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Tag: Sexual misconduct

  • Harvey Weinstein’s rape conviction is overturned by New York’s top court

    Harvey Weinstein’s rape conviction is overturned by New York’s top court

    NEW YORK — New York’s highest court on Thursday threw out Harvey Weinstein ’s 2020 rape conviction with a ruling that shocked and disappointed women who celebrated historic gains during the #MeToo era and left those who testified in the case bracing for a retrial against the ex-movie mogul.

    The court found the trial judge unfairly allowed testimony against Weinstein based on allegations that weren’t part of the case.

    Weinstein, 72, will remain in prison because he was convicted in Los Angeles in 2022 of another rape. But the New York ruling reopens a painful chapter in America’s reckoning with sexual misconduct by powerful figures — an era that began in 2017 with a flood of allegations against Weinstein.

    #MeToo advocates noted that Thursday’s ruling was based on legal technicalities and not an exoneration of Weinstein’s behavior, saying the original trial irrevocably moved the cultural needle on attitudes about sexual assault.

    The Manhattan district attorney’s office said it intends to retry Weinstein, and at least one of his accusers said through her lawyer that she would testify again.

    The state Court of Appeals overturned Weinstein’s 23-year sentence in a 4-3 decision, saying “the trial court erroneously admitted testimony of uncharged, alleged prior sexual acts” and permitted questions about Weinstein’s “bad behavior” if he had testified. It called this “highly prejudicial” and “an abuse of judicial discretion.”

    In a stinging dissent, Judge Madeline Singas wrote that the Court of Appeals was continuing a “disturbing trend of overturning juries’ guilty verdicts in cases involving sexual violence.” She said the ruling came at “the expense and safety of women.”

    In another dissent, Judge Anthony Cannataro wrote that the decision was “endangering decades of progress in this incredibly complex and nuanced area of law” regarding sex crimes after centuries of “deeply patriarchal and misogynistic legal tradition.”

    The reversal of Weinstein’s conviction is the second major #MeToo setback in the last two years. The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal of a Pennsylvania court decision to throw out Bill Cosby’s sexual assault conviction.

    Weinstein has been in a New York prison since his conviction for forcibly performing oral sex on a TV and film production assistant in 2006, and rape in the third degree for an attack on an aspiring actress in 2013. He was acquitted on the most serious charges — two counts of predatory sexual assault and first-degree rape.

    He was sentenced to 16 years in prison in the Los Angeles case.

    Weinstein’s lawyers expect Thursday’s court ruling to have a major impact on the appeal of his Los Angeles rape conviction. Their arguments are due May 20.

    Jennifer Bonjean, a Weinstein attorney, said the California prosecution also relied on evidence of uncharged conduct alleged against him.

    “A jury was told in California that he was convicted in another state for rape,” Bonjean said. “Turns out he shouldn’t have been convicted and it wasn’t a fair conviction. … It interfered with his presumption of innocence in a significant way in California.”

    Weinstein lawyer Arthur Aidala called the Court of Appeals ruling “a tremendous victory for every criminal defendant in the state of New York.”

    Attorney Douglas H. Wigdor, who has represented eight Harvey Weinstein accusers including two witnesses at the New York criminal trial, called the ruling “a major step back” and contrary to routine rulings by judges allowing evidence of uncharged acts to help jurors understand the intent or patterns of a defendant’s criminal behavior.

    Debra Katz, a prominent civil rights and #MeToo attorney who represented several Weinstein accusers, said her clients are “feeling gutted” by the ruling, but that she believed – and was telling them – that their testimony had changed the world.

    “People continue to come forward, people continue to support other victims who’ve reported sexual assault and violence, and I truly believe there’s no going back from that,” Katz said. She predicted Weinstein will be convicted at a retrial, and said accusers like her client Dawn Dunning feel great comfort knowing Weinstein will remain behind bars.

    Dunning, a former actor who served as a supporting witness at the New York Weinstein trial, said in remarks to The Associated Press conveyed through Katz that she was “shocked” by the ruling and dealing with a range of emotions, including asking herself, “Was it all for naught?”

    “It took two years of my life,” Dunning said. “I had to live through it every day. But would I do it again? Yes.”

    She said that in confronting Weinstein, she had faced her worst fear and realized he had no power over her.

    Weinstein’s conviction in 2020 was heralded by activists and advocates as a milestone achievement, but dissected just as quickly by his lawyers and, later, the Court of Appeals when it heard arguments on the matter in February.

    Allegations against Weinstein, the once powerful and feared studio boss behind such Oscar winners as “Pulp Fiction” and “Shakespeare in Love,” ushered in the #MeToo movement.

    Dozens of women came forward to accuse Weinstein, including famous actresses such as Ashley Judd and Uma Thurman. His New York trial drew intense publicity, with protesters chanting “rapist” outside the courthouse.

    “This is what it’s like to be a woman in America, living with male entitlement to our bodies,” Judd said Thursday.

    Weinstein, incarcerated at the Mohawk Correctional Facility, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) northwest of Albany, maintains his innocence. He contends any sexual activity was consensual.

    His lawyers argued on appeal that the trial overseen by Judge James Burke was unfair because three women whose claims of unwanted sexual encounters with Weinstein were not part of the charges were allowed to testify. Burke’s term expired at the end of 2022, and he is no longer a judge.

    They also appealed the trial judge’s ruling that prosecutors could confront Weinstein over his long history of brutish behavior, including allegations of punching his movie producer brother at a business meeting, snapping at waiters, hiding a woman’s clothes and threatening to cut off a colleague’s genitals with gardening shears.

    As a result, Weinstein, who wanted to testify, did not take the stand, Aidala said.

    The appeals court labeled the allegations “appalling, shameful, repulsive conduct” but warned that “destroying a defendant’s character under the guise of prosecutorial need” did not justify some trial evidence and testimony.

    In a majority opinion written by Judge Jenny Rivera, the Court of Appeals said defendants have a right to be held accountable “only for the crime charged and, thus, allegations of prior bad acts may not be admitted against them for the sole purpose of establishing their propensity for criminality.”

    The Court of Appeals agreed last year to take Weinstein’s case after an intermediate appeals court upheld his conviction. Prior to their ruling, judges on the lower appellate court at oral arguments had raised doubts about Burke’s conduct. One observed that Burke had let prosecutors pile on with “incredibly prejudicial testimony” from additional witnesses.

    At a news conference, Aidala predicted that the lasting effect of the reversal would be that more defendants will testify at their trials, including Weinstein, who “will be able to tell his side of the story.”

    He said that when he spoke to Weinstein Thursday, his client told him: “I’ve been here for years in prison for something I didn’t do. You got to fix this.”

    ___

    Associated Press writer Dave Collins reported from Hartford, Connecticut. AP writers Jocelyn Noveck, Cedar Attanasio and Larry Neumeister in New York also contributed to this story.

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  • Penn State Scandal Fast Facts | CNN

    Penn State Scandal Fast Facts | CNN



    CNN
     — 

    Here’s a look at the Penn State sexual abuse scandal. On November 4, 2011, a grand jury report was released containing testimony that former Penn State defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky sexually abused eight young boys over a period of at least 15 years. Officials at Penn State purportedly failed to notify law enforcement after learning about some of these incidents. On December 7, 2011, the number of victims increased to 10. Sandusky was found guilty in 2012.

    Included is a timeline of accusations, lists of the charges against Sandusky, a list of involved parties, a post grand jury report timeline, information about The Second Mile charity and Sandusky with links to the grand jury investigation.

    Jerry Sandusky

    Birth date: January 26, 1944

    Birth place: Washington, Pennsylvania

    Birth name: Gerald Arthur Sandusky

    Marriage: Dorothy “Dottie” (Gross) Sandusky (1966-present)

    Children: (all adopted) E.J., Kara, Jon, Jeff, Ray and Matt. The Sanduskys also fostered several children.

    Occupation: Assistant football coach at Penn State for 32 years before his retirement, including 23 years as defensive coordinator.

    Initially founded by Sandusky in 1977 as a group foster home for troubled boys, but grew into a non-profit organization that “helps young people to achieve their potential as individuals and community members.”

    May 25, 2012 – The Second Mile requests court approval in Centre County, Pennsylvania, to transfer its programs to Arrow Child & Family Ministries and shut down.

    August 27, 2012 – The Second Mile requests a stay in their petition to transfer its programs to Arrow Child & Family Ministries saying, “this action will allow any pending or future claims filed by Sandusky’s victims to be resolved before key programs or assets are considered for transfer.”

    March 2016 – After years of dismantling and distributing assets to Arrow Child & Family Ministries and any remaining funds to the Pennsylvania Attorney General to hold in escrow, the organization is dissolved.

    Source: Grand Jury Report

    1994-1997 – Sandusky engages in inappropriate conduct with different boys he met separately through The Second Mile program.

    1998 – Penn State police and the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare investigate an incident in which the mother of an 11-year-old boy reported that Sandusky showered with her son.

    1998 – Psychologist Alycia Chambers tells Penn State police that Sandusky acted the way a pedophile might in her assessment of a case in which the mother of a young boy reported that Sandusky showered with her son and may have had inappropriate contact with him. A second psychologist, John Seasock, reported he found no indication of child abuse.

    June 1, 1998 – In an interview, Sandusky admits to showering naked with the boy, saying it was wrong and promising not to do it again. The district attorney advises investigators that no charges will be filed, and the university police chief instructs that the case be closed.

    June 1999 – Sandusky retires from Penn State after coaching there for 32 years, but receives emeritus status, with full access to the campus and football facilities.

    2000 – James Calhoun, a janitor at Penn State, tells his supervisor and another janitor that he saw Sandusky sexually abusing a young boy in the Lasch Building showers. No one reports the incident to university officials or law enforcement.

    March 2, 2002 – Graduate Assistant Mike McQueary tells Coach Joe Paterno that on March 1, he witnessed Sandusky sexually abusing a 10-year-old boy in the Lasch Building showers. On May 7, 2012, prosecutors file court documents to change the date of the assault to on or around February 9, 2001.

    March 3, 2002 – Paterno reports the incident to Athletic Director Tim Curley. Later, McQueary meets with Curley and Senior Vice President for Finance and Business Gary Schultz. McQueary testifies that he told Curley and Schultz that he saw Sandusky and the boy engage in anal sex; Curley and Schultz testify they were not told of any such allegation. No law enforcement investigation is launched.

    2005 or 2006 – Sandusky befriends another Second Mile participant whose allegations would form the foundation of the multi-year grand jury investigation.

    2006 or 2007 – Sandusky begins to spend more time with the boy, taking him to sporting events and giving him gifts. During this period, Sandusky performs oral sex on the boy more than 20 times and the boy performs oral sex on him once.

    2008 – The boy breaks off contact with Sandusky. Later, his mother calls the boy’s high school to report her son had been sexually assaulted and the principal bans Sandusky from campus and reports the incident to police. The ensuing investigation reveals 118 calls from Sandusky’s home and cell phone numbers to the boy’s home.

    November 2008 – Sandusky informs The Second Mile that he is under investigation. He is removed from all program activities involving children, according to the group.

    November 4, 2011 – The grand jury report is released.

    November 5, 2011 – Sandusky is arraigned on 40 criminal counts. He is released on $100,000 bail. Curley and Schultz are each charged with one count of felony perjury and one count of failure to report abuse allegations.

    November 7, 2011 – Curley and Schultz are both arraigned and resign from their positions.

    November 9, 2011 – Paterno announces that he intends to retire at the end of the 2011 football season. Hours later, university trustees announce that President Graham Spanier and Coach Paterno are fired, effective immediately.

    November 11, 2011 – McQueary, now a Penn State receivers’ coach, is placed on indefinite administrative leave.

    November 14, 2011 – In a phone interview with NBC’s Bob Costas, Sandusky states that he is “innocent” of the charges and claims that the only thing he did wrong was “showering with those kids.”

    November 15, 2011 – The Morning Call reports that in a November 8, 2011, email to a former classmate, McQueary says he did stop the 2002 assault he witnessed and talked with police about it.

    November 16, 2011 – Representatives of Penn State’s campus police and State College police say they have no record of having received any report from McQueary about his having witnessed the rape of a boy by Sandusky.

    November 16, 2011 – A new judge is assigned to the Sandusky case after it is discovered that Leslie Dutchcot, the judge who freed Sandusky on $100,000 bail, volunteered at The Second Mile charity.

    November 21, 2011 – It is announced that former FBI Director Louis Freeh will lead an independent inquiry for Penn State into the school’s response to allegations of child sex abuse.

    November 22, 2011 – The Patriot-News reports that Children and Youth Services in Pennsylvania has two open cases of child sex abuse against Sandusky. The cases were reported less than two months ago and are in the initial stages of investigation.

    November 22, 2011 – The Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts announces that all Centre County Common Pleas Court judges have recused themselves from the Sandusky case. This is to avoid any conflicts of interest due to connections with Sandusky, The Second Mile charity, or Penn State.

    November 30, 2011 – The first lawsuit is filed on behalf of a person listed in the complaint as “John Doe,” who says he was 10 years-old when he met Sandusky through The Second Mile charity. His attorneys say Sandusky sexually abused the victim “over one hundred times” and threatened to harm the victim and his family if he alerted anyone to the abuse.

    December 2, 2011 – A victim’s attorneys say they have reached a settlement with The Second Mile that allows it to stay in operation but requires it to obtain court approval before transferring assets or closing.

    December 3, 2011 – In an interview with The New York Times, Sandusky says, “If I say, ‘No, I’m not attracted to young boys,’ that’s not the truth. Because I’m attracted to young people – boys, girls – I …” His lawyer speaks up at that point to note that Sandusky is not “sexually” attracted to them.

    December 7, 2011 – Sandusky is arrested on additional child rape charges, which raises the number of victims from eight to 10 people. He is charged with four counts of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and two counts of unlawful contact with a minor. He also faces one new count of indecent assault and two counts of endangering a child’s welfare, in addition to a single new count of indecent assault and two counts of corruption of minors.

    December 8, 2011 – Sandusky is released on $250,000 bail. He is placed under house arrest and is required to wear an electronic monitoring device. He is also restricted from contacting the victims and possible witnesses, and he must be supervised during any interactions with minors.

    December 13, 2011 – Sandusky enters a plea of not guilty and waives his right to a preliminary hearing.

    December 16, 2011 – A hearing is held for Curley and Schultz. McQueary testifies he told university officials that he saw Sandusky possibly sexually assaulting a boy in 2002. Following the testimony, the judge rules that the perjury case against Curley and Schultz will go to trial. The incident is later said to have happened in 2001.

