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Tag: defendant

  • Malibu, ’emotionally and physically scarred,’ is suing California, L.A., others over Palisades fire

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    Malibu is filing suit against the state of California, the city of Los Angeles, L.A. County and additional public entities. Saying the seaside enclave’s “entire character” was changed by the Palisades fire, the city is seeking damages for the loss of property, business and city revenue.

    Malibu officials confirmed Wednesday that the city had filed a civil complaint in Los Angeles County Superior Court with a list of defendants that included the California Department of Parks and Recreation, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority and the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy.

    Malibu officials said the decision was necessary to try to recoup losses that affect “the long-term fiscal implications for Malibu and its taxpayers,” according to a news release. The complaint does not list a specific dollar amount the city is seeking in damages.

    “The lawsuit seeks accountability for the extraordinary losses suffered by our community while recognizing that Malibu must continue to work collaboratively with our regional partners going forward,” Mayor Bruce Silverstein said in a statement.

    The city’s “entire character changed” on Jan. 7, 2025, when the defendants’ “unlawful conduct caused the Palisades Fire to ignite,” according to the complaint.

    The ensuing blaze killed 12 people, half of whom were Malibu residents, according to the city. Roughly 700 Malibu homes and dozens of businesses also were destroyed, the complaint states.

    Those businesses included restaurants that were local institutions, such as Moonshadows, the Reel Inn and Rosenthal Wine Bar & Patio.

    Malibu “is still reeling from the destruction” of the fire, “a hollowed out community, burned and destroyed buildings and homes, a shrinking tax base, emotionally and physically scarred citizens, and untold environmental damage,” the complaint states.

    Malibu claims that the fire was “not an accident” but a “foreseeable and proximate result of unlawful conduct” by the defendants.

    Each of the entities was blamed for its role in the fire, including not properly addressing the burn scar from the Lachman fire, which rekindled to become the Palisades fire; leaving “reservoirs empty for over a year”; and failing to ensure “essential firefighting infrastructure,” according to the complaint.

    “This decision was not made lightly,” Silverstein said. “The city has an obligation to act in the best interests of our residents and taxpayers.”

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    Andrew J. Campa

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  • ‘We are heartbroken’: Florida couple sues IVF clinic after DNA test reveals baby isn’t theirs

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    A Florida couple has filed an emergency lawsuit against a fertility clinic, alleging their newborn child is not genetically related to either of them after an in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedure.The couple, identified in court documents as John and Jane Doe to protect their privacy, is suing IVF Life, Inc. D/B/A Fertility Center of Orlando and Dr. Milton McNichol, M.D.According to the complaint filed in Palm Beach County Circuit Court, the couple used their own egg and sperm to create three viable embryos at the clinic.In March 2025, one of the embryos was implanted in Jane Doe, resulting in a successful full-term pregnancy. The couple’s healthy female child, Baby Doe, was born on Dec. 11, 2025.The parents became suspicious when Baby Doe displayed physical characteristics of a child who was not racially Caucasian, despite both John and Jane Doe being Caucasian.Genetic testing subsequently confirmed that Baby Doe has “no genetic relationship to either of the Plaintiffs,” indicating the implanted embryo was not one of the couple’s.While the Does expressed a deep emotional bond with the child they carried and delivered, the lawsuit states their belief that Baby Doe “should legally and morally be united with her genetic parents.”The couple also fears that another person may be pregnant with or raising one or more of their own embryos or children.The couple claims they notified the defendants on Jan. 5, 2026, requesting cooperation to unite Baby Doe with her genetic parents and to determine the disposition of their remaining embryos. They have received no “substantive response.”The Plaintiffs are seeking emergency injunctive relief, asking the court to compel the defendants to take several actions, including:Immediately notifying all patients who had embryos in storage before Jane Doe’s implantation about the allegations in the complaint and providing them with a copy.Paying for free genetic testing for all patients and their children whose births resulted from embryo implantation through the defendants’ services over the past five years.Disclosing any parentage discrepancies discovered through this testing.Official statement from Fertility Center of OrlandoWe are actively cooperating with an investigation to support one of our patients in determining the source of an error that resulted in the birth of a child who is not genetically related to them. Multiple entities are involved in this process, and all parties are working diligently to help identify when and where the error may have occurred. Our priority remains transparency and the well-being of the patient and child involved. We will continue to assist in any way that we can regardless of the outcome of the investigation.Official Statement from the couple”Our baby was born just over a month ago via emergency C-section. Her birth was the result of the miracle of in vitro fertilization—a journey that took years of careful medical procedures, tremendous expense, and deep emotional and physical sacrifice. The result is a beautiful, healthy baby girl whom we love more than words can express.I have a million things I want to say and so many emotions I wish I could share, but for now, this is what we are able to tell you: due to a medical error- the wrong embryo implanted by the doctor – our baby is not genetically related to either of us. While we are beyond grateful to have her in our lives and love her immeasurably, we also recognize that we have a moral obligation to find her genetic parents. Our joy over her birth is further complicated by the devastating reality that her genetic parents—whom we do not yet know—or possibly another family entirely, may have received our genetic embryo. We are heartbroken, devastated, and confused. This situation has completely dictated and complicated our lives since the moment of her birth. Aside from necessary outings where we have been forced to pretend everything is okay, we have been living like prisoners in our own home. We hope that by sharing this it will allow us to begin living more freely and to finally celebrate the one beautiful thing that has come from all of this: our daughter. Our baby girl is completely innocent and so undeserving of any of this. We’re also sharing this to prevent harmful rumors or misinformation, as we’ve already seen inaccurate information circulating in a few stories and articles.Please bear with us as we navigate this deeply confusing and painful time, living with the heartbreak of not knowing what happened to our genetic embryos or whether we may have a biological child (or children) somewhere out there in the hands of strangers. The added fear that our daughter could be taken from us at any time is almost unbearable. There are so many details and potential outcomes to this story, but for now, we will leave it here until further progress has been made by our legal counsel. Until then, please keep our family in your hearts and prayers, and if you have any information on the family who might be at the other side of this, please contact us.”

