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Supreme Court refuses to reinstate West Virginia ban on transgender student sports participation

April 6, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — The U.S. Supreme Court has denied West Virginia’s request to immediately reinstate a law that would ban transgender student-athletes from participating in sports teams consistent with their gender identity.

The decision is a win for a 12-year-old transgender girl and her parents who are challenging the law in a bid to allow her to continue running on her middle school cross-country and track teams.

It is also a victory for transgender rights advocates at a time when many states nationwide are enacting similar sports bans, even if the continued injunction is only temporary as legal challenges play out.

The court did not explain its decision, though two justices — Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas — issued a dissent.

“Among other things, enforcement of the law at issue should not be forbidden by the federal courts without any explanation,” Alito writes.

The high court was not considering the ban on the merits but rather addressing the question of whether it should remain on hold while legal proceedings continue in lower courts.

West Virginia, defending the law in court documents, has claimed that “there is ‘a substantial risk that boys would dominate the girls’ programs and deny them an equal opportunity to compete in interscholastic events.”

The American Civil Liberties Union, which is challenging West Virginia’s trans sports ban on behalf of the girl, Becky Pepper Jackson, applauded the decision.

“We are grateful that the Supreme Court today acknowledged that there was no emergency and that Becky should be allowed to continue to participate with her teammates on her middle school track team, which she has been doing without incident for three going on four seasons, as our challenge to West Virginia’s onerous trans youth sports ban makes its way through the courts,” the ACLU said in a statement. “This was a baseless and cruel effort to keep Becky from where she belongs – playing alongside her peers as a teammate and as a friend.”

2 former teachers sue Kanye West and Donda Academy, allege wrongful termination

April 6, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(LOS ANGELES) — Two former teachers at Kanye West’s Donda Academy are suing the recording artist and entrepreneur and California private school, alleging they were wrongfully terminated after raising concerns about the institution’s practices.

According to a lawsuit filed Thursday in Los Angeles County Superior Court, Cecilia Hailey started working at the Simi Valley school in November as a substitute teacher before becoming a full-time third grade teacher in January. Her daughter, Chekarey Byers, started working at the school in January as a fifth-grade teacher, the lawsuit stated.

Both were fired in March, according to the lawsuit, which alleges they were terminated after complaining about “unlawful and unsafe practices,” including the alleged lack of a proper disciplinary system, school nurse, janitorial staff and security precautions.

“No action was taken to remedy plaintiffs’ complaints regarding sanitation, health, safety or education standard pursuant to local and state law, which plaintiffs made throughout the entirety of their employment,” the lawsuit states.

The lawsuit, which includes West, who now goes by Ye, and Donda Academy among the defendants, also alleges that the women’s paychecks were “untimely or inaccurate.”

The two were terminated in early March, effective immediately, and were not provided a reason, according to the lawsuit.

“Plaintiffs are informed and believe that they were terminated in retaliation for their complaints about Defendants’ unlawful and unsafe educational practices,” the lawsuit stated.

The women, who are African American, also allege they were discriminated against based on their race after being called “aggressive” by a school leader, according to the lawsuit.

“Plaintiffs believe this type of comment facilitates stereotypes about African-American women as being confrontational simply for doing their job and voicing their legitimate concerns in order to provide a safe environment and proper education for their students,” the lawsuit states.

ABC News did not immediately receive a response from Donda Academy to an email seeking comment. It’s unclear whether Ye currently has a representative.

The lawsuit is seeking damages including unpaid wages, loss of earnings, deferred compensation and other employment benefits, as well as damages related to emotional distress.

Ye founded the private Christian school last year. The nonaccredited school, which serves students in pre-K through 12th grade, briefly appeared to be shutting down amid backlash over Ye’s antisemitic comments in the fall, though has remained open.

It is currently taking applications for the 2023-2024 school year, according to its website.

Tennessee expulsion vote: State House could oust Democratic lawmakers after gun violence protest

April 6, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NASHVILLE, Tenn.) — The Republican-controlled Tennessee state House of Representatives convened on Thursday to vote on ousting three Democratic lawmakers, which, if successful, would mark the first partisan expulsion in the state’s modern history.

The legislative session was underway as of Thursday afternoon but the expulsion vote hadn’t yet started.

