(FLORENCE, Ala.) — The corrections officer and escaped murder suspect who have been missing for days had “a special relationship,” the local sheriff confirmed.
Inmate Casey White and Lauderdale County Assistant Director of Corrections Vicki White — who are not related — went missing from Florence, Alabama, on Friday.
“Investigators received information from inmates at the Lauderdale County Detention Center over the weekend that there was a special relationship between Director White and inmate Casey White,” Lauderdale County Sheriff Rick Singleton said in a statement Tuesday. “That relationship has now been confirmed through our investigation by independent sources and means.”
Vicki White “participated” in the escape with Casey White, Singleton said Monday, adding, “Whether she did that willingly or she was coerced, threatened … not really sure.”
Casey White was charged with two counts of capital murder in September 2020 for the stabbing of 58-year-old Connie Ridgeway, authorities said. He could face the death penalty if convicted, the sheriff said.
On Friday morning, Vicki White allegedly told her colleagues that she was taking Casey White to the Lauderdale County Courthouse for a “mental health evaluation,” though he didn’t have a court appearance scheduled, Singleton said. Vicki White violated policy by escorting Casey White alone, the sheriff said.
Vicki White also allegedly told her colleagues that she was going to seek medical attention after dropping the inmate off at court because she wasn’t feeling well, but Singleton said his office confirmed that no appointment was made.
Vicki White had been talking about retiring for the last few months and turned in her paperwork on Thursday, Singleton told ABC News. Friday — the day the two went missing — was set to be her last day at work, he said.
The U.S. Marshals Service is offering up to $10,000 reward for information leading to Casey White’s capture and a $5,000 reward for information leading to Vicky White.
Marty Keely, U.S. marshal for the Northern District of Alabama, noted that Casey White may stand out due to his height — he’s 6 feet, 9 inches tall. Anyone who sees them is urged to call 911, Keely said.
Singleton called Vicki White, a 17-year veteran of the sheriff’s office, “an exemplary employee.”
“The employees are just devastated,” the sheriff said. “Nobody saw this coming.”
In an interview with Apple Music’s Ebro Darden that will be posted in full later Tuesday, Justin Bieber says his next album is nearly finished, and reveals it includes a number of features — including one with none other than John Mayer.
In a clip of the interview posted on Billboard, Justin says he’s “wrapping up” his next album: “It’s almost done. I got a lot of cool features and it should be dropping not too long from now.”
Mentioning John Mayer as one of the features, Justin says he contributes a “wicked guitar solo,” adding, “He’s someone I’ve looked up to for a long time.”
Justin goes on to describe John laying down his solo, adding, “It was mind-blowing to be able to see him operate in his gifting like that…being able to see him first-hand, because he is on another level, like, it’s just insane.”
In the interview, Justin, now 28, also discusses his status as sort of an “elder statesman” of pop, and how it’s important for him to support, as he puts it, “the Kid LAROIs of the world…these young cats.” He says he’s committed to helping up-and-comers “get their music out there, because I know what it’s like to have this vision and want people to hear your music.”
The Blac Chyna/Kardashian-Jenner court saga has finally come to a close, and the ruling in Chyna’s defamation lawsuit sided in favor of the famous reality TV family.
The Los Angeles jury hearing the suit on Monday awarded no monetary damages to Blac Chyna, who was suing the family for allegedly detailing her career as a reality TV star.
According to People, Chyna showed up in court on Monday alongside her lawyer, Lynne Ciani. Ciani didn’t speak much about Chyna’s reaction to losing the lawsuit but did mention some key points in the case, including the fact that jurors had to re-deliberate on a couple of questions they had “accidently skipped.”
“I’ve never seen in my career before a jury have to go back and deliberate on four questions,” she said. “The victory is that Chyna did not physically abuse her fiancé, Rob [Kardashian].”
Monday’s decision was the end of a nearly two week-long trial initiated by Blac Chyna in 2017, when she sued Kris Jenner, Kylie Jenner, Kourtney Kardashian and Khloe Kardashian for defamation and interference with her E! reality show, Rob & Chyna.
Upon leaving the courtroom, Blac Chyna was stopped from answering reporters’ questions. The Kardashian-Jenner family were not present in court, and instead attended the 2022 Met Gala in New York Monday night.
Billy Corgan has a word for people criticizing his voice. Or, rather, a finger representing two words.
