Free Republic

Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments on recent criticisms of Cardinal Donald Wuerl, Archbishop of Washington: It is one thing for the laity to be angry about recent revelations regarding former cardinal Theodore McCarrick, and the Pennsylvania grand jury report on molesting priests (which is riddled with lies), it is quite another to allow emotion, not reason, to guide one’s perspective on these twin scandals. Yet that is what is happening. The most angry comments are directed at Cardinal Donald Wuerl, Archbishop of Washington: He is being blamed for the twin scandals. This is patently unfair—there is no basis for...

Unlike most commentators and reporters, I [Bill Donahue] have read most of the Pennsylvania grand jury report. The purpose of this statement is to debunk many of the myths, and indeed lies, that mar the report and/or interpretations of it. Myth: Over 300 priests were found guilty of preying on youngsters in Pennsylvania. Fact: No one was found guilty of anything. Yet that didn’t stop CBS from saying “300 ‘predator priests’ abused more than 1,000 children over a period of 70 years.” These are all accusations, most of which were never verified by either the grand jury or the dioceses....

Democrats and their media allies, joined by many Republicans, are calling on Donald Trump to withdraw from the presidential race after a newly released, decade-old tape of a frat-house-level conversation between Trump and television host Billy Bush in 2005, in which Trump boasted of his heavy-handed pursuit of females. Now why might it be that men regard women as sex objects? Surely the ravenous purchase by females of stiletto heels, push-up bras, butt-hugging mini-skirts, plunging necklines, false eyelashes, hair extensions, breast implants, butt implants, lip implants, and mascara, rouge, and lipstick to the tune of billions a year has nothing...

IRWINDALE>> Sriracha maker David Tran was succinct when it came to his requirements for any place where he might expand his popular hot sauce business. “(We) must have chilies,” Tran said at a news conference where he announced he was considering an expansion to the Lone Star State. Last week, a delegation of Texas politicians, who have actively courted Tran via social media and open letters, toured the Azusa Canyon Road factory. Texas is known as a pepper-growing region, however, Craig Underwood, who grows all of the jalapeños that are crushed into the iconic roster sauce, said it would take...

IRWINDALE>> The famous rooster sauce is in short supply this month thanks to a new state regulation that requires manufacturer Huy Fong Foods to hold its Sriracha for 30 days before shipping it. Officials with the California Department of Public Health said a rule change affecting the company’s production procedure for Sriracha and its other two sauces became necessary after government officials reviewed the manufacturing process earlier this year. “The regulations outlining this process have been in existence for years, but the modified production requirements were established for the firm this year,” state Health Department spokeswoman Anita Gore said in...

The maker of popular hot chili sauce Sriracha made a bold statement Friday with a banner reading, “No tear gas made here,” placed outside its North Azusa Canyon Road factory. Huy Fong Foods CEO David Tran had released a statement with the same sentiment Wednesday morning following a ruling from a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge that said Tran must partially shut down his factory due to odor complaints from residents near the factory. The city of Irwindale had sued Huy Fong Foods claiming the smells coming from the factory created a “public nuisance” after residents began complaining the...

SANFORD — George and Shellie Zimmerman struggled with money problems. The year they married, he was sued, accused of failing to pay a credit-card bill. Three years later, she was sued for the same thing. Both were in and out of community college, records show, and spent their first years together in a home owned by her parents.

The judge who revoked George Zimmerman's bond did so after he determined that it was "apparent" that Zimmerman's wife had lied under oath, and clear that Zimmerman "does not properly respect the law." Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester revoked Zimmerman's bond on June 1, but his written order was filed Monday. In it, Lester lays out his rationale.

The nation's fixation on the shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin has led many to question whether an impartial jury could be found for the trial of his killer, George Zimmerman. But it's possible a judge, not a jury, will decide Zimmerman's fate. He says he fired in self-defense, and many expect his lawyers will eventually ask for an immunity hearing under Florida's controversial "stand your ground" law. Often described as a "minitrial" in which the burden of proof is on the defense and the judge serves as jury, such hearings are unlike other criminal-justice proceedings. The lawyers' roles are...

SANFORD -- George Zimmerman's attorney is expected to get a look at some of the prosecution's key evidence against his client Monday. But the public may not get a look at any of it -- at least not yet. Zimmerman has been charged with second-degree murder for shooting and killing 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in February. Zimmerman has claimed he shot the teen in self-defense, but state prosecutors said the evidence they have collected suggests otherwise. Normally, such evidence would be made public right away, but attorney Mark O'Mara said he wants to redact some of that information first. O'Mara said...

George Zimmerman's Arraignment Hearing to be live streamed today at 1:30 pm ET

New documents on the court's website here: http://www.flcourts18.org/presspublic.html

The shooting of Trayvon Martin by George Zimmerman has spurred national outrage over Florida's Stand Your Ground law. Unfortunately, the discussion of this law has been marred by misinformation. Jeffrey Toobin, CNN senior legal analyst, erroneously claimed that the law "allows a disproportionate response; if someone comes at you with a fist, you can reply with a gun." Many have asserted that in Florida anyone who believes he is in danger can use deadly force, no matter how unreasonable his belief. These perceptions of the law are wrong. As compared with other states, Florida's Stand Your Ground law is neither...

SANFORD – Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester, Jr., who's been on the bench 15 years and has a great deal of experience with high-profile murder cases, on Wednesday was assigned the George Zimmerman murder case. It was originally given to Circuit Judge Jessica Recksiedler, but she recused herself Wednesday after Zimmerman's attorney asked her to step aside because of a possible conflict of interest: Her husband is the law partner of Mark NeJame, who's been hired to comment on the case for CNN.

A West Point cadet from Houston will return to class Monday after military academy officials rescinded a suspension that came after he was embroiled in a March altercation with singer Patti LaBelle's entourage at a local airport. Word from the New York military academy came as dueling lawsuits - one filed by cadet Richard King, the other by LaBelle - await resolution in local courts. King's attorney, John Raley, said Houston police recently apprised academy officials that the 23-year-old cadet had not been implicated in wrongdoing in the March 11 incident at George Bush Intercontinental Airport.

National Popular Vote is good for conservatives, the GOP, and public policy. Period. Having been active in support of the initiative for over a year now, I have met and talked to hundreds of conservative leaders, activists, and elected officials. I have found most of those who reflexively oppose it do so because they think it is a process to amend the Constitution, don’t understand how it works or how it would affect outcomes, or are convinced of some grand conspiracy to turn America into a permanent Democrat hegemony. The reality is the current system disenfranchises millions of conservatives from...

WEARE — Even as late as yesterday afternoon, residents here were scratching their heads over the commotion a one-page fax from thousands of miles away had caused Tuesday. "We're trying to collect taxes, not answering phones," said town clerk Evelyn Connor about what she said was a distraction from today's tax collection deadline. By yesterday afternoon, at least 50 different media outlets had called looking for comment. "We're too busy for this," she said, shaking her head. The commotion began yesterday when a fax came for Chip Meany, the town's building code enforcement officer. The letter, sent by Logan Darrow...

Furious over the recent Supreme Court ruling that lets local governments grab private property for new development, a gadfly yesterday asked a New Hampshire town to seize the home of Justice David Souter. Logan Darrow Clements sent a letter to the town of Weare, N.H., proposing to build "The Lost Liberty Hotel" and "Just Desserts Cafe" on Souter's property. "The justification for such an eminent domain action is that our hotel will better serve the public interest as it will bring in economic development," he wrote. Clements, who runs a California media company, added, "This is not a prank." His...