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  • Democrats begin to clash over who replaces Platner even before he exits

    Democrats begin to clash over who replaces Platner even before he exits

    The implosion of Graham Platner’s campaign for Senate in Maine after an accusation of rape has ripped open divisions inside the Democratic Party as its progressives and moderates battle to pick his successor even before he has said he will step aside.

    National Democrats have grown alarmed that a seat seen as crucial to winning control of the Senate could be slipping from the party’s grasp. Platner had survived a series of controversies — about a tattoo with Nazi symbolism, inflammatory old Reddit posts, and his relationships with women — but many in the party abandoned him after the rape accusation, including the leaders of the Maine Democratic Party and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.

    They have demanded that Platner step down before a Monday deadline for him to be replaced on the ballot to find a new Democrat to run against Sen. Susan Collins, a longtime Republican fixture in the state. The main super political action committee for Democratic Senate candidates said it would redirect $24 million in ad reservations to other states if he remained.

    Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.), one of Platner’s earliest and most prominent backers, joined the chorus on Tuesday afternoon.

    “I have spoken with Graham Platner about the best path forward for Maine,” Sanders said in a statement. “In light of these very serious allegations, I have recommended that he step aside.”

    Platner, who has denied the allegation, said on a private call with his campaign staff on Monday evening that he believed he still had leverage to influence which candidate would replace him on the ticket, according to three people familiar with the conversation. On the call, he did not announce plans to withdraw but implied such a decision would be coming, the people said.

    Platner’s campaign had stopped running ads on Meta’s platforms, such as Facebook and Instagram, as of Tuesday, according to the company’s ad disclosure database. He had been running multiple ads as recently as Monday evening.

    The drama comes almost exactly two years after the Democratic Party was roiled by the exit of Joe Biden, then the president, from his reelection race and the speedy anointment of Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee. That process — and Democrats’ ultimate loss in 2024 — has left deep scar tissue for many in the party.

    Many on the left — including, it appears, Platner himself — want any replacement to come from the progressive wing of the party after he won the primary over Gov. Janet Mills, a moderate two-term Democrat, who withdrew over a month before the election.

    “To the Democratic establishment: This is not your opening,” said Joseph Geevarghese, executive director of Our Revolution, a group that emerged from Sanders’ 2016 presidential campaign. Referring to Senate Democrats’ campaign arm, he added, “Mainers did not vote by an overwhelming margin against Janet Mills and the DSCC’s handpicked pick just to be handed another status-quo candidate anyway.”

    On the flip side, many in the party establishment believe those on the left should show some humility after Platner’s collapse.

    A range of Democratic groups and activists engaged in the politics of “I told you so.”

    “When women raise the alarm, listen,” said a social media post from EMILY’s List, a group that works to elect Democratic women and that had backed Mills. “Graham Platner’s behavior is disqualifying (AS WE HAVE SAID THIS WHOLE DAMN TIME), and he should end his campaign.”

    On Tuesday morning, more Democrats who are ideological allies of Platner called for him to step aside, including New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.

    “I believe that it’s time for him to drop out of the race,” Mamdani said when asked at a news conference. “I think the focus of today should be to respond to the gravity of what so many of us have read, and I think the only appropriate response is for the campaign to come to an end.”

    Mamdani and Platner share several advisers, including Morris Katz and Rebecca Katz of the Fight Agency.

    The progressive group MoveOn also dropped its endorsement.

    As the situation in Maine threatened to spiral out of control, Schumer and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee are set to host major donors this week for a fundraising retreat at the Broadmoor in Colorado Springs. Donors are asked to contribute $44,300 to attend, according to a copy of the invitation.

    The event, which was previously scheduled, was billed as a “special weekend to discuss the DSCC’s strategy and campaigns for taking back the Democratic Senate majority,” but now talk is likely to be consumed by the developments in Maine.

    Platner can be replaced as the Democratic nominee if he withdraws voluntarily by Monday. The state Democratic Party would then have until July 27 to pick his replacement, under state law. But the law does not dictate how the state party itself needs to pick Platner’s replacement.

    What that would look like remains unclear. The options under discussion include a convention or a statewide caucus in late July.

    “We ask for your patience as this work continues,” Devon Murphy-Anderson, the state party’s executive director, wrote in a message to committee members on Tuesday, adding: “Whatever process is ultimately adopted must reflect our Democratic values. It should be open, inclusive, transparent, and fair.”

