As the Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, I am entrusted with the responsibility of protecting the civil rights of the brave men and women of our nation’s armed forces, and our nation’s veterans.  Since COVID-19 has come to our shores, active duty servicemembers and members of the National Guard and Reserve have shouldered new burdens as they work to protect our country.  We owe it to them to ensure that COVID-19 does not jeopardize their economic livelihood.  That is why the Department of Justice is committed to vigorously enforcing all the civil rights laws, including those that protect the housing and civilian employment rights of servicemembers. 

Assistant Attorney General Stephen E. Boyd issued the following statement in support of efforts to streamline payments under the Public Safety Officer Benefit Program (PSOB) to public safety officers fatally injured while working during COVID-19:

A federal court permanently enjoined Mary E. Shade, d/b/a MS Tax, of Piqua, Ohio, from owning or operating a tax return preparation business and preparing tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today. Mary E. Shade consented to the relief.

A federal court in Tampa, Florida has permanently barred Steven Doletzky, formerly doing business as Liberty Tax Service, from operating a tax return preparation business and preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today. The court also ordered Doletzky to disgorge $175,000 of ill-gotten gains that the United States alleges he received from filing federal tax returns that claimed improper tax refunds, understated customers’ federal tax liabilities, or otherwise included false or fraudulent claims.

On March 18, a federal court ordered El Mundo Feliz, a Partnership (El Mundo), and Daniel Martinez Jr. to begin paying employment taxes to the United States on a timely basis, the Justice Department announced today.

A federal court permanently enjoined Smart Ajayi, d/b/a Harplett Marketing LLC., Topps Tax Services and Smart Tax Services, and JoAnn Villarreal, both of Grand Prairie, Texas, from owning or operating a tax return preparation business and preparing tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today. Ajayi and Villarreal consented to the relief.

On April 24, 2020, a federal appellate court upheld an order enforcing an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) summons directed to the Taylor Lohmeyer Law Firm PLLC, the Department of Justice announced. The summons directed the law firm to provide information about clients who used the law firm’s services to create and maintain foreign bank accounts and entities. On appeal, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit upheld the trial court’s enforcement of the summons and rejected the law firm’s “blanket” claim that all responsive materials were protected by the attorney-client privilege. It explained that revealing the fact that the clients participated in specific types of transactions would not necessarily reveal any confidential communication of legal advice protected by the attorney-client privilege.

Thank you, Sean, for your kind introduction. And thank you to CSIS for partnering with us in this conference and for your leadership and innovative thinking on critical policy issues that affect us all. I would like to take a few moments now to reflect on how the National Security Division (NSD) came to be and how, in our first decade, we have strived to achieve our twin aims: protecting the United States against national security threats while safeguarding our core freedoms.

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. has agreed to pay $3.2 million to settle charges for providing the SEC with incomplete and inaccurate securities trading information known as “blue sheet data.”…

This conference offers a great opportunity for CCIPS, the Department, and each of our law enforcement colleagues gathered at the table today to discuss our shared efforts in IP enforcement, and to hear your comments about the latest successes and challenges. It’s an event that benefits all of us.

A superseding indictment was returned yesterday in federal court in Brooklyn, New York, charging Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. (Huawei), the world’s largest telecommunications equipment manufacturer, and two U.S. subsidiaries with conspiracy to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO).

A North Carolina man who took part in a conspiracy to steal design information from aircraft companies to speed up approval of competing airplane technology has been sentenced to nearly six years in federal prison.

A federal grand jury in the District of Columbia returned a 16-count indictment against a former Acting Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and a former subordinate for their alleged theft of proprietary software and confidential databases from the U.S. government as part of a scheme to defraud the U.S. government.

Two commercial flooring executives, Robert A. Patrey Jr. and Kenneth R. Smith, pleaded guilty for their role in an antitrust conspiracy to rig bids and fix prices for commercial flooring services and products sold in the United States, the Department of Justice announced. The defendants are cooperating with the Justice Department’s ongoing investigation.

The U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division and The Federal Trade Commission today issued a joint statement detailing an expedited antitrust procedure and providing guidance for collaborations of businesses working to protect the health and safety of Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"At trial, the Antitrust Division argued that Sabre’s acquisition of Farelogix would extinguish a crucial constraint on Sabre’s market power and would result in higher prices and less innovation. While we are disappointed with the court’s decision, we appreciate the court’s thoughtful consideration of this important case. We will closely review the court’s opinion and consider next steps in light of our commitment to preserving competition for the benefit of the American consumer."

The Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Bureau of Competition jointly released a statement today affirming the importance of competition for American workers.  The agencies also announced that they will protect competition for workers on the frontlines of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) response in the United States by enforcing the antitrust laws against those who seek to exploit the pandemic to engage in anticompetitive conduct in labor markets.

This week, the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division celebrates the 20th anniversary of World Intellectual Property Day. The division marks the occasion by remembering the revolutionary ideal that our nation’s founding fathers embedded in the U.S. Constitution: that “securing . . . to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries” will “promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts.” For over 200 years, this “exclusive Right” has served as the foundation of the U.S. system of patent, copyright, and trademark laws.

Sabre Corporation and Farelogix, Inc. announced today the termination of their merger agreement.

