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Most Americans oppose Trump 3rd term, taking control of Greenland and Canada: POLL

April 29, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — Most Americans take President Donald Trump at his word when he talks about sending American citizens to foreign prisons, serving a third term as president and trying to take control of Greenland and Canada — even as sweeping majorities oppose each of these potential actions.

About 7 in 10 adults in this ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos poll think Trump is serious when he talks about sending American citizens who are convicted of violent crimes to prisons in other countries (71%) and the United States trying to take control of Greenland (68%).

Fewer, but still a broad 62%, say the same about his serving a third term, even though the Constitution prohibits him from running again. A slim majority, 53%, think Trump is serious when he talks about the United States trying to take control of Canada.

That doesn’t mean most people think these are good ideas: The survey, produced for ABC by Langer Research Associates with fieldwork by Ipsos, finds that Americans by wide margins oppose these proposals. At the high end, a vast 86% oppose the United States trying to take control of Canada. Eighty percent oppose Trump serving a third term, 76% oppose trying to take control of Greenland and 66% oppose sending U.S. citizens to foreign prisons.

See PDF for full results.

For his part, Trump insisted in an interview last week that he wasn’t trolling about trying to take control of Canada and Greenland. He also has said he is not joking about running for a third term; upping the ante, Trump 2028 merchandise appeared for sale on the Trump Organization’s website last Thursday.

Unsurprisingly, these proposals are especially well received by the 39% of Americans who approve of the way Trump is handling his job as president. One, indeed, reaches majority support — sending U.S. citizens who are convicted of violent crimes to foreign prisons, backed by 59% of Trump approvers.

Half of those in his base, 49%, support the United States trying to take control of Greenland. Forty-three percent in this group like the third-term idea; taking control of Canada lags, even among Trump approvers, at 29%.

Kidding me?

Notably, too, Republicans, conservatives and Trump approvers are most likely to say he’s not serious about any of these proposals. On the other side of the political spectrum, Democrats, liberals and Trump disapprovers are far more apt to think he means it.

Just 35% of Republicans think Trump is serious about taking over Canada, compared with 75% of Democrats. Thirty-eight percent of Republicans think he’s serious about a third term, compared with 88% of Democrats. And while more Republicans — just shy of six in 10 — think he’s serious about taking control of Greenland and sending U.S. prisoners abroad, again, these go much higher among Democrats.

On each item:

Third term

Opposition to a third term is substantial even among some of the key support groups that elected Trump last fall, including white men without four-year college degrees (74% of whom oppose another Trump term), white evangelical Protestants (70%), conservatives (67%) and Republicans (60%).

Wishful thinking may be a factor for some: Among Republicans who think Trump is serious about a third term, support for the idea rises to 60%. That compares with 24% among Republicans who don’t think he’s serious. On the other hand, a vast majority of Democrats (88%) think he’s serious about a third term; nearly none of them (3%) support it.

Canada/Greenland

When it comes to Canada and Greenland, perceptions of Trump’s intentions are associated with broader approval of his handling of U.S. relations with other countries — which has a strong partisan flavor. Among people who approve of his handling of international relations — 51% and 30%, respectively — support trying to take control of Greenland and Canada. Among those who disapprove of Trump’s work on international relations, support for these actions drops to 4% in the case of Greenland and 3% for Canada.

Notably, in partisan terms, 45% of Republicans support trying to take control of Greenland. That drops to 27% who support trying to take control of Canada.

Deporting Americans

As reported Friday, 47% of Americans support sending undocumented immigrants who are suspected members of a criminal group to El Salvador prisons without a court hearing. Fifty-seven percent in this group also support shipping out U.S. citizens convicted of violent crimes, while 41% oppose it.

At 32% overall, support for sending convicted Americans to foreign prisons peaks in especially Trump-friendly groups, including 59% of those who approve of his work in office, 58% of people who call themselves very conservative and 57% of Republicans. Support drops to 30% of independents and 12% of Democrats.

Methodology

This ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos poll was conducted online via the probability-based Ipsos KnowledgePanel® April 18-22, 2025, in English and Spanish, among a random national sample of 2,464 adults. Partisan divisions are 30%-30%-29%, Democrats-Republicans-independents.

Results have a margin of sampling error of 2 percentage points, including the design effect. Error margins are larger for subgroups. Sampling error is not the only source of differences in polls.

The survey was produced for ABC News by Langer Research Associates, with sampling and data collection by Ipsos. See details on ABC News survey methodology here.

