Democrats search for 51st net neutrality vote

Senate Democrats are hunting for one more Republican vote to prevent the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from repealing net neutrality rules.

Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced Tuesday that all 49 Democrats have endorsed legislation to preserve the rules. With Sen. Susan Collins (Maine) already on board, Democrats need the support of just one more Republican to ensure the legislation is sent to the House.

The bill, which will be introduced by Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), would use a legislative tool called the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to roll back the FCC’s vote last month scrapping the 2015 net neutrality rules. The rules have required internet service providers (ISP) to treat all web traffic equally, and supporters say they’re essential to preventing companies such as Comcast and Verizon from abusing their control over internet access.The Democrats plan to use procedural rules under the CRA to force a vote on their bill in the coming months.

Even though the bill is unlikely to pass the House or be signed by President Trump, Democrats see an opportunity to capitalize on the outcry surrounding the FCC repeal and force Republicans to vote on net neutrality ahead of the midterm elections.

“With full caucus support, it’s clear that Democrats are committed to fighting to keep the internet from becoming the Wild West where ISPs are free to offer premium service to only the wealthiest customers while average consumers are left with far inferior options,” Schumer said in a statement Tuesday.

He added, “When we force a vote on this bill, Republicans in Congress will — for the first time — have the opportunity to right the administration’s wrong and show the American people whose side they’re on: big ISPs and major corporations or consumers, entrepreneurs, and small business owners.”

On the House side, Rep. Mike Doyle (D-Pa.) announced Tuesday that he had lined up 82 co-sponsors for his companion CRA bill, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). But the procedural rules for CRA bills are different in the House; Democrats do not have the power to force a vote by securing co-sponsors.

That’s left the Senate as the primary venue for the net neutrality fight.

Supporters of the rules looking for the 51st vote for the CRA bill could have several targets.

Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), for example, who made headlines last year by bucking the administration on a handful of judicial nominees, said last week that he is undecided on Markey’s bill.

“There a lot of nuances, and there are very good arguments on both sides,” Kennedy said to reporters, according to the National Journal. “I’m honestly undecided. Right now, to me, it’s a very, very close call.”

Sen. Dean Heller (R-Nev.), who’s seen as one of the most vulnerable Republicans in this year’s midterm election, is another possible target in the net neutrality push. Spokespeople for Kennedy and Heller did not respond to requests for comment.

Still, Republicans have largely opposed the Obama-era rules as heavy-handed regulation that has stifled investment from broadband companies. They say existing antitrust and consumer protection laws are already sufficient to secure an open internet.

Democrats and their allies disagree and think Republicans will pay a political price for that stance.

Fight for the Future, a group that helped rally internet users to protest the FCC vote, has already launched an online scorecard to track members’ positions on the CRA, directing supporters to reach out to their representatives.

“Net neutrality is going to be an election issue in 2018 and every member of Congress knows it,” Evan Greer, the group’s campaign director, said in a statement.

“The CRA is steamrolling through the Senate because lawmakers are reading the writing on the wall that it’s the only viable legislation on the table. Cleanly reversing the FCC’s unpopular and illegitimate decision is, on substance, the correct policy move, and the only one that has support from voters,” Greer said.

It could be months before the net neutrality bill reaches the Senate floor. The FCC’s final order still needs to receive approval from the White House’s Office of Management and Budget and must be published in the Federal Register before Congress can review it. At that point, lawmakers will have 60 legislative days to take up the CRA bills.

Even if the effort in Congress fails, as expected, the FCC’s repeal order will be facing court challenges for years to come. That will allow Democrats to extend the shelf life of a political battle in which they see themselves on the winning side.

“Republicans now have a clear choice — be on the right side of history and stand with the American people who support a free and open internet, or hold hands with the special interests who want to control the internet for their own profit,” Markey said in a statement Tuesday. “I urge them to join the majority of Americans, embrace the bipartisanship of net neutrality, and support this resolution.”

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7.3-magnitude earthquake strikes off Japan

A tsunami warning is in effect for Japan's Fukushima Prefecture after a 7.3-magnitude earthquake struck off Honshu at 5:59 a.m. Tuesday (3:59 p.m. Monday ET), according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.

