The Vatican’s human development office has created a working group on the topic of the expulsion of criminal organizations from the Catholic Church.
The group was created in honor of Rosario Livatino, a Catholic judge killed by the mafia in Sicily in 1990, who was beatified in the Cathedral of Agrigento May 9.
The eight-member group will study the excommunication of the mafia, offering support to bishops around the world, according to a press release announcing the initiative from the Dicastery for the Promotion of Integral Human Development.
Giuseppe Pignatone, president of the Vatican City State Tribunal, will be a member of the group. Pignatone is an Italian magistrate who served as deputy public prosecutor in Palermo and then public prosecutor in the cities of Reggio Calabria and Rome, where he oversaw the arrests and trials of a large number of people belonging to organized crime organizations.
Other members of the anti-mafia working group are philosopher Vittorio V. Alberti; Italian politician and former president of the Antimafia Commission Rosy Bindi; anti-mafia activist Fr. Luigi Ciotti; author and ex-mafia rehabilitation activist Fr. Marcello Cozzi; Greek Catholic priest Fr. Ioan Alexandru Pop; and prison chaplain Fr. Raffaele Grimaldi.
Grimaldi has served as a prison chaplain for more than 20 years and helped rehabilitate the man behind the 1990 murder of Bl. Rosario Livatino. Antonio Gallea, then 20 years old and a leader of the Agrigento-based Stidda, was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder.
In 2015, the court granted Gallea parole for good behavior and Grimaldi supported the ex-mafia boss’ reform and reintegration into society.
Gallea also gave testimony during the diocesan phase of Livatino’s beatification cause but was arrested in February on accusations that he is again leading the Stidda.
Grimaldi was saddened to learn that the man he had known for 11 years may have returned to criminal activity. “It is a great disappointment, I had given him all my trust,” Grimaldi said, according to Avvenire, the newspaper of the Italian bishops’ conference. “But that doesn’t change our mission. I do not give up. Paths to rehabilitation and reintegration must always be offered to inmates. A story like this cannot put all those who really want to make a path of change in a bad light,” he said.
The priest said: “I followed him spiritually, he came to Mass and to prayer meetings. He asked me for advice and I as a spiritual father did everything for him. I am a priest, I must give strength to resume the journey. That’s why I’m so disappointed now. But I’m praying for him.”
On the day of Rosario Livatino’s beatification, May 9, Pope Francis called the young judge “a martyr of justice and faith.”
“He always placed his work ‘under the protection of God’; for this, he became a witness of the Gospel until his heroic death. May his example be for everyone, especially magistrates, an incentive to be loyal defenders of the law and liberty,” the pope said at the end of his Regina Caeli address.
Livatino worked as a prosecutor in Sicily dealing with the criminal activity of the mafia throughout the 1980s. He confronted what Italians later called the “Tangentopoli,” the system of mafia bribes and kickbacks given for public works contracts.
At the age of 37, he served as a judge at the Court of Agrigento.
He was driving unescorted toward the Agrigento courthouse when another car hit his vehicle, sending him off the road. He ran from the crashed vehicle into a field, but was shot in the back and then killed by more gunshots.
Today a plaque on the highway marks the spot where Livatino was killed. It reads: “Martyr of justice.” On Dec. 21, Pope Francis elevated this title when he recognized the judge as a martyr killed “in hatred of the faith.”
Thanks to Hannah Brockhaus.
Monday, May 10, 2021
Monday, April 19, 2021
#OnThisDay in 1995, Domestic Terrorists and Anti-government Extremists, Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols, Bombed the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
The Oklahoma City bombing was a domestic terrorist truck bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, on Wednesday, April 19, 1995.
Perpetrated by anti-government extremists Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols, the bombing happened at 9:02 am and killed at least 168 people, injured more than 680 others, and destroyed more than one-third of the building, which had to be demolished. The blast destroyed or damaged 324 other buildings within a 16-block radius, shattered glass in 258 nearby buildings, and destroyed or burned 86 cars, causing an estimated $652 million worth of damage. Local, state, federal, and worldwide agencies engaged in extensive rescue efforts in the wake of the bombing. The Federal Emergency Management Agency activated 11 of its Urban Search and Rescue Task Forces, consisting of 665 rescue workers who assisted in rescue and recovery operations. Until the September 11 attacks in 2001, the Oklahoma City bombing was the deadliest terrorist attack in the history of the United States other than the Tulsa race massacre. It remains one of the deadliest acts of domestic terrorism in U.S. history.
