(NEW YORK) — Dexter Scott King, the youngest son of civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr., died Monday from prostate cancer, according to The King Center.
He was 62 years old.
“The sudden shock is devastating,” his brother Martin Luther King III said in a statement. “It is hard to have the right words at a moment like this. We ask for your prayers at this time for the entire King family.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(NEW YORK) — The Biden administration announced new steps Monday to expand access to contraception, abortion medication and emergency abortion care at hospitals on what would have been the 51st anniversary of Roe v. Wade.
It’s the latest attempt by the federal government to preserve abortion access and protect reproductive health care since the Supreme Court’s decision in June 2022 to end federal protections for abortion rights.
The initiatives are expected to be announced at a meeting President Joe Biden is holding Monday afternoon with his Task Force for Reproductive Healthcare Access, during which physicians who practice in states where abortion was restricted following the overturning of Roe will discuss their personal experiences.
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To strengthen contraception access, the administration said it will implement several measures, including federal agencies issuing new guidance to “clarify standards” and make sure Food and Drug Administration-approved contraceptive medications are available for free under the Affordable Care Act.
Xavier Becerra, the secretary of Health and Human Services, issued a letter Monday to various insurers — including private companies, state Medicaid plans, Medicare plans and the Children’s Health Insurance Program — reminding them of their obligations to cover contraceptives for those on their plans.
“As a reminder, plans and issuers subject to the requirement to cover preventive services must provide the full range of FDA-approved, -cleared or -granted contraceptives (including emergency contraception), effective family planning practices, and sterilization procedures to prevent unintended pregnancy and improve birth outcomes,” he wrote.
Additionally, the Office of Personnel Management will offer new guidance to insurers making sure contraception access is strengthened for federal workers, retirees and family members.
The HHS is also announcing a “comprehensive plan” to increase awareness and understanding about the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, which requires patients to receive emergency medical care regardless of their ability to pay.
In July 2022, the HHS issued guidance that under the EMTALA, which was passed in 1986, doctors must perform abortions in emergency departments — even in states where the procedure is illegal — if the patient needs “stabilizing medical treatment” for an emergency medical condition.
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The administration’s new initiative will also include distributing resources about rights for patients and materials for health care providers about complying with federal requirements. It comes as the Supreme Court is set to hear a case about whether abortion care can be provided under the EMTALA.
The Supreme Court is also expected to review a lower court’s decision to restrict nationwide access to mifepristone, one of two abortion pills, which was approved by the FDA in 2000.
In the Monday announcement from the White House, the administration said the FDA and the Department of Justice would defend access to mifepristone before the court.
Separately, Vice President Kamala Harris is kicking off a series of abortion rights events, starting in Wisconsin on Monday, where she is expected to denounce a recent bill presented by Republican lawmakers to limit abortion after 14 weeks.
“Even as Americans — from Ohio to Kentucky to Michigan to Kansas to California — have resoundingly rejected attempts to limit reproductive freedom, Republican elected officials continue to push for a national ban and devastating new restrictions across the country,” Biden said Monday in a statement. “On this day and every day, Vice President Harris and I are fighting to protect women’s reproductive freedom.”
During a press briefing Monday, Jen Klein, director of the White House Gender Policy Council, said Biden has been urging Congress to restore federal protections for abortion.
“The president has been quite clear since Roe v. Wade was overturned, the ultimate solution is to pass federal national legislation to restore the protections in Roe, and we will continue to work to hope that Congress will pass that legislation so the president can sign it,” she said.
Since the Supreme Court’s decision, at least 16 states have ceased nearly all abortion services, according to an ABC News tally.
Arizona, Florida, Nebraska, North Carolina and Utah also have bans in place ranging from 12 weeks to 18 weeks, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a research group that studies sexual and reproductive rights.
(LOS ANGELES) — Nearly 30,000 professors, librarians and other employees in the California State University system are set to launch a five-day strike on Monday, potentially canceling classes for hundreds of thousands of students over the first week of the spring semester.
The worker protest follows months-long contract negotiations centered on pay increases and other workplace improvements for employees at the nation’s largest public university system, which serves about 460,000 students spread across 23 campuses.
Faculty members have demanded a 12% pay hike, a higher minimum salary and longer parental leave, among other demands, Charles Toombs, president of the California Faculty Association and a professor at San Diego State University, told ABC News.
“We need to be paid for the tremendous work we do to make the California State University System a great system,” Toombs told ABC News.
It remains unclear how many members will participate in the strike and, in turn, the extent of disruption for campus activities.
