California
Lawsuit alleges Fox Sports ex-host harassed hairstylist, offered her $1.5M for sex
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A woman who worked as a hairstylist for Fox Sports alleges in a lawsuit that former host Skip Bayless made repeated, unwanted advances toward her — including an offer of $1.5 million to have sex with him.
Attorneys for Noushin Faraji, who was a hair stylist at Fox for more than a decade, are seeking unspecified damages from Bayless, Fox Sports and its parent company, Fox Corporation, according to a copy of the lawsuit filed Friday in California Superior Court in Los Angeles.
The complaint claims Fox executives fostered a hostile work environment that allowed senior managers and on-air personalities including Bayless to abuse workers without fear of punishment.
The Associated Press does not generally identify, in text or images, those who say they have been sexually assaulted or subjected to abuse unless they have publicly identified themselves as Faraji has in filing the lawsuit.
An attorney for Bayless, Jared Levine, did not immediately respond to AP’s telephone and text messages seeking comment. Email and phone messages left at Bayless’s talent company were not immediately returned.
Bayless could not be reached directly for comment.
Fox Sports said in a statement that it takes the allegations seriously but had no further comment given the pending lawsuit.
Faraji claimed that the advances by Bayless, which began in 2017 and continued until last year — included lingering hugs, kisses on the cheek and comments from Bayless that he could change Faraji’s life if she had sex with him.
In 2021, she claims in the suit, Bayless offered Faraji $1.5 million for sex and, after she refused, later threatened her job.
“Ms. Faraji knew that he was trying to pressure her into having sex with him, but she kept repeating that she was a professional that had to be kind to all talent,” the lawsuit says.
Bayless worked for Fox Sports until 2024 when his show was canceled after its ratings plummeted with the departure of his co-host, Shannon Sharpe.
Faraji said she was fired in 2024 based on “fabricated” reasons. The lawsuit said she initially remained quiet about her treatment at Fox, believing she could be in danger if she went public.
The suit also claims Fox employees were not paid their full wages or overtime. It seeks class-action status on behalf of other workers who allegedly were impacted.
In 2017 Fox Sports fired its head of programming amid a probe of sexual harassment allegations.
Arizona
Death row prisoner asks to be executed sooner than the state wants
PHOENIX (AP) — An Arizona death row prisoner asked the state’s highest court to skip legal formalities and schedule his execution earlier than authorities were aiming for, pushing as he had in the past to have his death sentence carried out.
Aaron Brian Gunches’ execution would mark a resumption of Arizona’s use of the death penalty after a two-year pause while it reviewed its procedures.
In a handwritten court filing this week, Gunches asked the state Supreme Court to schedule his execution for mid-February for his murder conviction in the 2002 killing of Ted Price.
Gunches, who isn’t a lawyer but is representing himself, said his death sentence is “long overdue” and that the state was dragging its feet in asking the court for a legal briefing schedule leading up to the execution.
Attorney General Kris Mayes’ office, which is seeking Gunches’ execution, said a briefing schedule is needed to ensure corrections officials can meet execution requirements, such as testing for the pentobarbital that will be used for his lethal injection.
Two years ago, Gunches asked the Arizona Supreme Court to issue his execution warrant, saying justice could be served and the victim’s families could get closure.
Gunches had been set to be put to death in April 2023. But Gov. Katie Hobbs’ office said the state wasn’t prepared to enforce the death penalty because it lacked staff with expertise to carry out executions.
Hobbs, a Democrat, had promised not to carry out any executions until there was confidence the state can do so without violating any laws. The review Hobbs had ordered effectively ended in November when she dismissed the retired federal magistrate judge she had appointed to head the review.
Gunches pleaded guilty to a murder charge in the shooting death of Price, his girlfriend’s ex-husband, near the Phoenix suburb of Mesa.
Arizona, which has 111 prisoners on death row, last carried out three executions in 2022 following a nearly eight-year hiatus brought on by criticism that a 2014 execution was botched and because of difficulties obtaining drugs for execution.
