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On a rare two-game skid, No. 24 Arizona faces DavidsonA shareholder has sued Warner Bros. Discovery , the soon-to-be former home of the NBA , for violating securities law by misleading investors on the impact of losing its long-standing rights deal with the league. Richard Collura filed the suit in New York federal court seeking class action status on behalf of shareholders who purchased WBD stock between February 23 and August 7 of 2024, which is when the media giant took a massive $9.1 billion write-down at its networks segment related in part, it said, to losing the NBA on TNT. With linear television in decline, Paramount also took a large write-down in the same quarter. Under its existing 2014 deal with the NBA, TNT paid an annual average fee of $1.2 billion. 4. In 2024, the NBA entered advanced discussions with its various partners for a new round of media-rights deals that would last approximately a decade. WBD was unable to reach a new deal with the NBA before its exclusive negotiating window expired in April 2024, allowing the NBA to negotiate with other companies for its sports rights content, including, inter alia, NBC, which offered to pay an annual average fee of $2.5 billion, and Amazon, which offered to pay an annual average fee of $1.8 billion. The suit claims defendants, which also include WBD’s CEO David Zaslav and CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels , “made materially false and misleading statements regarding the company’s business, operations, and prospects,” during the period specified and “failed to disclose that WBD’s sports rights negotiations with the NBA were causing, or were likely to cause, the company to significantly reevaluate its business and goodwill.” Basically, it says the WBD defendants routinely “overstated WBD’s overall business and financial prospects” – like Zaslav stating on the first quarter call that WBD was “now on solid footing with a clear pathway to growth” and that the company is confident in its “ability to drive sustained operating momentum and enhanced shareholder value.” WBD’s stock price fell by 69 cents, or about 9.to close at $7.02 per share. It’s gained back ground since, closing Tuesday at $10.11. Bigger picture the shares have fallen precipitously since Discovery acquired Warner Media. “As a result of Defendants’ wrongful acts and omissions, and the precipitous decline in the market value of the Company’s securities, Plaintiff and other Class members have suffered significant losses and damages.” There were warnings about the business and sports rights in the company’s 10k and other filings, but the suit dismisses them as “generic” boilerplate that didn’t acknowledge the actual risk. WBD had also sued the NBA for awarding its package to Amazon and in that lawsuit said the loss of the rights deal would be devastating. (The NBA and WBD subsequently reached a settlement that includes putting NBA games on Max in some international markets and a related deal with ESPN, which also has a package, to keep Inside the NBA on air.) “During the Class Period, Defendants engaged in a plan, scheme, conspiracy and course of conduct, pursuant to which they knowingly or recklessly engaged in acts, transactions, practices and courses of business which operated as a fraud and deceit upon Plaintiff and the other members of the Class; made various untrue statements of material facts and omitted to state material facts ... [to] artificially inflate and maintain the market price of WBD securities,” the said claimed, seeking damages.A nation dedicated to propping up the superrich
Your black plastic kitchen utensils aren’t so toxic after all. But you should still toss them, group saysTrump Says Bill Gates Asked To Meet With Him In Bizarre Truth Social PostA shareholder has sued Warner Bros. Discovery , the soon-to-be former home of the NBA , for violating securities law by misleading investors on the impact of losing its long-standing rights deal with the league. Richard Collura filed the suit in New York federal court seeking class action status on behalf of shareholders who purchased WBD stock between February 23 and August 7 of 2024, which is when the media giant took a massive $9.1 billion write-down at its networks segment related in part, it said, to losing the NBA on TNT. With linear television in decline, Paramount also took a large write-down in the same quarter. Under its existing 2014 deal with the NBA, TNT paid an annual average fee of $1.2 billion. 