Jan. 6 hearing live updates: Trump set to plead not guilty
(LOS ANGELES) — Former President Donald Trump’s election interference case resumes Thursday after months of delays, with a hearing in front of the federal judge overseeing the case.
The hearing comes a week after special counsel Jack Smith filed a superseding indictment that revised the original Jan. 6 charges to reflect the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark ruling that Trump is entitled to immunity from criminal prosecution for official acts undertaken while in office.
Here’s how the news is developing:
Trump is set to plead not guilty
At his expected arraignment at today’s hearing, Donald Trump has directed his attorneys to plead not guilty on his behalf to charges in the superseding indictment brought by special counsel Jack Smith.
Trump is not expected to appear at the hearing in person, after waiving his right to be present in a filing earlier this week.
The hearing in the case was scheduled before Smith filed the superseding indictment.
(HILLSBOROUGH, N.C.) — A convicted murderer escaped from custody Tuesday morning while being transported to a medical appointment at a North Carolina hospital, the sheriff’s office said.
Ramone Alston, 30, broke away from a corrections officer while being escorted to UNC Hospital in Hillsborough, according to the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction.
“He had freed himself from leg restraints and, still in handcuffs, jumped out and ran into adjacent woods,” the department said in a statement.
He was last seen wearing a gray T-shirt, brown pants and white New Balance sneakers, as well as handcuffs connected to a waist chain, officials said.
Officials are asking the public to immediately call 911 if they see him and warning them not to approach him.
“He’s unpredictable — we don’t know what he’s going to do, so he should certainly probably be considered dangerous,” Keith Acree, a spokesperson for the Department of Adult Correction, said in a press briefing. “People make rash decisions at a time like this; he’s already made one very large rash decision this morning.”
As of Wednesday morning, Alston’s whereabouts were still unknown, though he is believed to have headed north of the hospital.
Director of Orange County Emergency Services Kirby Saunders said state, local and federal law enforcement teams have searched hundreds of acres for Alston, using aerial assets, helicopters, canine resources and ground searchers.
The North Carolina Department of Adult Correction said Tuesday they would offer a $25,000 reward for information leading to the capture of Alston. On Wednesday, a spokesperson for the department said the U.S. Marshals Service had contributed $10,000, increasing the reward amount to $35,000.
Alston was convicted of shooting and killing a 1-year-old girl on Christmas Day in 2015. He is serving a life sentence.
The infant victim, Maleah Williams, had been playing outside with her Christmas toys when she was struck by gunfire, her mother previously told Raleigh ABC station WTVD.
Alston’s family has been cooperating with authorities, Sheriff Charles Blackwood told reporters, though he said “cooperation has been varied.”
Blackwood said he went to school with Alston’s father and has known the suspect since he was born. He called Alston a “troubled child” and said he’d been involved in criminal activity since his youth.
“He’s extremely cagey, he’s extremely dangerous and he has nothing to lose,” Blackwood said.
(TULSA, Okla.) — A dog in Tulsa, Oklahoma, started a house fire after biting into a lithium ion battery, fire officials said.
The Tulsa Fire Department recently released dramatic footage of the fire, which took place in May, showing the portable cellphone battery sparking and bursting into flames, sending two dogs and a cat running.
The home sustained significant damage in the fire, but the pets escaped through a dog door and were not harmed, according to Andy Little, a spokesperson for the fire department.
“However, the outcome could’ve been much worse if there had been no means of escape or if the family was asleep at the time,” Little added.
Little called lithium ion battery fires a “critical issue that has been affecting fire departments across the United States.”
The batteries, commonly used to charge cellphones, are “known for storing a significant amount of energy in a compact space,” Little said.
“However, when this energy is released uncontrollably, it can generate heat, produce flammable and toxic gases and even lead to explosions,” he added.
Extreme heat exposure, physical damage, overcharging and using incompatible charging equipment can lead to the devices catching fire, according to experts.
Little urged the public to exercise caution with lithium ion batteries, including storing them out of reach of children and pets.
To dispose of the devices, Little said they should be brought to a designated recycling center or hazardous waste collection point — not simply thrown in the garbage, which could damage the batteries and potentially cause fires.
“Let us work together to prevent lithium-ion battery-related fires and keep our homes and communities safe,” Little said.
(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden penned a letter to commemorate one year since the fatal fires in Maui.
In the letter, he reflected on the devastation he saw in his visit to the island and how the flames impacted the communities in Lahaina and Kula.
“We said a silent prayer before your beloved banyan tree, which had been charred by the flames, but was still clinging to life. That sacred tree still stands today. Its new growth reflects the strength and resilience of your community,” Biden wrote in the letter to the people of Maui.
A devastating wildfire tore through the Hawaii island of Maui on Aug. 8, 2023, killing dozens of people and destroying the town of Lahaina. In the letter, Biden remembered the “tremendous loss and devastation” and also honored the “courage and kindness” that existed in the “darkest of moments.”
Biden pointed to the work of first responders and the way that neighbors helped and supported each other in those harrowing days.
“We continue to hold the people of Maui in our hearts and prayers,” Biden said in the letter.
In addition, the White House is touting their efforts to continue to pursue “a coordinated and comprehensive Federal response” and help the long-term recovery of the community. The administration pointed to the “nearly $3 billion in Federal support to response, recovery, and rebuilding efforts.”