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aplbarn.bsky.social

@aplbarn.bsky.social
817 followers 630 following 418 posts

Life science IP Attorney. Immunologist/microbiologist/virologist. Advocate for science and science education. Made in Detroit. No legal advice. Opinions are my own.

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Reposted by @aplbarn.bsky.social
Senator Chris Van Hollen @vanhollen.senate.gov · 10/08/2026
This is Big Brother stuff. ICE has collected the DNA of lots of US citizens, including children & those who’ve never been convicted of a crime.   This is a blatant violation of people's privacy. We cannot give another dime to fund ICE's continued abuses.  www.wired.com/story/ice-dn...
wired.com
ICE Collected Nearly 1 Million People’s DNA Last Year—Including Young Children
Internal documents show ICE's DNA collection has skyrocketed in the second Trump administration. Now hundreds of thousands of people never convicted of a crime are in an FBI criminal database forever.
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The Emancipator @theemancipator.org · 13/08/2026
The now-viral video of Alisa N. Hacket, 18, being forcefully body-slammed and punched in the face by an Arkansas state trooper is the latest example of the disparate violence leveled at Black girls and women.
theemancipator.org
Viral Video of Teen Punched by Arkansas State Trooper Highlights Misogynoir Violence
The now-viral video of Alisa N. Hackett, 18, being forcefully body-slammed and punched in the face by an Arkansas state trooper is the latest example of the disparate violence leveled at Black girls a...
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Celeste Headlee @celesteheadlee.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Christopher Gillum was arrested in Florida with hundreds of rounds of ammunition and a handgun while on his way to Louisiana to commit a mass shooting. He had “expressed recent threats to harm ‘Black people’."
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ProPublica @propublica.org · 13/08/2026
Louisiana’s attorney general has opposed all but one of 23 compensation claims brought by people whose convictions have been vacated. Once, she even threatened to block an exoneree’s ability to obtain a law license if he didn’t drop his claim. with @veritenews.org
propublica.org
He’s Eligible for Up to $480,000 After Being Wrongly Imprisoned for 42 Years. The State Says No.
Elvis Brooks’ case was an egregious example of a wrongful conviction, civil rights attorneys said. But Louisiana’s attorney general maintains that Brooks and other exonerees are guilty — and therefore...
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Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani @mayor.nyc.gov · 10/08/2026
If it looks like an Amazon delivery and drives like an Amazon delivery, then it's an Amazon delivery, right? Not according to Amazon. Big companies like Amazon have built a vast network of subcontractors who deliver their packages while shielding them from accountability.
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Rachel Maddow @maddow.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
“Tuberculosis, a bacterial disease that spreads through the air, is considered such a serious public health risk that there are state laws specifically related to controlling it. The law makes clear that 'investigation is not optional'...” coloradosun.com/2026/08/07/a...
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Brennan Center @brennancenter.org · 09/08/2026
Lifetime terms have cut off the Supreme Court from democratic accountability, and the justices have used their power to undermine democracy by dismantling the Voting Rights Act. This is why reforms like term limits are needed. bit.ly/458NyoF
brennancenter.org
What the Voting Rights Act Can Teach About Supreme Court Reform
No institution should be beyond meaningful democratic accountability.
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Celeste Headlee @celesteheadlee.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
A national boycott is needed here. Please, regardless of where you are living, please help protect your neighbors in DC and don't use DoorDash.
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Sherrilyn Ifill @sifill.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
Whew! And prosecuted a whole grown man to cover the President’s embarrassment.
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Ana Marie Cox @anamariecox.com · 07/08/2026
"Women accounted for 100 percent of the decline in the labor force in July, according to a National Women’s Law Center analysis of the Bureau of Labor Statistics’s latest dismal jobs report. Overall, the economy lost 23,000 jobs in July: Women lost 32,000 jobs, while men gained 9,000."
newrepublic.com
Trump’s Terrible July Jobs Numbers Only Hurt Women
And the number of women who have left the workforce since January is more than double the number of men.
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Sherrilyn Ifill @sifill.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
My latest: open.substack.com/pub/sherrily...
open.substack.com
Republican Senate Confirms Trump As Attorney General
The Vote to Confirm Todd Blanche as Attorney General is Catastrophic
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Jennifer Shin - WTAF @jennifershin.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
Researchers at the Statens Serum Institut in Denmark have conducted multiple landmark, population-wide studies tracking hundreds of thousands to over 1.2 million children using national health registries to examine potential links between vaccines and autism. Every major study found no connection.
en.ssi.dk
Large Danish Study: No link between vaccines and autism or 49 other health conditions
A new Danish study finds no association between aluminum in childhood vaccines and 50 different health conditions, including autism, asthma, and autoimmune diseases. The findings reaffirm the safety o...
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The Weekend on MS NOW @theweekendmsnow.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
“Todd Blanche now becomes the symbol of Donald Trump's corruption of the rule of law in America” Retired Judge J Michael Luttig minces no words over what it means that Todd Blanche has been confirmed as attorney general and the danger that poses to the upcoming midterm elections.
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Celeste Headlee @celesteheadlee.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
Trump is confessing to a crime here. Federal law prohibits super PACs from coordinating with or donating to candidates.
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Citizen.Coping @propcazhpm.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
The theme for 2026 #BlackInNeuroWeek was "Preserving Brain Health in a World Meant to Destroy It". Dr. Raina Croff summarized research on how multiple stressors of gentrification impacts Black seniors. I imagine data centers are causing similar harms for communities impacted. #NeuroRacism
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Hypervisible @hypervisible.blacksky.app · 08/08/2026
“This is very real redlining…It is appropriating rural, Black-owned land and converting it for industrial purposes, and it’s being done by people who have no historical or cultural tie to the land. These are not people who are local, developing their land for industrial use.”
theguardian.com
