29-year-old man attacked by bear in Yellowstone National Park

29-year-old man attacked by bear in Yellowstone National Park
29-year-old man attacked by bear in Yellowstone National Park
George Rose/Getty Images

(NEW YORK) — A 29-year-old man is recovering after suffering significant but non-life-threatening injuries to his chest and left arm following a bear attack in Yellowstone National Park, authorities said.

The solo hiker was walking on the Turbid Lake Trail, located northeast of Mary Bay in Yellowstone Lake and approximately 2.5 miles from the Pelican Valley Trailhead in the Pelican Valley Bear Management Area, when he encountered the bear and deployed bear spray against it, according to a statement from the National Park Service.

The hiker told officials he thought the bear was a black bear but, based on the location, size, and behavior of the animal, park officials said it was likely a grizzly bear and that bear management staff will attempt to confirm the species through DNA analysis, if possible.

National Park Service medics responded to the incident and walked out with the hiker who was subsequently taken to the Lake Medical Clinic before being flown to a nearby hospital for treatment.

“The Turbid Lake Trail is closed until further notice,” officials said. “Because this incident was a defensive reaction by the bear during a surprise encounter, the park will not be taking any management action against the bear.”

This is the first incident of a bear injuring a person in Yellowstone in 2025 and the first incident in over four years when, in May 2021, a grizzly bear injured a solo hiker on the Beaver Ponds Trail in Mammoth Hot Springs.

This incident currently remains under investigation.

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Trump establishes emergency board to resolve Long Island Rail Road union dispute

Trump establishes emergency board to resolve Long Island Rail Road union dispute
Trump establishes emergency board to resolve Long Island Rail Road union dispute
A scenic view of the Farmingdale Long Island Railroad station near by the Bethpage State Park Golf Course on August 11, 2025 in Farmingdale, New York.

(LONG ISLAND, N.Y.) – – President Donald Trump has agreed to establish an emergency board to review the dispute between the Long Island Rail Road and the unions that represent its employees, according to an executive order released by the White House.

A coalition of unions representing about half of Long Island Rail Road employees averted a strike earlier this week by asking President Donald Trump to establish an emergency board, as they seek a pay increase.

Service will continue on the busiest commuter railroad in North America while this emergency board process is underway. A strike could occur next May, however, if a compromise with the MTA isn’t reached.

The news comes after the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen announced on Monday that 99.9% of its 529 active LIRR union members voted to authorize a strike.

The coalition of unions, however, agreed to formally request Trump to establish an emergency board to attempt to resolve the issues between the union and the LIRR and come to a new contract, staving off a potential strike that would have begun Thursday.

If BLET does not agree to a new contract by May, however, it could be the first time LIRR employees strike in over 30 years. LIRR unions last went on strike in 1994, but the walkout only lasted for two days before a new contract for LIRR employees was settled.

“These passengers, they’re our friends, our neighbors, our family, and they should be treated much better than we’ve seen over this past week,” said BLET Vice President James Louis. “This is why the five unions decided to be the grown-ups in the room and request President Trump to appoint a presidential emergency board per the Railway Labor Act and allow both sides to present the proposals to the board.”

The strike would potentially affect more than 270,000 daily commuters in New York, as five unions representing 55% of the LIRR workforce are demanding a 16% raise over a four-year period.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul decried the idea of a strike on Monday, stating that it would hurt LIRR employees and passengers.

“A strike would hurt not only the riders who rely on the LIRR, but also many hardworking LIRR employees and their families, who will be left without pay because of unrealistic demands and their union leadership’s refusal to negotiate,” Hochul said in a press release. “There is a fair offer on the table, and I have directed the MTA to be ready to negotiate anytime, anywhere.”

According to the MTA, which runs the LIRR, the unions planning to strike next year have already rejected one deal that offered them a 9.5% wage increase over a three-year period, which would keep LIRR workers as the highest-paid railroad employees in the country. LIRR engineers currently make $160,000 a year on average and top out at $350,000, according to the agency.

LIRR President Rob Free has lambasted the collective bargaining effort by the unions, citing it as a cash grab that would overpay LIRR employees who already earn almost $50 an hour on average, per MTA figures, which is 7% higher than industry norms, he said.