4. In 2024, the NBA entered advanced discussions with its various partners for a new round of media-rights deals that would last approximately a decade. WBD was unable to reach a new deal with the NBA before its exclusive negotiating window expired in April 2024, allowing the NBA to negotiate with other companies for its sports rights content, including, inter alia, NBC, which offered to pay an annual average fee of $2.5 billion, and Amazon, which offered to pay an annual average fee of $1.8 billion. The suit claims defendants, which also include WBD’s CEO David Zaslav and CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels , “made materially false and misleading statements regarding the company’s business, operations, and prospects,” during the period specified and “failed to disclose that WBD’s sports rights negotiations with the NBA were causing, or were likely to cause, the company to significantly reevaluate its business and goodwill.” Basically, it says the WBD defendants routinely “overstated WBD’s overall business and financial prospects” – like Zaslav stating on the first quarter call that WBD was “now on solid footing with a clear pathway to growth” and that the company is confident in its “ability to drive sustained operating momentum and enhanced shareholder value.” WBD’s stock price fell by 69 cents, or about 9.to close at $7.02 per share. It’s gained back ground since, closing Tuesday at $10.11. Bigger picture the shares have fallen precipitously since Discovery acquired Warner Media. “As a result of Defendants’ wrongful acts and omissions, and the precipitous decline in the market value of the Company’s securities, Plaintiff and other Class members have suffered significant losses and damages.” There were warnings about the business and sports rights in the company’s 10k and other filings, but the suit dismisses them as “generic” boilerplate that didn’t acknowledge the actual risk. WBD had also sued the NBA for awarding its package to Amazon and in that lawsuit said the loss of the rights deal would be devastating. (The NBA and WBD subsequently reached a settlement that includes putting NBA games on Max in some international markets and a related deal with ESPN, which also has a package, to keep Inside the NBA on air.) “During the Class Period, Defendants engaged in a plan, scheme, conspiracy and course of conduct, pursuant to which they knowingly or recklessly engaged in acts, transactions, practices and courses of business which operated as a fraud and deceit upon Plaintiff and the other members of the Class; made various untrue statements of material facts and omitted to state material facts ... [to] artificially inflate and maintain the market price of WBD securities,” the said claimed, seeking damages.
Blues supporters also sang the name of head coach Maresca during the closing stages of an emphatic success sealed by goals from Axel Disasi, Christopher Nkunku, Noni Madueke, Cole Palmer and substitute Jadon Sancho. Bottom club Southampton briefly levelled through Joe Aribo but were a man down from the 39th minute after captain Jack Stephens was sent off for pulling the hair of Marc Cucurella. Chelsea, who have endured an underwhelming period since Todd Boehly’s consortium bought the club in 2022, climbed above Arsenal and into second place on goal difference, seven points behind leaders Liverpool. “It was a very good feeling, especially because you can see that they are happy, that is our target,” Maresca said of the atmosphere in the away end. “We work every day to keep them happy and tonight was a very good feeling, especially the one that they can see that Chelsea’s back. This is an important thing.” Maresca rotated his squad in Hampshire, making seven changes following Sunday’s impressive 3-0 win over Aston Villa. Following a sloppy start, his side, who stretched their unbeaten run to six top-flight games, could easily have won by more as they hit the woodwork three times, in addition to squandering a host of chances. “I’m very happy with the five we scored,” said the Italian. “I’m not happy with the first 15, 20 minutes, where we struggled. The reason why we struggled is because we prepared the game to press them man to man and the first 15, 20 minutes we were not pressing them man to man. “After 15, 20 minutes we adjust that and the game was much better. For sure we could score more but five goals they are enough.” Southampton manager Russell Martin rued a costly “moment of madness” from skipper Stephens. The defender’s ridiculous red card was the headline mistake of a catalogue of errors from the beleaguered south-coast club as they slipped seven points from safety following an 11th defeat of a dismal season. “I don’t think anyone will be as disappointed as Jack,” Martin said of Stephens, who was sent off for the second time this term after tugging the curls of Cucurella as Saints prepared to take a corner. “I haven’t got to sit down and talk with him about that at all. He will be hurt more than anyone and it’s changed the game for us tonight, which is disappointing. “I think they have to describe it as violent conduct; it’s not violent really but there’s no other explanation for that really. It’s a moment of madness that’s really cost us and Jack.” Southampton repeatedly invited pressure with their risky attempts to play out from defence, with goalkeeper Joe Lumley gifting Chelsea their second goal, scored by Nkunku. While Saints were booed off at full-time, Martin, who was missing a host of key players due to injuries and suspensions, praised the effort of his depleted team. “When they see such a big scoreline and a couple of the goals we concede, I understand it (the jeers),” he said. “It’s football, it’s emotive, people feel so much about it, it’s why it’s such a special sport in this country and so big. “I understand it but I feel really proud of the players tonight, some of the football we played at 11 v 11 was amazing. “For an hour with 10 men we’ve dug in so deep, there were some big performances. I’m proud of them for that and I’m grateful for that because that’s not easy in that circumstance.”