Consumer gloom amid Trump’s tariffs expected to have worsened in April

April 29, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — A new survey of consumers on Tuesday is expected to show attitudes worsened in April, casting further gloom over the economy as President Donald Trump’s tariffs set off warnings of price increases and a possible recession.

A reading of sour consumer sentiment would mark the fifth consecutive month of decline, leaving the Conference Board gauge at its lowest level since the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell this month joined a growing set of policymakers and analysts who’ve cautioned about a possible outcome that bodes poorly for consumers: accelerating price increases alongside a sluggish economy.

A slew of companies have already announced plans for price hikes in response to the tariffs, including bargain retailers Temu and Shein.

Meanwhile, recession fears are mounting on Wall Street. Goldman Sachs earlier this month hiked its odds of a recession from 35% to 45%. JPMorgan pegged the probability of a recession this year at 60%.

Trump earlier this month paused so-called “reciprocal tariffs” on most U.S. trade partners, but the White House also raised its cumulative tariffs on Chinese goods to 145%.

An across-the-board 10% tariff applies to nearly all imports, except for semi-conductors, pharmaceuticals and some other items. Those levies come on top of specialized tariffs on steel, aluminum and autos.

Even after the suspension of some tariffs, U.S. consumers face the highest average effective tariff rate since 1909, the Yale Budget Lab found.

In recent days, Trump has voiced mixed messages about the prospect of a de-escalation in the trade war with China.

Trump last week said that tariffs on China would “come down substantially.” Days later, however, Trump urged Boeing to “default China” in response to a Chinese order that airlines reject deliveries of the U.S.-based aerospace company’s planes.

“This is just a small example of what China has done to the USA, for years,” Trump said in a post on social media.

Despite flagging consumer sentiment and ongoing market turmoil, key measures of the economy remain fairly strong.

The unemployment rate stands at a historically low level and job growth remains robust, though it has slowed from previous highs. Meanwhile, inflation cooled in March, putting price increases well below a peak attained in 2022, data showed.

The sturdy data offers little reassurance, some economists previously told ABC News.

Measures of the economy like inflation and hiring are released a month after the data is gathered, and they often reflect slow-moving shifts in business or consumer behavior, the economists said. As a result, such measures can prove outdated, especially when the economy is in flux.

Consumer spending, which accounts for about two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, could weaken if shopper sentiment sours. In theory, a slowdown of spending could hammer some businesses, prompting layoffs that in turn further shrink consumer appetite.

Speaking at the Economic Club of Chicago earlier this month, Powell acknowledged the “solid condition” of the U.S. economy, but he cautioned about signals of a potential slowdown. For instance, Powell noted a “sharp decline in sentiment” among businesses and households.

“Life moves pretty fast,” Powell added.

Trump voters are confident in how he’s handling the economy — but some have concerns about prices, tariffs

April 29, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — As President Donald Trump nears the 100th day of his second presidency, polling shows Americans largely disapproving of his handling of the economy, tariffs, and recent stock market turmoil.

But his 2024 voters largely say they’re still confident in his handling of the economy, and they overwhelmingly stand by their vote for Trump.

“I believe Trump will turn things around; I’m glad he’s president,” said Jessianna Bartier, 53, of Ohio. “With Biden, I felt there was so much waste. He was causing a lot of damage economically,” she said, and she had felt depressed by the former president’s efforts. “Trump has definitely got his work cut out for him.”

According to a new ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos poll, only 39% of Americans approve of how Trump has handled the economy; fewer approve of his handling of tariffs on imported goods or recent stock market turmoil. Seventy-one percent of Americans said that Trump’s handling of tariffs will contribute to inflation in the United States, although 59% think tariffs will create more manufacturing jobs.

But among Americans who voted for Trump in 2024, 87% approve of how he is handling the economy, while 78% approve of his handling of tariffs. A softer 71% said they approve of his handling of recent turmoil in the stock market.

Furthermore, among 2024 Trump voters, 74% think his economic policies will put the U.S. economy on a stronger foundation for the long term; at the same time, 45% of those voters think it’s very or somewhat likely that his economic policies will cause a recession in the short term.

An overwhelming 96% of those who voted for Trump believe how they voted was the right thing to do.

Bartier, a former flight attendant, now works as a bartender and lives in Ohio. She said she used to be a Democrat but became Republican as she “started dating more mature men.” She said she has always voted because “my voice matters.”