In a recent Instagram post, the Smashing Pumpkins frontman shared a picture of himself onstage while raising his middle finger. Text across the image reads, “To the conspiracists about the state of my voice.”
While it’s unclear exactly who or what inspired Corgan’s ire, Pumpkins fans on Reddit theorize Corgan was responding to comments on his recent vocal performance of the song “X.Y.U.” during last weekend’s Beale Street festival, which featured some pretty intense screaming.
However, a quick perusal of the comments on the performance seem to be in favor of the screaming — perhaps Corgan’s middle finger was more of a triumphant eff-you to doubters rather than an angry one.
To hear Corgan’s voice in person, you can catch the Pumpkins’ ongoing Rock Invasion 2 tour, which finally kicked off this week after a two-year pandemic delay.
(MILFORD, Conn.) — Dozens of police officers from multiple states held a rally outside a Connecticut courthouse Tuesday as a white state trooper they contend was charged with manslaughter for doing his job was arraigned in the 2020 killing of a Black 19-year-old alleged carjacker.
Connecticut State Trooper Brian North, 31, appeared at a brief hearing in Superior Court in Milford, but did not enter a plea to a felony manslaughter charge stemming from the fatal shooting of Mubarak Soulemane.
North, who is free on $50,000 bail, did not speak at the hearing and a judge scheduled his next court date for June 2.
Soulemane’s mother, Omo Klusum Mohammed, attended the hearing and later said she and her family would not be intimidated from pursuing justice.
“I feel in my heart they were here to try to intimidate us,” Mohammed said at a post-hearing news conference outside the courthouse. “But there is no officer or any trooper who will intimidate us. We are here to stand for justice, and I’m here to stand for justice for my son, Mubarak Soulemane. And I hope and pray justice will be served and Brian North will go to jail.”
Mohammed vowed to attend every court hearing to ensure North is held accountable for her son’s death.
“We are here today for justice, justice for my son Mubarak Soulemane, who has been massacred by state Trooper Brian North,” Mohammed said.
Mohammed’s attorney, Stanford Rubenstein, added, “Ultimately, this case will be decided on the evidence. And I believe once pictures of the truth, video of what happened, is shown to a jury, they will come to the same conclusion I have: that this was an execution.”
North was arrested last month and charged in Soulemane’s death after the state inspector general released a lengthy report alleging North’s use of deadly force was not justified in the January 2020 shooting of Soulemane.
State Inspector General Robert Devlin Jr.’s investigation found that although Soulemane was allegedly armed with a steak knife, had stolen a Lyft rideshare vehicle and was apparently off his medication for schizophrenia, he was not a threat to North and other officers when he was shot multiple times.
Soulemane was killed when North allegedly fired seven times at him through the closed driver’s side window of a stolen Lyft vehicle after troopers stopped him and pinned him in on Interstate 95 in West Haven following a chase that reached speeds of 100 mph, according to the report.
Devlin’s investigation found that Soulemane was sitting behind the wheel of the car surrounded by troopers and officers from other agencies. He was trapped inside because North’s cruiser was blocking the driver’s side door.
An officer from the West Haven Police Department was bashing in the passenger-side window with a baton and another trooper was poised to deploy a stun gun on Soulemane when North opened fire as Soulemane reached into his pocket and pulled a knife, according to the report.
“Stated briefly, the investigation establishes that, at the time Trooper North fired his weapon, neither he nor any other person was in imminent danger of serious injury or death from a knife attack at the hands of Soulemane,” the inspector general concluded in his report. “Further, any belief that persons were in such danger was not reasonable. I therefore find that North’s use of deadly force was not justified under Connecticut law.”
But several dozen state police officers from Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Pennsylvania who rallied in support of North outside the courthouse on Tuesday said they strongly disagree with Devlin’s findings.
Andrew Matthews, executive director of the Connecticut State Police Union, said he and other union members believe North should not have been charged.
“When our troopers are, what we believe, prosecuted for doing their job, we will defend them,” Matthews said at a news conference outside the courthouse prior to North’s hearing. “We will defend their actions when we believe that they are justified in doing and performing their duties to protect the public.”
Matthews said he and other members of the union felt “obligated” to rally around North, adding, “our troopers put their lives on the line every day to protect the public.”
“And when people make split-second decisions that others can review over and over again and form their own judgment of what they did or what they would have done, we have to stand up for our troopers,” Matthews said.
