Alaska
High court allows correspondence school program law to stand
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — The Alaska Supreme Court has overturned a lower court ruling that said two statutes violated the state constitution by sending public funds to private schools.
The case centers on provisions of a state law passed a decade ago that allowed families with kids in correspondence school programs to receive reimbursements for instruction-related costs. The unanimous ruling Friday was a win for Gov. Mike Dunleavy, who backed the program.
More than 22,000 students are enrolled in correspondence schools, a type of homeschooling supported by local school districts. It’s used by families living in remote regions of Alaska, but some urban families have opted for correspondence programs instead of neighborhood schools.
At issue were provisions that said districts with correspondence programs must provide individual learning plans for correspondent students. Parents can use the funds to buy services and materials from a public, private or religious organization.
The lower court found those provisions violated the Alaska Constitution, which prohibits the use of public funds “for the direct benefit of any religious or other private educational institution.”
“This ruling means that the program is preserved, and families, the 22,000 families who are relying on it, can continue to do so for the coming school year,” “said Institute for Justice attorney Kirby Thomas West, who represented a group of families who use their correspondence school allotments on private school classes.
The state Supreme Court did not say whether using allotments at private schools is constitutional.
The court said because school districts approve vendors to be paid with allotment funds, the state was the wrong party to sue. The justices sent the case to the lower court to decide that point.
Attorney Scott Kendall, representing a group of public school parents who challenged the correspondence school statutes, said he’s optimistic.
“There’s zero indication from the court that they remotely think spending correspondence funds at a private school is allowable,” Kendall told Alaska Public Media. “While this will cause some delay in the ultimate outcome, we remain very, very confident that that will be the outcome.”
Arizona
Man gets life sentence on murder conviction in starvation death of 6-year-old son
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — A northern Arizona man has been sentenced to prison for the rest of his life on convictions including first-degree murder in the 2020 starvation death of his 6-year-old son, according to court proceedings.
A Coconino County judge sentenced Anthony Martinez, 28, on Friday to life in prison on the murder conviction, with additional prison sentences linked to child abuse and kidnapping convictions in the abuse of the deceased child and an older sibling.
Additionally, cumulative sentences of three years prison were added on two convictions for aggravated assault, which can be served concurrently or credited against time served.
The Arizona Daily Sun reported that Martinez declined to speak during the court hearing but wrote a letter to his children that was read aloud by a defense attorney, apologizing “for all the things I put you through.”
A legal representative for Martinez did not immediately respond to telephone and email messages seeking comment Saturday.
Presiding Judge Ted Reed cited aggravating factors in sentencing Martinez, describing the crimes as especially heinous and cruel while Martinez was in a position of trust as the children’s father. The judge also acknowledged that Martinez suffered through a traumatic childhood and that he had no prior felony convictions.
Authorities say the boy who died, Deshaun Martinez, was locked in a tiny bedroom closet for 16 hours a day over a month with his older brother as punishment for stealing food in the home at night while their parents slept.
An autopsy showed the boy weighed just 18 pounds (8.1 kilograms) when he died — well below average for his age. The manner of death was listed as a homicide.
The boy’s mother, Elizabeth Archibeque, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and child abuse and was sentenced in July 2023 to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Panama
Judge acquits 28 people accused in Panama Papers case, including law firm co-founder
PANAMA CITY (AP) — A judge has acquitted 28 people accused of money laundering in an international case known as the Panama Papers, including the co-founder of a law firm that authorities say was at the center of a conspiracy to hide money linked to illegal activities.
Jürgen Mossack founded Mossack & Fonseca with then associate Ramón Fonseca, who died in May. Mossack was acquitted on Friday along with others after a Panamanian judge found that the evidence against Mossack didn’t comply with the chain of custody after authorities raided the office of the now defunct firm.
Prosecutors had accused Mossack, Fonseca and others of creating offshore companies and using complex transactions to hide money from illegal activities related to the so-called car wash corruption scandal involving Brazilian construction company Odebrecht, which pleaded guilty in U.S. federal court to a charge related to using shell companies to hide millions of dollars in bribes paid worldwide to win public contracts.
The judge noted that other evidence in the Panama Papers case “was not sufficient and conclusive to determine the criminal responsibility of the accused.”
In addition, the judge lifted personal and property precautionary measures against all the defendants, according to a judicial statement.
“We feel satisfied in the midst of mixed emotions, because many lives were affected along the way,” Guillermina Mc Donald, who was the defense attorney for Mossack and Fonseca, told The Associated Press. Her firm also represented 80% of the accused firm’s collaborators.