Bartier said her family is struggling financially at the moment, because her fiance lost his job and her own income is “definitely not enough.”

But she’s optimistic that Trump will be able to strengthen the economy.

She has mixed feelings about Trump on some issues, saying she appreciates his border crackdown but is at odds with his views on LGBTQ issues and abortion.

But on tariffs, she said she feels they may cause challenges at first but will be effective later on — although the recent stock market turmoil does give her pause.

“I think the tariffs are, in the short term, going to hurt us economically; but in the long term, [they’re] going to bring back jobs to America,” she said. She acknowledged feeling uncertain about how the tariff news impacted stocks: “Do I like seeing the Dow go down on itself? No.”

“[Trump’s] gonna do what he’s gonna do. He’s kind of a rogue agent,” Bartier added.

Anthony Romano, 64, a retired purchasing agent who lives by himself in Philadelphia, said he feels positive about Trump but has some concerns about the stock market.

“Overall I think he’s doing a really good job,” Romano said, but he added that it “seems like the stock market has been crashing — it’ll put a lot of stress on people.”

Stocks have fluctuated in the wake of what some experts described as continued uncertainty over the White House’s tariff policies and announcements. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday that the White House is “setting the fundamentals for a strong dollar, a strong economy, a strong stock market”.

Romano said he’s still confident in the president, citing Trump’s experience as a businessman.

“I have my trust in him; he knows what he’s doing,” he said.

Another of Trump’s voters who took the poll, Deborah Williams, 71, of Nevada, considers herself an independent politically and said she just retired from running a home-based business. Her husband, 78, has a part-time job and earns minimum wage.

She said she’s keeping an eye on the economy, especially given their dwindled income, and is “cautious about where I’m spending my money these days,” including with travel.

On tariffs, she has mixed feelings. She’s concerned they could impact prices and may be being done too bluntly, but called Trump’s philosophy behind them “a noble idea.”

“I want America to be the tough kid on the block again,” Williams said, and she does not want think Americans should be paying for or subsidizing other countries’ expenses. “Trump’s my man for doing that at this point,” she said, adding later, “He has the opportunity to put our economy back together by playing hardnose with some of these people we import from.”

The poll only asks respondents for their first names; some respondents contacted by ABC News declined to share their last name.

Irene, 63, who works for the library and local government in a northern New Jersey town, told ABC News that she has mixed feelings over how the Trump administration has rolled out tariffs.

“I’m kind of favorable for the tariffs, because I think we have been taken advantage of by different countries,” she said. “It’s just that, maybe he’s going a little overboard or too fast with all of this. And the tariffs are going to affect a lot more than they were originally going to.”

She hasn’t felt any impact on her or her family’s finances yet. Asked what she hopes to see from the White House going forward, she said she was hoping for the economy she felt America had during the first Trump administration.

“I look back to when he was in the office the first four years, and I just felt like the economy was in better shape,” she said, mentioning interest rates and gas prices. “I was kind of hoping we could get somewhere towards that point.”

She also told the poll she feels a recession is somewhat likely, and she hopes it does not impact the jobs she holds or her finances.

“But I’m at the point where I’m trying to get in a better financial position, just in case that recession should happen, it won’t hit me as hard,” she said.

That has not caused her to rethink how she voted for Trump in November: “I’m still behind my vote because I definitely didn’t have a good feeling about the Democrats,” she said.

The ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos poll was conducted online via the probability-based Ipsos KnowledgePanel® April 18-22, 2025, in English and Spanish, among a random national sample of 2,464 adults. Partisan divisions are 30%-30%-29%, Democrats-Republicans-independents.

Results have a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points, including the design effect. Error margins are larger for subgroups. Sampling error is not the only source of differences in polls.

See details on ABC News survey methodology here.

ABC News’ Gary Langer and Christine Filer contributed to this report.

‘Unprecedented’: How Trump has pushed the limits of presidential power in his first 100 days

April 29, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — One hundred days ago this week, just hours after taking the oath of office and reveling before a crowd of thousands at Capital One Arena, President Donald Trump signed the first executive orders of his second term.

With the stroke of his pen, he maintained he could freeze environmental and other agency regulations Congress had authorized. With another, he withdrew the U.S. from an international climate agreement.

“You’re witnessing the dawn of the golden age of America,” he told the roaring crowd. “That’s what it’s going to be.”

