Page 4 - ARUBA TODAY

A4 U.S. NEWS
Friday 25 May 2018

'It's about time': Trump pardons late boxer Jack Johnson

By JILL COLVIN Sylvester Stallone, whom April that Stallone, a long- ontay in a fight" if he really E. Haywood, had pressed
Associated Press Trump credited with cham- time friend, had brought started working out. Trump for a posthumous
WASHINGTON (AP) — Presi- pioning the pardon. Johnson's story to his atten- Lewis said Johnson had pardon, and Sen. John Mc-
dent Donald Trump on Trump said Johnson had tion in a phone call. been an inspiration to him Cain, R-Ariz., and former
Thursday granted a rare served 10 months in prison "His trials and tribulations personally, while Stallone Senate Majority Leader
posthumous pardon to "for what many view as a were great, his life complex said Johnson had served as Harry Reid, D-Nev., had
boxing's first black heavy- racially-motivated injus- and controversial. Others the basis of the character promoted Johnson’s case
weight champion, clearing tice." have looked at this over Apollo Creed in his "Rocky" for years.The son of former
Jack Johnson's name more "It's my honor to do it. It's the years, most thought it films. "This has been a long slaves, Johnson defeated
than 100 years after what about time," the president would be done, but yes, I time coming," he said. Tommy Burns for the heavy-
many see as his racially- said. Johnson, a promi- am considering a Full Par- Trump has a personal histo- weight title in 1908 at a time
charged conviction. nent athlete who crossed don!" Trump wrote then. ry with the sport, and host- when blacks and whites
"I am taking this very righ- over into popular culture The Oval Office ceremony ed matches in the 1990s at rarely entered the same
teous step, I believe, to cor- decades ago with biogra- was a celebratory scene, his hotels. ring. He then beat a series
rect a wrong that occurred phies, dramas and docu- bringing together boxing After Johnson’s convic- of “great white hopes,” cul-
in our history and to honor mentaries, was convicted greats past, present and fic- tion, he spent seven years minating in 1910 with the
a truly legendary boxing in 1913 by an all-white jury tional. The guests brought as a fugitive, but eventu- undefeated former cham-
champion," Trump said dur- for violating the Mann Act with them a colorful boxing ally returned to the U.S. and pion, James J. Jeffries.
ing an Oval Office ceremo- for traveling with his white championship belt, which turned himself in. He served Haywood, who joined
ny. He was joined by WBC girlfriend. That law made it sat front and center on the about a year in federal Trump in the Oval Office,
heavyweight champion illegal to transport women president's Resolute Desk prison and was released in said her great-great un-
Deontay Wilder, retired across state lines for "im- as he spoke. At one point, 1921. He died in 1946 in an cle’s conviction had led
heavyweight titleholder moral" purposes." Trump jokingly asked Lewis auto crash. her family members to live
Lennox Lewis and actor Trump had tweeted in late whether he could "take De- His great-great niece, Linda in shame of his legacy.q

Bus driver charged in crash that killed student, teacher

By DAVID PORTER school in Paramus on a on westbound I-80.
Associated Press field trip to a historic site in The crash, about 45 miles
A school bus driver with a New Jersey, about 30 miles west of New York City,
history of driver's license (48 kilometers) away. sheared the bus from its
suspensions caused a fa- Muldrow missed a turn, wheelbase and crushed
tal crash on a New Jersey then merged onto Inter- the front end of the dump
highway last week by cross- state 80 in Mount Olive, ac- truck. The bus wound up on
ing three lanes of traffic in cording to an affidavit filed top of the guardrail on the
an apparent attempt to by New Jersey state police. eastbound side of the high-
make an illegal U-turn, ac- He quickly crossed three way.
cording to a criminal com- lanes toward a break in the In an interview this week on
plaint released Thursday. median reserved for emer- CBS, Muldrow's son said his
Authorities charged Hudy gency vehicles to attempt father denied making a U-
Muldrow Sr., 77, with two an illegal U-turn, the affida- turn.
counts of vehicular ho- vit says. Muldrow had his license sus-
micide in the deaths of Muldrow "disregarded the pended 14 times between
10-year-old student Miran- marked No Turn sign" and 1975 and 2017, mostly for In this May 17, 2018, file photo, emergency personnel work at
da Vargas and 51-year-old turned his bus "to the left administrative reasons, the scene of a school bus and dump truck collision on Interstate
teacher Jennifer William- in an apparent attempt to according to state motor 80 in Mount Olive, N.J. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)
son. More than 40 others gain access to an official- vehicle records. The most
were injured, some serious- use only access point," ac- recent license suspension Muldrow had valid driving mercial driver's license in
ly, in the May 17 crash be- cording to the document. was in December for failing privileges, a valid commer- 2012 and his school bus en-
tween the bus and a dump It adds that Muldrow turned to pay parking tickets. He cial driver's license and a dorsement in 2013. The bus
truck. his bus "so that it was po- also had eight speeding vi- valid school bus endorse- endorsement requires driv-
The bus was one of three sitioned in an almost-per- olations between 1975 and ment, according to the ers to pass a background
carrying students and pendicular direction in re- 2001. Motor Vehicle Commission. check, road test and a writ-
teachers from a middle lation to the lanes of travel" At the time of the crash, He had earned his com- ten test.q