U.S.Associated PressProsecutors seek 15 years for former 'Cheer' star Harris
A prosecutor has asked a federal judge to sentence Jerry Harris, a former star of the Netflix documentary series “Cheer,” to 15 years in prison for coercing teenage boys to send him obscene photos and videos of themselves and soliciting sex from minors at cheerleading competitions. Attorneys for Harris are seeking a sentence of six years. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly Guzman wrote in a sentencing memo late Wednesday that Harris used “his status as a competitive cheerleader, his social media persona, and eventually his celebrity and money, to persuade and entice his young victims to engage in sexually explicit conduct for him or with him.”
U.S.The Daily BeastLauren Boebert Baffled by ‘Bricks’ Belonging to a Construction Site
CapitolPolice why are there 20 pallets of bricks one block from the House Office Buildings? Boebert tweeted, apparently alluding to the standard bricks the right believes are owned by potential antifa activists. Yet as it turned out, the bricks are part of an ongoing construction project on First Street in Washington D.C., according to signs right next to the pallets.
U.S.NextSharkJapanese man loses USB drive containing personal info of 460,000 residents after drunken night out
Following a night out drinking and passing out on the street, a Japanese man woke up to find that his bag containing two USB sticks with the personal information of nearly half a million residents went missing. On Tuesday evening, the unnamed man, said to be in his 40s, spent several hours drinking at a local restaurant in Suita of northern Osaka, Japan, shortly before passing out on the street. When the man regained consciousness, he found that his bag and USB sticks were missing, reported NHK per BBC.
U.S.Associated PressWisconsin election investigator says he deleted records
The former Wisconsin Supreme Court justice hired to investigate President Joe Biden's victory in the battleground state testified Thursday that he routinely deleted records, and deactivated a personal email account, even after receiving open records requests. Michael Gableman testified in a court hearing about whether the person who hired him, Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, should face penalties after earlier being found in contempt for how he handled the records requests from American Oversight. Dane County Circuit Judge Valerie Bailey-Rihn decided against penalizing Vos for contempt, but said she would determine later whether to penalize Vos for how he handled open records requests.
BusinessMotley FoolSocial Security Checks Could Soar in 2023: Here's How Much Extra Seniors Might Receive
For better or worse, Social Security is our nation's most vital social program. A recent survey from national pollster Gallup found that 84% of nonretirees plan to lean on Social Security as a "major" or "minor" source of income when retired. Considering how important the program is to the financial well-being of tens of millions of currently retired Americans, there's perhaps no announcement more universally awaited than Social Security's annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA).
U.S.Miami Herald‘I felt something sharp.’ Woman takes off pants to uncover unwanted visitor in Florida
The “Oh No” song was the perfect soundtrack for a recent TikTok video. A Florida woman with the handle @uss_andrea went viral after showing her followers a common, albeit disturbing, occurrence in her home state. In the quick clip, she says in a voiceover: “I just took off my pants because I felt something sharp.
BusinessReutersChevron to relocate head office within California, sell existing HQ
Chevron Corp is planning to relocate its global headquarters to a new leased space in California and sell its existing head office in the state, a company spokesperson told Reuters on Friday. "The current real estate market provides the opportunity to right-size our office space to meet the requirements of our headquarters-based employee population," the company said in an email. Chevron is expected to shift its headquarters to the new site during the third quarter of 2023.
U.S.Shreveport Times | The TimesWoman's 'indecent exposure' citation over shorts, crop top goes viral: What we know
A Louisiana woman's account of receiving a citation at a music festival has gone viral. Casey Lacaze-Lachney, known on TikTok by her username @kazzi112, attended a festival on June 11 in Winnfield, Louisiana, where she said she was cited for indecent exposure. In her TikTok post about the incident, LaCaze-Lachney is shown wearing a black t-shirt that covered her shoulders and was cropped just above the belly button, paired with cutoff denim shorts and a studded belt.
U.S.Lexington Herald-LeaderIt’s a terrible day in America, and you can thank Kentucky’s own Mitch McConnell for it.
This morning, I set out to write a column that would give some credit to Sen. Mitch McConnell for FINALLY allowing some action to curb our insane gun violence. It was he who basically ushered the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision, opening the floodgates to the tsunamis of money in politics that have corrupted our legislative process so completely. People who promised that Roe v. Wade was settled law, by the way.