“These five labor organizations, who are amongst the highest paid in the nation, want 6.5% more than everyone else, without any concessions, including outdated work rules, that significantly increase salaries, including providing multiple days’ pay for one day of work,” Free said in a press conference last week.

However, the LIRR unions maintain they are trying to achieve fair wages for their members, as they have been without a pay raise for over three years and run almost 1000 daily trains.

Gil Lang, the General Chairman for the BLET’s LIRR engineers, said the unions are trying to keep pace with the rising cost of living in New York.

“We are only asking for a fair contract — one that provides modest wage gains, or at the very least, maintains real wages,” Lang said. “Our members would not ratify anything short of that.”

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Tyler Robinson said he killed Charlie Kirk because he ‘spreads too much hate’: Officials

Tyler Robinson said he killed Charlie Kirk because he ‘spreads too much hate’: Officials
Tyler Robinson said he killed Charlie Kirk because he ‘spreads too much hate’: Officials
Chet Strange/Getty Images

(NEW YORK) — Tyler Robinson, the person accused of assassinating conservative influencer Charlie Kirk during an event at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10, has been formally charged with a slew of offenses, including aggravated murder, with prosecutors announcing the intent to seek the death penalty.

Robinson, 22, has also been charged with felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury, obstruction of justice, two counts of witness tampering and commission of a violent offense in the presence of a child, Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray announced on Tuesday.

Gray, who described Kirk’s death as “an American tragedy,” said he does not “take this decision lightly” in regard to seeking the death penalty for Robinson. The suspected shooter will continue to be held without bail.

Robinson is also scheduled to make his first court appearance on Tuesday.

Robinson was arrested last week for felony discharge of a firearm, aggravated murder and obstruction of justice, according to probable cause documents and was booked into the Utah County Jail.

Robinson was apprehended after his father recognized him in photographs released by authorities, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said last week.

“Robinson’s father reported that when his wife showed him the surveillance image of the suspected shooter in the news, he agreed it looked like their son,” according to the charging documents.

His father told Robinson to turn himself in, with the 22-year-old initially saying no, but later changing his mind, officials said previously.

When his father called Robinson, he implied he planned to “take his own life,” with his parents convincing him to meet them at their home, the charging documents said.

“As they discussed the situation, Robinson implied that he was the shooter and stated that he couldn’t go to jail and just wanted to end it,” the charging documents said.

His parents then asked their son why he committed this crime, to which he said “there is too much evil and the guy [Charlie Kirk] spreads too much hate,” according to the charging documents.

The suspect’s parents urged Robinson to speak with a family friend who is a deputy sheriff, who convinced him to turn himself in, charging documents said.

Prosecutors also revealed conversations between the suspect and his roommate in the moments after the shooting.

“I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out,” one of the messages read.

Investigators are continuing to assess evidence, including looking at electronic devices the suspect may have had access to, as federal charges could be announced in the coming days, law enforcement officials told ABC News.

A motive has not been revealed by officials, despite Vice President JD Vance saying “left-wing extremism” is “part of the reason” Kirk was killed.

Discord, a group chat messaging platform, confirmed on Monday that Robinson sent messages two hours before he was taken into custody admitting he shot the conservative influencer.

“Hey guys, I have bad news for you all…It was me at UVU yesterday. im sorry for all of this,” one of the messages read.

During a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Tuesday, FBI Director Kash Patel said the FBI is investigating “anyone and everyone involved in that Discord chat.”

Patel said there are “a lot more” than 20 people linked to Robinson on Discord and that the FBI is “running them all down.” He added that a “number of individuals” are currently being investigated.

In a press briefing from the Oval Office Monday evening, President Donald Trump said it appeared Robinson became radicalized on the internet.

“Something happened to him over a fairly short period of time. It looks like he was radicalized over the internet, and it’s radicalized on the left. He’s a left,” Trump claimed.

Robinson is alleged to have had an “obsession” with the conservative influencer, based on the alleged shooter’s digital footprint, FBI Co-Deputy Director Dan Bongino said Monday on Fox News.

Bongino said the suspect appeared to have exhibited “multiple warning signs.”

“I believe co-workers stated he had detached himself when the topic of politics came up and walked away,” Bongino said on Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom.”

Bongino said they are looking into whether anyone knew the shooting could happen and didn’t alert authorities, referring to the Discord chats Robinson allegedly had about Kirk.