Overall, he’s issued more than 130 executive orders and even more memorandums, declared at least eight national emergencies and engaged in a showdown with the courts that has prompted debate on whether a constitutional crisis is underway.

Driving much of his action is a legal theory advocated by conservatives that the Constitution gives a president nearly unquestioned control over the federal government.

Trump and his top officials also contend that he’s simply working to implement the agenda that Americans voted for in November.

But other constitutional and legal experts who spoke with ABC News call it unparalleled overreach.

“This really is unprecedented,” Elizabeth Goitein, the senior director of the Brennan Center’s Liberty and National Security Program, told ABC News.

“We’ve seen really broad theories of executive power advanced in previous administrations,” Goitein said. “There’s been a steady trend over the last few decades towards increasingly broad views of executive power, especially after 9/11. But this is unprecedented and it’s different in kind, not just in degree.”

Trump, in a recent interview with Time to mark 100 days, disagreed.

“Well, I don’t feel I’m expanding it,” Trump told the magazine when asked about amassing presidential power. “I think I’m using it as it was meant to be used.”

Trump’s ‘government by executive order’

Nearly every day since Jan. 20, Trump has signed executive actions in the Oval Office, often in front of television cameras. He’s signed the greatest number of executive orders in his first 100 days of any president going back 88 years.

“He’s trying to do government by executive order on a whole range of issues,” said David Schultz, a constitutional law expert at Hamline University.

Following Trump’s lead, his administration has carried out a dramatic purge of what Congress had set up as independent agencies, firing tens of thousands of employees, even those with civil service protections. He’s also sought to wipe out diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives across the federal government.

Trump signed an order to diminish the Department of Education, with the ultimate goal of wiping away the agency established by law. He’s tried to effectively end birthright citizenship, which is enshrined in the 14th Amendment and has been upheld repeatedly by the Supreme Court.

To move forward with his immigration and economic policies, Trump has declared national emergencies that Goitein, an expert on presidential emergency powers, said are unjustified.

Despite border crossings being down, Trump invoked the 1798 wartime Alien Enemies Act to deport hundreds of Venezuelan migrants his administration alleged to be gang members, affording them little to no due process.

He invoked the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act in order to impose sweeping tariffs on virtually all U.S. trading partners. Though it is Congress, not the president, that has the power to impose taxes and regulate trade — and the emergency power used by Trump makes no mention of tariffs.

At times, he’s used the power of the presidency to pursue retribution on political opponents. Seemingly contrary to his promise to end the “weaponization” of government and the justice system, he’s signed orders targeting specific law firms that took on clients or cases he disagreed with politically. He directed the Justice Department to investigate Chris Krebbs and Miles Taylor, two officials from his first term who’ve criticized him or challenged his 2020 election falsehoods.

Trump’s harshest critics say some action verges on authoritarianism, noting his open respect for “strongman” leaders, including China’s President Xi Jinping, Russia’s Vladimir Putin and Hungary’s Viktor Orban.

“Sometimes you need a strongman,” Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity last September while campaigning.

Pushback from the courts — but not from Congress

“Our Framers were envisioning that if a president tried to do things like this, Congress would step in,” said Schultz. “And right now, it looks like partisanship is more powerful than checks and balances.”

Despite having Republican majorities (albeit narrow ones) in the House and Senate, Trump has opted to largely go it alone on his agenda in his first 100 days. Republicans on Capitol Hill, so far, appear uninterested or unwilling to seriously challenge him.

“We’re all afraid,” GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski, one of the few Republicans to be critical of Trump, told her Alaskan constituents last month. Murkowski added that “retaliation is real.”

While congressional pushback has been minimal, a clear clash is underway between the Trump administration and the courts as various groups and individuals challenge his policies.

Trump has berated judges who ruled against him as “radical left” and called for District Judge James Boasberg’s impeachment. He and Vice President JD Vance openly floated the idea of not abiding by lower court orders — “He who saves his Country does not violate any Law,” Trump posted on social media — though later said they would comply with decisions from the Supreme Court.

Chief Justice John Roberts issued a rare statement in rebuke of the rhetoric — and though he didn’t mention Trump by name, the context was clear.

In a major escalation of the administration’s standoff with the courts, the FBI last week arrested a Milwaukee judge, Hannah Dugan, and accused her of obstructing immigration agents. An attorney for Dugan said she will “defend herself vigorously and looks forward to being exonerated.” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, when asked about the incident, left open the possibility of the Justice Department taking more action against federal judges or even Supreme Court justices if they were obstructing the arrest of anyone suspected of being in the country illegally.