Monday, April 12, 2021
Sopranos star Joseph Siravo, who played Tony Soprano's father, has died
“Sopranos” star Joseph Siravo, who played Tony Soprano’s father, has died following a battle with cancer. He was 66.
Siravo’s agent confirmed the actor’s death to Variety, noting that he died on Sunday following a “long, courageous” battle with colon cancer.
Siravo is best known for work in television as well as theater. On HBO’s “Sopranos,” he played Johnny Soprano — featuring prominently in flashback episodes to the 1960s — and later portrayed Fred Goldman, father of Ron Goldman, in FX’s “The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story.”
Other recent credits include TV series such as “For Life,” “The Blacklist,” “Made in Jersey,” “Dirty Sexy Money” and “Law and Order.” In film, he appeared in the Adam Driver-led “The Report” and Meera Menon’s 2016 film “Equity, as well as “Motherless Brooklyn,” “The Wannabe,” “Shark Tale” and “Night Falls on Manhattan.”
Born and raised in Washington D.C., the actor did his BA at Stanford before completing an MFA at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts theatre program. He made his screen debut in “Carlito’s Way” (1993) and soon landed the Johnny Soprano role in HBO hit “The Sopranos,” which ran for six seasons.
Siravo also starred in Broadway productions of the Tony Award-winning “Oslo” and “The Light in the Piazza.” Earlier in his career, he performed in a national tour of “Jersey Boys.” The actor has countless off-Broadway and regional theater credits to his name, including Off-Broadway New York productions of “Mad Forest” and “Up Against the Wind,” as well as “My Night With Reg” and “The Root.” Regional credits include “Hamlet” at the Long Wharf, “Anthony & Cleopatra” at Berkeley Rep and “Last of the Boys” at the McCarter Theatre.
Siravo was also highly regarded as a teacher at various actor training programs in New York. After studying at NYU, where he trained under Ron Van Lieu, Olympia Dukakis and Nora Dunfee, he eventually joined the faculty of NYU Grad Acting, where he taught Shakespeare.
Siravo is survived by his daughter Allegra Okarmus; son-in-law Aaron Okarmus; grandson Atticus Okarmus; his sister Maria Siravo; and brothers Mario Siravo, Ernest Siravo and Michael Siravo.
A memorial service will soon be held for the actor.
Siravo’s agent confirmed the actor’s death to Variety, noting that he died on Sunday following a “long, courageous” battle with colon cancer.
Siravo is best known for work in television as well as theater. On HBO’s “Sopranos,” he played Johnny Soprano — featuring prominently in flashback episodes to the 1960s — and later portrayed Fred Goldman, father of Ron Goldman, in FX’s “The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story.”
Other recent credits include TV series such as “For Life,” “The Blacklist,” “Made in Jersey,” “Dirty Sexy Money” and “Law and Order.” In film, he appeared in the Adam Driver-led “The Report” and Meera Menon’s 2016 film “Equity, as well as “Motherless Brooklyn,” “The Wannabe,” “Shark Tale” and “Night Falls on Manhattan.”
Born and raised in Washington D.C., the actor did his BA at Stanford before completing an MFA at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts theatre program. He made his screen debut in “Carlito’s Way” (1993) and soon landed the Johnny Soprano role in HBO hit “The Sopranos,” which ran for six seasons.
Siravo also starred in Broadway productions of the Tony Award-winning “Oslo” and “The Light in the Piazza.” Earlier in his career, he performed in a national tour of “Jersey Boys.” The actor has countless off-Broadway and regional theater credits to his name, including Off-Broadway New York productions of “Mad Forest” and “Up Against the Wind,” as well as “My Night With Reg” and “The Root.” Regional credits include “Hamlet” at the Long Wharf, “Anthony & Cleopatra” at Berkeley Rep and “Last of the Boys” at the McCarter Theatre.
