Durham pays $2.25 million settlement in carjacker crash death | Trump makes endorsement in NC-13 race
No. 66 — Mar. 31-Apr. 6, 2024
UNC-linked coronavirus researcher accused of "discrepancies in testimony"
Peter Daszak, President of EcoHealth Alliance, has been called to publicly testify by the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic and the Committee on Energy and Commerce, who are investigating the origins of COVID-19
Daszak previously testified at a private interview with the committees in regards to the 2018 "DEFUSE" proposal related to bat-borne coronaviruses and spike proteins, which EcoHealth Alliance submitted to DARPA 2018 in conjunction with organizations including UNC and the Wuhan Institute of Virology.
According to the proposal and Daszak's previous testimony, the gain-of-function research would have been performed by Dr. Ralph Baric at UNC. Daszak also testified that research described in the proposal would have been performed according to the "Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories" standard put out by the NIH and CDC.
However, according to the letter, a draft version of the proposal obtained by medical watchdog group US Right to Know contains comments from the authors which cast this testimony in doubt:
"Ralph, Zhengli. If we win this contract, I do not propose that all of this work will necessarily be conducted by Ralph, but I do want to stress the US side of this proposal so that DARPA are comfortable with our team. Once we get the funds, we can then allocate who does what exact work, and I believe that a lot of these assays can be done in Wuhan as well…"
Peter Daszak, President of EcoHealth Alliance
And another:
"In the US, these recombinant SARS-CoV are studied under BSL3, not BSL2, especially important for those that are able to bind and replicate in primary human cells. In china, might be growin these virus under bsl2. US reseachers will likely freak out."
Dr. Ralph Baric, UNC
As we have been reporting, US Right to Know is currently involved in a public records lawsuit with UNC over records potentially related to the origins of COVID-19:
And...
UNC claims "research project collaborations" are exempt from public records statute in COVID-19 origins investigation lawsuit (No. 57 — Feb. 3, 2024)
U.S. Right to Know public records lawsuit reveals efforts to evade transparency (No. 58 — Feb. 10, 2024)
Coronavirus Pandemic Subcommittee alleges FBI interest in UNC/COVID origins public records requests (No. 59 — Feb. 17, 2024)
UNC COVID-19 Origins Public Records Lawsuit: what does "proprietary mean"? (No. 61 — Mar. 2, 2024)
UNC-Chapel Hill was also the site of a "Stop Gain of Function" rally last month:
"Stop Gain of Function" rally at UNC-Chapel Hill (No. 62 — Mar. 3-Mar. 9, 2024)
Steve Baker faces first DC hearing for J6 journalism case
Journalist Steve Baker Pleads Not Guilty to 4 Jan. 6 Misdemeanor Counts - Epoch Times
Blaze News investigative journalist Steve Baker pleads not guilty to 4 misdemeanor charges over his Jan. 6 reporting - The Blaze
City of Durham pays out $2.25 million for off-duty deputy killed by carjacker in police chase
Agreement ends lawsuit over deadly police chase; $2.25 million settlement - NC Lawyers Weekly
In first settlement of its kind, city of Durham pays more than $2 million in police chase lawsuit - WRAL
Durham paid $2.25M to family of woman killed in police chase that city still defends - N&O
The City of Durham has agreed to pay $2.25 million to settle a lawsuit by the estate of Brooke Maynard, who was killed in 2018 by a carjacker fleeing Durham Police.
Maynard, a Durham County deputy who worked at the Durham County Detention Center, was off-duty and driving a personal car through an intersection near Northgate Mall when Tomaris Parker ran a red light and struck her vehicle at 71-mph.
Leading up to the crash, Parker had led police on an 11-minute chase through downtown Durham after officers attempted to pull over the vehicle which he had stolen at gunpoint that morning. Parker's prior criminal history included Assault Inflicting Serious Bodily Injury, Possession of Firearm by Felon, and Robbery w/ Dangerous Weapon.
For the City of Durham to be found liable in court, it would have to have been proven that the officers were "grossly negligent" in pursuing the carjacker at high speeds. The lawyers for Maynard's estate pointed to bodycam and dashcam video of the pursuing police, which recorded one of the pursuing officers (a trainee) expressing the desire that the carjacker would "hit a (expletive) tree."
The city is not admit fault, instead maintaining that Parker "is legally and morally responsible" for Maynard's death. Maynard was sentenced to a minimum of 19 years, 11 months in prison after pleading guilty to second degree murder.
Given the fact that the Durham Police's sole involvement in the crash was to pursue a violent felon who was fleeing arrest in a stolen vehicle, I am skeptical of the precedent this will set. After all; the speed of the chase was set by the carjacker, not the police. The police only have the opportunity to either chase, or not chase.
If police create a policy that fleeing felons exceeding a certain speed will not be pursued, it seems to me this would only provide incentive for criminals to attempt a high speed chase, creating additional danger for the lawful road-users.
13th Congressional District runoff election heats up
The GOP’s Family Feud - The Assembly
Former President Donald Trump makes endorsement in North Carolina’s 13th District - N&O
Former President Trump endorses Brad Knott for NC’s 13th Congressional District - CBS17
Former President Donald Trump's endorsement of NC-13 candidate Brad Knott has added a new dimension to what was already a heated race.
Knott will be facing Kelly Daughtry on May 13th in a runoff primary election. Knott and Daughtry received 18.7% and 27.4% of the vote respectively in lasts month's primary. (According to NC law, a runoff election between the top two vote-getters can be triggered in a primary when no candidate receives more than 30% of the vote).
Knott, a former federal prosecutor, has admitted that he voted in the wrong precinct in up to five previous elections. Although Knott claims this was an unintentional error, I personally have never voted without the poll worker requiring me to verify the address that I am registered to vote at.
Daughtry, on the other hand, has been exposed for donating $500 to Democrat Attorney General Josh Stein's 2020 re-election campaign, and $250 to Democrat Cheri Beasley's Senate campaign in 2021. Revieing public records, I was also able to find donations to at least 4 other Democratic campaigns between 2014 and 2020, for a total of over $2,500.
In addition to donating to Democrats, a 2012 Facebook comment has been found where Daughtry indicated that she would be voting for Obama. In response, Daughtry claims she actually voted for Romney.
In addition, Daughtry's Super PAC has been caught doctoring photos of Knott, including an image of Knott rubbing shoulders with a smiling President Biden, and another of Knott shaking hands with President Biden. In fact, the original unedited images are of Knott speaking and shaking hands with law enforcement officers.
