Judge rejects call to immediately shut down Alex Jones’ Infowars in bankruptcy dispute
A federal judge has rejected a request to immediately shut down conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ media company as disputes in his bankruptcy cases widen. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez denied the request Monday and said Jones’ company, Free Speech Systems, can continue operating until June 14. That’s when the judge is expected to decide whether Jones’ bankruptcy reorganization gets converted into a liquidation that would sell off his assets. Jones and his company filed for bankruptcy reorganization after he lost two lawsuits and was ordered to pay $1.5 billion to relatives of victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. The families filed an emergency motion Sunday seeking liquidation of Jones’ assets.
Toyota apologizes for cheating on vehicle testing and halts production of three models
TOKYO (AP) — Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda has apologized for massive cheating on certification tests for seven vehicle models. The fraudulent testing at Japan’s top automaker involved the use of inadequate or outdated data in collision tests and incorrect testing of airbag inflation and rear-seat damage in crashes. Engine tests were also found to be falsified. Toyota stopped production Monday of the three models made in Japan. The deceptive tests don’t affect the safety of the vehicles already on roads. Two other Japanese automakers Mazda and and Honda also reported Monday improper testing of their vehicles but said they are safe to use.
Trial in the fatal daytime ambush of rapper Young Dolph reset to September
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — A judge has reset the trial date for a man charged with killing rapper Young Dolph in a daytime shooting ambush at a cookie shop in his hometown of Memphis, Tennessee. Shelby County Judge Jennifer J. Mitchell on Monday set a Sept. 23 trial date for Justin Johnson. He has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of Young Dolph, who was gunned down in November 2021. Johnson’s trial had been set to start Monday. However, prosecutors and Johnson’s lawyer filed a joint motion May 14 asking the judge to delay the trial to allow them to present expert witnesses to discuss cellphone location records.
New Orleans valedictorian lived in a homeless shelter as he rose to the top of his class
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Elijah Hogan came through a senior year of high school in a homeless shelter to make it to the top of his class. The 19-year-old recently graduated as one of two valedictorians at Walter L. Cohen charter high school in New Orleans. Hogan’s mother died when he was 8 and he had lived with his grandmother for several years. He ended up in the Covenant House shelter for homeless youth before his final year of high school. Hogan’s graduation ceremony speech applauded his classmates for getting through their trials and hardships. Hogan now plans to attend Xavier University of Louisiana and pursue a major in graphic design.
From decay to dazzling, Ford restores grandeur to Detroit train station that once symbolized decline
DETROIT (AP) — The once-blighted monolithic Michigan Central train station — for decades a symbol of Detroit’s decline — has new life following a massive six-year, multimillion-dollar renovation to create a hub for mobility projects in the rebirth of the Motor City. No longer the windowless, hulking, scavenger-ravaged structure ominously shadowing the city’s Corktown neighborhood, the former train station now is a home to Ford Motor Co. and the centerpiece of a sprawling 30-acre mobility innovation district. Ford announced in 2018 that it was buying the 18-story building and adjacent structures as part of its plans for a campus focusing on autonomous vehicles. Grand opening ceremonies include an outdoor concert on Thursday, with tours for the general public starting Friday.
‘SNL’ lampooned men in artistic swimming. Bill May could be the sport’s first male Olympian
NEW YORK (AP) — Bill May might become the first man to compete in artistic swimming at an Olympics. The 45-year-old who lives in California will find out on Friday if he is picked by a five-person panel to represent the United States at the Paris Games in the team event for the sport that used to be called synchronized swimming. May has retired and unretired several times over the years. He has performed with Cirque du Soleil and coached at a club in Santa Clara. He always held out hope of a chance to go to the Olympics. Men are allowed to participate in artistic swimming for the first time at the 2024 Games.
Company that bred beagles for research pleads guilty to neglect, ordered to pay record $35M fine
A company that bred beagles for medical research has agreed to pay a record $35 million as part of a criminal plea admitting it neglected thousands of dogs at its breeding facility in rural Virginia. Prosecutors said Monday that the penalties amount to the largest ever levied in an animal-welfare case. The plea deal also bars Envigo RMS and its Indiana-based parent company, Inotiv, from breeding or selling dogs in the future. The federal investigation of Envigo drew national attention in 2022 when federal authorities conducted a search of the breeding facility in Cumberland County, Virginia. Inotiv issued what it called a “statement of contrition” after Monday’s plea deal in federal court in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Simone Biles cruises to 9th national title and gives Olympic champ Sunisa Lee a boost along the way
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Gymnastics star Simone Biles cruised to a record ninth U.S. Championship, giving good friend Sunisa Lee a boost along the way. Lee, the 2020 Olympic champion, fell on vault early in the competition and appeared shaken. Biles, who fell on vault at the 2020 Olympics and pulled out of several events, went to Lee to lend an ear and provide a confidence boost. Lee returned and eventually finished fourth behind Biles’ winning total of 172.500. Skye Blakely was second and Kayla DiCello was third. The Olympic trials are up next in Minneapolis in late June.
The matchup is set: Panthers, Oilers will meet in the Stanley Cup Final
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Matthew Tkachuk is about to renew some acquaintances. Connor McDavid is going back to where his NHL career started. The Stanley Cup Final matchup is set: The Florida Panthers, back in the title round for the second consecutive year and seeking their first championship, will take on the Edmonton Oilers — a team looking to return to hockey’s mountaintop for the first time since 1990.
Gay pride revelers in Sao Paulo reclaim Brazil’s national symbols
SAO PAULO, Brazil (AP) — The iconic yellow and green of Brazil’s flag mixed with a sea of rainbow-colored tutus, hand fans and drag queen hairdos at Sunday’s LGBTQ+ pride parade in Sao Paulo. The event along the city’s main thoroughfare is among the biggest gay pride celebrations in the world. Every year it attracts thousands of people to celebrate the sexual diversity in a country synonymous with street partying but where violence and discrimination against members of the LGBTQ+ community has surged in recent years. This year organizers made a special appeal for participants to wear green and yellow in a pointed rebuke to far right followers of former President Jair Bolsonaro who in recent time appropriated Brazil’s national symbols for themselves.
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