The U.S. House of Representatives elected Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) to be the new speaker after former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) was voted out of the leadership position earlier this month.
Lawmakers elected Johnson in the first House floor ballot on Wednesday, with Republicans narrowly defeating the Democrats’ nominee, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.).
During her speech nominating Johnson, House Republican Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) called the Louisiana congressman “a man of deep faith” who “epitomizes what it means to be a servant leader.”
“Mike has dedicated his life to preserving America’s great principles of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” Stefanik added.
READ MORE: McCarthy voted out as Speaker of the House
Shortly after his election, Johnson posted the following statement on X:
It is the honor of a lifetime to have been elected the 56th Speaker of the House.
Thank you to my colleagues, friends, staff, and family for the unmatched support throughout this process.
It has been an arduous few weeks, and a reminder that the House is as complicated and diverse as the people we represent. The urgency of this moment demands bold, decisive action to restore trust, advance our legislative priorities, and demonstrate good governance. Our House Republican Conference is united, and eager to work.
As Speaker, I will ensure the House delivers results and inspires change for the American people. We will restore trust in this body. We will advance a comprehensive conservative policy agenda, combat the harmful policies of the Biden Administration, and support our allies abroad. And we will restore sanity to a government desperately in need of it. Let’s get back to work.
Limited visibility caused by a “super fog” over New Orleans on Monday resulted in a major car pileup involving at least 168 vehicles that left eight individuals dead and at least 63 injured.
In a statement released Tuesday on Facebook, the Louisiana State Police wrote, “The ongoing investigation has determined that at least 168 vehicles were involved in the crash, and 63 individuals received injuries in the incident.”
The Louisiana State Police explained that all of the vehicles involved in Monday’s tragic accident had been removed from both sides of I-55 and the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development had initiated the process of cleaning up the road.
“DOTD bridge inspectors are onsite conducting preliminary inspections and have identified multiple areas requiring bridge repairs,” the statement added. “A comprehensive structural inspection will take place once the bridge surface is completely clear of debris, diesel, and other chemicals.”
Louisiana State Police spokesperson told weather.com that Monday’s multi-car pileup began just prior to 9:00 on Monday. The vehicles involved in the pileup were spread across about a mile of I-55. The Daily Wire also reported that at least three 18-wheeler vehicles were involved in Monday’s vehicle pileup.
A video posted on X, formerly Twitter, by Fox 8 New Orleans shows a portion of the deadly pileup with multiple vehicles on fire.
Gov. John Edwards released a statement on social media regarding Monday’s tragic accident, warning of the danger caused by fog and wildfire smoke and encouraging Louisiana residents to pray for the individuals involved in Monday’s vehicle pileup.
READ MORE: 2 US troops killed in military vehicle crash identified
“Please join me and Donna in praying for those hurt and killed in today’s tragic I-55 crash, as well as their families. The combination of wildfire smoke and dense fog is dangerous, and I want to encourage all Louisianans in affected areas to take extreme caution when traveling,” Edwards stated. “I also want to thank the first responders and medical personnel who have worked so diligently to save lives and render aid.”
The Daily Wire reported that Tyler Stanfield, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in New Orleans, claimed that the combination of smoke caused by a wildfire across the Mississippi River and moisture caused Monday’s super fog. “It’s the perfect storm,” Stanfield said, according to The New York Times.
According to Stanfield, New Orleans usually experiences a super fog two times per year as a result of regional swamp fires caused by dry conditions in the fall.
Clarencia Patterson Reed told The Times-Picayune and The New Orleans Advocate that she was forced to make a quick stop to avoid crashing into vehicles in front of her due to the super fog conditions on Monday; however, she quickly became entangled in the pileup as cars behind her crashed into her vehicle.
“It was ‘Boom. Boom,’” she said. “All you kept hearing was crashing for at least 30 minutes.”
Pink is getting candid about suffering a near-fatal drug overdose when she was a teenager, just before landing a record deal.
The “Just Like a Pill” hit-maker sat down with “60 Minutes” for an interview that aired Sunday evening, in which she said she was an open book and that no question was off the table. The 44-year-old singer, born Alecia Beth Moore, then revisited a fateful Thanksgiving nearly three decades ago.
“Thanksgiving of 1995, I was at a rave and I overdosed. I was on, oh boy — ecstasy, angel dust, crystal, all kinds of things,” she recalled. “Then I was out. Done. Too much.”
The Grammy winner’s been open in the past about her overdose, saying it was a pivotal moment. Moore told Shape magazine in 2012 that a DJ offered the young singer a performance slot during a hip-hop night. “His only caveat was that I couldn’t do drugs, so I didn’t,” she said at the time. “That’s the thing with me — once I make up my mind, I’m done.”
Pink landed a record deal with LaFace Records shortly after and launched her solo career in 2000.
Talking with “60 Minutes,” she attributed her teenage substance abuse to a volatile environment at home. “I was a punk, and I had a mouth. I had a chip on my shoulder,” she explained.
“Basically, I grew up in a house where, every day, my parents were screaming at each other, throwing things, hated each other. And then I got into drugs. I was selling drugs. And then I was kicked out of the house. I dropped out of high school. That was off the rails.”
