Idaho Supreme Court orders new venue for U of I quadruple murder trial
The man charged with stabbing four University of Idaho students to death in Moscow, Idaho, had his trial moved to Boise, Idaho, and a new judge assigned to the case. The order came from the Idaho Supreme Court on Thursday, Sept. 12, as the justices agreed with a lower court’s finding that he would not receive a fair trial in north Idaho’s Latah County.
The defense argued that Bryan Kohberger, the murder suspect, would not get an impartial jury because the pressure to find him guilty in the rural area near the crime would be too great.
Kohberger’s lawyers noted that one of the respondent’s threatened to “burn the courthouse down” if Kohberger was not convicted of the murders.
Boise is about 300 miles south of Moscow. However, the prosecution contended the case is nationally known already and a change of venue for the trial would not make a difference in fairness.
The relatives of one of the victims, Kaylee Goncalves did not want the location changed, saying that they believed having the trial in Latah County would help the community heal.
“We’ve always tried to do what we thought was best,” Steve Goncalves, the father of Kaylee, told ABC News. “Keeping it where it had been, but if that can’t happen, let’s just hit the ground running and just get it going.”
Kohberger is accused of killing the students at an off-campus house in November 2022. He’s charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary. If convicted of the crimes he could face the death penalty. The trial is set to begin in June 2025.
Kohberger has pleaded not guilty to all charges, and his defense claims he is innocent.
FIRE found 32% of students believe it is at least sometimes okay to use violence to stop a campus speech. Meanwhile, more than half (51%) said blocking other students from attending would be acceptable, and 69% said shouting down someone to prevent them from speaking on campus is OK.
Prospective students and parents should read these rankings and make college decisions accordingly. Colleges are not an undifferentiated blob. There are many schools (including elite schools) that respect free speech and maintain institutional neutrality. Choose those schools. https://t.co/PObvrju3lv
When it comes to having open and honest dialogue on campus, students say there are some topics that are more difficult to talk about than others. More than half (55%) said having an open and honest conversation about the war in Gaza is difficult, while nearly half (45%) said abortion was a tough topic and 42% said talking about transgender rights wasn’t easy.
About 1 in 4 college students surveyed also said it was “not very” or “not at all” clear if their administration protects free speech on campus.
Sweet Briar College cites more than 120-year-old will to bar transgender women
An all-women’s college in Virginia is out with a new admission policy reported on Friday, Aug. 30, that bars transgender women from enrolling next school year, citing a document from more than 120 years ago. Sweet Briar College’s President and Chair of the school board Mary Pope Hutson said the rule stems from the legally binding will of its founder, Indiana Fletcher Williams, who died in 1900.
Hutson said the document requires the liberal arts school to “be a place for girls and young women.” She wrote in a letter that the phrase “must be interpreted as it was understood at the time the will was written.” The policy now requires applicants to “confirm that her sex assigned at birth is female, and that she consistently lives and identifies as a woman.”
However, the new rule sparked criticism. Many faculty members fear the guidelines will hurt already diminishing enrollment numbers. Women’s colleges have reportedly seen a decline in enrollment since the 1960s, and Sweet Briar College nearly shuttered in 2015 due to financial problems and falling enrollment.
Opponents of the new requirement also cited the board’s original interpretation of the will, which excluded non-white students. The institution had to get permission from a federal judge to accept Black students after Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Faculty voted overwhelming on Monday, Sept. 2, to rescind the admission policy.
Sweet Briar College’s Student Government Association called the policy “alienating” and “unnecessary.” The association’s president, who is nonbinary, said at least 10% of students use different pronouns and would not fit within the new policy. However, it is unclear how the admission rules would impact current students.
Hutson responded, saying that the college works to “ensure” all students “feel welcome,” adding, a “broader policy is a slippery slope toward co-education.”
Women’s colleges began to admit transgender women around a decade ago. However, at least three now bar transgender women. Private undergraduate colleges are exempt from Title IX, so, Sweet Briar College is not required to follow new rules from the Biden administration, banning discrimination based on gender identity.
