State Champ Radio Current Events
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Daniel Penny, the former Marine who placed Jordan Neely in a chokehold on a subway train last year, was found not guilty of his death after the jury had deadlocked on a manslaughter charge.
On Monday (Dec. 9), Daniel Penny, who choked fellow subway passenger Jordan Neely on an uptown-bound F train last year, was acquitted on the charge of criminally negligent homicide. The decision came after the jury had previously been deadlocked on a charge of manslaughter, which the presiding judge dismissed last Friday (Dec. 6). The verdict means that the former Marine is a free man.
Neely, a 30-year-old unhoused man, boarded the F train last May shouting loudly and behaving randomly. Penny, 24, managed to get behind Neely and placed him in a chokehold to subdue him, with other passengers assisting. Video footage showed Neely, who is Black, struggling to get out of Penny’s hold for several minutes. Neely would be rushed to the hospital after police arrived, where he died due to compression of the neck, which was confirmed by the medical examiner. Penny would be charged the next month.
The case would become a fiercely debated flashpoint locally in New York City and nationwide, with conservatives and right-wingers rallying around Penny, who is white. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis called him a “Good Samaritan.” Observers compared it to the incident 40 years ago where Bernard Goetz, who was white, shot four Black teenagers on the subway claiming he was a target for being mugged by them.
“Jordan Neely was failed by the city’s social service system for years. He was failed by our city when Daniel Penny put him in a chokehold on the subway. And today, Jordan was failed once again, this time by the city’s justice system, following the jury’s decision to acquit Penny of criminally negligent homicide,” wrote City Council members Sandy Nurse, Shahana Hanif, Jennifer Gutiérrez, Carmen de La Rosa, Kevin C. Riley and Crystal Hudson in a joint statement condemning the decision. As Penny was ushered away from the courthouse by his lawyers, Neely’s father, Mr. Zachery, spoke to reporters about the decision while surrounded by supporters, including the Reverend Al Sharpton. “I just want to say I miss my son,” he said after struggling with emotion for several minutes, adding: “It hurts. It really, really hurts.”
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Source: Courtesy / Netflix / Jamie Foxx
Telling his story on his terms, Jamie Foxx revealed to the world and his fans in his new Netflix comedy special Jamie Foxx: What Had Happened Was what exactly was the medical emergency that almost took his life in 2023.
Screaming “I’m back!” while dancing and exciting the crowd, the talented multihyphenate revealed that doctors at the Piedmont Hospital just 400 yards away from the Atlanta theater saved his life.
Before he revealed the answer to the burning question, what was the “mystery illness” that almost ended his story? Foxx said while fighting tears, “Please, Lord, let me get through this.”
Jame Foxx’s Sister’s Decision To Take Him To The Hospital Saved His Life
As he promised, he told his story, but using comedy, revealing to the crowd, “April 11, I had a bad headache, and I asked my boy for Aspirin. I realized quickly that when you’re in a medical emergency, your boys don’t know what the f*** to do.”
He revealed that before he could even swallow the Aspirin, he was unconscious for weeks, even joking about some lackluster care he received from one doctor before he got to the root of the issue.
“I don’t remember 20 days,” Foxx told the crowd. His friends told him that one doctor they took him to gave him a cortisone shot and sent him on his way. “What the fuck is that?” Foxx joked. “I don’t know if you can do Yelps for doctors, but that’s half a star.”
But his sister, Deidra Dixon, knew her brother was in serious trouble. “She says, ‘Get him in the car. That ain’t my brother right there,’” Foxx revealed. “She drove around — she didn’t know anything about Piedmont Hospital, but she had a hunch that some angels [were] in there.”
At the hospital, doctors told Dixon her brother was “having a brain bleed that has led to a stroke,” and had they not caught it sooner, he would have died. “My sister knelt down outside the operating room and prayed the whole time,” Foxx continued.
He claims it “was kind of oddly peaceful,” speaking of being unconscious and adding, “I saw the tunnel. I didn’t see the light.” Foxx then joked, “It was hot in that tunnel. Shit, am I going to the wrong place in this motherfucker? Because I looked at the end of the tunnel, and I thought I saw the Devil like, ‘C’mon.’ Or is that Puffy [Sean Combs]?”
Jamie Foxx Couldn’t Walk
Following his surgery, the doctor told Dixon he “may be able to make a full recovery, but it’s going to be the worst year of his life.” Foxx concurred: “That’s what it was.”
