Last Monkey On the Loose after Mississippi Highway Crash is Captured After Being Spotted By Resident

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Last Monkey On the Loose after Mississippi Highway Crash is Captured After Being Spotted By Resident

(Headline USA) ​​ The last monkey on the loose among several that escaped after a Mississippi highway crash has been found and captured, authorities said Thursday.

A resident who lives near the crash site called authorities to report the animal’s location and it was then “successfully recovered,” the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks said in a statement to The Associated Press.

It was the last monkey on the loose from the Oct. 28 crash when the truck overturned on Interstate 59. Five monkeys were killed as law officers hunted for them in the immediate aftermath of the crash. Video from officers’ body-worn cameras showed a chaotic scene as monkeys that escaped from their wooden crates dashed around the grassy interstate median, with some running toward cars and semis on the interstate.

Two other monkeys that eluded officers at the crash site were later shot and killed by civilians, who said they were protecting their families and neighborhoods. Officials had warned residents not to approach the Rhesus monkeys, saying they are known to be aggressive.

The last monkey on the loose was found Wednesday afternoon near a home in the Vossburg area, just east of where the truck had wrecked. Brandy Smith saw the monkey when her dog started barking, she told WDAM-TV. Her neighbors called 911. Workers from one of the companies that had been transporting the truckload of monkeys across the country arrived to tranquilize the monkey, Smith said.

The monkeys had been housed at the Tulane University National Biomedical Research Center in Louisiana, which routinely provides primates to scientific research organizations, according to the university. Tulane has said it wasn’t transporting the monkeys and they do not belong to the university.

PreLabs, which describes itself on its website as a biomedical research support organization, said in a statement that the animals were being lawfully transported to a licensed research facility. It said the monkeys weren’t carrying any known diseases. Thirteen of the monkeys that were not killed arrived at their original destination last week, according to Tulane.

The escape is the latest glimpse into the secretive industry of animal research and how contracts demanding confidentiality prevent the public from knowing key facts about studies involving animals.

 

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press. 

Powerful Iowa Judge Charged with OWI After Witnesses Say She Drove Wrong Way on Highway

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Powerful Iowa Judge Charged with OWI After Witnesses Say She Drove Wrong Way on Highway

(Headline USA) ​​ A powerful Iowa judge has been charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated after witnesses say she drove the wrong way on a highway Tuesday night while passed out behind the wheel.

Adria Kester, chief judge of the state’s Second Judicial District, was released from the Boone County Jail on Wednesday morning, court records show.

A criminal complaint said motorists called 911 after 8 p.m. on Tuesday night to report a truck slowly driving eastbound in the westbound lanes on U.S. Highway 30 near Boone. One of the witnesses reported the driver looked unconscious and slumped over the steering wheel, and drove into the highway median.

The complaint said a witness got out of their vehicle to check on the driver but could not open the door, and the vehicle was still slowly moving in the median. The witness told police she had to climb in the back window to put the 2026 GMC Canyon Denali truck in park and shut it off.

A deputy with the Boone County sheriff’s office said he found Kester in the driver’s seat appearing to be heavily intoxicated and unsteady. He wrote that Kester, 55, of nearby Ogden, could not walk on her own and was assisted to an ambulance for treatment.

After she was cleared by medical services, Kester still could not walk and refused to answer whether she would be willing to undergo field sobriety testing, according to the complaint. The deputy wrote in the complaint that he also determined it would not be safe to conduct those tests given her condition.

A warrant was issued to obtain a sample of Kester’s blood at the Boone County Hospital. She was arrested for first offense operating while intoxicated and booked into jail around 4 a.m.

County Sheriff Andy Godzicki said the blood specimen would be shipped to a state crime laboratory for testing. He said he was glad that no one was injured in the incident.

“This is a tough situation for both the Kester family and the sheriff’s office,” he said, adding that he had instructed his staff to treat the judge the same as any other suspect.

Kester pleaded not guilty in a court filing submitted Wednesday afternoon by her attorney, Matt Lindholm, who is considered one of the state’s top lawyers for defending against drunk driving charges.

