Category: U.S. News

A Tennessee man accepted responsibility Friday for his involvement in the fatal shooting of rapper Young Dolph during a broad daylight attack at a Memphis cookie shop, bringing closure to legal proceedings that began after the music artist’s stunning murder in his home city over four years ago.

Cornelius Smith Jr., 36, entered a guilty plea to second-degree murder charges in a Memphis courtroom through a prosecutorial agreement that eliminated additional charges he faced, according to a statement from the district attorney’s office. The plea arrangement resulted in a 20-year prison term for Smith.

Both Smith and Justin Johnson faced first-degree murder accusations in the November 2021 slaying of Young Dolph at his preferred bakery, situated close to where he grew up in a blue-collar Memphis community.

During Johnson’s trial, Smith served as the primary prosecution witness, leading to Johnson’s first-degree murder conviction in 2024 after Smith identified him as the accomplice gunman. Johnson received a life sentence in September 2024, followed by additional sentences for conspiracy to commit murder and illegal firearm possession as a convicted felon.

Smith provided testimony during Hernandez Govan’s trial as well, though Govan was cleared in August of accusations that he orchestrated the murder.

Young Dolph, legally known as Adolph Thornton Jr., worked as a rapper, independent record label executive and producer who was raised in Memphis and respected throughout the community for his philanthropic efforts. The 36-year-old had returned to his hometown to distribute Thanksgiving turkeys to local families when the shooting occurred.

The attack sent shockwaves through the music industry as yet another promising rap artist’s life was cut short, joining the ranks of Tupac Shakur, Notorious B.I.G. and Nipsey Hussle.

Officials reported that two individuals stepped out of a white Mercedes-Benz and opened fire on the rapper at the bakery location. Medical examiner findings showed he died from approximately 20 gunshot wounds.

Following the tragedy, Makeda’s Homemade Cookies became a shrine honoring Young Dolph’s memory. The city also paid tribute to him during a Memphis Grizzlies basketball game and designated a street in his honor, while artists created murals depicting the rapper throughout the area.

Legal officials have described the murder as connected to Anthony “Big Jook” Mims’ desire for retribution against Young Dolph over insulting songs targeting Big Jook and the music company he co-managed for his sibling, rapper Yo Gotti. Smith’s testimony revealed that Big Jook offered $100,000 for Young Dolph’s death and smaller rewards for targeting all performers signed to Young Dolph’s label, Paper Route Empire.

During Justin Johnson’s court proceedings, a prosecutor explained to the jury that Cocaine Muzik Group (currently called Collective Music Group), a competing record company established by Yo Gotti, sought to recruit Young Dolph, but he declined their offer.

Big Jook died in a shooting outside a restaurant in January 2024. Authorities have made no arrests in his death, and he never faced charges related to Young Dolph’s murder.

In his testimony, Smith stated, “I didn’t know anything about Paper Route having no hits,” until Govan informed him about the situation. He claimed Govan recruited him to “do the hits” and planned to keep $10,000 as his portion.

However, jurors in Govan’s case remained unconvinced that he planned the killings.

Young Dolph’s death prompted an outpouring of tribute messages across social media platforms for the artist, whose songs explored Memphis street culture and his parents’ struggles with crack addiction, while sharing powerful messages about resilience and determination through adversity. His reputation as an uncompromising independent performer and entrepreneur became legendary in hip-hop circles.

Young Dolph launched his musical journey through multiple mixtape releases. His recorded albums featured his 2016 first release, “King of Memphis.” He worked with various artists on additional mixtapes and albums, including Key Glock, Megan Thee Stallion, T.I., Gucci Mane and 2 Chainz, among others. Three of Young Dolph’s albums achieved top 10 status on the Billboard 200 chart, with 2020’s “Rich Slave” reaching the No. 4 position.

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Grab one from the shelf. Let yourself be drawn in by its shining cover. Look at the incredibly muscled figure wearing a form-fitting costume. The hero will undoubtedly be flying, yelling, or launching a bad guy into oblivion.

They’re absurd. They’re irresistibly wonderful. Superhero comic books are purely American creations.

When you contrast the slender comic book with Europe’s graphic novels, they seem fragile and childish. Stack the American comic against Japanese Manga and they look pure in their obsession with good versus evil; they recall a bygone era of American values.

Previously costing a nickel, a dime, a quarter, now priced like a coffee drink, they represent American consumer culture. The comic book is storytelling in fast-food form. Visual treats, mental candy.

But what makes them distinctly American products is the narrative that unfolds across their 32 pages month after month, year after year.

When the Fantastic Four embarked on their life-changing space mission in 1961 and “cosmic rays” changed the foursome into reluctant superheroes, comics ventured into strange territory where the mighty were also the unwilling, thoroughly contemporary casualties of science and fate.

Spider-Man, the Hulk, Wolverine (the roster continues) received extraordinary powers that turned them into outsiders, forcing them to become imperfect saviors.

They were, through some aspect of the American spirit, tied to Peter Parker’s ethical code: “With great power comes great responsibility.” They represent variations of an American Sisyphus, destined to rescue us repeatedly.

What could be more distinctly American — that strength, when coupled with a moral compass, ultimately triumphs? So noble, so innocent.

Even now, despite darker themes, Marvel and DC, the industry giants, keep reimagining American identity.

Previously supporting characters in stories dominated by white male protagonists, Gwen Stacy, Jean Grey and Susan Storm have recently stepped forward as leaders to refresh the Spider-Man, X-Men and Fantastic Four storylines. Absolute Wonder Woman has pioneered new territory with stunning artwork. Miles Morales represents Spidey for today’s audience.

Still, the fundamental conflicts persist.

Bruce Wayne struggles to form connections beyond his butler; he embodies the isolated individual in fragmented America. Steve Rogers carries the weight of symbolizing the “Greatest Generation” from World War II. He remains a Captain America perpetually displaced, even in his homeland.

And could there be a more representative tech billionaire manipulating humanity’s destiny than Superman’s enemy Lex Luthor and his megalomaniacal fantasies? If only our reality included a glasses-wearing Clark Kent watching over us. Just to be safe.

CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame has unveiled its most extensive collection of Paul McCartney memorabilia ever put on public display, focusing on the legendary musician’s transformation following his departure from The Beatles.

The exhibition titled “Paul McCartney and Wings” debuted Friday in Cleveland, chronicling the artist’s creative rebirth through showcased musical instruments, original handwritten lyrics, and photography by his spouse, Linda McCartney. Linda served as both keyboardist and harmony singer for Wings throughout the group’s ten-year existence from 1971 to 1981, during which they created memorable tracks like “Band on the Run,” “Silly Love Songs,” and “Live and Let Die.”

Following The Beatles’ dissolution, Paul McCartney transformed from a globally recognized musician since his youth into a family man with young children. Wings represented this personal evolution, according to Andy Leach, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s senior director of museum and archival collections.

The band’s integration of family life — including bringing children on concert tours, featuring a married couple performing together, and creating music inspired by his spouse who was also a band member — was “remarkable and unusual” for that time period, when rock music was predominantly male-centered and family elements were seldom so prominently featured in a group’s public persona, Leach explained.

“What’s interesting about Wings is that they were formed around the idea of reinvention, renewal, risk-taking, experimentation, but collaboration,” Leach said. “And family was at the center of it, too.”

Leach journeyed to London to collaborate with McCartney and his team in selecting and shipping guitars and performance attire to Cleveland. Most of the displayed items come from McCartney’s private collection.

According to Leach, Wings helped establish the grand-scale productions that became synonymous with 1970s arena rock, employing progressively sophisticated lighting and stage designs for tours like Wings Over the World and Wings Over America.

Leach described his amazement at seeing and touching guitars that “I’ve heard on record my whole life.”

The exhibition includes a reconstructed version of McCartney’s Scottish farmhouse, which he continues to own, where Paul and Linda withdrew following The Beatles’ 1970 split and established a recording facility.

Inside the recreated residence, photographs of Paul and Linda McCartney with their children cover the walls, while Linda’s camera is displayed in a case on the improvised kitchen table.

The photographs captured by Linda, a distinguished artist who became the first woman photographer to have her work featured on Rolling Stone’s cover in 1968, demonstrate her position “at the center of the family, and in some ways, at the center of the band,” Leach noted.

Linda McCartney shared three decades of marriage with Paul, who instructed her in keyboard playing after The Beatles ended. She passed away from breast cancer in 1998.

Among Leach’s preferred pieces are the handwritten musical arrangements by renowned Beatles producer George Martin for “Uncle Albert” and the James Bond theme “Live and Let Die,” which became one of Wings’ most lasting compositions.

Additional pieces were contributed by longtime Wings roadie John Hamill, former band members, and the widow of Denny Laine, Wings’ co-founder who also helped establish The Moody Blues and performed guitar, bass, keyboards, and both lead and backing vocals.

The Hall of Fame announced the exhibition will remain open for a minimum of one year, with hopes of extending it through summer 2027.

