Red Bluff Daily News

February 22, 2017

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POLARIZINGFIGURE MARYALTAFFER—THEASSOCIATEDPRESS Milo Yiannopoulos speaks during a news conference, Tuesday in New York. Yiannopoulos has resigned as editor of Breitbart Tech a er coming under fire from other conservatives over comments on sexual relationships between boys and older men. By Deepti Hajela TheAssociatedPress NEWYORK Polarizingright- wingwriterMiloYiannopou- los was by turns apologetic forcommentshemadeabout sexualrelationshipsbetween boys and men and adamant he had been the subject of "a cynical media witch hunt" on Tuesday as he spoke af- ter resigning as an editor at Breitbart News. Yiannopoulos opened his remarks to reporters by say- ing two men, including a priest, had touched him in- appropriately when he was between the ages of 13 and 16. "My experiences as a vic- tim led me to believe I could say anything I wanted to on this subject, no matter how outrageous," he said. "But I understand that my usual blend of British sarcasm, provocation and gallows hu- mor might have come across as flippancy, a lack of care for other victims or, worse, advocacy. I am horrified by that impression." The British writer said he was resigning from Bre- itbart, which helped make him a star, because it would be "wrong to allow my poor choice of words to detract from my colleagues' impor- tant reporting." Theapologyfolloweddays of criticism from fellow con- servatives after the release of video clips in which Yian- nopoulosappearedtodefend sexualrelationshipsbetween menandboysasyoungas13. In one of them, Yian- nopoulos, who is gay, said relationships between boys and men could "help those young boys discover who they are and give them secu- rity and safety and provide themwithloveandareliable sortofrock,wheretheycan't speak to their parents." On Monday, he was disin- vited from the Conservative Political Action Conference after video of his remarks was promoted through so- cial media. Publisher Simon & Schus- ter announced it would can- cel the publication of his up- coming book, "Dangerous." Yiannopoulos said the book had already received inter- est from other publishers and would still come out this year. He pledged to donate 10 percent of the proceeds to child sex abuse charities. But he also said the flare- up over remarks made a year ago "is a cynical media witch hunt from people who do not care about children. They care about destroying meandmycareerand,byex- tension, my allies." Yiannopoulos has long been known for provocative commentsaboutwomenand Muslims and made his sup- port for Republican Donald Trump clear in the last pres- idential election cycle. Milo Yiannopoulos apologizes for remarks, quits Breitbart By Scott Smith The Associated Press FRESNO A California bank robber who used a hostage as a human shield in a deadly shootout with police following the heist and a wild car chase was sentenced Tuesday to life in prison during an emo- tional hearing. Jaime Ramos, 22, pleaded guilty last year in a deal with prosecutors to avoid a possible death sentence at trial. The 2014 robbery and chase through Stockton, 80 miles inland from San Francisco, ended in the deaths of two other suspects and Misty Holt- Singh, a 41-year-old wife, mother of two and bank customer who was taken hostage. Ramos didn't speak in court, but Holt-Singh's mother, Karen Farmer, stood to say a few words, according to Sacramento news station KCRA-TV. "My daughter was taken from me," she said, break- ing down in tears. "My life will never be the same without my Misty." Two other women who were taken hostage but survived did not to attend the sentencing, finding it too difficult emotionally, San Joaquin County Dep- uty District Attorney Rob- ert Himelblau said. The plea deal avoids a stress- ful trial where they would have to relive the horror by testifying, he said. "It makes sure that Ra- mos never sees the light of day again," the prosecutor said. In court, Holt-Singh's husband, Paul Singh, re- visited his last conver- sation with his wife that day and later learning she had been killed. He talked about the loss his daugh- ter feels each day. "They deprived my daughter of her mother," Singh said. "She has no one to tell her how to do her hair, put on her makeup or get ready for her first dance." In the midday heist, the three armed men stormed into a Bank of the West branch, then fled with their three hostages in an SUV owned by one of the bank employees. The two surviving women were injured when they were thrown from the moving vehicle or jumped out during a chase last- ing nearly an hour. In the shootout, officers fired roughly 600 bullets into the vehicle — 10 striking Holt-Singh as Ramos held her as a human shield, po- lice have said. Separate from the crim- inal case, Holt-Singh's family and the two sur- viving hostages have sued the Stockton Police De- partment and 32 officers involved in the shooting. City spokeswoman Con- nie Cochran said the three lawsuits are still pending. The police department commissioned a review, finding that the shots the officers fired at the end of the pursuit were excessive and unnecessary. Ramos pleaded guilty to murder, carjacking and at- tempted murder of a po- lice officer late last year. His defense attorney, Jon- athan Fattarsi, did not re- spond to requests for com- ment by The Associated Press. A second man, Pablo Ruvalcaba, also pleaded guilty to Holt-Singh's kill- ing, accepting a prison sentence of 25 years to life. The 23-year-old was ac- cused of driving the three robbers to the bank. CRIME Bank robber gets life for using hostage as shield NEVERGIVEUP UNTIL THEY BUCKLE UP. VISIT SAFERCAR.GOV/ KIDSBUCKLEUP VISIT SAFERCAR.GOV/ KIDSBUCKLEUP 728MainStreet Red Bluff, CA 96080 Support our classrooms, keep kids reading. DONATE YOUR VACATION newspaper dollars to the Newspaper In Education Program HELP OUR CHILDREN Formoredetailscall Circulation Department (530) 737-5047 6,356fans+48 this week Facebook Page YOU'LL LIKE WHAT YOU SEE ..andgrowing,everyweek! Daily News Facebook fans receive special posts of breaking news, sports, weather and road closures, clicking right to full stories and photos published on redbluffdailynews.com ... Tehama County's most-visited local website ... things that fans want to know about, sooner rather than later! 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