LONDON   Theresa May became the leader of Britain after the country voted in a June 2016 referendum to leave the European Union. Brexit was her No. 1 job, and she failed to deliver it. May announced Friday that she will resign as her party's leader June 7 and make way for a new British prime minister later this summer. Speaking in front of the official residence, 10 Downing Street, May said she had "done my best" but was unable to sway members of Parliament to back her compromise vision of Brexit. She told Britons that compromise was not a dirty word. Subscribe to the Post Most newsletter: Today's most popular stories on The Washington Post "I believe it was right to persevere even when the odds against success seemed high," she said. "It is and will always remain a matter of deep regret for me that I have not been able to deliver Brexit." Near the end of her brief remarks, May noted that she was Britain's second female prime minister and promised there would be more women in the highest office. Then her voice became shaky and tears almost came as she said she was departing with "no ill will, but with enormous and enduring gratitude to have had the opportunity to serve the country I love." May joins a series of Conservative prime ministers who have fallen over the question of Britain's relationship with Europe. David Cameron, John Major and Margaret Thatcher, Britain's only other female prime minister, were all ousted in part because they could not get their party, let alone the country, to agree on how closely tied Britain and the continent should be. May spent two years negotiating, in secret, a Brexit withdrawal deal with the E.U., only to see it rejected three times by the House of Commons, with many of her own Conservatives refusing to support her. Earlier this week, she was still vowing to push on and offered a tweaked version of her Brexit plan. It was rejected so swiftly and resoundingly by so many lawmakers, including members of her cabinet, that it became clear she would be ushered out soon. May set out her departure plans shortly after a Friday morning meeting with Graham Brady, chair of the Conservative Party's powerful backbench "1922 Committee." (Brady later in the day stepped down to consider a party leadership run.) May will resign as party leader following a state visit by President Trump and D-Day commemorations. She will stay on as prime minister until the Conservatives, who will remain in power, select a new leader for their party and the country. It seems likely they will choose someone who at least pays lip-service to the prospect of a no-deal Brexit   leaving the E.U. without a transition period and adopting a relationship governed by World Trade Organization rules. Economists have predicted that abrupt change would wreak havoc on both sides of the English Channel. "It's quite extraordinary given that two to three years ago, the vast majority of Conservative MPs would have regarded a no-deal Brexit as impossible or highly irresponsible," said Rob Ford, a political scientist at the University of Manchester. "Now, it's unlikely you'd be elected as the next prime minister without some level of commitment to that approach." Those eager to move to 10 Downing Street have been circling for some time. Boris Johnson, a flamboyant politician known around the country simply as "Boris," once said, "My chances of being PM are about as good as the chances of finding Elvis on Mars." Yet he is the current favorite in opinion polls and betting markets to become the 77th British prime minister. On Friday, Johnson complimented May on "a very dignified statement." He tweeted his thanks to the outgoing prime minister for her "stoical service" and said it was "now time to follow her urgings: to come together and deliver Brexit." Nicola Sturgeon, leader of the Scottish National Party, retweeted Johnson, adding the comment : "What a hypocrite." Johnson is popular with the Conservative grass roots, who play a key role in choosing the party leader. He served two terms as mayor of London, which traditionally votes Labour, proving he also has some cross-party appeal. But he lost support in some circles after the 2016 referendum, when he put himself forward as the face of the Brexit campaign. And his record as foreign secretary under May was mixed. Others who have declared interest in the top job include Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who confirmed his candidacy shortly after May's announcement Friday. Andrea Leadsom, who resigned as House of Commons leader this week and was a finalist alongside May in 2016, has said she is "actively considering" another leadership bid. A raft more are expected to follow. Among them: former Brexit secretary Dominic Raab and Environment Secretary Michael Gove. Under Conservative Party rules, any lawmaker can put their name forward, as long as they have the backing of two Conservative members of Parliament. Tory lawmakers then vote in a series of rounds, removing the person with the fewest votes, until only two are left. The 125,000 Conservative Party members then select their preferred candidate. Ken Clarke, a senior Conservative lawmaker, said the leadership contest could be hard fought. "We are going to have a chaotic six weeks now, as a diversion, possibly a harmful diversion from the deadlock on the European Union," Clarke told the BBC. He also noted that in Tory leadership races, the early favorite "hasn't won one of these for a very long time." Marcus Roberts, international projects director at polling firm YouGov, said that if history is kind, May will be remembered as a leader who put in a good effort and even negotiated a decent Brexit deal with the E.U., but who wasn't able to play politics. "She may have had the right intention, and she may have even got the best thing for Britain," he said. "But it isn't enough if you don't know how to count in Parliament and you don't know how to sell in public." There are those who say that, for any leader, getting a Brexit deal through Parliament would have been a nearly impossible task. And the dogged May stuck it out longer than many people predicted, remaining popular even with a public that hated her Brexit approach. In a statement, Irish Prime Minster Leo Varadkar said May was "principled, honorable and deeply passionate about doing her best for her country." But some analysts argue that she got the sequencing of Brexit terribly wrong: She launched into negotiations with the E.U. before achieving consensus within her party. She told hard Brexiteers at the start of her premiership that she would honor their red lines, only to reverse her position later. She tried a cross-party approach near the very end of her time, not at the beginning. "When you're at your max power as prime minister, that's when you can make magnificent generous offers," Roberts said. "When you're clinging on by your fingernails, what are the incentives to make a deal with you and help you out?" Nigel Farage, the leader of the newly created Brexit Party, said: "It is difficult not to feel for Mrs. May, but politically she misjudged the mood of the country and her party. Two Tory leaders have now gone whose instincts were pro-E.U. Either the party learns that lesson or it dies." May's support took a nose-dive in 2017, after she called an election she didn't have to and lost her party's parliamentary majority, setting up many struggles to come. Last month, she turned to opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn to help break the Brexit impasse. Those talks collapsed last week. Corbyn said he could not negotiate with a leader on her way out. On Friday, Corbyn tweeted : "Theresa May is right to resign. She's now accepted what the country's known for months: she can't govern, and nor can her divided and disintegrating party." Corbyn called for an immediate general election after a new Tory leader is in place. At the beginning of her three years in power, May promised to build a better country and spoke movingly about tackling the "burning injustices" in British society, such as life expectancy inequality, the gender pay gap and lack of social mobility. Damian Green, one of May's closest political allies, told the BBC that May's inability to focus on the domestic agenda was "at least as distressing as the failure to deliver Brexit." In Brussels, where E.U. policymakers have unhappily watched the British drama for years, May's departure was met with a shrug. Many there long ago gave up on her ability to deliver a deal and had been counting the days until her resignation. Nor do they expect much progress to be made on Brexit until the end of October, their new expiration date for Britain's E.U. membership. But some fear that a new British prime minister will arrive with a fresh set of unrealistic expectations about what concessions the Europeans are willing to extend to London. Most E.U. leaders feel they have already gone as far as they will go. Britain would have to concede some of its own red lines before any major changes to the departure deal could be made, policymakers say. "A new Prime Minister & the likely return of cakeism, unicorns and cherry-picking," Fabian Zuleeg, head of the European Policy Center think tank, wrote on Twitter, using three of Brussels' favorite terms for wishful thinking from London. French President Emmanuel Macron demanded "swift clarification" about the British government's plans for Brexit. Macron has been eager to show Britain the door and move on. May's resignation announcement, with its risk of months more of inaction in London, played into Macron's concerns that the European Union could get waylaid by Britain's domestic dramas. "We cannot wait in indefinite uncertainty," the presidential Elysee Palace said in a statement. In Berlin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel took note of May's decision "with respect" and is ready to continue to work closely with London, said spokeswoman Martina Fietz. And in the Netherlands, Prime Minister Mark Rutte said in a tweet that "the agreement reached between the E.U. and the United Kingdom for an orderly Brexit remains on the table." karla.adam@washpost.com william.booth@washpost.com Michael Birnbaum in Brussels contributed to this report.


LONDON (Reuters) - It has been more than 15 years since Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic began their collection of Grand Slam titles and the bad news for anyone eyeing tennis's big prizes is their stranglehold on men's tennis is as tight as ever. Nadal, a few days after turning 33, proved unstoppable at Roland Garros for a 12th time on Sunday as he crushed Dominic Thiem with the same frightening intensity that he displayed when beating Mariano Puerta to win his first French Open in 2005. Federer, who will be 38 in August, played dazzling tennis to reach the semi-final before Nadal and a Parisian gale did for his hopes of a record-extending 21st Grand Slam title. The 32-year-old Djokovic, meanwhile, is stuck on 15, three behind Nadal, after falling agonizingly short of holding all four majors at the same time for the second time. Between them they now have 53 Grand Slam titles from the last 64 played dating back to Federer's first Wimbledon triumph in 2003 when he was aged 21. What is more, the trio have shared the last 10 between them in their third era of total domination, having won 11 in a row between 2010 and 2012 and 18 in a row between 2005 and 2009. Austrian Thiem, ranked fourth in the world but still without a Grand Slam title, is now 25. By that age the three players above him were already multiple Grand Slam champions. Thiem said that he will strive to get better and better, but knows they will too. Their relentless desire to stay ahead of the chasing pack is why only seven other men have won a Grand Slam title in the last 16 years. With the exception of Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka who have won three apiece, four of them have been one-Slam wonders. Marat Safin won his second major at the Australian Open in 2005 but that was before either Nadal or Djokovic had begun their count. After watching Nadal for the past two weeks, seven-time Grand Slam champion Mats Wilander believes the Spaniard is still improving his game. "The way he hit his backhand against Thiem tells me he's still working at his game, developing another way of playing," the Swede, working for Eurosport, said. While chiefly motivated by his rivalries with Nadal and Djokovic, Federer says his enthusiasm to keep evolving as a player comes from watching the likes of Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev and the new challenges they bring. "It never gets boring, because every day plays different, every opponent plays different, every guy gives you different struggles," Federer said last week. The way things look right now it might be Old Father Time that finally brings down the curtain on the current era, rather than the young pretenders stuck in the shadow of arguably the greatest three players ever to swing a racket. "Being in this era, it seems like it's going to be hard for anyone to kind of do something the same that three of us did," Djokovic said last week. "I don't know what the future will bring, but I'm sure it will be bright." (Reporting by Martyn Herman, editing by Pritha Sarkar) Related slideshow: Best of the French Open (Provided by imagn)