Leach characterized the exhibit as having “perfect timing” due to what he called “a nice kind of renaissance or at least a new appreciation for them among fans and a new understanding about how remarkable and important” Wings’ musicians were.

He referenced the debut of the Amazon Prime documentary Man on the Run, a new box set, and the upcoming 2025 publication Wings: The Story of a Band on the Run, co-authored by Paul McCartney and historian Ted Widmer.

An explosion followed by a massive fire at a Maine lumber facility has left at least 11 people injured, according to local authorities.

Officials in Waldo County have classified the incident as a “mass casualty event.” A spokesperson for MaineHealth Maine Medical Center in Portland, which operates as a Level 1 trauma facility, confirmed they were preparing to receive 10 patients being transferred from area hospitals. Meanwhile, Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center reported treating one patient listed in critical condition, according to a hospital spokesperson in Bangor.

The blast occurred at Robbins Lumber, located in Searsmont, a community of approximately 1,500 residents situated roughly 95 miles from Portland. Officials are working to determine what caused the explosion.

“We have dumped all of the resources from the whole county over to that area,” said Mike Larrivee, Waldo County 911 director.

State police spokesperson Shannon Moss confirmed that Maine State Police and fire marshals had been dispatched to the scene.

Attempts to reach Robbins Lumber for comment were unsuccessful. According to the company’s website, the business has operated as a family-owned enterprise for five generations since its founding in 1881. The site identifies the operation as “a high-tech lumber manufacturer.”

The lumber and wood products sector represents a vital and longstanding industry throughout Maine, particularly in the state’s rural communities. According to the Maine Forest Products Council, the industry generated more than $8 billion for the state’s economy in 2024 while supporting approximately 29,000 jobs.

Gov. Janet Mills announced that public officials were closely tracking the emergency response efforts.

“I urge folks to stay clear of the area, follow the instructions of law enforcement, and allow emergency personnel to respond. I ask Maine people to join me in keeping all those affected in their thoughts,” Mills wrote in a post on X.

An Army sergeant’s wife has been freed from immigration detention after being held for approximately one month, representatives from U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth’s office announced.

Active-duty Sgt. Jose Serrano, who completed three deployments to Afghanistan and is currently based in Texas, had previously informed The Associated Press that federal immigration officials detained his spouse, Deisy Rivera Ortega, on April 14. The arrest occurred while she attended a scheduled meeting with immigration officials to process her permanent residency paperwork.

Sen. Duckworth, a Democratic lawmaker and former combat service member, directly contacted Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin on Wednesday to push for Rivera Ortega’s freedom, her office reported. Rivera Ortega was freed on Thursday night.

“Rivera-Ortega has been released from ICE custody with a GPS tracking device, mandatory home visits, and ICE office check-ins. She will receive full due process,” the DHS stated. The department has oversight of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Rivera Ortega’s family has not yet provided a statement regarding the situation.

Serrano is currently serving at the Fort Bliss area, and he and Rivera Ortega became husband and wife in 2022. DHS records show Rivera Ortega crossed into the U.S. without authorization in 2016, and an immigration judge ordered her removal in December 2019.

Rivera Ortega worked at two hotel establishments and possessed both a military spouse identification card and authorized employment documentation, Duckworth’s office noted. She was seeking approval through the parole-in-place program, which protects military family members’ relatives from immigration actions while they pursue legal status adjustments.

In April of last year, DHS discontinued a 2022 directive that treated military service by immediate family as a “significant mitigating factor” when determining immigration enforcement actions. The current policy declares that “military service alone does not exempt aliens from the consequences of violating U.S. immigration laws.”

DHS data indicates that over 100 immediate relatives of military veterans have entered removal proceedings as part of the Trump administration’s comprehensive deportation efforts.

After public criticism and involvement from lawmakers from both political parties, some spouses of veterans and current military personnel have been freed from federal immigration detention facilities.

Federal authorities have filed terrorism charges against an Iraqi citizen who prosecutors say orchestrated numerous planned attacks across multiple continents as revenge for American military actions in Iran.

Court documents made public Friday in Manhattan federal court reveal that Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi allegedly planned to strike a synagogue in New York City within the past month and shared photographs and location details of Jewish community centers in Los Angeles and Scottsdale, Arizona, with an undercover federal agent as potential targets.

Prosecutors allege Al-Saadi was behind no fewer than 18 planned terrorist operations throughout Europe, which included attempting to firebomb a financial institution in Amsterdam and carrying out knife attacks against Jewish individuals in London.

The defendant also faces accusations of participating in two recent incidents in Canada: an assault on a synagogue and gunfire directed at the U.S. consulate in Toronto during March.

Federal charges include conspiracy to support Kata’ib Hizballah, an Iran-backed Iraqi Shia militant group, and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, both organizations labeled as foreign terrorist groups by the U.S. government.

Additional charges encompass conspiracy and material support for terrorist activities and conspiracy to detonate explosives at public locations.

During his first court hearing, Al-Saadi remained silent, though his attorney stated that he considers himself a political prisoner and prisoner of war, claiming U.S. officials are targeting him due to his connection with Qasem Soleimani, the Revolutionary Guard commander eliminated in a U.S. drone attack in Baghdad in 2020.

No plea was entered at this time. Al-Saadi will stay in custody but may request bail at a later date.

Defense attorney Andrew Dalack revealed that Al-Saadi was apprehended in Turkey before being transferred to U.S. custody. Dalack noted his client has been held in isolation since arriving at a federal detention facility in Brooklyn on Thursday evening.

NEW YORK — A Manhattan jury was unable to reach a unanimous decision Friday in Harvey Weinstein’s rape retrial, prompting a judge to declare a mistrial.

The former movie producer remains incarcerated following convictions for sexual assault on both coasts, but the mistrial means the New York rape allegation remains unresolved after three separate trials.

The predominantly male jury in Manhattan had been deliberating whether Weinstein sexually assaulted Jessica Mann, a hairstylist and actor, in 2013. Defense attorneys contended the sexual encounter was consensual between the then-married Weinstein and Mann, who is decades younger.

Earlier Friday, jurors informed the court they had reached an impasse in Harvey Weinstein’s rape retrial, but Judge Curtis Farber directed them to continue their deliberations in this high-profile case from the #MeToo era that a previous jury could not resolve last year.

The indication of deadlock surfaced several hours into their third day of discussions. The jury submitted a written message stating they “have concluded that they cannot reach” a unanimous decision. Judge Curtis Farber gave instructions for the group to persist with deliberations, which is the standard response from New York judges when a jury initially reports being stuck.

The jurors then resumed their private discussions. Their responsibility is determining whether Weinstein — the former entertainment industry executive who became emblematic of the #MeToo movement’s fight against sexual assault — raped hairstylist and actor Jessica Mann at a Manhattan hotel in March 2013.

An appellate court reversed his 2020 New York conviction involving charges related to Mann and a second accuser. During a retrial last year, jury deliberations collapsed due to internal conflicts regarding Mann’s case, resulting in this current retrial. Weinstein faces a single charge of third-degree rape.

Mann, 40, testified that while she voluntarily engaged in some intimate encounters with the then-married producer, he forced unwanted sexual contact on her that day despite her repeated refusals.

Weinstein’s defense team maintains the encounter was consensual. They highlighted that Mann continued meeting with Weinstein afterward and showed affection toward him. Mann explained she experienced conflicted emotions about him, herself and the incident.

Her perspective shifted in 2017, when multiple accusations against the Academy Award-winning Weinstein fueled the #MeToo movement. Several of those allegations resulted in criminal convictions against Weinstein in New York and California.

Weinstein, 74, has stated he “acted wrongly” but never attacked anyone.

The current jury listened to almost three weeks of testimony, including five days from Mann. Weinstein chose not to testify.

The Associated Press typically does not name individuals who report sexual assault. However, Mann has consented to being identified.

Federal prosecutors announced Friday they will pursue capital punishment against the suspect accused of gunning down two Israeli Embassy workers outside a Washington-area Jewish museum.

Elias Rodriguez is charged with federal hate crime and murder violations in the deaths of Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim, who were leaving a museum event last May when they were shot. According to the indictment, Rodriguez yelled “Free Palestine” during the attack and later declared to officers, “I did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza.”

Rodriguez faces hate crime charges that carry the possibility of execution. The indictment contains special findings that enable federal prosecutors to pursue the death penalty.

“My message to anyone who seeks to commit political violence in this district — D.C. is not the place. You will be held accountable and you will face the full wrath of the law,” said Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, during an unrelated press conference Friday where she disclosed the death penalty decision.

The hate crime allegations require prosecutors to demonstrate that antisemitism drove Rodriguez to open fire on Lischinsky and Milgrim, a young couple planning to get engaged. Milgrim held U.S. citizenship while Lischinsky was an Israeli citizen employed in America.