‘This is very real redlining’: outrage in Little Rock as two datacenters loom
Critics decry proposed hyperscale projects, fearing overuse of water and electricity, and ‘appropriating rural, Black-owned land for industrial purposes’
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Senator Patty Murray @murray.senate.gov · 08/08/2026
At 4:30AM Senate Republicans voted to confirm Todd Blanche, the President’s former personal lawyer, as Attorney General. Blanche has signed off on absolutely historic corruption. What a disgrace. I voted NO. America deserves so much better.
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Jeremy Berg @jeremymberg.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
Fresh grant terminations at NIH 🤬 www.science.org/content/arti... 1/7
science.org
NIH Director Bhattacharya kills more health disparities grants
Letter says agency is “adjusting its extramural research portfolio, which includes terminating grant awards”
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Johnathan Perkins @johnathanperk.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
Nolan died over the Fourth of July. No one has been charged. In fact, precisely zero suspects have been named in the Nolan Wells [murder] case. This is America. 🇺🇸
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Adam Serwer @adamserwer.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
Wrote about the border search exception: a massive loophole in the Fourth Amendment that allows border officials to search through your phone without a warrant, the exception provides an easy pretext for the Trump administration to target its political enemies. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
theatlantic.com
Trump Should Need a Warrant to See Your Phone
Federal officers can too easily comb through the most intimate details of your life.
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Mississippi Free Press @mississippifreepress.org · 05/08/2026
Jackson police are investigating the death of an unidentified Black woman who was found hanging in a tree behind a vacant home in Mississippi’s capital city on Monday night. www.mississippifreepress.org/black-woman-...
mississippifreepress.org
Black Woman Found Hanging in Tree Behind Vacant Home in Jackson, But Details Are Sparse
Jackson police are investigating the death of a Black woman who was found hanging in a tree behind a home in Mississippi's capital city.
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SupercuriousPhD @supercuriousphd.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
..brain clearance as a compartmentalized system of organized pathways and immune niches whose dysfunction may underlie regional vulnerability in neurological disease- www.cell.com/cell/fulltex... 🌎🧪#Medsky #Neuroskyence
cell.com
Physiological brain clearance architecture revealed by neuronal protein tracing
Neuronal protein tracing, unlike CSF tracers, reveals that brain clearance follows a “nearest exit” principle through distinct border immune niches disrupted differently by disease.
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Mehdi Hasan @mehdirhasan.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
"Here Are 19 - Yes, 19! - Ways Trump and Republicans Are Plotting to Rig and Steal the Midterm Elections" Attacking immigrants and Black voting power. Gutting election security. Voter purges. Threats of arrests and raids. And so much more. From Zeteo:
zeteo.com
Here Are 19 - Yes, 19! - Ways Trump and Republicans Are Plotting to Rig and Steal the Midterm Elections
Attacking immigrants and Black voting power. Gutting election security. Voter purges. Threats of arrests and raids. And so much more. Trump’s assault on elections is truly unprecedented.
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Celeste Headlee @celesteheadlee.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
"The panels threw a moving shade across the rows, which cooled the soil & slowed how fast water escaped into the air. The plants returned the favor, because moisture rising off the leaves cooled the panels overhead and nudged up how much power they made."
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Scott Horton @robertscotthorton.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
Exclusive: Daphy Michel, from Haiti, was dropped off in Pittsburgh in 20F temperatures wearing summer clothes. She froze to death. Another ICE homicide. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
theguardian.com
Family to sue after woman released from ICE custody froze to death
Exclusive: Daphy Michel, from Haiti, was dropped off in Pittsburgh in 20F temperatures wearing summer clothes
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Brennan Center @brennancenter.org · 01/08/2026
DHS is spending billions on domestic surveillance and data tools capable of targeting anyone, with little oversight or transparency. Congress must investigate how these powerful technologies are bought and used. bit.ly/4wx8EZO
brennancenter.org
DHS’s Domestic Surveillance, Data Collection, and Analytics Tools
Fueled by a budget boom, the Department of Homeland Security is expanding its technological arsenal, with little oversight or transparency around how these tools are used.
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Nancy Levine Stearns @nancylevinestearns.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
🚨 ABC News: The Johns Hopkins University researcher released after being detained by ICE at Maryland airport: Fatima Ameaka was held at a facility in Louisiana, according to her lawyer. The ICE kidnappings must stop. abcnews.com/US/johns-hop...
abcnews.com
Johns Hopkins researcher released after being detained by ICE at Maryland airport
A Johns Hopkins University researcher, originally from Cameroon, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers earlier this week.
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Genetics Society of America @genetics-gsa.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
On August 1, 1931, Harriet Creighton and Barbara McClintock published the first experimental proof that genes are physically located on chromosomes—a discovery that transformed genetics. 1/3🧵
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The New York Times @nytimes.com · 01/08/2026
Breaking News: Nirmal Purja, a well-known mountaineer, was one of four climbers killed when an avalanche struck Pakistan’s Broad Peak on Thursday. The fate of six others was unknown.
nyti.ms
Nirmal Purja, Renowned Mountaineer, Is Found Dead on Pakistani Mountain
The British-Nepali mountaineer was one of 10 climbers who were struck by an avalanche on Thursday on Broad Peak, one of the world’s highest mountains.
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Taniel @taniel.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
BIG DEAL on voting rights this morning: Governor Spanberger just restored the voting rights of some 60,000+ Virginians. Her move reverses Youngkin's abrupt decision in 2023 to end automatic voting rights restoration, which brought Virginia back to a system of default lifetime disenfranchisement.
boltsmag.org
Virginia Governor Restores Voting Rights for Thousands With Past Felony Convictions - Bolts
This is the only state that, absent action by the governor, bans people convicted of any felony from voting for life. Virginians have an opportunity to end that system for good in November.
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Anna Clark @annaleighclark.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