    LONGWOOD, Fla. —

    A Florida couple has filed an emergency lawsuit against a fertility clinic, alleging their newborn child is not genetically related to either of them after an in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedure.

    The couple, identified in court documents as John and Jane Doe to protect their privacy, is suing IVF Life, Inc. D/B/A Fertility Center of Orlando and Dr. Milton McNichol, M.D.

    According to the complaint filed in Palm Beach County Circuit Court, the couple used their own egg and sperm to create three viable embryos at the clinic.

    In March 2025, one of the embryos was implanted in Jane Doe, resulting in a successful full-term pregnancy. The couple’s healthy female child, Baby Doe, was born on Dec. 11, 2025.

    The parents became suspicious when Baby Doe displayed physical characteristics of a child who was not racially Caucasian, despite both John and Jane Doe being Caucasian.

    Genetic testing subsequently confirmed that Baby Doe has “no genetic relationship to either of the Plaintiffs,” indicating the implanted embryo was not one of the couple’s.

    While the Does expressed a deep emotional bond with the child they carried and delivered, the lawsuit states their belief that Baby Doe “should legally and morally be united with her genetic parents.”

    The couple also fears that another person may be pregnant with or raising one or more of their own embryos or children.

    The couple claims they notified the defendants on Jan. 5, 2026, requesting cooperation to unite Baby Doe with her genetic parents and to determine the disposition of their remaining embryos. They have received no “substantive response.”

    The Plaintiffs are seeking emergency injunctive relief, asking the court to compel the defendants to take several actions, including:

    • Immediately notifying all patients who had embryos in storage before Jane Doe’s implantation about the allegations in the complaint and providing them with a copy.
    • Paying for free genetic testing for all patients and their children whose births resulted from embryo implantation through the defendants’ services over the past five years.
    • Disclosing any parentage discrepancies discovered through this testing.

    Official statement from Fertility Center of Orlando

    We are actively cooperating with an investigation to support one of our patients in determining the source of an error that resulted in the birth of a child who is not genetically related to them. Multiple entities are involved in this process, and all parties are working diligently to help identify when and where the error may have occurred. Our priority remains transparency and the well-being of the patient and child involved. We will continue to assist in any way that we can regardless of the outcome of the investigation.

    Official Statement from the couple

    “Our baby was born just over a month ago via emergency C-section. Her birth was the result of the miracle of in vitro fertilization—a journey that took years of careful medical procedures, tremendous expense, and deep emotional and physical sacrifice. The result is a beautiful, healthy baby girl whom we love more than words can express.

    I have a million things I want to say and so many emotions I wish I could share, but for now, this is what we are able to tell you: due to a medical error- the wrong embryo implanted by the doctor – our baby is not genetically related to either of us.

    While we are beyond grateful to have her in our lives and love her immeasurably, we also recognize that we have a moral obligation to find her genetic parents. Our joy over her birth is further complicated by the devastating reality that her genetic parents—whom we do not yet know—or possibly another family entirely, may have received our genetic embryo.

    We are heartbroken, devastated, and confused.

    This situation has completely dictated and complicated our lives since the moment of her birth.

    Aside from necessary outings where we have been forced to pretend everything is okay, we have been living like prisoners in our own home. We hope that by sharing this it will allow us to begin living more freely and to finally celebrate the one beautiful thing that has come from all of this: our daughter.

    Our baby girl is completely innocent and so undeserving of any of this. We’re also sharing this to prevent harmful rumors or misinformation, as we’ve already seen inaccurate information circulating in a few stories and articles.

    Please bear with us as we navigate this deeply confusing and painful time, living with the heartbreak of not knowing what happened to our genetic embryos or whether we may have a biological child (or children) somewhere out there in the hands of strangers. The added fear that our daughter could be taken from us at any time is almost unbearable.

    There are so many details and potential outcomes to this story, but for now, we will leave it here until further progress has been made by our legal counsel. Until then, please keep our family in your hearts and prayers, and if you have any information on the family who might be at the other side of this, please contact us.”

