Write an article based on this summary:

– Forty-three days after the election, all the votes have finally been tallied and certified. History will show Hillary Clinton beating Donald Trump by a final count of nearly 3 million votes, the Hill reports. According to a tweet Tuesday from the nonpartisan Cook Report, Clinton received 65,844,610 votes (48.2%) to Trump's 62,979,636 (46.1%). However with the Electoral College officially making Trump the 45th US president on Monday, history will also show Clinton as the second Democrat in the past five elections to win the popular vote but lose the presidency. Meanwhile, the Huffington Post reports Trump had the third worst popular-vote performance by a winning candidate on record.

Donald Trump is set to be sworn in next month as the 45th president of the United States, despite garnering almost 3 million fewer votes than his challenger.

 With the presidential election results now certified in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., Hillary Clinton won a total of 65,844,610 votes ― 48.2 percent ― compared with Trump’s 62,979,636 votes ― 46.1 percent ― according to David Wasserman of the nonpartisan Cook Political Report. Other candidates took 7,804,213 ballots, or about 5.7 percent of the popular vote.

 All 50 states + DC now certified:

 Clinton: 65,844,610 (48.2%)

 Trump: 62,979,636 (46.1%)

 Others: 7,804,213 (5.7%)https://t.co/j58GaxfPmH — Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) December 20, 2016

 Clinton’s margin of victory in the popular vote is the largest in raw numbers for any candidate who has gone on to lose in the Electoral College. Her margin of victory is almost six times larger than that of Democrat Al Gore, whose popular vote win in 2000 is now the second-largest in this category. Gore received about 500,000 more votes than Republican George W. Bush, but came up short in the Electoral College after a hotly contested race in Florida.

 Trump’s substantial deficit in the popular vote makes his margin by percentage of votes the third-worst among winning candidates since 1824 (when the popular vote was first officially recorded), according to an analysis by The New York Times published earlier this week.

 Thanks to the Electoral College, none of this matters. Trump won 306 electoral votes to Clinton’s 232 on Election Day, securing him a comfortable victory last month. Although many of Trump’s opponents had spent the past few weeks trying to figure out how they could deny the real estate mogul a path to the White House, the Electoral College on Monday further secured his win.

 A total of 304 electors cast their votes in favor of the GOP nominee, meaning just two Republican electors defected. Some 227 cast their presidential ballots for Clinton, with five Democratic electors switching their vote. Those seven defecting electors voted for other candidates. ||||| Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham ClintonBullying rates in Trump-supporting Virginia districts rose after 2016 election: study The challenge for Dems? Winning attention vs. Trump Group hoping to draft Beto plans ambitious 2020 push MORE won the popular vote by just under 3 million votes, final state vote totals aggregated by the Cook Report revealed on Tuesday.

 The political news outlet, which has been tracking the votes in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, found Clinton with 65.8 million votes and 48.2 percent, compared to 62.9 million and 46.6 percent for Republican Donald Trump Donald John TrumpGovernment workers protest outside White House on shutdown day 20 Fed chief Powell: Prolonged shutdown will harm US economy Senators say questions remain on Trump strategy in Syria after briefing MORE.

 It tweeted out that all of the states plus D.C. had certified their results.

 All 50 states + DC now certified:

 Clinton: 65,844,610 (48.2%)

 Trump: 62,979,636 (46.1%)

 Others: 7,804,213 (5.7%)https://t.co/j58GaxfPmH — Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) December 20, 2016

 Other candidates — including Green Party Candidate Jill Stein, Libertarian Candidate Gary Johnson Gary Earl JohnsonHillicon Valley: Social media struggles with new forms of misinformation | US, Russia decline to join pledge on fighting cybercrimes | Trump hits Comcast after antitrust complaint | Zuckerberg pressed to testify before global panel Ex-Facebook exec ousted from company sparked controversy with pro-Trump views: report Heinrich wins reelection to Senate in New Mexico MORE and write-ins — took 5.7 percent of the popular vote, Cook Report’s data showed.

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 The results come a day after the Electoral College voted to secure Trump's presidency.

 On Monday, Trump won 304 Electoral College votes — just two below those he won on election night. Two Republican electors cast their ballots for alternatives.

 Clinton got 227 votes after five Democratic electors voted for alternatives.

 Anti-Trump groups had urged Republican electors to defect but those efforts fell flat. Clinton received more defections than Trump in the final tally.

 Many Democrats across the country have called for an end to the Electoral College since the election.

 On Monday, The New York Times’s editorial board pushed for ending the Electoral College, calling it an “antiquated mechanism” that eliminates “basic fairness” from the presidential race.

 Clinton is the second Democrat to lose the presidential election but win the popular vote in the last five races. Republican George W. Bush defeated Democrat Al Gore Albert (Al) Arnold GoreDem introduces bills to eliminate Electoral College, stop presidents from pardoning themselves Al Gore’s right about carbon capture and sequestration Democrats view 2020 as a referendum on democracy MORE in the 2000 election after Gore won the popular vote by more than 500,000 votes -- a sizably smaller lead than Clinton.

 This story was updated at 3:04 p.m. ||||| Tweet with a location

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London (CNN) Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have revealed further details about their wedding -- including how the bride's parents will be involved, the timing of their honeymoon and how they plan to remember Harry's mother, Princess Diana.

 Meghan's mother and father, Doria Ragland and Thomas Markle, who split up when she was young, will both attend. In the days before the wedding, they will fly into the UK to spend time with the British royal family, including Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh, according to Jason Knauf, communications secretary to Prince Harry.

 Meghan will spend her last night as a single woman at a hotel in an undisclosed location.

 Then, on the morning of Saturday, May 19, a car will take Meghan and her mother to Windsor Castle before her father walks her down the aisle of St. George's Chapel at 12.00 p.m. (7.00 a.m. ET).

 Knauf said Meghan is "delighted to have her parents by her side on this important and happy occasion."

 Read More ||||| LONDON -- Meghan Markle's divorced parents will meet with Queen Elizabeth II and other royals before her May 19 wedding to Prince Harry and will have special roles in their daughter's wedding, a palace spokesman said Friday. At the wedding, the royal couple also plan to honor the memory of the late Princess Diana, Harry's mother, who died in a Paris car crash in 1997.

