(WASHINGTON) — The U.S. has launched a new retaliatory strike against Houthi targets in Yemen amid the group’s continued attacks on international ships in the area, officials said Wednesday.
Five areas were targeted in the U.S. strikes on Yemen: the governorates of Hodeidah, Taiz, Dhamar, Bayda, and Saada, the Sanaa-Saba press agency, the Houthi state media claimed.
CENTCOM said in a post on X Wednesday night that the strike targeted 14 Iranian-made Houthi missiles “that were loaded to be fired in Houthi controlled areas in Yemen.”
“These missiles on launch rails presented an imminent threat to merchant vessels and U.S. Navy ships in the region and could have been fired at any time, prompting U.S. forces to exercise their inherent right and obligation to defend themselves,” the statement continued.
Tomahawk cruise missiles used in the strike were launched from both U.S. Navy surface ships and a submarine, U.S. officials said.
Houthi state media blamed the U.S. and the U.K. for the attacks. The U.S. is the only country to have acknowledged the strike.
Wednesday’s strike came after a drone from the Houthi-controlled area in Yemen hit a U.S.-flagged carrier ship in the Gulf of Aden on Wednesday, U.S. Central Command previously confirmed.
No injuries were reported in that incident. The bulk carrier ship remains seaworthy although some damage has been reported, CENTCOM said.
In a statement late Wednesday night, the shipping company, Genco Shipping, confirmed the incident on its freighter, the M/V Genco Picardy as it transited through the Gulf of Aden. It was filled with a phospate rock cargo, the company said.
“All seafarers aboard the vessel are confirmed to be uninjured,” Genco said in a statement.
“An initial inspection by the crew indicates that damage to the vessel’s gangway is limited, and the vessel has remained stable and underway on a course out of the area,” the statement concluded.
The Company and vessel crew have remained in close contact with all relevant authorities.
As part of efforts to stop Iran-backed Houthi militants from attacking vital Middle Eastern shipping lanes, Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday announced the U.S. would once again classify the Yemeni rebel group as a terrorist organization. The State Department says the step will enable the U.S. to more effectively restrict the group’s access to financial support.
Blinken said that the restrictions and penalties linked to the designation would not take effect for 30 days, and that the delay was designed to ensure the flow of aid and commercial goods to Yemeni civilians is minimally impacted.
“The Houthis must be held accountable for their actions, but it should not be at the expense of Yemeni civilians,” Blinken said in a statement. “As the Department of State moves forward with this designation, we are taking significant steps to mitigate any adverse impacts this designation may have on the people of Yemen.”
Blinken also made clear that the decision could be reversed if Houthis ended their assault on maritime traffic.
“If the Houthis cease their attacks in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, the United States will reevaluate this designation,” he said.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump during a campaign event in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, U.S., on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024. (Adam Glanzman/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Former President Donald Trump’s convincing victory in Monday’s Iowa caucuses shows his continued strength among Republicans, and a new ABC News/Ipsos poll finds once more that Trump is both viewed nationwide as the candidate whom Republicans and Republican-leaning independents would be most satisfied with as their 2024 nominee as well as the highest-rated contender across a range of other attributes.
Three out of four Republican-leaning adults say they would be very or somewhat satisfied with Trump as the GOP’s presidential nominee, compared to 64% who say the same about Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and 50% for former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, Trump’s two remaining rivals in the nominating race.
Trump’s advantage tracks closely with the findings about Republicans who were interviewed as part of a more extensive ABC News poll conducted the week before the Iowa caucuses.
And much like Iowa entrance polls that indicated Trump was able to dominate among evangelical or born-again Christian voters in the state on Monday, he maintains a sizable advantage in that group’s assessments nationally as well. According to the new ABC News/Ipsos poll conducted using Ipsos’ KnowledgePanel, 74% of evangelicals or born-again Christians are somewhat or very satisfied with Trump. He has a stronger rating on this question than both Haley and DeSantis among this group.
Trump swept the Iowa caucuses on Monday, defeating the other candidates by historic margins and winning 51% of the vote: the first decisive win of the presidential primary season that establishes a high-stakes benchmark just days before the New Hampshire primary, which takes place on Tuesday and where Haley is hoping to eat into Trump’s margin of victory in order to fuel her own campaign.
DeSantis came in second in Iowa with 21% and Haley was in third place with 19%.
Despite DeSantis’ and Haley’s insistence that their showings in Iowa prove there is appetite among the GOP for a candidate whose name is not Trump — because 49% of caucusgoers voted for someone other than him — and that either of them would be stronger in one-on-one matchups against President Joe Biden, the ABC News/Ipsos poll finds that 80% of Republican-aligned adults view Trump as the candidate with the best chance of getting elected in November. One in 10 say Haley has the best chance, while 9% say the same of DeSantis.
Trump also has a wide lead in this poll over DeSantis and Haley on a range of other attributes. Republicans and GOP leaners see him as the top-choice candidate who best represents their personal values, is the strongest leader, best understands the problems of people like them and is best qualified to serve as president.
Trump’s advantage over DeSantis and Haley on these traits is similar to the ABC News/Ipsos poll conducted just prior to the Iowa caucuses, with one exception: The perception that Trump is the candidate with the best chance of getting elected in November has strengthened since his win in Iowa.
Trump also maintains a higher favorability rating than his opponents. In the new poll, 72% have a favorable impression of him, compared to 63% for DeSantis and 49% for Haley. These numbers are similar to right before the caucuses.
The former president is largely considered the front-runner in New Hampshire’s fast approaching contest, but Haley has cut into his lead considerably since the fall. According to 538’s polling average, she currently trails Trump in the state by about 13 points, 45.6-33.1%. That is in stark contrast to early November, when Trump dominated the field, leading by about 30 points.
Part of Haley’s boost came after well-received debate performances and after a key local endorsement — in December, New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu opted to support her over his friend, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. And her team has placed a big bet that independent voters in the state will rally on her behalf.
The importance of New Hampshire is reflected strongly in her campaign’s finances, with more than $26 million spent inundating the state with ads between her official campaign organization and her allied super PAC.
She’s also had an aggressive ground game, with 35 days recorded on the ground in the state and more than 50 events with voters, according to an ABC News analysis of events since February.
Even still, in his speech to Iowans on Monday evening, Trump made it clear he believes that GOP voters’ devotion in New Hampshire is strong enough to maintain his lead.
“So it’s now off to New Hampshire, a great place … they’re embarrassed by what’s going on. Our country is laughed at all over the world and laughing at us,” he said. “And they want our country to come back.”