It was after that Dixon and his daughter Corinne Marie Foxx decided it was time to “cut it all off,” keeping all information from hitting the internet. “They didn’t want you to see me like that. And I didn’t want you to see me like that,” Foxx said while visibly choking up. “I want you to see me like this.”
When Foxx woke up at a Chicago rehabilitation center on May 4, he couldn’t understand why he was in a wheelchair and could not understand why he had a stroke because, as he puts it, “Jamie Foxx doesn’t have strokes.”
Foxx also shared an emotional story about his 14-year-old daughter sneaking into his room with her guitar to play songs for him, which helped his high vitals go down, also saving his life.
The comedian also did impressions of Katt Williams, Donald Trump, Denzel Washington, Dave Chappelle, Mike Tyson, and Jay-Z. He addressed conspiracy theories regarding him being a “clone” and made sure to remind folks he is a musical powerhouse as well.
Jamie Foxx: What Had Happened Was is now streaming on Netflix.
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Source: NYPD / NYPD
It’s been days since the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, Brian Thompson, was gunned down outside of the New York Hilton Midtown hotel in Manhattan and while the manhunt for the shooter continues, police have released new photos of the murderer as the public still refuses to lift a finger to help in any way, shape or form.
According to the New York Times, the NYPD have released two new images of the suspected hitman as they continue to struggle to get a lead on his whereabouts, following the shocking murder of Brian Thompson. While we still aren’t getting a good look at his entire face, police are hoping these images will jog someone’s memory and lead to a hint or tip that’ll help them in their efforts to track him down even though he’s become sort of a folk hero to many people in the online community.
The New York Times reports:
One image, captured from the front of the cab, appears to show the unidentified suspect peering forward from the vehicle’s back seat with his face partially obscured by a blue surgical mask, a dark hat and a black hood. The other image, apparently recorded through a window, shows the man walking on the street wearing the same mask, a black puffer jacket and a hood pulled over his head.
The police have said that the man caught a taxi around 7 a.m. Wednesday on the Upper West Side, about 15 minutes after he shot Mr. Thompson. He took the cab uptown to a bus terminal near the George Washington Bridge, where they believe he may have caught a bus out of the state.
🚨UPDATE: Below are photos of a person of interest wanted for questioning regarding the Midtown Manhattan homicide on Dec. 4.
The full investigative efforts of the NYPD are continuing, and we are asking for the public’s help—if you have any information about this case, call the… https://t.co/U4wlUquumf pic.twitter.com/243V0tBZOr
— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) December 8, 2024
Though it is suspected that the killer has already made his way out of New York City (and maybe even the U.S.), police might’ve gotten some evidence in their search for the gunman.
Officers also recovered a backpack in Central Park on Friday that they believe the man may have discarded as he cycled away from the scene of the shooting toward the Upper West Side, before he caught the cab. They had yet to publicly confirm if the backpack belonged to the man or contained any items of value to the investigation.
Hoping to get someone to drop dime, the NYPD is offering a $10,000 reward for any information that’ll lead to the arrest of the suspect. Seems a bit low to us, but hey, it is what it is.
What are your thoughts on the UnitedHealthcare CEO suspect? Hero or villain? Let us know in the comments section below?
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Source: SOPA Images / Getty
One of the most popular insurance providers is rethinking one of their recent plan changes. Anthem BlueCross BlueShield has reversed their policy to not cover anesthesia after the CEO of UnitedHealthcare was murdered.
As spotted on TMZ, the popular health insurance company is rethinking their recent coverage plan when it pertains to their subscribers going under the knife. Back in November, Anthem BlueCross BlueShield declared they would no longer pay for anesthesia for the full-length duration of some surgeries that exceed a certain amount of time. While this only impacted three states, the news took the public by surprise with many questioning ABCBS’ business ethics. An outcry on social media soon followed, but the Chicago, Ill.-based insurer didn’t seem to be reconsidering the policy change.
On Wednesday (Dec. 4), UnitedHealthcare’s CEO Brian Thompson was assassinated in New York City outside of his midtown Manhattan hotel. Local police say the murder was pre-planned but have yet to publicly reveal the shooter’s potential motive. Since then Anthem BlueCross BlueShield has changed their tune regarding the coverage limitations on anesthesia.
