Tennessee
Judge sets April trial for 3 former officers charged with murder in Nichols’ beating
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Three former Memphis police officers charged with murder in the beating of Tyre Nichols will go on trial in April, a judge decided Friday.
Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith have pleaded not guilty to state charges of second-degree murder in the death of Nichols, who was punched, kicked and hit with a police baton after he fled a traffic stop in January 2023.
During a hearing Friday, Shelby County Judge James Jones Jr. scheduled their trial in state court for April 28.
The three were found guilty Oct. 3 of federal witness tampering charges in the death of Nichols, 29, whose beating was caught on police video that has been released to the public. Haley was also convicted on two federal civil rights violations and a charge of conspiracy to witness tamper. They are scheduled for sentencing on the federal convictions in January.
The three, along with Emmitt Martin and Desmond Mills Jr., were part of a crime suppression team called the Scorpion Unit that was disbanded after Nichols’ beating.
Mills and Martin pleaded guilty ahead of the federal trial, and they testified for prosecutors. Their sentences are pending. Mills and Martin also are expected to change their pleas in state court, which allows them to avoid a murder trial.
Nichols, who was Black, had run from a traffic stop despite being hit with pepper spray and a Taser. He died Jan. 10, 2023, three days after the beating. The five officers, who also are Black, were fired and then indicted in the death, which sparked national protests and calls for broad changes in policing.
After officers caught up to Nichols, police body cameras and a security camera captured officers pummeling Nichols in a struggle just steps from his home as he cried out for his mother.
The video shows the officers milling about, talking and laughing as Nichols struggles with his injuries. An autopsy report shows he died from blows to the head. The report describes brain injuries, along with cuts and bruises on his head and other areas.
Attorneys for Bean and Smith have filed motions asking U.S. District Judge Mark S. Norris to throw out their federal convictions. Norris has not ruled on the motions.
Arizona
Ex-Phoenix Suns employee files racial discrimination, retaliation lawsuit against the team
PHOENIX (AP) — A former Phoenix Suns employee is suing the team, alleging racial discrimination and unlawful retaliation that led to her termination, according to a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Arizona.
Andrea Trischan, the team’s former manager of diversity, equity and inclusion, said in the lawsuit filed Wednesday that “potential financial misconduct” and sexual misconduct also took place by team employees. Trischan worked for the Suns for about 10 months from September 2022 until July 2023.
“Andrea’s case is built on substantial evidence that establishes a clear and undeniable pattern of discrimination within the Suns organization,” Trischan’s lawyer Sheree Wright wrote in a statement.
ESPN and The Arizona Republic first reported on the lawsuit.
Trischan was hired in 2022 after former owner Robert Sarver was suspended and fined $10 million for “workplace misconduct and organizational deficiencies.” Sarver eventually sold the team to Mat Ishbia, who paid roughly $4 billion for the Suns and the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury.
After being fired in 2023, Trischan filed a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Arizona Attorney General’s Office’s civil rights division. That was dismissed on Nov. 5, according to ESPN and the Arizona Republic.
“Ms. Trischan’s case was dismissed by the Arizona Attorney General’s office earlier this week,” Suns and Mercury Senior Vice President of Communications Stacey Mitch wrote in a statement. “Her claims have been without merit from day one, and now this lawsuit, in which she is seeking $60M, is based on the same claims that were just dismissed. We are fully confident the courts will agree her story is completely fabricated.”
Wright wrote that Trischan wants to prove her case in court “rather than relying on a government entity constrained by limited resources and an overwhelming caseload.”
New York
Nursing home operator accused of neglect settles with state for $45 million
NEW YORK (AP) — The operators of four nursing homes in New York will pay $45 million to settle claims that they neglected and mistreated residents, including some who were forced to sit in their own urine and feces for hours, state Attorney General Letitia James announced Thursday.
The Democrat filed a civil lawsuit last year that accused the owners and operators of Centers Health Care of using Medicaid and Medicare funds to enrich themselves, their relatives and associates instead of using funds for resident care. James claimed understaffing at the homes contributed to neglectful care. She said residents lived in squalor and were left unsupervised, leading to injuries.
Under the settlement, Centers and its owners will direct $35 million for improved resident care and staffing. Medicaid and Medicare programs will receive $8.75 million in restitution. Independent monitors for operations and finances were appointed by the court shortly after the lawsuit was filed and reforms have already begun, according to the attorney general.
“Centers’ owners operated the nursing homes with insufficient staffing so that they could pocket tens of millions of taxpayer dollars meant for resident care,” James said in a prepared statement. “Residents suffered tragic harm and their families were often left in the dark or in despair about their loved ones.”
