Current Events
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Source: press handout / Mexico
El Chapo is being reminded that blood isn’t always thicker than water. The drug kingpin’s sons are allegedly negotiating plea deals with the United States government.
As spotted on Newsweek, the two offspring of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán are said to be working with the court system on agreements that will essentially lessen their jail time. Back in 2019, their infamous father was sentenced to life in prison plus 30 years for overseeing a continuing criminal enterprise, the Sinaloa Cartel, a Mexican organized crime syndicate. Since then, federal prosecutors alleged that Ovidio Guzmán López, 34, and Joaquín Guzmán López, 38, took over the operation after their father was captured in 2016.
In 2023, the siblings were both named in indictments by federal prosecutors claiming they were principals in a fentanyl-trafficking operation. The “Chapitos” have since been arrested in 2024, both originally pled not guilty to various charges. On Tuesday (Jan. 7), attorneys confirmed the two are negotiating plea agreements. “We need a bit more time,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Erskine said in court. “We’re trying to explore whether there might be a global resolution.” The legal professional did not comment further.
Ovidio Guzmán López is due in court Feb. 27. Joaquin Guzmán López is due in court March 19. El Chapo is currently serving his time in a ADX Florence, a super maximum prison in Colorado.
No plea deal — yet — for El Chapo’s sons, per report from their court appearance today in Chicago… https://t.co/2oDNGIE1QV
— Keegan Hamilton (@keegan_hamilton) January 7, 2025
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Source: Eric Charbonneau / Getty / Allison Holker / Stephen ‘tWitch’ Boss
Allison Holker, the widow of Stephen’ tWitch’ Boss, is facing a tremendous amount of backlash from both Boss’ family and social media after revealing the late dancer and Ellen Show DJ/dancer allegedly used drugs and made his family and friends sign NDAs to attend his funeral.
It didn’t take long for the backlash to surface after Allison Holker’s exclusive interview with People dropped, featuring her talking about her late husband’s tragic passing, which sparked Boss’ cousin, Elle, to air out Holker on X, formerly Twitter.
Per Page Six:
“He wasn’t an addict. He smoked weed and was actively trying to quit. He wasn’t some junkie,” she tweeted, adding that Holker has allegedly kept Boss’ three kids — Weslie, 16 (whom Boss adopted), Maddox, 8, and Zaia, 5 — from seeing his relatives.
“I’m so tired of keeping my f–king mouth shut bro. You did our family so mf dirty,” she added in a separate tweet, before alleging that Holker made Boss’ family and friends sign NDAs to attend his funeral.
“Yeah idgaf about an NDA. This crazy woman made me and his actual family including his mother sign an NDA just to even attend the funeral,” Elle claimed.
“She’s been trying to tarnish his legacy and refuses to let the Boss family see the children. Only to exploit and LIE on my cousin. Hell no.”
Boss’ Cousin Wasn’t Alone In Calling Out Allison Holker
Elle wasn’t alone; Courtney Ann Platt, a close friend of Boss and former New York Knicks dancer, also had time for Holker, calling her out in a lengthy Instagram post, confirming Boss’ cousin’s claims.
“This is by far the most tacky, classless, opportunistic act I have ever seen in my entire life,” Platt wrote in response to Holker’s interview with People where she is also plugging her memoir, This Far.
“We all had to sign some weird NDA to attend his funeral (even his own mother who you’ve treated like garbage this entire time and let’s just remember you wouldn’t have even had a husband if it wasn’t for her) not to share anything or ruin his name as if that was on anyone’s mind in the first place and here you go and write a book with all the dirty laundry smearing his name and attempting to dim the bright loyal, loving, light that was your husband, my friend,” Platt continued.
She added, “What a joke. Yes, he took his own life which is a fact all of us still can’t fathom and he was clearly having mental health issues, hurting so deeply and this is your example of empathy? Of your love?”
Boss’ brothers reshared Platt’s post in their Instagram Stories.
X users also got in on the action, calling out Holker for “tarnishing” her late husband’s legacy for bringing up his alleged drug use well after his suicide on December 13, 2022, at the age of 40.
