Crime & Justice
Maryland governor issues pardons for more than 175,000 marijuana convictions
On Monday June 17, Maryland’s governor issued pardons for more than 175,000 marijuana convictions.
On Monday June 17, Maryland’s governor issued pardons for more than 175,000 marijuana convictions.
This initiative comes almost two years after Maryland voters approved a constitutional amendment legalizing recreational marijuana for people 21 and older.
Maryland marijuana convictions pardons
The pardons by Gov. Wes Moore will forgive low-level marijuana possession and certain paraphernalia charges, the governor’s office said – noting it was possible for a person to have more than one conviction pardoned.
“This is about changing how both government and society view those who have been walled off from opportunity because of broken and uneven policies,” Moore said at a signing event Monday.
Disproportionate impact
The governor described his executive order as “the most sweeping state-level pardon” in the country’s history.
Acknowledging the disproportionate impact the issue has on Black and brown people, the event coincided this week with Juneteenth, which commemorates the end of slavery in the US, The Washington Post reported.
Maryland marijuana convictions pardon stats
The executive order will result in the pardons of more than 150,000 misdemeanor convictions for simple possession of cannabis and more than 18,000 misdemeanor convictions for use or possession with intent to use drug paraphernalia, the governor office said. About 25% of those convictions stem from the city of Baltimore.
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Crime & Justice
Investigation Discovery in production on docuseries about Sean “Diddy” Combs amid allegations
Leading true crime network Investigation Discovery has announced it is in production on a docuseries exploring the rise and influence of Sean “Diddy” Combs.
Investigation Discovery has announced that it has partnered with Maxine Production on a docuseries exploring the rise and influence of Sean “Diddy” Combs and the allegations of violent behavior and illegal activity that have trailed the music mogul.
Combs, 54, was arrested at a Manhattan hotel on the night of Monday, Sept. 16. He’s charged with sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution.
Sean “Diddy” Combs Docuseries
As accounts of sexual assault, abusive behaviors, and other disturbing claims surface, the docuseries traces the story of this self-proclaimed Bad Boy, unraveling allegations of a pattern of depravity. The multipart docuseries is set to premiere in 2025 on ID and Max.
Unheard Voices
Furthering ID’s commitment to elevating survivors’ stories, the docuseries will feature the voices of many who have alleged acts of violence and brutality.
Through access to archival footage and in-depth reporting from Rolling Stone, along with harrowing testimony from survivors as well as friends and colleagues who knew and worked with Combs before his stardom, the multi-part docuseries will offer insight into unfolding allegations against the once untouchable superstar.
It will also highlight the toxic power dynamic that played out within the industry and kept many survivors silenced – until now.
The project is being produced for ID by Maxine Productions and IPC in association with Rolling Stone Films.
Combs has pled not guilty to the charges and is ordered to remain behind bars until trial. He faces up to life imprisonment if convicted on the top charge.
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Crime & Justice
Woman who fatally shot neighbor Ajike Owens found guilty of manslaughter
An all-white jury in an Ocala, Fla., found Susan Lorincz, 60, guilty of manslaughter after two-and-a-half hours of deliberations.
Susan Lorincz, the Florida woman who fatally shot her neighbor Ajike “AJ” Owens through a closed door in June 2023 in an ongoing feud about the victim’s children playing outside their homes, was found guilty Friday, Aug. 16.
Found guilty
An all-white jury in an Ocala, Fla., found Lorincz, 60, guilty of manslaughter after two-and-a-half hours of deliberations.
After the verdict, Lorincz appeared to shrug her shoulders before she left the courtroom with correctional officers, reports ABC News.
“Oh, God! Thank you, Jesus!” Pamela Dias, Owens’ mother, yelled after Lorincz left the room.
“Today, our family can sleep a little better knowing that Susan Lorincz will no longer be a threat to our community, especially to my grandchildren,” Dias told ABC News. “While this verdict does not bring my daughter AJ back to us, it does bring a sense of peace that we have long sought,” she said.