    A range of candidates are being discussed, with some early attention on those who ran and lost the primary for governor this year. Those Democrats include Troy Jackson, a former president of the Maine Senate; Nirav Shah, a former director of Maine’s public health agency; and Shenna Bellows, Maine’s secretary of state. But some Democrats were concerned about elevating someone who just lost.

    Supporters of Jackson, who had backed Platner in the primary, created a Draft Troy website, and he filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission for a Senate exploratory committee. Shah put out a statement that said he had received “hundreds of encouraging messages,” adding that anyone who ran for the nomination should commit to a televised debate and “multiple town halls across every corner of the state.”

    Another possible candidate is Dan Kleban, a co-founder of the Maine Beer Co., a brewery outside Portland. He briefly ran for Senate last year before dropping out and endorsing Mills. But like Platner, he has never held elected office or been through the rigors of a campaign.

    Yet another possibility is Jordan Wood, who also previously ran for Senate and dropped out. Wood ran instead in the primary for Rep. Jared Golden’s House seat and lost.

    Golden, a moderate Democrat and veteran who holds the most pro-Trump House seat of any Democrat in Congress, is retiring and previously said he was ready to step away from elected office.

    In recent days, Golden has fielded calls gauging his interest in a run for Senate, according to two people familiar with those conversations who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private discussions.

    Golden has not commented since the latest allegations against Platner emerged.

    More unconventional picks were being bandied about, as well. One Democratic firm in recent days included actor Patrick Dempsey in a poll. (He was viewed favorably by 52% of voters in the survey.) Others floated the popular liberal historian Heather Cox Richardson, who is based in Maine.

    Some Democrats erupted after the news emerged that Platner wanted a replacement who was aligned with him politically. One person familiar with the Platner campaign’s internal discussions said Monday that Platner would seek a guarantee he would be replaced by someone in agreement with “the values and vision and policy agenda” that he had pressed.

    Others argued that under the circumstances, Platner’s support would be damaging.

    Joe Baldacci, a state senator who ran and lost in the primary for Golden’s House seat this year, said the idea that Platner would bless a replacement would be the equivalent of “tying a lead weight” to the person.

    “After you have put the Democratic Party in a shambles and undermined all Democratic candidates running for office in Maine then you should have no say in who will be your successor,” Baldacci wrote on social media. He added, “Any connections to Platner will doom that person’s campaign from the very beginning.”

    This article originally appeared in the New York Times.

  • Hackers stole private information of more than 50,000 clients from a Philly-based law firm, lawsuits say

    Hackers stole private information of more than 50,000 clients from a Philly-based law firm, lawsuits say

    Cybercriminals duped a Blank Rome attorney into sharing the personal information of 57,554 former and current clients, two federal lawsuits filed Monday say.

    The firm, which is headquartered in Philadelphia and has 15 other offices nationwide, notified impacted clients a month after the incident, according to the complaints.

    The two nearly identical proposed class-action lawsuits, filed in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania by former Blank Rome clients from California, accuse the firm of negligence, breach of contract, and violation of consumer protection laws, among other claims.

    Blank Rome failed to use industry standards for cybersecurity and to comply with safeguards mandated by a federal medical privacy law, according to the complaints. It also didn’t appropriately train staff to identify these types of cyber schemes, the suits said.

    The lawsuits asks a judge to certify the class action on behalf of all people impacted by the breach, award them damages, and order action to ensure their identities are protected.

    “The exposure of one’s Private Information to cybercriminals is a bell that cannot be unrung,” the suits say. “Before this data breach, its current, former, and prospective clients’ Private Information was exactly that — private. Not anymore.”

    The incident was limited to one attorney and the firm’s network was never breached, a Blank Rome spokesperson said.

    “We are committed to protecting our clients’ information and maintaining the trust they place in us,” the firm’s statement said. “We believe the lawsuit has no merit and will aggressively defend against it.”

    The firm disputed that all people impacted were clients, but did not say who else was impacted.

    The attorney who filed the two lawsuits did not respond to a request for comment.

    Class-action lawsuits following cybersecurity breaches have become increasingly common. Earlier this year, Comcast agreed to pay $117.5 million to settle two dozen suits over a 2023 data breach, and the University of Pennsylvania was sued multiple times over an October breach that impacted fewer than 10 people.

    They are also lucrative for class attorneys who can pocket as much as a third of the settlement’s amount.

    The Blank Rome data breach took place on May 21 after an “unauthorized third party” posing as a member of the firm’s IT department instructed a Blank Rome attorney to upload files to an external Google Drive, according to a notice of breach attached to the complaint.

    Clients began receiving notice on June 26, the suits say.