METHODOLOGY – This ABC News/Ipsos poll was conducted using the probability-based Ipsos KnowledgePanel® January 16-17, 2024, in English and Spanish, among a random national sample of 1,480 Republicans and Republican-leaning independents, with an oversample of born-again Christians weighted to their correct proportion in the population. Results have a margin of sampling error of 2.8 points, including the design effect, for the full sample. Sampling error is not the only source of differences in polls. See the poll’s topline results and details on the methodology here.
(NEW YORK) — It may seem counterintuitive, but extreme cold blasts like the majority of the United States is currently experiencing will continue to occur even as global temperatures soar to record levels.
While research shows that a warming climate will bring more frequent and intense heat waves and fewer, less potent cold blasts, widespread freeze events will still occur, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Record low temperatures have been present in the past several days from the Plains to the Midwest and South.
Millions of residents in the U.S. as far south as Texas, Louisiana, Alabama and Florida saw bitter cold temperatures on Tuesday and Wednesday, with some regions experiencing temperatures in the single digits.
While some regions will experience a brief warmup on Thursday, another cold blast is expected for the end of the week.
Research from climate experts around the world has shown that more dramatic extremes in both hot and cold temperatures are a symptom of climate change.
The deadly deep freeze that caused a power grid crisis in Texas in 2021, has also been attributed to extreme weather patterns linked to global warming.
Record temperatures, both hot and cold, along with heat waves and cold blasts, are naturally a part of how the weather varies daily.
But over the past two decades, daily record highs are at least twice as frequent as daily cold records, according to data compiled by Climate Central, a nonprofit climate science news organization.
There are still cold spells and extremely cold days in a warming climate, but they are shorter and not as cold, according to Climate Central.
(ISLAMABAD and LONDON) — Pakistan carried out retaliatory airstrikes in Iran early Thursday, allegedly targeting militant positions amid rising tensions between the neighboring nations.
A Pakistani official told ABC News that Thursday’s strikes hit training camps belonging to Baluch insurgents in southeastern Iran, near the border with Pakistan. About seven locations were targeted and at least seven people were killed, according to preliminary information.
The Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a statement describing Thursday’s action as a “series of highly coordinated and specifically targeted precision military strikes against terrorist hideouts in Sistan-o-Baluchistan province of Iran.”
“A number of terrorists were killed during the Intelligence-based operation – codenamed ‘Marg Bar Sarmachar,'” the ministry said. “This action is a manifestation of Pakistan’s unflinching resolve to protect and defend its national security against all threats.”
The ministry noted that “Iran is a brotherly country and the people of Pakistan have great respect and affection for the Iranian people.” Islamabad has “always emphasized dialogue and cooperation in confronting common challenges including the menace of terrorism and will continue to endeavor to find joint solutions.” according to the ministry.
Thursday’s attacks came in response to Iranian airstrikes in Pakistan on Tuesday, targeting what Tehran described as bases for the Sunni separatist group Jaish al-Adl. Tuesday’s strikes killed two children and injured three others in southwestern Pakistan’s Baluchistan province, near the border with Iran, according to the Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which called the attacks an “unprovoked violation of its airspace.
Iran also conducted airstrikes in Iraq and Syria late Monday in response to a suicide bombing that killed more than 90 people earlier this month, for which the Sunni militant group Islamic State claimed responsibility.
Tensions were already high in the Middle East amid Israel’s ongoing war with Hamas in the neighboring Gaza Strip and growing fears that it could spread into a regional war.
In this Nov. 7, 2023 file photo Duane Keith “Keffe D” Davis looks on as he appears in Clark County District Court in Las Vegas. (Steve Marcus-Pool/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — In a newly obtained audio recording of a jailhouse phone call from the man charged with orchestrating the killing of Tupac Shakur, suspect Duane “Keffe D” Davis and his son can be heard discussing what prosecutors allege was a plot to harm their cooperating witnesses.
In a portion of the two-minute and 16-second audio recording, obtained by ABC News affiliate KTNV-TV, Davis can be heard in a conversation with his son, in which the term “green light” is used.
Prosecutors have claimed in court documents that “in [Davis’] world, a ‘green light’ is an authorization to kill.” which “caused enough concern that the Federal Government stepped in and provided resources to at least [one witness] so he could change his residence.”
On the call, Davis’ son can be heard saying he’s “got some s— to tell” his father.
“About what?” Davis asks.
“A bunch of some s— that’s going on,” his son replies.
When asked, “Where?” his son responds, “Around the city.”
“They talking about [inaudible] it’s a green light – talking about the, uh, our side,” his son adds.
“Our side? It’s a green light on our side?” Davis asks.
“Yeah, that’s what he told him, he said n—-, we was raised in war, we don’t give a f—,” his son answers.
“For wha – for this here?” Davis asks.
“B-Rue, yea … he’s saying that ‘it’s on,'” his son answers.
“Aw …” Davis responds.
Prosecutors included a partial transcript of the October call in their argument against Davis’ request for bail, as ABC previously reported.
Davis, through his lawyers, continues to deny the allegations.
ABC News was first to report that authorities are investigating Davis’ jail calls — and specifically, this one.
In their court filings and in comments to ABC News, Davis’ attorneys say prosecutors have misconstrued what was said on that call — that Davis was never planning to put a hit out on those cooperating in the case against him — rather, there was concern about word on the street that his own family was in danger.
In a statement to ABC News Wednesday regarding the audio, Davis’ lawyers held firm to that explanation of Davis’ communications.
“It is clear that in the phone call, our client Mr. Davis does not threaten any witnesses whatsoever,” Charles Cano and Robert Arroyo, chief deputy special public defenders for Clark County, told ABC News. “Our interpretation of that phone call is that his son was warning him about a threat towards him and / or his family.”
Davis, 60, currently remains in the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas, where he’s been held since his arrest on Sept. 29, 2023 in connection with Shakur’s murder. His trial date is set for June 3. He has pleaded not guilty.
Judge Carli Kierny set Davis’ bail at $750,000 last week — a sum far above what his lawyers had asked for in advocating for his release to house arrest, pending trial.
His lawyers had asked that their client be allowed to await trial while on house arrest — or that bail not exceed $100,000 — claiming their client is not a threat to the community nor a flight risk.
Shakur was killed in a Las Vegas drive-by shooting on Sept. 7, 1996 — a crime that has become one of the most infamous unsolved murders in modern American history.
