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U.S. NEWS Diamars 3 mei 2022

Trump election probe special grand jury selected in Atlanta

(AP) — A special grand til June and won’t meet every
jury was selected Monday week. They will be notified
for the investigation into in advance of when they need
whether former President to be there, and there’s some
Donald Trump and others wiggle room if they can’t
illegally tried to influence make it to every session as
the 2020 election in Geor- only 16 are needed for a quo-
gia. rum, he said.

The investigation has been McBurney then led the
underway since early last 200 potential grand jurors
year, and Fulton County Dis- in swearing an oath to give
trict Attorney Fani Willis took truthful answers about their
this unusual step of request- qualifications.
ing the special grand jury to
help it along. She noted in a He explained that grand ju-
letter to the chief judge that rors must be at least 18, must
the special grand jury would be U.S. citizens and must
be able to issue subpoenas to have lived in Fulton Coun-
people who have refused to ty for the past six months.
cooperate otherwise. Anyone who’s an elected of-
ficial or has been for the last
The chief judge ordered the two years, anyone convicted
special grand jury to be seated of a felony or anyone who’s
for a period of up to a year, lic interest in this case, the a trial, but would instead be Raffensperger to “find” the served on a Fulton County
beginning Monday. Of the court made arrangements for serving on an investigative votes needed for him to win jury or grand jury in the last
pool of about 200 people parts of Monday’s selection special grand jury looking the state. She has also said year is not qualified to serve,
called from the county mas- process to be broadcast live. into actions surrounding the they are looking at a Novem- McBurney said.
ter jury list, 26 were chosen Now that the special grand 2020 general election. ber 2020 phone call between
to serve — 23 grand jurors jury has been selected, how- U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham The investigation involves
and three alternates. Special ever, everything it does will “Now it’s time for 26 mem- and Raffensperger, the abrupt actions surrounding the 2020
grand juries focus on inves- happen in secret. bers of our community to resignation of the U.S. attor- general election, and it is
tigating a single topic and participate in that investiga- ney in Atlanta on Jan. 4, 2021, important that grand jurors
making recommendations Fulton County Superior tion,” McBurney said. and comments made during “bring an open mind to the
to the district attorney, who Court Judge Robert McBur- December 2020 Georgia leg- process,” the judge said. Any-
then decides whether to seek ney, who’s been tasked with Willis has confirmed that islative committee hearings one who is already convinced
an indictment from a regular overseeing the special grand her team is looking into a on the election. that a crime did or did not
grand jury. jury, told the people sum- January 2021 phone call in happen should say they have
moned to the jury pool that which Trump pushed Geor- McBurney said the grand ju- a conflict when asked, Mc-
Because of the intense pub- they would not be hearing gia Secretary of State Brad rors won’t begin meeting un- Burney said.

US pediatricians’ group moves to abandon race-based guidance

(AP) - For years, pedia- educational materials, text- genetics and other biological
tricians have followed books and newsletter articles, factors play in determining
flawed guidelines linking Wright said. health.
race to risks for urinary
infections and newborn “We are really being much Last year, the academy retired
jaundice. In a new policy more rigorous about the a guideline calculation based
announced Monday, the ways in which we assess risk on the unproven idea that
American Academy of Pe- for disease and health out- Black children faced lower
diatrics said it is putting comes,” Wright said. “We do risks than white kids for uri-
all its guidance under the have to hold ourselves ac- nary infections. A review had
microscope to eliminate countable in that way. It’s go- shown that the strongest risk
“race-based” medicine ing to require a heavy lift.” factors were prior urinary
and resulting health dis- infections and fevers lasting
parities. Dr. Brittani James, a family more than 48 hours, not race,
medicine doctor and medical Wright said.
A re-examination of AAP director for a Chicago health
treatment recommendations center, said the academy is A revision to its newborn
that began before George making a pivotal move. jaundice guidance — which disparities.
Floyd’s 2020 death and inten- currently suggests certain Whatever the intent, these
sified after it has doctors con- “What makes this so monu- races have higher and lower aids have harmed patients, The academy is urging other
cerned that Black youngsters mental is the fact that this is risks — is planned for this she said. medical institutions and spe-
have been undertreated and a medical institution and it’s summer, Wright said. cialty groups to take a similar
overlooked, said Dr. Joseph not just words. They’re act- “This violates our oath as approach in working to elim-
Wright, lead author of the ing,” James said. Dr. Nia Heard-Garris, head physicians — to do no harm inate racism in medicine.
new policy and chief health of an academy group on mi- — and as such should not be
equity officer at the Univer- In recent years, other major nority health and equity and used, Heard-Garris said. “We can’t just plug up one
sity of Maryland’s medical doctor groups including the a pediatrician at Chicago’s leak in a pipe full of holes and
system. American Medical Associa- Lurie Children’s Hospital, Dr. Valencia Walker, a spe- expect it to be remedied,” said
tion have made similar pledg- noted that the new policy in- cialist in newborn care and Heard-Garris. “This state-
The influential academy es. They are spurred in part cludes a brief history “of how health equity at Nationwide ment shines a light for pedia-
has begun purging outdated by civil rights and social jus- some of our frequently used Children’s Hospital in Co- tricians and other healthcare
advice. It is committing to tice movements, but also by clinical aids have come to be lumbus, Ohio, called the providers to find and patch
scrutinizing its “entire cata- science showing the strong — via pseudoscience and rac- new policy “a critical step” those holes.”
log,” including guidelines, roles that social conditions, ism.” toward reducing racial health