Since then, the state has been criticized for taking too long to insert an IV for lethal injection into a condemned prisoner.
Colorado
Man accused of attacking reporter has had mental health issues for years, lawyer says
GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (AP) — A man accused of attacking a Colorado reporter after questioning whether he was a citizen and saying “This is Trump’s America now” has had mental health issues for years, his lawyer said.
Patrick Egan, 39, has been charged with assault, committing a bias-motivated crime and harassment in connection with an attack on KKCO/KJCT reporter Ja’Ronn Alex on Dec. 18 outside the television station in Grand Junction, about 240 miles (390 kilometers) west of Denver.
Alex told police that he believed he had been followed by Egan, who was working as a taxi driver, and then assaulted because he is Pacific Islander, according to court documents.
Egan’s attorney, Ruth Swift, told a judge during a court hearing Thursday that “he has had some ongoing mental issues for about two decades” and is currently receiving treatment, KREX-TV reported. Swift did not return a telephone call from The Associated Press on Friday.
Egan has access to mental health therapy and emergency crisis services in addition to friends who would support him and reach out to him if he were released from jail, Swift said.
One of Egan’s supporters in court for the hearing, Ben Wilson, told Judge JenniLynn Lawrence that he was surprised by the allegations against Egan.
“I have five kids and he’s like family,” he said. “When I got the news of what happened, (I thought) ‘That’s not Patrick.’”
Lawrence denied Swift’s request to lower his bond from $20,000 cash. She said Egan, who has lost his job as a driver, poses a “significant community safety risk,” and she expressed concern about Egan’s willingness and ability to appear at future court hearings.
Alabama
Man sentenced to death for fatally shooting 2 as part of killing spree
DADEVILLE, Ala. (AP) — An Alabama man who authorities say killed four people in the span of two days in 2020 has been sentenced to death for two of the killings, court records show.
Tallapoosa County Circuit Court Judge William Whorton sentenced Derrick Hightower, 36, to death Thursday for fatally shooting Barbara Tidwell, 65, and her husband Willie Tidwell, 61, while robbing their home in Dadeville on April 17, 2020.
Attorneys for Hightower did not respond to an emailed request for comment Friday morning.
Hightower was found guilty in December on four counts of capital murder and one count of theft of property in the Tidwells’ deaths.
He is also charged with killing Nancy Nash, 54, at a landscaping business in Auburn and stealing Nash’s car to drive 30 miles (48 kilometers) to the Tidwells’ home, according to the indictment.
Hightower was indicted by a grand jury in 2021 on two counts of capital murder and burglary in connection with Nash’s killing. A trial date has not been set.
Another person, Kentrice Hill, 24, was allegedly with Hightower when Nash was killed and is also charged with capital murder. Hill’s next hearing is Jan. 15.
Attorneys for Hill did not respond to an emailed request for comment.
Hightower concluded the 48-hour killing chain that spanned close to 100 miles (160 kilometers) statewide on April 18, when he robbed and fatally shot Antoine Harris, 36, inside his home in east Birmingham, according to a plea deal Hightower signed in 2023.
Hightower led law enforcement on an hourslong chase in Harris’ car after leaving Nash’s black pickup truck at a hotel near Harris’ home.
“I want to issue a formal apology to the family,’’ Hightower said during a 2023 court hearing about Harris’ death, according to AL.com.
A Jefferson County judge sentenced Hightower to life without parole for killing Harris, as well as 20 years for attempting to shoot a police officer who carried out his arrest.
Virginia
Ex-deputies are charged with murder over inmate’s death while restrained
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (AP) — Three former sheriff’s deputies in Virginia have been charged with second-degree murder over the death of a man they restrained at a local jail last year, prosecutors announced Friday.
A special grand jury returned the indictments after meeting three times to hear evidence, said Colin Stolle, the Virginia Beach commonwealth attorney.
