(NEW YORK) — Sean “Diddy” Combs is asking a federal appeals court to expedite his appeal of his conviction on two prostitution-related charges, arguing he could finish his prison sentence before his appeal is heard on a normal timetable.
Combs is appealing his conviction and his more than four-year sentence.
“An expedited briefing and argument schedule is critical to ensure that Mr. Combs’s appeal of his sentence does not become moot while the appeal is pending,” defense attorney Alexandra Shapiro said in a new filing.
She said Combs has already served approximately 14 months of his 50-month sentence, and it is unclear how much additional time he will ultimately serve due to his potential eligibility for reductions.
Earlier this week, the Bureau of Prisons posted what the agency believes to be Combs’ release date from the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, which is set for May 8, 2028 — although it can change.
Combs was convicted of two counts of transportation for the purposes of prostitution after an eight-week trial in July. The jury acquitted Combs of more serious sex trafficking and racketeering charges he faced.
In his appeal, Combs plans to argue to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that prosecutors misapplied the law.
“Sean’s appeal will challenge the unfair use of the Mann Act, an infamous statute with a sordid history, to prosecute him for sex with consenting adults,” Shapiro said.
He has said his counts of conviction should not apply because he had no financial motive for transporting male escorts. Instead he said he wanted to watch them have sex with his girlfriends.
(NEW YORK) — Last week, Joel Camas, a 16-year-old living in the Bronx, New York, showed up for a routine immigration check-in at a federal building in the city, hoping he would be able to return to class at his high school later that morning.
But when Camas appeared at the immigration office accompanied by his lawyers, his attorneys say he was immediately detained and taken into custody, despite telling officials that he has Special Immigrant Juvenile Status — a federal pathway to legal residency for undocumented minors who have allegedly been abused, neglected, or abandoned.
The detention of the 16-year-old, who was granted SIJS status due to the conditions in Ecuador and because his father abandoned him, occurred one month after his mother, who was issued an order of removal in 2024, self-deported to Ecuador, the country they both fled almost three years ago due to gang violence.
Camas’ detention has raised alarm among immigration attorneys about the Trump administration’s rollback of protections for SIJS recipients and their risk for deportation to their home countries.
In June, the administration announced a policy change that eliminated the automatic consideration of deferred action and work permits for those with approved SIJS status who are awaiting an available green card visa. The move, according to immigration attorneys, has resulted in the detention and possible deportation of young immigrants who were granted protections by immigration judges.
The government has defended the changes made to the SIJS program by alleging they are addressing “significant national security and public safety concerns” stemming from alleged abuses within the program.
In Camas’ case, a federal judge on Tuesday issued a temporary restraining order blocking his removal, shortly after the Department of Homeland Security said that Camas “will be reunited with his family” in Ecuador.
“One of the findings that a judge needs to make is that it’s in the best interest for this young person to remain in the U.S.,” said Beth Baltimore, the attorney representing Joel. “I’ve never seen young people targeted in this way.”
Similarly, Carlos Guerra Leon, an 18-year-old from Spring Valley, New York, was stopped and detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in August while on his way to work.
According to Guerra Leon’s attorney, Sarah Decker, he was detained without a warrant by officers and told he had a final order of removal, despite having SIJS status and being granted deferred action through 2026.
Guerra Leon was transported to Jackson Parish Detention Center in Louisiana, where he remains in detention. His attorneys have a pending lawsuit alleging that his detention is unlawful and that his arrest was in violation of his Fourth Amendment rights.
In a statement to ABC News, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said that Guerra Leon chose to remain in the U.S. despite a removal order “in violation of the [country’s] immigration laws.”
McLaughlin did not address Guerra Leon’s SIJS status.
“He had just graduated from high school this past June,” Decker said of Guerra Leon. “He was diligent and a well-respected worker at a local car wash, and community members have described him as an extremely hardworking, kind, and responsible young person who was dedicated to building a career in a special trade and finishing his education.”
(NEW YORK) — The National Guard is planning to train as many as 500 troops per state to serve as part of a rapid-response force focused on civil disturbance missions, according to a U.S. official.
The move follows an executive order signed by President Donald Trump in August that called for each state to have National Guard quick reaction forces that could be deployed on short notice for “quelling civil disturbances and ensuring the public safety and order.”
