Tuesday morning news: August 15, 2023

Trump indicted » Donald Trump and 18 allies were indicted in Georgia on Monday over their alleged efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss in the state.

Fulton County prosecutor Fani Willis used a statute normally associated with mobsters to accuse the former president and others.

WILLIS: The defendants engaged in a criminal racketeering enterprise to overturn Georgia’s presidential election result.

The nearly 100-page indictment accuses Trump or his allies of taking numerous actions to try and overturn the results. It also pointed to this phone call between then-President Trump and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.

TRUMP: I just want to find 11,789 votes, which is one more than we have.

Two recounts in Georgia did not find the widespread voter fraud Trump believed had occurred in the state.

Other defendants in this case include former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and Trump's personal attorney Rudy Giuliani.

Willis said it’s her wish to not see this case drag out.

WILLIS: We do want to move this case along, and so, we will be asking for a proposed order that occurs — a trial date within the next six months.

She said the defendants would be allowed to voluntarily surrender by noon Aug. 25.

Unlike federal charges, there would be no chance of a pardon by the sitting president. And in the state of Georgia, the governor has very limited powers to pardon someone convicted of of state crimes

Trump maintains the Fulton Co. case is politically motivated.

Hawaii » Many families in Hawaii continue to cling to hope that missing loved ones will turn up alive and well.

As of last night, more than a thousand people remained missing following a wildfire that incinerated parts of Maui.

One Maui resident said she’s grateful to have escaped alive.

RESIDENT: My son was like, "Mom, is this it?" I mean, what do you tell your kids?

As cellphone towers have slowly come back online, the number of people missing dropped from 2,000 to about 1,300 last night.

Gov. Josh Green explained that the fire spread at a rate of more than 60 miles per hour.

GREEN: That meant that fire traveled at one mile every minute. With those kind of winds at 1,000 degree temperatures, ultimately, all the pictures you will see will be easy to understand.

Roughly a hundred people were confirmed dead. But Green says he fears the death toll will rise sharply as recovery teams comb through the ashes.

Pennsylvania teen terrorism arrest » FBI officials say they’ve arrested a Philadelphia teenager who they say was collecting deadly weapons, and planned to join a terror group with ties to al-Qaeda.

Special Agent Jacqueline Maguire:

MAGUIRE: He had access to firearms and had purchased items and materials commonly used in the construction of improvised explosive devices.

She said the 17-year-old was sending and receiving terrorist propaganda as well as guidance on how to build a bomb.

Mississippi officers » Six former Mississippi law enforcement officers have pleaded guilty to state charges that they assaulted two black men earlier this year. WORLD’s Lauren Canterberry has more.

LAUREN CANTERBERRY: Five former sheriff’s deputies and one off-duty police officer raided a home in January without a warrant where they abused Michael Corey Jenkins and Eddie Terrell Parker for nearly two hours.

One officer shot Jenkins in the mouth. The men filed a federal civil rights lawsuit in June seeking $400 million dollars in damages.

All six men pleaded guilty earlier this month to federal charges in the incident. They face five to 30 years behind bars on the state charges.

They’ll be sentenced in November for the federal charges.

For WORLD, I’m Lauren Canterberry.

Kansas newspaper raid » More than 30 major newspapers across the country have signed a letter condemning a police raid of a small town newspaper in Kansas.

The letter accuses police of unconstitutionally violating freedom of the press.

Marion Police officers marched into the offices of the Marion County Register over the weekend and confiscated computers and cellphones.

The paper’s editor and co-owner, Eric Meyer:

Meyer: This is the type of stuff that you know Vladimir Putin does that third-world dictators do this is Gestapo tactics from World War II.

Police obtained a warrant to search the offices and the homes of the paper’s co-owners after receiving an invasion of privacy complaint.

The claimant accused the newspaper of obtaining private arrest records.

Chinese def minister visiting Russia » The Chinese defense minister is visiting Moscow this week in a show of support, highlighting Beijing’s military ties with Russia. WORLD’s Josh Schumacher has more.

JOSH SCHUMACHER: Defense Minister Li Shangfu will speak at the Moscow Conference for International Security.

Russia has reportedly invited more than 100 countries to attend, with the goal of uniting nations that the United States and its allies are working to isolate.

China and Russia want to build a coalition to rival Western powers and shake up the global balance of power.

Li’s latest visit follows a series of recent joint military drills including a fleet of Chinese and Russian vessels that sailed close to U.S. waters near Alaska last week.

For WORLD, I’m Josh Schumacher.

Niger » In Niger, the leaders of the military coup that ousted President Mohamed Bazoumn now say they plan to prosecute him for high treason.

They claim to have evidence that Bazoum undermined the security of Niger.

A group of West Aftican nations has demanded the junta restore the president to power and have threatened possible military action. But leaders of the group say they’re still working to bring a peaceful end to the coup.

I'm Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: New York City’s housing problem gets worse. Plus, a trip to the Canadian wilderness.

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