Last week’s tragic assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk shocked the nation and spurred an immediate -- and ultimately successful -- manhunt to locate the accused killer.
It was not long before FBI Director Kash Patel found himself under fire for what critics said was a series of embarrassing blunders in the early hours of the investigation, though President Donald Trump has since stepped forward to defend the agency and its leader, as Politico reports.
The immediate aftermath of Kirk’s killing saw the start of an intense, coordinated law enforcement effort to identify and arrest the perpetrator.
Indeed, not long after the shooting, social media users posted video of a man being handcuffed and led away by police, though it later emerged that he was not suspected of shooting Kirk.
Patel himself posted that same day that another “subject” had been taken into custody, only to reveal two hours later that the individual had been “released after an interrogation by law enforcement.”
Adding fuel to the fire were reports that just hours after Kirk was gunned down in front of a stunned Utah Valley University crowd, Patel was spotted dining at Rao’s, a high-end, New York City eatery in what was viewed as tone-deaf move, given the critical work in which his agency was then engaged.
Among the growing list of prominent names casting doubt on the director’s suitability for his current role were those of conservative commentator Christopher Rufo, who said that it was “time for Republicans to assess whether Kash Patel is the right man to run the FBI” and of Erick Erickson, who echoed his sentiments and said, “The FBI situation is concerning.”
Countering those assessments was Trump himself, who said in a Saturday Fox News interview, “I am very proud of the FBI. Kash -- and everyone else -- they have done a great job.”
White House communications director Steven Cheung also came to Patel’s defense, issuing a statement to Politico on Saturday.
“Director Patel and his team worked night and day to find this murderer and bring him to justice,” Cheung began.
The White House official continued, “Anyone who doubts his resolve and dedication -- especially when Charlie was such a close friend to him -- simply is using this extremely sad moment in a disgusting act of political gamesmanship.”
Cheung concluded, “The focus was on catching this killer, and he will face the full wrath of the justice system.”
On Friday, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox announced the arrest of suspected killer Tyler Robinson, a 22-year-old man expected to face formal charges next week.
For Patel’s part, he is slated to appear on Capitol Hill in the coming week, where he will almost certainly be questioned about the manner in which the investigation unfolded, and undoubtedly, the nation will be watching.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Police sometimes arrest the wrong people. Usually, the officers figure out the mistake quickly and besides a huge amount awkwardness, there's little other damage.
Not always.
And now a federal judge has allowed a Texas woman's lawsuit against officers of the Broward County sheriff's office to move forward, withdrawing from them the ordinary immunity that officers mostly have.
According to the Institute for Justice, which is handling the case on behalf of Jennifer Heath Box, "In the opinion, Judge [Melissa] Damian wrote that it violates the Fourth Amendment to put the wrong person in jail when there are 'observable differences between the individual and the person described in the warrant and there was plenty of time for officers to verify the identity of the person being arrested but the officers ignored red flags and arrested the person anyways.'"
The ruling also said the deputies are not entitled to qualified immunity, a legal doctrine that shields government officials from being held liable when they violate someone's rights unless that right is "clearly established."
The ruling rejected the county's attempt to get the case dismissed.
"This Court finds that 11th Circuit case law provides several materially similar decisions that would provide the Deputies a fair warning that their conduct was unlawful," the judge said.
Box was arrested while getting off a cruise ship in Port Everglades following a family trip on Christmas Eve 2022, and spent three days in jail, before finally being released.
The IJ said, "Police had a warrant for a different Jennifer—Jennifer Delcarmen Heath—who was 23 years younger; five inches shorter; and had a different hair color, eye color, skin tone, social security number, and home address. Deputies Peter Peraza, Monica Jean, Jasmine Hines and Anthony Thorpe all at various points overlooked the evidence on the warrant which proved they had the wrong Jennifer, but moved forward with the arrest and detention anyway."
Box said she was pleased her case will move forward.
"When I was in jail, nobody would listen to me that they had arrested the wrong person, and now it feels like somebody is finally listening," she said.
The decision "makes it clear that when police overlook obvious evidence that they're arresting the wrong person, they'll be held accountable," said IJ Attorney Jared McClain. "Anyone who looked at Jennifer should have been able to tell she was not the person police wanted."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
The U.S. Department of State has come up with the idea of excluding from America those foreigners who celebrate murder.
