The Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany has agreed to pay $148 million to settle claims from some 440 people sexually abused by priests and diocesan employees and volunteers.
In a statement, Bishop Mark O’Connell said while the settlement is substantial, “it cannot adequately compensate the survivors for the horrors they experienced.” He added that the settlement can “hopefully provide some solace to all those affected by the pain caused by the perpetrators and the failings of those who could have intervened but did not.”
The settlement comes after child abuse survivors were allowed to file sexual abuse lawsuits as part of a look-back window created by the 2019 New York Child Victims Act. Survivors are also claimants in an ongoing federal bankruptcy case after the Albany diocese filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2023.
Then-Bishop Edward Scharfenberger told reporters when announcing the bankruptcy filings that the diocese “doesn’t see any other alternative” after settling 50 child sexual abuse case, and still struggling to settle over 400 more.
Albany diocese settles hundreds of child sexual abuse cases
Faith Kates: the woman who introduced models to ‘dear friend’ Jeffrey Epstein
A female executive at the top of the modelling industry had a close friendship with Jeffrey Epstein and introduced him to women on the agency’s books, a Guardian investigation has found.
Until last November, Faith Kates ran Next Management modelling and talent agency, which has represented the likes of Alexa Chung, Milla Jovovich and Billie Eilish, a position she held for decades as the founder of the business. She stepped down quietly just weeks before the first major Epstein files were released, saying she intended to focus on charity work.
Links between Kates and the late sex offender have previously been reported, but analysis of documents published by the US Department of Justice reveals a much deeper relationship than previously known, with emails showing Kates secretly took business advice from Epstein and discussed multimillion-dollar loans.
Kates appears to have met Epstein regularly, including on one occasion with the then Prince Andrew at a New York department store in December 2010, the week of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s now infamous visit to the city to supposedly call off his friendship with the financier.
California sheriff seizes more ballot materials in defiance of state officials
A Republican sheriff in California has confiscated additional ballot materials from a special election, escalating his conflict with state lawmakers who say he is conducting a baseless investigation into claims of voter fraud.
On Tuesday, Chad Bianco, the Riverside county sheriff who is running for governor, was already at the center of a legal controversy after seizing 650,000 ballots from last year’s special election. Earlier this week he ordered his office to seize 426 additional boxes of ballot materials as part of the alleged criminal investigation, prompting criticism from lawmakers including Rob Bonta, California’s Democratic attorney general.
Bianco’s ballot seizures have triggered several lawsuits against him, including one filed with the California supreme court by voters represented by the UCLA Voting Rights Project. The lawsuit seeks to block his recount of last year’s vote on Proposition 50, a measure to redraw California’s congressional districts in ways that favored Democrats.
US law enforcement foils plot to assassinate Palestinian American activist
Law enforcement officers foiled a plot to assassinate New York-based Palestinian American activist Nerdeen Kiswani and arrested a 26-year old man in connection with the plan.
Kiswani wrote in post on X that late on Thursday, the FBI joint terrorism taskforce informed her that a plot against her life was “about to” take place, and that agents had conducted an operation in Hoboken, New Jersey, in connection to it.
According to a criminal complaint unsealed on Friday and a Department of Justice press release, Alexander Heifler, 26, was arrested on Thursday night on charges of unlawfully possessing and making firearms.
The complaint describes a weeks-long sting by an undercover officer who, at one point, infiltrated a group video call in which Heifler asked for assistance with “molotovs”. Heifler later met with the undercover officer on multiple occasions, at one point telling him that he had an address for the “victim”, which the complaint does not name. The officer was at Heifler’s residence when he assembled about eight molotov cocktails on Thursday.
Three killed as tourist helicopter crashes on Hawaiian island of Kauai
A tourist helicopter crashed on a remote beach off the coast of Kauai, Hawaii, killing three people and injuring two others, authorities said.
The helicopter was carrying one pilot and four passengers when it crashed on Thursday afternoon at Kalalau Beach, the Kauai fire department said. The beach is on the Na Pali coast on Kauai’s north shore. The area is otherwise reachable only by hiking or boat.
The area’s geography of tall seaside cliffs and sharp mountain ridges can contribute to turbulent air and quick weather changes that pose hazards for aviation. It was the latest in a series of fatal crashes that has plagued the industry for decades.