Judge Balaoisa Marquínez had decided to combine the Panama Papers case with another known as “Operation Car Wash,” a major anti-corruption investigation that began in Brazil.
On Friday, she ruled that in the car wash case, “it was not possible to determine the entry of money from illicit sources, coming from Brazil, into the Panamanian financial system with the purpose of hiding, concealing, disguising or helping to evade the legal consequences of the preceding crime.”
In June 2022, Mossack, Fonseca and 37 other people were acquitted in a separate money laundering case.
The investigation in Brazil began in 2014, with the Mossack & Fonseca firm later coming under scrutiny after 11 million financial documents tied to the company were leaked.
The repercussions of the leak were widespread: it led to the resignation of a prime minister in Iceland and brought scrutiny to now former leaders of Argentina and Ukraine, Chinese politicians and Russian President Vladimir Putin, among others.
Pennsylvania
Former labor union president sentenced to 4 years in prison for embezzlement
READING, Pa. (AP) — The former president of a Philadelphia labor union has been sentenced to four years in prison for his role in what federal prosecutors said was embezzlement of more than $600,000 of union funds.
Brian Burrows, 64, of Mount Laurel, New Jersey, former president of Local 98 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, was also ordered Wednesday in federal court in Reading to forfeit almost $136,000 and to pay an amount of restitution to be determined later.
Burrows and John “Johnny Doc” Dougherty, the union’s longtime business manager, were convicted in December of conspiracy, embezzlement and other counts. Prosecutors said they used the money for items including home renovations, concerts, groceries and even a cookie tray for the christening of a relative’s baby.
Dougherty is scheduled to be sentenced July 11.
The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Burrows addressed the court for 45 minutes, portraying himself as a faithful steward of union funds who put thousands of dollars in pension benefits, health care, and profit-sharing checks back in the pockets of members.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Bea Witzleben noted that she hadn’t heard an apology and said Burrows seemed to be saying that if he saved union electricians money here and there “it was OK to steal from them.”
U.S. District Judge Jeffrey L. Schmehl criticized Burrows not only for an “egregious breach” of the trust of union members but for failing to stop wrongdoing by others, saying he had “clearly ignored the warning signs by auditors and other union officials.”
Dougherty, 63, was previously convicted of bribery for keeping a city council member on the union payroll to help keep a tight grip on construction jobs. The former council member, Bobby Henon, is serving a 3-1/2 year prison term.
Massachusetts
Former university lab manager convicted of staging hoax explosion at Boston campus
A former lab manager at Northeastern University has been convicted of staging a hoax explosion at the Boston campus and then lying about what happened to a federal agent.
Jason Duhaime, 46, from San Antonio, Texas, was convicted on three counts Friday by a federal jury. He faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for each offense.
Two attorneys representing Duhaime withdrew from the case in January, court documents show. A public defender who replaced them could not immediately be reached for comment Saturday.
Duhaime worked as the university’s new technology manager and director of the Immersive Media Lab. In September 2022, he called the university police to say he’d collected several packages from a mail area, including two Pelican hard plastic cases, and that when he opened one of the cases, it exploded and sharp objects flew out and injured his arms.
Duhaime’s 911 call sparked a major response from law enforcement, who evacuated the area and called in the bomb squad.
He showed police a letter he told them he’d found inside the case, which claimed the lab was trying to get people to live inside a virtual reality world and was secretly working with Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and the U.S. government.
“In the case you got today we could have planted explosives but not this time!!!” the note read, court documents show. “Take notice!!! You have 2 months to take operations down or else!!!!!”
But Duhaime’s story quickly unraveled, according to the FBI. They didn’t find anything in the cases and noted the letter appeared to be in pristine condition. The FBI said Duhaime had superficial injuries to his arms, but no damage to his shirt sleeves. And when agents searched Duhaime’s computer, they found a copy of the letter in a backup folder that he’d written a few hours before calling 911.
“Bomb hoaxes like the one the defendant fabricated here have real life consequences. Communities are put in fear, law enforcement personnel are diverted from other important duties and there are significant financial repercussions,” Acting U.S. Attorney Joshua Levy said in a statement. “As we experience a wave of bomb hoaxes in schools, houses of worship and other gathering places, we will work closely with our local, state and federal partners to hold accountable anyone who tries to inject fear and distress into our community.”
Duhaime is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 2.