You can see those reactions in the gallery below.
*If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call or text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988.*
1. Holker’s own manager is not rocking with her
2. Choreographer Emmanuel Hurd also called out Allison Holker
4. Took off the ring and changed the last name with the quickness
5. Very vile
6. Allison Holker might want to stay off social media for a few days
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Source: Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin / Getty
Newly released bodycam footage shows a pretty tense run-in between rapper/actor Ice-T and a cop during a traffic stop in Hudson County, New Jersey, last May.
Ice-T, known for his iconic role as NYPD detective “Odafin ‘Fin’ Tutuola” on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, was pulled over near a DMV office while driving his Porsche. The incident unfolded as Ice-T attempted to address registration issues with the vehicle.
According to the footage, the 66-year-old entertainer explained he was headed to the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) following a system outage that occurred when he’d tried to update his paperwork before. Despite the minor traffic offense, things escalated quickly, with both sides becoming frustrated. At one point, Ice-T asked if he was being arrested before questioning the officer’s right to tow the car. Things became so intense they called for a supervisor, who helped calm things down.
Ultimately, Ice-T got four tickets for expired tags, no inspection, and other paperwork problems. But his car wasn’t towed, and he was allowed to finish with the paperwork at the DMV to bring the vehicle registration current.
The footage has caused some online debate, with many wondering how the stop was handled and others pointing out how hard it is to stay calm in stressful situations.
This incident adds to the ongoing conversation about law enforcement and how public figures are treated. Even though things got tense, it didn’t escalate further, making people think about the balance between authority and respect in these situations.
Law & Order Star Ice-T Goes Off on Cop During Traffic Stop pic.twitter.com/N8Xp1x0WVC
— Bodycam Videos 🚔📹 (@BodycamVideos_) January 3, 2025
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Source: Scott Olson / Getty
Lawyers for Donald Trump are scrambling to block the final investigative report by Special Counsel Jack Smith from being released, calling them “failed cases.”
The legal team for President-elect Donald Trump sent a last-minute request to Attorney General Merrick Garland to halt the “imminent” release of the final report by Special Counsel Jack Smith claiming it would be a “bad-faith crusade” on the part of the Biden-Harris administration, and further arguing that Garland should fire Smith. This request was reportedly made after the team had the chance to review a draft of the report “in a conference room at Smith’s office between January 3 and January 6, 2025,” which Smith was scheduled to file with the Department of Justice at 1 p.m. “Because Smith has proposed an unlawful course of action, you must countermand his plan and remove him immediately,” the letter from Todd Blanche and John Lauro read. U.S. District Court Judge Aileen Cannon would ultimately block the release of the report for now in a motion.
Smith had requested that the election interference case against Trump related to the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol be dismissed in November after Trump won the presidential election. “The Department’s position is that the Constitution requires that this case be dismissed before the defendant is inaugurated,” he wrote in the motion filed with U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan, who oversaw the case in Washington D.C. “This outcome is not based on the merits or strength of the case against the defendant.” The case against Trump and other co-defendants in Florida where he was accused of hoarding classified government documents and refused returning them to the government, was dismissed by Judge Cannon, who has made decisions favorable to Trump in the past and was appointed to the bench by him in his first term. In her decision at the time, she ruled that Smith’s appointment as Special Counsel was “unconstitutional.”
Garland has stated that he would provide lawmakers with a copy of the report once Smith has filed it with his office, and in an overnight brief, Smith noted that Garland’s office would probably not release it until Friday morning (Jan. 10). In Cannon’s motion to block, the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals would first review the emergency appeal by Trump’s lawyers. However, it does not distinguish between the two cases and allows for the court to also review the Department of Justice’s counter-appeal to Trump’s legal motion.
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Source: Prince Williams / Getty / Nelly and Ashanti
We know you care. Legendary spin the block couple, Nelly and Ashanti, are getting a docuseries at Peacock.
Deadline exclusively reports the music superstars will be the focal point of a docuseries fresh off their secret marriage and the birth of their first child.