Centers, in a prepared statement, said it was pleased to resolve the litigation, “which dismisses all allegations of wrongdoing against Centers.”
New York
Judge weighs the merits of lawsuit alleging ‘Real Housewives’ creators abused cast member
NEW YORK (AP) — The lawyer for a former cast member of the “Real Housewives of New York” told a federal judge Thursday that the First Amendment cannot shield the show’s creators from a lawsuit alleging that the show’s participants were subjected to a “rotted workplace culture.”
Attorney Sarah Matz said the lawsuit brought by Leah McSweeney earlier this year should advance to the stage where evidence can be gathered for trial.
Adam Levin, a lawyer for defendants including entertainer Andy Cohen, one of the show’s producers, and the Bravo channel, told the judge that the lawsuit’s allegations were protected by the First Amendment and that it should be dismissed at a stage in which the judge is required to assume the allegations are true.
The judge did not immediately rule on the future of the lawsuit, which seeks unspecified damages for mental, emotional, physical pain along with impairment of life’s joys and lost future earnings.
The lawsuit filed in Manhattan federal court alleges that McSweeney, who suffers from alcoholism, was pressured to drink booze on the show and was retaliated against when she wanted to stay sober or was denied reasonable accommodations to aid her efforts at sobriety.
It also alleges that the defendants “employed psychological warfare intentionally weaponized to break Ms. McSweeney’s psyche,” particularly when she was intimidated and prevented from visiting her dying grandmother through threats to cut her pay or fire her if she left the filming location.
“They knew she was trying to be sober,” Matz told the judge. “The show is not called the ‘Drunk Housewives of New York City.’”
The judge, who said he had never seen the show, asked each side numerous questions and seemed inclined to, at a minimum, strike some allegations from the lawsuit that pertained to events on camera.
Levin told him the lawsuit should be tossed in its entirety. He said ruling in favor of the claims made in McSweeney’s lawsuit “would kill” some television and Broadway stage shows if the First Amendment did not protect the producers of shows.
Particularly when it comes to a reality television show, the cast member becomes the message of the show and “you can’t separate the person from the speech,” Levin said.
“What are the limits a director can do to induce the behavior the director wants?” the judge asked as he questioned whether a director could demand that show participants not sleep for two days before filming or subject themselves to a physical assault just before they go on camera.
Levin said there were limits to First Amendment protection for the creators of a communicative show, but he said they were narrow in scope. McSweeney’s lawsuit, he said, did not fall within the narrow exceptions, such as when a producer might commit a criminal felony offense during the production of a show.
New York
Giuliani’s lawyers seek to withdraw from legal fight over defamation judgment
NEW YORK (AP) — Two lawyers say they can no longer represent Rudy Giuliani in a legal fight over property he’s been ordered to give up to satisfy part of a $148 million defamation judgment against him. They asked a judge to remove them from the case, citing disagreements with the former New York City mayor.
The request in federal court comes a week after a judge ordered Giuliani to turn over by Friday a Mercedes that once belonged to actress Lauren Bacall, an heirloom watch and other prized assets to two former Georgia election workers who sued him over his remarks about them as he fought to overturn President-elect Donald Trump’s 2020 election loss.
The women were awarded the judgment last year. Giuliani then filed for bankruptcy, but a judge cut that short after finding that the ex-mayor had flouted the process. Lawyers for the election workers, Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Wandrea “Shaye” Moss, say Giuliani has avoided turning over his assets.
In a filing late Wednesday, attorney Kenneth Caruso sought permission for himself and co-counsel David Labkowski to stop representing Giuliani.
Caruso wrote that lawyers may withdraw from representing clients when there is a “fundamental disagreement,” or when a client insists on presenting a claim that is not warranted under the law and cannot be supported by a good-faith argument, or when the client fails to cooperate.
Several paragraphs of the publicly posted filing are blacked out. The redacted version does not provide details on possible issues.
A representative for Giuliani didn’t immediately respond to an email and a phone call seeking comment.
Giuliani has until Monday to oppose the motion.
The massive defamation judgment stems from Giuliani’s role in pushing Trump’s unfounded claims that the election was stolen from him. That effort also resulted in pending criminal charges against Giuliani in Georgia and Arizona.
The ex-mayor and longtime Trump ally has been defiant amid the collection efforts, which have stretched past an Oct. 29 deadline. He told reporters outside court last week he was the victim of a “political vendetta.” On Election Day, Giuliani was seen riding near a polling place in Palm Beach, Florida, in a Mercedes that appeared to be the car he was supposed to turn over.
Giuliani, who has since been disbarred in New York and Washington, had falsely accused Freeman and Moss of ballot fraud, saying they snuck in ballots in suitcases, counted ballots multiple times and tampered with voting machines.