 Officials didn't predict the weather - springtime in England can be glorious or horrid, sometimes on the same day - but they outlined plans for a celebration designed to spread from the privileged environs of Windsor Castle throughout Britain and the world, via television and the internet.

 Here are some of the plans disclosed by Harry's press secretary, Jason Knauf, during a briefing at Buckingham Palace:

 Meghan's Parents To Take Part In Wedding

 Markle's parents, Thomas Markle and Doria Ragland, will arrive during the week before the May 19 wedding so they have time to meet Harry's family.

 Knauf says they will visit with the queen, her husband Prince Philip, Harry's father Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, and with Harry's brother Prince William and his sister-in-law Kate.

 Ragland will travel with her daughter by car to Windsor Castle on May 19 and Thomas Markle will walk his daughter down the aisle of St. George's Chapel for the ceremony.

 Knauf says Markle is "delighted" that her parents will be by her side. He did not say whether Markle's half brother and half sister will attend the wedding.

 ___

 Princess Diana's Family Will Have A Role

 The press secretary says Harry is "keen to involve his mother's family in the wedding" and that all three of Diana's siblings will be present. One of Diana's two older sisters, Jane Fellowes, will give a reading during the ceremony to represent Diana's family.

 ___

 No Maid Of Honor

 Markle, an American actress who came to prominence in the TV series "Suits," will not have a maid of honor during the ceremony.

 Harry has chosen William as his best man.

 ___

 Young Bidesmaids And Page Boys

 Knauf says all the bridesmaids and page boys will be children. That may mean a role for Prince George, 4, and Princess Charlotte, 3, the children of Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge. But don't bother looking for Prince Louis - born in late April - as the youngest prince will not attend the wedding.

 ___

 Don't Ask About The Dress

 Palace officials are determined that the style and designer of Markle's wedding gown will be kept secret until the moment she gets out of the car to walk into the chapel. They say this tradition is very important - but that won't keep speculators from trying to guess who has received the most important dressmaking assignment of the year.

 ___

 Separated The Night Before

 The press secretary says Harry and Markle will spend the night before the wedding apart. They have been living together in recent months since announcing their engagement. They will spend their first night as a married couple in Windsor Castle.

 ___

 Good Wishes For Prince Philip's Health

 Palace officials say they're hopeful that 96-year-old Prince Philip, Harry's grandfather, will be well enough to attend the wedding festivities . The queen's husband has been recovering from hip replacement surgery and has not participated in any public events since being discharged from the hospital in mid-April.

 ___

 Follow The Wedding At Home

 The palace plans to publish the Order of Service on its website the morning of the wedding so people watching it on television will be better able to follow what's taking place inside the church.

 ___

 Delayed Honeymoon

 Knauf would not reveal where the newest royal couple will spend their honeymoon, but he said they won't be leaving right after the wedding. Instead they plan to make their first public appearance as a married couple during the week following the ceremony. In the past, they have traveled in Africa together.

 ---

 Royal Photographer

 Alexi Lubomirski, the photographer who snapped Harry and Meghan's engagement photos, will be back behind the lens for the wedding. A mutual friend suggested Harry and Meghan check out Lubomirski's Instagram where the fashion photographer posts his work with some of world's most famous faces including Julia Roberts, Beyoncé and Angelina Jolie. |||||

Write a summary.

– Prince Harry will be missing his mother on his wedding day, just two weeks away, but his aunt will be standing in. Lady Jane Fellowes will represent her sister, the late Princess Diana, at the May 19 ceremony at Windsor's St. George's Chapel, where she'll also do a reading, reports CBS News. Diana's two other siblings also will attend, as will bride Meghan Markle's mother and father, who are divorced. They're to meet the queen, Prince Philip, and the other British royals a week ahead of the wedding, which will see Thomas Markle walk his daughter down the aisle. CNN reports Markle won't have a maid of honor. "She has a very close knit group of friends and did not want to choose one over the other," a rep for Harry says. (Harry's pick for best man is no surprise.)


– And there was much joy in Michigan: Five Ohio State Buckeyes—including star QB Terrelle Pryor—have been suspended by the NCAA for the first five games of next season for selling rings, jerseys, and other goodies to make a buck, reports the Columbus Dispatch. They will, however, be able to play in this year's Sugar Bowl. The school plans to appeal. Some of the players also received what the NCAA deemed improper discounts from a tattoo parlor. All have to give between 1,000 to $2,500 to charity to make up for their profits. Pryor sold his 2008 Big Ten championship ring and his 2008 "gold pants," which the AP describes as "a trinket" given to players on a team that beats Michigan.

Expand this summary.

>>> NCAA news release on Ohio State violations

 Terrelle Pryor and four of his Ohio State teammates will be suspended from the first five games of the 2011 season because of NCAA violations, the school and NCAA announced today. All five will be eligible to play in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 4.

 Not that it made the news that much more palatable, Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said.

 "There is a gut-wrenching feeling when you lose a game, and then there is one that goes beyond when you don't feel as if you did what you should do as people," Tressel said. "So whatever the next step of gut-wrenching is, that's the way you feel, and we feel a responsibility for our kids on and off the field. Obviously, it's painful."

 The other four involved in the five-game suspension next season are wide receiver DeVier Posey, running back Dan Herron, left tackle Mike Adams and backup defensive end Solomon Thomas. The five were sanctioned for first accepting discounted rates on tattoos and then letting that escalate into selling personal OSU memorabilia to the owner of a local tattoo parlor for thousands of dollars over a period starting in 2009. Also, backup linebacker Jordan Whiting will miss one game.

 But all six will be eligible to play in the Sugar, NCAA vice president of academic and membership affairs said in the NCAA news release announcing the sanctions. There are allowances for that, he said.

 "The policy for suspending withholding conditions (suspensions) for bowl games of NCAA championship competition recognizes the unique opportunity these events provide at the end of a season, and they are evaluated differently from a withholding perspective," Lennon said. "In this instance, the facts are consistent with the established policy."

 The problems came to light as a result of a federal probe into the affairs of the tattoo parlor owner. Smith said the U.S. Attorney's office notified OSU officials on Dec. 7 that during the searches related to the probe, a stash of OSU memorabilia signed by the players in question was discovered.

