Woman indicted for attempting to send ex-husband fentanyl-laced chocolates
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(PARKER COUNTY, Texas) — A woman in Texas is behind bars after allegedly attempting to send her ex-husband fentanyl-laced chocolates, according to the Parker County Sheriff’s Office.
Pamela Jean Stanley, 63, from Coleman, Texas, was indicted last week after being arrested in May for “developing a plan to murder her ex-husband,” in which she specifically wanted to purchase powdered fentanyl and inject it into a high-end box of chocolates, the sheriff’s office said in a statement on Friday.
According to officials, Stanley told an acquaintance — in conversation she didn’t know was being recorded — that she planned on mailing the laced chocolates to her ex-husband, making it appear like the package was from a travel agency as a “congratulatory gift for his recent engagement with a ‘honeymoon’ incentive offer.”
Through an undercover ruse in the parking lot of a local motel on May 30, an investigator “solicited the purchase” of what Stanley believed was fentanyl, with officials “immediately” taking her into custody, the sheriff’s office said.
At the time of her arrest, Stanley was also in possession of a substance “tested as containing 9.5 grams of methamphetamine,” according to authorities.
Stanley was indicted on Friday for criminal solicitation with intent to commit murder, criminal attempt to commit murder and possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver, officials said.
Her ex-husband, Jeff Kauth, told ABC News Dallas station WFAA that this was not the first time he had concerns about his ex-wife’s alleged threats, with Kauth previously talking to investigators about rumors of Stanley hiring a hitman.
“It didn’t really surprise me because she’s kind of that way,” Kauth told WFAA. “Her plan was pretty ingenious. She thought this stuff through.”
The two were married for 14 years before they divorced in 2019, Kauth told WFAA. For his safety amid his ex-wife’s alleged threats, Kauth said he installed security cameras around his house and even placed a “dummy” he built wearing his hat and jacket in the kitchen as a decoy in case she tried to shoot toward him.
“I was hoping she would move on or find happiness, I was hoping she’d hope the same for me, but it just didn’t work out that way,” Kauth told WFAA.
Kauth said if Stanley had been successful in her alleged plan, he “probably would’ve eaten” the laced chocolates and said he is “relieved” she was caught by officials.
“I’ll never look at a box of chocolates the same,” Kauth told WFAA.
Stanley remains in custody, with a bond set to $450,000, the sheriff’s office said.
She was previously arrested in 2019 for deadly discharge of a firearm, according to jail records.
Court records indicate that she is scheduled to appear for a pre-trial hearing on Aug. 12, with her jury trial beginning on Oct. 20.
The attorney representing Stanley did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
(OAKMONT, PA) — Two unlikely golfers are making their dreams come true at this year’s U.S. Open. ABC News’ David Muir spoke with the golfers as they prepare for the national championship this month.
Among them is 17-year-old Mason Howell from Thomasville, Georgia, who will be one of the youngest competitors at the prestigious tournament. Howell, who first picked up a golf club at age three and began competing in tournaments by six, recently qualified to play alongside golf’s elite professionals.
“I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was nervous,” Howell told reporters after securing his spot, embracing his parents at the 18th green. “Hugging my mom and my dad walking off the 18th green… is just a feeling that I don’t know if I’ll feel again, but it was one of the greatest moments of my life.”
The high school junior sharing with ABC News his message to aspiring athletes: “Keep working hard, and dreams really do come true.”
But Howell isn’t the only inspiring story heading into next week’s championship. Dr. Matt Vogt, a 34-year-old dentist from McCordsville, Indiana, proved it’s never too late to chase your dreams by also qualifying for the tournament.
“I feel like I’m going to wake up from a dream,” Vogt said after his qualifying round. “This isn’t going to be real… but I’m so excited.”
Between treating patients and running on minimal sleep, Vogt hopes his journey will inspire others.
“My hope in qualifying for the U.S. Open at this stage of my life as an amateur is to really inspire others,” he told ABC News. “You can accomplish awesome things while still having a career… still having a family. It’s never too late to follow your dreams, and honestly, I hope to be an example of that.”
