Tennessee Gender Care Bill Moves Forward

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The GOP-controlled Tennessee state Legislature on Thursday gave final approval to legislation that criminalizes adults who help minors receive gender-affirming care without parental consent, paving the way for path for the first proposal in the country to be sent to Governor Bill Lee’s desk for his signature.

The bill mirrors almost the same language as a so-called “anti-abortion trafficking” proposal that Tennessee Republican lawmakers approved just a day earlier. In that version, supporters hope to prevent adults from helping young girls get abortions without the permission of their parents or guardians.

Lee, a Republican, has not commented publicly on either bill.

While the Republican supermajority touted the proposed statutes needed to protect parental rights, critics warned of their potential broad application. Violations could range from talking to a teen about a website about where to find care to helping that youth travel to another state with looser restrictions on gender-affirming care services.

“Tennessee lawmakers are on the verge of enacting more than twice as many anti-LGBTQ+ laws as any other state, a stunning assault on their own constituents,” Human Rights Campaign Senior Director of Legal Policy Cathryn said in a statement. Oakley.

Teen arrested in shooting with schoolmate

ARLINGTON, Texas – Police say a 17-year-old boy was arrested on a murder warrant after fatally shooting a schoolmate on an Arlington high school campus.

The slain student was identified as Etavian Barnes, 18, by the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office.

Barnes was found unconscious with multiple gunshot wounds Wednesday afternoon outside the portable buildings on the Bowie High School campus, according to Arlington Police Chief Al Jones.

The suspect, who was also a student at the school, was arrested a short time later near campus, according to Jones, who said the two apparently knew each other.

“We are still in the early stages of our investigation, our detectives are working to determine a motive,” Jones said.

Jones said the shooting was reported around 2:50 p.m. and the school was placed on lockdown for about two hours before students were allowed to leave.

Four dead in intense accident after police chase

CONCORD, Pa. — Three adults and a pregnant teenager were killed in a fiery crash while police pursued their vehicle in connection with retail robberies in southeastern Pennsylvania, authorities said.

The car was speeding away from a traffic stop with seven people inside Wednesday afternoon when the driver lost control while using the right shoulder to pass a vehicle that was not involved in the chase, state police said. Police stopped the car shortly after officers spotted it at a Concord Township shopping center and approached the group, who returned to the car and drove away.

The 7-mile chase on Route 322 ended after the car crossed the road and crashed into a concrete bridge embankment, catching fire.

Killed in the crash were Isaiah Miller, 20, who was driving; Ikeam Rogers, 20; and Kalyn Billups, 21. Tyjana Motley, 17, who was pregnant, died a short time later in a hospital.

Emergency medical measures were taken in an attempt to save Motley’s son, state police said, but they were unsuccessful.

Three other passengers in the vehicle, two adults and a 16-year-old girl, were being treated for injuries that are not considered life-threatening.

FTC awards $5.6 million in Ring settlement

NEW YORK – The Federal Trade Commission is sending more than $5.6 million in refunds to consumers as part of a settlement with Amazon-owned Ring, which was accused of failing to protect private video streams from outside access.

In a 2023 complaint, the FTC accused the home security, doorbell camera, and home security provider of allowing its employees and contractors to access customers’ private videos. Ring reportedly used such images to train algorithms without consent, among other purposes.

Ring was also accused of failing to implement key security protections, which allowed hackers to take control of customers’ accounts, cameras and videos.

The resulting settlement required Ring to remove content that had been obtained illegally, establish stronger security protections, and pay a hefty fine.

According to a notice on Tuesday, the FTC will send 117,044 PayPal payments to affected consumers. Eligible customers will need to redeem these payments within 30 days, according to the FTC.

In a statement to The Associated Press, Ring said criminals took emails and passwords that were “stolen from other companies to illegally log into Ring accounts of certain customers” who used the same credentials on multiple sites in 2019, adding that the company quickly addressed this by notifying those it discovered were “exposed in a third-party, non-Ring incident” and taking steps to protect affected accounts.