    The firm identified the breach within two hours, deleted all the files on the drive, and opened an investigation, the notice said. Blank Rome also notified law enforcement.

    The notice was sent to clients whose information, which included names and Social Security numbers, was stolen. Clients’ addresses, dates of birth, driver’s license numbers, passport numbers, and medical and health insurance information were also potentially obtained by the hackers, the notice said.

    Blank Rome provided complimentary credit monitoring to impacted clients, the notices said, and has taken internal steps “mitigating similar risk,” including by working with cybersecurity professionals.

    “We are notifying you of this incident and want to assure you that we take it seriously,” the firm’s notice said.

  • Judge rejects Justice Department attempt to get names of 2020 election workers in Fulton County

    Judge rejects Justice Department attempt to get names of 2020 election workers in Fulton County

    ATLANTA — The U.S. Department of Justice cannot have the names and personal contact information for every person who worked during the 2020 election in Georgia’s Fulton County, a federal judge ruled Tuesday.

    The Justice Department in April obtained a grand jury subpoena seeking the names and personal contact information of county employees and volunteer poll workers. President Donald Trump has long claimed without evidence that widespread voter fraud in Georgia’s most populous county, a Democratic stronghold, cost him victory in the state in 2020.

    Fulton County asked a judge to quash the subpoena, arguing it was meant to “target, harass, and punish the President’s perceived political opponents” and that it was “grossly over broad and untethered to any reasonable need.”

    “Given the low need for the subpoenaed information and the highly burdensome nature of the disclosure of the same, the Subpoena is unreasonable and must be quashed,” U.S. District Judge William Ray wrote in his ruling, calling the scope of the request “staggering.”

    Emails seeking comment were sent to both the Justice Department and Fulton County.

    While grand juries often work with federal prosecutors to investigate alleged crimes, “that does not give the DOJ the right to use the Grand Jury to do whatever the DOJ wants,” he wrote.

    Even if the records sought by the Justice Department could help find people who worked for the county during the 2020 election who support the theory that the election was unfair, the information couldn’t be used to charge anyone, Ray wrote.

    “That is because the statute of limitations for any possible crime arising from the 2020 Election has long expired,” he wrote.

    The subpoena came after the FBI in January served a search warrant at the Fulton County election hub and seized hundreds of boxes of ballots and other documents from the 2020 election. A federal judge in May denied the county’s request to force the federal government to return the ballots.

    The Justice Department argued in a court filing that the subpoena was the “next step in the normal investigative process” and that it seeks “records identifying persons with relevant knowledge.”

    Kamal Ghali, a lawyer for the county, argued that the subpoena “will chill participation by election workers” and that the statute of limitations for any of the alleged misconduct had already lapsed.

    Justice Department lawyer William McComb argued the statute of limitations issue is not relevant at the investigative stage. The point of the investigation is to figure out what charges can be brought, he said.

    “My point is, as we sit here now, we are not sure what charges can be brought. That’s the whole point of the investigation,” he said.

    The request for election workers’ contact information, McComb said, “would simply be a pathway to determine and speak with and interview certain individuals who worked at the polls who may have seen, heard or done something in and of themselves.”

    The judge noted that the Justice Department had expressed concern about possible criminal actions in the years that followed the election, including an alleged failure by the county to preserve electronic ballot images. But he pointed out that the subpoena seeks information related to what happened during the 2020 election and its immediate aftermath.

    “In these hyper-political times in which we currently live, there are sure to be some who disagree with this decision because they believe the allegations of fraud in the 2020 Election and believe that ‘light’ should be brought to those claims,” Ray wrote.

    He added that nothing prevents continued investigation into those allegations by people who believe those claims — such as Congress or even the Justice Department — but the power of the grand jury, “which exists to investigate potential crimes and to bring viable indictments,” cannot be used for that purpose. Otherwise, anyone in power could use the grand jury process to subpoena personal information of citizens “with no legitimate law enforcement purpose,” he wrote.

    “Thus, everyone, whether you support the President or you do not, or whether you believe the 2020 Election was fair or believe that it was not, should be concerned about the DOJ’s ability to utilize the power of the Grand Jury to appropriate your private information without a legitimate purpose,” Ray wrote.

  • Trump-promoted Freedom Fuel gas stations are opening around Philly. Here’s what we know.

    Trump-promoted Freedom Fuel gas stations are opening around Philly. Here’s what we know.

    Philadelphia-area drivers can now fill up their tanks with less-expensive gasoline promoted by President Donald Trump’s administration, but details on the entire enterprise remain scarce.