Specifically, the assassination this week of conservative free speech activist Charlie Kirk.
"In light of yesterday's horrific assassination of a leading political figure, I want to underscore that foreigners who glorify violence and hatred are not welcome visitors to our country," Christopher Landau, deputy secretary of state, said.
"I have been disgusted to see some on social media praising, rationalizing, or making light of the event, and have directed our consular officials to undertake appropriate action," he wrote. "Please feel free to bring such comments by foreigners to my attention so that the @StateDept can protect the American people.
Authorities announced on Friday that Tyler Robinson, 22, of Utah, who allegedly had been radicalized in recent months and had expressed hate for Kirk, was taken into custody in the murder.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier had confirmed a new visa policy that provides that foreign nationals visiting or living in the country legally could lose their visa status if they violate the law.
A department spokesman confirmed, "This administration does not believe that the United States should grant visas to persons whose presence in our country does not align with US national security interests."
A report at Gateway Hispanic said the death of Kirk has "unleashed a wave of outrage, particularly due to the mockery and celebrations that have emerged on social media."
The result was Rubio's announcement to ban foreign nationals who celebrated Kirk's assassination, which was confirmed by Landau's posting.
The report said, "The United States will not tolerate the glorification of violence from abroad."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
A prominent voice in American media is calling for an "end of the America left" after this week's extreme violence, the assassination of conservative free speech advocate Charlie Kirk of Turning Point USA, and the subsequent online chatter praising the murder.
A suspect was arrested early Friday, Tyler Robinson, 22, of Utah, who has been described as hating Kirk and objecting to his presence at a Utah school where he was shot.
The left was condemned in a commentary by John Daniel Davidson, a senior editor at the Federalist, whose writings widely have been used in multiple publications.
"Their cause is revolutionary and inherently violent, and if we don't stamp it out completely it will consume and eventually destroy this country. We can be a constitutional republic of free citizens or we can be ruled by a leftist revolutionary regime. We cannot be both, which means we can no longer tolerate the violent leftist radicals among us," he warned.
"So how should the right respond? On the formal institutional level, The Trump administration should dismantle the entire ecosystem of left-wing political activism in America. Antifa and BLM groups need to have their assets seized and donor lists scrutinized. The left-wing billionaires who fund these organizations need to be criminally investigated and charged if possible. Groups tied to transgenderism, Palestine/Hamas, socialism and other radical leftist causes should be targeted using every tool available to the Justice Department and federal law enforcement agencies. The law should be applied maximally to these groups and the individuals who lead them and fund them," he suggested.
He noted Kirk himself had written months ago about "how assassination culture is spreading on the left."
Those comments included surveys that 48% of liberals think it would be at least somewhat justified to murder Elon Musk, and 55% said the same of President Trump.
"The left is being whipped into a violent frenzy. Any setback, whether losing an election or losing a court case, justifies a maximally violent response," Kirk said at the time. "This is the natural outgrowth of left-wing protest culture tolerating violence and mayhem for years on end. The cowardice of local prosecutors and school officials have turned the left into a ticking time bomb."
The suspect accused in Kirk's murder "reportedly engraved transgender and antifascist slogans on the bullets in the rifle he used to kill Kirk, confirming what everyone already knew, that Kirk's assassination was motivated by radical leftist ideology."
It results from "the deliberate cultivation of violence by the institutional left as a political strategy. That's what Kirk was getting at in his X post. Those in positions of authority — in public schools and universities, in the media, in the Democratic Party, in Hollywood and Silicon Valley — have for many years encouraged and themselves engaged in violent political rhetoric, and at times openly endorsed political violence. Why? Because violence is at the center of the left's political project," Davidson explained.
He warned of "disingenuous" comments coming from the likes of Barack Obama, who had a "close association with violent, unrepentant left-wing terrorists Bill Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn of The Weather Underground," yet still associated with "mainstream Democratic politics."
"There is no place in this country for Obama-style political leftism that pretends to abhor violence while tacitly and rhetorically embracing it. It's not an overstatement to say that the politics of Ayers and Obama and the mainstream political left in America created the shooter who killed Kirk."
