After 60 years, priest jailed for life for murdering Texas beauty queen

Agencies
December 9, 2017

San Antonio, Dec 9: A retired Catholic priest convicted of murdering a former beauty queen who came to him for confession was sentenced to life in prison by a jury in south Texas on Friday, local media reported, ending a cold case that has troubled the community for nearly 60 years.

John Feit, a visiting priest in McAllen, Texas, when the second-grade teacher came to him for confession during Holy Week in 1960, was convicted on Thursday of premeditated murder in the death of Irene Garza, then 25.

It was the maximum sentence possible for Feit, who was 27 at the time of the murder and is now 85, KRGV TV and The Monitor of McAllen reported.

Garza`s murder still haunts the communities that line the Rio Grande, across the river from Mexico.

Feit was living in a retirement home in Arizona when he was indicted last year and extradited to Texas to stand trial in the case.

During five days of testimony, prosecutors called nearly two dozen witnesses, including a retired Trappist monk from a Missouri monastery who said Feit confessed to him that he had killed Garza.

Prosecutors also presented evidence that Catholic Church officials pressured local officials not to pursue Feit as a suspect in the initial investigation, partly because of fears that it could jeopardize John Kennedy`s run for president at the time. Kennedy`s Catholic faith was an issue in the campaign.An August 1960 letter from a Texas priest to another church official, which was entered into evidence, warned that bringing a lurid murder case against a Catholic priest "could make this a juicy scandal for the opposition to Kennedy."

The defense did not place Feit on the stand, instead pointing out inconsistencies in the prosecution`s case, and stressing the absence of eyewitness testimony placing the priest and the victim together on the night Garza was last seen.

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News Network
June 25,2020

New Delhi, Jun 25: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday hit out at Congress for "unceremoniously sacking" its spokesperson and said that leaders in the opposition party are "feeling suffocated".

To substantiate his point, Shah referred to the recent Congress Working Committee (CWC) meet in which senior members and younger members raised a few issues, however, they were "shut down".

Taking to Twitter, Shah posted two English dailies' articles titled -- "Not scared of PM Modi, but many in the party dodge him: Rahul at Congress Working Committee meet" and "Congress removes Sanjay Jha as party spokesperson after critical article".

Last week, Jha was dropped as AICC spokesperson and Abhishek Dutt and Sadhna Bharti appointed as National Media Panelist of Congress party.

"During the recent CWC meet, senior members and younger members raised a few issues. But, they were shouted down. A party spokesperson was unceremoniously sacked. The sad truth is - leaders are feeling suffocated in Congress," the Union Minister tweeted.

Meanwhile, Shah also targetted Congress on the completion of 45 years of emergency, which was imposed by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on June 25, 1975 and asked the party to self introspect.

"As one of India's opposition parties, Congress needs to ask itself: Why does the Emergency mindset remain? Why are leaders who do not belong to 1 dynasty unable to speak up? Why are leaders getting frustrated in Congress? Else, their disconnect with people will keep widening," he wrote.

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Fairman
 - 
Thursday, 25 Jun 2020

Jha the spokesperson, tried to be under the payroll of BJP, so disciplinary action was imminent.

 

Discipline has no compromise.

Mohammed
 - 
Thursday, 25 Jun 2020

If i am not wrong you have already purchased suffocated leaders from congress.

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Agencies
March 14,2020

New Delhi, Mar 14: Excise duty on petrol and diesel was on Saturday hiked by ₹3 per litre as the government looked to mop up gains arising from fall in international oil prices.

Special excise duty on petrol was hiked by ₹2 to ₹8 per litre incase of petrol and to Rs 4 incase of diesel, an official notification said.

Additionally, road cess on petrol was raised by ₹1 per litre each on petrol and diesel to ₹10.

The increase in excise duty would in normal course result in a hike in petrol and diesel prices but most of it would be adjusted against the fall in rates that would have necessitated because of slump in international oil prices.

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News Network
May 24,2020

New Delhi, May 24: Overwhelmed by the donations that poured in from the society for his help, Phool Mia, the fruit seller in north Delhi's Jagatpuri area whose mangoes were looted by the ordinary people, said that those who helped him have made his "Eid" and have shown that "humanity is still alive".

Video footage that went viral on social media, shows that scores of passers-by looted the unattended crates of mangoes of a fruit seller after a fight broke out in the neighbourhood. The incident took place on Wednesday.

"My stock of mangoes worth Rs 30,000 was kept there. Some persons were fighting with each other fearing which I left the place to avoid any sort of altercation. When I returned, I saw that they were looting the mangoes kept there. There were 50-100 people who were involved in this act," Phool Mia, narrated the ordeal.

"A video got viral about the incident after which people donated to me on a portal. They empathised with me when I was ruined. I thank the media and all those people who have donated from the bottom of my heart as they made my Eid. Now, I would be able to celebrate Eid with my children. This shows humanity is still alive," he added.

However, four people have been arrested on the basis of video footage, Delhi Police said.

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