Prosecutors allege that Davis was a feared gang member back in the 1990s and was the “shot caller” on the night when Shakur was gunned down while in the passenger seat of a stopped car by the Vegas Strip. According to prosecutors, Davis is now willing to play “shot caller” once again as he stands charged in connection with Tupac’s murder, and so he should remain locked up.
Davis’ own words have been crucial in the case against him. In his memoir and in interviews over the years, Davis has admitted to playing a key part in Tupac’s killing. His defense team says prosecutors have relied on testimony from witnesses “with questionable credibility” and excerpts from Davis’ book, which they say could have been penned by his co-author. Interviews Davis himself gave detailing his role in the shooting were “never verified” for their “truthfulness,” his lawyers said, adding that Davis’ media admissions were “done for entertainment purposes” and for financial gain.
In setting Davis’ high bail, Judge Kierny noted although no “explicit” threat was made on Davis’ jail calls, “they do cause the court concern.”
“When we talk about the nature and the seriousness of danger to any victims or other people in this case, as the state has indicated, this could be very high,” Judge Kierny said. “I don’t believe that the FBI is stepping in and providing coverage or assistance for people in situations where they don’t think it’s a credible threat.”
(ORLANDO, Fla.) — Over a hundred people came together for a candlelight vigil after 9-year-old Elyas Amyr Marshall-Rodriguez was killed after crawling under an Orange County school bus earlier this week.
Witnesses told affiliate ABC News’ Orlando affiliate WFTV that the 9-year-old boy got off the bus Tuesday afternoon and, as he was walking away from the bus, he dropped his football when he crawled under the bus to get it and the vehicle began moving.
Marshall-Rodriguez was in remission for leukemia when he was killed on Tuesday after being diagnosed at 2 years old, according to his family who spoke at his vigil.
“He was the life of the party,” said Trenae Gayle, Elyas’ cousin. “He loved football, he loved basketball, he loved all sports.”
Principal Erin Willis of Lawton Chiles Elementary, the school that Marshall-Rodriguez attended, issued a statement on social media following his death.
“I know I speak for our entire community when I express the terrible grief we are all feeling. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family as they go through this extremely difficult time,” Willis said. “We will have grief counselors on campus … for as long as we need them for any student or staff member who needs to speak with someone. Please keep our students and staff in your thoughts at this very difficult time. Thank you for your support.
The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating the accident and the investigation is currently ongoing.
(WASHINGTON) — Congressional leaders left the White House on Wednesday seemingly still at odds over how to break the logjam over Ukraine aid and U.S. border policy.
President Joe Biden hosted top lawmakers for more than an hour to discuss his $106 billion supplemental request that would include roughly $61 billion in military assistance to Ukraine as it fights Russia’s invasion.
The bill, which also includes aid for Israel and Taiwan as well as $14 billion for border security, has been stalled amid fierce debate over immigration policy as House Republicans demand stricter protocols on asylum and parole.
Leaving the meeting, House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters, “We understand that all these things are important, but we must insist, we must insist that the border be the top priority.”
“We understand that there’s concern about the safety, security and sovereignty of Ukraine but the American people have those same concerns about our own domestic sovereignty and our safety and our security,” he said.
Schumer countered that both Ukraine and the border need to be addressed at the same time.
“The president himself said over and over again that he is willing to move forward on [the] border. And so we said we have to do both,” Schumer said.
The Senate Democratic leader added, “The only way we will do border and Ukraine, or even either of them, is bipartisan. You cannot, cannot do things with one party in a divided Congress. Any party that says, ‘Do it my way or no way’, we’re not going to get anything done.”
A White House readout of the meeting called the need for Ukraine aid “urgent.”
“In the meeting, President Biden underscored the importance of Congress ensuring Ukraine has the resources it needs — including air defense and artillery capabilities — to defend itself against Russia’s brutal invasion. The President discussed the strategic consequences of inaction for Ukraine, the United States, and the world. He was clear: Congress’s continued failure to act endangers the United States’ national security, the NATO Alliance, and the rest of the free world,” the White House statement said.
Ahead of the meeting, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the meeting would center on Ukraine.
“That’s what we’re gonna focus on in this discussion,” Kirby told reporters at the daily briefing. “And as the speaker knows quite well, we continue to negotiate in good faith in a bipartisan way with the Senate, Republicans and Democrats up there on Capitol Hill, about the national security supplemental and which obviously includes money for border security.”
Kirby said that could include sharing some classified material with the lawmakers to help demonstrate the “desperate, urgent need” for weapons and other capabilities to be provided to Ukraine.
It’s been more than a year since Congress approved major funding for the war-torn Eastern European nation, and the administration has said it is quickly running out of funds to continue providing aid to Ukraine.
Describing the White House meeting, Schumer said there was an “understanding that if we don’t come to Ukraine’s aid, that the consequences for America and around the globe would be nothing short of devastating.”
Johnson said while House Republicans “understand the necessity about Ukraine funding” they still have questions about Ukraine’s “strategy and endgame.”
Biden’s requested supplemental national security package sets aside $14 billion for border policies, including the hiring of more than 1,000 additional border patrol agents and asylum officers. It also includes $1.2 billion to combat the flow of fentanyl.
But Republicans are demanding more sweeping changes to U.S. immigration policy, pointing to the influx of migrants at the southwest border.
Negotiations have been going on for months, and were carried on throughout the holiday recess by a bipartisan group of senators.
Heading into the meeting with Biden, Schumer and McConnell gave a brief update on where things stand.
McConnell said the supplemental package could go up for a vote in the Senate as soon as next week.
“This is a unique opportunity to accomplish something in divided government that wouldn’t be there under unified,” McConnell said. “I keep reminding my members that if we had a 100% Republican government — the president, House, Senate — we probably would not be able to get a single Democratic vote to pass what Senator Lankford and the administration are trying to get together.”
Schumer said he wouldn’t make promises on timing for a vote but said they were “making good progress.”
But Johnson has only grown more insistent that the House should not accept the Senate’s work, and instead has pointed to H.R. 2, a House-Republican backed bill filled with border policies the Democratic-controlled Senate wouldn’t support and that the White House would likely veto.
“We have talked about the necessary elements to solve this problem,” Johnson said outside the White House.
“We passed our bill and it has critical elements. It’s a historic restoration of the ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy, it is the end of catch and release, it is reforms to the broken asylum and parole systems. We’re not insistent upon a particular name of a piece of legislation, but we are insistent that the elements have to be meaningful,” he said.