“Did they … hear it and think it was a joke? That is what we’re trying to find out now,” he told Fox News. “If there is a larger network here, we will get that out to the public as soon as we can.”

ABC News’ Mike Levine contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Charlie Kirk’s family: What to know about his wife Erika, 2 kids

Charlie Kirk’s family: What to know about his wife Erika, 2 kids
Charlie Kirk’s family: What to know about his wife Erika, 2 kids
Samuel Corum/Getty Images

(NEW YORK) — Charlie Kirk was a husband and the father of two young kids at the time of his death Sept. 10 at a campus university event in Utah.

Kirk, the founder of the conservative youth activist organization Turning Point USA, was remembered by his wife Erika Kirk in an address to the nation on Sept. 12, her first public message since his killing.

“You have no idea the fire that you have ignited within this wife, the cries of this widow will echo around the world like a battle cry,” Erika Kirk said, adding that she would continue her late husband’s work with Turning Point USA.

“To everyone listening tonight across America, the movement my husband built will not die. It won’t, I refuse to let that happen … All of us will refuse to let that happen,” she said. “No one will ever forget my husband’s name, and I will make sure of it.”

Charlie Kirk, 31, was shot while speaking at Utah Valley University, the first stop this fall for his organization’s “The American Comeback Tour,” which was traveling to multiple college campuses across the country.

President Donald Trump announced Kirk’s death on social media, writing, “The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead.”

“No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie. He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us,” the president wrote. “Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you!”

Together, the Kirks are parents of two children, a son who turned 1 in May and a daughter who turned 3 in August.

“When I got home last night, our daughter just ran into my arms … and she said, ‘Mommy, I missed you.’ I said, ‘I missed you too, baby.’ She goes, ‘Where’s daddy?,'” Erika Kirk said in her Sept. 12 address. “What do you tell a 3-year-old? She’s three. I said, ‘Baby, daddy loves you so much. Don’t you worry. He’s on a work trip with Jesus so he can afford your blueberry budget.'”

Both Charlie Kirk and Erika Kirk shared glimpses of their home life on social media, sharing photos of their children, though not sharing their names or faces.

When Utah Gov. Spencer Cox announced at a Sept. 12 press conference the arrest of a suspect in Charlie Kirk’s fatal shooting, he spoke of the activist’s family.

“I especially want to thank the family of Charlie Kirk — Erika, Charlie’s parents, his children,” Cox said. “I want us to be thinking of them as we bring justice in this case. They will be involved in that justice. We will be working very closely with them as we move through this process as well.”

On Sept. 13, Turning Point USA announced details of a celebration of life ceremony for Kirk. The ceremony is set to be held Sunday, Sept. 21, in Glendale, Arizona, at State Farm Stadium, the NFL stadium in Arizona where the Cardinals play. The venue has a capacity of 63,000, according to the stadium’s website.

Here is more to know about Erika Frantzve Kirk

Erika Kirk is a former Miss Arizona USA and collegiate basketball player who is currently studying for a doctorate in Biblical studies at Liberty University, according to her biography on her website.

She is the founder of Proclaim, a faith-based clothing line, the host of the “Midweek Rise Up” podcast and the founder of two nonprofit organizations, according to her website.

Erika Kirk has also been a frequent presence by her husband’s side at speaking engagements and public appearances.

The couple went on their first date in New York City seven years ago this month, according to a post Erika Kirk shared on Instagram.

“5 years ago today, we sat inside Bills Burgers in NYC deep in conversation and banter over theology, philosophy, and politics and at the end, you paused, looked at me and said, ‘I’m going to date you,'” she wrote in a Sept. 5, 2023, post.

Following Charlie Kirk’s death, Erika Kirk shared a video on Instagram of Charlie Kirk telling the story of how they met to their daughter while sitting at a table at Bill’s Burgers in New York City.

“It started as a job interview … and then I realized momma was beautiful and smart and elegant and Christ-like, and so I said, ‘Forget this job interview. I want to date you.’ I said, ‘I have enough friends,'” Charlie Kirk is seen in the video telling their daughter as she sits on his lap. “And that’s where your journey began.”

Charlie Kirk proposed to Erika Kirk just two years after their first date, in December 2020, and they wed in Arizona on May 8, 2021, according to social media posts she shared at the time.

