New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D) defended Daniel Penny as his trial ended arguments and the jury began deliberations. Penny could face up to 15 years in prison if the jury finds him guilty of second-degree manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide for the death of Jordan Neely.The trial highlighted how Penny took action to restrain Neely, who made death threats on a subway car while it was going to another station. Neely also said he did not care if he went to jail.Chundru said Neely died from 'the combined effects of sickle-cell crisis, the schizophrenia, the struggle and restraint, and the synthetic marijuana.'“We’re now on the subway, where we’re hearing someone talking about hurting people, killing people,” Adams said to radio host Rob Astorino, according to the Daily Wire. “You have someone [Penny] on that subway who was responding, doing what we should have done as a city.”"Those passengers were afraid," he added.Multiple witnesses, even some called by the prosecution, said they were terrified of Neely and thought this particular man was more dangerous than other deranged people on the city's subway system. “Then you look at the complete failure of our mental health system, a complete failure from the days of closing psychiatric wards and having those who needed help just turned over into the street without giving any safety net to accept them," Adams said about the city's ongoing problems with providing mental health care.The Democrat mayor took issue with how the media has portrayed Neely, heavily emphasizing his Michael Jackson impersonation while downplaying his actions that led to Penny restraining him.“It seemed like it was a young, innocent child who was brutally murdered, and it gave that impression when you look at the photo that was being used," Adams said.While the medical examiner of Manhattan testified that Penny's hold on Neely was the sole cause of death, going so far as to say that it would have been the cause of death even if Neely had enough drugs in his system "to put down an elephant," a forensic pathologist called by Penny's defense team said that was not the case.Dr. Satish Chundru testified he ruled out the air choke and the blood choke as the only cause of death because there were other contributing factors. Chundru said the bruising on Neely's neck and the “almost negligible” tiny spots of bleeding found on his eyelids were not consistent with a fatal chokehold.Chundru said Neely died from “the combined effects of sickle-cell crisis, the schizophrenia, the struggle and restraint, and the synthetic marijuana," noting that schizophrenia results in an “increased risk of sudden cardiac death.”Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

The wife of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson — who was fatally shot outside a Manhattan hotel Wednesday morning in a "brazen" and "premeditated, preplanned targeted attack," according to police — said he had been receiving "threats."Paulette Thompson told NBC News in a phone call that "there had been some threats. Basically, I don’t know, a lack of coverage? I don’t know details. I just know that he said there were some people that had been threatening him."'The shooter then walks toward the victim and continues to shoot. It appears that the gun malfunctions as he clears the jam and begins to fire again.'She added to NBC News that police told her it appeared that the shooting was "a planned attack." The New York Post, which cited NBC News, reported that Paulette Thompson also said, “I can’t really give a thoughtful response right now. I just found this out, and I’m trying to console my children."What else do we know?New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a news conference that Thompson was struck at least once in the back and at least once in the right calf and that that the suspect was "lying in wait for several minutes," NBC News reported."Many people passed the suspect, but he appeared to wait for his intended target," Tisch added, according the news network.Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said the suspect arrived at the scene about five minutes before the shooting and fired a shot at Thompson’s back, NBC News noted."The shooter then walks toward the victim and continues to shoot. It appears that the gun malfunctions as he clears the jam and begins to fire again," Kenny added, according to the news network.Three live 9mm rounds and three discharged 9mm shell casings were found at the scene, NBC News said, adding the police recovered a cell phone near the scene."The motive for this murder is currently unknown, but based on the evidence we have so far, it does appear the victim was specifically targeted," Kenny added to reporters, the news network said. "But at this point, we do not know why."Kenny also said Thompson appeared unaware that he was in any danger and had no security detail around him, according to the New York Times, which also reported that a law enforcement official said surveillance video captured the shooting and that it shows the gunman alone when he fired at Thompson.The suspect was described as a white male wearing a black hoodie, black pants, black sneakers with a white trim, and a gray backpack who was using a gun with a silencer, an individual familiar with the matter told CNBC.Tisch said the shooter fled the scene on foot and then on a New York Citi Bike and was last seen in Central Park, NBC News reported. Police said no arrests have been made, the news network noted, adding that Crime Stoppers was offering a $10,000 reward for information.You can view WNYW's video report here about the fatal shooting, which includes surveillance images of the suspected gunman and the update from police.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Joe Rogan recently interviewed Marc Andreessen, and what the tech investing legend told him was enough to make Rogan audibly gasp. Dave Rubin plays the clip of their conversation about right-wing tech entrepreneurs being “debanked” for their political views. “Under current banking regulations, after all the reforms of the last 20 years, there's now a category called a ‘politically exposed person’ — PEP. … You are required by financial regulators to kick [PEPs] out of your bank,” Andreessen said. “What?!” Rogan gasped. “What if you’re politically on the left?” “Well, that’s fine,” Andreessen explained. “So no one on the left gets debanked?” Rogan asked in disbelief. “I have not heard of a single instance of anyone on the left getting debanked,” said Andreessen. He then pointed to David Horowitz as an example of someone who was debanked for being a conservative. “He's pro-Trump. … He's been very anti-Islamic terrorism; he's been very worried about migration — all these things. And they debanked him for that,” said Andreessen, clarifying that being debanked means “you get kicked out of your bank account” and “you can’t do credit card transactions.” “How is that legal?” Rogan asked next. Andreessen explained that while there is an amendment that protects free speech, there isn’t one that prevents the government from pressuring banks to debank the people they don’t like. “The private company banks do it because they're expected to, but the government gets to say, ‘We didn't do it; it was the private company that did it,’ and JPMorgan can decide who they want to have as customers, of course, because they're a private company, and so it's this sleight of hand that happens,” Andreessen told Rogan. “It's a privatized sanctions regime that lets bureaucrats do to American citizens the same thing that we do to Iran.” Andreessen went on to explain that during the Obama administration, certain legal businesses were debanked simply because of the industry they were in. The initiative was called “Operation Choke Point 1.0.” “So if you're running a medical marijuana dispensary in 2012, guess what? You're doing your business all in cash because you literally can't get a bank account; you can't get a Visa terminal; you can't process transactions; you can't do payroll; you can't do direct deposit; you can't get insurance,” he said. “You’ve been sanctioned.” “And then [the Biden] administration extended that concept to apply it to tech founders, crypto founders, and then just generally political opponents,” he added, noting that this initiative is called “Operation Choke Point 2.0.” “We’ve had like 30 founders debanked in the last four years,” he told Rogan, who was flabbergasted, adding that this is why he supported Trump. To hear Dave’s commentary on the debanking scandal, watch the clip above. Want more from Dave Rubin?To enjoy more honest conversations, free speech, and big ideas with Dave Rubin, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

