The Product Manager's Playbook for AI Success in Regulated Industries
Terry Prone: Santa’s old-fashioned parenting tricks for the naughty and the niceI’m A Celeb fans say key part of show is ‘missing’ calling it 'really strange’
NEW YORK (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump’s lawyers formally asked a judge Monday to throw out his hush money criminal conviction , arguing continuing the case would present unconstitutional “disruptions to the institution of the Presidency.“ In a filing made public Tuesday, Trump’s lawyers told Manhattan Judge Juan M. Merchan that dismissal is warranted because of the extraordinary circumstances of his impending return to the White House. “Wrongly continuing proceedings in this failed lawfare case disrupts President Trump’s transition efforts,” the attorneys continued, before citing the “overwhelming national mandate granted to him by the American people on November 5, 2024.” Trump’s lawyers also cited President Joe Biden’s recent pardon of his son, Hunter Biden, who had been convicted of tax and gun charges . “President Biden asserted that his son was ‘selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted,’ and ‘treated differently,’" Trump’s legal team wrote. The Manhattan district attorney, they claimed, had engaged in the type of political theater "that President Biden condemned.” Prosecutors will have until Dec. 9 to respond. They have said they will fight any efforts to dismiss the case but have indicated openness to delaying sentencing until after Trump’s second term ends in 2029. In their filing Monday, Trump's attorneys dismissed the idea of holding off sentencing until Trump is out of office as a “ridiculous suggestion.” Following Trump’s election victory last month, Merchan halted proceedings and indefinitely postponed his sentencing, previously scheduled for late November, to allow the defense and prosecution to weigh in on the future of the case. He also delayed a decision on Trump’s prior bid to dismiss the case on immunity grounds. Trump has been fighting for months to reverse the conviction, which involved efforts to conceal a $130,000 payment to porn actor Stormy Daniels, whose affair allegations threatened to disrupt his 2016 campaign. He has denied any wrongdoing. Trump takes office on Jan. 20. Merchan hasn’t set a timetable for a decision. The defense filing was signed by Trump lawyers Todd Blanche and Emil Bove, who represented Trump during the trial and have since been selected by the president-elect to fill senior roles at the Justice Department. A dismissal would erase Trump’s historic conviction, sparing him the cloud of a criminal record and possible prison sentence. Trump is the first former president to be convicted of a crime and the first convicted criminal to be elected to the office. Merchan could also decide to uphold the verdict and proceed to sentencing, delay the case until Trump leaves office, wait until a federal appeals court rules on Trump’s parallel effort to get the case moved out of state court or choose some other option. Trump was convicted in May on 34 counts of falsifying business records to conceal a $130,000 hush money payment to porn actor Stormy Daniels, just before the 2016 presidential election, to suppress her claim that they had sex a decade earlier. He says they did not and denies any wrongdoing. Prosecutors cast the payout as part of a Trump-driven effort to keep voters from hearing salacious stories about him. Trump’s then-lawyer Michael Cohen paid Daniels. Trump later reimbursed him, and Trump’s company logged the reimbursements as legal expenses — concealing what they really were, prosecutors alleged. Trump has pledged to appeal the verdict if the case is not dismissed. He and his lawyers said the payments to Cohen were properly categorized as legal expenses for legal work. Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Get local news delivered to your inbox!What Snoop wants: Arizona Bowl gives NIL opportunities to players for Colorado State, Miami (Ohio)
The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite have ended higher as gains by many of the so-called Magnificent Seven tech stocks pushed benchmarks up on a holiday-thinned trading day. or signup to continue reading With megacap stocks having outsized influence on markets, their performance during a week in which many investors take time off will be even more pronounced. Meta Platforms, Nvidia and Tesla all closed higher on Monday, with Google parent Alphabet also in positive territory. The gains helped propel the Nasdaq Composite to its third straight increase, and a second advance in three sessions for the S&P 500. According to preliminary data, the S&P 500 gained 42.96 points, or 0.70 per cent, to end at 5,972.23 points, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 192.29 points, or 0.98 per cent, to 19,764.89. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 61.59 points, or 0.14 per cent, to 42,901.85. After a solid run since the November presidential election, Wall Street's rally hit a bump this month, especially after the US Federal Reserve forecast just two 25-basis-point rate reductions for 2025 - down from its September view of four cuts - and raised its annual inflation outlook. This included a selloff last Wednesday triggered by the US Federal Reserve signalling a slower rate-cut pace. Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer at Northlight Asset Management, noted that while some course correction has occurred in recent days, as interest-rate expectations have been modified by investors, many of the same trends remain in place, including tech and tech-enabled stocks finding favour. "We're really seeing a microcosm today of what we've seen all year long, and the trends are back in place despite what we've seen in the last couple of weeks where things bounced around a little bit," Zaccarelli said. As well as major benchmark gains, a majority of the S&P sectors finished higher on Monday, led by communication services . Markets are also entering a historically strong period for US stocks. Since 1969, the last five trading days of the year, combined with the first two of the following year, have yielded an average S&P 500 gain of 1.3 per cent - a period known as the "Santa Claus Rally", according to the Stock Trader's Almanac. Northlight's Zaccarelli said he believed conditions were right for such a rally, as this year's gains would likely mean investors would hold on to positions as opposed to selling and booking losses which they can use for tax purposes. Qualcomm's shares rose after a jury found its central processors are properly licensed under an agreement with UK-based Arm Holdings. Shares of Arm, which has vowed to seek a fresh trial, fell. Walmart dropped after the US consumer finance watchdog accused the retail giant and workforce payments company Branch Messenger of forcing more than a million delivery drivers into using accounts that cost them more than $US10 million ($A16 million) in junk fees. Eli Lilly gained after the US Food and Drug Administration approved the drugmaker's weight-loss treatment, Zepbound, for obstructive sleep apnea. Shares of sleep apnea device makers ResMed and Inspire Medical fell. Nordstrom's shares declined after the department store chain's founding family and Mexican retailer El Puerto de Liverpool agreed to take the company private. DAILY Today's top stories curated by our news team. WEEKDAYS Grab a quick bite of today's latest news from around the region and the nation. WEEKLY The latest news, results & expert analysis. WEEKDAYS Catch up on the news of the day and unwind with great reading for your evening. WEEKLY Get the editor's insights: what's happening & why it matters. WEEKLY Love footy? We've got all the action covered. WEEKLY Every Saturday and Tuesday, explore destinations deals, tips & travel writing to transport you around the globe. WEEKLY Going out or staying in? Find out what's on. WEEKDAYS Sharp. Close to the ground. Digging deep. Your weekday morning newsletter on national affairs, politics and more. TWICE WEEKLY Your essential national news digest: all the big issues on Wednesday and great reading every Saturday. WEEKLY Get news, reviews and expert insights every Thursday from CarExpert, ACM's exclusive motoring partner. TWICE WEEKLY Get real, Australia! Let the ACM network's editors and journalists bring you news and views from all over. AS IT HAPPENS Be the first to know when news breaks. DAILY Your digital replica of Today's Paper. Ready to read from 5am! DAILY Test your skills with interactive crosswords, sudoku & trivia. Fresh daily! Advertisement Advertisement‘Bagging it’: Dutton attacks bombshell findings
Burt, the huge Australian crocodile who had a cameo in ‘Crocodile Dundee,’ dies at 90LONDON — A woman who claimed mixed martial arts fighter Conor McGregor "brutally raped and battered" her in a Dublin hotel penthouse was awarded nearly 250,000 Euros ($257,000) on Friday by a civil court jury in Ireland. Nikita Hand said the Dec. 9, 2018, assault after a night of partying left her heavily bruised and suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. McGregor testified that he never forced the woman to do anything against her will and said she fabricated the allegations after the two had consensual sex. His lawyer had called Hand a gold digger. The fighter, once the face of the Ultimate Fighting Championship but now past his prime, shook his head as the jury of eight women and four men found him liable for assault after deliberating about six hours in the High Court in Dublin. He was mobbed by cameras as he left court but did not comment. He later said on the social platform X that he would appeal the verdict and the "modest award." People are also reading... Hand's voice cracked and her hands trembled as she read a statement outside the courthouse, saying she would never forget what happened to her but would now be able to move on with her life. She thanked her family, partner, friends, jurors, the judge and all the supporters that had reached out to her online, but particularly her daughter. "She has given me so much strength and courage over the last six years throughout this nightmare to keep on pushing forward for justice," she said. "I want to show (her) and every other girl and boy that you can stand up for yourself if something happens to you, no matter who the person is, and justice will be served." The Associated Press generally does not name alleged victims of sexual violence unless they come forward publicly, as Hand has done. Under Irish law, she did not have the anonymity she would have been granted in a criminal proceeding and was named publicly throughout the trial. Her lawyer told jurors that McGregor was angry about a fight he had lost in Las Vegas two months earlier and took it out on his client. "He's not a man, he's a coward," attorney John Gordon said in his closing speech. "A devious coward and you should treat him for what he is." Gordon said his client never pretended to be a saint and was only looking to have fun when she sent McGregor a message through Instagram after attending a Christmas party. He said Hand knew McGregor socially and that they had grown up in the same area. She said he picked her and a friend up in a car and shared cocaine with them, which McGregor admitted in court, on the way to the Beacon Hotel. Hand said she told McGregor she didn't want to have sex with him and that she was menstruating. She said she told him "no" as he started kissing her but he eventually pinned her to a bed and she couldn't move. McGregor put her in a chokehold and later told her, "now you know how I felt in the octagon where I tapped out three times," referring to a UFC match when he had to admit defeat, she said. Hand had to take several breaks in emotional testimony over three days. She said McGregor threatened to kill her during the encounter and she feared she would never see her young daughter again. Eventually, he let go of her. "I remember saying I was sorry, as I felt that I did something wrong and I wanted to reassure him that I wouldn't tell anyone so he wouldn't hurt me again," she testified. She said she then let him do what he wanted and he had sex with her. A paramedic who examined Hand the next day testified that she had never before seen someone with that intensity