    The White House on Tuesday announced the opening of the first Freedom Fuel gas station in Upper Dublin Township, at a former Sunoco station.

    In the undated video, drivers happily filled their tanks for $3.47 a gallon, which the White House said was to honor “our 47th President.” That’s cheaper than the least-expensive gas at nearby stations, according to prices posted by GasBuddy.

    The Freedom Fuel station in Dresher is near a McDonald’s and across the street from a shopping plaza. But what sets it apart from other nearby gas stations is the assortment of American flags planted across its footprint — and the cheaper gas.

    While a nearby Citgo station, about five minutes away, prices regular gas at $3.79 a gallon, and a Gulf offers it at $3.85, Freedom Fuel offers it at $3.47 a gallon.

    For many patrons stopping by Tuesday afternoon, the branding was new — and secondary to savings.

    The Freedom Fuel Network gas station at 1400 Dreshertown Road in Dresher.

    Jessiah Brice, 25, said the Freedom Fuel station was convenient because it is near her job. She had noticed the new branding after the July Fourth holiday and had no idea what it was about, but she welcomed the idea regardless of the affiliation with Trump.

    “Gas should be cheaper,” she said. “My only issue is: How is it $3.47 here and $5 by me?”

    Another gas buyer, who declined to give her name out of privacy concerns, said she had heard of Trump’s efforts to bring cheaper gas to people but had not connected it to her local gas station.

    “What’s not to love?” said another patron, before driving away with a full tank.

    Seyer Hamidi, 36, stumbled upon the station after picking up his car, which he likes to fill up with premium gas, from the mechanic. He, too, welcomed the idea.

    “Gas is going to be high whether you’re a Republican or Democrat,” the Republican said, noting the cheaper gas was a step in the right direction.

    A lot remains unclear, including the names of the participating businesses and how they are able to sell gasoline cheaper than nearby competitors.

    A White House spokesperson confirmed that a website for the Freedom Fuel Network, which showed 25 locations across the Philadelphia region and South Jersey, was accurate. The White House did not confirm that all 25 locations are open and did not provide information about the company.

    The list includes stations in Elmwood Park, Bustleton, and Hunting Park, but it was unclear if every location on the Freedom Fuel website was open.

    A White House spokesperson said the Freedom Fuel Network was a private company and not a government program, adding that the company was not purchasing gasoline at a discount and that the administration has not provided funding. The spokesperson said the business was simply making gas more affordable for drivers in Pennsylvania and New Jersey but did not elaborate.

    The company behind the Freedom Fuel Network did not respond to a request for comment.

    The fuel pumps at the Freedom Fuel Network gas station at 1400 Dreshertown Road in Dresher.

    Beyond that, not much information was available beyond the White House social media post and a statement made by Trump, who wrote on his Truth Social account last week that a “very smart retailer” located throughout the Northeast was “stepping up” to offer a discount at the pump.

    Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, crunched the numbers and said there was no profitable way for Freedom Fuel stations to sell gas so cheaply.

    “Stations selling at this price, it’s not sustainable,” De Haan said. “Generally, when losses happen, somebody’s got to pay for it.”

    De Haan had no insight on who owns the stations or what deals they might have made to purchase gas, but did confirm many of the stations exist in GasBuddy’s database, though the names were “vastly different.”

    Gas prices have been dropping in recent weeks after peaking in May. Prices soared after the United States attacked Iran and the Strait of Hormuz — a key shipping lane — was shut down.

    The average cost of a gallon of gas in Philadelphia on Tuesday was $3.95, according to AAA. That was up nearly 20% from this time last year, when the cost of a gallon of gas averaged $3.31.

  • A new Sprouts Farmers Market is opening in South Jersey this summer

    A new Sprouts Farmers Market is opening in South Jersey this summer

    Another Sprouts Farmers Market is coming soon to South Jersey.

    The Sprouts in Washington Township is set to open Aug. 28, the company announced Tuesday in a statement.

    The 23,000-square-foot organic grocery store is under construction on Egg Harbor Road in Sewell, with an attached 6,400-square-foot storefront for lease, according to marketing materials for the new development.

    Sprouts plans to bring on about 90 full- and part-time employees, with hiring events scheduled next week for Tuesday and Wednesday at the Double Tree by Hilton in Cherry Hill.

    This Sprouts in South Philadelphia opened in 2018.

    The Washington Township location will be the Phoenix-based chain’s fourth in South Jersey. The grocer, which specializes in organic, gluten-free, and plant-based products, also has stores in Haddon Township, Marlton, and West Deptford.

