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(LAS VEGAS) — A judge set bail at $750,000 for the one-time gang member charged in connection with the murder of Tupac Shakur.

Judge Carli Kierny also ruled that the suspect — Duane “Keffe D” Davis — can await trial under house arrest with electronic monitoring if able to post bail.

Davis, 60, has been held without bail in the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas since his arrest on Sept. 29, 2023. He was charged with open murder with use of a deadly weapon with a gang enhancement in connection with the 1996 drive-by killing of Tupac.

During a hearing Tuesday addressing the defense’s request for release or reasonable bail, attorney Robert Arroyo argued that Davis was not a danger to the community, has been earning an honest living and “if he was going to run he would have did it” years ago.

“If Duane is so dangerous, if this case is so overwhelming, his guilt is so overwhelming … why did [authorities] wait 15 years to make the arrest?” Arroyo said.

Davis’ lawyers had asked that bail not exceed $100,000.

Prosecutors meanwhile claimed that Davis “presents a very, very high danger to the community,” in particular to witnesses who might testify against him at trial, and asked for no bail or a high bail. They had cited an October conversation between Davis and his son in which the pair used the term “green light,” which they allege is “authorization to kill.”

Davis’ lawyers claim prosecutors misconstrued what was said on those calls — that Davis was never planning to put a hit out on those cooperating in the case against him — rather, he was concerned there was word on the street that his own family was in danger.

Kierny said there were several factors to consider, including his length of residence in Henderson, Nevada, and a close relationship with his family, before issuing her decision on bail and house arrest.

Pending posting bail, Davis remains in the Clark County Detention Center.

Clark County District Attorney Steven Wolfson, whose office is prosecuting the case, told reporters he respected the judge’s decision and that she was “conscientious and thorough” in reaching it.

“We believe he is still a danger to the community, he is a danger to some of the witnesses and others,” Wolfson said. “My prosecutors argued just that, and I believe the judge agreed with our arguments today.”

Davis has pleaded not guilty. His next court appearance, a status conference, has been scheduled for Feb. 20.

His trial date is set for June 3.

The Clark County District Attorney’s Office alleges that the suspect was a feared gang member back in the 1990s and was the “shot caller” on the night of Sept. 7, 1996, when Shakur was gunned down while in the passenger seat of a stopped car by the Vegas Strip.

Until Davis’ arrest, no charges had ever been filed, and the case remained cold for nearly 30 years. Prosecutors allege though Davis did not pull the trigger, he was in the shooter’s car on that night and orchestrated Shakur’s death.

Davis claims to be one of two living witnesses, along with former Death Row Records CEO Suge Knight, to the Vegas shooting that killed the rapper, according to a search warrant released by police.

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(WASHINGTON) — NASA announced Tuesday it is delaying its first-crewed missions to the moon in decades, delaying a moon flyby until September 2025 and an attempted landing on the moon until September 2026.

“To safely carry out these missions, agency leaders are adjusting the schedules for Artemis II and Artemis III to allow teams to work through challenges associated with first-time developments, operations, and integration,” NASA sad in a release.

Artemis II was scheduled to send four astronauts into space in 2024 for a lunar flyby before returning to Earth while Artemis III was planning to send four astronauts to the moon in 2025.

In its release, NASA said that during an Artemis flight test, teams discovered battery issues and challenges with a component that controls air ventilation and temperature control.

Additionally, NASA has been investigating why char layer pieces from its spacecraft’s heat shield were lost during the Artemis I mission.

Artemis I, which launched in November 2022 and was completed in December, marked the first step in an ambitious plan to establish a long-term presence on the moon for scientific discovery and economic development, and potentially even send a crewed mission to Mars.

“We are letting the hardware talk to us so that crew safety drives our decision-making. We will use the Artemis II flight test, and each flight that follows, to reduce risk for future Moon missions,” Catherine Koerner, associate administrator, Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington, said in a statement.

“We are resolving challenges associated with first-time capabilities and operations, and we are closer than ever to establishing sustained exploration of Earth’s nearest neighbor under Artemis,” Koerner added.

