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Closing arguments continue in murder trial of slain South Florida rapper XXXTentacion

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:00:15 GMT

Attorneys continue to close their case against the men charged with murdering a South Florida rapper. A month’s long trial is coming to an end. At some point Wednesdays, the jury will begin their deliberations. “The most important question that you have to answer is, ‘has the state proven to you, are you sure, beyond all reasonable doubt, that Michael was involved in a murder?'” said Joe Kimok, a defense attorney for Michael Boatwright. Closing arguments continued Wednesday in the murder trial of South Florida rapper XXXTentacion, who was robbed, shot, and killed in Deerfield Beach back in June of 2018.Prosecutors said that Dedrick Williams, Trayvone Newsome and Michael Boatwright committed the crime.In the process, police said, they stole $50,000 in cash from the star rapper who was reportedly shopping for a motorcycle.According to investigators, the defendants then took to social media and posted pictures and videos showing off the money that they stole....

California company’s 3D rocket poised to make debut launch

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:00:15 GMT

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — A rocket made almost entirely of 3D parts was poised to blast off Wednesday on its debut launch.California-based Relativity Space is attempting to launch the rocket to orbit from Cape Canaveral.It’s a relatively small rocket, just 110 feet (33 meters), and won’t be carrying anything for this test flight.About 85% of the rocket, named Terran, is made of 3D parts printed at the company’s factory in Long Beach, California, including its engines. Relativity Space aims to increase that percentage on its future versions.SpaceX’s Falcon rockets have been flying with 3D parts for years, but not nearly to the extent of Relativity Space’s new rocket.Relativity Space said its rocket is the largest 3D printed object to exist and attempt orbital flight.Businessman Mark Cuban of TV’s “Shark Tank” was among the early investors in the company.

Jeremy Renner unveils trailer for project he says is ‘a driving force’ in his recovery

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:00:15 GMT

(CNN) — Months after Jeremy Renner was in a devastating snow plow accident, Disney+ has unveiled the trailer for a new docuseries that shows the actor behind the wheel of large vehicles in the name of doing good.The trailer for his feel-good project “Rennervations” was released on Tuesday, showing Renner and a team of expert builders as they travel the world in search of decommissioned vehicles that they can rebuild to serve a new purpose for communities in need.The four-part Disney+ series comes as Renner continues to heal from injuries sustained during a New Year’s Day accident near his Nevada home. Renner suffered “blunt chest trauma and orthopedic injuries” after being run over by a snow plow while helping a family member clear snow from a private driveway, a representative for Renner told CNN at the time.He shared an update on his Instagram in the weeks that followed revealing he broke over 30 bones in the accident.The “Hawkeye” s...

Family pleads public to find hit-and-run driver who left man in critical condition in Miramar

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:00:15 GMT

Relatives and police officers are seeking the public’s help to track down a hit-and-run driver who left a young man fighting for his life. What started out as a fun night for two brothers quickly took a terrible and tragic turn. A hit-and-run left a 31-year-old unconscious and in critical condition. Jahmaar Williams is a son, brother and father. He was also an active member of the Army National Guard for 12 years, and now, he is fighting for his life after a hit-and-run driver left him to die.“Me and my brother were just out having a good time, and as we were crossing the street, he was struck by a car that was close enough to hit both of us, but somehow, I was unscathed, untouched and survived,” said Chris Williams, Jahmaar’s brother.Jahmaar’s brother, Chris, witnessed the crash after they were leaving a lounge in the area on March 4.His family joined Miramar Police detectives Wednesday to plead for anyone with information to come forward.“My son...

Russia beats Tom Cruise in race for first movie shot in space

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:00:15 GMT

Russia has released a trailer for “The Challenge,” the first feature film to be shot in space.It was shot some 400 kilometers above Earth on the International Space Station (ISS) in 2021 — before the invasion of Ukraine — and will be released next month, making it the first movie in which the actors and director were flown out to space for filming.In 2020, Hollywood star Tom Cruise, along with director Doug Liman, had revealed plans to travel to the ISS to shoot a feature film in collaboration with Elon Musk’s SpaceX and NASA. There’s no sign yet of that movie.“The Challenge” is about a female cardiac surgeon called Zhenya (played by Russian actress Yulia Peresild) who is part of a team of doctors sent to operate on a cosmonaut (played by actual cosmonaut Oleg Novitskiy) who loses consciousness while on the ISS.Peresild and producer-director Klim Shipenko traveled to the ISS along with cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov in October 2021 and filmed...