“I expect most of the classes on every campus to be canceled,” Toombs said, speaking on the phone as he picketed in the rain in San Diego on Monday. “There may be some individual faculty members who hold classes anyway but the majority of members are in favor of a strike.”
Ninety-five percent of union members voted in October to authorize a strike, after CSU stood by its offer of a 5% pay increase for faculty to go into effect on Jan. 31.
Last month, some faculty participated in one-day strikes at four CSU campuses in response to the standoff.
CSU did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
In a previous statement, Leora Freedman, the CSU’s vice chancellor for human resources, said the university system was forced to step aside from negotiations due to union intransigence.
“We have been in the bargaining process for eight months and the California Faculty Association has shown no movement, leaving us no other option,” Freedman told The Mercury News.
Toombs expressed optimism that the strike would help bring about an agreement this week.
If the two sides fail to reach a deal, however, the union would consider other labor actions, such as rolling strikes across different campuses or a request that faculty fulfill only the minimum amount of work.
“Nothing has been decided,” Toombs said. “Hopefully we’ll have a deal.”
On Friday, CSU reached a tentative contract agreement with more than 1,000 plumbers, electricians and other skilled trade workers who had otherwise planned to participate in the strike this week.
The tentative deal included guaranteed annual salary increases and the return of a salary-step system that codifies promotions, according to a statement from Teamsters Local 2010, which represents the workers.
“We achieved this historic agreement by standing together as Teamsters — and in solidarity with our sister Unions at CSU — to take powerful action like CSU has never seen before,” Teamsters Local 2010 Secretary-Treasurer Jason Rabinowitz said in a statement on Friday, encouraging union members to join the picket lines in support of striking faculty.
In a statement, CSU Chancellor Mildred García applauded the agreement.
“The work of our Teamsters-represented employees is invaluable, providing our students with an environment that supports their success,” García said.
“I am thankful and appreciative that we have been able to arrive at a fiscally sustainable agreement that fairly compensates them for their skilled and dedicated work,” she added.
(NEW YORK) — A Georgia judge has issued a stay of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ deposition in the the divorce case of her top prosecutor, amid allegations that she and prosecutor Nathan Wade were involved in an improper relationship while prosecuting the election interference case against former President Donald Trump.
The judge said that he will determine whether Willis has any relevant information after Wade is deposed in the divorce proceedings next week.
“The key part to me is whether [Willis] lacks unique personal knowledge or has unique personal knowledge of a matter that’s relevant to the subject matter,” the judge said in ordering the stay. “Only after I hear what Mr. Wade has to say can do I think I can make a determination about whether [Willis] has any unique knowledge about these issues.”
Willis’ deposition had been scheduled for Tuesday.
Michael Roman, one of Trump’s co-defendants in his Georgia election interference case, is seeking to dismiss the indictment against him and disqualify Willis, alleging she “engaged in a personal, romantic relationship” with one of the top prosecutors she brought in to work on the case, which allegedly resulted in financial gain for both of them.
At the start of Monday’s hearing, the judge — at the request of Ashleigh Merchant, the attorney for Roman who first filed the motion containing the allegations — ordered the divorce case between Wade and his wife be unsealed and made public.
The ruling came over the objections of Wade’s attorney, who argued that the “current status” of the case “clearly shows the harm that is done to these parties.”
The attorney for Wade’s wife consented to unsealing, saying they have “no objection.” A media coalition that includes ABC News also argued for the unsealing of the case.
Willis’ subpoena, according to court documents, was served on Willis the same day Roman filed allegations that she was having an improper relationship with Wade, who she brought in to help her prosecute the case against Trump. The filing alleges Wills “engaged in a personal, romantic relationship” with Wade, which allegedly resulted in financial gain for both of them.
Wade’s wife had asked the judge in her divorce case to enforce the subpoena in order to “determine details” surrounding Wade and Willis’ relationship. Her filing included credit card records that appear to show Wade paid for multiple trips to Miami and San Francisco for him and Willis during the election probe.
Willis’ attorney, Cinque Axam, told the judge during Monday’s hearing that Willis’ testimony is not relevant to the divorce case because it is a “no fault divorce.”
“Both parties have alleged that [the marriage] is irretrievably broken,” Axam said. “Alleging adultery is not relevant.”
The judge asked if Willis’ attorney was saying his client lacks “unique” personal knowledge that could not be discovered in some other way. Axam responded that, “The knowledge that she may or may not have is not unique.”
“Miss Willis does not share any accounts with [Wade], D.A. Willis does not determine what he spends his money on — no matter where it comes from,” Axam said.