“He thinks he can either ignore or bully his way through,” Schultz said of Trump’s posture toward the judiciary. “And so far, he’s got a mixed record at best in terms of being able to do that.”

Several legal experts and presidential scholars who spoke to ABC News expressed concern that the courts will become inundated by Trump’s moves as his second term continues, and the system of checks and balances will continue to break down.

“The separation of powers is probably the most important protection that we have against presidents becoming kings,” said Goitein. “If this is the new normal, then we can say goodbye to democracy.”

Police raided the wrong house, now a family wants the Supreme Court to let them sue

April 29, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — A police SWAT team bursts into a home with little warning, only to quickly realize that it’s the wrong address and the occupants inside are innocent victims of the officers’ mistake.

The scenario has played out in American communities for years — sometimes resulting from bad intelligence, others from inadvertent officer errors — often leaving property damaged and families traumatized.

Legal immunity for cops can mean little restitution.

A major case before the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday could clear a path for some victims of wrong-house raids to sue for damages under an exception to immunity under federal law.

“It’s just a simple matter of fairness,” said Patrick Jacomo, an attorney with Institute for Justice, a nonprofit legal advocacy group litigating the case.

The plaintiffs — Trina Martin, her teenage son Gabe, and ex-partner Toi Cliatt — have spent seven years seeking to sue the FBI for damages after agents mistakenly raided their Atlanta home in 2017.

“I thought someone was breaking in, and it was so chaotic that I thought they had a mission, and the mission was to kill us,” said Martin in an interview with ABC News Live.

Toi Cliatt, who scrambled out of bed at the sound of flash-bang grenades exploding in his living room, described seeking shelter in a closet before the agents detained him.

“They threw me down on the floor and they were interrogating me, and they were asking me questions. And I guess the answers that I was responding to them with didn’t add up,” Cliatt said. “And that’s when I realized that they were in the wrong place.”

“The lead officer came back and he gave us a business card and he apologized and then he left,” said Martin.

The couple said their home sustained $5,000 of damage from burned carpet, broken doors and fractured railings. The emotional trauma is harder to quantify. “It’s countless,” Cliatt said.

Martin’s 7-year-old son Gabe, who sought cover under his bed in terror during the incident, says the experience dramatically altered his life.

“I see the world differently now. I didn’t really have a childhood growing up because of that,” said Gabe, now 13. “So, it really kind of changed me as a person.”

The FBI denied the family’s claims for restitution. The Trump administration, which is defending the agency at the Supreme Court, argues sovereign immunity shields the government from damages claims.

“Cops are human and they make mistakes. And a lot of times the mistakes that are being made are because there’s not enough due diligence, there’s not enough research going into it,” said Anthony Riccio, former First Deputy Superintendent of Chicago Police Department. “The result of it can be devastating for the family impacted.”

Most law enforcement agencies don’t keep track of wrong house raids or publicly report data, legal experts say. Civil Rights advocates estimate hundreds of cases of wrong-house raids nationwide each year; most victims are not compensated for the physical or emotional harm that often results.

“We have a right to be safe in our homes, and when officers are acting bad — for lack of a better word — then individuals have the right to hold them accountable,” said Anjanette Young, a Chicago social worker whose apartment was mistakenly raided by police in 2019.

Young’s case has become one of the most high-profile examples of the problem. Body camera video from the incident captures the 49-year-old handcuffed naked and bewildered in her living room just after 7 p.m. on a Thursday evening.

“You got the wrong house. I live alone!” she is heard on tape pleading with the cops. “Tell me what’s going on!”

Young says it took officers 40 minutes to realize they had the wrong address. They left her without any remedy, she said.

“I’ve been diagnosed with major depression and PTSD, and as a clinician myself, I understand what that means,” she said. “Time does not cure it. It is something that you live with and you have to learn how to manage it.”

A 2023 review by Chicago’s inspector general found that officers had committed at least 21 wrong-house raids over a four-year period. Young sued the city of Chicago and received a nearly $3 million settlement in 2021, but other victims aren’t so lucky.

“The problem with the Anjanette Young case was the information given to the officers was fictitious. A paid informant provided fictitious information in order to get money from the police department,” said Riccio. “When the officers showed up to execute the warrant, they were in the house for seconds before they realized, this is bad information.”

The impacts can be severe.