On Thursday (Dec. 5), UnitedHealthcare’s Vice President Janey Kiryluik gave an exclusive statement to Forbes explaining they will “not proceed with this policy change” after the announcement was surrounded with “significant widespread misinformation.” She went on to further detail ABCBS’ position. “To be clear, it never was and never will be the policy of Anthem BlueCross BlueShield to not pay for medically necessary anesthesia services,” Kiryluik told Forbes in a statement. “The proposed update to the policy was only designed to clarify the appropriateness of anesthesia consistent with well-established clinical guidelines.”
The suspect in Brian Thompson’s murder has yet to be apprehended.
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Source: Bernard Smalls / @PhotosByBeanz / O’Shea Jackson Jr.
According to actor O’Shea Jackson Jr., the son of hip-hop icon Ice Cube, Andrew Schulz went too far with his response to Kendrick Lamar.
The Straight Outta Compton star hopped on X and let Andrew Schulz know he did not feel the comedian’s response to Lamar’s bars on the track “Watch Out Murals” off his latest album GNX.
Schulz took things to the extreme when he described, hypothetically speaking, what he would do to the “luther” crafter if they were in jail together.
“Kendrick’s people and the gang affiliate, you know, everybody, his security, they will kill me, they will destroy me. They’ll find me in the street, they’ll f**king cut me up, they’ll shoot, they’ll do whatever, I’m not a tough guy … But just Kendrick? I would make love to him and there’s nothing he could do about it. Just Kendrick Lamar? I would make love to him. And the only thing that he could do is decide if it’s consensual or not,” Schulz said.
He continued his weirdness by adding, “He’s talking a lot of sh*t, but if it came down to it, I could put him on my lap, I could feed him a bottle … and make love to him if I wanted to.”
Terrence “Punch” Henderson, president of Lamar’s former label, TDE, responded to Schulz’s comments saying, “Wait… wait… I know as a Blackman who’s involved in Hip Hop Music, that we are a bit slow and don’t really understand sarcasm and humor… but did my guy say he want to sleep with Dot??”
O’Shea Jackson Jr. Had Time For Andrew Schulz
In a quote post of a clip of Schulz’s podcast Flagrant with Akaash Singh, Oshea Jackson Jr. called Schulz a “weird n***a” for insinuating that he could take advantage of Kendrick Lamar in a one-on-one fight due to the rapper’s height.
Schulz then responded, “Google ‘No Vaseline’ by Ice Cube,” with Jackson clapping back, “A metaphor about getting f**ked business wise by your manager Is not the same homie. He ain’t call you a b**ch. He ain’t say f**k you. Didn’t even say your name. And your response was buck breaking. S**t was just crazy.” He later shared, “My post was from two days ago. He bring up my dad and I can’t respond? Ain’t no beef. I just didn’t like the statement.”
An X user responded to Jackson, telling him to “let it go” because Schulz is a comedian. The Den of Thieves star responded, “My post was from two days ago. He brought up my dad, and I can’t respond? I have no beef. I just didn’t like the statement.”
Social media also had thoughts about the back-and-forth between Jackson and Schulz. You can see those reactions in the gallery below.
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Donald Trump appeared on Meet The Press Sunday morning (Dec. 8), marking his first televised interview since becoming the president-elect in November after a tight race with Vice President Kamala Harris. Sitting down with Meet The Press moderator Kristen Welker, Donald Trump was measured at times but also slippery on some of his positions as observers on the X social media platform pointed out contradictions and flat-out lies in his statements where he received little pushback.
President-elect Donald Trump, 78, spoke in a conversational tone as he sat across from Kristen Welker, displaying a muted version of expressing himself in comparison to some of his fiery and off-the-rails campaign speeches. With the presidential victory in hand and emboldened by officially winning the Republican Party majority of both the House and Senate, Trump toned down the rhetoric but also said that he would carry out unpopular policies despite growing murmurs of discontent among his base and those far outside of it.
Trump spoke to Welker’s inquiry about his plans for the first 100 days in the White House, a longstanding marker of the president making his intentions known and setting a tone for the government as his leadership continues to come into view over the next four years.
After a rambling answer that covered everything from tackling crime in major cities and extending the so-called “Trump tax cuts,” Trump defended his nominee for Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth despite the mounting allegations against him. Trump’s answer was a masterclass of avoiding the actual question by using filler words and highlighting how much Fox News supported Hegseth, once more ignoring the fact that some of the allegations against his nominee originated within the network.
Early in the chat, Welker lobbed a question regarding tariffs, which some felt was one of several softballs tossed at Trump. Instead of getting Trump to explain how he’ll attack inflation and lower prices, since it was a key campaign point and why many voters pulled the lever for him, he elected not to offer a guarantee on one of his top promises.