The U.S. Open golf tournament in 2025 will be held from June 12 to June 15 at Oakmont Country Club in Oakmont, Pennsylvania.
(PAGELAND, SC) — A 7-year-old South Carolina girl remains in critical condition after she was shot while sleeping in her own home over the weekend, according to the Pageland Police Department.
At approximately 1:17 a.m. on Sunday, police responded to shots being fired into the Pageland home, hitting the girl — identified as Skylar Baker — in the head, officials said.
Skylar received first aid at the scene and was flown to an area hospital with “life-threatening injuries,” according to police.
Police said the incident, which they described as a “careless act of violence,” appears to have been a drive-by shooting and the suspect remains at large. The bullet went through the house and struck Skylar in the right side of her brain, her mother, Essence Chambers, told ABC News.
As of Tuesday, Skylar remains in critical condition and is on a ventilator, according to Chambers.
Skylar, described by her mother as a “ball of energy” and “happy child,” now has a plate inside her head and will soon undergo a craniotomy, Chambers said.
“Before all of this, she was completely healthy,” Chambers said. “I want everybody to keep praying for her.”
In a press release, local police expressed their hope that “someone will come forward with answers as to who was involved in this case.”
“We are heartbroken that this little girl is suffering due to the actions of someone who had no regard for the life of others. Our thoughts and prayers continue to go out to the family,” they said in Monday’s release.
Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Pageland Police Department Chief Dean Short called the shooting a “terrible thing, especially in a small community.”
“What matters is we come together, support one another and take a stand against this type of violence,” Short said.
Melissa Massey, a neighbor of Skylar, told ABC Charlotte affiliate WSOC that drive-by shootings in Pageland are “unheard of.”
Officials said anyone with any information on the incident or the suspect to contact police at 843-672-6437.
(WASHINGTON) — Democratic lawmakers will submit a bill in the Senate on Tuesday that would reverse the Pentagon’s new ban on transgender military service members diagnosed with gender dysphoria who now face being forced out if they had not previously self-identified as transgender.
The “Fit to Serve Act” would prohibit the Defense Department from banning transgender service members from serving in the military. If passed, the law would prevent the Defense Department from denying access to healthcare on the basis of gender identity, and it would also prohibit the military from forcing service members to serve in their sex assigned at birth.
It would also make it illegal for the military to discriminate against service members on the basis of gender identity.
The Defense Department’s policy was required by an executive order signed by President Donald Trump on his first day in office that banned transgender individuals from serving in the military. In outlining the policy in a memo issued in late February, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth wrote that ” individuals who have a current diagnosis or history of, or exhibit symptoms consistent with, gender dysphoria are incompatible with the high mental and physical standards necessary for military service.”
“We recruit and train the best and bravest to protect our country — losing highly qualified service members, who meet strict standards to join the military, makes us less safe,” said Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., who is the lead sponsor of the bill that is being filed in the Senate on Tuesday, which was first announced last month.
“By prohibiting this discrimination on the basis of gender identity, this legislation will help to ensure transgender individuals who are qualified to serve may do so” said Sen. Marie Hirono, D-Hawaii, one of the bill’s co-sponsors.
Under the Pentagon’s new policy, transgender service members had until June 6 to self-identify and begin the process of voluntary separation. With the passing of that deadline, the Pentagon has begun a process of involuntary separation of service members diagnosed with gender dysphoria, which is defined as “psychological distress that results from an incongruence between one’s sex assigned at birth and one’s gender identity.”
Ahead of that deadline, the Pentagon said more than 1,000 service members had self-identified as having been diagnosed with gender dysphoria. It is unclear whether that number increased ahead of the deadline or how officials had reached that estimate.
National Guard and Reserve service members have until July 7 to self-identify for voluntary separation.
The Pentagon’s new ban went into effect in early May shortly after the Supreme Court ruled that the Trump administration could enforce the ban on transgender people in the military while legal challenges to the ban proceed in lower courts.
Navy Cmdr. Emily Shilling, who is a lead plaintiff in one of the legal challenges, told ABC News that she has chosen to voluntarily separate.