In 2013, Moore made her acting debut in “Thanks for Sharing,” a sex addiction comedy. She starred alongside Mark Ruffalo, Josh Gad and Tim Robbins as a woman who attends Sexaholics Anonymous meetings to help control her desire to sleep with strange men.
Moore pulled from her own experience with addiction for the role. She’s also used it to inspire her music, with songs including “Just Like a Pill” and “Who Knew,” which was written after the singer lost two friends to drug overdoses.
On Oct. 12, Pink set off on her Trustfall tour, opening in Sacramento, California, just days after finishing the North American leg of her Summer Carnival tour. (While she was in London with the latter tour, attendees threw cheese and ashes at her onstage.) “Trustfall,” Pink’s ninth studio album, will be released in February.
Despite having to postpone several shows because of family medical issues and a bad respiratory infection, Pink is slated to resume performing on Oct. 25 with a show at the Ball Arena in Denver. She has 15 more dates across the United States and Canada after that.
Nokia, a major telecommunications equipment manufacturer, announced last Thursday that the company is preparing to cut as many as 14,000 jobs as part of its effort to reduce costs due to a decrease in third-quarter sales and profit.
In a recent business filing, Nokia announced that the company would be launching a cost-saving program to “lower its cost base on a gross basis.” As part of the company’s new cost-saving program, Nokia is expected to reduce its workforce from 86,000 employees worldwide to between 72,000 and 77,000 employees, which the company said would result in a 10-15% “reduction in personnel expenses.”
According to The Associated Press, Nokia, a Finland-based technology company, is currently one of the world’s top suppliers of 5G wireless networks. The company’s announcement of mass layoffs comes at a time when Nokia is trying to “navigate the current market uncertainty” as high-interest rates impact the global economy.
The Associated Press noted that Nokia’s third-quarter sales dropped 20% compared to the third quarter of last year, resulting in a significant decrease in revenue. The company’s mobile networks business dropped 24% due to decreased sales in the North American market, where the company currently employs roughly 10,500 people, according to the company’s website.
“We continue to believe in the mid-to-long-term attractiveness of our markets,” Nokia CEO Pekka Lundmark said. “Cloud computing and AI revolutions will not materialize without significant investments in networks that have vastly improved capabilities.”
READ MORE: 20,000 jobs cut at major banks, more layoffs expected
According to The Associated Press, Nokia’s decreased sales were caused by telecom operators placing additional investments on hold as a result of increased costs and interest rates. Lundmark noted that the issue was market-wide and that the company’s competitors also faced the same challenge in the current global economy.
“Investments by operators have reduced remarkably,” Lundmark said. “Perhaps the most serious situation prevails in the North American market, which has a very critical effect to our total profitability.”
Due to the company’s decrease in revenue, Lundmark explained, “Cost-cutting is necessary so that we can secure our competitiveness and thus our future.” However, the CEO noted that the “most difficult business decisions” are the ones that impact people at the company, such as the upcoming layoffs.
“We have immensely talented employees at Nokia and we will support everyone that is affected by this process,” he said. “Resetting the cost-base is a necessary step to adjust to market uncertainty and to secure our long-term profitability and competitiveness. We remain confident about opportunities ahead of us.”
Many travelers are looking forward to a much-awaited vacation this year. According to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), daily traveler numbers for 2023 are approaching pre-pandemic (2019) levels.
If you’ve been considering applying for TSA PreCheck to streamline the process of airport security, here’s your guide to how it works, the interview process and more, along with some tips for using your membership for the first time.
What is TSA PreCheck?
TSA PreCheck is a Trusted Traveler Program (TTP) designed to expedite the process of getting through airport security. The program is managed by the TSA and gives passengers access to special security lines at participating airports in the United States. TSA PreCheck membership costs $78 (previously $85) and is good for five years.
TSA PreCheck is available in more than 200 airports and with 85 airlines across the United States. When you get to the security line after check-in, an agent will direct you to the PreCheck line after confirming your membership via your boarding pass.
This membership allows you to keep your light jacket, shoes and belt on, and liquids and electronics (like laptops) can stay inside your luggage, too. Then, it’s as simple as walking through a security scanner and you’re good to go to your gate.
How to participate in TSA PreCheck
Becoming a member of the TSA PreCheck program will require a few steps, starting with your application. To apply for TSA PreCheck, you must be a U.S. citizen, U.S. national or lawful permanent resident. There is no age restriction for applicants, and children of age 12 and under can use their parents’ or guardians’ memberships and need not officially apply.
Once you’ve applied with an enrollment provider, you’ll need to schedule an appointment at an enrollment center to complete a background check and fingerprinting. At this appointment, you’ll pay your membership fee and find out if you’ve been approved. Once you’ve been approved, you’ll receive a known traveler number (KTN) that you can use whenever you book a flight. It can take up to 60 days to receive your KTN, but most applicants receive their KTN within three to five days.