The Artemis team will be made up of three Americans — Victor Glover, Christina Hammock Koch and Reid Wiseman — and one Canadian, Jeremy Hansen. Glover and Koch will be the first person of color and woman, respectively, to set foot on the lunar surface.

They are set to be first series of missions that NASA has used to send a crew to the moon since the Apollo 17 mission in December 1972, more than 50 years ago.

NASA said in is release that Artemis IV, the first mission to the Gateway lunar space station, remains on track for 2028.

“Artemis is a long-term exploration campaign to conduct science at the Moon with astronauts and prepare for future human missions to Mars,” Amit Kshatriya, deputy associate administrator of Exploration Systems Development, and manager of NASA’s Moon to Mars Program Office at headquarters, said in a statement.

“That means we must get it right as we develop and fly our foundational systems so that we can safely carry out these missions,” Kshatriya said. “Crew safety is and will remain our number one priority.”

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(NEW YORK) — At least three people were killed and multiple others injured across four states amid severe weather on Tuesday as a major storm system threatens parts of the East Coast.

More than a dozen tornadoes have been reported from Texas to Georgia since Monday, many occurring overnight and Tuesday morning in Florida’s Panhandle, as the major storm crossed the country.

A tornado hit the Panama City area in Bay County early Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service.

At least five people in the county were transported to hospitals with injuries, Bay County spokesperson Valerie Sale told ABC News. There are also reports of significant damage throughout the county due to the storm, Sale said.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has issued a state of emergency for northern Florida due to the severe weather threat. The order covers 49 counties in north and central Florida.

In Georgia, one person is dead after a tree fell on a vehicle while the driver was traveling on Highway 54 in Jonesboro Tuesday morning, police said.

In North Carolina, one person was killed and two critically injured at a mobile home park in Claremont following severe weather, Catawba County officials said. The National Weather Service is on the scene to evaluate if it was a tornado.

An 81-year-old woman in Cottonwood, Alabama, was killed Tuesday morning after a possible tornado blew her mobile home over several times while she was inside, according to the Houston County Coroner’s Office.

Tornado watches remain in effect along a large swath of the East Coast, from Florida into southern Virginia. The threat of strong, damaging wind gusts and tornadoes from severe thunderstorms will persist through the afternoon and into the early evening hours.

As of Tuesday afternoon, more than 500,000 customers in the South, Mid-Atlantic and Midwest were without power, including more than 82,000 in Florida and more than 155,000 in the Carolinas.

The storm system is expected to swing north and bring flooding and damaging winds to the Northeast later Tuesday.

Flood watches are in effect along a large swath of the East Coast, including Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, New York City and Boston.

Heavy rain is expected to gradually move up the Interstate 95 corridor through the afternoon and evening to Philadelphia and New York City, with a chance of flooding possible.

The worst impacts from this powerful storm are forecast to begin to unfold in parts of the Northeast by early Tuesday evening, first hitting the D.C./Baltimore area around 6 p.m. ET. with heavy rain and strong wind gusts sweeping in.

In the greater New York City metro area, the worst impacts are expected roughly between 8 p.m. and 2 a.m. ET, with extremely heavy rain and very strong wind gusts.

Additionally, New England is predicting heavy rain on Tuesday night into Wednesday with possible flooding. An estimated 2 to 4 inches of rain is forecast in the Northeast on top of all the melting snow.

Strong damaging winds are expected to accompany the heavy rain as, locally, 50 to 65 mph gusts are possible from the Virginia coast all the way up to Maine. Power outages are possible in swathes of the Northeast.

On the back side of this storm, heavy snow is forecast from Missouri to Iowa and into Wisconsin and Michigan where, locally, up to 10 inches of snow could be possible.

Chicago will be right on the line of rain and snow with only a few inches of sloppy snow possible in the city and up to 5 to 10 inches west and north of the city.

2nd storm moving into West

A second storm is also moving into the Pacific Northwest and the northern Rockies with more heavy snow, strong winds and heavy rain for the coast.

A rare blizzard warning is in place for Oregon and Washington, just outside of Seattle and Portland, where some areas have not seen a blizzard warning issued in more than 10 years.

