A shopper browses near ‘Sale’ signs in the meats section of a grocery store on July 7, 2026 in Pasadena, California. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Inflation dropped more than expected in June as gas prices eased in response to negotiations between U.S. and Iran over the Middle East conflict.
Prices rose 3.5% in June compared to a year earlier, marking a retreat from a year-over-year inflation rate of 4.2% in the prior month, federal government data released on Tuesday morning showed.
The reading for June marks the lowest inflation since March, though the pace of price increases remains more than a percentage point higher than its pre-war level.
Last month, oil prices fell to their lowest level since before the late February outbreak of the Iran war. That drop came after a preliminary agreement included provisions aimed at resolving a global crude shortage.
A spike in oil prices over recent days amid a resumption of fighting, however, threatens to push gas prices higher, erasing some of the relief delivered last month.
Brent crude futures, the benchmark index for worldwide trading, rose to $86.90 a barrel on Tuesday. That figure stood roughly even with its level a month earlier, though it remained more than 20% higher than its pre-war level.
The inflation report on Tuesday offered some additional bright spots outside of energy prices.
Core inflation — a measure of price increases that strips out volatile food and energy prices — clocked at 2.6% over the year ending in June. That reading indicated a slight decline from the previous month, suggesting the cooldown had extended beyond gasoline.
Cyclospora cayetanensis is a unicellular parasite that causes an intestinal infection called cyclosporiasis. (CDC)
(NEW YORK) — Reported cases of cyclosporiasis, an intestinal illness caused by a parasite, have surpassed 2,600 in Michigan, the state’s health department said on Monday.
Cases jumped by more than 1,000 since Friday for a total of 2,642 reported since June 22, according to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS). At least 44 people have been hospitalized. Michigan typically sees about 50 cases per year.
Most cases have been reported in southeastern Michigan, including Wayne County, where Detroit is located, according to MDHHS.
On Monday, Michigan health officials said that while their investigation into the outbreak continues, current results point to lettuce or salad greens as a potential source of the illnesses in the state.
MDHHS data shows that most cases have been among adults, with the 30-39-year-old group making up the highest share, followed by the 40-49-year-old group and then the 60-69-year-old group.
The outbreak was first identified on June 29, when the Monroe County Health Department announced it was investigating a cluster of cases.
Michigan health officials previously told ABC News that the working hypothesis is that the outbreak is linked to food contamination, but so far, no produce, grower or supplier has been identified.
Earlier this month, MDHHS sent out recommendations to restaurants and other commercial kitchens in southeast Michigan to reduce risks of exposure. The parasite usually spreads through food or water contaminated with feces, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It does not typically spread person-to-person.
Foodborne outbreaks of cyclosporiasis in the past have been linked to various types of imported fresh produce, such as raspberries, basil, snow peas, mesclun lettuce and cilantro, according to the CDC. At least 31 other states have reported cases of cyclosporiasis, according to an ABC News tally, analyzing CDC data and state health department data.
As of Friday, New York has reported the second-highest number of cases at 470 cases since May 1, followed by Ohio at 364, state health officials told ABC News. Meanwhile, Illinois and Florida are each reporting more than 100 cases as of Friday, according to their respective health departments.
The CDC said it has confirmed 843 domestic cases from May 1 to July 9. The agency wrote on its website that it is “aware that states are likely to report higher case counts of cyclosporiasis than reflected in CDC data and is working closely with states to update numbers as additional cases are confirmed.”
The agency said it expects a six-week reporting lag between illness onset and case reporting to the CDC as it receives and reviews the data.
Cyclosporiasis is treated with the oral antibiotic trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX), commonly sold as Bactrim, Septra and Cotrim, and taken for 10 days, according to the CDC.
The agency says people can prevent infection by thoroughly washing produce, cutting away bruised or damaged parts of fruits and vegetables and refrigerating pre-prepared or pre-cut produce.
Additionally, the CDC recommends washing hands thoroughly with soap and water before handling or preparing raw fruits and vegetables.
ABC News’ Youri Benadjaoud contributed to this report.