“Judge Kester recognizes the seriousness of the situation and is fully cooperating with law enforcement and the judicial process,” Lindholm said in a statement. “She is committed to addressing this matter responsibly and in accordance with the law.”

Steve Davis, a spokesperson for the Iowa Judicial Branch, said the court system was aware of Kester’s arrest but could not comment since it was “a pending case and a personnel matter.” He said the seven-member Judicial Qualifications Commission investigates allegations of misconduct by Iowa judges, and can recommend the retirement, discipline or removal of a judicial officer to the Iowa Supreme Court.

A judge ordered Kester released without bond after an initial court appearance Wednesday morning. The judge also ordered her to submit to a substance abuse evaluation and follow any recommendations for treatment in the next 30 days.

Iowa Chief Justice Susan Christensen appointed Kester chief judge in the district, which includes 22 counties in northern and central Iowa and is the largest geographically in the state, in December 2022. In that role, Kester supervises hundreds of judges and court employees in the district and presides over cases.

Kester had been appointed as a district judge by Gov. Kim Reynolds in 2017 after serving as a prosecutor and criminal defense lawyer.

Kester’s judicial position quickly complicated the criminal proceedings against her.

One district associate judge recused herself from the case Wednesday due to her “professional relationship” with Kester. Christensen later signed an order requiring that a judge from another district be appointed to handle the case. Judge Gregory Brandt was later designated.

The Boone County Attorney’s Office also cited a conflict in asking the court to appoint the Polk County Attorney’s Office as a special prosecutor.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press. 

Explosion at Mississippi Chemical Plant Causes Ammonia Leak, Evacuations

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Explosion at Mississippi Chemical Plant Causes Ammonia Leak, Evacuations

(Headline USA) ​​ An explosion at a hydrogen and nitrogen product manufacturer in Mississippi on Wednesday caused an ammonia leak and forced nearby residents to evacuate, officials said.

Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves said in a post on the social platform X that emergency officials from across the state were responding to the anhydrous ammonia leak at CF Industries’ plant north of Yazoo City.

No deaths or injuries have been reported, he said.

“Thank you to all of Mississippi’s first responders and emergency managers for quickly responding to the leak,” he said.

Photos and video posted online show a large plume of yellowish smoke rising above the facility, which includes an ammonia plant and four nitric acid plants, among other things.

The facility is able to store about 48,000 tons of ammonia, although the exact amount there when the explosion took place was not immediately clear.

CF Industries said in a statement that there are no injuries, and “all employees and contractors on site at the time of the incident have been safely accounted for.”

Andre Robinson, who lives about a half-mile (800 meters) from the facility, said he and his son were getting ready to make gumbo when he heard what sounded like a sonic boom or a tree crashing on his house.

“There was a boom and then the house shook,” he said.

When he looked outside, Robinson said he saw smoke rising from the facility and started to smell a strong scent of ammonia.

“We’re used to the ammonia smell, but not that bad,” he said, adding that his family has since evacuated to Jackson.

Part of U.S. Route 49E was temporarily closed, according to the Mississippi Department of Transportation.

The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality said in a post on X that “air monitoring operations are underway and will continue as long as necessary to ensure public safety.”

Anhydrous ammonia is used as a fertilizer to help provide nitrogen for corn and wheat plants, according to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. If a person touches it when it is in gas or liquid form, they could be burned.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press. 

Former South Carolina Democrat Indicted on Federal Charges of Defrauding Legal Clients

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Former South Carolina Democrat Indicted on Federal Charges of Defrauding Legal Clients

(Headline USA) ​​ A former South Carolina state lawmaker has been indicted on federal allegations that he schemed to defraud his legal clients.

According to court papers, a federal grand jury on Wednesday indicted former Rep. Marvin Pendarvis, a Democrat and attorney, on 10 charges including wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and money laundering.

Federal prosecutors said that Pendarvis, between 2022 and 2024, negotiated financial settlements on behalf of his clients, but didn’t tell them that he had received the funds. Instead, according to the government, Pendarvis — who was at the time serving as a lawmaker representing the Charleston area — allegedly pocketed the money himself, either not telling his clients the money had been obtained, or ultimately giving them lesser sums than what he had negotiated.

In all, according to prosecutors, Pendarvis deposited more half a million dollars into his law firm’s trust fund account, from which he paid nothing to clients.