Each state will be required to have a quick reaction force ready by the start of next year with most states required to have 500 personnel assigned to the force.
The development was first reported by The Guardian which obtained a copy of an Oct. 8 internal memo from the National Guard detailing each state’s allotment. The Guardian posted the memo on its website.
Each of the 50 states and four territories with National Guards already have dedicated quick-reaction forces that assist with natural disasters and civil disturbances.
It is unclear if the forces outlined in the memo are in addition to those — or a larger version specifically trained for civil disturbances.
It is also unclear how the force would be different from existing quick-reaction forces already available to each state.
Over the summer, Trump deployed thousands of National Guard troops to Los Angeles amid protests over the surge of immigration enforcement there and later to Washington, D.C., as part of what he called a crime-fighting initiative.
The Trump administration has also sought to deploy Guard troops in Chicago and Portland.
In this May 1, 2025, file photo, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks during a press conference held at the ICE-Enforcement and Removal Operation office in Miramar, Fla. Joe Raedle/Getty Images, FILE
(FLORIDA) — All 43 Democratic state legislators in Florida have asked Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis to declare a state of emergency as nearly three million Floridians are set to lose their access to SNAP food assistance benefits when funding for the program expires Saturday amid the federal government shutdown.
In a letter to the governor dated Oct. 28, the legislators ask him to “declare a State of Emergency on Food Insecurity to unlock state emergency resources” to make available resources that will allow various state agencies to acquire extra food and funding and to expand school meal programs until SNAP benefits are restored.
“Under Section 252.36 of the Florida Statutes, the Governor has clear authority to declare a State of Emergency when ‘the occurrence or threat thereof is imminent.’ Hunger is both,” the letter states.
“For families already struggling under record food and housing costs, the loss of this critical support would be catastrophic. Local food banks and pantries have already reported overwhelming demand and depleted supplies,” the letter states. “Food insecurity is also increasing for federal employees and our military families as the shutdown continues. This is not speculation; it’s reality.”
“We are days away from a full-blown hunger emergency that will leave families without food during the holiday season. The state cannot stand by,” the letter further states, adding “No child should go hungry because politicians in Washington can’t agree.”
An ABC News request for comment sent to the office of Gov. DeSantis did not immediately receive a response. However, when asked for a reaction to the letter during an unrelated press conference Wednesday at the University of South Florida, DeSantis responded, “Did those Democrats write a letter to Chuck Schumer asking him to stop filibustering the spending?” referring to the Democratic Senate minority leader.
Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries have been at the center of an impasse with Republican leadership, Senate Majority Leader Tom Thune and House Speaker Mike Johnson, since the shutdown began on Oct. 1.
Nearly 42 million Americans were receiving SNAP benefits as of May 2025, the most recent data available, according to the USDA, which funds the state-administered program. Just over 2.9 million Floridians receive SNAP benefits, making Florida the fourth-highest SNAP recipient, according to the latest USDA data, after California, Texas and New York.
There have been thirteen failed votes in the Senate to reopen the government, with the most recent on Tuesday. Democrats have refused to vote on a short-term funding bill that doesn’t address the issue of extending subsidies for the Affordable Care Act, which expire Dec. 31, and Republicans have said they will not address the issue without Democrats first voting on a bill to re-open the government.
On Tuesday, 25 states and the District of Columbia sued the Trump administration over the impending loss of SNAP benefits amid the federal government shutdown, which is now the second-longest in U.S. history.
: Senator John Thune (R-SD) at the annual GRAMMYs on the Hill Advocacy Day on Capital Hill on April 19, 2018 in Washington, DC. Capitol Hill’s largest and most prestigious legislative event for music creators. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/WireImage for The Recording Academ
(WASHINGTON) — With critical food assistance benefits set to run out Saturday, Senate Majority Leader John Thune on Wednesday said he is talking with President Donald Trump about the shutdown as lawmakers appear sympathetic, but still entrenched.
The Department of Agriculture said earlier this week that Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, which serve roughly 42 million low-income Americans, will not be issued on Nov. 1 amid the ongoing government shutdown.
On Tuesday night as he traveled to South Korea, Trump signaled his administration may find a solution to help fund SNAP, saying “we’re going to get it done,” without offering any details on how.