Controversy over Trump photos at Arlington National Cemetery
Former President Donald Trump’s running mate has harsh words for Vice President Kamala Harris amid controversy over Trump’s visit to Arlington National Cemetery this week. And Israel’s military has launched a massive incursion into the West Bank as concerns grow over a broadening war. These stories and more highlight The Morning Rundown for Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024.
Controversy over Trump photos at Arlington National Cemetery
There’s controversy on the campaign trail after former President Donald Trump’s visit to Arlington National Cemetery earlier this week. He was there to mark three years since the United States’ withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Two Trump campaign officials had a “verbal and physical altercation” with a cemetery official during Monday’s, Aug. 26, ceremony honoring the 13 U.S. military service members killed in a bombing at Kabul’s airport in 2021, according to NPR.
Sources with knowledge of the incident told multiple news outlets the former president’s campaign had been warned not to take any pictures or videos in the area known as Section 60, but they did so anyway. Section 60 is the part of the cemetery dedicated to military personnel killed while fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Cemetery officials released a statement confirming “an incident” had occurred and a report had been filed but did not give details about what had happened.
Late Tuesday night, Aug. 27, Trump posted a photo on his Truth Social platform of the Gold Star families who had invited him to the ceremony. In the post, family members said they had invited the campaign to film in Section 60.
However, cemetery officials say that wasn’t their call to make. Federal law prohibits political campaign or election-related activities within army national military cemeteries.
Trump’s running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, touched on the incident during a rally in Pennsylvania Wednesday, Aug. 28, dismissing the allegations.
“Three years ago, 13 brave, innocent Americans died, and they died because Kamala Harris refused to do her job and there hasn’t been a single investigation or a single firing,” Vance said. “I don’t, I don’t — look, sometimes mistakes happen. That’s just the nature of government, the nature of military service. But to have those 13 Americans lose their lives and not fire a single person is disgraceful. Kamala Harris is disgraceful.”
Vance also blasted Trump’s Democratic opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, for how the Biden administration handled the withdrawal from Afghanistan.
“And she wants to yell at Donald Trump because he showed up?” he said. “She can… she can go to hell.”
The Harris campaign has declined to comment on Vance’s remarks as well as the reports of an altercation at Arlington.
Harris, Walz to sit down for first TV interview of campaign
Vice President Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz will take part in their first joint interview since their campaign together began on Thursday, Aug. 29. This interview marks Harris’ first formal sit-down as the 2024 Democratic presidential candidate and comes at a critical time as she faces criticism for her lack of media engagement.
Since President Joe Biden withdrew from the race and endorsed her, Harris has been criticized for not participating in interviews or holding press conferences.
Their interview with CNN’s Dana Bash comes as the Harris campaign kicks off a bus tour of swing state Georgia. It will air at 9 p.m. ET.
At least 10 dead amid large-scale Israeli military operation in West Bank
The Israeli military launched its largest incursion into the occupied West Bank in decades on Wednesday. At least 10 Palestinian militants were killed in what the IDF described as a “counterterrorism operation.”
Hundreds of Israeli troops took part in the overnight raids targeting Palestinian militants after months of increasing attacks. These raids have raised concerns about the potential for the Israel-Hamas War to escalate further.
The IDF’s international spokesperson said in a briefing Israel had identified a quote “systematic strategy in Iran” of smuggling weapons and explosives into the West Bank.
The United Nations’ secretary general has called on Israel to immediately end the operation, saying it’s “fueling an already explosive situation and further undermining the Palestinian authority.”
The Supreme Court declined to reinstate the Biden administration’s latest student debt cancellation plan, leaving millions of borrowers in limbo as legal challenges continue. The justices turned down a request from the Justice Department to lift an appeals court order blocking the SAVE plan.
SAVE is an income-driven repayment program designed to lower monthly payments and offer earlier loan forgiveness. The save plan is part of President Biden’s broader effort to reduce the financial burden on about 43 million Americans with student debt.