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  • Ex-CHP captain who drunkenly exposed himself on flight, twice, avoids jail sentence

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    A former California Highway Patrol captain will not serve jail time after admitting to exposing himself and sexually touching flight attendants aboard a JetBlue flight last year.

    Dennis Woodbury, 50, will instead receive three years of probation after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor count of simple assault on an aircraft. U.S. District Judge Percy Anderson ordered Woodbury to complete 100 hours of community service and undergo mental health and substance abuse treatment and testing, according to court records.

    “That the defendant was once in a position of public trust and committed these acts is disturbing and should be taken seriously,” Assistant U.S. Atty. Brenda Galvan wrote in a sentencing memorandum.

    Woodbury had previously been dismissed from the CHP after serving in the San Gabriel Valley, the U.S. attorney’s office said in a news release.

    He was initially arrested on a more serious felony charge of abusive sexual contact within federal jurisdiction but was allowed to plead to a lesser charge of simple assault under a plea agreement accepted by the court in October.

    The U.S. attorney’s office argued that a sentence of 90 days in custody “reflects the seriousness of the offense given the defendant’s history,” according to the memorandum.

    The victims, two male flight attendants, testified that Woodbury’s actions left them fearful for their safety and disrupted their ability to do their jobs during a cross-country flight in April 2025, according to prosecutors.

    On the flight, Woodbury downed a bottle of Prosecco and showed one flight attendant a pornographic picture, according to court records.

    Woodbury then suggested the two men go on a cruise together.

    “When [the attendant] demonstrated how the plane’s oxygen masks worked, he saw Woodbury looking at him and [making] a hand-pumping motion,” the criminal complaint states.

    Shortly after, he slapped an attendant’s butt and yelled, “I love you.” The incident prompted flight staff to swap sections on the plane, but Woodbury’s behavior persisted.

    He walked to the plane’s front galley, pulled down his pants and exposed himself to the second flight attendant. After he was urged to take his seat, Woodbury circled back to the front of the plane, demanded wine and exposed himself again.

    The government said the incident compromised the attendants’ ability to perform safety-critical duties during the flight. In a victim impact statement, one flight attendant said Woodbury’s conduct caused “significant emotional, professional and reputational” harm.

    “No one should have to feel threatened merely for doing their job,” prosecutors wrote.

    Despite those arguments, the court declined to impose a jail sentence.

    Anderson also waived a $2,000 fine proposed by prosecutors, citing Woodbury’s financial circumstances, and ordered him to pay a mandatory $10 special assessment, according to the judgment.

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    Gavin J. Quinton

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  • Multnomah County DA Seeks Public’s Help Locating Woman Wanted On Manslaughter Warrant – KXL

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    Angelita Minor, photo provided by the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office

    PORTLAND, Ore. — The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office is asking for the public’s help in locating a 29-year-old woman who is wanted on a felony warrant.

    Authorities say Angelina Latisha Minor is wanted on a charge of first-degree manslaughter stemming from a March 2024 traffic crash. Prosecutors allege Minor was driving under the influence of intoxicants at the time of the crash, which resulted in the death of her 4-year-old son.

    According to the district attorney’s office, Minor violated the conditions of her supervised release, prompting a judge to issue a warrant for her arrest. Her last known address was in North Portland.

    Officials warn the public not to approach Minor. Anyone who sees her or knows her whereabouts is urged to call 9-1-1 immediately.

    The case remains under investigation, and Minor is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.

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    Jordan Vawter

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  • Trump administration says it’s freezing child care funds to Minnesota after series of fraud probes

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    President Donald Trump’s administration announced on Tuesday that it’s freezing child care funds to Minnesota amid ongoing investigations into fraud allegations. Related video above: Group of Minnesota House and Senate Republicans calling on Gov. Tim Walz to resign over fraud investigationsActing director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Jim O’Neill announced on the social platform X that the step is in response to “blatant fraud that appears to be rampant in Minnesota and across the country.”“We have turned off the money spigot and we are finding the fraud,” he said.O’Neill said all payments through the Administration for Children and Families, an agency within the U.S. Health and Human Services Department, will require “justification and a receipt or photo evidence” before money is sent. They have also launched a fraud-reporting hotline and email address, he said.The announcement comes after years of investigation that began with the $300 million scheme at the nonprofit Feeding Our Future, for which 57 defendants in Minnesota have been convicted. Prosecutors said the organization was at the center of the country’s largest COVID-19-related fraud scam, when defendants exploited a state-run, federally funded program intended to provide food for children.A federal prosecutor alleged earlier in December that half or more of the roughly $18 billion in federal funds that supported 14 programs in Minnesota since 2018 may have been stolen. Most of the defendants are Somali Americans, they said.O’Neill also called out a conservative influencer who had posted a video Friday claiming he found that day care centers operated by Somali residents in Minneapolis had committed up to $100 million in fraud. O’Neill said he has demanded Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz submit an audit of these centers that includes attendance records, licenses, complaints, investigations and inspections.Walz, the 2024 Democratic vice presidential nominee, has said fraud will not be tolerated and his administration “will continue to work with federal partners to ensure fraud is stopped and fraudsters are caught.”Walz has said an audit due by late January should give a better picture of the extent of the fraud. He said his administration is taking aggressive action to prevent additional fraud. He has long defended how his administration responded.Minnesota’s most prominent Somali American, Democratic U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, has urged people not to blame an entire community for the actions of a relative few.

