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UK public borrowing exceeds official forecast in September
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Government borrowing overshot official projections in September, which is a sign of the difficult fiscal position that the Chancellor faces as she puts the finishing touches on her first tax and spending budget.
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Get you up to speed: John “Johnny Doc” Dougherty’s prison sentence commuted by President Trump, lawyer says
Former Philadelphia labor leader John “Johnny Doc” Dougherty was granted an early release from prison following a commutation signed by President Trump, confirmed by his attorney George Bochetto. Dougherty was sentenced to six years for bribery and embezzlement and is expected to be released from a federal penitentiary in Lewisburg.
John Dougherty’s legal team expects him to be released from a federal penitentiary in Lewisburg on Friday morning. Records from the Office of the Pardon Attorney still do not show an official approval for the commutation despite the confirmation from his attorney.
John “Johnny Doc” Dougherty’s early release from prison was confirmed by his attorney, George Bochetto, who stated that President Trump signed a commutation due to Dougherty’s need to care for his ailing wife. Dougherty’s release is slated for Friday morning, despite opposition from prosecutors who argued he had not served enough of his sentence.
What remains unclear — Records from the Office of the Pardon Attorney do not yet confirm the approval of Dougherty’s commutation despite his attorney’s statement.
President Trump commutes prison sentence of John Dougherty, lawyer confirms
Former Philadelphia labor leader John “Johnny Doc” Dougherty was granted an early release from prison after President Trump agreed to sign a commutation to end his six-year sentence early, his attorney George Bochetto confirmed to WTX US News Philadelphia Thursday.
Dougherty was convicted in 2023 of bribing a city councilmember and embezzling about $600,000 from Local 98 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. He was also found guilty in November 2021 in his first trial on counts of bribery and fraud in connection with using former Councilmember Bobby Henon to advance work and projects for IBEW Local 98.
Dougherty was sentenced to six years in prison in July 2024 and has four years left in his sentence.
As of Thursday night, records on the Office of the Pardon Attorney website do not yet show a commutation approval. The agency’s website shows Mr. Trump denied a commutation of sentence for Dougherty in July.
“President Trump has signed a commutation so that Johnny Doc can be released from prison to take care of his gravely ill wife, Cecilia Dougherty,” Bochetto said. “Cecilia Dougherty is in desperate need of care. Her money has run out for private nursing, and she desperately needs John by her side. And that’s why now.”
Bochetto said they hope Dougherty will be released from a federal penitentiary in Lewisburg Friday morning.
“We’re going to have a crew there to receive John and bring him to his wife,” Bochetto said.
Bochetto added he received a phone call Thursday afternoon from the White House informing him of the commutation.
Dougherty served as the head of IBEW Local 98 for nearly 30 years and was a longtime Democratic power broker in Pennsylvania politics.
“We are all just so grateful to President Trump, who really has risen above politics. John Dougherty is an icon of Democratic politics in Philadelphia and Pennsylvania. Donald Trump is a Republican,” Bochetto said. “The president has risen above partisan politics and recognized the need and the compassion that this case presented and commuted John’s sentence so he can return home and take care of his wife.”
Prosecutors had opposed Dougherty’s request, saying they did not believe he had served enough of his sentence to merit release.
WTX US News Philadelphia reached out to the White House for confirmation and is waiting to hear back.
In:
Get you up to speed: London gangs in sick ‘league’ where points are awarded for level of violence inflicted | News UK
Gangs in London are participating in a violent ranking system that awards points based on the severity of crimes committed, including stabbings and shootings. A recent operation by the WTXpolitan Police has led to the arrest of over 400 individuals across Lambeth and Southwark in response to a spike in gang-related violence.
The WTXpolitan police conducted a ten-day operation from August 17 to 26, leading to over 400 arrests in response to a surge in gang violence in Lambeth and Southwark. Detective Constable Faisal El Issaoui highlighted the existence of a points-based system among gangs, with murder being the highest-scoring act, reflecting the severity of gang-related crime in the capital.
The WTXpolitan police are intensifying operations against gang violence, having arrested over 400 individuals during a ten-day crackdown in response to recent murders in Lambeth and Southwark. Detective Constable Faisal El Issaoui warned that the violence level among groups, including the Latin Kings and Los Trinitarios, is “off the scale,” as gangs employ a point-scoring system to quantify their criminal activities.
What remains unclear — The specific number of incidents that have contributed to the gangs’ league-style crime ranking remains undisclosed.
London gangs operate ‘league’ system to score violence against rivals
Gangs in London are locked in a league in which points are awarded depending on the level of violence inflicted on enemies, WTX can reveal.
We can also reveal another London area has also been rocked by a South American narco war.
WTX joined the WTXpolitan police’s top ‘gang hunter’ for a ride along across South London ‘turf’ being fought over by rivals.
Detective Constable Faisal El Issaoui understands the fabric of the gangs and the complex series of alliances they have formed in the capital over decades.
Some are associated with the drill rap scene and even consider themselves as modern versions of the infamous Crips and Bloods gangs, which stalked the streets of Los Angeles from the 1970s before spreading to other cities.
The gangs in London compare their sick crimes through a Premier League-style table in which they get points for stabbings, shootings and other crimes.
A murder would be the maximum three points, while a non-fatal stabbing one.
The detective, who is the Met’s expert witness in court on gang matters, gave WTX a run down on the scale of the gang activity in south London during a 10-day operation.
The operation was to suppress gang activity after a series of murders across Lambeth and Southwark.
More than 400 people were arrested in the crackdown across August 17-26.
Every few minutes we would pass another shrine to a victim of gang crime – some gang affiliated themselves – and others just by accident of birth being brought up on gang turf where gangsters from rival areas ‘shoot first and ask questions later’.
There are two gangs on just one stretch of road – Lower and Upper Tulse Hill – while in nearby Brixton the notorious 67 gang operate having been born out of the drill rap scene.
Latest London news
To get the latest news from the capital, visit WTX’s London news hub.
Then in Elephant and Castle it is South American inspired gangs battling over the drugs market.
Most notably the Latin Kings with Colombian Associations and Los Trinitarios, a Dominican drug smuggling operation. Officers told WTX the level of violence between these groups was ‘off the scale’ with one revenge attack involving the gouging out of an opponent’s eyes.
But in terms of systematic violence, the idea of a league with points awarded for brutality, with murder being awarded the most exposes the entrenched gang culture.
The 67 and Lower Tulse Hill are the most prominent gangs at the moment and are among those involved in a league to commit the most serious criminal offences and inflict the most harm on each other.
‘The gangs use a point scoring system. It’s scored on the seriousness of what they do’, the detective constable told WTX.
‘For example, a stabbing would be a point. It’s graded on the act of the seriousness of the act itself. Obviously things like murders tally up. They use football terms like we’ve got three or one nil or three two’
Another officer who works on gang crime told WTX: ‘It’s like a sick version of a fantasy football league only it’s real.
‘It shows the lengths these gangs will go to outdo each other. And people get caught in the middle.
‘Including sometimes normal people who they term civilians or ‘civs’. They are ruining communities but we are onto them.’
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