Federal prosecutors characterize the murders as premeditated, stating Rodriguez traveled by plane from Chicago to the Washington area before the May 21 gathering at the Capital Jewish Museum, bringing a firearm in his checked baggage.

Eyewitnesses reported seeing him walking back and forth outside before he approached four individuals and began shooting. Security footage captured Rodriguez moving toward Lischinsky and Milgrim after they collapsed, standing over them and firing more rounds. Officials said he appeared to reload his weapon before running away.

Following the attack, authorities say Rodriguez entered the museum and declared, “I did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza, I am unarmed,” based on court records. He also expressed admiration to investigators for an active-duty Air Force member who immolated himself outside the Israeli Embassy in February 2024, calling the man “courageous” and a “martyr.”

In Friday’s legal filing, prosecutors stated Rodriguez’s conduct was “motivated by political, ideological, national, and religious bias, contempt, and hatred.” They wrote that he “targeted individuals whom he perceived to have attended an event for young Jewish professionals, organized by the American Jewish Committee and hosted at the Capital Jewish Museum, to amplify the effect of his crimes.”

Defense lawyers for Rodriguez did not immediately return requests for comment. Prior to Friday’s announcement, his legal team met with Justice Department officials to present arguments against seeking capital punishment in the case.

Rodriguez is scheduled to appear in court again on June 30. No trial date has been established.

AKRON, Ohio — Federal investigators began examining Friday what led to a fatal aircraft accident in northeast Ohio that resulted in two deaths when a small plane struck a residence and burst into flames.

The National Transportation Safety Board is spearheading the investigation in Akron, working alongside the Federal Aviation Administration and Ohio State Highway Patrol, according to officials.

Flight records show the white and blue Piper PA-28-180 departed from Akron Fulton Airport around 2:45 p.m. Thursday, remaining airborne for approximately one hour before going down in a residential neighborhood and igniting.

Witnesses at the nearby Firestone Country Club first reported the accident, as thick black smoke billowed high into the sky from the crash site.

The Akron Fire Department reported that both the struck residence and an adjacent home required evacuation because of the blaze. Fortunately, no residents or onlookers sustained injuries.

As of Friday, the Summit County Medical Examiner’s office stated that officials had not yet identified the two fatalities or contacted their next of kin.

In a statement, the Highway Patrol indicated that investigators are continuing to examine flight information, eyewitness accounts, and aircraft documentation to establish the cause. The NTSB planned to provide an update Friday afternoon.

The American Winds College of Aeronautics, located in the area, posted on Facebook late Wednesday confirming all of its aircraft were accounted for and safe. Speaking for the institution, Denise Hobart of the North East Ohio Pilots Association said they were offering prayers for the pilot, passengers and their loved ones.

A Tennessee resident who uses the online alias Chud the Builder and has gained notoriety for publishing racist content on social media platforms received a $1.25 million preliminary bond Friday on charges including attempted murder.

Dalton Eatherly, 28, stands accused of firing shots at another individual Wednesday afternoon outside the Montgomery County Courthouse following a confrontation.

During Friday’s arraignment proceedings, prosecution attorneys requested that Eatherly remain in custody without bond until a comprehensive hearing could take place next week. Judge H. Reid Poland III rejected that request but established a substantial bond amount, citing the presence of numerous individuals “in the courtyard or at the courthouse and the seriousness of these felonies.”

Beyond the attempted murder accusation, Eatherly is charged with using a firearm during a dangerous felony, aggravated assault, and reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon.

Poland additionally referenced Eatherly’s previous bond releases in two separate cases. He is facing a harassment charge in Montgomery County from November and was also charged last week in Nashville’s Davidson County with theft of services, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.

Jacob Fendley, the attorney assigned to represent Eatherly on the felony charges Friday, did not respond to requests for comment.

Eatherly, who is white, creates social media content where he attempts to provoke Black passersby through racial slurs and racist dog whistles. He produces these videos in Nashville and in Montgomery County’s Clarksville.

According to jail records, he remained in Montgomery County jail custody Friday. A comprehensive bond hearing is set for May 21 with a preliminary hearing scheduled for May 26.

Federal authorities have announced a substantial $200,000 bounty for details that could lead to the arrest and conviction of a former military counterintelligence officer who fled to Iran more than a decade ago and now faces espionage charges.

Monica Elfriede Witt, currently in her 40s, was formally charged by federal prosecutors in February 2019 with espionage-related crimes, including sharing sensitive national defense materials with Iranian authorities. She continues to evade capture.

According to Daniel Wierzbicki, special agent in charge of the FBI Washington Field Office’s Counterintelligence and Cyber Division, Witt “allegedly betrayed her oath to the Constitution more than a decade ago by defecting to Iran and providing the Iranian regime National Defense Information and likely continues to support their nefarious activities.”

“The FBI has not forgotten and believes that during this critical moment in Iran’s history, there is someone who knows something about her whereabouts,” he stated in Wednesday’s announcement.

The timing behind the FBI’s renewed focus on Witt’s case remains unclear. The United States and Iran have been at war since Feb. 28.

Witt’s military career spanned from 1997 to 2008, during which she received training in Farsi and participated in classified overseas counterintelligence operations, including assignments in the Middle East. Following her military service, she worked as a Defense Department contractor.

The Texas-born former officer left for Iran in 2013 following invitations to attend two fully-funded conferences in that country, which federal prosecutors describe as events that promoted anti-Western messaging and criticized American values.

Prior to her departure, FBI agents had cautioned Witt about her conduct, but she assured them she would not share sensitive work-related information if she traveled to Iran, according to prosecutors.

Court documents reveal that Witt compromised “sensitive and classified U.S. national defense information and programs,” the announcement stated.

“Witt allegedly intentionally provided information endangering U.S personnel and their families stationed abroad. She also allegedly conducted research on behalf of the Iranian regime to allow them to target her former colleagues in the U.S. government,” authorities said.

SEATTLE (AP) — This story stands tall. Literally.

At a Seattle sports bar on a recent Saturday evening, hundreds of exceptionally tall individuals experienced something uncommon: fitting in. Women wearing their tallest heels had to stretch their necks upward to meet someone’s gaze. Men accustomed to ducking through doorways appeared average-sized. For one night, no one had to answer questions about why they don’t play basketball.

This is Tall Tour, a traveling gathering that attracts thousands nationwide to honor the singular physical characteristic that has distinguished them throughout their lives — sometimes positively, sometimes not. Since beginning last summer, the tour has made stops in 19 cities, with attendance growing from just 30 participants in Tampa, Florida to approximately 4,000 in Orlando, event organizers report. The Seattle gathering brought together roughly 750 people, they noted.

“You’re moving around and there are individuals your height and people even taller than you when you believed you were simply this enormous oddity,” explained Tyler Bergantino, the tour’s 6-foot-9 creator who requires a size-16 shoe. “That’s something that I believe is very therapeutic for tall people.”

The idea developed almost by chance. Bergantino, 32, a former software sales professional turned TikTok content creator, shared an informal invitation on social media during a trip through Texas. He sought content material. Instead, he ignited a nationwide phenomenon.

“It developed organically,” he explained. “I can’t really claim responsibility for it.”

Every event follows a consistent structure: Tall individuals congregate, capture photographs, exchange advice for footwear shopping and share experiences about bumping their heads on door frames and squeezing into airplane seats.

For numerous women, the evening’s primary attraction is the speed dating segment and the possibility of encountering someone willing to date a taller woman — whether that involves matching their stature, surpassing it or simply accepting it. Many connected over the mutual difficulty of navigating a dating environment that continues to prefer shorter women.

“Dating as a tall woman, you feel like you’re intimidating to people,” expressed 25-year-old Ksenia Protasenko, who stands 6 feet tall. “There’s this association with you being a warrior type, but it’s not true. It’s tough to have your height as the first thing people notice about you because it feels like people are not really seeing any vulnerable parts of you.”

Protasenko mentioned that men frequently inquire whether she plays basketball. She typically has a response prepared.

“I tell them, ‘Yeah, sure,’ even though I don’t,” she said. “Then I ask them if they play mini golf. That seems to straighten them right up.”

The peak moment arrives when organizers announce the tallest man and woman present. In Seattle, those honors went to a mother and son. Susan Mullendore, 44 and 6-foot-5, stood next to her son Grayson, 19 and 7 feet tall, as the audience cheered enthusiastically.

“As a mom, just seeing Grayson having this experience meant the world to me,” Susan said. “To be able to be crowned with him was really special. It was nice to have our height celebrated.”

For Grayson, a college freshman, the evening provided something unusual: a sense of belonging. When in public, he explained, strangers make remarks and take photos of him without permission. “People think that because we’re tall they can say whatever they want or do whatever they want, like we’re zoo animals almost,” he said.

At Tall Tour, the situation reversed.

“It was insane to feel small for once,” he said, referencing the event’s 7-foot-3 and 7-foot-4 co-hosts known as the Tall Boys. “It was so surreal to be able to have a conversation and look people in the eyes.”