North’s attorney, Jeffrey Ment, declined to comment on the case, but said, “Trooper North appreciated the support of his brother and sister officers from not only Connecticut, but also from surrounding states.”
Maguire and Dunst in 2002 — Kevin Winter/Getty Images
It might be hard to believe, but director Sam Raimi‘s first Spider-Man film turns 20 Tuesday.
It technically wasn’t the first hit film to star a Marvel movie superhero and usher in the still-going wave of cinematic comics-based adventures — that honor, most experts agree, belongs to 1998’s Blade.
X-Men followed in 2000, but Raimi’s first of three Sony Pictures-produced Spidey films in 2002 became a benchmark — so much so that Tobey Maguire reprising his role as Peter Parker/Spider-Man and Willem Dafoe returning as Norman Osborne/The Green Goblin in Spider-Man: No Way Home helped push that film far past the billion-dollar mark worldwide.
Kirsten Dunst starred as Parker’s long-pined-for classmate, Mary Jane Watson, in Raimi’s trilogy. The original Spider-Man also gave fans Oscar-winner JK Simmons as Spidey-hating newspaper editor J. Jonah Jameson — the latter another characterization so beloved it was brought into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Spider-Man went on to earn $825 million and set up Raimi’s Spider-Man 2 in 2004, which may have earned less but is widely considered by fans to to be the best of the trilogy, and one of the best comic movies ever made.
While Raimi’s 2007 Spider-Man 3 was a financial success, the critics were less than kind — including Raimi himself, who recently called it “awful.” The director stepped back from the genre after that film, until recently, when Marvel Studios hired him for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. That film, which opens Friday, is so far receiving very positive reviews.
(NEW YORK) — An unprecedented leak of a draft Supreme Court opinion on abortion is putting a new spotlight on what could happen if the court overturns Roe v. Wade, the landmark case that made abortion a federally protected right in the United States.
The document, obtained by Politico, shows the Supreme Court’s conservative majority of justices are ready to overturn nearly 50 years of established abortion rights precedent via the Mississippi, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, a case the court heard last year and is expected to rule publicly on by the end of June.
“Roe was egregiously wrong from the start,” writes Justice Samuel Alito, the opinion’s apparent author, in a copy of the draft posted online Tuesday night.
Chief Justice John Roberts called the leaked draft a “singular and egregious breach” of trust in a statement issued Wednesday.
Here are five things to know about the leaked draft, the Mississippi case and what is expected to happen to abortion access in the U.S. if Roe is overturned.
1. The Mississippi case centers on a 15-week abortion ban.
In the case, the state of Mississippi is arguing to uphold a law that would ban most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, while Jackson Women’s Health, Mississippi’s lone abortion clinic, argues the Supreme Court’s protection of a woman’s right to choose the procedure is clear, well-established and should be respected.
Since the Roe v. Wade ruling and the 1992 Planned Parenthood v. Casey ruling that affirmed the decision, the court has never allowed states to prohibit the termination of pregnancies prior to fetal viability outside the womb, roughly 24 weeks, according to medical experts.
Mississippi, through its state health officer, Dr. Thomas E. Dobbs, an infectious disease physician, argues Roe and Casey were wrongly decided and that each state should be allowed to set its policy.
2. How the draft ruling became public remains a mystery.
The leak of the draft ruling on a high-stakes issue like abortion is being described as an extraordinary breach of protocol and tradition for the Supreme Court, whose nine justices and their clerks are known for being extremely discreet.
The document, which Politico said it obtained from a “person familiar with the court’s proceedings,” is marked “first draft” and dated Feb. 10, 2022 — two months after oral arguments were heard in the case Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.
“The Constitution does not prohibit the citizens of each State from regulating or prohibiting abortion,” the draft states. “Roe and Casey arrogated that authority. We now overrule those decisions and return that authority to the people and their elected representatives.”
Following the publication of the draft, Chief Justice Roberts announced he has directed the Marshal of the Court — its chief operations and security officer — to investigate the leak.
“To the extent this betrayal of the confidences of the Court was intended to undermine the integrity of our operations, it will not succeed. The work of the Court will not be affected in any way,” Roberts said in a statement. “We at the Court are blessed to have a workforce — permanent employees and law clerks alike — intensely loyal to the institution and dedicated to the rule of law.”
