Retail sales drop 1% in December
Sales during the holiday fell below industry projections as shoppers scaled back due to inflation and increased interest rates.
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Good Morning AmericaGrandfather pays homeless woman $20 to watch granddaughter while he got drunk at bar for hours: Police
A grandfather has been arrested after paying a homeless woman $20 to look after his 7-year-old granddaughter while he got drunk at a bar for hours, police say. The incident occurred on Monday evening at approximately 7:45 p.m. when deputies from the Sacramento County Sheriff’s North Patrol responded to the parking lot of a bar on the 5300 block of Auburn Boulevard in Sacramento, California, when, according to police, a passerby called the emergency services to reports of a 54-year-old man “asking people for help because his 7-year-old granddaughter had been kidnapped for human trafficking.” When deputies arrived on scene, they ended up speaking with the suspect, a 54-year-old grandfather named Jason Warren who they noticed was “highly intoxicated” from the moment they made contact with him, police said.
- ABC News
Militants have committed crimes against humanity in Sudan, Human Rights Watch report warns
Ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity have been committed in El Geneina, West Darfur, against ethnic Massalit and non-Arab communities, according to a report released Thursday by Human Rights Watch. The Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, paramilitary group and allied militias have committed "numerous serious violations of international humanitarian and human rights law" as part of their campaign against the Massalit people of El Geneina, the report said. "The events are among the worst atrocities against civilians so far in the current conflict in Sudan," HRW said.
- Good Morning America
Elmo shares mental health help after ‘How is everybody doing’ question goes viral
For over five decades, "Sesame Street" has been educating generations with invaluable life lessons and is now continuing to deliver the task with a new initiative through its nonprofit Sesame Workshop. Earlier this year, Elmo, the beloved character from the TV series, experienced a viral moment on social media after asking a seemingly simple question. The conversation drove a spotlight on the mental health crisis among adults in the country.
- ABC News
3 children, 2 adults in critical condition following possible targeted shooting in San Antonio, Texas: Police
Five individuals, including three children under 10, were shot at a residence in San Antonio, Texas, Wednesday night in what authorities believe was a targeted shooting. All of the victims -- two adults and three children -- are in critical condition, Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar said at a media briefing. At about 7:40 p.m. CT, officers responded to a call about a shooting on the 6700 block of Windsor Hollow Dr. in San Antonio, Salazar said.
- ABC News
Barron Trump picked to serve as a Florida delegate at Republican National Convention
Barron Trump, the youngest child of former President Donald Trump, was chosen as one of Florida's at-large delegates for the Republican National Convention, according to a list of delegates obtained by ABC News. In response to the news of Barron Trump being selected as one of Florida's at-large delegates to the Republican National Convention, a Trump campaign official told ABC News that the former president's youngest son is "very interested" in the political process.
- ABC News
Rev. Al Sharpton and Ben Crump speak at funeral for Ohio man who died last month while in police custody
Funeral services were held Wednesday for a 53-year-old man who died after being detained by police in Ohio last month. Frank Tyson's hands were cuffed behind his back, and he was placed on his stomach at a social establishment in Canton. Rev. Al Sharpton and civil rights attorney Ben Crump spoke at Tyson's memorial at the Hear the Word Ministries church.
- Good Morning America
50 million Americans under severe weather threats amid multiday tornado outbreak
More than 50 million Americans, from Texas to Missouri to the Carolinas, are under severe weather and tornado threats Wednesday night. One person has died and four others were injured after storms moved through Maury County, Tennessee, Maury Regional Health told ABC News. Wednesday marks the fourth multiday tornado outbreak in four weeks.
- ABC News
Kelly Rizzo shares sweet photo with boyfriend Breckin Meyer
Kelly Rizzo celebrated her boyfriend, actor Breckin Meyer, in the sweetest way for his birthday. The actress and podcast host shared a photo with Meyer on Instagram Tuesday and praised him for all that he is to her. Rizzo married Bob Saget in October 2018.
- ABC News
Sperm whales communicate through a 'complex phonetic alphabet,' study finds
The ways sperm whales communicate with each other may be more "complex" than scientists previously believed, with new research drawing similarities between the whale species' language and human phonetics. In a study published Tuesday in Nature Communications, researchers examined a group of sperm whales in the waters surrounding the Caribbean island of Dominica, analyzing their whale calls. Sperm whales -- which have the largest brains of any animal species on Earth -- can combine and modulate different clicks and rhythms to create complex calls, similar to human language, according to the study, which notes the sequences of clicks sperm whales project are called codas.
- ABC News
House quickly kills Marjorie Taylor Greene's effort to oust Speaker Johnson
Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene on Wednesday officially triggered a vote on her motion to oust House Speaker Mike Johnson, but within minutes Democrats joined almost all Republicans to overwhelmingly reject her move. There were audible boos from lawmakers in the chamber as Greene spoke at length about her grievances with Johnson as she called for a vote. The Georgia congresswoman, flanked by co-sponsor GOP Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, asserted Johnson had "not lived up to a single one" of the promises he made the Republican conference after he was elected to the top post in October.
