Dirksen Federal Courthouse, 219 S. Dearborn St. | Rich Hein/Sun-Times
Federal prosecutors have made the rare move of seeking dismissal of a three-year-old drug indictment following testimony from a former Drug Enforcement Administration supervisor who said drugs in Chicago are “typically trafficked by Latino people.”
The comments seemed to stun defense attorneys and catch the attention of U.S. District Judge John Blakey, who on Friday agreed to toss charges pending since 2019 against Leonel Hernandez-Rodriguez, Feliberto Flores-Ramos, Charlie Dotson and Francisco Carranza-Rosales.
The unusual move came more than a month after Keith Billiot, who is now retired but worked as a supervisory special agent for the DEA, testified about his role in the case during a March evidentiary hearing. He later walked back his comment following intense cross-examination, telling the judge race was “irrelevant” to the DEA’s work.
Billiot explained during the hearing what had led him to believe Flores-Ramos and Dotson had been involved in a drug deal Jan. 31, 2019. After naming other factors, including the behavior of the suspects, Billiot went further, according to a court transcript.
“In the city of Chicago for the five-and-a-half years that I worked here, typically — not always, but typically it is people of Latino descent are the ones that are supplying people of African American descent or Caucasians, or whatever,” Billiot said, according to the transcript. “But it’s the — the fact of the matter is that the drugs come up from Mexico or come in from Colombia but they come through Latino countries into the cities throughout the U.S. and therefore they’re typically trafficked by Latino people. So all of that, when you put all of that together, it indicated a narcotics transaction to me.”
Defense attorneys in the case — Thomas Anthony Durkin, Gal Pissetzky, Michael Leonard and Robert Rascia — all moved to strike Billiot’s testimony. Blakey said he’d strike the comment about race and added, “I’m going to permit vigorous cross examination on the issue, so fire away.”
Billiot could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
Joseph Fitzpatrick, a spokesman for U.S. Attorney John Lausch, said that, “after reviewing the matter internally, we decided that moving to dismiss the indictment was the best course of action in this case.”
A criminal complaint in the case said law enforcement saw Flores-Ramos leave a home in the 6500 block of South Kenneth the afternoon of Jan. 31, 2019, holding his hand against the left side of his jacket in a way that suggested he was hiding something.
It said Flores-Ramos then got in a Dodge Caliber and traveled to 63rd and Kilbourn while investigators followed. The Dodge parked behind a white Buick sedan, Flores-Ramos got out and climbed into the Buick’s passenger seat with his hand still pressed against his jacket, according to the complaint.
Dotson was allegedly in the Buick’s driver’s seat.
Investigators soon drove toward the Buick and parked next to it, records show. After ordering Dotson and Flores-Ramos out of the car, authorities said they spotted an open bag filled with what turned out to be $34,000 cash on the front passenger floorboard. The feds also said a closed backpack in the back seat later turned out to contain a kilogram of cocaine.
The other defendants were found at the home on South Kenneth, where the feds say they also found eight kilograms of cocaine and $600,000 cash in a dishwasher.
Flores-Ramos admitted after his arrest that he’d gone to sell cocaine to Dotson, according to the complaint.
Still, during the March hearing, Billiot found himself defending his comments about the ethnicity of typical drug suppliers in Chicago. He noted he’d also pointed out other key factors in the investigation.
“So it was not the mere fact — and to be quite honest with you, I’m offended by the whole racism thing,” Billiot told Durkin. “It was not the fact that a Latino person met with a Black person. Absolutely not. Is that clear enough, sir, please? Can we get beyond that please?”
“I started with the probable cause that we developed upon your client and went all the way through the chain of events, sir,” Billiot continued. “That’s including the car, the car is running, the lights are off. Why would that be, sir? So I painted the picture of the entire probable cause that we saw, all the — the things that we saw. We didn’t generate those things. The client — the defendants here did but I simply testified as to what we saw. There is no racism involved in this.”
Blakey also questioned him about the comment, asking whether the ethnicity of the defendants played any role in his decision-making.
“It’s irrelevant,” Billiot eventually told the judge. “Someone’s ethnicity — the clearest way for me to say this is someone’s ethnicity is irrelevant to us in all respects.”
But Billiot pushed back once more against Durkin, telling the defense attorney, “this inference of racism is so phony.”
“You know nothing about me,” Billiot said. “Nothing. For you to infer that I’m a racist, I’m the godfather of an African-American child. She is — she is the daughter of a police officer and soldier who is one of my closest friends.
“There is nothing racist about what we do or how we do it. Nothing.”
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How Matt Gaetz Got Here
The Justice Department is investigating whether Representative Matt Gaetz, a Florida Republican and close ally of former President Donald Trump, broke federal sex trafficking laws. The inquiry focuses on his relationships with young women who had been recruited online, and whether he had sex with a 17-year-old girl.
Report: Rep. Matt Gaetz Does Not Plan to Resign
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) said he has no plans to resign after the Hill reported he is being investigated by the Department of Justice (DOJ) due to allegations regarding an inappropriate relationship with a minor and violation of sex trafficking laws.
Orgies, blackmail, extortion, Iran hostages: The crazy claims against Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz
Blackmail. An alleged orgy with prostitutes. Accusations of sex with an underage girl. And a convoluted extortion plot involving a likely dead American hostage in Iran. Even by Florida standards, the Matt Gaetz saga is downright bizarre — and getting weirder by the day. Before this week, the young Sunshine State congressman and ally of…
Trump blasts big tech ‘censorship’ after interview pulled by Facebook
Former President Donald Trump on Thursday night decried big tech “censorship” after an interview he gave to his daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, was taken off Facebook. “I did a very nice interview with Lara,” the former commander-in-chief said in a separate interview on cable news channel Real America’s Voice. “Facebook took it off and it’s disgraceful,”…
Fauci on AstraZeneca Shots; Sinovac Milestone: Virus Update
Anthony Fauci, America’s top infectious disease official, said the country may not need AstraZeneca’s vaccine even if it passes U.S. regulatory approval, Reuters reported, citing an interview. Sinovac said annual production capacity of its Covid-19 vaccine CoronaVac has reached 2 billion doses.
‘He is Risen!’: Aussie PM Celebrates Hope and Victory in Easter Message
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has expressed his optimism for the future in his Easter message, saying it is a time for families and communities to come together and celebrate hope and victory. “For Christians around the world, Easter is a time to celebrate the most important words of our faith—He is Risen!” Morrison said. “Christians everywhere can draw strength and heart from these words.” Morrison said that over the challenging last year the Christian community has heeded the ancient principles of protecting, valuing, and looking out for our family, friends, neighbours, community, and country. “It was more difficult to gather to worship as a faith community normally would,” he said. “Nor could we sing those joyful songs that mean so much to us.” However, Morrison said Easter Sunday was a chance for the community to remember the words of Psalmist; “this is the day which the Lord has made; …
Ingenuity Mars Helicopter Prepares for the First Flight on Another Planet
Humanity’s first Wright Brothers moment on another planet will happen in April. The Ingenuity Mars helicopter will attempt the first powered flight on Mars no earlier than April 8, according to NASA. It’s fitting that the mission, an experimental companion to the Perseverance rover, is carrying a piece of history. A postage stamp-size piece of […]
The post Ingenuity Mars Helicopter Prepares for the First Flight on Another Planet appeared first on NTD.
