The special counsel who prosecuted Hunter Biden accused US President Joe Biden on Monday of undermining public confidence in the justice system with his criticism of the investigation into his son.Hunter Biden, 54, was convicted of gun and tax crimes in cases brought by special counsel David Weiss but was pardoned by his father in December.Weiss, in his final report on the case released Monday, noted that the president, in announcing the pardon, had criticized the prosecution of his son, calling it “selective,” “unfair,” “infected” by “raw politics,” and a “miscarriage of justice.””This statement is gratuitous and wrong,” Weiss said. “Other presidents have pardoned family members, but in doing so, none have taken the occasion as an opportunity to malign the public servants at the Department of Justice based solely on false accusations.”The special counsel said the prosecutions of Hunter Biden were “the culmination of thorough, impartial investigations, not partisan politics.”Calling those rulings into question and injecting partisanship into the independent administration of the law undermines the very foundation of what makes America’s justice system fair and equitable,” he said. “It erodes public confidence in an institution that is essential to preserving the rule of law.”Biden pardoned his son prior to his sentencing in the two criminal cases.”No reasonable person who looks at the facts of Hunter’s cases can reach any other conclusion than Hunter was singled out only because he is my son — and that is wrong,” the president said at the time.The release of Weiss’s report comes shortly before the expected release this week of another special counsel report — that of Jack Smith, who brought two criminal cases against former and now future president Donald Trump.Smith accused Trump of seeking to overturn the results of the 2020 election he lost to Biden and mishandling top secret documents after leaving the White House.Neither case came to trial and Smith, in line with a Justice Department policy of not prosecuting a sitting president, dropped the charges after Trump won the November presidential election.- History of personal pardons -Smith’s report on the election interference case is likely to be released this week but his report on the documents case may be withheld because charges are pending against two of Trump’s former co-defendants.Hunter Biden was convicted last year of lying about his drug use when he bought a gun — a felony — and he pleaded guilty in a separate tax evasion case.His father had repeatedly said he would not pardon Hunter but that he decided to do so after he “watched my son being selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted.”US presidents have previously used pardons to help family members and other political allies.Bill Clinton pardoned his half-brother for old cocaine charges and Trump pardoned the father of his son-in-law for tax evasion, though in both cases those men had already served their prison terms.Trump has vowed to pardon supporters who stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, in a bid to reverse his 2020 election loss.

Nine people have been charged in connection with looting in evacuation zones around huge fires burning in Los Angeles, the area’s chief prosecutor said Monday.The charges include for one burglary that netted $200,000 and one in which an Emmy statuette was stolen, Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman told reporters.One of those charged faces the possibility of life in prison if convicted, Hochman said, adding the legal action should serve as a warning to potential wrongdoers.”The question is not if, but when, you will be caught if you engage in these crimes,” Hochman said.”Do not commit any of these crimes in which people are trying to profit from the tragedy of the people who have suffered from these various fires.”Around 92,000 people remain displaced seven days after huge fires erupted around Los Angeles, killing at least 24 people.Evacuation zones in which 12,000 structures lie in ruins have been declared out of bounds as police work to reassure residents that their property will be safe from looters.But arrests continue to mount, and on Monday the first charges were announced.Two suspects were caught on a Ring doorbell camera invading a home in the affluent Mandeville Canyon area, which was threatened by the Palisades fire over the weekend.Hochman said Martrell Peoples has previous serious convictions and, under the so-called “three-strike” rule, could be imprisoned for life.His alleged accomplice, Demari Bell, could be jailed for more than 22 years. A third man was arrested for hit-and-run as police hunted down those responsible for the burglarySix other suspects have been charged with a number of home burglaries in Altadena, including the theft of an Emmy Award from one home.No details were given about who owned the statuette.Blake Chow of the Los Angeles Police Department said officers across jurisdictions were working together to bring criminals to book at a difficult time for the community.”Isn’t it bad enough we have (thousands of) people that have been evacuated from an area, and then we get a handful of people that want to… go victimize them,” he said.

US President Joe Biden announced Monday that two of the Navy’s future aircraft carriers will be named for former commanders-in-chief Bill Clinton and George W. Bush.”The future USS William J. Clinton (CVN 82) and the future USS George W. Bush (CVN 83) will begin construction in the years ahead,” Biden said in a statement issued just a week before he is replaced in office by Donald Trump.”When complete, they will join the most capable, flexible, and professional Navy that has ever put to sea,” Biden said. The United States has a long tradition of naming some of its aircraft carriers — massive warships that are crewed by thousands of sailors and carry dozens of planes — after former presidents.The latest line of US carriers is named for Gerald R. Ford, and another of the multi-billion-dollar ships bears John F. Kennedy’s name — the second time he has been honored in that way.Clinton — who did not serve in the military — was president from 1993 to 2001, a period that saw US warplanes carry out strikes in Iraq and Yugoslavia, and American troops battle Somali militiamen in the infamous Black Hawk Down incident, among other conflicts.Bush, who served as a pilot in the Air National Guard, held America’s highest office from 2001 to 2009. His presidency was defined by the so-called “War on Terror” that he launched in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, a military effort that spanned the globe and included the devastating, long-running wars in Afghanistan and Iraq that left tens of thousands of people dead.US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin hailed the choice of the names, saying that the ships “will serve as lasting tributes to each leader’s legacy in service of the United States.””Like their namesakes, these two future carriers, and the crews who sail them, will work to safeguard our national security, remind us of our history, and inspire others to serve our great republic,” Austin said in a statement.