That shared experience goes beyond footwear sizes. Participants describe a lifetime of social awareness — adjusting their voices to higher tones to appear less threatening, moving slowly around corners to avoid startling people, hunching over to blend in.

“You’re hyper-fixated on making sure that people don’t see you as a threat,” Bergantino said.

Tall individuals frequently feel isolated and misplaced, especially during adolescence he explained, mentioning he reached 6-foot-9 at age 16. But at Tall Tour, participants can finally experience belonging.

“It heals a portion of your inner child,” he said. “Everyone’s walls come down, and it’s like we’re all one family.”

Susan understands that sentiment.

“Sometimes you just want to go through the airport and be left alone. And that doesn’t happen for us. We usually get a lot of whispers,” she said. “We get it. It’s shocking to see tall people. But sometimes it does get old.”

The difficulties go beyond social discomfort. Locating clothing and footwear that fits can be challenging. Susan, who requires a size-14 shoe, purchases clothing from a specialty company in the United Kingdom. To accommodate his dormitory bed, Grayson added a mattress extension and three plywood sheets for support. He still extends beyond the edge.

Bergantino left his sales position two years ago and now operates Tall Tour full-time with a small team including his brother, who manages video and social media, a chief executive officer and a chief operating officer.

Even famous personalities have noticed. Seven-foot-6 basketball player Mamadou Ndiaye attended the Los Angeles gathering and the team has communicated with 7-foot-1 NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal.

Upcoming plans include expanding speed dating opportunities, creating a fashion show featuring height-inclusive brands and models, and developing spinoffs such as Tall Tour at Sea. International destinations in Canada, Dubai, London, Australia, the Netherlands and Japan are also under consideration. Bergantino says he aims to create “the tall-person ecosystem” — advocacy for exit row seating, improved clothing options and even a mobile application.

For now, the satisfaction comes in smaller moments, like watching women in heels celebrate the height that previously caused embarrassment.

“The most joy of the day comes from the Tall Queen when she gets her crown and everyone’s going crazy,” he said. “It gets me every time.”

___

Tall Tour will continue through May with two additional stops in Houston and Dallas, Texas. Follow Annika Hammerschlag on Instagram.

AKRON, Ohio — A deadly aircraft accident occurred Thursday afternoon when a small plane slammed into a residential property in Ohio, killing both individuals aboard the aircraft, according to the Akron Fire Department.

The crash happened just before 4 p.m. and immediately burst into flames, officials reported in a statement. Authorities confirmed no one inside the struck residence was harmed during the incident. Emergency responders evacuated the impacted home along with an adjacent property as a safety precaution.

Aviation officials identified the aircraft as a Piper PA-28, the Federal Aviation Administration confirmed via email.

Social media footage posted on X captured the aftermath, displaying a massive column of dark smoke billowing above the residential area following the collision. While the aircraft cannot be seen in the recorded material, flames are visible at the bottom of the smoke column as it extends upward over surrounding houses in the neighborhood.

The annual National Safe Boating Week will take place from May 16 through May 22, 2026, according to information from the Safe Boating Campaign.

This week-long national observance is designed to raise awareness about water safety and encourage responsible practices among recreational boaters throughout the United States.

The designated week provides an opportunity for boating safety organizations, coast guard units, and marine law enforcement agencies to promote educational programs and safety initiatives aimed at reducing accidents on the water.

A rising trend across America shows families with children, parents, and grandparents choosing to share the same residence. These multi-generation living arrangements are also influencing changes in home design and construction.

Four people died when a medical transport aircraft went down in mountainous terrain near Ruidoso, New Mexico, during the early morning hours of Thursday, according to local authorities. The crash also started a forest fire in the area.

By midday, the blaze had expanded to cover 35 acres amid windy and dry weather conditions, Lincoln County Manager Jason Burns reported. Burns expressed that county authorities were “very concerned” about the fire, with local agencies collaborating alongside the U.S. Forest Service to control the flames.

What caused the aircraft to crash remains unclear, Burns stated. Search teams located the wreckage between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. Thursday in challenging, steep and rocky terrain within the Capitan Mountains that proved hard to reach, requiring crews to walk the final half-mile to access the site, according to Burns.

Those who perished included flight crew members and medical staff, Burns noted. Authorities have not released the identities of the deceased.

“Our hearts and prayers go out to the families, loved ones, friends and colleagues of those who lost their lives in this tragic incident,” Burns stated during a press briefing.

The aircraft had taken off from Roswell Air Center with Sierra Blanca Regional Airport as its destination, the Federal Aviation Administration reported. Both the FAA and National Transportation Safety Board will conduct investigations into the incident.

Trans Aero MedEvac operated the aircraft, which had been conducting a medical transport mission and was declared overdue when radio communications and radar tracking were lost, the company announced.

Trans Aero MedEvac has provided services throughout southeastern New Mexico and west Texas since 1966.

Ruidoso is a mountain community with fewer than 8,000 permanent residents, located at the foot of south-central New Mexico’s Sierra Blanca range. The region, which encompasses Lincoln National Forest, features dense forests and rural landscapes.

A previous medical aircraft accident in the Devil’s Canyon section of Lincoln National Forest claimed five lives in 2007. That incident occurred shortly after the flight departed from Ruidoso Regional Airport en route to Albuquerque.

Before Thursday’s accident, NTSB data shows 25 deadly medical aircraft crashes have occurred over the last 25 years, resulting in nearly 70 fatalities.

Multiple incidents have happened within the last 18 months, including a jet that went down in a Philadelphia neighborhood in January 2025, killing eight people, and an August crash on the Navajo Nation in northern Arizona that killed four. In December, a Mexican Navy aircraft carrying a young patient and seven others crashed in the Gulf off the Texas coast.

Medical evacuation aircraft flights typically don’t pose greater risks than other flights since they operate between airports like standard aircraft, according to aviation safety expert Jeff Guzzetti. Medical helicopter operations carry higher dangers because they frequently involve landing on roadways or makeshift sites near accident scenes to rapidly transport injured individuals to hospitals.

Research examining air medical accidents across a 20-year span through 2020 revealed that helicopters accounted for more than 70% of deaths.

“Typically when an air medical air plane accident occurs, the reasons are usually the same as any other airplane accident. There’s not unique issues with the air medical mission,” stated Guzzetti, who previously worked as a crash investigator for both the NTSB and FAA.

HUNTSVILLE, Texas — Texas reached a grim milestone Thursday evening when officials executed a man whose intellectual disabilities had been acknowledged by experts on both sides of the case, making him the 600th person put to death in the state since capital punishment resumed in 1982.

Edward Busby Jr. was declared dead at 8:11 p.m. after receiving a lethal injection at the state penitentiary in Huntsville. The execution proceeded after the U.S. Supreme Court removed a stay that had been granted over questions about his mental capacity. His legal team had mounted numerous final appeals to prevent the execution.

Busby had been sentenced to die for the suffocation murder of Laura Lee Crane, a 77-year-old former professor at Texas Christian University. According to prosecutors, Crane was taken from a grocery store parking lot in January 2004 and died after being placed in her car’s trunk with 23 feet of duct tape covering her entire face, blocking her ability to breathe.

This execution represents Texas’s 600th since the state reinstated the death penalty four decades ago. Busby became the fourth person executed in Texas this year and the 12th across the United States. The same day, Oklahoma also carried out an execution of Raymond Johnson, who had killed his former girlfriend and her infant daughter nearly two decades earlier.

During his final moments, when the warden offered him the opportunity to make a last statement, Busby expressed repeated remorse and pleaded for forgiveness.

“I am so sorry for what happened,” he said while restrained on the execution table. “Miss Crane was a lovely woman. I never meant anything bad to happen to her.” He expressed wishes that he could “take it all back” and acknowledged he had “no right to get in that car.”

“I’ll take the blame if that helps.”

He spoke about giving his life to God and encouraged his sister, who was watching and praying from behind a nearby window, to find a church and “pick up your cross.”

“I’m here because this is the will of God,” he said before the lethal injection began.

When the pentobarbital sedative started flowing, Busby took a sudden breath, shut his eyes and gasped. He then made snoring noises that gradually became quieter. All movement and sounds stopped within 40 seconds, though he wasn’t officially declared dead until 38 minutes later.

The execution had appeared uncertain after the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted a stay last week to examine his intellectual disability claims more thoroughly. However, the Supreme Court reversed that stay Thursday following a request from the Texas Attorney General’s Office, which contended that similar challenges had been previously dismissed and were “meritless” due to “conflicting evidence.”

Busby’s legal representatives immediately sought another stay, but a lower court rejected their request.

The Supreme Court ruled in 2002 that executing intellectually disabled individuals violates constitutional protections. However, the court has allowed states flexibility in determining how to assess such disabilities.

Busby’s defense team had contended that his execution should not proceed because experts hired by both the defense and the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office had concluded he was intellectually disabled.