“I can’t guarantee anything. I can’t guarantee tomorrow. But I can say that if you look at my — just pre-Covid, we had the greatest economy in the history of our country. And I had a lot of tariffs on a lot of different countries, but in particular China,” Trump said before meandering and calling the tariffs “beautiful,” but Welker did remind Trump that those “beautiful” tariffs cost Americans billions.
In other portions of the conversation, Trump still refused to concede the 2020 election results despite overwhelming evidence that the presidency was not stolen from him. He also doubled down on false claims that he improved the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which he continues to refer to as “Obamacare,” a law that took cues from Sen. Mitt Romney when he was governor of Massachusetts and the state’s health care reform law.
Trump continues to claim he “saved Obamacare” despite his many attempts to repeal the Affordable Care Act and insert a law of his own, even though it could harm those who voted for Trump in the long run. Trump also stuck to his incorrect statement that 13,099 murders in the past three years were allegedly committed by illegal immigrants. Welker attempted to get Trump to understand the number includes four decades of data but Trump insisted this exaggerated number came under President Joe Biden’s tenure.
On X, formerly Twitter, Donald Trump’s Meet The Press interview found its way onto the timeline with many pointing out how it missed several marks. Check out the replies below.
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Photo: Getty
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Source: Brandon Bell / Getty / Elon Musk / Donald Trump
Elon Musk was not pinching pennies during the presidential election. The Tesla Chief donated a lot of money to ensure Donald Trump slimed his way back into the White House.
NBC News reports that Musk donated over $20 million to a mysterious super PAC at the end of Felon 47’s campaign as part of the $250 million he spent to help make America racist again; oops, we meant “great” again, according to new finance reports.
Per NBC News:
Musk financed RBG PAC, according to the report the group filed Thursday night with the Federal Election Commission. The super PAC, which did not disclose its donors before the election, launched ads contending that Trump did not support a federal abortion ban.
All of the money the group pulled in — $20.5 million — came from a single donation from the Elon Musk Revocable Trust in Austin, Texas. RBG PAC spent almost all of its money on digital ads, mailers and text messages, according to the campaign finance report, which covered Oct. 17 through Nov. 25.
The news website also reports that Musk donated $238 million to the America PAC throughout the election cycle, including an extra $120 million in the election’s final weeks.
We Can’t Forget About Those $1 Million Giveaways
According to federal disclosures, America PAC used the money for canvassing and get-out-the-vote efforts via text message, printing, postage, and digital ads. America PAC also ran a controversial $1 million giveaway that saw Musk hand checks to people who signed up for the PAC’s heavily conservative-leaning petition.
Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner sued Musk and the PAC in late October to stop the giveaway. Still, a judge in the state sided with Musk and America PAC, allowing them to continue with the giveaway.
The Justice Department also warned America PAC that the giveaway was damn near close to being illegal, but subsequently, no action was taken by the department.
According to America PAC’s finance report, the $1 million bribes, oops, we mean prizes, were listed as payments for a “spokesperson consultant.”
Bootleg Tony Stark also gave $3 million to the MAHA (Make America Healthy Again) Alliance, a super PAC affiliated with Donald Trump’s pick to run HHS, Robert F. Kenndey Jr.
So, Musk, who Sweet Potato Mussolini tapped to run the made-up Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to help cut government spending, spent a lot to ensure he had plenty of influence when President-Elect Trump took office.
We see the jig.
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Source: Courtesy / Netflix / Jamie Foxx
Jamie Foxx’s health scare was the talk of social media for months, as fans and the world wanted to know exactly what was going on with the talented actor/musician that landed him in the hospital. We will find out in the upcoming Netflix special, Jamie Foxx: What Had Happened Was…‘
It was no secret that Foxx, who will also star in the upcoming Netflix action/comedy film Back In Action alongside Camron Diaz, was doing a stand-up comedy special that would solely focus on his still mysterious health scare, which led many to speculate what happened to the Hollywood icon.
Speaking with the African American Film Critics Association, Foxx promised to tell the world what landed him in the hospital as long as he could “do it in a funny way,” and he has kept that promise.
In the first trailer for the special, that is Foxx’s way of giving back to his fans who have supported him throughout his career and during his health scare, he tells the audience, “If I can stay funny, I can stay alive.”
Netflix describes the special: “Jamie expresses deep gratitude to those who prayed and supported his recovery, turning this performance into a touching thank you to his fans. This comedy event is a celebration of resilience, humor, and the power of community, reminding us all of the healing power of laughter.”