Andrea Hastings, an attorney for Wade’s wife, argued in favor of the deposition.
“I have questions,” Hastings said more than once. “And she needs to answer them.”
Since the motion containing the allegations was filed earlier this month, a spokesperson for the DA’s office has issued only one statement, saying they would respond to the allegations “through appropriate court filings.”
Speaking last week at the Big Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church during a Martin Luther King Jr. Day service, Willis appeared to address the allegations for the first time, calling herself a “flawed” and “imperfect” person and defending Wade as a “great friend and a great lawyer.” She did not deny the allegations, though she suggested they were motivated by race.
The Fulton County judge overseeing the election interference case has set an evidentiary hearing on the allegations for next month and ordered the DA’s office to respond to the allegations in court by Feb. 2.
Trump’s attorney has said he is considering adopting Roman’s motion, which is seeking to have Willis disqualified from the case and the indictment dismissed.
Roman, Trump and 17 others pleaded not guilty in August 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. Four co-defendants subsequently took plea deals in exchange for agreeing to testify against other defendants.
(NEW YORK) — New Hampshire voters will choose between former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley and former President Donald Trump in the Republican primary on Tuesday. However, it’s still unclear whether their neighbors to the north, in Maine, will have a similar set of options when it comes time for them to vote. Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows ruled that Trump could not appear on Maine’s primary ballot due to a 14th Amendment ban on those who have engaged in insurrection from holding office.
The Supreme Court will weigh in on the matter in early February, but in the meantime we asked Granite Staters about their thoughts. According to a University of New Hampshire poll, 50 percent of New Hampshirites support Bellows’s decision, while 42 percent oppose it. Thirty-five percent said they understand the 14th Amendment provision very well, while 42 percent said they understand it only somewhat well.
The reasons New Hampshire residents gave for their views on Trump’s removal from Maine’s primary ballot ran the gamut. Those who opposed it said that Trump did not engage in insurrection, was not responsible for Jan. 6 and at the very least was not convicted of anything. Those who supported it still expressed some hesitation about the precedent set by taking a candidate off the ballot, but said the 14th Amendment outweighed those concerns.
(SOUTH BEND, Ind.) — A house fire in South Bend, Indiana, killed five children on Sunday evening, according to fire officials.
Crews responded to a residential fire at 222 North LaPorte Ave at approximately 6:15 p.m. local time. When they arrived, a two-story structure was engulfed in flames. South Bend firefighters said they found several victims trapped on the second floor of the building.
Six individuals were rescued from the home and five were later pronounced dead, officials said. The surviving victim was rushed to a local hospital and later airlifted to a specialized pediatric burn center in Indianapolis for further treatment. The ages of the victims are not currently known.
One adult was in the house at the time of the fire and was uninjured, fire officials told ABC News.
Amid the rescue efforts, one firefighter was injured after falling through the second floor and was transported to the hospital for treatment, according to officials. The firefighter is expected to make a full recovery, officials noted.
“While this incident casts a shadow of sorrow over our community, particularly due to the loss of young lives, it is also a poignant reminder of the courage and dedication displayed by the members of the South Bend Fire Department,” the department said in a statement.
“The firefighters of Engine 2, in their unyielding commitment to protect and serve, exhibited a profound disregard for their own safety in the face of extreme danger. Their actions reflect the highest ideals of selflessness and a citizens-first ethos, characteristics emblematic of the bravery inherent in our city’s first responders,” the statement continued.
The South Bend Fire Department said it is working with state and local authorities to investigate the cause of the fire.
(NEW YORK) — A Georgia judge is set to hear arguments on Monday over whether to enforce a subpoena issued to Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis as part of her top prosecutor’s divorce case, which she received amid allegations that she and the prosecutor were involved in an improper relationship while prosecuting the election interference case against former President Donald Trump.
Willis is seeking to quash the subpoena she received from the wife of special prosecutor Nathan Wade, in order to avoid her deposition in the case, which is set for Tuesday.
Willis claims in a court filing that her deposition would be “outside the scope of discovery” in the divorce matter and that it amounts to “attempt to harass and damage her professional reputation.”
“The sought after deposition of District Attorney Willis is not relevant to the subject matter involved in the pending action and should not be permitted,” the filing from Willis’s attorney said.
The subpoena, according to court documents, was served on Willis the same day a co-defendant in her case against Trump filed allegations that she was having an improper relationship with Wade, who she brought in to help her prosecute the case against Trump. The filing, from Trump co-defendant Michael Roman, alleges Wills “engaged in a personal, romantic relationship” with Wade, which allegedly resulted in financial gain for both of them.