Former President Donald Trump speaks at his caucus night event at the Iowa Events Center, Jan. 15, 2024 in Des Moines, Iowa. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Former President Donald Trump is on trial this week in New York City to determine whether he will have to pay former Elle magazine columnist E. Jean Carroll additional damages for defaming her in 2019 when he denied her allegations of sexual assault.
Last year, in a separate trial, a jury determined that Trump was liable for sexually assaulting Carroll in the dressing room of a Manhattan department store in the 1990s, and that he defamed her in a 2022 social media post by calling her allegations “a Hoax and a lie” and saying “This woman is not my type!”
Trump has denied all wrongdoing and has said he doesn’t know who Carroll is.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Jan 17, 4:53 PM
Carroll agrees she did not shy away from publicity
E. Jean Carroll conceded on cross-examination that she anticipated “blowback” would follow the publication of her rape allegation against then-President Trump, and that she did not shy away from publicity that she now says has shattered her reputation.
“You’ve continued to publicize every lawsuit you had against President Trump?” defense attorney Alina Habba asked.
“Yes,” Carroll responded. “Because I wanted people to know that a woman can speak up and win a trial. I wanted people to know. I’m 80. I don’t want to be quiet. It’s not right to make a woman be quiet. It has gone on for too long.”
The defense has been trying to portray Carroll as an attention-loving woman who is overplaying her emotional accounts of how the backlash following her rape accusation affected her.
Carroll also said under questioning that she hosted watch parties in her lawyer’s office that were attended by comedian Kathy Griffin and Trump’s niece Mary Trump, both of whom are critics of the former president.
“Isn’t Kathy Griffin known for holding up a severed head of President Trump?” Habba asked.
“Yes,” Carroll said.
Court subsequently adjourned for the day, with Carroll scheduled to return to the witness stand on Thursday for additional cross-examination.
Trump indicated he would be making remarks to the press later this afternoon.
Jan 17, 4:24 PM
Judge promptly rejects defense request for mistrial
In the middle of E. Jean Carroll’s cross-examination, former President Trump’s defense attorney Alina Habba sought a mistrial, which the judge promptly denied.
Habba was questioning Carroll about threatening emails she said she received. Carroll said she deleted many of those messages because “I didn’t know how to handle death threats. I thought deleting them was the easiest way to get them out of my life.”
When Carroll said she had deleted some messages around the time of her earlier trial involving Trump, Habba asked for a mistrial, saying, “The witness has just admitted to deleting evidence herself.”
Judge Kaplan immediately denied the request and said, “The jury will disregard everything Ms. Habba just said.”
Habba also questioned whether Carroll received disparaging messages after publishing her account of the sexual assault at Bergdorf Goodman, but before Trump issued his denial.
“Some of the slime happened before the president issued his statement?” Habba asked.
“No,” Carroll responded. “Because they were reacting to the White House statement.”
Asked how she knew, Carroll said, “Because of the wording,” prompting Habba to say, “So a denial from the White House would mean that any statement echoing it would be President Trump’s fault?”
Jan 17, 2:46 PM
Cross-examination of Carroll stumbles at the start
The direct examination of E. Jean Carroll ended with her telling the jury she would “never get used to attacks” like the ones she has continued to endure from former President Trump and his followers.
“Was he posting about you as recently as yesterday? Carroll’s attorney Roberta Kaplan asked regarding Trump.
“That’s what I’ve been told,” Carroll answered before she was shown a Truth Social post from Tuesday, during the lunch break, in which Trump called the trial a “fake case from a woman I’ve never met, seen or touched.”
The cross-examination of Carroll began on a discordant note when defense attorney Alina Habba tried to confront Carroll with some of her testimony from an earlier deposition.
There was a dispute over whether Habba had properly told the judge which part of the deposition she intended to introduce.
“We’re going to do it my way, Ms. Habba,” Judge Kaplan said.
“Sure,” Habba replied, abandoning that line of questioning.
Jan 17, 2:01 PM
Judge denies defense motion for him to recuse himself
Following the a lunch break, the defense team made an immediate motion for Judge Kaplan to recuse himself from the trial because of the “general hostility” defense attorney Michael Madaio said the judge has shown toward Trump’s side.
Kaplan responded with a single word: “Denied.”
Carroll is now returning to the witness stand to continue her testimony.
Jan 17, 1:17 PM
‘You can’t control yourself,’ judge admonishes Trump
At the lunch break, Judge Lewis Kaplan threatened to boot former President Trump from the courtroom if he continues to make side comments within earshot of the jury.
The warning came after E. Jean Carroll’s attorney Shawn Crowley complained for a second time about Trump’s comments.
“The defendant has been making statements that we can hear at counsel table,” she said, quoting Trump as saying, “It is a witch hunt” and “It really is a con job.”
When a video of Trump disparaging E. Jean Carroll was played for the court, Crowley said Trump remarked, “It’s true.”
Judge Kaplan, in response, addressed the defense from the bench.
“Mr. Trump has the right to be present here. That right can be forfeited and it can be forfeited if he is disruptive, which is what has been reported to me,” the judge said. “Mr. Trump, I hope I don’t have to consider excluding you from the trial.”
“I understand you are probably very eager for me to do that,” the judge added, to which Trump threw his up his arms and said, “I would love it, I would love it.”
“I know you would, because you can’t control yourself in this circumstance,” Kaplan replied. “You just can’t.”
Jan 17, 12:38 PM
Carroll says she’s always on ‘hyper alert’ due to threats
Ever since then-President Trump defamed her in June of 2019, E. Jean Carroll told the jury, she has been inundated with threats of physical and sexual violence.
In one message, Carroll said of the sender: “He wants me to stick a gun in my mouth in pull the trigger.”
Another message said, “I hope someone really does attack, rape and murder you.”
When another message was displayed for the jury, Carroll said, “I’m sorry people in the courtroom have to see this.” Her attorney, Roberta Kaplan, replied, “I’m sorry to have to ask you about it, Ms. Carroll.”
The message said, “i will rape u e jean carroll.”
Carroll described her visceral reaction to these messages. “The body believes it’s going to happen,” she said. “It feels like it’s going to happen.”
Carroll said she now lives her life on “hyper alert” for potential threats in and around her home in upstate New York.
“I have a pit bull rescue. He’s a great dog, but I never, never had him off the leash. When the first threats came in, I let him off the leash and he now patrols,” Carroll said. “I alerted the neighbors to be on the watch and I bought bullets for the gun I had inherited from my father.”
“Where do you keep that gun?” Kaplan asked. “By my bed,” Carroll responded.