    January 13, 2012 – Curley and Schultz enter pleas of not guilty for their failure to report child sex abuse.

    January 22, 2012 – Paterno dies at the age of 85.

    February 14, 2012 – Penn State says that the Sandusky case has cost the university $3.2 million thus far in combined legal, consultant and public relations fees.

    June 11, 2012 – The Sandusky trial begins. On June 22, Sandusky is found guilty on 45 counts after jurors deliberate for almost 21 hours. His bail is immediately revoked, and he is taken to jail.

    June 30, 2012 – McQueary’s contract as assistant football coach ends.

    July 12, 2012 – Freeh announces the findings of the investigation into Penn State’s actions concerning Sandusky. The report accuses the former leaders at Penn State of showing “total and consistent disregard” for child sex abuse victims, while covering up the attacks of a longtime sexual predator.

    July 23, 2012 – The NCAA announces a $60 million fine against Penn State and bans the team from the postseason for four years. Additionally, the school must vacate all wins from 1998-2011 and will lose 20 football scholarships a year for four seasons.
    – The Big Ten Conference rules that Penn State’s share of bowl revenues for the next four seasons – roughly $13 million will be donated to charities working to prevent child abuse.

    August 24, 2012 – “Victim 1” files a lawsuit against Penn State.

    September 20, 2012 – Penn State hires Feinberg Rozen LLP (headed by Kenneth Feinberg who oversaw the 9/11 and BP oil spill victim funds).

    October 2, 2012 – McQueary files a whistleblower lawsuit against Penn State.

    October 8, 2012 – An audio statement from Sandusky airs in which he protests his innocence and says he is falsely accused.

    October 9, 2012 – Sandusky is sentenced to no less than 30 years and no more than 60 years in prison. During the hearing, Sandusky is designated a violent sexual offender.

    October 15, 2012 – Plaintiff “John Doe,” a 21-year-old male, files a lawsuit against Sandusky, Penn State, The Second Mile, Spanier, Curley and Schultz. Doe alleges that he would not have been assaulted by Sandusky if officials, who were aware he was molesting boys, had not covered up his misconduct.

    November 1, 2012 – The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania files eight charges against former Penn State President Spanier. The charges include perjury and endangering the welfare of a child. Former university Vice President Schultz and former Athletic Director Curley face the same charges, according to Attorney General Linda Kelly.

    November 15, 2012 – The Middle States Commission on Higher Education lifts its warning and reaffirms Penn State’s accreditation.

    January 30, 2013 – Judge John M. Cleland denies Sandusky’s appeal for a new trial.

    July 30, 2013 – A judge rules that Spanier, Curley and Schultz will face trial on obstruction of justice and other charges.

    August 26, 2013 – Attorneys announce Sandusky’s adopted son and six other victims have finalized settlement agreements.

    October 2, 2013 – The Superior Court of Pennsylvania denies Sandusky’s appeal.

    October 28, 2013 – Penn State announces it has reached settlements with 26 victims of Sandusky. The amount paid by the university totals $59.7 million.

    April 2, 2014 – The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania also denies Sandusky’s appeal.

    September 8, 2014 – NCAA ends Penn State’s postseason ban and scholarship limits. The $60 million fine and the 13 years of vacated wins for Paterno remain in place.

    January 16, 2015 – The NCAA agrees to restore 111 of Paterno’s wins as part of a settlement of the lawsuit brought by State Senator Jake Corman and Treasurer Rob McCord. Also, as part of the settlement, Penn State agrees to commit $60 million to the prevention and treatment of child sexual abuse.

    December 23, 2015 – A spokeswoman for the State of Pennsylvania employee retirement system says Sandusky will receive $211,000 in back payments and his regular pension payments will resume. This is the result of a November 13 court ruling that reversed a 2012 decision to terminate Sandusky’s pension under a state law that allows the termination of pensions of public employees convicted of a “disqualifying crime.” The judge said in his ruling that Sandusky was not employed at the time of the crimes he was convicted of committing.

    January 22, 2016 – A three-judge panel reverses the obstruction of justice and conspiracy charges against Spanier, Curley and Schultz, and the perjury charges against Spanier and Curley.

    May 4, 2016 – A new allegation purports Paterno knew that his assistant coach Sandusky was sexually abusing a child as early as 1976, according to a new court filing. The ongoing lawsuit, filed in 2013, seeks to determine whether Penn State or its insurance policy is liable for paying Sandusky’s victims. At least 30 men were involved in a civil settlement with Penn State, and the number of victims could be higher.

    May 6, 2016 – CNN reports the story of another alleged victim who explains how he was a troubled young kid in 1971 when Sandusky raped him in a Penn State bathroom. He says his complaint about it was ignored by Paterno.

    July 12, 2016 – Newly unsealed court documents allege that Paterno knew about Sandusky’s abuse and that he dismissed a victim’s complaint.

    August 12, 2016 – In a bid for a new trial, Sandusky testifies at a post-conviction hearing claiming his lawyers bungled his 2012 trial. On the stand, Sandusky describes what he said as bad media and legal advice given to him by his former lawyer, Joseph Amendola.

    November 3, 2016 – The Department of Education fines Penn State $2.4 million for violating the Clery Act, a law that requires universities to report crime on campuses. It’s the largest fine in the history of the act.

    March 13, 2017 – Curley and Schultz plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge of endangering the welfare of children in exchange for the dismissal of felony charges.

    March 24, 2017 – Spanier is found guilty on one misdemeanor count of endangering the welfare of a child. Spanier was acquitted of more serious allegations, including conspiracy charges and a felony count of child endangerment.

    June 2, 2017 – Spanier and two other former administrators are sentenced to jail terms for failing to report a 2001 allegation that Sandusky was molesting young boys. Spanier whose total sentence is four to 12 months incarceration, will be on probation for two years and must pay a $7,500 fine, according to Joe Grace, a spokesman for Pennsylvania’s attorney general’s office.

    – Curley is sentenced to seven to 23 months’ incarceration and two years’ probation, Grace said. He will serve three months in jail followed by house arrest and pay a $5,000 fine.

    – Schultz is sentenced to six to 23 months’ incarceration and two years’ probation. He will serve two months in jail, followed by house arrest and pay a $5,000 fine, according to Grace.

    January 9, 2018 – Penn State reports that the total amount of settlement awards paid to Sandusky’s victims is now over $109 million.

    February 5, 2019 – In response to an appeal for a new trial that also questions the validity of mandatory minimum sentencing, the Superior Court of Pennsylvania orders Sandusky to be re-sentenced. The request for a new trial is denied.

    April 30, 2019 – US Magistrate Judge Karoline Mehalchick vacates Spanier’s 2017 conviction for endangering the welfare of a child. Spanier was set to be sentenced on the one count conviction, instead, the court ordered the conviction be vacated because it was based on a criminal statute that did not go into effect until after the conduct in question. The state has 90 days to retry him, according to court documents. The following month, Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro appeals the judge’s decision to throw out the conviction.

    November 22, 2019 – Sandusky is resentenced to 30 to 60 years in prison, the same penalty that was previously overturned. The initial sentence of at least 30 years in prison was overturned by the Pennsylvania Superior Court, which found that mandatory minimum sentences were illegally imposed.

    March 26, 2020 – The US Office for Civil Rights finds that Penn State failed to protect students who filed sexual harassment complaints. OCR completed the compliance review after it was initially launched in 2014, and found that the University violated Title IX for several years, in various ways. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos announces that the US Department of Education and the university have entered into a resolution agreement that compels Penn State to address deficiencies in their complaint process, reporting policy requirements, record keeping, and training of staff, university police and other persons who work with students.

    December 1, 2020 – Spanier’s conviction is restored by a federal appeals court.

    May 26, 2021 – A judge rules that Spanier will start his two month prison sentence on July 9. Spanier reports to jail early and is released on August 4 after serving 58 days.

    Sandusky Verdict

    Victim 1
    Count 1 – guilty: Involuntary Deviate Sexual Intercourse (Felony 1)
    Count 2 – guilty: Involuntary Deviate Sexual Intercourse (Felony 1)
    Count 3 – guilty: Indecent Assault (Felony 3)
    Count 4 – guilty: Unlawful Contact with Minors (Felony 1)
    Count 5 – guilty: Corruption of Minors (Misdemeanor 1)
    Count 6 – guilty: Endangering Welfare of Children (Felony 3)

    Victim 2
    Count 7 – not guilty: Involuntary Deviate Sexual Intercourse (Felony 1)
    Count 8 – guilty: Indecent Assault (Misdemeanor 2)
    Count 9 – guilty: Unlawful Contact with Minors (Felony 1)
    Count 10 – guilty: Corruption of Minors (Misdemeanor 1)
    Count 11 – guilty: Endangering Welfare of Children (Misdemeanor 1)

    Victim 3
    Count 12 – guilty: Indecent Assault (Misdemeanor 2)
    Count 13 – guilty: Unlawful Contact with Minors (Felony 3)
    Count 14 – guilty: Corruption of Minors (Misdemeanor 1)
    Count 15 – guilty: Endangering Welfare of Children (Felony 3)

    Victim 4
    Count 16 – ****DROPPED****: Involuntary Deviate Sexual Intercourse (Felony 1)
    Count 17 – guilty: Involuntary Deviate Sexual Intercourse (Felony 1)
    Count 18 – ****DROPPED*****: Involuntary Deviate Sexual Intercourse (Felony 1)
    Count 19 – ****DROPPED*****: Aggravated Indecent Assault (Felony 2)
    Count 20 – guilty: Indecent Assault (Misdemeanor 2)
    Count 21 – guilty: Unlawful Contact with Minors (Felony 1)
    Count 22 – guilty: Corruption of Minors (Misdemeanor 1)
    Count 23 – guilty” Endangering Welfare of Children (Felony 3)

    Victim 5
    Count 24 – not guilty: Indecent Assault (Misdemeanor 1)
    Count 25 – guilty: Unlawful Contact with Minors (Felony 3)
    Count 26 – guilty: Corruption of Minors (Misdemeanor 1)
    Count 27 – guilty: Endangering Welfare of Children (Felony 3)

    Victim 6
    Count 28 – not guilty: Indecent Assault (Misdemeanor 1)
    Count 29 – guilty: Unlawful Contact with Minors (Felony 3)
    Count 30 – guilty: Corruption of Minors (Misdemeanor 1)
    Count 31 – guilty: Endangering Welfare of Children (Misdemeanor 1)

    Victim 7
    Count 32 – guilty: Criminal Attempt to Commit Indecent Assault (Misdemeanor 2)
    Count 33 – ****DROPPED****: WITHDRAWN BY PROSECUTORS (unlawful contact with minors)
    Count 34 – guilty: Corruption of Minors (Misdemeanor 1)
    Count 35 – guilty: Endangering Welfare of Children (Misdemeanor 1)

    Victim 8
    Count 36 – guilty: Involuntary Deviate Sexual Intercourse (Felony 1)
    Count 37 – guilty: Indecent Assault (Misdemeanor 2)
    Count 38 – guilty: Unlawful Contact with Minors (Felony 1)
    Count 39 – guilty: Corruption of Minors (Misdemeanor 1)
    Count 40 – guilty: Endangering Welfare of Children (Misdemeanor 1)

    (Due to 2nd indictment, counts start over with Victims 9 and 10)

    Victim 9
    Count 1 – guilty: Involuntary Deviate Sexual Intercourse (Felony 1)
    Count 2 – guilty: Involuntary Deviate Sexual Intercourse (Felony 1)
    Count 3 – guilty: Indecent Assault (Felony 3)
    Count 4 – guilty: Unlawful Contact with Minors (Felony 1)
    Count 5 – guilty: Corruption of Minors (Misdemeanor 1)
    Count 6 – guilty: Endangering Welfare of Children (Felony 3)

    Victim 10
    Count 7 – guilty: Involuntary Deviate Sexual Intercourse (Felony 1)
    Count 8 – guilty: Involuntary Deviate Sexual Intercourse (Felony 1)
    Count 9 – guilty: Indecent Assault (Misdemeanor 1)
    Count 10 – guilty: Unlawful Contact with Minors (Felony 1)
    Count 11 – guilty: Corruption of Minors (Misdemeanor 1)
    Count 12 – guilty: Endangering Welfare of Children (Felony 3)

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  • Colorado bill aims to protect whistleblowers who report police misconduct

    Colorado bill aims to protect whistleblowers who report police misconduct

    EDGEWATER, Colo. — Lawmakers will hold a hearing Tuesday on a bill aimed at protecting whistleblowers who report police misconduct.

    Supporters say House Bill 24-1460 is long overdue and will help root out bad cops in Colorado. Law enforcement groups, however, oppose it, calling it irresponsible and unnecessary.

    From an early age, McKinzie Rees knew what she wanted to be.

    “My grandpa was a police officer, and I just always wanted to be a police officer,” Rees said.

    McKinzie Rees

    McKinzie Rees, a former police officer with the Edgewater Police Department, is pushing for the passage of a bill to protect those who report police misconduct.

    Rees lived her dream for a few years. She started out with the Black Hawk Police Department and eventually found her way to the Edgewater Police Department.

    “In the beginning, it wasn’t so bad,” Rees said.

    But things changed in 2019 after a Christmas party.

    “I was sexually assaulted by one of my sergeants,” Rees said.

    Rees said she and that sergeant, Nathan Geerdes, were in the back seat of an Uber heading to another gathering when the sexual assault occurred.

    “I was, you know, trying to push him off and kind of like, you know, make it known that I didn’t want any part of what he was doing,” said Rees.

    Rees said Geerdes made her date sit in the front seat with the Uber driver while he sat in the backseat with her.

    “I didn’t want to cause a massive scene in the Uber with a driver that I don’t know. And then my date sitting in the front seat was kind of in an awkward situation,” said Rees.

    She said Geerdes sexually assaulted her a second time in the hallway of the restaurant they stopped at.

    “I told my date, “Let’s just eat our pizza and get out of here,”” Rees said.

    She said she reported the incident to a colleague but heard nothing for almost a year.

    Crime

    Former Edgewater, Black Hawk officer indicted on unlawful sexual contact charges

    11:55 AM, Dec 07, 2022

    “I got pulled into a room with a couple of other members of the department and asked to tell them about what had happened at the Christmas party a year prior,” Rees said.

    She later learned two members of the police department had approached the First Judicial District Attorney’s Office.

    “They felt that the department wasn’t handling it the way they should have handled it, that it was kind of kept hush-hush,” said Rees.