The storm will follow in the current storm’s footsteps and will bring more severe weather to the South with tornado and flood threats Friday and more heavy snow for the Midwest and the Great Lakes.

By Friday night into Saturday, the storm will move into the Northeast with more heavy rain, strong winds and flooding.

ABC News’ Alexandra Faul contributed to this report.

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(NEW YORK) — The focus of the investigation into Friday’s midair emergency on an Alaska Airlines flight is focused on the single aircraft, but could be broadened as the National Transportation Safety Board learns more, board Chief Jennifer Homendy said.

“However, at some point we may need to go broader. But right now we have to figure out how this occurred with this aircraft,” Homendy said Tuesday on ABC News’ “Good Morning America.”

The door plug fell off the plane, a Boeing 737 Max 9, around 5:11 p.m. local time Friday as the aircraft with 171 passengers, including three babies and four unaccompanied minors, had climbed to 16,000 feet after taking off from Portland International Airport, according to the NTSB.

The Federal Aviation Administration said Tuesday, “Every Boeing 737-9 Max with a plug door will remain grounded until the FAA finds each can safely return to operation.”

“The safety of the flying public, not speed, will determine the timeline for returning the Boeing 737-9 Max to service,” the FAA said.

Boeing said it continues to be in “close contact” with its customers and the FAA about required inspections of certain 737 Max 9 planes.

“As part of the process, we are making updates based on their feedback and requirements,” the company said.

The fittings at the top of the door plug fractured, Homendy said. The NTSB examination has shown that those fittings were fractured, allowing the plug door to move upward and outward, she said.

“We don’t know if the bolts were loose. We don’t know if bolts were in there fractured or possibly the bolts weren’t there at all,” she said. “We have to determine that back in our laboratory.”

On Monday, United Airlines said it had found loose bolts on its 737 Max 9 fleet during inspections ordered after Friday’s incident involving an Alaska Airlines flight.

The Federal Aviation Administration said Saturday it was temporarily grounding certain Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft operated by U.S. airlines or in U.S. territory until they were inspected. The FAA said the pause would affect about 171 planes worldwide.

Homendy said Tuesday she would feel safe flying on a 737 Max 9 now.

“I would feel safe flying right now,” Homendy said. “Our aviation system is the safest in the world.”

ABC News’ Amanda Maile, Sam Sweeney, Bill Hutchinson and Jon Haworth contributed to this report.

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(NEW YORK) — A final batch of documents pertaining to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was unsealed Tuesday.

At least seven documents were released. Over 215 documents have been released since last week.

The records unsealed Monday included photos from Sarah Ransome, an alleged adult victim of Epstein, as well as an exhibit that mentions discredited allegations Ransome made about former President Bill Clinton, former President Donald Trump, Britain’s Prince Andrew and Virgin Group founder Richard Branson. She later admitted the claims were false.

The records are part of a defamation lawsuit brought by Virginia Giuffre, an alleged victim of Epstein, against his longtime companion Ghislaine Maxwell that the two settled in 2017. Epstein died by suicide in a Manhattan jail while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges.

Neither Clinton, nor Trump, nor Branson was accused by Giuffre, or anyone else besides Ransome, of any wrongdoing in the course of Giuffre’s defamation lawsuit against Maxwell. Clinton has denied any knowledge of Epstein’s crimes. Trump has said he cut-off contact with Epstein many years ago.

In a statement to ABC News on Tuesday, the Virgin Group, on behalf of Branson, said Ransome’s allegations against him are “false, baseless, and unfounded.”

Prince Andrew has long denied allegations that he had sex with Giuffre on three occasions, as she has claimed in court records and interviews. In 2022, Andrew settled a case Giuffre brought against him.

Maxwell is serving a 20-year prison sentence after she was convicted in 2021 of aiding Epstein’s sex trafficking of young women and girls. Her appeal will be heard in March.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

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(NEW YORK) — Last year proved to be one of the costliest in the United States due to extreme weather disasters, according to a new report by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The U.S. was hit with more billion-dollar disasters in 2023 than any other year on record, highlighting the increased risk stemming from a changing climate, NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information announced Tuesday.

