Investigation Still ‘Active’ 8 Months After Idaho Twins Died Following Vaccinations

The Defender Staff

Eight months after 18-month-old twins died in their Idaho home, days after receiving the flu vaccine and other routine shots, Payette police told NBC Idaho news affiliate KTVB the case remains open. However, officials did not release any new information.

The parents told CHD.TV in May that police immediately treated them as suspects.

Last week, Payette Police Chief Gary Marshall told KTVB that the deaths of Dallas and Tyson Shaw remain “an active investigation” and that “there is no new information that can be released.”

Officials denied public records requests submitted to the Payette Police Department and the Ada County Coroner’s Office, citing the ongoing investigation.

Authorities have not released a cause or manner of death, and no toxicology or autopsy findings have been made public. It remains unclear whether investigators continue to view asphyxiation as a leading theory or whether alternative explanations are being considered.

Trump Says He Kept Venezuela’s Regime Intact to Avoid an “Iraq-Style” Collapse

Big League Politics, 01/17/26 

President Donald Trump said Friday that he deliberately avoided dismantling Venezuela’s post-Maduro governing structure in order to prevent chaos similar to what followed the U.S. invasion of Iraq.

Speaking to reporters as he departed the White House on Jan. 16, Trump explained that his administration chose to work with Venezuela’s interim leader Delcy Rodríguez rather than immediately install opposition figure María Corina Machado, citing the dangers of creating a sudden power vacuum.

Trump pointed to Iraq as a cautionary tale.

“If you ever remember a place called Iraq, where everybody was fired—the police, the generals, everybody—they ended up being ISIS,” Trump said. “Instead of just getting down to business, they ended up being ISIS.”

Judge Restricts ICE Actions Against Protesters in Minnesota

Kimberly Hayek  1/16/2026|Updated: 1/17/2026 

A federal judge in Minnesota on Friday ruled that federal immigration agents can’t detain or use nonlethal munitions and crowd dispersal tools on peaceful protesters who aren’t obstructing authorities, including when these people are observing the agents.

The decision, handed down by U.S. District Judge Kate Menendez, stems from a lawsuit brought last month by six local activists.

These individuals, backed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Minnesota, said that Homeland Security (DHS)  personnel were infringing on their First Amendment rights when they observed federal agents performing their duties.

After the ruling, Tricia McLaughlin, DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, issued a statement saying her agency was taking “appropriate and constitutional measures to uphold the rule of law and protect our officers and the public from dangerous rioters.”

French Bishops Issue Public Statement Fearing a Right to Euthanasia and/or Prison

By Bryan Lawrence Gonsalves

French Catholic bishops have issued a public statement urging lawmakers to reject a proposed law that would legalize euthanasia and assisted suicide in France. The warning comes days before the French Senate is scheduled to debate the “end of life” bill between Jan. 20 and Jan. 26.

The bill, which was already passed by the National Assembly in May 2025, would establish a new “right to die” for gravely ill adults, but France’s bishops argue it would threaten the most fragile and undermine the respect due to every human life.

The pro-euthanasia legislation was adopted by France’s lower house on May 27, 2025, with 305 votes in favor and 199 against.

Gays Against Groomers Takes Washington D.C.

Being in Washington, D.C. to save girls’ sports was one for the record books. It was an honor to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with allies, parents, athletes, and everyday Americans who refuse to stay silent. The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in two pivotal cases: Little v. Hecox from Idaho and West Virginia v. B.P.J. These challenges target state laws that ban male athletes from competing in female sports. The importance of these cases cannot be overstated. For decades, Title IX has ensured that women and girls have equal opportunities in education and athletics, carving out spaces where they can compete fairly and safely.

But in recent years, a radical push to allow males into female categories has eroded these hard-won protections. In Little v. Hecox, Idaho’s law prohibits biological males from participating in girls’ sports at public schools and colleges, emphasizing sex-based categories to prevent unfair advantages. Similarly, West Virginia v. B.P.J. upholds a ban on male athletes joining female teams, arguing that physical differences rooted in biology (strength, speed, bone density) give males an edge that no amount of hormone suppression can fully erase. Studies from sports scientists show that even after testosterone reduction, male athletes retain significant advantages, leading to displaced female competitors, shattered records, and increased injury risks for girls.