The district attorney’s office had previously recommended changing Busby’s sentence to life imprisonment. However, the trial judge rejected the intellectual disability findings and maintained the death sentence in 2023.

In a Wednesday statement, the district attorney’s office explained it had requested Thursday’s execution date because it determined that under existing law, Busby did not qualify as intellectually disabled.

Courts had previously postponed two other scheduled execution dates for Busby.

According to prosecutors, Busby and his accomplice, Kathleen Latimer, kidnapped Crane from a Fort Worth grocery store parking lot and forced her into her vehicle’s trunk while they drove around. Prosecutors stated she died from suffocation after having 23 feet of duct tape wrapped around her face.

Busby was later apprehended in Oklahoma City while driving Crane’s vehicle and directed authorities to her body in Oklahoma, just across the Texas border.

Latimer is currently serving a life sentence for murder.

Bryan Mark Rigg, an author and historian representing the Crane family as an execution witness, stated they “neither support or oppose the death penalty. However, they are united in their respect for the rule of law.”

Rigg, who had been Crane’s student as a child, described how she spent decades helping children with learning disabilities and “was discarded in a field like a piece of trash.” He emphasized the execution was not about revenge but “accountability under the law and about remembering the life of an extraordinary educator.”

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Federal authorities have taken into custody a Washington state visitor who was filmed throwing a large stone at a protected Hawaiian monk seal near a beach in Maui last week.

Igor Mykhaylovych Lytvynchuk, 38, voluntarily turned himself in to authorities in the Seattle region on Wednesday after special agents from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration began pursuing his arrest, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Aislinn Affinito based in Honolulu.

The Covington, Washington resident faces charges of harassing and attempting to harass a protected animal.

During his Thursday court appearance at U.S. District Court in Seattle, a judge allowed Lytvynchuk’s release while requiring him to appear at a future hearing in Honolulu scheduled for May 27.

Federal public defender Greg Geist, who represented Lytvynchuk during the proceeding, indicated his client has retained legal counsel in Hawaii, though the attorney’s identity was not immediately available in court records. Following the hearing, Geist refused to respond to inquiries from an Associated Press reporter or reveal the Hawaiian attorney’s name.

Two individuals who came to support Lytvynchuk at the hearing refused to provide statements.

The recorded incident sparked significant public outrage and calls for legal action throughout Hawaii, including from the mayor of Maui.

An officer from the state Department of Land and Natural Resources responded to reports of monk seal harassment in Lahaina last week, the area devastated by fatal wildfires in 2023. A bystander presented video evidence showing the marine mammal swimming in shallow waters while a man observed from the shoreline.

According to prosecutors’ criminal complaint, the cellphone footage shows the individual gripping a substantial rock in one hand, taking aim, and launching it straight toward the monk seal. The stone, which a witness compared to coconut-sized, barely missed striking the seal’s head but forced the animal to suddenly change its movements, the complaint stated.

After being confronted by a witness, the man responded that he was unconcerned and possessed sufficient wealth to cover any penalties, the complaint indicated.

Maui Mayor Richard Bissen stated the criminal charges demonstrate that mistreatment of protected species will face consequences. He named the seal as “Lani,” a recognized and cherished presence around Lahaina’s waterfront, whose reappearance following the fires provided comfort and optimism during challenging times.

However, the state natural resources department clarified through email that the seal was likely not Lani, due to missing distinctive markings.

“Humanity and the instinct to protect what is vulnerable are still values people can unite around,” Bissen wrote in his emailed statement.

The mayor revealed he contacted the U.S. attorney in Honolulu to push for criminal prosecution.

Lytvynchuk faces violations under both the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Hawaiian monk seals represent a critically threatened species, with only 1,600 individuals surviving in natural habitats.

Upon conviction, Lytvynchuk could receive up to one year imprisonment for each charge. He additionally faces potential fines reaching $50,000 under the Endangered Species Act and up to $20,000 under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Authorities revealed Thursday that six individuals discovered deceased inside a shipping container at a Texas rail yard were victims of a human trafficking operation, with the group including a teenage boy just 14 years old.

The victims, who originated from Honduras and Mexico, were found Sunday at a rail facility in Laredo, Texas, located close to the Mexican border, according to police who provided additional information about the tragic discovery.

“They did not pass away in our city, but they were discovered here after hours of suffering,” Laredo Mayor Victor Treviño said at a news conference. “We are demanding justice for these lives lost. It doesn’t matter where they came from.”

A Union Pacific worker made the grim discovery of the bodies. Officials from the Webb County medical examiner’s office believe hyperthermia, commonly known as heat stroke, caused the deaths, a determination echoed by the mayor.

According to Laredo Police Chief Miguel Rodriguez Jr., the victims were placed inside the container on Saturday while the train was in Del Rio, Texas, occurring two days following the train’s departure from Long Beach, California.

The police chief explained that the train made stops in the San Antonio region before reaching Laredo on Sunday. The city serves as a major trade hub along the U.S.-Mexico border and frequently sees illegal human trafficking activities.

“We did not know what we had at the beginning. We did not know that it was a human smuggling situation,” Rodriguez said. Asked about the route taken, the chief said it was a federal investigation and that he would not be releasing further details.

Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar indicated Monday that he suspected the death of a 49-year-old Mexican man discovered in the area was linked to the same train. Bexar County, where San Antonio is located, sits approximately 150 miles north of Laredo.

Last year, two human traffickers received life sentences for orchestrating the deadliest smuggling incident in U.S. history along the Mexican border. They were found guilty in connection with 53 migrant deaths inside an overheated truck trailer in Texas during 2022.

Train-based smuggling across the border has remained a persistent problem, largely because trains heading into the United States frequently reduce speed or halt completely in Mexico before crossing. This situation provides opportunities for traffickers or migrants to board trains or conceal drugs and other illegal items before entering American territory.

Border crossings decreased during the final period of the Biden administration and hit historic lows under the second Trump administration. Statistics from the agency show that Border Patrol agents in Laredo encountered approximately 40 individuals daily attempting illegal crossings in March, ranking it as the third most active sector among the nine border regions with Mexico.

An Oklahoma judge approved bond Thursday for Richard Glossip, a former death row prisoner who will now be released from custody while he waits for a retrial in a 1997 homicide case.

Glossip spent nearly three decades incarcerated and came within hours of execution on multiple occasions, receiving final meals three times during 2015. He has consistently maintained his innocence in the slaying of Barry Van Treese, who owned an Oklahoma motel where Glossip worked. The nation’s highest court overturned his conviction and death sentence last year.

The following timeline details significant developments in Glossip’s legal proceedings and appeals.

Jan. 7, 1997: Barry Van Treese suffers fatal injuries from a beating at his Oklahoma City motel property. Authorities arrest two workers, Justin Sneed and Richard Glossip, for their alleged involvement in the homicide.

Aug. 14, 1998: A jury finds Glossip guilty of murder and imposes a death sentence. The prosecution presented evidence of a contract killing arrangement during the proceedings. Maintenance worker Sneed provided testimony claiming he murdered Van Treese after Glossip offered him $10,000 for the crime.

July 17, 2001: Oklahoma’s highest criminal court overturns Glossip’s murder conviction and mandates a retrial.

Aug. 27, 2004: Following a second trial that results in another murder conviction, Glossip receives a death sentence once more.

April 29, 2014: Oklahoma employs the surgical sedative midazolam for the first time during Clayton Lockett’s execution, who writhes and groans on the gurney. Officials stop the execution process, but Lockett dies 43 minutes later. State officials later attribute the complications to a poorly positioned intravenous line rather than the new drug combination.

Nov. 20, 2014: Officials postpone Glossip’s planned execution to give Oklahoma time to secure drugs and educate personnel on a revised protocol.

Jan. 28, 2015: Following Glossip’s consumption of what should have been his final meal, the U.S. Supreme Court stops his execution along with two other Oklahoma inmates while reviewing their legal challenge to the state’s midazolam use in executions.

June 29, 2015: The U.S. Supreme Court, in a split decision, allows Oklahoma to continue using midazolam in executions.

Sept. 15, 2015: Glossip receives his supposed last meal for the second time: chicken fried steak with mashed potatoes and a dinner roll, fish and chips, a bacon cheeseburger and a strawberry malt.

Sept. 16, 2015: Just hours before his scheduled execution, the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals provides Glossip with a two-week delay to examine claims of fresh evidence supporting his innocence.

Sept. 29, 2015: Glossip consumes what officials intend to be his final meal for the third time: a medium pizza, two orders of fish and chips, a bacon cheeseburger and a strawberry malt.

Sept. 30, 2015: As prison staff prepare to carry out Glossip’s execution, Oklahoma’s governor halts the procedure because one of the lethal drugs didn’t comply with the state’s execution protocol.

Oct. 2, 2015: Following a request from the state’s attorney general, the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals suspends all executions indefinitely while officials examine Oklahoma’s execution procedures.

