New York
Man who stabbed woman to death in her apartment sentenced to 30 years to life
NEW YORK (AP) — A man who followed a woman from the street up six flights of stairs into her New York City apartment and stabbed her to death was sentenced Tuesday to 30 years to life in prison.
Assamad Nash, 27, was sentenced in Manhattan state Supreme Court for the Feb. 13, 2022, murder of 35-year-old Christina Yuna Lee.
Nash had pleaded guilty on June 18 to one count each of murder and burglary as a sexually motivated felony.
Prosecutors said Lee was returning home to her building in Manhattan’s Chinatown when Nash followed her up the stairs and into her apartment. They said Nash pushed his way inside and attempted to sexually assault her.
Neighbors heard Lee struggling with Nash and called 911, but it took police more than an hour to break the door down and get inside the apartment. They found Lee dead in the bathroom with at least 40 stab wounds.
“Christina Yuna Lee was killed in an unthinkably horrific manner in her own apartment at the hands of Assamad Nash,” District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in a statement. Bragg said Lee’s death “not only devastated her family but left a lasting impact on an entire community.”
Lee worked as a senior creative producer at Splice, an online platform for digital music.
Some in New York’s Asian-American community feared that the murder of Lee, who was Korean American, was part of a wave of anti-Asian violence during the coronavirus pandemic. But Nash was not charged with a hate crime.
Alabama
City and company to refund speeding tickets
TUSKEGEE, Ala. (AP) — Hundreds of local drivers who paid fines from speeding cameras installed by a multibillion dollar company will get full refunds, an Alabama mayor confirmed.
In January, the city of Tuskegee hired German company Jenoptik to install speeding cameras. Last week, the mayor of Tuskegee Lawrence Haygood said all drivers who had been fined would get their money back, CBS42 reported. Many drivers were getting close to ten fines over $100 before receiving a citation in the mail.
The city “decided to suspend the program due to several complications with the camera ticket program and based on advice of legal counsel,” Haygood said in an email. “Initially, we did not have full understanding of some of the potential challenges in implementation of the program.”
Months after the cameras were installed, eight Tuskegee drivers filed a lawsuit that said the cameras incorrectly identified speeding cars and charged $25 to appeal the traffic ticket in court. The lawsuit said that these alleged factors breach the right to due process established in the state constitution. Mayor Haygood said that the decision to refund the tickets was unrelated to the lawsuit.
Mayor Haygood said the cameras were initially installed after numerous complaints about excessive speeding across the city. He added that the tickets weren’t intended to be used as a source of revenue, which is illegal under a state law passed in 2022.
The traffic camera company, Jenoptik, has installed road safety technology in over 80 countries around the world, according to its website. It has similar speed cameras in numerous cities across the United States. Both the city and Jenoptik will be responsible for the refunds.
Alabama
83-year-old former legislator sentenced to 13 months in prison for kickback plot
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — The longest-serving member of the Alabama House of Representatives was sentenced to 13 months in federal prison Tuesday on charges of federal conspiracy and obstruction of justice, despite an earlier nonbinding plea agreement that gave the 83-year-old a more lenient sentence to be served at home.
John Rogers was also charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud and one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice, as part of a kickback scheme that diverted hundreds of thousands of dollars from a fund intended to pay for community projects in Jefferson County.
“What’s important is that we sent a message to future lawmakers,” George Martin, the federal prosecutor, said outside of the courthouse in Birmingham after the decision. “You will get caught and you will go to jail. So just don’t do it.”
Rogers is a Democrat from Birmingham first elected to the Alabama Legislature in 1982.
Between 2018 and 2022 federal prosecutors said that Rogers directed $400,000 to a youth sports organization run by then-Rep. Fred Plump. Federal prosecutors said that Plump then gave approximately $200,000 of that money back to Rogers and his former legislative aid Varrie Johnson Kindall. The kickbacks occurred before Plump took office.
Plump and Kindall were both sentenced to 12 months in prison last week for the kickback scheme. Kindall was also sentenced to an additional two years on separate charges related to stolen retirement funds.
Rogers initially agreed to a non-binding plea agreement in March. Federal prosecutors agreed to recommend a 14 month sentence to be served at home in exchange for Rogers’ resignation from the Alabama House of Representatives and a repayment of $197,950.
But the prosecutors rescinded the offer after Rogers’ attorney filed a document that stated Rogers didn’t remember conversations related to the obstruction charge, undermining the former lawmaker’s admission of guilt, prosecutors argued. On Tuesday, prosecutors recommended 14 months served in a federal prison.
Ultimately the judge said the disagreement over the initial plea agreement didn’t factor into his decision to sentence the 83-year-old to 13 months in prison.
“You’ve done great things, but you also did this, which is bad” U.S. District Judge Scott Coogler said in court, addressing the former legislator. He added that Rogers was “more culpable” than the other people involved because he used the money for himself, whereas Plump only helped in the kickback, but did not personally benefit.
Rogers’ attorney’s expressed disagreement with the judge’s decision, repeating concerns about Rogers’ health conditions, which include prostate cancer, diabetes and a prescription for dialysis.
Lawyers said that Rogers “has resigned his office and has accepted the embarrassment and humiliation that comes with his resignation under these circumstances. He let down not only his constituents and the people of Alabama but also the office that he held for more than 40 years.”
Rogers gave an emotional and apologetic testimony to the judge ahead of sentencing.
“I’m sorry for the whole escapade, I take full responsibility for it. I regret it,” Rogers said through tears.
Rogers’ attorney said he didn’t know whether the sentence would be appealed.
