Jose Ibarra, the illegal migrant from Venezuela charged with the murder of Augusta University student Laken Riley on the University of Georgia campus in February, has decided to choose a trial by judge over jury. 

Former FEMA supervisor Marni’ Washington, recently fired for telling FEMA workers to avoid houses with Trump signs, claims they had problems with people in two homes that happened to have Trump signs. She insists that she was made a scapegoat to send a message to President-elect Donald Trump, suggesting that FEMA officials wanted Trump to […] The post Fired FEMA Worker Said They Avoid [Trump] Homes All Over appeared first on www.independentsentinel.com.

An Indiana man has been found guilty of killing two teenage girls near a hiking trail in Delphi back in 2017 in a case that gained national attention. Richard Allen, 50, was found guilty Monday on two counts of murder and two counts of felony murder in the killing of 13-year-old Abby Williams and 14-year-old Libby German, CNN reported. The jury spent 19 hours deliberating across three days before coming to the decision. “Regardless of what the verdict is, people aren’t going to be happy,” said Special Judge Frances Gull before reading the verdict, WTHR reported. Allen faces up to 130 years in prison for the murders and remained emotionless while the verdict was read before being comforted by his attorneys. A gag order was placed on the case, so attorneys cannot speak about it until after Allen’s sentencing on December 20. Allen’s attorney did not respond to a Daily Wire inquiry about his likely appeal. Libby’s grandmother, Becky Patty, cried and hugged family members as she left the courthouse. Outside, people reportedly cheered the verdict while others showed support for Allen, who many believe did not receive a fair trial and may be innocent. Allen’s wife, Kathy, told WTHR that the legal case “isn’t over at all.” Carroll County Prosecutor Nick McLeland, in his opening and closing statements, alleged that Allen is the man seen in a video taken by Libby telling the girls to go “down the hill.” The video was recorded as the girls crossed the Monon High Bridge. Their bodies were found nearby the day after they went missing. “I believe the evidence is firmly convincing that Richard Allen is ‘Bridge Guy,’ and he killed Abby and Libby,” McLeland told jurors, WTHR reported. The prosecution also pointed to confessions Allen made while in jail, though his defense attorneys have long claimed those confessions can’t be trusted because of Allen’s failing mental health. Defense attorney Brad Rozzi used his closing statements to point out the issues with the prosecution’s case, including the lack of DNA or weapons evidence tying Allen to the crime, as well as a timeline he says doesn’t line up. “The defense trusts what you’ve heard over the past several weeks is more important than what you’re hearing today,” Rozzi said. MATT WALSH’S ‘AM I RACIST?’ NOW STREAMING ON DAILYWIRE+ Defense attorney Andrew Baldwin previously argued that the state’s investigation was botched and that cell phone evidence shows Allen couldn’t have been the one to kill the girls. Baldwin said the prosecution claimed the girls were killed by 4 p.m. on February 13, 2017, and their bodies were not moved prior to their discovery the next day. Allen, who admitted to being on the trail the day the girls were killed, left the area by 2:15 p.m., according to his legal team, citing phone records. The prosecution also claimed an unspent bullet found at the crime scene came from Allen’s gun, but the round is commonly used by law enforcement, and no officer’s gun was tested in connection to the case. The idea that a mass-produced bullet cycled through a mass-produced gun could create a unique marking is also suspect, according to Stephen Gutowski, a certified firearms instructor and reporter who founded The Reload. “The forensic techniques used by crime labs to match specific guns to specific bullets have come under heavy scrutiny in recent years,” Gutowski told The Daily Wire in 2022. “So, I think it’s important to examine claims like this with a healthy dose of skepticism. The idea you could match a mark on the rim of a casing to a specific gun’s extractor seems dubious to me.” The case was also plagued by drama behind closed doors, with accusations of impropriety flying from both sides, as well as at and from the judge.

Attorney Mark Paoletta warned employees within the Justice Department that they needed to be ready to help President-elect Donald Trump implement his lawful agenda come January 20, 2025 — or they should start packing up their desks. Paoletta, who served as General Counsel for the Office of Management and Budget during the first Trump administration, responded on Monday to a POLITICO article that suggested lawyers working within the DOJ were “terrified” of what to expect from Trump, who blames the DOJ under President Joe Biden for engaging in political prosecution. From the article: Some career attorneys at DOJ are already considering heading for the exits rather than sticking around to find out whether threats from Trump and his allies are real or campaign bluster. Paoletta minced no words in his response, shared via X, explaining that Trump had been elected to implement the agenda he promised from the campaign trail and, provided his agenda was within the laws of the United States, it was the responsibility of those serving in the federal government to aid him as he did so. Paoletta went on to list a series of agenda items on which employees within the DOJ would be expected to assist. Securing the southern border, mass deportations of illegal aliens (beginning with rapists and murderers), surging resources to process immigration/asylum claims to clear out backlog and end widespread abuse of the asylum system, ending automatic citizenship for children of illegal aliens, and taking federal actions to prevent sanctuary cities from obstructing federal immigration enforcement. Restoring law and order across our country, including rescuing our cities from mob violence and left-wing soft on crime prosecutors, Immediately stopping the lawfare and persecution of political opponents that is unprecedented in American history and destroying our democracy. Granting pardons or commutations to January 6th defendants and other defendants who have been subjected to politically-driven lawfare prosecutions and sentences. Abolishing DEI in government and taking action against those companies and universities that engage in racial discrimination. Protecting Americans’ right to speech, religion, and the Second Amendment. Protecting religious liberties, including investigating and prosecuting the horrific antisemitism ripping through this country. Protecting parents’ rights from irreparable transgender surgeries and procedures on minor children, and investigating those who have pushed this on minor children. Paving the way for an energy boom and American Energy Golden Age. Holding accountable those who weaponized their government authority to abuse Americans. “These are all positions President Trump campaigned on and that career DOJ lawyers may be working on to accomplish President Trump’s lawful agenda that was approved by a landslide vote of the American People,” Paoletta continued, pointing out the fact that it was not within the job description of career DOJ employees to set the agenda moving forward, and it was their responsibility to assist in implementing the agenda of the President. MATT WALSH’S ‘AM I RACIST?’ NOW STREAMING ON DAILYWIRE+ Paoletta went on to note that they would certainly be allowed to give feedback, but they should understand that the ultimate decision would not be theirs. “Of course, no one will push them to implement flagrantly illegal actions like President Biden did with his student loan plan, where he thumbed his nose at the Supreme Court’s ruling and then tried to implement another illegal plan which was struck down,” Paoletta continued. “(In fact, the media was cheering on his law-breaking). I don’t recall reading any stories about career attorneys being concerned about working on this blatantly illegal action.” “If these career DOJ employees won’t implement President Trump’s program in good faith, they should leave,” he concluded. “Those employees who engage in so-called ‘resistance’ against the duly-elected President’s lawful agenda would be subverting American democracy. Finally, those that take such actions would be subject to disciplinary measures, including termination.” President Trump was elected by the American people to carry out his agenda, which includes: Securing the southern border, mass deportations of illegal aliens (beginning with rapists and murderers), surging resources to process immigration/asylum claims to clear out backlog and… https://t.co/n7yeUvRM2H — Mark Paoletta (@MarkPaoletta) November 11, 2024