An ABC News graphic shows the forecast on Tuesday, April 14, 2026. (ABC News)
(NEW YORK) — More than 125 million Americans are on alert for sweltering heat from coast-to-coast, as heat alerts are in place from Southern California to the intermountain West and northern Plains, upper Midwest and across to the Northeast.
Daily record highs may be broken in Rapid City, Fargo, Grand Forks in the northern Plains on Tuesday.
In the Northeast, record daily highs could be broken at Plattsburgh and Syracuse, New York. Other parts of New England may get with a degree or two of a daily record today.
Those daily record highs would follow several broken on Monday, including in Bismarck, North Dakota, with 105 degrees F; International Falls, Minnesota, at 97; and Hibbing, Minnesota, at 93. Rapid City, South Dakota, and Dickinson, North Dakota, tied records with 102 and 103, respectively.
On Wednesday, daily record highs are possible around Grand Rapids, MI and Wilmington, Delaware. An extreme heat warning is in place through Thursday for Minneapolis, Minneapolis, with daily high heat index up to 100 possible.
Other extreme heat warnings are in place from Utah to the upper peninsula of Michigan.
In Utah, Salt Lake City is expected to reach near 100 on Tuesday. Fargo is under an extreme heat warnings for a heat index as high as 105.
The heat index for places like Calumet, Michigan, and Duluth, Minnesota, could reach near 100.
Detroit, Michigan, is under a heat advisory for a heat index near 105.
The rest of the week will remain hot and humid across the upper Midwest with highs in the 90s and heat indices feeling even warmer.
In the Northeast, a heat wave begins today, with 3 or more days of temperatures at or above 90 degrees for New York City, Philadelphia and D.C. Those high temperatures could last five days, through Saturday.
A heat advisory is in place for at least Tuesday and Wednesday across much of the Northeast due to heat indices around 100 expected. The upper Northeast will be hottest today with a heat index of 100 to 104 from Rochester and Albany, New York, to Boston, Massachusetts.
The area between New York City and D.C. will likely be the hottest on Wednesday, with heat indices near 100 in NYC and near 105 in D.C.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Trenton, New Jersey, are under an extreme heat warning for heat indices up to 107 on Wednesday.
Out West, southern California is under heat alerts through Thursday.
Temps will reach 85 to 90 across the coastal valleys and up to 105 for the interior valleys through Tuesday.
A heat advisory stretches up to San Jose, California, where temps will reach the mid to upper 90s on Tuesday.
Wednesday and Thursday will be hotter, with temps in downtown Los Angeles reaching the middle to upper 90s and interior valleys reaching up to 110.
Next week, temperatures look less extreme across America.
Significant flood threat in Texas
For the next three days, there is a level 3 of 4 flood threat in place in South-Central Texas.
That warning came amid a very rare and dangerous setup. Everyone in the region should be on alert, especially those near rivers and low water crossings. But even areas that don’t normally flood must be alert.
The greatest threat will lie across the Edwards Plateau into Hill Country and along the Rio Grande Valley between the Big Bend down toward Eagle Pass.
Rainfall rates each day could exceed 2″ per hour.
Each day on Tuesday through Thursday could see 3″ to more than 7″ of rainfall over this area.
Three-day totals over that region could top 15″ in some places.
Severe weather threat in northern New England
Fueled by the extreme heat and humidity and a sinking cold front from Canada, severe storms capable of destructive winds of more than 70 mph, large hail large than ping pong balls, and a strong tornado or two will move over northern New England today.
A level 3 of 5 risk is in place from northeast New York through northern Vermont, northern New Hampshire, and northern Maine on Tuesday afternoon and evening. It includes Burlington, Vermont; Plattsburgh, New York; Caribou, Maine; Colchester, Vermont; and Massena, New York.
Storms are most likely after 4 p.m. ET and continuing into the night as the cold front sinks south.
Marco Rubio, Secretary of State looks on as U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine for bilateral talks at Bestepe Presidential Compound during the NATO Summit, July 8, 2026 in Ankara, Turkey. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Secretary of State Marco Rubio is preparing to host delegations from more than 70 countries this week for a gathering focused on addressing what the Trump administration describes as the overlooked threat posed by “the resurgence of transnational far-left terrorism,” according to a State Department official and internal documents reviewed exclusively by ABC News.
