Author: NCIJ NETWNCIJ NETWORK

Reading Time: 4 minutes Click here to read highlights from the story Gov. Tony Evers reopened the commutations process in April – the first time in 25 years Wisconsin prisoners had the opportunity to request shorter sentences. The Commutation Advisory Board will meet from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Friday. The virtual meeting is open to the public with no registration required. It will stream at www.youtube.com/@GovCommutations and/or wiseye.org/live. Natalie Murphy, one of 12 people who will speak at the hearing, told Wisconsin Watch she spent two weeks reading through her application before submitting it. The ACLU of Wisconsin…

Following an executive order that called for breaking up the combination measles, mumps and rubella, or MMR, vaccine, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said that a “recent” study “just came out” that “very strongly supports” the idea. But there’s no evidence of any such credible study, past or present. In a CNN interview that aired on Aug. 15, Kennedy defended President Donald Trump’s Aug. 10 executive order on childhood vaccines, which among other things, asked officials to begin pursuing a way to offer single-disease shots. Those vaccines have not been available in the U.S. for nearly…

US president hits out as states bordering the Strait of Hormuz continue talks on managing the strategic waterway.President Donald Trump has asserted that the United States is not engaged in talks with Iran ⁠and has not scheduled any, but has meanwhile insisted that the Strait of Hormuz remains open.The US leader insisted in a social media post on Tuesday that while the naval blockade of Iranian ports remains “in full force and effect”, all other marine traffic was free to pass. He also posted a map depicting the strategic waterway as US territory.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listThe…

It marks a sign of progress after the Trump administration’s effort to push new oil development in Venezuela, which began after the U.S. raid that captured former leader Nicolás Maduro in January, had slowed in recent months. Despite a boost from higher crude prices, negotiations have bogged down around key details like dispute resolution, while authorities in Caracas dealt with a devastating pair of June earthquakes that killed thousands.Venezuela’s interim president Delcy Rodríguez last month unveiled new regulations offering more favorable fiscal terms to international oil companies.The signings come after the Trump administration renewed pressure on Rodríguez to have PDVSA…

Alaska’s nonpartisan Senate primary will offer a rare chance to test the strength of the two leading candidates, Dan S. Sullivan, the Republican incumbent, and former Representative Mary Peltola, a well-funded Democrat, as they face off months before November.And voters in Northern California will choose a replacement for former Representative Eric Swalwell, who resigned in the spring after allegations of sexual misconduct.Here’s what to watch on Tuesday, a busy Primary Day from coast to coast.Who’s ahead in Alaska’s marquee Senate race?Alaska has nonpartisan Senate primaries, and the top four candidates will move on to the general election.That means Mr. Sullivan,…

A federal judge on Tuesday blocked a land exchange that would have allowed a contentious road to be built through the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge, a vast wild area in southwestern Alaska.The decision by Judge Sharon L. Gleason of U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska was a setback for the Trump administration, which finalized the land swap deal in October. It was a victory for Alaska Native tribes and environmental groups that sued to stop road construction.The deal called for the Interior Department to transfer 490 acres of land within the wildlife refuge to King Cove Corporation, a…

You’re walking the dog at night, and your little flashlight, which has been getting dimmer, conks out. Instead of stumbling home in the dark, wouldn’t it be great if you could somehow eke a little more energy out of the batteries inside?That’s not as crazy as it sounds. When a battery-powered device stops working, we say the battery is “dead”—but it’s not really. It still contains chemical energy, and the voltage isn’t zero; it’s just not high enough to run a current through the light bulb or LED (or whatever load you have).But with a little physics chicanery, you can…

Cybersecurity giant Fortinet on Monday announced the acquisition of AI security company Virtue AI. The enterprise security and governance platform made by Virtue AI provides automated testing, real-time protection, and compliance oversight specifically built for AI models, conversational applications, and autonomous agents.   One of the platform’s components conducts automated red-teaming to uncover vulnerabilities using over 100 proprietary attack algorithms across hundreds of attack vectors and risk categories.  For autonomous systems, the testing environment simulates dozens of enterprise scenarios to evaluate agent tool usage, system access, and multi-step execution workflows.  During live operations, the platform applies real-time runtime guardrails across text,…

The Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed its own framework for crypto asset offerings, pressing ahead while landmark legislation stalls.  The regulator unveiled “Regulation Crypto Assets” on Tuesday, a tailored offering regime it says will let token issuers raise money in the U.S. without falling foul of securities laws. Tuesday’s proposal carves out two exemptions from registration under the Securities Act of 1933. The first is a one-time exemption allowing issuers to raise up to $5 million in crypto over four years. The second permits up to $75 million in any 12-month period, but comes with financial statements and ongoing…

British wildlife photographer Margot Raggett says she created the book Remembering Elephants after she heard David Attenborough say, “The question is, are we happy to suppose that our grandchildren may never be able to see an elephant except in a picture book?” Her effort was to provoke this question in others and to give the proceeds from its sale to conservation organizations. In a sense, the book went viral and generated a following, prompting Raggett to continue the book series and her nonprofit, Remembering Wildlife.“Sometimes people get upset with me and say ‘They’re still around,’ but I want people to…