A Federal District Court upheld the ruling of a lower court on Friday and dismissed a case brought by a Chicago lawyer who wanted to sue 19 people for leaving bad on-line reviews for his law firm because of xenophobic comments he made on Facebook, Law.com reports.

In 2017, David Freydin made numerous idiotic comments on his Facebook page demeaning Ukrainians, such as asking, “Did Trump put Ukraine on the travel ban list?! We just cannot find a cleaning lady!”  Readers of the comments then went to Facebook, Google and Yelp and left low-rated reviews for his law firm and for himself personally, including calling him embarrassment and a disgrace to the US judicial system.”

Freydin wanted to sue 19 people who posted those poor reviews on the websites, claiming he is the victim of a civil conspiracy that libeled him, involving people who never used his legal services but wrote negative reviews anyway. 

Broward County, Florida Sheriff Gregory Tony, appointed in 2019 by Governor Ron DeSantis after former Sheriff Scott Israel was removed over his mishandling of the 2018 Parkland massacre, is apparently going to stay on the job despite some youthful indiscretions that Tony left off his applications in his previous job with another department, the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports.

Among Tony’s crazy teenage hijinks were killing another teenager with a gun when he was 14, a charge on which Tony was acquitted after successfully arguing self-defense, then as an adult his drug use, writing bad checks, traffic tickets, et cetera, all of which were left off of his job application for his prior position with the Coral Springs, Florida Police Department. “Although it appears that Tony knowingly and willfully [misled] public servants in the performance of their official duties by making false statements in writing on his official applications (regarding his traffic citation, drug use, and arrest history) … a criminal prosecution of these actions would be negated,” said Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigator Keith Riddick, citing the statute of limitations has long expired for any potential perjury charges. Back the Blue, libs.

A federal judge rejected a plea deal Monday that would have allowed Travis McMichael to avoid going on trial on federal hate crimes charges, the AP reports.

Trump minion Tom Barrack, who last July was indicted on charges of illegally lobbying for the UAE, charges that for unclear reasons had been shelved internally at the Justice Department in 2019 while Trump was still president, says that two year delay somehow makes the charges invalid in a motion arguing for dismissal filed Monday, as if they served him a sandwich with moldy bread.

“[T]he government’s unjustified two-year delay in charging Mr. Barrack also warrants dismissal of the indictment. The government had all the evidence on which the indictment was based in 2019. The indictment pleads the conspiracy terminated in April 2018, and the alleged false statements occurred in June 2019. Why the government waited more than two years, and until after a change in administration, is a question only it can answer, but it should answer it especially given the paramount First Amendment interests at stake. Had the government brought this case when its investigation was complete in 2019, recollections regarding Mr. Barrack’s June 2019 interview would have been fresh and the harm from the government’s failure to make a contemporaneous record might have been mitigated. The lengthy delay has also prejudiced Mr. Barrack’s ability to identify, preserve, and secure documentary evidence and obtain evidence from witnesses whose memories have faded. The government has provided no explanation for its delay, and the specter that the government intentionally delayed bringing this case for political reasons or tactical advantage hangs heavily over this case. Because Mr. Barrack has been deprived of a fair opportunity to defend himself, the indictment should be dismissed,” write Barrack’s attorneys and damn that is pathetic this asshole thinks he’s entitled to his own special statute of limitations.

Far right asshole Jim Lamon, currently one of the leading candidates for the Republican Arizona Senate nomination, fielded some questions on Sunday about his signing on to the fake Trump electoral college certificate in December of 2020, the Arizona Republic reports. “The Republican electors put forth a valid document that said, in the event that the election certification was overturned, there would be no excuse not to recognize those electors,” said Lamon to KTVK’s “Politics Unplugged”, which is bullshit because the document he signed contains no such language.

Lamon could be digging for that cover to plead ignorance as the fake Trump 2020 Pennsylvania and Nevada certificates did explicitly contain that contingency. However Lamon also told KTVK the document was “very straightforward, very simple,” meaning he at least claims to have read the whole thing thoroughly. Mark Kelly should use that to squash this fucker into Lamonade.