Berlin State Hospitals Pause AstraZeneca Shots for Women Staff Under 55
BERLIN—Berlin’s state hospital groups Charite and Vivantes have stopped giving women under the age of 55 shots of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine, spokeswomen for the hospitals said on Tuesday. The moves follow reports of rare but serious blood clots, bleeding, and in some cases death after vaccination, mainly in young women. “From the Charité’s point of view, this step is necessary because in the meantime further cerebral venous thromboses have become known in women in Germany,” a spokeswoman said in an emailed statement. Charite said the action was precautionary while they waited for final assessments. No complications have occurred in its hospitals following vaccinations with AstraZeneca. A spokeswoman for Vivantes clinics also said the move to pause the shot for younger women was a precautionary measure. Some 19,000 people work at the Charite hospitals and 17,000 at Vivantes, which operates clinics as well as care homes. Tagesspiegel, which first reported the …
Germany Indefinitely Suspends AstraZeneca Vaccine for Anyone Under Age 60
Germany indefinitely suspended use of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID vaccine for anyone under 60 following advice from STIKO, the country’s independent vaccine committee and external experts. The committee investigated reports of blood clots, some fatal, in people who received the vaccine
According to the Associated Press, Health Minister Jens Spahn and state officials unanimously agreed to give the vaccine only to people 60 or older unless they belong to a high-risk category where the benefits outweigh the risk of a serious side-effect.
“In sum, it’s about weighing the risk of a side effect that is statistically small, but needs to be taken seriously, and the risk of falling ill with corona,” Spahn told reporters in Berlin.
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) today said they’ve not yet identified any risk factors — such as age, sex or a previous history of blood clotting disorders — associated with the AstraZeneca vaccine.
The EMA issued a new statement reiterating their previous conclusion that the vaccine’s benefits outweigh the risks, but cautioned that people should be aware of the “remote possibility” of rare blood clots occurring, and must seek immediate medical attention in case of symptoms.
The EMA said it “continues to work with the national authorities in the EU Member States to ensure that suspected cases of unusual blood clots are reported” and analyzed.
As The Defender reported Tuesday, several regions of Germany, including Berlin and Munich, temporarily paused the vaccine for people under 60 after Germany’s vaccine regulator disclosed 31 cases of a rare brain blood clot, nine of which resulted in deaths. The decision was made as a precaution ahead of a meeting with national medical regulators scheduled for later in the day yesterday.
The outcome of the Tuesday meeting in Germany was the decision, announced today, to indefinitely suspend use of the AstraZeneca vaccine in people under 60.
The German regulators’ decision was “based on the currently available data on the occurrence of rare but very severe thromboembolic side effects. This side effect occurred four to 16 days after vaccination, predominantly in people [under] 60 years of age,” STIKO said.
STIKO is also looking into the possibility of administering a second shot with a different COVID vaccine, for those who have already received their first dose.
Chancellor Angela Merkel said the suspension of the vaccine’s use in the under-60s would help boost citizens’ trust in AstraZeneca’s COVID vaccine after a series of missteps, Reuters reported.
“Everything is based on one principle and that is trust,” Merkel said. “Confidence arises from the knowledge that every suspicion is counted in every individual case.”
In a statement ahead of the announcement, the vaccine maker said tens of millions of people had received the vaccine and that the EU regulator and World Health Organization concluded the benefits outweighed the risks.
AstraZeneca told CNBC it would continue to analyze its database to understand “whether these very rare cases of blood clots associated with thrombocytopenia occur any more commonly than would be expected naturally in a population of millions of people.”
“We will continue to work with German authorities to address any questions they may have,” it added.
Previously, Germany had not given the vaccine to people 65 and over, saying there was insufficient data on its efficacy in that age group. Earlier this month, more than 20 countries, including Germany, suspended use of the AstraZeneca vaccine after reports of rare blood clots in the brain, some resulting in death, in healthy people who received the vaccine.
Although authorized for use in the EU, AstraZeneca’s vaccine has been authorized for use in the EU, it has not yet received Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) in the U.S. The company plans to apply for EUA in the upcoming weeks. If approved, AstraZeneca would become the fourth available vaccine in the U.S., joining Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson.
The post Germany Indefinitely Suspends AstraZeneca Vaccine for Anyone Under Age 60 appeared first on Children’s Health Defense.
According To The New York Times, Blue Cities & Towns Continue To Struggle With Covid | “Covid Surge in Michigan Alarms Health Experts”
Covid-19 vaccinations at Greater Emmanuel Institutional church in Detroit on Saturday. In Michigan’s largest city, local leaders are racing to vaccinate residents amid a rise in cases. Credit…Cydni Elledge for The New York Times
DETROIT — The country is a study in contrasts. New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, and other states in the Northeast continue to report high levels of cases, and troubling upticks have emerged in Illinois, Minnesota and some other Midwestern states. But in much of the South and West, case numbers remain relatively low…
Nearly 500 Chicagoans testing positive every day raising concerns of a potential third surge of COVID-19 (LIVE UPDATES)
Here’s Wednesday’s news on how COVID-19 is impacting Chicago and Illinois.
Latest
Chicago sees ‘quantum leap’ in COVID-19 cases — widening Lightfoot-Pritzker split over vaccine plans
Illinois’ COVID-19 uptick took another jump Wednesday as Chicago’s “quantum leap” in cases raised more concerns of a potential third surge of the virus, officials said.
Another 2,592 residents across the state were diagnosed with the virus among 77,727 tests, which lowered Illinois’ average positivity rate to 3.3%, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.
But that key metric has shot up 57% overall in under three weeks, while COVID-19 hospitalizations have jumped 24% over the same time frame. More than 1,400 beds were occupied by coronavirus patients Tuesday night, the most the state’s hospitals have treated since Feb. 24.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Mayor Lori Lightfoot agree the uptick has halted any talk of further reopening — but they’re still far apart on when all adults should be eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine dose.
The governor voiced concern Wednesday over the city’s timetable for that move, saying “I think that they will want to do that sooner than they are currently planning to.”
Read the full story from Fran Spielman and Mitchell Armentrout here.
News
9:24 a.m. James Taylor kicking off rescheduled 2021 tour at the United Center
Live music may be returning to the United Center this summer.
James Taylor on Wednesday announced his postponed world tour with special guest Jackson Browne will kick off at the Chicago venue on July 29.
Tickets purchased for the original dates will be honored for the trek that wraps up Nov. 1 in San Diego. (The tour was originally slated for a stop June 9 the United Center; refunds are available at point of purchase for those unable to make the new date.)
Taylor postponed the tour last April due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which shut down all live music/theater venues across the country. Browne contracted coronavirus last March, revealing at the time he suffered only minor symptoms and recuperated while quarantining at home.