Complete the online application
The application for TSA PreCheck can be found on the TSA website under “Apply Now.” When completing your application, it’s very important that your name appears exactly as it does on your government identification. Some of the information you’ll need includes:
—Full name
—Date of birth
—Gender
—Preferred language
—A preferred method of contact (email or phone)
When you complete your application, you’ll be directed to set your appointment for your background check and fingerprinting, and you’ll be given a list of enrollment centers to choose from in your area. You’ll also have the opportunity to set a time and date for your appointment.
Complete the in-person interview at an enrollment center
TSA PreCheck allows walk-ins for interviews, but applicants with appointments are prioritized. Appointments are scheduled to last about 10 minutes (if the enrollment center is busy, it may take a bit longer). It’s best to schedule a TSA PreCheck appointment while completing your application, and the earlier you can schedule it, the better. You’ll be given the option to choose from a variety of enrollment centers in your area, along with different days and times.
At your appointment, you’ll be required to present approved identification documents. This includes an unexpired U.S. passport or else a valid photo ID and a document that meets citizenship requirements (such as a U.S. birth certificate). You’ll also be fingerprinted and pay your membership fee. Membership fees are nonrefundable and can be paid with a credit card, debit card, money order, company check or certified/cashier’s check.
The interview itself is pretty low-key. You’ll be asked to verify the information on your application and may also be asked about your employment history and travel habits. If you have any criminal history, you should be prepared to give more information about that.
How to get TSA Precheck for free
Getting the most out of TSA PreCheck actually starts before you use the service. In fact, many travel credit cards provide a statement credit to cover the cost of TSA PreCheck or Global Entry membership. So, if you have an eligible credit card — like the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, for example — you’ll get reimbursed up to $100 for TSA PreCheck or Global Entry.
To receive the credit, you’ll simply pay the fee with your eligible credit card. Also check out Bankrate’s travel toolkit for tips and tricks on how to maximize travel with a credit card.
Using TSA PreCheck for the first time
Once you have your TSA PreCheck membership, here are some tips that can help you make the most of it:
—Make sure you use your KTN whenever you book a flight to ensure TSA PreCheck shows up on your boarding pass.
—If you’re a frequent flyer, add your KTN to your profile.
—Do online check-in for your flight 24 hours ahead of time to make sure your PreCheck status is there. If it isn’t, contact the airline.
—Arrive at the airport at least two hours ahead of your flight to make sure your PreCheck status is confirmed (if you aren’t able to do so online or by phone).
—Be sure you are traveling through an airport with TSA PreCheck services.
Does one TSA PreCheck membership work for families?
The short answer to this question is no. TSA PreCheck membership doesn’t automatically transfer to your family members. The one exception is children of age 12 and under. Children in this age category can go through the TSA PreCheck line with a parent or guardian who has membership in the program.
Children of ages 13 to 17 may also be able to use the TSA PreCheck lane if they’re traveling with a parent or guardian who has TSA PreCheck and if they have the TSA PreCheck indicator on their boarding pass. However, their use of the lane is not guaranteed, and they may be required to go through standard security screening.
How to update personal information for TSA PreCheck
Your TSA PreCheck membership is good for five years. If during that time your personal information changes, you’ll need to update it as soon as you can with the provider that enrolled with. The most direct way to do so is to call it at 855-347-8371 (for IDEMIA) or 833-777-1811 (for Telos), Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. ET. You can also send an inquiry online to get information about how to change your personal information. This may take a little longer, however, because you will have to wait for a response.
The bottom line
If you do any domestic travel, having TSA PreCheck can be a real perk. Participating in this Trusted Traveler Program will enable you to breeze through security lines. While there is a membership fee of $78 to participate in this program, several credit cards offer members credits that cover this application fee. There are other Trusted Traveler Programs from the government that offer different benefits. If you’re looking to have a quicker re-entry into the U.S. after international travel, Global Entry is the program to look at — and it includes TSA PreCheck membership, too.
________
Key takeaways
—TSA PreCheck membership can help you get through airport security faster.
—With TSA PreCheck, you can keep a light jacket, shoes and belt on, and you won’t have to remove your laptop or liquids from your bag.
—To apply for TSA PreCheck, you’ll need to fill out a short online form and complete an in-person appointment at an enrollment center.
—Many travel credit cards offer a statement credit to cover the entire cost of TSA PreCheck membership (currently $78).
Don Smith remembers the moment he awoke in an intensive care unit after 13 days in a medically induced coma. His wife and daughter were at his bedside, and he thought it had been only a day since he arrived at the emergency room with foot pain.
Smith said his wife “slowly started filling me in” on the surgery, the coma, the ventilator. The throbbing in his foot had been a signal of a raging problem.
“When you hear someone say a person died of infection, that’s sepsis,” said Smith, 66, of Colorado Springs, Colorado, who went to the ER shortly before Christmas 2017. Ultimately, he spent almost two months in the hospital and a rehab center following multiple surgeries to clear the infected tissue and, later, to remove seven toes.
Sepsis, the body’s extreme response to an infection, affects 1.7 million adults in the United States annually. It stems from fungal, viral, or bacterial infections, similar to what struck Madonna this year, although the singer never said whether she was diagnosed with sepsis. Treatment delays of even a few hours can undermine a patient’s chance of survival. Yet sepsis can be difficult to diagnose because some patients don’t present with common symptoms like fever, rapid heart rate, or confusion.