“For too long this threat has remained a blind spot in the international community’s counterterrorism focus, underestimated and under-resourced, despite the danger it poses,” a note shared with foreign governments describing the concept of the meeting reads.
It goes on to assert that law enforcement and counterterrorism experts have revealed a “clear trend” of “globally networked, politically-motivated terrorists — particularly far-left terrorists” increasingly turning to “organized, deadly violence to advance their political objectives.”
The meeting, which will take place in Washington on Thursday, will lay the foundation for “coordinated action” to counter international organizations that are “seeking to implement an extreme political vision through intimidation and coordinated campaigns of terror,” the document states.
Representatives from roughly 60 countries were initially expected to attend, but the State Department said in a post to X on Friday it would expand the ministerial due to “overwhelming interest” by inviting additional countries “working to combat the growing international threat of far-left violence.”
A State Department official said more than 10 additional invitations had been extended.
Some critics of the Trump administration’s counterterrorism approach have claimed its focus on threats from the far left is misguided.
Analysis conducted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in 2025 found that while left-wing violence in the U.S. has increased over the past decade, “it has risen from very low levels and remains much lower than historical levels of violence carried out by right-wing and jihadist attackers.”
The CSIS report concluded it was “important to resource all dimensions of the terrorism threat.”
“Left-wing terrorism is a Trump administration priority, but jihadist terrorism also remains a concern even though it has declined,” it states. “Right-wing terrorism could come roaring back, especially if in 2028 there are complaints of a ‘stolen election’ or similar incendiary claims.”
The ACLU has also taken issue with multiple actions taken by the Trump administration’s counterterrorism approach, accusing it of targeting politically opposed but peaceful activists and donors “under the guise of addressing political violence and domestic terrorism.”
President Donald Trump meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for bilateral talks at Bestepe Presidential Compound during the NATO Summit on July 8, 2026 in Ankara, Turkey. (Win Mcnamee/Getty Images)
(LONDON) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy left last week’s NATO summit armed with a valuable commitment from President Donald Trump — that Kyiv would get approval to produce vital interceptor missiles for the Patriot air defense system, which since 2023 has helped defend Ukraine’s skies against Russian aircraft, drones and ballistic missiles.
Zelenskyy and his top officials have long warned that Ukraine needs more air defense systems and far more ammunition to blunt Russia’s daily long-range strikes. In recent weeks and with interceptor missile stocks reportedly running low, those warnings have become more dire.
Trump’s approval for Kyiv to get a production license to produce Patriot interceptors on home soil is “really good news for Ukraine,” Chrystia Freeland, previously Canada’s deputy prime minister and now an economic adviser to Zelenskyy, told ABC News on the sidelines of the Chatham House think tank’s conference in London last week.
“It would be even better if they were getting Patriots right now, because they’re being hammered,” Freeland added. “It’s great to get the licenses. But between getting the licenses and actually being able to make the Patriot [missiles] to defend themselves, it’s going to take time. And during that time, lots of people are going to die.”
As civilian casualties in Ukraine rise, securing more air defense systems and ammunition are a priority for Kyiv, Zelenskyy has said repeatedly. Russian strikes killed at least 265 civilians in Ukraine and injured 1,816 in June, senior United Nations official Rosemary DiCarlo told the body’s Security Council earlier this month.
The combined casualty total for June is the highest recorded since the first months of Russia’s full-scale invasion, DiCarlo said. Moscow’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, a top U.N. official told the Security Council on Thursday.
In a post to X on Monday, Zelenskyy said that he and Trump “have reached an important deal on licenses to produce Patriot systems. Our teams are now working to implement this truly historic political agreement. We worked toward this for a very long time.”
Trump said during his warm meeting with Zelenskyy in the Turkish capital Ankara that the two leaders had developed a “good relationship.” The friendly exchange was a far cry from the infamous bilateral meeting at the White House last year which devolved into a heated public argument, with Trump and Vice President JD Vance openly admonishing Zelenskyy.