 The subsequent investigation by the OSU compliance office led to interviews with the players and then the suspensions. This is what each of them will have to repay to regain elibility next season:

 Adams must repay $1,000 to a charity for selling his 2008 Big Ten championship ring

 Herron must repay $1,150 to a charity for selling his football jersey, pants and shoes for $1,000 and receiving discounted services worth $150

 Posey must repay $1,250 to a charity for selling his 2008 Big Ten championship ring for $1,200 and receiving discounted services worth $50

 Pryor must repay $2,500 to a charity for selling his 2008 Big Ten championship ring, a 2009 Fiesta Bowl sportsmanship award and his 2008 Gold Pants, a gift from the university

 Thomas must repay $1,505 to a charity for selling his 2008 Big Ten championship ring for $1,000, his 2008 Gold Pants for $350 and receiving discounted services worth $155

 Whiting must pay $150 to a charity for receiving discounted services.

 "We will appeal the game suspensions," Smith today said at a news conference, but he also praised the NCAA for reacting quickly to the situation.

 Smith went on to say that the U.S. Attorney's office assured them that as far as the players' involvement was concerned, "this is not a criminal case. ... And it is not an agent or booster case."

 If players miss do miss five games next year, they would sit out contests against Akron (Sept. 3), Toledo (Sept. 10), at the University of Miami (Sept. 17), Colorado (Sept. 24) and the Big Ten opener against Michigan State (Oct. 1).

 tmay@dispatch.com ||||| FILE - This nov. 27, 2010, file photo shows Ohio State's Terrelle Pryor, left, celebrating with quarterbacks coach Nick Siciliano after an NCAA college football game against Michigan, in Columbus, Ohio.... (Associated Press)

 FILE - This nov. 27, 2010, file photo shows Ohio State's Terrelle Pryor, left, celebrating with quarterbacks coach Nick Siciliano after an NCAA college football game against Michigan, in Columbus, Ohio.... (Associated Press)

 Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor and four other Buckeyes were suspended by the NCAA for the first five games of next season for selling championship rings, jerseys and awards, and receiving improper benefits from a tattoo parlor. All can still play in the Sugar Bowl against Arkansas.

 Along with Pryor, running back Daniel Herron, wide receiver DeVier Posey, offensive lineman Mike Adams and defensive end Solomon Thomas must sit out and repay between $1,000 to $2,500 to charity.

 Pryor must repay $2,500 for selling his 2008 Big Ten championship ring, Fiesta Bowl sportsmanship award and his 2008 gold pants, a trinket given to players who are a part of a team which beats rival Michigan.

 Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith said the school will appeal the suspensions.

 "While we believe sanctions should be rendered, we do believe they are severe," he said Thursday at a news conference. "We do believe we can give mitigating circumstances for the NCAA to consider."

 The NCAA did not suspend the players for Jan. 4 Sugar Bowl against the eighth-ranked Razorbacks because the "student-athletes did not receive adequate rules education during the time period the violations occurred."

 "These are significant penalties based on findings and information provided by the university," Kevin Lennon, NCAA vice president of academic and membership affairs, said in the release.

 Lennon said a game was added on to the usual four-game penalty "because these student-athletes did not immediately disclose the violations when presented with the appropriate rules education."

 Pryor is the team's star, while Herron is the leading rusher and Posey is the second-leading receiver. Adams is a starter at left tackle and Thomas a top sub on the defensive line.

 A sixth player, linebacker Jordan Whiting must sit out the first game of the 2011 season and pay $150 to a charity for the value of services that were discounted by the tattoo artist because he was a Buckeyes player.

 "We as coaches feel the buck stops here," coach Jim Tressel said. "We're the ones who need to make things even more crystal clear."

 Smith said Ohio State was not "explicit" in instructing players about the sale of apparel, awards and gifts.

 Adams must repay $1,000 for selling his 2008 Big Ten championship ring.

 Herron must repay $1,150 for selling his football jersey, pants and shoes for $1,000 and receiving discount services worth $150.

 Posey sold his 2008 Big Ten ring for $1,200 and also received discount services. |||||


Article:
Mischa Barton My Mother's a Financial Vampire ... She's Sucking Me Dry

 Mischa Barton -- My Mother's a Financial Vampire ... She's Sucking Me Dry

 Exclusive Details

 Mischa Barton's mother/manager pocketed a chunk of her daughter's salary from a movie -- and even kicked Mischa out of her own Beverly Hills mansion ... according to a new lawsuit.

 Mischa filed the suit against her mom, Nuala Barton ... claiming she's a "greedy stage mother posing as a talent manager" ... and says she lied to Mischa about her income on a film called "The Hoarder." In the docs, Mischa says Nuala told her she was being paid a certain amount ... but eventually found out from the production company her salary was higher than that number.

 She says Nuala took the difference for herself ... and also took a 10% management fee. She doesn't mention specific numbers in the lawsuit.

 Mischa says mommie dearest also used her name to pimp out a handbag line and to open a Mischa Barton fashion boutique in London -- all of which might have been great if Mischa got a dime from any of it. She says Nuala kept all the profits for herself.

 As for Mischa's home -- she says her mother rigged the paperwork to give herself co-ownership of the 8 bedroom, 11 bath mansion. According to the suit, Nuala even took out loans against the property -- and then kicked her out of her own home. She says her mom and dad are now "comfortably" entrenched in the mansion.

 The suit gets particularly nasty ... with Mischa stating her parents "sit back expecting their daughter's hard work and dedication to her craft to support their lifestyle." She adds neither of them has had a job, outside of Mischa Inc., in over a decade.

 Interestingly, Mischa didn't sue Dad, but that's probably only because he's not her manager. ||||| Mischa Barton filed suit Tuesday against her mother, Nuala Barton, claiming she's withheld her daughter's career earnings and otherwise exploited her fame.

 The complaint, filed in the Los Angeles Superior Court, reads like a soap opera: "This action arises from the tragic tale of a greedy stage mother posing as a talent manager who, instead of acting in the best interest of her daughter/client, schemed to defraud her unsuspecting victim."

 Barton is seeking unspecified damages, triple the amount the court finds her mother to have withheld. Her five-count complaint includes claims of breach of fiduciary duty, breach of oral contract and conversion.

