DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Your tax dollars are getting spent on weight-loss drugs like Ozempic, and the total is adding up
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-11 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

AdvertisementConnecticut was quick to experience the impact of weight loss drugs on its economy last year. Politico reported in November that the state's employee health plan was set to spend $30 million on drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Comptroller Sean Scanlon told BI that that was up from $8 million in 2020. Connecticut began testing out a method to offer those seeking weight loss drugs access to a program with online tools for weight management. In North Carolina, the State Health Plan has put a moratorium on new users of GLP-1 drugs for weight loss.

Persons: Sean Scanlon, Scanlon, it's, Dale Folwell, Folwell, Shelby Livingston, Eli Lilly, that'll, Nik Modi Organizations: Service, Business, Bloomberg, Medicaid, Politico, BI, State, North, State Health, Novo Nordisk, Wall Street, University of Texas System, UT, RBC Capital Markets Locations: Connecticut, Wegovy, . Connecticut, North Carolina, Novo, Netherlands, United States

☆ 25 healthcare startups that are set to take off in 2024, according to top VCs
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-18 | by ( Rebecca Torrence | Blake Dodge | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

AetionAetion's website. AetionPicked by: Lynne Chou O'Keefe, the founder and managing partner of Define VenturesWhat the company does: Aetion provides pharmaceutical companies, payers, and regulators with real-world evidence they can use to inform decisions. Aetion provides the real-world evidence that insurers, pharmaceutical companies, and regulatory agencies need to evaluate the value of drugs and inform those conversations, she said. "The cost of specialty drugs, what's happening in the Inflation Reduction Act — all are bellwethers that we need a more value-based-oriented system around therapeutics going forward," she said. — Shelby Livingston

Persons: Aetion, Lynne Chou O'Keefe, O'Keefe, — Shelby Livingston

That sort of approach resonated in conservative strongholds like Alabama long before Trump. Alabama Democrats, especially, cite deep historical roots involving racism, class and urban-rural divides when explaining Wallace, Trump and the decades between them. Moderate to progressive “national Democrats” were concentrated in north Alabama, Baxley explained, while reactionary “states-rights Dixiecrats” cohered in south Alabama. Wallace won four Deep South states as an independent in 1968. Wallace won his fourth term as governor in 1982 after disavowing segregation and winning over enough Black voters.

Persons: George Wallace, Wallace, Donald Trump, Trump, “ Alabamians, ”, Terry Lathan, ” Trump, Barack Obama, Brent Buchanan, Wayne Flynt, “, Lathan, Ron DeSantis, Reagan, Trump's, ” Wallace, Lyndon Johnson, Bill Baxley, Baxley, Lincoln ”, ” Baxley, Franklin Roosevelt’s, “ Wallace, Johnson, Barry Goldwater, Flynt, Alabama “, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, Wallace’s, Jimmy Carter, Carter, Alabama's, Democratic pollster Zac McCrary, Hillary Clinton’s, Joe Biden’s, ” McCrary, Sen, Richard Shelby's, Shelby, Newt Gingrich, Dan Carter, Jeff Sessions, Trump’s, John McCain, Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee, Rick Santorum, Tommy Tuberville, Katie Britt, dealmaker, Britt, Buchanan, Republican pollster, Donald Trump’s, Kim Chandler Organizations: ATLANTA, — Republican, University of Alabama, Civil Rights Movement, Republicans, Party of Lincoln, Party of Trump, Trump, America, GOP, Alabama Republicans, Democratic, Alabama Democrats, “ Party, Democrats ”, Politics, National Democrats, Franklin Roosevelt’s New, Civil, Act, Republican, Reconstruction, Klux Klan, Birmingham's, Baptist Church, Washington, Democrat, “, Democrats, U.S, Senate, Sessions, Alabama, Alabama Legislature, Southern Democrats, Capitol, Shelby, Associated Press Locations: Tuscaloosa, Washington, Alabama, lockstep, Florida, Southern, U.S, Texas, New York, Trump, Jan, Montgomery , Alabama

