Connect with us

Published

on

The White House has threatened to veto a Republican Senate resolution that would result in roughly 3,000 federal offenders who were released to home confinement during the COVID-19 pandemic being sent back to prison.

In a statement of administration policy released Wednesday, the Biden administration said it opposes Senate Joint Resolution 47 , introduced by Sen. Marsha Blackburn (RTenn.) in late October. As Reason previously reported , the resolution, which criminal justice advocates say could reach the Senate floor for a vote as early as this week, would overturn a Justice Department rule allowing some federal offenders to remain under house arrest after the end of the government’s COVID-19 emergency declaration.

The White House cited the extraordinarily low recidivism rate among those released to home confinement and the reduced cost to taxpayers compared to incarceration.

“Of the over 13,000 people released to home confinement under the CARES Act, less than one percent have committed a new offensemostly for nonviolent, low-level offensesand all were returned to prison as a result,” the statement says. “Moreover, since home confinement is less than half the cost of housing someone in prison, this program has saved taxpayers millions of dollars and eased the burden on BOP staff so they can focus on the higher risk and higher need people in Federal prison.”

The resolution is the latest in a battle among the Biden administration, criminal justice advocacy groups, and Republicans over the continuation of the pandemic-era policy.

In the final days of the Trump administration, the Justice Department released a memo finding that once the federal government ended its COVID-19 emergency declaration, all former inmates with remaining sentences would have to report back to prison.

Criminal justice advocacy groups began pressing the Biden administration to reverse that decision, arguing that the program had been an unqualified success and that it would be bizarre and cruel to send back people who had thrived on the outside. The White House initially declined to do so , instead announcing a clemency initiative that would have targeted only nonviolent drug offenders, leaving thousands of others, such as white-collar offenders, to return to prison regardless of their conduct. But last December, the Justice Department reversed course and issued a new memo finding that the BOP had the discretion to leave them under house arrest for the remainder of their sentences.

“It would be a terrible policy to return these people to prison,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said , “after they have shown that they are able to live in home confinement without violations.”

Republicans balked at the sudden change in legal opinion. Sen. Tom Cotton (RArk.), one of 28Republican co-sponsors of Blackburn’s resolution, wrote that the reversal “betrays victims and law-enforcement agencies that trusted the federal government to keep convicted criminals away from the neighborhoods that the offenders once terrorized.”

Criminal justice advocates say there’s no terror going on. Right on Crime, a conservative criminal justice reform group, wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that the resolution “will cost millions to lock up thousands of people who have been thriving with no offenses while following all the rules of electronic monitoring.”

Caught in the middle of all this are thousands of people who have spent the last three years trying to put their lives back together, such as Kendrick Fulton, who was incarcerated for 17 years for a nonviolent drug offense before being released to home confinement under the CARES Act. Fulton has since gotten his commercial driver’s license and steady work.

Fulton told Reason earlier this month, “We’re doing better than people that are all-the-way discharged, and they wanna send us back. They know the program is a success. They know it’s a win-win, and it’s saving taxpayer dollars.”

Continue Reading

Entertainment

YouTuber Jake Paul strikes defeat against former boxing champ Mike Tyson in Texas

Published

on

By

YouTuber Jake Paul strikes defeat against former boxing champ Mike Tyson in Texas

YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul has defeated one of the greatest-ever fighters, former heavyweight world champion Mike Tyson, who’s more than twice his age.

The bout was won on a unanimous points decision at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas – home of the Dallas Cowboys and the biggest NFL stadium in the US.

The fight was already controversial but then arguably failed to live up to the hype. Boos were heard from the crowd in the final two rounds, after a perceived lack of action.

Mike Tyson, left, fights Jake Paul during their heavyweight boxing match, Friday, Nov. 15, 2024, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Image:
The heavyweight boxing match took place in Arlington, Texas. Pic: AP

Boxing careers compared

This was not Paul’s first professional fight. The 27-year-old American YouTube star made his debut in 2020 with his most high-profile clash against Tyson Fury’s brother Tommy Fury last year, which he lost by a split decision.

The so-called “Problem Child” has since defeated former UFC contender Nate Diaz, professional boxer Andre August, former Gold Gloves champion Ryan Bourland and most recently MMA fighter Mike Perry.

In contrast, “Iron Mike” Tyson, 58, was ranked among the best heavyweight boxers of all time.

More on Jake Paul

During his career, he knocked out 44 opponents – retiring from professional boxing in 2005 after defeat against Kevin McBride.

He returned to the ring in 2020 for a bout against fellow boxing icon Roy Jones, which ended in an unofficial draw.

Mike Tyson, left, fights Jake Paul during their heavyweight boxing match, Friday, Nov. 15, 2024, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Image:
Mike Tyson struggled at times against Jake Paul, 31 years his junior. Pic: AP

‘Someone’s getting put to sleep’

Earlier this week, Paul said he believed the bout would not go the distance. “No, someone’s getting put to sleep,” he said. “It’s going to be a war, and we’re both heavy hitters. It’s not going the full 16 minutes.”

Tyson was more reflective: “I’ve been through so many ups and downs since my last fight with Kevin McBride,” he said.

“I’ve been in rehab. I’ve been in prison, been locked up. Never in a million years did I believe I’d be doing this.”

