(LONDON) — Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, a supporter of independence for Scotland, said on Wednesday she plans to resign.
She cited her duty to step back amid the “nature and scale” of the challenges facing her country. Sturgeon, who has served for more than eight years, said new leadership would have “the energy” needed to lead the government and to push for Scotland to break away from the United Kingdom.
“I am firmly of the view that there is now majority support for independence,” she said in a statement. “But that support needs to be solidified — and it needs to grow further if our independent Scotland is to have the best possible foundation.”
She added, “To achieve that we need to reach across the divide in Scottish politics, and my judgement now is that this needs a new leader.”
Sturgeon said she plans to continue in the role until a successor is ready to take office.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in a statement thanked Sturgeon for her long-standing service.
“I wish her all the best for her next steps,” Sunak said on Twitter. “We will continue to work closely with the @scotgov on our joint efforts to deliver for people across Scotland.”
(NEW YORK) — Tesla plans to open a portion of its U.S. charging network to competing electric vehicle makers, the Biden administration said on Wednesday.
The carmaker plans to open about 7,500 charging stations across the U.S. before the end of 2024, officials said on Wednesday.
The update from Elon Musk’s car company comes as the White House rolls out new measures to expand EV charging across the country.
The Biden administration announced it had partnered with Tesla and other companies — including General Motors and Hertz — as part of a two-year project that aims to use “private funds to complement federal dollars and putting the nation’s EV charging goals even closer within reach.”
Tesla plans to install about 3,500 new stations on highways across the country, the White House said. Those new charges are expected to be open to other vehicles.
“All EV drivers will be able to access these stations using the Tesla app or website,” the White House said. “Additionally, Tesla will triple its full nationwide network of Superchargers, manufactured in Buffalo, New York.”
(LOS ANGELES) — A lawsuit against Cedars-Sinai Health System and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles claims the hospital shared patient data with third parties.
Filed by plaintiff John Doe, the proposed class action lawsuit claims his and other patients’ private information — including data related to their medical inquiries — was shared with marketing and social media platforms including Google, Microsoft Bing and Meta, the parent company of Facebook.
“Cedars-Sinai transmitted to third parties portions of the patients’ private communications with it through pieces of tracking code that it embedded in its website, for the sole purpose of sharing such information with marketing entities,” the lawsuit reads. “This code served as real time wiretaps on patients’ communications.”
According to the lawsuit, originally reported by The Register, patients at Cedars-Sinai can use either the hospital’s website or its app to log into the patient portal and research symptoms about their medical conditions, about doctors who can treat said conditions, as well as other issues related to their health.
However, the lawsuit claims Cedars-Sinai’s website had Meta Pixel programmed. Meta Pixel is a piece of code that can help identify how Facebook users are interacting with content on a website.
Allegedly, when a patient entered any of the following information — types of medical treatment sought; name, sex, language and specialty of a physician; searches related to COVID-19 information and treatment; locations where treatment was sought; or that a telephone call was made to schedule an appointment — it was shared simultaneously with Meta.
“By way of illustration, if a patient made an appointment with a doctor for treatment of cancer, the tracking code Cedars-Sinai put on its website conveyed that information to Meta, which in turn allowed Meta to include that patient in marketing target groups that it offered to its other advertising clients who wanted to market to cancer patients,” according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit claims John Doe “has noticed an increase in the number of health-related ads that he has received, and he has received ads relating to the condition about which he communicated on Defendant’s website.”
The lawsuit argues this is in violation of Cedars-Sinai’s privacy policy, which assures user information is protected and won’t be shared for other services unless specifically requested by the patient.
In a statement to ABC News, a Cedars-Sinai spokesman said the hospital upholds patient privacy but did not comment on the allegations.
“We are unable [to] comment on pending litigation, but we can say that the health and medical privacy of our patients and community are of the utmost importance,” the statement said. “We will continue to follow regulatory guidance in this area while striving to provide the best website experience for people searching for healthcare information and treatment options.”
Meta declined to comment on the lawsuit but pointed ABC News to their Business Tools policies that prohibit advertisers from sharing an individual’s sensitive health information.