    WASHINGTON —

    President Donald Trump’s administration announced on Tuesday that it’s freezing child care funds to Minnesota amid ongoing investigations into fraud allegations.

    Related video above: Group of Minnesota House and Senate Republicans calling on Gov. Tim Walz to resign over fraud investigations

    Acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Jim O’Neill announced on the social platform X that the step is in response to “blatant fraud that appears to be rampant in Minnesota and across the country.”

    “We have turned off the money spigot and we are finding the fraud,” he said.

    O’Neill said all payments through the Administration for Children and Families, an agency within the U.S. Health and Human Services Department, will require “justification and a receipt or photo evidence” before money is sent. They have also launched a fraud-reporting hotline and email address, he said.

    The announcement comes after years of investigation that began with the $300 million scheme at the nonprofit Feeding Our Future, for which 57 defendants in Minnesota have been convicted. Prosecutors said the organization was at the center of the country’s largest COVID-19-related fraud scam, when defendants exploited a state-run, federally funded program intended to provide food for children.

    A federal prosecutor alleged earlier in December that half or more of the roughly $18 billion in federal funds that supported 14 programs in Minnesota since 2018 may have been stolen. Most of the defendants are Somali Americans, they said.

    O’Neill also called out a conservative influencer who had posted a video Friday claiming he found that day care centers operated by Somali residents in Minneapolis had committed up to $100 million in fraud. O’Neill said he has demanded Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz submit an audit of these centers that includes attendance records, licenses, complaints, investigations and inspections.

    Walz, the 2024 Democratic vice presidential nominee, has said fraud will not be tolerated and his administration “will continue to work with federal partners to ensure fraud is stopped and fraudsters are caught.”

    Walz has said an audit due by late January should give a better picture of the extent of the fraud. He said his administration is taking aggressive action to prevent additional fraud. He has long defended how his administration responded.

    Minnesota’s most prominent Somali American, Democratic U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, has urged people not to blame an entire community for the actions of a relative few.

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  • Alec Baldwin lawsuit claiming wrongful prosecution heads to federal court

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    Four years after the “Rust” movie shooting, New Mexico officials have moved Alec Baldwin’s lawsuit alleging malicious prosecution to federal court.

    This week’s filing is the latest twist in the long legal saga after the October 2021 on-set death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

    Baldwin, the 67-year-old star and a producer of the western film, had been facing a felony involuntary manslaughter charge for his role in Hutchins’ accidental shooting. But the judge overseeing Baldwin’s case abruptly dismissed the charge against him during his July 2024 trial after concluding that prosecutors withheld evidence that may have been helpful to his legal team.

    Six months later, Baldwin sued New Mexico’s district attorney and special prosecutors, asserting malicious prosecution. The actor claimed he had been made a celebrity scapegoat because of the intense media pressure on local authorities to solve the high-profile case.

    His lawsuit targeted New Mexico special prosecutor Kari T. Morrissey, 1st Judicial Dist. Atty. Mary Carmack-Altwies and Santa Fe County sheriff’s deputies, who led the investigation into Hutchins’ death.

    The defendants have denied Baldwin’s allegations.

    Baldwin’s wrongful prosecution suit was first filed in New Mexico court in Santa Fe.

    On Tuesday, the defendants, including Morrissey, exercised their legal right to shift the case to federal court. The decision was made, in part, because “Mr. Baldwin brought federal civil rights claims in his lawsuit,” said Albuquerque attorney Luis Robles, who represents the defendants.

    In addition, Baldwin does not live in New Mexico, where the case was filed.

    Baldwin could object to the move and petition for it to be brought back to state court. On Wednesday, his team was not immediately available for comment.

    A New Mexico judge had dismissed Baldwin’s malicious prosecution claims in July, citing 90 days of inactivity in the case. Baldwin’s legal team petitioned to get the case reinstated and the judge agreed to the request.

    That prompted the defendants’ move to shift the case to the higher court.

    During his Santa Fe trial last year, Baldwin’s lawyers had sought to turn the focus away from whether Baldwin pulled his gun’s trigger in the accidental shooting to where the lethal bullet came from.

    Baldwin’s attorneys repeatedly accused law enforcement officers and prosecutors of bungling the case, including by allegedly hiding potential evidence — a batch of bullets that they said may have been related to the one that killed Hutchins.