The plan’s estimated cost has been a point of contention, with critics arguing it effectively forgives loans without proper authorization.
CrowdStrike offers $60M in credits; Delta reports $500M loss
CrowdStrike is offering $60 million in credits to customers impacted by a massive software outage earlier this year, but the true cost of the incident might be much higher. Delta Air Lines — the most affected client — claims it lost around $500 million due to the outage, which disrupted flights and operations.
Despite these challenges, CrowdStrike reported a strong quarter with $260.8 million dollars in adjusted earnings. That’s a 47% increase from last year.
However, the company has revised its full-year earnings forecast downward, reflecting the expected costs of customer compensation.
Moody’s downgraded CrowdStrike’s outlook from positive to neutral, raising concerns about the company’s ability to retain customer trust after the incident.
NASA’s Perseverance rover begins steep climb up Mars crater
NASA’s Perseverance rover has set off on a “road trip” of sorts across Mars. The rover has been wandering the red planet’s Jezero Crater since 2021.
So far, it’s found evidence of ancient flash floods and collected several rock samples, which NASA plans to bring back to Earth on a future mission. Now, the rover is expected to spend the next few months making a steep climb up to the western rim of the crater.
Scientists believe the 28-mile-wide crater was once home to a river delta and they’re hoping samples taken by Perseverance will help them piece together an idea of what Mars’ climate was like billions of years ago and whether it sustained life.
Will Newsom sign bill to make California colleges hire undocumented students?
California lawmakers overwhelmingly passed a bill that would order public universities to hire undocumented college students without work permits on Monday, Aug. 26. The bill now awaits California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s, D, signature, who has until the end of September to make a decision.
The legislation was introduced by Democrats in February after the University of California regents rejected a similar proposal in January. UC argued then and now that a move like this puts the college at risk of being sued citing a federal ban on hiring undocumented workers. The university is also concerned the bill would put federal funding in jeopardy.
The crux of the bill relates to a federal employment law from 1986. California Democrats argue that the law does not apply to state agencies, which includes public universities, citing an untested theory from 27 UCLA scholars, and say the state would be held liable for the law not the universities, if push came to shove from the federal government.
If Newsom does sign the bill, universities would begin hiring undocumented students starting on Jan. 6, 2025.
There are still many lingering questions, like whether UC would even have to comply with the legislation since it’s constitutionally autonomous from the Legislature.
Around 83,000 undocumented students reportedly live in California, many of whom have ineligible to work since the Deferred Action on Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program was frozen in 2021.
The real reason China’s educated youth can’t find jobs
They were told with hard work and a good education, they’d get the career of their dreams. But for many young adults in China, that is simply not the case.
For a couple of years now, there have been rumors about the “lying flat” or “let it rot” youth in China, a characterization that the kids are lazy and don’t want to work. But there’s more to the story in the world’s second-largest economy.
Some recent graduates are dishing out more money than they can hope to make in a job for interview coaches and job agents. A Bloomberg article said some students are paying $50,000 to try to land a finance job. And still, it’s not enough.
China’s youth unemployment surged to 17.1% in July, up from 13.2% a month earlier, according to the latest government data. This new measure of youth unemployment excludes current students. Experts say the July spike is in part because of students who graduated in June.
In 2023, China’s jobless rate for 16- to 24-year-olds reached 21.3%, so high the government stopped reporting the data. The government later agreed on a new method to exclude students.
Now these young graduates have a new name: “rotten-tail kids.” It comes from the millions of unfinished homes that litter the country known as “rotten-tail buildings,” real estate dreams that never came to fruition.
“There is an entire generation of children who have grown up under the one-child policy,” said Doug Guthrie, a China scholar and professor of global leadership at Arizona State University’s Thunderbird School of Global Management. “Those children have two parents and four grandparents who have very much focused on their well-being. And maybe they’ve become a little bit more willing to wait and think, ‘Well, if I don’t get the perfect high-end service sector economy job that I want, I’ll just continue to live at home.’”
Can China turn its youth unemployment problem around? Watch the full interview with Doug Guthrie in the video above.