    Across the river, the company operates four Philadelphia locations, including Roosevelt Mall in the Northeast and the new Rivermark complex in Northern Liberties, as well as two Montgomery County stores in Upper Dublin and Montgomeryville.

    Never-opened Amazon Fresh in Havertown set to become a Sprouts Farmers Market

    The chain has a location under construction in Limerick, and recently signed a lease for the never-opened Amazon Fresh in Havertown, with a Sprouts opening expected early next year.

    While some other chain grocery stores have closed locally, and some consumers have cut back due to higher prices, Sprouts is expanding, with a goal to open 40 stores nationwide by the end of 2026, according to a recent earnings report.

    Sprouts executives said on the earnings call that they are also taking steps to improve affordability, including store promotions like $5 Sushi Wednesday and price reductions on increasingly expensive items like coffee.

  • NATO unveils billions in arms deals to prove its firepower as Trump again demands Greenland

    NATO unveils billions in arms deals to prove its firepower as Trump again demands Greenland

    ANKARA, Turkey — President Donald Trump on Tuesday insisted that the United States should be in control of Greenland rather than NATO ally Denmark, renewing tensions in Europe even as the trans-Atlantic military alliance was announcing billions in arms deals at a summit in an attempt to appease the mercurial U.S. leader.

    Trump called the semiautonomous island “an important part” for the United States, as he repeated the false claim that it’s surrounded by Chinese and Russian ships and said he won’t let Greenland be threatened.

    “That should be controlled by the United States, not by Denmark,” Trump told reporters during a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara.

    The NATO alliance was founded on the principle that its 32 members will defend each others’ territory and not threaten to seize it. At the summit, European countries and the alliance’s secretary-general, Mark Rutte, were already working overtime to address another longstanding Trump complaint: that European allies do not spend enough on their own defense.

    Separately, Trump announced that the U.S. will lift sanctions on Turkey that were issued after Ankara purchased a Russian missile defense system that led to the country being kicked out of the F-35 fighter jet program — in a nod to his warm ties with summit host Erdogan.

    Trump cites Erdogan ‘chemistry’ as he lifts obstacle on F-35s

    Turkey’s purchase in 2019 of Russian-made S-400 missile defense systems sparked years of tensions, despite the warm personal relationship between Trump and Erdogan dating back to the U.S. president’s first term.

    Legal hurdles remain before Turkey could be fully admitted back to the U.S. F-35 program, but the removal of sanctions issued under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act would help ease that process. Regaining access to the F-35s is a top goal of Erdogan.

    “We’re going to be taking the sanctions off, OK?” Trump said in response to a question, saying Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth were working on the issue.

    Trump said the possibility of selling F-35s to Turkey is “something certainly we’d consider” given the countries’ relationship, and that “Turkey’s been, in many ways, much more loyal than other countries that we think would be loyal.”

    Erdogan expressed hope that the U.S. will sell the F-35s, saying the U.S. president always stands by his word.

    Trump and Erdogan showed off their fondness for each other. Erdogan greeted Trump with an elaborate ceremony involving military officials on horseback and jets overhead emitting red, white, and blue smoke.

    Asked what makes their relationship so strong, Trump said there’s “a chemistry that works between us,” adding that “Sometimes you get along with the toughest people, like him.”

    Turkey’s access to U.S. F-35s could complicate relationships elsewhere. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he has urged Trump not to sell the fighter jets to Turkey, saying it would put Israel in danger.

    “This is not a force for peace and stability,” Netanyahu said on CNN. “When you give them that power, you’re going to see aggression its wake.”

    There is also opposition among U.S. lawmakers to Turkey having the F-35s as long as the Russian missile defense system remains in its possession. Even if sanctions are lifted, the Trump administration still faces restrictions under U.S. law that prevent Turkey from being able to purchase the fighter jets if it owns the S-400s.

    NATO has ‘moment of great pride’ on defense

    Earlier in the day, NATO showcased military projects worth billions of dollars — an investment Rutte called “money well spent” and one clearly meant to try to satisfy Trump.

    Rutte was speaking to government ministers and defense industry officials at a forum billed as NATO’s “big reveal,” to the thrum of techno music.

    NATO does not own weapons — these are the property of member countries — but it has 14 AWACS early warning radar surveillance planes that are about 50 years old, along with newer surveillance drones.

    A deal to replace the aging planes was announced Tuesday. Swedish manufacturer Saab will supply up to 10 new GlobalEye surveillance aircraft for a 10-nation consortium, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson announced.