 The Sixth Sense and The O.C. actress claims her mother "had absolutely no experience or training" in talent management when she took on her daughter's career. She claims Nuala set up a scheme in which she exclusively controlled Mischa's finances and only "doled out an ‘allowance’ to Barton at her sole discretion and on a sporadic basis."

 She alleges her mother induced her to buy a Beverly Hills home for $7.8 million in 2006 and "represented to Barton that the lavish home would be a vehicle for which Barton could invest her growing income for acting services," but she structured the purchase to assign herself half-ownership of the property. "Nuala and Barton’s father currently reside comfortably in the $7.8 million home. Barton is not welcome at the property," continues the complaint.

 Nuala allegedly lied about Mischa's compensation for acting in the horror film The Hoarder "so that she could pocket the difference — on top of her hefty management fee — all without Barton’s knowledge." She entered her daughter into endorsement contracts without telling her and launched enterprises like a Mischa Barton handbag line and Mischa Barton fashion boutique in London without compensating her daughter, claims the actress.

 "Nuala currently refuses to provide Barton with any of the funds she earned (and continues to earn in the form of residual payments) for her acting, modeling and endorsement services," reads the complaint.

 "These revelations of exploitation and fraud, coupled with ongoing instances of bullying and verbal abuse, eventually led to the breakdown of Barton and Nuala's personal and professional relationship,” claims Barton, who is now with APA and LINK — “a reputable talent manager."

 Alex Weingarten of Venable filed the complaint.

 Nuala's attorney Lawrence Ecoff of Ecoff Landsberg tells THR neither he nor Nuala have received the complaint. They declined to comment. ||||| Mischa Barton is suing her manager-mother, alleging that over the course of "The O.C." star's career Nuala Barton has messed with her daughter's money, property and image.

 A lawsuit filed Tuesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court casts Nuala as "a greedy stage mother posing as a talent manager who, instead of acting in the best interest of her daughter/client, schemed to defraud her unsuspecting victim."

 Mischa, now 29, entered into a verbal contract when she was 8, agreeing to pay her mother a management fee equal to 10% of her gross earnings but not more than that, the lawsuit says.

 The actress "placed her utmost trust" in her mother until recently, when Mischa's discovery of "exploitation and fraud, coupled with ongoing instances of bullying and verbal abuse" resulted in the breakdown of their personal and professional relationships, the suit says.

 According to the lawsuit, Nuala created various companies that gave her control over her daughter's money, gave herself half-ownership in the house Mischa bought in 2006 and then borrowed against that property, started her own side businesses making money off Mischa's image, entered Mischa into endorsement deals — one as recently as October — without explaining the obligations of those deals, and lied to her daughter about her salary to act in "The Hoarder" and pocketed the difference.

 Nuala also lied to Mischa about how much the actress had been paid to do the movie "The Hoarder," forged her daughter's signature on documents associated with the job and then pocketed the difference for herself, the suit says.

 "Neither Nuala nor Barton's father, Paul, has had a job independent of Barton in over a decade," the lawsuit says. "Instead, they sit back expecting their daughter's hard work and dedication to her craft to support their lifestyle. Both comfortably reside in the $7.8 million Beverly Hills home that was purchased with Barton's funds while Barton is not welcome at the property."

 Incidentally, that house has been a pain in Mischa Barton's butt for a while now: In February 2013 she was trying to lease it out for $35,000 a month, and by August 2014 she was reportedly behind on the mortgage.

 Mischa is seeking actual damages plus triple that in punitive damages as well as legal fees. While no dollar amount is specified, the document puts the sum in question at more than $25 million.

 The younger Barton had a rocky time after becoming a star via "The O.C.," which ran from 2003 to 2006. In 2007, she was arrested on suspicion of DUI and ordered by the court to go to rehab and employ a sobriety coach. In 2009, she found herself on a four-day involuntary psych hold.

 "It was a full-on breakdown," Barton told People in October 2013. "I was under enormous pressure."

 Back then, however, she was cutting her U.K.-born parents some slack.

 "They were thrust into this situation that was completely foreign to them," she told the magazine. "Nothing could prepare them to have their children jump into the overtly sexualized and crazy world of L.A."

 Still, she told the mag that when she was a teen she had lots of people depending on her. "I asked to get out of jobs all the time," she said, "and the response was, 'No, you have to.' There's an attitude that you can't say no."

 Mischa Barton is now represented professionally by agent Jonathan Perry of APA and manager Adam Griffin of LINK Entertainment. Lawyers Alex Weingarten and Leslie Eggers of Venable LLP are representing her in the suit against her mother.

 Follow Christie D'Zurilla on Twitter @theCDZ and Google+. Follow the Ministry of Gossip on Twitter @LATcelebs. ||||| The preeminent momager of the group, Kris Jenner, manages all of the Kardashian kin, including Kim, Khloe, Kourtney, Rob, Kylie and Kendall. (But who manages Bruce?)

 "My [mom] was never my manager but she was always with me on set. She would bring the pasta machine and make home-made pasta wherever we went!" Dunst told The Telegraph. Still, mom Inez was the one who took Kirsten to auditions, including one for a cereal commercial, when she was just 3. Kirsten's earliest modeling gig, however, was even before then, as a toddler on the cover of this "Babysitter's Club" book.

 Dina Lohan has been a stage mom her entire life, but Lindsay Lohan is reportedly considering firing her mother as her manager.

 The one-time soap star is also the manager to daughter Hayden Panettiere and son Jansen Panettiere.

 Former minister Joe Simpson may have managed his daughter's career successfully, but he made everyone feel weird when he told GQ in 2004, "Jessica never tries to be sexy. She just is sexy. If you put her in a t-shirt or you put her in a bustier, she’s sexy in both. She’s got double D’s! You can’t cover those suckers up!”

 After he oversaw her career for decades, Beyonce Knowles fired father Matthew Knowles in March 2011, releasing this statement: "I've only parted ways with my father on a business level. He is my father for life, and I love my dad dearly. I am grateful for everything he has taught me. I grew up watching both he and my mother [Tina Knowles] manage and own their own businesses. They were hard-working entrepreneurs and I will continue to follow in their footsteps."