A Biden administration rule, finalized in August, ups the ante for hospitals, setting specific treatment metrics that must be met for all patients with suspected sepsis, which could help save some of the 350,000 adults who die of infections annually. Children, too, are affected, with some estimates that 75,000 are treated each year for sepsis and up to 20% of them die. Hospitals that fail to meet the requirements risk losing potentially millions in Medicare reimbursement for the year.
Still, because the rule applies broadly, it has triggered pushback for its lack of flexibility.
Efforts to reduce sepsis deaths are welcome, but “where it gets controversial becomes ‘Is this the best way to do it?’” said Chanu Rhee, an infectious disease physician and associate professor of population medicine at Harvard Medical School.
The approach requires that blood tests be done quickly to look for markers that may indicate sepsis. Also, the measures say antibiotics must be started within three hours of identifying a possible case. The quality measures, called the Severe Sepsis/Septic Shock Early Management Bundle, also call for certain other tests and intravenous fluids to keep blood pressure from dropping dangerously low.
In the proposed rule, which was issued in May, Medicare regulators wrote that the treatments have resulted in “significant reductions in hospital length of stay, re-admission rates and mortality,” since the guidelines were initiated in 2015 under a requirement that hospitals simply report whether they were following them or not.
“These are core things that everyone should do every time they see a septic patient,” said Steven Simpson, a critical-care physician, a professor of medicine at the University of Kansas, and the chairman of the Sepsis Alliance, an advocacy group backed by individual, government, and health industry funding.
The final rule builds on that earlier effort. Nationwide, an average of 57% of patients received care that met the guidelines in 2021, with the most compliant averaging 80%, according to the Biden administration.
But, starting in fall 2024, hospitals must move beyond simply reporting on the measures and meet the specific treatment benchmarks, which will be added to Medicare’s Hospital Value-Based Purchasing Program.
“Before, even if you were reporting 0% compliance, you didn’t lose your money. Now you actually have to do it,” said Simpson.
Failing to meet those measures and other patient-safety standards could be costly: Smaller hospitals could lose “hundreds of thousands” of dollars in Medicare reimbursements annually; for large institutions, “it’s in the millions-of-dollars range,” said Akin Demehin, senior director of quality and patient safety policy at the American Hospital Association.
The hospital association opposed the final rule, writing in a June letter to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services that the recommended treatments had not kept up with evolving science and that their focus on quick antibiotic administration for all suspected cases “has the high potential to lead to excessive use.” That could fuel antibiotic resistance.
Similar concerns have been cited by other professional medical associations, including the Infectious Diseases Society of America. In a 2020 paper, it called for modifying the metrics to target only patients with septic shock, the most serious form of the condition, rather than all suspected sepsis cases. The society also argued that physicians need more flexibility.
What’s more, there is debate over whether broadly implementing the treatment regimen will save lives.
Rhee raised this issue early this year in JAMA. In an opinion piece he co-authored, Rhee cited four studies, including one he led, showing broad-spectrum antibiotic use increased after the sepsis bundle was introduced eight years ago, yet there was little or no change in outcomes for patients.
“Unfortunately, we do not have good evidence that implementation of the sepsis policy has led to an improvement in sepsis mortality rates,” he said.
Another study offers a different view. It showed that adhering to the treatments reduced deaths by about 5.7% among patients who received them. Medicare officials cited the study and its results in their proposal for the rule.
Rhee is unconvinced that the treatment protocols alone led to the drop.
Simpson, at the Sepsis Alliance, said there is enough evidence that the effort to follow the treatment standard resulted in improvements, and he is looking forward to more.
“It is quite clear that this works better than what was present before, which was nothing,” Simpson said. If the current sepsis mortality rate could be cut “by even 5%, we could save a lot of lives.”
All those involved agree that awareness is crucial, not only on the part of medical teams, but among patients, too. Crystal Waguespack, 41, a nurse in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, said she knew about sepsis but didn’t apply that to her own symptoms when she began experiencing severe pain in 2018, two weeks after an operation.
“I never checked to see if I had a fever,” or noticed her increased heart rate, she said.
But she did speak up. Waguespack said the severe pain, which occurred on a weekend when her regular doctor was unavailable, led her to see a physician unfamiliar with her case who told her that the pain was normal and that she was simply anxious. So she went to the emergency department.
“I did not take no for an answer, and I think that saved my life,” she said.
At the hospital, doctors found she had spinal fluid leaking and a surgery-site infection. She spent 14 days in the hospital battling sepsis, meningitis, and a heart infection.
Key takeaways from her experience: Always ask, “Could this be sepsis?” said advocates. And don’t wait.
Smith certainly wishes he had gone directly to a hospital instead of first seeing a foot specialist.
“I went to a foot doctor because my foot hurt,” said Smith. “But a foot doctor is not an infectious disease doctor. You need to get to a place where different kinds of doctors can see you. That’s called a hospital.”
Marlen Medina knew exactly what she would give her son when he returned from Sylmar’s Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall: a blue Dodge Charger.