    Geerdes was eventually indicted by a grand jury and pleaded guilty to unlawful sexual contact, official misconduct, and forgery. He was sentenced to four years probation and must register as a sex offender. He also can no longer work in law enforcement.

    At Geerdes’ sentencing earlier this year, Rees said she learned she wasn’t his only victim. She said another woman stepped forward and accused him of sexually assaulting her several years before.

    “It was a surprise, but it wasn’t a surprise because I felt what he did was very brazen and something that had been practiced almost,” said Rees.

    Rees is now pushing for the passage of HB24-1460, which would require law enforcement to investigate misconduct allegations and save the documents related to the case for three years. Victims could sue agencies and peace officers that don’t investigate misconduct allegations. In addition, officers who do nothing could be charged with a misdemeanor.

    Law-enforcement groups, including the Colorado Fraternal Order of Police and the County Sheriffs of Colorado, have come out against the bill, calling it irresponsible and punitive.

    “Together we stand united against the ‘unprofessional conduct’ or ‘misconduct’ of peace officers,” the groups said in a statement. “This bill, however, unnecessarily singles out one profession – law enforcement – for prosecution, marking the first time any occupation would be subject to criminal penalties for failing to report speculative violations of undefined conduct.”

    The groups said there are already “extensive guardrails” to address police misconduct and hold bad actors accountable.

    “Adding new rules targeting police who may or may not be ‘reasonably aware’ of another officer’s possible misconduct appears more punitive than solution-oriented,” they said.

    They also said a bill like this can’t be thoughtfully considered with little time left in the legislative session.

    Local News

    Former officer accused of unlawful sexual contact faces additional charges

    10:45 PM, Jun 26, 2023

    State Rep. Leslie Herod, D-Denver, one of the bill’s primary sponsors, said there is plenty of time to consider the bill and make any necessary changes.

    “What I’ve heard time and time again is law enforcement saying the thing that a good cop hates the most is a bad cop,” said Herod. “This bill holds those bad cops accountable.”

    Herod said she’s thankful Rees and others have stepped forward to craft and support the bill.

    “It is extremely brave to see McKinzie and so many others stepping forward to tell their stories,” said Herod.

    Rees plans to testify in support of the bill when it’s heard in the House Judiciary Committee Tuesday afternoon.

    Rees said she resigned from the Edgewater Police Department because she was about to be fired. She believes she was retaliated against for speaking up about what happened to her.

    “Just speaking up about things, you get a lot of backlash when that happens,” said Rees.

    She said because her police record includes a resignation in lieu of termination, she’s not been able to get a job.

    She’s currently involved in a lawsuit with the City of Edgewater and hopes to have a resolution soon so she can get back to doing what she loves.

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    Brandon Richard

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  • Bill Maher Calls Actors Who Won’t Work With Woody Allen “a Bunch of P-ssies”

    Bill Maher Calls Actors Who Won’t Work With Woody Allen “a Bunch of P-ssies”

    Woody Allen, the 88-year-old auteur who has touted his immunity to cancellation, is getting his latest public defense from Bill Maher, who declared in a new interview that any actor who refuses to work with Allen over the longstanding sexual abuse allegations against him are “a bunch of pussies.”

    Speaking to Katie Couric on the latest episode of his Club Random podcast, Maher railed against the lack of “consistency” of “MeToo punishments” for men like Louis C.K., who admitted to sexual misconduct with multiple women in 2017. Maher, who said he’s “very much so” still friendly with the comedian, claimed that—despite C.K. winning the Grammy for best comedy album in 2022—he has not been able to mount a worthy comeback in the mainstream Hollywood film industry.

    His attentions then turned to Allen, who was accused by Dylan Farrow—Allen’s adopted daughter with ex-partner Mia Farrow—of sexual assault against her when she was a child. The allegation was first made in 1992, when she was seven years old, and then again in an open letter penned by Dylan in 2014. Allen has repeatedly denied the allegations; he has never been charged with a crime. “I respect the artist and the man,” Maher said of Allen. “I don’t think he committed that crime. There were two police investigations that exonerated him. I mean, what do you have to do in this country?”

    Maher went on to rail against actors who refused to work with the filmmaker or expressed regret about already having done so. As he told Couric, “All these actors who won’t work with him anymore, some of them made movies with him [and have said] ‘I regret doing that’—what a bunch of pussies.”

    The late-night host also critiqued the scope of 2021’s HBO documentary series Allen v. Farrow, which details the allegations against Allen with cooperation from numerous members of the Farrow family. “First of all, it’s a very improbable crime that they’re accusing him of. Plainly, the other party had motivation and was vindictive,” said Maher, referring to Mia Farrow. “If you saw the documentary about it, it was all from her point of view. So, first of all, I just flat out believe him. I believe a 57-year-old man didn’t suddenly become a child molester in the middle of a divorce proceeding and a custody battle in a house full of adults in broad daylight.” (Allen and Farrow were never married.)

    At the time of the alleged abuse, Allen was undergoing an acrimonious split from Farrow, which began after Mia discovered Allen had become sexually involved with Soon-Yi Previn, Farrow’s then 21-year-old adopted daughter whom Allen first met when she was 10 years old. When Couric pointed to “some pretty damning” evidence against Allen that was “separate” from Dylan’s and Mia’s accounts, things that “raised some legitimate questions”—citing an alleged past romantic relationship with a high school student and Allen’s desire to see a girlfriend “dress up in little anklets and Mary Janes and babydoll dresses”—Maher continued his defense.

    “Oh, you think he’s the only guy who likes that?” Maher asked with a laugh. “You think he’s the first guy who wanted his girlfriend to dress in anklets and babydoll [dresses]?” He went on to assert that Allen’s sexual preferences don’t “make [him] a pervert,” adding, “That’s what we grew up on, we find it sexy.” (Allen has denied any abuse or relationships with underage women.)

    Last fall, Allen’s latest film, Coup de Chance, premiered at the Venice International Film Festival to both protests and a a five-minute standing ovation. Earlier this month, the octogenarian director said in an interview with Air Mail that he’d considered retiring because “all the romance of filmmaking is gone.”

    Savannah Walsh

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  • Dominique Strauss-Kahn Fast Facts | CNN

    Dominique Strauss-Kahn Fast Facts | CNN



    CNN
     — 

    Here is a look at the life of Dominique Strauss-Kahn, former International Monetary Fund (IMF) Director.

    Birth date: April 25, 1949

    Birth place: Neuilly-sur-Seine, France

    Birth name: Dominique Gaston Andre Strauss-Kahn

    Father: Gilbert Strauss-Kahn, a legal and tax advisor

    Mother: Jacqueline Fellus, a journalist

    Marriages: Myriam L’Aouffir (October 2017-present); Anne Sinclair (1991-2013, divorced); Brigitte Guillemette (1984-date unavailable publicly, divorced); Helene Dumas (1967-date unavailable publicly, divorced)

    Children: with Brigitte Guillemette: Camille; with Helene Dumas: Vanessa, Marine and Laurin

    Education: HEC Paris (École des Hautes Études Commerciales de Paris), Public Law, 1971; Paris Institute of Political Studies (Institut d’Études Politiques de Paris), Political Science, 1972; University of Paris, Ph.D., Economics, 1977

    His 2010 IMF salary was tax free, amounting to more than $500,000 with perks.

    Taught economics at the prestigious Institut d’Etudes Politiques de Paris, commonly known as Sciences Po, and at Stanford University in California.

    Was considered to be the leading contender to run against Nicolas Sarkozy for the 2012 presidency of France.

    1981-1986 – Deputy Commissioner of the Economic Planning Agency.

    1986 – Wins election to France’s National Assembly – the lower house of parliament.

    1988-1991 – Chairs the Finance Commission.

    1991- 1993 – Minister of Industry and International Trade under President Francois Mitterrand.

    1997-1999 – Minister of Economy, Finance and Industry. Resigns amid allegations that as a practicing lawyer he was involved in party campaign funding irregularities. Strauss-Kahn is later cleared of the charges.

    2001-2007 – Elected three times to the French National Assembly.

    2006 – Loses to Segolene Royal for the Socialist Party’s presidential nomination.

    November 1, 2007-May 18, 2011 – IMF Managing Director.

    2008 – Is reprimanded by the IMF for a relationship with a subordinate, Piroska Nagy.

    May 14, 2011 – Is escorted off an Air France flight headed to Paris and taken to a New York police station for questioning about the alleged sexual assault of a Sofitel Hotel housekeeping employee. The hotel employee says that Strauss-Kahn attempted to force himself on her when she came to clean his room. By the time police officers arrived, Strauss-Kahn had already left the Manhattan hotel.

    May 14, 2011 – Is charged with attempted rape and imprisonment of the hotel employee.

    May 16, 2011 – Is denied bail and transferred to New York’s Rikers Island jail.

    May 18, 2011 – Resigns his position with IMF. His 2007 contract includes a severance package with a $250,000 one-time payout and a smaller annual pension.

    May 19, 2011 – Is indicted on seven counts: two counts of a criminal sexual act, two counts of sexual abuse, and one count each of attempt to commit rape, unlawful imprisonment and forcible touching.

    May 19, 2011 – Is granted bail based on these conditions: home confinement, the surrender of his travel documents, and the posting of $1 million in cash bail and a $5 million bond.

    June 6, 2011 – Pleads not guilty to all seven charges.

    July 1, 2011 – Is released from house arrest after prosecutors disclose that the accuser admitted to lying about certain details.

    July 4, 2011 – French journalist Tristane Banon’s lawyer says that Banon will be filing a complaint claiming Strauss-Kahn attempted to rape her in 2003. In anticipation of the filing, Strauss-Kahn files a counterclaim against Banon for “false declarations.”

    July 5, 2011 – Banon files a criminal complaint against Strauss-Kahn, alleging attempted rape.

    August 8, 2011 – Nafissatou Diallo, the Manhattan maid who accused Strauss-Kahn of sexual assault, files a civil lawsuit against him.

    August 23, 2011 – All sexual assault charges against Strauss-Kahn, related to Diallo, are dismissed at the request of the prosecutor.

    September 3, 2011 – Leaves New York to return to France.

    September 18, 2011 – In an interview with French television station TF1, Strauss-Kahn says the incident at the Sofitel Hotel was “not only an inappropriate relationship, but more than that – an error, a mistake, a mistake concerning my wife, my children, my friends, but also a mistake that the French people placed their hope in change on me.”

    October 13, 2011 – French prosecutors announce that charges will not be filed against Strauss-Kahn for the alleged sexual assault of Banon due to a lack of sufficient evidence and a statute of limitations that applies to the case.

    February 21-22, 2012 – Is questioned by French police about an alleged prostitution ring possibly operated out of luxury hotels.

    March 26, 2012 – Strauss-Kahn is warned that he is under investigation for “aggravated pimping” for his alleged participation in a prostitution ring.

    May 14, 2012 – Files a countersuit for at least $1 million against Diallo, the Manhattan maid who accused him of sexual assault.

    May 21, 2012 – A French investigation into Strauss-Kahn’s alleged involvement in a prostitution ring widens. Authorities say that police will open a preliminary inquiry into acts that allegedly took place in Washington, DC, in December 2010, which they believe could constitute gang rape.

    October 2, 2012 – A French prosecutor drops the investigation connecting Strauss-Kahn to a possible gang rape in Washington, DC. The testimony on which the investigation is based has been withdrawn and the woman is declining to press charges.

    December 10, 2012 – Diallo and Strauss-Kahn reach a settlement in her civil lawsuit against him. Terms of the settlement are not released.

    July 26, 2013 – Prosecutors announce that Strauss-Kahn will be tried on charges of “aggravated pimping” for his alleged participation in a prostitution ring.

    September 17, 2013 – It is announced that Strauss-Kahn has been appointed as an economic adviser to the Serbian government.

    February 2, 2015 – The trial concerning “aggravated pimping” charges against Strauss-Kahn begins.

    February 17, 2015 – A prosecutor tells a French criminal court that Strauss-Kahn should be acquitted of aggravated pimping charges because of insufficient evidence. The Lille prosecutor’s office said in 2013 that evidence didn’t support the charges, but investigative magistrates nevertheless pursued the case to trial.

    June 12, 2015 – Strauss-Kahn is acquitted of charges of aggravated pimping.

    February 2016 – Is named to the supervisory board of Ukrainian bank Credit Dnepr.

    June 2016 – Strauss-Kahn and seven others are fined in civil court after the anti-prostitution group Mouvement du Nid appeals the June 2015 acquittal. Strauss-Kahn is ordered to pay more than $11,000 in damages to the group.

    December 7, 2020 – Netflix releases “Room 2806: The Accusation,” a documentary series covering the 2011 sexual assault case involving Strauss-Kahn and Diallo.

    December 15, 2022 – Le Monde reports that French authorities are investigating Strauss-Kahn for potential tax fraud related to his consulting activities in Morocco. Strauss-Kahn was one of dozens whose financial secrets and offshore dealings were released in the “Pandora Papers” by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) in 2021.

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  • Judge will appoint special master to oversee California federal women’s prison after rampant abuse

    Judge will appoint special master to oversee California federal women’s prison after rampant abuse

    OAKLAND, Calif. — A special master will be appointed to oversee a troubled federal women’s prison in California known for rampant sexual abuse against inmates, a judge ordered Friday, marking the first time the federal Bureau of Prisons has been subject to such oversight.

    A 2021 Associated Press investigation that found a culture of abuse and cover-ups at the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin brought increased scrutiny from Congress and the federal Bureau of Prisons. The low-security prison and its adjacent minimum-security satellite camp, located about 21 miles (34 kilometers) east of Oakland, have more than 600 inmates.

    U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers called the prison “a dysfunctional mess” in her order. She did not name someone to be the special master but wrote that the court would appoint one quickly.

    “The situation can no longer be tolerated. The facility is in dire need of immediate change,” she wrote, adding that the Bureau of Prisons has “proceeded sluggishly with intentional disregard of the inmates’ constitutional rights despite being fully apprised of the situation for years. The repeated installation of BOP leadership who fail to grasp and address the situation strains credulity.”

    The order is part of a federal lawsuit filed in August by eight inmates and the advocacy group California Coalition for Women Prisoners. They allege that sexual abuse and exploitation has not stopped despite the prosecution of the former warden and several former officers.

    “This unprecedented decision on the need for oversight shows that courageous incarcerated people, community and dedicated lawyers can collectively challenge the impunity of the federal government and Bureau of Prisons,” said Emily Shapiro, a member of California Coalition for Women Prisoners, in a statement Friday.