Diesel fuel was leaking into the Baltimore harbor Friday morning from a four-alarm warehouse fire that broke out Thursday night. Authorities said they don't know how much fuel has washed into the water, leaking through storm drains. The diesel is being contained behind floating booms and with absorbent materials at the mouth of the Jones Falls, near the harbor-cleaning device known as Mr. Trash Wheel, said U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Ronald Hodges. The fire, at an abandoned mattress warehouse in the Oldtown neighborhood, was brought under control by 9 a.m. Friday, city fire spokeswman Blair Adams said. Crews from Baltimore and Anne Arundel, Baltimore and Howard counties fought the fire for more than 12 hours. Hodges said it was not clear from where the diesel was leaking, but that the Coast Guard suspected there was some heavy machinery inside the warehouse that may have been damaged. The agency began monitoring and containing the spill about 3:45 a.m.. The Maryland Department of the Environment is also involved in the cleanup. Gov. Larry Hogan convened an emergency conference call with state officials to coordinate response to the spill. Environment Secretary Ben Grumbles said early Friday afternoon the spill was contained. Angela Haren, the Baltimore Harbor Waterkeeper at Blue Water Baltimore, said the group was glad to see a quick response to the spill. "Diesel fuel has the potential to be devastating to fish, birds and other wildlife as well as posing a public health risk," she said. "This is yet another reminder that our streets are connected to our streams; pollution on land can and will find its way into our waterways." The contamination comes a day before the fourth annual Baltimore Floatilla, a kayaking event that raises money for and awareness of Inner Harbor water quality. Hundreds of kayakers are expected to paddle through the harbor from 8 a.m. to noon Saturday. State officials said they are in communication with the Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore, the event's organizer, to ensure paddlers avoid the contaminated area. sdance@baltsun.com twitter.com/ssdance


2018 was a record-setting year for buybacks. The kickoff to 2019 showed signs of continuing, if not breaking, that trend. But the strong equities rebound in the first quarter was followed by a large uptick in volatility in May, a repercussion of trade war concerns. This has not only impacted the stock market, but also the volume of buybacks companies are willing to authorize. This trend reversal in 2019 started in May. In fact, 2019 was off to a stronger start than 2018 for buyback announcements until that point. As of the end of April, U.S. companies had authorized $366 billion in share repurchases, a 14% increase compared to 2018. However, as of the end of June, this year's buybacks were more than 22% lower than 2018, with just $511 billion in announced buybacks compared to $659 billion at the same time in 2018. In May and June alone, buybacks were down 80% and 33%, respectively, compared to the same time during the previous year. This decline in authorizations is important for two reasons. First, buyback announcements can provide a forward-looking basis for how companies feel about the environment going forward. The significant decline could reflect companies', specifically certain industries, lack of confidence in their future outlook. Second, the timing of this decline suggests that perhaps trade war concerns, and seeing them as more imminent or real, could be the basis for this change of outlook. Last year, which cumulatively had more than $1 trillion in buyback announcements, the trade war put a noticeable damper on an otherwise strong, and growing, buyback trend. Initial rhetoric on the trade war ramped up in March and April 2018. During that time, buyback announcements declined significantly, dropping from $221 billion in January and February 2018 to just $100 billion in March and April. March 2018 saw only $20 billion in announcements, compared to the 2018 monthly average of $90 billion. The impact of the trade war was also industry specific. Industrials and technology companies diverged noticeably in buyback trends. In March 2018, there were only $260 million worth of buyback announcements from industrials companies compared to approximately $8 billion per month on average for the previous eight months. The industry faced plans to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, directly impacting their bottom line. The aggregate decline in buybacks reflected a lack of confidence in a trade war resolution. Technology companies, on the other hand, went on to announce record buybacks, including chipmakers, suggesting that, at least in 2018, this sector had confidence that any impact they might feel from the trade war would be resolved. This year, a similar trend has emerged aligning escalating trade war commentary with a significant reduction in corporate buyback announcements. The 2019 monthly run rate for buyback announcements, January through April, was $91 billion. For May and June of 2019, that number dropped an average of $72 billion. Tech is one industry caught in the cross hairs of this round of trade war rhetoric, especially after talks fell apart. In 2018, the technology sector announced $369 billion in buybacks, which accounted for 34% of all announcements that year. Comparatively, in May and June 2019, tech companies announced only $4.4 billion in buybacks, representing just 3.1% of the announcements. On May 5th, President Donald Trump threated to raise tariffs on China, which led to an actual increase on May 10. Huawei was then placed on the U.S. Entity List, banning the company's products from purchase by U.S. companies. This escalation had the potential to significantly impact tech companies. The decline in buybacks in certain industries could indicate that it's best for investors to avoid those sectors, at least in the near term. However, not all sectors are at the mercy of the trade war, and this is also reflected in continued buyback authorizations. The financial sector accounted for more than 77% of all buybacks in May and June followed by consumer discretionary at roughly 6%. Additionally, energy companies continue to announce buybacks in 2019 at a much larger rate than 2018. So far this year, the energy sector has announced $34 billion in buybacks. This equates to 84% of the total announcements the sector made in 2018 at just the halfway mark through the year. It's not surprising for buyback announcements to drop off during periods of turmoil. But not all companies have abandoned buybacks. Those still announcing can be a signal of potential strength if the volatility continues. For example, World Fuel Services (INT), which markets aviation and marine fuel services, announced $100 million buyback the morning of May 29. From May 28 to June 30, INT is up 23.7% versus 5.2% for the S&P 500 TR Index. LyondellBasell (LYB), a plastic, chemical, and fuel products company, announced 10% buyback the morning of May 31, along with quarterly dividend boost. Between May 30 and June 30, LYB is up 12.7% versus S&P 500 TR 5.7%. Additionally, Arconic (ARNC), which produces and distributes aerospace products, authorized a $500 million buyback the morning of May 20 and entered into a $200 million accelerated share repurchase agreement. Between May 19 and June 30, ARNC is up 17.6% versus S&P 500 TR Index 3.1%. As the trade war continues to impact both businesses and the markets, investors can expect a continued drawdown on buybacks, particularly from industries facing the brunt of any tariffs. While investors may continue to see some industries unaffected by the trade war that present some investing opportunities in a potentially difficult environment, investors can expect the trend of record-setting buyback authorizations to continue when trade rhetoric has subsided. Copyright 2019 U.S. News & World Report


Video by CBS Philadelphia About 10 years ago, give or take a bit, I had a situation happen to me that happens to a lot of people. My debit card was hacked. Fraudsters stole my debit card number; my credit union eventually concluded they swiped the card information by planting a gas pump skimmer at a station I frequented. It's not hard to figure out what happened next. The bad guys used my card information to make fraudulent purchases. In the end, over $2,000 in unauthorized charges were made, courtesy of the money in mine and my husband's joint bank account. To make matters worse, my credit union didn't catch the fraud. Instead, they approved the fraudulent transactions and allowed the money to be debited from my checking account. I personally didn't realize there was a problem until a few days later when I logged into my bank account to pay a credit card bill. Only then did I discover that the money which was supposed to be in my checking account was missing. Reporting the fraud As I scrolled through my online account activity, I started to discover several charges I didn't recognize. (Imagine my eyes popping open, bigger and bigger, along with several loud exclamations and you'll have a pretty accurate mental image of my reaction.) I called my credit union immediately to report the problem. I expected for the stolen money to be put back in my account right away. Spoiler alert: that's not what happened. Instead, the credit union representative told me they needed time to investigate the fraud. They would cut off my debit card and issue me a new one so no additional theft could take place. While that happened, however, it could take a week or more before I saw any money returned to my account. The next big problem? My family's monthly bills were still due. Our credit card issuers, utility providers and mortgage company weren't going to sit back and wait for their payments while the credit union investigated whether I was telling the truth about the phony charges. Thankfully, my husband and I had money in savings. We used that money to pay the bills while our checking account sat empty during the investigation. It was an eye opening experience for us. Our own personal money - not the credit union's funds - was tied up during the investigation into the fraudulent charges on our account. Why I never use debit cards After a few days, the credit union did put the stolen money back into our checking account. Other than the initial shock and the hassle of moving some money from savings to checking, we came through the situation no worse for the wear. Yet I knew the outcome could have been a lot different if the thieves had stolen more money from our account. What if our savings account balance had also been wiped out by thieves? (Our account, after all, was set up to withdraw money from savings if the checking account is ever empty.) What if the credit union had taken longer to reimburse us for the stolen funds? We could have faced late fees from our creditors and possibly even credit damage if we were unable to pay our bills during the fraud investigation. Now, unless I'm pulling cash out of an ATM, I never use my debit card. When I can, I try to avoid using my debit card even then. (ATM skimmers are a common problem as well, in case you didn't know.) Legal fraud protections Since this experience, my husband and I choose to use credit cards for our purchases. The fraud protections available are simply a lot more robust than those available for debit cards. I learned this lesson the hard way. Don't get me wrong - a credit card number is just as easy to steal as a debit card number. Had I used my credit card to pay for gas at that compromised pump all those years ago, my credit card account would almost certainly have been hacked. The difference between debit cards and credit cards lies not in their ability to be compromised. It's what happens after your account is used without your permission that sets these two payment methods apart. The electronic funds transfer act When your debit card number is stolen, like mine was, federal law protects you from liability for most of the fraudulent charges. The name of the law that gives you these protections is the Electronic Funds Transfer Act (EFTA). But there's a catch. You have to report the theft (or loss of your debit card) to your financial institution - and there's a ticking clock. How EFTA protections work for fraudulent debit card transactions When your debit card number (not the card itself) is stolen and unauthorized transactions are made: You have up to 60 days after your statement is sent out to report the fraud. Do this, and you have zero liability for unauthorized transactions. Don't wait more than 60 days after your statement has been sent out to report debit card fraud. If you make this mistake, your financial institution may hold you 100 percent responsible for unauthorized transactions . I reported the fraud to my credit union as soon as I found out about it, before my next statement was even generated. However, the EFTA says your bank or credit union can take up to 10 business days to investigate the fraud and it can ask you to send a written confirmation of an error within 10 days after you report the fraud verbally. Translation: that's up to 10 business days the money you deposited in your checking account might not be available to use. Ouch! If your physical debit card is lost or stolen, the rules change a little: You should report debit card theft or loss within two business days of learning about your missing card. Do this and your maximum liability for any fraudulent transactions is limited to $50 . If you wait more than two business days (after learning about the problem) to report the theft or loss of your debit card, you could pay more. Your liability jumps to $500 within 60 days after your statement is sent out. The worst thing you can do after a debit card is lost or stolen is to not report it at all. Once more than 60 days have passed after your statement is sent out, you could be personally on the hook for 100 percent of any unauthorized transactions . The Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA) Your credit card issuers also have rules to follow when it comes to fraud. The Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA) is a federal law which protects you if your credit card is overcharged, billed for merchandise you never receive, or - you guessed it - used without your permission. When your credit card is used fraudulently, the FCBA caps your liability at $50. But many card issuers won't hold you responsible for even this amount. There's still a ticking clock to worry about, so you'll need to report any credit card fraud within 60 days. And again, the FTC recommends for you to send a billing dispute in writing. However, you don't have to send a payment for the disputed charges while your credit card issuer investigates them. The bottom line Hands down, credit cards offer more robust protection when it comes to fraud. That's a big reason they're my favorite payment method to use. Plus, if and when my credit card account is hacked again (let's face it, card fraud happens a lot), I know my personal money won't be tied up during the investigation. If my debit card is hacked, on the other hand, I can't access my personal money while my financial institution tries to figure out what happened on my account. When you add in the fact that credit cards give us so many other perks, like price protection and the ability to earn lucrative rewards, the choice between debit cards and credit cards is really a no-brainer. Learn more: How I boosted my credit score by almost 100 points in one year Divorce and your mortgage: Here's what to know Here's how much divorce costs


