’s mycoplasma infections to flu and COVID during winter, and then whooping cough and various kinds of bacteria infections.”
Others, like Ben Cowling, the chair of epidemiology at the University of Hong Kong’s School of Public Health, are not convinced that the immunity debt theory tells the whole story. Cowling believes that more surveillance and more testing has also contributed to the increase in disease reporting, and told Bloomberg, “Immunity debt, it definitely happens, but I don’t think it results in enormous epidemics after COVID.”
Like Cowling, Christopher Murray, the director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, believes there are more factors at play than just the immunity debt theory. “Why would it be worse in places that did a good job? That seems a bit strange. Some of this is the idea that those countries kept frail, elderly people alive,” Murray added that taken together with the immunity debt theory, “it’s a really quite complicated set of things going on.”
In addition to this, pandemic era misinformation about the way vaccines work contributed to a drop in childhood vaccinations, and poverty has played an as-yet-undetermined role in helping to spread diseases, say experts. Poverty, found Bloomberg’s report, has spiked across the globe in the wake of the pandemic, adding yet another layer to the increased rate of communicable diseases. According to Cowling, fewer vaccinations contributed to the rise of diseases like measles, polio, and pertussis.
Measles, in particular, functions as a kind of litmus test for the spread of other diseases, as it requires a 95% vaccination rate in children to eliminate its spread. Measles, which was functionally eradicated in the United States in 2000, has staged a comeback after vaccinations for kindergarten children dipped. According to Katherine Wallace, an epidemiologist at the University of Illinois, the measles resurgence is a sign that other diseases are going to be making a similar rebound.
Jeremy Farrar, World Health Organization’s chief scientist, pointed out that COVID-19 has created “a series of concentric circles,” evidenced in part by the drop in vaccinations.
“We’ve got to make the case for science and for vaccines and explain and explain and explain the importance. We can’t just say some people are anti-science or anti-vaccine and forget them,” Farrar said. “We need to listen, explain, and try to reach everybody.”
Pastor Lorenzo Sewell Says He’s ‘Humbled’ Donald Trump Visited ‘The Hood’ For Blacks For Trump Rally
Sewell (falsely) claimed former President Barack Obama or President Joe Biden never came to the Black neighborhoods like Trump.
Pastor Lorenzo Sewell of Detroit’s 180 Church is being criticized for his choice words when he told former President Donald Trump he was “humbled” that he came to “the hood.”
During a Blacks For Trump rally hosted at the large church, Sewell moderated a roundtable discussion on June 15 to engage with Black voters in the Motor City. To start things off, Sewell thanked the four-time indicted politician for coming to “the hood,” highlighting that former President Barack Obama or President Joe Biden failed to do so. “President Obama never came to the ’hood, so to speak, right? President Joe Biden, he went to the big NAACP dinner, but he never came to the ’hood,” he said to thunderous applause.
After his comments went viral on social media, Sewell was interviewed on “Fox & Friends First” to discuss how Trump’s visit “means so much” to the community — since he couldn’t remember the last time a President laid out a concrete plan, like Trump’s Platinum Plan, for Black voters. “Those metrics matter to us,” he said. “So we’re going to ask him, we’re going to hold him accountable to the Platinum Plan that he produced.”
Social media wasn’t too happy about Sewell’s celebration of Trump, including a lengthy prayer and wearing a shirt saying,” Make Black America Great Again.” They dug into the pastor’s past and found his congregation once voted him out as pastor. During a long legal battle regarding control of the 180 Church, in 2023, Wayne Circuit Judge Kathleen McCarthy granted Sewell a temporary restraining order to continue holding services at the church after he said the locks were changed by members illegally who wanted him out as pastor.
After the rally, which hosted a majority of white participants, Trump was the guest of the hour at the Turning Point Action Convention. He used his time at the podium to suggest Biden doesn’t know what the word “inflation” means and challenged Biden to take a cognitive test — one he is said to have “aced.” “I think he should take a cognitive test like I did,” Trump said. “Ronny Johnson, he was the White House doctor, and he said I was the healthiest President he feels in history.” According to CNN, Trump mixed up the doctor’s name and was referring to Texas Republican Rep. Ronny Jackson.
Trump: I think Biden should take a cognitive test. My doctor Ronny Johnson. Ronny Johnson, do you know him?
NBA Prospect Terrence Shannon Jr. Found Not Guilty Of Felony Rape
'The jury has spoken, and justice was served. The public at large owes Terrence Shannon Jr. an apology.'
University of Illinois guard Terrence Shannon Jr. was arrested on Dec. 28 and charged with rape after an alleged incident in September 2023. On June 13, the star player was found not guilty of felony rape and aggravated sexual assault by a jury in Kansas.
According to The Washington Post, a jury took less than two hours to return a verdict of not guilty for Shannon, who always maintained his innocence when he was accused by a woman of inappropriately touching her at a bar in Lawrence, Kansas.
Emotions in Kansas court as the verdict is read NOT GUILTY for former #Illini Terrence Shannon Jr.
The verdict couldn’t have come at a better time for the NBA prospect, who has entered himself in the NBA Draft, which will take place on June 26 (first round) and June 27 (second round).
The accusation stemmed from an alleged incident in Lawrence when Shannon was in town watching The University of Illinois football team play against the University of Kansas on Sept. 8. A woman accused the basketball player of grabbing her arm to pull her closer to him at the bar where he was viewing the game. She claimed he reached under her skirt to assault her. During the trial, he stated that he did not perform the act she accused him of, and until the preliminary hearing last month, he never saw her before.
