Month: July 2026

A Georgia father who bought his teenage son the firearm utilized in a fatal 2024 school shooting was sentenced Thursday to 15 years in state prison. Colin Gray, 55, learned his fate in Barrow County Superior Court after a jury previously found him guilty on 27 counts, including second-degree murder, involuntary manslaughter, child cruelty, and reckless conduct. Prosecutors had sought an 80-year term, whereas the defense requested a reduced sentence with ten years behind bars.

The legal outcome follows the sentencing earlier in the week of his son, Colt Gray, who received life in prison without parole after admitting guilt to 55 charges, including murder. The younger Gray was 14 years old in September 2024 when he brought the weapon to Apalachee High School in Winder, roughly 45 miles northeast of Atlanta. The shooting claimed the lives of 14-year-old students Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, along with educators Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Cristina Irimie, 53, while wounding nine others.

Presiding over both proceedings, Chief Judge Nicholas Primm delivered a stern assessment of the father’s conduct, addressing Colin Gray directly from the bench. “It is clear you failed as a parent,” Primm stated during the hearing, noting that “the warning lights were flashing brighter and brighter and you didn’t get him help”. However, the judge explained that the law required balancing the severity of the tragic outcome with the legal boundaries of crimes rooted in criminal negligence rather than direct intent.

The case sets a landmark precedent in American jurisprudence, marking the first time a parent has been convicted of second-degree murder for supplying a weapon used in a mass shooting by their child. The conviction builds on a growing trend among legal authorities seeking to hold parents criminally responsible when their children gain access to household firearms and carry out acts of violence.

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President Donald Trump suggested Thursday that he could temporarily retract Todd Blanche’s nomination for attorney general, escalating an internal party confrontation with two Senate Republicans whose opposition has stalled the confirmation process. Writing on social media, Trump indicated that Blanche, his former personal defense lawyer currently functioning in an interim capacity, would remain as acting attorney general regardless of whether the Senate moves forward with a formal confirmation vote.

The dispute centers on pushback from Sens. John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina, both of whom have withheld support for the nominee. In his post, Trump praised his appointee, stating, “Todd Blanche is a STAR, and everyone knows it!” before proposing a procedural delay to circumvent the lawmakers. “I have no objection to temporarily withdrawing Todd’s name, if they do not do the right thing, and putting him back after Cornyn and Tillis are out of office,” Trump declared, noting that both senators are slated to exit the Senate next year.

The Senate Judiciary Committee, led by Sen. Chuck Grassley, postponed a scheduled Thursday panel vote to advance Blanche following the deadlock. Cornyn and Tillis have demanded formal written commitments from the Department of Justice regarding the resolution of Trump’s tax lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service and the complete dismantling of a proposed $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund”. Responding to the president’s comments online, Cornyn cautioned that “POTUS is mistaken if he believes concerns about the provisions in his tax lawsuit settlement are limited to me and Senator Tillis”.

Under federal law governing Justice Department vacancies, Blanche can continue serving as acting attorney general without Senate approval, effectively allowing the executive branch to maintain its leadership structure without making legislative concessions. However, political strategists note that deferring the confirmation carries risks for the administration, as upcoming midterm elections could alter the Senate’s current 53-47 Republican majority before Blanche can be renominated.

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The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee is preparing to vote next week on whether to hold Dr. Anthony Fauci in contempt of Congress after the retired public health official repeatedly asserted his Fifth Amendment rights during a contentious committee appearance.

Panel chairman Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., announced the upcoming vote following a three-hour session on Wednesday where the former top infectious disease specialist declined to field questions regarding his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. Paul asserted that Fauci no longer possesses constitutional protection against self-incrimination because of a comprehensive presidential pardon granted by former President Joe Biden. The Kentucky lawmaker argued that this immunity shields the long-serving scientist from criminal liability, provided his testimony is truthful. Republican members also contended that Fauci effectively waived his Fifth Amendment rights by presenting an opening statement prior to refusing subsequent questions.

Throughout the proceedings, Fauci stood firm in his refusal to engage, consistently stating, “On the advice of counsel, I respectfully decline to answer based upon my rights under the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution.” The former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases defended his silence by calling the hearing politically motivated, arguing that “the only conclusion I can reach is that the sole reason [Paul] is calling me before this committee is to get me to say something, anything that could vindicate his repeated public pledges that I end up, in his words, ‘behind bars.’” Fauci has previously characterized claims that he lied to Congress as “preposterous.”

The hearing highlighted deep partisan divisions over the country’s pandemic response. Republican lawmakers accused Fauci of eroding public trust and misleading lawmakers on virus origins, with Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., asking during one sharp exchange, “Well, nothing says honesty like taking the 5th, huh, doc?” Committee Democrats strongly defended the 85-year-old physician, framing the hearing as a partisan campaign against a dedicated public servant with more than five decades of medical service. However, with Republicans holding an 8-7 majority on the panel, the committee possesses the votes required to advance a contempt resolution.

If approved by the committee, the citation would move to the full Senate, where Democrats could potentially block it using procedural filibusters. Legal experts emphasize that invoking the Fifth Amendment does not constitute an admission of wrongdoing, and the broader legal debate regarding how presidential pardons intersect with congressional subpoena power may ultimately require resolution in federal court.

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The Federal Reserve opted to maintain its benchmark interest rate in the target range of 3.5% to 3.75% on Wednesday, marking a continued pause in monetary policy adjustments despite ongoing pressure from above-target inflation. The decision by the Federal Open Market Committee left key borrowing costs unchanged, as policymakers weighed stable economic expansion against stubborn price increases across key consumer sectors.

The policy outcome was approved through a 9-3 vote, revealing internal friction among central bank leaders. Three regional bank presidents dissented from the majority stance, having “preferred” an immediate quarter-percentage-point increase to counteract persistent inflationary trends. Central bank officials maintained the benchmark range “in support of the Federal Reserve’s dual mandate” to foster maximum employment while securing stable long-term prices.

In its official policy statement, the central bank underscored that “Economic activity is expanding at a solid pace despite elevated uncertainty that owes, in part, to the conflict in the Middle East,” adding that “Job gains have kept pace with the workforce, and the unemployment rate has changed little”. Despite robust employment metrics and strong corporate expenditures in artificial intelligence infrastructure, central bankers acknowledged that “Inflation remains elevated relative to the Committee’s 2 percent goal, in part reflecting supply shocks that have driven price increases in certain sectors, including energy”.

Under the leadership of Fed Chair Kevin Warsh, who took charge earlier this year, the committee reiterated its determination to curb living costs, declaring that “The Committee will deliver price stability”. Warsh has previously signaled “no tolerance” for lingering price pressures, though the committee chose to keep borrowing costs static to evaluate how existing restrictions cool the broader marketplace.

Financial markets continue to monitor future central bank directives closely as investors weigh the likelihood of policy shifts later in the year. While underlying economic growth remains firm, persistent price pressures and energy market volatility maintain significant pressure on future monetary decisions.

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