 In a video for AOL music, Ashanti and her mom/manager sweetly interviewed each other for Mother's Day 2012. “You always taught me to be a leader, not a follower,” Ashanti told Douglas, a former dance teacher. “As simple as it is, it has always stuck with me and I’m very grateful for that advice.”

 The "Home Alone" star's relationship with his father-manager Kit Culkin soured in the late '90s when rumors of mismanagement surfaced. The two are now estranged.

 In 2000, a then 16-year-old LeAnn Rimes filed a lawsuit against her father-manager, claiming that he had stolen $7 million of her earnings. The pair have since reconciled. |||||Summary:

– It sounds like something that might have happened on The OC: Mischa Barton is suing her mother, claiming the greedy "momager" withheld the actress's earnings, among other things. According to the Hollywood Reporter, Barton, 29, says mom Nuala Barton "had absolutely no experience or training" and simply "[posed] as a talent manager" in order to exploit and defraud her daughter. The lawsuit accuses Nuala of controlling Barton's earnings while only giving Barton an occasional "allowance," and even of lying about her earnings for one movie "so that she could pocket the difference—on top of her hefty management fee—all without Barton's knowledge." According to the Los Angeles Times, Barton's suit says she entered into a verbal contract with her mom when she was 8; her mom was to get 10% of her gross earnings. In 2006, when Barton was 20, she claims her mother convinced her to buy a $7.8 million home in Beverly Hills as an investment vehicle ... but that Nuala and Barton's dad now live in the home, where Barton is "not welcome." There are myriad additional accusations surrounding forged signatures, a handbag line, a fashion boutique, and endorsement contracts, along with allegations of "bullying and verbal abuse." As TMZ notes, the lawsuit gets decidedly personal: Barton says neither of her parents have had a job other than managing her for more than 10 years, and they both "sit back expecting their daughter's hard work and dedication to her craft to support their lifestyle." Nuala is, as you might expect, no longer Barton's talent manager. (Click to read about 10 more momagers and dadagers.)


Summarize this article:

Story highlights A star system caught extraterrestrial intelligence experts' attention in October after an unusual light pattern was observed

 After monitoring a space anomaly for two weeks, SETI says it has not detected radio signals

 NASA says the star was likely surrounded by comets

 (CNN) An anomaly in deep space that has been the focus of speculation and observation for weeks over possible extraterrestrial life may have just been solved.

 A research team from Iowa State University looked at data from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, and found that the strange dips in light, which were initially theorized to be possible structures, were likely a "swarm of comets."

 The system, KIC 8462852, had been under scrutiny since its unusual light fluctuation was discovered by users of the online astronomy crowdsourcing site Planet Hunters. The group uses publicly available data gathered by NASA's Kepler Telescope, which has been tasked with finding Earth-like planets by searching for the periodic dimming of stars that might suggest such a planet is passing by.

 But NASA says the Kepler Telescope only viewed the star in "visible light," and in this case, they searched by infrared light.

 "It's possible that a family of comets is traveling on a very long, eccentric orbit around the star," NASA said in a statement. "At the head of the pack would be a very large comet, which would have blocked the star's light."

 Read More ||||| A star called KIC 8462852 has been in the news recently for unexplained and bizarre behavior. NASA's Kepler mission had monitored the star for four years, observing two unusual incidents, in 2011 and 2013, when the star's light dimmed in dramatic, never-before-seen ways. Something had passed in front of the star and blocked its light, but what?

 Scientists first reported the findings in September, suggesting a family of comets as the most likely explanation. Other cited causes included fragments of planets and asteroids.

 A new study using data from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope addresses the mystery, finding more evidence for the scenario involving a swarm of comets. The study, led by Massimo Marengo of Iowa State University, Ames, is accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal Letters.

 One way to learn more about the star is to study it in infrared light. Kepler had observed it in visible light. If a planetary impact, or a collision amongst asteroids, were behind the mystery of KIC 8462852, then there should be an excess of infrared light around the star. Dusty, ground-up bits of rock would be at the right temperature to glow at infrared wavelengths.

 At first, researchers tried to look for infrared light using NASA's Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, and found none. But those observations were taken in 2010, before the strange events seen by Kepler -- and before any collisions would have kicked up dust.

 To search for infrared light that might have been generated after the oddball events, researchers turned to Spitzer, which, like WISE, also detects infrared light. Spitzer just happened to observe KIC 8462852 more recently in 2015.

 "Spitzer has observed all of the hundreds of thousands of stars where Kepler hunted for planets, in the hope of finding infrared emission from circumstellar dust," said Michael Werner, the Spitzer project scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, and the lead investigator of that particular Spitzer/Kepler observing program.

 But, like WISE, Spitzer did not find any significant excess of infrared light from warm dust. That makes theories of rocky smashups very unlikely, and favors the idea that cold comets are responsible. It's possible that a family of comets is traveling on a very long, eccentric orbit around the star. At the head of the pack would be a very large comet, which would have blocked the star's light in 2011, as noted by Kepler. Later, in 2013, the rest of the comet family, a band of varied fragments lagging behind, would have passed in front of the star and again blocked its light.

 By the time Spitzer observed the star in 2015, those comets would be farther away, having continued on their long journey around the star. They would not leave any infrared signatures that could be detected.

 According to Marengo, more observations are needed to help settle the case of KIC 8462852.

 "This is a very strange star," he said. "It reminds me of when we first discovered pulsars. They were emitting odd signals nobody had ever seen before, and the first one discovered was named LGM-1 after 'Little Green Men.'"

 In the end, the LGM-1 signals turned out to be a natural phenomenon.

 "We may not know yet what's going on around this star," Marengo observed. "But that's what makes it so interesting."

 Ames manages the Kepler and K2 missions for NASA's Science Mission Directorate. JPL managed Kepler mission development. Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. operates the flight system with support from the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado in Boulder.

 JPL manages the Spitzer Space Telescope mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Science operations are conducted at the Spitzer Science Center at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. Spacecraft operations are based at Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company, Littleton, Colorado. Data are archived at the Infrared Science Archive housed at the Infrared Processing and Analysis Center at Caltech.

 Caltech manages JPL for NASA.

