Congress to probe Fort Hood in Texas after soldier deaths
AUSTIN, Texas — Congress will launch an investigation into sexual assault, disappearances, deaths and the leadership’s response at Fort Hood after 28 soldiers stationed at the U.S. Army base in Texas died this year, two subcommittee leaders announced Tuesday.
According to data from Fort Hood officials, the 28 deaths include five homicides, as well as accidents, suicides, deaths related to illness, cases still under investigation and one combatrelated death.
Democratic Reps. Stephen Lynch of Massachusetts and Jackie Speier of California sent a letter to Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy requesting documents and information on the deaths. Lynch chairs the Committee on Oversight and Reform’s Subcommittee on National Security, and Speier leads the Committee on Armed Services’ Subcommittee on Military Personnel.
According to the letter, the subcommittees will jointly investigate if recent deaths “may be symptomatic of underlying leadership, discipline, and morale deficiencies throughout the chain-of-command.”
The letter said that according to Army data there were an average of 129 felonies committed annually at Fort Hood between 2014 and 2019, including cases of homicide, sexual assault, kidnapping, robbery and aggravated assault.
The members of Congress cited the deaths of Spc. Vanessa Guillen, who according to federal officials was bludgeoned to death at the Texas base in April by a fellow soldier, and Pvt. Gregory Morales, whose remains were found in June while searching for Guillen. Morales was reported missing in August 2019.
Navy search: The U.S. Navy said Tuesday that it halted its search for a sailor believed to have gone overboard from the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz in the northern Arabian Sea.
The Navy identified the missing sailor as Information Systems Technician 2nd Class Ian McKnight. He disappeared Sunday, sparking a shipwide search before the Navy sounded a “man overboard” alert for him.
The Navy said an investigation continued into McKnight’s disappearance.
Investigation of postmaster: House Democrats said Tuesday that they will investigate whether Postmaster General Louis DeJoy encouraged employees at his former business to contribute to Republican candidates and then reimbursed them in the guise of bonuses, a violation of campaign finance laws.
Five people who worked for DeJoy’s former company, New Breed Logistics, say they were urged by DeJoy’s aides or by DeJoy himself to write checks and attend fundraisers at his mansion in Greensboro, North Carolina, The Washington Post reported. Two former employees told the newspaper that DeJoy would later give bigger bonuses to reimburse for the contributions.
It’s not illegal to encourage employees to contribute to candidates, but it is illegal to reimburse them as a way of avoiding federal campaign contribution limits.
Monty Hagler, a private spokesperson for DeJoy, said in a statement that DeJoy was unaware any workers felt pressure to make donations. Hagler also said DeJoy believes he has always complied with campaign fundraising laws and regulations.
Charges in cop’s slaying:
Three teenagers were charged Tuesday with fatally shooting a Cleveland police detective and another man during what authorities said was a robbery attempt.
David McDaniel Jr., 18, of Cleveland, was charged with two counts of aggravated murder in Cleveland Municipal Court, records show. A 17-year-old male and 15-year-old male, who were not identified because of their ages, faces aggravated murder, aggravated robbery and felonious assault charges in Cuyahoga County Juvenile Court.
McDaniel and the two juveniles are accused of killing Cleveland police detective James Skernivitz, 53, and Scott Dingess, 50, as they sat in Skernivitz’s unmarked police car Thursday night.
U.S. census: Two days after a federal judge ordered the U.S. Census Bureau to stop winding down 2020 census operations for the time being, the statistical agency said Tuesday in court papers that it’s refraining from laying off some census takers and it’s restoring some quality-control steps.
The temporary restraining order issued late Saturday by U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, California, stops the Census Bureau from winding down operations until a court hearing for a preliminary injunction is held Sept. 17.
The temporary restraining order was requested by a coalition of cities, counties and civil rights groups that had sued the Census Bureau, demanding it restore its previous plan for finishing the census at the end of October, instead of using a revised plan to end operations at the end of September. The coalition had argued the earlier deadline would cause the Census Bureau to overlook minority communities in the census, leading to an inaccurate count.
Belarus activist held: A leading opposition activist in Belarus was held on the border with Ukraine on Tuesday after she resisted an attempt by authorities to deport her as part of government efforts to end a month of protests against authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko.
Maria Kolesnikova, a member of the Coordination Council created by the opposition to facilitate talks with the longtime leader on a transition of power, had been detained Monday in the capital of Minsk along with two other council members.
Israel-UAE signing: Israel and the United Arab Emirates will sign their historic deal normalizing relations at a White House ceremony Sept. 15, U.S. officials said Tuesday.
The ceremony will come just a month after the agreement to establish full diplomatic relations was announced Aug. 13. The historic deal delivered a key foreign policy victory to President Donald Trump as he seeks reelection and reflected a changing Middle East in which shared concerns about archenemy Iran have largely overtaken traditional Arab support for the Palestinians.
Kanye West run: Kanye West will appear as a presidential candidate on Mississippi’s ballot in November, after being approved as a qualified candidate by the State Board of Election Commissioners on Tuesday.
The rapper has already qualified to appear on the ballot as an independent candidate in several states, including Arkansas, Idaho, Iowa, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Utah.