☆ All the 'Virgin River' books, in order
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-03 | by ( Esme Mazzeo | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +22 min

While waiting for season six, here's the full list of books in the "Virgin River" series and the correct order to read them in. "Virgin River" (2007)"Virgin River" HarperCollins"Wanted: Midwife/nurse practitioner in Virgin River, population six hundred. "A Virgin River Christmas" (2008)"A Virgin River Christmas" HarperCollins"Last Christmas Marcie Sullivan said a final goodbye to her husband, Bobby. But the Sheridan and Riordan families have different plans for Patrick and Angie and for Christmas, Virgin River style!" "Return to Virgin River" (2020)"Return to Virgin River."

Persons: —, Robyn Carr, Melinda Monroe, she's, Mel, …, Sheridan, John, Middleton, Paige Lassiter, Semper Fidelis —, it's, Brie Sheridan, Mike Valenzuela, Virgin River's, Mike, Brie, Marcie Sullivan, Bobby, Ian Buchanan, Bobby's, Ian, Marcie, Ian doesn't, Virgin River, Vanessa Rutledge, Vanessa, Matt, Paul Haggerty, he's, Matt's, Paul, Shelby McIntyre, Luke Riordan, Shelby, Luke, Rick Sudder, Iraq —, Rick, Dan Brady, they'd, Nathaniel Jensen, Annie McCarty, Noah Kincaid, Noah, Ellie Baldwin, Ellie, Franci Duncan, Sean Riordan, Sean, — he's, Franci, Rosie, Erin Foley, Erin, Aiden Riordan, journaling, there's, Drew Foley, Sunny Archer, Sunny, Drew, Clay Tahoma, Lilly Yazhi, Lilly, There's, Clay, HarperCollins, Colin Riordan, Jillian Matlock, Jillian, Colin, Kelly, Kelly's, Lief Holbrook, Courtney, Becca Timm, Denny Cutler, Denny, Becca, Connor Danson, Leslie Petruso didn't, Connor, Leslie, Katie Malone, Katie doesn't, Dylan Childress, Dylan, Katie, Nora Crane, they've, harvesttime, Tom Cavanaugh, Nora doesn't, Nora, She's, Tom won't, Riordan, Patrick, Angie LeCroix, Jack Sheridan, she'd, Patrick Riordan, Angie, Kaylee Organizations: Netflix, Service, HarperCollins, California, Virgin, Virgin River, eBay, Bar, Marines, redwoods Locations: California, Virgin River, Virgin, Sacramento, Fallujah, Vanni, Paradise, Iraq, Los Angeles, —, Jill's, San Francisco, LA, Kelly's, Redwood, Southern California

☆ Thomas Edison tried to take credit for a device created by a Black American inventor
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-02 | by ( Yoonji Han | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Granville T. Woods was one of the most prolific Black inventors in the 19th century. Woods' inventions revolutionized transportation, but he faced many challenges as a Black inventor. One such inventor was Granville T. Woods, the most prolific Black inventor in the late 19th century. Woods, ironically, was dubbed "Black Edison" by newspapers at the time for his contributions to science. Historians ascribe Woods' decision to sell his hard-won patents to an acknowledgment that it was difficult to market Black American inventions to a largely white audience.

Persons: Granville, Woods, Thomas Edison, he'd, —, Edison, George Westinghouse, Frank Sprague, Rayvon Fouché, Lewis H, Latimer, Shelby J, Davison, couldn't, Lucius Phelps, Michael C, Christopher Organizations: Service, Woods, Co, United States Patent, National Inventors Hall of Fame, Edison, Edison Company, Getty, Westinghouse, General Electric, American Engineering, of Black Studies Locations: Cincinnati , Ohio, Columbus , Ohio, Australia, African American

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee's decades-old aggravated prostitution statute violates the Americans with Disabilities Act, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Friday after an investigation, warning that the state could face a lawsuit if officials don't immediately cease enforcement. LGBTQ+ and civil rights advocates have long criticized the measure as discriminatory, making it almost impossible to find housing and employment due to the restrictions for violent sex offenders. The DOJ letter details several of the struggles of those with aggravated prostitution convictions. A lifetime sex offender registration can stop people from visiting with their grandchildren, revoke job offers, and severely limit housing options. Plaintiffs who had filed a lawsuit seeking to block the aggravated prostitution law in October said the DOJ's letter only further supports their efforts.

