Crime

The Hill reports: Roger Stone’s lawyers told a court on Thursday that they intend to appeal the right-wing political operative’s 40-month prison sentence and a judge’s decision to deny him a new trial. Stone was convicted in November following a jury trial on charges of lying to Congress and witness tampering in a case that stemmed from his efforts to …

Fox News reports: Longtime President Trump associate Roger Stone, who was sentenced earlier this year to roughly three years in prison for making false statements and witness tampering, said in a podcast released Thursday that he’s “praying” for a pardon from the president — repeating a claim that his punishment would be a “de facto death sentence” because of coronavirus. …

The New York Post reports: A woman was busted for allegedly spitting on a fellow shopper during a squabble over social distancing at a high-end Italian market in Philadelphia, according to a new report. Shopper Alexis Danilo told KYW-TV that she was shopping at Di Bruno Bros. in Center City Sunday when Jacqueline McBride, 27, got a little too close …

The Sacramento Bee reports: A 36-year-old man pulled a knife Friday on a television news team covering an anti-lockdown protest in Huntington Beach, California. Christien Francis Petersen of Costa Mesa has been jailed on suspicion of exhibiting a deadly weapon other than a firearm and kidnapping. Petersen approached a KTTV cameraman and reporter, produced a pocket knife and forced them …

Baton Rouge’s ABC News affiliate reports: Police have issued an arrest warrant for the controversial pastor of Life Tabernacle Church in Central, Louisiana. The warrant accuses pastor Tony Spell of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, the Central Police Department says. Police in Central say Spell allegedly backed up a church bus into the direction of a person protesting in …

The Chicago Sun-Times reports: Singer R. Kelly is writing new lyrics these days via email. The lyrics? “Please. Please. Please.” The words are from three recent emails sent to Chicago attorney Steve Greenberg by Kelly, who petitioned the court last week to release him from incarceration at the Metropolitan Correctional Center during the COVID-19 pandemic. Greenberg said the emails were …

USA Today reports: Bill Cosby won’t be leaving incarceration any time soon, despite concerns that he could be susceptible to coronavirus while in prison. Because he’s a sex offender, “inmate Cosby is not eligible for a reprieve by the governor,” Pennsylvania Department of Corrections spokeswoman Susan McNaughton told USA TODAY in an email Saturday. Cosby representatives were surprised to learn …

The Guardian reports: An international mystery concerning the alleged theft of priceless ancient papyrus biblical fragments from a collection held at Oxford University has led to the arrest of a classics professor on suspicion of theft and fraud. Dr Dirk Obbink, an associate professor in papyrology and Greek literature at the university, was detained by officers from Thames Valley police. …

Newsweek reports: In his first television appearance since the lifting of a 16-month-long gag order, former Trump adviser Roger Stone told Fox News host Tucker Carlson Friday that if he went to prison, it would be a “death sentence.” Stone was convicted in 2019 for obstructing a congressional investigation into alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 election. Throughout the trial, …

CNN reports: It was described as the “magic bullet” to protect against the deadly coronavirus — a “remarkable clinical phenomenon” that could cure the disease within hours. In the words of San Diego physician Jennings Staley, the drug hydroxychloroquine​, approved to treat conditions ranging from malaria to lupus, was “almost too good to be true.” On his website advertising the …

CNN reports: The federal Bureau of Prisons has notified Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump’s former personal attorney, that he will be released early from prison due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to people familiar with the matter and his lawyer. Cohen is serving a three-year sentence at the federal prison camp in Otisville, NY, where 14 inmates and seven staff …

New York’s CBS affiliate reports: A man who allegedly threatened to blow up the “Alice in Wonderland” statue in Central Park was arrested after police found knives, rifle ammunition and what appeared to be three empty pipe bombs in his Manhattan apartment, prosecutors say. Kevin Fallon, 30, sent a group text to several people he knew around 8 p.m. on …

Reuters reports: The convicted celebrity lawyer Michael Avenatti has been granted temporary freedom from a New York City jail by a California federal judge who said the spread of the novel coronavirus was a compelling reason to release him. In an order late on Friday, U.S. District Judge James Selna said Avenatti, who represented adult film actress Stormy Daniels in …

Reuters reports: Harvey Weinstein, who is serving a prison sentence for rape, has no symptoms of the coronavirus, his spokesman said on Thursday, more than two weeks after a union official for corrections officers said the former movie producer had tested positive. “As of now, it’s been 14 days since reports of concern from people inside the prison, and he …

Yahoo News reports: Pattie Stockman, wife of former Rep. Steve Stockman (R-Texas), asked President Trump to pardon him amid the coronavirus pandemic so his 10-year sentence for fraud and other white-collar crimes “does not become a death penalty.” Stockman, a conservative firebrand, was convicted in April 2018 of 23 felonies for allegedly misusing $1.25 million in campaign funds for personal …

The Hartford Courant reports: A Madison teenager has been arrested and charged with computer crimes after “Zoom bombing” online classes held through Daniel Hand High School. Madison Public Schools recently turned to the popular virtual video conferencing software Zoom to conduct classes online while students study from home during the coronavirus pandemic, but teachers immediately fell victim to what has …

Reuters reports: Australia’s highest court acquitted former Vatican treasurer George Pell on Tuesday of sexually assaulting two teenaged choirboys in the 1990s, freeing the 78-year-old cardinal after 404 days in jail. The High Court ordered Pell’s convictions be quashed and verdicts of acquittal be entered in their place, ending the most high profile case of alleged historical sex abuse to …

The Dallas Morning News reports: William Neil “Doc” Gallagher, a financial consultant and radio host who stole more than $20 million from investors, has been sentenced to 25 years behind bars after he reached a plea agreement with Dallas County prosecutors. Gallagher, 79, pleaded guilty Friday to one count each of theft of more than $300,000, money laundering of more …

St. Louis’s CBS News affiliate reports: 33-year-old Cuba, Mo. man was arrested Tuesday after coughing on shoppers inside a store and writing “COVID” inside a cooler door. Officers arrived to a local business for a report of a man causing a disturbance inside. An employee told police the man, later identified as 33-year-old John Swaller of Cuba, Mo., was coughing …

The Associated Press reports: Investigators arrested a California train engineer Tuesday after he allegedly derailed a train in a bid to crash into the USNS Mercy, the hospital ship treating non-COVID-19 patients at the Port of Los Angeles to lessen the burden on area hospitals, prosecutors said. Eduardo Moreno, 44, was expected to appear in court Wednesday for arraignment on …