Author: Darren Smith

The murder trial of Karmelo Anthony, the 19-year-old accused of fatally stabbing a teenage football star at a Texas track meet, has begun with no black jurors on the panel — after defence attorneys raised a legal objection claiming the final three black prospective jurors were removed by prosecutors because of their race. The 12-person jury and six alternates were selected from a pool of approximately 500 prospective jurors questioned over several days, with District Judge John Roach Jr ultimately siding with the prosecution when the defence challenged the removals. Prosecutors argued the three individuals were struck not because of…

A district judge has been removed from office after sending a colleague a “highly sexualised image,” making unwanted physical contact with staff and referring to himself and fellow judges in what investigators described as “highly inappropriate terms” — with the Lord Chancellor and Lady Chief Justice overruling a disciplinary panel that had recommended a lesser sanction. District Judge Andrew Simpson, who was based in Newcastle, was dismissed for gross misconduct after the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office received a complaint alleging he had “behaved inappropriately towards a number of staff.” The JCIO’s investigation found a pattern of behaviour that included contacting…

A coroner has ruled that a full jury inquest will examine whether Hampshire Police officers caused or contributed to the death of Henry Nowak — the 18-year-old student stabbed to death in Southampton after his killer used a false racism allegation to ensure Henry was handcuffed by officers as he lay dying. Hampshire’s area coroner Jason Pegg told Winchester Coroner’s Court on Thursday that because Henry was under arrest and in police custody when he died, Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights — the right to life — had been engaged, requiring a public investigation into the…

The crisis entered a dangerous new phase on the fourth consecutive day of demonstrations, as protesters broke through metal barricades and surged toward the Prime Minister’s office in Tirana — with police responding with water cannons and tear gas as crowds refused to disperse and demands escalated to calls for Edi Rama’s resignation. The scenes marked a significant escalation from the largely peaceful gatherings of previous days. According to our sources, protesters tore through the metal barricades separating them from the Prime Minister’s building as riot police deployed water cannons against the advancing crowd. The demonstrators did not retreat, gathering…

A 28-year-old Long Island man died in his father’s arms after a longtime friend allegedly stabbed him in the neck while he slept — with the woman found still hiding in the victim’s basement when police arrived, the murder weapon reportedly still in her possession. Bobby Carragher, an autobody shop worker from Massapequa, had spent several hours watching television with Kristin Sculley, 22, in his basement bedroom before falling asleep, according to NBC New York. Nassau County police say it was at that point that Sculley allegedly carried out the attack, stabbing Carragher in the neck with a pocket knife.…

Thousands of Albanians are set to take to the streets of Tirana for a second consecutive evening to protest a vast luxury resort development linked to Jared Kushner, Donald Trump’s son-in-law — as the country’s anti-corruption prosecutors opened a formal investigation into how a protected coastal wetland was stripped of its legal status to make way for the project. The second day of protests is set to begin at 6pm at Skanderbeg Square in the capital, with demonstrators planning to march towards the Prime Minister’s office. The call to return was amplified by well-known Albanian comedian and mayoral candidate Florian…

A father was heard screaming a chilling message about death and money in the street just ten minutes before he shot dead six members of his own family across multiple locations in an Iowa city, police have confirmed. Ryan Willis McFarland, 52, carried out a series of domestic violence-fuelled shootings in Muscatine, Iowa, on Monday afternoon before taking his own life as officers closed in on him near the city’s riverfront trail. The massacre claimed the lives of six people believed to be his relatives, including two students and two school district employees, sending shockwaves through the close-knit community. Neighbour…

British tourists travelling to Tenerife and Gran Canaria next week have been warned of significant travel disruption as the Canary Islands prepare for an unprecedented papal visit — with authorities on high alert after a chilling ISIS threat targeting Pope Leo XIV. Pope Leo XIV will arrive in the Canary Islands on 11 and 12 June as part of a wider tour of Spain, marking the first ever official papal visit to the islands. The occasion has prompted one of the largest security operations in the archipelago’s history — and a disturbing threat from a pro-ISIS outlet that has placed…

A mother carried her dead baby daughter onto a bus and pleaded with fellow passengers to save her — while knowing the child had already been killed hours earlier by her and her partner, a new documentary series has revealed. Rosalin Baker, 25, strapped the lifeless body of 16-week-old Imani to her chest in a baby carrier and boarded a bus in London, where she sat impassively texting on her phone for around 20 minutes before raising the alarm that her daughter had stopped breathing. Traumatised passengers rushed to help, attempting CPR on the tiny body, while Baker remained emotionless…

A teenager accused of making a bomb hoax that forced Peter Kay off stage and sent 13,000 fans fleeing from a Birmingham arena had to be removed from his court hearing today after he began taking off his prison-issue tracksuit bottoms in front of the judge. Omar Majed, 19, appeared via video link at Birmingham Crown Court charged with communicating false information to police under the Criminal Law Act, following an incident at the Utilita Arena last month that brought Kay’s Better Late Than Never tour to an abrupt halt just 45 minutes into the performance. Judge Andrew Smith KC…