Freeland said that while Trump’s backing was welcome in Kyiv, Ukrainian leaders were focused on the bigger strategic picture. “They’re playing 100% to necessity. Ukrainians aren’t fighting to put on a show for Trump. They’re fighting because otherwise they will die,” she said.
“Trump does like a winner. He is not averse to flip flops. And I do think the stronger Ukrainians are the more likely they are to get his support,” Freeland added.
The Ankara declaration — NATO allies traditionally issue a joint communique to mark the end of each summit — said that Ukraine “contributes to transatlantic security” and is in line to receive some $80 billion in allied funding across 2026, with 2027 funding to be “at least equivalent.”
“Allies stand united in our unwavering support for Ukraine in defending its freedom, sovereignty, and territorial integrity,” the statement read.
The outcome was a positive one for Ukraine, Freeland said. “I would emphasize that the Ukrainians are making their own luck. I think the better they do, the more enthusiasm there is for supporting them. I think the Ukrainians recognize,” she said.
European allies, in particular, Freeland said, had shown they “are prepared to hang in there.” She added, “I think neither the Russians nor the Americans thought that Europe could do it.”
Russia’s full-scale invasion of its neighbor is now in its fifth year, the latest round of conflict having followed a lower-intensity conflict which began in 2014 with Russia’s annexation of Crimea and its fomentation of separatist rebellion in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region.
A campaign that was designed to deliver a rapid Russian victory has now lasted longer than World War One, with Kyiv claiming to have inflicted nearly 1.5 million casualties on the invading forces while Russia’s ongoing offensives in the east of the country remain at a glacial pace.
Ukrainian long-range strikes into Russia, meanwhile, have increased exponentially in scale and intensity, putting particular pressure on the country’s lucrative oil production, refining and export sectors. Ukrainian drones are also increasingly targeting the supply routes into Crimea, seeking to effectively blockade the occupied peninsula from afar.
Ukraine’s foreign partners have been lauding the country’s reported successes. Even Trump, who famously suggested last year that Ukraine did not “have the cards” to play, said last month that Zelenskyy was “doing pretty well” in the showdown with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Both the Trump administration and former President Joe Biden’s administration had put pressure on Kyiv to refrain from attacking certain targets, with Ukraine’s strikes on Russian oil facilities reportedly a particularly sensitive subject under both administrations.
But Ukraine’s ongoing success on that front, Freeland said, showed it had been “a mistake to ask the Ukrainians to tie one hand behind their back.”
“One of the things that has changed is Ukrainians are now using their own weapons and they’re making their own weapons, and that means they don’t need to ask anyone’s permission for where they strike. And I do think that’s made a big difference,” she added.
Though the wartime narrative appears to be swinging somewhat in Ukraine’s favor, the country’s cities remain under near-constant fire and Kyiv’s forces do not appear able to liberate significant territory still occupied by Russian troops. In his latest casualty update in February, Zelenskyy said Ukraine had lost at least 55,000 soldiers killed since 2022.
Ukraine also still appears to be frozen out of NATO membership in the short term, despite Zelenskyy’s repeated and recent appeals for the alliance to set out a clear roadmap for Ukraine’s accession, which allies have repeatedly said they support in principle.
“I have actually heard, behind closed doors and also in public, more and more European leaders saying Russia shouldn’t have a veto on who is in NATO, and Ukraine now has the strongest army in Europe, we should have them on our team,” Freeland said.
Moscow and Kyiv still appear far apart on the key issues in any future settlement. Though Putin has claimed a willingness to negotiate, he is still refusing to engage directly with Zelenskyy and is still demanding a raft of major Ukrainian concessions in exchange for peace.
“I think it’s impossible to foresee what will happen next,” Freeland said when asked about the war’s outlook. “Where are we right now? We know that the Ukrainians are doing well … We know that Russia is suffering more than it has since the beginning of the war.”
“I think that the view that Ukraine was about to collapse was always overdone. And I think that was a line that Russia pushed in order to get Western allies, particularly the United States, to push Ukraine to surrender. And they were effective, for a while,” she added.
