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This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 6 WASHINGTON (AP) — The defense team in the Capitol riot trial of the Oath Keepers leader is relying on an unusual strategy with Donald Trump at the center. Lawyers for Stewart Rhodes, founder of the extremist group, are poised to argue that jurors cannot find him guilty of seditious conspiracy because all the actions he took before the siege on Jan. 6, 2021, were in preparation for orders he anticipated from the then-president — orders that never came. Rhodes and four associates are accused of plotting for weeks to stop the transfer of presidential power from the Republican incumbent to Democrat Joe Biden, culminating with Oath Keepers in battle gear storming the Capitol alongside hundreds of other Trump supporters. Opening statements in the trial are set to begin Monday. Rhodes intends to take the stand to argue he believed Trump was going to invoke the … [Read more...] about Trump at center of Oath Keepers novel defense in Jan. 6 case

WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — When Michael Moore was released from prison after serving time for selling drugs, he realized that it was time to make a change in his life. With the help and guidance of the Delaware Center for Horticulture, Moore enrolled in a post-release program in public landscaping, which included job training for gardening, park maintenance and basic knowledge of planting. He completed the program in 2014. “I was encouraged to apply and I gave it a shot,” said Moore, who was approached about the program following his four-year prison term. “I ended up getting hired on their staff after the program because I was willing to learn.” The program helped him stay grounded, said Moore, who recently got pardoned for all of his charges with the help of the organization. The Branches to Chances Program provides classroom and hands-on training through professional development in the horticulture and landscape industry. The center hired Moore in February 2014, and he … [Read more...] about Gardening program helps ex-offenders start over

GOLDEN TROUT WILDERNESS, Calif. — We clambered loudly up the miserable incline, horses stumbling as their shoes slid on the ladder of rocks that took us up and away from the Kern River. “Devil’s Stairway,” Chelsea McGlyn, the wrangler on this expedition, said over her shoulder, twisting around in the saddle. Was it such a brutal trail when I made my first trip here almost 60 years ago? Memory is too fragile to say definitively. What I can never forget from that day was the cowboy on the fast paint horse who got stuck behind me and had to eat my dust — kicked up by a horse and three mules — until the trail leveled out. Advertisement He paused and introduced himself as Sterling Grant, farmer from the San Joaquin Valley town of Wasco, and invited the 16-year-old wannabe cowboy from Los Angeles to mosey up the river and visit him in the morning. “I’ll be at Funston,” he said, and pulled away at a near trot. The encounter, in 1963, was a fulcrum in my life. The … [Read more...] about As a young man, I traveled the High Sierra by mule. After 59 years, I tried it again

Chaffey High School senior Belen Esparaz looks over a voter-registration form after California Secretary of State Shirley Weber Ph.D. spoke to students at the Ontario school on Wednesday, September 21, 2022 about making the effort to register prior to age 18 to vote. Photo: Will Lester/MediaNews Group/Inland Valley Daily Bulletin via Getty Images There weren’t high expectations for the Democratic Party going into the midterms. Aside from the historic trend that the controlling party in Washington normally loses seats in non-presidential years, polling suggested low energy from the party’s base and terrible approval ratings for President Biden. But then came June 24 and Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization , the Supreme Court’s bombshell decision to overturn Roe v. Wade . That, says veteran Democratic strategist Tom Bonier, changed everything. After the stunning victory of pro-choice voters in Kansas on August 2, his firm, TargetSmart, analyzed new voter … [Read more...] about The Surge That Could Save Democrats

0 Politics & Government Several new laws go into effect Oct. 1. Some of the new laws pertain to online dating, firearm background checks, jury duty, and more. Rich Scinto , Patch Staff Posted Reply CONNECTICUT — A batch of new laws go into effect on Oct. 1 and several of them could have life-changing consequences for some residents. Below is a summary of seven laws that go into effect Oct. 1.: Tethering and sheltering dogs Dogs need to be given adequate shelter if they are outside for more than 15 minutes during certain adverse weather conditions. Conditions include: When National Weather Service issues a weather advisory or warning or during extreme heat or cold. Dog breed, size and other conditions can be taken into consideration to determine whether a dog’s health and safety could be affected. The law doesn’t apply when a dog is accompanied by a person in the same conditions. Dogs need to be … [Read more...] about These 7 New CT Laws Can Change Your Life Oct. 1

1 Crime & Safety Thursday marked the 40th anniversary of a series of poisoning deaths that changed the way over-the-counter products are packaged. Eric DeGrechie , Patch Staff Posted | Updated Reply ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, IL — Forty years ago this week, the nation was gripped with fear. During a three-day span from Sept. 29 through Oct. 1, 1982, what would become known as the Chicago Tylenol murders were tragically playing out across the suburbs of Chicago. In the end, seven people died after the over the counter pain reliever was laced with cyanide in a case that remains unsolved to this day — baffling police and citizens alike not just locally, but across the country. "I just remember how shocking it was," Patch reader Kerry Neidel told us earlier this week. "And the fact that they never caught the person was even more shocking. I became much more observant of over-the-counter drug purchases to see if they were … [Read more...] about Chicago Tylenol Murders Still Shock Area, Nation, 40 Years Later