“Court employees have an exemplary and important tradition of respecting the confidentiality of the judicial process and upholding the trust of the Court. This was a singular and egregious breach of that trust that is an affront to the Court and the community of public servants who work here,” he said. “I have directed the Marshal of the Court to launch an investigation into the source of the leak.”
3. The draft ruling is not a final Supreme Court decision.
The drafting of Supreme Court opinions is a fluid and dynamic process, sources familiar with the internal operations have told ABC News.
The leaked document is part of that fluid process and is not the court’s final ruling.
Though the document is from February, an unnamed source familiar with the deliberations told Politico that Justices Alito, Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett all initially supported a ruling siding with Mississippi and “that line-up remains unchanged as of this week.”
A Wall Street Journal editorial this month suggested that Chief Justice John Roberts, known for his passion for established precedent and the court’s reputation, may try to convince one of his conservative colleagues to join him in a narrower opinion that would not completely overturn Roe v. Wade.
4. Overturning Roe v. Wade would give power to the states.
If the Supreme Court rules to overturn Roe v. Wade, the power to decide abortion access would rest with the elected leaders of each state.
As of today, more than half of the nation’s 50 states are prepared to ban abortion if Roe is overturned, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive rights organization.
Twenty-one states already have laws on the books that would immediately ban abortion if Roe were overturned. Five additional states are likely to ban abortion should Roe be overturned, the Guttmacher report said.
Because the states that plan to ban abortion are focused in specific geographic regions, including the South, the expected effect is that women will have to travel much longer distances, at a greater cost and inconvenience, to seek abortion care, according to Elizabeth Nash, interim associate director of state issues at the Guttmacher Institute.
On the other side, states that support abortion rights, like California, Connecticut and New York, are also ones to watch if Roe is overturned because they could fortify laws that enhance and protect abortion access in their states, experts say.
5. Abortion remains legal in all 50 states as of now.
Abortion rights advocates are messaging to people that abortion is currently legal in all 50 states.
Though many states over the past several decades have passed laws that limit abortion access — as seen most recently in Oklahoma, Florida and Texas — Roe v. Wade, which made access to abortion a constitutional right, currently remains the law of the land.
(MIAMI) — A 23-year-old man featured in a video that went viral after he groped two flight attendants, punched a third, screamed his parents had $2 million and was duct taped to a seat of a Frontier Airlines flight was sentenced Tuesday to 60 days in jail followed by one year of supervised release.
Max Berry pleaded guilty to three counts of assault within maritime and territorial jurisdiction and faced 1.5 years and a $15,000 fine. Berry had been drinking on a Frontier Airlines flight in August from Philadelphia to Miami when he spilled his drink on himself and a flight attendant. Berry went to the bathroom and came out without his shirt.
As flight attendants tried to help him, he groped them.
A fight ensued and Berry was eventually restrained with duct tape. The incident racked up more than 13 million views online.
In court documents, Berry’s attorney said, “Max Berry is a good man who committed a bad act, that was not planned, it was committed in an unsophisticated manner, and it is an aberration.”
According to WPLG, in court Tuesday, Berry apologized, took full responsibility for his actions and explained how he has been remorseful from the very start.
Two of the flight attendants gave victim impact statements about how this experience has affected them. After the hearing, both victims said the 60-day sentence was not enough, but better than nothing.
Before issuing the sentence, the judge said to Maxwell there’s “no delete button” and people can’t think they’re able to go on a plane and do this, adding that flight attendants shouldn’t feel unsafe at their job, WPLG reporter Annaliese Garcia told ABC News.
Court documents show several character witnesses’ statements detailing Berry’s hard work, good grades, leadership and volunteer service in the community.
Documents show he has received substance abuse treatment and therapy for depression and anxiety since the incident.
Berry, who recently graduated from college has struggled to find work.
“Due to the tremendous media attention that this case garnered, Max’s efforts to find a job utilizing his recently obtained college degree in finance economics were futile, as he was constantly being denied positions that he was applying for in the finance world and elsewhere without an explanation,” Berry’s attorney wrote in court documents.
(WASHINGTON) — The U.S. government now considers WNBA star Brittney Griner to be “wrongfully detained” in Russia, the State Department said.
