Is this you? As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.
Claim your profile
Articles by Bystanders wave
Court date set in Hunter Biden’s California tax case
Hunter Biden is set to appear in a California courtroom next month on nine tax counts, the latest fallout from a special counsel investigation into his business affairs. President Joe Biden's son is scheduled for an initial appearance at an arraignment in Los Angeles on Jan. 11, according to a federal court calendar posted Monday. He is facing three felony and six misdemeanor counts, including filing a false return, tax evasion, failure to file and failure to pay.
Huge jugs of jalapeno paste hide nearly 2 tons of meth and cocaine, border agents say Original
A tractor-trailer stopped at a border crossing into California contained more than the listed jugs of jalapeno paste, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers reported. The shipment, stopped Dec. 13 at the Otay Mesa Cargo Facility near San Diego, also contained 3,161 pounds of methamphetamine and 522 pounds of cocaine hidden in the paste, a Dec. 14 news release by the agency said.
‘Amazing’ sea creatures dazzle as they make a rare return off California. See them Original
A pod of orcas, also known as killer whales, rarely seen in Southern California waters is wowing whale watchers with a surprise return visit. The Eastern Tropical Pacific pod, more often found off the coast of Mexico and Central America, has been spotted multiple times in the past several days off Palos Verdes and Santa Monica, The Orange County Register reported.
‘Amazing’ sea creatures dazzle as they make a rare return off California. See them
A pod of orcas, also known as killer whales, rarely seen in Southern California waters is wowing whale watchers with a surprise return visit. The Eastern Tropical Pacific pod, more often found off the coast of Mexico and Central America, has been spotted multiple times in the past several days off Palos Verdes and Santa Monica, The Orange County Register reported.
Millions in opioid settlement funds sit untouched as overdose deaths rise
Nearly a year after Montana began receiving millions of dollars to invest in efforts to combat the opioid crisis, much of that money remains untouched. Meanwhile, the state’s opioid overdose and death counts continue to rise. The money is part of the approximately $50 billion that states and local governments will receive nationwide in opioid settlement funds over nearly two decades.
Tri-Valley’s Goodness Village sparks creative energy in formerly unhoused neighbors
Scott Donovan was in a bad place. Donovan, 50, had been homeless for about five years, sleeping outside a recycling place in Livermore, California. He lived day to day, thinking mainly about his safety and what he could eat that day. “I was not in good shape. Not in a good place in life,” he said. That changed when a Livermore police officer who knew Donovan took him to Goodness Village — a tiny home program serving the formerly unhoused population in the Tri-Valley — for an interview.
Seeking redemption: A death row inmate’s journey into LA County’s largest psych ward
LOS ANGELES -- The yelling surprised no one. Yet still Craigen Armstrong was concerned. Ray was always acting out. This time he had just come back from medical and was standing at the glass wall, screaming at the sheriff's deputies on the other side. He was furious, accusing one of them of sleeping with his wife. Armstrong and the other inmates in the cell block hoped the disruption would blow over. But Ray only got louder and more frustrated.
Texas police hunt escaped inmate serving life sentence
Dec. 18 (UPI) -- Authorities in Texas are hunting an inmate serving a life sentence who escaped from prison over the weekend, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice said. Robert Yancy Jr., 39, escaped Sunday from the Clemens Unit in Brazoria, Texas, which is located about 55 miles south of Houston. He was last seen at about 3:38 p.m. Sunday in a 2021 white Nissan Versa wearing a black beanie and a black sweater, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice said in a statement.
Car crashes into presidential motorcade vehicle in Delaware; Bidens uninjured
Dec. 18 (UPI) -- A sedan accidentally crashed into President Joe Biden's motorcade in Delaware on Sunday night as he and first lady Jill Biden were leaving his campaign office. The incident happened shortly after 8 p.m. in downtown Wilmington, according to the White House press pool, which said the silver sedan slammed into a SUV that was protecting the motorcade at the intersection across the street from his campaign headquarters.
Some Trump fake electors from 2020 haven’t faded away. They have roles in how the 2024 race is run
Nearly two years after he signed documents attempting to overturn Donald Trump's 2020 loss in Nevada, Jim Hindle thanked everyone gathered in a historic Nevada boomtown's commission chambers and asked them to bear with him while he learned how to oversee elections in rural Storey County. Hindle was another replacement in what was a revolving door of county election officials across Nevada as the 2022 midterms approached.