Persons: —, ”, Bill Lee, “, Kristen Clarke, Jonathan Skrmetti, David Rausch, Steven Mulroy, it's, Mulroy, ” Brandon James Smith, Skrmetti, “ OUTMemphis, Molly Quinn, OUTMemphis, Adrian Sainz Organizations: U.S . Department of Justice, American Civil Liberties Union, Transgender Law Center, Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, of, DOJ, Associated Press Locations: Tenn, Tennessee, United States, Shelby County, Memphis, Memphis , Tennessee

☆ Why Congress gave $174,000 to Dianne Feinstein's wealthy daughter as part of a recent bill to avert a government shutdown
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

It's a tradition known as a "death gratuity" that's been in place for at least 140 years. They were also handing over $174,000 to Katherine Feinstein, the daughter of the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein. But Katherine Feinstein, a former judge in San Francisco and the only child of the recently-deceased California Democrat, almost certainly does not need that money. AdvertisementIn 2021, NTUF calculated that gratuity payments have cost taxpayers more than $5.1 million since 2000. AdvertisementBusiness Insider reached out to Katherine Feinstein via her lawyers but did not receive a response.

Persons: Dianne Feinstein's, It's, that's, —, Katherine Feinstein, Sen, Dianne Feinstein, Joe Biden, Katherine Anne Feinstein, Katherine —, National Taxpayers Union Foundation —, Alfred Lay, Republican Sen, John McCain of, Democratic Sen, Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts, Richard Shelby, Feinstein, Frank Lautenberg, Bill Posey, Posey Organizations: Service, Treasury, State of, California Democrat, National Taxpayers Union Foundation, Rep, Missouri Democrat, Republican, Democratic, ABC News Locations: State, State of California, San Francisco, California, —, Missouri, John McCain of Arizona, New Jersey, Florida

A lower court judge had blocked enforcement of the ban in certain situations on Aug. 4, but the order has been on hold while the state appeals to the Texas Supreme Court. Oral arguments in the case are set for 10 a.m. (1600 GMT) in Austin. She was told she could not have an abortion until fetal cardiac activity stopped or her condition became life-threatening. Other plaintiffs said they were forced to travel out of state for medically necessary abortions. Reporting By Brendan Pierson in New York, Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Bill BerkrotOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Shelby Tauber, Jessica Mangrum, Molly Duane, Amanda Zurawski, Zurawski, Brendan Pierson, Alexia Garamfalvi, Bill Berkrot Organizations: REUTERS, Shelby, Texas, Texas Supreme, Center for Reproductive Rights, Thomson Locations: Texas, Denton , Texas, Austin, Travis County , Texas, New York

☆ This Mustang Stands Out in Her Corral Full of Them
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( A.J. Baime | Photographs Olivia Bowdoin For The Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Daphne Norris, 50, a UPS driver living in Bryceville, Fla., on her 1965 Ford Mustang convertible and 2019 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R, as told to A.J. When my parents met, my father had a 1966 Mustang GT and my mother had a 1965 Mustang. Growing up, my dad used to tell me all the fun stories about stuff he had done with his Mustang. By this time he and my mom had sold the others and bought a 1965 Mustang convertible.

Persons: Daphne Norris, Shelby GT350R, A.J Organizations: Ford Locations: Bryceville, Fla

Tennessee's state House map was also challenged in the lawsuit, though the state did defend those boundaries. Ultimately, the three judges panel upheld the House map and ordered the Tennessee Senate to come up with a new district layout by Jan. 31, 2024. “Today's court ruling against the gerrymandered state Senate map is a clear win for the Tennessee Constitution,” said Democratic Sens. The Tennessee Democratic Party said Wednesday that it would continue fighting the ruling on upholding the House map. In April 2022, the panel of state trial-level judges blocked the Senate map from taking effect.