Jan 17, 12:00 PM
Judge instructs Trump to keep his voice down
Former President Trump has been making side commentary during E. Jean Carroll’s testimony within earshot of the jury, Carroll’s lawyer complained during a break in the proceedings, outside the jury’s presence.
“Mr. Trump is sitting at the back table and has been loudly saying things” like “‘Carroll’s statements are false’ and ‘she now seems to have gotten her memory back,'” the attorney, Shawn Crowley, told Judge Kaplan.
Sitting at the defense table, Trump has been seen scoffing, chuckling, and encouraging his attorney, Alina Habba, to interject during the proceedings. He has been visibly shaking his head at some of what Carroll asserts on the witness stand.
When, earlier, Judge Kaplan denied the defense’s request for an adjournment and instructed Habba to “sit down,” Trump was heard saying, “He is a very nasty guy.”
During Carroll’s testimony in which she said she interpreted Trump’s remark that “she’s not my type” to mean “I’m too ugly to assault,” Trump was heard laughing after the judge overruled a defense objection.
Before the jury returned to the courtroom, Judge Kaplan addressed Trump’s side comments and instructed him to “take special care” to keep his voice down when conferring with counsel, “so that the jury does not overhear it.”
Jan 17, 11:35 AM
Trump ‘ended the world that I had been living in,’ Carroll says
Recounting her response when Trump denied her rape claim in 2019, Carroll said that when Trump said “she’s not my type,” she interpreted it to mean “I’m too ugly to assault.”
“What did it feel like to have the President of the United States say those things about you?” her attorney Roberta Kaplan asked.
“To have the President of the United States, one of the most powerful persons on Earth, calling me a liar for three days and saying I’m a liar 26 times — I counted them — it ended the world that I had been living in. And I entered a new world,” Carroll responded as Trump sat at the defense table. “I was attacked. I was attacked on Twitter, I was attacked on Facebook, I was attacked in news blogs, I was attacked, brutally attacked, in messages.”
The jury saw some of those messages, which mimicked Trump’s statements, calling her “lying old hag” or saying “shame on you and your lying I-hate-Trump story.”
Carroll testified that the messages started instantly and have not stopped. She said she sometimes receives “scores and scores, sometimes hundreds a day.”
Jan 17, 11:25 AM
Carroll says she’s paid ‘as dearly as is possible to pay’
“I’ve paid just about as dearly as is possible to pay,” E. Jean Carroll testified about her life after then-President Trump fiercely denied her rape claim in a series of defamatory statements in 2019.
When New York magazine, on June 21, 2019, published an excerpt of Carroll’s book that included her allegation that Trump raped her in a department store dressing room, she testified that she expected him to respond.
“I expected him to deny it but to say it was consensual, which it was not, but that’s what I expected him to say,” Carroll testified.
“Is that what he did?” her attorney Roberta Kaplan asked. “No,” Carroll answered.
According to a reporter’s Tweet from 5:17 p.m. on June 21, 2019, which was shown in court, Trump responded to the allegation by saying, “I’ve never met this person in my life.”
“That is a lie,” Carroll said. “He said I made up an accusation to sell a book. That is a lie. He said I made up the accusation for publicity’s sake. That is a lie. He said my accusation damaged the real victims of sexual assault. That is a lie.”
Carroll read additional statements by Trump reacting to her allegation.
“He said people like me, who make false accusations, are very dangerous, in very dangerous territory, that I shouldn’t have done it for the sake of publicity. That is also a lie,” Carroll said.
Jan 17, 10:32 AM
Carroll takes the stand as Trump looks on
Eight months after a jury determined that former President Trump was liable for sexually assaulting and defaming E. Jean Carroll, the former magazine columnist is back on the witness stand this morning — this time with Trump in attendance.
“I’m here because Donald Trump assaulted me and, when I wrote about it, he lied and he shattered my reputation,” Carroll told the jury after taking the stand. “Yesterday I opened up Twitter and it said ‘Hey lady, you’re a fraud.'”
The courtroom seating arrangement, with Carroll on the witness stand and Trump looking on from the defense table, brings the two of them face-to-face after they appeared to avoid eye contact during the trial’s first day Tuesday.
Jan 17, 10:24 AM
‘I said sit down,’ judge admonishes Trump attorney
The start of former President Trump’s defamation trial this morning was delayed briefly by a juror transportation issue.
As proceedings got underway, outside the jury’s presence, a tense exchange unfolded between the judge and defense attorney Alina Habba, who again repeated a request to adjourn the trial on Thursday so Trump can attend the funeral of former first lady Melania Trump’s mother, Amalija Knavs.
“I am asking your honor to have the kindness that my client deserves,” Habba said to Judge Lewis Kaplan, who has already twice denied the defense’s request to postpone the trial due to Thursday’s funeral.
Kaplan, interrupting Habba, said, “Indeed Ms. Habba, the right that he has according to the Supreme Court of the United States is to be present either in person or through counsel.”
Habba persisted, with Trump looking on, prompting the judge to instruct her to “sit down” and make no further argument.
“I said sit down,” Kaplan said.
“I don’t like to be spoken to that way,” Habba responded. “I am asking your honor to please refrain from speaking to me that way. I am asking for an adjournment.”
“It’s denied. Sit down,” Kaplan said.
Jan 17, 9:32 AM
Trump arrives at courthouse
Former President Trump has arrived at Manhattan federal court for Day 2 of his defamation damages trial.
His motorcade pulled up to the courthouse at around 9:15 a.m. ET.
Jan 17, 7:37 AM
Carroll set to testify as first witness
Donald Trump is expected to be in the courtroom this morning when E. Jean Carroll takes the stand to testify about how the then-president’s defamatory denial of her sexual assault allegations in 2019 upended her life.
Trump “unleashed his followers to go after her online” after Carroll went public with her allegations, damaging her reputation as a writer and making her feel unsafe in her own home, Carroll’s attorney Shawn Crowley told the jury in her opening statement yesterday.
“Ms. Carroll bought bullets for the gun that she inherited from her father, and she now sleeps with it right beside her bed. She checks her surroundings every time she leaves her house or gets out of her car,” Crowley said. “She’s afraid — afraid that someday, somebody is going to make good on their threats and come after her in person.”
Despite sitting feet from each other in the courtroom yesterday, Carroll and Trump avoided eye contact and never interacted during the first day of the trial. However, when Carroll takes the stand to testify this morning, she will speak directly in front of the counsel table where Trump is seated.
Jan 16, 8:30 PM
Trump expected to attend trial Wednesday, sources say
Former President Trump, who was campaigning in New Hampshire Tuesday evening, is expected to return to New York to attend the second day of his defamation trial on Wednesday, sources tell ABC News.