    The Bureau of Prisons declined to comment on the special master appointment.

    FCI Dublin’s sexual abuse scandal has been one of many troubles plaguing the bureau, which is also beset by rampant staffing shortages, suicides and security breaches.

    Since 2021, at least eight FCI Dublin employees have been charged with sexually abusing inmates. Five have pleaded guilty. Two were convicted at trial. Another case is pending. Roughly 50 civil rights lawsuits against FCI Dublin employees are also ongoing.

    Rogers wrote that “in making this extraordinary decision, the Court grounds itself in BOP’s repeated failure to ensure that the extraordinary history of this facility is never repeated.”

    All sexual activity between a prison worker and an inmate is illegal. Correctional employees enjoy substantial power over inmates, controlling every aspect of their lives from mealtime to lights out, and there is no scenario in which an inmate can give consent.

    Rogers made an unannounced visit to the prison Feb. 14, touring the facility and its satellite camp for nine hours. She spoke with at least 100 inmates, as well as staff.

    Many of the inmates told her that they did not fear sexual misconduct and said “no” when asked if it was still prevalent at the prison, Rogers wrote. Still, the plaintiffs in the August lawsuit have “presented incidents of sexual misconduct that occurred as recently as November of 2023.”

    While she did not find that the prison has a “sexualized environment,” as alleged in the lawsuit, the judge wrote that she does not believe that sexual misconduct has been eradicated in FCI Dublin.

    “The truth is somewhere in the middle—allegations of sexual misconduct have lingered but to characterize it as pervasive goes too far,” she wrote. “However, and as the Court finds herein, because of its inability to promptly investigate the allegations that remain, and the ongoing retaliation against incarcerated persons who report misconduct, BOP has lost the ability to manage with integrity and trust.”

    Friday’s special master appointment follows days after the FBI searched the prison as part of an ongoing, years-long investigation. The current warden has also been ousted after new allegations that his staff retaliated against an inmate who testified against the prison, according to government court papers filed Monday.

    Despite recent attempts at reform, Rogers wrote that the prison “cannot seem to leave behind, however, is its suspicion that it is the system, not incarcerated women, that is being abused.”

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  • S.F. State employee who oversaw sexual misconduct and discrimination cases alleges retaliation

    S.F. State employee who oversaw sexual misconduct and discrimination cases alleges retaliation

    A former San Francisco State University employee who oversaw the handling of sexual misconduct and discrimination cases alleged that the campus president and an official with the state university system tried to interfere with an investigation into harassment allegations against a professor and said that the school failed to properly investigate hundreds of claims of wrongdoing.

    In a 20-page complaint filed Wednesday against the campus and the California State University system, Heather Borlase said that she was terminated last summer after she launched an investigation into multiple Muslim students’ complaints that a professor showed a drawing of the prophet Muhammad in his Islamic studies class without warning or reason.

    Borlase alleged that San Francisco State President Lynn Mahoney and CSU Vice Chancellor of Human Resources Leora Freedman believed the professor’s actions were protected under academic freedom and asked Borlase to halt the investigation. But Borlase said that a probe was necessary to determine whether the professor’s actions constituted religious harassment. Visual depictions of Muhammad are considered offensive for many Muslims.

    Freedman wanted to offer time “for the parties to reach an informal resolution,” according to the complaint, and took the case from Borlase in April 2023. Roughly a week later, after the case faced public criticism by an outside advocacy group, Borlase said she was placed on administrative leave and learned months later that her job would not be reinstated. According to the complaint, she was told the decision was “in the best interest of the university.”

    The university said that “the change wasn’t made to influence the outcome of any investigation.”

    “Like all CSU campuses, S.F. State takes seriously its responsibility to provide students and employees a safe learning and working environment,” director of communications Bobby King said. “Different leadership was desired to lead work in the department, which was already happening to improve processes and outcomes.”

    Borlase claimed that she inherited more than 400 unresolved cases of harassment, misconduct and discrimination when she started in 2021 and had received pushback from university officials who “expressed concern about the exposure” when she tried to address the reports.

    According to the complaint, the university “encouraged her to only work on the most egregious cases involving current students or faculty. Ms. Borlase insisted on bringing all cases into compliance.”

    In one instance, an investigation into sexual harassment allegations against a professor found that people were dissuaded from bringing such claims forward. But Borlase said she was discouraged from taking corrective action that could put the university “in a negative light,” the complaint said.

    In another instance, an investigation found that a campus administrator had racially harassed an employee, calling them “a runaway slave.” According to the complaint, Borlase was asked to “downplay the university’s failure to act when concerns … were first raised.”

    “S.F. State’s failure to timely respond to student and staff complaints, its interference with the integrity of investigations, and scapegoating and terminating Ms. Borlase cannot be condoned,” said Katherine Smith, one of the attorneys representing Borlase.

    Borlase’s concerns coincided with CSU’s examination of its policies around Title IX — the federal ban on sex discrimination — following multiple accounts of inconsistencies over how university officials handled complaints of sexual misconduct and retaliation. On several of CSU’s 23 campuses from San Diego State University to California State University Maritime Academy, Times investigations found that students and employees lacked confidence in the Title IX process and often feared that their issues would be ignored. A Times analysis of complaints from the 2021-2022 school year found that about 3% of more than 2,600 reports of sexual harassment and sexual misconduct were formally investigated.

    “It is critical for students to know it is safe to come forward and when they do, their complaints will be fairly investigated,” said Wendy Musell, another attorney for Borlase.

    Shortly before Borlase’s dismissal last year, the Cozen O’Connor law firm shared a report with CSU’s Board of Trustees and the university community that found flaws in how CSU campuses collect data, widespread distrust by students and employees in how wrongdoing is addressed and a low number of investigations.

    A state audit found similar breakdowns. And in a push for broader accountability, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law that would require the CSU system to disclose the outcome of sexual harassment cases and investigations.

    The CSU is the largest four-year public university system in the nation. It has previously said that it will make changes to its handling of complaints and is hiring additional staff to improve its investigative process.

    “Transforming culture is not easy or quick. It takes time and significant resources,” Board Chair Wenda Fong told The Times last year.

    Colleen Shalby

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  • Winona teacher, track coach charged with sexual misconduct

    Winona teacher, track coach charged with sexual misconduct

    WINONA, Minn. — A southeastern Minnesota high school teacher and track coach is accused of having sex with several minor students, court documents filed Thursday reveal.

    Eric Birth, 29, was charged with one count of criminal sex conduct in the third degree for “sexually penetrating” a 17-year-old girl in the fall of 2017, charging documents say. 

    The Winona Police Department says in June 2023 it received an anonymous complaint that Birth had a sexual relationship with a former student while they were still in high school. When the victim was contacted, they denied the allegations. However, on Jan. 2, the victim contacted the police to discuss her relationship with Birth.

    Police say they spoke to a 2018 Winona Senior High School graduate as a result of its investigation into Birth. Police questioned her Snapchat conversations with Birth while she was in high school. She allegedly told police that Birth had sent his address and she went to his house to do “sexual stuff,” but she ended up leaving before anything could happen because she felt uncomfortable.

    Charges state the two eventually had intercourse, which the victim said was planned and happened one morning before school, while her parents were at work.

    MORE NEWS: 4 injured in south Minneapolis stabbing, police say

    The victim recalled going into the principal’s office the same year after someone had reported Birth’s inappropriate behavior with some girls. She told police she had lied when questioned by school administrators because she was scared. She added that she thought the report included two other girls.

    At least four girls reported to police having inappropriate contact with Birth. All four victims were members of the track team.

    Birth took advantage of vulnerable girls, charges reveal

    One girl, identified in court documents as “Victim #1”, says Birth started a group chat on Snapchat with her and some other girls she ran with before school to prepare for the track season. She says Birth was involved with the group for a while and provided her and another one of the girls with his personal cell phone number.

    The girl allegedly confided in Birth about her issues and reached out to him because she was having a difficult time. She says the two met in April 2022 at a pre-determined meeting spot to talk in person.

    Birth reportedly got inside the girl’s car and kissed her. She told police this made her uncomfortable but he pulled her from the vehicle and started to kiss her again. He then allegedly pulled down his pants and forced the girl to give him oral sex while he held her head down. The act was interrupted when another vehicle approached the area.

    Charges allege Birth tried to get the girl to have intercourse in the back seat, but she refused. She says he tried to persuade her to have a relationship with him for the following two weeks.

    The second victim included in the charging documents says Birth was her track coach when she attended Winona Senior High School in 2016 and that she confided in him while struggling with personal issues. She said that Birth told her that he could talk to him and he would “help her with whatever she needed.”

    MORE NEWS: Convoy honoring fallen Burnsville first responders surpasses expectations

    The girl, a member of the track team, told police that she and Birth had a relationship of a sexual nature, including intercourse, when she was just 16.

    A third victim reported having a sexual relationship with Birth in April and May 2017 after she confided in him about personal issues she had been struggling with. She was only 17 at the time.

    She added that Birth had called her during her senior year of high school, concerning an investigation by the school in regards to their relationship. She recalled a conversation with the principal asking about her relationship with Birth but says she denied any allegations.

    Multiple witnesses also reported seeing a video of the third victim performing oral sex on Birth when they borrowed his phone one day at track practice.

    Birth has been employed at Winona Area Public Schools since April 2016 as a coach, according to the Minnesota Department of Education. He has been a physical education teacher there since August 2021. He was placed on administrative leave in early January.

    If convicted, Birth faces at least 15 years in prison.

    WCCO Staff

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  • Atlanta Courthouse Shootings Fast Facts | CNN

    Atlanta Courthouse Shootings Fast Facts | CNN



    CNN
     — 

    Here’s some background information about Brian Nichols and the Atlanta courthouse shootings. On March 11, 2005, 33-year-old Nichols escaped from the Fulton County Courthouse while on trial for rape, and killed four people.

    Birth date: December 10, 1971

    Birth place: Baltimore, Maryland

    Birth name: Brian Gene Nichols

    Children: with Sonya Meredith: a son, March 8, 2005; with Stephanie Jay: Jasmine Jay, 1992

    Judge Rowland Barnes, 64, Fulton County Superior Court Judge

    Julie Brandau, 46, court reporter

    Hoyt Teasley, 43, sheriff’s deputy

    David Wilhelm, 40, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent

    1995 – Moves to Atlanta with his family.

    1996-1999 – Is on probation from 1996 to 1999 for a felony drug case in Cobb County, Georgia. He is arrested with a small amount of marijuana.

    Summer 2004 – Is charged with the rape of his former girlfriend.

    8:45 a.m. – While being escorted to his retrial for the rape and other charges, Nichols attacks a sheriff’s deputy when she removes his handcuffs, in a struggle that lasts about three minutes and is caught on surveillance video. He takes the key to a lock box where her gun is stored.

    Nichols retrieves the gun, changes clothes and crosses a sky bridge into the next building and heads for the courtroom.

    Nichols then goes to Judge Rowland Barnes’ private chambers, tears out the phone lines, takes three hostages and asks about the judge’s whereabouts. He leaves a number of times, finally returning with another deputy taken hostage.

    8:55 a.m. – Seizes the second deputy’s gun and enters the courtroom from behind the bench, fires a single shot into Barnes’ head, then shoots and kills court reporter Julie Brandau.

    Nichols goes down the stairwell, leaves through an emergency exit and sets off an emergency alarm.

    On Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, witnesses say he fires multiple shots into the abdomen of another sheriff’s deputy, Hoyt Teasley.

    9:05 a.m. – Nichols first steals a dark SUV (2001 Mazda Tribute), drives fewer than three blocks and crashes through the gate of another parking deck.

    9:07 a.m. – A tow truck driver, Deronte Franklin, says that after he directs police into the deck, Nichols comes back down and steals his truck at gunpoint.

    9:14 a.m. – Nichols then drives to another deck about six blocks away where Almeta Kilgo, an employee of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, says he stole her 2004 Mercury Sable. She says she escaped after refusing Nichols’ order to stay in the car.

    9:15 a.m. – Atlanta Police Command staff are notified at APD Communications that a Fulton County deputy has been shot.

    9:16 a.m. – Nichols carjacks a blue Isuzu Trooper from Sung Chung, at 250 Spring St.

    9:19 a.m. – The tow truck (1999 Ford F-350) stolen at 9:07 a.m. is recovered at a parking deck at 98 Cone St.

    9:20 a.m. – Nichols drives a couple more blocks to another deck, Centennial Parking, 130 Marietta St., where he steals the car of AJC reporter Don O’Briant, a green 1997 Honda Accord. He says Nichols orders him into the trunk and pistol-whips him when he refuses. O’Briant manages to run away.

    9:30 a.m. (approx.) – Police say they believe Nichols moved unnoticed across the street through a crowd gathering for a college basketball tournament, making his escape on a MARTA subway train to the Lenox area. Officials say nothing about Nichols’ whereabouts for the next 13 hours.

    9:45 a.m. – The Atlanta Police Department takes command of the crime scene.

    By about 7 p.m. – Authorities announce they are offering a $60,000 reward for information leading to Nichols’ capture.

    10:40 p.m. – Nichols attempts to rob a couple at an apartment on Lenox Road, getting into a scuffle before fleeing.

    Sometime later but less than five minutes away on foot, Nichols encounters US ICE Agent David Wilhelm and he shoots and kills Wilhelm, taking his gun, his badge and his blue Chevrolet pickup.

    11 p.m. – An AJC employee finds O’Briant’s green Honda Accord on a different level of the same downtown parking garage, Centennial Parking.

    About 2:30 a.m. – Ashley Smith returns from running an errand to her apartment in Duluth, about 20 miles northeast of Atlanta. Nichols forces his way into her apartment at gunpoint and binds her hands and feet.

    Smith says as they spoke for hours about religion and family, Nichols began to relax, and eventually unbound her hands and feet.

    After 6 a.m. – Smith says she followed Nichols so he could hide the truck and then took him back to the apartment in her car. She says that Nichols did not take any weapons on the trip, and that she had her cell phone but did not call police.

    About 6:30 a.m.-7 a.m. – Construction workers arrive at David Wilhelm’s home, find his body and call police, who put out an alert for the blue Chevrolet pickup truck.

    Smith says Nichols allowed her to leave to visit her daughter. Nichols gives her money, saying he was going to stay at her apartment for a “few days.”

    About 9:50 a.m. – Smith dials 911 and within minutes, a SWAT team converges on the building.

    About 11:24 a.m. – Nichols is taken into custody after surrendering by waving a white t-shirt or towel.