A dozen Los Angeles professional sports teams pledged $8 million toward wildfire relief on Monday and outlined plans for three events to distribute supplies to those affected by blazes still ravaging the United States’ second-largest city.The NFL’s Rams and Chargers, the NBA’s Lakers and Clippers, MLB’s Dodgers and Angels, MLS’s Galaxy and LAFC, the NHL’s Ducks and Kings, the WNBA’s Sparks and the NWSL’s Angel City FC said the funds would go to multiple organizations including the American Red Cross, the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation, World Central Kitchen and various local animal rescue organizations.Apparel manufacturer Fanatics has also partnered with the teams to distribute $3 million in merchandise to families that have been evacuated from their homes.Clothes, hygiene kits, school supplies, shoes and other items would be distributed on Friday at Dodger Stadium, the Ram’s SoFi Stadium and at BMO Stadium — home of LAFC and Angel City FC.More than 90,000 people remained displaced Monday, seven days after multiple wind-driven blazes erupted.At least 24 people were killed and thousands left without homes, and authorities warned that winds forecast to intensify again on Tuesday could lead to “extreme fire behavior and life-threatening conditions.”In order not to divert public resources from the fires the NFL moved the Rams’ playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings to Arizona on Monday night.Two Lakers games and one Clippers game were postponed, but both teams were scheduled to host games on Monday, with the Lakers encouraging fans to bring donations of supplies to their downtown arena.The Lakers said in a statement that Monday’s game would be “dedicated to the Los Angeles community and Southern California’s first responders”.

As deadly flames swept closer and smoke poured into their Los Angeles home, Zahrah Mihm tried to calmly wake her two young children in the middle of the night.”We gotta go baby. We’re going on a fun adventure,” she told 4-year-old Ethan in her gentlest voice, scooping up her 18-month-old baby and fleeing their house in Altadena.The neighborhood would soon be totally razed by the inferno. At least 17 died in this community alone, with more bodies being discovered. The trauma has been severe for everyone, but is perhaps more acute among evacuated families with young children, many of whom are now desperately seeking diapers, milk formula and clothing.And then there is the question of how to explain this colossal disaster to children who may sense their parents’ panic, even if they do not fully grasp what is happening.”When we woke up at four in the morning panicking, he was shaking, scared,” recalled Mihm.”I was like, ‘Are you cold?’ He’s like, ‘No, mommy, what’s happening? Why is there fire?'” The Mihms are sheltering at a friend’s home after struggling to find a hotel.Even now, Zahrah is trying to distract her son, describing their visit Monday to a donation center in search of clean bedding and diapers as “a super fun party” packed with people, food and toys.As his mother — still wearing the slippers in which she’d fled — spoke to an AFP reporter, Ethan proudly displayed his new dinosaur pajamas and toy car. “I’m trying to take this moment out of his mind, and just be like, ‘It’s all good. Our house got a little owie, we are gonna fix it. It’s gonna be fine,'” she said, out of earshot of him.- ‘Traumatized’ -The donation center in nearby Arcadia — which sprung up organically from one resident’s TikTok post asking for supplies, and has drawn hundreds of volunteers — received so many donations it is turning some away, but baby products remain among the most pressing needs.”We desperately need diapers,” said Kellie Krievs, a 38-year-old communications director who is volunteering at the makeshift operation in the parking lot of the Santa Anita racetrack.”A lot of people, the first thing they ask for is diapers and baby formula,” Krievs told AFP.Beyond those products, mental health is an urgent concern.”The kids are not alright,” said Chessa Latifi, deputy director of emergency response for NGO Project Hope.”They’re acting differently and they’re under stress — they know that their friends have lost their homes, and they know that their school is closed.”She urged parents to maintain whatever normalcy they can, including setting up playdates with friends.”Just trying to make sure they understand that their community, whether it be physically or emotionally, is still there for them,” she said.”This entire city has been traumatized, whether your house was burnt down or not,” Latifi added.Thankfully for the Mihms, their home was only partially burnt.Neighboring homes on three sides of their property were totally destroyed, as the blaze miraculously swept in an S-shape around them.But they are still unable to return, with no electricity, powerlines dangling dangerously around the house, and National Guard soldiers sealing off the street.”We’re OK. We’re just devastated, that’s all,” Mihm said.