Mentor

U.S. Supreme court rejects Republican bid to limit mail-in voting in Pennsylvania

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday allowed an extension of the deadline for mail-in absentee ballots in Pennsylvania for the Nov. 3 election, declining a Republican request to block a lower court's ruling that gave voters more time. The justices, divided 4-4, left in place a Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling in favor of state Democrats that had extended the deadline for state election officials to receive mail-in ballots postmarked by the evening of Election Day until three days afterward. The brief court order noted that four of the court's five conservative justices would have granted the request.

Boy, 13, shot and killed in Georgia by ski mask-wearing gunman while fixing lawnmower at home

Relatives say they were at a loss to find any conceivable motive for the shooting

Killer dubbed ‘Black Widow’ gets prison release 30 years after hit on estranged husband

Barbara Kogan organised killing to secure life insurance payout

Waitress’s private sex video shared by coworkers in Facebook group chat, NC suit says

The woman is seeking $100,000 for lost income and emotional duress, according to court filings.

A Broward poll worker tried to remove maskless voters. Elections chief let them vote

Police responded to an early voting site in Fort Lauderdale on Monday after a poll worker told four voters they couldn’t vote without masks. But after police consulted with Broward County Elections Supervisor Peter Antonacci, the voters were allowed back into the polling place to cast their ballots, still without masks on.

R. Kelly lawyers denied chance to question inmate who attacked singer in federal lockup

CHICAGO - Attorneys for R. Kelly will not get the chance to question an inmate who confessed to attacking the singer at a downtown jail in August, a federal judge ruled Monday. And Kelly's beating behind bars is not enough, on its own, to merit his release from the Metropolitan Correctional Center, U.S. District Judge Harry Leinenweber wrote. It was the latest rejection of Kelly's many ...

UK to start one-hour COVID-19 tests at airports from Tuesday - The Times

Rapid tests will be introduced from Tuesday at Heathrow Airport to allow travellers to enter countries where a negative COVID-19 test result is needed to skip quarantine, the newspaper said. Heathrow Airport did not immediately respond when contacted by Reuters.

'That '70s Show' star Danny Masterson must head to trial on charges he raped 3 women, judge rules

Danny Masterson, an actor on "That '70s Show," failed to get his Los Angeles rape case dismissed Monday and must appear for arraignment Nov. 2, a judge ruled Monday. The former sitcom star is accused of forcibly raping three women in separate incidents at his Hollywood Hills home between 2001 and 2003. His defense filed a demurrer motion that was denied by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge ...

Ireland aiming to return to Level 3 restrictions by December 1, PM says

The Irish government is aiming to return to Level 3 COVID-19 restrictions at the end of the six week period on the highest stage, Level 5, that will kick in this week, Prime Minister Micheal Martin said on Monday. In order to do so, the government will seek to consistently get the so-called "reproduction rate" that measures the number of people infected by someone who has tested positive below 1, Martin said.

U.S. CDC issues 'strong recommendation' for mask mandate on airplanes, trains

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday issued a "strong recommendation" that all passengers and employees on airplanes, trains, subways, buses, taxis and ride-share vehicles should wear masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The interim guidance also calls for facial coverings at transportation hubs like airports and train stations. "Broad and routine utilization of masks on our transportation systems will protect Americans and provide confidence that we can once again travel more safely even during this pandemic," the CDC said.

Montana federal prosecutor warns of dangers of pot legalization ahead of vote

Montana's top federal prosecutor is urging voters to tread carefully before voting to legalize recreational marijuana, taking the unusual step of jumping into a political debate about a ballot initiative in the weeks before the election. In an op-ed published in several newspapers in recent days and posted on the Justice Department's website on Monday, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme told voters they should "review in detail" a pair of ballot initiatives that would legalize cannabis for adults ages 21 and older, warning that marijuana is addictive, could lead to more traffic accidents and could even "increase the risk of severe complications from COVID-19." Smoking, whether marijuana or tobacco, could increase risk of severe COVID-19 due to potential for lung inflammation.

Mexico City warns of tighter COVID-19 restrictions

Mexico City's mayor on Monday warned tighter coronavirus curbs could come into effect later in the week as COVID-19 hospitalizations in the sprawling capital rose. "We still have time to take preventative measures to keep (hospitalizations) from increasing in the coming weeks," Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum told reporters, noting that hospital beds for coronavirus patients are just under half-full. Hospitalizations have ticked up for nearly 10 days, and officials are monitoring the trend this week to determine if it indicates an upswing of infections in Mexico's biggest urban hub - a metropolis of some 9 million people ringed by dense suburban sprawl.

