A prosecutor has issued a public plea urging Missouri Governor Mike Parson not to pardon a former police detective over the fatal shooting of a Black man. Eric DeValkenaere was convicted in 2021 of involuntary manslaughter and armed criminal action in the December 2019 death of 26-year-old Cameron Lamb. DeValkenaere, a former Kansas City police officer, was sentenced in 2022 to six years in prison but has remained free on bond as his appeal is reviewed. After reports emerged earlier this week that Gov Parson is considering a pardon in the case, Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker warned in a public letter that the greater long-term effect of the potential pardon would be the “erosion of our public safety system as fair and just.” “Pardons are political actions by design, not devised for the innocent but for the guilty,” wrote Ms Peters Baker in the letter addressed to Gov Parson. “I imagine you might view a pardon as a way to support police. But I expect this extreme action for the only KCPD officer convicted of fatally shooting a black man will ignite distrust, protests, and public safety concerns for citizens and police.” Ms Peters Baker accused Gov Parson of “being lobbied” into the decision and of “using a political action to subvert the rule of law.” According to the prosecutor, no one from the governor’s office has reached out to the family members of the victim. Lamb family members and loved ones also gathered on the steps of the Jackson County Courthouse on Tuesday, asking the governor to speak with them before making a final call. “Governor, if you pardon DeValkenaere, you will create more tension in the city and we will be left to pick up the pieces,” Reverend Emmanuel Cleaver said during the Tuesday rally, according to KCTV. In a statement to KCTV, the governor’s office accused Ms Peter Baker of “political games ... for her re-election bid.” “Governor Parson is grounded in his faith and believes in second chances,” spokesperson Kelli Jones said, noting the 538 the governor has issued. “He has created more workforce training opportunities for offenders, brought the landmark Reentry 2030 program to assist offenders, and started the first law enforcement academy at a historically black college.” During a bench trial in 2021, a judge said DeValkenaere and his partner violated Lamb’s constitutional rights because they had no probable cause to believe he had committed a crime, had no warrant for Lamb’s arrest and had no search warrant or consent to be on the property. The convicted officer shot Lamb as the victim was backing up a truck into a garage and within seconds of arriving where Lamb lived. The officers had followed him after reports of several traffic violations. DeValkenaere testified that he shot Lamb because he believed his partner’s life was in danger. Meanwhile, Lamb’s family has said he was not armed and that a gun found at the scene was planted. In a motion filed last year with the Missouri Court of Appeals, DeValkenaere’s attorneys argued that DeValkenaere and his partner had probable cause to be on Lamb’s property and to arrest him for the traffic violations, The Kansas City Star reported. Read More Daniel Penny indicted in Jordan Neely subway death as ex-marine’s arraignment set for 28 June How Republicans and right-wing media turned Jordan Neely’s killer into a hero Grand jury votes to indict Daniel Penny in subway killing of Jordan Neely

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It’s hard to resist garlic sometimes, but its pungent smell can often last long on the tongue and what better way to get rid of it than good old yoghurt? Garlic contains a compound called sulfur volatiles that can cause a bad odour after being eaten. Researchers wanted to better understand how yoghurt and its components can eliminate or reduce such strong odours. For the study, researchers from the Department of Food Science and Technology at Ohio State University, Columbus tested the garlic deodourising capabilities of yoghurt and its individual components of water, fat and protein to see how each stood up to the smell. As a result, the team found both fast and protein were effective at trapping garlic odours, leading the scientists to suggest high-protein foods may one day be formulated specifically to fight garlic breath. “High protein is a very hot thing right now – generally, people want to eat more protein,” said senior study author Sheryl Barringer, professor of food science and technology at the university. “An unintended side benefit may be a high-protein formulation that could be advertised as a breath deodorizer in addition to its nutritional claims,” she said. “I was more excited about the protein’s effectiveness because consumer advice to eat a high-fat food is not going to go over well.” In the lab experiment, researchers placed equal amounts of raw garlic in glass bottles and confirmed the smell of the garlic was released in concentrations that would be detected by the human nose. Scientists measured the levels of volatile molecules in gaseous form present before and after each treatment. It was revealed that garlic alone reduced 99 per cent of the major odour-producing raw garlic volatiles. When introduced separately, the fat, water and protein components of yoghurt also had a deodorising effect on raw garlic, but results showed fat and protein performed better than water. Looking at fat’s performance, a higher quantity of butter fat was more effective at deodorisation. The proteins which were studied included different forms of whey, casein and milk proteins, all of which were effective at deodorising garlic. This may be because of their ability to trap the volatile molecules before they are emitted into the air. A casein micelle-whey protein complex performed the best. “We know proteins bind flavour – a lot of times that’s considered a negative, especially if a food with high protein has less flavour. In this case, it could be a positive,” Barringer said. Additional experiments that involved changing the pH of the yoghurt to make it less acidic (4.4 pH to 7 pH) actually appeared to lower the yoghurt’s deodorisation effect on the garlic. However, changing the pH of water did not seem to make any difference on the water’s deodorization effect. “That’s telling me it goes back to those proteins because as you change pH you change the configuration of proteins and their ability to bind. That said we definitely should be looking at these proteins,” Barringer said. “It probably depends on the protein, as well, because different proteins react differently to pH. So that may be an important thing as we look at other proteins for their garlic deodorization effect.” The team also tested the deodorising effect of yoghurt and its components on fried garlic, in the process they found that drying garlic alone can significantly reduce garlic odour. Yoghurt and its individual ingredients neutralised a lower percentage of volatile compounds of fried garlic compared to raw garlic. Study authors think this may be because there were fewer volatiles to trap than were present in the raw cloves. The findings have provided a foundation for future studies on proteins that might help fight the garlic breath. In the meantime, Barringer predicts that Greek yoghurt, with a higher protein profile than the whole milk plain yoghurt used in the study, may be particularly effective at getting rid of garlic breath. Fruit-flavoured yoghurts will probably work, too, she said – and whatever is used, it must quickly follow ingestion of raw garlic. “With apples, we have always said to eat them immediately,” she added. “The same with yoghurt is presumed to be the case – have your garlic and eat the yoghurt right away.” The study was published in the journal Molecules. Read More 11 best mouthwashes that will keep your mouth minty fresh Women less likely than men to receive CPR from strangers, study finds Study finds toxic ‘forever chemicals’ may be ‘intentionally added’ to some period products Yoghurt could be the cure for bad garlic breath, study finds Teenager’s death after drinking too much water was ‘preventable’ Could bats hold the secret to beating Covid and cancer?

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