There were 28 separate billion-dollar weather and climate disasters last year, smashing the previous record set in 2020 of 22 billion-dollar disasters, according to the report.

These disasters included 17 severe storms, four flooding events, two tropical cyclones, two tornado outbreaks, one winter storm, one wildfire, and one drought and heat wave event. The firestorm that caused the Maui wildfires on Aug. 8, 2023, and Hurricane Idalia, which struck Florida’s Gulf Coast at the end of August, were included in those expensive disasters.

The U.S. disaster costs for 2023 were $92.9 billion, but this total annual cost may rise by several billion dollars as additional costs from identified events are reported. There were at least 492 fatalities associated with these events, according to the report.

The costliest events in 2023 were the southern/midwestern drought and heat wave that occurred during spring to fall of 2023, totaling $14.5 billion, and the southern and eastern severe weather event that occurred in early March, which tallied $6 billion.

Over the last seven years, from 2017 to 2023, 137 separate billion-dollar disasters have killed at least 5,500 people and cost greater than $1 trillion in damage, according to NOAA’s report.

Last year was also a record 13th consecutive year where the U.S. experienced 10 or more billion-dollar disasters and the fourth consecutive year (from 2020 to 2023) where 18 or more billion-dollar disasters impacted the U.S.

Since records began in 1980, the U.S. has sustained 376 separate weather and climate disasters where overall damages or costs reached or exceeded $1 billion (based on the consumer price index adjustment to 2023) per event, the report stated. The total cost of these 376 events exceeds $2.66 trillion.

The U.S. also experienced several climate and weather anomalies in 2023.

The Atlantic basin saw 20 named tropical cyclones during 2023 — ranking fourth for the most named tropical systems in a year since 1950, according to NOAA.

The preliminary tornado count for 2023 was above average, with 1,197 tornadoes reported and an additional 97 preliminary tornadoes still under verification for the Oct. 1 to Dec. 31 period.

Drought coverage across the contiguous U.S. ranged from a maximum extent of 46% occurring on Jan. 3, 2023, and a minimum coverage of 19% on May 30, the lowest contiguous U.S. footprint since the drought of mid-2020, according to the report.

Flash drought impacted much of the Lower Mississippi Valley during the latter half of 2023, resulting in the greatest coverage of exceptional drought in Louisiana with 74.2% of the state measuring at exceptional drought on Nov. 14.

Annual precipitation for the contiguous U.S. was 29.46 inches, 0.48 inches below average, ranking in the driest third of the historical record, according to the report.

Record heat in 2023 likely exacerbated drought conditions.

The average annual temperature of the contiguous U.S. in 2023 was 54.4 degrees Fahrenheit, 2.4 degrees above average and ranking fifth-warmest on record. Globally, 2023 was the hottest year on record, Copernicus, the European Union’s climate change service, announced Tuesday.

 

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(NEW YORK) — Multiple people have been injured and significant damage has been reported in Florida due to a possible tornado as part of a major storm system expected to bring severe weather to parts of the East Coast on Tuesday.

At least 10 tornadoes have been reported in Texas, Florida and Alabama since Monday, most occurring overnight and Tuesday morning in Florida’s Panhandle, as the major storm crosses the country.

A tornado hit the Panama City area in Bay County early Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service.

At least five people in the county were transported to hospitals with injuries, Bay County spokesperson Valerie Sale told ABC News. There are also reports of significant damage throughout the county due to the storm, Sale said.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has issued a state of emergency for northern Florida due to the severe weather threat. The order covers 49 counties in north and central Florida.

The storm system is expected to swing north and bring flooding and damaging winds to the Northeast later Tuesday.

There are currently 13 states on flood watch from Georgia to Maine as the storm approaches the East Coast, with severe weather for the Carolinas, Florida and Georgia with tornadoes and flash flooding possible Tuesday.

Heavy rain will arrive in the Mid-Atlantic by around noon on Tuesday and will gradually move up the Interstate 95 corridor through the afternoon as heavy rain is expected to begin in Philadelphia and New York City with a chance of flooding possible.

Additionally, New England is predicting heavy rain on Tuesday night into Wednesday with possible flooding. An estimated 2 to 4 inches of rain is forecast in the Northeast on top of all the melting snow.