At the same time, Trump blamed Democrats for putting Americans at risk of losing critical federal food assistance this weekend.
“The Democrats have caused the problem on food stamps … because all they have to do is sign, and, you know, they sign, I’ll meet with them,” Trump said.
Asked about Trump’s SNAP benefits comments, Thune told reporters on Wednesday that he spoke to Trump on Tuesday, but didn’t have insight into what his comments meant.
“I think that what he is saying consistently is ‘Open up the government and then we’ — and that’s the way to fund SNAP,” Thune said.
Republican Sen. Josh Hawley has a new bill that would fund SNAP during the shutdown. While several Republican senators support it, Thune has appeared lukewarm about bringing it to the floor.
Asked if Trump’s comments were an endorsement of bills like Hawley’s that would fund SNAP during the shutdown, Thune said he wasn’t sure if that’s what Trump was referring to.
“I think the message that he and the rest of the White House, including JD yesterday, have delivered pretty clearly is ‘Open up the government and that’s the way to fund SNAP and everything else.’ If he’s got something else he’s thinking about, I’ll certainly be open to listening to that,” Thune said.
On Wednesday morning, House Speaker Mike Johnson warned that the impacts of the government shutdown this week — including a possible food crisis as well as missed paychecks for federal workers and air traffic controllers — are “getting really tough for the American people,” placing the onus squarely on Democrats.
“The Democrats are coming near now to a cliff that they will not be able to turn back from,” Johnson said at a news conference in the Capitol. “You’ve got families and children that rely upon SNAP benefits that are going to go hungry here at the end of the week.”
As Democrats continue their fight over health care subsidies as the Nov. 1 open enrollment date approaches, Trump said Tuesday night that he would work with Democrats — as long as they vote to fund the government.
“I’d say, open up the government and we’ll work it out,” Trump told reporters.
Democrats are working to balance their health care demands and find solutions for SNAP, with Democratic Sen. Ben Ray Luján expected to attempt to get the Senate to unanimously pass legislation that would direct the USDA to release available contingency funds to ensure benefits under SNAP and the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program continue during the shutdown.
Luján’s bill is co-sponsored by every Democrat in the Senate, but does not have any Republican co-sponsors. Because it’s being put on the floor by Democrats, the only way the bill could pass is if every senator supports it — meaning it will likely fail as a result.
“Right now, we’re staring down the barrel at two crises at once. A health care crisis and a hunger crisis,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a press conference Wednesday afternoon.
“We don’t want to pit health care and food. Thank you. We think you can have both,” he later shouted.
Schumer has continued to call on Republicans to “sit-down and negotiate with us” to reopen the government and address the health care crisis.
Thune told reporters Wednesday morning that discussions over a path out of the shutdown have “ticked up significantly” and that he’s “hopeful” that something fruitful will soon emerge.
“It’s ticked up significantly,” Thune said of talks among rank-and-file members. “And hopefully that’ll be a precursor of things to come. But yeah, there’s a lot of higher-level conversation.”
Thune stressed that conversations are going on among rank-and-file members and not among leadership.
“There are a lot of rank-and-file members that continue to, I think, want to pursue solutions and to be able to address the issues they care about, which is including health care, which as I just said right there we are willing to do, but it is obviously contingent upon them opening up the government.”
ABC News’ Megan Mistry, Isabella Murray and Lalee Ibssa contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) — Two men hired by Iran in a failed plot to kill Masih Alinejad, an Iranian dissident, author and activist, at her New York City home in 2022 were sentenced to 25 years in prison on Wednesday.
A Manhattan federal court jury convicted Rafat Amirov and Polad Omarov of murder-for-hire and attempted murder in aid of racketeering in March.
Federal prosecutors said the two partnered with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in an attempt to silence one of Iran’s most vocal, internationally recognized and effective critics in exchange for half a million dollars.
“I looked these men in the eyes — men who intended to silence me for defending women’s freedom — and am still standing,” Alinejad said after the sentencing hearing.
The journalist said the verdict is a “victory for my fellow dissidents who continue to fight for freedom and refuse to be silenced.”