A woman played dead so she could fend off a knife-wielding man accused of killing a hiker and threatening others in two separate incidents along the Appalachian Trail, according to law enforcement. The woman trekked six miles through a stretch of the trail in southwestern Virginia to report the attack early Saturday, according to court documents. James Jordan, 30, was arrested and charged in US District Court in Abingdon with one count of murder and one count of assault with the intent to murder. Federal public defender Nancy Dickenson declined to comment on Monday. Jordan did not enter a plea at his first court appearance, according to the US Attorney's Office for the Western District of Virginia. After Jordan's arrest, authorities revealed that he was accused of threatening another group of hikers on the trail in Tennessee in April. The sheriff of Unicoi County, Tennessee, told CNN that Jordan was arrested and charged with criminal impersonation, possession of drugs and possession of drug paraphernalia. But he was not charged with assault because the hikers involved would not press charges and refused to appear in court, Sheriff Mike Hensley said. "I just want the families of the victims to know that I did everything in my power to get him off of the trail," Hensley said. Suspect allegedly threatened to burn victims The hikers in this past weekend's Virginia incident are not named in an affidavit attached to a criminal complaint that describes the terrifying chain of events. The ordeal allegedly began Friday night, when Jordan allegedly approached four hikers on a section of the trail in George Washington and Jefferson National Forest in Smyth County, Virginia. "He was acting disturbed and unstable, and was playing the guitar and singing," the affidavit said. Later in the evening, after the four set up camp in Wythe County, Jordan allegedly approached them again. "Jordan spoke to the hikers through their tents and threatened to pour gasoline on their tents and burn them to death," the affidavit said. Terrified, the four hikers scrambled to pack and leave camp. Jordan pulled out a knife and chased after two of the hikers -- a man and a woman -- as they fled, authorities said. The stabbing Jordan returned to the campsite, according to the affidavit, and starting arguing with one of the two remaining hikers, referred to as Victim #1. The other person -- referred to as Victim #2 in the affidavit -- watched as Jordan stabbed Victim #1 in the upper part of the body and Victim #1 fell to the ground. Victim #2 ran off and Jordan followed, catching up with her as she tired. She turned to face Jordan and raised her arms in surrender when Jordan began stabbing her. She fell to the ground and played dead, "at which point Jordan left to find his dog," the affidavit said. The escape Two hikers met the woman on the trail and helped her trek six miles to Smyth County, where she called 911. A sheriff's office investigator interviewed her and she identified Jordan as the attacker. Authorities did not release details on her condition, but said she probably will survive. Victim #1 was pronounced dead at campsite, the affidavit said. A knife was near the body. They located Jordan and took him into custody. He had blood stains on his clothes, the affidavit said. Around 2:30 a.m. Saturday, two people presumed to be Hikers #1 called Wythe County's 911 center. They said they were chased by a man with a "machete," the affidavit said. When interviewed by investigators, the two hikers identified Jordan as the man who chased them. Earlier reports called the weapon a machete based on their statements, but the affidavit says it was a knife. The Tennessee incident CNN affiliate WSET reported that Jordan was arrested in April in Unicoi County, Tennessee, after allegedly threatening other hikers with a knife. He was charged with criminal impersonation, possession of drugs and possession of drug paraphernalia, the Unicoi County Sheriff's Department said. He was given probation and ordered to pay fines following his hearing. Jordan is also known by his trail name of "Sovereign," WSET reported. Megan Newsome, the fiancee of Jordan's brother, Dustin Wildes, said they were unaware of the incident in April. The couple had not been in touch with Jordan since his mother died in March, Newsome said. At the time, Jordan was living in Fort Lauderdale. The trail The Appalachian Trail is part of the National Park Service. The longest hiking-only footpath in the world," it extends 2,190 miles over 14 states between Springer Mountain, Georgia, and Katahdin, Maine, according to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy. It attracts more than 3 million people each year, the conservancy said. More than 3,000 people try to hike the path in a single year, "The whole Appalachian Trail community of hikers and volunteers is profoundly sickened by the horrific and deadly attack Saturday morning," said Suzanne Dixon, president of conservancy.


Martin Truex Jr. was in a familiar spot   but he needed one better. Truex again found himself chasing down Chase Elliott for the win at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International on Sunday, but once again he came up short. Read Also: Chase Elliott tops Truex at Watkins Glen for second straight year Most of the race, Elliott maintained a solid lead but late in the race Truex was able to get to Truex's rear bumper but was never able to make a pass for the lead. "I tried to do all I could. Chase did an excellent job, just not making mistakes, and really all I could do was get to two car lengths, one and a half at the closest in braking, and just try to force a mistake," Truex said. "But he hit his marks. His car was really fast in the key areas that you need to be, leaving a few of the key corners. I just couldn't get a run on him and we just were kind of stuck there. "We passed quite a few cars there that were fast and finished up front, just couldn't past that last one." Truex has become a proficient road racer and earned his third career victory at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway earlier this year. He won at the Glen in 2017 and has finished no worse than third in the last three races at the road course in upstate New York. "Honestly, we weren't as good as we needed to be (Saturday in practice), and we made some changes after practice, and definitely in the right direction," Truex said. "Just wish we could have been just a tiny bit better. "It really was all about restarts and track position, and if I could have just got by him on that last one we would have set sail, I believe, but we didn't, and he won. "He did a good job, and overall it was a good weekend for us."


PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland   1-2-1-2. There are only a handful of people who have matched Brooks Koepka's grand-slam rhythm of late. Fred Astaire comes to mind. Gene Kelly, maybe. On the golf course, there are few who have performed with a more sustained level of dexterity in major championships. Maybe only Bobby Jones, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods. Part of the intrigue, of course, is the fact that Koepka has won twice as many majors (four) as he has regular PGA Tour events (two). Which leads to the obvious question: What, if anything is he doing differently before and during golf's four biggest events? And, wouldn't you know, the answer is simple. "I practice before the majors," said Koepka when speaking to the media Tuesday on the eve of the Open Championship at Royal Portrush . "I'm ready for majors. Regular tournaments, I don't practice. If you've seen me on TV, that's when I play golf." But there's more to it than that. And it might be something Koepka will think about should he bother to review a transcript of his chat with the media. Asked whether he had ever played in a major without playing the week before, the two-time PGA and U.S. Open champion, seemingly unconsciously, revealed himself to an extent he has perhaps never done before. "Yeah, the Open every year," he said. "But I practice. I get here early. And at Augusta, I don't play the week before. But I'm practicing going in." The next question was also obvious: So when you say you always play before a major, you mean you practice the week before? "Every time I've won, yeah. Every time I've won, I've played," Koepka said. "But the week before Augusta just doesn't fit my schedule. And then coming over here, I like to get adjusted and see the course a little bit." Ah-ha. There seems to be a pattern here, on both sides of the Koepka ledger. When the 29-year-old Floridian plays in an event the week before a major there is right now at least a fair chance he is going to win, or at least contend strongly. But when he doesn't tee-up competitively prior to the Masters or the Open, he doesn't win. Or at least not yet. Memo to Brooks: Maybe you should have made your way to the Scottish Open last week. Nevertheless, it's hard not to think of Koepka as the favorite at Portrush, his major rhythm still something to behold. Oh, and there's the fact that Koepka has a 15th club in actually on his bag this week as he attempts to break the habit of a lifetime. His caddie of the last six years, Ricky Elliott, was born and raised in Portrush and has played the course thousands of times. No player in the field will have somebody with more local knowledge working for him. "He's just told me spots where to hit it," Koepka said. " 'This is where you want to leave it' stuff. I won't hit many drivers five, maybe six if the wind direction stays the same as it's been the last four days. "Try and avoid bunkers. In links golf, that's all I'm trying to do," Koepka said. "I feel like that's the biggest mistake you can make out here. If you can avoid those and put yourself on the right side of the hole, you're going to have a good chance to win the tournament." Indeed, where Elliott is most valuable is in the depth of the pair's relationship. The Northern Irishman understands what to say to his boss. And, just as importantly, when to say it. "Ricky keeps it light," Koepka said. "He knows not to talk about golf while we're out there. He knows if I'm getting a little bit tense, maybe upset, angry, whatever it is, he can tell just by my walk. He can tell by my body language. And that's what makes a great caddie. A lot of times he'll tell me to slow down, slow my walk. If I get angry, my walk gets a little bit quicker. "Under pressure he knows exactly what to say at the right time, which is what you want in a caddie," Koepka added. "And I wouldn't want anybody else on my bag. He's been tremendous. He's part of the reason why I've had the success I've had. And I love the guy to death." Koepka was less revealing when it came to his thoughts on why Americans are currently doing so well in the game's four most important weeks. Should another triumph on Sunday, the U.S. will hold all four and have won 10 of the last 11. Any idea why Brooks? "I have no idea," he said. Nor, come to think of it, does anyone else. Inevitably, this warm and cozy chat wound down with (British tabloid-driven) mention of Koepka's propensity to get a little touchy over just how little recognition/publicity his recent run of success has engendered. "Not enough" has been the gist of his previous utterances on the subject, one he seems to be trying to dampen. "But I'm over trying to get the recognition," Koepka said. "You either like me or you don't, that's life in general. It's not anything I'm too concerned about at this moment. I'm literally just focused on golf. I want to play the best I can every week. I want to play well in majors." And that he has been doing. Better than anyone else in the game for a wee while now. He is the man to beat this week. That much is not in doubt. Check out Golf Digest Schools for the best in video golf instruction WATCH: GOLF DIGEST VIDEOS See the video. 7 Bets You Should Make on the Open Championship


FALLS CHURCH, Va. (AP)   Prosecutors won't call former national security adviser Michael Flynn to testify at the upcoming trial of his one-time business partner, and now consider him to be an unindicted co-conspirator. Court documents unsealed Tuesday in federal court in Alexandria show prosecutors changed their minds about putting Flynn on the stand at next week's trial of Bijan Kian . Flynn's lawyers have objected to the about-face, and say prosecutors wanted him to take the stand and admit things that weren't true. They say the change may also cause problems for Flynn at his own upcoming sentencing, which was postponed so the judge could take into account Flynn's level of cooperation at the Kian trial. Flynn's lawyer, Jesse Binnall, pointed out that prosecutors said explicitly at a June 13 hearing that they did not consider Flynn to be a co-conspirator in the case. Binnall said it's wrong for the government to reverse that assessment simply because they don't find his testimony to be useful. "(T)he government's reversal also sounds an alarm of potential retaliation and may have ramifications for Mr. Flynn beyond this trial," Binnall wrote. Kian is charged with illegally acting as a foreign agent. Prosecutors say Kian was acting at the Turkish government's behest when he persuaded Flynn to write a November 2016 op-ed piece critical of Fethullah Gulen, a cleric living in the U.S. who is a nemesis of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The legal advice Flynn and Kian received about whether they were required to register as foreign agents   and its admissibility at trial   has been a major issue in pretrial proceedings. After the op-ed piece ran, government lawyers contacted Flynn and Kian's joint business, Flynn Intel Group, and questioned whether they needed to register as foreign agents. Flynn Intel Group ultimately registered under the Foreign Agents Registration Act. But the indictment alleges that Kian knowingly made false statements to his lawyers and on the FARA registration form. Binnall says that when Flynn made the FARA application, he thought at the time he was providing accurate information. Binnall said prosecutors wanted Flynn to admit that he knew the statements were false at the time he made them. "Mr. Flynn cannot give that testimony because it is not true," Binnall said. Flynn pleaded guilty in December 2017 to lying about his contacts with Russians in the months between Donald Trump's election and his inauguration in a separate case brought by then-special counsel Robert Mueller. Flynn had been an outspoken foreign policy adviser to Trump during the 2016 campaign and served briefly in the administration as national security adviser before questions about his dealings with Russia forced him to resign. Kian's lawyers, for their part, say the case against their client is built largely on information provided by Flynn and the case is weak because Flynn can't be trusted to tell the truth. "The government has belatedly realized what should have been clear all along   Flynn is not to be believed," Kian's lawyers wrote.


Welcome to the Wednesday edition of The Cooler, where it's time to spend some time on the ice. Let's get to it: *When Wild general manager Paul Fenton embarked on a roster shakeup in the middle of last season, the intent seemed clear on two fronts: 1) See if an injection of new blood would create a better dynamic down the stretch that might propel the team into the playoffs and spark a run; 2) Add a combination of youth and payroll flexibility to pave the way for a bigger shift in direction during the offseason. Number 1 obviously didn't happen. Number 2 is coming into focus but still in question. Barring anything dramatic (like, say, a Jason Zucker trade that still hasn't happened amid chatter that has died down), the Wild's offseason activity might be drawing to a close. Sure, Minnesota has a couple more notable restricted free agents to sign (Joel Eriksson Ek and Kevin Fiala), but after signing Ryan Donato on Tuesday the others can't be far behind. As such, we are in position to take a look at where the Wild stands with payroll, talent and flexibility in order to judge (at least to this point) the net result of the reshuffling that began in earnest six months ago. Note: Salaries are yearly cap hits and length of remaining contract includes 2019-20. Estimates for Eriksson Ek and Fiala via Evolving Hockey). KEY SUBTRACTIONS Mikael Granlund ($5.75 million, 1 year left); Nino Niederreiter ($5.25 million, 3 years left); Charlie Coyle ($3.2 million, 1 year left). KEY ADDITIONS Ryan Donato ($1.9 million, 2 years left); Kevin Fiala (Estimated $3.1 million, 2 years left); Victor Rask ($4 million, 3 years left); Mats Zuccarello, $6 million, 5 years left); Ryan Hartman ($1.9 million, 2 years left). OTHER NOTABLE DECISIONS Eric Staal (2-year extension, $3.25M per year); Joel Eriksson Ek (estimated 2-year deal as RFA at $1.35M per year). So: Had the Wild kept the status quo -- no trades, no outside free agent signings, keeping Eriksson Ek, they would have been on the hook for about $15.5 million in salary in 2019-20 with Granlund, Nino, Coyle and Ek. That would have diminished to $6.6 million in 2020-21 had they let Coyle and Granlund walk in free agency. As it stands (estimated), the Wild will be on the hook for $18.25 million next season between Donato, Fiala, Rask, Zuccarello, Hartman and Ek, and the same number in 2020-21. (I'm not sure if the Staal re-signing fits into either equation, but it felt strange to leave it off the decision list). If we keep Hartman (a low-leverage signing) and Eriksson Ek out of it, it looks like this: $14.2 million status quo in 2019-20 with Granlund, Coyle and Nino, which is down to just one player (Nino) and $5.25M beyond next year. $15 million (estimated) in 2019-20 and 2020-21 for Donato, Fiala, Rask and Zuccarello, with longer-term commitments to both Rask and Zuccarello. I think it's fair to say the Wild would need to get a jump from two out of the three of Donato, Fiala and Rask next season to feel better about their short-term lineup vs. what they would have had by doing nothing. And the bigger-picture question: Would you rather have Donato, Fiala, Rask and Zuccarello in 2020-21 for $15 million or would you rather have Niederreiter and $10 million more in cap space -- which is what the Wild would have had just by playing out this coming season and letting Granlund and Coyle walk? Framing it that way reinforces the bets Fenton is making on his ability to evaluate talent and try to remake this roster on the fly. Because in terms of cap flexibility, the Wild sure seems to have less of it than when the reshuffling started. *Want to go in a completely different direction from the last 500 words? Here's a picture of Jack White and other members of The Raconteurs taking in Tuesday's Twins game a night after playing The Armory. *I'll take a hard pass on the Face App that makes us all look old, particularly if it's the Russians trying to gather data on us. But then I'll contradict myself temporarily to show you old Aaron Rodgers. *Bill Simmons is trying to build the case for Chris Paul to the Wolves by floating the idea that all it would take is Gorgui Dieng and Jeff Teague. ___ (c)2019 the Star Tribune (Minneapolis) Visit the Star Tribune (Minneapolis) at www.startribune.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.


Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has sometimes used her personal email accounts for government business and has not always properly saved the messages, according to an internal investigation released Monday. The agency's Office of Inspector General, which was investigating at the request of House Democrats, said it searched the department's email system and found a "limited" number of messages to or from DeVos' personal accounts. In total, it said there were "fewer than 100" emails linked to four personal accounts. Most of the emails were from the first six months of 2017, soon after DeVos took office, and most were from a single person, the inquiry found. The person, who was not identified in the report, was writing to recommend candidates for agency jobs. Other emails were from people who congratulated DeVos on her confirmation or offered other job advice. In total, investigators said they identified six emails sent by DeVos on private accounts, including five that involved official agency business. The inquiry concluded that there was no evidence of "active or extensive" use of DeVos' personal accounts. The secretary's office told investigators it was taking "additional steps to identify and preserve" emails in her personal accounts. A department spokeswoman declined to comment for this story. Under department rules, employees are forbidden from using personal emails for government business except in rare circumstances when their work accounts are unavailable. In those cases, employees are required to forward the messages to their work accounts within 20 days. But in DeVos' case, the report said, that never happened. "We did not identify any instances where the secretary forwarded emails from her personal accounts to her department email accounts," the report said. It added that "the secretary's emails related to government business were not always being properly preserved." The inspector general's office urged the department to improve its training on the issue. It said there was no other evidence of irregularities around the use of personal emails. During his 2016 campaign, President Donald Trump repeatedly attacked Democratic rival Hillary Clinton over findings that she used a private email server for work while she was secretary of state. At rallies, Trump often called for her prosecution and led supporters in chants of "lock her up!" The Education Department review was requested in October 2017 by Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn. The inspector general's office said it was unable to begin work until "well into 2018" because of staffing challenges. ___ Follow Collin Binkley on Twitter at https://twitter.com/cbinkley


HOUSTON   A 17-year-old man was charged with littering after two Houston Police officers said he and his 18-year-old girlfriend allegedly tossed a loaded gun out of a car. The incident happened on Sunday afternoon in the 7200 block of Tobruk Lane. According to police, Anthony Gutierrez was driving with his girlfriend Rosemary Flores, when Guiterrez allegedly committed a minor traffic violation. Police said they were trying to pull the car over, but when Guiterrez saw the police car he allegedly told Flores to toss the weapon out the window. Police pulled over Gutierrez who allegedly admitted to officers that he told Flores to throw the weapon out. According to the Texas Penal Code , it's a Class A Misdemeanor if anyone under the age of 18-years old is found carrying a weapon, which is punishable with up to a year in jail and a $4,000 fine The officers retrieved the weapon and arrested both Gutierrez and Flores, and took them in to be processed into the jail. Police contacted the Harris County District Attorney's Office intake division, and were told a crime hadn't been committed and that Gutierrez was abandoning the gun , KPRC reported. Wish I was making this up. Officers are stopping a car, suspects throw a GUN out the window. Officers detain and contact DA's office for unlawful carrying of a weapon (gun in plain view). DA refuses all charges! Officers had to lock them up for...wait for it....littering...a GUN!   Joe Gamaldi (@JoeGamaldi) May 21, 2019 To ensure the weapon was taken off the street, police charged the teens with littering, officials said. On Wednesday, the Harris County DA's office released the following statement: "We have taken an additional look at this matter and today filed a charge against the 17-year-old driver of carrying a handgun in a vehicle, in this case, the violation being that the weapon was in plain view as opposed to being concealed. This is a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail and a $4,000 fine." Send your news tips and story ideas to bryan.kirk@patch.com


A man is in the hospital after an officer-involved shooting in Madisonville Thursday, police said. The shooting took place around 10 a.m. near Bramble Park when two officers responded to a report of a man in the park acting erratically with a knife. The officers encountered the man in the parking lot and shots were fired. Police Chief Elliot Isaac said at least one officer fired a shot. The man was taken to the hospital with multiple gunshot wounds and is in surgery. No officers were injured, police said. Police said several witnesses on the scene will be interviewed. Police said there are no other suspects. Police said they will continue to investigate and collect evidence at the scene. A follow-up press conference will be held Friday, police said. Bramble Avenue has been reopened. WLWT will continue to update this story with more information as it comes in. READ MORE: Police: Man accused of acting erratically with knife shot by officers in Madisonville CHECK OUT WLWT: Stay in the know. Get the latest Cincinnati news, weather and sports from the team at Ohio's own WLWT.


Trent Alexander-Arnold admitted that he is 'just another boy from Liverpool whose dreams came true' after the Reds claimed their sixth Champions League title on Saturday. Jurgen Klopp's side overcame Premier League rivals Tottenham with a 2-0 victory in Madrid, with Mohamed Salah's early penalty and a late second from Divock Origi enough to seal the victory. Just a normal lad from Liverpool whose dream has just come true  #YNWA #UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/DOIPwVkdkA   Trent Arnold (@trentaa98) June 1, 2019 Virgil van Dijk turned in a man-of-the-match display in defence, alongside Alexander-Arnold who was another star performer at right back and, as quoted by Marca , the 20-year-old said after the game: "I'm just another boy from Liverpool whose dreams have come true." The quality of the game was widely said to have fallen below the expected level of a Champions League final, with neither side able to take firm control over proceedings at the Wanda Metropolitano, but Alexander-Arnold insisted: "When we look back we won't remember that it was a boring game. "We'll remember that we won the Champions League. It's hard to describe [how I feel] with words. After the season we had, we deserved this title more than anyone. Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold are ready to be interviewed by @DesKellyBTS ... He insists they join the rest of their teammates to celebrate with the fans  You can't take that moment away from them! ❤ pic.twitter.com/gpfZXhTMkJ   Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) June 1, 2019 "We've done something special and we dominated the game." Alexander-Arnold appeared in his second Champions League final in two seasons on Saturday, having been a part of the Liverpool side which lost 3-1 to Real Madrid in last season's showpiece event.  Trent Alexander-Arnold:  16 assists in all competitions this season...  Set to become 1st player aged under 21 to start consecutive finals! #UCLfinal | @LFC | @trentaa98 pic.twitter.com/xAVhgWUufU   #UCLfinal (@ChampionsLeague) June 1, 2019 Saturday's triumph is the latest instalment in what continues to be a meteoric rise for the young defender, who also played a key role in Liverpool's stunning comeback victory against Barcelona in the semi-finals to guide his side to the final.


BOSTON (AP) Torey Krug flew down the ice with his helmet off, like his big, bad predecessors on the Boston defense from the days of Eddie Shore and Bobby Orr. He lined up St. Louis center Robert Thomas and knocked him off his skates, delighting the crowd and sending an unmistakable message to rest of the Blues: The Bruins had woken up from their 11-day layoff, and they were ready to fight for the Stanley Cup. ''I think it gave our team energy, and that's all you're trying to do out there,'' Krug said after Boston rallied from a two-goal deficit to beat St. Louis 4-2 in Game 1 on Monday night. ''Hopefully it gave the guys a boost on the bench.'' Sean Kuraly scored to break a third-period tie and assisted on another goal, and Tuukka Rask stopped 18 shots to help the Bruins complete their comeback from a two-goal deficit. Game 2 in the best-of-seven series is Wednesday night. Forty-nine years after Bobby Orr flew through the air to beat the Blues for the 1970 NHL title, the Bruins got goals from defensemen Connor Clifton and Charlie McAvoy. Brad Marchand added an empty netter with about three minutes left, but the unofficial clincher came when Krug got up off the ice after losing his helmet in a tussle with David Perron in front of the Boston net. ''You know, you don't want to mess with that guy,'' Clifton said. ''Don't make that guy mad.'' Jordan Binnington made 34 saves for the Blues, who haven't been back to the final since getting swept by Boston in 1970. But it was Boston which was struggling with a long layoff - at least early on. Idle since May 16, when they completed their sweep of the Carolina Hurricanes, the Bruins spotted St. Louis a two-goal lead before snapping out of their slumber. Brayden Schenn made it 1-0 lead midway through the first period on a third-chance shot. In the first minute of the second, David Pastrnak got sloppy behind the Bruins' net and Schenn was there again, this time to pass it to Vladimir Tarasenko in the slot to make it 2-0. ''I think we can be even better, and we have to be,'' Perron said. Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy admitted that the long layoff since the Eastern Conference finals may have left his team rusty. ''The time off, you don't have your edge yet to battle,'' he said. ''We weren't too happy with the way the game was going. We weren't playing our game. We weren't playing to our standard. And I think after the second goal, that kind of woke us up.'' The Bruins went on to outshoot the Blues 18-3 in the second period, finishing the game with a 38-20 edge. ''I was pretty much a spectator after that,'' Rask said. Just 76 seconds after Tarasenko's goal, Clifton tipped in a pass from Kuraly to cut the deficit to one. And in the middle of the second, on the Bruins' fourth power play of the game, McAvoy came right up the middle and wristed it past Binnington's glove to tie it. It was still tied five minutes into the third when Noel Acciari, on Binnington's left, made a spin move and swept the puck across the crease to Kuraly. He steadied it with his skate and then poked it in with his stick to give the Bruins their first lead of the game. ''In the second period we stopped skating, turned it over and gave them momentum,'' Blues coach Craig Berube said. ''I thought they were the better team after that.'' Notes: Zdeno Chara had a cut on his left arm where he was hit by Tarasenko's shot. He said it required a few stitches but was not a big deal. ... Lil Nas X and Chase Rice, who performed a concert in City Hall Plaza before the game, were in attendance. They both got big cheers when shown on the video board, and the crowd erupted when Rice chugged a beer. ... Members of the Bruins' 2011 Stanley Cup championship team took part in pregame banner ceremonies. Five players on the current roster were on that team: Rask, Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, David Krejci and Chara. ... The Blues scored the first goal for the 14th time in 20 playoff games. They had been 10-3 when scoring first, and 6-1 when leading after the first period. ... Blues D Vince Dunn missed his fourth straight game with an unspecified injury. ... Binnington stopped 83 of the previous 85 shots he faced through one period, dating back to Game 4 of the Western Conference finals. UP NEXT The Bruins would be halfway to their seventh NHL title with victory on Wednesday night at home. It would be their first since 2011. They lost to Chicago in the 2013 final. --- More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP-Sports


Ten people from Florida and other states have been convicted and sentenced for their roles in a money laundering ring that included identity theft and credit card fraud, netting more than $1.5 million in profits. Among the expenses charged on fraudulently obtained credit cards, the U.S. Attorney's Office said: a Rolex watch valued at $14,065; spa services and other items at Acqualina Resort and Spa in Sunny Isles Beach that cost $1,299; and eye surgery totaling about $5,000. In April 2018, the 10 involved were indicted on federal charges including conspiracy to commit access device fraud, producing, using, and trafficking in counterfeit access devices and aggravated identity theft. According to the feds, the group "used the personal identifying information of other individuals to open credit card accounts without the victims' knowledge or consent." They then used the cards to purchase various items and services. One of the defendants "used fraud proceeds and laundered funds to purchase property in Davie that was valued at more than $600,000," the U.S. Attorney's Office said. The 10 people charged are: Noe Reina De La Cruz, 28, of Doral; Raul Gil-Rodriguez, 36, formerly of Paramus, New Jersey; Ney Antonio Lopez De La Cruz, 25, of Doral; Domingo Reyes, 41, formerly of Doral and New York; Yousef Michi, 35, of New York; Esteban Ochoa, 35, of New York; Vantroy Sanchez, 40, of New York; Jeffrey Batista, 28, of New York; Carlos David Franco, 32, of Miami; and Pedro De La Cruz, 49, of New York. On Thursday, the last two of the group were sentenced for their role in the crime. Gil-Rodriguez, who was considered one of two leaders of the ring, was given just over eight years in jail. Reyes was sentenced to four years in jail. The remaining eight received punishments ranging from probation to eight years in jail. The defendants were also ordered "to pay restitution, special assessments, and forfeiture money judgments that totaled more than $1.5 million," according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.     ©2019 Miami Herald Visit Miami Herald at www.miamiherald.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.