The 1970s violence included nearly "five bombs a day" in American cities, ignited by "left-wing terrorists."
"Eventually, this rash of left-wing terrorism came to an end — not because the leftist radicals were beaten, or because they mellowed out, but because they won. They infiltrated and took over our institutions, the universities and the media and corporate America, and eventually put one of their disciples, Obama, in the White House," Davidson explained.
That makes violence "foundational to the left's entire revolutionary political project going back more than a half-century in this country."
That's why, he said, so many left-wingers are "justifying" Kirk's murder.
"These are the same people who cheered when Trump supporters or vaccine skeptics died of Covid, or celebrated when Hamas slaughtered Israeli civilians on Oct. 7, 2023. Some of these leftists are members of the U.S. House of Representatives, who loudly protested a moment of prayer on Kirk's behalf as he was dying."
He warned, "For the left, politics is a religion — not like Christianity but more like Islam. If you submit, you'll be permitted to live. If you don't, you must be destroyed."
If Democrats are "implicated, so be it."
"It might be that the DNC and the Democratic Party itself need to be destroyed, root and branch. In the near term, Democrat politicians like Rep. Ilhan Omar, who mocked Kirk after he was killed, should be expelled from Congress by the Republican majority," he said.
=Former North Carolina Rep. Madison Cawthorn was arrested this Wednesday in Cape Coral, Florida, as Breitbart reports.
The arrest followed his failure to appear at a scheduled court hearing for a prior traffic violation.
In April this year, Cawthorn was cited for driving without a valid license in Naples, located in Collier County, leading to the scheduled court appearance at 8:30 a.m. on the day of his arrest.
Authorities in Collier County issued an out-of-county warrant early Wednesday when Cawthorn did not show up to court. He was subsequently apprehended by police in nearby Cape Coral.
The Gulf Coast News detailed the arrest: "Former Congressman, Madison Cawthorn, was arrested earlier today for failure to appear for a routine traffic infraction. Madison keeps a very busy schedule and, due to a scheduling misunderstanding, did not appear in court this morning."
Cawthorn was released on the same day after posting a $2,000 bond.
Simultaneously, Cawthorn is eyeing a return to Congress, this time from Florida's 19th Congressional District. This was confirmed by meetings he held with Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill on the same day.
Axios, citing an unnamed source, reported, “Cawthorn was meeting with Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill on Wednesday to discuss his bid for the seat."
The pursuit of a political comeback in Florida unfolds at a time of legal and personal turmoil for the young politician.
The series of incidents, ranging from legal issues to potential political maneuvers, has kept Cawthorn in the public eye.
Following his release, Cawthorn has not made any public statements regarding the arrest or his future political plans.
His previous tenure in Congress and the recent challenges highlight a turbulent career marked by both controversy and resilience.
As the dust settles on his recent arrest, the conversation about Cawthorn’s political future intensifies.
The potential to run for a congressional seat in Florida suggests a strategic move to rejuvenate his political path amid ongoing legal battles.
Observers and constituents alike are closely monitoring Cawthorn’s actions, waiting to see how his legal and political dramas unfold.
President Donald Trump watched a New York Yankees game from behind bulletproof glass on Thursday as America continued to reel from the sickening assassination of his friend Charlie Kirk.
A suspect was taken into custody on Thursday night and announced to the public the next morning as 22-year-old Tyler Robinson. The Utah native is a confirmed radical leftist who complained that Kirk, one of the most prominent conservative public figures in the U.S., was "full of hate."
The assassination has impacted Trump, a good friend of Kirk, on a personal level. The president has announced that he will posthumously award Kirk the highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
The Yankees held a moment of silence for Kirk, who is being mourned at vigils all across the country, at Thursday's match against the Detroit Tigers, where Trump was in attendance behind panes of bulletproof glass.
There were "numerous snipers pictured overlooking the ballpark," the Sun noted.
Trump was in New York to commemorate the 24th anniversary of 9/11. The somber mood of the day was heightened by fresh shock and grief over the murder of Kirk, a 31-year-old husband and father.
“Kirk founded the youth activist group ‘Turning Point USA’ and had become a fixture on college campuses,” the Yankees' account posted on X.
“Charlie Kirk, a husband and father of two children, was 31 years old.”