Protesters gathered both inside — in the gallery, where they were told to remain silent — and in large groups outside, in apparent support of the three Democratic lawmakers.

Reps. Justin Jones, Gloria Johnson and Justin J. Pearson are the three facing expulsion resolutions for allegedly violating the chamber’s rules of decorum by participating in a gun control protest at the state Capitol last week. The demonstration came in the wake of the deadly Covenant School shooting in Nashville on March 27, where a former student fatally shot three children and three adults, police have said.

When protesters crowded the state House and gallery hallways last week, calling for stricter gun laws, only one Democratic lawmaker was granted permission to address them.

Others, particularly young progressives like freshman Reps. Pearson and Jones, also wanted to speak but were prohibited by Republican leadership.

So, during a recess, the duo, along with Johnson, used the well of the House chambers to demand action. With their mics shut off, they brought a megaphone, leading chants.

Days later, Tennessee’s Republican Reps. Bud Hulsey, Gino Bulso and Andrew Farmer sponsored the expulsion resolutions Monday. They argued the Democratic lawmakers “did knowingly and intentionally bring disorder and dishonor to the House of Representatives through their individual and collective actions.”

Hulsey, Bulso and Farmer did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.

Republican state lawmakers including Speaker Cameron Sexton have accused the trio of attempting to incite an insurrection, even likening their actions to the violent Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, according to ABC affiliate WKRN.

Since the Civil War, the Tennessee state House has voted only twice to expel a member.

As of Thursday, the trio of Democrats said they have already lost ID access to the state Capitol and been stripped of any committee assignments.

But Pearson and Johnson told ABC News, no matter the results of the expulsion vote, they will remain undeterred in fighting for their constituents.

“If we are expelled on Thursday, you can expect the protest to continue the resistance to build, and the advocacy for our communities and for the people that we care about,” said Pearson.

“This is not going to stop me in the least,” Johnson added.

ABC News’ Sarah Beth Guevara contributed to this report.

Officials credit vigilant Ohio high school student for preventing potential shooting

April 6, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(CHESTERLAND, Ohio) — Local officials in Ohio are commending the quick thinking of a high school student who they say potentially averted a school shooting.

After the 17-year-old student alerted a school resource officer on Monday morning about a bullet found in one of the school’s bathrooms, police were able to locate and arrest a student who had brought a 9mm handgun and three fully-loaded magazines into the school, school officials said.

“The fact that we were able to do so rests in large part on the actions of a student who did what he knew was right; he reported a suspicious finding to his school resource officer,” West Geauga Local Schools Superintendent Richard Markwardt said at a press conference on Wednesday.

Police charged 18-year-old Brandon Morrissette with attempted aggravated murder, inducing panic and illegal possession of a deadly weapon in a school, according to court records obtained by ABC affiliate WEWS in Cleveland.

Geauga County Prosecutor Jim Flaiz said that Morrissette will be taken into custody and arraigned once he clears medical and psychological evaluations at a mental health facility, which could be as early as Friday.

It was not immediately known if Morrissette has an attorney.

Chester Township Police Chief Craig Young said that once authorities learned about the bullet, they sorted through nearly two dozen individuals captured on video entering the school’s bathroom, eventually narrowing it down to Morrissette who was arrested Monday morning.

Flaiz also credited the school’s resource officer for the successful response.

“This was handled, in my opinion, absolutely correctly and properly from beginning to end,” he said.

The school went into lockdown while the investigation took place, and students were later dismissed for the entire day due to an associated threat on social media, according to Markwardt. Officials defended the delay in waiting until the school’s third period to issue a lockdown, despite finding the bullet during the first period, calling any earlier lockdown based on the information available at the time “premature.”

“I am deeply grateful for the fact that no students and staff were injured or killed in this recent incident,” Markwardt said at the press conference.

Biden administration will share reports on Afghanistan withdrawal with Congress, official says

April 6, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — The Pentagon and State Department are set to share with Congress their after-action reports on the 2021 military withdrawal from Afghanistan, the White House will soon announce, according to a U.S. official.

The reports will be provided to lawmakers via a secure portal so members can access them electronically.