“(Jackson and I/James and I) want to thank all those who have graciously held onto their tickets; we appreciate your continued patience as we navigate these unchartered waters. We didn’t want to have to cancel this tour that we’ve been waiting so long to perform together, so we’ve been working to get these dates rescheduled to a time period when the U.S. is reopened and safe to gather for a concert,” the two legendary singer-songwriters said in a joint statement.”
Read the full story from Miriam Di Nunzio here.
New Cases & Vaccination Numbers
- Another 2,592 residents across the state were diagnosed with the virus among 77,727 tests.
- Nearly 500 Chicagoans are testing positive every day, an average figure that has jumped 37% over the past week.
- Illinois is vaccinating more people than ever as the state’s rolling average is up to a new high of 109,538 shots doled out per day.
- On Tuesday, 137,445 shots went into arms, the state’s third-highest daily total yet.
Friend with George Floyd during arrest refuses to testify in Chauvin trial
A key witness who was with George Floyd when he was arrested is refusing to testify against the ex-cop accused of murdering his longtime friend, court documents show. Morries Lester Hall, 42, was one of the passengers with Floyd in a car in Minneapolis last May when the 46-year-old was arrested — insisting in interviews days later that he was “going to be his voice.”
But Hall filed a surprise motion in Hennepin County District Court late Wednesday asking not to be called in the murder trial of ex-cop Derek Chauvin — and insisting he would not answer questions even if called.
Rose McGowan slams Twitter for booting her over Clinton photo
Rose McGowan slammed Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey for supporting “evil” after her account was suspended for tweeting about Bill Clinton. The outspoken “Scream” actress — and one of the most vocal Harvey Weinstein accusers — was recently banned for the post, showing the Democratic ex-president being massaged by a woman.
Joe Biden Supports MLB Moving All-Star Game Out of Georgia, Repeats Lies About Voting Bill
Sports hasn’t gone political enough, so here’s President Puddinghead joining in. Joe Biden would appear to be echoing his former wingman’s efforts to exploit sports for his political agenda. To set the stage, Georgia passed a voter integrity bill. Leftists think voter integrity is raaaaaacist. There have been calls for Major League Baseball to pull the All-Star Game from Atlanta to punish the state. Even though most sports fans don’t care for woke bullplop like this, Biden is all about the decision.
And then came the lies about the bill.
President Joe Biden speaks about fans returning to stadiums, vaccination progress | SportsCenter
youtu.be
The Georgia bill is Jim Crow on steroids. Did I mention that the Georgia bill is Jim Crow on steroids? They told me to say that it’s Jim Crow on steroids. If I say it five times, they’ll give me an extra pudding later. Jim Crow on steroids. Jim Crow on steroids.
Biden has already been tagged for lying about the bill. Actually, I can’t say for sure that he lied. He may just have been repeating what he was told to say. Let me put it like this: Joe Biden believes invalid truth about the bill. But just once, I’d like someone to ask him a simple question. How? How is the voting bill “Jim Crow on steroids”? Even if the president gave a meandering non-answer, at least he would have been challenged once.
Here’s a link to the bill. The bill INCREASES the early voting window. That gives people MORE opportunity to vote. If Georgia is suppressing the vote by increasing early voting, they really suck at suppressing the vote.
Two big matters of contention are a) needing to show ID for absentee voting, and b) tightening the electioneering rules within a close radius of polling places. That’s the “bans giving out water” part of the bill. Political activists can’t go inside that radius to “hand out” water. That may or may not be promoting one of the candidates or the activist’s partisan political agenda.
Anyone who says that is “Jim Crow on steroids” is either lying about the bill or has been lied to about the bill. Either way, you’re an asshole. We used to be able to expect more of the president. Instead, Joe Biden has decided the only way to push his agenda is through the politics of fear and division. And here I thought he was the guy to “unite” the country!
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Dementia Joe WALKS AWAY Mid-Question! | Louder With Crowder
youtu.be
Arizona Republican senators hire auditors to reviews 2020 election
Arizona state Senate Republicans have hired a team of independent auditors to recount the 2020 election, including a hand recount of all ballots in Maricopa County.
The lawmakers announced their decision Wednesday.
The team will be led by Cyber Ninjas, a cybersecurity company focusing on security in financial and government sectors. The firm will oversee the team of technology or cybersecurity companies, including Wake Technology Services and Digital Discovery.
Georgia House Strips Delta Air Lines of Tax Break After CEO’s Criticism of Voting Integrity Law
The Georgia state House voted Wednesday to strip Delta Air Lines of a significant tax break after the firm’s CEO condemned a recently passed voting integrity law. Led by Republicans, the Georgia House voted to strip the firm of the break that’s worth tens of millions of dollars per year. The Senate did not take up the measure before it adjourned. “It was very disappointing,” said House Speaker Rep. David Ralston, a Republican, said of Delta CEO Ed Bastian’s comment on the voting laws earlier this week. “You don’t feed a dog that bites your hand. You’ve got to keep that in mind sometimes,” Ralston added of the passage of the bill, according to local media reports. The final vote in the state House was 97-73. “The entire rationale for this bill was based on a lie,” Bastian said in a statement of the Georgia voting bill, adding: “Unfortunately, that excuse …
Macron Orders COVID-19 Lockdown Across All of France, Closes Schools
PARIS—President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday ordered France into its third national lockdown and said schools would close for three weeks as he sought to push back a third wave of COVID-19 infections that threatens to overwhelm hospitals. With the death toll nearing 100,000, intensive care units in the hardest-hit regions at breaking point, and a slower-than-planned vaccine rollout, Macron was forced to abandon his goal of keeping the country open to protect the economy. “We will lose control if we do not move now,” the president said in a televised address to the nation. His announcement means that movement restrictions already in place for more than a week in Paris, and some northern and southern regions, will now apply to the whole country for at least a month, from Saturday. Departing from his pledge to safeguard education from the pandemic, Macron said schools will close for three weeks after this …
Over 100 Fully Vaccinated People in Washington State Test Positive for COVID-19
Over 100 people have tested positive in Washington state for COVID-19 even after getting fully vaccinated, authorities said Tuesday. Epidemiologists found evidence of 102 so-called breakthrough cases since Feb. 1. That number represents 0.1 percent of people in the state who have been fully vaccinated against the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, which causes COVID-19. The […]
The post Over 100 Fully Vaccinated People in Washington State Test Positive for COVID-19 appeared first on NTD.
When can kids get the COVID-19 vaccine? A pediatrician answers 5 questions parents are asking
A big question among parents and teachers as more schools reopen is when their kids will be vaccinated against COVID-19. Some have wondered whether the vaccine is even necessary for children. There is news on that front. In a press release on March 31, 2021, vaccine maker Pfizer suggested its vaccine is as effective in children ages 12-15 as it is in young adults. However the results of Pfizer’s vaccine trials in adolescents have not been fully released or reviewed by the Food and Drug Administration, and that will take several weeks.
Dr. James Wood, a pediatrician and assistant professor of pediatric infectious diseases, explains what doctors know today about the risk children face of getting and spreading the coronavirus and when vaccines might be available.
Do kids really need to get the COVID-19 vaccine?