Persons: —, Wednesday's, “, Randy McNally, Jonathan Skrmetti, ”, Democratic Sens, London Lamar, ” Akbari, Lamar, Hendrell Remus, didn’t Organizations: Republican, Republicans, Tennessee Senate, Tennessee Constitution, Democratic, The Tennessee Democratic Party, state's Democratic Party, General, Tennessee Democratic Party, U.S Locations: Tenn, Nashville, Davidson County, gerrymandered, Tennessee, Raumesh Akbari, London, Shelby, Memphis

☆ Senate panel investigates US airline baggage, seat selection fees
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Between 2018 and 2022, total revenue across major U.S. airlines from baggage fees increased from $4.9 billion to $6.8 billion, the senator said. Blumenthal also cited a report by a travel consultancy that found that eight leading U.S. airlines last year collected an estimated $4.2 billion in fees for seat selection. "U.S. airlines increasingly charge ancillary fees that obscure the actual cost of air travel," Blumenthal said in the letters. Airline CEOs in 2018 lobbied against bipartisan legislation to mandate "reasonable and proportional" baggage and change fees and convinced Congress to drop the plan. The U.S. Transportation Department last year proposed requiring airlines to disclose fees for baggage, ticket changes and family seating the first time an airfare is displayed.

Persons: Shelby Tauber, Richard Blumenthal, Blumenthal, David Shepardson, Will Dunham, Chris Reese Organizations: Dallas Love Field Airport, REUTERS, Rights, U.S, Senate, Democratic, Investigations, American Airlines, United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Spirit Airlines, Frontier Airlines, Airlines for America, U.S . Transportation, Aviation, Thomson Locations: Dallas , Texas, U.S, Delta

Qatar has become a key negotiator for the release of hostages held by Hamas. In recent years, the tiny Emirate has led mediation efforts in Afghanistan, Iran and Ukraine. WSJ’s Shelby Holliday explains how Qatar became a diplomatic power broker. Photo illustration: Marina CostaIsrael and Hamas are closing in on an internationally brokered deal to pause fighting and free some of the roughly 240 hostages taken by the militant group, officials close to the talks said, amid heightened scrutiny of the civilian toll of Israel’s invasion of Gaza. The hostage talks—brokered by Egypt, Qatar, and the U.S.—have moved in fits and starts for weeks and could break down again.

Persons: WSJ’s Shelby Holliday, Marina, Marina Costa Israel, — Organizations: Marina Costa, U.S Locations: Qatar, Afghanistan, Iran, Ukraine, Gaza, Egypt

☆ Mistrial declared for Kentucky officer charged in Breonna Taylor killing
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Brad Brooks | Companies Need To Integrate Climate Reporting Across Functions To Comply With California S New Law | Henry Engler | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Former Louisville police detective Brett Hankison poses for a booking photograph at Shelby County Detention Center in Shelbyville, Kentucky, U.S. September 23, 2020. Shelby County Detention Center/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 16 (Reuters) - The federal civil rights trial of a former Louisville, Kentucky, police officer charged in the 2020 death of Breonna Taylor, a Black woman whose killing fueled a wave of racial justice protests, was declared a mistrial on Thursday. U.S. District Judge Rebecca Grady Jennings declared the mistrial in the trial of Brett Hankison - charged with civil rights violations for allegedly using excessive force - after the jury told her they could not reach an unanimous verdict. Hankison was the only officer of the three who fired their weapons to face criminal charges. One of the other officers charged - Kelly Goodlett - pleaded guilty last year.