Trump is then scheduled to return to New Hampshire later Wednesday.
Jan 16, 6:02 PM
Trial is ‘straight out of banana republic,’ says Trump attorney
Donald Trump’s legal counsel Boris Epshteyn briefly spoke to reporters outside court at the conclusion of Tuesday’s proceedings, calling the trial “straight out of [a] banana republic.”
“Manhattan is 90-95% Democrat,” Epshteyn said, despite voter registration records showing the borough is about 70% Democratic. “Does anybody think the President will get a fair trial here? Absolutely not,” he said.
Despite a jury last year finding Trump liable for sexually abusing Carroll, Epshteyn alleged that Carroll is making “false accusations.”
“President Trump has consistently stated that he did not commit the allegation and did not commit the acts that the plaintiff alleges. He has been steadfast in that. And it is right to defend himself from false accusations,” Epshteyn said.
Epshteyn declined to comment on whether Trump plans to attend court tomorrow.
Carroll did not speak to reporters when she left court.
Jan 16, 4:52 PM
Carroll seeking a ‘windfall’ over ‘mean Tweets,’ Trump attorney says
E. Jean Carroll is looking for a “windfall” over a series of “mean Tweets from Twitter trolls,” Trump attorney Alina Habba said during the defense’s opening statement, in which Habba sought to cast doubt on the severity of the alleged harm Carroll said she endured.
Habba told the jury they do not have to believe Carroll’s account of how she has suffered as a result of Trump’s defamatory statements.
“Her career has prospered and she has been thrust back into the limelight like she has always wanted,” Habba said, accusing Carroll of using her story “to obtain as much fame and notoriety as possible.”
The defense framed Carroll’s lawsuit as nothing more than an attempt to shake down Trump for money over scores of critical Tweets that have nothing to do with the defamatory statements by Trump that are at issue in the trial.
“She expects you as the jury to give her an award for every negative comment that was thrown her way,” Habba said. “She is looking for you to give her a windfall because some people on social media said mean things about her.”
Habba showed a photo of Carroll in the company of Trump critic Kathy Griffin and said Carroll is close with another critic of the former president, his niece Mary Trump.
“This is someone who craves fame and seeks fame wherever she can get it,” Habba said. “She got what she wanted.”
The proceedings were dismissed for the day after both sides concluded their opening statements. The trial will resume Wednesday with the first witness in the case.
Jan 16, 4:00 PM
Trump ‘unleashed his followers,’ Carroll’s attorney says
Donald Trump’s lies about E. Jean Carroll “unleashed his followers to go after her,” and as Trump campaigns for president he “continues to lie about Ms. Carroll,” Carroll’s attorney said in her opening statement.
“How much money will it take to make him stop?” Carroll’s attorney, Shawn Crowley, said. “He kept up those very same lies even after a federal jury sat in this courtroom and unanimously found that he sexually assaulted her and defamed her.”
Crowley reminded the jury that Trump “was president when he made those statements and he used the world’s biggest microphone to humiliate her” — the result of which was that he “wrecked” Carroll’s reputation in a matter of days, Crowley said.
“Donald Trump’s response was swift and brutal,” Crowley said. “Donald Trump did not just deny the assault. He went much, much further.”
She quoted Trump’s statements from June 22, 2019: “‘People should pay dearly for making up accusations” about him.
Crowley also quoted Trump saying “she’s not my type” on that day in 2019. “In other words, she was too ugly to assault. She must have been lying because she was too unattractive for Mr. Trump to sexually assault,” Crowley said.
Carroll, who is now 80, sat at the plaintiff’s table as her attorney showed the jury messages Trump’s followers posted calling her ugly and urging her to kill herself.
“When Donald Trump called Ms. Carroll a fraud and a liar, they listened and they believed and they decided to go after her,” Crowley said. “Donald Trump knew exactly what he was unleashing.”
Jan 16, 3:40 PM
‘This is not a do-over,’ judge instructs jury
Judge Lewis Kaplan told the nine jurors that they must accept as true that Trump forcibly sexually assaulted E. Jean Carroll and defamed her when he denied it.
“Ms. Carroll did not make up her claim of forcible sexual abuse,” Judge Kaplan told the panel. “His false statements tended to disparage Ms. Carroll or tended to expose her to hatred or to induce an unsavory opinion of her.”
The judge made it clear the jury was only determining damages related to two defamatory statements Trump made in June 2019 when he denied Carroll’s rape allegation. He said the trial was not an opportunity to re-litigate the prior trial, in which a jury found Trump liable for defamation and sexual assault.
“This trial is not a do-over of the previous trial which determined those facts,” Kaplan said.
Jan 16, 3:18 PM
Trump departs before opening statements
Former President Trump has departed Manhattan federal court prior to the delivery of opening statements in his defamation damages trial.
Trump voluntarily showed up to court for jury selection this morning, and did not return after the lunch break. He has a campaign event scheduled later today in New Hampshire.
His attorney suggested Trump would return to court for at least part of tomorrow’s proceedings, when E. Jean Carroll is expected to be the first witness.
The jury has been sworn in, with opening statements to begin following instructions from the judge.
Jan 16, 2:08 PM
2 election deniers don’t make cut as jury is seated
A jury of nine has been selected to hear the evidence in the case.
One juror is a married father of two grown children who works in the subway system. and said he is an avid local news viewer. Another juror is a German native who emigrated to the United States and said she does not watch the news.
The jury also includes a newlywed who works in property management and gets his news from social media, a woman with a master’s degree who works as a publicist for a tech firm, and a single man who works in television.
Two people who said they believed that the election was stolen from Donald Trump by President Joe Biden did not make the jury. Nor did a man who said he believed Trump was being treated unfairly by the United States court system.
Opening arguments will begin follow the lunch break. As they exited the courtroom, Trump and Carroll came within feet of each other but appeared to ignore one another.
Jan 16, 12:11 PM
Prospective jurors questioned about political leanings
Former President Trump has been twisting and turning in his seat at the defense table as prospective jurors answer the judge’s questions about their political affiliations, voting habits, campaign donations, and any experience with sexual assault — and whether they ever watched The Apprentice or read E. Jean Carroll’s advice column in Elle magazine.
As another columnist was known to say, “Only in New York, kids.”
One prospective juror, number 68, affirmed that he donated to Trump’s campaign, followed him on social media, and believed that the 2020 election was stolen from Trump by President Joe Biden.