A pseudo-court recently fined a small Canadian town and its mayor for refusing in a 3-2 vote to proclaim the month of June "Pride Month" and to hoist the LGBT activists' colors. According to the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario, a failure to oblige the activist group Borderland Pride constitutes discrimination. Harold McQuaker, a small construction business owner and the mayor of the Township of Emo, Ontario — just north of the Minnesota border — remains defiant, telling the Toronto Sun Monday, "I utterly refuse to pay the $5,000 because that's extortion." McQuaker indicated that the town council, on which he has the deciding vote, will together determine what to do about the $10,000 the court ordered Emo to pay — a sum the Sun indicated is "tougher than most criminals ever receive." "I have a lot of respect for our four councilors," said McQuaker. "We have a special meeting of council, and they will decide that and what to do next. Either pay the fine or appeal it?" 'There's no flags being flown for the straight people.' Following the ruling, Borderland Pride gleefully noted that McQuaker might also have to reimburse taxpayers for the legal fees associated with his years-long defense, which are estimated to total at least six figures. Extra to imposing the monetary penalties for a democratic vote unfavorable to outside radicals, Karen Dawson of the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario — a nonjudicial government entity that nonetheless issues judicial-like rulings — also ordered McQuaker and the current chief administrative officer of the township to complete the woke tribunal's re-education program, titled "Human Rights 101," having determined that the Municipal Act of 2001 did not protect council members from liability under the Human Rights Code for supposedly discriminatory actions. After all, McQuaker dared point out during a council meeting that "there's no flag being flown for the other side of the coin. … There's no flags being flown for the straight people." 'We just don't have a flagpole at our town hall.' The so-called eLearning Module of "Human Rights 101" claims that discrimination can be overt, hidden, constructive, and systemic. Apparently, where the tribunal is concerned, perceived offense rather than intent is what actually counts. In other words, someone's anodyne remark or neutral behavior could be discriminatory depending on the interpretation of a thin-skinned ideologue. "I will not pay the $5,000 I have been fined and will not take the training," McQuaker told the Sun. "I did not do anything wrong." "If anybody needs training it's the LGBTQ2+ to quit pushing their weight around and make demands that people can't live with," added McQuaker. Contrary to the regional activist group's suggestion, McQuaker insisted the claims of prejudice are all projection. "I don't hate anybody," said McQuaker. "We just don't have a flagpole at our town hall." 'This is about the unilateral power of an unelected, unaccountable government agency to compel speech.' "I am a husband to my wife for 51 years, father of two, a grandfather of seven and a great grandfather of one," he said. "I consider myself a very reasonable person and a good leader for our community and I would have a lot of support if there was an election." Borderland Pride, ever difficult to please, lashed out at McQuaker over his comments Monday, stating, "What we are seeing is a public temper tantrum from an elected official who has been emboldened by the pattern of attacks on institutions and the rule of law from the political right. It is disturbing, inappropriate, and unlawful." "Mayor McQuaker's comments reflect a flagrant disrespect for the laws governing his public office, and he should withdraw them," continued the activist group. "Mayor McQuaker is further governed by a municipal code of conduct, which requires him to respect the authority of the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario. He can be sanctioned by the integrity commissioner for failing to do so. We would caution him from engaging in any further misconduct of this nature. It is very clearly beneath the expectations and requirements of his office." Allan Stratton, a gay Canadian playwright who has long engaged in LGBT activism, blasted Borderland Pride in a recent op-ed for the National Post, writing, "This is about the unilateral power of an unelected, unaccountable government agency to compel speech." Stratton noted further that this case demonstrates the pseudo-court has "lost sight of its mission, broke public confidence in its legitimacy and provided a counter-productive example of left-wing authoritarianism." Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

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