The couple sat down together for an episode of “The Charlie Kirk Show” in April to talk about marriage and family life.

“Keep your faith, obviously first, and try to identify any fleshy problems that you might be having,” Charlie Kirk said of his advice to young married couples, according to a YouTube video of the podcast.

Erika Kirk added, in part, “You have to continually invest in the confidence in one another, that you’re on the same team. You support each other. You love each other. You’re not going to undercut each other. You’re not going to undercut each other.”

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Tyler Robinson, accused of killing Charlie Kirk, set to face formal charges for death of conservative influencer

Tyler Robinson said he killed Charlie Kirk because he ‘spreads too much hate’: Officials
Tyler Robinson said he killed Charlie Kirk because he ‘spreads too much hate’: Officials
Chet Strange/Getty Images

(NEW YORK) — Formal charges are expected to be announced Tuesday against Tyler Robinson, the person accused of assassinating conservative influencer Charlie Kirk during an event at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10.

Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray is set to hold a news conference to announce the charges against Robinson after they are filed in the late morning, according to Utah County officials.

Robinson is also scheduled to make his first court appearance on Tuesday.

Robinson was arrested last week for felony discharge of a firearm, aggravated murder and obstruction of justice, according to probable cause documents and was booked into the Utah County Jail.

Investigators are continuing to assess evidence, including looking at electronic devices the suspect may have had access to, as federal charges could be announced in the coming days, law enforcement officials told ABC News.

A motive has not been revealed by officials, despite Vice President JD Vance saying “left-wing extremism” is “part of the reason” Kirk was killed.

Discord, a group chat messaging platform, confirmed on Monday that Robinson sent messages two hours before he was taken into custody admitting he shot the conservative influencer.

“Hey guys, I have bad news for you all…It was me at UVU yesterday. im sorry for all of this,” one of the messages read.

During a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Tuesday, FBI Director Kash Patel said the FBI is investigating “anyone and everyone involved in that Discord chat.”

Patel said there are “a lot more” than 20 people linked to Robinson on Discord and that the FBI is “running them all down.” He added that a “number of individuals” are currently being investigated.

Robinson was apprehended after his father recognized him in photographs released by authorities, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said last week. His father told Robinson to turn himself in, with the 22-year-old initially saying no, but later changing his mind, officials said.

In a press briefing from the Oval Office Monday evening, President Donald Trump said it appeared Robinson became radicalized on the internet.

“Something happened to him over a fairly short period of time. It looks like he was radicalized over the internet, and it’s radicalized on the left. He’s a left,” Trump claimed.

Robinson is alleged to have had an “obsession” with the conservative influencer, based on the alleged shooter’s digital footprint, FBI Co-Deputy Director Dan Bongino said Monday on Fox News.

Bongino said the suspect appeared to have exhibited “multiple warning signs.”

“I believe co-workers stated he had detached himself when the topic of politics came up and walked away,” Bongino said on Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom.”

Bongino said they are looking into whether anyone knew the shooting could happen and didn’t alert authorities, referring to the Discord chats Robinson allegedly had about Kirk.

“Did they … hear it and think it was a joke? That is what we’re trying to find out now,” he told Fox News. “If there is a larger network here, we will get that out to the public as soon as we can.”

ABC News’ Mike Levine contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Trump files $15 billion defamation suit against New York Times, Penguin Random House

Trump files  billion defamation suit against New York Times, Penguin Random House
Trump files $15 billion defamation suit against New York Times, Penguin Random House
Win McNamee/Getty Images

(NEW YORK) — President Donald Trump is seeking $15 billion in damages from The New York Times and Penguin Random House in a defamation lawsuit that alleges the newspaper and publisher engaged in a campaign to damage his reputation ahead of the 2024 election. 

Alleging that the Times has become a “leading, and unapologetic, purveyor of falsehoods,” Trump’s attorneys argued that a series of articles about Trump — including a report that Trump’s former chief of staff John Kelly warned the president would rule like a dictator, an article about the making of “The Apprentice,” and a report about the controversy that has followed Trump — amounted to libel. 

Filed in the Middle District of Florida, the lawsuit names The New York Times and Times reporters Peter Baker, Russ Buettner, Susanne Craig, and Michael Schmidt as defendants. The lawsuit also names Penguin Random House — the publisher of Craig and Buettner’s book “Lucky Loser: How Donald Trump Squandered His Father’s Fortune and Created the Illusion of Success” — as a defendant. 