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By MICHELLE L. PRICE WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — An online spat between factions of Donald Trump’s supporters over immigration and the tech industry has thrown internal divisions in his political movement into public display, previewing the fissures and contradictory views his coalition could bring to the White House. The rift laid bare the tensions between the newest flank of Trump’s movement — wealthy members of the tech world including billionaire Elon Musk and fellow entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and their call for more highly skilled workers in their industry — and people in Trump’s Make America Great Again base who championed his hardline immigration policies. The debate touched off this week when Laura Loomer , a right-wing provocateur with a history of racist and conspiratorial comments, criticized Trump’s selection of Sriram Krishnan as an adviser on artificial intelligence policy in his coming administration. Krishnan favors the ability to bring more skilled immigrants into the U.S. Loomer declared the stance to be “not America First policy” and said the tech executives who have aligned themselves with Trump were doing so to enrich themselves. Much of the debate played out on the social media network X, which Musk owns. Loomer’s comments sparked a back-and-forth with venture capitalist and former PayPal executive David Sacks , whom Trump has tapped to be the “White House A.I. & Crypto Czar.” Musk and Ramaswamy, whom Trump has tasked with finding ways to cut the federal government , weighed in, defending the tech industry’s need to bring in foreign workers. It bloomed into a larger debate with more figures from the hard-right weighing in about the need to hire U.S. workers, whether values in American culture can produce the best engineers, free speech on the internet, the newfound influence tech figures have in Trump’s world and what his political movement stands for. Trump has not yet weighed in on the rift, and his presidential transition team did not respond to a message seeking comment. Musk, the world’s richest man who has grown remarkably close to the president-elect , was a central figure in the debate, not only for his stature in Trump’s movement but his stance on the tech industry’s hiring of foreign workers. Technology companies say H-1B visas for skilled workers, used by software engineers and others in the tech industry, are critical for hard-to-fill positions. But critics have said they undercut U.S. citizens who could take those jobs. Some on the right have called for the program to be eliminated, not expanded. Born in South Africa, Musk was once on an a H-1B visa himself and defended the industry’s need to bring in foreign workers. “There is a permanent shortage of excellent engineering talent,” he said in a post. “It is the fundamental limiting factor in Silicon Valley.” Related Articles National Politics | Should the U.S. increase immigration levels for highly skilled workers? National Politics | Trump threat to immigrant health care tempered by economic hopes National Politics | In states that ban abortion, social safety net programs often fail families National Politics | Court rules Georgia lawmakers can subpoena Fani Willis for information related to her Trump case National Politics | New 2025 laws hit hot topics from AI in movies to rapid-fire guns Trump’s own positions over the years have reflected the divide in his movement. His tough immigration policies, including his pledge for a mass deportation, were central to his winning presidential campaign. He has focused on immigrants who come into the U.S. illegally but he has also sought curbs on legal immigration , including family-based visas. As a presidential candidate in 2016, Trump called the H-1B visa program “very bad” and “unfair” for U.S. workers. After he became president, Trump in 2017 issued a “Buy American and Hire American” executive order , which directed Cabinet members to suggest changes to ensure H-1B visas were awarded to the highest-paid or most-skilled applicants to protect American workers. Trump’s businesses, however, have hired foreign workers, including waiters and cooks at his Mar-a-Lago club , and his social media company behind his Truth Social app has used the the H-1B program for highly skilled workers. During his 2024 campaign for president, as he made immigration his signature issue, Trump said immigrants in the country illegally are “poisoning the blood of our country” and promised to carry out the largest deportation operation in U.S. history. But in a sharp departure from his usual alarmist message around immigration generally, Trump told a podcast this year that he wants to give automatic green cards to foreign students who graduate from U.S. colleges. “I think you should get automatically, as part of your diploma, a green card to be able to stay in this country,” he told the “All-In” podcast with people from the venture capital and technology world. Those comments came on the cusp of Trump’s budding alliance with tech industry figures, but he did not make the idea a regular part of his campaign message or detail any plans to pursue such changes.