According to the website, the series will be filmed and produced by Nelly, Ashanti, and Critical Content, the company behind the Netflix documentary Sly and MTV’s Catfish. It will follow the celebrity couple. The Haynes will also executive produce alongside Jenny Daly and Oji Singletary at Critical Content Studios.
Deadline also reports the series has been filming for the past few months, but no did not share when we can expect to see the series on the streamer.
Nelly & Ashanti’s Love Timeline
Nelly and Ashanti’s legendary love story began in 2003 and ended in 2013 before a chance encounter during the VERZUZ event (remember those?) between Fat Joe and Ja Rule when they were both brought in as special guests to participate in the music battle.
In April 2024, Ashanti confirmed what we all knew: that she was pregnant with the couple’s first child, born in July. We also learned the couple, without much fanfare, got married in December 2023 in Missouri.
The upcoming docuseries will mark Nelly’s return to television. He starred in 2014-2015’s Nellyville, which lasted for two seasons on BET, and the Kevin Hart-led mockumentary Real Husbands of Hollywood. The “Country Grammar” rapper also starred in Adam Sandler’s The Longest Yard remake and an episode of CSI: New York. He also showed off his dance moves when he competed in Dancing With The Stars.
Ashanti was also bit by the Hollywood bug, starring in movies like Resident Evil: Extinction and series like Army Wives and Love & Listings.
Will you be tuned in? Let us know.
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Residents in the Westside, Los Angeles neighborhood of the Pacific Palisades, are threatened by a raging wildfire, leading Gov. Gavin Newsom to declare a state of emergency, and officials are looking to tame the blaze. The Pacific Palisades and other neighborhoods in California are under evacuation orders while the images from the wildfire have sparked both concern and debate online.
All across social media, the California wildfire has been discussed widely with users posting stirring photos and videos of the blaze. According to various reports from the likes of CBS News and the Los Angeles Times along with local outlets.
The fire began in Northwest Los Angeles on Tuesday (Jan. 7) morning and led to the evacuation of around 30,000 residents of the Pacific Palisades, which is nestled in the Westside region of Los Angeles County. High winds throughout the day spread the brush fire and CalFire reports that the blaze grew to a size of nearly 3,000 acres. Damages from the blaze are still being tallied along with the number of injuries, with widespread reports of heavy traffic and the like as residents look to flee to safety.
A second blaze broke on in Eaton in the Northern Los Angeles County neighborhood of Altadena and has reportedly torched over 1,000 homes according to CalFire officials. There was also a blaze titled the Hurst Fire that broke out in Los Angeles’ Sylmar neighborhood on Tuesday and touched several hundred acres.
Winds reached as high as 99 mph in the Altadena region and 84 mph at Hollywood Burbank Airport according to the National Weather Service. Santa Ana winds are typical in California but not usually this intense according to officials covering the weather event.
On X, formerly Twitter, residents enduring the wildfires are sharing their accounts of what they’re facing and giving detailed photos and video footage of the spreading damage. Those replies can be viewed below.
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Photo: Getty
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With Dry January in full swing, several people are opting to abstain from alcohol for the entire month while others are employing a Damp January tactic and lowering the intake with lighter sips. U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy is urging alcohol brands to add a warning label that drinking can cause cancer, prompting a new debate about the ingesting of adult beverages.
Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued an advisory last Friday calling for warning labels to be placed on bottles of alcohol meant for drinking highlighting the cancer risk links. In the advisory, Murthy says that drinking can lead to the cause of seven types of cancer – mouth, throat, voice box, esophagus, breast, liver, colon and rectum.
In a statement, Murthy clarified his office’s findings.
“Alcohol is a well-established, preventable cause of cancer responsible for about 100,000 cases of cancer and 20,000 cancer deaths annually in the United States – greater than the 13,500 alcohol-associated traffic crash fatalities per year in the U.S. – yet the majority of Americans are unaware of this risk,” said U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy. “This Advisory lays out steps we can all take to increase awareness of alcohol’s cancer risk and minimize harm.”