“Today, the Times is a fullthroated mouthpiece of the Democrat Party. The newspaper’s editorial routine is now one of industrial-scale defamation and libel against political opponents,” the lawsuit claimed. 

Trump’s lawyers allege that The New York Times and Penguin Random House sought to not only damage the president’s “hard-earned and world-renowned reputation for business success,” but also hurt his chances of winning the 2024 election.

“President Trump brings this suit to highlight that principle and to clearly state to all Americans exhausted by, and furious at, the decades of journalistic corruption, that the era of unchecked, deliberate defamation by the Times and other legacy media outlets is over,” the lawsuit said. 

A New York Times spokesperson said the lawsuit has no merit.

“It lacks any legitimate legal claims and instead is an attempt to stifle and discourage independent reporting,” the Times spokesperson said. “The New York Times will not be deterred by intimidation tactics. We will continue to pursue the facts without fear or favor and stand up for journalists’ First Amendment right to ask questions on behalf of the American people.”

Penguin Random House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from ABC News. 

“President Trump’s transcendent ability to defy wrongful conventions has been vividly reflected in his successful undertaking to restore integrity to journalism, and repair the immense damage caused by legacy media outlets such as the Times for the better part of a decade,” the lawsuit said.

In July, Trump filed a $10 billion lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal  after the Journal reported that Trump allegedly sent disgraced financier Jeffery Epstein a bawdy letter in 2003 that was included in a book made for Epstein’s 50th birthday, which Trump has denied. 

In response to that suit, a spokesperson for Journal owner Dow Jones said, “We have full confidence in the rigor and accuracy of our reporting, and will vigorously defend against any lawsuit.” 

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

13 people hurt in 2 mass shootings at Minneapolis homeless encampments on the same day

13 people hurt in 2 mass shootings at Minneapolis homeless encampments on the same day
13 people hurt in 2 mass shootings at Minneapolis homeless encampments on the same day
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey speaks to the media following a mass shooting at Annunciation Catholic School on August 27, 2025 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

(MINNEAPOLIS) — At least 13 people have been wounded, five critically, in two shootings that erupted over a span of 12 hours at homeless encampments in Minneapolis with the city’s mayor saying he wouldn’t be surprised if they are connected.

The shootings on Monday marked the fourth and fifth mass shootings to occur in Minneapolis in the past three weeks, including one on Aug. 27 at Annunciation Catholic School that left two children dead and 21 people injured.

“This is tragic. It’s horrible. It’s unacceptable, and, sadly, it’s not surprising,” Mayor Jacob Frey said at a news conference early Tuesday.

Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said the city’s latest mass shooting unfolded Monday night at a notorious homeless encampment in southeast Minneapolis, in which eight people were shot and an estimated 30 shots were fired.

“Here we are yet again in the aftermath of a mass shooting. This is not normal,” O’Hara said.

O’Hara said the shooting at the homeless encampment on South 28th Avenue and East Lake Street occurred around 10 p.m. local time. He said an officer working at a Target store nearby was approached by multiple people “running and telling him that there was gunfire at the encampment.”

“The officer exited the store and heard gunfire coming from the area of the encampment,” O’Hara said.

Upon arrival, officers found five people wounded, including two people, a man and a woman, discovered inside tents suffering from bullet wounds to the head, O’Hara said. He said three other gunshot victims showed up at hospitals on their own.

O’Hara said at least four of the victims had life-threatening gunshot wounds.

The chief said multiple shell casings were recovered from the scene, leading investigators to believe that someone inside the encampment exchanged gunfire with the shooter who targeted the encampment.

O’Hara said that in addition to the shooting, a fire broke out in one of the tents while police were on scene and that that firefighters were called to extinguish the blaze.

No arrests have been announced in the shooting.

O’Hara said detectives are investigating the possibility that the shooting is connected to earlier gunfire at a nearby homeless encampment that left five people injured, including one in life-threatening condition. He said the earlier shooting occurred just after 11 a.m. near the intersection of East Lake Street and Stevens Avenue.

“While the investigation is still very, very preliminary, that is certainly something that we can’t rule out, and, of course, it’s something that we are considering,” O’Hara said.

