Ex-officer who pleaded guilty on Tyre Nichols: ‘He was helpless’

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) — Elon Musk, the world’s richest person, has vaulted to the forefront of the presidential campaign as a top donor and impassioned speaker in support of former President Donald Trump.

Still, Musk has said in recent days that the candidate’s economic plans could cause financial pain, at least in the short term.

Among those proposals is the potential formation of a new “government efficiency commission” to be led by Musk. The group would scrutinize federal spending and slash programs deemed wasteful.

Speaking on a telephone town hall on Friday, Musk said spending cuts imposed by the commission would “necessarily involve some temporary hardship.” Ultimately, Musk added, the cost-cutting would “ensure long-term prosperity.”

“We have to reduce spending to live within our means,” Musk said.

Offering up another cautionary note, Musk voiced agreement with a post on X on Tuesday that warned of dire economic fallout if Trump wins the election and implements some of his key agenda items.

“If Trump succeeds in forcing through mass deportations, combined with Elon hacking away at the government, firing people and reducing the deficit – there will be an initial severe overreaction in the economy,” an anonymous user posted on X.

“Market will tumble. But when the storm passes and everyone realizes we are on sounder footing, there will be a rapid recovery to a healthier, sustainable economy,” the post added.

In reply, Musk said, “Sounds about right.”

ABC News contacted Musk-owned companies, Tesla and SpaceX, in an effort to reach Musk for comment. He did not immediately respond. America PAC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In response to ABC News’ request for comment, the Trump campaign praised Musk, saying he is uniquely equipped to help improve government efficiency.

“As President Trump has said, Elon Musk is a genius, an innovator, and has literally made history by building creative, modern, and efficient systems. Elon Musk has dedicated himself to America’s future by offering to serve with President Trump to ensure our government works more efficiently and uses America’s taxpayer dollars effectively,” Brian Hughes, a senior adviser to the Trump campaign, told ABC News.

“The commission will ultimately be staffed and dedicated to this mission, and President Trump is committed to having Mr. Musk lead this commission to analyze the functionality of our government,” Hughes added.

On the campaign trail, Trump has vowed to slap tariffs of up to 20% on all imported goods and deport millions of undocumented immigrants. Economists widely view those proposals as likely to drive up consumer prices, since companies typically pass along the costs of taxes and wage increases to customers.

Trump has also floated the notion of eliminating the personal income tax for all Americans. The U.S. would pay for the lost tax revenue with far-reaching tariffs, Trump told Joe Rogan last week.

The individual income tax currently accounts for roughly half of the $5 trillion in revenue that the federal government brings in each year. It would be all but impossible to make up for the lost revenue with increased tariffs, experts previously told ABC News.

Last year, the U.S. imported about $3.8 trillion worth of goods, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis found. To generate the same amount of revenue currently brought in by the individual income tax, a tariff would have needed to be set at about 70%, said Alan Auerbach, a law professor at the University of California, Berkeley.

However, a tariff of such magnitude would significantly reduce U.S. trade, slashing the total amount of imported goods and, in turn, reducing tax revenue.

Musk, who leads Tesla and SpaceX, has taken an active role as both a large donor and vocal proponent backing Trump.

Musk donated about $75 million to a pro-Trump Super PAC over a three-month period ending in September, according to disclosures filed to the Federal Election Commission. Musk, who owns X, frequently posts messages in support of Trump on the social media platform, where he boasts more than 202 million followers.

The U.S. national debt currently stands at about $35 trillion. President Joe Biden has added to the national debt over the course of his term in office, just as Trump did.

Vice President Kamala Harris’ economic plans would increase primary deficits by $1.2 trillion over the next 10 years, according to a budget model created by the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business. The plans put forward by Trump, meanwhile, would increase primary deficits by $5.8 trillion over that period, the model found.

Speaking on a telephone town hall on Friday, Musk vowed to closely examine the federal budget if appointed head of a potential “government efficiency commission.”

The role means “looking at every line item, every expense, and saying is this necessary at all?” Musk said.

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(BIRMINGHAM, Ala.) — Officials have announced up to $100,000 in reward money for information leading to the arrests of the gunmen behind a mass shooting in Birmingham, Alabama.

Multiple shooters are wanted for killing four people and injuring 17 others outside a lounge in the Five Points South Entertainment District on Saturday night.

Five of the injured victims remain in the hospital on Monday, Birmingham Police Chief Scott Thurmond said at a news conference.

Investigators have received a “significant number” of tips but are asking for more, the chief said.

The FBI is offering a reward up to $50,000 for information leading to the gunmen’s arrests and convictions, FBI Birmingham Special Agent in Charge Carlton Peeples announced at Monday’s news conference.

“If you, or you know someone, who has information about those involved in Saturday’s mass shooting, know that you can remain anonymous,” Peeples said.

Frank Barefield, chairman of Crime Stoppers of Metro Alabama, also announced a $50,000 reward — the group’s biggest reward ever.

“You can receive up to $100,000 if you have credible information that leads to, one, an arrest, and another, an actual conviction,” Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin said. “It’s your time to step up. And we need you.”

