Free Republic

A group of Russian elites are allegedly conspiring to overthrow Russian President Vladimir Putin and “restore economic ties” with the West, according to Ukrainian intelligence. “Poisoning, sudden illness, accident – Russia’s elite is considering removing Putin,” declared a Sunday Facebook post from the Chief Directorate of Intelligence for the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. The ministry claimed that a group of “influential people” has been forming in Russia who want to “remove Putin from power as soon as possible and restore economic ties with the West, which were destroyed by the war in Ukraine.” The intel alleges that the group...

All 14 of Mississippi’s black, Democratic state senators refused to vote on a bill banning the teaching of critical race theory in the state’s public schools, walking out in protest instead. “This bill is not morally right,” Democratic Sen. Barbara Blackmon of Canton said during the debate ahead of the Friday vote before joining the walkout. Senate Bill 2113 passed 32-2 in the GOP-controlled chamber, with the only votes against it coming from two white Democrats. It will move to the state’s lower House, which is also controlled by Republicans, for review.

A ninth child was discharged from Children’s Wisconsin hospital after being treated for injuries suffered in the Waukesha Christmas parade tragedy Sunday. A total of seven children are still recovering in the hospital one week after a crazed driver plowed through revelers at an annual Christmas celebration in the Milwaukee suburb, killing six people and injuring more than 60 others.

A Newark Police Officer struck and killed a nurse with his car and then drove the body to his mother’s house seeking advice before returning to the scene with the body, officials said on Wednesday. Louis Santiago, 25, of Bloomfield was arrested and charged with reckless vehicular homicide, desecrating human remains and other charges after he hit and killed 29-year-old nurse Damian Dymka, of Garfield, on the Garden State Parkway, according to the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office.

The object was first spotted by the Catalina Sky Survey, which works to identify threatening asteroids, according to CNET. A simulation shows just how close the space rock came to the planet. The object, about 6.6 feet in diameter, was likely to have mostly burned up had it struck the atmosphere, according to reports. It was undetected until hours after it had passed the planet, as it had approached from the direction of the sun, blocking it from scientists’ view.

After a five-year moratorium, the state of Oklahoma botched its third consecutive execution on Thursday when convict John Marion Grant died after convulsing and vomiting all over himself following a lethal injection, according to witnesses. Grant, 60, was convicted of murdering prison guard Gay Carter on Friday the 13th in November of 1998 after he stabbed her 16 times with a shank knife while he was serving sentences for robbery and illegal firearm charges. Almost immediately after he was injected, Grant experienced two dozen full body convulsions and began vomiting all over himself, according to Associated Press reporter Sean Murphy,...

The prop gun that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on a New Mexico movie set had been used by crew members offsite for fun, a new report claims. The gun, which was fired by Alec Baldwin on the set of the movie “Rust,” may have even been loaded with live rounds when it was used for what was essentially target practice, TMZ reported. Multiple sources connected to the production of the film told TMZ that the gun was fired at off-the-clock gatherings – which could explain how a live round found its way into the gun’s chamber. Another source who was...

Enlarge Image Secretary to the Governor Melissa DeRosa Secretary to the Governor Melissa DeRosa resigned Sunday night.AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File Governor Cuomo’s top aide Melissa DeRosa resigned on Sunday night amid a sex harassment scandal rocking Albany. The trusted aide, who allegedly helped try to bury sexual harassment allegations against her boss, released a statement saying the last two years have been “mentally and emotionally trying.”