California on Friday led a group of 20 states in requesting that a federal judge stop President Trump from diverting federal funds to build his wall on the southern border. The state attorneys general announced their request for the preliminary injunction as Trump traveled to California to visit a segment of the border wall. In the filing, the states argue that Trump's declaration of a national emergency in order to divert federal funding to the wall from other sources is unconstitutional, and that construction of the wall under those circumstances would cause irreparable damage. "Notwithstanding the president's expressed frustration with Congress and the legislative process, he must act in accordance with the procedures established in the Constitution to obtain funding for his border wall," the filing reads. The states also claim that construction of the wall could cause "possible irreparable harm to endangered species" living near the border, and that the administration has violated the National Environmental Policy Act by not studying the potential environmental impact of the wall. The states' request came just hours after the American Civil Liberties Union also asked a federal judge to implement a preliminary national injunction to halt construction of the border wall. Trump declared a national emergency earlier this year following shortly after a 35 day partial government shutdown after Congress refused to pass a funding bill granting him his requested amount of funding to construct the border wall. Attorney General William Barr said at the time that Trump had the legal authority and standing to declare the national emergency. And Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and other immigration officials have since called the situation at the border a crisis. Trump earlier this week threatened to shut down the border with Mexico. But he later backed off that position, saying that he will give Mexico a year to stem illegal immigration and drug trafficking happening on the southern border.


The Phillies have placed southpaw Adam Morgan on the 10-day injured list with a flexor strain. His placement, which opens a roster spot for the activation of just-acquired outfielder Corey Dickerson , is retroactive to the first of the month. It isn't known how long Morgan will be down, but it's disappointing news nevertheless for a club that has been racked by bullpen injuries and performance downturns. The 29-year-old hurler isn't exactly a premium late-inning arm, but he was an important part of the relief picture for the Phils. Since converting full-time to a bullpen role in the 2017 campaign, Morgan has produced 133 2/3 innings of 3.97 ERA ball in Philadelphia. He's carrying 9.6 K/9 against 3.4 BB/9 in that run. It has been much of the same this year, with Morgan turning in solid but hardly dominant overall work. That characterization tends to understate Morgan's value. He has jumped up to a 15.4% swinging-strike after a dip in 2018. And while he's a marginal performer against right-handed hitters, he has largely dominated lefties. This year, they're slashing a putrid .143/.150/.204. They struggled to meager .267/.350/.314 and .193/.245/.352 slashes in the prior two seasons. In sum, Morgan is an important match-up piece for a team that will need to squeeze out close victories if it's to reach the postseason. Without him, the club will rely upon Jose Alvarez and Ranger Suarez as lefty relief options.