Persons: Brett Hankison, Breonna Taylor, Rebecca Grady Jennings, Hankison, Daniel Cameron, Taylor, George Floyd, Kelly Goodlett, Joshua Jaynes, Kyle Meany, Brad Brooks, Sandra Maler Organizations: Louisville, Detention, REUTERS, U.S, Department of Justice, Kentucky's, Police, Thomson Locations: Shelby, Shelbyville , Kentucky, U.S, Louisville , Kentucky, Kentucky, Minneapolis, Georgia, Longmont , Colorado

☆ A Taylor Swift-themed cruise sets sail in 2024: Here's what 'Swifties' need to know about the fan-led experience
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Celia Fernandez | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Taylor Swift fans are entering their cruise era. The travel agency Marvelous Mouse Travels announced it's organizing a fan-led cruise group for "Swifties" to come together and celebrate the singer and their fandom. The cruise, which is not actually affiliated with Taylor Swift herself, will take place aboard the Royal Caribbean Allure of the Seas ship next fall. Malerman happened to be wearing a Taylor Swift shirt one of the days and the rest, they say, is history. Taylor Swift will not be present for this fan-led experience.

Persons: Taylor Swift, Swift, Jessica Malerman, Nicole Rivera, Shelby Reyes, Malerman, Reyes, Allen J Organizations: Seas, Port, CNBC, Royal Caribbean, Royal, Los Angeles Times, Getty Locations: Caribbean, Port of Miami, Royal Caribbean, Bahamas, Nassau, staterooms, United States

☆ The Stealthy Sailboat-Submarine Drone the U.S. Navy Is Using Near Iran
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The Stealthy Sailboat-Submarine Drone the U.S. Navy Is Using Near IranAs the U.S. races to counter adversaries like Iran and China with drones, Ocean Aero is ramping up production of the Triton, an autonomous sailboat-turned-submarine that can carry weapons and other payloads. WSJ’s Shelby Holliday got a closer look. Photo illustration: Jamie Leventhal

Persons: Shelby Holliday, Jamie Leventhal Organizations: U.S . Navy, Triton Locations: Iran, U.S, China

☆ Reducing pesticides in food: Major food manufacturers earn an F grade
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Sandee Lamotte | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

“Pesticide exposure during pregnancy may lead to an increased risk of birth defects, low birth weight, and fetal death,” the American Academy of Pediatrics stated. “Exposure in childhood has been linked to attention and learning problems, as well as cancer.”Yet pesticide exposure is widespread, even for chemicals that were banned years ago by federal agencies. In the 2023 Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce — a list of nonorganic produce with the most pesticides — researchers found 210 different pesticides on the 12 foods. In addition, consumers can ask food companies to “release the actual test results of pesticide concentrations in their products,” said EWG’s Temkin. “Food companies have not been publishing such data, instead relying on generalities,” she said via email.

Persons: ”, Cailin Dendas, “, disheartening, Jane Houlihan, Houlihan, Kale, collard, ” Alexis Temkin, toxicologist, ” Dendas, Jim Watson, Dendas, Sow, General Mills, Archer Daniels, Lamb, Nestlé, Dane Lisser, Shelby Stoolman, EWG’s, Temkin, ” Temkin, “ Steer Organizations: CNN, “ Pesticides, Healthy, “, ”, American Academy of Pediatrics, Environmental, US Environmental Protection Agency, Environmental Protection Agency, US Centers for Disease Control, Getty, Archer Daniels Midland Co, PepsiCo Inc, Conagra Brands Inc, Campbell Soup Company, Lamb Weston Holdings Inc, G Foods Inc, Cargill, Danone S.A, Del Monte Pacific Ltd, General, Inc, Kraft Heinz Company, Mars Incorporated, Mondelēz, Post Holdings Inc, ADM, US Food and Drug Administration Locations: United States, AFP

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — A judge has set an August trial date for four former Memphis police officers charged in the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols after a traffic stop in January. During a short hearing on Monday, Shelby County Criminal Court Judge James Jones Jr. announced the Aug. 12 trial date in the cases of Emmitt Martin, Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith. A fifth officer charged in the case, Desmond Mills Jr., pleaded guilty last week to federal charges of excessive force and obstruction of justice. The five former officers who were charged also are Black. The federal trial date for the four other officers is May 6.

