Convicted murderer Alex Murdaugh has asked the South Carolina State Supreme Court to review a decision earlier this year that denied him a new trial based on jury tampering allegations. Murdaugh’s attorneys filed a motion this week requesting the state’s highest court review the lower court judge’s decision to deny Murdaugh a new trial, WYFF reported. He is also appealing his conviction to the state court of appeals. Murdaugh was found guilty in March 2023 for the murders of his wife, Maggie, and youngest son, Paul. Murdaugh’s allegations of jury tampering centered around former county clerk Rebecca “Becky” Hill, who worked on Murdaugh’s murder trial and wrote a book about the case. Murdaugh claimed that Hill influenced the jury to find him guilty so that she could sell a book about the trial. Murdaugh had attempted to use the allegations to get a new trial, but in January, Judge Jean Toal denied his bid even as she condemned Hill’s actions. Toal said Hill was “attracted by the siren call of celebrity” and that she “wanted to write a book about the trial and expressed that as early as November 2022, long before the trial began.” Hill has denied the allegations against her, but Toal determined that Hill had told another clerk and others of “her desire for a guilty verdict because it would sell books.” “She made comments about Murdaugh’s demeanor as he testified and she made some of those comments before he testified to at least one and maybe more jurors,” Toal said, according to CNN. “Did clerk of court Hill’s comments have any impact on the verdict of the jury? I find that the answer to this question is no.” Toal added that the jurors determined Murdaugh to be guilty “without fear or favor” but that Hill “allowed public attention of the moment to overcome her duty.” “I simply do not believe that the authority of our South Carolina Supreme Court requires a new trial in a very lengthy trial such as this on the strength of some fleeting and foolish comments by a publicity-influenced clerk of courts,” Toal said, according to CNN. But one juror answered “Yes, ma’am,” when the judge asked if Hill’s comments affected her vote. The juror later told the judge that she stood by an earlier sworn affidavit that said the other jurors influenced her to vote guilty more than Hill’s comments. In his closing arguments, Murdaugh attorney Jim Griffin cited case law while arguing that any communication from court staff to jurors is considered prejudicial, and that the defense proved Hill had prejudicial communications with jurors. He argued that “one of those jurors says it influenced my verdict. How is that not prejudice?” Hill resigned from her position in March and is now facing 76 counts of ethics violations, many pertaining to that trial.

House Republicans pressed Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson on Wednesday over concerns that the state’s voter registration partnership with President Joe Biden’s Small Business Administration unfairly benefits the president’s re-election campaign.  Small Business Committee Chair Roger Williams (R-TX) sent a letter to Benson demanding answers on the Memorandum of Understanding “to promote civic engagement and voter registration in Michigan.” According to Republicans, the agreement between Benson and the Small Business Administration appears to primarily target Democrat areas for voter registration.  “The SBA’s job is to help our nation’s small businesses,” the letter from Williams and Michigan House Republicans said. “Sadly, it appears the Biden Administration has abused the trust of the American taxpayer, betrayed the mission of the SBA, and weaponized the powers and resources of the federal government to serve his own re-election interests.” According to the letter, first reported by Fox News, the Small Business Administration has also favored Democrat areas for outreach events. The committee said that 39 of 52 small business events scheduled in Michigan from January to November 2024 are in counties favorable to Democrats. They also wrote that all of the visits by SBA Administrator Isabel Guzman and Deputy Administrator Dilawar Syed were at events in Democrat-favorable counties.  “While the SBA claims no actual voter registration efforts have occurred, it is curious that the SBA Administrator, appointed to help all small businesses thrive, has concentrated her efforts in areas key to the Biden campaign securing re-election,” the letter says.  In the letter, the committee asks Benson to provide all communications between Michigan Secretary of State employees and federal employees about the voter registration partnership and for details on whether Republicans have been invited to participate in business outreach events.  The letter cited an undercover video from investigative journalist James O’Keefe showing Guzman’s chief of staff appearing to say that the administration only did events with Democrats to help them get elected while ignoring Republicans. CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP Michigan GOP Rep. Lisa McClain said the partnership between Michigan and the Biden administration was problematic. “The United States is built upon the principle of free and fair elections, but the Biden administration seems to not care about upholding our democracy,” she said. “Instead, they’re using the taxpayer funded SBA to coordinate voter registration with Michigan’s Secretary of State. This is an unbelievable abuse of power that will ruin the integrity of our elections. I am gravely concerned about the SBA’s plot, and I will not rest until I get to the bottom of it.” Michigan’s collaboration with the SBA stems from an executive order issued by President Biden shortly after he took office requiring federal agencies to “consider ways to expand citizens’ opportunities to register to vote and to obtain information about, and participate in, the electoral process.” Michigan is expected to be one of the pivotal states for the 2024 election. According to an average of polls, former President Donald Trump holds a 0.6 percent lead over Biden.

