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u.s. news Diaranson 10 augustus 2022

Jury deliberations start in deadly US inflation will likely stay

motorcycle crash trial high even as gas prices fall

(AP) — Americans may finally be catching a break
from relentlessly surging prices — if just a slight one
— even as inflation is expected to remain painfully
high for months.

Thanks largely to falling gas prices, the government’s
inflation report for July, to be released Wednesday morning,
(AP) — Jury delibera- Duguay accused prosecutors is expected to show that prices jumped 8.7% from a year
tions in the New Hamp- of ignoring that their own Witnesses were consistent, earlier — still a sizzling pace but a slowdown from the
shire trial of a truck driver accident reconstruction unit he argued, in describing the 9.1% year-over-year figure in June, which was the highest
charged with killing seven contradicted their theory that truck as weaving back and in four decades.
motorcyclists began Tues- Zhukovskyy crossed into the forth before the crash. That
day after closing state- oncoming lane. An expert behavior continued “until he The forecast by economists, if it proves correct, would raise
ments raised questions hired by the defense, mean- killed people,” Chase said. hopes that inflation might have peaked and that the run
about who was more “all while, testified that the crash of punishingly higher prices is beginning to ease slightly.
over the place”: the truck- happened on the center line “That’s what stopped him. There have been other hopeful signs, too, that the pace of
er accused of swerving of the road and would have It’s not that he made some inflation may be moderating.
back and forth across the occurred even if the truck responsible decision to start
road or the eyewitnesses was in the middle of its lane paying attention or do the At the same time, an array of other economic developments
accused of contradicting because Mazza’s motorcycle right thing,” he said. “The are threatening to keep intensifying inflation pressures. The
each other. was heading in that direction. only thing that stopped him pace of hiring is robust and average wages are up sharply.
was an embankment after he And even as gas prices fall, inflation in services such as
Volodymyr Zhukovskyy, 26, “From the beginning of this tore through a group of mo- health care, rents and restaurant meals is accelerating.
of West Springfield, Mas- investigation, the state had torcycles.” Price changes in services tend to be sticky and don’t ease as
sachusetts, faces negligent made up their mind about quickly as they do for gas, food or other goods. Those trends
homicide, manslaughter and what had happened, evidence Chase called the attempt suggest that overall inflation may not drop significantly
reckless conduct charges in be damned,” said Duguay, to blame Mazza a “fanciful anytime soon.
connection with the June 21, who also highlighted incon- story” and “frivolous dis-
2019, crash that killed seven sistencies between witness traction,” while reminding President Joe Biden has already pointed to falling gas prices
members of a Marine motor- accounts or when witnesses jurors of that Zhukovskyy, as a sign that his policies — such as releases of oil from the
cycle club. contradicted themselves. who didn’t testify at trial, told nation’s strategic reserve — are helping combat the higher
investigators “Obviously, I costs that have hammered household budgets, particularly
Prosecutors have argued that “Those witnesses were all caused the crash.” for lower-income families.
Zhukovskyy, who had taken over the place about what
heroin, fentanyl and cocaine they recalled and what they “He was crystal clear from the Yet Republicans will push ongoing high inflation as a top
that day, repeatedly swerved claimed to have seen,” he very beginning that he caused campaign issue in this fall’s elections, with polls showing
back and forth before the said. this crash,” Chase said. “That that high prices have driven Biden’s approval ratings down
head-on crash and told police is what he said, because that sharply.
he caused it. But a judge dis- In particular, Duguay sug- is what happened.”
missed eight charges related gested that members of the On Friday, the House is poised to give final congressional
to whether he was impaired, Jarheads Motorcycle Club The motorcyclists who died approval to a revived tax-and-climate package pushed
and his attorneys blame the “shaded” their accounts to were from New Hampshire, by Biden and Democratic lawmakers. The bill, which
lead biker, Albert “Woody” protect Mazza and the club. Massachusetts and Rhode Is- among other things aims to ease pharmaceutical prices by
Mazza, who was among Prosecutor Scott Chase ac- land and ranged in age from letting the government negotiate Medicare’s drug costs, is
those killed. knowledged some inconsis- 42 to 62. They were part of a expected to cut the federal budget deficit by $300 billion
tencies, but asked jurors to larger group that had just left over a decade.
“He was drunk, he was not remember the circumstanc- a motel along U.S. Route 2 in
looking where he was going, es. Randolph. Yet economists say the measure, which its proponents have
he lost control of his motor- titled the Inflation Reduction Act, will have only a minimal
cycle and slid in front of Vlad “People were covering the Killed were Mazza, of Lee, effect on inflation over the next several years, though it
Zhukovskyy’s truck. Al Maz- dead, trying to save the barely New Hampshire; Edward could could slow price increases a bit more later this decade.
za caused this accident. Vlad living, comforting the dy- and Jo-Ann Corr, a couple
Zhukovskyy is not guilty,” ing. This wasn’t story time,” from Lakeville, Massachu-
defense attorney Jay Duguay he said. “They were up here setts; Michael Ferazzi, of
said in closing statements. talking about some of the Contoocook, New Hamp-
most unimaginable chaos, shire; Desma Oakes, of
“There is no doubt that this trauma, death and carnage Concord, New Hampshire;
accident was a tragedy,” Du- that we can even imagine Daniel Pereira, of Riverside,
guay said. “But we are not three years later. They were Rhode Island; and Aaron
here to decide whether or not talking about hell broke Perry, of Farmington, New
this was a tragedy.” open.” Hampshire.