Florida’s Republican Party censures embattled chair over rape investigation
Dec. 18 (UPI) -- The Republican Party of Florida censured and called for the resignation of its embattled chair, Christian Ziegler, on Sunday, stopping just short of ousting him over allegations that he sexually assaulted a woman.
Study bolsters evidence that severe obesity increasing in young US kids
A new study adds to evidence that severe obesity is becoming more common in young U.S. children. There was some hope that children in a government food program might be bucking a trend in obesity rates — earlier research found rates were dropping a little about a decade ago for those kids. But an update released Monday in the journal Pediatrics shows the rate bounced back up a bit by 2020.
AP News in Brief at 12:04 a.m. EST
Israel faces new calls for truce after killing of hostages raises alarm about its conduct in Gaza DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israel's government faced calls for a cease-fire from some of its closest European allies on Sunday after a series of shootings, including the mistaken killing of three Israeli hostages, fueled global concerns about the conduct of the 10-week-old war in Gaza.
What to Know About Washington’s Scandal Over Sex in a Senate Hearing Room
Capitol Hill was rocked over the weekend by the circulation of an explicit video of two men apparently having sex in a congressional hearing room. The eight-second pornographic clip, first posted Friday evening by right-wing media website the Daily Caller, was reportedly leaked from a private group chat for gay men in politics.
Haley slams DeSantis for stumping in Iowa with Massie, who’s opposed votes condemning antisemitism
Nikki Haley denounced Republican presidential rival Ron DeSantis in Iowa Sunday for campaigning in the state with Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie, the lone House Republican who voted last week against a GOP resolution condemning antisemitism on university campuses. “You can’t be pro-Israel and bring the most anti-Israel Republican into this state, who voted against fighting antisemitism on college campuses,” Haley said.
Kishida’s support tanks after replacing scandal-hit cabinet
Support for Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida fell to fresh lows in polls taken after he reshuffled his cabinet to contain a funding scandal that threatens the future of his government. A survey by the Mainichi Shimbun Dec. 16-17 found approval of his cabinet slumped by 5 percentage points from last month to 16%, the lowest since he took office in October 2021. His disapproval rate rose to 79%, the highest since the newspaper started conducting such polls more than seven decades ago.
Republican Furious Joe Biden Tearing Down Confederate Memorial in Arlington
The looming removal of the Confederate Memorial from Arlington National Cemetery (ANC) this week has sparked outrage from the Republican congressman leading the charge to stop the 109-year-old monument's dismantling. Despite mounting condemnation from dozens of Republican members of Congress, the Confederate Memorial will be removed before December 22 from the nation's largest military graveyard, where 400,000 people are buried in Arlington County, Virginia.
Trump says Nevada fake electors treated ‘unfairly’ during rally in Reno
Former President Donald Trump called out three of Nevada's fake electors Sunday, saying they're being treated unfairly less than 24 hours before they are scheduled to be arraigned for signing certificates falsely stating Trump won the state in 2020. Trump did not directly mention the charges nor the upcoming court date during a rally in Reno, but he cast the fake electors as victims in a brief portion of a speech that spanned more than an hour.
New York mayor’s ex-top fundraiser Brianna Suggs assigned to paperwork in wake of FBI raid
The former chief fundraiser for Mayor Eric Adams’ campaign has been assigned a job focusing on paperwork since the feds raided her home as part of a probe into his campaign finances, the mayor revealed in a new interview. Adams previously said the staffer, Brianna Suggs, was no longer raising money for him but shied away from sharing details on her exact role. “She’s going to do — there’s so much administrative paperwork, documentation,” the mayor told PIX11 in an interview aired Sunday.
SDPD lieutenant joins state board that helps decide if officers should lose their badges - for good
A veteran San Diego police lieutenant was recently named to the state board that recommends whether law enforcement officers should permanently lose their badges under a new California law. In some ways, it's a role he's been training for his whole 24-year career.
How to address juvenile justice issues? Maryland Senate President Bill Ferguson says there’s a need for cohesion, responsibility
In spite of a reported decline in youth crime and Baltimore’s slowed murder rate, Maryland’s juvenile justice policy has left some residents fearful and angry with their representatives in Annapolis, and confused about what their state laws actually do — especially in the face of a spate of car thefts. “The facts matter, but so does the perception,” Senate President Bill Ferguson, a South Baltimore Democrat, said in an interview with The Baltimore Sun last week.