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    Meg James

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  • Georgia judge to toss landmark racketeering charges against ‘Cop City’ protesters

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    A Georgia judge on Tuesday said he will toss the racketeering charges against all 61 defendants accused of a years-long conspiracy to halt the construction of a police and firefighter training facility that critics pejoratively call “Cop City.”Fulton County Judge Kevin Farmer said he does not believe Republican Attorney General Chris Carr had the authority to secure the 2023 indictments under Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations law, or RICO. Experts believe it was the largest criminal racketeering case ever filed against protesters in U.S. history.The defendants faced a wide variety of allegations — everything from throwing Molotov cocktails at police officers, to supplying food to protesters who were camped in the woods and passing out fliers against a state trooper who had fatally shot a protester. Each defendant faced up to 20 years in prison on the RICO charges.Farmer said during a hearing that Carr needed Gov. Brian Kemp’s permission to pursue the case instead of the local district attorney. Prosecutors earlier conceded that they did not obtain any such order.“It would have been real easy to just ask the governor, ‘Let me do this, give me a letter,’” Farmer said. “The steps just weren’t followed.”The case is not over yetFive of the 61 defendants were also indicted on charges of domestic terrorism and first-degree arson connected to a 2023 “night of rage” in which masked activists burned a police car in downtown Atlanta and threw rocks at a skyscraper that houses the Atlanta Police Foundation. Farmer said Carr also didn’t have the authority to pursue the arson charge, though he believes the domestic terrorism charge can stand.Farmer said he plans to file a formal order soon and is not sure whether he would quash the entire indictment or let the domestic terrorism charge proceed.Deputy Attorney General John Fowler told Farmer that he believes the judge’s decision is “wholly incorrect.”Carr plans to “appeal immediately,” spokesperson Kara Murray said.“The Attorney General will continue the fight against domestic terrorists and violent criminals who want to destroy life and property,” she said.Defense attorney Don Samuel said the case was rife with errors. Defense attorneys had expected to spend the whole week going through dozens of dismissal motions that had been filed. During an impassioned speech on Monday, the first day of the hearing, Samuel called the case “an assault on the right of people to protest” and urged Farmer to “put a stop to this.”“We could have spun the wheel and seen which argument was going to win first,” Samuel told The Associated Press after Farmer announced his decision from the bench.The long-brewing controversy over the training center erupted in January 2023 after state troopers who were part of a sweep of the South River Forest killed an activist, known as “Tortuguita,” who authorities said had fired at them while inside a tent near the construction site. A prosecutor found the troopers’ actions “objectively reasonable,” though Tortuguita’s family has filed a lawsuit, saying the 26-year-old’s hands were in the air and that troopers used excessive force when they initially fired pepper balls into the tent.Numerous protests ensued, with masked vandals sometimes attacking police vehicles and construction equipment to stall the project and intimidate contractors into backing out. Opponents also pursued civic paths to halt the facility, including packing City Council meetings and leading a massive referendum effort that got tied up in the courts.Carr, who is running for governor, had pursued the case, with Kemp hailing it as an important step to combat “out-of-state radicals that threaten the safety of our citizens and law enforcement.”But critics had decried the indictment as a politically motivated, heavy-handed attempt to quash the movement against the 85-acre project that ultimately cost more than $115 million.Environmentalists and anti-police activists were unitedEmerging in the wake of the 2020 racial justice protests, the “Stop Cop City” movement gained nationwide recognition as it united anarchists, environmental activists and anti-police protesters against the sprawling training center, which was being built in a wooded area that was ultimately razed in DeKalb County.Activists argued that uprooting acres of trees for the facility would exacerbate environmental damage in a flood-prone, majority-Black area while serving as an expensive staging ground for militarized officers to be trained in quelling social movements.The training center, a priority of Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, opened earlier this year, despite years of protests and millions in cost overruns, some of it due to the damage protesters caused, and police officials’ needs to bolster 24/7 security around the facility.But over the past two years, the case had been bogged down in procedural issues, with none of the defendants going to trial. Farmer and the case’s previous judge, Fulton County Judge Kimberly Esmond Adams, had earlier been critical of prosecutors’ approach to the case, with Adams saying the prosecution had committed “gross negligence” by allowing privileged attorney-client emails to be included among a giant cache of evidence that was shared between investigators and dozens of defense attorneys.As the delays continued, defendants said their lives had been wrecked by the charges, with many unable to secure steady jobs or housing.Three of the defendants, organizers of a bail fund that supported the protesters, had also been charged with 15 counts of money laundering, but prosecutors dropped those charges last year.Prosecutors had previously apologized to the court for various delays and missteps, but lamented the difficulty of handling such a sprawling case, though Farmer pointed out that it was prosecutors who decided to bring this “61-person elephant” to court in the first place.Defense attorney Xavier de Janon said Farmer’s decision is a “victory,” but noted that there are other defendants still facing unindicted domestic terrorism charges in DeKalb County, as well as numerous pending misdemeanors connected to the movement.“The prosecutions haven’t ended against this movement, and I hope that people continue to pay attention to how the state is dealing with protests and activism, because it hasn’t ended,” de Janon said. “This is a win, and hopefully many more will come.”

    ATLANTA —

    A Georgia judge on Tuesday said he will toss the racketeering charges against all 61 defendants accused of a years-long conspiracy to halt the construction of a police and firefighter training facility that critics pejoratively call “Cop City.”