 For more information about Kepler and Spitzer, respectively, visit:

 http://www.nasa.gov/kepler

 http://kepler.nasa.gov

 http://www.nasa.gov/spitzer

 http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu

 News Media Contact

 Whitney ClavinJet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California818-354-4673whitney.clavin@jpl.nasa.govMichele JohnsonAmes Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif.650-604-6982michele.johnson@nasa.gov2015-357 |||||

 The alien star probably has a band of eccentric comets. (NASA/JPL-Caltech)

 If you were still holding out hope for aliens hanging out around KIC 8462852, I've got some bad news for you. Researchers at Iowa State University think they've found an explanation for the star's weird behavior. Spoiler alert: It's not aliens.

 In October, scientists spotted a distant star that was blinking in an unusual fashion. Unlike most of the stars spotted by the Kepler telescope — which keeps an eye on fluctuations in light to help detect planets passing in front of distant suns — this one was dimming irregularly.

 [Why NASA’s top scientist is sure that we’ll find signs of alien life in the next decade]

 Experts pointed out that the star's light was winking in and out of view in a way that could presumably possibly be the result of some massive orbiting alien structure. The scientists didn't really think that our space telescopes had caught sight of an "alien megastructure," but there's no harm in hoping.

 Since then, the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) institute has turned its radio telescopes to the strange star — and they haven't heard any of the radio signals we'd expect from the goings-on of an intelligent civilization.

 [Scientists caught a new planet forming for the first time ever]

 A cluster of comets had been floated as one possible explanation. Now, in a study published in the Astrophysical Journal Letters, Massimo Marengo of Iowa State University (along with his doctoral student Alan Hulsebus and former student Sarah Willis, now a researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Lincoln Laboratory) suggests it's the most likely one.

 Marengo and Co.'s work didn't actually rule out an alien megastructure, but it did rule out other, more likely explanations — like massive planetary or asteroid collisions. Looking at the star in infrared light didn't reveal the hot dust one would expect from such violent activity. That makes the most likely (non-alien) explanation a set of cold comets — ones that have been orbiting the planet for a while, causing different levels of dimming based on their assorted sizes and transit periods.

 "This is a very strange star," Marengo said in a statement. "It reminds me of when we first discovered pulsars. They were emitting odd signals nobody had ever seen before, and the first one discovered was named LGM-1 after 'Little Green Men.'”

 Pulsars turned out to be very weird — but they weren't aliens, either.

 "We may not know yet what's going on around this star,” Marengo said. “But that's what makes it so interesting."

 Read More:

 The invincible tardigrade — already a weird animal — is full of DNA stolen from bacteria

 Apparently Earth is sprouting dark matter ‘hairs’

 Someone finally looked into the physics of chocolate fountains

 Scientists still can’t settle on what killed the dinosaurs

 Mars might get rings just like Saturn’s one day ||||| AMES, Iowa – Was it a catastrophic collision in the star’s asteroid belt? A giant impact that disrupted a nearby planet? A dusty cloud of rock and debris? A family of comets breaking apart? Or was it alien megastructures built to harvest the star’s energy?

 Just what caused the mysterious dimming of star KIC 8462852?

 Massimo Marengo, an Iowa State University associate professor of physics and astronomy, wondered when he saw all the buzz about the mysterious star found by citizen scientists on the Planet Hunters website.

 Those citizen scientists were highlighting measurements of star brightness recorded by NASA’s Kepler spacecraft. Tiny dips in a star’s brightness can indicate a planet is passing in front of the star. That’s how Kepler astronomers – and citizen scientists using the internet to help analyze the light curves of stars – are looking for planets.

 But this star had deep dips in brightness – up to 22 percent. The star’s brightness also changed irregularly, sometimes for days and even months at a time. A search of the 150,000-plus stars in Kepler’s database found nothing like this.

 So Marengo and two other astronomers decided to take a close look at the star using data taken with the Infrared Array Camera of NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope. They report their findings in a paper recently published online by The Astrophysical Journal Letters.

 Their conclusion?

 “The scenario in which the dimming in the KIC 8462852 light curve were caused by the destruction of a family of comets remains the preferred explanation …,” wrote the three – Marengo; Alan Hulsebus, an Iowa State doctoral student; and Sarah Willis, a former Iowa State graduate student now with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Lincoln Laboratory.

 Questions about the star were launched last month when a research team led by Tabetha Boyajian of Yale University reported on the star in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. The astronomers reported how citizen scientists tagged the star’s deep and irregular dips in brightness as “bizarre” and “interesting.”

 Boyajian and the other researchers looked at the data and investigated several possible causes. They wrote the “most promising theory” was a barrage of crumbling comets passing in front of the star.

 In a subsequent paper submitted to The Astrophysical Journal, Jason Wright and colleagues at Penn State University speculated about other causes, including alien megastructures built to harvest energy while orbiting the star.

 When the Iowa State astronomers studied the star with Spitzer infrared data from January 2015 – two years after the Kepler measurements – Marengo said they didn’t see much. If there had been some kind of catastrophe near the star, he said there would be a lot of dust and debris. And that would show up as extra infrared emissions.

 Marengo said the study looked at two different infrared wavelengths: the shorter was consistent with a typical star and the longer showed some infrared emissions, but not enough to reach a detection threshold. The astronomers concluded there were no excess infrared emissions and therefore no sign of an asteroid belt collision, a giant impact on a planet or a dusty cloud of rock and debris.

 So Marengo and his colleagues say the destruction of a family of comets near the star is the most likely explanation for the mysterious dimming. The comet fragments coming in rapidly at a steep, elliptical orbit could create a big debris cloud that could dim the star. Then the cloud would move off, restoring the star’s brightness and leaving no trace of excess infrared light.

 And the alien megastructure theory?