Jamie Foxx: What Had Happened Was… is directed by Hamish Hamilton. Hamilton also serves as an executive producer along with Foxx, Marcus King, Datari Turner, James Longman, Raj Kapoor, and Katy Mullan.
Foxx’s tentpole Foxxhole Productions and Done + Dusted are also producing. The special premieres on Netflix on December 10. Peep the trailer below.
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Source: Scott Olson / Getty
The Department of Justice issued a report detailing the numerous abuses by the Memphis Police Department based on their investigation after the death of Tyre Nichols.
On Wednesday (Dec. 4), the Department of Justice released a scathing report containing the findings of an investigation into the Memphis Police Department, revealing that the department “engages in a pattern or practice of using excessive force, conducting unlawful stops, searches and arrests and discriminatory policing of Black people and residents with behavioral health disabilities,” according to DOJ’s Civil Rights Division Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke. The department began its investigation 17 months after the beating death of Tyre Nichols by Memphis Police officers in 2023 after a traffic stop.
The report went into detail on how officers would employ excessive force “almost immediately in response to low-level, nonviolent offenses, even when people are not aggressive.” One example detailed how nine police cruisers and 12 officers responded to a call of a mentally ill person who stole a $2 soft drink from a gas station, using a Taser and pepper spray in the process. Another data point by Clarke highlighted the disparity of police interactions between Black and white residents, where she noted: “MPD cites or arrests Black adults for marijuana possession at 5.2 times the rate of White adults.” Another instance detailed how a Memphis Police officer picked up an 8-year-old with behavioral issues and tossed him onto a couch. These were in addition to “inconsistencies” between written reports and body camera footage.
The city of Memphis held a press conference to respond to the findings of the report. “In the last three years we have changed over 700 policies… that help to direct process, help to improve officer response. Community engagement has been a significant part of the work we have been doing,” said Memphis Police Department Chief Cerelyn “C.J” Davis. Davis is Black, as is 50% of the police department, including the five officers involved in beating Nichols. Memphis City Attorney Tannera George Gibson stated that the city had been presented with a consent decree granting further federal oversight over the department, but it declined in a letter, writing: “Until the City has had the opportunity to review, analyze, and challenge the specific allegations that support your forthcoming findings report, the City cannot — and will not — agree to work toward or enter into a consent decree that will likely be in place for years to come and will cost the residents of Memphis hundreds of millions of dollars.”
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Source: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI / Getty
President-elect Donald Trump has agreed to sit down with NBC’s Kristen Welker for his first network interview after winning the 2024 election last month.
According to reports, Donald Trump has agreed to sit down with Meet The Press moderator Kristen Welker for his first network interview since being reelected to the White House in last month’s presidential election. The interview with Welker will take place Friday (Dec. 6), and will be recorded and aired Sunday (Dec. 8), during the 10:30 a.m. time slot that Meet The Press usually airs in, as announced by NBC.
Trump and Welker have a turbulent history as interviewer and subject. Welker interviewed him for Meet The Press in September 2023, which would be Trump’s only major network appearance. Welker was taken to task by critics for not firmly fact-checking Trump on his talking points, which included immigration and the policies of his then-Republican primary opponent, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. That interview stood out among his appearances on Fox News networks and with podcast hosts such as Joe Rogan and Adin Ross during the presidential election cycle.
Welker was also attacked by Trump as being “biased” before his debate against then-Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden in September 2020. He’d later praise her during the debate, hosted by NBC News. “By the way, so far, I respect very much the way you’re handling this. I have to say,” he said at the debate stage in Belmont, Tennessee. She also sparred with Vice President-elect JD Vance over his backpedaling on abortion after his debate in October.
The interview is significant as other outlets are plotting on how to cover and approach Trump, who has repeatedly expressed his desire to get revenge on those whom he felt had wronged him. Most recently, Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, the hosts of MSNBC’s Morning Joe, have been under constant criticism after they visited Mar-a-Lago last month after the election. Scarborough blasted critics of the meeting in a 20-minute rant Thursday morning (Dec. 5), claiming that other networks are plotting out their own sit-downs with Trump. “Do we judge CNN for doing it? No,” he said. “You know why? It’s their jobs! Grow up! It’s their jobs. The only thing we did that caused this Twitter storm is we told you. Now, if you’d prefer that we don’t tell you everything that we do that’s fine. But we just thought in this case that transparency was best.”