    Fulton County Judge Kevin Farmer said he does not believe Republican Attorney General Chris Carr had the authority to secure the 2023 indictments under Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations law, or RICO. Experts believe it was the largest criminal racketeering case ever filed against protesters in U.S. history.

    The defendants faced a wide variety of allegations — everything from throwing Molotov cocktails at police officers, to supplying food to protesters who were camped in the woods and passing out fliers against a state trooper who had fatally shot a protester. Each defendant faced up to 20 years in prison on the RICO charges.

    Farmer said during a hearing that Carr needed Gov. Brian Kemp’s permission to pursue the case instead of the local district attorney. Prosecutors earlier conceded that they did not obtain any such order.

    “It would have been real easy to just ask the governor, ‘Let me do this, give me a letter,’” Farmer said. “The steps just weren’t followed.”

    The case is not over yet

    Five of the 61 defendants were also indicted on charges of domestic terrorism and first-degree arson connected to a 2023 “night of rage” in which masked activists burned a police car in downtown Atlanta and threw rocks at a skyscraper that houses the Atlanta Police Foundation. Farmer said Carr also didn’t have the authority to pursue the arson charge, though he believes the domestic terrorism charge can stand.

    Farmer said he plans to file a formal order soon and is not sure whether he would quash the entire indictment or let the domestic terrorism charge proceed.

    Deputy Attorney General John Fowler told Farmer that he believes the judge’s decision is “wholly incorrect.”

    Carr plans to “appeal immediately,” spokesperson Kara Murray said.

    “The Attorney General will continue the fight against domestic terrorists and violent criminals who want to destroy life and property,” she said.

    Defense attorney Don Samuel said the case was rife with errors. Defense attorneys had expected to spend the whole week going through dozens of dismissal motions that had been filed. During an impassioned speech on Monday, the first day of the hearing, Samuel called the case “an assault on the right of people to protest” and urged Farmer to “put a stop to this.”

    “We could have spun the wheel and seen which argument was going to win first,” Samuel told The Associated Press after Farmer announced his decision from the bench.

    The long-brewing controversy over the training center erupted in January 2023 after state troopers who were part of a sweep of the South River Forest killed an activist, known as “Tortuguita,” who authorities said had fired at them while inside a tent near the construction site. A prosecutor found the troopers’ actions “objectively reasonable,” though Tortuguita’s family has filed a lawsuit, saying the 26-year-old’s hands were in the air and that troopers used excessive force when they initially fired pepper balls into the tent.

    Numerous protests ensued, with masked vandals sometimes attacking police vehicles and construction equipment to stall the project and intimidate contractors into backing out. Opponents also pursued civic paths to halt the facility, including packing City Council meetings and leading a massive referendum effort that got tied up in the courts.

    Carr, who is running for governor, had pursued the case, with Kemp hailing it as an important step to combat “out-of-state radicals that threaten the safety of our citizens and law enforcement.”

    But critics had decried the indictment as a politically motivated, heavy-handed attempt to quash the movement against the 85-acre project that ultimately cost more than $115 million.

    Environmentalists and anti-police activists were united

    Emerging in the wake of the 2020 racial justice protests, the “Stop Cop City” movement gained nationwide recognition as it united anarchists, environmental activists and anti-police protesters against the sprawling training center, which was being built in a wooded area that was ultimately razed in DeKalb County.

    Activists argued that uprooting acres of trees for the facility would exacerbate environmental damage in a flood-prone, majority-Black area while serving as an expensive staging ground for militarized officers to be trained in quelling social movements.

    The training center, a priority of Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, opened earlier this year, despite years of protests and millions in cost overruns, some of it due to the damage protesters caused, and police officials’ needs to bolster 24/7 security around the facility.

    But over the past two years, the case had been bogged down in procedural issues, with none of the defendants going to trial. Farmer and the case’s previous judge, Fulton County Judge Kimberly Esmond Adams, had earlier been critical of prosecutors’ approach to the case, with Adams saying the prosecution had committed “gross negligence” by allowing privileged attorney-client emails to be included among a giant cache of evidence that was shared between investigators and dozens of defense attorneys.

    As the delays continued, defendants said their lives had been wrecked by the charges, with many unable to secure steady jobs or housing.

    Three of the defendants, organizers of a bail fund that supported the protesters, had also been charged with 15 counts of money laundering, but prosecutors dropped those charges last year.

    Prosecutors had previously apologized to the court for various delays and missteps, but lamented the difficulty of handling such a sprawling case, though Farmer pointed out that it was prosecutors who decided to bring this “61-person elephant” to court in the first place.

    Defense attorney Xavier de Janon said Farmer’s decision is a “victory,” but noted that there are other defendants still facing unindicted domestic terrorism charges in DeKalb County, as well as numerous pending misdemeanors connected to the movement.

    “The prosecutions haven’t ended against this movement, and I hope that people continue to pay attention to how the state is dealing with protests and activism, because it hasn’t ended,” de Janon said. “This is a win, and hopefully many more will come.”

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  • 3 suspects charged in Liam Payne’s death, including hotel employee and alleged dealer

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    In the ongoing investigation into One Direction singer Liam Payne’s death, three suspects have been charged for their alleged involvement in the pop star’s sudden demise last month.