A tsunami wave of 1-3 meters (3-10 feet) is possible, according to the agency. The US Geological Survey put the magnitude at 6.9, striking 37 kilometers (23 miles) east-southeast of Namie off the country's east coast at a depth of 11.4 kilometers (7 miles).

Two aftershocks were reported by USGS, one 5.4 and one 4.8.

Several tsunami waves have been spotted off the coast of Fukushima Prefecture, CNN affiliate NHK reported. One was spotted 22 kilometers off the coast of Iwaki City; a 90-centimeter wave was reported at Port of Soma; a 60-centimeter wave was reported at Port of Onahama.

Video on social media from Onahama featured sounds of sirens in response to the warning in effect. Images of the port showed waves that the broadcaster described as "backwash" that happens before a tsunami hits shore.

NHK urged the public to evacuate, cautioning that even if waves appear low in the ocean they can rise as they reach shore. The broadcaster reminded people to dress warmly in the cold rain and urged them to help others leave.

"Please do not think that you are safe. Please evacuate to high grounds," the network said. "Please think about the worst-case scenario and evacuate right away."

Earthquakes are common in Japan. The most recent was a 6.2 magnitude in late October near Kurayoshi, a city to the west of Osaka, which caused a handful of injuries.

The epicenter of this latest earthquake was not far south of the 2011 quake that caused a devastating tsunami, damaged nuclear reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi plant and killed more than 15,000 people. The devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan will rank among the costliest natural disasters on record.

The 2011 quake moved Japan's coast 8 feet and shifted the Earth's axis, ranking among the costliest natural disasters on record.

Tokyo Electric Power Company Inc. said there had been no abnormalities or change in radiation levels at Fukushima Daiichi. Authorities are working to confirm reports that the reactor's cooling system stopped, NHK reported.

There is no tsunami threat to Hawaii as a result of the quake, the Honolulu Department of Emergency Management said.

Developing story - more to come

CNN's Radina Gigova and Taylor Ward contributed to this report.

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Afghanistan and Pakistan Hit by Huge Earthquake

KABUL, Afghanistan — A deadly earthquake hit northern Afghanistan and Pakistan on Monday afternoon, registering a preliminary magnitude of 7.5 and causing heavy damage in one of the world’s most impoverished and war-torn regions.

At least 122 people were reported killed, with 100 or more of them in Pakistan, and that figure seemed likely to rise significantly, officials in both countries said.

The quake, which struck at 1:39 p.m., was centered in the Hindu Kush mountain range, about 28 miles southwest of the district of Jurm in Afghanistan and about 160 miles northeast of Kabul, the Afghan capital. The quake’s depth was reported at 132 miles, the United States Geological Survey said, and its effects were felt as far away as New Delhi.

People poured into the streets of Kabul, where buildings shook for at least two minutes, and similar scenes played out in Islamabad and Peshawar in Pakistan. Officials in both countries declared emergencies, and military units were ordered to join the response.

In Pakistan, provincial authorities in Peshawar said at least 63 people had been killed in surrounding Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Province. Severe tolls were also expected in other remote regions of the north, including in the Federally Administrated Tribal Areas, but no immediate confirmation of exact numbers was available because of a breakdown in communications systems.

Reverberations were felt across several provinces in Afghanistan, particularly in northern areas that had already been in turmoil because of a widespread Taliban offensive. There, too, the shaking damaged communication lines, making initial damage difficult to assess.

In Islamabad, the Pakistani capital, people ran out into the open as the earthquake rattled the city. Panic was widespread in neighborhoods with high-rises and multistory apartment blocks, and hundreds of shopkeepers and customers swarmed the main avenue in Blue Area, a commercial neighborhood.

In the northern city of Peshawar, Mehreen Ali, 30, a dentist, said she was sitting in a car outside a shopping plaza when the vehicle started shaking.

“I thought the car was shaking as the driver was leaning against it,” Ms. Ali said. “Then suddenly, people started coming out of the building in front. People were staring at the building as if it was about to fall as it shook.”

In the northern valley of Swat, at least 35 people were killed, local officials said. At least 100 houses were damaged.

Shazia Bibi, 34, said a wall of her house collapsed, injuring her on the head and back. “I was rushing out of the house when the wall collapsed,” Ms. Bibi said from a hospital bed.

