May 1 top stories
Hello, it is May 1. Here are today’s top stories.
Judge in hush money trial fines Trump for gag order
Judge Merchan handed down his first punishment to former President Trump for violating the judge’s gag order over a series of posts on Truth Social in the New York hush money trial Tuesday.
The prosecutors in the case had filed a motion (a formal request) to hold Trump in contempt (willful disobedience) over his social media posts and public comments about Cohen, Daniels and the makeup of the jury pool.
Judge Merchan ruled Trump in contempt for nine violations of his gag order, with a fine of $1,000 for each instance amounting to $9,000 in total. He warned in his written order that he would not tolerate further violations of the order and said that continued violations could also lead to imprisonment.
The gag order prohibits the former president from making or directing others to make public statements about known witnesses concerning their potential participation in the investigation or in this criminal proceeding and public statements about any juror.
Owner of exploded building arrested at airport while trying to leave US
On March 4, fire and explosion occurred in a suburban Detroit Clinton Township building that housed a distributor for the vaping industry called Goo. More than 100,000 vape pens were stored on-site. Authorities have said a truckload of butane canisters had arrived at the building within a week of the explosion that sent canisters soaring up to 2 miles.
Turner Lee Salter, 19, was about a quarter of a mile away when he was struck by a canister that was propelled through the air by the explosion. Salter later died.
The owner, Noor Noel Kestou, 31, of the business was charged with involuntary manslaughter.
Authorities said Kestou was arrested at a New York airport as he was preparing to depart for Hong Kong on a one-way ticket on Saturday, April 20. He was brought back to Michigan last Wednesday.
Kestou has now been released from jail after posting a $500,000 bond. Authorities have his passport and Kesou has to wear a GPS tether.
Clinton Township Fire Chief said the explosion was due to the illegal possession and improper storage of nitrous oxide and butane cans.
Over 50 injured after USC bus collides with LA Metro train
According to authorities, a Los Angeles Metro train and a USC transportation bus collided outside Exposition Park shortly before noon, injuring 55 people.
Los Angeles Metro communications director said the bus crossed into the path of a Metro E Line train. The light rail line runs from East Los Angeles to downtown Santa Monica, mainly at street level, and not all of the crossings have gates.
The Los Angeles Police Department is investigating.
A spokesperson for the Los Angeles Fire Department said: In total, 55 people were injured. Of that group, 18 were taken to hospitals, two in critical condition and 16 in fair condition. At least 37 were treated and released on the scene. They confirmed the two most severe patients were the bus driver and a passenger aboard the bus.
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Laos born immigrant battling cancer wins $1.3 billion Powerball jackpot
The winning $1.3 billion Powerball ticket was sold in early April at a convenience store in Portland, Oregon, ending a winless streak that had stretched more than three months.
Oregon Lottery officials on Monday said 46-year-old Cheng Saephan, a Laos-born immigrant living in Portland and battling with cancer for eight years had his latest chemotherapy treatment last week, claimed the winning ticket.
Saephen told reporters at a news conference Monday: “I am grateful for the lottery and how I have been blessed. I am able to provide for my family and my health. My life has been changed. Now I can bless my family and hire a good doctor for myself.”
Saephan said he purchased more than 20 tickets for the drawing. Officials said Saephen decided to take his winnings as a lump sum, $422 million after taxes.
See Alex’s story about a cat sneaking into an Amazon return box that then got shipped.
Utah cat found safe in California after sneaking into Amazon return box
Thanks, Callie.
A Utah woman said her cat was accidentally shipped in an Amazon box that traveled over 500 miles. It survived.
What happened? The cat, Galena, happened to sneak into a 3 feet by 3 feet box that the owner was using to return an item to Amazon. The box weighed over 30 pounds so the owner did not notice the extra weight.
After the box was shipped, the owner realized that the cat was missing. The owner asked her family and friends to help look for the cat and they passed around posters to the neighborhood.
After six days, Amazon workers discovered the cat in the package in California. One worker took the cat to a vet, where its microchip was scanned. That scan notified the cat owner in Utah. She then flew to California to be reunited with the cat.
The cat did not have food or water for six days and was thinner, but is doing okay.
Thanks for that story. That’s all the top stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light!
Judge in hush money trial fines Trump for gag order
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/30/nyregion/trump-trial-takeaways-gag-order.html
Owner of exploded building arrested at airport while trying to leave US
Over 50 injured after USC bus collides with LA Metro train
Laos born immigrant battling cancer wins $1.3 billion Powerball jackpot
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/1-billion-powerball-jackpot-winner-cheng-saephan-oregon/
Utah cat found safe in California after sneaking into Amazon return box
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/apr/29/cat-amazon-box