Thursday, December 12, 2019

Kentucky judge accused of retaliation, attempting threesomes with staffers and allowing drinking in courthouse

A Kentucky judge has come under fire for allegedly desecrating her position and courthouse after an anonymous complaint accused her of favoritism, making sexual advances and other misconduct. The Kenton County Family Court Judge faces nine misconduct-related charges for allegedly making inappropriate sexual advances, trading jobs for donations to her campaign, using a legal panel for campaign work, retaliating against employees and attorneys, keeping false time sheets, and allowing guitars to be played in the office and her employees to consume alcohol. The Kentucky Judicial Conduct Commission filed the charges against the judge following an investigation. The complaint was filed on November 18th and a Notice of Formal Proceedings and Charges was released on December 4th. One member of the panel reportedly quit after the judge flirted with her through Snapchat, and asked her if she would have sex with the judge’s husband. The judge allegedly asked the panel member to join group sex with her former church pastor and current case specialist. According to the panel member, when she did not comply with the judge’s request, she began to feel ostracized and eventually resigned. An attorney who was also on the panel said the judge dismissed him because he didn’t donate enough money to her reelection campaign. The judge also reportedly retaliated against a school liaison officer who supported the judge’s opponent during the 2018 election. The judge is also accused of having a sexual relationship with another man, which led to her hiring him. The two allegedly played in a band together and had sexual relations with the judge’s secretary while at work. The judge denied the allegations to the commission, including having a sexual relationship with the man she hired. She also acknowledged appointing her “acquaintances” to a permanent custody roster, but added “almost all attorneys who practice in this county” are her acquaintances.  (Cincinnati Enquirer)

A Michigan man has admitted to intentionally sabotaging his brother by spraying deer repellent around his hunting stands

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) recently responded to a complaint of hunter harassment during firearm deer season in Newaygo County. The complainant accused his brother of harassing him while hunting on private land the pair owned together. A DNR Conservation Officer examined two SD cards from trail cameras, which showed the brother wearing a backpack sprayer and spraying two hunting stands located on public U.S. Forest Service property. The DNR collected and tested samples of the liquid sprayed on the stands. According to reports, the officer confronted the suspect as he was hunting in his blind. The man confessed to tampering and harassment. He was also found to have been illegally hunting using bait. The man was reportedly upset because he felt his brother was intentionally cutting off the deer by hunting the public land next to the private camp the pair owned, the Department of Natural Resources shared. The man reportedly apologized and admitted to spraying “liquid fence,” which is used as a repellent for deer. A warrant request has been submitted by the DNR for hunter harassment and using bait. (Michigan Live)

Which jobs have seen the fastest growth in the U.S.? 

Data scientists, behavioral health professionals and engineers, according to the annual Emerging Jobs Report, which uses data to analyze workforce trends. That has come in part as greater insurance coverage for mental health has driven demand for behavioral health professionals, while data scientists have been taking on work traditionally done in other fields. (LinkedIn)

Is the craft beer revolution over?

Craft beer, once purported to be the savior of the U.S. beer industry, is beginning to fall out of flavor with consumers. Although drinkers have been abandoning domestic staples like Budweiser for almost a decade, the highly profitable but over-saturated craft beer sector is losing traction among younger drinkers who are switching to more buzzy alcohol options like spiked seltzer. Craft beer drinkers now skew older and less diverse than in previous years, experts say. There’s also an over-abundance of craft breweries, with more than 2,500 brewpubs and 4,522 microbreweries in operation nationally. (FSR Magazine)

Americans spend more on health care

Americans spend the world’s highest share on health care, allocating 16.9% of U.S. GDP to medical bills, compared to an average of 8.8%, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Increased health care spending has been helped by less spending on food, clothing and shelter, which now account for 35.2% of consumer spending compared to 53.7% in 1929. That’s thanks to rising incomes and falling relative prices, with the latter driven by cheaper production overseas. (Bloomberg)

Facebook rejects US plea for access

Facebook said it would proceed with “end-to-end” encryption for its WhatsApp and Messenger services, rejecting a U.S. plea to allow government access. Attorney General William Barr and his U.K. and Australian counterparts requested the so-called back door in October, emphasizing its role in apprehending child sex predators. However, the social media giant said that no such access could be provided without making the messaging apps more vulnerable to hackers and spies, highlighting one of the central conflicts of privacy in the digital age. (The Wall Street Journal)

Federal Funds Set to Expand Forest Farming in Appalachia

Growers of mushrooms, ginseng and other herbs that require forest cover will receive more than $500,000 in federal funding to start or expand production. Last month, U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, both Democrats from Virginia, announced nearly $600,000 in federal funding for a university-led project aimed at helping Appalachian residents start forest farms. Supporters say forest farming could be a tool to help mitigate the effects of climate change. Ginseng or black cohosh, various herbs, and mushrooms could be cultivated intentionally on the forest floor. Sometimes called “forest farming”, it sequesters a lot of carbon from the atmosphere. Appalachia is home to one of the most biodiverse and extensive temperate forests in the entire world. According to the Agricultural Marketing Resource Center, sales of herbal products and dietary supplements reached nearly $7 billion in 2015. (Public News Service)

BLM Ordered to Redo Climate Reviews on Utah Oil Leases

A court challenge by conservation groups has forced the Bureau of Land Management to pull back dozens of oil and gas leases in western states, including in Utah. A federal judge ruled last week that the BLM failed to properly study the effects of climate change when it approved the sale of 130 leases across the state. The lawsuit was filed by the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, Living Rivers and The Center for Biological Diversity. An attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity and said federal officials were in a rush to fulfill the Trump administration’s goal of “American energy dominance.” BLM officials have said once the new reviews are complete, they will issue a decision for each lease that will either cancel it, modify its terms or lift the suspension without any changes. The leases were among about 240 the BLM issued from 2014 to 2018 under the National Environmental Policy Act. (The Salt Lake Tribune)

Thursday Storms In With:

• Gingerbread House Day
• International Day of Neutrality
• National 12-hour Fresh Breath Day
• National Ding-a-Ling Day
• National Cocoa Day
• National Lost Day
• Our Lady of Guadelupe
• Poinsettia Day