The helicopter was carrying one pilot and four passengers when it crashed on Thursday afternoon at Kalalau Beach, the Kauai fire department said. The beach is on the Na Pali coast on Kauai’s north shore. The area is otherwise reachable only by hiking or boat.
The area’s geography of tall seaside cliffs and sharp mountain ridges can contribute to turbulent air and quick weather changes that pose hazards for aviation. It was the latest in a series of fatal crashes that has plagued the industry for decades.
Police said three people died and two others were transported to Wilcox medical center for treatment. An email was sent to the medical center seeking the patients’ conditions.
Hegseth removes 2 Black and 2 female officers from promotion list: Report
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has reportedly blocked the promotion of two Black and two female Army officers to be one-star generals.
The New York Times reported Friday that Hegseth for months pressed senior Army leaders, including Secretary Dan Driscoll, to remove the officers’ names but was repeatedly refused. Then earlier this month, Hegseth struck the names from the list, which is being reviewed by the White House before being sent to the Senate for final approval.
Asked about the report, Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell called it “full of fake news from anonymous sources who have no idea what they’re talking about and are far removed from actual decision-makers within the Pentagon.”
He did not address Hegseth’s decision to pull the four officers from the promotion list, only saying that promotions “are given to those who have earned them.”
Iranian hackers publish emails allegedly stolen from Kash Patel
Pro-Iran hackers published more than 300 emails and photos Friday from what appears to be a personal email account for FBI Director Kash Patel.
In a statement, an FBI spokesman acknowledged the Iranian campaign. "The FBI is aware of malicious actors targeting Director Patel’s personal email information, and we have taken all necessary steps to mitigate potential risks associated with this activity. The information in question is historical in nature and involves no government information," the spokesman said.
The hacking group, called Handala, indicated on its website that the leak was in retaliation after the FBI and Justice Department seized several of its websites last week, accusing the group of “psychological operations” and saying it was a front for Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security. The State Department offered a reward of up to $10 million for information on Iranian hackers threatening U.S. critical infrastructure.
Explained: Amid Iran war, the rise of Israeli settler violence in West Bank
Over the past few days, amid the US-Israeli war on Iran, Israeli settlers are reported to have launched a wave of violence in the occupied West Bank.
Since the start of the war on February 28, masked settlers have allegedly killed at least five Palestinians, injured many residents, sexually assaulted and paraded one man, burned cars and homes, and rampaged through villages, according to Reuters reports citing eyewitnesses and rights groups.
While settler violence is hardly new in the West Bank, the latest surge has been enabled by the curbs on movement imposed during the war on Iran, with military roadblocks preventing ambulances from reaching victims quickly, Reuters said.
West Bank — located to the west of the Jordan river — is a part of the Occupied Palestinian Territories along with Gaza. The latest round of violence comes amid the Israeli government’s push for new settlements on the territory “as attention shifts to the Iran war”, according to an Associated Press report.
UK judge orders home secretary to explain opposition to Hamas de-proscription appeal
A British judge has ordered the UK home secretary to “get on with” explaining her opposition to Hamas's appeal to be removed from the list of proscribed terrorist organisations.
Hamas, currently proscribed in the UK, is appealing against this designation before the Proscribed Organisations Appeal Commission (POAC), an independent tribunal.
Last April, Mousa Abu Marzouk, the head of Hamas’s foreign relations office, instructed British lawyers to appeal against the UK’s 2021 decision by former Home Secretary Priti Patel to designate the movement as a terrorist organisation.
Four months later, in August 2025, Hamas lodged a second appeal to POAC after former UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper rejected the group’s request to be taken off the list of banned groups.
During Thursday’s proceedings, Justice Jonathan Swift, the chair of POAC, told government lawyers to respond to Hamas's appeal and to “clearly explain any reasons for delay” by 20 May.
More Articles...
- Russia Reportedly Moves to Arm Iran With Advanced Drones After US-Israel Strikes
- What To Know About BA.3.2, The Highly Mutated COVID Variant Spreading Through The World Right Now
- Judge blocks Trump administration from limiting Anthropic's contracts with federal government
- Judge asked to take Trump name off Kennedy Center
Page 2 of 1179