Former Washington State trooper Robert Lamay, who quit the force in October over a COVID-19 vaccine requirement and telling Governor Jay Inslee “kiss my ass” in a video during his final patrol was hailed on Fox News as a hero in multiple segments and was interviewed on the propaganda network at least twice following his totally badass, lib-owning departure.

Now that he’s dead of the virus, however, Media Matters have been unable to find a single mention of his passing in the network’s coverage since Friday. Which is totally understandable, since it doesn’t really fit in with Fox News version of the truth of what sometimes happens to anti-vaxxers, even the most invincible-feeling ones. They should by all means avoid reporting something tragic and stupid that they certainly helped cause with all their oppositional-defiant anti-vax bullshit.

However, in the slightest shred of fairness to Fox, they did publish a story about Lamay’s death on their website Saturday, and it does not appear to have been buried if we judge by the number of comments – over 15,000 as of Monday. Media Matters mentions this in their write-up.

One person is in custody after a number of Jewish establishments in Chicago’s West Ridge neighborhood were targeted in a Neo-Nazi vandalism spree starting Saturday into Monday, Fox 32 reports. On Saturday the Tol Kuv synagogue and Tel Aviv bakery on West Devon Avenue both had windows broken in the early morning hours. Then on Sunday the Hanna Sacks Bais Yaakov High School and FREE Synagogue were defaced with swastikas and other anti-semitic graffiti. A congregant at FREE was also “verbally assaulted” by an unidentified man. Finally on Monday morning yet another West Devon Avenue synagogue’s windows were kicked in.

“We’ll get through it,” FREE Synagogue Rabbi Levi Notik told Fox 32. “I want to thank law enforcement, they did a tremendous job. They were here very quick, had detectives here in minutes. Police already have one person in custody. It was incredible.” It is unknown how closely these incidents were connected and if any more suspects remain at large.

Texas: Prepare NOW for sub-freezing conditions expected to begin impacting much of the state during the middle of this week. ❄️

Visit https://t.co/1lek8P83V8 for winter weather resources. #txwx pic.twitter.com/5rzvqzzli1

— Texas Division of Emergency Management (@TDEM) January 30, 2022

Federal prosecutors have reportedly reached a plea agreement on civil rights charges with the father and son who were found guilty of the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, a black who was chased and gunned down by three white man while he was jogging through a neighborhood, NBC News reports.

Prosecutors filed notifications with the court saying Travis McMichael and his father Gregory McMichael have reached an agreement with prosecutors.  The third man convicted as part of Arbery’s murder, William “Roddie” Bryan, was not mentioned in the filing.

Any deal would likely be run by Arbery’s family before being accepted by the court.  Wanda Cooper Jones and Marcus Arbery, Arbery’s parents, have said they are vehemently against offering the trio any deal.  “This proposed plea is a huge accommodation to the men who hunted down and murdered Ahmaud Arbery,” the pair said in the overnight statement, provided by NBC affiliate WTLV in Jacksonville, Florida.

Six historically Black colleges and universities received bomb threats Monday morning forcing them to shut down operations for at least part of the day as law enforcement officials investigated the threats, CNN reports.

Southern University and A&M in Louisiana; Howard University in Washington, DC; Bethune-Cookman University in Florida;, Albany State University in Georgia; Bowie State University in Maryland; and Delaware State University in Delaware all received threats Monday morning.  Details of the threats were not released.

This is the second time this month that HBCU’s have received bomb threats.  On January 5th, three college including Howard received bomb threats that caused them to shut down.

An independent report by a non-partisan government investigator released Monday found that British Prime Minister Boris Johnson exhibited exceptional poor judgment while holding a series of crowded social gatherings at 10 Downing Street while the country was in lockdown due to spreading coronavirus, the BBC reports.

Senior British civil servant Sue Gray investigated 16 different social events held at the Prime Minister’s residence while the government was enforcing mandatory isolation regulations that limited the number of people who could meet in a private residence.

Gray found “failures of leadership and judgment by different parts of No 10 and the Cabinet Office at different times. Some of the events should not have been allowed to take place. Other events should not have been allowed to develop as they did.”

Conservative in government on both sides of the US-Canada border are telling voters to ignore their eyes and ears as they do a terrible job distancing themselves from displays of Nazi Swastikas at far right protest events over the weekend in Orlando, Florida and Ottawa, Canada.