Wade’s wife has asked the judge in her divorce case to enforce the subpoena in order to “determine details” surrounding Wade and Willis’ relationship. Her filing included credit card records that appear to show Wade paid for multiple trips to Miami and San Francisco for him and Willis during the election probe.
In her filing seeking to quash the subpoena, Willis claims that she “cannot provide unique personal knowledge” on matters relevant to the divorce because the marriage is ending on the grounds that it was “irretrievably broken.”
“Because the parties agree that the marriage is irretrievably broken and the concept of fault is not at issue, there is no information that District Attorney Willis could provide that might prove relevant to granting or denying the divorce,” the filing says. “Thus, any information sought from District Attorney Willis would be irrelevant to the divorce proceedings pending in this Court.”
Court filings allege the relationship between Willis and Wade began “while Wade was married” and that he filed for divorce “a day after his first contract with Willis commenced.”
The judge on Monday is also set to hear arguments from Ashleigh Merchant, the attorney for Roman who first filed the motion containing the allegations, who is seeking to have the divorce proceedings unsealed. A media coalition that includes ABC News is also set to argue for the unsealing of the case.
Since the motion containing the allegations was filed earlier this month, a spokesperson for the DA’s office has issued only one statement, saying they would respond to the allegations “through appropriate court filings.”
Speaking last week at the Big Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church during a Martin Luther King Jr. Day service, Willis appeared to address the allegations for the first time, calling herself a “flawed” and “imperfect” person and defending Wade as a “great friend and a great lawyer.” She did not deny the allegations, though she suggested they were motivated by race.
The Fulton County judge overseeing the election interference case has set an evidentiary hearing on the allegations for next month and ordered the DA’s office to respond to the allegations in court by Feb. 2.
Trump’s attorney has said he is considering adopting Roman’s motion, which is seeking to have Willis disqualified from the case and the indictment dismissed.
Roman, Trump and 17 others pleaded not guilty in August 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. Four co-defendants subsequently took plea deals in exchange for agreeing to testify against other defendants.
The U.S. military has ended an “exhaustive” 10-day search and rescue mission for two Navy SEALs who went missing on Jan. 11 in the waters of the Gulf of Aden and are now presumed deceased, according to a new statement from U.S. Central Command.
The military is conducting recovery operations for the service members, CENTCOM said Sunday night.
“We mourn the loss of our two Naval Special Warfare warriors, and we will forever honor their sacrifice and example. Our prayers are with the SEALs’ families, friends, the U.S. Navy, and the entire Special Operations community during this time,” Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla, CENTCOM’s commander, said in the statement.
Military officials said that the U.S., Japan and Spain used air and naval resources and “searched more than 21,000 square miles” for the missing SEALs, scouring the gulf off the coast of Somalia — to no avail.
“Out of respect for the families, no further information will be released at this time,” CENTCOM said.
The two SEALs went into water in mid-January during a nighttime boarding mission to interdict a dhow suspected of carrying Iranian-made weapons for Houthi militants in Yemen, military officials have said.
Dhows are small fishing or cargo vessels that are sometimes used by Iran to smuggle weapons.
As a small Navy craft approached the dhow on Jan. 11, one of the SEALs fell into rough waters and, following protocol, a second SEAL dove into the water in a rescue attempt, according to officials.
The rest of the SEALs continued with the mission on the dhow and seized Iranian-made ballistic and cruise missile parts and warheads similar to those being used by the Houthis in more than 30 attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, officials said.
The Houthis have said their attacks are in response to Israel’s bombardment of Gaza as the Israelis target Hamas fighters as retaliation for Hamas’ Oct. 7 terror attack.
For years, the U.S. Navy has intercepted dhows in the Gulf of Aden that are suspected of carrying Iranian-made weapons to the Houthis.
During these missions, boarding teams typically pull aside the dhows in small water craft to undertake a “flag verification” mission if the dhow is unflagged or has replaced its flag to mask its smuggling.
The seizure involving the SEALs was the first since the Houthis began their strikes, most of which have been repelled by U.S., French and British warships.
The SEALs were operating from the USS Lewis B Puller, an expeditionary sea base and converted freighter topped with landing decks for helicopters and capable of releasing small watercraft.
“In the wintertime, the sea state is typically 8-12 feet,” said Eric Oehlerich, an ABC News contributor and retired SEAL commander. “The horizon is flat, so 8-12 feet is 8 feet above the flat horizon — and then eight feet, it’s like a 16 foot wave.”