“What I think is important for us to recognize and what is absolutely true, is Ukraine’s success right now is showing us that if we give them the tools, they will finish the job,” Freeland said.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents on March 24, 2026 in New York, New York. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
(BIDDLEFORD, Maine) — Federal immigration authorities were involved in a fatal shooting in Biddeford, Maine, on Monday, according to the local elected leaders and multiple sources.
Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, said he was briefed on the incident by Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin. He said he was informed that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were involved in the deadly shooting.
King said the man was fatally shot after federal agents tried to stop the vehicle he was driving.
“He was in a vehicle — pulled out in the vehicle, and the term the secretary used was ‘weaponized’ the vehicle and was shot by an ICE agent,” King told reporters Monday morning.
King said the man who was shot was the target of the operation and that ICE agents had been given a final order for the man to be removed from the country.
“Body cameras were not on the agents. So we have no video evidence of what occurred in this case,” King said. “State and local officials, of course, are attending to it. The FBI will be leading the investigation because it was a federal operation.”
The Maine Attorney General’s Office also released a statement, confirming that the ICE operation on Monday morning was targeting a man related to a final order to remove him from the country. The Attorney General’s Office alleged, “the suspect attempted to flee in the vehicle in the direction of the officer and was fatally shot.”
“The male subject is not being named until positive identification is made and family members are notified,” according to the statement from the state Attorney General’s Office.
Maine Gov. Janet Mills said she was also briefed on the shooting and was informed that federal law enforcement was involved.
“I know situations like these are alarming and frightening,” Mills said in a statement. “The Maine State Police are at the scene supporting and working cooperatively with the Attorney General’s Office, Maine’s Office of Chief Medical Examiner, and Federal officials to determine the facts of what occurred this morning.”
Two Maine immigration advocacy groups — Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition (MIRC) and the Presente! — issued a joint statement, saying the individual who was killed was a 26-year-old Colombian man, who they claimed was authorized to work in the United States and had a Social Security number.
The groups called for a “prompt, independent, and transparent investigation.” The groups also called for a full accounting of every agency and officer involved as well as the preservation of all body-camera footage, surveillance footage, and communications between the federal officials involved.
“ICE must not be allowed to investigate itself or control the public narrative surrounding a death in which its personnel or operations were involved,” the groups said.
The FBI said the agency “responded to assist on-scene immediately following this morning’s shooting incident in Biddeford, Maine. We have no additional comment at this time.”
The Department of Homeland Security has not yet responded to ABC News’ requests for comment.
A bystander video verified by ABC News showed what appeared to be federal immigration agents and uniformed law enforcement officers in the aftermath of the shooting performing first aid on an individual on the ground at an intersection.
A Ring camera video obtained by ABC News from a residence near the shooting scene captured the sound of what appeared to be at least five gunshots.
Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine, said in a social media post that she is “aware of reports that someone was fatally shot in Biddeford this morning, and ICE may be involved.”
A bystander video verified by ABC News showed what appeared to be federal immigration agents and uniformed law enforcement officers in the aftermath of the shooting performing first aid on an individual on the ground at an intersection.
A Ring camera video obtained by ABC News from a residence near the shooting scene captured the sound of what appeared to be at least five gunshots.
Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine, said in a social media post that she is “aware of reports that someone was fatally shot in Biddeford this morning, and ICE may be involved.”
A bystander video verified by ABC News showed what appeared to be federal immigration agents and uniformed law enforcement officers in the aftermath of the shooting performing first aid on an individual on the ground at an intersection.
A Ring camera video obtained by ABC News from a residence near the shooting scene captured the sound of what appeared to be at least five gunshots.
Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine, said in a social media post that she is “aware of reports that someone was fatally shot in Biddeford this morning, and ICE may be involved.”
She added, “My team and I are working to get more information and will share more as we learn it.”
Em Akerley, who lives near the shooting scene, told ABC affiliate station WMTW, that she was inside her home having her morning coffee when she heard the gunshots.
“I thought it was a backfire, and then I kept hearing them,” Akerley said. “I thought it was a drive-by shooting.”
She said she looked out her window and saw a small white car being corralled by two men, who appeared to be trying to stop the vehicle from losing control in the intersection.