Persons: —, Tyre Nichols, James Jones Jr, Emmitt Martin, Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Justin Smith, Desmond Mills Jr, Mills, Nichols, Jan Organizations: Memphis, Prosecutors, U.S, Memphis Police Department Locations: MEMPHIS, Tenn, Shelby

☆ This $1,600 speaker system makes your electric truck sound like it has a V8 engine. People joked it's the EV equivalent of sticking a playing card in your bike spokes.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-02 | by ( Kylie Kirschner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A demo of the system shows a Ford F-150 Lightning making V8 engine sounds. After all, though Ford's electric truck might have a massive frunk, its motor is far quieter than its gasoline-powered counterparts. Borla, a company that designs and manufactures exhaust systems, is now selling a $1,600 aftermarket "active performance sound system for EV." Another company called Thor Tuning sells an "electric exhaust system" for EVs. And car companies like Hyundai and Dodge have gotten in on the action too, producing electric cars with built in electric exhaust sound systems.

Persons: —, TFLstudios, Borla Organizations: Service, Shelby Mustang, Kufatec, Hyundai, Dodge Locations: TikTok

[1/2] Desmond Mills Jr. with attorney Blake Ballin stand as five former Memphis police officers who have been charged in the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols attend an arraignment hearing at Shelby County courthouse in Memphis, Tennessee, U.S., February 17, 2023. REUTERS/Karen Pulfer Focht/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 1 (Reuters) - One of the five former Memphis police officers charged in the death of Black motorist Tyre Nichols has asked a U.S. District Court judge to change his plea of not guilty in the federal civil rights case, court records showed on Wednesday. The Daily Memphian, citing an interview with Ballin, said the plea would affect the state case against him. The officers also face a federal civil suit filed by civil rights lawyer Ben Crump on behalf of the family. The other officers charged in the case are Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Justin Smith and Tadarrius Bean.

Persons: Desmond Mills Jr, Blake Ballin, Tyre Nichols, Karen Pulfer Focht, Black, Mark Norris, Mills, Nichols, whacked, Ballin, Ben Crump, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Justin Smith, Tadarrius Bean, cuffed, Daniel Trotta, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Memphis, REUTERS, U.S, of, Police, The Memphis Police Department, Memphis Fire Department, Thomson Locations: Shelby County, Memphis , Tennessee, U.S, Western, of Tennessee

☆ Spora Health's founder painted a rosy portrait of his healthcare startup. The reality is more complicated.
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-30 | by ( ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

The way Dan Miller told it, his startup Spora Health was crushing it, providing high-quality care to "thousands" of people online. The startup had secured at least one big contract, with Apple, according to three former Spora employees and another source close to Spora. Four of them told Insider they either no longer worked with Spora or hadn't seen Spora patients in a year. Two doctors listed on Spora's website as "featured Spora providers" also told Insider that they no longer worked for the startup. Another former clinician said she only ever treated a handful of Spora patients.

Persons: Dan Miller, Miller, Spora, it's, UnitedHealthcare, Aetna didn't, paychecks, hadn't, he's, It's, —, we've, " Miller, Shelby Livingston, Rob Price, Emmalyse Brownstein, Ryan Pickrell, Gloria Dawson, Stephanie Hallett, Alcynna Lloyd, Hayley Peterson Organizations: Company, TechCrunch, Spora, US Securities and Exchange Commission, Apple, Aetna, Stanford Graduate School of Business, Human Ventures, MaC Venture, SEC Locations: Spora, Level's, slivingston@insider.com

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — A judge removed himself from the Young Dolph murder case Friday after he was ordered to do so by a Tennessee appeals court, which questioned whether he could be impartial to a man charged with killing the rapper two years ago. Shelby County Criminal Court Judge Lee Coffee asked the court clerk to assign a new judge in the high-profile case. Johnson and Cornelius Smith have pleaded not guilty in the killing of Young Dolph, whose real name was Adolph Thornton Jr. Coffee said he made the call “in court, on the bench, with another case before the Court,” according to the appeal ruling. The appeals court reversed Coffee's denial of the recusal motion and said that a new judge should be reassigned.