According to Oehlerich, those high-water conditions increase the risk to nighttime ship boardings, which are carried out in pitch-black darkness.
He described it as one of the most difficult missions that a SEAL can undertake, requiring constant training.
“You have the risk of your boat capsizing in close proximity to larger vessels, you have to establish a solid ladder point, you have to climb a ladder at night over the open ocean between two ships — they’re smashing into each other — and then get on board,” he said.
“And then your problem starts with what you’re going to do … with whomever is on board that boat,” he added.
The Jan. 11 seizure also marked the first time since November 2019 that the U.S. Navy has taken Iranian-made ballistic missile and cruise missile components believed to be headed for the Houthis.
The military said the 14 mariners aboard the dhow were taken off the vessel and are in U.S. custody, though their future status remains to be determined.
After they were taken off the dhow, the vessel was deemed unsafe and sunk by naval forces.
Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, is speaking out after revealing she has been diagnosed with malignant melanoma, her second cancer diagnosis within the past year.
“Naturally another cancer diagnosis has been a shock but I’m in good spirits and grateful for the many messages of love and support,” Ferguson wrote in an Instagram post Monday, adding, “I am resting with family at home now, feeling blessed to have their love and support.”
Ferguson — who was previously married to Prince Andrew and is the mother of their two daughters, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie — was diagnosed last summer with breast cancer, for which she underwent a mastectomy.
A spokesperson for the duchess said Sunday that Ferguson’s dermatologist requested several moles be “removed and analyzed” at the same time she was undergoing reconstructive surgery following her mastectomy.
One of the moles that was removed was “identified as cancerous,” according to the spokesperson.
“She is undergoing further investigations to ensure that this has been caught in the early stages,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “Clearly, another diagnosis so soon after treatment for breast cancer has been distressing but the duchess remains in good spirits.”
Ferguson said on Instagram that she hopes sharing her diagnosis will help encourage people to get checked for cancer.
“I believe my experience underlines the importance of checking the size, shape, colour and texture and emergence of new moles that can be a sign of melanoma and urge anyone who is reading this to be diligent,” she wrote.
What to know about melanoma
Melanoma is treated by surgically removing the primary tumor and surrounding normal tissue. Immunotherapy and other targeted therapy may also be used to treat advanced melanoma. The estimated 5-year survival for melanoma ranges from 99.5% for localized disease, to 31.9% for disease that has spread. Death rates have been declining largely due to advances in treatment.
Per the CDC, for every 100,000 people, 20 new cases of melanoma are reported each year, and two people die. It is the sixth most common cause of cancer in men and women. Over two-thirds of melanomas are diagnosed among adults 55 and older.
The USPSTF has found that the current evidence is inconclusive regarding screening asymptomatic adolescents and adults by visual skin examination. Those who have a suspicious skin lesion, or who have a familial syndrome, should be monitored more closely.
Avoiding sunburn and using sunscreen can reduce the risk of melanoma. Also avoiding UV exposure from tanning beds or other devices can also lower risk. Having another type of skin cancer, or breast or thyroid cancer increases your risk of melanoma.
Voters in New Hampshire will head to the polls and cast their ballots on Tuesday, weighing in on what looks to be the most competitive Republican primary race in the country.
According to 538’s polling averages, former President Donald Trump leads the pack with 49% support, former Amb. Nikki Haley follows with 34%, and before his exit on Sunday afternoon, Gov. Ron DeSantis had 5%. Trump has a double-digit lead in the Granite State, but it’s still a far closer race than what national polls show.
Haley’s competitiveness in the state comes down in large part to New Hampshire’s large population of politically unaffiliated voters who are allowed to cast a ballot in the Republican Primary. She performs better with that group than strictly Republican voters and also performs well with groups that make up a large segment of Granite State voters: people with a four-year college degree, older voters and moderates.
Ahead of the contest, ABC News sat down with Trump, DeSantis and Haley supporters to understand why they’re voting for their chosen candidate. A Haley supporter, who voted for Biden in 2020, said that if Haley does not win the primary, they will vote for President Joe Biden or independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. A Trump supporter said they were committed to voting for Trump in a hypothetical general election, even if he were convicted of a felony before Election Day.
Immigration was the number one issue for some of the voters in the election, while another said leadership qualities were most important to them. Though there were clear disagreements among the voters, they agreed they want what’s best for the country even if they disagree about how to get there.
Editor’s note: The interviews were conducted prior to DeSantis leaving the race on Sunday.