“All of a sudden, all of these plain-clothes vested men started running down the street, abandoning their cars,” Akerley said.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
People shield from the sun under umbrellas next to the Victoria Memorial outside Buckingham Palace as the UK is hit by another heatwave. (Vuk Valcic/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
(LONDON) — More than 2,700 people are estimated to have died in England and Wales in recent months as a result of heat-related causes, a new report has found.
The excess deaths occurred as a result of heat waves in May and June, according to researchers at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), Imperial College London and the Met Office.
Globally, heat is the leading cause of weather-related deaths, according the World Health Organization (WHO).
The heat wave that occurred between May 21 and 29 was likely responsible for around 550 deaths, while the heat wave that occurred from June 18 to 28 was likely responsible for about 2,200 deaths, the analysis found.
Both heat waves broke long-standing temperature records, according to the report.
In the U.K., the temperature threshold for an official heat wave is lower than in much of the U.S.
A heat wave is defined as a period of at least three consecutive days with daily maximum temperatures meeting or exceeding the heat wave temperature threshold, according to the Met Office. The threshold varies by county and ranges from 77 to 82 degrees Fahrenheit.
Across much of the U.S., the temperature threshold is at least three consecutive days with daily maximum temperatures at 90 degrees or greater.
The most heat-related deaths occurred southeast of England, with 549 in total. London saw 453 deaths and the West Midlands reported 368 deaths, researchers said. They suggested that people in areas less frequently exposed to extreme heat may be more vulnerable.
“It is vital that action on adapting Britain’s homes, workplaces, and critical infrastructure to extreme heat outpaces these health risks, especially if we are to protect those most vulnerable to its impacts, such as older people, babies, and children,” Malcolm Mistry, assistant professor in climate and geo-spatial modeling at the LSHTM, said in a statement.
About 42% of heat-related deaths that occurred in the U.K. during those months were exacerbated by human-caused climate change, researchers said.
“Climate change is further boosting the temperature of essentially every heat wave we observe today,” Flavio Lehner, a climate scientist at Cornell University, said in a statement to ABC News. “In other words, had the same weather pattern occurred 50 or 100 years ago, it would have also resulted in a heatwave, but one that was a bit cooler.”
It’s not only daytime high temperatures that are a concern. Heat waves are becoming even more dangerous as overnight low temperatures are still too high for people to recover from the heat stress they experience during the day, according to the WHO.
Western Europe, the region most impacted by the historic heat wave in late June, experienced its hottest June on record last month, according to Copernicus, Europe’s climate change service.
Many June and some all-time records for daily maximum temperature were broken in several countries, according to Copernicus.
France’s nationwide average temperature hit 30 degrees Celsius, or about 86 degrees Fahrenheit, on June 24 — the highest-ever temperature recorded, according to weather officials at Meteo-France, the national weather service. High temperatures in Paris recorded in the triple digits in the days after.
High temperatures also impacted cities like Madrid and Rome, according to Copernicus.
There were more than 5,000 excess deaths in Germany and another 4,700 deaths in France, Belgium, Spain and the Netherlands between June 20 and 28, Reuters reported.
Rising atmospheric and ocean temperatures “reflect a climate system continuing to accumulate heat” that result in increasingly intense heat waves and a persistently warm ocean, Samantha Burgess, strategic lead for climate at the European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, said in a statement.
“June 2026 underscored how profoundly the climate is changing,” Burgess said. “Western Europe recorded its warmest June on record, and continued record warmth in the global ocean.”
Matthew Glasser and Joe Simonetti contributed to this report.
An FBI logo on a podium seen during a press conference at Los Angeles FBI Office on Tuesday, July 7, 2026 in Los Angeles, CA. (Ronaldo Bolaños / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
(DETROIT) — The FBI announced it is joining an investigation into the death of an infant who was found dead in a toilet at the Electric Forest music festival last month. The agency is offering a $15,000 reward for new information on the case.
The FBI’s Detroit Field Office, alongside Michigan State Police, is seeking information regarding the identification, arrest and conviction of the person or people responsible for the death.