In the United States, around 100,000 alcohol-related cancer cases are active along with an annual total of 20,00 alcohol-related cancer deaths. The statement adds that many factors go into determining one’s cancer risks including biological, environmental, social, and economic factors. Currently, the standard of two drinks a day for men and one drink a day for women is considered moderate drinking and assumed to not bear any significant risks.
Congress would need to approve the warning labels and there would need to be quantifiable data findings to get this through the chambers. There has already been some resistance to the advisory by opinion writers who cover the health industry with one columnist suggesting that the same should be said of recreational marijuana.
With the incoming Trump administration, it isn’t known how much roadway this advisory will have with President-elect Donald Trump, who reportedly does not drink.
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Photo: Getty
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Source: Fulton County Jail / Fulton County Sheriff’s Office
President-elect Donald Trump is slated to appear for sentencing for his conviction in the “hush money” case in New York City, and his online supporters are beside themselves.
Last Friday (January 3), President-elect Donald Trump received bad news regarding his sentencing in the “hush money” case in New York City when Judge Juan Merchan issued a decision that he would proceed. Judge Merchan ordered the sentencing to take place ten days before Trump is to be sworn in as president in Washington, D.C. The 18-page decision detailed Merchan’s reasoning, primarily explaining that Trump’s claims of immunity citing the Supreme Court’s infamous opinion were not valid. “The Constitution dictates that only a President, after taking the oath of office, has the authority of the Chief Executive, a President-elect does not. Accordingly, a President-elect is not permitted to avail himself of the protections afforded to the individual occupying that Office,” Merchan wrote.
Trump’s constant trashing of Merchan and other lawmakers and the court system also played a part in the decision. “Defendant’s disdain for the Third Branch of government, whether state or federal, in New York or elsewhere, is a matter of public record. Indeed, Defendant has gone to great lengths to broadcast on social media and other forums his lack of respect for judges, juries, grand juries, and the justice system as a whole,” he continued. Trump is not expected to receive any time in jail, as Merchan noted the difficulties in handing a prison sentence to a sitting president, he will not move to throw out the conviction.
Trump raged over that fact in a post on his Truth Social platform in the early hours of Monday morning (January 6), hours before his team declared that they would file an emergency appeal with New York State known as an “Article 78” petition used to challenge decisions by state judges and agencies. Several of Trump’s supporters among the right voiced their displeasure with Merchan on social media. “JUST IN: Judge Juan Merchan has just ordered President Trump to be sentenced in his phony hush money case on January 10th in New York City, 10 days before his inauguration. Outrageous,” wrote Laura Loomer, a far-right activist who’s been an ardent follower of Trump.
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Source: Michael Reaves / Getty / Megan Thee Stallion
Megan Thee Stallion soft launched her alleged new boo, Chicago Bulls hooper Torrey Craig, and it didn’t take long for the drama to follow.
It only took hours after Megan Thee Stallion and Torrey Craig looked coupled up in a pic, an IG model decided it was time to put the NBA hooper on blast, and she came with receipts.
The streets began talking in 2024 about the two possibly dating after, with Thee Stallion adding more fuel to the fire by showing up to his games and posting a flick, even though they both have not officially confirmed they are in a relationship.
Things got interesting on social media over the weekend when an IG model, Jasmine Elizabeth, who also doubles as a registered nurse, shared dirty DMs she and Craig exchanged, with Megan Thee Stallion’s “B.A.S” as the soundtrack.
X removed Elizabeth’s original post because it violated the platform’s rules, but you can always count on someone screen-recording a moment on social media.
The IG Model shared screenshots of payments Craig allegedly sent to her, DMs asking her if she ever made a sex tape and if he could suck on her breasts.
#thejasmineelizabethhh exposes Chicago Bulls NBA player Torrey Craig for sending her payments And explicit messages after revealing his relationship with Megan Thee Stallion.👀First her bestfriend now jasmine.. Megan might have a problem💀#FREETORYLANEZ pic.twitter.com/I7lU3gHagn
— 41POP (@not41pop) January 5, 2025
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Torrey Craig Responded To The Claims
Craig, 34, responded to the post on Saturday via his Instagram Stories, writing, “Ain [sic] no way ppl want clout that bad.” In another post, he shared a video of a woman showing how to make fake Instagram DMs.
