One of two California doctors charged in the overdose death of “Friends” star Matthew Perry, Dr. Mark Chavez, pleaded guilty to illegally distributing ketamine. Chavez, based in San Diego, admitted to providing the drug to Perry through fraudulent means, acknowledging that it was administered without proper medical supervision. He now faces up to 10 years in prison, with sentencing scheduled for April.Chavez’s plea comes as part of a broader case involving several co-defendants. Another doctor, Dr. Salvador Plasencia, and Jasveen Sangha, an alleged illicit supplier known as the “ketamine queen,” have both pleaded not guilty and will face trial in March. Two other individuals, Perry’s assistant Kenneth Iwamasa and an alleged middleman, have already pleaded guilty.Court documents reveal that Perry, who publicly battled substance abuse for years, died in October 2023 from the “acute effects” of ketamine and other factors, leading to his drowning. Chavez’s cooperation with prosecutors has resulted in fewer charges, and he has relinquished his medical license before sentencing.

The building, located in the Bachoura district, housed a Hezbollah-affiliated health center. This marks the first Israeli strike near Beirut’s center, just meters from Lebanon’s parliament.The strike followed the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reporting eight soldier fatalities in southern Lebanon, their first losses since launching ground operations against Hezbollah. In response, Hezbollah claimed to have destroyed Israeli tanks and vowed to continue resisting.Israel has intensified operations to dismantle Hezbollah’s “terrorist infrastructure” in southern Lebanon, as Hezbollah has launched hundreds of rockets into northern Israel. The escalating conflict has already displaced over 1.2 million people in Lebanon, with more than 1,200 reported dead.The conflict has drawn international attention, with U.S. President Joe Biden expressing opposition to Israeli retaliatory strikes on Iranian nuclear sites, emphasizing the need for strategic discussions.As the situation intensifies, the humanitarian toll continues to rise, with both sides suffering significant losses.#thenewswhisperer #NewsUpdate

This case involved Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, and Justin Smith, and it sparked national protests and calls for police reform.While all three officers were convicted of at least one charge, Bean and Smith were acquitted of civil rights violations. Haley was found guilty of a lesser charge related to bodily injury. The court was silent as the verdicts were read, and the judge ordered the officers into custody pending a hearing regarding their release before sentencing. Witness tampering charges carry up to 20 years in prison.Rodney Wells, Nichols’ stepfather, commented on the outcome: “A win is a win. They’re all going to jail.”Five officers were charged in total, but two pleaded guilty and testified against their former colleagues. Throughout the trial, jurors were shown police footage of the officers brutally beating Nichols, who later died from his injuries.Prosecutors argued that the assault stemmed from Nichols fleeing a traffic stop, describing it as a “street tax” or “run tax.” The officers were accused of lying to supervisors and medical personnel about the incident and falsifying reports to cover up the severity of their actions.Defense attorneys challenged the adequacy of the officers’ training, but footage and testimony, including emotional accounts from officers

Tropical Storm Milton formed in the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday. According to the National Hurricane Center, it is expected to strengthen into a hurricane as it heads toward Florida’s west coast.By Sunday, forecasters warned of significant risks, including potential “life-threatening impacts” for parts of the coastline.Milton is forecasted to intensify rapidly, becoming a hurricane by Sunday night and potentially reaching major hurricane status before landfall in Florida. A significant hurricane is classified as Category 3 or higher, with sustained winds of at least 111 mph. Current predictions suggest Milton could make landfall with winds up to 120 mph.As of Sunday morning, Milton was located about 345 miles west-northwest of Progreso, Mexico, and approximately 860 miles southwest of Tampa, Florida. The storm’s maximum sustained winds had increased to 60 mph, up from 40 mph on Saturday night, and was moving north-northeast at five mph.Milton is expected to move across the Gulf of Mexico and approach Florida’s western coast by midweek. This forecast follows Hurricane Helene, which recently caused widespread devastation across Florida and the Southeast, killing over 200 people. President Biden visited the impacted areas last week, highlighting the extensive recovery efforts still underway.In preparation for Milton’s possible landfall, Governor

