Free Republic

A federal district court judge ruled Thursday caps on religious services in Washington D.C. were unconstitutional going into the Easter holiday. Judge Trevor N. McFadden, appointed under former President Donald Trump in 2017, concluded the district’s guidelines set the nation’s capital apart from the 37 states with no attendance caps on church gatherings. The ruling comes just in time for Easter Sunday on April 4, one year after the holiday was interrupted by state and local officials who implemented guidelines to ban large congregations. Restrictions targeting religious services quickly became a theme of the coronavirus pandemic lockdowns. In Louisville, Democratic...

Mayor Greg Fischer said the Louisville Metro Police Department releasing its rules of engagement will be beneficial to protect everyone, whether protesting or not. After a press conference Monday, Fischer addressed weekend protests and LMPD’s announcement that the department would more strictly enforce existing laws. He said it is important to define what is permissible in order to prevent “unnecessary interaction” between police and protesters.

Mayors back reparations that could cost $6.2 quadrillion, or $151M per descendant" The nation’s mayors on Monday backed a national call for reparations to 41 million black people, a program that could cost taxpayers $6.2 quadrillion. The U.S. Conference of Mayors released a letter backing a Democratic plan to form a reparations commission to come up with a payment for slavery. “We recognize and support your legislation as a concrete first step in our larger reckoning as a nation, and a next step to guide the actions of both federal and local leaders who have promised to do better by...

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) Morning protests near Jefferson Square have turned violent several times this week with people blocking roadways, threatening drivers and confronting police. Police reports show 17 people were arrested following confrontations on Wednesday morning. All were from Louisville except for one suspect who is from Borden, Indiana. LMPD released the names of 15 people facing charges. According to an arrest report, Christopher Wells is charged with disorderly conduct and inciting a riot. Police say he was "manning...the unauthorized barricades along with several others numbering more than five."(snip) Investigators said Gregory Brewton punched an officer in the head....

Dozens of police officers in Louisville, Ky. reportedly walked out on the city's Democratic mayor, Greg Fischer, as a form of protest, as the Fraternal Order of Police president explained that the officers felt “disrespected” as they struggle to keep the peace after more than a week of fiery protests. Video obtained by the Courier-Journal shows Fischer standing in the middle of the room at a roll call before the start of a 12-hour shift, as streams of Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) officers and detectives silently file out. FOP President Ryan Nichols, who was not present, said the move...

"...Phone recordings of the incident show police officers booing Fischer when he walked into a large room full of officers who were arriving for the night shift Wednesday afternoon. The vast majority of the officers walked out leaving the mayor alone with some who did stay to speak with him. Ryan Nichols, president of the Fraternal Order of Police in River City, a fraternity of law enforcement officers, told WAVE 3 News that officers in the LMPD do not feel the mayor's support in the midst of the protests...." "...The LMPD first came under fire after the death of Breonna...

Police in Louisville, Kentucky, walked out on the city's mayor in protest at him 'disrespecting' them as they claimed he 'does not care about them at all'. Video shows officers and detectives from the Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) silently streaming out of a room as mayor Greg Fischer prepared to address them ahead of a 12-hour shift. Fraternal Order of Police president Ryan Nichols, who was not present, said the move was an unplanned reaction by officers who said they felt 'completely unsupported and disrespected.' Tensions in the city have been high after the death of EMT Breonna Taylor...

The federal government (Trump Administration) will not appeal a judge's ruling that revoked a grazing permit for Oregon ranchers Dwight and Steven Hammond..... The US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Geoffrey Berman, resigning. Berman to be replaced by Jay Clayton, chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission. The US Attorney for New Jersey, Craig Carpentio, to take over as Acting US Attorney for Southern New York July 3rd..... Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said today that one of hte police officers involved in the March 13th killing of Breonna Taylor will be fired.... The Air Force Inspector General...

The Louisville Metro Police Department is in danger of losing 200 or more officers by the end of the summer, according to the leader of the union that represents them. River City FOP President Ryan Nichols said LMPD is at risk of losing not only veteran officers but young ones, and that could gravely affect public safety and the future of the department. "As much as I would like to say I would encourage all of our officers to stay here and that this is a great place to work, the fact is that's not true," Nichols said. Nichols said...

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Hundreds of protesters gathered in downtown Louisville Thursday night outside Metro Hall, calling for justice in the Breonna Taylor case. The protest erupted just hours after Mayor Greg Fischer held a town hall discussion about the case and community relations with police. People downtown could be hear chanting, "Not justice, no peace." LMPD officers could be seen fighting off protesters.

A federal judge overturned North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s orders Saturday that sought to cap religious services at no more than 10 people while businesses and other organizations in the state were left to accommodate up to 50. The double standard, District Court Judge James C. Dever ruled in the Eastern District of North Carolina, was an overt show of distrust among those gathering to worship and deemed the directive illegal, according to the News and Observer. “The record, at this admittedly early stage of the case, reveals that the Governor appears to trust citizens to perform non-religious activities...

A federal judge granted a restraining order against a Kentucky mayor who promised to record the license plates of Easter church goers, calling the order “unconstitutional.” U.S. District Court Judge Justin Walker granted the temporary restraining order (TRO) preventing Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer from blocking Easter drive-in-services at On Fire Church, the non-profit public interest law firm First Liberty Institute announced in a Saturday press release. According to First Liberty, the Louisville church had been hosting drive-in-church services for several weeks consistent with the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) coronavirus guidelines. The order prevents Louisville from “enforcing; attempting...

The mayor of Louisville, Kentucky says churches will not be allowed to hold drive-in services on Easter Sunday. Mayor Greg Fischer, a Democrat, said he made his decision with a “heavy heart.” “Our job is to deny the virus,” the mayor told television station WDRB. “If we don’t do that, more lives will be lost. I know it’s tough…I just can’t allow (drive-thru church services) to happen.” The Courier-Journal reports that the mayor wants congregants who “belong to a church that is defying Fischer’s request to contact their minister or the city’s 311 line.” The mayor actually wants Christians to...

Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer responded to Governor Matt Bevin on Twitter after he said protests outside McConnell's home were 'embarrassing the city of Louisville.'

A work crew began to dismantle a Confederate monument in Louisville, Kentucky on Saturday, the mayor said, in the latest move to take down or relocate symbols of the slaveholding Southern Confederacy from the American Civil War. Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer in a pair of messages on Twitter showed photos of figures that had been removed from the monument.[snip]Students and staff members at the University of Louisville had said the memorial condoned slavery.

Muhammad Ali's birthplace of Louisville, Kentucky, is paying tribute Saturday to the late boxing legend, who died Friday in Arizona at 74. At a ceremony at the city's Metro Hall, Mayor Greg Fischer said flags on government buildings would remain at half-staff until Ali has been laid to rest.