Asked about the possible connection between the two shootings, Frey added, “We don’t know for sure, but I wouldn’t be surprised.”

Frey said the city has been trying for months to clear the homeless encampment at South 28th Avenue and East Lake Street, the scene of Monday night’s shooting. He said the encampment is on private property and that the city’s attempts to clear it have been met with resistance by the owner of the property.

“These homeless encampments are not safe either for the people that are in them, nor are they safe for the surrounding neighborhood. With this particular one, we’ve been saying this for months. We have been met with resistance for trying to clear this particular encampment,” Frey said.

In addition to the Annunciation Catholic School shooting, in which the suspect, 23-year-old Robin Westman, died by suicide, Minneapolis police investigated an Aug. 26 mass shooting that left one man dead and five other people wounded in southwest Minneapolis.

At the time, O’Hara said the shooter walked up to a group of people standing at the corner of East 29th Street and Clinton Avenue South and unleashed a barrage of at least 30 shots with a high-powered rifle before fleeing.

No arrests have been announced.

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Fulton County DA Fani Willis remains disqualified from Trump’s Georgia election interference case

Fulton County DA Fani Willis remains disqualified from Trump’s Georgia election interference case
Fulton County DA Fani Willis remains disqualified from Trump’s Georgia election interference case
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis looks on during a hearing in the case of the State of Georgia v. Donald John Trump at the Fulton County Courthouse on March 1, 2024, in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Alex Slitz-Pool/Getty Images)

(ATLANTA, Ga.) — Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis will remain disqualified from prosecuting the election interference case against President Donald Trump and others, after the Georgia Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to hear her appeal of the matter.

“Members of the public may well be interested in the case underlying this petition for certiorari,” the concurring opinion read. “But our focus in assessing whether to grant review under our certiorari jurisdiction is on the law of Georgia.”

In a dissenting opinion, Justice Carla McMillian wrote the case “warrants reconsideration, and the issue is likely to recur.”

Tuesday’s ruling on the criminal racketeering case appears to put an end to the nearly two-year legal saga that derailed the prosecution, which began in January of 2024 after Willis was first accused of misconduct by Michael Roman, one of Trump’s codefendants, over her relationship with one of the prosecutors on the case.

An independent body — the Prosecuting Attorneys Council of Georgia — will now be tasked with assigning an independent prosecutor to take over the case and determine its fate.

In a statement, Willis said “I disagree” with the decision, but said she would begin the process of turning the case over to the council.

“I hope that whoever is assigned to handle the case will have the courage to do what the evidence and the law demand,” Willis said.

An attorney for President Trump, Steve Sadow, celebrating the ruling, saying the court “correctly denied review.”

“This proper decision should bring an end to the wrongful political, lawfare persecutions of the President,” Sadow said.

Trump and 18 others pleaded not guilty in August 2023 to all charges in a sweeping racketeering indictment for alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in the state of Georgia.

The charges, which were brought following Trump’s Jan. 2, 2021, phone call in which he asked Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to “find” the votes needed to win the state, allege that the defendants solicited state leaders throughout the country, harassed and misled a Georgia election worker, and pushed phony claims that the election was stolen, all in an effort for Trump to remain in power despite his election loss.

Defendants Kenneth Chesebro, Sidney Powell, Jenna Ellis and Scott Hall subsequently took plea deals in exchange for agreeing to testify against other defendants.

Trump has blasted the district attorney’s investigation as being politically motivated.

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Luigi Mangione: Judge tosses 2 state murder charges related to act of terrorism

Luigi Mangione: Judge tosses 2 state murder charges related to act of terrorism
Luigi Mangione: Judge tosses 2 state murder charges related to act of terrorism
Luigi Mangione (C), accused killer of US insurance CEO Brian Thompson, arrives for a hearing in New York City on February 21, 2025. (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images)

(NEW YORK) — A judge dismissed two murder charges related to acts of terrorism as Luigi Mangione, the accused killer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, made his first Manhattan courtroom appearance in five months on Tuesday.

Judge Gregory Carro tossed out the most severe charge, first-degree murder, accusing Mangione of murder as a crime of terrorism.

The judge said the evidence presented to the grand jury was insufficient to support the terrorism charge.

Carro also tossed a second-degree murder charge, related to killing as an act of terrorism.