Siravo was also highly regarded as a teacher at various actor training programs in New York. After studying at NYU, where he trained under Ron Van Lieu, Olympia Dukakis and Nora Dunfee, he eventually joined the faculty of NYU Grad Acting, where he taught Shakespeare.
Siravo is survived by his daughter Allegra Okarmus; son-in-law Aaron Okarmus; grandson Atticus Okarmus; his sister Maria Siravo; and brothers Mario Siravo, Ernest Siravo and Michael Siravo.
A memorial service will soon be held for the actor.
Friday, April 09, 2021
7th Member of Violent MS-13 Street Gang Indicted for Murder #MS13
Another member of the violent international street gang Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) is set to appear in federal court for his alleged role in a 2018 murder, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Jennifer B. Lowery.
Carlos Elias Henriquez-Torres, 20, an El Salvadorian national who illegally resided in Houston, was previously in state custody on related charges. He is set to appear at 2 p.m. today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Andrew Edison on the charges in the superseding indictment returned March 31.
Previously indicted were Wilson Jose Venture-Mejia, 24, Jimmy Villalobos-Gomez, 24, Angel Miguel Aguilar-Ochoa, 35, Walter Antonio Chicas-Garcia, 24, and Marlon Miranda-Moran, 21, all El Salvadorian nationals. Villalobos-Gomez is a legal permanent resident but the remaining men unlawfully resided in Houston. The charges against all of them remain pending.
Also named in the indictment is Franklin Trejo-Chavarria, 23. He is currently in custody in El Salvador.
The indictment alleges they committed a 2018 murder in furtherance of the MS-13 enterprise. The victim was allegedly beaten to death with machetes in order for the defendants to further their positions in the enterprise.
All are charged with conspiracy and murder in aid of racketeering.
If convicted, they face a potential death sentence.
Carlos Elias Henriquez-Torres, 20, an El Salvadorian national who illegally resided in Houston, was previously in state custody on related charges. He is set to appear at 2 p.m. today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Andrew Edison on the charges in the superseding indictment returned March 31.
Previously indicted were Wilson Jose Venture-Mejia, 24, Jimmy Villalobos-Gomez, 24, Angel Miguel Aguilar-Ochoa, 35, Walter Antonio Chicas-Garcia, 24, and Marlon Miranda-Moran, 21, all El Salvadorian nationals. Villalobos-Gomez is a legal permanent resident but the remaining men unlawfully resided in Houston. The charges against all of them remain pending.
Also named in the indictment is Franklin Trejo-Chavarria, 23. He is currently in custody in El Salvador.
The indictment alleges they committed a 2018 murder in furtherance of the MS-13 enterprise. The victim was allegedly beaten to death with machetes in order for the defendants to further their positions in the enterprise.
All are charged with conspiracy and murder in aid of racketeering.
If convicted, they face a potential death sentence.
Tuesday, March 09, 2021
Who Rode the Most Expensive Bike On Sons Of Anarchy and How Much Did it Cost?
The winning formula for creator Kurt Sutter's Sons of Anarchy consists of a few key things: murder, mayhem, and motorcycles. Sure, there are other facets of the show that begin with different letters of the alphabet, but much of the series chronicling the goings-on in an outlaw motorcycle club revolved around those three concepts. Murder? Many of the personal relationships and conflicts ended in death, namely those surrounding series protagonist Jax Teller (Charlie Hunnam), whose father was murdered by his future stepdad Clay Morrow (Ron Perlman); whose wife Tara Knowles (Maggie Siff) was murdered by his own mother, Gemma Morrow (Katey Sagal); and who, in turn, murdered his own mother and stepfather, thus completing the circle of death. Wait, should we have included a spoiler warning? Because, like, that's pretty much the show.
Onto mayhem; obviously crazy action factored prominently into the show's plot points, when it came to conceptualizing seasons as a whole. The Sons had dealings with the Galindo cartel, the Cacuzza crime family, the Irish Republican Army, the Aryan Brotherhood, the Lin Triad, the Russian mafia, and the militia movement, most of which ended badly and ended big.