“We have no statement at this time beyond the allegations plead in the complaint,” Rachele Byrd, managing partner of firm Wolf Haldenstein Adler Freeman & Herz’s San Diego office and one of the attorneys for the plaintiff, told ABC News in an email.
Meta is not the only defendant in the lawsuit. The lawsuit also claims Cedars-Sinai placed tracking codes from Google Analytics and Microsoft Bing on its website to help target website visitors with more personal advertisements.
“Google Analytics is a measurement product that helps businesses better understand their web and app performance — businesses own the data collected and can delete it at any time,” a Google spokesperson said in a statement to ABC News. “As a product, Google Analytics was built so that users could not be identified by Google for ourselves or anyone else and data in Google Analytics is obfuscated and aggregated. Additionally, we have strict policies against advertising to people based on sensitive information and take action when a customer violates these terms.”
Microsoft did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
This is not the first time Meta has been targeted in a lawsuit for use of its Meta Pixel.
In a proposed class action lawsuit filed in Louisiana last month, patients alleged LCMC Health Systems, based in New Orleans, and Willis-Knighton Health System, based in northwestern Louisiana, shared sensitive medical data without patients’ knowledge or consent.
“We are learning more and more about this shocking breach of trust as our investigation continues,” attorney Stephen Herman, a partner at law firm Herman Herman & Katz, which is representing the plaintiffs in the Louisiana case, told ABC News in a statement. “This was a gross invasion of privacy that went on for years.”
(LONDON) — The exact crown Camilla, the queen consort, will wear at the coronation in May has finally been announced.
Camilla, who will be crowned alongside her husband King Charles III, will wear the Queen Mary’s Crown, Buckingham Palace confirmed Tuesday.
The crown has been removed from the display at the Tower of London in order to make modifications to it ahead of the May 6, 2023, coronation, the palace said.
Camilla’s decision to wear the Queen Mary’s Crown at the coronation brings with it some controversy and a historic first.
This will be the first time in “recent history” that a queen consort has used an existing crown for a coronation, instead of having a new one made, according to the palace.
The palace described Camilla’s decision to re-wear the Queen Mary’s Crown as one made “in the interests of sustainability and efficiency.”
The Queen Mary’s Crown has a complicated history due to the types of diamonds it originally contained.
The crown was created for the 1911 coronation of King George V, according to the Royal Collection Trust. Set with 2,200 diamonds, the crown was worn by his wife Queen Mary at the coronation.
When it was first made, the crown contained three large diamonds, the Kohinoor and Cullinan III and IV diamonds, according to the Royal Collection Trust.
Buckingham Palace said this week that for the coronation in May, the crown will be reset with the Cullinan III, IV and V diamonds, each of which were also worn by the late Queen Elizabeth II.
“The diamonds were part of Queen Elizabeth II’s personal jewellery collection for many years and were often worn by Her late Majesty as brooches,” the palace said in a statement.
The queen’s death last September reignited calls for some of the diamonds in the crown jewels to be returned to their countries of origin.
The Kohinoor diamond was mined in India thousands of years ago and is one of the largest cut diamonds in the world.
Over the centuries, India, Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan have all claimed ownership and called for the British to surrender it, but the British government has rejected pleas to return the Kohinoor diamond.
Historic Royal Palaces, which oversees the Tower of London, notes that the diamond has a “turbulent history” and is a “symbol of conquest.”
The Cullinan diamond was discovered in South Africa in 1905 in a mine owned by its namesake, Thomas Cullinan.
It was later purchased by the government in the former province of Transvaal, South Africa — which was dissolved in 1994 after the fall of apartheid — where it was found, and “presented to the reigning British monarch, King Edward VII,” according to Encyclopedia Britannica.
The Royal Collection Trust states that the diamond was presented to the king “as a symbolic gesture to heal the rift between Britain and South Africa after the Boer War.”
(NEW YORK) — Romance scammers raked in big bucks in 2022, deceiving almost 70,000 people out of $1.3 billion, according to a new report from the Federal Trade Commission.