“The welfare and safety of U.S. citizens abroad is among the highest priorities of the U.S government. The Department of State has determined that the Russian Federation has wrongfully detained U.S. citizen Brittney Griner,” a department spokesperson told ABC News on Tuesday. “With this determination, the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens will lead the interagency team for securing Brittney Griner’s release.”
With this classification, the U.S. will now be more involved in negotiating for her freedom.
Griner, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, was visiting Russia to play basketball off-season and was arrested in February at a Moscow area airport for allegedly having vape cartridges in her luggage that contained hashish oil — an illegal substance in Russia.
She is facing drug charges with up to 10 years in prison, according to Russian media reports, and her pre-trial detention was extended in March to May 19.
Griner met with a U.S. official from the consular officer in Russia on March 24 amid a push from the U.S. to gain access to the WNBA star.
Calls to free Griner escalated last week following the release of Marine veteran Trevor Reed, who was freed from Russian prison as part of a prisoner exchange.
Former Marine Paul Whelan has also been detained in Russia since 2019. Whelan’s brother, David Whelan,told ABC News on Monday that his brother asked, “Why was I left behind?” following Reed’s release.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began one week after Griner was detained on Feb. 17. Some officials are concerned that Americans jailed in Russia could be used as leverage in the ongoing conflict.
Nneka Ogwumike, president of the WNBA Players Association, told Good Morning America last month that the league understands the importance of being “strategic” when discussing Griner’s case so her safety is not compromised.
“It’s tough — that could have been us,” Ogwumike said. “We’re really most concerned about her health and safety. Especially her mental health. We’re hearing that … she’s OK. But we want her home.”
The WNBA announced on Tuesday that the league will honor Griner with a floor decal bearing her initials and jersey number (42) on the sideline of all 12 WNBA teams as the 2022 season kicks off on Friday.
“As we begin the 2022 season, we are keeping Brittney at the forefront of what we do through the game of basketball and in the community,” WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said in a statement on Tuesday. “We continue to work on bringing Brittney home and are appreciative of the support the community has shown BG and her family during this extraordinarily challenging time.”
Griner is a seven-time WNBA All-Star, who has been playing for the Phoenix Mercury since 2013.
Jim Pitman, executive vice president and general manager of the Phoenix Mercury, said in a statement on Tuesday that the team will also launch various philanthropic initiatives, including BG’s Heart and Sole Shoe Drive, to recognize Griner’s contributions to the community.
“In conjunction with the league, the other 11 teams, and those closest to BG, we will work to keep her top-of-mind as we tip the 2022 season,” he said. “While we await her return, our main concern remains for her safety and well-being.”
Griner’s trip to Russia to play off-season has underscored the issue of pay inequality in professional basketball.
Many WNBA players have traveled around the world to play in the off-season because they don’t make enough money during the season — an issue that is not as prevalent for NBA players who are paid more. The top WNBA salary is $228K, whereas star NBA players can make at least $1 million a year.
Ogwumike, who also traveled overseas to play during the off-seasons, said she believes there is a gender issue at play in Griner’s case.
“When is it not? It’s disappointing that the question of it being a gender issue is top of mind now when it comes to this type of circumstance and the reality is she’s over there because of a gender issue, pay inequity,” she said.
ABC News’ Conor Finnegan, Matthew Stone and Kelly McCarthy contributed to this report.
Britney Spears broke her social media hiatus to share a never-before-seen dance rehearsal video, claiming it was taken shortly before she was involuntarily committed at a mental health facility.
“This is from 4 years ago … three months before my dad sent me to that place,” Britney captioned the Monday Instagram post, which saw her smiling and coaching her all-male group of backup dancers. It is unknown when exactly the video was taken or if Britney was rehearsing for her tour or upcoming Vegas residency.
“No lie … even though I taught this routine I messed up like crazy because there were new dancers that were way bigger than me and I got way too excited,” she continued.
Britney’s comments echo what she told a court in June of last year during a hearing on her conservatorship. She spoke then about being forced to do another Vegas residency after finishing her Piece of Me Tour.
“I was basically directing most of the show,” she said at the time. “I actually did most of the choreography, meaning I taught my dancers my new choreography myself. I take everything I do very seriously. There’s tons of video with me at rehearsals.” It’s unknown whether Monday’s posted clip is one of those videos, but Britney said of her performance: “I wasn’t good. I was great.”
Britney closed her new post by saying that, while she’s still on her social media break, “I guess it’s a good time to REFLECT.”