of bruising. A doctor told jurors Hand had multiple injuries. Hand said the trauma of the attack had left her unable to work as a hairdresser, she fell behind on her mortgage and had to move out of her house. Police investigated the woman's complaint but prosecutors declined to bring charges, saying there was insufficient evidence and a conviction was unlikely. McGregor, in his post on X, said he was disappointed jurors didn't see all the evidence prosecutors had reviewed. He testified that the two had athletic and vigorous sex, but that it was not rough. He said "she never said 'no' or stopped" and testified that everything she said was a lie. "It is a full blown lie among many lies," he said when asked about the chokehold allegation. "How anyone could believe that me, as a prideful person, would highlight my shortcomings." McGregor's lawyer told jurors they had to set aside their animus toward the fighter. "You may have an active dislike of him, some of you may even loathe him – there is no point pretending that the situation might be otherwise," attorney Remy Farrell said. "I'm not asking you to invite him to Sunday brunch." The defense said the woman never told investigators McGregor threatened her life. They also showed surveillance video in court that they said appeared to show the woman kiss McGregor's arm and hug him after they left the hotel room. Farrell said she looked "happy, happy, happy." McGregor said he was "beyond petrified" when first questioned by police and read them a prepared statement. On the advice of his lawyer, he refused to answer more than 100 follow-up questions. The jury ruled against Hand in a case she brought against one of McGregor's friends, James Lawrence, whom she accused of having sex with her in the hotel without consent. Be the first to know
Dillon Gabriel was faced with a quandary when he arrived at Oregon this year. Gabriel had worn No. 8 at Oklahoma before transferring for his sixth season of eligibility. But in Eugene, that number had special significance because it had been worn by Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota. There were many similarities between the two: They were both dual-threat quarterbacks who had piled up accolades along with yards and touchdowns. Both hailed from Hawaii and were shaped by the island spirit. Mariota chose the No. 8 initially because of the number of Hawaiian islands. His helmet's facemask was formed in an 808, Hawaii's area code. So Gabriel took a leap of faith and texted Mariota to ask his permission. Mariota, now with the NFL's Washington Commanders, said yes. "You know, when you’re growing up and you have that kind of direct example, a guy from Hawaii, playing at a high level, at the DI level, and then you see him go to the NFL, it’s like you can see it, you can believe it,” Gabriel said. Gabriel has led the top-ranked Ducks (12-0, 9-0 Big Ten) through an undefeated season and on to the Big Ten title game on Saturday against No. 4 Penn State (11-1, 8-1) in Indianapolis. Gabriel — who played his first three years at Central Florida before joining the Sooners — became the all-time NCAA leader for total career touchdowns along the way and now has 183, including 149 via pass, 33 via rush and one reception. He's tied with former Oregon quarterback Bo Nix — now with the Denver Broncos — with an FBS-record 61 career starts. Ever humble, Gabriel is thoughtful about the arc of his career. "I think we’re in an interesting time that’s all about results. And so many people talk about the process but aren’t patient enough. I think if you look at my body of work, I’m a guy who’s eager and wants to get better but has had that time to develop and work in that way. I think you see it over time," Gabriel said. As a Duck, Gabriel has thrown for 3,277 yards and 24 TDs in 12 games. He's rushed for seven more scores. Mariota spent his three-year college career at Oregon, throwing for 104 touchdowns and running for 29 more. He was the Ducks' quarterback in the 2014 season, the last time Oregon advanced to the national championship game. "I mean, everybody would love to run out there with the experience that we have at quarterback right now,” Oregon coach Dan Lanning said. “And I think that experience shows up consistently every Saturday for us. More than anything, just the ability for Dillon to be calm within the chaos that exists in a football game, and being a great decision-maker and understanding the scheme.” The only other time Oregon finished the regular season 12-0 was in 2010, when the Ducks played for the BCS national championship. Among the team's victories this season was a 32-31 win at home over Ohio State and a 38-17 victory over Michigan at the Big House. The Ducks capped the season with a 49-21 victory over rival Washington , finishing 9-0 in their first Big Ten year. Gabriel threw for a pair of touchdowns and ran for another in that game. The Nittany Lions advanced to the conference title game with a 44-7 victory over Maryland on Saturday. They were helped by Ohio State’s 13-10 loss to Michigan in Columbus. Oregon has played the Nittany Lions just one other time, in the 1995 Rose Bowl. Penn State, led by Joe Paterno, won that one, 38-20. The winner in Indianapolis this weekend can secure a first-round bye in the expanded 12-team playoffs. Both teams are assured of a playoff berth even with a loss. On Tuesday, Gabriel added another honor when he was named Big Ten offensive player of the year. "He’s earned the trust and the admiration of all his teammates and the coaches around him," Lanning said. "This guy prepares extremely hard. He is the calmest dude you’ve ever been around on the field, which is impressive, but I’m really proud of him and what he’s been able to do for this team.” Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 all the season. Sign up here . AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
Scottish artist Jasleen Kaur who put doily on a car wins Turner Prize 2024Indiana aims to limit turnovers vs. Minnesota
Garrett Wilson is frustrated and his future will be a major decision for the next Jets GM, coachITV I'm A Celebrity fans 'gutted' for runner-up as they brand win 'inevitable'