She was paying it off while her son, Bryan Diaz, served time for attempted murder. She expected him to be released sometime next year — a date he was eagerly awaiting.
“Pronto voy llegar a la casa, “ he wrote in one of the many letters he sent his mother from juvenile hall.
Soon,I’m coming home.
Marlin Medina cries while reflecting on the life and death of her son Bryan Diaz while looking over a photo album in Hermosa Beach, California on Oct. 6, 2023. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times/TNS)
On May 9, Diaz died inside his cell from an overdose caused by fentanyl-laced narcotics — the first death inside the county’s juvenile halls in over a decade.
Five months after her son’s death, Medina, 46, drove up to a Hermosa Beach cafe in the same Blue Dodge she had planned to give him. It looked the way she imagined it would when Diaz took the wheel, except for one grim modification to the back windshield.
“F—-Sylmar Juvenile Hall,” reads the decal stretching across the entire back of the car. “R.I.P. Bryan Diaz (04-25-2005 ~ 05-09-2023).“
“It hurts me so much,” she said in Spanish, her voice cracking, “that I wasn’t able to take him to the DMV to get his driver’s license, that I wasn’t able to show him how to drive, that he didn’t drive the car that I bought him.”
Marlin Medina shows one of the last FaceTime video conversations she had with her son Bryan Diaz, in Hermosa Beach, California on Oct. 6, 2023. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times/TNS)
In the months since Diaz’s death, the probation department has provided few answers about how the 18-year-old got access to drugs inside Nidorf Hall’s Secure Youth Treatment Facility, or SYTF, where youths accused or convicted of the most serious crimes are held. Medina said she has had no communication with the probation department about its investigation since the day her son died.
Since Diaz’s death, probation officials have taken steps to limit the flow of drugs in the facility, and even some of the department’s critics say those efforts have been successful. But the recent arrest of a 22-year-old SYTF detainee suspected of supplying fentanyl has led to allegations that staffers at the juvenile hall are involved in drug distribution.
On Oct. 2, L.A. County prosecutors charged Nicholas Ibarra with bringing narcotics into a jail and possession of drugs for sale, records show. Prosecutors said Ibarra, 22, possessed fentanyl inside Nidorf Hall on Aug. 8. He had previously been convicted of murder and burglary as a juvenile, according to the criminal complaint.
Ibarra has pleaded not guilty to the drug charges. His juvenile attorney declined to comment, and it’s unclear whether he has a lawyer representing him in adult court.
A memorial for Bryan Diaz appears in a photograph in a family album. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times/TNS)
While he was being transferred to an adult jail, Ibarra claimed he could provide information about an officer dealing drugs inside Nidorf Hall, including the narcotics that led to Diaz’s death in the SYTF, according to Tom Yu, an attorney representing the arresting officers.
In a letter to Interim Probation Chief Guillermo Viera Rosa, Yu said the officers “obtained an overwhelming amount of evidence that suggested” an officer and a teacher at Nidorf have been supplying fentanyl to youths. The names of the officer and the teacher were redacted in a copy of the letter that Yu provided to The Times.
Yu told The Times that officers Reggie Torres and David Corona were placed on administrative leave after reporting Ibarra’s statements to supervisors.
“This misconduct is being covered up,” Yu said in a written statement. “To date, this probation officer is still supplying fentanyl and the officer remains employed.”
Yu also alleged that Torres — who is the president of the union representing supervising probation officers — was being retaliated against for criticisms he’d levied against managers, according to the letter to the chief. Repeated calls to a spokesman for the union, SEIU Local 721, were not returned.
The probation department said it would not comment on pending criminal or personnel investigations, and responded to a detailed list of questions from The Times with a statement that said it would “vigorously seek criminal prosecution of anyone trying to introduce contraband into a juvenile facility.”
The agency said it has taken steps to “establish enhanced security protocols” and is monitoring its procedures to identity potential improvements.
Two probation department sources, who requested anonymity because they are not authorized to speak publicly about the ongoing investigation, said the officers may have been placed on leave for failing to promptly report Ibarra’s statements to supervisors — not because they sounded the alarm about alleged drug dealing by staffers, as Yu contended.
Though both sources said Ibarra claimed he could identify the individual responsible for selling drugs, neither could substantiate Yu’s assertion about a link to Diaz’s overdose. One of the probation sources said Ibarra and Diaz were housed in the same unit at the time of the 18-year-old’s death.
Last week, an ABC report claimed Ibarra was arrested in connection with Diaz’s death, but a spokeswoman for the district attorney’s office said Ibarra had not been charged with any crimes related to the overdose. No case has been presented to prosecutors related to Diaz’s death, said the spokeswoman, Tiffiny Blacknell.
**
In her first interview since her son’s death, Medina listed the milestones that he will never hit: graduation, marriage, fatherhood.
She holds the county’s probation department responsible.
“They were supposed to protect him,” she said. “I thought they were going to look after him.”
Teachers at Nidorf Hall, deputies and parents of incarcerated youths told The Times they were left that spring with the same sinking feeling: the facility meant to rehabilitate the county’s most troubled kids was going to be responsible for a death.