According to the FBI, romance scammers create an online identity to gain a person’s trust and affection and then use that relationship to steal or manipulate them.
Last year, romance scammers stole from tens of thousands of victims with a median reported loss of $4,400 each, the FTC said.
Romance scammers use dating apps to target people, but are more likely to send people a private message to establish a relationship, according to the FTC.
Approximately 40% of people who lost money in 2022 said scammers contacted them on social media, while 19% said it began on an app or a website, according to the FTC. The FTC noted that popular messaging apps such as Google Chat, Telegram and WhatsApp were used to continue conversations.
According to the FTC report, romance scammers often use specific lies to scam people.
Approximately 24% of romance scammers tell potential victims that they or a loved one is “sick, hurt, or in jail;” 18% offer to teach how to invest; another 18% say they’re in the military; and 12% use lies surrounding getting married, according to the FTC.
The FTC said that last year 24% of people reported paying scammers using gift cards, 19% paid in cryptocurrency, and 14% paid using a bank wire transfer or payment.
Over 60% of reported losses stemmed from bank wire transfers and cryptocurrency payments, the latter making up the largest reported dollar amount in 2022, according to the FTC.
Last month, a Florida woman was arrested for planning a years-long romance scam that defrauded an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor.
According to federal prosecutors, Peaches Stergo stole $2.8 million over four years from the victim, whom she met on a dating website.
“Stergo deceived an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor, maliciously draining his life savings so she could become a millionaire through fraud,” U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in a statement.
The FTC does provide ways to spot a romance scammer in action:
Nobody legit will ever ask you to help — or insist that you invest — by sending cryptocurrency, giving the numbers on a gift card, or wiring money. Anyone who does is a scammer.
If someone tells you to send money to receive a package, you can bet it’s a scam.
Talk to friends or family about a new love interest and pay attention if they’re concerned.
Try a reverse image search of profile pictures. If the details don’t match up, it’s a scam.
(NEW YORK) — As the Easter season nears, with Ash Wednesday on Feb. 22, fast-casual restaurant chains have released specialty seafood-forward menu items ideal for practicing Christians during Lent.
For those unfamiliar, Lent is the six-week period between Ash Wednesday and Easter during which many Christians abstain from eating meat on the holy days of obligation and Fridays. Traditionally, it has marked a period or reflection, fasting and penitence, with many giving up specific things in the weeks leading up to the Easter holiday.
For years, McDonald’s has been a popular Lent option for its Filet-O-Fish sandwich, and now more competitors are wading in.
Below, check out some of the Lent-friendly menu items that are available now nationwide:
Lent 2023 food specials
Popeyes
The fast food spot known for its fried chicken has brought back two fan-favorite seafood offerings for a limited time: the Flounder Fish Sandwich and the Shrimp Tackle Box.
The Flounder Fish Sandwich, first introduced in 2021, now comes in both classic or spicy varieties. It’s made with a light, flakey flounder fillet marinated in Louisiana herbs and spices, dusted in crispy coating and fried, served on a warm, buttery toasted brioche bun with pickles and classic tartar sauce or spicy spread.
The $6 Shrimp Tackle Box comes with eight crispy butterfly shrimp seasoned in Louisiana herbs and spices, served crispy in a Southern breading, paired with a regular side, a hot buttery biscuit and classic tartar sauce.
From Valentine’s Day through Feb. 19, customers can buy one sandwich combo and get another a la carte sandwich for free on the Popeyes app and online for mobile orders.
Long John Silver’s
The seafood-centric fast-casual chain announced new savings for seafood-loving families with three seasonal specials through April 23.
Shrimp fans have three varieties to choose from for $6 shrimp baskets: a six-piece grilled shrimp basket served on a bed of savory rice with a side; six-piece batter-dipped shrimp served with a choice of one side and two hushpuppies; or crispy breaded popcorn shrimp served with one side and two hushpuppies.
All three of the above shrimp preparations are also available in a $10 shrimp sea-shares box, which includes 15 pieces grilled or battered, or the popcorn shrimp.