Everyone and their mother is trying CBD, likely in search of the promised benefits of anxiety relief, better sleep and calming inflammation. 32 things you need to know about CBD before you try it Seems like everyone is curious about trying CBD, likely in search of the promised benefits of anxiety relief , better sleep and calming inflammation. Some health claims have gotten out of hand   CBD cannot, for instance, save you from cancer   and the buzz around the substance seems to be growing. Why is everyone so obsessed with CBD? It helps that the substance just sounds cool. CBD's appeal is bolstered by its adaptability to some trend-forward products: vape pens, vegan cupcakes and coconut sugar-sweetened lattes, to name a few. And besides grasping at food trends , CBD has found its way into non-edible wellness trends as well, including essential oils, soaps and spa treatments . Many people believe that CBD is legal everywhere, too, and that it's safer. But that may not be true. In fact, there's a lot about this substance that consumers don't know. Before you decide to incorporate CBD into your wellness routine , click through the slideshow above for everything you need to know about the substance. CBD is just one compound CBD is an abbreviation that refers to cannabidiol, one of 113 cannabinoid compounds that have been discovered in the cannabis plant. Products such as CBD supplements and oils contain concentrated versions of cannabidiol. Research suggests that CBD may have an effect on the body. However, many claims about the compound have yet to be backed by sufficient bodies of research. CBD affects your body and your brain Other types of cannabinoid are produced in your body naturally already. These compounds interact with two specific chemical receptors: CB1 receptors, which are largely concentrated in the central nervous system, and CB2 receptors, which are less prevalent in the brain but more common in tissues of the immune and digestive systems . CBD appears to influence these receptors to attach to more of the body's natural cannabinoids, though research on the exact mechanism is still a little hazy. These compounds are different from CBD, and CBD itself does not appear to attach to either receptor. CBD has links to inflammation These two receptors, CB1 and CB2, are related to certain inflammatory responses in the body. Some research suggests that whatever happens between CBD and these receptors helps to modulate inflammation, and this appears to be particularly true after a trauma. Inflammation can be triggered by any number of things   eating certain foods , drinking too much alcohol, or experiencing emotional stress, for example   and it is a symptom of a number of serious health issues . For this reason, many have touted CBD as a miracle drug that can help to prevent disease. However, there is little to no research on humans to support claims about specific diseases. "Technically speaking, no CBD product can make a legal health claim," says David Cunic, licensed physical therapist and cannabis industry expert. "They might give suggestions or say it 'might help,' but they cannot make any certified claims. If any CBD product makes any guarantees or definitive health claims, then I recommend staying away from it." Many people turn to CBD to treat anxiety One of the more popular claims about CBD is that it can help tame anxiety. Anecdotal accounts swear that it works , and there is some preliminary research showing that CBD has potential for mitigating symptoms. The key word here is preliminary   more research is needed before any advice to take it can be considered science-backed or trustworthy. Some caveats: Doctors have long warned against people with anxiety ingesting THC, as it could trigger paranoia or panic. More on this later, but some CBD products on the market do contain THC. Using a purer form of CBD that doesn't have THC may be advisable for those with an anxiety disorder . It's also worth noting that anxiety is a psychological condition that should be diagnosed and treated with the aid of a health professional. Taking mental health treatment into your own hands   and relying on substances to do so   is not advised. CBD can't get you high CBD is very different from THC, another compound found in cannabis, and its effects are also different. THC is the key active ingredient in marijuana and it possesses the psychoactive properties of the drug. In other words, THC makes you feel high   but CBD does not possess these psychoactive properties. However, if a CBD-infused product also contains THC, the product may be psychoactive. CBD products could be hiding THC How can you tell whether or not there's THC in your CBD product? Well, in theory there shouldn't be very much. According to a review published in the journal Epilepsy & Behavior and a release by the FDA, federal law restricts producers to a concentration of below 0.3 percent THC in a CBD-labeled product. However, research published in JAMA shows that many products far exceed this limit without disclosing on the label. In fact, many of the CBD products tested had enough THC included to intoxicate or impair users   and would have particularly strong effects in children. Since regulatory agencies are struggling to keep up with the booming market, it's hard to tell for sure whether the THC content in the product you've acquired is as low as the company claims. CBD products could cause you to fail a drug test Using CBD products can actually cause you to fail a drug test   not because CBD itself shows up on testing, but because of THC in the product. If a CBD product has more than the mandated level, you could be taking in a level of THC that sends you over the edge. You really need to check the label There's a lot to consider when reading the label, but you definitely want to ensure that the levels of CBD and other chemicals are listed. A label from any reputable company will list how much THC remains in the product, or at least state that it is below the 0.3 percent legal limit. "If you're buying a product and they don't even have that on the label, it's a pretty big red flag," says Jake Black, who holds a doctorate in organic chemistry from Yale University and serves as chief scientific officer at Treehouse Hemp . "There are a lot of bad actors out there, unfortunately. There's a lot of confusion about THC levels, the processing and what's actually being done to get that THC level below the legal limit." Research shows that actual levels of THC present in CBD products vary wildly between companies. Black recommends doing more research on your chosen product before you trust what you read. There's no exact science to choosing your dose Since CBD isn't a legal supplement or a doctor-approved prescription, there aren't any real recommended doses. So unfortunately, finding out which dosage is right for you is a messy process of trial and error. "First, research the appropriate dosage ranges," advises Greg Dicum, co-founder of Cultivating Wellness , a CBD market research company. "Then try it; if it works, scale back the dose a bit. If it's not working, scale it up. The goal is to find the minimum effective dose and go with that." Researching appropriate dosage ranges can get tricky, since there's so much conflicting information online. And since there's no medical consensus, CBD suppliers often offer their own recommendations. "I generally encourage my patients to start with between 20 and 50 total milligrams daily in divided doses," says Dr. Peter Swanz, board-certified naturopathic physician and advisory board member of CBD brand Onyx & Rose . "Ten milligrams in the morning, 10 milligrams in the afternoon and 10 milligrams in the evening. We then adjust the dose weekly or every couple of weeks until we reach a dose that is achieving the results we are looking for." There are 3 main types of CBD You might have seen the words "full-spectrum," "broad-spectrum," and "isolate" tossed around in relation to CBD. Since the industry is so new, these distinctions are an evolving concept. But generally speaking, these are the three types of concentrated CBD you might see on the market. And it makes kind of a big difference which one you choose. Isolate is the purest form "Isolate" in chemistry refers to the purest form of a substance. CBD isolate is concentrated CBD in its purest possible form. There should be no fatty acids, proteins or turpines from the plant in the product. Some isolate products are intentionally diluted by the selling company   so you still need to check the CBD content listed on the label. Full-spectrum CBD has more compounds involved Those who swear by full-spectrum CBD are focused on the fact that purifying hemp extract into CBD isolate removes a lot of other plant material   and they claim that this plant material could be good for you to ingest alongside CBD. Black, the organic chemist, compares the concept to eating a vitamin C pill versus eating an orange . There are other nutrients in the orange you might want, as well. "In a full-spectrum extract, in addition to CBD, the product should include other cannabanoids, the turpines from the plant (responsible for the smell of different strains of hemp and cannabis), and some fatty acids or proteins from the plant," Black says. These other compounds are purported to help your body to absorb more of CBD's benefits or produce other positive effects in the body. "It's been shown that the medicinal effects of full-spectrum products are not equal to the medicinal effects of pure CBD," Black says. There's no agreed-upon meaning of the word 'full-spectrum' While "full-spectrum" is a widely-used term, it's become problematic. "There's not really an accepted definition or legal definition of what the word 'full-spectrum' means," Black says. "It's come to mean whatever your particular part of the internet thinks it is. You can read 100 different blog posts with 100 different definitions." For some sellers, in order to qualify something as full-spectrum the plant itself must remain intact. Other people believe that if they add certain ingredients, such as MCT oil and separately obtained turpines, to a CBD isolate, it still counts as a full-spectrum extract. Some sellers will even dilute the product heavily in an oil such as coconut oil or MCT oil, failing to list the CBD concentration on the label under the guise of "full-spectrum." This is why it's important for consumers to do their research. The same label may denote wildly different products   and wildly different doses of CBD. Broad-spectrum is a middle ground between the two Broad-spectrum CBD is a blend of the two concepts, isolate and full-spectrum. As with full-spectrum, there is no widely agreed upon definition. But generally speaking, broad-spectrum CBD products are more likely to have all of the THC removed. There are different methods of taking CBD There are a few different methods of incorporating CBD to choose from. An increasing variety of products are being developed by the day, but for now the most popular methods of taking CBD include using a tincture, inhaling CBD products through a vape, using CBD topically, eating CBD-infused foods and drinking water-soluble CBD beverages. A tincture is most popular A tincture is any concentrated plant extract mixed with a liquid solvent so that it can be administered in a precise dose using a dropper. Many people opt to use a tincture to drop small doses of CBD oil directly into the mouth below their tongue, though others opt to use it to drop CBD oil on other food items. You could even drop a bit of CBD on top of a slice of toast or into your coffee . Since this allows the consumer to avoid smoking anything and to have greater control over the dosage, this method tends to be more popular. Using a tincture can have side effects According to the National Institutes of Health , some reported side effects of using a tincture under the tongue include dry mouth, low blood pressure , light headedness, drowsiness and (in rare cases) signs of liver injury. Additionally, you want to check that the ingredients in the CBD oil you use aren't harmful. "If the CBD product that you are using has anything else in the ingredients other than possibly some natural flavoring, then you should probably look for a different type of CBD product," says Cunic, the physical therapist. "You want to make sure the CBD you use is a quality-grade product which contains no added chemicals, thinning agents, heavy metals, pesticides or fertilizers." There are benefits to using a tincture This method is one of the more popular ones for a few other reasons, as well. Since those who use a tincture often use a purer form of CBD, this can minimize risk of exposure to other compounds. Additionally, applying the CBD oil below the tongue allows it to be quickly absorbed through the skin. "Kind of like chewing tobacco or something like that, anecdotally the effect is much quicker than if it were to go through the digestive system," Black explains. You can inhale CBD with a vape pen Some opt to inhale CBD through a vape pen or other device. The smoked and inhaled solutions are made with CBD extract mixed with some type of solute. Since CBD is not able to dissolve in water, there aren't water-based solutions for these vapes. Rather, these solutions are made by mixing CBD with another substance such as propylene glycol, MCT oil or polyethylene glycol. There are some hidden dangers of vaping While vaping CBD is perceived as a healthier alternative to smoking, it could still pose serious health risks because of other chemicals. According to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry , propylene glycol does not have any known serious adverse effects, but some evidence suggests that propylene glycol may break down small amounts of dangerous compounds at higher temperatures. Other vaping solutions are made with MCT oil or polyethylene glycol, both of which studies have shown may produce acetaldehyde, a known carcinogen . There is another serious threat to be considered: contamination with other substances. Since these products are so unregulated, it's hard to be sure what compounds are used. The U.S. Army and North Carolina health officials both issued public warnings in 2018 against vaping CBD in response to 90 patients who reported serious side effects. These side effects included hallucinations, heart irregularities , nausea, vomiting, confusion and even loss of consciousness. Long story short: Smoking these things can be bad for you. And above all, make sure you know what's in the thing you're smoking! There are some perceived benefits of vaping Vaping or smoking CBD results in a quicker onset of its effects, since the substance goes directly into your lungs and enters your bloodstream from there. However, the effects also disappear more quickly. There are hopes in the medical community that CBD vaping can help those who wish to quit smoking. A study published in the journal Addictive Behaviors found that while those who used a placebo inhaler smoked the same number of cigarettes throughout the study, those who inhaled CBD reduced the number of cigarettes smoked by around 40 percent. However, these findings are preliminary, meaning more research is needed before this method of quitting tobacco can be safely recommended. CBD-infused foods are becoming popular Many cafes and small stores sell trendy treats and drinks they say are infused with CBD. CBD-infused lattes and baked goods are becoming increasingly popular, promising health benefits such as reduced anxiety and inflammation. Shipping these products across state lines is actually illegal   though, many companies do so anyway. The legal arena is pretty hazy around small cafes and local establishments selling CBD-infused foods and beverages in-house. Particular regulations on CBD vary by state and there isn't much enforcement of these regulations at the moment. However, these regulations are becoming stricter by the day. The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health announced that selling CBD-infused foods will cost businesses points on their health inspection. And according to a report by The New York Times , New York City, Maine and Ohio have all started to crack down and even confiscate CBD-infused foods. Water-soluble CBD beverages also exist You may have seen beverages that claim to contain CBD. "CBD extract by itself is insoluble in water. It would be like pouring olive oil in water   it just completely separates and will never mix," Black says. "But you can add substances such as surfactants that can blend the CBD with water more effectively." With these products, you can either add the CBD to your own beverage (like you might do with a packet of powdered lemonade) or purchase a beverage with the CBD already added. CBD affects you differently if you eat or drink it If you choose to ingest a food or drink infused with CBD, it will take longer for the substance to take effect than it would if you used a tincture or inhaled it. This is because the CBD must pass through and be absorbed through your digestive tract. Though it takes longer to become active, it will also have a longer and slower effect. You can use CBD topically for pain management Some skincare products, lotions or spa treatments administer CBD by applying it directly to the skin. Though there is preliminary evidence that it may help with pain management for conditions such as arthritis, there is a need for more research to decide whether these treatments are effective. Others opt to use CBD to treat headaches, muscle pain and skin conditions such as psoriasis. You should always request a certificate of analysis A certificate of analysis is lab-tested proof that a company is taking measures to ensure their product is safe and authentic. A certificate of analysis will tell whether the product has residual solvents, pesticides, heavy metals and a CBD content that aligns with the numbers printed on the label. It's best that these tests are performed by a third-party laboratory, rather than the company's own labs. "Because the FDA is not really regulating CBD right now, you can start a company and get away with selling something misleading until you get in trouble," Black says. "Reputable companies are generally very willing to show you their certificate of analysis." You can find these certificates online or through a barcode printed on the product that you can scan using your phone. CBD might interact with medications Like certain foods , CBD could interact with some medications. "CBD impacts the liver and the body's ability to process and detoxify from chemicals, including many pharmaceutical drugs," says Swanz, the naturopath. "This is particularly important for anyone taking medications such as blood thinners, anti-seizure medications and any medication related to the transplant of a new organ or tissue." According to the National Institutes of Health , CBD may significantly impact the way many common medications are processed by the body, including drugs such as antidepressants, hormonal therapies, antianxiety medication and migraine medication. Some drugs are more dangerous to combine with CBD than others, so make sure you consult the full list . You should also talk to your doctor about your use of CBD. The FDA has approved CBD to treat epilepsy Epilepsy is the only disease for which the FDA has approved CBD as a treatment. The agency did so in 2018 after three randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trials were assessed. Over 500 patients were involved in the studies. The drug Epidiolex, which administers CBD as an oral solution, is the only FDA-approved drug with CBD. It was cleared for children over the age of 2 as a treatment for seizures associated with two rare and severe forms of epilepsy, Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome. CBD is not FDA-approved to treat any other disease or condition The FDA is very clear that they do not approve CBD as an effective treatment for a disease or condition other than the exception of Epidiolex for epilepsy. "FDA continues to be concerned at the proliferation of products asserting to contain CBD that are marketed for therapeutic or medical uses," the FDA says in a statement . "Selling unapproved products with unsubstantiated therapeutic claims is not only a violation of the law, but also can put patients at risk." The FDA has started to crack down on CBD products The CBD industry has expanded without much regulation, and exponentially so in the past couple of years. But this trend may soon come to an end. Already the FDA has issued multiple warnings over the past couple of years to companies who violate the law in how they advertise or distribute their products. Some of these products make dozens of medical claims that cannot be supported (such as the effectiveness of CBD in treating illness). Some also administer unregulated levels of the compounds to humans or animals. These unsubstantiated claims are considered both dangerous and misleading by the FDA. The organization plans to hold a conference in May 2019 to address a new approach to CBD regulation. There are some dangers of CBD use Contrary to what many believe, there have been reports of negative health consequences associated with CBD. Those who have used CBD as a treatment for a medical condition have reported adverse health effects according to the FDA , but the agency says that additional research is needed, preferably under clinical trials. Additionally, other side effects of CBD have been reported anecdotally including irritability, tiredness, reduced appetite, gastrointestinal distress, rashes, breathing issues, liver problems and worsened mental health issues . More research is needed to investigate whether these somewhat rare side effects are of more serious concern. It's illegal to sell CBD as a supplement Some companies sell CBD as a dietary supplement, sometimes even adding a nutrition label to the package. The FDA has not approved CBD for this purpose, and it's actually illegal to advertise a CBD product as a supplement   partly because it's considered eligible for approval as a drug. The FDA expects to continue barring CBD as an active ingredient in a dietary supplement. Even with supplements that are legal and regulated, these regulations have their problems. If you're looking to add more supplements to your wellness routine, here's a look at everything you need to know before you take one . More from The Daily Meal: Hidden Dangers of the Keto Diet These Foods Can Mess With Your Medication Breakfast Mistakes You Didn't Know You Were Making 10 Signs You Should Cut Back on Coffee The Best Foods for Your Gut   and Why You Should Care