Prospective juror 63 was excused after he said that his knowledge of Trump’s criminal indictments — of which there are four that the former president is currently facing — would impact his ability to be fair and impartial.
The majority of prospective jurors signaled they were registered to vote, prompting the judge to ask if they had voted in 2016 and 2020. Trump turned to look at those who answered in the affirmative.
Three prospective jurors said they had donated to Trump’s campaign. Eleven said they donated to either the Obama, Clinton or Biden campaigns. At least ten watched The Apprentice.
Jan 16, 11:32 AM
Judge explains case to prospective jurors
Judge Kaplan explained the case to prospective jurors, saying, “Ms. Carroll sued Mr. Trump for defamation for certain statements he made” shortly after she publicly accused him of raping her.
“This trial is limited to the issue of the money damages, if any, that Ms. Carroll should receive for those publications. The reason that’s so is that the court determined in a previous decision that Mr. Trump is liable,” Kaplan said. “It has been determined already that Mr. Trump did sexually assault Ms. Carroll.”
To whittle down the jury pool, Kaplan began with this question: “Having heard what you have heard about this case so far, would you be unable to give both sides a fair trial and to decide this case solely on the basis of the evidence you hear during this trial and the instructions I give you?”
Three prospective jurors were immediately excused for signaling they could not be fair.
One woman said she worked for Ivanka Trump’s company from 2017 to 2018. “Would that experience have any effect on your ability to be fair and impartial to both sides in this case?” Judge Kaplan asked regarding her connection to Trump’s eldest daughter. “No,” the woman replied.
After the judge asked if anyone else had worked for Trump or his family, a man indicated he was an officer in the U.S. Navy while Trump was commander in chief. The man said it would have no impact on his ability to be fair.
Jan 16, 11:23 AM
Prospective jurors enter courtroom to begin selection process
As prospective jurors filed into the courtroom for jury selection, Donald Trump surveyed the group. One woman appeared to smile upon recognizing Trump. A man leaned forward and appeared to stare for several seconds.
“You’ve been summoned for possible service in a civil case,” Judge Kaplan said before introducing the plaintiff and defendant. “This case is between a writer, advice columnist E. Jean Carroll, and former President Donald Trump,” he said.
Jurors were told the case is expected to last three to five days and that they would sit through Thursday and, if necessary, return on Monday. They were also told they will be anonymous.
“That means neither your names nor the names of the jurors who are ultimately selected will be made public,” Judge Kaplan said. He had earlier cited Trump’s rhetoric as among the reasons for the anonymous jury.
Jurors will assemble daily at an off-site location and be driven to court under guard, the judge said.
“This is for your own protection. As you may understand, this case has attracted media attention and that’s likely to continue,” Kaplan said.
Jan 16, 10:40 AM
Layout of courtroom has Trump sitting 2 tables behind Carroll
Unlike courtrooms where the counsel tables are arranged side by side, the counsel tables in the courtroom this morning are arranged behind one another, with Trump and his attorneys seated two tables behind Carroll and her counsel.
Trump appeared to take note of that arrangement when he entered the courtroom.
He appeared to point at Carroll, then he and his team asked a man seated at the table between them to slide over — possibly to block Trump’s view of Carroll, or to provide a better view of the proceedings.
Jan 16, 10:27 AM
Judge again declines to delay trial
On Friday, Judge Kaplan denied a request from Trump’s attorneys to postpone the trial for a week so Trump could attend Thursday’s funeral of Amalija Knavs, the mother of former first lady Melania Trump, who died last Tuesday after a long health battle.
In court this morning, Trump attorney Alina Habba repeated her request for an adjournment so Trump can attend Knavs’ funeral.
“You asked me for a week’s adjournment and I denied it,” Judge Kaplan said. “The repetition is not accomplishing anything.”
The judge said Friday that he would grant a continuance so the trial, which was initially scheduled to conclude this week, would be extended so Trump could testify on Monday, Jan. 22.
Jan 16, 10:12 AM
Defense lodges several objections as court gets underway
“The court has made a number of rulings precluding evidence and argument,” said Judge Lewis Kaplan as court got underway, asking each side’s lead attorney to affirm that the parties understood the rules.
The defense objected, arguing that the court lacked jurisdiction. Kaplan quickly dispensed with the objection, saying, “Overruled.” Kaplan, who has a reputation as a no-nonsense judge, also overruled several other defense objections.
“I do think these are issues that will become an issue on appeal. We still don’t know what witnesses are coming in and which aren’t,” Trump attorney Alina Habba said, before Kaplan interrupted, saying, “Ms. Habba you have had a witness list for months.”
Habba pressed on, with Kaplan noting her objections.
“I have heard you, I have considered what you have to say and I have ruled,” Judge Kaplan said.
Jan 16, 9:56 AM
Trump seated in courtroom
Donald Trump has taken a seat in court, where jury selection in his defamation trial is scheduled to get underway this morning.
His decision to attend this trial is a clear shift for the former president, whose lawyers portrayed his absence from last year’s defamation and battery trial as a service to New York City, saying the city would not have to suffer the “logistical and financial burdens” of Trump’s attendance.
Carroll’s attorneys, however, pounced on Trump’s absence.
“He didn’t even bother to show up here in person,” attorney Roberta Kaplan told the jury.
Writing on social media last month, Trump blamed his absence at the trial on “not good advice” from his then-lawyer Joe Tacopina.
“I was asked by my lawyer not to attend–‘It was beneath me, and they have no case.’ That was not good advice,” Trump wrote.
Trump attorney Alina Habba is serving as Trump’s lead defense attorney for this week’s trial.
Jan 16, 9:21 AM
Carroll arrives for trial
E. Jean Carroll has arrived at the courthouse for the first day of the trial.
She smiled to reporters as she entered court.
Jan 16, 9:03 AM
Trump arrives at courthouse
Following his victory in Iowa, former President Trump landed at 3:30 a.m. in New York and just arrived at his civil defamation trial in lower Manhattan.
Trump is not required to attend the trial, though his decision not to attend last year’s defamation and battery trial by the same plaintiff, writer E. Jean Carroll, was mocked by Carroll’s attorney.
Trump’s motorcade pulled up to the courthouse this morning at at 8:50 a.m. ET.
Jan 16, 8:51 AM
On heels of Iowa victory, Trump is back on trial
When Donald Trump’s federal defamation trial gets underway in lower Manhattan this morning, it will be only about 11 hours since the former president claimed victory in the Iowa caucuses.
The trial is expected to take about a week, which could take Trump right to the doorstep of the New Hampshire Primary, scheduled for next Tuesday.