U.S. Postal carrier charged with stealing Miami-Dade mail-in ballot, debit cards

A U.S. Postal Service carrier has been arrested on charges of stealing one Miami-Dade County mail-in ballot that was sent to a Miami Beach resident earlier this month, federal authorities said Monday.

U.S. House Speaker Pelosi, Mnuchin narrow differences on aid bill, Pelosi spokesman says

U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin "continued to narrow their differences" in a 53-minute telephone conversation Monday about a fresh coronavirus aid package, Pelosi's spokesman, Drew Hammill, wrote on Twitter. Pelosi hopes that by the end of Tuesday there will be "clarity" on whether a coronavirus stimulus bill can be passed before the Nov. 3 elections, Hammill wrote.

Priest and abstract-expressionist painter Bill Moore dies

Father Bill Moore, a Catholic priest and prominent abstract expressionist who spent decades spreading spiritualism through his paintings, has died at age 71. Moore died Sunday at a Southern California hospice, his longtime friend and art representative, Tom Irwin, told The Associated Press on Monday. A retrospective, “My Last Art Beat: Still Touching and Feeding Souls,” is on exhibit at the Progress Gallery in Pomona, California, until the end of October.

Two stolen lizards worth $75,000 are found a year after vanishing, California cops say

The Australian lace monitors can reach up to six feet in length.

Maxwell loses bid to keep sworn testimony under wraps

Ghislaine Maxwell has lost her legal battle to keep sworn depositions giving intimate details about her personal life under wraps. A federal appeals court upheld a decision from a lower court that the testimony given by the 58-year-old socialite and associate of disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein should be made public. Maxwell is currently being held at a Brooklyn prison awaiting trial on charges that she helped Epstein recruit underage girls as young as 14 to engage in sexual acts in the mid-1990s. She has pleaded not guilty. The documents relate to a deposition she gave in 2016 as part of a civil defamation case brought by one of Epstein's victims, Virginia Roberts Giuffre. Ms Giuffre alleges Epstein forced her to have sex with Prince Andrew and others when she was only 17. The Duke of York has denied the allegations.

Eleven U.S. states urge EPA to toughen planned airplane emissions rules

A group of 11 states and the District of Columbia on Monday urged the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to strengthen the first-ever proposed standards regulating greenhouse gas emissions from airplanes and other aircraft. The state attorneys general led by California said the EPA emissions rules proposed in July were "entirely insufficient." California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said the "sham proposal to regulate it is the equivalent of doing nothing."

Goldman Sachs gives staff half-day paid leave on U.S. election day

Goldman Sachs Group Inc is giving staff a half-day of paid leave on Nov. 3 to ensure they have time to vote in the U.S. elections, according to a staff memo seen by Reuters on Monday. "We recognize that the pandemic raises unique challenges for those who want to exercise this civic responsibility to vote safely and that is why we are providing our people the time and flexibility to vote on Election Day," Goldman's chief executive, David Solomon, said in the memo.

Ghislaine Maxwell loses fight to keep her Jeffrey Epstein testimony sealed

A three-judge appeal panel ruled that the deposition of Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged madam, should be unsealed, upholding a decision by a lower-court judge.

Veteran TV executive Channing Dungey jumps to Warner Bros.

Veteran TV industry executive Channing Dungey was named chairman of the Warner Bros. Television Group after tenures at ABC and Netflix in which she shepherded hit series including “Scandal." Dungey, who at ABC in 2016 became the first African American head of a network entertainment division, will succeed veteran Warner executive Peter Roth when he steps down from the post early next year, the company announced Monday. After an ABC career that spanned 14 years, including as a series development executive, Dungey was hired by Netflix in late 2018 as its vice president for original series.

All-female scientific coalition calls for protection of Antarctic Peninsula

Climate change and human activity are harming Antarctica and threatening wildlife from humpback whales to microscopic algae, more than 280 scientists and conservation experts say in urging protections for the icy region. The coalition - all women - called for creating a new marine protection area around Antarctica, as governments on Monday began a two-week meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources. Two Antarctica areas are already protected: The South Orkney Islands and the Ross Sea.

Man arrested after string of arson attempts on post office and city hall, SC cops say

SLED is joining in the investigation due to “the severity of the charges.”

Long-term problems in younger low-risk COVID-19 patients; flu shot may offer some protection

Young, healthy adults with COVID-19 who do not require hospitalization are still at risk for long-term health problems, Oxford University researchers found. At an average of 140 days after their symptoms began, 98% were still fatigued, 92% had heart and lung symptoms, 88% had muscle aches, 87% had breathlessness, 83% headaches, and 73% gastrointestinal symptoms. The researchers say their study, posted on Friday on medRxiv ahead of peer review, cannot prove the virus caused these later issues.