Zahir Shah, a resident of Mingora in Swat Valley, said he was sitting in a vehicle with a friend when buildings around them started to shake. They quickly sped away and into an open area for safety. Mr. Shah said he could not reach his relatives in remote areas of the valley as mobile and landline phones were not working.

Hospital officials in Swat said at least 250 people had been brought in for treatment by Monday evening.

Landslides were reported in the mountainous Pakistani regions of Gilgit and Chitral, as boulders fell on to the roads, cutting off many areas. Damage was reported in more central parts of the country as well: In Punjab Province, at least 10 people were wounded when a school wall collapsed in the city of Sargodha.

In Afghanistan, the country’s chief executive, Abdullah Abdullah, called an emergency meeting of senior officials to respond to the disaster. “This is the strongest earthquake that has happened in our country in recent years,” Mr. Abdullah said, warning of the possibility of aftershocks.

Telephone services were disrupted across a wide section of northern Afghanistan. The roll call of affected provinces closely mirrored those hardest hit by surging Taliban attacks in recent months.

In Takhar Province, the collapse of a school building left 12 students dead and 40 others injured, according to Sunatullah Taimoor, a spokesman for the Takhar provincial governor. Some of the victims, all girls aged 6 to 16, were killed in a stampede, he said.

In Baghlan Province, 12 students were injured after a high school collapsed in the city of Pul-i-Kumri, according to Mohammad Nasir Kohzad, the provincial head of national disaster management. Extensive damage was also reported in the areas of Borka and Aq Kotal.

In Nangarhar Province, health officials said seven people were killed and 77 others injured.

In Parwan Province, three people were killed and 13 injured, and 50 houses collapsed, according to Bahauddin Jilani, the leader of the provincial council.

South Asia, where the Indian tectonic plate collides with the Eurasian plate, has a history of devastating earthquakes. In April, more than 8,700 people were killed in Nepal’s worst earthquake in 80 years. And in 2005, tens of thousands were killed in a 7.6 magnitude earthquake centered in the Kashmir region.

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Exclusive: City to pay $70K to settle suit alleging NYPD erased footage of beating

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The city will pay $70,000 to settle a lawsuit alleging an NYPD officer let CCTV footage of a suspect's beating get erased before the suspect or his lawyer could review it.

Keashon Gillam, 22, alleged in a federal lawsuit that an NYPD "VIPER" camera recorded an Oct. 8, 2011 incident outside the Stapleton Houses where officers pummeled him badly enough to leave him with a concussion, medical staples and a scar on his head.

One of the officers who worked inside the housing complex's camera room rushed out to join the beating, the lawsuit alleged, then failed to flag the footage for archiving, meaning that, by NYPD policy, it would be erased after seven days, the lawsuit alleged.

On Monday, U.S. District Judge I. Leo Glasser dismissed the case, after Gillam and the city agreed to a settlement a month earlier.

"It was right in front of video cameras, and the video evidence was recorded over before we could get it, and we tried very hard," said Gillam's lawyer, Gregory Antollino. "We didn't even find out that it had been recorded over until years later. And so I think the policy with regard to those tapes needs to be looked at so that the truth can be preserved."

According to the NYPD patrol guide, recordings made by the city's Video-Interactive Patrol Enhanced Response, or VIPER cameras, are erased and destroyed every seven days, unless the recording is the subject of an incident report.

"I knew there was cameras out there, because basically I've been living out here all my life," Gillam said in an interview with the Advance Thursday. "For them to say that had no videotape, I knew that was BS.... Me and my mother went to get the tape so many times."

SUIT FILED IN 2012

Gillam filed his lawsuit in December 2012, while the criminal case against him was still pending.

According to the lawsuit, the officers had been chasing a "big fish" suspect, and when they couldn't catch him, "turned to a group of young black men standing near 218 Broad St."

Gillam, who was then 18, was standing outside with his cousin, tried to walk away from two officers, Christopher Parco and Timothy Lake, the lawsuit alleged. He had a small amount of marijuana on him, according to the lawsuit.

Moments earlier, Gillam told the Advance, he had watched a man who had been sitting on a bench run as soon as police showed up at the housing development.

The officers yelled, "Get the (expletive) up on the gate, get the (expletive) up on the gate!" Gillam recalled.