The White House will also publicly release a 10-page unclassified summary on the withdrawal, which has long drawn sharp criticism from Republicans.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Bob Lee, Cash App founder and former Square executive, dead after ‘horrific’ act of violence

April 6, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(SAN FRANCISCO) — Bob Lee, Cash App founder and executive at cryptocurrency firm MobileCoin, died after “apparent stab wounds,” the San Francisco Police Department said on Thursday.

San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins on Wednesday described the killing of Lee as “horrific.”

Police responded to a report of a stabbing early Tuesday, around 2:35 a.m., and found a 43-year-old man suffering from stab wounds, the San Francisco Police Department said on Thursday.

Police confirmed Lee’s identity in a statement late Wednesday and said the San Francisco Police Department Homicide Detail is investigating the incident.

“There is no place for this kind of violent crime against anyone in our city. I want to assure everyone that our investigators are working tirelessly to make an arrest and bring justice to Mr. Lee and his loved ones, just as we try to do on every homicide that occurs in our city,” said San Francisco Police Chief Bill Scott in a statement.

Officers called for medics, who transported the victim to a nearby hospital with life-threatening injuries, the police report said, adding that the victim ultimately died from the injuries.

“We do not tolerate these horrific acts of violence in San Francisco,” Jenkins said.

London Breed, the mayor of San Francisco, said in a statement to ABC News that Lee’s death marks a “horrible tragedy.”

“My sympathies go out to his family and friends,” Breed said. “The police are actively investigating what happened and will share details as soon as they can.”

Lee served as the first chief technology officer at Square, a digital payment company founded by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey.

“Bob was a dynamo, a force of nature,” Joshua Goldbard, the CEO of MobileCoin, told ABC News in a statement.

“He was made for the world that is being born right now, he was a child of dreams, and whatever he imagined, no matter how crazy, he made real,” Goldbard added.

During the 2000s, Lee worked at Google, where he helped develop Android.

Cash App did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Lee is survived by his wife, Krista, and their two children.

“Bob’s real resume is the hearts and minds he touched in his time on earth,” Goldbard said. “Bob’s legacy is the feeling that you can make a difference if you try, and of course his amazing children.”

ABC News’ Annie Pong and Alex Stone contributed to reporting.

Search underway for man convicted of murder who left Atlanta correctional facility

April 6, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — A manhunt is underway in Georgia for a man convicted of murder who apparently left an Atlanta correctional facility while on parole.

The Georgia Department of Corrections issued an alert Wednesday for residents to be on the lookout for Charles Smith, who it said had “walked away” from the Atlanta Transitional Center.

“DO NOT APPROACH,” the agency warned.

Smith was convicted and given a maximum life sentence for a 1992 murder in Clayton County, according to online prison records, which list his current status as parole. He is a resident of the transitional center, officials said.

Authorities described Smith as standing 5 feet, 10 inches tall and weighing about 200 pounds with brown eyes and black hair. He was last seen wearing black pants and a black shirt.

The Georgia Department of Corrections also issued an alert for another escaped convict early Thursday.

The agency warned residents to be on the lookout for Johnson State Prison inmate Dshawn Garrison, who was sentenced to 25 years on a rape conviction, online prison records show.

Garrison escaped from Johnson State Prison in Wrightsville Wednesday evening and was last seen in Sparta, about 45 miles northwest of the facility, authorities said.

Washington County sheriff’s deputies pursued a vehicle matching the description of the one Garrison allegedly fled in until it crashed in Sparta, the sheriff’s office said. The occupants fled on foot, authorities said.

“At this time, many law enforcement agencies are in this area attempting to apprehend the inmate and his accomplices,” the sheriff’s office said in a social media post while urging residents in the area to “use caution.”

Authorities described Garrison as standing 6-foot-2 and weighing 167 pounds with brown eyes. He was last seen wearing a state-issued inmate uniform.

Judge in Trump’s criminal case has received dozens of threats, police sources say

April 6, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — The judge overseeing the criminal case against former President Donald Trump has received dozens of threats in recent days, police sources told ABC News.

Trump himself had lashed out at New York Judge Juan Merchan, calling him “Trump hating.” Merchan previously oversaw the tax fraud trial of the Trump Organization that ended in a conviction.

Most of the threats against Merchan are in the form of harassing calls and emailed death threats, the sources said.