“We cannot give safe harbor or shelter to people who want to just simply kill people. We cannot give them cover,” the mayor said. “They should not feel safe in our community — they should not feel safe anywhere.”

The chief said to the unknown gunmen, “We’re gonna hunt you down and we’re gonna arrest you.”

At least one person at the shooting scene was believed to have been targeted, police said.

Investigators believe the guns used were “converted to fully automatic,” Thurmond told ABC News on Sunday.

Fully automatic weapons “do not belong on the streets,” the chief said Monday.

Gabriel Eslami, who was shot and injured, said he was in a long line outside the lounge when he heard the gunshots.

“There’s bodies on the sidewalk. There’s smoke from the guns,” he told ABC News, describing the scene as like a “horror movie.”

Eslami said his friend rushed him to the hospital.

“I get there, I’m screaming, ‘Help! Help! I’ve been shot, I’ve been shot,'” he said.

“I’m so lucky,” he added.

The names of three of the four people killed have been released by police: 21-year-old Anitra Holloman, 27-year-old Tahj Booker and 27-year-old Carlos McCain.

ABC News’ Stephanie Ramos contributed to this report.

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(NEW YORK) — The Menendez brothers face the possibility of freedom after serving more than 30 years in prison, with their case being reviewed for possible resentencing by the Los Angeles County District Attorney following the emergence of significant new evidence.

On Aug. 20, 1989, Lyle Menendez, then 21, and Erik Menendez, then 18, gunned down their parents in their Beverly Hills mansion. Jose Menendez was a wealthy 45-year-old entertainment executive, while 47-year-old Kitty Menendez was a homemaker.

The brothers were sentenced to life in prison after being convicted at their second retrial, following mistrials in the first trial.

“It was from the jump, one of the biggest cases in Los Angeles and in the country; no one could believe that these two young men had killed their parents this way,” ABC’s Terry Moran, who covered the trial, told “Impact X Nightline.”

The fact that they killed their parents 36 years ago was always clear. However, the reason they did it has always divided and captivated the nation.

During their initial trial, defense attorney Leslie Abramson contended that Lyle and Erik shot their parents in self-defense. She argued that the brothers feared their parents would kill them if they disclosed the years of alleged molestation they had suffered at their father’s hands.

The first trial ended in a mistrial on Jan. 13, 1994, due to a deadlocked jury. After a second trial, the brothers were found guilty of first-degree murder in 1996 and received two consecutive life prison terms without the possibility of parole.

A fresh legal filing has been submitted with even more distressing details of Jose Menendez’s alleged abuse.

According to the brothers’ attorneys, Erik Menendez penned a letter describing his father’s alleged abuse to his cousin.

Another alleged victim of their father, a former member of Puerto Rican boy band Menudo, also spoke out in 2023 Peacock documentary “Menendez + Menudo: Boys Betrayed.” Roy Rosselló alleged that he was abused by José Menendez when he was 14.

The Menendez brothers have seemingly gone from public enemies to victims as a powerful movement builds online to set the brothers free.

Their story is now under a modern lens, casting a new perspective on an alleged trauma that was barely understood at the time — that men could also be victims of sexual abuse. Some people say this reexamination challenges long-held beliefs and prompts people to rethink their understanding of this complex issue.

“I have always thought that if the Menendez brothers were the Menendez sisters, they’d be free today, would have been convicted,” Moran said. “But an abuse victim often gets some kind of clemency.”

Prison reform advocate Kim Kardashian called for their release.

‘We are all products of our experiences,” Kardashian wrote in a personal essay about the brothers. “Time changes us, and I doubt anyone would claim to be the same person they were at 18.”

Actor Rosie O’Donnell has befriended the brothers.

“They were not horrible kids,” O’Donnell told “Impact X Nightline.” “They were severely, sadistically tortured by a pedophile predator father, and a very compliant and also involved mother, who had no interest in them.”

In the ’90s, Dr. William Vicary, a former psychiatrist, was a key witness for the defense in the case after defense attorney Leslie Abramson hired him to evaluate Erik Menendez. Vicary later received probation of his medical license for admitting to altering notes from those meetings.

“In the ’80s and ’90s, the public had very little knowledge about this type of sexual abuse, especially fathers abusing their own sons,” Vicary told “Impact X Nightline.” “Back then, there were many people that just dismissed this outright.”

Others like Alan Abrahamson, who covered the trial for the LA Times, still believe the brothers killed their parents for money and that the jury got it right, given their lavish spending spree in the aftermath of the killings.

“The parents were sitting in the den watching TV,” Abrahamson told “Impact X Nightline.” “Did they have any weapons? No.”

Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón announced earlier this month that he was reviewing new evidence in the case against the brothers.

Some family members said the Menendez brothers should have been charged with manslaughter instead of murder. A group of relatives, including Kitty Menendez’s sister, agree.

The family members held a news conference in LA on Wednesday, hoping it would influence the appeal of their sentencing. The court has scheduled one hearing for November 2024.

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