Mass native arraigned in classified document leak
Massachusetts Air National Guardsman Jack Teixeira was arrested in connection with a series of leaked classified military documents April 13, according to the New York Times.
Teixeira was arraigned in federal court in Boston April 14, according to CNN.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested Teixeira at his North Dighton, Massachusetts home shortly after the New York Times reported he was a person of interest in the case.
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said Teixeira was taken into custody “without incident” for “alleged unauthorized removal, retention and transmission of classified national defense information.”
“Today, the Justice Department arrested Jack Douglas Teixeira in connection with an investigation into alleged unauthorized removal, retention and transmission of classified national defense information. Teixeira is an employee of the United States Air Force National Guard,” Garland said.
Teixeira is reportedly the leader of a group on Discord called Thug Shaker Central, made up of 20-30 people who shared an interest in guns, gaming and racist memes, the New York Times wrote.
Documents involved in the leak were initially published on Discord but began circulating on other social media sites including Twitter, 4chan and Telegram, according to the New York Times. The documents showed classified information relating to the war in Ukraine and briefing materials regarding Canada, China, Israel and South Korea and the Middle East.
President Joe Biden suggested Thursday morning that officials were close to finding the individual responsible for the leaks while speaking to the press in Ireland.
“There’s a full-blown investigation going on as you know, with the Intelligence Committee and the Justice Department, and they’re getting close,” Biden said.
Fox News reaches settlement with Dominion Voting Systems in defamation suit
A $787.5 million settlement was reached in the Dominion Voting Systems defamation lawsuit against FOX News April 18, according to CNN.
The settlement bypasses what had the potential to be a landmark test on the abilities of the First Amendment to act on the damages connected to misinformation, according to The New York Times.
“The truth matters. Lies have consequences,” said Justin Nelson, a lawyer representing Dominion, outside the courthouse. “Over two years ago, a torrent of lies swept Dominion and election officials across America into an alternative universe of conspiracy theories causing grievous harm to Dominion and the country.”
The suit was filed by Dominion in March 2021 following allegations that the network had “recklessly disregarded the truth” by knowingly reporting false information surrounding the 2020 presidential election. FOX News conceded that some claims about the election and Dominion reported by the network were false.
“We are pleased to have reached a settlement of our dispute with Dominion Voting Systems. We acknowledge the Court’s rulings finding certain claims about Dominion to be false. This settlement reflects FOX’s continued commitment to the highest journalistic standards. We are hopeful that our decision to resolve this dispute with Dominion amicably, instead of the acrimony of a divisive trial, allows the country to move forward from these issues,” FOX News Media said in a press release.
The settlement came following a two-hour delay to the scheduled hearing of opening statements, during which it was observed that lawyers from both FOX and Dominion communicated privately, according to CNN.