The rest of the indictment remains, with the judge refusing to dismiss another second-degree murder charge, to which the accused killer has pleaded not guilty.

Mangione will be tried in state court on a charge of intentional murder in connection with Thompson’s murder.

Mangione returned to a Manhattan courtroom Tuesday for the first time in five months, hoping the judge will either dismiss state murder and terrorism charges or suppress evidence seized during his arrest.

Mangione is accused of shooting and killing CEO Brian Thompson with a 9 mm handgun equipped with a silencer on a Midtown Manhattan street on Dec. 4, 2024.

After a several-day manhunt, Mangione was captured in Altoona, Pennsylvania.

When police found Mangione at a McDonald’s in Altoona, he was carrying a backpack that investigators said contained the alleged murder weapon, a fake ID and a red notebook he used as a diary.

“I finally feel confident about what I will do,” one entry said, according to authorities. “The target is insurance. It checks every box.”The defense argued police lacked a warrant, making the search of the backpack illegal.

A federal grand jury charged Mangione in April with two counts of stalking, firearms offense and murder through the use of a firearm, a charge that makes him eligible for the death penalty, if convicted.

He also faces state charges in New York in connection with the shooting.

Mangione has pleaded not guilty to state charges in New York and Pennsylvania as well as the federal charges. The simultaneous prosecutions put him in what his attorneys have called an “untenable situation” and they’ve asked Judge Gregory Carro to dismiss the state case, or at least put it on hold.

Prosecutors are hoping the judge will set a date for trial.Mangione is also being ordered to appear in a Pennsylvania courtroom regarding those state charges. While he is currently being held in the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, the Blair County District Attorney’s Office in Pennsylvania wants the accused killer to appear in court for a pretrial motion hearing scheduled for Nov. 7.

In Pennsylvania, Mangione has pleaded not guilty to charges of forgery, possession of an instrument of a crime and giving a false ID to an officer.

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Tyler Robinson set to face formal charges in shooting death of Charlie Kirk

Tyler Robinson said he killed Charlie Kirk because he ‘spreads too much hate’: Officials
Tyler Robinson said he killed Charlie Kirk because he ‘spreads too much hate’: Officials
Chet Strange/Getty Images

(NEW YORK) — Formal charges are expected to be announced on Tuesday against Tyler Robinson, the alleged assassin accused of shooting Charlie Kirk during an event at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10.

Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray is set to hold a news conference to announce the charges against Robinson after they are filed in the late morning and will be made available to the public immediately after that, according to Utah County officials.

Robinson is also scheduled to make his first court appearance later on Tuesday and Utah County officials will be providing more information during the press conference announcing the formal charges.

Robinson was arrested last week for felony discharge of a firearm, aggravated murder and obstruction of justice, according to probable cause documents, and was booked into the Utah County Jail.

Investigators are continuing to assess evidence, including looking at electronic devices the suspect may have had access to, as federal charges could be announced in the coming days, law enforcement officials told ABC News.

A motive has not been revealed by officials, despite Vice President JD Vance saying “left-wing extremism” is “part of the reason” Kirk was killed.

Robinson was apprehended after his father recognized him in photographs released by authorities, Cox said on Friday. His father told Robinson to turn himself in, with the 22-year-old initially saying no, but later changing his mind, officials said.

In a press briefing from the Oval Office Monday evening, President Donald Trump said it appeared Robinson became radicalized on the internet.

“Something happened to him over a fairly short period of time. It looks like he was radicalized over the internet, and it’s radicalized on the left. He’s a left,” Trump claimed.

Before the arrest of the alleged shooter, officials said they had obtained “good” video footage of the individual and were able to track the movements of the suspect.

Meanwhile, Robinson is alleged to have had an “obsession” with the conservative influencer, based on the alleged shooter’s digital footprint, FBI Co-Deputy Director Dan Bongino said Monday on Fox News.

Bongino said the suspect appeared to have exhibited “multiple warning signs.”

“I believe co-workers stated he had detached himself when the topic of politics came up and walked away,” Bongino said on Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom.”

Bongino said they are looking into whether anyone knew the shooting could happen and didn’t alert authorities, referring to online chats Robinson allegedly had about Kirk.

“Did they … hear it and think it was a joke? That is what we’re trying to find out now,” he told Fox News. “If there is a larger network here, we will get that out to the public as soon as we can.”

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