Adriana E. Ramírez: It is time to send in the clownsTORONTO, Nov. 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- POET Technologies Inc. (" POET " or the " Corporation ") (TSXV: PTK; NASDAQ: POET), the designer and developer of the POET Optical InterposerTM, Photonic Integrated Circuits (PICs) and light sources for the data center, tele-communication and artificial intelligence markets, today announces its intention to complete a registered direct offering pursuant to which the Corporation expects to issue 5,555,556 common shares (the " Common Shares ") and warrants exercisable for 2,777,778 Common Shares (the " Warrant " and, together with the Common Shares, the " Offered Securities "). The combined price of one Common Share and the accompanying Warrant in respect of one-half Common Share will be US$4.50 (or approximately C$6.29), to raise aggregate gross proceeds to the Corporation of US$25,000,002 (the " Offering "). The Warrant will be exercisable at an exercise price of US$6.00 (or approximately C$8.39) per Common Share for a period of five years from the date of issuance. The Corporation anticipates using the net proceeds of the Offering for working capital related to its recently announced intention to expand assembly operations into Malaysia and for other corporate purposes. It is anticipated that the Offering will close on or about December 3, 2024. The Offering will be made by way of a prospectus supplement to the short form base shelf prospectus of the Corporation dated September 6, 2024 (the " Base Shelf Prospectus ") which will be prepared and filed by the Corporation with the securities regulatory authorities in each of the provinces and territories of Canada prior to the closing of the Offering, and will be filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission pursuant to the Corporation's U.S. registration statement on Form F-10 (Registration No. 333-28055, which includes the Base Shelf Prospectus and was declared effective by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission on September 10, 2024. The Offering is expected to be made to a single institutional investor that qualifies as an "accredited investor" under National Instrument 45-106 – Prospectus Exemptions of the Canadian Securities Administrators. The consummation of the Offering remains subject to the receipt of regulatory approvals, including the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange (the " Exchange "), and other customary closing conditions. No commission or finder's fee will be paid in connection with the Offering. This news release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction. About POET Technologies Inc. POET is a design and development company offering high-speed optical engines, light source products and custom optical modules to the artificial intelligence systems market and to hyperscale data centers. POET's photonic integration solutions are based on the POET Optical InterposerTM, a novel, patented platform that allows the seamless integration of electronic and photonic devices into a single chip using advanced wafer-level semiconductor manufacturing techniques. POET's Optical Interposer-based products are lower cost, consume less power than comparable products, are smaller in size and are readily scalable to high production volumes. In addition to providing high-speed (800G, 1.6T and above) optical engines and optical modules for AI clusters and hyperscale data centers, POET has designed and produced novel light source products for chip-to-chip data communication within and between AI servers, the next frontier for solving bandwidth and latency problems in AI systems. POET's Optical Interposer platform also solves device integration challenges across a broad range of communication, computing and sensing applications. POET is headquartered in Toronto, Canada, with operations in Allentown, PA, Shenzhen, China, and Singapore. More information about POET is available on our website at www.poet-technologies.com . Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information This news release contains "forward-looking information" (within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws) and "forward-looking statements" (within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995). Such statements or information are identified with words such as "anticipate", "believe", "expect", "plan", "intend", "potential", "estimate", "propose", "project", "outlook", "foresee" or similar words suggesting future outcomes or statements regarding any potential outcome. Such statements include, without limitation, the Corporation's expectations with respect to consummation of the Offering, its products, the scalability of the POET Optical Interposer and the success of the Corporation's products, the Corporation's ability satisfy all closing conditions and close the Offering within the announced timeline, the