Biden Nominates Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to be First Black Woman on Supreme Court

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The White House announced today that President Biden has selected to nominate Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson as Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.

Jackson, currently a judge on U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, will be the first Black woman to serve on the nation's highest court if confirmed.

The nomination ends a month-long search and fulfills a campaign promise by Biden to nominate a Black woman to the bench.

The administration said in a statement Biden "sought a candidate with exceptional credentials, unimpeachable character, and unwavering dedication to the rule of law" to replace Justice Stephen Breyer, who announced he would step down from the Supreme Court after 27 years last month at the end of the current term.

I’m proud to announce that I am nominating Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to serve on the Supreme Court. Currently serving on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, she is one of our nation’s brightest legal minds and will be an exceptional Justice.https://t.co/iePvhz1YaA pic.twitter.com/Nzqv2AtN8h

— President Biden (@POTUS) February 25, 2022

"He also sought a nominee—much like Justice Breyer—who is wise, pragmatic, and has a deep understanding of the Constitution as an enduring charter of liberty," it added. "And the President sought an individual who is committed to equal justice under the law and who understands the profound impact that the Supreme Court’s decisions have on the lives of the American people."

Jackson, a former clerk for Breyer, has served as a federal appellate judge, a federal district court judge, a member of the U.S. Sentencing Commission, an attorney in private practice and as a federal public defender.

The Democratic Party will likely need all its members in Washington to confirm the historic appointment in a 50-50 Senate (50 Republicans, 48 Democrats and two Independents who caucus with the Democrats), though there will be an attempt at bi-partisanship. 

When Jackson was confirmed to the appellate bench, she had the support of three Republican senators. If needed, however, the Democrats can confirm the appointment with their 50 votes and Vice President Kamala Harris as the tie-breaker.

She was born in Washington and grew up in Miami. The daughter of educators, Jackson graduated magna cum laude from Harvard College, then attended Harvard Law School, where she graduated cum laude and was an editor of the Harvard Law Review.

After law school, Jackson served in Breyer’s chambers as a law clerk. Then served as a federal public defender from 2005 to 2007, representing defendants on appeal who did not have the means to pay for a lawyer. If confirmed, she would be the first former federal public defender to serve on the Supreme Court

From 2013 to 2021, she served as a United States District Judge for the District of Columbia. She has been confirmed by the Senate on a bipartisan basis three times – twice as judge and once to serve on the U.S. Sentencing Commission.

Jackson's husband Patrick serves as Chief of the Division of General Surgery at Georgetown University Hospital. She lives with him and their two daughters in Washington.

Jury Convicts Ex-Minneapolis Officers of Violating George Floyd’s Civil Rights

Left to right: J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane, Tou Thao

Three former police officers face up to life in prison after being found guilty of violating George Floyd's civil rights by a federal jury in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Thursday.

After deliberating for two days the 12 jurors — four men and eight women — found ex-Minneapolis cops Tou Thao, J. Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane, culpable for their actions during the arrest of Floyd, whose death at the hands of fellow officer Derek Chauvin in 2020 on video was the catalyst for worldwide protests against systemic racism.

According to the Department of Justice violating a person's civil rights "is punishable by a range of imprisonment up to a life term, or the death penalty, depending upon the circumstances of the crime, and the resulting injury, if any." Federal sentencing guidelines, however, may make the most severe punishment unlikely.

Thao, Kueng and Lane were charged with depriving Floyd of his civil rights while acting under government authority and failing to provide Floyd with medical care. Thao and Kueng faced an additional count for failing to stop Chauvin from initiating the actions which caused Floyd’s death.

Chauvin was convicted of murder and manslaughter last year in state court. A state trial is scheduled for June against the men on charges of aiding and abetting murder and manslaughter.

Hollywood Unlocked Blog in Hot Water Over Claim Queen Elizabeth II is Dead

Queen Elizabeth II

With the world seemingly on the verge of World War III and the ongoing pandemic, one hip-hop-centric news source with millions of followers and credibility for breaking stories found a way to stand out from the crowd.

Unfortunately for Hollywood Unlocked, the scoop it posted has been debunked and denied by multiple media sources and Britain's Royal Family.

The pop culture blog with 2.8 million Instagram followers published a post to its Instagram page that claimed "sources close to the Royal Kingdom" had exclusively told the blog that the Queen had died Tuesday.

The story alleged the 95-year-old, who was diagnosed with COVID-19 Sunday, had been found dead shortly before she was expected at British Vogue editor Edward Enninful's wedding.

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The reaction to the story was swift and brutal from traditional media. Print publications, broadcast and electronic media across the world called out the story as a hoax. That, however, didn't stop site founder and former "Love & Hip Hop" cast member, Jason Lee, from standing behind his scoop.

We don’t post lies and I always stand by my sources. Waiting for an official statement from the palace.

— Jason Lee (@theonlyjasonlee) February 22, 2022

“We don’t post lies and I always stand by my sources. Waiting for an official statement from the palace,” the 44-year-old Lee wrote on Twitter on Tuedsay. On his personal Instagram account, he added, "I've never been wrong," in a shared note that also indicated he would be hanging with Kanye West later that day.

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Unfortunately for Lee, his claims are looking even more unfounded. US Weekly reported that the sovereign attended her weekly conversation with U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday. The site said the palace confirmed the news to royal reporter Omid Scobie.