These two cities with the same name are among the oldest settlements in North America (est. 1668). And they sit across an increasingly fraught US/Canada border. I wrote about it:
propublica.org
As Trump’s Tariff War With Canada Drags On, This Border Community Suffers Without a Voice
Under an intensifying trade war, parts of northern Michigan are feeling the financial pain. But with a president intent on conflict and a congressman silent on the issue, these Michiganders see no sig...
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Thee NYC angry black latina mom! ♉️🇩🇴🗽 🐝💛 @urbanmodernism.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
Thank you for believing in what we’re building. 💚 Children need real books in their hands and more chances to learn by creating, exploring, and doing. The Threads community showed up beautifully. Our school supplies wishlist is linked below. 📚✏️🌱 www.amazon.com/registries/g...
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Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett @crockett.house.gov · 29/07/2026
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Chris Geidner @chrisgeidner.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
NEW: James Comey has filed a motion to dismiss his seashells indictment as an unconstitutional vindictive and selective prosecution.
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA
EASTERN DIVISION
United States of America, )
 )
v. ) Case No.: 4:26-CR-00016-FL-RN
 )
James B. Comey, Jr., )
 )
 Defendant. )
_______________________________________)
JAMES B. COMEY JR.’S MOTION TO DISMISS INDICTMENT
FOR VINDICTIVE AND SELECTIVE PROSECUTION
James B. Comey, Jr., by and through undersigned counsel, and pursuant to Federal Rule of
Criminal Procedure 12(b), moves this Court to dismiss the indictment. As explained in the
accompanying Memorandum, the government has singled out Mr. Comey for prosecution because
of his protected speech and because of President Trump’s personal animus toward him. Such a
vindictive and selective prosecution violates the First Amendment, Due Process Clause, and equal
protection principles. The proper remedy for this unconstitutional prosecution is dismissal with
prejudice. But at the very least, the Court should order discovery and an evidentiary hearing and
require the government to establish that it has a legitimate basis for this prosecution.
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Douglas Main @dmain.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
Have a story in @theguardian.com today, please read or share if you have a minute: Border wall threatens Quitobaquito Springs, home to an Indigenous cemetery and three extremely rare species — two of which live nowhere else on Earth www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
theguardian.com
‘Total chaos’: the biological wonderland threatened by Trump’s border wall
Environmental groups are sounding the alarm over plans that threaten a desert spring that’s home to rare fish and turtles and sacred to the O’odham people
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Josh Marshall @joshtpm.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
Federal Judge Rules That FDA’s Mifepristone Restrictions Are Excessive, Unscientific and Unlawful talkingpointsmemo.com/news/federal...
talkingpointsmemo.com
Federal Judge Rules That FDA’s Mifepristone Restrictions Are Excessive, Unscientific and Unlawful
A federal judge in Virginia ruled in favor of an abortion provider...
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Michelangelo Signorile @msignorile.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
600 casualties hidden for months. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
theguardian.com
Pentagon reports more than 600 Iran war casualties in quiet database update
Figures are source of dispute as US defense department days ago reduced record of troops killed and wounded
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Richard M. Carpiano, PhD, MPH @rmcarpiano.medsky.social · 27/07/2026
What a mess. Helpful read covering what are rather confusing actual details of the Taylor Farms recall... 🛟😷🧪🧭
theguardian.com
‘Not standard’ for Taylor Farms to ask White House to delay cyclospora recall, ex-FDA head says
Scott Gottlieb responds to report that company contacted the White House seeking to delay a recall announcement
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Prison Journalism Project @prisonjournalism.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
Last year, @marisakabas.bsky.social included us in her "independent journalism" gift guide. Consider this your sign, Bluesky. We train incarcerated writers and publish their works. If you've been thinking about supporting us, we'd love your help reaching our summer campaign goal. #ijs
prisonjournalismproject.fundjournalism.org
Donate | Prison Journalism Project
Prison Journalism Project is supported by people like you. Support Prison Journalism Project today.
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Al Jazeera English @aljazeera.com · 26/07/2026
Confirmed cases of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo have surged beyond 3,000. The official death toll has climbed to 1,354, a rise of more than 40% in just five days. A public health consultant tells Al Jazeera the virus is 'spreading like wildfire'.
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Big John @dcbigjohn.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
Local authorities plan crackdown on anti-ICE protests at Alexandria detention camp www.nola.com/gambit/news/...
nola.com
Local authorities plan crackdown on anti-ICE protests at Alexandria detention camp
Louisiana residents are demanding the local board operating a former air force base in Alexandria drop a planned crackdown on protests at the site as part of preparations to open
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Rima I Anabtawi @rimaanabtawi.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
Madison police kill man in broad daylight in front of witnesses wisconsinexaminer.com/briefs/madis...
wisconsinexaminer.com
Madison police kill man in broad daylight in front of witnesses • Wisconsin Examiner
A Madison police officer shot a man several times, killing him during an arrest for allegedly casing cars in the Willy Street neighborhood.
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Alicia @aliciablackgirl.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
The Save America Act is nothing but a voter suppression plan. To suppress blue votes and republicans are terrified of losing the midterms so they have to cheat. That’s their slimy MO.
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Hanoumatoi @hanoumatoi.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
The people in power will never let those who challenge the prison industrial system threaten it. And that comes from both parties. www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...
theguardian.com
He won office in Louisiana after a murder exoneration. Maga wouldn’t let the election stand
Calvin Duncan studied law in prison to free himself and won his court clerk race in a landslide. Three hours in, the role was abolished in an act of ‘white supremacy’
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Mark Joseph Stern @mjsdc.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Just canceled my DashPass and sent this email to DoorDash. I encourage you to do the same if you support D.C. home rule. press@doordash.com and ir@doordash.com
Hello,