Long John Silver’s is also offering a fish and shrimp family feast with 12 batter-dipped shrimp, eight hand-battered, wild-caught Alaska pollock fillets, two family-size sides, and eight hushpuppies.
7-Eleven
For a limited time 7-Eleven, Speedway and Stripes are offering rewards members a “fin-tastic” deal with $2 fish sandwich Fridays.
The garlic herb Wild Alaska Pollock fillet is topped with American cheese and tartar sauce and served on a warm brioche bun, made in partnership with the Association of Genuine Alaska Pollock Producers.
Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for God’s Love we Deliver
Heart’s Nancy Wilson is ready to start focusing on work behind the scenes of the music business. The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer has just launched her own music management company, Roadcase Management.
“I believe rock music still has such a meaningful place in the world and I’m ready to go to bat for the new generation of inspired talent,” she tells Billboard. “I want to do this because in today’s world new music needs more of a fighting chance to get through to the fans despite the compartmentalized markets.”
The company has already signed its first client, Portland singer/songwriter Madisenxoxo, who’s set to release the single “You’re So Pretty” this week. “I fell in love with Madisenxoxo’s music the first time I heard it,” Wilson says. “For me it feels like a whole new sound we’ve all been waiting to hear. It borrows from a few classic sound genres that evoke a new cultural context at a time when, I think, the culture is ready for it.”
And while Wilson does plan to sign more acts, she’s not in a rush. She shares, “Developing a roster will take time as we intend to stick to quality over quantity and seek only the right artists for the right reasons.”
The Grammy winner is reportedly playing Harley Quinn — the psychiatrist who becomes the Joker’s sidekick/love interest — in the upcoming Joker sequel — and while the post seemingly confirms the rumor, she has yet to explicitly name the character she’s playing in the movie.
The first Joker movie grossed over $1 billion worldwide and picked up a pair of Oscars, including Phoenix’s Best Actor win.
Joker: Folie à Deux makes its way into theaters on October 4, 2024.
(WASHINGTON) — Justice Department investigators probing former President Donald Trump’s handling of classified documents after leaving office have asked a judge to overrule attorney-client privilege and compel one of Trump’s attorneys to appear before a grand jury, multiple sources have confirmed to ABC News.
The DOJ is making the request on the basis of the crime-fraud exception, sources said, which allows for attorney-client privilege to be suspended in cases where it is suspected that legal services were rendered in the commission of a crime.
The development was first reported by the New York Times.
As previously reported by ABC News, DOJ officials said in a filing last summer that lawyers for Trump certified in early June that a “diligent search” of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate turned up just 38 classified documents, all of which were safely secured in one storage room. Two months later, when FBI agents raided the premises, they found more than 100 additional classified documents — some of which were located outside of the storage unit, including in Trump’s office desk, the DOJ said.
Prosecutors are now seeking to compel one of the Trump attorneys who made that certification to investigators, Evan Corcoran, to answer the grand jury’s questions.
They are also seeking to have Corcoran answer questions about one of Trump’s current top aides, sources tell ABC News.
Neither Corcoran nor a representative for Trump immediately responded to a request for comment from ABC News.
(EAST LANSING, Mich.) — Three students were killed and five other students were injured by a gunman who opened fire at an academic building and the student union on the Michigan State University campus in East Lansing on Monday night, police said.
After an hourslong manhunt, police found the 43-year-old suspect, Anthony McRae, dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound off campus.
All five injured students remain in critical condition Tuesday morning, officials said.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Feb 15, 5:42 AM EST
MSU student survives bloodshed 14 months after another mass shooting
ABC News spoke to Matt Riddle, who said his daughter survived the bloodshed at Michigan State University on Monday night, 14 months after surviving another deadly mass shooting at a high school in Oxford, Michigan.
The shooting at Oxford High School on Nov. 30, 2021, left four people dead and seven others wounded.
“Having been through it in Oxford … it helped her understand what she needs to do in these situations,” Riddle told ABC News during an interview on Tuesday night. “I don’t like that she has those tools. I wish she didn’t, but she does.”
Feb 14, 7:58 PM EST
Classes to resume on Monday
Classes at Michigan State, which have been canceled in the wake of the tragic shooting, will resume on Monday, school officials said.
