Biden DOJ Received Gag Order Preventing NYT from Notifying Journalists of Government Phone, Email Surveillance

During the remaining weeks of the Trump administration and the beginning of the Biden administration, the Department of Justice (DOJ) attempted to seize the communication records of four New York Times reporters in a quest for their sources. The Biden administration maintained the pursuit that Trump began and informed some top Times executives about the record-collection initiative. However, the Biden DOJ implemented a gag order prohibiting any public discussion of the matter, the New York Times reported Friday, citing the disclosure of one of its top attorneys David McCraw.

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  U.S. Justice Dept says it will no longer seize reporters' records in leak investigations

  Reuters
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  DOJ Will No Longer Seize Reporters’ Data in Leak Investigations

  The Wrap

A Florida 86-year-old pleaded for his job. Now, he’ll enter a plea on a murder charge

A senior citizen nightmare, losing a long held job when you still need the money, descended a couple of circles when a Belle Glade octogenarian shot the man firing him Friday. PBSO said Cabrera asked his supervisor “to continue to work for another year due to financial reasons.” When the supervisor denied Cabrera's request, PBSO said, “Cabrera became upset, pulled the gun out of his pocket and shot the victim several times, killing him.”

World Bank pauses Mali payments after coup as leader warns against sanctions

BAMAKO (Reuters) -The World Bank said on Friday it had temporarily paused payments to operations in Mali following a military coup, while the man expected to become the new prime minister warned sanctions would only complicate the country's crisis. The Bank's actions add to pressure on Mali's military leadership after chief security ally France announced on Thursday it was suspending joint operations with Malian troops in order to press for a return to civilian rule. The military's overthrow of Mali's transitional president last week, its second coup in nine months, has drawn international condemnation and raised fears the political crisis will weaken regional efforts to fight Islamist militants.

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  France suspends military ties with Mali over coup

  BBC
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  Opposition movement set for key rally in crisis-hit Mali

  AFP

France suspends military ties with Mali over coup

France is halting joint military operations with Mali over last week's coup in the West African country. It said the suspension would continue until it received guarantees about a return to civilian rule in Mali. French forces have been supporting troops from Mali, Chad, Mauritania, Niger, and Burkina Faso to fight militants in the Sahel region.

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  France halts military cooperation with Mali

  Reuters Videos
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  At least 138 killed in deadliest Burkina Faso attacks since 2015

  AFP

Capitol riot attendee argued she was allowed inside the building on January 6 because she looked up the hours online and it said it was open

A California woman was arrested and charged in connection to the Capitol riot on Friday in Alabama. Stephanie Baez boasted about her attendance on her Instagram during and after the insurrection, prosecutors allege. An alleged Capitol riot attendee, who prosecutors say boasted about her presence at the pro-Trump insurrection on social media, told authorities that she had permission to be in the Capitol on January 6 because she had previously looked up the building's operating hours to confirm it was open so she could tour the site.

Don’t want to spend all day at the DMV? Now you can register your new vehicle online

Idahoans can now save time at the Division of Motor Vehicles by registering their cars online, according to the Idaho Transportation Department. If residents purchased a vehicle from an Idaho dealership, they can now complete the transaction that previously had to be done in person on the DMV's website, according to a Thursday release. Vehicle registration is one of 15 transactions the DMV — which processes nearly 100,000 online transactions each month — has available via the site, according to the release.

'General Hospital' star undergoes brain surgery to remove cyst that split in 2

“General Hospital” star Kirsten Storms is recovering after undergoing brain surgery earlier this week to remove a cyst that "had split into two." Storms, 37, shared a series of videos on her Instagram Stories Friday detailing her surgery and recovery process while seemingly in good spirits. In the clips, she is sitting in the passenger seat of the car next to her former co-star, Emme Rylan, while wearing a large neck brace.

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  ‘General Hospital’ Star Kirsten Storms Recovering From Brain Surgery to Remove ‘Very Large Cyst’

  The Wrap
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  Former Disney Channel Star Kirsten Storms Reveals She's Recovering From Brain Surgery

  E!

5.3-magnitude earthquake rattles Southern California; felt in cities over 90 miles away

A magnitude 5.3 earthquake was felt across parts of Southern California on Saturday morning. The temblor was a part of a cluster of earthquakes that have been reported in Southern California, according to United States Geological Survey. People in Chula Vista, San Diego, El Centro and Indio felt the 5.3 quake, according to the USGS, Did You Feel It reports.

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  5.3 Magnitude Earthquake Shakes Southern California, Epicenter East Of San Diego

  Deadline
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  Recent earthquakes may not be predictors of larger quakes, experts say

  KCRA - Sacramento Videos

Trump on idea to run for House seat in 2022 in a bid to become Speaker and launch an impeachment inquiry against Biden: 'It's very interesting'

A radio host suggested to Trump that he should run for a House seat in 2022 and become Speaker. Trump responded that it was a "very interesting" idea and might be better than running for Senate. Trump could, theoretically, become House Speaker - but experts say it is very unlikely.