The Broncos have struggled to find the right footing offensively in recent seasons and much of the focus on turning that around has been on the quarterback position. Trevor Siemian , Paxton Lynch , Brock Osweiler and Case Keenum all started games while the team was missing the playoffs the last three seasons, but Joe Flacco and Drew Lock are the new hope at the position. All of that focus can cloud the need for the other 10 players on the field to play at a high level as well. One of those 10 players this year is going to be first-round pick Noah Fant . The tight end has moved right into the first team and the hope in Denver is that he can bring more playmaking ability to the offense. "I don't really feel pressure ," Fant said, via KUSA. "I feel like my expectations for myself are pretty high. I feel like when my expectations for myself exceed everyone else's, I don't really feel pressure from everyone else. But that's back by my work ethic and what I do out here every day and pushing myself." Rookie tight ends have often struggled as they transition from college to the pros. The Broncos will be much better off if Fant can find a way to buck that trend.


A Mansfield woman is behind bars, facing a charge of capital murder in the death of her 9-year-old niece. Mercia Sneed, 42, was arrested Saturday and charged with injury to a child not long after her niece Melodi Sneed was taken to Mansfield Methodist Hospital, where she later died of an unspecified cause. Good Samaritan Killed While Helping Stranded Driver At about 12:40 p.m. Saturday, Mansfield police were called to a home on the 4200 block of Eagle Drive where medics were providing CPR to a child reportedly suffering cardiac arrest. After officers arrived and assisted medics, Melodi was transported to the hospital where, at about 1:30 p.m., she was declared deceased. Homebuilder Sentenced to 50 Years in Prison for Hiding Money Mansfield police began an investigation into the girl's death and soon established a crime scene at the home. Mercia Sneed, the girl's aunt, was arrested and charged with injury to a child causing serious bodily injury and ordered held on $500,000 bond. According to a next-door neighbor, she had been staying with the family for a few days to try to get back on her feet. That neighbor said Sneed came over acting erratic Saturday afternoon, talking non-chalantly about a "baby not breathing." The child, her older sister and parents had just moved in earlier this month. People living nearby expressed their shock. "I was actually pretty sad too because it is a child, she's innocent. She still had life to go, to look forward to," Omar Cardoza said. On Wednesday, as the investigation unfolded, Mansfield police said the Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office ruled the child's death a homicide and that Sneed will now face a charge of capital murder. "This is very traumatic. That's why we're being very detailed with this. It's an extremely important case. A little 9-year-old girl has died, so we're going to be very thorough," Mansfield police Sgt. Travis Waybourn said. Neither investigators nor the medical examiner revealed any additional information about the case, including how the child died. Sneed, meanwhile, remains jailed in the Tarrant County Jail. Photo Credit: NBC 5 News/Tarrant County Sheriff's Office


Women mayors are on the rise in America According to the Rutgers University Center for American Women and Politics, as of February 2019, more than 20 percent of mayors in American cities with populations over 30,000, were women. While the political landscape is constantly evolving, more and more women are answering the call to service and representing their communities across the country. Here are just a few of those powerful female politicians. London Breed, San Francisco, Calif. After winning a special election on June 5, 2018, London Breed became the first black woman (and second woman ever) to be elected mayor of San Francisco. LaToya Cantrell, New Orleans, La. LaToya Cantrell (left) took office in May 2018, making her the first female mayor of New Orleans. Jane Castor, Tampa, Fla. Before she won the mayoral election earlier this year, Jane Castor was the first female police chief with the Tampa Police Department. Coincidently, she is also the first LGBTQ mayor in Tampa, Fla. Jenny Durkan, Seattle, Wash. Elected in 2017, Jenny Durkan became Seattle's first female mayor since the 1920s as well as the city's first lesbian mayor. Carolyn G. Goodman, Las Vegas, Nev. Carolyn G. Goodman has served as mayor of Las Vegas since 2011. Only the second female mayor of the city, Goodman overwhelming won this year's election for her third and final term. Keisha Lance Bottoms, Atlanta, Ga. Keisha Lance Bottoms took office in January 2018, beating a crowded field of candidates in Atlanta's 2017 mayoral election. Lori Lightfoot, Chicago, Ill. For the first time in Chicago's history, two black women faced off in a mayoral election. Lori Lightfoot defeated Toni Preckwinkle to take over the mayorship from Rahm Emanuel this May. She is the first black female mayor and first LGBTQ mayor. Betsy Price, Fort Worth, Texas Serving as mayor of Fort Worth, Texas, since 2011, Betsy Price ran unopposed in 2015 and was elected to a third consecutive term. Libby Schaaf, Oakland, Calif. Libby Schaaf is currently serving her second term as mayor in Oakland, Calif. She was re-elected in the 2018 election and is an outspoken critic of President Trump's immigration policies. Karen Weaver, Flint, Mich. Karen Weaver, the current mayor of Flint, Mich., is running for re-election this August, facing several challengers. Nan Whaley, Dayton, Ohio Although Nan Whatley decided to run for governor of Dayton, Ohio, in the 2018 election, she dropped out of the race and has remained mayor of the city.


Juan Rodriguez, the father of 1-year-old twins who died after he said he accidentally left them in his car all day while he was at work, made an emotional first court appearance on Saturday. The 39-year-old and his wife, Marissa, spent much of the proceedings in tears as he pleaded not guilty to charges of manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide. He sobbed throughout the court appearance, but began physically shaking when his lawyer mentioned the twins, Luna and Phoenix Rodriguez. He was ordered held on $50,000 cash or $100,000 bond. Rodriguez was able to make bail, and was released following the court appearance. Rodriguez, from Rockland County, just north of New York City, dropped his 4-year-old son off at a home in Westchester, New York, on Friday before driving to work as a licensed clinical social worker at James J. Peters VA Medical Center in the Bronx. Rodriguez told police he forgot his 1-year-old twins were strapped into their rear-facing car seats when he arrived for work at 8 a.m. When he returned to his car eight hours later to drive home, he "observed Luna and Phoenix in the above reference vehicle, strapped into their car seats, not moving, not breathing and both children appeared lifeless," according to court documents. Rodriguez called 911, but the children were pronounced dead on the scene at 4:10 p.m. The children's body temperatures were 108 degrees, according to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. "I assumed I dropped them off at daycare before I went to work," Rodriguez told officers who arrived on the scene, according to court documents. "I blanked out. My babies are dead; I killed my babies." Rodriguez did not speak during his court appearance Saturday evening, but his lawyer called the children's deaths "a tragedy of horrific proportions." "Certainly it's unimaginable, and at the time that I had occasion to speak to my client last night ... he was inconsolable," his lawyer, Joey Jackson, said in court. "He obviously is still in that state of mind. ... My client, under no circumstances, meant at all for this to occur. My client is married, his wife is here, in addition to numerous other family members, judge, who support him and love him dearly." "There's nothing here at all that is intentional and my client, if he could bring back time, certainly he would do that," Jackson continued. "I think in this world in which we live with so many, perhaps too many, distractions it just didn't have to happen. It did and it's most regrettable." Rodriguez, who works with veterans as a social worker, also is a member of the military and served in Iraq. His lawyer said he was injured during his tour, but is still a member of the National Guard. He also has two older children, a 16-year-old and 12-year-old. Rodriguez is also facing two misdemeanor counts of endangering the welfare of a child. Family and friends greeted the father when he was released from custody Saturday evening. He was met with cheers and several hugs as he was ushered into a car. "He's mindful that he has to live with this for the rest of his life," Jackson added. ABC News' Ben Stein contributed to this report.


Oakland Oakland is expected to reach temperatures in the mid-60s and up all week, according to the seven-day forecast from drone-powered weather service Saildrone . The temperature will climb to 70 degrees today and 68 degrees on Wednesday. Skies should stay partly cloudy through the next seven days. Winds will continue to be light over the course of the week, with the highest speeds on Saturday at only 12 mph. Want to take advantage of the weather? Check out these upcoming events and things to do in Oakland . This story was created automatically using Saildrone's local weather forecast data, then reviewed by an editor. We also incorporate historic weather data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.