A message left Wednesday with Pendarvis was not immediately returned.

Pendarvis’ law license was suspended last year after a former client accused him of forging his signature to reach a settlement in a lawsuit without his permission. The order issued then by the state Supreme Court didn’t detail why the suspension had been recommended, but the former client — whose initials matched one of the alleged victims detailed in Wednesday’s indictment — accused Pendarvis of sending him text messages asking him not to sue over the alleged forgery.

“Let’s handle this (expletive). No need to try and hurt me man. I can help you,” Pendarvis wrote Lewis in text messages filed with the state lawsuit, which is still pending.

First elected in a special election in 2017, he won three full terms before resigning from office about four months after the suspension of his law license.

According to court records, Pendarvis is slated to appear in federal court on Nov. 18.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press. 

Man Who Threw Sandwich at Federal Agent in Washington is Found Not Guilty of Assault Charge

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Man Who Threw Sandwich at Federal Agent in Washington is Found Not Guilty of Assault Charge

(Headline USA) DC jurors convicted numerous Jan. 6 protestors who were totally peaceful when they entered the Capitol, but they decided to let a former Justice Department employee who threw a sandwich at a federal agent off the hook.

Sean Charles Dunn, who hurled his subway sandwich at an agent in a fit of rage during President Donald Trump’s law enforcement surge in Washington, was found not guilty of assault on Thursday in the latest legal rebuke of the federal intervention.

There was no dispute over whether Dunn threw the sandwich at a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent on the night of Aug. 10. But his lawyers argued it was a “harmless gesture” during an act of protest protected by the First Amendment.

Prosecutors said Dunn knew he did not have a right to throw the sandwich at the agent.

Dunn hugged his lawyers after the foreperson read the verdict. Later, he said, “I’m relieved and I’m looking forward to moving on with my life.”

A grand jury refused to indict Dunn on a felony assault count. After the rare rebuke from the grand jury, the office of U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro charged Dunn with a misdemeanor.

When Dunn approached a group of CBP agents who were in front of a club hosting a “Latin Night,” he called them “fascists” and “racists” and chanted “shame” toward them. An observer’s video captured Dunn throwing a sandwich at an agent’s chest.

“Why are you here? I don’t want you in my city!” Dunn shouted, according to police.

Dunn ran away but was apprehended. He was released from custody but rearrested when armed federal agents in riot gear raided his home. The White House posted a highly produced “propaganda” video of the raid on its official X account, Dunn’s lawyers said.

Dunn worked as an international affairs specialist in the Justice Department’s criminal division. After Dunn’s arrest, Attorney General Pam Bondi announced his firing in a social media post that referred to him as “an example of the Deep State.”

Dunn lawyers urged the judge to dismiss the case for what they alleged was a vindictive and selective prosecution. They argued that the posts by Bondi and the White House show Dunn was impermissibly targeted for his political speech.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press. 

 

Senate Expected To Vote on Thursday To Block Trump From Starting a War With Venezuela

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Senate Expected To Vote on Thursday To Block Trump From Starting a War With Venezuela

(Dave DeCamp, Antiwar.com) The Senate is expected to vote on Thursday at 5:00 pm Eastern Time on a bipartisan War Powers Resolution that would block President Trump from attacking Venezuela without congressional authorization, a vote that comes amid reports that he is reviewing several options for starting a war with the country.

Americans can contact their senators and urge them to support S.J.Res. 90, introduced by Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA), Rand Paul (R-KY), and Adam Schiff (D-CA). Go to 1833stopwar.com to see how your senator may vote on the bill and how they voted on a previous War Powers Resolution that would have stopped the US bombing campaign against alleged drug-running boats in the region.

The resolution to stop the boat strikes failed in a vote of 48-51, with Sen. Paul and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) being the only Republicans supporting the measure, but the bill to prevent a war with Venezuela may have more GOP support.

POLITICO reported on Wednesday that at least four other Senate Republicans are questioning the legal rationale for the boat strikes, signaling they may support the Venezuela War Powers Resolution. They include Senators Mike Rounds (SD), Todd Young (IN), Susan Collins (ME), and Jerry Moran (KS).