    READ MORE: Hostage says she gained trust of Atlanta killings suspect

    March 15, 2005 – Nichols makes his first court appearance after being captured.

    May 5, 2005 – A Fulton County grand jury indicts Nichols on 54 counts, including four counts of felony murder. District Attorney Paul Howard says the state will seek the death penalty.

    May 17, 2005 – Nichols pleads not guilty to all 54 counts.

    September 27, 2005 – Smith’s book, “Unlikely Angel,” is published by Zondervan/Harper Collins. The book recounts the seven hours she spent as Nichols’ hostage.

    February 8, 2006 – Superior Court Judge Hilton Fuller rules that Nichols’ trial will take place at the Fulton County Courthouse, the scene of some of the crimes.

    November 9, 2006 – Judge Fuller rules that cameras will be allowed in the courtroom, though he leaves open the possibility of some restrictions once the trial begins.

    October 15, 2007 – Jury selection begins.

    October 17, 2007 – Judge Fuller suspends jury selection indefinitely due to lack of state funding for the defense.

    January 30, 2008 – Judge Fuller announces he is stepping down from the case due to the perception by many that he is biased.

    July 10, 2008 – The trial resumes and jury selection begins. Nichols pleads not guilty by reason of insanity.

    September 17, 2008 – A jury of eight women and four men (six black females, two white females, two black males, one white male and one Asian male) is selected.

    September 22, 2008 – Opening statements begin.

    November 7, 2008 – After 12 hours of deliberation, a jury finds Nichols guilty on all 54 counts. The jurors reject the defense attorneys’ claim that Nichols suffers from mental illness.

    December 13, 2008 – Superior Court Judge James Bodiford sentences Nichols to life in prison without parole, the maximum for all counts, a day after the jury deadlocks on a death penalty sentence.

    READ MORE: Jury deadlocked on penalty for Atlanta courthouse shooter

    August 18, 2015 – Smith’s book, “Unlikely Angel,” is published by HarperCollins/William Morrow as “Captive: The Untold Story of the Atlanta Hostage Hero.”

    September 18, 2015 – The film “Captive” is released by Paramount Pictures and is an adaption of Smith’s book. It stars David Oyelowo as Nichols and Kate Mara as Smith.

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  • Adult dancers in Washington state want a strippers’ bill of rights. Here’s how it could help them

    Adult dancers in Washington state want a strippers’ bill of rights. Here’s how it could help them

    SEATTLE — For months, Andrea studied for her master’s degree in library sciences between dancing naked at clubs in Seattle. But then she was sexually assaulted at work and slapped by a customer — and nobody stepped in to help.

    Now, she and hundreds of other strippers in Washington state are fighting for statewide protections that would be the most comprehensive in the U.S., according to advocates.

    “We shouldn’t be verbally abused for just doing our job and existing,” said Andrea, who has seen a DJ at one club harass dancers if they don’t tip him enough. She avoids the club if he’s there, said the 24-year-old, who would only use her first name. The Associated Press does not identify people who say they have been sexually assaulted.

    Known as the “strippers’ bill of rights,” proposals being considered in the Legislature would require a security guard at each club, keypad codes to enter dressing rooms, training for employees on preventing sexual harassment, and procedures if a customer is violent. They would also require training on how to de-escalate conflict between dancers, employees and customers, and signs stating that dancers are not required to hand over tips.

    The Senate bill was approved by the full body Wednesday on a 29-20 vote.

    “Without this legislation, the conditions are not safe. There are harassment and abuse that is happening,” said Democratic Sen. Rebecca Saldaña, who sponsored the Senate bill. “But with this the workers are now empowered to have protections.”

    The bills are the culmination of six years of advocacy work by Strippers Are Workers, a dancer-led organization in Washington, in response to wide regulation gaps for strippers at the 11 clubs across the state, said Madison Zack-Wu, its campaign manager.

    But those regulation gaps extend beyond Washington. and during those six years of work by Strippers Are Workers, only one other state added worker protections for adult entertainers, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. In 2019, Illinois started requiring that adult entertainment establishments, along with other businesses, have a written sexual harassment policy. That same year, Washington added a few initial regulations, including panic buttons and blacklists for customers.

    The list by NCSL doesn’t include bills focused on age minimums or human trafficking, a criminal industry whose victims are often recruited to work in U.S. strip clubs, according to the National Human Trafficking Hotline. These bills rarely address workplace protections like the ones in Washington, said Landon Jacquinot, an NCSL policy associate.

    There have also been efforts at the local level, including a bar in Los Angeles and a strip club in Portland, Oregon, where dancers voted to unionize. And, in a 2014 decision with statewide implications, the Nevada Supreme Court ruled that dancers at one Las Vegas club are employees, and are entitled to minimum wage and other protections.

    But Zack-Wu said many strippers don’t want to become full-time employees. “This job is all about flexibility and trying to make it your own,” she said. The bills in Washington would apply to all strippers, no matter their employment status.

    “It is a legal, licensed business operation in the state of Washington, so the people who work there deserve our attention and our respect and the protections that every other Washington worker gets,” said Democratic Rep. Amy Walen, who sponsored the House bill.

    A similar bill in Washington stalled last year after concerns were raised over it allowing alcohol in strip clubs. The Senate bill clears the way for the clubs to serve alcohol, while the House bill does not.

    Most dancers in Washington are independent contractors, and they can be blacklisted if they report abuse or exploitation by managers, said Zack-Wu. Customers pay the dancers, who then have to pay club fees every shift, which could be as much as $200.

    The proposed measures would cap club fees at $150 or 30% of the amount they made during their shift — whichever is less — while barring clubs from carrying over unpaid fees from previous shifts as part of dancers accessing the space.

    In late 2022, Eva Bhagwandin had just given a man three lap dances at a club in Seattle only to have his card declined, the 28-year-old said. He became aggressive, yelling that he already paid. The manager didn’t step in and there was no security guard, so she and a waitress had to get him and his screaming friends out of the club. She was never paid the $140 she was owed, but still had to pay $200 to the club.

    Afterward, she learned that another dancer had experienced something similar two days before with the same men.

    “The lack of security and training and the lack of support between the management to the dancers, creates this culture where customers know that they can come in and not pay, they can come in and assault dancers, and they can come in and pretty much do whatever they want,” she said.

    But Zack-Wu said there is concern that adding these protections without also adding revenue from alcohol sales could result in businesses, which have struggled since the pandemic, shutting down.

    “We don’t want clubs to shut down now or in the future because that will just put everyone out of work and then put them in even riskier or more dire situations,” she said.

    Republican lawmakers said they support protecting employees in this industry, but it’s challenging to know the best way to regulate it.

    “We also want to make sure that we’re doing this correctly and striking the right balance for, not just the workers, but communities and neighborhoods as well,” said House Minority Leader Drew Stokesbary, a Republican.

    Andrea, the dancer in Seattle, received her degree in November and wants to work in a library while continuing to dance. But she hopes soon there will be added protections.

    “It’s not the easiest place for us to be sometimes but, you know, a lot of people persevere because we love the job,” she said. “But with all these protections in place, it would really help a lot.”





    By Hallie Golden | Associated Press

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  • CIA terminates whistleblower who prompted flood of sexual misconduct complaints

    CIA terminates whistleblower who prompted flood of sexual misconduct complaints


    The CIA this week terminated a woman whose whistleblower account of being assaulted in a stairwell at the spy agency’s headquarters prompted a flood of colleagues to come forward with their own complaints of sexual misconduct. The woman’s attorney called the action a brazen retaliation.

    While the CIA said that accusation was “factually inaccurate,” it wouldn’t comment further on the case and declined to explain why the 36-year-old did not make it through the agency’s clandestine officer training program known as “the Farm” and, unlike many of her classmates, was not hired into another job.

    “To be clear, the CIA does not tolerate sexual assault, sexual harassment or whistleblower retaliation,” CIA spokesperson Tammy Thorp told The Associated Press, adding the agency uses “consistent processes to ensure the fair and equal treatment of every officer going through training.”

    The woman’s termination came less than six months after she filed a federal civil rights lawsuit alleging the CIA retaliated against her for reporting what she said was a 2022 stairwell assault in Langley, Virginia, to law enforcement and testifying about it in a closed congressional hearing.

    The lawsuit accused the agency of giving her harsher performance reviews and “slut shaming” her by improperly releasing her personal information during the state prosecution last year of Ashkan Bayatpour, a then-fellow CIA trainee convicted of assaulting her with a scarf.

    The woman’s attorney, Kevin Carroll, told the AP that the CIA has now “unlawfully ended a young woman’s career only because she had the moral courage, lacking in her managers, to stand up and be a witness about her sexual assault.”

    “The agency’s festering workplace sexual violence problem,” Carroll said, “is now harming the retention of young women who won’t put up with it any longer.”

    The woman, who is not being identified because the AP does not generally identify victims of alleged sexual abuse, was credited with launching a reckoning, of sorts, at the CIA because hers was the rare allegation of sexual misconduct at the super-secret spy agency to make it into a public courtroom.

    An AP investigation found the case helped embolden at least two-dozen women to come forward to authorities and Congress over the past two years with their own accounts at the CIA of sexual assaults, unwanted touching and what they contend is a campaign to keep them from speaking out.

    Their accusations ranged from lewd remarks about sexual fantasies at after-work happy hours to a case in which a senior manager allegedly showed up at a subordinate’s house at night with a firearm demanding sex. Some of the alleged incidents go back years and took place as officers were on risky covert missions overseas, while others took place at CIA headquarters.

    A congressional inquiry and bipartisan calls for a watchdog investigation prompted CIA Director William Burns last year to launch a series of reforms to streamline claims, support victims and more quickly discipline those behind misconduct.

    It remains unclear whether the woman’s firing will prompt further action. Offices of the U.S. senators leading the inquiry, Virginia Democrat Mark Warner and Florida Republican Marco Rubio, did not respond to requests for comment.

    Carroll, the woman’s attorney, said she had been given protected whistleblower status before speaking with Congress. But those familiar with the Whistleblower Protection Act cautioned that such protections can be limited, especially at the CIA.

    Tom Devine, a longtime whistleblower rights advocate who is legal director for the Government Accountability Project, said CIA employees don’t have the same rights as other federal employees because of national security concerns.

    “You can blow the whistle, but only within the intel community,” Devine said. “So when she went to the police, she was very much on her own. It’s an obnoxious loophole.”

    In her testimony to a Virginia jury last summer, the woman recounted the moment when Bayatpour allegedly tightened the scarf around her neck and tried to kiss her against her will.

    “He made a face like he was trying to really hurt me,” she testified. “That face, that’s what stays with me to this day. That’s the hardest part.”

    Bayatpour acknowledged wrapping the scarf around the woman in the stairwell but insisted his actions were intended in jest during a 40-minute walk together. The incident, his attorney said, was “a joke that didn’t land the way it was intended to land.”

    Bayatpour, a 39-year-old Alabama native and former Navy intelligence officer, remained employed at CIA for several months after he was convicted in August of misdemeanor assault and battery, sentenced to six months probation and ordered to surrender any firearms.

    But as of last month, he no longer works for CIA, according to a person familiar with the situation who wasn’t authorized to discuss the matter and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

    Bayatpour deferred questions to his attorney, who did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

    ___

    Mustian reported from New York and Goodman from Miami.

    ___

    Contact AP’s global investigative team at Investigative@ap.org or https://www.ap.org/tips/



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  • Cyprus president makes government ministers sign a pledge not to tolerate sexual harassment

    Cyprus president makes government ministers sign a pledge not to tolerate sexual harassment


    NICOSIA, Cyprus — Cyprus’ president on Friday required all government ministers to sign a “zero tolerance” declaration on sexist behavior and sexual harassment among employees and anyone visiting a government office.

    Cyprus already has stringent laws against sexual harassment and sexism in the workplace, but it’s the first time that ministers had to sign such a declaration in what Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides called an “institutional commitment” to eliminating such behavior in government.

    Cyprus ranks a lowly 22nd of 27 countries in the European Union in terms of gender equality, scoring 57.3 out of 100, according to the European Institute for Gender Equality.

    All ministers, deputy ministers and commissioners signed the declaration during a ceremony at the presidential palace. Christodoulides said that he expected all his subordinates to implement the declaration.

    “Through our behavior, our stance and approach, it is us who must first and foremost stand as an example,” Christodoulides said.

    A father of four daughters, Christodoulides has made gender equality a key policy objective for his nearly year-old administration. He said his government is already working to “dismantle whichever gender bias discrimination that takes us years back.”

    Cyprus’ Gender Equality Commissioner Josie Christodoulou said that the declaration formally embeds the issue of gender in all levels of government.

    “The ultimate goal is to create an environment allowing for a healthy society and economy, equal for all,” Christodoulou said.



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  • Wrestling icon Vince McMahon resigns from WWE parent company after ex-employee files sex abuse suit

    Wrestling icon Vince McMahon resigns from WWE parent company after ex-employee files sex abuse suit


    STAMFORD, Conn. — Wrestling icon Vince McMahon resigned Friday from WWE’s parent company t he day after a former employee filed a federal lawsuit accusing him and another former executive of serious sexual misconduct, including offering her to a star wrestler for sex.

    McMahon stepped down from the his position as executive chairman of the board of directors at WWE’s parent company, TKO Group Holdings, according to a statement released late Friday. He continued to deny wrongdoing following the lawsuit filed by Janel Grant, who worked in the company’s legal and talent departments.

    The suit includes allegations that McMahon, now 78, forced Grant into a sexual relationship in order for her to get and keep a job and passed around pornographic pictures and videos of her to other men, including other WWE employees.

    The AP typically does not name accusers in sexual assault cases, but Grant’s representatives said she wished to go public. Her lawyer declined to comment Friday.

    McMahon’s statement said that he was leaving the board “out of respect” for WWE and TKO Group.

    “I stand by my prior statement that Ms. Grant’s lawsuit is replete with lies, obscene made-up instances that never occurred, and is a vindictive distortion of the truth,” he said in the statement. “I intend to vigorously defend myself against these baseless accusations, and look forward to clearing my name.”

    McMahon stepped down as WWE’s CEO in 2022 amid an investigation into allegations that match those in the lawsuit, which was filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Connecticut, where WWE is based.

    McMahon was the leader and most recognizable face at WWE for decades. When he purchased what was then the World Wrestling Federation from his father in 1982, wrestling matches took place at small venues and appeared on local cable channels. WWE matches are now held in professional sports stadiums, and the organization has a sizable overseas following.

