World
US Attorney General calls for end to cocaine sentencing disparity
Memos from the pinnacle of the US Justice Division take goal at drug insurance policies linked to excessive charges of Black incarceration.
United States Lawyer Basic Merrick Garland instructed federal prosecutors on Friday to finish disparities in the way in which they cost offences involving crack cocaine and powder cocaine.
The change, outlined in a pair of inner memos launched by the US justice division on Friday, is a significant win for felony justice reform advocates, who level out that the present sentencing regime has led to the disproportionate incarceration of Black Individuals because the coverage was adopted almost 40 years in the past.
Necessary minimal sentences for crack-related offences are at the moment 18 occasions lengthier than these for powder cocaine. The justice division has supported eliminating that disparity and a bipartisan group of lawmakers is engaged on laws that might considerably cut back it.
Within the memos, Garland instructs prosecutors to deal with “crack cocaine defendants no in another way than for defendants in powder cocaine circumstances” when they’re charging defendants and making sentencing suggestions.
In addition they instruct prosecutors to order expenses involving necessary minimal sentences to conditions wherein there are specific aggravating components, such because the management of an organised crime group.
Advocates welcomed the transfer however added that codifying the develop into legislation was key.
“At present’s announcement recognises this injustice and takes steps to lastly strike parity between powder and crack cocaine sentences when there are not any pharmacological variations within the substances,” Democratic Senator Cory Booker, a sponsor of the laws relating to cocaine sentencing, mentioned in a press release.
The transfer comes as Senate negotiators shut in on a deal to tuck a measure narrowing sentencing disparities between crack and powder cocaine right into a year-end spending invoice.
In 1986, Congress handed a legislation to determine necessary minimal sentences for drug trafficking offences, which handled crack and powder cocaine offences utilizing a 100-to-1 ratio. Beneath that method, an individual convicted for promoting 5gm of crack cocaine was handled the identical as somebody who offered 500gm of powder cocaine. That proportion was narrowed to 18-to-1 in 2010.
The steering from Garland goes into impact in 30 days. It doesn’t apply retroactively.
World
Video: South Korea’s Political Instability Deepens With New Impeachment
Lawmakers from South Korea’s governing party protested on Friday against a vote to impeach the country’s acting president, Han Duck-soo. The motion, which passed 192-0, came less than two weeks after President Yoon Suk Yeol was also ousted by the opposition in the National Assembly.
World
Man on vacation with family goes overboard on Norwegian cruise ship in Bahamas
The frantic search for a Norwegian Cruise Line passenger who went overboard has been called off.
A spokesperson for the cruise line confirmed to Fox News Digital that the 51-year-old went overboard from Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Epic late Thursday afternoon.
The incident was first noted at approximately 3 p.m. as Norwegian Epic was sailing from Ocho Rios, Jamaica en route to Great Stirrup Cay in the Bahamas.
The passenger was on the cruise with his family, the spokesperson said. The cruise left from Port Canaveral, Florida on Saturday, Dec. 21 and was a seven-night Western Caribbean voyage.
DISNEY CRUISE LINE NO LONGER ACCEPTING PHOTOCOPIES OF GUEST BIRTH CERTIFICATES
The cruise line said that authorities were quickly notified and search and rescue efforts were immediately implemented.
SOCIAL MEDIA USERS GET DRAMATIC AFTER CARNIVAL CRUISE SHIP HITS ICE IN ALASKA: ‘TITANIC MOMENT’
“After an extensive search that was unfortunately unsuccessful, the ship was released by the authorities to continue its voyage,” the spokesperson said.
Norwegian Cruise Line said the passenger’s loved ones on board were “being attended to and supported during this very challenging situation.”
“Our thoughts and prayers are with his loved ones during this difficult time,” the spokesperson added.
The Norwegian Epic, which was built in 2010 and refurbished in 2020, has 19 decks. It can accommodate 4,070 passengers with double occupancy of its cabins and has 1,724 crew members.
It was not immediately clear what caused the man to go overboard. The man has not been identified.
World
Olive oil, milk and cereals: How did food prices fluctuate in 2024?
After food prices soared in 2021 and 2022, over five essential food products saw price drops in 2024, including milk and cereals.
In 2024, agricultural prices in the European Union saw a modest decline, falling by 2% compared to 2023.
This price decline followed sharp increases in 2021 and 2022 that occurred due to the COVID-19 pandemic, extreme weather conditions and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Despite a surge in olive oil prices in 2024, the prices of cereals dropped by 15%, eggs by 8%, and vegetables and horticultural products declined by 2%.
The price of pigs and poultry also shrank by 7% and 8%, respectively.
According to Eurostat figures, milk prices decreased in 16 EU countries in 2024.
The sharpest decline was recorded in Finland with a 12% drop in prices, followed by Portugal with 10% and Spain with 8%.
By contrast, the sharpest increase was in Ireland with a 15% rise in prices, followed by Lithuania with 11% and Latvia with 10%.
In terms of production, the cost of seeds and veterinary services rose by 3%.
However, prices for fertilisers and soil improvers plummeted by 18%, food for animals by 11%, and plant protection products and pesticides by 2%.
Commission measures between farmers and buyers
After a year in which farmers have protested regularly, the EU Commission has presented an initiative to ensure they receive fair compensation and are no longer forced to sell products below production costs.
The proposed measures include mandatory written contracts that require buyers to clearly outline key terms such as price, quantity, and delivery timelines, taking into account market conditions and cost fluctuations.
The package also introduces a regulation to enhance enforcement of the Unfair Trading Practices (UTPs) Directive, which was adopted five years ago but remains largely unimplemented.
Video editor • Mert Can Yilmaz
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