Feb. 13, 2020: Oklahoma reveals intentions to restart executions using a three-drug lethal injection protocol.

May 5, 2023: The U.S. Supreme Court stops Glossip’s execution once again, originally scheduled for May 18, following a request from Oklahoma’s Republican attorney general, who determined Glossip’s trial was “unfair and unreliable.”

Feb. 25, 2025: The U.S. Supreme Court overturns Glossip’s murder conviction and death sentence, determining prosecutors violated his right to a fair trial by permitting Sneed, their primary witness, to provide testimony they knew was false.

June 9, 2025: Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond announces plans to prosecute Glossip again for murder. Despite acknowledging his previous trial was unfair, Drummond states he doesn’t believe Glossip is innocent.

May 14, 2026: An Oklahoma judge sets a $500,000 bond for Glossip, providing him an opportunity to be released from custody while awaiting trial.

A Tennessee man notorious for creating racist social media content faces attempted murder charges following a Wednesday shooting outside a courthouse in Clarksville.

Dalton Eatherly, who uses the online name Chud the Builder, creates social media videos where he harasses Black pedestrians with racial slurs and offensive language. The white man was taken into custody Wednesday following a violent confrontation with another individual.

Law enforcement officers responded to gunfire reports near the Montgomery County Courthouse around 1:20 p.m. Wednesday. Sheriff’s deputies apprehended two individuals who had been involved in a “physical altercation that escalated to gunfire,” according to an official statement from the sheriff’s department. Both individuals suffered gunshot injuries and were transported to different medical facilities, where their conditions were reported as stable.

District Attorney General Robert Nash confirmed in a separate statement that Eatherly was one of the parties involved. Officials refused to provide details about the second individual; however, an eyewitness who observed him being placed in an ambulance said he appeared to be Black.

Neither Nash nor sheriff’s officials have revealed what triggered the confrontation. It remains unclear whether Eatherly has legal representation for this case. The courthouse remained closed Thursday due to the incident, and digital records had not been updated. A lawyer who has represented Eatherly in another matter did not respond to requests for comment.

In an audio recording Eatherly shared on social media shortly after the incident, he claims he fired his weapon in self-defense after the other person began attacking him physically. The recording captures Eatherly speaking with emergency medical personnel, with one paramedic noting the entry and exit wounds from a bullet in his arm.

“Did I shoot myself or did it graze it?” Eatherly asks in the recording.

Following his hospital discharge Wednesday, Eatherly was transported to the Montgomery County detention facility. His charges include attempted murder, using a firearm during a dangerous felony, aggravated assault and reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon.

Officials did not provide Thursday updates on the other man’s medical status, and a hospital representative cited medical privacy regulations that prevent them from sharing information about violence victims.

In a previous online fundraising campaign, Eatherly complained that his contracting business struggles to find work because people disapprove of his video content. He describes his content as “mild jokes” and acknowledges using racial slurs while characterizing it as “harmless humor.” The fundraiser’s original posting date is unknown. He directed his appeal to “friends, supporters, and champions of free speech.”

While Eatherly frequently mentions free speech in his online posts, his actions in those videos may violate Tennessee criminal statutes, according to David Raybin, a criminal defense lawyer and former prosecutor with expertise in state criminal law. Since Eatherly was known to openly display a pistol while verbally attacking people, this combination could constitute assault, Raybin explained.

“You don’t have to touch someone,” he noted. Assault charges can apply when someone “create[s] fear of imminent harm.”

Additionally, approaching someone with “fighting words” qualifies as disorderly conduct under Nashville city laws.

Claire Martin, who works at a law firm across from the courthouse, witnessed the shooting’s aftermath. She noted that Eatherly has gained local notoriety for shouting racial slurs at Black individuals while recording them. Eatherly frequently engages in similar behavior in downtown Nashville, located approximately 50 miles southeast.

The previous Saturday, Eatherly was removed from a Nashville steakhouse after refusing to stop broadcasting live video from inside the establishment. A police affidavit stated he began shouting and “making racial statements” before departing without settling a bill of nearly $400. He was arrested the next day on charges of theft of services, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. He was freed on $5,000 bond.

On the morning of the shooting, he was scheduled for a Clarksville court appearance regarding an alleged $3,300 debt to a credit company, based on Montgomery County court documents. The civil lawsuit was initiated in February on behalf of Midland Credit Management. Court records do not show whether Eatherly attended the status hearing. Digital records show the case remains active. The shooting happened several hours afterward.

Eatherly was not appearing in online court records as of Thursday afternoon, but following typical Montgomery County procedures, he will likely face arraignment Friday. A judge will determine bond conditions at that time.

While police have not disclosed what preceded the shooting, if Eatherly is determined to have instigated the confrontation with the other person, proving self-defense would be extremely challenging, according to Raybin, the criminal defense specialist. In any case, individuals only have the legal right to use lethal force when facing threats of death or serious bodily injury.

“I think a prosecutor would give very little weight to claims of self-defense,” Raybin stated.

A 46-year-old defendant charged with injuring two motorists during a shooting incident on a Cambridge street entered not guilty pleas Thursday during his court appearance.

Tyler Brown participated in the Cambridge District Court proceeding through video connection from his hospital room, remaining largely silent with his eyes appearing closed throughout most of the session. When the judge announced that not guilty pleas were being recorded for charges including armed assault with intent to murder and six additional counts such as unlawful firearm possession, Brown responded with a nod.

Judge David Frank mandated that Brown stay in detention, whether at the medical facility or jail, until his scheduled hearing on May 21. Brown’s legal representative, Carolyn McGowan, chose not to make statements during the proceeding beyond responding to the judge’s scheduling inquiries. The Committee for Public Counsel Services/Public Defender Division, which lists her as senior trial counsel, has not provided comment when contacted.

Authorities allege that Brown discharged his weapon Monday afternoon on a busy thoroughfare beside the Charles River in Cambridge. Frightened motorists fled their cars or sought protection underneath vehicles as the incident unfolded.

According to Middlesex Assistant District Attorney Nicole Allain, one victim who sustained a gunshot wound to his head has been discharged from medical care, while a second driver shot multiple times in the leg continues receiving hospital treatment.

Approximately one hour prior to the shooting incident, Brown participated in a video call with his parole officer. While armed, he disclosed on camera that he had experienced a relapse and expressed suicidal intentions. The parole officer contacted law enforcement, who began tracking Brown and located him in Cambridge through cellular phone data.

Court documents detail the circumstances preceding the violence. Investigators report that Brown had received diagnoses for post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression, and had been discharged Friday from psychiatric care.

The filing indicates Brown was serving both parole and probation terms for previous offenses including armed assault to murder and additional firearm violations. While his parole period was scheduled to conclude this week, his probation term remained active.

Meghan Kelly, a spokesperson for the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office, confirmed that Brown lacked proper licensing to possess a firearm.

Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan outlined Brown’s criminal background dating to 1994, including an armed robbery conviction in Michigan. Additional convictions include a 1997 escape charge in Michigan and drug-related offenses in New Hampshire in 2007.

Within Massachusetts, Brown has accumulated multiple convictions for assault and gun charges, including a 2021 conviction for shooting at police officers.

During that case, prosecutors recommended a minimum 10-year prison sentence, citing the “level of brazen violence” and his probation status from a 2014 conviction involving assault and witness intimidation. However, the judge imposed a five to six-year state prison term plus three years probation, crediting nearly 18 months of pre-trial detention.

The judicial decision at that time generated controversy and criticism from local officials worried about insufficient consequences for violent criminals — concerns that have emerged again. The Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association posted on social media, calling the situation “Talk about a ball drop.”

NEW YORK (AP) — The Canadian rapper has made his comeback as the “Iceman,” and everything is on the line.

His latest studio effort — the ninth of his career and first release following his widely publicized defeat in a heated rivalry with Kendrick Lamar — drops this Friday.

The confrontation between these two hip-hop giants ignited during spring 2024, featuring an exchange of harsh tracks that reached its peak when Lamar dropped “Not Like Us.” This direct assault on Drake led to Drake filing a defamation case against their mutual record company, which was thrown out. While Drake’s challenge to that dismissal remains active, hip-hop communities universally recognize Lamar as the winner.

The Toronto-based artist finds himself at a critical juncture. Despite maintaining his position among the world’s top-selling musicians and running successful ventures across music, clothing, athletics, internet betting and other sectors, he hasn’t produced a major hit recently.

Within hip-hop culture, where standing determines influence, what’s his current position?

“The Kendrick battle absolutely dethroned Drake. Up until then, he was considered the leader of the pack, insofar as sales and hit records,” says Sowmya Krishnamurthy, author of “The Blueprint: Inside the Business of Roc-A-Fella Records.”

“He also just hasn’t been able to recover with a hit record. I often like to say all is forgiven with a hit,” she said.

