Free Republic

A split among jurors means there will be no death penalty for an Islamic extremist who maniacally raced a truck along a popular New York City bike path, killing eight people and maiming others. The decision means Sayfullo Saipov, 35, an Uzbekistan citizen who lived in New Jersey, gets an automatic sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole in the October 2017 attack. Jurors told the judge Monday that they were unable to reach the unanimous verdict required for a death sentence. The sentencing was the culmination of a trial that featured emotional testimony from survivors of...

On December 4, California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) Build North Coast Corridor (NCC) crews performed the final concrete pour to complete the underground foundation for the new Interstate 5 (I-5) bridge at the San Elijo Lagoon in the City of Encinitas. The bridge reconstruction will help relieve traffic congestion, improve lagoon tidal flows, and create new bike and pedestrian paths when complete in late 2021. “Throughout the course of this regionally significant transportation project, the efforts to reestablish the health of the San Elijo Lagoon is an achievement with regional environmental benefits,” said...

<p>The Portland Police Department said in a news release that officers received a report around 10:53 p.m. of an injured person on the Interstate 205 Multi-Use Path, and arrived at the scene to find an injured woman.</p> <p>During the investigation, officers learned that the woman was traveling north when she became "entangled and injured" by material that was strung across the path.</p>

NEW YORK (AP) — Lawyers for a man charged with killing eight people when he drove his truck onto a New York City bike path say the death penalty should be ruled out because President Donald Trump was “uninformed and full or rage” when he called for it. The lawyers filed papers Tuesday in federal court on behalf of Sayfullo Saipov (sy-foo-LOH’ sah-YEE’-pawf).

Sayfullo Habibullaevic Saipov, who previously entered a plea of not guilty, faces an indictment that includes murder, attempted murder and terror-related charges in the October 31 rampage. In a court filing Friday, prosecutors said Saipov, 30, committed the crimes “in an especially heinous, cruel and depraved manner.” They also cited his alleged support of the Islamic State and lack of remorse. The suspect’s attorneys said in a statement that they were disappointed. “We think the decision to seek the death penalty rather than accepting a guilty plea to life in prison with no possibility of release will only prolong the...

Former U.S. Rep. Jim Oberstar, who represented northeastern Minnesota for 36 years and brought millions of dollars to the state as chair of the powerful House Transportation Committee, died unexpectedly early Saturday morning. He was 79. A statement released by his family said Oberstar died in his sleep. A cause of death was not provided. His former chief of staff, Bill Richard, said Oberstar died at his home in Potomac, Maryland. […] Oberstar, a Democrat, was elected to Congress in 1974 and served 18 terms—the state’s longest-serving member of Congress. Oberstar became chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee...

Shovel ready, it turns out, doesn't always mean shovel ready. In the first year of the Obama administration, the federal government awarded Austin a $1.9 million stimulus grant for a project the city called "shovel ready": a 3.2-mile concrete bicycle trail along the northern portion of Walnut Creek in North Austin. More than two years later, there is only a clear-cut, 20-foot-wide swath, along with some partially buried metal rods and concrete along the creek. Work has stopped and will not resume anytime soon. The city, after fearing it would lose the federal money, is starting over. Oversight of the...

It was the one part of the six-lane intercounty connector that even highway haters embraced as a small but eco-friendly offset to a road that will pave over streams, woods and wildlife. Now, the possibility of building a continuous, off-road bicycle and walking trail along the Maryland highway's 18.8-mile route is in jeopardy -- in the name of protecting the environment. Montgomery County planners say a continuous 10-foot-wide asphalt bike path would cause too much damage to ecologically sensitive parkland traversed by the toll road under construction between Gaithersburg and Laurel. Instead, planners say, cyclists and walkers should be detoured...

Detectives in Buffalo have announced that the Bike Path Rapist has been linked to an attack, 12 years after he last struck. DNA now links Joan Diver's murder to the case. Detectives and residents alike have been on edge since Joan Diver was killed on September 29, 2006 because of the similarities between her attack and nine other attacks in the Buffalo area. Police say that the Bike Path Rapist is now wanted for three homicides and nine rapes. Police: Serial Rapist On The Loose For 20 years detectives in Buffalo, NY have been hunting for a predator. They think...

...The CBO projects that the federal government will collect $2.14 trillion this year. That's a hefty 58% increase from a decade ago. Washington may have many problems, but a shortage of money is not among them. All those dollars have not just gone to Iraq. The $286.5 billion highway bill is evidence that Washington is spending record amounts on infrastructure. And there's lots being lavished on all types of capital expenditures. The budget of the Army Corps of Engineers -- the federal agency tasked to help waterproof New Orleans -- is 31% higher today than it was 10 years ago.......