The short answer is yes. A lot of studies have shown that COVID-19 isn’t as severe in children, particularly younger kids – but that doesn’t mean kids aren’t at risk of getting infected and potentially spreading the virus.
Children under 12 who get COVID-19 do tend to have mild illnesses or no symptoms, while teenagers seem to have responses somewhere between what adults and younger kids have experienced. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that teens were about twice as likely to be diagnosed with COVID-19 as children ages 5-11.
Researchers are still trying to understand why we’re seeing these differences between older and younger kids. Behavior probably plays a part. Teenagers are more likely to engage in social or group activities, and they may or may not be wearing masks. Immune differences and biologic factors may also play a role. Non-SARS-CoV-2 coronaviruses are common in children, often resulting in upper respiratory infection. Is their frequent exposure to other coronaviruses helping protect them from severe COVID-19? That is one hypothesis. We know younger kids’ immune responses in general are different from adults, and likely play a role in protection.
It’s important to remember that while most children get only mild symptoms, they still face risks. At least 226 U.S. children with COVID-19 have died, and thousands have been hospitalized.
The key to minimizing the risk is to make sure kids eventually get vaccinated, follow social distancing recommendations and wear masks.
Are kids spreading the virus?
In a setting like a school where mask-wearing and social distancing are enforced, young kids seem to not spread the virus very much when the rules and guidelines are being followed. One CDC review found little difference in community cases in counties with elementary schools open and those with remote learning.
If precautions aren’t being taken, children infected with the coronavirus very well could spread it to adults. What isn’t clear yet is how great that risk is.
To keep schools as safe as possible, continuing schoolwide mask and social distancing policies will be important. With teenagers in particular, mask rules can’t hinge on whether the person has been vaccinated or not. Until herd immunity within the whole community is at a good level, social distancing and masking is still going to be the recommendation.
So, when can kids get vaccinated?
Right now, the Pfizer vaccine is the only one in the U.S. authorized for teenagers as young as 16. Before kids under 16 can be vaccinated, clinical trials need to be completed in thousands of young volunteers to assess the vaccines’ safety and efficacy, and the results must be fully reviewed by the Food and Drug Administration.
Pfizer said it expects to submit results from its adolescent trials for review soon. Vaccine manufacturer Moderna also has trials underway with adolescents. If their vaccines are shown to be safe and effective and regulators authorize them, kids 12 and up could be vaccinated before school starts in the fall.
Realistically, young children probably won’t be eligible for the vaccine until late fall or winter at the earliest. Moderna announced in mid-March that it had started testing its vaccine in children ages 6 months to 11 years. Pfizer said it is also starting testing in young children, but these trials take time.
What’s different about the vaccines kids will get?
The composition of the COVID-19 vaccines for children is the same as used in adults – the difference is that children may require a different dose.
The first step in vaccine trials is to figure out the right dose. The companies want to find the lowest possible dose that is both safe and produces a target level of antibodies. For example, Moderna uses a 100-microgram dose in adults. It is testing three different doses for children under age 2 – 25, 50 and 100 micrograms – and two doses for children over age 2, at 50 and 100 micrograms.
Once the company determines the optimal dose, it will launch a placebo-controlled trial to test its effectiveness, in which some children will get a placebo and some will get the vaccine.
A rigorous system for pediatric vaccine trials is well established in the U.S. These trials are key to assessing the safety and efficacy of vaccines in children, which can differ from adults.
I am optimistic that a safe and effective vaccine will be available for children. Thus far, there have not been any safety signals from either the adult or adolescent studies that have been worrying to me as a pediatrician, but the studies still need to be done in children.
How can parents create safe playdates for kids?
When I talk to parents, I explain that it’s a risk-versus-benefit question. Each family has a different tolerance.
From a medical standpoint, the mental health of kids and having them play with other kids is an important part of childhood.
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I would say that unvaccinated kids playing indoors without masks on is still not a great idea. The risk is just too high at this point. As weather warms up, I would encourage kids to play outside. Ride bikes, play and socialize – just do it in a safe manner.
We all have pandemic fatigue, including medical professionals. As the weather gets warmer, I think everyone just wants to get back to normal. The worst thing we can do, right as we start to see a light at the end, is fall backward again – because that would just make it that much longer for everyone.
This story was updated with Pfizer’s announcement on March 31.
The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.
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This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here: https://theconversation.com/when-can-kids-get-the-covid-19-vaccine-a-pediatrician-answers-5-questions-parents-are-asking-157512
15 million J&J COVID Vaccines Thrown Away After Ingredient Mix-Up With AstraZeneca
Fifteen million doses of Johnson & Johnson (J&J’s) vaccine failed quality control after workers at a Baltimore manufacturing plant negligently combined ingredients from AstraZeneca and J&J’s COVID vaccine.
The mix-up forced regulators to delay authorization of the plant’s production lines and prompted an investigation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
According to The New York Times, the plant is run by Emergent BioSolutions, a manufacturing partner with J&J and AstraZeneca, whose vaccine has yet to be authorized for use in the U.S.
Emergent has been cited repeatedly by the FDA for problems such as poorly trained employees, cracked vials and mold around one of its facilities, according to records obtained by the Associated Press through the Freedom of Information Act.
AstraZeneca and J&J’s COVID vaccines employ the same technology which uses a version of a virus — known as a vector — that is transmitted into cells to make a protein that then stimulates the immune system to produce antibodies.
However, J&J’s and AstraZeneca’s vectors are biologically different and not interchangeable.
Federal officials said Emergent’s mistake was human error that went undiscovered for days until J&J’s quality control checks uncovered it, according to people familiar with the situation. By then, up to 15 million doses had been contaminated, reported The Indian Express.
The error does not affect any J&J doses currently being distributed and administered in the U.S., as those were produced in the Netherlands where operations have been fully approved by federal regulators.
“As with the manufacturing of any complex biologic medication or vaccine, the start-up for a new process includes test runs and quality checks to ensure manufacturing is validated and the end product meets our high-quality standards,” J&J said in a statement Wednesday. “This approach includes having dedicated specialists on the ground at the companies that are part of our global manufacturing network to support safety and quality.”
Details of the issue were identified and addressed with Emergent and the FDA, J&J said.
An FDA spokesperson told news outlets: “FDA is aware of the situation, but we are unable to comment further. Questions about a firm’s manufacturing facilities should be directed to that firm.”
As reported by The Defender, J&J has never made a vaccine, but since entering the pharmaceutical market in 1959, the company has made a lot of headlines and has been fined billions of dollars for bad, including some illegal, behavior.
Developing a vaccine requires many years and necessitates the establishment of an R&D infrastructure vastly different than the structure required for conventional drug development. Yet the company was able to rush to market its first vaccine for a viral strain identified just 14 months ago.
J&J has a relationship with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunizations and has a $1 billion deal with the U.S. government to provide 100 million doses of its Emergency Use Authorization experimental vaccine.