The newborn was found in a portable restroom on the campgrounds of the festival on the morning of Sunday, June 28, the final day of the four-day festival, according to Michigan State Police. The festival took place in Rothbury, Michigan, in the western part of the state near Lake Michigan.
Preliminary autopsy findings indicate the infant was viable and born alive, Michigan police reported.
The child was identified by police as a “neonate,” an infant in the first 28 days after birth.
An employee of the restroom vending company found the deceased infant when conducting routine maintenance on the restrooms, ABC News’ Grand Rapids affiliate WZZM 13 reported.
“Investigators believe there are individuals with important information relevant to this case who may be reluctant to come forward,” Michigan State Police wrote on X. “The MSP continues to seek the public’s assistance and encourages anyone with information to report it.”
Information regarding the incident can be reported at Michigan.gov/MichTip or by calling 1-855-MICH-TIP (1-855-642-4847).
In a Facebook post, Electric Forest urged the public to share new information with police, writing it is “heartbroken” by the tragic event.
Michigan State Police requested the public not speculate on social media as investigators work to determine what happened.
“We are confident that continued investigative efforts, combined with forensic science, will ultimately lead to the identification of the person responsible,” Michigan State Police said.
U.S. President Donald Trump talks to reporters in the Oval Office at the White House on July 06, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — A federal judge in Florida has referred President Donald Trump’s attorneys for potential disciplinary action over their filing of the $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS that resulted in the creation of the now-defunct “Anti-Weaponization Fund.”
U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams’ scathing order criticized the president and his lawyers for using the court “to earmark billions of dollars from American taxpayers.”
“In reaching this conclusion, the Court determines that Plaintiffs improperly employed this lawsuit to justify a particular award in this matter — access to taxpayer funds and exemption from audits and other investigations — which was accomplished by leveraging control over Defendants,” Judge Williams wrote.
Trump in May announced the $1.776 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” to compensate those who allege they were wrongly targeted under the Biden administration, in exchange for Trump agreeing to drop his $10 billion suit against the IRS over the unauthorized disclosure of his tax information during his first term, for which a former IRS contractor pleaded guilty in 2023.
The arrangement sparked accusations of self-dealing and a bipartisan uproar over the possible use of taxpayer money to pay rioters who attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Judge Williams, in her order, said that Trump’s personal lawyers and the Department of Justice attempted to “use the Court to provide some legitimacy … to earmark billions of dollars from American taxpayers to redress grievances not defined in the law.”
“The Parties used the existence of federal litigation as a means of conferring legitimacy upon a course of action that they were unwilling to subject to judicial review,” Williams wrote. “The context of the ‘settlement,’ the relationships of the people involved in negotiating and approving it, the ethical implications of their conduct, and the Parties’ swift efforts to dismiss this case after the Court raised fundamental jurisdictional questions all support this conclusion. Accordingly, the Court expressly finds that Plaintiffs acted in bad faith.”
Williams also directly called out acting Attorney General Todd Blanche throughout her order, and suggested he provided “misleading” testimony before Congress when probed over the Justice Department’s now-defunct “Anti-Weaponization Fund.”
“The Court is extremely troubled by the testimony given by Acting Attorney General Blanche on May 19, 2026,” Williams wrote. “In response to why the ‘settlement agreement’ had not been submitted to this Court for review, he stated that ‘there is no judge’ because the case had been dismissed and, therefore, there was “no mechanism” for reviewing the agreement.”
“While temporally accurate, this answer is, at best, misleading and, at worst, disingenuous,” the judge wrote. “The Court was available to review any pleading by any Party at any time during this lawsuit. And if Acting Attorney General Blanche had thought the dismissal was improvidently granted or thought Plaintiffs misspoke when they said, ‘no judicial analysis is appropriate,’ he only had to file an appearance and ask for relief.”
The scathing assessment comes just two days before Blanche is set to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee for his confirmation hearing to take the attorney general position on a permanent basis. Republican senators have already said they would push for further details from Blanche on the portion of the settlement that related to Trump and his family being immune from IRS investigations of their past tax returns.