The local medical examiner found Hill, 34, died from “positional and mechanical asphyxia due to restraint with neck and torso compression.” The office ruled his death was a homicide.
Hill was arrested in June on charges of trespassing, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct, the Virginia Beach Sheriff’s Office said last year. The office said Hill was booked into the jail and deputies restrained him because he was uncooperative and combative. He experienced a medical emergency and was taken to the hospital, the office said.
Virginia Beach Sheriff Rocky Holcomb said last year that his office would investigate but had also asked the Virginia State Police to conduct an independent review. Following updates from state police in October, Holcomb said the deputies were no longer employed by his office.
The former deputies who’ve been charged are Eric G. Baptiste, 39, of Virginia Beach; Michael C. Kidd, 39, of Chesapeake; and Kevin B. Wilson, 34, of Virginia Beach.
An attorney for Baptiste, Brian Latuga, expressed condolences to Hill’s family in a statement to The Associated Press. But Latuga said Baptiste “had an exemplary career dedicated to serving and protecting this community” and “has been wrongfully accused of a horrendous crime.”
Lawyers for Kidd and Wilson did not immediately respond to emails from the AP seeking comment on their behalf.
Holcomb, the sheriff, said in a statement Friday he has “faith in the criminal justice system to ensure justice is served for both Rolin Hill and the individuals involved in this incident.”
WAVY-TV reported in June that the Virginia Beach chapter of the NAACP had raised concerns about the circumstances surrounding Hill’s death.
The Virginian-Pilot newspaper reported in October that it had run Hill’s obituary, which said he was an Eagle Scout who loved surfing, skateboarding and hanging out with his family.
It also stated that “mental health in America is still a major issue,” and requested that any donations go to mental health foundations.
An investigation led by the AP found that over a decade, more than 1,000 people died after police subdued them with physical force that is not supposed to be lethal. In hundreds of these encounters, officers broke multiple safety guidelines, including when they pinned people face down.
Lawsuit alleges Fox Sports ex-host harassed hairstylist, offered her $1.5M for sex
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A woman who worked as a hairstylist for Fox Sports alleges in a lawsuit that former host Skip Bayless made repeated, unwanted advances toward her — including an offer of $1.5 million to have sex with him.
Attorneys for Noushin Faraji, who was a hair stylist at Fox for more than a decade, are seeking unspecified damages from Bayless, Fox Sports and its parent company, Fox Corporation, according to a copy of the lawsuit filed Friday in California Superior Court in Los Angeles.
The complaint claims Fox executives fostered a hostile work environment that allowed senior managers and on-air personalities including Bayless to abuse workers without fear of punishment.
The Associated Press does not generally identify, in text or images, those who say they have been sexually assaulted or subjected to abuse unless they have publicly identified themselves as Faraji has in filing the lawsuit.
An attorney for Bayless, Jared Levine, did not immediately respond to AP’s telephone and text messages seeking comment. Email and phone messages left at Bayless’s talent company were not immediately returned.
Bayless could not be reached directly for comment.
Fox Sports said in a statement that it takes the allegations seriously but had no further comment given the pending lawsuit.
Faraji claimed that the advances by Bayless, which began in 2017 and continued until last year — included lingering hugs, kisses on the cheek and comments from Bayless that he could change Faraji’s life if she had sex with him.
In 2021, she claims in the suit, Bayless offered Faraji $1.5 million for sex and, after she refused, later threatened her job.
“Ms. Faraji knew that he was trying to pressure her into having sex with him, but she kept repeating that she was a professional that had to be kind to all talent,” the lawsuit says.
Bayless worked for Fox Sports until 2024 when his show was canceled after its ratings plummeted with the departure of his co-host, Shannon Sharpe.
Faraji said she was fired in 2024 based on “fabricated” reasons. The lawsuit said she initially remained quiet about her treatment at Fox, believing she could be in danger if she went public.