“Over the past weeks we have continued to evaluate and assess security concerns and potential threats and have maintained an increased security presence in and around courthouses and throughout the judiciary and will adjust protocols as necessary,” a spokesman for the Office of Court Administration told ABC News.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

North Carolina State Representative flips parties, gives Republicans supermajority

April 5, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(RALEIGH, N.C.) — North Carolina state Rep.Tricia Cotham announced Wednesday she is switching parties, giving Republicans the supermajority needed to override vetoes from Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper.

The freshman state representative, who said she was “welcomed with open arms by my [new Republican] colleagues,” attributed the switch to Democrats’ restrictions on the votes she cast.

“It became very clear to me early on in January that you better vote in line with everything Governor Cooper tells you to do,” Cotham said. “From signing on to bills, to he wanted to pick your seat on the House floor, to your committee requests … I will not be controlled by anyone.”

Former Democratic consultant and current Duke University Prof. Pope “Mac” McCorkle says Cotham’s switch is poised to give Republicans the power they need to implement many aspects of their agenda.

“Her becoming a Republican means by literally a party-line vote, all the commissions can be changed, all of that,” McCorkle said. “So that’s where I think it’s real power.”

One of the largest issues impacting North Carolina state politics this year is state legislature redistricting — a process that started more than 18 months ago. Republicans are expected to present a new legislature map in the coming months.

McCorkle says Cotham’s flip will not impact the redistricting debates because the maps only need the approval of the legislature.

“The governor does not a have a veto, so [Republicans] will already be able to pass the maps they want,” McCorkle said.

Cotham’s unexpected move comes during a time of political tension in the hotly contested swing state, where both chambers of the General Assembly are Republican-controlled even as a Democrat holds the governorship.

“Things are so tight, even when the Republicans have a super majority they’re afraid of losing it,” McCorkle said. He went on later to say “Everything is just frought with this incredible tension. But this just goes beyond the pale that a liberal legislator has flipped.”

North Carolina Democratic Party Chairwoman Anderson Clayton called on Cotham to resign, according to ABC’s Raleigh affiliate.

Her seat in the 112th district covers the eastern Charlotte suburbs, an area that voted heavily for President Joe Biden in 2020.

Cotham has a liberal record on some major issues, including abortion rights and state assistance programs. But one issue where she may stray from her former Democratic colleagues is school choice. Recent social media posts show her support for parents opting to use vouchers and send their children to schools outside their public school district — a stance normally held by Republicans.

North Carolina House members serve two-year terms, meaning Cotham’s district will have its next election in November of 2024. There is no process for recalling lawmakers under North Carolina state law.

Texas man claims ‘Find my iPhone’ glitch makes people think he stole their devices, may sue Apple

April 5, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(RICHMOND, Texas) — A homeowner in Texas has threatened to sue Apple after he says a glitch in the “Find My iPhone” app made people think he’s stolen their iPhone and other products.

Scott Schuster took to Instagram on Sunday and claimed that people kept showing up to his Richmond, Texas, home, alleging that the app is pinging his home as the location of their devices.

“I have multiple videos of people very upset and accusing me of stealing their expensive devices,” he wrote.

He told ABC News Houston affiliate KTRK that people have shown up to his home, which he’s lived in since 2018, every few months for the last few years.

Schuster did not respond to ABC News’ request for comment.

Schuster shared videos from his doorbell to KTRK of angry people showing up to his home accusing him of having their items, with one threatening to call the police on him.

“I tried to reach out to tech support already and they just closed my ticket,” he wrote on Instagram. Schuster also reached out to Steve Wozniak, a co-founder of Apple, asking for help in resolving the issue.

The “Find My” application is a program that allows Apple users to find their iPhones, AirPods, Apple Watches, MacBooks and other products using a geolocation feature.

Schuster claims that the feature is “clearly” broken in his area, resulting in multiple people showing up at his home in recent years.

In his Instagram post, he tagged Apple and said the company should “expect to receive a lawsuit” from him.

He provided proof to KTRK that he’s reached out to Apple Support many times since the beginning of 2022 and even filed a formal report, but he said nothing has been done to fix the issue.

“I don’t trust humans not to show up drunk and outraged in the middle of the night looking for their phone or AirPods (it has happened before),” he wrote on Instagram. “This creates dangerous scenarios and my house is in the crosshairs.”

Apple did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.

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