Corporation's use of proceeds for the Offering and the Corporation's ability to obtain the final approval of the Exchange. Such forward-looking information or statements are based on a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions which may cause actual results or other expectations to differ materially from those anticipated and which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions have been made regarding, among other things, management's expectations regarding the size of the market for its products, the capability of its joint venture to produce products on time and at the expected costs, the performance and availability of certain components, and the success of its customers in achieving market penetration for their products. Actual results could differ materially due to a number of factors, including, without limitation, the attractiveness of the Corporation's product offerings, performance of its technology, the performance of key components, and ability of its customers to sell their products into the market. For further information concerning these and other risks and uncertainties, refer to the Corporation's filings on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca and on the website of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission at www.sec.gov. Although the Corporation believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information or statements are reasonable, prospective investors in the Corporation's securities should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements because the Corporation can provide no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking information and statements contained in this news release are as of the date of this news release and the Corporation assumes no obligation to update or revise this forward-looking information and statements except as required by applicable securities laws. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein. 120 Eglinton Avenue, East, Suite 1107, Toronto, ON, M4P 1E2- Tel: 416-368-9411 - Fax: 416-322-5075
Pitt QB Eli Holstein carted off with leg injuryNEW YORK (AP) — Technology stocks pulled Wall Street to another record amid mixed trading. The S&P 500 rose 0.2% Monday after closing November at an all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite gained 1%. Super Micro Computer, a stock that’s been on an AI-driven roller coaster, soared after saying an investigation found no evidence of misconduct by its management or the company’s board. Retailers were mixed coming off Black Friday and heading into what’s expected to be the best Cyber Monday on record. Treasury yields held relatively steady in the bond market. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below. NEW YORK (AP) — Technology stocks are pulling Wall Street toward another record amid mixed trading on Monday. The S&P 500 rose 0.2% in afternoon trading after closing its best month of the year at an all-time high . The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 86 points, or 0.2%, with a little more than an hour remaining in trading, while the Nasdaq composite was 0.9% higher. Super Micro Computer, a stock that’s been on an AI-driven roller coaster, soared 31.1% to lead the market. Following accusations of misconduct and the resignation of its public auditor , the maker of servers used in artificial-intelligence technology said an investigation found no evidence of misconduct by its management or by the company's board. It also said it doesn’t expect to restate its past financials and that it will find a new chief financial officer, appoint a general counsel and make other moves to strengthen its governance. Big Tech stocks also helped prop up the market. Gains of 1.8% for Microsoft and 2.9% for Meta Platforms were the two strongest forces pushing upward on the S&P 500. Intel was another propellant during the morning, but it lost an early gain to fall 1.1% after the chip company said CEO Pat Gelsinger has retired and stepped down from the board. Intel is looking for Gelsinger’s replacement, and its chair said it’s “committed to restoring investor confidence.” Intel recently lost its spot in the Dow Jones Industrial Average to Nvidia, which has skyrocketed in Wall Street's frenzy around AI. Stellantis, meanwhile, skidded following the announcement of its CEO’s departure . Carlos Tavares steps down after nearly four years in the top spot of the automaker, which owns car brands like Jeep, Citroën and Ram, amid an ongoing struggle with slumping sales and an inventory backlog at dealerships. The world’s fourth-largest automaker’s stock fell 6.3% in Milan. The majority of stocks in the S&P 500 likewise fell, including California utility PG&E. It dropped 3.7% after saying it would sell $2.4 billion of stock and preferred shares to raise cash. Retailers were mixed amid what’s expected to be the best Cyber Monday on record and