It’s Time to Reconsider the Ashtray

Democratizing the smoking accessory for all Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest

Man beats 23-year-old Asian woman with walking cane as she gets off subway train

A 23-year-old Asian woman was attacked with a walking cane by a man at a subway station in Manhattan last month, and the police are now asking for the public's help in tracking down the suspect. The incident happened on 12 May as the woman exited the northbound 1 train at Broadway and West 116 Street in Morningside Heights, the police said. The NYPD's Hate Crime task force, which is investigating the attack, said in a tweet that an unknown man swung his cane at her multiple times, striking her on the head and hip.

Puppies are literally born to be our best friends, study finds. Here’s why

Turns out genetics can explain more than 40% of the discrepancy in how tested puppies performed on social tasks, such as responding to pointing gestures and maintaining eye contact with people, than others. University of Arizona researchers didn't just want to play with fluffy puppies all day; they say now they can focus on finding the specific genes responsible for these social traits that can help identify dogs that would be good service animals before they are even born. “People have been interested in dogs' abilities to do these kinds of things for a long time, but there's always been debate about to what extent is this really in the biology of dogs, versus something they learn by palling around with humans,” study co-author Evan MacLean, an assistant professor of anthropology and director of the Arizona Canine Cognition Center at the University of Arizona, said in a statement.

A timeline of the allegations against Sienna Mae Gomez, including the video that shows her kissing Jack Wright

Sienna Mae Gomez and Jack Wright are members of the TikTok collective the Hype House. The two of them appeared to date until Gomez was accused of sexual assault, which she denies. Wright has yet to acccuse Gomez himself, but two others have posted claims and a video.

The GOP is failing to make a villain out of Biden and has run out of ideas - so now they're getting desperate and turning on their own.

Biden's popularity has left Republicans in a state of chaos. Joe Biden is a popular president and Republicans are losing their minds. Biden, a 78-year-old moderate Democrat, has a job approval rating hovering around 60% of Americans.

15 Washington State University fraternity charged in connection with alcohol-poisoning death of 19-year-old pledge

Fifteen members of a Washington State University fraternity are facing charges in connection with the death of a 19-year-old from alcohol-poisoning two years ago. The former members of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity were charged by prosecutors in Whitman County, Washington, on Tuesday with the death of Sam Martinez, a freshman, in November 2019, according to The Spokesman-Review. Martinez was taking part in "an initiation process at the fraternity” when he died of alcohol poisoning, the Whitman County Prosecuting Attorney's Office said.

Videos shows a man who allegedly tried to hijack a Delta flight being restrained and zip-tied by passengers and flight attendants

A man attempted to breach the cockpit of a Delta Air Lines flight from LA to Nashville. The plane had to make an emergency landing in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Videos show passengers and flight attendants working together to restrain the man.

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  Delta flight diverted after attempted cockpit breach

  ABC News Videos
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  Flight Diverted to Albuquerque After 'Unruly' Passenger is Restrained

  Storyful

California police arrested two parents who went to a casino hours after their disabled kid starved to death

Two parents were arrested Friday in California after allegedly neglecting their three adopted kids. One of the kids - 15-year-old Karreon Franks - was disabled and died from starvation, the Oregonian reported. Two parents from Vancouver, Washington, were arrested Friday in California on suspicion of second-degree murder and homicide by abuse in the death of their adopted disabled son Karreon Franks.

A North Carolina student wore a Mexican flag over his graduation gown. He left without a diploma.

ASHEBORO, N.C. – When Ever Lopez decided to wear a Mexican flag to his high school graduation ceremony, he hoped to support his culture. Lopez didn't anticipate anyone would react strongly against it, but because of the flag, Lopez was denied his diploma. At the Asheboro High School graduation ceremony on Thursday night, Lopez said he carried the flag in and draped it over his shoulders while he was seated.

Anger as judge compares AR-15s to Swiss Army knives while striking down California assault weapon ban

A federal judge has struck down California's ban on assault weapons, ruling it unconstitutional and offering a strange, almost reverent defense of the AR-15 in his ruling. Judge Roger T Benitez, who has favoured gun rights organisations in previous rulings, described the rifle - which has been the go-to gun for many of the nation's deadliest mass shooters - as the pinnacle of home self-defense. "Like the Swiss Army Knife, the popular AR-15 rifle is a perfect combination of home defense weapon and homeland defense equipment," he wrote in his decision on Friday.

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  California's 32-yr assault weapons ban overturned

  Reuters Videos
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  Judge overturns California’s 32-year ban on assault weapons

  Associated Press

Jasmine Hartin manslaughter case exposes divides in Belize

And the stark divides in everyday life have been exposed by the high-profile case of Jasmine Hartin, the daughter-in-law of Tory grandee, Lord Ashcroft. Ms Hartin, who has two children with Lord Ashcroft's son Andrew, is currently on remand, charged with the manslaughter of police officer Henry Jemmott after his body was found in the water off San Pedro, shot with his own Glock 17 gun. The case has made headlines across the world.