Memorial service held for woman killed in Southwest flight
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Family and friends gathered Sunday to mourn an Albuquerque bank executive who died after the Southwest Airlines plane she was on blew an engine in midair.
Nearly a thousand people attended the evening service for Jennifer Riordan, the Albuquerque Journal reported . The service was held at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus, her alma mater.
“We appreciate the outpouring of support from the community. It truly touches our hearts,” the Riordan family wrote in a statement. “We know there are many in the community who want to celebrate Jennifer.”
The 43-year-old community leader and mother of two had been heading home from a business trip Tuesday on a flight from New York’s LaGuardia Airport bound for Dallas.
Early in the flight as the plane was at 32,000 feet one of its twin engines suddenly exploded. The impact showered the jet with debris and shattered the window next to Riordan.
Islamic State suicide bomber kills 57 in Afghan capital
KABUL, Afghanistan — An Islamic State suicide bomber attacked a voter registration center in Afghanistan’s capital on Sunday, killing 57 people and wounding more than 100 others, officials said.
Public Health Ministry spokesman Wahid Majro said that among 57 people killed, 22 were women and eight were children. He said 119 people were wounded, among them 17 children and 52 women, and “the tolls could still rise.”
The bomber targeted civilians who were registering for national identification cards, Kabul police chief Gen. Daud Amin said.
The large explosion echoed across the city, shattering windows miles from the attack site and damaging nearby vehicles. Police blocked all roads to the blast site, with only ambulances allowed in. TV stations broadcast live footage of hundreds of distraught locals gathered at hospitals seeking word about loved ones.
The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement carried by its Aamaq news agency, saying it had targeted Shiite “apostates.”
Trump says North Korea agreed to denuclearize. It hasn’t.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — President Donald Trump on Sunday claimed North Korea has agreed to “denuclearization” before his potential meeting with Kim Jong Un. But that’s not the case.
North Korea said Friday it would suspend nuclear tests and intercontinental ballistic missile launches ahead of summits with the U.S. and South Korea. Kim also said a nuclear test site would be closed and “dismantled” now that the country has learned how to make nuclear weapons and mount warheads on ballistic rockets.
But the North has stopped short of saying it has any intention of abandoning its nuclear arsenal, with Kim making clear that nukes remain a “treasured sword.”
Trump nonetheless tweeted Sunday that the North has “agreed to denuclearization (so great for World), site closure, &no more testing!”
Being committed to the concept of denuclearization, however, is not the same as agreeing to it, as Trump claims.
World watching for signs of N. Korea nuke deal at 2 summits
SEOUL, South Korea — When North Korean leader Kim Jong Un meets South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Friday the world will have a single overriding interest: How will they address North Korea’s decades-long pursuit of nuclear-armed missiles?
Success, even a small one, on the nuclear front could mean a prolonged detente and smooth the path for a planned summit between Kim and President Donald Trump in May or June. Optimists hope that the two summits might even result in a grand nuclear bargain.
North Korea’s announcement on Saturday to suspend further nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile tests and close its nuclear test site raised hopes in Washington and Seoul for a breakthrough in the upcoming nuclear negotiations. However, the North’s statement stopped well-short of suggesting it has any intentions to give up its nukes or halt its production of missiles.
Failure to reach a nuclear agreement would raise serious questions about the sincerity of Kim’s recent outreach to Seoul and Washington and rekindle the fears of war that spread across the Korean Peninsula last year.
___
Cosby defense team lobs attacks in court of public opinion
NORRISTOWN, Pa. — Jurors weren’t allowed to hear testimony that Bill Cosby’s chief accuser was once hooked on hallucinogenic mushrooms or had her sights set on becoming a millionaire, but that hasn’t stopped the defense from airing the explosive claims about Andrea Constand in the court of public opinion.
With Cosby’s sexual assault retrial heading for deliberations this week, the 80-year-old comedian’s lawyers and publicists are increasingly playing to an audience of millions, not just the 12 people deciding his fate.
They’re hitting at Constand’s credibility in the media with attacks that Judge Steven O’Neill is deeming too prejudicial or irrelevant for court, and they’re holding daily press briefings portraying Cosby as the victim of an overzealous prosecutor and an unjust legal system.
Cosby spokesman Andrew Wyatt has decried Constand’s allegations of drugging and molestation as “fantastical stories” and deemed District Attorney Kevin Steele an “extortionist” for spending taxpayer money on the case.
Lawyer Dennis McAndrews, who’s been in court following the retrial, said prominent defendants like Cosby almost always play to the court of public opinion when there’s no gag order, but that his team’s approach hasn’t been “particularly effective or convincing.”
___
Twain apologizes for saying she would have voted for Trump
NEW YORK — Shania Twain has apologized for saying if she were American she would have voted for Donald Trump for president, even though he’s offensive.
Twain made the comments in an interview with The Guardian that was published over the weekend. She told the British newspaper “Do you want straight or polite? . I would have voted for a feeling that is transparent.”
After receiving backlash, Twain took to Twitter to explain herself.
The Canadian says she wasn’t prepared for the question and was trying to express how Trump had connected with a certain segment of the U.S population.
Twain also says she’s against discrimination of any kind and hopes it’s clear from her public stances that she doesn’t share any moral beliefs with Trump.
___
Ginobili, Aldridge help Spurs beat Warriors to avoid sweep
SAN ANTONIO — Ettore Messina was screaming at the Spurs, and Manu Ginobili loved it.
Before Gregg Popovich, Ginobili played in Italy for Messina, and on Sunday he delivered a throwback performance for his old coach to save the Spurs’ season.
Experiencing a flashback to his days playing for Messina in the Euroleague in his early 20s, the 40-year-old Ginobili scored 10 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter to help San Antonio beat the Golden State Warriors 103-90. The Spurs avoided a series sweep as Popovich missed his second straight game following the death of his wife, Erin, on Wednesday.
In his 16th season in the NBA and perhaps the final home game of his career, Ginobili rebounded from a scoreless effort in Game 3 to help Messina capture his first playoff victory as a coach, albeit an unofficial one.
“For moments when he talks to the rest of the team, or when he gets upset and he yells at us, a lot of flashbacks,” Ginobili said, chuckling. “He’s very strict and he wants the team to play his way, so whenever we stopped executing the way we should have, the old himself comes back. It was good to see him coaching on this stage. Good memories.”