The New York Times reported on Tuesday that President Trump is considering potential major escalations that could lead to a full-blown war. They include bombing military targets inside Venezuela, sending special operations forces to kill or capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, or sending a much larger force to capture airfields and oil infrastructure.

This article originally appeared at Antiwar.com. 

 

Report: US To Establish Military Base in Damascus

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Report: US To Establish Military Base in Damascus

(Dave DeCamp, Antiwar.com) The US is planning to establish a military base in Damascus, Syria, Reuters has reported, as the Trump administration continues to strongly back the new Syrian government that’s led by former al-Qaeda leader Ahmed al-Sharaa.

The report said that the US will establish a military presence at an airbase on the outskirts of the Syrian capital for the purpose of enabling a security pact that Washington is attempting to broker between Israel and Syria.

The idea would be for the US military to monitor a potential deal that would include the demilitarization of areas to the south of Damascus. Officials compared it to the US monitoring of the ceasefire deal in Lebanon, which Israel has constantly violated, and the ceasefire deal in Gaza, which Israel has also been in breach of.

A Syrian Foreign Ministry official later told Syria’s state news agency SANA that the Reuters report was “untrue” but did not specifically deny that the US would establish a military presence in Damascus. “The current stage marks a transformation in the US position towards direct engagement with the Syrian central government in Damascus, and towards supporting the country’s unity while rejecting any calls for partition,” the official said.

A Syrian defense official told Reuters that the US had flown to the base in military C-130 transport aircraft to ensure the runway was usable, and a security guard at one of the base’s entrances said that American aircraft were landing there as part of “tests.”

Previous reports have said that the Trump administration may sign an agreement with the new Syrian government to formalize its military presence in Syria. The US has been closing bases in northeast Syria but is expected to maintain its presence at the al-Tanf Garrison in the south, which is situated where the borders of Syria, Iraq, and Jordan converge.

President Trump will be hosting Sharaa at the White House on Monday, where he is expected to formally join the US-led anti-ISIS coalition. Ahead of the visit, the US is asking the UN to lift sanctions on Sharaa, which were imposed due to his history as an al-Qaeda commander and associate of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the founder of ISIS.

This article originally appeared at Antiwar.com.

News Outlets Fight for Transparency in Kirk Assassination Case

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News Outlets Fight for Transparency in Kirk Assassination Case

(Ken Silva, Headline USA) A coalition of media outlets is fighting back against efforts by both the prosecution and the defense to keep certain proceedings secret in the Charlie Kirk assassination case.

As Headline USA has reported, both the prosecution and the defense want to prohibit cameras from the courtroom. The Utah County Sheriff’s Office has also requested cameras to be banned.

Additionally, the prosecution was allowed to file a secret motion in its dispute over whether the defendant, Tyler Robinson, will be allowed to wear street clothes during court proceedings (Judge Tony Graf ruled in favor of Robinson days later). The parties had a secret hearing over that dispute on Oct. 24, and now they further want to keep the transcripts and minutes from that hearing secret, the Salt Lake Tribune reported Thursday.

According to the Tribune, the coalition of 14 news organizations “filed a motion Wednesday asking the court to notify them of any future requests to limit access to proceedings.”

“Media attorney Michael Judd further asked 4th District Judge Tony F. Graf Jr. to allow the news organizations to weigh in on any closure requests,” the Tribune reported.

Media attorney Judd reportedly wrote in the motion that “both parties have attempted to chip away at those access rights almost immediately.”

The motion also seeks relief for an “infringement” that the media has already suffered—that being the secret motion in the argument over Robinson’s clothing.

Along with the Tribune, the news outlets attached to the motion are the Associated Press, Fox 13 News, Millard County Chronicle Progress, KOAL Castle Country Radio, KUER, Lehi Free Press, The Park Record, CBS Broadcasting, The New York Times, CNN, Fox News and Law & Crime Network.

Additionally, Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, spoke in favor of televising the proceedings in her recent interview with Fox News host Jesse Watters.

“There were cameras all over my husband when he was murdered. There have been cameras all over my friends and family, mourning. There have been cameras all over me, analyzing my every move, analyzing my every smile, my every tear,” she said.