A vigil is also planned on campus Wednesday night in honor of the victims, all of whom were students at the school, officials said.
“We are devastated by this tragedy and wrap our collective arms around the victims’ families and friends who face unimaginable injury and loss,” Kim Tobin, vice president of university advancement, said in a statement Wednesday announcing the details.
Feb 14, 6:27 PM EST
Victim Arielle Anderson remembered for passion to help others
Arielle Anderson, a junior from Grosse Pointe, Michigan, was one of the three Michigan State students killed in the shooting. Her family remembered her as a “precious daughter, granddaughter, sister, niece, cousin, and friend” in a statement shared Tuesday evening through her mother’s employer, Comerica Bank.
“As much as we loved her, she loved us and others even more,” the family said. “She was passionate about helping her friends and family, assisting children and serving people.”
Anderson, who was described as “sweet and loving with an infectious smile,” wanted to be a surgeon, her family said.
“Driven by her aspiration to tend to the health and welfare of others as a surgeon, she was working diligently to graduate from Michigan State University early to achieve her goals as quickly as possible,” the family said.
“We are absolutely devastated by this heinous act of violence upon her and many other innocent victims,” the statement added.
Feb 14, 3:26 PM EST
University releases names of victims
The three Michigan State students killed in the shooting have been identified by university police.
Brian Fraser, a sophomore, and Arielle Anderson, a junior, were both from Grosse Pointe, Michigan.
Alexandria Verner, a junior, was from Clawson, Michigan.
Five other students remain in the hospital in critical condition following the attack.
Feb 14, 2:19 PM EST
Suspect walked from his home to campus, viewed himself as ‘loner’
The FBI offered new details on the suspected gunman in a confidential briefing to law enforcement on Tuesday.
Investigators have determined 43-year-old Anthony McRae walked from his home to Michigan State and had no connection to the university or the victims.
Authorities said that when McRae was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, he had a “3-page document expressing his reasons for the attack and a number of additional locations in Lansing and Holt, Mich.; Ewing Township and Franklin Park, NJ; and Colorado Springs, Colo., which had ‘hurted’ (sic) him and, therefore, were deserving of attack.” Agents believe he had “personal grievances” with people at those locations.
McRae lived with his father, who is cooperating with the investigation, the FBI reported.
Investigators said the suspect’s writings confirmed he “was often alone.” The briefing said the gunman viewed himself as “a loner” and an “outcast” who was “never noticed or accepted by others.”
-ABC News’ Josh Margolin
Feb 14, 1:12 PM EST
Biden urges Congress to ‘enact commonsense gun law reforms’
President Joe Biden said in a statement Tuesday, “Our hearts are with these young victims and their families, the broader East Lansing and Lansing communities, and all Americans across the country grieving as the result of gun violence.”
Biden noted that the Michigan State mass shooting came one night before the U.S. marked five years since the Parkland, Florida, high school massacre. In the Feb. 14, 2018 school shooting in Parkland, 17 students and staff were gunned down.
“I have taken action to combat this epidemic in America, including a historic number of executive actions and the first significant gun safety law in nearly 30 years, but we must do more,” Biden said.
He stressed, “Congress must do something and enact commonsense gun law reforms, including requiring background checks on all gun sales, banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, closing loopholes in our background check system, requiring safe storage of guns, and eliminating immunity for gun manufacturers who knowingly put weapons of war on our streets. Action is what we owe to those grieving today in Michigan and across America.”
Feb 14, 1:04 PM EST
Timeline of the shooting
The first active shooter call came in at 8:18 p.m. from Berkey Hall, an academic building, and the university immediately told students to shelter in place, the Michigan State University Police Department said.
Shots were fired soon after at the student union.
At about 11 p.m., the suspected gunman was seen on campus security cameras, police said.
Images of the suspect were shared with the public at 11:18 p.m., police said.
At about 11:35 p.m., a caller’s tip led police to the suspect, authorities said.
Feb 14, 12:36 PM EST
Suspect had 2 guns, numerous magazines
The suspected shooter, 43-year-old Anthony Dwayne McRae, lived in Lansing, officials said.