    The National Criminal and Correctional Prosecutor’s Office of Argentina announced Thursday in a statement shared in Spanish that it has found evidence of “illicit conduct” by three people — including an employee of the hotel where Payne fell to his death. Charges included abandonment of a person followed by death, and supply and facilitation of narcotics. The suspects, who were not identified, were charged last Friday in a 180-page indictment delivered to judge Laura Graciela Bruniard, the statement said.

    Payne, an “X Factor” alum who also pursued a solo musical career after his One Direction days, died Oct. 16 after falling from a third-floor balcony at a hotel in Buenos Aires. He was 31.

    In a preliminary autopsy shared a day after the singer’s death, Argentine officials said authorities found substances in the singer’s room that appeared to be drugs in addition to evidence of consumption of alcohol and narcotics.

    Officials carried out nine raids and heard “several dozen” testimonies from people including hotel staff, Payne’s family and friends, medical professionals and other experts, Thursday’s announcement said. Police analysts also reviewed more than 800 hours’ worth of surveillance footage from in and around the hotel, combed through the contents of Payne’s phone (including calls and messages across various messaging and social media apps) and assessed the registry of guests and the singer’s orders from the hotel’s bar and restaurant to understand his drinking and eating habits.

    Officers from the Cybercrime unit also extracted information from the cellphones of hotel reception and volunteer witnesses to corroborate statements.

    Prosecutors allege that one of the defendants accompanied Payne on a daily basis during his stay in Buenos Aires. Payne died two weeks after he arrived in Argentina, where he attended an Oct. 2 concert by former One Direction bandmate Niall Horan. This defendant was charged with abandonment of a person followed by death, and supply and facilitation of narcotics, the statement said. The remaining two defendants were charged with supplying narcotics.

    One defendant is a hotel employee who allegedly provided Payne with cocaine during his stay. The other is a suspected narcotics supplier who had already been accused of dealing drugs in separate incidents, Thursday’s statement said.

    The investigation into Payne’s death is ongoing and the prosecution said it was considering ruling out the possibility of suicide, because “in the state [Payne] was going through, he did not know what he was doing nor could he understand it.”

    In October, officials determined Payne died from multiple traumas and internal and external bleeding caused by the fall. He “did not adopt a reflexive posture to protect himself and … he may have fallen in a state of semi- or total unconsciousness,” officials said last month.

    Payne had traces of alcohol, cocaine and a prescription antidepressant in his system in the moments before his death, Thursday’s statement said. Prosecutors confirmed that Payne’s body had been delivered to his father, Geoff Payne.

    Payne’s remains reportedly will be flown back to his native London, one of the cities where One Direction fans gathered last month to celebrate the singer’s life and music.

    Payne’s track “Do No Wrong” was set for a posthumous release last week, but plans were swiftly put on hold after fans pushed back.

    “Today I’m deciding to hold ‘Do No Wrong’ and leave those liberties up to all family members,” Payne’s collaborator Sam Pounds said last week in a since-deleted tweet. “I want all proceeds [to] go to a charity of their choosing (or however they desire).”

    Pounds added: “We are all still mourning the passing of Liam and I want the family to [mourn] in peace and in prayer. We will all wait.”

    Times staff writer Nardine Saad contributed to this report.

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    Alexandra Del Rosario, Angie Orellana Hernandez

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  • Indigenous tribe sues L.A. County, archdiocese over the ‘desecration’ of more than 100 graves

    Indigenous tribe sues L.A. County, archdiocese over the ‘desecration’ of more than 100 graves

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    The Gabrieleno Band of Mission Indians, also known as the Kizh Nation, is suing Los Angeles County, the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and the nonprofit La Plaza de Cultura y Artes, saying that their ancestors’ remains were mishandled when they built the Mexican American museum in downtown L.A.

    The Kizh Nation alleges in the lawsuit filed last week in L.A. County Superior Court that the defendants pledged to transfer the human remains dug up from the First Cemetery of Los Angeles in 2010 to wooden boxes that would be placed in individual graves in accordance with Catholic rituals.

    The remains were instead put in paper bags and into a single grave in the cemetery, which is in “direct violation of the express promises and assurances by defendants,” according to the complaint. The construction work at the plaza resulted in the “desecration” of more than 100 graves, the suit states.

    The Roman Catholic Archbishop of Los Angeles is responsible for the cemetery; L.A. County owns the land where the cemetery is and La Plaza de Cultura y Artes is the museum that opened in April 2011.

    The plaza serves as a community hub where Latinx culture is celebrated through dance, music, exhibitions and more. The Gabrieleno Band of Mission Indians are the Indigenous people of the Los Angeles Basin.

    The Archdiocese of Los Angeles said in a statement to the Los Angeles Daily News that they had told L.A. County that the “remains should be treated with the most utmost sensitivity and respect.”

    L.A. County told the news outlet that the county “engaged in a well-documented public process to respectfully reinter the remains uncovered” during the construction of the plaza.