ScienceReutersThe 'Mount Everest' of bacteria discovered in Caribbean swamps
The largest-known bacterium - a vermicelli-shaped organism that was discovered in shallow mangrove swamps in the Caribbean and is big enough to be seen with the naked eye - is redefining what is possible for bacteria, Earth's most ancient life form. Scientists said on Thursday the bacterium, called Thiomargarita magnifica, is noteworthy not merely for its size - colossal for a single-celled organism at up to about eight-tenths of an inch (2 cm) long - but also because its internal architecture is unlike other bacteria. The DNA, an organism's blueprint, is not free-floating inside the cell like in most bacteria but contained within numerous small membrane-bound sacs.
BusinessRoad & TrackHere's How Much Precious Metal Thieves Can Take From Your Catalytic Converter
Catalytic converter thefts have been on the rise over the last few years and show no signs of slowing down, as the prices of the precious metals that they contain continue to skyrocket. According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau, catalytic converter thefts saw an incredible 325 percent increase from 2019 to 2020. Much of it can be related to the state of global supply chains and the prices of the previous metals that allow a catalytic converter to function.
U.S.Miami HeraldOdd balls appearing in Connecticut trees are actually alive. Here’s what will emerge
Something akin to Christmas balls are showing up in trees throughout Connecticut, and state officials are warning admirers the festive decorations are actually communities of wasps. The tan-colored globes are often referred to as “oak apple galls” and can easily be mistaken for fruit, according to Connecticut Fish and Wildlife. These little galls are some of the most amazing natural occurrences in our forests that are still not fully understood by scientists,” the department wrote in a June 23 Facebook post.
WorldReutersAnalysis-Russia's grinding battlefield gains seen driven by new tactics
It took Russia weeks of fierce fighting, an untold number of casualties, and relentless shelling before the exhausted Ukrainian defenders of Sievierodonetsk received orders to quit its smouldering wreckage. But its capture, if and when officially confirmed, is likely to be hailed by Russia as evidence that its switch from its early and unsuccessful attempts at "lightning warfare" to a much slower grinding offensive which relies more on long-range shelling rather than close-quarters combat, is paying off. Sievierodonetsk would be the biggest Ukrainian city Russia has captured since it took the port of Mariupol last month.
- ScienceReuters Videos
Out of season flooding hits Italy's Venice
STORY: The sunset tide was not high enough to activate the Mose flood barriers, launched in 2020 to protect the fragile city from flooding during the high water. Venice's floods are caused by a combination of factors exacerbated by climate change - from rising sea levels and unusual high tides to land subsidence that has pushed down the city ground level. They usually occur in autumn and winter months.
BusinessFortuneUltrawealthy Americans are flocking to get ‘golden visas’ in Europe amid political turmoil. Here are the top 2 places they’re going.
The pandemic has given Americans the Great Resignation, a housing market that won't stop appreciating and a used-car and gas price crisis amid 40-year-high inflation. Maybe the villas of Portugal or beaches of Greece would be more appealing—or at least warmer. As life in America becomes more stressful and expensive, U.S. citizens have been investing in a “Golden Visa,” a program in which purchasing a second home in a different country entitles buyers to a second passport or a pathway to citizenship.
PoliticsReutersExplainer-What charges could Trump face over efforts to overturn the 2020 election?
The president's efforts likely violated a federal law making it illegal to "corruptly" obstruct any official proceeding, or attempt to do so, said Andrew Carter, the California federal judge overseeing the case. "The pressure on Pence alone is enough" for prosecutors to prove Trump obstructed the proceeding, said Barbara McQuade, a law professor at the University of Michigan and a former federal prosecutor. CONSPIRACY TO DEFRAUD THE UNITED STATES The committee submitted the court filing as part of its effort to force Trump adviser John Eastman to hand over documents.
WorldINSIDERObergefell, the plaintiff in the SCOTUS same-sex marriage ruling, said it's 'quite telling' Clarence Thomas omitted the case that legalized interracial marriage after saying the courts should go after other right to privacy cases
The Supreme Court on Friday overturned abortion rights established by Roe v. Wade. Clarence Thomas said the court should "reconsider" rulings on same-sex marriage and relationships. Jim Obergefell said Thomas omitted rulings on interracial marriage because it "affects him personally."
PoliticsHuffPostAngry Trump Again Demands The Impossible From Jan. 6 Panel After Riveting Hearing
Former President Donald Trump's reaction Thursday to another powerful day of testimony before the House select committee investigating the U.S. Capitol riot was to again demand the impossible: evidence of a rigged presidential election. Trump appears to be ignoring the information in the hearings the same way he ignored responses from his Justice Department, various state officials and U.S. Attorney General William Barr: The claims of a rigged election were baseless. Arizona House Speaker Rusty Bowers (R) testified Tuesday that Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani asked him to hold up electoral votes because “200,000 illegal immigrants” and more than 5,000 “dead people” voted in the state.