Judge sets April trial for 3 former officers charged with murder in Nichols’ beating
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Three former Memphis police officers charged with murder in the beating of Tyre Nichols will go on trial in April, a judge decided Friday.
Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith have pleaded not guilty to state charges of second-degree murder in the death of Nichols, who was punched, kicked and hit with a police baton after he fled a traffic stop in January 2023.
During a hearing Friday, Shelby County Judge James Jones Jr. scheduled their trial in state court for April 28.
The three were found guilty Oct. 3 of federal witness tampering charges in the death of Nichols, 29, whose beating was caught on police video that has been released to the public. Haley was also convicted on two federal civil rights violations and a charge of conspiracy to witness tamper. They are scheduled for sentencing on the federal convictions in January.
The three, along with Emmitt Martin and Desmond Mills Jr., were part of a crime suppression team called the Scorpion Unit that was disbanded after Nichols’ beating.
Mills and Martin pleaded guilty ahead of the federal trial, and they testified for prosecutors. Their sentences are pending. Mills and Martin also are expected to change their pleas in state court, which allows them to avoid a murder trial.
Nichols, who was Black, had run from a traffic stop despite being hit with pepper spray and a Taser. He died Jan. 10, 2023, three days after the beating. The five officers, who also are Black, were fired and then indicted in the death, which sparked national protests and calls for broad changes in policing.
After officers caught up to Nichols, police body cameras and a security camera captured officers pummeling Nichols in a struggle just steps from his home as he cried out for his mother.
The video shows the officers milling about, talking and laughing as Nichols struggles with his injuries. An autopsy report shows he died from blows to the head. The report describes brain injuries, along with cuts and bruises on his head and other areas.
Attorneys for Bean and Smith have filed motions asking U.S. District Judge Mark S. Norris to throw out their federal convictions. Norris has not ruled on the motions.
Arizona
Ex-Phoenix Suns employee files racial discrimination, retaliation lawsuit against the team
PHOENIX (AP) — A former Phoenix Suns employee is suing the team, alleging racial discrimination and unlawful retaliation that led to her termination, according to a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Arizona.
Andrea Trischan, the team’s former manager of diversity, equity and inclusion, said in the lawsuit filed Wednesday that “potential financial misconduct” and sexual misconduct also took place by team employees. Trischan worked for the Suns for about 10 months from September 2022 until July 2023.
“Andrea’s case is built on substantial evidence that establishes a clear and undeniable pattern of discrimination within the Suns organization,” Trischan’s lawyer Sheree Wright wrote in a statement.
ESPN and The Arizona Republic first reported on the lawsuit.
Trischan was hired in 2022 after former owner Robert Sarver was suspended and fined $10 million for “workplace misconduct and organizational deficiencies.” Sarver eventually sold the team to Mat Ishbia, who paid roughly $4 billion for the Suns and the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury.
After being fired in 2023, Trischan filed a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Arizona Attorney General’s Office’s civil rights division. That was dismissed on Nov. 5, according to ESPN and the Arizona Republic.
“Ms. Trischan’s case was dismissed by the Arizona Attorney General’s office earlier this week,” Suns and Mercury Senior Vice President of Communications Stacey Mitch wrote in a statement. “Her claims have been without merit from day one, and now this lawsuit, in which she is seeking $60M, is based on the same claims that were just dismissed. We are fully confident the courts will agree her story is completely fabricated.”
Wright wrote that Trischan wants to prove her case in court “rather than relying on a government entity constrained by limited resources and an overwhelming caseload.”
New York
Nursing home operator accused of neglect settles with state for $45 million
NEW YORK (AP) — The operators of four nursing homes in New York will pay $45 million to settle claims that they neglected and mistreated residents, including some who were forced to sit in their own urine and feces for hours, state Attorney General Letitia James announced Thursday.
The Democrat filed a civil lawsuit last year that accused the owners and operators of Centers Health Care of using Medicaid and Medicare funds to enrich themselves, their relatives and associates instead of using funds for resident care. James claimed understaffing at the homes contributed to neglectful care. She said residents lived in squalor and were left unsupervised, leading to injuries.
Under the settlement, Centers and its owners will direct $35 million for improved resident care and staffing. Medicaid and Medicare programs will receive $8.75 million in restitution. Independent monitors for operations and finances were appointed by the court shortly after the lawsuit was filed and reforms have already begun, according to the attorney general.
“Centers’ owners operated the nursing homes with insufficient staffing so that they could pocket tens of millions of taxpayer dollars meant for resident care,” James said in a prepared statement. “Residents suffered tragic harm and their families were often left in the dark or in despair about their loved ones.”