In another post, Craig shared messages from Elizabeth, ignoring her. One question she asked was, “I have a question for you. You gonna let me come to one of your games? I’m not tryna be seen, just wanna see you & head out lol.”
Torrey Craig pulled the reverse uno 👀 pic.twitter.com/37vWX3pOhl
— NFTs (@igotnftsmedia) January 5, 2025
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Elizabeth clapped back showing Craig indeed engaging in DM conversations with her.
The Jasmine Elizabeth posted a screen recording of her and Torrey Craig’s convo proving that she WASN’T talking to herself. pic.twitter.com/MXOWW4Mmze
— NFTs (@igotnftsmedia) January 5, 2025
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As expected, social media had thoughts. Some feel Elizabeth made Craig look silly asking for breast milk, calling him Homelander from The Boys, while others accuse her of being a clout chaser.
Did not want to know Torrey Craig was Homelander but here we are. pic.twitter.com/6cj400gpSg
— Nafisa (@thatxxv) January 5, 2025
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We hope Megan Thee Stallion is doing well despite all of this nonsense. You can see more reactions in the gallery below.
2. See what happens when you let people in your business
5. A choice
7. Why are y’all like this.
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Source: CHRIS KLEPONIS / Getty
President Joe Biden awarded his final list of recipients for the Presidential Medal of Freedom, including Denzel Washington and Hillary Clinton.
On Saturday (Jan. 4), President Joe Biden recognized an array of luminaries by awarding them the nation’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. It is his final such ceremony as Commander-in-Chief, and the list of 18 honorees included Academy Award-winning actor Denzel Washington, NBA Hall-of-Famer and businessman Earvin “Magic” Johnson, and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Denzel Washington receives the Presidential Medal of Freedom. pic.twitter.com/W59TnJxofk
— CSPAN (@cspan) January 4, 2025
The other recipients included Chef Jose Andres, actor Michael J. Fox, scientist Bill Nye, U2 singer/songwriter Bono, scientist and activist Jane Goodall, fashion mogul Ralph Lauren, American Film Institute founder George M. Stevens, entrepreneur Tim Gill, and World Cup winner Lionel Messi. There were also posthumous honorees – activist and co-founder of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party Fannie Lou Hamer, former Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, former Michigan Governor George Romney, and former Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter.
I am so humbled and overwhelmed with emotion right now. It is an absolute honor and privilege that President Joe Biden selected me for the esteemed Presidential Medal of Freedom award. Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined that this kid from Lansing, MI would one day… pic.twitter.com/3gFsus16cA
— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) January 4, 2025
One particular honoree caught the wrath of right-wingers – billionaire George Soros, who has been a consistent donor to Democrats through the years. Bestowing the Presidential Medal of Freedom on donors is not unusual. In Donald Trump’s first term in office, he bestowed the Presidential Medal of Freedom upon the late conservative media figure Rush Limbaugh and billionaire Republican donors Sheldon and Miriam Adelson. Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour and Carlyle Group co-founder David M. Rubenstein joined Soros on the list of honorees.
The ceremony was held in the East Room of the White House, and it was a jubilant affair. Michael J. Fox, who was honored for his contributions to the research of Parkinson’s disease, was overcome with emotion after receiving the honor. Chef Jose Andrés, who has become a global figure with his World Central Kitchen helping those in need after disasters and conflict, expressed his appreciation in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “Today, I’m humbled to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. I know that immigrants are bridges…we build the longer tables that connect us all,” he wrote.
When I first arrived to Washington DC in 1993, Senator Moynihan told me – “if you love America, America will always love you back.”
Today, I’m humbled to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. I know that immigrants are bridges…we build the longer tables that connect us… pic.twitter.com/vyV5g4ziyl
— Chef José Andrés 🕊️🥘🍳 (@chefjoseandres) January 4, 2025