coming off Black Friday . Target, which recently gave a forecast for the holiday season that left investors discouraged , fell 1.6%. Walmart , which gave a more optimistic forecast, rose 0.3%. Amazon, which looks to benefit from online sales from Cyber Monday, climbed 1.3%. The stock market largely took Donald Trump’s latest threat on tariffs in stride. The president-elect on Saturday threatened 100% tariffs against a group of developing economies if they act to undermine the U.S. dollar. Trump said he wants the group, headlined by Brazil, Russia, India and China, to promise it won’t create a new currency or otherwise try to undercut the U.S. dollar. The dollar has long been the currency of choice for global trade. Speculation has also been around a long time that other currencies could knock it off its mantle, but no contender has come close. The U.S. dollar’s value rose Monday against several other currencies, but one of its strongest moves likely had less to do with the tariff threats. The euro fell amid a political battle in Paris over the French government’s budget . The euro sank 0.7% against the U.S. dollar and broke below $1.05. In the bond market, Treasury yields gave up early gains to hold relatively steady. The yield on the 10-year Treasury climbed above 4.23% during the morning before falling back to 4.19%. That was just above its level of 4.18% late Friday. A report in the morning showed the U.S. manufacturing sector contracted again last month, but not by as much as economists expected. This upcoming week will bring several big updates on the job market, including the October job openings report, weekly unemployment benefits data and the all-important November jobs report. They could steer the next moves for Federal Reserve, which recently began pulling interest rates lower to give support to the economy. Economists expect Friday's headliner report to show U.S. employers accelerated their hiring in November, coming off October's lackluster growth that was hampered by damaging hurricanes and strikes. “We now find ourselves in the middle of this Goldilocks zone, where economic health supports earnings growth while remaining weak enough to justify potential Fed rate cuts,” according to Mark Hackett, chief of investment research at Nationwide. In financial markets abroad, Chinese stocks led gains worldwide as monthly surveys showed improving conditions for manufacturing, partly driven by a surge in orders ahead of Trump’s inauguration next month. Both official and private sector surveys of factory managers showed strong new orders and export orders, possibly partly linked to efforts by importers in the U.S. to beat potential tariff hikes by Trump once he takes office. Indexes rose 0.7% in Hong Kong and 1.1% in Shanghai. AP Business Writers Matt Ott and Elaine Kurtenbach contributed.
(The Center Square) – Paula Scanlan is hopeful the narrative around gender ideology is shifting, especially as Republicans prepare for majorities in both chambers of the 119th Congress and a seat in the White House. “I am hopeful that with the majorities now that we will be able to get across the finish line,” Scanlan told The Center Square on Thursday, speaking of more legislation on the way to protect women's spaces. “Obviously, this goes beyond sports ... So ideally, I think that the biggest thing would be to federally pass something that says this is what a woman is.”
People have once again endorsed PM Modi's leadership development vision NaddaAP News Summary at 11:03 a.m. EST
Middle East latest: Israel and Hezbollah trade fire, threatening Lebanon ceasefire
KILLER girlfriend Sarah Boone has been sentenced to life in prison for murdering her boyfriend after trapping him in a suitcase. Boone, 46, was earlier convicted of second-degree murder for the 2020 death of her boyfriend, 42-year-old Jorge Torres Jr. After delivering a rambling laundry list of gripes against her now-deceased boyfriend in a statement to the court , Boone was stoic as she was handed the life in prison sentence. The sentencing caps off a saga that began when Boone sealed her boyfriend in a suitcase while the couple played a drunken game of hide-and-seek at a home near Orlando, Florida . Boone then refused to let Torres Jr. out of the luggage, ignoring his cries for help. In chilling videos she took on her phone on the night of his death, she can be heard laughing as Torres Jr. tells her he can't breathe from inside the suitcase. READ MORE ON SARAH BOONE The videos, found on Boone's phone, show Torres pushing on the suitcase and trying to get out while saying, "I can't f**king breathe, seriously." In the footage, Boone taunts Torres, responding by saying, "That's what I feel like when you cheat on me," according to an arrest affidavit from the Orange County Sheriff's Office. Boone went upstairs to sleep, leaving Torres trapped in the luggage. She found him dead inside the suitcase