A CHALKED SIDEWALK message in California in support of those killed or wounded in the Feb. 14 Parkland shootings (Wikipedia).
The aftershocks of the Feb. 14 shootings at a Florida high school that took the lives of 17 people – most of them children – continued to dominate the news on Thursday.
Among the developments reported were these:
- The armed sheriff’s deputy at Margory Stoneman Douglas High School present during the attack resigned his job after it was revealed that he had watched the campus during the attack but never entered and tried to engage the shooter. The officer, identified as Scot Peterson, was suspended without pay and placed under investigation before he quit.
- Florida is seeking $1 million in federal aid in emergency funds to reimburse the state and local agencies for the cost of responding to the incident.
- Students and others in Florida are urging lawmakers to enact stricter gun control laws, and may be gaining some traction. President Donald Trump said he might consider an age limit of 21 and over for the purchase of some rifles – the current age is 18 – and Republican Florida Sen. Marco Rubio said he was reconsidering his opposition to the sale of large-capacity magazines.
- A top National Rifle Association leader on Thursday accused gun control advocates of exploiting the Feb. 14 shootings. According to the Associated Press, NRA Executive Vice President Wayne La Pierre said, “They hate the NRA. They hate the Second Amendment. They hate individual freedom.” His remarks were made to the Conservative Political Action Conference in Maryland.
More charges brought against Paul Manafort
Special counsel Robert Mueller on Thursday filed tax evasion and bank fraud charges against Paul Manafort, who had managed Donald Trump’s presidential campaign for a period in 2016. Also charged was Rick Gates.
They have already been charged in money-laundering conspiracy connected to a political party in the Ukraine. Both face up to 10 years in prison. None of the charges relate directly to Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential campaign.
ERIC GREITENS
Missouri governor hit with invasion of privacy charge
A grand jury has indicted Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens on one felony charge of invasion of privacy allegedly taking nude photographs of a woman without her consent in 2015. The governor, a Republican, has denied the charges.
He has admitted he had an affair with the woman, but denies that he took any such photographs of her or tried to use such an image against her. The St. Louis District Attorney, a Democrat, said that the statie of limitations for filing such a charge is three years and would expire in about a month.