    WWE merged last April with the company that runs Ultimate Fighting Championship to create the $21.4 billion sports entertainment company TKO Group Holdings, and McMahon served as that group’s executive chairman of the board until Friday.

    TKO Group’s representative referred media inquiries about McMahon’s resignation to his statement. Deadline first reported that he was stepping down.

    “Mr. McMahon does not control TKO nor does he oversee the day-to-day operations of WWE,” TKO Group said earlier this week. “While this matter pre-dates our TKO executive team’s tenure at the company, we take Ms. Grant’s horrific allegations very seriously and are addressing this matter internally.”

    Grant also names as defendants in the lawsuit the WWE and John Laurinaitis, an ex-pro wrestler and the company’s former head of talent relations and general manager. WWE and Laurinaitis did not return requests for comment Friday.

    According to the lawsuit, McMahon lived in the same building as Grant and in 2019 offered to get her a job at WWE after her parents died.

    She alleges that he eventually made it clear that one of the requirements of the job was a physical relationship with him and later with Laurinaitis and others.

    Over the next few years, McMahon lavished her with gifts including a luxury car, the suit says.

    It also alleges that McMahon offered one of his star wrestlers — a person not named in the lawsuit — sex with Grant as a perk in 2021.

    “WWE benefited financially from the commercial sex act venture orchestrated by McMahon, including by having wrestling talent, such as WWE Superstar, sign new contracts with WWE after McMahon presented Plaintiff as a sexual commodity for their use,” the lawsuit states.

    Grant is seeking unspecified monetary damages and to have the court void a $3 million nondisclosure agreement, of which she alleges she received only $1 million.

    “Ms. Grant hopes that her lawsuit will prevent other women from being victimized,” her attorney, Ann Callis, said in a statement Thursday. “The organization is well aware of Mr. McMahon’s history of depraved behavior, and it’s time that they take responsibility for the misconduct of its leadership.”



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  • 'Every woman's worst nightmare': Lawsuit alleges widespread sexual abuse at California prisons for women

    'Every woman's worst nightmare': Lawsuit alleges widespread sexual abuse at California prisons for women

    Warning: This article contains graphic descriptions of sexual abuse.

    It was after the daily 9 p.m. head count at the California Institution for Women in Chino when she was taken out of her cell by a correctional officer she thought was her friend.

    She was 21 and not even 100 pounds and the officer, who stood about 6-foot-7, was twice her size. “It was unheard of to be popped after the head count. I knew something was up,” she said. “He told me the lieutenant wanted to see me.”

    But when she got to the office, it was dark. “He started to kiss me and put his tongue in my mouth,” the woman said, recalling the 2014 incident. The Times is not naming her as she is a sex crime victim. “He put his hand in my pants. I tried to pull back, but he was persistent. Then he put his fingers inside me.” The next day, she said, he acted as if nothing had happened.

    The woman is one of 130 former inmates at California’s women’s prisons at Chino and Chowchilla, suing the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and more than 30 current and ex-correctional officers who they say abused them in prison. They are seeking unspecified damages for sexual assault, battery, negligence, infliction of emotional distress and violations of civil rights.

    Correctional officers at the California Institution for Women in Chino and Central California Women’s Facility committed widespread sexual abuse against the female detainees whom they guarded, according to a lawsuit filed last month. In many cases, the officers targeted and allegedly isolated the inmates and forced them to perform sexual acts, the lawsuit said.

    The lawsuit documents graphic incidents of sexual abuse stretching back a decade and reveals that the women, when they were at their most vulnerable, were punished and sometimes the victim of further abuse and punitive actions if they reported their assailants.

    “Every woman’s worst nightmare is being locked inside a facility filled with sexual predators with no means of escape,” said Doug Rochen, an attorney at ACTS Law who is representing the women. “And that’s exactly what each of these women, and likely thousands more, were subjected to for decades. California paid no attention to their well-being, left them to suffer at the hands of the worst kinds of sexual deviants, and made them relive their pain daily while being locked behind bars.”

    The lawsuit accused one sergeant at the Chino prison of more than 40 rapes — incidents of violence that often caused bleeding — and sexual misconduct involving a female inmate in 2015. Out of fear of retaliation and further confinement, one plaintiff, identified only as Jane CL-1 25 Roe, never reported the sexual misconduct, assuming the complaints would be “unanswered, dismissed, ignored, and buried without investigation or redress, thereby allowing the sexual misconduct to continue.”

    One of the women is a victim of an accused serial-rapist correctional officer, Gregory Rodriguez, who is charged with 96 counts of sex crimes involving nearly a dozen women at the Chowchilla prison during his tenure, the lawsuit alleges. The 27-year-old woman in 2014 was allegedly forced to perform oral sex acts on the guard at a time she was pregnant, according to the lawsuit.

    Another woman alleges she was sexually abused by then-correctional officer Israel Trevino in 2014 when she was 25. Trevino was terminated in 2018 after other allegations of sexual abuse. Several pending lawsuits accuse Trevino of abusing numerous victims. Trevino has since died.

    That same former inmate, identified as Jane MS0 8 Roe, alleges she was also victimized by two other correctional officers, one who groped her and another who groped her and penetrated her vagina, according to the lawsuit.

    Sexual abuse would occur in areas throughout the prisons, including cells, closets and storage rooms, the lawsuit alleges. In one alleged victim’s case, she was sexually abused in a cleaning supplies cupboard five times and eventually reported it to another correctional officer, who declined to take action. Rochen said it was part of a pattern of prison officials who systematically ignored complaints of sexual abuse.

    California prison officials didn’t reply to a request for comment on the litigation.

    Sexual abuse of incarcerated women is a widespread problem in facilities nationwide, with government surveys suggesting that more than 3,500 women are sexually abused by prison and jail workers annually.

    In addition to the sexual misconduct by prison workers, the lawsuit alleged the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation had inadequate hiring practices, procedures and training to prevent the sexual abuse and conduct.

    The lawsuit is the latest in a series targeting sexual abuse in California’s female prisons. Last summer, another law firm filed litigation involving more than 100 other plaintiffs, including victims of Rodriguez.

    State law gives victims of sexual assault by police and correctional officers up to 10 years after their assailants have been convicted of sexual assault or a crime in which sexual assault was initially alleged to sue. Victims can also sue up to 10 years after their assailants left the law enforcement agency they were working at when the assault occurred.

    Richard Winton

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  • Pro-Palestinian Yale Student Scales Menorah and Plants Palestinian Flag

    Pro-Palestinian Yale Student Scales Menorah and Plants Palestinian Flag

    A pro-Palestinian student at Yale tried to co-opt the symbol of the current Jewish holiday by planting a Palestinian flag on a menorah.

    The student climbed the oversized menorah, the symbol of Hanukkah, as others screamed, “Get the f**k down!,” and “It looks bad for us.”

    One student is seen climbing the menorah to 86 the flag. The flag has now been removed.

    It’s the latest skirmish on college campuses around the country — especially elite colleges and universities. As you know, the President of the University of Pennsylvania resigned Saturday after a torrent of criticism over her testimony in Congress Monday, where she would not squarely say calling for the genocide of Jews was bullying or harassment.


    TMZ.com

    We had a free speech advocate on “TMZ Live” Friday, who agreed with the President of Univ. of Penn., but seemed to have a different opinion if the protesters were members of the KKK with a similar message against Black people.

    TMZ Staff

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  • 2023 In Review Fast Facts | CNN

    2023 In Review Fast Facts | CNN



    CNN
     — 

    Here is a look back at the events of 2023.

    January 3 – Republican Kevin McCarthy fails to secure enough votes to be elected Speaker of the House in three rounds of voting. On January 7, McCarthy is elected House speaker after multiple days of negotiations and 15 rounds of voting. That same day, the newly elected 118th Congress is officially sworn in.

    January 7 – Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man, is pulled over for reckless driving. He is hospitalized following the arrest and dies three days later from injuries sustained during the traffic stop. Five officers from the Memphis Police Department are fired. On January 26, a grand jury indicts the five officers. They are each charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, official misconduct and official oppression. On September 12, the five officers are indicted by a federal grand jury on several charges including deprivation of rights.

    January 9 – The White House counsel’s office confirms that several classified documents from President Joe Biden’s time as vice president were discovered last fall in an office at the Penn Biden Center. On January 12, the White House counsel’s office confirms a small number of additional classified documents were located in President Biden’s Wilmington, Delaware, home.

    January 13 – The Trump Organization is fined $1.6 million – the maximum possible penalty – by a New York judge for running a decade-long tax fraud scheme.

    January 21 – Eleven people are killed in a mass shooting at a dance studio in Monterey Park, California, as the city’s Asian American community was celebrating Lunar New Year. The 72-year-old gunman is found dead the following day from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

    January 24 – CNN reports that a lawyer for former Vice President Mike Pence discovered about a dozen documents marked as classified at Pence’s Indiana home last week, and he has turned those classified records over to the FBI.

    January 25 – Facebook-parent company Meta announces it will restore former President Donald Trump’s accounts on Facebook and Instagram in the coming weeks, just over two years after suspending him in the wake of the January 6 Capitol attack.

    February 1 – Tom Brady announces his retirement after 23 seasons in the NFL.

    February 2 – Defense officials announce the United States is tracking a suspected Chinese high-altitude surveillance balloon over the continental United States. On February 4, a US military fighter jet shoots down the balloon over the Atlantic Ocean. On June 29, the Pentagon reveals the balloon did not collect intelligence while flying over the country.

    February 3 – A Norfolk Southern freight train carrying hazardous materials derails in East Palestine, Ohio. An evacuation order is issued for the area within a mile radius of the train crash. The order is lifted on February 8. After returning to their homes, some residents report they have developed a rash and nausea.

    February 7 – Lebron James breaks the NBA’s all-time scoring record, surpassing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

    February 15 – Payton Gendron, 19, who killed 10 people in a racist mass shooting at a grocery store in a predominantly Black area of Buffalo last May, is sentenced to life in prison.

    February 18 – In a statement, the Carter Center says that former President Jimmy Carter will begin receiving hospice care at his home in Georgia.

    February 20 – President Biden makes a surprise trip to Kyiv for the first time since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine almost a year ago.

    February 23 – Disgraced R&B singer R. Kelly is sentenced to 20 years in prison in a Chicago federal courtroom on charges of child pornography and enticement of a minor. Kelly is already serving a 30-year prison term for his 2021 conviction on racketeering and sex trafficking charges in a New York federal court. Nineteen years of the 20-year prison sentence will be served at the same time as his other sentence. One year will be served after that sentence is complete.

    February 23 – Harvey Weinstein, who is already serving a 23-year prison sentence in New York, is sentenced in Los Angeles to an additional 16 years in prison for charges of rape and sexual assault.

    March 2 – SpaceX and NASA launch a fresh crew of astronauts on a mission to the International Space Station, kicking off a roughly six-month stay in space. The mission — which is carrying two NASA astronauts, a Russian cosmonaut and an astronaut from the United Arab Emirates — took off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

    March 2 – The jury in the double murder trial of Alex Murdaugh finds him guilty of murdering his wife and son. Murdaugh, the 54-year-old scion of a prominent and powerful family of local lawyers and solicitors, is also found guilty of two counts of possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime in the killings of Margaret “Maggie” Murdaugh and Paul Murdaugh on June 7, 2021.

    March 3 – Four US citizens from South Carolina are kidnapped by gunmen in Matamoros, Mexico, in a case of mistaken identity. On March 7, two of the four Americans, Shaeed Woodard and Zindell Brown, are found dead and the other two, Latavia McGee and Eric Williams, are found alive. The cartel believed responsible for the armed kidnapping issues an apology letter and hands over five men to local authorities.

    March 10 – The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation announces that Silicon Valley Bank was shut down by California regulators. This is the second largest bank failure in US history, only to Washington Mutual’s collapse in 2008. SVB Financial Group, the former parent company of SVB, files for bankruptcy on March 17.

    March 27 – A 28-year-old Nashville resident shoots and kills three children and three adults at the Covenant School in Nashville. The shooter is fatally shot by responding officers.

    March 29 – Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich is detained by Russian authorities and accused of spying. On April 7, he is formally charged with espionage.

    March 30 – A grand jury in New York votes to indict Trump, the first time in American history that a current or former president has faced criminal charges. On April 4, Trump surrenders and is placed under arrest before pleading not guilty to 34 felony criminal charges of falsifying business records. Prosecutors allege that Trump sought to undermine the integrity of the 2016 election through a hush money scheme with payments made to women who claimed they had extramarital affairs with Trump. He has denied the affairs.

    April 6 – Two Democratic members of the Tennessee House of Representatives, Rep. Justin Jones and Rep. Justin Pearson, are expelled while a third member, Rep. Gloria Johnson, is spared in an ousting by Republican lawmakers that was decried by the trio as oppressive, vindictive and racially motivated. This comes after Jones, Pearson and Johnson staged a demonstration on the House floor calling for gun reform following the shooting at the Covenant School. On April 10, Rep. Jones is sworn back in following a unanimous vote by the Nashville Metropolitan Council to reappoint him as an interim representative. On April 12, the Shelby County Board of Commissioners vote to confirm the reappointment of Rep. Pearson.

    April 6-13 – ProPublica reports that Justice Clarence Thomas and his wife, conservative activist Ginni Thomas, have gone on several luxury trips involving travel subsidized by and stays at properties owned by Harlan Crow, a GOP megadonor. The hospitality was not disclosed on Thomas’ public financial filings with the Supreme Court. The following week ProPublica reports Thomas failed to disclose a 2014 real estate deal he made with Crow. On financial disclosure forms released on August 31, Thomas discloses the luxury trips and “inadvertently omitted” information including the real estate deal.

    April 7 – A federal judge in Texas issues a ruling on medication abortion drug mifepristone, saying he will suspend the US Food and Drug Administration’s two-decade-old approval of it but paused his ruling for seven days so the federal government can appeal. But in a dramatic turn of events, a federal judge in Washington state says in a new ruling shortly after that the FDA must keep medication abortion drugs available in more than a dozen Democratic-led states.

    April 13 – 21-year-old Jack Teixeira, a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard is arrested by the FBI in connection with the leaking of classified documents that have been posted online.

    April 18 – Fox News reaches a last-second settlement with Dominion Voting Systems, paying more than $787 million to end a two-year legal battle that publicly shredded the network’s credibility. Fox News’ $787.5 million settlement with Dominion Voting Systems is the largest publicly known defamation settlement in US history involving a media company.

    April 25 – President Biden formally announces his bid for reelection.