An Austin, Texas, police SWAT team responding to a gunfight, blew up the front door of Glen and Mindy Shields’ home in 2023 causing thousands of dollars in property damage. The suspect lived across the street. The city denied any wrongdoing and — as is often the case — claimed immunity.

When cops showed up outside Amy Hadley’s home in South Bend, Indiana, in 2022, her teenage son emerged with his hands up as some officers began to openly question whether the suspect lived there. They raided the home anyway. Police later said they had indications the suspect had posted to Facebook from inside.

“Police not only have things like qualified immunity to protect them, but in a case where the police work for the federal government, they have entire doctrines that effectively act like federal immunity,” said Jaicomo.

Trina, Toi and Gabe now hope the Supreme Court will help them pierce that shield.

Congress carved out an exception for federal law enforcement immunity from civil liability suits in 1974 for victims of “assault, battery, false imprisonment, false arrest, or abuse of process” by an officer.

The government denies the exception applies to the Martin case.

“What the Martins are looking for in this case is to be made whole for the mistake that was made by the FBI, but much more broadly than that is to ensure that they might be one of the last families that this happens to in America,” Jaicomo said.

The case comes as advocates for victims of police misconduct and mistakes say President Donald Trump is rolling back guardrails on law enforcement.

The Trump Justice Department has put a freeze on federal civil rights investigations into cops and vowed to reconsider consent decrees with police departments found to have engaged in a pattern of misconduct.

That includes agreements with the cities of Louisville and Minneapolis for police reforms agreed to after the 2020 police killings of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd in their respective cities.

“The Justice Department had in recent years been really taking a close look, at where things are going wrong, where you see a pattern of constitutional violations. And what the Trump Justice Department appears to be doing is backing away from that process,” said ACLU legal director Cecilia Wang.

Anjanette Young says communities don’t need to wait for the feds.

In Illinois, she’s lobbying state and local officials for strict new rules on search warrants to prevent cops from raiding the wrong house, including new steps to vet intelligence on a suspect’s location; requiring a 30 second wait after knocking before breaking down a door; and, mandatory use of tactics least intrusive to someone’s home and property.

“It’s not okay to harm people and then not fix the harm,” Young said.

Retired Chicago police officer Riccio agrees. “Whether that’s repairing the damage or providing them with some sort of compensation for what they’ve experienced, yeah, absolutely,” he said.

The Martins say that kind of restitution is the exception rather than the norm. Now, they hope the nation’s highest court will change that.

“For seven long years it felt like they were turning their backs on us,” Martin said. “I felt unheard, and it was easier to just give up, you know? And I didn’t want to give up.”

Funeral director trashed over 6,500 bodies of pets, used fake ashes to defraud customers out of $650,000: Officials

April 29, 2025 by WDNY Radio

Funeral director trashed over 6,500 bodies of pets, used fake ashes to defraud customers out of 0,000: Officials

Funeral director trashed over 6,500 bodies of pets, used fake ashes to defraud customers out of $650,000: Officials — Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office

(PITTSBURGH) — A funeral home director has been charged after allegedly throwing out the bodies of thousands of pets and giving owners the ashes of other animals, collectively charging them over $650,000 in the process, prosecutors said.

Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday announced on Monday that Jacob Vereb — owner of Vereb Funeral Home and Eternity Pet Memorial in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania — has been charged with improper disposal of “thousands of dogs and cats” for which owners paid for cremations, burials, returns of ashes, and other services, stealing over $650,000 from customers between 2021 and 2024,” according to a statement from the Pennsylvania’s Attorney General’s Office.

“Vereb took money in exchange for private cremation services, then disposed of many of the pets at a landfill and provided customers with ashes of other, unknown animals,” officials said.

The funeral home, which also worked with human remains, was only alleged by authorities to have defrauded customers who brought in their pets but the investigation identified more than 6,500 victims from Allegheny, Armstrong, Washington and Westmoreland counties, officials continued.

”This case is disturbing, and will cause devastation and heartache for many Pennsylvanians,” Attorney General Sunday said. “Our pets are members of our families, and this defendant betrayed and agonized pet owners who entrusted him to provide dignified services for their beloved cats and dogs. I commend our investigative team for a comprehensive review of voluminous records which uncovered this long-running pattern of theft and deception.”

Due to the vast numbers of people affected, the Office of Attorney General has launched a website to engage with victims where victims can provide their contact information, share victim impact statements, and receive updates on the criminal case. The website will also help concerned citizens to determine if they are victims in this case, officials said.