Several states would not allow the bout to go ahead, and the Texas Athletic Commission only agreed to the fight if there were changes, due to Tyson’s age.

It limited the contest to eight rounds lasting a maximum of two minutes instead of three. Both boxers were also required to wear heavier gloves, designed to lessen the force of punches.

The fight was initially scheduled for 20 July, but was postponed when Tyson suffered an ulcer flareup.

Taylor defends title

Katie Taylor, center, celebrates after defeating Amanda Serrano during their undisputed super lightweight title bout, Friday, Nov. 15, 2024, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Image:
Katie Taylor celebrates after defeating Amanda Serrano in Texas. Pic: AP

Meanwhile, among the undercard fights, Irish boxer Katie Taylor successfully defended her super lightweight world title against Puerto Rico’s Amanda Serrano.

But it was tight. Taylor claimed the rematch 95-94 for all three judges in an epic battle.

The bout came two and a half years after the pair fought at Madison Square Garden, which Taylor won on a split decision.

Bout suffered from buffering

Earlier in the evening thousands of Netflix users in the US reported problems seeing the coverage, with some posting on social media about buffering.

At one point, more than 98,000 people had reported issues according to Downdetector, which tracks outages.

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.

Please refresh the page for the fullest version.

You can receive Breaking News alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News App. You can also follow @SkyNews on X or subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.

Continue Reading

US

YouTuber Jake Paul strikes defeat against former boxing champ Mike Tyson in Texas

Published

on

By

YouTuber Jake Paul strikes defeat against former boxing champ Mike Tyson in Texas

YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul has defeated one of the greatest-ever fighters, former heavyweight world champion Mike Tyson, who’s more than twice his age.

The bout was won on a unanimous points decision at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas – home of the Dallas Cowboys and the biggest NFL stadium in the US.

The fight was already controversial but then arguably failed to live up to the hype. Boos were heard from the crowd in the final two rounds, after a perceived lack of action.

Mike Tyson, left, fights Jake Paul during their heavyweight boxing match, Friday, Nov. 15, 2024, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Image:
The heavyweight boxing match took place in Arlington, Texas. Pic: AP

Boxing careers compared

This was not Paul’s first professional fight. The 27-year-old American YouTube star made his debut in 2020 with his most high-profile clash against Tyson Fury’s brother Tommy Fury last year, which he lost by a split decision.

The so-called “Problem Child” has since defeated former UFC contender Nate Diaz, professional boxer Andre August, former Gold Gloves champion Ryan Bourland and most recently MMA fighter Mike Perry.

In contrast, “Iron Mike” Tyson, 58, was ranked among the best heavyweight boxers of all time.

More on Jake Paul

During his career, he knocked out 44 opponents – retiring from professional boxing in 2005 after defeat against Kevin McBride.

He returned to the ring in 2020 for a bout against fellow boxing icon Roy Jones, which ended in an unofficial draw.

Mike Tyson, left, fights Jake Paul during their heavyweight boxing match, Friday, Nov. 15, 2024, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Image:
Mike Tyson struggled at times against Jake Paul, 31 years his junior. Pic: AP

‘Someone’s getting put to sleep’

Earlier this week, Paul said he believed the bout would not go the distance. “No, someone’s getting put to sleep,” he said. “It’s going to be a war, and we’re both heavy hitters. It’s not going the full 16 minutes.”

Tyson was more reflective: “I’ve been through so many ups and downs since my last fight with Kevin McBride,” he said.

“I’ve been in rehab. I’ve been in prison, been locked up. Never in a million years did I believe I’d be doing this.”

Several states would not allow the bout to go ahead, and the Texas Athletic Commission only agreed to the fight if there were changes, due to Tyson’s age.

It limited the contest to eight rounds lasting a maximum of two minutes instead of three. Both boxers were also required to wear heavier gloves, designed to lessen the force of punches.

The fight was initially scheduled for 20 July, but was postponed when Tyson suffered an ulcer flareup.

Taylor defends title

Katie Taylor, center, celebrates after defeating Amanda Serrano during their undisputed super lightweight title bout, Friday, Nov. 15, 2024, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Image:
Katie Taylor celebrates after defeating Amanda Serrano in Texas. Pic: AP

Meanwhile, among the undercard fights, Irish boxer Katie Taylor successfully defended her super lightweight world title against Puerto Rico’s Amanda Serrano.

But it was tight. Taylor claimed the rematch 95-94 for all three judges in an epic battle.

The bout came two and a half years after the pair fought at Madison Square Garden, which Taylor won on a split decision.

Bout suffered from buffering

Earlier in the evening thousands of Netflix users in the US reported problems seeing the coverage, with some posting on social media about buffering.

At one point, more than 98,000 people had reported issues according to Downdetector, which tracks outages.

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.

Please refresh the page for the fullest version.

You can receive Breaking News alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News App. You can also follow @SkyNews on X or subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.

Continue Reading

Politics

Elon Musk ‘shot down’ OpenAI’s ICO plan in 2018 over credibility concerns

Published

on

By

<div>Elon Musk 'shot down' OpenAI's ICO plan in 2018 over credibility concerns</div>

According to a court filing, Elon Musk said that the proposed initial coin offering (ICO) “would simply result in a massive loss of credibility for OpenAI.”

Continue Reading

Trending