A spokesperson for Trump’s legal team said in a statement, “The IRS wrongly allowed a rogue, politically-motivated employee to leak private and confidential information about President Trump, his family, and the Trump Organization to the New York Times, ProPublica and other left-wing news outlets, which was then illegally released to millions of people. President Trump continues to hold those who wrong America and Americans accountable.”
A Justice Department spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the Judge Williams’ ruling.
Brandon DeBot, policy director of New York University’s Tax Law Center, said in a statement regarding Williams’ ruling, “The court confirmed this sweetheart deal is an abuse of the tax and legal system and ‘directly contravenes’ the tax system’s protections against political interference. This decision confirms that the IRS should not follow through to implement the Acting AG’s unprecedented and unauthorized exemption from the normal tax audit rules for the President and his affiliates.”
“The court’s decision is important, but does not remove the need for Congressional action to nullify the entire deal and to prevent any similar attempts at presidential self-dealing in the future,” DeBot said.
“This lawsuit was not brought to vindicate rights; it was brought to manipulate the judicial process to pursue benefits unavailable in litigation because the Parties were not adverse,” Judge Williams wrote.
Blanche last month told a House subcommittee that the Trump administration is backing down from establishing the “Anti-Weaponization Fund.” A federal judge has directed Justice Department to formally address whether fund is dead, as the agency has claimed.
In addition to referring the lawyers in the case for disciplinary action, Judge Williams said that Trump and the federal government are “prohibited from referring to the purported ‘settlement agreement'” or using it “in any judicial, administrative, regulatory, arbitration, or any other official proceeding.”
“The Court determines that Plaintiffs improperly employed this lawsuit to justify a particular award in this matter — access to taxpayer funds and exemption from audits and other investigations — which was accomplished by leveraging control over Defendants,” she wrote.
Williams also directed the court’s clerk to mail a copy of her order to the state bars of New York and Washington D.C., where disciplinary referrals had already previously been sent for Blanche and Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward.
It’s unclear how Williams’ ruling will impact the broad audit protections that were purportedly granted to Trump, his family, and his businesses. The Department of Justice had argued that those protections were part of a private settlement that did not require any judicial oversight, and Judge Williams did not explicitly lay out the next steps in her order.
Separate from the Florida case, federal judges this week had scheduled court hearings as part of lawsuits challenging the settlement — providing a potential venue where the issue may be litigated.
Lindsey Graham rides on the back of a golf cart with his sister Darline Graham Nordone (C) during the Iowa State Fair on August 17, 2015 in Des Moines, Iowa. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump said on Monday he wants Lindsey Graham’s sister, Darline Graham Nordone, to be his temporary replacement in the Senate.
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster announced around the same time as Trump’s post that he will be making an announcement about who is appointing to the Senate seat at 4 p.m. on Monday
ABC News has reached out to McMaster’s office about Trump’s push for Nordone to be Graham’s replacement. ABC News has already reached out to Nordone for comment.
Trump wrote in a social media post that he made his recommendation to McMaster, and said it would a “fabulous tribute” to Graham.
Separate from the temporary replacement to complete Graham’s term, South Carolina will hold a special election on Aug. 11 to replace Graham as the Republican nominee on the general election ballot this November.
Graham and his sister shared an incredibly close relationship. After their parents died when Graham was only 22 years old, he took on a caretaker role for his younger sister, becoming her legal guardian.
Nordone, in a recent video for Graham’s reelection campaign, said of her brother, “He’s always been there for me, no matter what.”
It is not immediately clear if Nordone has any political experience or aspirations. According to The New York Times, Nordone is a mother of two and has worked to help people with disabilities find jobs.
Graham’s office announced over the weekend that the longtime Republican lawmaker had died suddenly at the age of 71. Preliminary findings from the Medical Examiner of the District of Columbia said the senator died from an “aortic dissection due to arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease.”
Trump, in an interview with “Fox and Friends” on Monday morning, called Graham a “friend” and praised his work on shepherding through the nomination of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh during his first term.
“He had fun with politics, but he was really good at it,” Trump said of Graham. “And then when he got angry, like he did in the case of Brett Kavanaugh, it was so impactful.”