“Nearly a dozen veterinary practices and businesses worked with the Office of Attorney General to confirm that Vereb collected at least $657,517 in fees from pet owners who were promised a private cremation for their pet, but did not receive the actual ashes of their pet,” the Attorney General’s Office said. “Eternity Pet Memorial received the pets directly from consumers or through area veterinarians.”

Vereb, 70, was charged on Monday with felony counts of theft by deception, receiving stolen property, and deceptive business practices after surrendering Monday afternoon and was arraigned on the charges. He was released on his own recognizance, officials said.

The investigation is currently ongoing.

Alzheimer’s society calls on doctors to use newer early diagnostic testing due to improvements

April 29, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — New treatments and simple blood tests could change how doctors detect and treat Alzheimer’s disease, according to a new report from the Alzheimer’s Association.

Blood tests to detect Alzheimer’s are not yet approved for everyday use, but in research studies, they have improved the accuracy of diagnosis by up to 91%. Right now, doctors rely on brain scans called PET scans to find amyloid plaques or do a spinal tap to check for abnormal levels of proteins like beta-amyloid and tau.

These tests are expensive, invasive and not always easy to access. Blood tests could make it much simpler to find early signs of the disease and be more widely available.

“If you get a diagnosis early, you’re actually able to access treatments that you cannot take later on in the disease process,” Elizabeth Edgerly, PhD, a clinical psychologist and Alzheimer’s Association spokesperson, said in an interview with ABC News.

The report highlights that diagnosing Alzheimer’s earlier could open the door to treatments when they have the best chance of working, helping people stay mentally sharper for longer and giving families more time to plan for the future.

In the past two years, the FDA has approved two new drugs — Leqembi and Kisunla — that can slow the progression of early Alzheimer’s. While they are not cures, they can help people preserve memory and thinking skills longer, offering more time with a better quality of life.

This marks a major shift from older Alzheimer’s treatments, which could only manage symptoms without slowing down the disease much. However, these new drugs carry significant challenges, including high costs, the need for frequent brain scans to monitor serious side effects and the risk of swelling or bleeding in the brain. In addition, only people in the early stages of Alzheimer’s are eligible to receive these treatments.

“Ultimately, we would love to see an array of treatments that are available that tackle different aspects of Alzheimer’s, different factors that are contributing to it,” Edgerly said.

She noted that more than 140 different treatments are now in development, aiming to target different symptoms and stages of the disease.

The report also lays out an updated understanding of Alzheimer’s risk factors, dividing them into two categories. Some risks — like age, genetics and family history — cannot be changed. Others — including diet, exercise, blood pressure, cholesterol, hearing and vision health — are within a person’s control. Addressing the modifiable risks can have a significant impact on a person’s Alzheimer’s risk, the report noted.

In fact, Edgerly said that nearly half of all dementias could be preventable by taking better care of modifiable risks earlier in life.

“I could help reduce my risk of getting Alzheimer’s in later life if I’m really good about treating high blood pressure in my 40s and 30s,” she explained.

The report also announced the launch of ALZ-NET, a new nationwide tracking system that follows patients in real time to collect data on the long-term safety and effectiveness of the new medications, and to better understand who benefits most from early intervention.

Alzheimer’s disease, the most common cause of dementia, is a neurodegenerative condition that can start developing 20 years before symptoms appear. It is the seventh leading cause of death in the U.S.

Currently, more than 7 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s, many of whom remain undiagnosed, according to the report. By the year 2060, that number is expected to grow to more than 13 million.

Edgerly said she hoped that faster diagnosis and earlier access to treatment will improve care for Alzheimer’s and other dementia patients.

“The opportunities it would present to find people earlier in the process without having to go through six months or a year to get to that diagnosis would make a huge difference in helping people access treatments during the timeframe where they could be helpful,” she said.

Dr. Allen Chang is the chief resident of the Geriatric Medicine Subspecialty Residency Program at Dalhousie University and a member of the ABC News Medical Unit.

2 dead, 1 injured in Alaska plane crash

April 29, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(NANWALEK, ALASKA) — Two people are dead and another was seriously injured following a plane crash in Alaska on Monday, the Alaska Department of Public Safety told ABC News.

No details have been released as to what caused the crash.

“The Alaska State Troopers are on scene of a plane crash in Nanwalek,” the Alaska DPS said in a statement on Monday night. “Two adults were killed in the incident and one adult was seriously injured and medevaced to an Anchorage area hospital.”