EU officials distance themselves from intel on Nord Stream blasts

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:00:15 GMT

STOCKHOLM — European officials wanted nothing to do Wednesday with reports that a pro-Ukrainian group carried out the attacks on the Nord Stream gas pipelines last year. Their message: Don’t put this intel on us, and we’re not touching it.A joint German media investigation published Tuesday evening indicated Ukrainians may have been involved in the underwater explosions in the Baltic Sea. The New York Times backed up the findings in its own report, which said U.S. officials had reviewed similar intelligence. The Ukrainian government, however, denied any involvement and the reports do not directly link Kyiv to the sabotage.The allegations, if true, could damage public support for Europe’s unyielding support for Ukraine — particularly in Germany, which is investigating the explosion alongside Sweden and Denmark. But officials kept the possibility at arm’s length.“I would hesitate to give a clear analysis,” said German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, arri...

MEP Mussolini hands sanitary pad to Italy’s EU commissioner

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:00:15 GMT

BRUSSELS — Forza Italia MEP Alessandra Mussolini on Wednesday gave Italy’s EU Economy Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni a red-marked sanitary pad with his name on it and the inscription “VAT 0%.”Mussolini’s protest was aimed at eliminating value-added (or sales) tax on feminine hygiene products — something that nearly all EU countries impose.“Happy Women’s Day,” Mussolini — the granddaughter of Italy’s wartime fascist leader Benito Mussolini — told Gentiloni as she handed him the pad “with wings” because they “cost more.” It came at the end of a European Commission press conference on 2024 national budget guidelines, and coincided with International Women’s Day.“As a delegation of Forza Italia, we ask for 0 percent taxation on sanitary pads, paid menstrual leave and the harmonization in all member states of the rules concerning health rights and gender equality,” Mussolini told cameras in front of a table with several femi...

Biden to reveal nuke submarine plans Monday with UK, Australian leaders

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:00:15 GMT

President Joe Biden will unveil the first phase of an ambitious three-nation nuclear submarine deal next to the leaders of the United Kingdom and Australia on Monday in San Diego, according to six people familiar with the plans.The announcement is the culmination of 18 months of negotiations as the three countries figure out how to provide Australia with a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines. Restrictions on technology transfers and classified nuclear processes have complicated plans ever since the deal — known as AUKUS — was struck in September 2021. Last week, State Department and Pentagon officials briefed House Foreign Affairs Committee members about some of the issues.British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will join Biden for the event on Monday. Local lawmakers who are planning to attend the proceedings still don’t have concrete details about the timing or exact location. Plans to have the three men walk aboard a submarine for the ann...

Ukraine and UN call for Black Sea grain deal extension

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:00:15 GMT

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday called for the extension of a deal with Russia that allows Ukrainian grain exports to pass through the blockaded Black Sea. “Today, we are interested in ensuring that there is no hunger in the world. And our common policy is to continue the operation of the ‘grain corridor,’” Zelenskyy said, after talks in Kyiv. The deal, which was initially brokered by the United Nations and Turkey last July and extended in November, comes up for renewal again on March 18. “I want to underscore the critical importance of the rollover of the Black Sea Grain Initiative on 18 March and of working to create the conditions to enable the greatest possible use of export infrastructures through the Black Sea, in line with the objectives of the initiative,” said Guterres. Some 23 million tons of Ukrainian produce have been transported under the initiative so far, amid Russian President ...

US House speaker rejects Zelenskyy’s invite to Ukraine

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:00:15 GMT

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has invited House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to visit the embattled nation amid his hesitancy to greenlight aid, a request the California Republican quickly shut down.“He has to come here to see how we work, what’s happening here, what war caused us, which people are fighting now, who are fighting now. And then after that, make your assumptions,” Zelenskyy told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer in an interview.When informed about the Ukrainian invitation, the speaker told CNN that he would not take the trip and blamed the Biden administration for not acting quickly enough to aid Ukraine. Still, McCarthy (R-Calif.) held his position that the U.S. should not be sending a “blank check” to Kyiv, repeating a position he initially made last fall that sparked uproar from members of both parties.“Let’s be very clear about what I said: no blank checks, OK? So, from that perspective, I don’t have to go to Ukraine to understand where there’s a blank check or not,” McCarthy...