Trump was met with loud applause at Thursday's game as he was shown on the Jumbotron. His entourage included fellow New Yorkers in his political circle, including EPA Director and ex-Long Island Congressman Lee Zeldin and House Rep. Nicole Malliotakis.
Kirk's assassination has fueled concern about a rise in political violence, and Trump is leaving no doubt about his feelings on the topic.
In a Fox News interview Friday morning, Trump said the blame rests with the radical left -- not the right.
"The radicals on the left are the problem," Trump said, "and they're vicious and they're horrible and they're politically savvy, although they want men and women sports, they want transgender for everyone, they want open borders."
While the wound of his friend's murder is still fresh, Trump can take comfort in knowing that the shooter has been apprehended. But there is still plenty of hatred out there.
In a troubling development, a member of the Secret Service was caught glorifying Kirk's assassination. The person, who was suspended, made a post suggesting that "karma" got to Kirk for his "hate and racism."
Ever since Charlie Kirk's sickening assassination, ghouls on the left have been getting exposed and fired from their jobs for celebrating the murder. In a disturbing twist, a member of the Secret Service has been caught dancing on Kirk's grave.
In a Facebook post, agent Anthony Pough said that Kirk deserved to be killed for the crime of "spewing hate and racism."
The man accused of killing Kirk, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, is a leftist who complained that Kirk was "full of hate" before killing him, according to reports.
Pough has since been suspended, according to Breitbart, and he is facing termination.
Here's what his post said: "If you are Mourning this guy .. delete me. He spewed hate and racism on his show.”
He added, “At the end of the day, you answer to GOD and speak things into existence. You can only circumvent karma, she doesnt [sic] leave.”
This ghoul was exposed by reporter Susan Crabtree of RealClearPolitics, who noted in her report that Pough has a history of criticizing President Trump on social media.
"If that’s all it takes to set you off, that’s dangerous to have around,” one source in the Secret Service community told Real Clear Politics about the agent’s post. “I’m mostly concerned about the morals of a person sworn to protect the rights of others to engage in politics and exercise free speech, celebrating the death of someone exercising those same rights.”
This individual is clearly dangerous and should be fired ASAP. Not only is it twisted to celebrate the murder of an innocent man, but the victim happens to have been a good friend of Donald Trump.
It is troubling enough that schoolteachers and nurses have been caught glorifying an assassination. But a member of the Secret Service?
“The US Secret Service will not tolerate any behavior which violates our code of conduct,” an agency spokesperson told the New York Post. “We are aware of the employee’s social media post from today, and the individual has been placed on administrative leave as we investigate the matter.”
Let's not forget that President Trump came within an inch of his head exploding in public view last summer. The Secret Service came under heavy scrutiny at the time, and rightly so.
We need to do a better job vetting who is protecting the president.
We absolutely cannot have apologists for political violence working in this job -- especially if they harbor hatred of the president and his friends.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Authorities have revealed they believe the suspect in the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk this week had been getting more and more political in recent months, and that he had expressed opposition to Kirk even being on the campus of Utah Valley University, where he was killed this week.
The Washington Examiner reported that some of the details in the case that now is developing come from Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, a Republican who on Friday announced, "We got him."
The suspect was identified as Tyler Robinson, 22.
Cox explained a family member tipped off law enforcement.
"Robinson had become increasingly political in recent months, authorities said, at one point arguing with family members about Charlie Kirk at the dinner table, saying he was 'full of hate and spreading hate.' The suspect mentioned Kirk was coming to UVU and voiced his objection to his presence on campus," the report explained.
The revelations aligned with social media speculation that Robinson had become radicalized of late.
Cox also confirmed the political ideology the shooter took time to express – by cutting messages into the casings of the bullets in his gun.
Those included "Hey fascist! Catch!" the report said, as well as "Bella Ciao, Bella Ciao, Bella Ciao," the lyrics of an antifascist song.
Reports earlier confirmed that various ideological messages were found on bullets still in the apparent assassination rifle, which was found by authorities in a wooded area near the campus hours after the assassination.
The governor confirmed a "three-arrow symbol, an antifascist symbol made famous during street fights in Weimar Germany," was found on the casing that was fired at Kirk.
