Suspect arrested in NYC attack on Asian American woman
NEW YORK — A parolee convicted of killing his mother nearly two decades ago was arrested on assault and hate crime charges in an attack on an Asian American woman in New York City, police said Wednesday.
Police said Brandon Elliot, 38, is the man seen on surveillance video kicking and stomping the woman Monday near Times Square. They said Elliot was living at a hotel that serves as a homeless shelter a few blocks from the scene of the attack.
He was taken into custody at the hotel around midnight. Tips from the public led to his apprehension, police said.
Elliot was convicted of stabbing his mother to death in the Bronx borough of New York in 2002, when he was 19. He was released from prison in 2019 and is on lifetime parole. The parole board had previously twice denied his release.
Elliot, who is Black, faces charges of assault as a hate crime, attempted assault as a hate crime, assault and attempted assault in Monday’s attack. It wasn’t immediately known whether he had a lawyer who could speak on his behalf.
Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. said prosecutors will seek to have Elliot jailed without bail pending trial. He faces up to 25 years in prison if convicted, Vance said.
A law enforcement official identified the victim as Vilma Kari, 65. The official was not authorized to speak publicly and did so on condition of anonymity.
Kari’s daughter told The New York Times that her mother emigrated from the Philippines decades ago.
Wisconsin mask mandate: The Wisconsin Supreme Court struck down Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ statewide mask mandate Wednesday, stripping the governor of one of his last remaining tools to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
The conservative-leaning court ruled 4-3 that Evers violated state law by unilaterally issuing multiple emergency orders to extend the mandate for months.
It found that Evers needed legislative approval to issue more orders after the expiration of the initial 60-day mandate he issued in August.
The decision marks another legal defeat for Evers.
The state Supreme Court in May struck down his stayat-home order, finding that his health secretary lacked the authority to issue such an order.
A state appeals court blocked Evers’ attempts to limit capacity in bars, restaurants and other indoor places in October.
AstraZeneca vaccine: The head of the European Medicines Agency said Wednesday that there is “no evidence” that would support restricting the use of AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine in any population, as Germany has now done amid concerns over rare blood clots in people who got the shot.
But EMA Executive Director Emer Cooke said her agency continues to study reports of new cases as they come in and will provide a further assessment next week.
On Tuesday, an independent vaccine expert panel in Germany said AstraZeneca shots should not routinely be given to people under 60 because of a rise in reported
cases of unusual blood clots in the days after vaccination.
The German government followed the recommendation and said the British-Swedish company’s vaccine would be prioritized for people age 60 and older, although exceptions can be made in consultation with doctors.
The move put the spotlight back on the EMA, which authorized the AstraZeneca vaccine in January and said last month — after some European countries suspended its use over blood clot fears — that the vaccine’s benefits outweigh the risks.
Navalny on hunger strike:
Imprisoned Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny said Wednesday that he has started a hunger strike to protest authorities’ failure to provide proper treatment for his back and leg pains.
In a statement posted on Instagram, Navalny complained about prison officials’ refusal to give him
the right medicines and to allow his doctor to visit him behind bars.
He also protested the hourly checks a guard makes on him at night.
The 44-year-old Navalny, who is President Vladimir Putin’s most outspoken domestic opponent, was arrested in January upon his return from Germany, where he spent five months recovering from a nerveagent poisoning that he blames on the Kremlin.
Russian authorities have rejected the accusation.
Navalny said he had no choice but to start a hunger strike because his physical condition has worsened, with back pains having spread to his right leg and numbness in his left leg.
Last month, Navalny was sentenced to 2 ½ years in prison for violating the terms of his probation during convalescence.
US on Hong Kong: Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday reaffirmed a
determination made last year by the Trump administration that Hong Kong is no longer autonomous and remains undeserving of special treatment by the United States.
In a notice sent to Congress, Blinken said China had continued to “dismantle” Hong Kong’s autonomy since his predecessor, Mike Pompeo, first made the determination in May 2020.
As a result, Blinken said, the former British colony does not warrant U.S. trade and financial perks it had enjoyed since it reverted to Chinese rule in 1997 with a pledge from Beijing that it would enjoy significant autonomy for 50 years.
The decision is yet another indication that President Joe Biden’s administration has not strayed from the hard line that was taken by President Donald Trump on China.
On Tuesday, the State Department repeated the Trump administration’s
characterization of Chinese treatment of Uighur Muslims and other minorities in China’s western Xinjiang region as “genocide.” Pot now legal in NY: New York adults over 21 can now possess and use marijuana — even in public — under a legalization bill signed Wednesday by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Legal sales of recreational-use cannabis won’t start for an estimated 18 months until regulations are set.
Passed after several years of stalled efforts, the measure makes New York the 16th state to legalize adult use of the drug.
In a unique provision, New Yorkers 21 and over can now smoke cannabis in public, including on sidewalks. No other state allows that, said Paul Armentano, deputy director of pro-legalization group NORML.
Still, New Yorkers can’t smoke or vape marijuana where smoking is prohibited by state law.