"Me and my cousin, we're going home, we're not doing nothing, so we didn't think they were talking to us," he said.

Parco grabbed him, "spun him to the ground" and bashed his head with a police radio, and Lake joined in, punching and kicking him, the lawsuit alleged.

NO 'INCIDENT REPORT'

Officer Daniel Magee was watching the scene unfold in the VIPER surveillance room at the Stapleton Houses and rushed out to join the two officers, the lawsuit alleged, beating Gillam after he was cuffed.

"Although it was procedure to do so, Magee should have prepared an incident report to flag the video of the incident, which was caught on camera. He purposely did not to protect Parco and his brethren from being charged with excessive force," the lawsuit alleged.

At one point, the lawsuit alleged, Lake cut his finger on a safety razor while searching Gillam's pocket, flicked blood into Gillam's face and referred to him as a "n----r."

Gillam suffered a concussion and needed medical staples in his head, the lawsuit alleged.

He was planning to start classes at ASA College in Manhattan the next day, he told the Advance, but after recovering from his injuries, he could only focus on classes for the first couple of months.

"It just took a toll on me, I just didn't want to keep going to school every day just thinking about that day," he said. Gillam said he now works as a security guard and plans to return to school.

ACQUITTED AT TRIAL

Gillam was ultimately acquitted of resisting arrest charges at a bench trial this past March, and was adjudicated as a youthful offender on a marijuana possession charge in April.

His cousin, who was also arrested, was only charged with marijuana possession, and received an adjournment contemplating dismissal.

The city's Civilian Complaint Review Board and the NYPD's Internal Affairs Bureau investigated the incident, but did not substantiate any allegations against Lake or Parco, the lawsuit alleged. Magee was "retrained" over his handling of the VIPER video, according to the lawsuit.

The NYPD has not yet responded to a request made Wednesday seeking both comment on the case and general information about the department's policies regarding VIPER recordings.

"Settling the case was in the best interest of the city," said city Law Department spokesman Nick Paolucci.

Court records show the three named officers have been defendants in multiple lawsuits against the NYPD. One case involving both Lake and Magee is still pending, while the rest have ended with settlements.

Last September, Patrolmen's Benevolent Association President Patrick Lynch criticized the city for settling so many cases against police officers, referring to them as "quick buck" lawsuits that "have a secondary impact of seriously injuring the reputation of good police officers who often are not given the opportunity to defend themselves."

TWICE THE AVERAGE PAYOUT

The city has spent $428 million between January 2009 and October 2014 to settle nearly 11,000 NYPD-related lawsuits, according to numbers provided by the Law Department to the website MuckRock.com.

Gillam received more than double the $33,000 average paid out in those cases.

"I think the city was fair. I think it was a fair settlement," Antollino said.

While he's grateful for the settlement money, Gillam said, "I'd rather see officers like that off the streets."

Antollino called for the NYPD to revise its policy on deleting VIPER recordings.

"Who knows what the tape would have shown? But we think that it would have shown exactly what we alleged, and I think that the city policies on these VIPER cameras have got to change," Antollino said. "As it is, they record over them every week, and only if they get flagged do they save them."

Lawyer Jason Leventhal, who regularly handles cases against the NYPD, including several unrelated lawsuits against the officers named in Gillam's suit, also called for better handling of VIPER footage.

"Videos provide the most compelling evidence to determine what happened during a police encounter.  The destruction of videos strikes at the heart of the integrity of our justice system," he said. "The NYPD should immediately institute policies requiring the prompt examination and preservation of potential video evidence to ensure that the truth prevails."

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BREAKING NEWS: 3 people hurt in Alabama church shooting; suspect arrested

EAST SELMA, Alabama — An Alabama prosecutor says a suspect has been charged with attempted murder after allegedly shooting a woman, an infant and a pastor inside a church in Alabama.

Dallas County District Attorney Michael Jackson says James Minter was arrested after the shooting Sunday at the Oasis Church in East Selma, Alabama. Neither Minter’s age or hometown were immediately available.

Jackson says the shooting stems from a domestic issue between Minter and the woman and that race was not a factor.

Jackson says the pastor is white, while Minter and the two other victims are black. Jackson says Minter is being held without bond at the Dallas County jail.

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