    May 2 – More than 11,000 members of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) go on strike for the first time since 2007. On September 26, the WGA announces its leaders have unanimously voted to authorize its members to return to work following the tentative agreement reached on September 24 between union negotiators and Hollywood’s studios and streaming services, effectively ending the months-long strike.

    May 9 – A Manhattan federal jury finds Trump sexually abused former magazine columnist E. Jean Carroll in a luxury department store dressing room in the spring of 1996 and awards her $5 million for battery and defamation.

    June 8 – Trump is indicted on a total of 37 counts in the special counsel’s classified documents probe. In a superseding indictment filed on July 27, Trump is charged with one additional count of willful retention of national defense information and two additional obstruction counts, bringing the total to 40 counts.

    June 16 – Robert Bowers, the gunman who killed 11 worshippers at Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life synagogue in 2018, is convicted by a federal jury on all 63 charges against him. He is sentenced to death on August 2.

    June 18 – A civilian submersible disappears with five people aboard while voyaging to the wreckage of the Titanic. On June 22, following a massive search for the submersible, US authorities announce the vessel suffered a “catastrophic implosion,” killing all five people aboard.

    June 20 – ProPublica reports that Justice Samuel Alito did not disclose a luxury 2008 trip he took in which a hedge fund billionaire flew him on a private jet, even though the businessman would later repeatedly ask the Supreme Court to intervene on his behalf. In a highly unusual move, Alito preemptively disputed the nature of the report before it was published, authoring an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal in which he acknowledged knowing billionaire Paul Singer but downplaying their relationship.

    June 29 – The Supreme Court says colleges and universities can no longer take race into consideration as a specific basis for granting admission, a landmark decision overturning long-standing precedent.

    July 13 – The FDA approves Opill to be available over-the-counter, the first nonprescription birth control pill in the United States.

    July 14 – SAG-AFTRA, a union representing about 160,000 Hollywood actors, goes on strike after talks with major studios and streaming services fail. It is the first time its members have stopped work on movie and television productions since 1980. On November 8, SAG-AFTRA and the studios reach a tentative agreement, officially ending the strike.

    July 14 – Rex Heuermann, a New York architect, is charged with six counts of murder in connection with the deaths of three of the four women known as the “Gilgo Four.”

    August 1 – Trump is indicted by a federal grand jury in Washington, DC, in the 2020 election probe. Trump is charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States; conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding; obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding; and conspiracy against rights.

    August 8 – Over 100 people are killed and hundreds of others unaccounted for after wildfires engulf parts of Maui. Nearly 3,000 homes and businesses are destroyed or damaged.

    August 14 – Trump and 18 others are indicted by an Atlanta-based grand jury on state charges stemming from their efforts to overturn the former president’s 2020 electoral defeat. Trump now faces a total of 91 charges in four criminal cases, in four different jurisdictions — two federal and two state cases. On August 24, Trump surrenders at the Fulton County jail where he is processed and released on bond.

    August 23 – Eight Republican presidential candidates face off in the first primary debate of the 2024 campaign in Milwaukee.

    September 12 – House Speaker McCarthy announces he is calling on his committees to open a formal impeachment inquiry into President Biden, even as they have yet to prove allegations he directly profited off his son’s foreign business deals.

    September 14 – Hunter Biden is indicted by special counsel David Weiss in connection with a gun he purchased in 2018, the first time in US history the Justice Department has charged the child of a sitting president. The three charges include making false statements on a federal firearms form and possession of a firearm as a prohibited person.

    September 22 – New Jersey Democratic Senator Bob Menendez is charged with corruption-related offenses for the second time in 10 years. Menendez and his wife, Nadine Arslanian Menendez, are accused of accepting “hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes” in exchange for the senator’s influence, according to the newly unsealed federal indictment.

    September 28 – Dianne Feinstein, the longest-serving female US senator in history, dies at the age of 90. On October 1, California Governor Gavin Newsom announces he will appoint Emily’s List president Laphonza Butler to replace her. Butler will become the first out Black lesbian to join Congress. She will also be the sole Black female senator serving in Congress and only the third in US history.

    September 29 – Las Vegas police confirm Duane Keith Davis, aka “Keffe D,” was arrested for the 1996 murder of rapper Tupac Shakur.

    October 3 – McCarthy is removed as House speaker following a 216-210 vote, with eight Republicans voting to remove McCarthy from the post.

    October 25 – After three weeks without a speaker, the House votes to elect Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana.

    October 25 – Robert Card, a US Army reservist, kills 18 people and injures 13 others in a shooting rampage in Lewiston, Maine. On October 27, after a two-day manhunt, he is found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot.

    November 13 – The Supreme Court announces a code of conduct in an attempt to bolster the public’s confidence in the court after months of news stories alleging that some of the justices have been skirting ethics regulations.

    November 19 – Former first lady Rosalynn Carter passes away at the age of 96.

    January 8 – Supporters of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro storm the country’s congressional building, Supreme Court and presidential palace. The breaches come about a week after the inauguration of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who defeated Bolsonaro in a runoff election on October 30.

    January 15 – At least 68 people are killed when an aircraft goes down near the city of Pokhara in central Nepal. This is the country’s deadliest plane crash in more than 30 years.

    January 19 – New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Arden announces she will not seek reelection in October.

    January 24 – President Volodymyr Zelensky fires a slew of senior Ukrainian officials amid a growing corruption scandal linked to the procurement of war-time supplies.

    February 6 – More than 15,000 people are killed and tens of thousands injured after a magnitude 7.8 earthquake strikes Turkey and Syria.

    February 28 – At least 57 people are killed after two trains collide in Greece.

    March 1 – Bola Ahmed Tinubu is declared the winner of Nigeria’s presidential election.

    March 10 – Xi Jinping is reappointed as president for another five years by China’s legislature in a ceremonial vote in Beijing, a highly choreographed exercise in political theater meant to demonstrate legitimacy and unity of the ruling elite.

    March 16 – The French government forces through controversial plans to raise the country’s retirement age from 62 to 64.

    April 4 – Finland becomes the 31st member of NATO.

    April 15 – Following months of tensions in Sudan between a paramilitary group and the country’s army, violence erupts.

    May 3 – A 13-year-old boy opens fire on his classmates at a school in Belgrade, Serbia, killing at least eight children along with a security guard. On May 4, a second mass shooting takes place when an attacker opens fire in the village of Dubona, about 37 miles southeast of Belgrade, killing eight people.

    May 5 – The World Health Organization announces Covid-19 is no longer a global health emergency.

    May 6 – King Charles’ coronation takes place at Westminster Abbey in London.

    August 4 – Alexey Navalny is sentenced to 19 years in prison on extremism charges, Russian media reports. Navalny is already serving sentences totaling 11-and-a-half years in a maximum-security facility on fraud and other charges that he says were trumped up.

    September 8 – Over 2,000 people are dead and thousands are injured after a 6.8-magnitude earthquake hits Morocco.

    October 8 – Israel formally declares war on the Palestinian militant group Hamas after it carried out an unprecedented attack by air, sea and land on October 7.

    November 8 – The Vatican publishes new guidelines opening the door to Catholic baptism for transgender people and babies of same-sex couples.

    November 24 – The first group of hostages is released after Israel and Hamas agree to a temporary truce. Dozens more hostages are released in the following days. On December 1, the seven-day truce ends after negotiations reach an impasse and Israel accuses Hamas of violating the agreement by firing at Israel.

    Awards and Winners

    January 9 – The College Football Playoff National Championship game takes place at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. The Georgia Bulldogs defeat Texas Christian University’s Horned Frogs 65-7 for their second national title in a row.

    January 10 – The 80th Annual Golden Globe Awards are presented live on NBC.

    January 16-29 – The 111th Australian Open takes place. Novak Djokovic defeats Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets to win a 10th Australian Open title and a record-equaling 22nd grand slam. Belarusian-born Aryna Sabalenka defeats Elena Rybakina in three sets, becoming the first player competing under a neutral flag to secure a grand slam.

    February 5 – The 65th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony takes place in Los Angeles at the Crypto.com Arena.

    February 12 – Super Bowl LVII takes place at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. The Kansas City Chiefs defeat the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35. This is the first Super Bowl to feature two Black starting quarterbacks.

    February 19 – Ricky Stenhouse Jr. wins the 65th Annual Daytona 500 in double overtime. It is the longest Daytona 500 ever with a record of 212 laps raced.

    March 12 – The 95th Annual Academy Awards takes place, with Jimmy Kimmel hosting for the third time.

    March 14 – Ryan Redington wins his first Iditarod.

    April 2 – The Louisiana State University Tigers defeat the University of Iowa Hawkeyes 102-85 in Dallas, to win the program’s first NCAA women’s basketball national championship.

    April 3 – The University of Connecticut Huskies win its fifth men’s basketball national title with a 76-59 victory over the San Diego State University Aztecs in Houston.

    April 6-9 – The 87th Masters tournament takes place. Jon Rahm wins, claiming his first green jacket and second career major at Augusta National.

    April 17 – The 127th Boston Marathon takes place. The winners are Evans Chebet of Kenya in the men’s division and Hellen Obiri of Kenya in the women’s division.

    May 6 – Mage, a 3-year-old chestnut colt, wins the 149th Kentucky Derby.

    May 8-9 – The 147th Annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show takes place at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens, New York. Buddy Holly, a petit basset griffon Vendéen, wins Best in Show.

    May 20 – National Treasure wins the 148th running of the Preakness Stakes.

    May 21 – Brooks Koepka wins the 105th PGA Championship at Oak Hill County Club in Rochester, New York. This is his third PGA Championship and fifth major title of his career.

    May 22-June 11 – The French Open takes place at Roland Garros Stadium in Paris. Novak Djokovic wins a record-breaking 23rd Grand Slam title, defeating Casper Ruud 7-6 (7-1) 6-3 7-5 in the men’s final. Iga Świątek wins her third French Open in four years with a 6-2 5-7 6-4 victory against the unseeded Karolína Muchová in the women’s final.

    May 28 – Josef Newgarden wins the 107th running of the Indianapolis 500.

    June 10 – Arcangelo wins the 155th running of the Belmont Stakes.

    June 11 – The 76th Tony Awards takes place.

    June 12 – The Denver Nuggets defeat the Miami Heat 94-89 in Game 5, to win the series 4-1 and claim their first NBA title in franchise history.

    June 13 – The Vegas Golden Knights defeat the Florida Panthers in Game 5 to win the franchise’s first Stanley Cup.

    June 18 – American golfer Wyndham Clark wins the 123rd US Open at The Los Angeles Country Club.

    July 1-23 – The 110th Tour de France takes place. Danish cyclist Jonas Vingegaard wins his second consecutive Tour de France title.

    July 3-16 – Wimbledon takes place in London. Carlos Alcaraz defeats Novak Djokovic 1-6 7-6 (8-6) 6-1 3-6 6-4 in the men’s final, to win his first Wimbledon title. Markéta Vondroušová defeats Ons Jabeur 6-4 6-4 in the women’s final, to win her first Wimbledon title and become the first unseeded woman in the Open Era to win the tournament.

    July 16-23 – Brian Harman wins the 151st Open Championship at Royal Liverpool in Hoylake, Wirral, England, for his first major title.

    July 20-August 20 – The Women’s World Cup takes place in Australia and New Zealand. Spain defeats England 1-0 to win its first Women’s World Cup.

    August 28-September 10 – The US Open Tennis Tournament takes place. Coco Gauff defeats Aryna Sabalenka, and Novak Djokovic defeats Daniil Medvedev.

    October 2-9 – The Nobel Prizes are announced. The Nobel Peace Prize is awarded to jailed Iranian activist Narges Mohammadi for “her fight against the oppression of women in Iran and her fight to promote human rights and freedom for all,” according to the Norwegian Nobel Committee.

    November 1 – The Texas Rangers win the World Series for the first time in franchise history, defeating the Arizona Diamondbacks 5-0 in Game 5.

    November 5 – The New York City Marathon takes place. Ethiopia’s Tamirat Tola sets a course record and wins the men’s race. Kenya’s Hellen Obiri wins the women’s race.

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  • Woody Allen Fast Facts | CNN

    Woody Allen Fast Facts | CNN



    CNN
     — 

    Here’s a look at the life of Oscar-winning filmmaker Woody Allen.

    Birth date: December 1, 1935

    Birth place: Brooklyn, New York

    Birth name: Allan Stewart Konigsberg

    Father: Martin Konigsberg, worked various jobs

    Mother: Nettie (Cherry) Konigsberg, bookkeeper

    Marriages: Soon-Yi Previn (December 22, 1997-present), Louise Lasser (divorced), Harlene Rosen (divorced)

    Children: daughters adopted with Soon-Yi Previn: Manzie Tio Allen (2000), Bechet Dumaine Allen (1998); with Mia Farrow: Satchel Farrow (1987, now goes by Ronan), Dylan O’Sullivan Farrow (1985, adopted daughter), Moses Farrow (1978, adopted)

    Education: Attended New York University and City College of New York.

    He legally changed his name at 17 to Heywood Allen.

    Allen has worked as a comedy writer, stand-up comic, screenwriter, actor, playwright, musician and director.

    He has 24 Oscar nominations and four wins: 16 for writing, with three wins; seven for directing, with one win; and one nomination for acting.

    Allen has one Emmy nomination for writing.

    Allen has appeared in dozens of the movies he’s directed and claims to have never watched his films once they are released.

    Although Allen is best known for comedies, he has explored different genres including dramas (“Interiors”), thrillers (“Match Point”) and musicals (“Everyone Says I Love You”).

    Most of his movies have been filmed in and around New York.

    He plays the jazz clarinet and piano.

    1950-1960 – Comedy writer.

    1961-1964 – A standup comic.

    July 1964 – Releases his first comedy album, “Woody Allen.”

    June 22, 1965 – The first movie he wrote and performed in, “What’s New Pussycat?” is released.

    November 17, 1966 – “Don’t Drink the Water,” Allen’s first play, opens on Broadway.

    February 12, 1969-March 14, 1970 – “Play It Again, Sam,” his second play, runs on Broadway with Allen in the lead. In 1972, he reprises his role in the movie adaptation.

    1978 – “Annie Hall” wins four Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay Written for the Screen and Best Actress. Allen earns two of the four Oscars as writer and director. He is also nominated for Best Actor but does not win.

    1987 – Wins the Academy Award for Best Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen for “Hannah and Her Sisters.” He is also nominated for Best Director for the same film.

