Viking_Hippie

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/19794487

Anthony Odiong is accused of sexual assault by at least eight women whom the priest had been counseling

The criminal case that authorities are building against a Roman Catholic priest accused of preying on women whom he met while working in south-east Louisiana and Texas is progressing, with a grand jury in the latter state indicting him on three felony sexual assault charges.

Anthony Odiong, 55, faces two counts of second-degree sexual assault as well as one of first-degree sexual assault in the charges handed up against him recently in the McLennan county, Texas, state court.

The charges against Odiong – who was first arrested in July – involve two women. He could receive up to life imprisonment if convicted of the first-degree charge, a stiffer penalty that stems from the fact that the alleged victim in the case was a woman whom Odiong was prohibited from “marrying or purporting to marry” under Texas law. The second-degree counts each carry up to 20 years in prison in what is one of only about a dozen states with a law that criminalizes sexual activity between clergymen and adults who emotionally depend on their spiritual advice.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ca/post/28466921

The IRS has collected $1.3 billion from high-wealth tax dodgers since last fall, the agency announced Friday, crediting spending that has ramped up collection enforcement through President Joe Biden’s signature climate, health care and tax package signed into law in 2022.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel traveled to Austin, Texas, to tour an IRS campus and announce the latest milestone in tax collections as Republicans warn of big future budget cuts for the tax agency if they take over the White House and Congress.

Yellen said in a speech in Austin that in 2019, the top one percent of wealthy Americans owed more than one-fifth of all unpaid taxes, “leaving ordinary Americans to shoulder the burden.”

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ca/post/28090788

In June 2023, Paul Skye Lehrman and his partner Linnea Sage were driving near their home in New York City, listening to a podcast about the ongoing strikes in Hollywood and how artificial intelligence (AI) could affect the industry.

The episode was of interest because the couple are voice-over performers and - like many other creatives - fear that human-sounding voice generators could soon be used to replace them.

This particular podcast had a unique hook – they interviewed an AI-powered chat bot, equipped with text-to-speech software, to ask how it thought the use of AI would affect jobs in Hollywood.

But, when it spoke, it sounded just like Mr Lehrman.

That night they spent hours online, searching for clues until they came across the site of text-to-speech platform Lovo. Once there, Ms Sage said she found a copy of her voice as well.

They have now filed a lawsuit against Lovo. The firm has not yet responded to that or the BBC's requests for comment.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/19046110

Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said he isn’t buying all that Democratic “joy” on display at this past week’s Democratic National Convention in Chicago during a Sunday appearance with Jake Tapper on CNN’s State of the Union.

During their conversation, Tapper brought up the “disciplined” and “well-produced” DNC this week that, as the journalist put it, “conveyed patriotism and unity.” Graham didn’t see it that way.

“Well, I didn’t see what you saw,” Graham told Tapper with a laugh. “If you’re a Republican, you saw a hate fest. You saw a hate fest full of insults.”

“Americans are not joyful when they go to the gas station and fill up their car,” he continued. “They’re not joyful when they make their mortgage payment. They’re not joyful when they go to the grocery store. People are hurting, and this whole joy love fest doesn’t exist in the real world.”

To bolster his claim, Graham pointed to the gas prices, the state of the border, and inflation during Donald Trump’s presidency when “the world was not on fire.”

He's either lying or what he said gives us a look into his shitty perspective of the world. Either way such a miserable and pathetic existence.

Was reminded yesterday of one of the things I miss the most from Twitter and thought you guys should see him!

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Disclaimer: I'm not associated with Rufus or his human in any way except as a fan and former Twitter follower 😁