I fought on the battlefield for American lives and in business for good-paying jobs that fuel livelihoods. I will continue to fight for the hardworking families in Michigan’s 10th district as today I announce my run for Congress. Join me at https://t.co/L2HSYuRU7Y pic.twitter.com/PkqKpwqIWP

— John James (@JohnJamesMI) January 31, 2022

Fulton County, Georgia District Attorney Fani Willis has sent a letter to the FBI field office in Atlanta seeking assistance securing her offices after the Orange God Emperor’s threatened “nationwide protests” against “racist” DAs investigating him at his Saturday rally in Conroe, Texas, CNN reports.

“These prosecutors are vicious, horrible people. They’re racists and they’re very sick – they’re mentally sick,” Trump screamed to his fans Saturday night. “They’re going after me without any protection of my rights from the Supreme Court or most other courts. In reality, they’re not after me, they’re after you,” he added, without naming Willis or Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg. “I am asking that you immediately conduct a risk assessment of the Fulton County Courthouse and Government Center, and that you provide protective resources to include intelligence and federal agents,” Willis said in the letter to FBI Special Agent JC Hacker. “It is imperative that these resources are in place well in advance of the convening of the Special Purpose Grand Jury.”

COVID misinformation podcaster bro Joe Rogan says he was only looking to talk to people with “differing opinions,” on COVID-19 vaccines on his show in an Instagram video responding to Spotify’s new half-assed “disclaimer” policy, the AP reports. “I’m not trying to promote misinformation, I’m not trying to be controversial. I’ve never tried to do anything with this podcast other than to just talk to people,” said Rogan in a video posted late Sunday as Spotify tries to prevent a possible exodus of artists in protest of Rogan’s bullshit.

https://twitter.com/ElonJet/status/1487964749627330563

Elon Musk offered 19-year-old college freshman Jack Sweeney of Florida $5,o0o to shut down the Twitter account @ElonJet, which tracks the movements of Musk’s private jet, but that apparently wasn’t enough of an incentive, CNN reports.

Cheslie Kryst, the woman crowned Miss USA in 2019, jumped to her death from a building in downtown New York City after posting a photo on Instagram, commenting “May this day bring you rest and peace,” CNN reports.

Kryst was an attorney working on issues relating to prisoners who were sentenced unfairly.  She received her MBA and law degree from Wake Forest after getting her undergraduate degree from the University of South Carolina.  She also spent some time as a correspondent for ExtraTV.

“In devastation and great sorrow, we share the passing of our beloved Cheslie,” her family said in a statement. “Her great light was one that inspired others around the world with her beauty and strength. She cared, she loved, she laughed and she shined.”

The National Suicide Prevention Hotline in the US is available 24 hours a day at 1-800-273-8255. Call them if you need to talk to someone.

CNN’s Zachary Cohen reports that Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has asked the FBI for help in providing security for buildings and staff one day after [Donald] Trump said at his Texas rally that “supporters should hold ‘the biggest protests we have ever had’ in cities like Atlanta if ‘racist’ prosecutors ‘do anything wrong or illegal.'”

Willis is looking into Trump’s efforts to intimidate Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and other state officials to overturn the results of the election in the state where Trump lost to Joe Biden.

North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency said the government test-fired another ballistic missile, this one said to be powerful enough to reach the US territory of Guam, the Associated Press reports.

The KCNA reported the Monday morning (local time) launch was a successful test of the navigation system of a modified Hwasong-12 missile system.  The Hwasong-12 is deployed to North Korea military units.  The missile hit an apogee of 2,000 kilometers and landed 800 miles away in the Sea of Japan.

The series of tests is seen by diplomats as an effort to draw attention to the isolated nation, something the Kim government did in 2017 when the Trump Administration came into office.

The Cincinnati Bengals and the Los Angeles Rams will compete for the National Football League Championship in Super Bowl LVI on Sunday, February 13th.  The Rams will be the first team to play the Super Bowl in their home stadium.

The Bengals advanced to the Super Bowl by beating the favored Kansas City Chiefs 27-24 in overtime, according to ESPN.  It’ll be the Bengals third Super Bowl appearance, with no wins.  The Rams beat the San Francisco 49ers 20-17 in regular time to wrap up the NFC championship.