Wild Videos Show Cars Floating in Streets as Severe Weather Hits Carolinas
Amid severe weather in South Carolina, videos showing cars floating in the streets have made their way across social media on Sunday. A coastal nor'easter caused significant flooding as it passed along the South Carolina coast on Sunday. The storm system, which came from the Gulf of Mexico and crossed the Florida peninsula, also brought strong gusty winds and dumped heavy rain across the area.
Evictions in Cook County have caught up to pre-pandemic levels. The lack of affordable housing and rising costs are to blame, experts say
CHICAGO — The TV was turned to the news as the smell of bacon wafted from the kitchen after the sheriff’s police entered Michael Hallmon’s South Shore apartment on a chilly November morning. Inside the two-bedroom apartment sat a pile of clothes and shoes, along with a stack of bikes and a lawn chair made up as a bed. A computer monitor on a cluttered desk had a Microsoft Teams chat pulled up, and the kitchen counter was full of groceries. A greasy pan sat on the stove.
Millions of Americans Poised to Lose Primary Transportation
Millions of Americans are at risk of losing key modes of transportation as intercity bus depots close down en masse in many cities due to rising operation costs and loss of government funding, among other reasons. Made up of companies like Greyhound, Trailways, and Megabus, intercity bus lines offer transportation options between cities that have become heavily relied upon by many Americans commuting long distances for work, in addition to customers traveling for myriad other reasons.
Chief strategist for DeSantis super PAC resigns after “false” statements by new chairman
Dec. 17 (UPI) -- The chief Republican strategist for the super PAC that is helping organize Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis's campaign for president resigned after the group's new chairman made "false" statements about former employees. Jeff Roe's abrupt departure late Saturday from the "Never Back Down" PAC comes after several high-level officials in the organization were fired two weeks ago following the arrival of new chairman, Scott Wagner.
Gorgeous award-winning house for sale in Indiana has fun surprises throughout. See it
An estate with a unique look and build has landed on the real estate market in Indianapolis, Indiana, for $1.3 million. The three-bedroom, 3.5-plus-bathroom home stands out in its neighborhood thanks to its eye-catching design — and the fact that it’s two connected houses. “Explore award-winning Contemporary architecture in the Old Northside,” the listing on Compass says. “This curated home features soaring spaces & indoor/outdoor living.
Man killed fiancee and her daughters at 2 separate scenes, Illinois officials say
A man killed his fiancee and her two daughters and shot another person in Illinois, officials said. “This family has suffered an unimaginable tragedy,” a GoFundMe page said. Officials were called on Dec. 14 for reports that a man had been shot in the stomach in Ashland, according to a news release from the Cass County Sheriff’s Office. When officials arrived, they found the man suffering from a gunshot wound and a woman, later identified as 19-year-old Autumn Bell, dead, officials said.
White House condemns Trump remarks on immigration as un-American
The White House took aim Sunday at former President Donald Trump for saying immigrants are “poisoning the blood of our country,” portraying his comments as inflammatory fascist-style rhetoric that’s anathema to American democracy.
Serbia’s populists claim a sweeping victory in the country’s parliamentary election
Serbia’s ruling populists claimed sweeping victory on Sunday in the country's parliamentary election, which have been marred by reports of major irregularities both during a tense campaign and on voting day. Prime Minister Ana Brnabic said that with half of the ballots counted, the Serbian Progressive Party's projections show that President Aleksandar Vucic won 47% percent of the vote and expects to hold around 130 seats in the 250-member assembly.
Lindsey Graham Confronted on Donald Trump ‘Parroting Adolf Hitler’
Senator Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, was confronted on Sunday over criticisms that Donald Trump's recent comments on immigration had "parroted Adolf Hitler." The former president has been accused of echoing the Nazi leader following remarks about immigrants he made at a rally on Saturday in Durham, New Hampshire.
Judge overturns Mississippi death penalty case, says racial bias in picking jury wasn’t fully argued
A federal judge has overturned the death penalty conviction of a Mississippi man, finding a trial judge didn't give the man's lawyer enough chance to argue that the prosecution was dismissing Black jurors for discriminatory reasons. U.S. District Judge Michael P. Mills ruled Tuesday that the state of Mississippi must give Terry Pitchford a new trial on capital murder charges.
Show More
loading
Actions
Is this you?
As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.Get in touch with Bystanders
Contact Bystanders, search articles and posts on X, monitor coverage, and track replies from one place.
Learn more about Muck Rack