Following the conflict’s start, Drake managed only limited achievements: “Nokia” and “What Did I Miss?” both reached second place on the Billboard Hot 100.

Peter A. Berry, a music journalist with work in XXL and Complex, takes it a step further: “People have beefed in rap before and people have lost public rap battles. But the loss that Drake took to Kendrick Lamar on a national and global stage is probably the biggest loss any rapper has ever taken in a big rap conflict.”

He references “Not Like Us” claiming record and song of the year honors at the 2025 Grammys, marking the first time a rap diss track achieved this recognition. The celebration concluded when Lamar delivered the number-one track during his Super Bowl halftime show performance.

Drake didn’t just lose the confrontation — he was defeated using his own tactics: “Not Like Us” became a rap track so infectious it nearly crossed into pop territory, powered by memorable lyrics — exactly what Drake has built his reputation on. (See: “Kiki, Do you love me?” from 2018’s “In My Feelings,” or even “YOLO” from 2011’s “The Motto.”)

Despite this setback, he maintains his status among this century’s biggest artists. Recently, Spotify ranked him as their third-highest streamed performer ever worldwide, trailing only Taylor Swift and Bad Bunny.

“He remains this kind of immutable pop culture force,” says Berry, despite lacking a sustained, multi-week number-one success since 2018’s “Nice for What,” “God’s Plan” and “In My Feelings.”

“Drake’s music hasn’t evolved,” Krishnamurthy adds. This creative stagnation, combined with fragmented, algorithm-driven listening patterns, has diminished Drake’s recent achievements compared to previous years.

His 2021 release, “Certified Loverboy,” is widely viewed as a turning point when his consistent hits and critical acclaim began declining.

“It just feels very sort of scattered and disorganized. It’s almost like he’s throwing things at the wall and hoping for something to stick,” says Krishnamurthy, analyzing Drake’s lack of huge singles.

This makes “Iceman” feel so crucial. “Let’s say it doesn’t perform to certain standards. It will get harder and harder to see him as a viable artist,” she said.

Drake’s promotional campaign appears to acknowledge this pressure-filled moment.

“Iceman” isn’t a surprise drop. He’s been building anticipation for weeks through livestreams and themed YouTube content. He transformed his preferred courtside spots at Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena with ice and converted a downtown Toronto parking area into an enormous frozen block display. Supporters used blowtorches, sledgehammers and pickaxes to uncover the album’s launch date.

“Drake has been a genius-level marketer,” says Matthew Ismael Ruiz, a culture critic. “He’s masterful at commanding attention. The ice block was smart because it forced people to talk about it. It was a physical impediment to anyone in that community — and that instantly goes viral.”

“Of all the things he’s done in the last few years, this ‘Iceman’ album rollout has been unambiguously great,” says Berry. “It’s reminding people that he can be kind of unpredictable.”

However, creative promotion has limitations. Ultimately, Drake needs a blockbuster hit. “We’re about to go into the summer. If he can come out with a song of the summer, I think that would be really great for him,” says Krishnamurthy.

From a reputation standpoint, Ruiz thinks the guest appearances on “Iceman” will be significant — and keeping the song list secret might be meaningful. “The features will be the best indication of his pull in the industry,” he says — solid evidence of who backs him following the Lamar conflict.

This might be his return album, Krishnamurthy suggests — and not solely regarding streaming numbers. “Reputation, culture, these are things that cannot be quantified,” she says. “Maybe he does spectacular commercially and that is great, but that doesn’t mean that the music is good or has any lasting impact.”

Ultimately, “Drake is very concerned with his own mythology,” says Berry.

Even if “Iceman” reaches number one, if it doesn’t maintain that position, if it fails to restore Drake’s standing with hip-hop audiences, if it doesn’t receive critical praise — it could still be viewed as a failure.

A former death row inmate who came within moments of execution on three separate occasions has been granted bond by an Oklahoma judge while he awaits a new trial for a 1997 murder case.

Richard Glossip, 63, will have the opportunity to walk free for the first time in nearly three decades following his arrest. The U.S. Supreme Court overturned his conviction last year, and his persistent declarations of innocence have garnered backing from celebrities including Kim Kardashian.

Judge Natalie Mai set the bond amount at $500,000. Glossip will be required to wear electronic monitoring equipment and cannot leave Oklahoma. Additional conditions prohibit him from contacting case witnesses or using drugs or alcohol.

The 63-year-old had received a death sentence for the 1997 murder of Barry Van Treese, his former employer who owned a motel in Oklahoma City. Prosecutors claimed the killing was part of a murder-for-hire plot.

Last year, the Supreme Court determined that prosecutors violated Glossip’s constitutional rights to fair proceedings by permitting a crucial witness to provide testimony they were aware was dishonest.

Glossip has stayed incarcerated since Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond declared the state’s intention to pursue a new murder trial without seeking capital punishment.

“The court fully expects that the state will rigorously prosecute its case going forward and the defense will provide robust representation for Glossip,” the judge wrote in the order. “The court hopes that a new trial, free of error, will provided all interested parties and the citizens of Oklahoma, the closure they deserve.”

Throughout his death row tenure, Oklahoma courts scheduled nine separate execution dates for Glossip, bringing him so close to death that he consumed three final meals. In 2015, prison officials placed him in a holding cell adjacent to the execution chamber, preparing for lethal injection.

However, his scheduled execution was postponed when officials discovered the lethal drugs they had obtained did not comply with established execution procedures. This pharmaceutical error resulted in Oklahoma suspending executions for nearly seven years.

“Mr. Glossip now has the chance to taste freedom while his defense team continues to pursue justice on his behalf against a system that the United States Supreme Court has found to be guilty of serious misconduct by state prosecutors,” his attorney, Donald Knight, said.

The case gained worldwide recognition when actress Susan Sarandon, who earned an Academy Award for playing death penalty activist Sister Helen Prejean in the 1995 film “Dead Man Walking,” championed his cause. Glossip’s situation was also highlighted in the 2017 documentary “Killing Richard Glossip.”

NEW YORK — Former movie mogul Harvey Weinstein appeared in a New York courtroom Thursday as jury deliberations continued in his rape retrial, one day after the disgraced producer complained of chest pain while at the courthouse.

The 74-year-old, who has dealt with cardiac issues and other medical problems, appeared wan but conscious as he entered the courtroom in his customary wheelchair. When asked about his condition, Weinstein responded that he felt “good, fine.”

The former film executive had been in a courthouse detention area Wednesday when jurors, following several hours of deliberations, requested to hear portions of accuser Jessica Mann’s testimony again and wanted to examine a detailed prosecution timeline containing emails and additional evidence.

While defense attorneys, prosecutors and Judge Curtis Farber met in court to determine their response, Weinstein’s lawyer Marc Agnifilo reported that court personnel had informed him his client was suffering from chest discomfort.

Weinstein remained absent from the courtroom at that time, and Farber decided to dismiss jurors early Wednesday, citing “unforeseen reasons” for the premature adjournment.

On Thursday, jurors received the materials they had requested before returning to their private deliberations, while Weinstein was escorted back to the detention area.

The testimony in question covered a moment that Agnifilo had emphasized during his closing statements: an instance when Mann described “spacing out” while a defense attorney questioned why she preferred that friends remain unaware of any sexual activity between herself and Weinstein. The defense team sought to imply she was concerned about her public image rather than addressing an alleged rape that Weinstein denies occurred.

Mann, age 40, testified that while she voluntarily engaged in some intimate encounters with the then-married film producer, he forced unwanted sexual contact on her in a Manhattan hotel room during March 2013 despite her repeated refusals.

Weinstein’s legal team argues the incident was consensual, pointing out that Mann continued meeting with Weinstein afterward and showed affection toward him. Mann explained she experienced conflicted emotions about him, herself, and the events that transpired.

Her perspective shifted in 2017 when multiple sexual misconduct claims against the Academy Award-winning Weinstein sparked the #MeToo movement demanding accountability for sexual impropriety, particularly from influential men. While Weinstein acknowledged he “acted wrongly,” he maintains he never attacked anyone.

Several of these allegations resulted in criminal convictions against Weinstein in both New York and California.

An appellate court reversed his 2020 New York conviction involving charges related to Mann and another complainant. During a retrial last year, jurors could not reach a decision regarding Mann’s case, necessitating this current retrial. Weinstein faces one charge of third-degree rape.

The present jury listened to almost three weeks of testimony, with Mann testifying for five days. Weinstein chose not to take the stand.

The Associated Press typically does not reveal the identities of individuals claiming sexual assault. However, Mann has consented to being identified publicly.

WASHINGTON — The nation’s highest court delivered a unanimous decision Thursday permitting a crash victim to proceed with his lawsuit against a leading logistics firm following a devastating highway accident that resulted in a partial leg amputation.

The justices sided with Shawn Montgomery, whose stationary car was struck by a speeding semi-truck on an Illinois roadway in 2017. Montgomery contends that C.H. Robinson, the nation’s top freight broker, bears responsibility for their part in allowing the driver to operate despite what he calls “serious red flags.”