 “We didn’t look for that,” Marengo said. “We can’t really say it is, or is not. But what the star is doing is very strange. It’s interesting when you have phenomena like that – typically it means there’s some new physical explanation or a new concept to be discovered.” |||||

– KIC 8462852 is an odd and fascinating star, astronomers say—but it probably isn't host to an "alien megastructure," as some researchers suggested as a longshot possibility when the star and its highly unusual dimming pattern first came to attention. Instead, Iowa State University researchers who studied infrared light emitted by the star in the Cygnus constellation believe that the likeliest explanation is the "destruction of a family of comets," which caused dramatic changes in the light observed by the Kepler telescope as the fragments and debris cloud moved past the star in a long, elliptical orbit. The team didn't actually look for alien structures, but they were able to use the infrared data to rule out possibilities including a massive collision nearby, the Washington Post reports. The SETI Institute has also investigated the star, and found no trace of the radio signals that would suggest extraterrestrial technology was present, CNN reports. But even without aliens, nothing like what is happening around KIC 8462852 has ever been seen before and astronomers want to learn more. "This is a very strange star," lead researcher Massimo Marengo said in a NASA press release. "It reminds me of when we first discovered pulsars. They were emitting odd signals nobody had ever seen before, and the first one discovered was named LGM-1 after 'Little Green Men.'" "We may not know yet what's going on around this star," he added "But that's what makes it so interesting." (Closer to home, astronomers have discovered that Mars is destroying its own moon.)


Summarize this article:

In the midst of the chaos early Sunday morning at Pulse nightclub, the team at News 13 in downtown Orlando was covering the story when a producer took an ominous phone call.

 Overnight producer answered News 13 phone

 Caller claimed to be Pulse nightclub shooter

 Producer: 'I will never forget the words he said to me'

 "News 13, this is Matt," is how Matthew Gentili, a producer at News 13, answered the phone.

 Gentili knew something wasn't right.

 "I was receiving phone calls from viewers saying, 'What's going on? What's happening? What's happening in Orlando?" Gentili recalled Tuesday.

 Sharing with viewers the horror taking place just a few blocks down the street became Gentili's first priority — until a phone call made him pause.

 "I will never forget the words he said to me," Gentili said.

 About 45 minutes after the shooting began, the phone rang inside the News 13 newsroom.

 "It was at 2:45 a.m. when I had just received the phone call of someone claiming to be the Orlando shooter," he said. "I answered the phone as I always do: 'News 13, this is Matt.' And on the other end, I heard, 'Do you know about the shooting?' "

 Gentili said he was aware of the shooting. "Yes, I'm getting calls. I am hearing reports of a shooting," he replied to the caller, who then cut him off.

 "I'm the shooter. It's me. I am the shooter," the person on the other end said.

 Gentili said he didn't know what to say. The caller then started to say he committed the shooting for the Islamic State (militant group).

 "He did it for ISIS, and he started speaking Arabic," Gentili said of the early morning phone call. "At the time, I didn't know what he was saying. He was speaking so fast. But it was ... he was speaking fluently. Whatever language he was speaking, he knew it. And he was speaking it very quickly. And that is when I said to him, 'Sir. Please. Speak in English, please.'"

 Gentili said the caller stopped and said: "I did it for ISIS. I did it for the Islamic State."

 Gentili said he asked where the caller was, but the caller said it was "none of my (expletive) business."

 Sitting at his desk in the newsroom, Gentili said there was a long pause before he asked one final question.

 "It was silent for a while. I asked him: 'Is there anything else you want to say?' " Gentili said. "He said no and hung up the phone."

 Gentili sat and replayed in his head what had just happened. He heard nothing in the background.

 After completing a 12-hour shift, Gentili was interviewed at home by the FBI.

 Agents won't confirm whether Gentili spoke to the gunman, but News 13's managing editor was able to research the phone number from which the call came, and it matched to Omar Mateen.

 "I'm definitely changed," Gentili said. "When you get a phone call like that, I'm never going to be able to answer the phone again without thinking this is the most serious call I'll ever get in my life." ||||| As the chaos was unfolding in an Orlando nightclub Sunday morning, Omar Mateen reportedly placed a separate phone call to a local news station to try and tell the world what he had done.

 Matthew Gentili, a producer at News 13 in Orlando, was working the phones and receiving phone calls from people in the area asking about what had happened at Pulse Orlando, where 49 people – including the shooter – were massacred.

 Gentili said he received one phone call, which he later described as “the most serious call I’ll ever get in my life.”

 "It was at 2:45 a.m. when I had just received the phone call of someone claiming to be the Orlando shooter," he said in an interview with the station. "I answered the phone as I always do: 'News 13, this is Matt.' And on the other end, I heard, 'Do you know about the shooting?'"

 Gentili started to explain that he was aware of the shooting before the caller interrupted him.

 "I'm the shooter. It's me. I am the shooter," the person on the line said.

 The caller began to tell him that he committed the atrocity at the nightclub and that he was doing it for the Islamic State.

 "He did it for ISIS, and he started speaking Arabic," Gentili said. "At the time, I didn't know what he was saying. He was speaking so fast. But it was ... he was speaking fluently. Whatever language he was speaking, he knew it. And he was speaking it very quickly. And that is when I said to him, 'Sir. Please. Speak in English, please.'"

 The call then said that he was committing the murders for the Islamic State. When Gentili asked where the person was he replied, “none of my (expletive) business.”

 Gentili asked if he had any last words, and the caller said no and hung up the phone.

 The FBI interviewed Gentili after his 12-hour shift.

 The FBI didn’t confirm whether Gentili spoke with the shooter, but News 13 managed to research the number and it did match Mateen.

 Click for more from News 13. ||||| The Pulse nightclub gunman called the News 13 newsroom as the shooting was happening: https://t.co/MkeFGpyomZ pic.twitter.com/QLabUDSsv1 — Andrew O'Brien (@aobrien7) June 15, 2016

 As the deadliest mass shooting in American history unfolded in Orlando early Sunday morning, Matthew Gentili was staffing the phones less than two miles away.

 As Omar Mateen terrorized Pulse, a popular gay club, the phones at News 13 began to ring.

 Gentili, a producer at the television station — just a five-minute drive from Pulse on South Orange Avenue — spoke to one frightened Floridian after another.

 “I was receiving phone calls from viewers saying, ‘What’s going on? What’s happening?'” Gentili told a reporter at his own station Tuesday.

 When the phone rang once more at around 2:45 a.m., Gentili answered as he had all night: “News 13, this is Matt.”

 But this call was different.

 This call was chilling.

 “Do you know about the shooting?” a man asked Gentili.

 “Yes, I’m getting calls,” Gentili said. “I am hearing reports of a shooting. …”

 The man cut him off.

 “I’m the shooter. It’s me,” the man said. “I am the shooter.”