“We deserve to have cameras in there.”

Robinson’s next hearing is set for Jan. 16. He has yet to enter a plea.

Ken Silva is the editor of Headline USA. Follow him at x.com/jd_cashless.

State Department Says US Is Not Withdrawing from Iraq

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State Department Says US Is Not Withdrawing from Iraq

(Dave DeCamp, Antiwar.com) A US State Department spokesperson told Shafaq News on Wednesday that the US is not withdrawing from Iraq but shifting its military role to a “bilateral relationship” under a deal that will end the mission of the US-led anti-ISIS coalition in the country.

The official made the comment in response to Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani saying that Baghdad will only disarm the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), a group of mostly Shia militias, including some that are aligned with Iran, once the US-led coalition leaves Iraq.

The Trump administration has been demanding that Iraq disarm the PMF, which was formed in 2014 to fight ISIS and is considered part of Iraq’s security forces. The State Department official speaking to Shafaq said Iraq must dismantle the “Iran-backed militias” and accused the groups of engaging in “violent and destabilizing activities in Iraq.”

“Their actions drain the country’s resources and act against its national interests,” the spokesperson said. Referring to the US plans for its military presence in Iraq, the spokesperson said, “This is not a withdrawal. It is a shift toward a more traditional bilateral relationship in the areas of security and diplomacy.”

Last year, the US and Iraq signed a deal that would end the mission of the US-led coalition in Iraq by September 2026, but at the time of the signing, the Biden administration said that the US was “not withdrawing from Iraq.”

The US has recently withdrawn some military personnel from the country, but the War Department has said fewer than 2,000 US troops will remain. The US is keeping troops at the Ain al-Asad Air Base in western Iraq, at the Erbil Air Base in Iraqi Kurdistan, and a small number of advisors will remain in Baghdad.

Over the weekend, Iraqi Defense Minister Thabit al-Abbasi said the US had issued its “final” and “most serious” warning regarding the disarmament of the PMF. He also suggested that US War Secretary Hegseth told him the US would be conducting some sort of military operation in the region.

Al-Abbasi said that Hegseth’s message “concerns armed factions and includes a direct threat in the event that those factions carry out any operations in response to what Washington intends to do in the region near Iraq in the coming days.

This article originally appeared at Antiwar.com.

House Dems Summon Ex-Prince Andrew to Talk about Jeffrey Epstein

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House Dems Summon Ex-Prince Andrew to Talk about Jeffrey Epstein

(Ken Silva, Headline USA) Democrats in the House Oversight Committee have written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, seeking information about his relationship with deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

“You may have valuable information about the crimes committed by Mr. Epstein and his co-conspirators,” they said in a Thursday letter, signed by 16 Democrats.

Deceased Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre claimed that Epstein pimped her out to Windsor. They settled their lawsuit in 2022. In her posthumous book released last month, Guiffre, who reportedly committed suicide in April, wrote that she feared retaliation over her allegations.

House Democrats said they are investigating Giuffre’s allegations.

“This fear of retaliation has been a persistent obstacle to many of those who were victimized in their fight for justice,” they said. “In addition to Mr. Epstein’s crimes, we are investigating any such efforts to silence, intimidate, or threaten victims, and are interested in any avenues that may further shed light on these activities.”

The Democrats said they seek a response by Nov. 20.

The letter comes on the heels of the Oversight Committee releasing records that further implicate Windsor in Epstein’s alleged sex-trafficking scheme. Epstein’s heavily redacted ledger shows that he cut a $200 check in February 2000 for a “massage for Andrew.” Another $200 check was cut in May of that year for the same reason. The rest of the ledger is redacted.

Multiple teenagers have said Epstein paid them for massages that often included sexual activities. The Justice Department claims that Epstein didn’t pimp out those girls to any other men, but him cutting checks for massages may indicate otherwise.

Epstein was reportedly found dead in his prison cell in August 2019—allegedly of suicide. His accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell, is serving a 20-year sentence after being found guilty of conspiring with Epstein in 2021.

The Oversight Committee says it’s received over 8,000 records from the Epstein estate so far.

Ken Silva is the editor of Headline USA. Follow him at x.com/jd_cashless.

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