Trump has said that he plans to attend the trial at some point during the week, but has not indicted when.
The former president did not attend last year’s trial, held at the same courthouse, where a New York jury found him liable for sexually assaulting E. Jean Carroll and defaming her when he denied her accusation in a 2022 social media post.
(NEW YORK) — Tens of millions of Americans who overdraft on their bank accounts each year may soon enjoy major relief.
The government agency in charge of protecting consumers’ finances introduced a new rule to rein in overdraft fees charged by banks.
Americans paid a total of nearly $300 billion in overdraft fees over the past two decades, including $9 billion last year, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau told ABC News in a statement on Wednesday.
Typically, large banks charge $35 per transaction in the event of an overdraft. The proposed rule could drop that charge to as low as $3, the CFPB said.
“This is about the companies that rip off hard-working Americans simply because they can,” President Joe Biden said in a statement about the proposed rule.
The Consumer Bankers Association, an industry trade group, criticized the proposed rule.
“This proposal on overdraft price setting is just the latest in a myriad of unnecessary and costly regulations by this Administration that seems guided by political polling, rather than by sound policy created by what should be independent agencies,” the CBA said in a statement to ABC News.
“The aggregate costs and impacts of these proposals on Americans’ access to essential financial products and services have not been appropriately considered,” the CBA added.
Here’s what to know about bank overdraft fees, how the proposed rule could save consumers money and when it will go into effect:
How overdraft fees work
For decades, banks have charged overdraft fees to customers who spend more than they hold in an account at the time.
Under a law enacted in the late 1960s, banks faced a general requirement to disclose the cost of lending to a borrower.
At the time, customer payments drawing on bank deposits were typically made through checks sent in the mail.
Overdraft fees, the CFPB said, became a significant source of revenue for large banks in the 1990s and 2000s, as consumers underwent a shift from paper checks to debit cards. Nevertheless, firms could charge penalties without the same degree of disclosure as other types of loans.
By 2019, total overdraft fee revenue reached $12.6 billion paid by tens of millions of borrowers. Two megabanks, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo, accounted for one third of overdraft revenue reported by banks that reached over $1 billion in fees, the CFPB said.
“Decades ago, overdraft loans got special treatment to make it easier for banks to cover paper checks that were often sent through the mail,” CFPB Director Rohit Chopra said in a statement. “Today, we are proposing rules to close a longstanding loophole that allowed many large banks to transform overdraft into a massive junk fee harvesting machine.”
Neither Wells Fargo nor JPMorgan Chase immediately responded to ABC News’ request for comment.
The proposed rule will offer large banks two options in the event that a customer spends beyond the means available in his or her account.
First, large banks would retain the ability to provide a loan to the customer as long as it complies with existing lending law, including disclosure of relevant interest rates, the CFPB said.
Alternatively, the banks could charge a fee at an established benchmark in line with the amount a bank would require to break even on the transaction, the CFPB said. The proposed rule includes recommended benchmarks ranging from $3 to $14, the agency added, noting a request for comment to reach an appropriate amount.
If the agreed-upon overdraft fee lands in that range, it will make up a fraction of the current typical rate of $35 per transaction.
The rule would apply to roughly 175 insured financial institutions with more than $10 billion in assets, the CFPB said.
When could the new rule take effect?
The proposed rule alerts the public to the agency’s approach on a given topic, inviting public comment that can be incorporated into a final rule, the CFPB said.
Ultimately, a final rule must be published in the federal register to inform the public and other stakeholders.
A rule takes effect on Oct. 1 that follows the final rule’s publication in the federal register by at least six months, the CFPB said.
The proposed rule on overdraft fees, the agency added, is expected to go into effect on Oct. 1, 2025.
Greg McBride, chief financial analyst at Bankrate, said customers should remain vigilant in the meantime.
“It is far too early for consumers to let their guard down regarding overdrafts,” McBride told ABC News.
(NEW YORK) — Among the new evidence against alleged Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann is “cutting edge” DNA evidence, the district attorney told ABC News.
Heuermann was charged Tuesday with the murder of a fourth woman, 25-year-old escort Maureen Brainard-Barnes, who disappeared in 2007.
Heuermann had already been charged in July with murdering three other escorts: Megan Waterman, Amber Costello and Melissa Barthelemy.
The remains of all four women were found in desolate spots along the ocean near Gilgo Beach in December 2010, prosecutors said. Heuermann pleaded not guilty to all four murders.
The indictment in Brainard-Barnes’ death took longer because prosecutors were waiting for evidence, including “cutting edge” DNA evidence, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney told “Good Morning America” on Wednesday.
Investigators found DNA belonging to Heuermann’s now estranged wife, Asa Ellerup, in hair recovered from a belt used to restrain Brainard-Barnes, according to the indictment. Heuermann’s family was out of state when Brainard-Barnes was killed, prosecutors said, and Ellerup is not suspected to be involved.
“The DNA itself was extracted from the hair back in 2010,” Tierney said. “At that time, there was no method to obtain nuclear DNA profile from hair — that has since changed. So we’re on the cutting edge with regard to using this DNA analysis.”
This DNA evidence was among a slew of new evidence released Tuesday. The filing said prosecutors seized two phones from Heuermann during his arrest that were “in fictitious names,” and prosecutors said Heuermann used the phones in “hundreds of contacts with sex-workers between 2020 and 2023.”
Heuermann allegedly used the devices for searches, including the victims and their family members; the status of the investigation; and software that would help erase data from computers and other devices, prosecutors said.
“Defendant’s devices also contained the following: A collection of violent, bondage, and torture pornography preceding, during, and subsequent to the disappearances and murders of the aforementioned victims between 2007 and 2010; and prostitution-related searches preceding, during, and subsequent to the disappearances and murders of the aforementioned victims between 2007 and 2010,” the filing said.
The “Gilgo 4 investigation” is now over, authorities announced Tuesday.
Tierney said the case has “been very tough” for the four victims’ families.
The Gilgo Beach murders has “been this, sort of, pop culture thing, and I think sometimes they feel as though the lives of their loved ones get sort of lost in the mix,” Tierney said.
Brainard-Barnes’ daughter, Nicolette, who was 7 years old when her mother was killed, told reporters Tuesday, “While the loss of my mom has been extremely painful for me, the indictment by the grand jury has brought hope for justice for my mom and my family.”
The deaths of six other victims found near Gilgo Beach between 1996 and 2011 remain unsolved. The grand jury is continuing for the open cases, Tierney said.