According to the FDA, J&J’s vaccine consists of a “replication-incompetent recombinant adenovirus type 26, a SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, and contains the following inactive ingredients: citric acid monohydrate, trisodium citrate dihydrate, ethanol, 2-hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HBCD), polysorbate 80, sodium chloride, sodium hydroxide and hydrochloric acid. The adenovirus is also grown in the PER.C6® aborted fetal cell line.
Polysorbate 80, an ingredient in J&J’s vaccine, is a suspected underlying cause of anaphylactic COVID vaccine adverse reactions. Studies show that polysorbate 80 disrupts the normally protective blood-brain barrier.
As The Defender Reported, the FDA authorized J&J’s single-dose COVID vaccine in late February with a reported overall efficacy rating of 66% for preventing “moderate to severe COVID-19.” The vaccine was only 42.3% effective about a month after getting the shot in people 60 or older who had comorbidities.
Although the FDA identified no safety concerns with J&J’s COVID vaccine, suspected vaccine injuries associated with the vaccine have been reported to the Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System since March 2 — the primary mechanism for reporting adverse vaccine reactions in the U.S.
The post 15 million J&J COVID Vaccines Thrown Away After Ingredient Mix-Up With AstraZeneca appeared first on Children’s Health Defense.
US study finds Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine is 100% effective against severe Covid
AstraZeneca will ask FDA to greenlight its coronavirus vaccine in the first half of April after US trial found it is ‘100% effective’ against severe Covid and does NOT cause blood clots
- Latest trial of the AstraZeneca jab was done on 32,000 people in US, Chile and Peru and adds to success
- Nobody who received the real vaccine developed severe Covd-19 or died of it, making it 100% protective
- No severe side effects nor increased risk of blood clots in people in the study
- Research was carried out because US wanted US-based trial before approving it for use on its own citizens
University backtracks on interracial ban in ‘identity’ housing, says official ‘misspoke’
The University of Nevada, Reno has backtracked after a housing official suggested interracial living arrangements were prohibited in some of the school’s Living Learning Communities (LLCs) for safety reasons.
Dean Kennedy, executive director of residential life, housing and food services, told a conservative youth organization that students must match the “identity” of the identity-based LLC they want to live in. This is for “the safety of student participants,” he said, according to a message posted Tuesday by the conservative group Young America’s Foundation (YAF).
The public university provided a statement Wednesday to Just the News disavowing Kennedy’s statement.
Video shows moment Bronx gunman opens fire
Video released by police on Wednesday shows the moment a gunman opened fire on a Bronx street earlier this month, striking a victim in the leg. The gunman confronted the victim at about 4 a.m. as a group of people congregated outside of their cars near Colgate Avenue and Bruckner Boulevard in the Soundview section…
4 Dead, Including Child, in Officer-Involved Shooting in California: Police
Multiple people are dead, including a child, after a shooting late Wednesday at a two-story office building in Orange, California, according to police. The Orange Police Department announced in a statement that at 5:30 p.m. local time, it responded to a call of shots fired at 202 W. Lincoln Ave., Orange, a city about 30 miles southeast of […]
The post 4 Dead, Including Child, in Officer-Involved Shooting in California: Police appeared first on NTD.
March 31, 2021 | Nightly News Rebroadcast | Video: 54 Minutes 45 Seconds
A 6-month old baby is rescued from the Rio Grande river after it was thrown off a raft by human smugglers.
Reports from Michigan, New Jersey, and New York City say CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus cases are on the rise.
And Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.) is urging companies not to buy personal protective equipment from China.
Officer video shows Floyd struggle, then takedown
George Floyd’s struggle with three police officers trying to arrest him, seen on body-camera video, included Floyd’s panicky cries of “I’m sorry, I’m sorry” and “I’m claustrophobic!” as the officers tried to push Floyd into the back of a police SUV.
Ex-cop told onlooker George Floyd was big, ‘probably on something’
A security-camera scene of people joking around inside the store soon gave way to the sight of officers pulling Floyd from his SUV at gunpoint, struggling to push him into a squad car as he writhed, cried out and complained of being claustrophobic, and then putting him on the pavement.
MINNEAPOLIS — After the ambulance took George Floyd away, the Minneapolis officer who had pinned his knee on the Black man’s neck defended himself to a bystander by saying Floyd was “a sizable guy” and “probably on something,” according to police video played in court Wednesday.
The video was part of a mountain of footage — both official and amateur — and witness testimony at Officer Derek Chauvin ‘s murder trial that all together showed how Floyd’s alleged attempt to pass a phony $20 bill at a neighborhood market last May escalated into tragedy one video-documented step at a time.
A security-camera scene of people joking around inside the store soon gave way to the sight of officers pulling Floyd from his SUV at gunpoint, struggling to push him into a squad car as he writhed, cried out and complained of being claustrophobic, and then putting him on the pavement.
When Floyd was finally taken away by paramedics, Charles McMillian, a 61-year-old bystander who recognized Chauvin from the neighborhood, told the officer he didn’t respect what Chauvin had done.
“That’s one person’s opinion,” Chauvin could be heard responding. “We gotta control this guy ’cause he’s a sizable guy … and it looks like he’s probably on something.”
Floyd was 6-foot-4 and 223 pounds, according to the autopsy, which also found fentanyl and methamphetamine in his system. Chauvin’s lawyer said the officer is 5-foot-9 and 140 pounds.
Chauvin, 45, is charged with murder and manslaughter, accused of killing the 46-year-old Floyd by kneeling on Floyd’s neck for 9 minutes, 29 seconds, as he lay face-down in handcuffs. The most serious charge against the now-fired white officer carries up to 40 years in prison.
Floyd’s death, along with the harrowing bystander video of him gasping for breath as onlookers yelled at Chauvin to get off him, triggered sometimes violent protests around the world and a reckoning over racism and police brutality across the U.S.
Jurors were shown police bodycam video of the approximately 20 minutes between when police approached Floyd’s vehicle and when he was loaded into the ambulance.
Officers were clearly exasperated and could be heard cursing as Floyd braced himself against the squad car and arched his body while the police tried to get him inside. He resisted going in, saying over and over that he was claustrophobic. At one point, he threw his upper body out of the car, and officers tried to push him back in.
Once in the backseat, he twisted and writhed, and officers eventually pulled him out and brought him to the ground. Floyd thanked officers as they took him out of the squad car.
Once Floyd was on the ground — with Chauvin’s knee on his neck, another officer’s knee on his back and a third holding his legs — the officers talked calmly about whether he might be on drugs.
Officer Thomas Lane was heard saying officers found a “weed pipe” on Floyd and wondered if he might be on PCP, saying Floyd’s eyes were shaking back and forth fast.
“He wouldn’t get out of the car. He just wasn’t following instructions,” Lane was recorded saying. The officer also asked twice if the officers should roll Floyd on his side, and later said calmly that he thinks Floyd is passing out.
As Floyd was pinned down by Chauvin and other officers, McMillian, the bystander, could be heard on video saying to Floyd, “You can’t win” and “Get up and get in the car.”
Floyd replied: “I can’t.”
The defense has argued that Chauvin did what he was trained to do and that Floyd’s death was not caused by the officer’s knee, as prosecutors contend, but by Floyd’s illegal drug use, heart disease, high blood pressure and the adrenaline flowing through his body.