Aeroflot Airlines crew members helped smuggle $50 million worth of stolen iPads, iPhones, and more into Russia, a government investigation has found

The Department of State has revoked 113 visas of Aeroflot employees in connection to the smuggling scheme.

French faith leaders

Imam of Drancy Hassen Chalghoumi (3rd L) and French Jewish writer Marek Halter (C) attend a gathering of imams outside the Bois d'Aulne secondary school in homage to slain history teacher Samuel Paty, who was beheaded by an attacker for showing pupils cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed in his civics class

Disneyland unions tell California governor resort can be reopened safely

"We wrote you in June 2020 to tell you that we were not yet convinced that it was safe to reopen the parks on Disney’s timetable," the unions wrote in a letter dated Oct. 17. "Since then, Disney has taken safety measures we advocated, and engaged with their workers’ representatives, (such that) our original position has changed." The unions urged Newsom to direct the state’s task force in charge of theme park reopening to meet with them as part of the reopening process.

The US has charged 6 Russian hackers for a string of 'destructive' cyberattacks that targeted elections, shut down hospitals, and crippled a power grid

The six Russians are accused of comprising Sandworm, a Russian hacking collective that has wreaked havoc internationally but avoided prosecution.

13-year-old falls 20 floors off New York terrace while doing homework, police say

Details on how the boy fell are under investigation.

Police officer fired after ‘ties’ to neo-Nazi web forum revealed

Lafayette police department officials say they ‘missed’ an officer’s alleged racist comments on an extremist forum during a background investigation

France's new COVID-19 cases slow but deaths sharply up

France reported a massive increase of the number of people hospitalised with COVID-19 on Monday, while also becoming the eighth country in the world to report more than 900,000 cases since the start of the outbreak. Experts say it takes two weeks on average for containment measures to show their effectiveness.

Argentina set to hit one million coronavirus cases as recent spike strains healthcare system

Argentina is on track to become the fifth country in the world to exceed one million coronavirus cases, which would make it the smallest nation by far to reach the grim milestone, after infections accelerated in recent weeks. There were over 989,000 cases of the virus in the South American country by Sunday night, according to health ministry data. With a rolling daily average over 13,000 cases, that number is expected to top the million mark on Monday.

Police hold knife-wielding suspect at gunpoint on Hollywood studio lot, cops say

The sexual assault suspect got into a confrontation with police at the Paramount Pictures studio lot.

French COVID-19 ICU treatments above 2,000 threshold, at five-month high

French health authorities said the number of people treated in intensive care units for COVID-19 has gone beyond the 2,000 threshold on Monday, a first since May 17, with the renewed strain on the hospital system showing no signs of abating despite the partial curfew put in place since Saturday. France has reported soaring COVID-19 infections since thebeginning of September, prompting the government to put nine cities, including Paris, under an initial four-week curfew running from 9 pm to 6 am.

France's Ose to enrol up to 400 for 'T-cell' coronavirus vaccine trials

France's Ose Immunotherapeutics will enrol up to 400 patients for the first two stages of clinical trials of an experimental coronavirus vaccine it hopes will provide an extra weapon in battle against the global pandemic. Chief executive Alexis Peyroles told Reuters Ose hoped to roll out its vaccine in Europe and the United States in 2022, potentially at least a year after the most advanced projects. More than 40 drugmakers and research groups are conducting human trials into vaccines against a virus that has led to more than 1 million deaths and roiled economies.

Hungary to launch rapid COVID-19 testing this week: PM Orban

Hungary plans to launch rapid antigen tests for coronavirus infections possibly as soon as Tuesday, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Monday, as testing in the central European country has struggled to keep up with the pace of infections. Antigen tests detects proteins on the surface of the virus. "Together with our epidemiologists we are following what new testing methods are available in the world," Orban told parliament in response to an opposition lawmaker's question.

Retirees rally in Belarus against authoritarian president

About 3,000 retirees rallied in the Belarusian capital of Minsk for a third straight Monday to demand the resignation of authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko as mass protests of a disputed election continue to roil the country. On Monday, the country’s Interior Ministry threatened to use firearms against them “if need be,” saying the rallies “have become organized and extremely radical.”

Turkey's coronavirus cases back up to early-May levels

Turkey's daily number of new coronavirus cases increased to nearly 2,000 on Monday, reaching levels last seen in early May when restrictions were in place. Data from the Health Ministry showed another 1,958 people with COVID-19 symptoms had been diagnosed, as Ankara continues to report only symptomatic cases. Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said the daily number includes only those who show symptoms.