The body of a man who disappeared during an avalanche on Peru’s highest mountain has been found, 22 years later. Bill Stampfl was climbing Peru’s 22,000-foot tall mountain, Huascaran, in 2002 when an avalanche struck, CBS News reported. His family knew that he was likely dead, but without a body, they could never know for sure. Stampfl’s daughter, Jennifer, told The New York Times that she had largely accepted her father’s death but still had dreams that he was alive in Peru with amnesia and unaware of his family back in the U.S. Stampfl’s son, Joseph, recently received a phone call from a stranger, Ryan Cooper, saying that he had found Stampfl’s body while climbing Huascaran. Cooper explained that he had found Stampfl’s body frozen but mostly intact. “It was so out of left field. We talk about my dad, we think about him all the time,” Joseph told CBS. “You just never think you are going to get that call.” Joseph soon called his sister to deliver the news. “He told me that they found Dad,” she told the Times. “And I said, ‘What?’” On June 27, Cooper and a group of climbers were making their way back down Huascaran when they saw a dark shape sitting atop the snow. He told the Times that as they approached, they realized they had discovered a body that was curled into a defensive position as if the person was trying to shield themself from an avalanche. Cooper told the Times that the body was sitting atop the ice. “Not like half of him was under the ice or anything — he was on top of the ice,” he told the outlet. Cooper added that the body appeared mummified, and it was clear it had been on the mountain for a “really long time.” The climbers checked a fanny pack on the body and found Stampfl’s still-legible ID card and passport. Cooper and his brother, the only two Americans in the group of climbers, decided to track down Stampfl’s family to deliver the news. “He still had his wedding ring on his finger,” he said, “So I knew he was married, and I knew he probably had a family and somebody was expecting him home at some point. And he didn’t come home.” Cooper told the Times that it was a coincidence they found Stampfl’s body. They couldn’t make it to the top of the mountain due to weather conditions, so they decided to take a rarely used older route down, which is how they found the body. Cooper told the outlet he was initially disappointed about failing to reach the mountain’s summit. “But after things worked out the way that they did, I realized I wasn’t meant to summit,” he said. “I was meant to find Bill.” Before Cooper had even descended the mountain, he contacted his wife in Las Vegas to begin tracking down Stampfl’s family. Two days later, Cooper was on the phone with Joseph. Stampfl’s body was recovered and is set to be cremated before being returned to his family. His wife, Janet, told CBS she is happy to bring her husband home. “We all just dearly loved my husband. He was one of a kind,” she told the outlet. “We’re very grateful we can bring his body home to rest.”