Events spun out of control earlier that day soon after Floyd allegedly handed a cashier at Cup Foods, 19-year-old Christopher Martin, a counterfeit bill for a pack of cigarettes.
Martin testified Wednesday that he watched Floyd’s arrest outside with “disbelief — and guilt.”
“If I would’ve just not tooken the bill, this could’ve been avoided,” Martin lamented, joining the burgeoning list of witnesses who expressed a sense of helplessness and lingering guilt over Floyd’s death.
Martin said he immediately believed the $20 bill was fake. But he said he accepted it, despite believing the amount would be taken out of his paycheck by his employer, because he didn’t think Floyd knew it was counterfeit and “I thought I’d be doing him a favor.”
Martin then second-guessed his decision and told a manager, who sent Martin outside to ask Floyd to return to the store. But Floyd and a passenger in his SUV twice refused to go back into the store to resolve the issue, and the manager had a co-worker call police, Martin testified.
Martin said that when Floyd was inside the store buying cigarettes, he spoke so slowly “it would appear that he was high.” But he described Floyd as friendly and talkative.
After police arrived, Martin went outside as people were gathering on the curb and yelling at officers. He said he saw Officer Tou Thao push one of his co-workers. Martin said he also held back another man who was trying to defend himself after being pushed by Thao.
Wednesday morning’s testimony was briefly interrupted when a juror stood and raised her hand and gestured toward the door. She later told the judge that she had been feeling stress and having trouble sleeping, but told the judge she was OK to proceed.
Why the Media Uses George Floyd for Their Systemic Racism Narrative | Larry Elder
According to the Democrats and mainstream media, George Floyd’s death represents police engagement in systemic racism. Never mind the fact that research shows the police are more hesitant and reluctant to use force on a black suspect than a white suspect. In this episode, Larry shares three stories that arguably demonstrate systemic racism but that didn’t make the media hyperventilation cut. He also shares why the media hand-picks tragedies to fit the narrative and manipulate the masses. Larry Elder with Epoch Times show available on YouTube, Rumble, Youmaker, and The Epoch Times website. It also airs on cable on NTD America. Find out where you can watch us on TV.
Derek Chauvin Defense Blames “George Floyd Himself for His Own Death,” Not the Police “Blood Choke”
As the murder trial of former police officer Derek Chauvin continues, we speak with Minneapolis civil rights lawyer Nekima Levy Armstrong, who says prosecutors in the case clearly established that “the actions of Derek Chauvin played the most critical role in cutting off the air supply of George Floyd,” leading to his death, while the defense appears to be resorting to a strategy of victim-blaming. “I was really dismayed to see them try to deflect blame to bystanders and to blame George Floyd himself for his own death,” says Armstrong, a former president of the Minneapolis NAACP.
Teen who shot George Floyd video says he was “begging for his life”
MINNEAPOLIS — The teenager who shot the harrowing video of George Floyd under the knee of the Minneapolis police officer now charged in his death testified Tuesday that she began recording because “it wasn’t right, he was suffering, he was in pain.”
Darnella Frazier, 18, said she was walking to a convenience store with her younger cousin when she came upon the officers, and sent the girl into the store because she didn’t want her to see “a man terrified, scared, begging for his life.”
Frazier grew emotional at times, breathing heavily and crying as she viewed pictures of officer Derek Chauvin kneeling on Floyd last May.
Floyd’s death and the video of Floyd pleading for his life and onlookers angrily yelling at Chauvin to get off him triggered sometimes-violent protests around the world and a reckoning over racism and police brutality in the U.S.
One of the bystanders, who identified herself as a Minneapolis firefighter, pleaded repeatedly with officers to check Floyd’s pulse, but Chauvin continued to kneel on Floyd’s neck, and he and fellow officer Tou Thao wouldn’t let onlookers get close, Frazier said.
“They definitely put their hands on the Mace and we all pulled back,” she told the jury.
Frazier said of Chauvin: “He just stared at us, looked at us. He had like this cold look, heartless. He didn’t care. It seemed as if he didn’t care what we were saying.”
Chauvin attorney Eric Nelson sought to show that Chauvin and his fellow officers found themselves in an increasingly tense and distracting situation, with the growing crowd of onlookers becoming agitated and menacing over Floyd’s treatment.
But when Frazier was asked by a prosecutor whether she saw violence anywhere on the scene, she replied: “Yes, from the cops. From Chauvin, and from officer Thao.”
When asked to identify the officer, Chauvin stood up in the courtroom and took off his mask, appearing somber as he looked down and away before putting his mask on.
Earlier Tuesday, a man who was among the onlookers shouting at Chauvin to get off Floyd testified that he called 911 after paramedics took Floyd away, “because I believed I witnessed a murder.”
Donald Williams, a former wrestler who said he was trained in mixed martial arts, including chokeholds, returned to the witness stand a day after describing seeing Floyd struggle for air and his eyes roll back into his head. He said he watched Floyd “slowly fade away … like a fish in a bag.”
On Tuesday, prosecutors played back Williams’ 911 call, on which he is heard identifying Chauvin by his badge number and telling the dispatcher that Chauvin had been keeping his knee on Floyd’s neck despite warnings that Floyd’s life was in danger. She offers to switch him to a sergeant.
As he is being switched, Williams can he heard yelling at the officers, “Y’all is murderers, bro!”
During cross-examination, Chauvin attorney Eric Nelson pointed out that Williams seemed to grow increasingly angry at police on the scene, swearing at and taunting Chauvin with “tough guy,” “bum” and other names, then calling Chauvin expletives, which the defense lawyer repeated in court.
Williams initially admitted he was getting angrier, but then backtracked and said he was controlled and professional and was pleading for Floyd’s life but wasn’t being heard.
Williams said he was stepping on and off the curb, and at one point, Thao, who was controlling the crowd, put his hand on Williams’ chest. Williams admitted under questioning that he told Thao he would beat the officers if Thao touched him again.
Williams was among the first witnesses as Chauvin, 45, went on trial on charges of murder and manslaughter in Floyd’s death.
Prosecutors led off their case by playing part of the bystander video of Floyd’s arrest. Chauvin and three other officers were fired soon after the footage became public.
Prosecutor Jerry Blackwell showed the jurors the video after telling them that the number to remember was 9 minutes, 29 seconds — the amount of time Chauvin had Floyd pinned to the pavement “until the very life was squeezed out of him.”
Nelson countered by arguing: “Derek Chauvin did exactly what he had been trained to do over his 19-year career.”
The defense attorney also disputed that Chauvin was to blame for Floyd’s death, as prosecutors contend.
Floyd, 46, had none of the telltale signs of asphyxiation and had fentanyl and methamphetamine in his system, Nelson said. He said Floyd’s drug use, combined with his heart disease, high blood pressure and the adrenaline flowing through his body, caused a heart rhythm disturbance that killed him.
Firefighter says police did not allow her to help George Floyd on scene
A firefighter who gave eyewitness testimony Tuesday at former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin’s trial said police did not allow her to give lifesaving aid to George Floyd as Chauvin pressed his knee into the unarmed Black man’s neck.