Nearly the whole country was moved by the presence of Carryn Owens, widow of slain Navy SEAL William “Ryan” Owens, during President Donald Trump’s speech to a joint session of Congress. Nearly, but not all. Some liberals used the emotional moment to attack both the president and the grieving widow.

There are eight red light cameras around the city that will begin issuing warnings for violators for 30 days, before beginning to issue tickets.

WBAL NewsRadio, 98 Rock, WBAL-TV 11 and our partners at Howard Bank are proud to launch ‘Operation: Shop Local’ a community initiative to benefit small businesses in the Baltimore region.

The Washington Horse Racing Commission on Friday voted to approve a 44-day season for Emerald Downs in Auburn, Wash. Racing was originally scheduled to begin on April 18 but has been delayed because of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The new opening day is scheduled for Monday, June 22.  Initially, races will be conducted every Monday […]

The post Emerald Downs To Begin Racing June 22 With No Fans, Monday-Tuesday Schedule appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Chris talks with film directory Jeremiah Chechick, he is one of the two new voices on The Future of Photography. Chris’ Wide Angle Photography book is now available in Chinese. And Chris got a great deal to buy over half a Terabyte of microSD cards for only $10. Listen to find out how this went … Continue reading "870 Almost a Terabyte for 10 Bucks"

The post 870 Almost a Terabyte for 10 Bucks appeared first on PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS FROM THE TOP FLOOR.

The racing industry isn't exactly known for having an atmosphere of cooperation. The conflicts within the sport stack up fast after a quick glance at the headlines. Change is on the horizon in at least one area, though—drug regulation. Officials are coming together around the Mid-Atlantic Uniform Medication Program, an initiative promoted by the Racing […]

The post Three Chimneys Presents Good News Friday: A State of Cooperation appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

On Sunday May 10, the UK Government will outline the next phase of its response to the coronavirus pandemic, which may include changes to its current social distancing restrictions and, potentially, a timeline for the resumption of sport. Horse racing industry leaders will then meet on Monday, May 11 to discuss the Government's announcement and […]

The post British Horseracing Authority Publishes Provisional Program For First Week Of Racing appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Miami Herald: Florida’s lax oversight of nursing homes spills over from one deadly crisis to the next. “Florida’s solution for one potential crisis — the failure of nearly 100 elder-care facilities to comply with the state’s emergency power law, even as hurricane season approaches — is to allow the homes to pack all their residents … Continue reading Miami Herald: Florida’s lax oversight of nursing homes spills over from one deadly crisis to the next

California Literary Review: What coronavirus costs to the Italian cultural heritage.. “Given that Italy’s is generally considered the world’s richest cultural heritage, maintenance of its historic monuments and museum, with exhibits dating from the early Neolithic era through today’s avantgarde, is costly. But with international tourism virtually at the end for an indefinite period because … Continue reading California Literary Review: What coronavirus costs to the Italian cultural heritage.

The lawsuit, brought the ACLU, says Rock County deputies ignored Kelli Jo Torres' pleas to go to the station or hospital.

WBAL NewsRadio, 98 Rock, WBAL-TV 11 and our partners at Howard Bank are proud to launch ‘Operation: Shop Local’ a community initiative to benefit small businesses in the Baltimore region.

TVG, America's horse racing network, will partner with NBC Sports to bring live horse racing into the homes of fans across the country for the seventh consecutive weekend with twelve hours of coverage scheduled from Friday, May 8th through Sunday, May 10th from 4:00 p.m. ET to 8:00 p.m. ET each day. The coverage will […]

The post Preakness Winner War Of Will Highlights TVG’s Weekend Coverage appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

WBAL NewsRadio, 98 Rock, WBAL-TV 11 and our partners at Howard Bank are proud to launch ‘Operation: Shop Local’ a community initiative to benefit small businesses in the Baltimore region.

Simas Kucinskas writes: I would like to share some recent research (pdf here). In this paper, I develop a new method for estimating R in real time, and apply it to track the dynamics of COVID-19. The method is based on standard epidemiological theory, but the approach itself is heavily inspired by time-series statistics. I […]

The other day I wrote about the challenge in addressing the pandemic—a worldwide science/engineering problem—using our existing science and engineering infrastructure, which is some mix of government labs and regulatory agencies, private mega-companies, smaller companies, university researchers, and media entities and rich people who can direct attention and resources. The current system might be the […]

I’ve been reading a couple of old books of book reviews by Anthony Burgess. Lots of great stuff. He’s a sort of Chesterton with a conscience, for example in this appreciation of Uncle Tom’s Cabin: As for Tom’s forgiving Christianity—‘O, Mas’r! don’t bring this great sin on your soul! It will hurt you more than […]

Two legislative stalwarts lose endorsements as a wave of younger, more liberal challengers emerges in Minneapolis.

Returning Internal Revenue Service workers in Kansas City are being directed to a room well-stocked with face masks, while some other IRS offices were still telling staffers to buy or make their own as the Trump administration starts rolling out a location-based plan for returning more of the some 2 million federal workers to job sites.

Baltimore Orioles' Trey Mancini announced Tuesday he is undergoing chemotherapy for Stage 3 colon cancer.