the following morning and called 911. Most read in The US Sun Boone had tried to argue that she was acting in self-defense after suffering abuse at her boyfriend's hands. Testifying in her own defense, her legal team argued she suffered from "battered spouse syndrome," and she was afraid of Torres. In November, Boone requested a new trial, alleging professional misconduct and other complaints. Boone said Torres got into the suitcase voluntarily, and that the pair thought "it would be funny" after drinking wine at home. But the motion for a new trial was declined ahead of the sentencing. JORGE 'DESERVES JUSTICE' Torres' mother gave the first victim impact statement in court on Monday afternoon. Reliving the moment she found out her son was dead, she said that she "didn't hate" Boone "for what she did." Choking back tears, she said, "Since that day, I can't sleep. It's hard for me to remember that my son is not here no more." Torres' sister Victoria also gave an emotional victim impact statement, saying that her brother "deserves justice," and that Boone should "rot in jail." Sarah Boone was found guilty of second-degree murder for the 2020 death of her boyfriend, Jorge Torres Jr. Boone was arrested on February 25, 2020, by police in Orange County, Florida, for allegedly zipping her boyfriend in a suitcase and leaving him to die. She admitted to zipping him inside the suitcase but told investigators she believed he could free himself. Boone filmed Torres inside the suitcase pleading to get out. She went to trial for second-degree murder charges, more than a year after her originally scheduled trial date. The trial faced multiple delays due to public defenders withdrawing from representing Boone. She was initially due to stand trial in April 2023 before it was pushed back to July. This was then bumped to early 2024 and finally to October. Boone was convicted after a jury deliberated for 90 minutes on October 25, 2024. She was then sentenced to life in prison on December 2, 2024. Boone also spoke in court before her sentencing, reading a written statement. In a statement, she referenced the traditional Japanese art form of Kintsukuroi, repairing ceramics using gold to make a new piece. She accused Torres of raping, choking, beating, abusing her, and of leaving her "bloody" on her son's bed, and trying to "end her." Boone said she had "forgiven" Torres for what she alleged was years of abuse, including breaking the bones in her face and stabbing her, as well as threatening her son and her pets. She also blamed Torres' family for "not doing enough" to help her, and social media for preventing her from getting a "fair" trial. Boone said she also forgave herself "for not fighting back sooner," and "for falling in love with a monster." Read More on The US Sun She also described herself as "a survivor" and asked if she would have been seen as "woman of the year" if she had died rather than Torres. The sentence was delivered at the conclusion of the nearly two-hour hearing.LAS VEGAS — Dajuan Harris scored 14 points and top-ranked Kansas withstood the ejection of star center Hunter Dickinson to beat No. 11 Duke 75-72 in the Vegas Showdown on Friday night. Dickinson, who entered the game averaging 17.8 points and 10.4 rebounds, received a fragrant-2 foul and was ejected for kicking the Blue Devils’ Maliq Brown in the head midway through the second half. Highly touted Duke freshman Cooper Flagg took advantage of Dickinson's absence, and the Blue Devils kept it close all the way to the buzzer. Zeke Mayo added 12 points for Kansas (6-0), and Dickinson and AJ Storr each scored 11. Tyrese Proctor led Duke (4-2) with 15 points, Flagg scored 13, Kon Knueppel had 11 and Sion James finished with 10. Mayo put Kansas ahead for good when he made a jumper with 1:57 left for a 73-71 lead. Flagg hit a free throw for Duke and Rylan Griffen answered with two foul shots with 2 seconds left. Kansas has won four of the past five meetings with the Blue Devils and six of eight. Nine of the past 10 meetings have been decided by single digits. Kansas forward KJ Adams (24) the ball against Duke guard/forward Cooper Flagg (2) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Las Vegas. Credit: AP/Lucas Peltier Takeaways Kansas: Overcoming the loss of Dickinson could serve the Jayhawks well later in the season. Duke: Flagg had six points when Dickinson went out, but then on four trips to the lane had two dunks, a layup and a free throw. Key moment Knueppel had a 3-point try rim out at the buzzer that would have forced overtime. Key stat Duke shot 50% from the field and 42.3% from 3-point range. Kansas shot 49.1% overall and 47.1% from 3. Kansas forward KJ Adams (24) reacts after scoring against Duke during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Las Vegas. Credit: AP/Lucas Peltier Up next Kansas hosts Furman on Saturday. Duke is home against Seattle on Friday.
