More than a decade after a jailhouse snitch scandal rocked the Orange County district attorney's office and nearly upended the prosecution of the deadliest mass shooting in county history, federal officials announced they have ceased overseeing the department's informant program, citing recent reforms. The decision, announced Dec. 23, ends a year-long agreement between the Department of Justice and local prosecutors who were tasked with reforming the way they use informants in criminal cases.
"Incidents like this are unsettling, but our officers responded quickly, secured the scene, and worked with our partners to identify and arrest the suspect," said Lake City Chief of Police Gerald Butler in a press release.
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
The late journalist revealed in an essay in The New Yorker in November that she had been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, a rare and aggressive type of cancer that is mostly common above the age of 60. Doctors were first alerted to her condition after she gave birth to her second child in May 2024. They detected an unusually high white blood cell count, which is caused by the disease.
Tatiana Schlossberg, a granddaughter of President John F. Kennedy and a prominent climate activist and environmental journalist, died on December 30 at age 35, her family announced through a social media post.
Yields were lower Monday across the Treasury curve as buyers returned from the holiday, looking to grab bonds, especially longer-dated maturities. Despite bond traders preparing for a heavy schedule of U.S. Treasury debt auctions throughout the holiday-shortened week, which tends to increase bond supply and push prices down, the opposite happened Monday. The 30-year-long bond closed trading at 4.80%. In comparison, the benchmark 10-year note was last seen at 4.11%.
Whether you use two wheels or four, getting around New Jersey will cost more in the New Year as four toll agencies plan to raise rates next month. Those who shun cars for bikes won't get relief as CitiBike, which serves Jersey City and Hoboken, also announced some rate increases taking effect on Jan. 5. NJ Turnpike/Garden State Parkway Tolls will increase by 3% on New Jersey's two largest toll roads-the Parkway and the Turnpike-on Jan. 5, marking the fifth hike since March 2020.
Jaden Winston scored 17 points as Manhattan beat Rider 74-71 on Monday. Winston added five rebounds for the Jaspers (6-8, 2-1 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference). Terrance Jones scored 15 points, going 4 of 10 from the floor and 6 for 6 from the line. Anthony Isaac had 14 points and shot 5 of 14 from the field and 4 of 8 from the free-throw line.
The US Federal Reserve agreed to cut interest rates at its December meeting only after a deeply nuanced debate about the risks facing the US economy right now, according to minutes of the latest two-day session. Even some of those who supported the rate cut acknowledged the decision was finely balanced or that they could have supported keeping the target range unchanged, given the different risks facing the US economy, according to the minutes released on Tuesday.
Williams told AL.com on Tuesday that he's "Alabama through and through," adding that he has "no intentions of being anywhere else." After earning first-team All-SEC honors and freshman All-America honors in 2024, when he surged onto the scene as a 17-year-old for Alabama, Williams has had fewer catches, yards and half as many touchdowns (4) this season. The sophomore also has been prone to dropped passes. According to Tru Media, Williams is second nationally in highest percentage of drops (14.3) with 10 on the season.
Zaileen Janmohamed hardly had time to update her LinkedIn profile when she received her first and only marching orders from her new boss, Al Guido, the San Francisco 49ers president and board member of the newly formed Bay Area Host Committee. Go get us Super Bowl 60. Ten weeks later, the short, spunky Canadian of Indian descent and mother of three walked into a conference room filled with owners of all 32 NFL teams - and did just that.
Curt Cignetti knows winning. No matter where he finds himself, whether it's James Madison or with the Division II IUP Crimson Hawks, success follows him. Since getting the opportunity to lead a program, Cignetti has never had a losing season. When Indiana hired him in November 2023, the Hoosiers were the program with the most all-time losses in college football history, and ended the season with a 3-9 record under Tom Allen.
The next head coach of the Texas Tech Red Raiders had been a true underdog candidate at the start of the search process. To folks outside the Lone Star State, he was a relative unknown. This wasn't how these searches normally go. A longtime high school football coach with no college head coaching, coordinator or playcalling experience almost never gets to make the leap to the big job.
The Trump administration, as expected, reversed a whole suite of federal policies that promoted or encouraged EVs. California's ability to require the sale of EVs: gone. Federal rules about emissions and fuel economy being rewritten. Federal penalties for car companies that sell too many gas guzzlers: zeroed out. The $7,500 federal tax credit? Kaput. Meanwhile, automakers delayed or canceled a host
It is well known that President Trump was a real-estate developer before descending his golden escalator and entering politics. And in his first term, he didn't really flex those muscles. But since returning to the White House, Trump has been on a remodeling spree. "I have two jobs," Trump said recently. Commander in chief is one, but his real passion appears to be the second. "I have a construction job, which is really like relaxation for me because I have been doing it all my life."
Toys R Us is back - again. The latest phase of the toy store chain's comeback came this holiday season as Toys R Us stores popped up at a handful of malls around the US. The temporary stores are part of a broader revitalization opportunity by brand management company WHP and Go! Retail Group. It's the latest example of how the once-dominant chain is trying to make a comeback.
Attorneys Frank Lamothe III and Kristi Schubert have 75 clients. Twenty-three of them are prisoners, and most of them allege abuse at two long-shuttered orphanages, Hope Haven and Madonna Manor. Two of these men had a different path to prison. Bernard Joseph, 57, and Marcus Hamilton, 65, half-brothers, are serving life terms in Angola, the Louisiana state penitentiary, for murdering a priest.
The 15-year-old girl at the center of a case, which quickly gained national attention in the US over the weekend, was reportedly kidnapped in the Houston suburb of Porter. Her parents said she took her dog for a walk and had not returned by the time she was supposed to, according to a statement from the Montgomery county sheriff's office. Her father subsequently located her phone through the device's parental controls, the agency's statement said.
California firefighters have found the body of a California triathlete on a beach north-west of Santa Cruz, almost a week after she went missing amid speculation that she was killed by a shark. The remains of Erica Fox were found on Saturday, her father and husband confirmed to local news outlets. Fox, 55, was part of a group of more than a dozen swimmers who left from Lovers Point near Monterey, California, on 21 December, but she never returned to shore.
Two men who died after their helicopters collided midair in New Jersey over the weekend both earned their private pilot licenses over a decade ago and would often have breakfast together at a cafe near the crash site before taking to the skies from the local airport. Authorities on Monday identified the two New Jersey men as Kenneth Kirsch, 65, and Michael Greenberg, 71.
Auburn star wide receiver Cam Coleman has informed the school he plans to enter the NCAA transfer portal, sources confirmed to ESPN's Pete Thamel. Coleman, a former five-star recruit, is expected to be the top wide receiver available in the transfer portal when it officially opens on Friday. The sophomore has two more years of eligibility but will be a prized NFL draft prospect next year.