    “It’s a moment of great pride,” he said.

    Some projects will be paid for with funds from a system of cheap loans for defense purposes set up by the European Union, comprising up to $170 billion raised on capital markets.

    Representatives from 15 nations announced a multinational effort to buy air-to-air refueling and transport planes from Airbus. Then Rutte announced a four-country effort to purchase as many as five new Triton surveillance drones.

    Rutte had told reporters on the eve of the two-day summit that “we will announce tens of billions in new contracts.” However, at Tuesday’s event, no dollar figures were given and the display included some projects long since agreed upon.

    Ukraine’s Zelensky pushes for NATO entry

    Separately, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made a fresh appeal for his country to be allowed to join the alliance, saying his country’s armed forces are highly experienced and would boost NATO’s defense capabilities.

    He highlighted Ukraine’s ability to strike deep inside Russia and hit oil refineries and other energy targets. He said Ukraine’s armed forces are “eliminating” on average 30,000 Russian troops every month. He is set to meet with Trump on Wednesday in Ankara.

    “Frankly we take no pride in this,” Zelensky said, noting that the war with Russia — now in its fifth year — is one “we did not seek but one we are forced to fight.”

    Concern is mounting among some European countries that Russia might be preparing a hybrid attack — a combination of conventional warfare with tactics like cyberattacks — on the continent as Russian President Vladimir Putin struggles to secure victory in Ukraine.

    Yet a senior NATO official, speaking on the summit’s sidelines, said that despite some “reckless” actions by Russia, including airspace violations over Poland, Romania, and Estonia, the alliance has been successful in deterring Moscow from any potential attack on a member country. The official insisted on anonymity to brief reporters.

  • A Chester couple will face a county judge on murder charges in the death of their 2-year-old son

    A Chester couple will face a county judge on murder charges in the death of their 2-year-old son

    Cynthia Robinson and Frank Walton Sr. won back custody of their son, Frank Jr., in May 2025, Delaware County prosecutors said Tuesday.

    Six months later, the 2-year-old was dead, and the bruises and cuts that covered his young body told the story of the abuse he had been dealt in the weeks leading up to his killing, according to First Assistant District Attorney Kristin Kemp.

    Robinson, 37, and Walton, 57, were held for trial on charges of murder, conspiracy, and related crimes after an hours-long preliminary hearing before District Judge Dawn L. Vann.

    An autopsy revealed that Frank died in November from a laceration to his liver that caused significant internal bleeding, as well as bleeding in his brain that a forensic examiner said Tuesday was caused by either blunt trauma or severely shaking the boy.

    Those injuries, Kemp said, were caused by Robinson, who has a documented history of abusing all four of her children, and who had been seen beating and striking Frank whenever he cried at the couple’s house in Chester.

    Kemp said though Robinson dealt the fatal injuries, Walton was just as culpable — he waited to call 911 until the boy had died, despite seeing his condition worsen in the hours after the beating.

    Walton also agreed to lie to police and attempt to blame his son’s injuries on his then-3-year-old daughter, whom Robinson claimed had pushed the boy down the stairs, Kemp said. The girl, according to testimony Tuesday, had spent the entire day with Walton and had not been home.

    A Chesco couple cared more for drugs than their young son, judge says before sending them to prison for decades

    “They were afraid of law enforcement and investigators seeing that every aspect of that child had been abused,” Kemp said. “Only one thing could’ve happened with that baby, and that was his death.”

    Robinson’s attorney, Michael Dugan, said that there was no evidence his client had intended to kill her son.

    “At the end of the day, who calls 911? Mom. Who does CPR? Mom,” Dugan said. “I don’t think either one of these parents knew this child was dying, and when they knew his extreme condition, they called for help.”

    Walton’s attorney, Wana Saadzoi, asserted that the charges against him should be dropped — he had never been seen abusing his son, and the mortal injuries took place when he was out working.

    “He couldn’t have prevented it from happening if he wasn’t present,” she said. “This was a tragic failure that he was unable to appreciate the seriousness of his injuries.”

    But Kemp doubted that theory of the case, saying Walton was well aware of Robinson’s history of child abuse and should have done more to protect the toddler.

    “As a parent, you don’t get to bury your head in the sand,” she said. “You have an affirmative duty to intervene and save your child.”

    Frank was born prematurely, according to the affidavit of probable cause for his parents’ arrests, and tested positive for cocaine and fentanyl. He was placed in foster care as a result, but was returned to his parents in May 2025.