“For too long, dictators have treated America as their personal playground to orchestrate transnational oppression,” she said. “It’s past time the U.S. government makes clear that U.S. residents are protected and that if they are targeted on American soil, there will be consequences for the hitmen as well as the regimes that sent them.”
In a video posted on social media Wednesday morning, Alinejad said she was en route with the FBI to the federal courthouse for the sentencing “to face my would-be assassins” and read a victim impact statement.
“As you see, I’m wearing red because they were hoping to cover all over my body with blood,” she said. “I’m wearing red to celebrate my life.”
Ahead of the sentencing, prosecutors said Omarov and Amirov deserved 55 years in prison because they sought “to soak the Brooklyn streets with the victim’s blood.”
Meanwhile, Omarov’s attorney argued for a sentence of no more than 10 years and Amirov’s attorney argued for no more than 13 years.
Prosecutors said the pair is part of an Eastern European criminal organization with ties to Iran and wanted to use the bounty to build power and influence in the Russian mob.
“When Amirov and Omarov were presented with a $500,000 bounty to assassinate Ms. Alinejad, they pursued the assignment quickly and relentlessly,” federal prosecutors said.
Prosecutors said that in late July 2022, the triggerman hired by Amirov and Omarov “repeatedly traveled” to Alinejad’s Brooklyn neighborhood to surveil her.
At one point, the triggerman, Khalid Mehdiyev, saw Alinejad on her porch while he was walking around the neighborhood, and by the time he was able to make his way back to his car to retrieve an assault rifle, she had gone back inside, prosecutors said. “Alarmed” by the sight of Mehdiyev, Alinejad left her house on July 28, 2022, to stay with a friend out of state, prosecutors said.
Alinejad posted a video on social media of Mehdiyev outside her house on July 28, 2022.
When the triggerman drove away from the Brooklyn residence that day, the NYPD pulled him over for blowing a stop sign and driving on a suspended license. The officers arrested him and, during an inventory search of the car, found the assault rifle, as well as 66 rounds of ammunition, a ski mask, gloves and a bundle of cash, prosecutors said.
A one-story beach cottage fell into the Atlantic Ocean on the Outer Banks March 13, 2023, the fourth home to collapse into the sea on Hatteras Island in the past year. (Daniel Pullen/The Virginian-Pilot/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Several more North Carolina homes have collapsed into the Atlantic Ocean, and more could collapse in the coming days, according to the National Park Service.
Five unoccupied homes in the Outer Banks fell into the sea on Tuesday afternoon amid rough surf, the NPS announced.
Two of the homes that collapsed on Tuesday were located on Tower Circle Road in the community of Buxton, while two were located on Ocean Drive and one on Cottage Avenue, according to the NPS. All of the homes fell between 2 p.m. and 2:45 p.m. ET.
Local officials are attempting to reach the owners of the homes to determine their plans for cleaning up the debris on the beaches lining the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, the NPS said.
Officials advised visitors to the Cape Hatteras National Seashore to avoid the beach and stay out of the water in Buxton due to “varying amounts” of hazardous debris that are currently littering the beach south of the collapse site. Large pieces of lumber have also been observed in the surf and shorebreak.
The Outer Banks is a chain of barrier islands stretching the coast of North Carolina, featuring more than 100 miles of shoreline. The picturesque seaside communities are known for their beach homes propped on high stilts.
But more than two dozen privately-owned homes along the Cape Hatteras National Seashore have collapsed into the Atlantic since 2020, according to the NPS.
Sixteen of those homes succumbed to the sea since Sept. 16 of this year, according to the NPS.
Most of the debris from the homes that collapsed prior to the latest event had been cleaned up before Tuesday, the NPS said. There is potential for more homes to subside in the coming days.
Rising sea levels that have resulted from global warming and the melting of ice caps have likely exacerbated the natural sea erosion that occurs daily from the impacts of wind, waves and tides.
In the Outer Banks, the villages of Rodanthe and Buxton have been hit particularly hard by the effects of coastal erosion, according to the NPS.
The Outer Banks — along with other barrier islands on the East Coast — often face the brunt of inclement weather that impacts the eastern coast of the U.S.
In August, mandatory evacuations were issued in several counties in the Outer Banks due to Hurricane Erin, despite the storm not making landfall in the U.S.