“The defendant’s choices have left four young children without their mother, a loss that will be felt for the rest of their lives,” State Attorney William Gladson said in a statement. “While today’s verdict can’t bring AJ back, we hope it brings some measure of justice and peace to her family and friends.”
Trial for shooting Ajike “AJ” Owens
During the trial, prosecution presented the jury with evidence that Lorincz fired her .380-caliber handgun once through her door, striking Owens because she was “angry” over Owens’ four kids playing in a grassy space by their houses.
Lorincz had complained the children had been harassing her for nearly the entire three years she’d lived there, prosecutors claimed.
But Lorincz’s defense attorneys argued that she fired her weapon in self-defense, saying the 35-year-old Owens came banging on her door. Her lawyers maintained her actions were legal under Florida’s “stand your ground” law, which allows people to use deadly force in cases of self-defense.
Owens confronted Lorincz that day after her kids told her that the older neighbor threw roller skates and an umbrella at them for their “unruly” playing outside. Owens and Lorincz had had prior disagreements for the same reason.
Susan Lorincz was “not in fear”
Prosecutors told the jury that this and other evidence proved that Lorincz “was not in fear, she was angry” when she fatally shot Owens.
“It’s not a crime to bang on somebody’s door. It’s not a crime to yell,” Buxman said during closing arguments. “There was no imminent danger whatsoever when she fired that gun.”
While Lorincz didn’t testify, the jury did hear a recording of her taped interview with the police saying she never meant to hurt Owens.
Lorincz faces up to 30 years in prison when sentenced.
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Crime & Justice
Former University of Kentucky student pleads guilty after racist attack of Black student
On Monday, Aug. 12, Rosing, 23, pleaded guilty to four counts of fourth-degree assault as well as one count of disorderly conduct and public intoxication in Fayette County Circuit Court, according to the WLEX-TV.
Sophia Rosing, the former University of Kentucky student who physically assaulted and shouted racial slurs at a Black student, has pleaded guilty to several charges, according to news reports.
On Monday, Aug. 12, Rosing, 23, pleaded guilty to four counts of fourth-degree assault as well as one count of disorderly conduct and public intoxication in Fayette County Circuit Court, according to the WLEX-TV.
Sophia Rosing accused of racism
On Nov. 6, 2022, Rosing, who is White, was accused by police of physically assaulting and repeatedly shouting racial slurs at Kylah Spring, who is Black, at the campus residence hall where Spring worked, USA Today reported. The incident was caught on video and went viral on social media.
University of Kentucky police responded to the scene and said in a police report cited by the Herald-Leader that Rosings appeared “very intoxicated” and resisted arrest, adding that she kicked an officer and bit the officer’s hand. She was later permanently banned from campus.
“As a community working to prevent racist violence, we also must be committed to holding people accountable for their actions,” University of Kentucky President Eli Capilouoto said in a statement at the time, according to USA Today.
Mediation
The guilty plea arose out of a mediation in which Rosing’s attorney, Fred Peters, said, “A lot of things got said, apologies were made and we worked it out,” the Herald-Leader reported.
Rosing, he claimed, “has had a lot of time to think about what she has done, and she wrote a nice letter of apology.”
Moving forward for Kylah Spring
Spring addressed the guilty plea on Monday, telling WLEX-TV that she forgives Rosing but states that the process hasn’t been easy.
“I forgive her more so for myself,” Spring told the outlet. “I was raised not to hold grudges, I was raised that we give people forgiveness because God forgave us. It’s a hard thing for me to come to terms with, but in the end, I want to live a life where people can say I was a kind and forgiving person.”
Spring has founded The Spirit & Grace Project to provide support to other Black women attending colleges and universities where White people are the majority, reports WLEX-TV.
Rosing faces up to a year in prison. She is scheduled to be sentenced October 17th.
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Unheard Voices Magazine is a news reporting platform covered under Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research.
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