Crime

CBS Chicago reports: A megachurch in Ohio is accused of coercing an elderly woman in Rogers Park to hand over hundreds of thousands of dollars. The woman is mentally ill and has dementia. She is now under the care of the Cook County Public Guardian, who is fighting to reclaim that money — her life-savings. Bridget Pollard, 76, has lived …

The Los Angeles Times reports: New details emerged Monday about the arrest of Track Palin, the eldest son of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, with charging documents saying he broke into his parents’ home and beat his father. Track Palin, 28, was arrested Saturday and is charged with first-degree burglary, fourth-degree assault and criminal mischief; he remains in custody. A …

NBC News reports: The oldest son of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin was arraigned Sunday on domestic violence charges, according to online court records. Track Palin, was arraigned Sunday morning on charges of felony burglary, assault in the fourth degree and criminal mischief for causing property damage in Wasilla, Alaska, according to court records. Track Palin was also arrested in …

Reuters reports: A U.S. District Court judge on Friday said she would release former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort from house arrest once he meets certain conditions, expressing satisfaction that the $10 million he agreed to forfeit would be available if he ever failed to appear for court proceedings. In her order, Judge Amy Berman Jackson said to be released …

CNN reports: President Donald Trump on Friday did not dismiss the idea of pardoning former national security adviser Michael Flynn after he pleaded guilty earlier this month to lying to the FBI about conversations with Russia’s ambassador to the US. Asked whether he would consider a pardon for Flynn, Trump told reporters on the White House South Lawn Friday morning …

Christianity Today reports: The man who launched America’s largest and longest-running Christian music festival has been “indefinitely suspended” from the ministry and his church following his arrest Wednesday on charges of child molestation. Harry L. Thomas, founder of the Creation Festival and senior pastor of Come Alive New Testament Church in Medford, New Jersey, has been accused of sexually assaulting …

The Strait Times reports:  Two American men who were arrested in Thailand for posting naked photos to Instagram have been released from jail and are heading home to San Diego. Joseph Dasilva, 38, and Travis Dasilva, 36, were arrested at Bangkok’s Don Mueang International Airport last month after images posted to their Traveling Butts Instagram account showed them dropping their …

The Washington Post reports: James O’Keefe, the conservative founder of a charity that specializes in undercover videos targeting journalists and liberals, has been personally barred from seeking donations in Florida due to his criminal record, officials said. The ban is part of a wave of scrutiny by regulators in several states after New York officials threatened last week to prohibit …

Boston’s CBS affiliate reports: Former Massachusetts Sen. Brian Joyce “violated the public’s trust” and “decided to take the path of greed” by using his office for personal profit to accept up to $1 million in bribes and kickbacks in exchange for official actions, federal investigators said Friday. Joyce, a longtime attorney and Milton Democrat who was arrested Friday, is accused …

The boy does not appear in the clip, presumably because he was a juvenile. Oklahoma City’s ABC affiliate reports: Police have released body-camera footage of the March night when officers found former state Sen. Ralph Shortey in a motel room with an underage boy. Before police entered Shortey’s room at the Super 8 along Interstate 35 near Northeast 12th Street, …

Oklahoma City’s NBC affiliate reports: A former state senator could face up to life in prison after pleading guilty to child sex trafficking. Former Sen. Ralph Shortey, 35, entered a guilty plea Thursday after being caught with a 17-year-old boy at a motel. On March 9, the Moore Police Department was called shortly before 1 a.m to the Super 8 …

CNBC reports: President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser Michael Flynn is expected to plead guilty Friday to lying to the FBI about his post-election discussions with Russia’s ambassador to the United States. A plea hearing for Flynn, the first Trump administration official charged in the ongoing Russia probe, has been scheduled for 10:30 a.m. in Washington, D.C. federal court, …

Talking Points Memo reports: A month after turning himself in for charges he faces connected to Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe, former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort reached a bail deal with Mueller’s team, according to court documents filed by Manafort’s lawyers Thursday. Manafort’s lawyers are now seeking for a federal judge to approve of his release under the …

The New York Post reports: The Bronx teen accused of fatally stabbing a 15-year-old classmate and nearly killing another walked free Wednesday on $250,000 bond. “I am grateful to the people who donated to my bond fund,” Abel Cedeno, 18, said in a statement handed out to the media, which he said would be his last public comments on the …

CNN reports: Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s team has postponed an anticipated grand jury testimony linked to his investigation into Michael Flynn amid growing indications of possible plea deal discussions. Additional witnesses were expected to be questioned soon including a public relations consultant hired by Flynn’s lobbying firm who was given an early December date deadline to appear before the grand …

The Guardian reports: A former Bosnian Croat general has died after drinking a phial of poison at a UN tribunal in The Hague, where his war crimes sentence of 20 years was upheld on Wednesday, a court spokesman has confirmed. Seconds after his sentence was upheld at the international criminal tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), Slobodan Praljak, shouted out …

The Hill reports: The U.S. Office of Special Counsel is opening a case file to address allegations that White House counselor Kellyanne Conway violated federal law when she made comments about GOP Senate candidate Roy Moore’s Democratic challenger. Walter Shaub, the former director of the Office of Government Ethics, filed a complaint with the Office of Special Counsel last week …

The Huffington Post reports: A controversial far-right reporter was arrested Tuesday night following an altercation at a University of Connecticut event where he was speaking, a university spokesperson said. Lucian Wintrich, 29, the White House correspondent for the conservative website The Gateway Pundit, had been giving a speech advertised as “It Is OK To Be White” when a woman approached …

San Diego’s CBS affiliate reports: Friends of a San Diego couple fear the worst after the pair, known for their risqué travel photos, was caught up in a scandal overseas and disappeared. The couple, Travis Ti and Joseph Dasilva, took photos at Buddhist temples in Thailand, and the concern has grown on social media after a post said they were …

Reuters reports: Hate crimes against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in Russia have doubled in five years, researchers said on Tuesday, in the wake of a law banning “gay propaganda”. Murders accounted for almost 200 out of 250 crimes analyzed, the Center for Independent Social Research said, attributing the surge to Russia’s 2013 ban on the spreading of …