I’m writing to let you know that I just canceled my DashPass because of DoorDash’s disgraceful campaign against D.C. home rule.

DoorDash is urging Congress to nullify a new D.C. law imposing a 20 percent tax on food-delivery services—not merely by overturning that law, but by prohibiting the District from enacting any new tax without prior congressional approval. That is an extraordinarily sweeping assault on D.C.’s right to govern itself and an odious insult to the District’s residents.

I am especially disgusted by DoorDash’s public claim that it is somehow defending D.C. residents while actively seeking to strip us of our right to govern ourselves through our own democratically elected lawmakers. Please do not pretend that disenfranchising District residents is an act undertaken on our behalf.

I intend to publicize DoorDash’s attack on home rule as widely as possible and urge everyone I know to boycott the company.

Shame on you.
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jentrification ♎ @jentrification.com · 22/07/2026
Angely and Alexka Jerez Medina are twins, but ICE is holding them in separate detention camps in Texas and New Mexico. (petition link in article)
outliermedia.org
🚨 Detroit teens still stuck in ICE detention
Two Detroit teens are being held in immigration detention as approval rates plummet for asylum seekers.
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Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani @mayor.nyc.gov · 22/07/2026
Benjamin Netanyahu is a war criminal.
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Sherrilyn Ifill @sifill.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
They’re kids!
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Sarah Taber @sarahtaber.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
A quick word on Taco Bell: That's where we found the suspected lettuce, and it's not bc Taco Bell is gross. It's bc Taco Bell is REALLY GOOD at tracing product! Keeping track of exactly where they got their ingredients, & exactly what restaurants each shipment of ingredients went to!
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