“Yes I am ‘volunteering’ to retire but I do want to make it clear that myself and most others I have spoken to in SPARTA feel it is under duress,” said Shilling who is the president of Sparta Pride, an organization advocating for 2,400 transgender people in the military.
“For me, it’s the only way I believe I can continue to uphold my oath,” said Shilling. “I’m stepping away from active duty service, but not service to my country. My fight is only beginning.”
Defense officials have said that as of last December, about 4,240 current active-duty, Guard and Reserve service members had been diagnosed with gender dysphoria.
There are more than 2.1 million military service members serving on active-duty, Guard and the Reserves. Advocacy groups have put the actual number of transgender service members as being much higher, at around 15,000.
Since 2014, the total number of diagnoses for gender dysphoria among service members was 5,773, with 1,000 of those having gone through gender-affirming surgery, according to a defense official. The total costs for treatments, hormones and surgeries during that time frame was $52 million, said the official.
With the end of the voluntary separation period, transgender service members now face what could be a lengthy process that could end with their separation from military service.
The process will begin with military commanders being told to identify people in their units who have a diagnosis or history of gender dysphoria or exhibit symptoms consistent with gender dysphoria. Once they have done that, a referral to an annual health checkup will be initiated, beginning what could be a lengthy process that could lead to their removal from the military.
Pentagon officials have said those evaluations will be conducted during regularly scheduled annual physicals meaning it could be months before they take place.
The Pentagon incentivized service members with gender dysphoria to voluntarily separate ahead of the June 6 deadline by offering benefit payment packages that would be more than double what would be received if they were to separate involuntarily. Those who voluntarily separated would not have to risk paying back the recruitment or retention bonuses they may have earned during their military service.
The Democratic senators argue that instead of improving military readiness the implementation of the ban will have the opposite effect.
“This ban undermines our military readiness and national security by removing thousands of talented, experienced service members and signaling to potential recruits that the military does not respect them, their colleagues, their family, or their friends simply because of who they are,” said a description of the Fit to Serve Act. “It also wastes billions of taxpayer dollars invested in training these troops to become leaders to keep all of us safe.”
The bill is co-sponsored in the Senate by Warren, Hirono, Tammy Duckworth (Illinois), Kirsten Gillibrand (New York), Tammy Baldwin (Wisconsin), Ed Markey (Massachusetts), Ron Wyden (Oregon), Jeff Merkley (Oregon),John Fetterman (Pennsylvania), Chris Van Hollen (Maryland), Bernie Sanders (Vermont), Andy Kim (New Jersey), and Cory Booker (New Jersey). Congressmen Adam Smith (Washington) Mark Takano (California), Chrissy Houlahan (Pennsylvania), Sara Jacobs (California), and Eric Sorensen (Illinois) are sponsoring the legislation in the House of Representatives.
“By prohibiting this discrimination on the basis of gender identity, this legislation will help to ensure transgender individuals who are qualified to serve may do so,” Hirono said.
It remains to be seen how much bipartisan support the legislation could gain and whether it will be able to clear Republican majorities in both the Senate and the House.
“If you are willing to risk your life for our country and you can do the job, it shouldn’t matter if you are gay, straight, transgender, Black, white or anything else,” said Duckworth who added that the ban “is disruptive to our military, hurts readiness and not only does nothing to strengthen our national security — it actively makes things worse.”
“The Fit to Serve Act is a declaration that we will not stand by while our courageous troops are under political assault. Transgender service members meet the same rigorous standards, deploy worldwide, put in the same hard work and demonstrate the same dedication as any of their colleagues” said Jennifer Pike Bailey, Government Affairs Director of the Human Rights Campaign, one of the advocacy groups supporting the legislation.
“President Trump and Secretary Hegseth are taking away their jobs, cutting off their health care benefits, and disregarding the immense sacrifices these service members and their families have made. It’s a slap in the face to all who serve and puts our military readiness at risk,” she added.
“At a time when the United States faces growing threats around the world, banning them from the All-Volunteer Force will make Americans less safe,” said Luke Schleusener, CEO of Out in National Security.
“This legislation underscores that the fight to honor the service of thousands of transgender Americans in uniform — and to strengthen America’s national security — is far from over.”