Eight homes collapsed between Sept. 30 and Oct. 3 after the impacts from Hurricanes Humberto and Imelda, both of which stayed far in the Atlantic but still brought massive waves to the eastern seaboard.
An additional home fell on Oct. 18, days after the first nor’easter of the season battered the East Coast.
Projects to fortify the beaches near the Outer Banks, including beach nourishment and jetty repairs, are scheduled for 2026, ABC Raleigh-Durham affiliate WTVD reported.
Local officials are trying to preserve and secure the beaches as quickly as possible, Bobby Outten, manager of Dare County, told WTVD.
(NEW YORK) — Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Jamaica as a Category 5 hurricane — one of the most powerful hurricane landfalls on record in the Atlantic basin — and is now continuing its path of destruction through the Caribbean.
Melissa tore through Jamaica on Tuesday with 185 mph winds, making the storm the strongest hurricane on record to make landfall on the island. The previous record was set by Category 4 Hurricane Gilbert in 1988.
Rain totals in Jamaica could be up to 2 feet, with up to 30 inches in higher elevations. Jamaica’s prime minister has declared the country a disaster area.
Early Wednesday morning, Melissa made landfall in Cuba with 120 mph winds. Cuba faced a storm surge of up to 12 feet and could be inundated with 25 inches of rain in higher elevations.
Now, Melissa is heading toward the Bahamas as a Category 2 storm.
In the southeastern Bahamas, 5 to 10 inches of rain is expected and a storm surge of 5 to 8 feet is possible.
The storm is then expected to pass closely to Bermuda on Thursday night.
Officials in Pennsylvania are searching for Jairo Eliazar Ramirez-Lima, a man with “multiple active arrest warrants, including federal ICE detainers” who escaped police custody while handcuffed, according to the East Pikeland Township Police Department. (East Pikeland Township Police Department)
(NEW YORK) — A man in Pennsylvania with multiple warrants, including federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainers, is at large after he escaped police custody while still wearing handcuffs, according to the East Pikeland Township Police Department.
Jairo Eliazar Ramirez-Lima, 41, escaped from police custody on Saturday at approximately 6:59 a.m. while being transported from a local hospital following an arrest for driving under the influence, police said in a statement on Saturday.
Despite being handcuffed, Ramirez-Lima “fled on foot from the hospital grounds” and has not been seen since, police confirmed to ABC News on Wednesday.
Ramirez-Lima, who “should be considered dangerous,” was last seen wearing a black sweatshirt, white or light gray sweatpants and black sneakers, police said.
While police said there is “no known active threat to the public,” they added Ramirez-Lima has “multiple active arrest warrants, including federal ICE detainers and has a history of violence and weapons offenses.”
In addition to the DUI and escape charges, Ramirez-Lima was also charged with false identification to a law enforcement officer, tampering with public records, driving without a license, disregard to a traffic lane and careless driving, according to court documents obtained by ABC News.
He also has a protection-from-abuse order against him in Maryland, according to Philadelphia ABC station WPVI.
The suspect’s escape remains under investigation and police said additional information will be released as it becomes available.
Anyone with information on Ramirez-Lima’s whereabouts should contact the East Pikeland Township Police Department at 610-935-0606 or call 911, officials said.
In this handout satellite image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Hurricane Melissa churns through the Caribbean Sea, captured at 15:20Z on October 28, 2025. NOAA via Getty Images
(NEW YORK) — At first light on Wednesday, the coastal communities of southwestern Jamaica bore the devastation of being in the direct path of Hurricane Melissa, as images emerging from the area show numerous homes destroyed, vehicles overturned, power lines down and trees uprooted.
One of the hardest-hit areas appeared to be the town of Black River, where many homes and businesses were left in ruins by the powerful Category 5 hurricane that made landfall on Wednesday. Twisted sheets of metal and busted concrete lay in ruins in the streets of the village, as first responders were seen in the footage weaving through downed power lines in search of survivors.
Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness said his nation was “ravaged” by the hurricane’s 175 mph winds and torrential rain.
“I know many, especially those in the worst-affected parishes, are feeling disheartened,” Holness said in a social media post. “Your homes may have been damaged or destroyed, and your communities and towns no longer look the same.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