While the logistics firm contests this claim, Thursday’s ruling from the high court does not ensure Montgomery will ultimately prevail in his case.

More than two dozen states supported Montgomery’s legal challenge, stating the matter would strengthen safety standards within an industry responsible for transporting billions of tons of cargo across countless miles annually. Opposition came from the Trump administration and corporations including Amazon, who warned against subjecting logistics firms to legal exposure under what they termed a “patchwork” of varying state regulations.

According to Montgomery’s legal team, the truck operator had previously received citations for reckless driving in an earlier collision just months before, while his employer had been connected to no fewer than three accidents within roughly five months. Montgomery’s legal action claims C.H. Robinson bears partial responsibility for contracting with the carrier despite these warning signs.

The logistics company maintained that Montgomery’s state-level lawsuit should be dismissed because freight brokers depend on federal oversight of carriers, with federal regulations taking precedence over state laws.

However, in a written decision by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, the Supreme Court rejected this argument. The court determined that Montgomery’s allegations qualify under a safety regulation exemption, allowing his case to proceed.

The ruling may lead to increased legal challenges and insurance expenses for freight brokers that could eventually “cascade through the economy” and cause higher consumer prices, Justice Brett Kavanaugh noted in a supporting opinion joined by Justice Samuel Alito.

Nevertheless, “truck safety is a matter of life and death,” Kavanaugh emphasized.

The decision reversed an earlier ruling by a Chicago-area appellate court that had favored C.H. Robinson, which operates from Eden Prairie, Minnesota.

A specialized emergency services training session will take place at the Fire Training Center this Thursday afternoon.

The training event, identified as “Emergency Services – Katy,” is scheduled to run from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm on May 14, 2026.

The two-hour session represents part of ongoing emergency preparedness efforts at the facility. Additional details about the specific training components or participants were not immediately available.

Motorists traveling through downtown should plan for potential delays as construction activity has forced lane closures on Pennsylvania Avenue.

Both northbound and southbound right lanes are currently blocked between N Clayton Street and N Franklin Street due to ongoing construction work.

The lane restrictions are scheduled to remain in place until 7PM today. Drivers are advised to use alternate routes or allow extra travel time when passing through the affected area.

A federal court in Brooklyn sentenced the head of an international neo-Nazi organization to 15 years behind bars Wednesday for attempting to orchestrate violent hate crimes against Jewish people and racial minorities, including a disturbing scheme involving poisoned holiday candy.

Michail Chkhikvishvili, a 22-year-old Georgian national known by the alias “Commander Butcher,” received the sentence after entering a guilty plea in November to charges of soliciting hate crimes and sharing instructions for creating explosives and ricin.

“I acknowledge that my actions have brought harm by spreading hatred and violence and I’m truly sorry for that,” Chkhikvishvili wrote in a letter to the judge last month.

Defense attorney Zachary Taylor had requested a lighter five-year sentence, pointing to his client’s mental health issues that began in his teenage years when he “fell under the spell of the violent extremist content” on social media, while emphasizing that he has since changed. Taylor also highlighted the difficult conditions Chkhikvishvili endured during almost a year of detention in Moldova, where authorities arrested him in 2024 based on an international warrant, according to his correspondence with the judge.

Federal prosecutors identified Chkhikvishvili as the head of the Maniac Murder Cult, a global extremist organization following neo-Nazi beliefs that advocate for violence designed to spark racial and religious warfare.

According to prosecutors, the organization’s calls for violence — shared through Telegram messaging platforms and detailed in the “Hater’s Handbook” — seem to have motivated actual killings, including a school shooting in Nashville, Tennessee, last year that claimed the life of a 16-year-old student.

Chkhikvishvili “repeatedly called for the murder of innocent civilians, including children, and schemed to attack and terrorize Jewish communities and racial minorities in the United States,” Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Eisenberg said in a statement. “Chkhikvishvili, for example, tried to recruit a supposed associate to dress up as Santa Claus and pass out poisoned candy to minority children.”

Beginning in 2021, prosecutors stated that Chkhikvishvili shared the “Hater’s Handbook” with group members and other individuals.

“I’m very ashamed authoring Haters Handbook, hoping one day it will disappear, I wish I never wrote it,” Chkhikvishvili wrote to the judge.

Prosecutors revealed that Chkhikvishvili came to Brooklyn in 2022 and continuously urged others to carry out hate crimes and violent acts. In 2023, they said he attempted to convince an undercover FBI employee to conduct bombings and arson attacks “for the purpose of harming racial minorities, Jewish individuals and others.”

During 2024, the undercover agent received instructions “to target the Jewish community, Jewish schools, and Jewish children in Brooklyn with poison,” prosecutors stated.

“Chkhikvishvili sent detailed manuals about creating and mixing lethal poisons and gases, including ricin.”

A tragic security breach at a major Colorado airport has highlighted potential vulnerabilities in aviation safety systems across the country after an intruder managed to reach an active runway in under three minutes.

The incident unfolded late Friday night when a 41-year-old individual bypassed motion detection systems at Denver International Airport’s remote perimeter and climbed over an 8-foot fence equipped with barbed wire. The massive airport facility spans an area double the size of Manhattan across Colorado’s open plains.

Once inside the secure area, the man walked directly onto an active runway where he was struck and killed by a departing Frontier Airlines aircraft carrying 224 passengers and seven crew members. The pilot was forced to halt takeoff procedures and evacuate all 231 people on board, with twelve individuals sustaining minor injuries during the emergency evacuation.

Video footage captured the moment the individual was drawn into the aircraft’s engine, which immediately ignited, prompting the pilot to abort takeoff while traveling at 150 miles per hour.

Security and aviation specialists have characterized the Colorado incident as a significant safety breakdown that could have resulted in catastrophic consequences had the pilot failed to stop the high-speed aircraft safely.

“People ought to be concerned. This was really an unprecedented risk. But now there is precedent,” stated Eric Chafee, a law professor at Case Western Reserve University who specializes in aviation industry risk assessment.

“The individual ended up with a bad result. But having somebody basically damage a plane is really quite concerning because of all those lives aboard any given aircraft,” Chafee continued. “There ought to be new measures put into place to prevent this type of tragedy.”

However, other industry professionals questioned whether additional regulations are necessary, arguing that comprehensive surveillance systems or impenetrable airport barriers would be financially unfeasible given how infrequently such dangerous incidents occur.

Local medical authorities have classified the intruder’s death as suicide. Airport administrators from the city-operated facility have pledged to conduct a thorough review of existing procedures while maintaining that their perimeter security systems have earned “perfect scores” in federal evaluations.

The Associated Press has requested information from the Transportation Security Administration regarding Denver’s inspection records and detailed security protocols.

“Safety is something we take very, very seriously,” airport CEO Phillip Washington stated during a Tuesday press conference.

Washington noted that increasing fence height or adding razor wire might not prevent determined individuals from finding alternative entry methods.

The security breach began when ground sensors detected movement along the airport’s eastern perimeter, located approximately 2 miles from the main terminal building. A surveillance operator monitoring camera feeds mistakenly attributed the alarm activation to wildlife in the area, failing to identify the human intruder.

According to Washington, the individual required roughly 15 seconds to clear the perimeter fence and an additional two minutes to reach the runway area. Airport personnel remained unaware of the trespasser’s presence until the aircraft pilot contacted the control tower to report the collision.

Security specialist Jeff Price, who previously oversaw safety operations at the Denver facility during the 1990s, explained that perimeter violations occur regularly at airports nationwide, potentially numbering in the dozens annually. The Colorado airport maintains approximately 36 miles of fencing that officials say undergoes constant inspection and regular security patrols.

Price emphasized that most airport trespassers do not present genuine threats to public safety. A similar fatal incident occurred at an Austin airport in 2020 when a Southwest Airlines aircraft struck an individual on the runway, which authorities also determined was suicide.

Two legal firms informed Denver officials Tuesday of their intention to file lawsuits representing Frontier passengers, seeking damages exceeding $10 million. The firms have alleged “multiple failures” in airport security systems without providing specific details.

Steven Wallace, who formerly directed accident investigations for the Federal Aviation Administration, characterized the Denver fatality as a “one-off event” that would not warrant expensive nationwide improvements to airport perimeter security programs.

Wallace acknowledged that many perimeter barriers can be easily compromised, noting that no standardized construction requirements exist and that their main function involves keeping wildlife away from flight operations.

“I just don’t see how you’re going to think of and deal with every possible way a human could get into an airport,” he explained.

Jim Hall, former chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, warned that Friday’s incident could increase the likelihood of similar events due to potential copycat behavior. Hall recommended that Denver consider deploying additional personnel and enhanced surveillance systems to properly monitor its perimeter.

“With the amount of cameras and technology that is available, they need to address the problem,” he stated. “They’ve had a failure and they don’t need to have another one.”