- ABC News
RFK Jr. claims doctor said parasite 'ate' part of his brain
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s campaign on Wednesday responded to a New York Times report that described an incident where the independent candidate claimed a doctor told him that a parasitic worm was found in his brain more than a decade ago. In a 2012 deposition during a divorce from his second wife, Kennedy revealed that a doctor found a dead parasite in his brain -- one of multiple health conditions Kennedy said may have caused what he described in the deposition as "cognitive problems" he had experienced at the time, according to according to The New York Times. In a statement, Kennedy spokeswoman Stefanie Spear said the candidate contracted a parasite during his travel as an environmental advocate -- likely when he visited either Africa, South America or Asia.
- Good Morning America
Lady Gaga's 'Chromatica Ball' concert film trailer unveiled: Watch
Ever since Lady Gaga's Chromatica Ball tour wrapped up in 2022, fans have been waiting for the concert film. One of the final shows on the tour, the September 10 date in Los Angeles at Dodger Stadium, was recorded in June 2023. Gaga confirmed on Instagram that she was working on editing "The Chromatica Ball" film.
- Good Morning America
WNBA legend Candace Parker appointed president of Adidas women's basketball
Two-time WNBA MVP and three-time WNBA champion Candace Parker is taking on a new role. On Wednesday, a little over a week after she announced her retirement from basketball, Parker was named the president of Adidas women's basketball. The new role for Parker marks the culmination of a 16-year partnership with Adidas, according to a press release.
- ABC News
GOP leaders take credit after DC police remove GWU encampment. Protesters decry removal tactics
Congressional Republicans on Wednesday claimed their demands led to Washington's Metropolitan Police Department clashing with and removing pro-Palestinian protesters encamped at George Washington University. Supporters of the protesters, meanwhile, said the city went too far. Officers used pepper spray on pro-Palestinian protesters after they allegedly refused several orders to end the encampment when police moved in about 3 a.m., D.C. police chief Pam Smith told reporters.
- Good Morning America
Miss Teen USA 2023 resigns 2 days after Miss USA gives up title
Miss Teen USA 2023 UmaSofia Srivastava announced Wednesday that she is giving up her title, two days after Miss USA 2023 Noelia Voigt's resignation. In an Instagram post, Srivastava shared her decision to step away from the role.
- ABC News
Grand jury indicts Laken Riley murder suspect on 10 counts
The suspect accused of killing 22-year-old nursing student Laken Riley has been formally indicted on murder and other offenses in connection with the brutal slaying on the University of Georgia campus. A grand jury indicted Jose Ibarra, 26, with malice murder and felony murder in connection with the death of Riley, who was found dead in a wooded area on the Athens campus on Feb. 22 after she didn't return from a run. The indictment, which the Athens Clarke County grand jury returned on Tuesday, alleges that Ibarra killed the Augusta University student by "inflicting blunt force trauma to her head and by asphyxiating her" and seriously disfigured her head by striking her "multiple times" with a rock.
- ABC News
Timeline: Marjorie Taylor Greene's feud with Speaker Mike Johnson
For more than a month, GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene has threatened to demand a vote to oust House Speaker Mike Johnson, and has been leading a public charge to try to make that a reality. Green makes it official and files a motion to vacate the speaker saying he "betrayed our conference and broke our rules" by working with Democrats to pass a $1.2 trillion package to fund the government but does not make it "privileged" -- requiring a House vote. "I think that all of my other Republican colleagues recognize this is a distraction from our mission," he said.
- ABC News
Ippei Mizuhara, Shohei Ohtani's interpreter, to plead guilty to stealing millions from star player
Ippei Mizuhara, the former interpreter for MLB star Shohei Ohtani, has agreed to plead guilty to bank fraud in relation to stealing nearly $17 million from the star player in order to cover gambling debts, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Mizuhara, 39, has agreed to plead guilty to one count of bank fraud, which carries a maximum of 30 years in prison, and one count of subscribing to a false tax return, which carries up to three years in prison, according to the U.S Attorney's Office for the Central District of California. "The extent of this defendant's deception and theft is massive," U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said in a statement.
- Good Morning America
School bus driver on a mission to spread positivity to students
A school bus driver in Florida is on a mission to spread positivity to elementary, middle and high school students on his route. Anthony Burgess has been shuttling students for Pinellas County Schools since September 2023. "I wanted to make it brighter and make it a fun space, so I was like, 'Hey, let's make some quotes,'" Burgess said.
- ABC News
Getting illicit pills as easy as ordering food delivery via app, DEA administrator tells Congress
Getting illicit pills is as easy as ordering food delivery through an app, the Drug Enforcement Administration warned Congress on Tuesday. "We say all the time that the most dangerous place in the world right now is our homes because everyone has a smartphone, and within two or three … clicks on a smartphone, people are having pills delivered to their front doorstep like Uber Eats, like they get pizza delivered," DEA Administrator Anne Milgram told a House Appropriations subcommittee on Tuesday. "We're losing 22 Americans, teenagers between the ages of 14 and 18, every single week right now" to illegal drug use, Milgram said.