Man who stabbed woman to death in her apartment sentenced to 30 years to life
NEW YORK (AP) — A man who followed a woman from the street up six flights of stairs into her New York City apartment and stabbed her to death was sentenced Tuesday to 30 years to life in prison.
Assamad Nash, 27, was sentenced in Manhattan state Supreme Court for the Feb. 13, 2022, murder of 35-year-old Christina Yuna Lee.
Nash had pleaded guilty on June 18 to one count each of murder and burglary as a sexually motivated felony.
Prosecutors said Lee was returning home to her building in Manhattan’s Chinatown when Nash followed her up the stairs and into her apartment. They said Nash pushed his way inside and attempted to sexually assault her.
Neighbors heard Lee struggling with Nash and called 911, but it took police more than an hour to break the door down and get inside the apartment. They found Lee dead in the bathroom with at least 40 stab wounds.
“Christina Yuna Lee was killed in an unthinkably horrific manner in her own apartment at the hands of Assamad Nash,” District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in a statement. Bragg said Lee’s death “not only devastated her family but left a lasting impact on an entire community.”
Lee worked as a senior creative producer at Splice, an online platform for digital music.
Some in New York’s Asian-American community feared that the murder of Lee, who was Korean American, was part of a wave of anti-Asian violence during the coronavirus pandemic. But Nash was not charged with a hate crime.
Alabama
City and company to refund speeding tickets
TUSKEGEE, Ala. (AP) — Hundreds of local drivers who paid fines from speeding cameras installed by a multibillion dollar company will get full refunds, an Alabama mayor confirmed.
In January, the city of Tuskegee hired German company Jenoptik to install speeding cameras. Last week, the mayor of Tuskegee Lawrence Haygood said all drivers who had been fined would get their money back, CBS42 reported. Many drivers were getting close to ten fines over $100 before receiving a citation in the mail.
The city “decided to suspend the program due to several complications with the camera ticket program and based on advice of legal counsel,” Haygood said in an email. “Initially, we did not have full understanding of some of the potential challenges in implementation of the program.”
Months after the cameras were installed, eight Tuskegee drivers filed a lawsuit that said the cameras incorrectly identified speeding cars and charged $25 to appeal the traffic ticket in court. The lawsuit said that these alleged factors breach the right to due process established in the state constitution. Mayor Haygood said that the decision to refund the tickets was unrelated to the lawsuit.
Mayor Haygood said the cameras were initially installed after numerous complaints about excessive speeding across the city. He added that the tickets weren’t intended to be used as a source of revenue, which is illegal under a state law passed in 2022.
The traffic camera company, Jenoptik, has installed road safety technology in over 80 countries around the world, according to its website. It has similar speed cameras in numerous cities across the United States. Both the city and Jenoptik will be responsible for the refunds.
Alabama
83-year-old former legislator sentenced to 13 months in prison for kickback plot
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — The longest-serving member of the Alabama House of Representatives was sentenced to 13 months in federal prison Tuesday on charges of federal conspiracy and obstruction of justice, despite an earlier nonbinding plea agreement that gave the 83-year-old a more lenient sentence to be served at home.
John Rogers was also charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud and one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice, as part of a kickback scheme that diverted hundreds of thousands of dollars from a fund intended to pay for community projects in Jefferson County.
“What’s important is that we sent a message to future lawmakers,” George Martin, the federal prosecutor, said outside of the courthouse in Birmingham after the decision. “You will get caught and you will go to jail. So just don’t do it.”
Rogers is a Democrat from Birmingham first elected to the Alabama Legislature in 1982.
Between 2018 and 2022 federal prosecutors said that Rogers directed $400,000 to a youth sports organization run by then-Rep. Fred Plump. Federal prosecutors said that Plump then gave approximately $200,000 of that money back to Rogers and his former legislative aid Varrie Johnson Kindall. The kickbacks occurred before Plump took office.
Plump and Kindall were both sentenced to 12 months in prison last week for the kickback scheme. Kindall was also sentenced to an additional two years on separate charges related to stolen retirement funds.
Rogers initially agreed to a non-binding plea agreement in March. Federal prosecutors agreed to recommend a 14 month sentence to be served at home in exchange for Rogers’ resignation from the Alabama House of Representatives and a repayment of $197,950.
But the prosecutors rescinded the offer after Rogers’ attorney filed a document that stated Rogers didn’t remember conversations related to the obstruction charge, undermining the former lawmaker’s admission of guilt, prosecutors argued. On Tuesday, prosecutors recommended 14 months served in a federal prison.
Ultimately the judge said the disagreement over the initial plea agreement didn’t factor into his decision to sentence the 83-year-old to 13 months in prison.
“You’ve done great things, but you also did this, which is bad” U.S. District Judge Scott Coogler said in court, addressing the former legislator. He added that Rogers was “more culpable” than the other people involved because he used the money for himself, whereas Plump only helped in the kickback, but did not personally benefit.
Rogers’ attorney’s expressed disagreement with the judge’s decision, repeating concerns about Rogers’ health conditions, which include prostate cancer, diabetes and a prescription for dialysis.
Lawyers said that Rogers “has resigned his office and has accepted the embarrassment and humiliation that comes with his resignation under these circumstances. He let down not only his constituents and the people of Alabama but also the office that he held for more than 40 years.”
Rogers gave an emotional and apologetic testimony to the judge ahead of sentencing.
“I’m sorry for the whole escapade, I take full responsibility for it. I regret it,” Rogers said through tears.
Rogers’ attorney said he didn’t know whether the sentence would be appealed.