In a March court hearing, a judge expressed fear that a youth might die in custody soon after hearing from lawyers about two teens at Nidorf’s SYTF who were revived with the opioid overdose reversal drug Narcan after ingesting fentanyl-laced pills.
“It appears that it was a stroke of luck that the individuals that came across these two youths were trained in the use of Narcan and actually had it accessible,” Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Miguel Espinoza said. “If the youth had been in a different unit, or it had been at a time when there was an untrained staff member, it appears highly likely that one or both of the youths would have passed away.”
Medina got the call about Diaz while she was in the bathroom on her 10 a.m. break from her job packing fruit. Her son had died in his cell, she said an official told her, but they would not share what happened.
Desperate for answers, she drove that evening to the juvenile hall. Word of the death had already spread, and when she arrived she felt that everyone at the entrance knew why she was there.
“Nobody would look me in the eye,” she recalled.
A detective later told her that her son had probably died of an overdose. Until that point, she’d assumed he’d been in a fight and didn’t believe he used hard drugs.
“I’m angry, I want them to give me names,” she said. “I want to know: What did they give the kids? Who was selling it?”
That was the last interaction she had with anyone from the probation department.
“I actually hadn’t thought about it until now,” she said. “They never called me again.”
Diaz was pronounced dead at 8:26 a.m. that day, and his death was ruled accidental due to the effects of fentanyl, according to an autopsy report made public last month. Responding officers deployed multiple doses of Narcan and performed CPR to no avail, records show.
Another youth housed in the unit told investigators he saw Diaz consume “an unknown blue tablet,” but it was unclear how long before his death that took place, according to the medical examiner’s report.
Investigators also recovered from Diaz’s room a rolled-up piece of paper secured with tape, according to the report, an indication he may have crushed and snorted the pill.
Concerns about fentanyl-laced pills being distributed within the juvenile hall have lingered most of the year. After Diaz’s death, probation officials stepped up efforts to reduce access to drugs inside the compound. Viera Rosa ordered that staff and visitors could bring only clear bags into the facility and announced increased searches of the halls for drugs.
**
Medina had three sons: Leonel, a bubbly 10-year-old; José Luis, a 25-year-old race car driver; and her middle child, Bryan.
He was always the son she was closest to. The one who always promised to buy them a house in Arizona. The one who tattooed her name on his neck. The one who wrote her poems.
Days before he died, he penned a poem about his mother and his girlfriend titled “Till we meet again.”
“I miss both these women sososo much that I would give up my life to spend a day with them right now.”
Javier Stauring, a former Catholic chaplain who led services inside juvenile halls, read the poem at Diaz’s funeral. He also organized a memorial for Diaz inside the SYTF’s chapel.
“When Bryan passed away, the first thing they did — there were 11 kids in the unit — was separate them all,” he said. “And so, you don’t give them an opportunity to even grieve together.”
At the memorial, Stauring, who now leads the criminal justice reform group Healing Dialogue and Action, asked the youths from Diaz’s unit what they remembered most about him.
“Almost everyone said, ‘The smile,’” he recalled.
After her son’s death, Medina made a photo album to remember him by. He grins as he makes honor roll in fourth grade, on the soccer field, during one of many family trips to Knott’s Berry Farm in Buena Park.
At the end of the album are two photos of Diaz at age 17, his smile slightly more reserved.
Medina said those were the last photos she took of her son at home before he was arrested.
Diaz was sent to SYTF “following attempted murder charges,” according to the autopsy report. Blacknell said the charges against him were “sustained” and the teen‘s release date had yet to be determined. Medina said she did not want to discuss her son’s case.
Diaz was at Central Juvenile Hall in downtown L.A. for nine months before being transferred to SYTF, his mother said. Six weeks later, he overdosed.
Medina said he’d never voiced any problems with the facility, not even a complaint about the food. She said he always sounded upbeat on their calls.
“He was just a positive kid — but he was a positive kid in a unit that was just flooded with contraband,” said Scott Budnick, a producer and criminal justice advocate who regularly went into Diaz’s unit as part of a mentoring program. “I saw the pills. You knew they were fake Xanax and fake Percocet — and you knew they were probably laced with fentanyl.”
Budnick described Diaz’s unit as being “just like the Wild, Wild West,” with drug use by incarcerated youths obvious to everyone who entered the facility — including staff.
“I’ll be honest, all of us coming in during those days, it was very difficult to do what we do because everyone was high,” he said.
Diaz’s death was a wake-up call to the county’s probation department. The agency said it has ramped up canine searches and limited outside meal orders to stop drugs from coming in masked as food deliveries.
Budnick said he’s noticed significantly less drugs within the facility in the last month, which he credits to improved staffing, more programming and better security.
“They have done a very, very good job of searching and finding fentanyl pills and then holding people accountable,” Budnick said. “That’s not to say we’re kind of completely out of the woods and it couldn’t revert back. But right now, it’s the best I’ve seen it since I started 20 years ago.”
Prosecutors brought charges last month in adult court against two other youths for possession of drugs inside Nidorf Hall, according to the D.A.’s office. Those arrests took place in August, one day after court records allege Ibarra was caught with fentanyl.