Centers, in a prepared statement, said it was pleased to resolve the litigation, “which dismisses all allegations of wrongdoing against Centers.”
New York
Judge weighs the merits of lawsuit alleging ‘Real Housewives’ creators abused cast member
NEW YORK (AP) — The lawyer for a former cast member of the “Real Housewives of New York” told a federal judge Thursday that the First Amendment cannot shield the show’s creators from a lawsuit alleging that the show’s participants were subjected to a “rotted workplace culture.”
Attorney Sarah Matz said the lawsuit brought by Leah McSweeney earlier this year should advance to the stage where evidence can be gathered for trial.
Adam Levin, a lawyer for defendants including entertainer Andy Cohen, one of the show’s producers, and the Bravo channel, told the judge that the lawsuit’s allegations were protected by the First Amendment and that it should be dismissed at a stage in which the judge is required to assume the allegations are true.
The judge did not immediately rule on the future of the lawsuit, which seeks unspecified damages for mental, emotional, physical pain along with impairment of life’s joys and lost future earnings.
The lawsuit filed in Manhattan federal court alleges that McSweeney, who suffers from alcoholism, was pressured to drink booze on the show and was retaliated against when she wanted to stay sober or was denied reasonable accommodations to aid her efforts at sobriety.
It also alleges that the defendants “employed psychological warfare intentionally weaponized to break Ms. McSweeney’s psyche,” particularly when she was intimidated and prevented from visiting her dying grandmother through threats to cut her pay or fire her if she left the filming location.
“They knew she was trying to be sober,” Matz told the judge. “The show is not called the ‘Drunk Housewives of New York City.’”
The judge, who said he had never seen the show, asked each side numerous questions and seemed inclined to, at a minimum, strike some allegations from the lawsuit that pertained to events on camera.
Levin told him the lawsuit should be tossed in its entirety. He said ruling in favor of the claims made in McSweeney’s lawsuit “would kill” some television and Broadway stage shows if the First Amendment did not protect the producers of shows.
Particularly when it comes to a reality television show, the cast member becomes the message of the show and “you can’t separate the person from the speech,” Levin said.
“What are the limits a director can do to induce the behavior the director wants?” the judge asked as he questioned whether a director could demand that show participants not sleep for two days before filming or subject themselves to a physical assault just before they go on camera.
Levin said there were limits to First Amendment protection for the creators of a communicative show, but he said they were narrow in scope. McSweeney’s lawsuit, he said, did not fall within the narrow exceptions, such as when a producer might commit a criminal felony offense during the production of a show.
New York
Giuliani’s lawyers seek to withdraw from legal fight over defamation judgment
NEW YORK (AP) — Two lawyers say they can no longer represent Rudy Giuliani in a legal fight over property he’s been ordered to give up to satisfy part of a $148 million defamation judgment against him. They asked a judge to remove them from the case, citing disagreements with the former New York City mayor.
The request in federal court comes a week after a judge ordered Giuliani to turn over by Friday a Mercedes that once belonged to actress Lauren Bacall, an heirloom watch and other prized assets to two former Georgia election workers who sued him over his remarks about them as he fought to overturn President-elect Donald Trump’s 2020 election loss.
The women were awarded the judgment last year. Giuliani then filed for bankruptcy, but a judge cut that short after finding that the ex-mayor had flouted the process. Lawyers for the election workers, Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Wandrea “Shaye” Moss, say Giuliani has avoided turning over his assets.
In a filing late Wednesday, attorney Kenneth Caruso sought permission for himself and co-counsel David Labkowski to stop representing Giuliani.
Caruso wrote that lawyers may withdraw from representing clients when there is a “fundamental disagreement,” or when a client insists on presenting a claim that is not warranted under the law and cannot be supported by a good-faith argument, or when the client fails to cooperate.
Several paragraphs of the publicly posted filing are blacked out. The redacted version does not provide details on possible issues.
A representative for Giuliani didn’t immediately respond to an email and a phone call seeking comment.
Giuliani has until Monday to oppose the motion.
The massive defamation judgment stems from Giuliani’s role in pushing Trump’s unfounded claims that the election was stolen from him. That effort also resulted in pending criminal charges against Giuliani in Georgia and Arizona.
The ex-mayor and longtime Trump ally has been defiant amid the collection efforts, which have stretched past an Oct. 29 deadline. He told reporters outside court last week he was the victim of a “political vendetta.” On Election Day, Giuliani was seen riding near a polling place in Palm Beach, Florida, in a Mercedes that appeared to be the car he was supposed to turn over.
Giuliani, who has since been disbarred in New York and Washington, had falsely accused Freeman and Moss of ballot fraud, saying they snuck in ballots in suitcases, counted ballots multiple times and tampered with voting machines.
