Talk of the Town
(NEW YORK) — A woman who had been sought in connection with the death of her husband, a Massachusetts police officer, is believed to have been found dead, police said Monday, calling the case a “tragic murder-suicide.”
A search had been ongoing for Karen Solomon, 58, after her husband — 57-year-old Worcester Police Department Patrolman Kurt Solomon — was found dead in a home last week.
This is a developing story.
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(NEW YORK) — The death of a Central Park carriage horse that collapsed last week while on a ride with two passengers was caused by a foreign toxic plant, according to a necropsy publicized on Tuesday by the union representing carriage drivers.
The Transport Workers Union of America said the horse, Deniz, was giving a ride near East 90th Street in Manhattan on June 9 when it paused to eat a shrub along the curb.
A short time later, the 16-year-old horse collapsed and died, according to the necropsy performed by Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, the union said.
Two passengers were in the carriage when the incident happened, police said.
The plant was a Japanese yew, an ornamental that is toxic and deadly to horses, according to the report.
The union cited the necropsy report to counter growing calls from activists and the Central Park Conservancy to ban carriage horses due to how they’re treated.
“Deniz’s tragic death was not caused by neglect or abuse or the fact he was a carriage horse — as some animal rights activists and elected officials claimed,” Alexander Kemp, TWU’s administrative vice president, said in a statement.
“Poor Deniz died because the people running the Park Conservancy never warned anyone that there were deadly yew plants in the park. This is negligence at the highest level of the Conservancy,” he added.
The Central Park Conservancy didn’t immediately respond to ABC News for comment.
Some animal activist groups, like PETA, have long protested horse-drawn carriage rides in the park, arguing that the animals are put in danger because of nearby car traffic and forced to work in poor conditions, especially in extreme weather.
Deniz had passed a physical exam conducted by the NYPD’s Mounted Unit veterinarian in March, according to the TWU.
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(LEBANON, Pa.) — A Pennsylvania man who allegedly had a “hit list” and threatened to shoot Democratic state legislators in online posts has been charged with making terroristic threats, court records show.
Adam Berryhill, 42, of Lebanon, allegedly made “politically violent posts” on his X account that included a “hit list,” according to Pennsylvania State Police.
“The posts also included a picture of a firearm and made mention of a ‘Memorial Day Operation,'” state police said in an incident report.
Between April 7 and April 22, Berryhill allegedly posted “hit lists” and claimed to “‘start shooting’ multiple elected officials” in posts on X, according to the criminal complaint.
The 20 victims in the case identified by police in the report are all Democratic members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, including House Speaker Joanna McClinton.
The investigation began on April 28, when a state trooper tasked with conducting regular safety and security checks on McClinton “was alerted to several concerning social media posts” involving her and other state legislators made by an X account named “Pennsylvania Militia,” according to the complaint.
One post on April 7 stated, “I’ll approach every legal avenue and when they all fail I start shootings,” and then listed the names of 18 elected officials, according to the complaint.
Five days later, the account posted, “Can’t wait for the Memorial Day operation,” according to the complaint.
“Oh you like posting hit lists? Here’s mine b——,” the account posted on April 22, listing four officials referred to as “gun grabbing communists,” according to the complaint.
“Conservatives need to stop b——- and whining on this platform. The solution I have is war,” the account posted on April 24, according to the complaint. “Learn the law and know when it’s your God given right to kill your authorities.”
That post also referenced Cody Balmer, who committed an arson attack at Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s main residence in Harrisburg last year, according to the complaint.
An earlier post, on March 23, included what is believed to be an original photograph of a gun, “showing [Berryhill’s] possible access to a firearm as a means to carry out the threats,” the complaint stated.
Investigators linked the X account to Berryhill through email records and IP address data, according to the complaint. He was arrested on May 6 and charged with terroristic threats, authorities said.
“The statements made by Berryhill were not isolated or vague, but specific, targeted, and directed toward identifiable public officials, including Joanna McClinton and numerous members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly,” the complaint stated. “These communications included references to ‘hit lists,’ explicit threats of future shootings, and mention of a planned ‘Memorial Day operation,’ indicating premeditation and a potential timeline.”
Berryhill is being held on $250,000 bail. He waived his preliminary hearing, scheduled for Thursday, and his arraignment has been scheduled for June 11.