High court allows correspondence school program law to stand
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — The Alaska Supreme Court has overturned a lower court ruling that said two statutes violated the state constitution by sending public funds to private schools.
The case centers on provisions of a state law passed a decade ago that allowed families with kids in correspondence school programs to receive reimbursements for instruction-related costs. The unanimous ruling Friday was a win for Gov. Mike Dunleavy, who backed the program.
More than 22,000 students are enrolled in correspondence schools, a type of homeschooling supported by local school districts. It’s used by families living in remote regions of Alaska, but some urban families have opted for correspondence programs instead of neighborhood schools.
At issue were provisions that said districts with correspondence programs must provide individual learning plans for correspondent students. Parents can use the funds to buy services and materials from a public, private or religious organization.
The lower court found those provisions violated the Alaska Constitution, which prohibits the use of public funds “for the direct benefit of any religious or other private educational institution.”
“This ruling means that the program is preserved, and families, the 22,000 families who are relying on it, can continue to do so for the coming school year,” “said Institute for Justice attorney Kirby Thomas West, who represented a group of families who use their correspondence school allotments on private school classes.
The state Supreme Court did not say whether using allotments at private schools is constitutional.
The court said because school districts approve vendors to be paid with allotment funds, the state was the wrong party to sue. The justices sent the case to the lower court to decide that point.
Attorney Scott Kendall, representing a group of public school parents who challenged the correspondence school statutes, said he’s optimistic.
“There’s zero indication from the court that they remotely think spending correspondence funds at a private school is allowable,” Kendall told Alaska Public Media. “While this will cause some delay in the ultimate outcome, we remain very, very confident that that will be the outcome.”
Arizona
Man gets life sentence on murder conviction in starvation death of 6-year-old son
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — A northern Arizona man has been sentenced to prison for the rest of his life on convictions including first-degree murder in the 2020 starvation death of his 6-year-old son, according to court proceedings.
A Coconino County judge sentenced Anthony Martinez, 28, on Friday to life in prison on the murder conviction, with additional prison sentences linked to child abuse and kidnapping convictions in the abuse of the deceased child and an older sibling.
Additionally, cumulative sentences of three years prison were added on two convictions for aggravated assault, which can be served concurrently or credited against time served.
The Arizona Daily Sun reported that Martinez declined to speak during the court hearing but wrote a letter to his children that was read aloud by a defense attorney, apologizing “for all the things I put you through.”
A legal representative for Martinez did not immediately respond to telephone and email messages seeking comment Saturday.
Presiding Judge Ted Reed cited aggravating factors in sentencing Martinez, describing the crimes as especially heinous and cruel while Martinez was in a position of trust as the children’s father. The judge also acknowledged that Martinez suffered through a traumatic childhood and that he had no prior felony convictions.
Authorities say the boy who died, Deshaun Martinez, was locked in a tiny bedroom closet for 16 hours a day over a month with his older brother as punishment for stealing food in the home at night while their parents slept.
An autopsy showed the boy weighed just 18 pounds (8.1 kilograms) when he died — well below average for his age. The manner of death was listed as a homicide.
The boy’s mother, Elizabeth Archibeque, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and child abuse and was sentenced in July 2023 to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Panama
Judge acquits 28 people accused in Panama Papers case, including law firm co-founder
PANAMA CITY (AP) — A judge has acquitted 28 people accused of money laundering in an international case known as the Panama Papers, including the co-founder of a law firm that authorities say was at the center of a conspiracy to hide money linked to illegal activities.
Jürgen Mossack founded Mossack & Fonseca with then associate Ramón Fonseca, who died in May. Mossack was acquitted on Friday along with others after a Panamanian judge found that the evidence against Mossack didn’t comply with the chain of custody after authorities raided the office of the now defunct firm.
Prosecutors had accused Mossack, Fonseca and others of creating offshore companies and using complex transactions to hide money from illegal activities related to the so-called car wash corruption scandal involving Brazilian construction company Odebrecht, which pleaded guilty in U.S. federal court to a charge related to using shell companies to hide millions of dollars in bribes paid worldwide to win public contracts.
The judge noted that other evidence in the Panama Papers case “was not sufficient and conclusive to determine the criminal responsibility of the accused.”
In addition, the judge lifted personal and property precautionary measures against all the defendants, according to a judicial statement.
“We feel satisfied in the midst of mixed emotions, because many lives were affected along the way,” Guillermina Mc Donald, who was the defense attorney for Mossack and Fonseca, told The Associated Press. Her firm also represented 80% of the accused firm’s collaborators.
