June 7 top stories
Hello, it is June 7. Here are today’s top stories.
Trump’s cases in Florida and Georgia postponed indefinitely
Judge Aileen Cannon on May 7, indefinitely postponed former President Trump’s classified documents trial date, originally scheduled for May 20, in Florida–citing a number of outstanding pre-trial motions.
The ruling makes it unlikely that the classified documents trial will end before the 2024 presidential election, where Trump is the presumptive GOP presidential nominee.
Georgia’s Court of Appeals paused court proceedings Wednesday in Trump’s state 2020 election subversion case while it reviews appeals, including whether Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis can stay on the case.
Proceedings in the case are now likely paused until at least October, when the appeals court is set to hear oral arguments on Trump’s bid to disqualify Wilis. The pause in proceedings makes it unlikely that the Georgia case goes to trial before the November election.
These rulings are a win for Trump, who has pleaded not guilty and has successfully pushed for delays in multiple criminal trials ahead of November’s election.
Fatal black bear attack a first in California history
When police entered 71-year-old Patrice Miller’s home in Downieville, California, on November 8 to conduct a welfare check because she had not been seen for a few days, found a broken door and bear scat on the porch, they initially thought the bear had found her after she died.
However, a recent autopsy report confirmed that it was the bear that killed Miller by mauling, swiping or biting to the neck area.
Local sheriff’s office said the bear was killed and DNA confirmed it was responsible for the mauling. They said in a statement: “This incident is the first known, documented fatal attack by a black bear in California history.”
Experts say adult male bears can weigh around 400 pounds, and females are usually between 100 and 300 pounds. They are the only type of bear in California – although they are not always black, and can be cinnamon brown.
Carbon dioxide hits record level in atmosphere, causing climate change
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the Earth’s atmosphere has hit a new record.
This May, the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere hit nearly 427 parts per million, which is an increase of about 3 parts per million compared to last year’s peak. Scientists say that is one of the largest annual jumps on record.
All the extra carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere traps heat, and leads to more intense, frequent and persistent heat waves, and other extreme weather such as powerful hurricanes and heavy rain storms.
Scientists say such extreme, prolonged heat is directly related to human-caused climate change. The vast majority of the planet-warming pollution in the atmosphere comes from humans burning fossil fuels such as oil, gas and coal.
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Common low-calorie sweetener linked to heart attack and stroke, study finds
A new study found a low-calorie sweetener called xylitol used in many reduced-sugar foods and consumer products such as gum and toothpaste may be linked to nearly twice the risk of heart attacks, stroke and death in people who consume the highest levels of the sweetener.
Dr. Stanley Hazen, director of the Center for Cardiovascular Diagnostics and Prevention at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Institute, said: “We gave healthy volunteers a typical drink with xylitol to see how high the levels would get and they went up 1,000-fold. When you eat sugar, your glucose level may go up to 10% or 20% but it doesn’t go up a 1,000-fold.”
He added that humankind has not experienced levels of xylitol this high except within the last couple of decades when we began ingesting completely sugar-substituted processed foods.
In 2023, the same researchers found similar results for another low-calorie sweetener called erythritol, which is used as a bulking sugar in stevia, monk fruit and keto reduced-sugar products.
Additional lab and animal research presented in both papers revealed erythritol and xylitol may cause blood platelets to clot more readily. Clots can break off and travel to the heart, triggering a heart attack, or to the brain, triggering a stroke.
See a report on two people arrested for stealing a few thousands of LEGO sets from several Southern California retailers from Alex.
Man arrested after LAPD finds almost 3,000 stolen LEGO sets
Thanks, Callie.
A 71-year-old man in the Los Angeles area was arrested after police discovered over 2,800 boxes of stolen LEGO sets in his home. His name is Richard Siegel.
These LEGO sets can be valuable with individual prices ranging from $20 to over $1,000.
Police said they started investigating the case after they got a call that an alleged accomplice of Siegel, a 39-year-old woman, had robbed a retailer several times last December. Officers saw the woman steal items from several stores before dropping them off at Siegel’s home. When officers decided to raid Siegel’s home, they saw many boxes of LEGO sets stacked up.
They believe the two suspects sold the LEGO sets online because several customers showed up during the raid.
Siegel was charged with organized retail theft while the accomplice was charged with grand theft.
Thanks for the report. That’s all the top stories for this week. Have a nice weekend and stay with the light!
Trump’s cases in Florida and Georgia postponed indefinitely
https://www.cnbc.com/2024/05/07/trump-classified-documents-trial-postponed-indefinitely.html
Fatal black bear attack a first in California history
https://www.sfchronicle.com/outdoors/article/bear-bear-human-fatality-19499590.php
Carbon dioxide hits record level in atmosphere, causing climate change
Common low-calorie sweetener linked to heart attack and stroke, study finds
Man arrested after LAPD finds almost 3,000 stolen LEGO sets