National Roundup

Maine
State senator wants reforms for drug sentencing rules
BRUNSWICK, Maine (AP) — Maine’s independent senator said he supports a proposal to change federal mandatory drug sentencing policies to allow more flexibility.

Sen. Angus King said the Smarter Sentencing Act would give federal judges authority to conduct individualized reviews to determine appropriate sentences for some nonviolent drug offenses. He said the country’s “one-size-fits-all” approach to sentencing has unfairly resulted in nonviolent offenders spending decades in prison.

The act has the support of a group of senators that includes mostly Democrats along with Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah.

King said it’s “clearly past time to push this bill over the finish line as we continue our efforts to make sure punishments fit the crime.”

Pennsylvania
Philly lawyer Sprague, active in civic affairs, dies at 95
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Richard A. Sprague, a prominent Philadelphia lawyer who prosecuted murderers, won high-stakes civil lawsuits and was deeply influential in state and city political and civic affairs died Saturday evening, a funeral home confirmed.

Sprague, 95, passed away in his home in Haverford, said funeral director Elliot Rosen with Joseph Levine and Sons Memorial Chapel Inc., which is handling arrangements. A livestreamed service is planned for Thursday.

Sprague  served as chief counsel and director of the U.S. House of Representatives’ Select Committee on Assassinations, which probed the killings of President John F. Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Rosen called Sprague “a remarkable professional who I think brought great honor to our community in all the roles he served for the community and as an attorney.”

The Philadelphia Inquirer said Sprague’s list of clients included basketball star Allen Iverson, former Mayor Frank Rizzo, former State Sen. Vincent J. Fumo, famed defense attorney F. Lee Bailey and the late Inquirer owners, Lewis Katz and H.F. Gerry Lenfest.

Pennsylvania state courts turned to him repeatedly over many years to serve on boards and other entities, including the Court of Judicial Discipline, which presides over allegations that judges have misbehaved.

In 2016, he was part of a group, with retired state Supreme Court justices, that challenged a decision by lawmakers to rewrite a ballot question making it more likely that voters would approve loosening an existing retirement age limit for judges.

The paper said Sprague helped send hundreds of murderers to prison during 17 years with the city district attorney’s office.

Alaska
Family of man killed by police file civil lawsuit
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — The mother and brother of a man who was shot and killed by three Anchorage police officers in 2019 have filed a civil lawsuit this week that asks for $20 million from the municipality, the involved officers and other municipal employees.

Bishar Hassan, 31, was shot and killed on April 1, 2019, by officers Nathan Lewis, Matthew Hall and Brett Eggiman, the Anchorage Daily News reported  Friday.

None of the officers wore body cameras, but the police vehicles were equipped with dash cameras that captured footage of what happened in front of their vehicles.

An investigation into the shooting by the assistant attorney general for the Office of Special Prosecutions, John Darnall, determined that none of the officers involved would face criminal charges in Hassan’s death.

Rex Lamont Butler, the attorney representing Hassan’s family, said the video footage provides compelling evidence for their case.

“I think some people will look and see what they want to see,” Butler said. “But if you take the time to analyze it, it shows a situation without any process whatsoever. This young man is gunned down in the streets.”

On that day, police responded to reports of a man waving what looked like a black handgun. The man got on a bus and shortly afterward, Hall saw Hassan walking and noted that he matched the description of the armed man, Darnall said in the Office of Special Prosecutions report.

Hall drove his patrol vehicle onto the sidewalk and Lewis and Eggiman parked alongside him.

Police claim Hassan began approaching the officers. The investigative report said Hassan “reached into his right pants waistband and began pulling up (what) appeared to be a handgun.”

Police Chief Justin Doll told reporters after the shooting that Hassan pointed a gun at officers and all three fired at him.

The lawsuit filed by Hassan’s family Wednesday disputes the police narrative.

They said Hassan began to walk toward the patrol vehicle but stopped when Hall stepped out of his vehicle and put his hand on his firearm, said the civil complaint.

Hassan told the officer that he had a toy gun and spoke loudly enough that “Hall heard or should have heard” him speaking, the complaint said.

“(Hassan) did not point the toy gun at any of the officers before he was shot,” the complaint said.

Police identified the false handgun as a Daisy Powerline 340 BB Repeater Pistol.

“Hall, Lewis and Eggiman continued shooting (Hassan) even after it was obvious or after it should have been obvious to them that (Hassan) had dropped the fake gun and fallen to the ground,” the complaint said.

Hassan’s family said the police’s use of force was excessive. The officers attempted to administer aid to Hassan, but he later died from the gunshot wounds.

Texas
Pilot accused of indecent exposure during flight
DALLAS (AP) — Federal authorities have charged a former Southwest Airlines pilot with indecent exposure for an incident they say occurred during a flight last August.

Michael Haak was the pilot in command of the plane during a flight from Philadelphia to Orlando, Florida, according to a one-page filing in federal district court in Maryland.

According to the document, which was dated Friday, Haak exposed his genitals in acts that began, continued and ended while flight 6607 on Aug. 10 was in the air. The document did not indicate the circumstances and who might have witnessed the incident.

A Southwest spokeswoman said no passengers witnessed the incident; the pilots were the only people aboard aware of the incident.

The airline spokeswoman said Haak left the airline before the company was aware of the incident. Since learning of it, she said, Southwest cooperated with investigators.