n a significant ruling on Friday, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld Maryland’s handgun licensing law, dismissing arguments that it infringed upon Second Amendment rights by making gun acquisition overly burdensome.The majority of the court affirmed a lower court’s decision in favor of Maryland, with ten judges supporting the law’s constitutionality. The court ruled that the state’s handgun qualification statute, which mandates a license before purchasing a handgun, aligns with the nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation.Senior Judge Barbara Milano Keenan authored the majority opinion, with Judge Allison Jones Rushing writing a concurring opinion stating that the handgun license requirement is consistent with historical principles of firearm regulation.However, the decision was not unanimous. Judge Julius Richardson, in his dissent, argued that Maryland had not adequately shown that history and tradition justified the licensing requirement.The court’s full bench reviewed the case following a split decision last year, where a three-judge panel deemed the requirements unconstitutional in light of a 2022 Supreme Court ruling that expanded gun rights.The lawsuit, initially filed in 2016 by gun-rights advocates, challenged Maryland’s law, which was enacted in response to the Sandy Hook tragedy. The law requires prospective gun owners to complete safety training, submit

This decision prohibits the EPA’s Office of External Civil Rights Compliance and the Justice Department from enforcing the provision against any entity in the State of Louisiana.The ruling came after the EPA announced it was ending an investigation into “Cancer Alley,” a predominantly Black and low-income area with high cancer rates due to petrochemical production.Environmental advocacy group Earthjustice strongly criticized the decision, stating that it gives industrial polluters in Louisiana a free pass to harm communities, particularly minority groups.The ruling is significant after the Supreme Court ruled against the so-called Chevron deference, which previously gave federal agencies broader latitude to interpret federal law.

The cross-border attacks occurred as high-level talks resumed in Egypt, aiming for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas in the war in Gaza to ease regional tensions.Hezbollah claimed to have hit an Israeli military intelligence site near Tel Aviv with hundreds of rockets and drones. In contrast, Israel claimed its strikes were preemptive to prevent a more significant attack, but neither side provided evidence.Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said the attack was in response to Israel’s killing of a top militant commander in Beirut last month, which had been delayed to give the Gaza cease-fire talks a chance and to allow Iran-backed groups to discuss with Iran whether to attack Israel simultaneously. Israeli and U.S. military deployments also played a role.“We reserve the right to respond at a later time” if the results of Sunday’s attack aren’t sufficient, Nasrallah said, adding that allied Houthi rebels in Yemen and Iran itself had yet to respond. However, he assured the Lebanese people to “take a breath and relax.”Israel’s military said its intelligence base near Tel Aviv wasn’t hit.Both Israel and Hezbollah claimed to have aimed only at military targets. Israel’s military reported one navy soldier killed and two others wounded by incoming fire

Federal prosecutors have announced that Joseph Gillespie, a former Baltimore City tax collector, has admitted to accepting bribes from property owners and fraudulently obtaining COVID-19 relief funds.Gillespie, 35, pleaded guilty to charges related to an eight-year bribery scheme during which he accepted $250,000 in bribes to erase outstanding water bills, citations, and tax obligations. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Maryland, this scheme cost Baltimore taxpayers $1.2 million.The FBI captured multiple recordings of Gillespie discussing his illegal activities. In one recording, he claimed he could “wipe a bill off the city’s record” or falsely mark obligations as “paid.” In another conversation, he described himself as the “inside man” for various people across the city.The bribery took place between 2016 and September 2023. Over his 15-year tenure with the Baltimore City Finance Department, Gillespie reportedly took a cut of 10-15% of the debts he was supposed to collect before removing them from the records. He would sometimes send property owners photographic proof of the erased debts. He also accepted bribes to delay payments.Authorities alleged that Gillespie had accomplices within other city government agencies. For instance, he mentioned having someone in the water department who could erase debts. He also received