    Robinson’s half brother, Jason Weldon, testified Tuesday that he saw her carry Frank down the stairs by his T-shirt and drop him onto his back from about waist height hours before the boy died.

    He said he saw Robinson slap Frank and forcibly cover his mouth when he cried, and heard her say she was going to “beat this little [expletive].”

    Weldon testified that he threatened to report Robinson to county officials, but that she begged him not to because she did not want the boy to be taken away again.

    A Delco man was sentenced to decades in prison for his role in the fatal beating of an 18-month-old girl

    He said he told Walton about the abuse and that he needed to protect his kids.

    “If I would’ve known [Frank Jr. would be killed], I would’ve done something about it,” Weldon said.

    Weldon said he woke up on the night Frank died to see Robinson frantically performing CPR on the boy. And he was in the room when she told police that her daughter had pushed Frank down the stairs, he said, but he “didn’t think it went down that way.”

    An autopsy revealed that the injuries the boy sustained, especially the laceration to his liver, required force only an adult could apply, according to testimony Tuesday.

  • McConnell speaks to Republican leaders as speculation swirls about his health, remains hospitalized

    McConnell speaks to Republican leaders as speculation swirls about his health, remains hospitalized

    WASHINGTON — The Senate’s top two Republicans have spoken individually to Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell, according to aides, as the former GOP leader remains in the hospital more than three weeks after being admitted for undisclosed health issues.

    Aides to McConnell have declined to release any information about his condition, fueling speculation about his prognosis and whether he will be healthy enough to be at the Capitol when the Senate returns to Washington next week after a two-week recess. McConnell, 84, is retiring at the end of his term in January.

    A spokesperson for Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R., S.D.) said he had spoken with McConnell by phone on Monday and that the two had a “lengthy and substantive conversation that covered a variety of topics, including national security.” As leader, Thune is generally kept up to date on illnesses and absences in his conference as he has to navigate vote counts and his narrow 53-47 majority.

    Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso, the No. 2 Senate Republican, had a 20-minute conversation with McConnell on Tuesday, according to a spokesperson. The two discussed Senate races ahead of the midterm elections, the Supreme Court, and other topics, the statement said.

    “Senator McConnell was fully engaged and is eager to get back to the Senate,” said Barrasso spokesperson Kate Noyes.

    Another McConnell ally, Republican strategist Scott Jennings, posted on X that he had also talked to McConnell for 20 minutes on Tuesday, and that “he’s still recovering in the hospital.” Jennings said they spoke about politics, foreign policy, “and even a little bit of Senate history.”

    Few details released as McConnell remains in the hospital

    McConnell was admitted to the hospital on June 14, according to a statement from his office that only said he was “receiving excellent care.”

    A statement a week later said that he would not be voting that week. And on Thursday, a new statement said that he ”appreciates the outpouring of support he’s receiving while he continues his recovery in the hospital.”

    “The Senator continues to improve, and is working closely with his staff on Kentucky and Senate matters while the Senate is out of session,” the statement said.

    A spokesperson for McConnell released the same statement again on Tuesday, with no updates.

    McConnell has a history of health troubles

    The senator’s unspecified health issues come after several hospitalizations in recent years.

    While he was still Republican leader, McConnell was hospitalized with a concussion in March 2023 and missed several weeks of work after falling in a Washington hotel. He twice froze up during news conferences after he returned, staring vacantly ahead before colleagues and staff — including Barrasso, who is a doctor — came to his assistance.

    A year later, he fell and sprained his wrist while walking out of a GOP luncheon.

    McConnell had polio in his early childhood and he has long acknowledged some difficulty as an adult in walking and climbing stairs. He also tripped and fell in 2019 at his home in Kentucky and underwent surgery for a fractured shoulder.

    The Kentucky senator was first elected to the Senate in 1984 and was the Republican leader from 2007 until last year, serving as both majority and minority leader during that period. He has remained active as a rank-and-file senator, showing up for work when the chamber is in session, often using a wheelchair to get around.

  • Judge rules for the Washington Post in $3.8B defamation suit brought by Trump Media

    Judge rules for the Washington Post in $3.8B defamation suit brought by Trump Media

    A federal judge on Thursday ruled in favor of the Washington Post, throwing out a $3.8 billion defamation lawsuit filed in 2023 by President Donald Trump’s social media company, Trump Media and Technology Group.

    U.S. District Judge Thomas Barber, who is based in Tampa, wrote in a summary docket entry — known as a minute order — that Trump Media “failed to present evidence that would allow a jury to find by clear and convincing evidence” that the Post “published the allegedly defamatory statements with actual malice.” Barber granted the Post’s motion for summary judgment and denied one from Trump Media.