The suit also claims Fox employees were not paid their full wages or overtime. It seeks class-action status on behalf of other workers who allegedly were impacted.
In 2017 Fox Sports fired its head of programming amid a probe of sexual harassment allegations.
Arizona
Death row prisoner asks to be executed sooner than the state wants
PHOENIX (AP) — An Arizona death row prisoner asked the state’s highest court to skip legal formalities and schedule his execution earlier than authorities were aiming for, pushing as he had in the past to have his death sentence carried out.
Aaron Brian Gunches’ execution would mark a resumption of Arizona’s use of the death penalty after a two-year pause while it reviewed its procedures.
In a handwritten court filing this week, Gunches asked the state Supreme Court to schedule his execution for mid-February for his murder conviction in the 2002 killing of Ted Price.
Gunches, who isn’t a lawyer but is representing himself, said his death sentence is “long overdue” and that the state was dragging its feet in asking the court for a legal briefing schedule leading up to the execution.
Attorney General Kris Mayes’ office, which is seeking Gunches’ execution, said a briefing schedule is needed to ensure corrections officials can meet execution requirements, such as testing for the pentobarbital that will be used for his lethal injection.
Two years ago, Gunches asked the Arizona Supreme Court to issue his execution warrant, saying justice could be served and the victim’s families could get closure.
Gunches had been set to be put to death in April 2023. But Gov. Katie Hobbs’ office said the state wasn’t prepared to enforce the death penalty because it lacked staff with expertise to carry out executions.
Hobbs, a Democrat, had promised not to carry out any executions until there was confidence the state can do so without violating any laws. The review Hobbs had ordered effectively ended in November when she dismissed the retired federal magistrate judge she had appointed to head the review.
Gunches pleaded guilty to a murder charge in the shooting death of Price, his girlfriend’s ex-husband, near the Phoenix suburb of Mesa.
Arizona, which has 111 prisoners on death row, last carried out three executions in 2022 following a nearly eight-year hiatus brought on by criticism that a 2014 execution was botched and because of difficulties obtaining drugs for execution.
Since then, the state has been criticized for taking too long to insert an IV for lethal injection into a condemned prisoner.
Colorado
Man accused of attacking reporter has had mental health issues for years, lawyer says
GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (AP) — A man accused of attacking a Colorado reporter after questioning whether he was a citizen and saying “This is Trump’s America now” has had mental health issues for years, his lawyer said.
Patrick Egan, 39, has been charged with assault, committing a bias-motivated crime and harassment in connection with an attack on KKCO/KJCT reporter Ja’Ronn Alex on Dec. 18 outside the television station in Grand Junction, about 240 miles (390 kilometers) west of Denver.
Alex told police that he believed he had been followed by Egan, who was working as a taxi driver, and then assaulted because he is Pacific Islander, according to court documents.
Egan’s attorney, Ruth Swift, told a judge during a court hearing Thursday that “he has had some ongoing mental issues for about two decades” and is currently receiving treatment, KREX-TV reported. Swift did not return a telephone call from The Associated Press on Friday.
Egan has access to mental health therapy and emergency crisis services in addition to friends who would support him and reach out to him if he were released from jail, Swift said.
One of Egan’s supporters in court for the hearing, Ben Wilson, told Judge JenniLynn Lawrence that he was surprised by the allegations against Egan.
“I have five kids and he’s like family,” he said. “When I got the news of what happened, (I thought) ‘That’s not Patrick.’”
Lawrence denied Swift’s request to lower his bond from $20,000 cash. She said Egan, who has lost his job as a driver, poses a “significant community safety risk,” and she expressed concern about Egan’s willingness and ability to appear at future court hearings.
Alabama
Man sentenced to death for fatally shooting 2 as part of killing spree
DADEVILLE, Ala. (AP) — An Alabama man who authorities say killed four people in the span of two days in 2020 has been sentenced to death for two of the killings, court records show.