Despite praise for the department’s increased efforts to search for drugs within the compound, it’s unclear what steps have been taken to curtail the role officer misconduct might play in drug abuse inside the facility. In September, the L.A. County Office of the Inspector General issued a report that noted continued allegations of staff bringing in cellphones and “illicit drugs.” The report did not say if any officers had been disciplined, fired or arrested for such behavior.
Medina said she had no idea her son’s death had become a catalyst for change — that his name was often chanted in public meetings, a symbol among activists of what’s at stake when the department flounders.
His death was the worst-case scenario. Rather than rehabilitate her son, Medina said she felt the probation department was responsible for his death, allowing him far too easy access to the drugs that killed him.
“If this would have happened to my child, in my house, under my responsibility, they would have came after me,” she said.
An off-duty Alaska Airlines pilot attempted to take control of the flight and turn off the plane engines midair before being subdued on Sunday.
The incident occurred Sunday night on a flight from Everett, Washington, to San Francisco when the pilot was in the jump seat in the cockpit. Airline pilots routinely hop aboard other flights to catch a free ride.
The Embraer E-175 regional jet took off from from Paine Field around 5:23 p.m. with 80 passengers and additional crew, according to the Seattle Times.
According to audio obtained by the newspaper, the flight crew got the situation under control quickly.
“We’ve got the guy that tried to shut the engines down out of the cockpit, and he doesn’t sound like he’s causing any issues in the back right now,” the pilot told air traffic controllers, adding that they wanted police to meet them when they landed.
The plane was diverted to Portland International Airport where the pilot was arrested. Local police are investigating with support from the Federal Aviation Administration.
Joe Emerson, 44, was booked into a Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office jail around 4:00 a.m. on Monday morning, according to the Seattle Times. He’s been charged with 83 counts of attempted murder, 83 counts of reckless endangerment and one count of endangering an aircraft.
Alaska Air Group said in a statement there was “a credible security threat related to an authorized occupant in the flight deck jump seat” during the flight.
“The crew secured the aircraft without incident. All passengers on board were able to travel on a later flight.
“We are grateful for the professional handling of the situation by the Horizon flight crew and appreciate our guests’ calm and patience throughout this event,” Alaska Air said.
The passengers were given travel vouchers, the airline said.
A China Coast Guard (CCG) ship making “dangerous blocking maneuvers” collided on Sunday morning with one of two boats used by the Philippine Navy for rotation and resupply (Rore) missions to Filipino troops stationed on Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal, the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS) reported.
During that same mission, the port (left-hand) side of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vessel was also “bumped” by a Chinese maritime militia vessel.
Both incidents, the latest in a series of maritime tensions between the two countries, were condemned by the NTF-WPS, as it criticized the “dangerous, irresponsible and illegal actions” of the CCG and Chinese maritime militia.
“[These are] in violation of Philippine sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction and in utter blatant disregard of the United Nations Charter, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos), Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea and relevant international maritime conventions, and the 2016 Arbitral Award,” the NTF-WPS said in a statement.
The task force reported that the collision between CCG Vessel 5203 and Filipino supply boat Unaizah on May 2 took place at 6:04 a.m. on Sunday, 13.5 nautical miles (NM) or 1.9 kilometers east northeast of the BRP Sierra Madre, a grounded World War II-era warship serving as a military outpost on Ayungin Shoal. It did not say if the boat’s crew suffered injuries or if the Unaizah May 2 sustained any damage.
Despite the collision, the resupply mission was “successfully” conducted as the other supply boat, Unaizah May 1, made it to BRP Sierra Madre, the task force added.
In the second incident, a Chinese maritime militia vessel with tail No. 00003 (CMMV 00003) bumped PCG vessel MRRV 4409 which was lying approximately 6.4 NM (11.9 km) northeast of Ayungin.
The CCG defended its actions, saying it lawfully blocked the Filipino vessels that were “illegally carrying construction materials.” It also accused the Philippines of trespassing.
The CCG said the Unaizah May 2 sailed at the bow of Vessel No. 5203 “on purpose in a way that was not professional nor safe in spite of China’s advanced notice and repeated warnings.”
It added that “at 0813 AM, the Philippine vessel 4409 began to [move] astern deliberately, leading to collision of the stern of its vessel into the starboard of China’s static floating Qiong Sansha Yu 00003.”
The move, the CCG stressed, was intended “to [find fault] with China and escalate the current situation.”
“The Philippines’ action seriously violated the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea and threatened the navigation safety of the Chinese vessels. The operation of Chinese side was professional, legitimate, and lawful and the responsibility [lies] entirely with the Philippine side,” it said.
This is not the first time Manila has accused Beijing of carrying out “dangerous maneuvers” within the West Philippine Sea while blocking its regular Rore missions to the BRP Sierra Madre.
On Feb. 6, a CCG ship directed a “military-grade” laser at one of the PCG vessels escorting a mission.
Eight days after the laser attack, President Marcos summoned Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian to Malacañang. Despite this, another CCG ship blocked a Filipino patrol vessel and caused a near-collision at Ayungin Shoal on April 23.