Strong damaging winds are expected to accompany the heavy rain as, locally, 50 to 65 mph gusts are possible from the Virginia coast all the way up to Maine. Power outages are possible in swathes of the Northeast.

On the back side of this storm, heavy snow is forecast from Missouri to Iowa and into Wisconsin and Michigan where, locally, up to 10 inches of snow could be possible.

Chicago will be right on the line of rain and snow with only a few inches of sloppy snow possible in the city and up to 5 to 10 inches west and north of the city.

2nd storm moving into West

A second storm is also moving into the Pacific Northwest and the northern Rockies with more heavy snow, strong winds and heavy rain for the coast.

A rare blizzard warning is in place for Oregon and Washington, just outside of Seattle and Portland, where some areas have not seen a blizzard warning issued in more than 10 years.

The storm will follow in the current storm’s footsteps and will bring more severe weather to the South with tornado and flood threats Friday and more heavy snow for the Midwest and the Great Lakes.

By Friday night into Saturday, the storm will move into the Northeast with more heavy rain, strong winds and flooding.

 

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(NEW YORK) — Shares of Boeing have plunged nearly 10% this week after a door plug blew out of the company’s 737 Max 9 aircraft during an Alaska Airlines flight.

The incident, which took place on Friday night, prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to ground the aircraft.

The stock price of Spirit Aerosystems, the manufacturer of the door plug, has fallen by more than 11% since trading began on Monday.

The National Transportation Safety Board has opened an investigation into the incident. The Alaska Airlines flight, which carried 171 passengers, had taken off from the Portland International Airport and climbed to 16,000 feet when the door plug fell off the aircraft, according to the NTSB.

None of the passengers or crew members experienced serious injuries.

In a note to investors, Bank of America said the incident does not alter the firm’s previous recommendation that individuals buy shares of the stock. The bank, however, warned of a potential negative effect on public perception of Boeing.

“We do not expect this current issue to have a material impact to our 2024 financial forecast,” Bank of America said, adding, “We do see the latest incident as eroding the fragile confidence that has been built around the 737 Max franchise. In our view, Boeing needs to tread carefully and cautiously through this potential reputational minefield.”

On Monday, United Airlines said it had found loose bolts on its 737 Max 9 fleet during inspections ordered after Friday’s incident.

The NTSB investigation could expand to additional aircraft as the agency learns more, NTSB chief Jennifer Homendy told ABC News’ “Good Morning America” on Tuesday.

“At some point we may need to go broader,” Homendy said. “But right now we have to figure out how this occurred with this aircraft.”

In a statement on Saturday, Boeing backed the decision to ground its 737 Max 9 aircraft and investigate the incident.

“Safety is our top priority and we deeply regret the impact this event has had on our customers and their passengers,” the company said. “We agree with and fully support the FAA’s decision to require immediate inspections of 737-9 airplanes with the same configuration as the affected airplane.”

“We will remain in close contact with our regulator and customers,” the company added.

The renewed scrutiny arrives roughly five years after Boeing 737 Max aircraft were grounded worldwide following a pair of crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia that killed a combined 346 people.

In 2021, after a two-year ban, Boeing 737 Max aircraft were permitted to fly.

In addition to the safety concerns, the company faced a pandemic-related decline in demand as well as a recent supply chain slowdown tied to flaws identified in the 737 Max.

Speaking on an earnings call in October, Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun acknowledged difficulties encountered by the company in recent months as it aims to reach full production.

“We have more work to do. But overall, we’re making progress in our recovery,” Calhoun said. “We knew 2023 would be a bumpy ride.”

Calhoun addressed scrutiny of the company’s culture as it tried to restore trust over the years following the deadly crashes.

“I’ve heard from a few of you wondering if we’ve lost a step in this recovery,” he said. “You might not be surprised to hear that I view it as exactly the opposite.”

“Over the last several years, we’ve added rigor around our quality processes,” he added. “We’ve worked hard to instill a culture of speaking up and transparently bringing forward any issue, no matter the size, so that we can get things right for a bright future.”

 

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