Arrest warrant

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's office has charged two Harris County men, Angel Evora and Darrick Haynie, with illegally casting ballots while on felony parole. The investigation began after a citizen tip and was confirmed through voter records and the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Under Texas law, felons lose voting eligibility until parole or probation ends, after which rights are automatically restored. Arrest warrants were filed in neighboring Montgomery County, where the cases will be prosecuted. Officials say such violations are rare and often stem from misunderstanding of eligibility rules, but can carry serious penalties, including a return to prison. The Attorney General's Election Integrity Unit says further investigations are ongoing.

Kissimmee Mayor Jackie Espinosa was arrested on charges of grand theft and organized scheme to defraud following a months-long investigation by Florida's Attorney General, the Department of Law Enforcement, and the state CFO's office. She is being held without bond and faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted. Officials allege Espinosa used her office to funnel $50,000 in COVID-19 relief funds from the city's Business Boost 2.0 grant program to businesses owned or controlled by her and her family, out of $90,000 total awarded to family-linked businesses, and took steps to reduce oversight of the program. The case stemmed from a resident-filed ethics complaint and a special prosecutor's earlier finding of probable cause for impeachment. Two days after her arrest, the Florida Commission on Ethics formally censured Espinosa and fined her $2,000 under a joint stipulation agreement, in which she admitted the family-connected businesses benefited from the program in violation of state statutes. The censure does not remove her from office or constitute a criminal conviction. Espinosa remains mayor and, through her attorney and in her own statements, maintains the matter is administrative or civil rather than criminal.

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced a state charge of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder against former Cuban President Raúl Castro, 95, tied to the 1996 shootdown of two Brothers to the Rescue planes by Cuban MiGs that killed four exiles. The charge builds on a federal indictment issued earlier this year accusing Castro, then Cuba's defense minister, of ordering Wasp Network spies to infiltrate the exile group and authorizing the attack. An arrest warrant aims to restrict Castro's travel to nations with U.S. extradition agreements, though officials acknowledge he is unlikely to face a Miami courtroom. Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel dismissed the charges as politically motivated.

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has filed state charges of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder against former Cuban President Raúl Castro, 95, building on a federal indictment issued earlier this year. The charges stem from the February 1996 downing of two unarmed Brothers to the Rescue planes by Cuban MiGs over international waters, killing four Miami-based exiles. Prosecutors say Castro, then Minister of the Revolutionary Armed Forces, authorized the attack after Cuban intelligence agents infiltrated the exile group. An arrest warrant will restrict Castro's travel, though officials concede he is unlikely to face a U.S. court. Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel dismissed the case as political theater, linking it to broader U.S.-Cuba tensions amid Trump administration pressure on the island.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in New York to address the United Nations, pledging to defend Israel against what he called "terrible lies" and to speak on behalf of Israeli soldiers. His visit drew renewed criticism from New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who has previously threatened to have Netanyahu arrested and reiterated in a CNN interview that he views the prime minister as a "war criminal" responsible for genocide against Palestinians. Mamdani said New Yorkers have the right to protest given the International Criminal Court's outstanding arrest warrant for Netanyahu. Netanyahu responded sharply, accusing the mayor of supporting Hamas and inciting unrest against New York's Jewish community. Police union officials warned the rhetoric could escalate protests.

Separately at the UN, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian delivered a defiant speech condemning U.S. and Israeli actions, prompting a walkout by an American delegate. In Israel, U.S. Ambassador Yechiel Leiter's son was critically injured in a car-ramming attack in Samaria, adding further strain amid the high-profile diplomatic tensions.
Netanyahu's UN visit sparks clashes with Mayor Mamdani over ICC arrest calls amid rising Israel-Iran tensions.

Arguments began Wednesday in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in a Louisiana lawsuit seeking to roll back a Biden-era FDA rule that allows mifepristone, a drug used in medication abortions, to be prescribed via telehealth and sent by mail. Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill filed the suit last October, arguing the telehealth policy—made permanent in 2023 after being loosened during the pandemic—violates state law, which has banned abortion since the 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade. A Louisiana woman, Rosalie Markezich, joined as a plaintiff, alleging she was given mifepristone by her boyfriend after it was mailed by a California doctor; related arrest warrants against out-of-state prescribers in California and New York were not honored by those states.

The Fifth Circuit previously froze the FDA rule for Louisiana before the Supreme Court restored telehealth access pending further litigation. A ruling could reshape nationwide mail-order abortion access and may eventually reach the Supreme Court. Telehealth accounted for about 29% of U.S. abortions last year.

Former Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin was arrested by the Bourbon County Sheriff's Office while working as a featured extra on a Christmas movie set at a horse farm in Paris, Kentucky, after a tip alerted deputies to his location. He was booked into a local detention center before being transferred to the Louisville Metro Detention Center on a charge tied to a Jefferson Family Court contempt order. He later appeared in court in an orange jumpsuit and handcuffs.

Judge Angela Johnson ruled Bevin must serve the full 60-day sentence, rejecting his attorney's request for home detention, saying he had shown "complete disregard" for the court. The contempt stemmed from Bevin's repeated failure to turn over financial records and appear at hearings in a child support dispute brought by his son Jonah, one of four children the Bevins adopted from Ethiopia, who alleges he was abandoned at an abusive, now-closed Jamaican facility. Johnson said she may revisit the sentence in 30 days; it remains appealable. Bevin served as governor from 2015 to 2019.