Further, the fired casing referenced a nearly decade-old sexual meme, saying, 'Notices bulge, OWO, what's this?'" the report confirmed.
The Examiner also noted that authorities revealed that Robinson's roommate showed police messages on the app called Discord that outlined the assassination plan and a description of what he'd done with the rifle, suggesting that there was communication going on with at least one other person aware of the shooting plan.
Authorities are accusing Robinson of hitting Kirk with a sniper shot from atop the Sorensen Student Center near the courtyard where Kirk had set up to engage with students about topics on which they had opinions.
A report at the Independent said, "Officials said they were informed Robinson 'confessed' or at least implied he fatally shot Kirk to a family member."
That explained he "reportedly become more political in recent years," and, in fact, "expressed negative views of Kirk."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
The suspect arrested for this week's assassination of conservative voice Charlie Kirk, 22-year-old Utah resident Tyler Robinson, is facing multiple charges, including a murder count that could bring on discussion of the death penalty.
The charges were announced Friday against Robinson, who did not have a previous criminal record, to include aggravated murder, felony discharge of a weapon causing serious bodily harm and obstruction of justice.
The official listing of the charges isn't expected until next week.
But it is the murder count that could result in an option for the death penalty, according to a report at the Washington Examiner.
Authorities said Robinson was arrested after family members called police, after he "either confessed or implied that he assassinated Kirk."
The Examiner explained, "Authorities said Robinson had become increasingly political in recent months. At one point, he argued with family members about Kirk at the dinner table, saying he was 'full of hate and spreading hate.' Robinson also mentioned Kirk was coming to Utah Valley University and objected to his presence on campus."
Robinson is accused of engraving political and gender-ideology messages on the bullet casings found in the gun.
And authorities noted that Robinson's roommate showed investigators Discord app messaging outlining what Robinson allegedly did with the murder weapon, a rifle found in a wooded area near the shooting scene.
The report said the messages involved "a need to retrieve a rifle from a drop, leaving the rifle in a bush, messages related to visually watching the area where a rifle was left, and a message referring to having left the rifle wrapped in a towel."
Robinson was booked into the Utah County jail and was being held.
According to the Gateway Pundit, the information about the charges now pending comes from a probable cause affidavit in support of the arrest.
President Trump is calling for the suspect in the brutal North Carolina train stabbing to be "awarded THE DEATH PENALTY" as Americans call for the killer to face a swift and severe punishment.
Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska, 23, was randomly and repeatedly stabbed to death on a Charlotte light rail on August 22. A 34-year-old repeat offender, DeCarlos Brown Jr., has been charged with the murder.
Many Americans are simply fed up with soft-on-crime policies after this unprovoked attack, which was captured on harrowing video for the world to see - and Trump is sending a strong message that the killer should pay the ultimate price.
"The ANIMAL who so violently killed the beautiful young lady from Ukraine, who came to America searching for peace and safety, should be given a ‘Quick’ (there is no doubt!) Trial, and only awarded THE DEATH PENALTY," Trump posted on Truth Social. "There can be no other option!"
The murder unfolded four and a half minutes after Zarutska boarded the train and sat in front of Brown, who is black.
She had no interaction with Brown before he suddenly pulled out a pocketknife and stabbed her three times in cold blood.
The murder has brought fresh scrutiny to soft-on-crime policies that allow repeat offenders to roam, with Brown's own family members saying he should not have been free.
Local magistrate Teresa Stokes let him go on cashless bail months before the attack, despite 14 prior arrests and convictions for crimes like robbery with a dangerous weapon, larceny and breaking and entering.
The shocking depravity of Zarutska's murder, and the suspect's lengthy criminal history, have led many to say capital punishment is in order.
Attorney General Pam Bondi has pledged to “seek the maximum penalty for this unforgivable crime” and ensure the suspect “will never again see the light of day as a free man.”
The Justice Department has charged Brown with an act causing death on a mass transportation system, which could lead to the death penalty.
North Carolina has the death penalty, but because of legal challenges it has been effectively dormant for years.
Zarutska's family said Tuesday that they are "heartbroken beyond words" and they are "calling attention to a broader crisis in public safety and systemic failure."
"Iryna came here to find peace and safety, and instead her life was stolen from her in the most horrific way. No family should have to go through this," the family said.