    1992 – His 12 year relationship with actress Mia Farrow ends when she discovers his affair with her adopted daughter, Soon-Yi Previn. Subsequently, allegations of sexual molestation are made by their adopted daughter, Dylan, 7. A two-year custody battle for their three children Satchel, Dylan and Moses ensues, which Farrow wins.

    April 1998 – The documentary, “Wild Man Blues,” is released, showcasing Allen’s love for the jazz clarinet and his association with the Eddy Davis New Orleans Jazz Band.

    2002 – Makes his only appearance at an Academy Awards ceremony. He appeals for the continued use of New York as a setting for movies after September 11, 2001.

    2012 – Wins an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for “Midnight in Paris.”

    February 1, 2014 – An open letter written by Dylan Farrow is published in the New York Times, recounting her allegation that Allen sexually assaulted her when she was a child. A representative for Allen releases a statement the next day, denying the charges.

    February 7, 2014 – Allen responds in an op-ed column released by The New York Times. He says the allegations are untrue and rooted in his acrimonious breakup with Mia Farrow.

    September 30, 2016 – Allen’s first video streaming series, “Crisis in Six Scenes” debuts on Amazon.com.

    January 2018 – Several actors who appeared in Allen’s latest film, “A Rainy Day in New York,” announce they will be donating their salaries to charity amid questions about longstanding sexual abuse claims against Allen. The movie has yet to be released.

    September 16, 2018 – In a New York magazine profile, Soon-Yi Previn defends Allen against allegations of molestation.

    February 7, 2019 – Allen and his production company file a lawsuit against Amazon claiming the company backed out of a $68 million four-picture deal.

    November 8, 2019 – Allen and his production company reach a settlement with Amazon in a breach of contract lawsuit.

    March 23, 2020 – Allen’s memoir “Apropos of Nothing” is published by Arcade Publishing. Grand Central Publishing, a division of Hachette Book Group, originally acquired the rights to the book but canceled their plans to publish it after employees walked out in protest.

    February 21, 2021 – “Allen v. Farrow,” a four-part HBO docuseries that examines Allen’s relationship with Farrow and sexual-assault allegations by their daughter Dylan premieres.

    March 28, 2021 – In an interview for “CBS Sunday Morning,” Allen denies the sexual abuse allegation by his daughter Dylan.

    June 7, 2022 – “Zero Gravity,” Allen’s new essay collection is published.

    September 27, 2023 – Allen releases his 50th film and first French-language film, “Coupe de Chance.”

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  • Internal documents show the World Health Organization paid sexual abuse victims in Congo $250 each

    Internal documents show the World Health Organization paid sexual abuse victims in Congo $250 each

    LONDON — Earlier this year, the doctor who leads the World Health Organization’s efforts to prevent sexual abuse travelled to Congo to address the biggest known sex scandal in the U.N. health agency’s history, the abuse of well over 100 local women by staffers and others during a deadly Ebola outbreak.

    According to an internal WHO report from Dr. Gaya Gamhewage’s trip in March, one of the abused women she met gave birth to a baby with “a malformation that required special medical treatment,” meaning even more costs for the young mother in one of the world’s poorest countries.

    To help victims like her, the WHO has paid $250 each to at least 104 women in Congo who say they were sexually abused or exploited by officials working to stop Ebola. That amount per victim is less than a single day’s expenses for some U.N. officials working in the Congolese capital — and $19 more than what Gamhewage received per day during her three-day visit — according to internal documents obtained by The Associated Press.

    The amount covers typical living expenses for less than four months in a country where, the WHO documents noted, many people survive on less than $2.15 a day.

    The payments to women didn’t come freely. To receive the cash, they were required to complete training courses intended to help them start “income-generating activities.” The payments appear to try to circumvent the U.N.’s stated policy that it doesn’t pay reparations by including the money in what it calls a “complete package” of support.

    Many Congolese women who were sexually abused have still received nothing. WHO said in a confidential document last month that about a third of the known victims were “impossible to locate.” The WHO said nearly a dozen women declined its offer.

    The total of $26,000 that WHO has provided to the victims equals about 1% of the $2 million, WHO-created “survivor assistance fund” for victims of sexual misconduct, primarily in Congo.

    In interviews, recipients told the AP the money they received was hardly enough, but they wanted justice even more.

    Paula Donovan, who co-directs the Code Blue campaign to eliminate what it calls impunity for sexual misconduct in the U.N., described the WHO payments to victims of sexual abuse and exploitation as “perverse.”

    “It’s not unheard of for the U.N. to give people seed money so they can boost their livelihoods, but to mesh that with compensation for a sexual assault, or a crime that results in the birth of a baby, is unthinkable,” she said.

    Requiring the women to attend training before receiving the cash set uncomfortable conditions for victims of wrongdoing seeking help, Donovan added.

    The two women who met with Gamhewage told her that what they most wanted was for the “perpetrators to be brought to account so they could not harm anyone else,” the WHO documents said. The women were not named.

    “There is nothing we can do to make up for (sexual abuse and exploitation),” Gamhewage told the AP in an interview.

    The WHO told the AP that criteria to determine its “victim survivor package” included the cost of food in Congo and “global guidance on not dispensing more cash than what would be reasonable for the community, in order to not expose recipients to further harm.” Gamhewage said the WHO was following recommendations set by experts at local charities and other U.N. agencies.

    “Obviously, we haven’t done enough,” Gamhewage said. She added the WHO would ask survivors directly what further support they wanted.

    The WHO has also helped defray medical costs for 17 children born as a result of sexual exploitation and abuse, she said.

    At least one woman who said she was sexually exploited and impregnated by a WHO doctor negotiated compensation that agency officials signed off on, including a plot of land and health care. The doctor also agreed to pay $100 a month until the baby was born in a deal “to protect the integrity and reputation of WHO.”

    But in interviews with the AP, other women who say they were sexually exploited by WHO staff asserted the agency hasn’t done enough.

    Alphonsine, 34, said she was pressured into having sex with a WHO official in exchange for a job as an infection control worker with the Ebola response team in the eastern Congo city of Beni, an epicenter of the 2018-2020 outbreak. Like other women, she did not share her last name for fear of reprisals.

    Alphonsine confirmed that she had received $250 from the WHO, but the agency told her she had to take a baking course to obtain it.

    “The money helped at the time, but it wasn’t enough,” Alphonsine said. She said she later went bankrupt and would have preferred to receive a plot of land and enough money to start her own business.

    For a visiting WHO staffer working in Congo, the standard daily allowance ranges from about $144 to $480. Gamhewage received $231 a day during her three-day trip to the Congolese capital Kinshasa, according to an internal travel claim.

    The internal documents show that staff costs take up more than half of the $1.5 million the WHO allotted toward the prevention of sexual misconduct in Congo for 2022-2023, or $821,856. Another 12% goes to prevention activities and 35%, or $535,000, is for “victim support,” which Gamhewage said includes legal assistance, transportation and psychological support. That budget is separate from the $2 million survivors assistance fund, which assists victims globally.

    The WHO’s Congo office has a total allocated budget of about $174 million, and its biggest funder is the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

    The U.N. health agency continues to struggle with holding perpetrators of sexual abuse and exploitation to account in Congo. A WHO-commissioned panel found at least 83 perpetrators during the Ebola response, including at least 21 WHO staffers. The youngest known victim was 13.

    In May 2021, an AP investigation revealed that senior WHO management was told of sexual exploitation during the agency’s efforts to curb Ebola even as the abuse was happening but did little to stop it. No senior managers, including some who were aware of the abuse during the outbreak, were fired.

    After years of pressure from Congolese authorities, the WHO internal documents note it has shared information with them about 16 alleged perpetrators of sexual abuse and exploitation who were linked to the WHO during the Ebola outbreak.

    But the WHO hasn’t done enough to discipline its people, said another Congolese woman who said she was coerced into having sex with a staffer to get a job during the outbreak. She, too, received $250 from the WHO after taking a baking course.

    “They promised to show us evidence this has been taken care of, but there has been no follow-up,” said Denise, 31.

    The WHO has said five staffers have been dismissed for sexual misconduct since 2021.

    But in Congo, deep distrust remains.

    Audia, 24, told the AP she was impregnated when a WHO official forced her to have sex to get a job during the outbreak. She now has a five-year-old daughter as a result and received a “really insufficient” $250 from WHO after taking courses in tailoring and baking.

    She worries about what might happen in a future health crisis in conflict-hit eastern Congo, where poor infrastructure and resources mean any emergency response relies heavily on outside help from the WHO and others.

    “I can’t put my trust in (WHO) anymore,” she said. “When they abandon you in such difficulties and leave you without doing anything, it’s irresponsible.”

    ___

    AP journalists Krista Larson in Dakar, Senegal, and Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report.

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  • Omegle shuts down online chat service amid legal challenges

    Omegle shuts down online chat service amid legal challenges

    Omegle, an online chat service that billed itself as an anonymous forum to “talk to strangers,” has shut down amid allegations it served as a hotbed for criminal activities. 

    In a lengthy statement Thursday, Omegle founder Leif K-Brooks said the service is closing because combating misuse of the platform is “no longer sustainable, financially nor psychologically.” In recent years, Omegle has faced a slew of lawsuits alleging the platform, which connected people via text and video chat, became a breeding ground for sexual harassment and facilitated the sexual exploitation of minors by pairing underaged users with sexual abusers.  

    “The stress and expense of this fight – coupled with the existing stress and expense of operating Omegle, and fighting its misuse – are simply too much,” Brooks said in the statement.  

    The website shut its anonymous chat function Thursday.

    Omegle, founded in 2009, rapidly rose to prominence, becoming a mainstay of 2010s internet culture alongside similar anonymous chat services such as Chat Roulette. Since its launch, the platform had racked up tens of millions of monthly visitors, Similar Web data shows. However, that popularity made the platform a magnet for bad actors whose conduct posed profound content moderation challenges for the company.

    “There can be no honest accounting of Omegle without acknowledging that some people misused it, including to commit unspeakably heinous crimes,” Brooks said in the statement. 

    Legal Liabilities 

    Rampant misuse of Omegle spurred several lawsuits against the service, including one in which lawyers alleged the chat service paired an 11-year-old girl with a sexual predator, a court filing shows. Omegle settled that $22 million civil suit last week, Gizmodo reported.  

    “By failing to take action to prevent predators from carrying out these crimes against helpless children on Omegle and failing to cure its negligent design and manufacture, these predatory users felt empowered and incentivized to continue their abusive and malicious use of the product,” a lawyer alleged in the complaint.

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  • Jason Derulo Accused Of Dropping Woman From Record Label For Refusing Sexual Advances

    Jason Derulo Accused Of Dropping Woman From Record Label For Refusing Sexual Advances

    A 25-year-old singer is accusing pop star Jason Derulo of sexual harassment, alleging that he pressured her to drink and have sex with him after signing her to his record label and then dropped her when she refused his advances.

    In the lawsuit filed Thursday, Emaza Gibson said that after Derulo had signed her with the promise of collaborating on several albums, he used physical aggression to intimidate her and then refused to record with her once she insisted on maintaining a strictly professional relationship with him.

    As a result, Gibson claimed, she was deprived of the resources and funding to complete and promote the planned album.

    “I worked really hard,” she told HuffPost. “I shouldn’t have to sleep with anybody to secure a deal.”

    Derulo’s representatives did not respond to HuffPost’s request for comment.

    Singer Jason Derulo performs onstage at the Lollapalooza Festival Berlin on Sept. 10, 2023.

    Britta Pedersen/picture alliance via Getty Images)

    Derulo was acting as Gibson’s mentor and supervising agent in a deal he struck for her with Atlantic Records and his own label, Future History, Gibson said.

    Her lawsuit claims that before they recorded any music, Derulo advised her that in order to succeed, she would have to participate in “goat skin and fish scales,” which she interpreted as “conducting sex rituals and doing cocaine.”

    Derulo invited Gibson to dinner and drinks “on multiple occasions,” according to the lawsuit, but she turned him down because she wanted to keep their relationship “purely professional.” But at the studio, she said, he pressured her to drink alcohol with him, even though she told him she doesn’t drink.

    “Compounding the sexualized nature” of his drink invitations, Gibson claimed, he deliberately scheduled their recording sessions for late at night, when he continued to pressure her to drink.

    In November 2021, Gibson met with Derulo and Atlantic executives in New York City. Another woman, who is not identified in the lawsuit, allegedly told her privately that Derulo only invited Gibson to the meeting because he wanted to have sex with her.

    Gibson said that when she asked Derulo about the other woman after the meeting, he “lost control,” waving his arms across her face and screaming, which made her feel “trapped and afraid” in the car.

    Gibson was alone, she told HuffPost, on several other occasions when she claimed Derulo was “being aggressive” and yelling at her. She said that her mother, who was her manager, was with her in her final recording session with him in June 2022, when Gibson alleges that he yelled and “charged towards” her because he was angry that the two women were late. He calmed down and tried to hug her, she said, but she ran to the bathroom, crying, she said.

    One of Derulo’s engineers tried to comfort her, describing his behavior as “just tough love,” Gibson’s lawsuit claims.

    “It’s not tough love,” she told HuffPost. “I know about abusive men. I shouldn’t be in that predicament in a professional setting … I could have been pulled to the side to talk about these things or approached differently. And I was embarrassed.”

    Emaza Gibson claims in a lawsuit that Jason Derulo pressured her to drink and acted aggressively toward her before he dropped her from his label.
    Emaza Gibson claims in a lawsuit that Jason Derulo pressured her to drink and acted aggressively toward her before he dropped her from his label.

    The next day, Gibson’s mother contacted Derulo’s manager, Frank Harris, who responded that Derulo “is going to do whatever he’s going to do” and that “I’m not his master,” according to the suit.

    Harris and Atlantic Records, also named in the lawsuit, did not respond to HuffPost’s requests for comment.

    As a result of Derulo’s aggression, Gibson said, she feels uncomfortable around other men.

    Gibson’s attorney, Ron Zambrano, called Derulo’s behavior “despicable” and “another example of the music industry’s dark underbelly.”

    “He not only broke promises and breached contracts, but his threats of physical harm and unconscionable sexual advances toward this young woman who is just trying to break into the industry were outrageous and illegal,” Zambrano said in a statement shared with HuffPost. “Executives knew of Derulo’s behavior without a care. No one should have to suffer through such treatment by their employer, and in this case, by someone who preyed on the plaintiff’s vulnerabilities and desire to succeed, then just threw her away like garbage when he didn’t get his way.”

    Gibson is seeking a jury trial and compensation for lost wages and benefits, legal fees and medical expenses related to the emotional distress she claims she suffered.

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