    The judge said in his ruling Thursday that a full opinion is forthcoming.

    Public figures who sue for defamation in U.S. courts generally must demonstrate that the defendants acted with actual malice — disseminating information they know is false, or acting with reckless disregard for the truth — under the standard set by the landmark 1964 Supreme Court case New York Times Co. v. Sullivan.

    In the complaint, lawyers for Trump’s social media company alleged a “yearslong crusade” by the Post that culminated in an “egregious hit piece.”

    The article, published on May 13, 2023, focused on Trump Media’s effort to obtain financing ahead of a merger to take the company public. The deal, a merger with a special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, called Digital World Acquisition, received sign-off from federal securities regulators in February 2024. One month later, in March, the company debuted under the ticker symbol DJT on the Nasdaq stock exchange.

    “We are pleased with the court’s decision and look forward to reviewing its written order upon release,” a Post spokesperson wrote in a statement.

    After discovery concluded in the case, the Post published a correction to the original piece, appended with a hyperlink on May 22, 2026 — three years after it was published.

    The correction noted that “[d]iscovery in the ongoing litigation has established that Trump Media didn’t pay a loan referral fee of $240,000, as was stated in the article and was based on The Post’s reporting at the time of publication.”

    Trump Media said the correction was a win and said it is considering appealing the court loss.

    “After three years, The Washington Post finally admitted its harmful story was false,” a spokesperson for Trump Media wrote in a statement on Monday. “We believe a jury should decide whether these falsehoods were actionable and will evaluate whether to appeal last week’s ruling in due course. We will also continue to hold the media accountable.”

  • An Idaho mother who said her toddler twins died after vaccinations has been charged with murder

    An Idaho mother who said her toddler twins died after vaccinations has been charged with murder

    An Idaho woman who said her toddler twins died last year after being vaccinated faces murder charges connected to their deaths, authorities said.

    A grand jury indicted Andrea Shaw, who is accused of suffocating her 18-month-old twins in May 2025, on two counts of first-degree murder on June 29, according to court records and a statement from the Payette Police Department.

    While appearing last year on an internet show produced by Children’s Health Defense — an anti-vaccine group founded by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — Shaw said her twins died after getting vaccinated. Kennedy has not been affiliated with the group since December 2024, when he formally resigned as chairperson to join President Donald Trump’s administration.

    Shaw, 23, was arrested by Boise police officers last week and arraigned Thursday. She is being held on a $2 million bond and could face life in prison or the death penalty if convicted or if she pleads guilty to first-degree murder. Her next court appearance is July 14.

    Joe Filicetti, an attorney representing Shaw, wrote in a text message that she “denies anything and everything” and that the state “cannot prove” the criminal charges.

    “We will defend her with wholeheartedness,” Filicetti added.

    The Payette Police Department and the Payette County prosecutor’s office declined to comment Monday.

    During her May 2025 appearance on the Children’s Health Defense show, Shaw said she found her twins dead in their room days after they got vaccinated for the flu and other diseases.

    “They had got their shots at the same time by two nurses at the same time,” Shaw said. “And they got sick.”

    Medical experts point out that the childhood vaccines at issue — hepatitis A, influenza, and DTaP — are safe and effective for kids and recommended by various medical groups.

    Shaw is also a plaintiff in a federal lawsuit brought by Children’s Health Defense and others against the American Academy of Pediatrics. The lawsuit, which was filed in January in federal court in Washington, accuses the American Academy of Pediatrics of racketeering for its “central role in an enterprise that has defrauded American families about the safety of the childhood vaccine schedule for several decades.” In the lawsuit, Shaw is described as a mother “whose children died following routine vaccinations administered according to AAP guidelines.”

    The American Academy of Pediatrics has asked the court to dismiss the suit, asserting in an April court filing that it is the “latest missive in a campaign targeting” the academy and its “use of science-backed evidence in vaccine policy.”

    In January, pediatricians and other experts became alarmed when U.S. health officials made broad changes to childhood vaccine guidance, dropping several universal recommendations. Kennedy, who helped lead the anti-vaccine movement for years, said the changes better align the U.S. with peer nations “while strengthening transparency and informed consent.”

    In March, a federal judge blocked the changes and said Kennedy likely violated federal procedures in revamping a key vaccine advisory committee. But the judge’s order is not the final word; the blocks are temporary, pending either a trial or a decision for summary judgment.