And, of course, motorcycles are central to the premise of a show about the fictional motorcycle club from which the series takes its name, and Sons of Anarchy featured some sweet bikes. Most members favored a version of the Harley-Davidson Dyna line, like Jax's 2003 H-D Dyna Super Glide Sport (via HotCars), for which the National Automobile Dealers Association's guide lists a suggested price of $14,510. But that pales in comparison to the price tag — and honestly, the bike itself — for one of the other cast member's rides.
One might think that the best, most expensive bike on Sons of Anarchy would be reserved for the club's president, in which case one would be wrong. Clay Morrow rode a Harley-Davidson Dyna Super Glide, like Jax. In fact, the Son with the sickest ride isn't even a member of the SAMCRO chapter when we first meet him. That distinction goes to Rane Quinn, introduced as president of the Nomad chapter of the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club. And why, we ask, would a Nomad have the best, most expensive bike on the show? The answer is simple: the actor who played Quinn built the bike himself.
Quinn rocked a 2013 custom Hellrazor, built in real life by Illusion Motorsports, the custom cycle shop co-owned by actor Rusty Coones, who plays Quinn on Sons of Anarchy. If that's all starting to make sense, here's a bit more context: Coones is a real-life member of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club and, according to the OC Register, was at one point president of the San Fernando Valley and Orange County chapters. So, when you know all the details, Quinn having the baddest bike on the show actually makes perfect sense.
Price-wise, reports conflict, but the Hellrazor is valued at $80,000 on the low end, a figure which comes courtesy of the OC Register. According to HotCars, Coones' motorcycle was valued at $90,000. The Hellrazor was the featured item at the inaugural Street Vibrations Motorcycle Auction in 2018, one of 65 lots at the event, the proceeds of which went to charity. According to auctioneer Hudson Stremmel of Stremmel Auctions (via BikeBound), the Hellrazor was expected to fetch more than $100,000 (the winning bid was not disclosed), a sum that almost would have allowed Jax to buy seven of his Harleys.
Thanks to Andrew Jameson.
Onto mayhem; obviously crazy action factored prominently into the show's plot points, when it came to conceptualizing seasons as a whole. The Sons had dealings with the Galindo cartel, the Cacuzza crime family, the Irish Republican Army, the Aryan Brotherhood, the Lin Triad, the Russian mafia, and the militia movement, most of which ended badly and ended big.
And, of course, motorcycles are central to the premise of a show about the fictional motorcycle club from which the series takes its name, and Sons of Anarchy featured some sweet bikes. Most members favored a version of the Harley-Davidson Dyna line, like Jax's 2003 H-D Dyna Super Glide Sport (via HotCars), for which the National Automobile Dealers Association's guide lists a suggested price of $14,510. But that pales in comparison to the price tag — and honestly, the bike itself — for one of the other cast member's rides.
One might think that the best, most expensive bike on Sons of Anarchy would be reserved for the club's president, in which case one would be wrong. Clay Morrow rode a Harley-Davidson Dyna Super Glide, like Jax. In fact, the Son with the sickest ride isn't even a member of the SAMCRO chapter when we first meet him. That distinction goes to Rane Quinn, introduced as president of the Nomad chapter of the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club. And why, we ask, would a Nomad have the best, most expensive bike on the show? The answer is simple: the actor who played Quinn built the bike himself.
Quinn rocked a 2013 custom Hellrazor, built in real life by Illusion Motorsports, the custom cycle shop co-owned by actor Rusty Coones, who plays Quinn on Sons of Anarchy. If that's all starting to make sense, here's a bit more context: Coones is a real-life member of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club and, according to the OC Register, was at one point president of the San Fernando Valley and Orange County chapters. So, when you know all the details, Quinn having the baddest bike on the show actually makes perfect sense.
Price-wise, reports conflict, but the Hellrazor is valued at $80,000 on the low end, a figure which comes courtesy of the OC Register. According to HotCars, Coones' motorcycle was valued at $90,000. The Hellrazor was the featured item at the inaugural Street Vibrations Motorcycle Auction in 2018, one of 65 lots at the event, the proceeds of which went to charity. According to auctioneer Hudson Stremmel of Stremmel Auctions (via BikeBound), the Hellrazor was expected to fetch more than $100,000 (the winning bid was not disclosed), a sum that almost would have allowed Jax to buy seven of his Harleys.
Thanks to Andrew Jameson.
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