Persons: —, Young Dolph, Lee Coffee, Coffee, Justin Johnson, Luke Evans, Evans, Johnson, Cornelius Smith, Adolph Thornton Jr, Smith, Hernandez Govan, Coffee’s recusal Organizations: Tennessee, Defendant Locations: MEMPHIS, Tenn, Tennessee, Shelby, Memphis

☆ How Chinese Aggression Has Pushed the Philippines Closer to the U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-26 | by ( Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

How Chinese Aggression Has Pushed the Philippines Closer to the U.S. Located near Taiwan and the South China Sea, the Philippines has found itself at the center of a global effort to counter China. WSJ’s Shelby Holliday traveled there to learn about the nation’s strategic importance and its growing ties with the U.S. Photo: David Fang

Persons: WSJ’s Shelby Holliday, David Fang Organizations: U.S Locations: Philippines, Taiwan, South China, China

Georgia has "made great strides since 1965 towards equality in voting," the judge wrote, referring to the year the Voting Rights Act was enacted to ensure Black voter power was not diluted through racially gerrymandered congressional and state legislative maps. Once the maps are drawn, litigants can still sue under the Voting Rights Act to demand the drawing of districts that are not designed to dilute minority voting power. The state is expected to appeal, but in a similar case in Alabama, the high court ruled for voting rights activists. "I applaud the district court's decision ordering Georgia to draw maps compliant with the Voting Rights Act," Georgia state Senate Minority Leader Gloria Butler, a Democrat, said in a statement responding to the ruling. A similar case is going on in Louisiana, which was also ordered to draw another majority-Black district.

Persons: Steve Jones, Georgia –, Mike Johnson, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Jones, – Raphael Warnock, Jon Ossoff –, Holder, Gloria Butler Organizations: U.S, District, Black, Supreme, Democrats, Louisiana Republican, Donald Trump View, GOP, Republican, Democrat, Georgia's, Supreme Court Locations: Georgia, Atlanta, Louisiana, Alabama, County, Black

☆ China, a U.S. Ally and the Fight Over an Old Rusty Ship
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( Niharika Mandhana | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Located near Taiwan and the South China Sea, the Philippines has found itself at the center of a global effort to counter China. WSJ’s Shelby Holliday traveled there to learn about the nation’s strategic importance and its growing ties with the U.S. Photo: David FangSINGAPORE—A dispute between China and the Philippines, a U.S. ally, is rapidly escalating over an unusual military outpost: a World War-II era ship that is leaky, riddled with holes, covered in rust and sitting atop a reef in the South China Sea. The decrepit ship, the BRP Sierra Madre, and the small detachment of marines aboard are defending the Philippines’ claim to Second Thomas Shoal, located about 100 miles off its west coast. The country grounded the ship on the reef 2½ decades ago to stave off China’s expanding control over the South China Sea.

Persons: WSJ’s Shelby Holliday, David Fang SINGAPORE, Thomas Organizations: U.S, BRP, BRP Sierra Madre Locations: Taiwan, South China, Philippines, China, U.S, BRP Sierra

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — LGBTQ+ and civil rights advocates on Tuesday filed a federal lawsuit challenging Tennessee's aggravated prostitution statute, arguing that the law stems from the decades-old AIDS scare and discriminates against HIV-positive people. The law was later reclassified in 2010 as a “violent sexual offense," requiring those convicted to face lifetime sex offender registration. Another plaintiff has struggled for years to find housing that complies with Tennessee's sex offender registry requirements. A separate plaintiff is currently incarcerated for violating a sex offender registry requirement and has chosen not to seek parole despite being eligible because complying with registry requirements has become so onerous. According to the complaint, 83 people are currently registered for aggravated prostitution in Tennessee.

Persons: ”, Molly Quinn, OUTMemphis, Bill Lee, Jonathan Skrmetti, David Rausch, Frank Strada, —, Jane Doe Organizations: American Civil Liberties Union, Transgender Law Center, ”, of, Centers for Disease Control, Prevention, CDC, Memphis Police, Unit Locations: Tenn, Tennessee, United States, U.S, Memphis, Illinois, New Jersey, Virginia, Shelby County

Search resuls for: "Shelby"

25 mentions found