U.S.Associated PressEx-Minneapolis officer who killed 911 caller to be released
The former Minneapolis police officer who fatally shot an unarmed woman who called 911 to report a possible sexual assault in the alley behind her home is scheduled to be released from prison next week, months after his murder conviction was overturned and he was resentenced on a lesser charge. Mohamed Noor, 36, is scheduled to be released from custody Monday, 18 days shy of the fifth anniversary of the July 15, 2017, fatal shooting of Justine Ruszczyk Damond, a 40-year-old dual U.S.-Australian citizen and yoga teacher who was engaged to be married. Noor was initially convicted of third-degree murder and manslaughter, but last year the Minnesota Supreme Court tossed out his murder conviction and 12 1/2-year sentence, saying the murder charge didn't apply to the circumstances of this case.
- U.S.Oxygen
Footage Shows Dad Of Murdered Toddler Pummeling Alleged Killer In Court
The Ohio father of a murdered toddler punched the boy's alleged killer, who also stands accused of killing the child's mother, in a dramatic courtroom attack. Footage captured Tonio Hughes ambushing Desean Brown, 22, in court on Thursday morning during a pretrial hearing for the alleged killer, Fox 19 reports. Brown will face trial for the 2020 stabbing death of his girlfriend Nyteisha Lattimore, 29, and the murder of her 3-year-old son Nylo Lattimore.
U.S.The WrapMaher Warns of ‘Two Very Different Americas’ After SCOTUS Kills Roe and NY Gun Control (Video)
Of course the biggest issue in America is the final repeal of Roe v. Wade by an unrestrained right wing Supreme Court majority, all but one of whom were appointed by presidents who didn't actually win the popular vote. Maher kicked off his opening bit with a detailed series of half-jokes about it, noting that this week has been filled with unhinged SCOTUS decisions; not just the repeal of Roe for example, but also the elimination of even tepid gun control laws in America. “Well if you're keeping score at home, it's Guns 1, women nothing,” Maher joked.
U.S.Associated PressFauci says he's 'example' for COVID-19 vaccinations
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, says his COVID-19 recovery is an “example” for the nation on the protection offered by vaccines and boosters. Speaking during a White House briefing, Fauci, 81, said he began experiencing virus symptoms on June 14 and tested positive a day later. “I'm still feeling really quite fine,” Fauci said Thursday, as the administration emphasized the protection offered by vaccines to people of all ages, after the U.S. became the first country in the world to extend vaccine eligibility to children as young as six months.
PoliticsThe New York TimesIn Boebert's District, as Elsewhere, Democrats Surge into GOP Primary
Driven by fears of extremism and worries about what they see as an authoritarianism embodied in Boebert, thousands of Democrats in the sprawling 3rd Congressional District of Colorado have rushed to shore up her Republican challenger, state Sen. Don Coram. Their aim is not to do what best for Democrats but what they think is best for democracy. It is a long shot: Coram has raised about $226,000 in a late-starting, largely invisible bid to oust a national figure who has raked in $5 million.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderBiden accidentally flashed a cue card telling him exactly where to go and what to do at a White House event
Joe Biden accidentally revealed his cue card for a White House meeting, with very simple instructions. Cue cards are common, but right-wing commentators treated this one as a serious gaffe. President Joe Biden accidentally revealed a cue card at a White House meeting on Thursday, offering a glimpse of very simple instructions for the process of the meeting.
ScienceAssociated PressNASA: Give us back our moon dust and cockroaches
NASA wants its moon dust and cockroaches back. The space agency has asked Boston-based RR Auction to halt the sale of moon dust collected during the 1969 Apollo 11 mission that had subsequently been fed to cockroaches during an experiment to determine if the lunar rock contained any sort of pathogen that posed a threat to terrestrial life. The material, a NASA lawyer said in a letter to the auctioneer, still belongs to the federal government.
“More than half of mass shooters exhibited clear warning signs before committing their crimes, which makes such laws worthwhile.”
“It’s very difficult to determine if a person with no obvious criminal or mental illness history poses such a threat.”
“We will not end mass shootings, but smart public policy can reduce them.”
"A wider net is bound to ensnare many people who do not actually pose a threat.”
“They may also further dissuade gun owners from seeking mental health treatment if they fear their guns could be seized.”