Kylian Mbappe’s spot-kick woe goes on as Real Madrid lose at Athletic Bilbao
By Karen Garcia, Los Angeles Times A recent study that recommended toxic chemicals in black plastic products be immediately thrown away included a math error that significantly overstated the risks of contamination, but its authors are standing by their conclusions and warn against using such products. Published in the peer-reviewed journal Chemosphere , experts from the nonprofit Toxic-Free Future said they detected flame retardants and other toxic chemicals in 85% of 203 items made of black plastic including kitchen utensils , take-out containers, children’s toys and hair accessories. The study initially said the potential exposure to chemicals found in one of the kitchen utensils approached the minimum levels the Environmental Protection Agency deemed a health risk. But in an update to the study, the authors say they made an error in their calculations and the real levels were “an order of magnitude lower” than the EPA’s thresholds. The error was discovered by Joe Schwarcz, director of McGill University’s Office for Science and Society in Canada. In a blog post, Schwarcz explained that the Toxin-Free Future scientists miscalculated the lower end of what the EPA considered a health risk through a multiplication error. Instead of humans being potentially exposed to a dose of toxic chemicals in black plastic utensils near the minimum level that the EPA deems a health risk, it’s actually about one-tenth of that. Though Schwarcz said the risks outlined in the study aren’t enough for him to discard his black plastic kitchen items if he had them, he agreed with the authors that flame retardants shouldn’t be in these products in the first place. “The math error does not impact the study’s findings, conclusions or recommendations,” said Megan Liu, a co-author of the study who is the science and policy manager for Toxic-Free Future . She added that any traces of flame retardants or toxic chemicals in cooking utensils should be concerning for the public. Flame retardants are getting into commonly used items because black-colored products are being made from recycled electronic waste, such as discarded television sets and computers, that frequently contain the additives. When they’re heated, the flame retardants and other toxic chemicals can migrate out. If you’re wondering whether your old black plastic spoon or other utensils are a part of this group, Liu shared some more guidance. It’s nearly impossible to know whether a black plastic product is contaminated. That’s because these products that include recycled e-waste don’t disclose a detailed list of all ingredients and contaminants in the product. Liu said it’s also unclear how many types of flame retardants are in these black plastic products. Some of the products that researchers tested in this recent study “had up to nine different harmful chemicals and harmful flame retardants in them,” she said. Anytime you’re looking for the type of recycled plastic a product is made of you’re going to look for a number within the chasing arrows (that form a triangle) logo. Recycling symbols are numbered 1 to 7 and we commonly associate the numbers with what we can toss in our blue recycling bins. The 1 through 7 numbers stand for, respectively, polyethylene terephthalate, high-density polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), low-density polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene or Styrofoam, and miscellaneous plastics (including polycarbonate, polylactide, acrylic, acrylonitrile butadiene, styrene, fiberglass and nylon). The study found higher levels of toxic flame retardants in polystyrene plastic, which is labeled with the number 6, said Liu. There isn’t a definitively timeline of when recycled electronic-waste started to be incorporated into black plastic products specifically, but e-waste started to get recycled in the early 2000s, Liu said. The way computers, cellphones, stereos, printers and copiers were being disposed of previously was to simply add them to a landfill without reusing salvageable parts. But as the National Conference of State Legislatures notes, electronics production required a significant amount of resources that could be recovered through recycling. Recovering resources such as metals, plastics and glass through recycling used a fraction of the energy needed to mine new materials. However, the study pointed out that flame retardants and other chemical contaminates have been detected in and near e-waste recycling facilities, in indoor air and dust at formal e-waste recycling facilities in Canada, China, Spain and the U.S. It also noted contamination in soil samples surrounding e-waste recycling sites in China and Vietnam. The safest nontoxic material options for kitchen utensil are wood and stainless steel. ©2024 Los Angeles Times. Visit at latimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.None