The Lebanon County Public Defender’s Office said his attorney is not making any statements at this time.
Gov. Shapiro said he has spoken with McClinton and Senate Leader Jay Costa about the threats against members of the state legislature.
“I told them that while these threats of political violence seek to intimidate and silence, my Administration will continue to do everything in our power to keep them safe and ensure their members can continue to make their voices heard as the people’s elected representatives,” Shapiro said in a statement Wednesday.
The leaders of the state legislature condemned the threats.
“These threats are extremely disturbing, not just to the members identified, but to all public figures who are contending with an increasingly hostile environment,” the leaders — McClinton, Costa, Majority Leader Matt Bradford and Republican Leader Jesse Topper — said in a joint statement on Wednesday.
“We condemn any threat against any of our colleagues who are faithfully serving their communities and pledge to support mental health care, intervention, and law enforcement funding that make our state safer,” the statement said.
The governor said that Pennsylvania State Police have implemented a new process to notify state legislators “immediately and directly of any and all threats of violence against them.”
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(FRISCO, Texas) — A Texas judge is set to hear arguments Thursday on whether Karmelo Anthony should get a new trial, two months after a jury convicted and sentenced him to 35 years in prison for fatally stabbing a fellow student at a high school track meet.
The hearing comes a day after the Collin County judge who presided over the murder trial was removed from further proceedings in the case.
Prosecutors called the deadly stabbing “unjustified” and “plain and simple murder,” while the defense argued that Anthony acted in self-defense when he stabbed 17-year-old Austin Metcalf at a track meet in Frisco in April 2025.
After hearing four days of testimony, a Collin County jury found Anthony, 19, guilty of murder following three hours of deliberation on June 9. The same jury sentenced him to 35 years in prison after several more hours of deliberation.
Anthony’s attorneys claimed in a motion seeking a new trial that the teen was “coerced” into waiving his right to testify, stemming from a purported dispute between defense attorneys and prosecutors about whether his testimony would be covered by an agreement limiting some character evidence in the trial. Defense attorneys alleged this denied him a “complete defense.”
The defense also alleged that Collin County Judge John Roach improperly instructed the jury and that his courtroom restrictions, which limited public access to the proceedings, denied Anthony a fair trial.
In a statement to ABC Dallas affiliate WFAA ahead of this week’s hearings, Collin County First Assistant District Attorney Bill Wirskye said Anthony’s new attorneys “filed a motion containing several inaccurate characterizations of the trial proceedings.”
“I and the entire prosecution team conducted this trial ethically and in full compliance with the Court’s ruling and any agreements with defense counsel,” Wirskye added.
A new judge will preside over Thursday’s hearing, after Judge Sid Harle granted the defense’s motion to recuse Roach from any further matters in the Anthony case.
In his order issued Wednesday, Harle wrote that there were grounds for recusal “in that the evidence adduced at the hearing is such that the respondent judge’s impartiality might reasonably be questioned.”
Retired Kaufman County District Judge Michael Chitty has been assigned to oversee the case.
In the defense motion seeking to recuse the trial judge from the post-trial proceedings, Anthony’s attorneys questioned both Roach’s impartiality in the case and his courtroom restrictions.
The motion cited what it called “problematic comments” Roach made during an interview following the verdict, in which it said the judge “endorsed the jury’s guilty verdict” and defended his courtroom restrictions. It also pointed to a public letter Roach released following the trial, in which he stated that those who worked on the case “contributed to ensuring the process was conducted fairly.”
Anthony’s attorneys said Wednesday that they are “pleased” with Harle’s decision to recuse Roach and “look forward to presenting the merits of Karmelo’s motion for a new trial to a fair and independent judge.”
Ahead of the high-profile trial, Roach imposed a gag order and barred any electronics from the courtroom during the proceedings due to the attention the case had garnered.
“Due to the significant public and media interest in this case, the Court finds that specific procedures are necessary to ensure the Defendant’s right to a fair and impartial trial, the orderly administration of justice, the safety and security of all participants, and reasonable public access consistent with constitutional requirements,” Roach wrote in a May order.
On Wednesday, Chitty ordered that the trial procedures will remain in effect at this time for future proceedings in the case.
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