On Aug. 22, the Unaizah May 1 and 2 managed to deliver fresh supplies to Filipino troops stationed on Ayungin Shoal, weeks after CCG vessels thwarted an earlier mission by training water cannons on one of the supply boats.
Only last week, a Chinese Navy ship shadowed the BRP Benguet off Pag-asa Island conducting a Rore mission.
The Philippine Navy boat issued several radio challenges against the People’s Liberation Army-Navy ship 621 which tried to cross its bow with the closest point of approach at 350 yards.
US condemns incident
The latest maritime run-in between Manila and Beijing drew condemnation from several countries, including the United States which said China’s “latest disruption of a legal Philippine resupply mission to Ayungin Shoal” placed the lives of Filipino troops at risk.
“We stand with our friends, partners, allies in protecting Philippine sovereignty and in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific,” US Ambassador MaryKay Carlson said on X (formerly Twitter) on Sunday.
Canada also criticized the incident, saying it was provoked by the CCG’s “unlawful and dangerous conduct.”
“The PRC’s (People’s Republic of China) actions are unjustified. China has no lawful claim to the West Philippine Sea. Its actions are incompatible with the obligations of a signatory to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea,” the Embassy of Canada said in a statement.
In a separate post on X, Canadian Ambassador to the Philippines David Hartman said they stand “in full unity with the Philippines in defense of its territorial integrity and the upholding of international law.”
For European Union Ambassador to the Philippines Luc Veron, “these incidents, their repetition and intensification are dangerous and very disturbing.”
“We join the Philippines in its call for the full observance of International Law in the South China Sea,” he added.
Netherlands Ambassador to the Philippines Marielle Geraedts said her country stood with the Philippines in its call “for the full observance of international law in the South China Sea,” while German Ambassador Andreas Pfaffernoschke expressed his country’s concern about the recent “confrontations” in the South China Sea.
‘Treacherous acts’
Senators also called out the CCG, with Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri reiterating that “our freedom of navigation in our own exclusive economic zone within our own continental shelf should be recognized and upheld.”
“Let me salute our (PCG and military) personnel… for displaying courage and restraint in continuing their resupply missions despite the hostile and treacherous acts of [CCG] and their maritime militia,” he stressed in a statement.
“China, enough already. This latest collision is squarely the [CCG’s] fault,” Sen. Risa Hontiveros said.
“I call on the international community to join the Philippines’ condemnation of China’s most recent violence against the Filipino people. Our nations should not stop fighting for the rule of law,” she added.
A mob of pro-Palestinian supporters attacked two Turning Point USA workers and violently beat a Christian man who was escorting an elderly Jewish couple in Skokie, Illinois, on Sunday.
According to The Jerusalem Post, the violent attacks against the Turning Point USA workers occurred as pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli rallies took place at the same time on Sunday near Chicago.
Peter Christos, a Turning Point USA employee, posted a video on X, formerly Twitter, that identified him as the man being violently attacked by pro-Palestinian supporters.
“Yesterday in Skokie, myself & @TPUSA coworker were violently attacked by Pro-Hamas protestors while trying to escort a lost, elderly Jewish couple to the Pro-Israel event,” he said. “I was punched repeatedly, kicked in the head, and hit with a flagpole. This is being Pro-Israel in 2023.”
Yesterday in Skokie, myself & @TPUSA coworker were violently attacked by Pro-Hamas protestors while trying to escort a lost, elderly Jewish couple to the Pro-Israel event.
I was punched repeatedly, kicked in the head, and hit with a flagpole.
Charlie Kirk, founder and CEO of Turning Point USA, also confirmed on social media that the man being violently attacked by pro-Palestinian supporters in the video was Christos.
In a post on X, Kirk shared a video posted by Stop Antisemitism, writing, “This is our @TPUSA staffer, Peter Christos, who is Christian, not Jewish. Yesterday, he was violently attacked while he and another TPUSA staffer were trying to escort an elderly Jewish couple away from a pro-Israel rally.”
READ MORE: Man punches woman in the face for being Jewish, police say
Like Christos, Kirk explained that as the two Turning Point USA workers were walking to their cars, “pro-Hamas supporters” encountered them, “assaulted them, punched them repeatedly, and hit them with a flag pole” prior to the police escorting them to safety.
“All of these thugs need to be arrested and charged with hate crimes,” Kirk stated.
This is our @TPUSA staffer, Peter Christos, who is Christian, not Jewish. Yesterday, he was violently attacked while he and another TPUSA staffer were trying to escort an elderly Jewish couple away from a pro-Israel rally. On the way to their cars, they encountered pro-Hamas… https://t.co/zKCorUZPyW
According to The Jerusalem Post, the mob’s attack on Christos and his co-worker while the two Turning Point USA employees were escorting an elderly Jewish couple was just one of multiple incidents that occurred outside the Lincolnwood Town Center, where a “Standing with Israel” rally was being held.
NBC5 Chicago reported that about 200 pro-Palestinian protestors gathered outside Sunday’s “Standing with Israel” event. Near the same place where the Turning Point USA employees were assaulted, an unnamed 39-year-old man was arrested by police for firing a gun “in self-defense” near pro-Palestinian protestors on Sunday.