Genevieve Hansen, 27, said that when she arrived at the scene, she saw multiple officers “leaning over” Floyd’s body and appearing to press “the majority of their weight” into him.
“He was not moving,” Hansen said of Floyd. “The first thing that concerned me was his face was like … smushed into the ground, swollen.”
Ben Shapiro: No, the Derek Chauvin trial isn’t a referendum on American racism
The following article, Ben Shapiro: No, the Derek Chauvin trial isn’t a referendum on American racism, was first published on BizPac Review.
Op-ed views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author. Since the death of George Floyd, our esteemed media, as well as their Democratic allies, have […]
Continue reading Ben Shapiro: No, the Derek Chauvin trial isn’t a referendum on American racism …
‘Very Few’ Disparities Linked to Racism: UK Commission
British society is not rigged against ethnic minorities and very few racial disparities are caused by racism, an independent review has found. The review was published on Wednesday by the independent Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities, which was set up by Prime Minister Boris Johnson in July 2020 to examine inequality in the UK in the wake of Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests over the death of George Floyd. “Put simply we no longer see a Britain where the system is deliberately rigged against ethnic minorities,” said Dr. Tony Sewell, a veteran education consultant who chairs the Commission, in the report’s foreword. “The impediments and disparities do exist, they are varied, and ironically very few of them are directly to do with racism.” Instead, “the evidence shows that geography, family influence, socio-economic background, culture, and religion have more significant impact on life chances than the existence of racism,” he …
Derek Chauvin’s bodycam seen discarded under patrol car during George Floyd’s arrest
- Derek Chauvin’s murder trial continued for a third day on Wednesday in Minneapolis
- The prosecution played never-before-seen footage from Chauvin’s body camera, showing his perspective as he approached Floyd
- He was seen with his hands around Floyd’s neck as he and Officer Thomas Lane struggled to get him into a squad car
- After a chaotic, blurred portion of footage, Chauvin’s camera fell to the tarmac
- In footage recorded by Lane’s body camera, Chauvin’s camera could be seen lying beneath the squad car
- It’s unclear exactly how the camera came to be on the ground during the confrontation
‘Forgive Me’: CNN’s Brooke Baldwin Chokes Up After Witness Becomes Emotional At Derek Chauvin Trial
CNN’s Brooke Baldwin choked up live on air Wednesday after watching a witness in the Derek Chauvin trial become emotional while testifying.
Baldwin and CNN analyst Elie Honig were watching the trial during the broadcast of “CNN Newsroom” when witness Charles McMillan broke down crying while watching video evidence of George Floyd’s arrest, prompting the court to recess.
Christopher Martin Says He Regrets Accepting Fake Bill From George Floyd
The teenage store clerk who first confronted George Floyd about his use of a fake $20 bill said in court on Wednesday that he felt “disbelief and guilt” when he saw Derek Chauvin kneeling on Mr. Floyd’s neck in front of the store after a co-worker called 911.
The clerk, Christopher Martin, 19, said he had quickly recognized that the $20 bill that Mr. Floyd used to buy cigarettes at the Cup Foods convenience store on May 25 appeared to be fake. At the urging of a manager, Mr. Martin twice went outside to Mr. Floyd’s car and asked him to come inside the store to pay for the cigarettes or talk with the manager.
Mr. Martin said he thought Mr. Floyd, unlike a friend of Mr. Floyd’s who had tried to use a fake bill earlier that day, had not realized that the bill was fake. “I thought I’d be doing him a favor” by accepting it, Mr. Martin said.
Pelosi Might Steal an Iowa House Seat
With her narrow majority, the Speaker could pull a trick from the Gilded Age by challenging the minority’s narrow or suspect victories and replacing them with their own or declaring the seat vacant, provoking a time-consuming special election. Between the 44th Congress (1875-77) and the 58th (1903-05), the parties flipped a total of 59 seats through such challenges.
Lawyer Linked to Steele Dossier is Working for House Dems to Overturn Results of Iowa Election
by Chuck Ross
House Democrats have hired Marc Elias (pictured above, right), the elections lawyer linked to the infamous Steele dossier, to help in their bid to overturn the results of an Iowa House race won by a Republican incumbent.
According to Politico, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) is paying Elias to represent the campaign of Rita Hart, a Democrat who lost by six votes to Rep. Mariannette Miller-Marks.
Hart has appealed to Congress to adjudicate the outcome of the election after state officials declared Miller-Marks the winner. Hart claims that Iowa officials failed to count 22 ballots that would have swayed the election in her favor.
House Democrats will have significant control over the appeals process, raising concerns among Republicans that the process will be rigged against them. The House Administration Committee, which is chaired by Rep. Zoe Lofgren, a close ally of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, will hear part of the Hart appeal. The entire House will have to vote to overturn the results of the contest.
“Federal law provides that this contest is the proper avenue to ensure that all legal ballots are counted and we have presented credible evidence to support their inclusion in the final tally,” Elias said in a statement issued through the DCCC, according to Politico.
Elias has suffered one major loss during the 2020 election cycle. He represented the campaign for Ted Brindisi, an incumbent Democrat who challenged his loss to Claudia Tenney in a New York House race.
Elias alleged that “irregularities” in voting machines switched votes from Brindisi to Tenney. The case drew some national attention because the argument mirrored Republicans’ baseless claims that voting machine irregularities were responsible for Donald Trump losing to President Joe Biden in some states.
A judge ruled in favor of Tenney on Feb. 5 after finding insufficient evidence of any widespread problems with voting machines.
Elias, a partner at the firm Perkins Coie, is perhaps best known outside Democratic circles for his links to the Steele dossier.
Elias was the attorney who hired Fusion GPS on behalf of the DNC and Clinton campaign to investigate Donald Trump’s possible ties to Russia. As part of the project, Fusion GPS hired former British spy Christopher Steele to conduct the investigation.
Perkins Coie paid Fusion GPS just over $1 million for the project.
Elias “vigorously” denied any involvement in the dossier before it was reported that the Clinton campaign and DNC had funded the project. A New York Times reporter said in October 2017, after details of the dossier were first revealed, that Elias had falsely told him he had no link to the dossier.
The dossier’s most significant claims remain either uncorroborated or have been discredited outright. Steele claimed in the dossier that the Trump campaign was involved in a “well-developed conspiracy of cooperation” with the Kremlin to influence the 2016 election.
Federal investigators ultimately found no evidence of a conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Russia.
– – –
Chuck Ross is a reporter at Daily Caller News Foundation.
The post Lawyer Linked to Steele Dossier is Working for House Dems to Overturn Results of Iowa Election appeared first on The Georgia Star News.
Israel Election Results Show Stalemate
TEL AVIV — Israel’s fourth election in two years has ended in another stalemate, with neither Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu nor his opponents able to win a parliamentary majority, according to final results released Thursday by the Israeli election authority.
The results set the stage for weeks or even months of protracted coalition negotiations that many analysts expect may fail, prompting yet another election in late summer.