In a dramatic turn of events, two grenades were discovered at Honolulu's Daniel K. Inouye International Airport, prompting a swift evacuation and significant disruptions. The incident has raised serious concerns about airport security and the potential for terrorist activities on American soil. The discovery occurred early Tuesday morning when airport security personnel identified the explosives during a routine baggage screening. The grenades were found in the luggage of a passenger who has since been detained for questioning. The swift response by airport authorities averted a potential catastrophe, but the incident has left many travelers shaken and frustrated by the ensuing chaos. Two inert grenades were discovered in a passenger's carry-on luggage by TSA agents at Hawaii's Hilo International Airport causing the airport to be briefly evacuated. https://t.co/K7E6yDIZZx pic.twitter.com/L6Qd6qTkPl — CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) July 10, 2024 Upon the discovery, law enforcement officials quickly evacuated the airport, causing widespread panic among passengers and staff. Bomb disposal units were dispatched to the scene to safely remove and neutralize the threat. Flights were delayed, and thousands of passengers were left stranded as authorities secured the premises and conducted a thorough investigation. The incident underscores the ongoing challenges faced by airport security in detecting and preventing potential threats. Despite rigorous screening procedures, the presence of such dangerous items in a passenger's luggage raises questions about the effectiveness of current security measures. This breach highlights the need for constant vigilance and potential improvements in screening technologies and protocols. Hawaii Airport Forced to Evacuate After Two Grenades Found in Man's Carry-On Luggage, TSA Agents in Pittsburgh Stops Another Man Carrying Two Grenades READ: https://t.co/TfPQgF7GZ8 pic.twitter.com/Qqf4TEmzQz — The Gateway Pundit (@gatewaypundit) July 11, 2024 Republican lawmakers have seized on the incident to call for increased scrutiny and enhanced security measures at airports nationwide. They argue that the discovery of grenades at a major international airport is a stark reminder of the ever-present threat of terrorism and the need for robust national security policies. These calls for action come amid broader debates about border security and the importance of safeguarding American infrastructure. In the wake of the evacuation, travelers expressed their frustration with the delays and the lack of clear communication from airport officials. Many passengers were left in the dark about the reasons for the evacuation and the status of their flights, leading to confusion and anxiety. This incident has sparked a debate about how airports handle emergency situations and communicate with the public during crises. While the investigation is still ongoing, initial reports suggest that the passenger with the grenades may not have intended to carry out an attack. However, the presence of such dangerous items in a civilian setting is deeply troubling and underscores the potential for severe consequences. Authorities are now focused on understanding how the grenades made it through initial security checks and whether there was any malicious intent. The incident at Honolulu's airport is a stark reminder of the persistent threats faced by the nation and the importance of maintaining stringent security protocols. As the investigation continues, it is likely that more details will emerge about the circumstances surrounding the discovery. In the meantime, the incident serves as a wake-up call for both security agencies and the public to remain vigilant and proactive in the face of potential dangers. As America grapples with this latest security scare, the incident at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport will undoubtedly fuel ongoing discussions about national security, airport safety, and the measures needed to protect citizens from harm. The Republican push for stronger security policies may gain momentum as a result, emphasizing the need for a comprehensive approach to safeguarding the nation. The post Chaos at Hawaii Airport: Grenade Discovery Forces Evacuation appeared first on The Conservative Brief.

It’s important for any of us to know what’s in the food we’re eating. That said, this is all-the-more important for those of us with food allergens. In the United States, the USDA has a list of the “Big 9” food allergies. In other words, they’re the most common ones. This list includes soy, an ingredient found in a popular cake sold by Wegmans Food Markets. The problem, however, is that this product was not labeled properly. As a result, there is a recall on this cake. The supermarket chain announced the recall on their website. The product that contains soy is their “Kalo Gluten Free Carrot Cake Slices.” However, the product was mislabeled as “Gluten Free Chocolate Cake.” As a result, customers would be unaware of the fact that the food contains soy. Wegmans has stores in over 100 locations. They can be found in the District of Columbia as well as the following states: Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Steward Masweneng / Unsplash Products that are affected by this recall include the following UPC reading: 8-53407-00418-4. If you discover this product in your home, Wegmans is asking that you return the product to your place of purchase for a full refund. Cake Recall Includes One of the “Big 9” Allergens — Check Your Kitchen to Stay Safe At the moment, there is no news of whether or not these mislabeled products have resulted in an allergic reaction. It’s also unclear if the products have been entirely removed from shelves. Either way, any questions or concerns can be directed toward Wegman. Their website offers ways to contact them. This isn’t the only recent recall that is due to an allergen. Corn pancakes that contain milk have also been recalled for being improperly labeled, which you can learn more about here. And as always, stay safe, everyone! You can find the source of this story’s featured image here! The post Recall Alert: Cake Recalled Across Several States For Potential Allergic Reactions appeared first on InspireMore.

"As for ordering the assassination of a domestic political rival, that could be considered an “unofficial act” related to personal political interest," Finley said in an email to Check  Your Fact. "But there would have to be an extensive evidentiary hearing to determine whether the President was acting as a candidate or as commander in chief."

'They just want us to get out of here'

'the media has played a role in this'

A post shared on X claims that the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 wants to cut the military’s basic allowance for housing (BAH). THEY WANT TO CUT BAH ENTIRELY. PROJECT 2025 by @Heritage_Action does not think service members are deserving of housing allowances. YALL SHUT THE F UP and READ THIS pic.twitter.com/pwL6NaSWXx — Mal (@malhdavis) July 2, 2024 Verdict: […]

‘We’re seeing sabotage, we’re seeing assassination plots’