“As we stated in September ’23, we emphatically denied these charges and waited for our day in court,” Mark P. Sutter, Shannon’s attorney, said in a written statement to The Washington Post. “That time has come, the jury has spoken, and justice was served. The public at large owes Terrence Shannon Jr. an apology.”
Shannon, who participated in the NBA Draft Combine last month, led his team to a 29-9 record, where they lost to the eventual champions, the University of Connecticut, after making it to the Elite Eight.
Lil Uzi Vert Photos In Marc Jacobs 40th Anniversary Ad Campaign Faces Backlash
Uzi faced backlash for how he modeled for the photoshoot.
Rapper Lil Uzi Vert stars in Marc Jacobs’ newest campaign for its 40th anniversary. The rapper shows off the brand’s exclusive tote bag to celebrate the occasion.
The luxury brand shared photos from its Stephen Sprouse x Marc Jacobs shoot on June 14. In the anniversary spread, the Philadelphia-based rapper donned an all-black outfit, including a silky black durag styled by Alastair McKimm, while showcasing the lime green and Black tote.
This coveted edition of Jacobs’ classic tote, including Sprouse’s graffiti design, added a streetwear flair to the leather handbag.
“I wanted to use Stephen’s graffiti because it meant something to me. Stephen as an artist; Stephen as a New York figure. It had the credibility of [the] street, but also the style of somebody who was a fashion designer,” Jacobs said of his collaboration.
The bag’s description: “AMERICAN fashion designer STEPHEN SPROUSE pioneered the then revolutionary idea of mixing uptown sophistication with a downtown punk. MARC first saw SPROUSE’S graffiti prints in 1984 and got to know him when they worked on their now iconic collaboration for LOUIS VUITTON.”
However, the rapper faced pushback by some fans in the comments section. Some leaned into homophobic and discriminatory comments on how the 28-year-old modeled in the photo shoots.
“It’s giving women of the year,” said one commenter.
Another disrespectfully wrote, “Uzi, give JT her purse back.”
Conversely, defenders of Lil Uzi Vert pointed out that men across generations have bended the boundaries of masculinity, especially in fashion.
“The masculinity comments are weird,” explained a commenter. “Men used to wear crop tops and shoes with heels in the ‘70s. I guess there was an agenda to end Black masculinity then, too.”
While neither Jacobs nor Lil Uzi Vert has commented on the backlash, the hip-hop artist is growing his ties to the fashion industry.
Jasmine Crockett Calls Clarence Thomas ‘Corrupt’ After Report Revealed He Received $4M In Gifts
Thomas has been under fire since 2023 after reports found he received high valued gifts from GOP super donor and billionaire Harlan Crow.
Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Tx.) didn’t mince words during an interview with MSNBC, calling Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas “corrupt” after a new report revealed that he received close to $4.2 million in gifts.
Crockett sat in on an interview with MSNBC’s Melissa Murray to discuss the high court’s recent decision to overturn a ban on bump stock — the gun accessories used in some of the deadliest mass shootings in U.S. history. While discussing the ruling, Crockett touched on Thomas’s seemingly sneaky ways of receiving gifts. “Y’all were too nice before. Clarence Thomas is corrupt. End of story,” she said.
“No one gets this kind of money and isn’t influenced in any way. There will absolutely be a reckoning on November 5.”
Thomas has been under fire since 2023 after reports found he received high-valued gifts from GOP super donor and billionaire Harlan Crow. However, more has come to the surface. In mid-June 2024, Senate Judiciary Chair Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) unveiled information showing that Thomas failed to disclose information on three additional trips funded by Crow. The report also noted the high court justice received close to $4.2 million in gifts — exceeding the amount of gifts given to any other judge.
According to CNBC, Thomas was allegedly given 103 gifts valued at more than $2.4 million between 2004 and 2023. In comparison to his judicial colleagues, the other justices accepted just 93 gifts during the same time span worth a combined value of roughly $248,000. Fellow conservative Justice Samuel Alito was allegedly the sole receiver of the majority of those gifts — accepting 16 in total worth $170,095.
Alito has also come under fire in the past few weeks over allegedly biased opinions that cater to conservative viewpoints. After reports surfaced of flags being flown over his homes — one being an upside-down American flag over his Alexandria, Virginia, residence — Crockett wasn’t too surprised at the ruling of the bump stock ban. “I’m sure Alito would find a reason for why that law is unconstitutional in some way,” she said.
“All of those gun manufacturers would win again.”
The ban was implemented following the mass shooting in Las Vegas during a country music concert that took the lives of 60 people and wounded hundreds more. Both former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden’s administrations pushed the ban by having the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) identify semiautomatic guns with bump stocks as machine guns, which are banned under federal law.
With the 6-3 majority opinion, written by Thomas on June 14, he wrote the federal government had “stretched the law too far.” “We conclude that a semiautomatic rifle equipped with a bump stock is not a ‘machine gun’ because it does not fire more than one shot ‘by a single function of the trigger,’” the opinion read.
A family member of one of the victims, Christiana Duarte, said the ruling just opens the doors for more violence. “The ruling is really just another way of inviting people to have another mass shooting,” Danette Meyers, family friend and spokesperson, said.
“It’s unfortunate that they have to relive this again. They’re really unhappy.”