Côte d’Ivoire: Hundreds arrested languishing in detention following presidential election unrest
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Six detainees allegedly tortured while in custody
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Overuse of pre-trial detentions and violation of fair trials
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Dire conditions of detention aggravated by COVID-19
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Progress noted in investigations into electoral violence
Hundreds of people in Côte d’Ivoire are languishing in dire conditions in prison after being arrested during violence and election-related protests last year, including many who are in pre-trial detention with limited access to lawyers, Amnesty International said today.
The organization interviewed 52 people during a mission in Côte d’Ivoire last month, including former detainees, families of detainees, lawyers, victims of violence and activists. Researchers also met with authorities to assess the judicial response to the protests and violence that occurred between August and November 2020, surrounding the presidential election in October.
At least 300 people including activists, protesters, opposition supporters, and alleged perpetrators of violence from across the political spectrum have been arrested and detained. It was not possible to ascertain the exact number of people currently in detention in the context of these events as the authorities did not provide this information, and Amnesty delegates were not allowed to visit the prisons despite a formal request.
“Detainees are suffering dire conditions in already overcrowded prisons. Many of them have limited access to lawyers or medical treatment, and current COVID-19 restrictions impede visits from their families. They must be treated humanely and must be able to communicate with their families and lawyers,” said Samira Daoud, Amnesty International West and Central Africa Director.
“We call on authorities in Côte d’Ivoire to put an end to the systematic use of pre-trial detention, especially, to immediately and unconditionally release those arbitrarily detained and to expedite proceedings for the other detainees in due respect of the rights of the defense.”
Amnesty International welcomes the progress that has been made in investigating the violence that raged between supporters of the ruling and the opposition parties in many towns, as families of victims of killings during such violence are still in need of justice, truth and reparations. The delegation noted that investigations are ongoing, and some arrests have already been made.
However, the organization documented several human rights violations linked with the judicial process of protesters and other people, including arbitrary arrests, systematic pre-trial detention, lack of legal assistance, allegations of torture or other ill-treatment, and poor detention conditions.
Arbitrary detentions
In August 2020, demonstrations were called by opposition parties to denounce President Alassane Ouattara’s candidacy for a third term. From that point on, many people were arbitrarily arrested, including opposition members and civil society activists, for exercising their rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.
Although some people have since been released after having spent days, weeks, or months in detention, many remain behind bars. Among them is Pulchérie Edith Gbalet, the president of social justice organization Alternative Citoyenne Ivoirienne (ACI).
Pulchérie was arrested on 15 August 2020 by masked individuals after she called for peaceful demonstrations. She was charged with compromising public order, participation in an insurrectionary movement, undermining the state’s authority, willful destruction of public properties, and causing a gathering.
Three of her colleagues, Gbaou Gedeon Junior, Kouakou N’Goran Aime Cesar and Djehi Bi Cyrille were arrested on the same charges. They all remain in detention at MACA central prison in Abidjan.
“Pulchérie Edith Gbalet, her three colleagues and other people arbitrarily detained must be immediately and unconditionally released. They must be allowed to return to their family safely and be able to continue with their legitimate activist work,” said Michèle Eken, Amnesty International West Africa researcher.
The organization documented several cases of people who were arbitrarily detained, including many who did not participate in the protests.
One businessman was arrested in November 2020 on his way to his office, which is near the headquarters of an opposition party. He is still detained at MACA after being charged with public disorder.
Another detainee was arrested in August 2020 while going to a pharmacy on a day that protests were occurring and has been in pre-trial detention ever since.
Systematic pre-trial detention and inadequate legal assistance
Many of those arrested in connection with the protests and violence have been in pre-trial detention for months. Many did not have access to a lawyer from the moment they were detained and appeared in front of the investigating judge without a lawyer to dispute the charges and the need for detention.
“Pre-trial detention should be the exception, not the norm. It should never be used as an advance punishment for people who have not been – and may never be- found guilty. It is important to respect the presumption of innocence and the right to fair trial of all people subject to criminal charges, including the right to have a lawyer,” said Samira Daoud.
Allegations of torture
Six individuals were allegedly forced to accept the charges against them after being subject to torture or other ill-treatment.
One man who was arrested on 31 October 2020 spent nearly a month at the Directorate for the Surveillance of the Territory (DST) where he and five others were allegedly tortured with power lead and tasers, then beaten with machetes, before signing the statements that they were not allowed to read. They were then transferred to MACA.
A youth leader of an opposition party was arrested in November, handcuffed, and taken to the DST where he was allegedly punched and beaten before being charged with eight counts, including disturbing public order and conspiracy against the state.
Another man who was arrested on 18 October spent six days at the DST where he was allegedly beaten with machetes and power leads.
“Authorities in Côte d’Ivoire must immediately launch independent, impartial and effective investigations into allegations that some detainees were tortured and threatened while in custody,” said Michèle Eken.
Dire prison conditions
Lawyers and authorities told Amnesty International that most detainees, including those arrested in other towns, are being held at MACA central prison.
As of January 2020, the prison held 7,782 people more than half pre-trial detainees, far beyond its capacity for 1,500. Eyewitnesses described how the MACA has become more overcrowded following the wave of arrests between August and November last year.
As well as severe overcrowding, they described unsanitary conditions that led to illnesses. At least one detainee who arrived at MACA in August tested positive for COVID-19. Another was not allowed to shower for three days.
In the women’s section of the prison, former detainees said they showered, washed dishes and did laundry in the same hot and mosquito-filled cell.
Ill-health made worse by lack of medical care
At least one person arrested surrounding those events and held at MACA has died.
Aristide Ahui died on 9 March 2021 after he was transferred to the hospital. He had been arrested on 29 October 2020 for undermining the state authority while he was on his way to get drinks and had then been detained at MACA prison pending his trial. His right foot was paralyzed, and his health quickly deteriorated while he was in pre-trial detention.
According to information received by Amnesty International, Aristide Ahui’s condition got so bad that he was unable to speak or move. He was transferred to the hospital once early in February this year then sent back to prison where his condition deteriorated.
Following pressure from several figures, Aristide Ahui was hospitalized again at ‘’CHU Cocody’’ hospital at the end of February, where he died on 9 March. The hospital bills were covered by his family.
A family member told Amnesty International:
“After his arrest I was unable to visit him due to COVID-19 restrictions. They searched the house. He did not have a lawyer. He was not sick before his arrest. I was told he first suffered from tuberculosis. He was chained to the hospital bed.”
Another detainee had been arrested on 13 August along with dozens of others, charged with public disorder and sent to MACA prison. He was diagnosed with a heart condition before being arrested and has been unable to see a heart specialist since his detention. He was sent to the hospital when he arrived at the prison as he could not breathe well due to chest pain. He was given a weeklong treatment of antibiotics, which helped him feel a bit better but he later relapsed.
“As prison overcrowding worsens, and amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we reiterate our call on authorities to ensure more people are released, in particular detainees with underlying medical conditions, in accordance with the recommendations of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights,’’ said Samira Daoud.
“Authorities should ensure that pre-trial detention is only used as a measure of last resort.”