    The agencies didn’t immediately respond to The Times’ request for comment Monday.

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    Summer Lin

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  • Girardi judge cites calls with Erika Jayne, ugly sweater in competency ruling

    Girardi judge cites calls with Erika Jayne, ugly sweater in competency ruling

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    The judge who found Tom Girardi competent to stand trial saw evidence he was faking memory problems in his relationship with his reality star wife and in the shabby cardigan the normally dapper man wore for mental exams.

    In a 52-page decision unsealed Friday, U.S. Dist. Judge Josephine Staton wrote that the disgraced former attorney met the legal standard to face wire fraud charges stemming from what prosecutors describe as a decades-long, $100-million scheme that robbed law firm clients.

    “Defendant clearly understands the nature of the charges against him,” the judge wrote. She said Girardi’s “purported denial of knowledge of the charges made against him [and/or the purported failure to remember such charges once reminded of them] is wholly lacking in credibility.”

    Staton’s competency finding was disclosed last week, but the decision explaining her reasons was held back to allow for redactions of personal information. Much of her ruling is based in the conclusions of experts who testified at series of hearings last fall.

    The judge also pointed to Girardi’s claim that he did not remember his wife, the “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” star Erika Jayne. The pair have been married for more than 20 years, though she filed for divorce in 2020 as his financial problems emerged.

    “Defendant’s denial of any memory of a third wife is undercut by the fact that, during a clinical interview, he answered a phone call from her, accurately remembering she was leaving to fly to Spain that day,” the judge wrote, referring to testimony from a neuropsychologist who examined Girardi for the government.

    Staton also noted the ill-fitting and hole-ridden burgundy sweater that Girardi, known during his career for immaculately tailored suits, chose to wear to court, interviews with lawyers and medical experts. Prosecutors have suggested it was part of a calculated plan to portray himself as mentally addled. Staton noted how Girardi would dig through a hamper looking for the sweater before key meetings with psychological experts.

    “This tended to show that Defendant’s short-term memory was intact because he recalled having that sweater, sought it out to wear on that day, and found it in the laundry,” she wrote.

    Girardi’s lawyers have argued that the 84-year-old, who resides in the dementia ward of a nursing home, has no short-term memory and does not recognize them or remember the criminal case against him when they meet.

    A magistrate judge entered a plea of not guilty on his behalf last year because of the competency issue. With that decided, normal proceedings in the case are to resume with a hearing scheduled for Wednesday.

    Staton allowed that his advanced age might make him less of a help to his lawyers than at the pinnacle of his career, when his “superior cognition and his abilities as a civil trial attorney would have been likely to result in an exceptional ability to participate in his own defense.”

    But, she concluded, “any actual diminishment of these abilities or of his cognition is not as severe as Defendant presents it and, stripped of the feigning and/or exaggeration described by the experts and found by the Court herein, Defendant retains the ability ‘to assist properly in his defense.’”

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    Harriet Ryan

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  • O.C. man pleads guilty to firebombing Planned Parenthood clinic, plotting other attacks

    O.C. man pleads guilty to firebombing Planned Parenthood clinic, plotting other attacks

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    An Orange County man has pleaded guilty to firebombing a Planned Parenthood clinic in Costa Mesa as well as plotting similar attacks elsewhere in Southern California, according to authorities.

    Chance Brannon, 24, of San Juan Capistrano pleaded guilty Thursday to four federal charges: malicious destruction of property by fire and explosives, possessing an unregistered destructive device, intentional damage to a reproductive health services facility, and conspiracy.

    Brannon, who at the time was an active duty U.S. Marine stationed at Camp Pendleton, was one of three suspects arrested in connection with the 2022 attack.

    The other two defendants, Tibet Ergul, 22, of Irvine and Xavier Batten, 21, of Brooksville, Fla., have pleaded not guilty to their charges and are scheduled to go to trial in March.

    According to Brannon’s plea agreement, the three made plans in February and March 2022 to use a Molotov cocktail against various targets, including the office of the Anti-Defamation League in San Diego. The trio decided to target the Planned Parenthood in Costa Mesa to deter doctors and scare pregnant women from seeking abortions, prosecutors said.

    The plea agreement states Brannon and Ergul threw the incendiary weapon at the clinic on the morning of March 13, 2022. It exploded at the front entrance, leaving noticeable damage.

    Later that year and into 2023, authorities say Brannon conspired to seek out additional targets, including a second Planned Parenthood clinic and the Dodgers’ LGBTQ+ Pride Night. He also discussed plans to start a “race war” by damaging a utility substation to disrupt Orange County’s power grid, according to the plea agreement.

    “This defendant exemplifies the insidious danger posed by domestic extremism,” U.S. Atty. Martin Estrada said in a statement.

    Brannon was arrested in June and has remained in federal custody since.

    “Chance is a young man who has made mistakes. He is looking forward to closing out this chapter in his life,” his attorney, Kate Corrigan, wrote in an email.

    Brannon is due to be sentenced on April 15. He faces a maximum sentence of 51 years in prison.

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    Jeremy Childs

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