The shooter died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound as law enforcement was approaching, a law enforcement source briefed on the situation said.
The source added that a firearm was recovered at the scene, and a second firearm was found in a backpack along with numerous magazines.
McRae served 18 months in prison between 2019 and 2021 on a weapons charge for having a loaded weapon in his vehicle, according to Michigan’s Department of Corrections.
-ABC News’ Lucien Bruggeman, Luke Barr and Josh Margolin
Feb 14, 12:25 PM EST
Michigan State police releases names of 2 victims
Two of the three Michigan State students killed in the shooting have been identified by university police.
Brian Fraser, a sophomore, was from Grosse Pointe, Michigan, while Alexandria Verner, a junior, was from Clawson. Authorities said they will not be naming the third victim at the request of the family.
Five other students remain in the hospital following the attack.
Feb 14, 11:56 AM EST
Shock, fear, confusion at Michigan State
At Michigan State, students and staff are overcome with shock, fear and confusion, Lansing Mayor Andy Schor told ABC News’ GMA3.
“It’s a terrible time. No mayor, no governor, no elected official ever wants to be up all night or wake up to a situation like this,” he said.
Schor said mental health resources are available.
Schor said the five injured students “are critical but stable.”
“It’s touch and go,” he said. “and the doctors are doing their best to work as aggressively as possible.”
Feb 14, 11:02 AM EST
Suspect had note indicating threat to NJ schools
When the suspect, 43-year-old Anthony McRae, was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, authorities said there was a note in his pocket indicating a threat to two public schools in Ewing, New Jersey, according to Ewing police.
McRae had local ties to Ewing but hasn’t lived in the area in several years, police said.
Ewing Public Schools are closed on Tuesday out of an abundance of caution, police said. However, no threat has been found and schools are expected to reopen on Wednesday, police said.
McRae “had a history of mental health issues,” police added.
Feb 14, 8:47 AM EST
No motive known
No motive is known, police said. The 43-year-old suspect, Anthony McRae, had no known connection to the university, according to authorities.
After police released the suspect’s photo, a tip from a caller led authorities to finding him, officials said.
A search warrant has been executed at a home, police said.
Feb 14, 8:14 AM EST
Michigan leaders call out US gun violence
At a news conference Tuesday, Michigan leaders called out the prevalence of U.S. gun violence.
Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., said, “I cannot believe I am here again doing this 15 months later,” speaking at the scene of another Michigan school shooting, referring to the November 2021 mass shooting at Oxford High School where four students were killed and several others were injured.
“I am filled with rage that we have to have another press conference about our children being killed in schools,” she said.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer added, “We’re all broken by an all-too-familiar feeling.”
“We cannot keep living like this,” she said. “Our children are scared to go to school. People feel unsafe in their houses of worship or local stores.”
Feb 14, 6:00 AM EST
City manager thanks ‘brave’ first responders after ‘horrific act of violence’
Interim East Lansing City Manager Randy Talifarro described Monday night’s mass shooting at Michigan State University as a “horrific act of violence.”
“The City of East Lansing is mourning the devastating shooting that occurred on the campus of Michigan State University tonight,” Talifarro said in a statement. “Our hearts go out to all of the victims of this horrific act of violence as well as their family and friends. East Lansing and MSU have always shared in each other’s victories and each other’s losses. Tonight, we hold space while we grapple with this devastating loss of life together.”
Talifarro also thanked the “brave first responders who quickly responded to MSU’s campus.”
“Against every natural instinct they ran towards the sound of danger, seeking not their own wellbeing, but instead to protect and serve those in need,” he said. “And we stand shoulder to shoulder with everyone impacted by tonight’s events. Please know that you’re not alone in your grief. We stand with you and will be here as we seek to heal as a community.”
City buildings and offices, including city hall, the public library and the district court, will be closed to the general public on Tuesday. Essential city employees will be reporting to work.
Drop-in counseling services will be available for members of the community at the East Lansing Hannah Community Center beginning at 9 a.m. ET.
