Former Minneapolis police officer Mohamed Noor was sentenced Friday by a Minnesota judge to 12½ years in prison for the fatal shooting of a woman while responding to her 911 call.

Noor, a 33-year-old Somali-American, was convicted April 20 on charges of third-degree murder and manslaughter in the death of Justine Ruszczyk, who had relocated from her native Australia to Minneapolis to live with her fiancé.

During the sentencing hearing, Ruszczyk's fiancé, Don Damond, read a letter in which he described weeping in a dress shop when he saw her wedding dress a week after her death.

"I had an experience of what that magical wedding night in Hawaii would have been like," he said. "I fantasized about seeing you walk on the beach in that dress toward me to exchange our vows. I fantasized kissing you as they designated us man and wife."But these are not memories but sad wishes of what will never be."

A judge on Friday rejected Google's motions to throw out a lawsuit brought by fired engineer James Damore accusing the internet company of discrimination against conservatives, men and white people.

The ruling by Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Brian Walsh means the case, which Damore exited late last year in favor of arbitration, can move forward into the discovery phase.

"This ruling is a significant step forward for all California workers, and sends notice to Silicon Valley that discrimination of any kind will not be escape legal scrutiny," lead plaintiffs' attorney Harmeet Dhillon said in a statement.

Baltimore police announced the arrest of one of their own on Thursday after reviewing officer-worn body cam footage painting a very different picture than what one of their senior officers reported.

Sgt. Ethan Newberg was charged with second-degree assault, misconduct and false imprisonment for allegedly attacking a man who did nothing wrong. The charges came after officials reviewed footage from his body-worn camera of an arrest earlier this week conducted by Newberg.

According to officials, Newberg, a 24-year veteran with the department, was running a warrant check and claimed a second man at the scene "challenged him and became combative and aggressive."

"The body worn camera that I reviewed tells a much different story," Baltimore Police Commissioner Michael Harrison said at a press conference Thursday. "It shows the man speaking to Sgt. Newberg and walking calmly away after offering his opinion that Sgt. Newberg should have not placed the suspect on a wet sidewalk."

What's the Latin for smartphone? Listeners to Vatican Radio may soon find out as the station has launched news bulletins in the language of Caesar and Cicero.

The move is part of efforts to revive the use of Latin and the first five-minute bulletin was broadcast on Saturday morning. Mere decades ago Latin was a staple in school systems in many European countries as well as being the language of all Roman Catholic services, however its use has waned significantly.

Mesa Police Chief Ramon Batista has responded to the results of a vote of no confidence against him.

In a statement released Wednesday, the Mesa Fraternal Order of Police said of the 564 police department employees who responded to the vote, 95% of them said they had no confidence in Chief Batista, with only 23 employees saying they had confidence in the chief.

"He is no longer welcome in the Mesa Police Department. He is no longer welcome in our home and we'd like him to leave," said Nate Gafvert, President with the Mesa Police Association.

"Morale has never been worse at the Mesa Police Department," said Will Biascoechea, President of Mesa Fraternal Order of Police, in the statement. "Through his ineffective leadership and intimidation of police officers, Chief Batista has created a toxic environment that puts both police officers and citizens in danger."

Potential serial killer has Detroit clearing vacant homes

Detroit Police have arrested the person of interest identified in the case of a potential serial killer and rapist who may be singling out sex workers on the city's east side.

Three victims, all believed to be sex workers, have been found dead at vacant east side homes in recent months, said Detroit Police Chief James Craig.

Police arrested DeAngelo Kenneth Martin, 34, who is known to be homeless at a bus stop in that part of town around 7:30 p.m. Friday, officials said in a press release.

"The world should know that what they're doing out here is crazy," said a man who refused to share his passcode with police.

William Montanez is used to getting stopped by the police in Tampa, Florida, for small-time traffic and marijuana violations; it's happened more than a dozen times. When they pulled him over last June, he didn't try to hide his pot, telling officers, "Yeah, I smoke it, there's a joint in the center console, you gonna arrest me for that?"

They did arrest him, not only for the marijuana but also for two small bottles they believed contained THC oil - a felony - and for having a firearm while committing that felony (they found a handgun in the glove box).

Then things got testy.

As they confiscated his two iPhones, a text message popped up on the locked screen of one of them: "OMG, did they find it?"

The officers demanded his passcodes, warning him they'd get warrants to search the cellphones. Montanez suspected that police were trying to fish for evidence of illegal activity. He also didn't want them seeing more personal things, including intimate pictures of his girlfriend.

So he refused, and was locked up on the drug and firearms charges.

A "feminist" protester who screamed "Nazi scum" in the face of an elderly Donald Trump supporter being pelted with a milkshake in London has left her job at the NHS, after hundreds signed a petition to have her sacked.

In video footage shot in London on Tuesday, Siobhan Prigent screams "Nazi scum!" into the face of an elderly Trump supporter, before the man is hit with a milkshake by another protester and almost set upon by the crowd.

Prigent, blond and clad in a t-shirt reading "F*ck Off Trump," also includes the eloquent variation "Naaaaazi" in her tirade.

A lawyer for the pro-Yellow Vest priest, filmed singing anti-Macron songs following mass, has told RT he will petition the Pope if French prosecutors bring charges against the cleric for insulting the office of the president.

Father Michel, a popular priest in the department of Eure in Normandy was filmed leading dozens of Yellow Vest supporters in a post-service chorus of "Macorn, moron" and "we're coming to get you." Shared thousands of times, the clip prompted angry local officials to lodge a complaint against the priest. If charges are filed, he could face legal action for talking politics in a place of worship and for failing to acknowledge the most sacred of French ideals - the separation of church and state.

However, Father Michel's lawyer, Philippe de Veulle, said that the investigation amounted to an "abuse of power" by the state and that his client did nothing wrong. De Veulle maintained that worshipers had broken into song because of the priest's support for the Yellow Vest movement and that priests were "free to sing" in the church after the ceremony had ended.

No, this is not at all an endorsement of the apocalyptic scenarios of AOC or that famous young Swedish climate expert, Greta. It is, however, a look at unusual weather disasters in several key growing regions from the USA to Australia, the Philippines and beyond that could dramatically affect food availability and prices in the coming year. That in turn could have major political implications depending on how the rest of the growing season develops.

USA Midwest Waterlogged

According to the latest May 20 report of the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) of the US Department of Agriculture, corn and soybean crops are well behind the planting growth levels normal this time of the planting season. They report that only 49% of all planned corn acreage in the US has been planted compared with 78% at this time a year ago. Of that only 19% has yet emerged from the ground compared to 47% in May 2018. In terms of soybeans, barely 19% of crops have yet been planted compared with 53% a year before. Rice acreage planted is down to 73% compared to 92% a year ago in the six US rice-growing states. Of course, should weather dramatically improve the final harvest numbers could improve. It is simply too early to predict.


The USA is by a wide margin the world largest soybean producer with 34 percent of the world's soybean production and 42% of world exports prior to the China trade battles. The US is also the world largest corn or maize producer, almost double China, the number two. A serious harvest failure in these two crops could significantly affect world food prices, leaving aside the unfortunate fact that almost all US soybeans and corn are GMO crops. They are mainly used in animal feed.

A major factor in the disruption of the US Midwest growing season is the fact that the past 12 months have seen the greatest precipitation levels since the US Government began keeping statistics in 1895, according to the US NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Record snowfall followed by abnormally heavy rains are the reason.