News in brief

By The Associated Press

Chad Daybell sentenced to death for killing wife and girlfriend’s children

BOISE, Idaho | A jury in Idaho has unanimously agreed that convicted killer Chad Daybell deserves the death penalty for the gruesome murders of his wife and his girlfriend’s two youngest children. The decision ends a grim case that began in 2019 with a search for two missing children.

The 55-year-old Daybell showed no emotion Saturday when learning he will face the death penalty for the murders of Tammy Daybell; 16-year-old Tylee Ryan; and 7-year-old Joshua “JJ” Vallow.

Idaho law allows for execution by lethal injection or firing squad, though firing squad executions have never been used in the state.

During a nearly two-month-long trial, prosecutors said Daybell promoted apocalyptic prophecies and tales of possession by evil spirits to justify the killings.

Ex-NJ officer sentenced to 27 years in shooting death

NEWARK, N.J. | A former New Jersey police officer has been sentenced to a total of 27 years in prison in the shooting death of one man and the wounding of another during a high-speed car chase 5½ years ago in the city of Newark.

Superior Court Judge Michael Ravin sentenced former Newark officer Jovanny Crespo on Friday to 20 years for aggravated manslaughter and seven years for aggravated assault in the January 2019 chase.

NJ.com reported that 31-year-old Crespo wept as his mother and sister begged for leniency. He later stood to briefly apologize to the victims’ families.

Democratic agreement on using AI went nowhere

WASHINGTON | The Democratic National Committee was watching earlier this year as campaigns nationwide were experimenting with artificial intelligence. So the organization approached a handful of influential party campaign committees with a request: Sign onto guidelines that would commit them to use the technology in a “responsible” way.

The draft agreement, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press, was hardly full of revolutionary ideas. It asked campaigns to check work by AI tools, protect against biases and avoid using AI to create misleading content.

“Our goal is to use this new technology both effectively and ethically, and in a way that advances – rather than undermines – the values that we espouse in our campaigns,” the draft said.

The plan went nowhere.

—From AP reports