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

4 minors dead after vehicle rams into after-school camp in Illinois

April 29, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(CHATHAM, IL) — Four minors are dead after a vehicle crashed into a building hosting an after-school camp in Chatham, Illinois, officials announced at a press conference on Monday afternoon. They ranged in age from 4 to 18 years old, according to a statement from the Illinois State Police.

Multiple others were injured in the incident, which took place shortly after 3 p.m. on Monday. The extent of their injuries is unknown, though several were hospitalized and one was airlifted from the scene of the accident.

The car struck three individuals outside of the YNOT (Youth Needing Other Things) Outdoors Summer Camp, and a fourth person was killed inside, according to Chatham Police Department.

Authorities described the situation as chaotic and urged families to use the reunification site to speed up the victim identification process.

“The driver and sole occupant of the vehicle was uninjured and transported to an area hospital for evaluation,” the ISP statement said.

Police said the driver is considered a suspect, though no charges or arrests have been announced. Their identity has not yet been released.

“Our community lost a group of bright and innocent young people with their whole lives ahead of them,” Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker said in a statement posted on X on Monday night.

“Parents said goodbye to their children this morning not knowing it would be the last time,” the statement continued. “My heart is heavy for these families and the unimaginable grief they’re experiencing — something that no parent should ever have to endure.”

Pritzker added that his office was monitoring the situation and he thanked first responders for assisting.

The ISP is working with the CPD to investigate, they said in a statement on Monday.

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

Trump administration investigating Harvard Law Review for alleged discrimination

April 29, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump’s administration is launching an investigation into Harvard University’s law journal over alleged discriminatory practices, expanding its weeks-long battle over federal funding with the elite institution.

The civil rights offices of the Education and Health and Human Services departments announced Monday they are investigating the Harvard Law Review, an independent, student-run organization that promotes legal scholarship.

The offices are investigating allegations that the journal discriminates based on race “in lieu of merit-based” standards, in violation of the Title VI anti-discrimination law, according to a release by the two agencies.

“Harvard Law Review’s article selection process appears to pick winners and losers on the basis of race, employing a spoils system in which the race of the legal scholar is as, if not more, important than the merit of the submission,” Craig Trainor, acting assistant secretary within the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights, said in a statement on Monday.

The agencies said the Harvard Law Review risks losing federal funding if found to have broken Title VI law.

The Harvard Law Review has been published and edited by students for over 135 years. It aims to be an effective research tool for practicing lawyers and students, according to its website.

“Harvard Law School is committed to ensuring that the programs and activities it oversees are in compliance with all applicable laws and to investigating any credibly alleged violations,” a spokesperson for the university said in a statement to ABC News, noting that the journal “is a student-run organization that is legally independent from the law school.”

The latest investigation comes after the Trump administration froze over $2.2 billion in federal funding to Harvard after the university refused to comply with a series of demands following an antisemitism task force review earlier this month.

Harvard University President Alan Garber said in a letter at the time that “no government — regardless of which party is in power — should dictate what private universities can teach, whom they can admit and hire, and which areas of study and inquiry they can pursue.”

The university has filed a lawsuit over the Trump administration’s threats to withhold funding, asking a judge to block the funding freeze from going into effect, arguing the move is “unlawful and beyond the government’s authority.”

During a short conference on Monday, U.S. District Court Judge Allison Burroughs scheduled oral arguments in the lawsuit challenging the funding freeze on July 21. In the meantime, the funding freeze will remain in effect.

The Internal Revenue Service is also considering revoking Harvard’s tax-exempt status, sources told ABC News earlier this month.

In other developments, the Department of Education said Monday its civil rights office found that the University of Pennsylvania violated Title IX by allowing transgender athletes to compete on its women’s sports teams.

The department is demanding the university issue a statement to its community that it will comply with the law, apologize to athletes whose athletic participation was “marred by sex discrimination,” and restore all athletics records or accolades “misappropriated by male athletes.” The school has 10 days to resolve the violation or risk a referral to the Department of Justice.

Earlier this year, the Trump administration said it suspended $175 million in federal contracts awarded to Penn, citing the participation of a transgender athlete on a women’s swimming team.

A Penn spokesperson said at the time that the university has “always followed” NCAA and Ivy League policies regarding student participation on athletic teams.

ABC News’ Peter Charalambous contributed to this report.

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