Tallapoosa County Circuit Court Judge William Whorton sentenced Derrick Hightower, 36, to death Thursday for fatally shooting Barbara Tidwell, 65, and her husband Willie Tidwell, 61, while robbing their home in Dadeville on April 17, 2020.
Attorneys for Hightower did not respond to an emailed request for comment Friday morning.
Hightower was found guilty in December on four counts of capital murder and one count of theft of property in the Tidwells’ deaths.
He is also charged with killing Nancy Nash, 54, at a landscaping business in Auburn and stealing Nash’s car to drive 30 miles (48 kilometers) to the Tidwells’ home, according to the indictment.
Hightower was indicted by a grand jury in 2021 on two counts of capital murder and burglary in connection with Nash’s killing. A trial date has not been set.
Another person, Kentrice Hill, 24, was allegedly with Hightower when Nash was killed and is also charged with capital murder. Hill’s next hearing is Jan. 15.
Attorneys for Hill did not respond to an emailed request for comment.
Hightower concluded the 48-hour killing chain that spanned close to 100 miles (160 kilometers) statewide on April 18, when he robbed and fatally shot Antoine Harris, 36, inside his home in east Birmingham, according to a plea deal Hightower signed in 2023.
Hightower led law enforcement on an hourslong chase in Harris’ car after leaving Nash’s black pickup truck at a hotel near Harris’ home.
“I want to issue a formal apology to the family,’’ Hightower said during a 2023 court hearing about Harris’ death, according to AL.com.
A Jefferson County judge sentenced Hightower to life without parole for killing Harris, as well as 20 years for attempting to shoot a police officer who carried out his arrest.
Virginia
Ex-deputies are charged with murder over inmate’s death while restrained
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (AP) — Three former sheriff’s deputies in Virginia have been charged with second-degree murder over the death of a man they restrained at a local jail last year, prosecutors announced Friday.
A special grand jury returned the indictments after meeting three times to hear evidence, said Colin Stolle, the Virginia Beach commonwealth attorney.
The local medical examiner found Hill, 34, died from “positional and mechanical asphyxia due to restraint with neck and torso compression.” The office ruled his death was a homicide.
Hill was arrested in June on charges of trespassing, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct, the Virginia Beach Sheriff’s Office said last year. The office said Hill was booked into the jail and deputies restrained him because he was uncooperative and combative. He experienced a medical emergency and was taken to the hospital, the office said.
Virginia Beach Sheriff Rocky Holcomb said last year that his office would investigate but had also asked the Virginia State Police to conduct an independent review. Following updates from state police in October, Holcomb said the deputies were no longer employed by his office.
The former deputies who’ve been charged are Eric G. Baptiste, 39, of Virginia Beach; Michael C. Kidd, 39, of Chesapeake; and Kevin B. Wilson, 34, of Virginia Beach.
An attorney for Baptiste, Brian Latuga, expressed condolences to Hill’s family in a statement to The Associated Press. But Latuga said Baptiste “had an exemplary career dedicated to serving and protecting this community” and “has been wrongfully accused of a horrendous crime.”
Lawyers for Kidd and Wilson did not immediately respond to emails from the AP seeking comment on their behalf.
Holcomb, the sheriff, said in a statement Friday he has “faith in the criminal justice system to ensure justice is served for both Rolin Hill and the individuals involved in this incident.”
WAVY-TV reported in June that the Virginia Beach chapter of the NAACP had raised concerns about the circumstances surrounding Hill’s death.
The Virginian-Pilot newspaper reported in October that it had run Hill’s obituary, which said he was an Eagle Scout who loved surfing, skateboarding and hanging out with his family.
It also stated that “mental health in America is still a major issue,” and requested that any donations go to mental health foundations.
An investigation led by the AP found that over a decade, more than 1,000 people died after police subdued them with physical force that is not supposed to be lethal. In hundreds of these encounters, officers broke multiple safety guidelines, including when they pinned people face down.