Judge Balaoisa Marquínez had decided to combine the Panama Papers case with another known as “Operation Car Wash,” a major anti-corruption investigation that began in Brazil.
On Friday, she ruled that in the car wash case, “it was not possible to determine the entry of money from illicit sources, coming from Brazil, into the Panamanian financial system with the purpose of hiding, concealing, disguising or helping to evade the legal consequences of the preceding crime.”
In June 2022, Mossack, Fonseca and 37 other people were acquitted in a separate money laundering case.
The investigation in Brazil began in 2014, with the Mossack & Fonseca firm later coming under scrutiny after 11 million financial documents tied to the company were leaked.
The repercussions of the leak were widespread: it led to the resignation of a prime minister in Iceland and brought scrutiny to now former leaders of Argentina and Ukraine, Chinese politicians and Russian President Vladimir Putin, among others.
Pennsylvania
Former labor union president sentenced to 4 years in prison for embezzlement
READING, Pa. (AP) — The former president of a Philadelphia labor union has been sentenced to four years in prison for his role in what federal prosecutors said was embezzlement of more than $600,000 of union funds.
Brian Burrows, 64, of Mount Laurel, New Jersey, former president of Local 98 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, was also ordered Wednesday in federal court in Reading to forfeit almost $136,000 and to pay an amount of restitution to be determined later.
Burrows and John “Johnny Doc” Dougherty, the union’s longtime business manager, were convicted in December of conspiracy, embezzlement and other counts. Prosecutors said they used the money for items including home renovations, concerts, groceries and even a cookie tray for the christening of a relative’s baby.
Dougherty is scheduled to be sentenced July 11.
The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Burrows addressed the court for 45 minutes, portraying himself as a faithful steward of union funds who put thousands of dollars in pension benefits, health care, and profit-sharing checks back in the pockets of members.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Bea Witzleben noted that she hadn’t heard an apology and said Burrows seemed to be saying that if he saved union electricians money here and there “it was OK to steal from them.”
U.S. District Judge Jeffrey L. Schmehl criticized Burrows not only for an “egregious breach” of the trust of union members but for failing to stop wrongdoing by others, saying he had “clearly ignored the warning signs by auditors and other union officials.”
Dougherty, 63, was previously convicted of bribery for keeping a city council member on the union payroll to help keep a tight grip on construction jobs. The former council member, Bobby Henon, is serving a 3-1/2 year prison term.
Massachusetts
Former university lab manager convicted of staging hoax explosion at Boston campus
A former lab manager at Northeastern University has been convicted of staging a hoax explosion at the Boston campus and then lying about what happened to a federal agent.
Jason Duhaime, 46, from San Antonio, Texas, was convicted on three counts Friday by a federal jury. He faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for each offense.
Two attorneys representing Duhaime withdrew from the case in January, court documents show. A public defender who replaced them could not immediately be reached for comment Saturday.
Duhaime worked as the university’s new technology manager and director of the Immersive Media Lab. In September 2022, he called the university police to say he’d collected several packages from a mail area, including two Pelican hard plastic cases, and that when he opened one of the cases, it exploded and sharp objects flew out and injured his arms.
Duhaime’s 911 call sparked a major response from law enforcement, who evacuated the area and called in the bomb squad.
He showed police a letter he told them he’d found inside the case, which claimed the lab was trying to get people to live inside a virtual reality world and was secretly working with Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and the U.S. government.
“In the case you got today we could have planted explosives but not this time!!!” the note read, court documents show. “Take notice!!! You have 2 months to take operations down or else!!!!!”
But Duhaime’s story quickly unraveled, according to the FBI. They didn’t find anything in the cases and noted the letter appeared to be in pristine condition. The FBI said Duhaime had superficial injuries to his arms, but no damage to his shirt sleeves. And when agents searched Duhaime’s computer, they found a copy of the letter in a backup folder that he’d written a few hours before calling 911.
“Bomb hoaxes like the one the defendant fabricated here have real life consequences. Communities are put in fear, law enforcement personnel are diverted from other important duties and there are significant financial repercussions,” Acting U.S. Attorney Joshua Levy said in a statement. “As we experience a wave of bomb hoaxes in schools, houses of worship and other gathering places, we will work closely with our local, state and federal partners to hold accountable anyone who tries to inject fear and distress into our community.”
Duhaime is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 2.