 The caller then said he had carried out the Pulse attack for the Islamic State and began speaking quickly in a foreign language.

 “At the time, I didn’t know what he was saying,” Gentili told News 13 reporter Scott Fais. “He was speaking so fast. But it was … he was speaking fluently. Whatever language he was speaking, he knew it. And he was speaking it very quickly. And that is when I said to him, ‘Sir. Please. Speak in English, please.'”

 “I did it for ISIS,” the caller said, according to Gentili, “I did it for the Islamic State.”

 When the TV producer asked the caller’s location, the man said it was “none of my [expletive] business,” Gentili said.

 “It was silent for a while,” Gentili said. “I asked him: ‘Is there anything else you want to say?'”

 The man said no and hung up.

 After the call, Gentili quickly plunged back into producing news about the mass shooting, in which Mateen killed 49 people and injured 53 more, according to authorities. When he finally did get off work, he was interviewed by the FBI about the phone conversation.

 The gunman who killed at least 49 people in a shooting rampage at an Orlando nightclub has been identified as 29-year-old Omar Mateen. Here is what we know about him so far. (Deirdra O'Regan/The Washington Post)

 FBI agents would not confirm whether it was the gunman on the phone with the producer, but the TV station’s managing editor matched the incoming phone number to Mateen, according to News 13.

 The timing and content of the phone call also appears to make sense.

 After opening fire within the club at around 2 a.m. Sunday morning, Mateen then called 911 for the first time at 2:30 a.m. but quickly hung up without saying anything, FBI Director James Comey said at a briefing Monday. Mateen then called back, spoke briefly with the 911 dispatcher and hung up again. The dispatcher called back, and they had a second brief conversation.

 “During the calls he said he was doing this for the leader of [the Islamic State] who he named and pledged loyalty to,” Comey said. He said the gunman also expressed solidarity with the perpetrators of the Boston Marathon bombing and with Moner Mohammad Abusalha, a Florida man who in 2014 became a suicide bomber in Syria.

 The phone call to News 13 came shortly after that second 911 conversation ended.

 Omar Mateen showed no signs of remorse in phone calls with police during an hours-long standoff at the Pulse nightclub, Orlando Police Chief John Mina said in an interview with The Washington Post on June 13. (Gillian Brockell,McKenna Ewen/The Washington Post)

 Roughly two hours later, Orlando police, worried by Mateen’s comments about explosives, decided to stage a rescue of the remaining club-goers. Police used an armored vehicle to ram the nightclub. As terrified hostages escaped from the hole in the building, so, too, did Mateen.

 He was armed with two guns and died in a hail of police gunfire.

 Two days later, Gentili said he was still haunted by the phone call.

 “I will never forget the words he said to me,” Gentili told News 13.

 “I’m definitely changed,” he also said Tuesday. “When you get a phone call like that, I’m never going to be able to answer the phone again without thinking this is the most serious call I’ll ever get in my life.”

 1 of 25 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad × What the investigation into the Orlando mass shooting looks like View Photos Officials are scouring the site and others in the area for information about the June 12 massacre. Caption Officials are scouring the site and others in the area for information about the June 12 massacre. June 15, 2016 Law enforcement officials gather outside Pulse nightclub in Orlando during the shooting investigation. David Goldman/AP Buy Photo Wait 1 second to continue.

 Read more about the Orlando mass shooting:

 ‘The guilt of being alive is heavy,’ survivor of nightclub shooting says

 Orlando shooter’s wife facing intense scrutiny from the FBI

 The lives lost in Orlando |||||

– Orlando shooter Omar Mateen not only called police during the massacre at Pulse nightclub but also, apparently, a TV station. News 13 producer Matthew Gentili says he was handling the phones just 2 miles from the club around 2:45am Sunday as viewers called in to ask about the shooting when he received a call that changed him, per Fox News. The caller asked if Gentili knew about the shooting, then announced, "I'm the shooter. It's me," Gentili says. The caller began speaking fluent Arabic until Gentili asked him to speak in English. "I will never forget the words he said to me," says Gentili. He said, "I did it for ISIS. I did it for the Islamic State." The caller refused to tell Gentili where he was. When Gentili asked if the man had anything more to say, he said no and hung up. Gentili was interviewed by the FBI, which didn't confirm the call came from Mateen, but News 13 says the number matched the shooter's phone. The timing also makes sense, per the Washington Post. The first shots rang out around 2am. Authorities say Mateen called 911 around 2:30am and eventually had two short conversations with a dispatcher. The call to News 13 would have followed. "I'm never going to be able to answer the phone again without thinking this is the most serious call I'll ever get in my life," Gentili says.


Write an article based on this summary:

– Sheriff's deputies shot and killed a 6-year-old boy Thursday in Texas, WOAI reports. Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar says four deputies opened fire on 30-year-old Amanda Jones, a suspected car thief, after they "cornered" her outside a mobile home occupied by Kameron Prescott and his family in the town of Schertz. One of the bullets went through the mobile home and hit Kameron in the abdomen. According to CNN, Salazar says deputies performed first aid on the boy, but he was pronounced dead at the hospital. Jones was also killed. "The deputies are, of course, understandably shaken up," Salazar says. He says the shooting is under investigation, but in his opinion the boy's death is "a tragic accident." Salazar says one deputy is "adamant" he saw Jones with a gun and that she threatened to shoot him. He says Jones threatened both police and Kameron's family, who didn't know her, just before deputies opened fire. But investigators haven't been able to locate a gun despite the use of a helicopter and dive team. Salazar says they have found a pipe with Jones' blood on it near the scene of the shooting. One deputy at the scene was wearing a body camera, but he blocked it with his rifle during the shooting. Meanwhile, Kameron is being remembered by those who knew him. "Kameron was a ball of energy, happy, smart, and could strike up a conversation with anyone,” school counselor Maria Morales tells KSAT. “He also had a great sense of humor and caring heart."

SCHERTZ, Texas - The Bexar County Sheriff says it appears a deadly deputy-involved shooting that claimed the lives of a suspect and a 6-year-old boy was a "tragic accident."

 Six-year-old Kameron Prescott was killed when deputies opened fire on a woman at a mobile home park following a nearly two-hour manhunt. Authorities say the woman was a wanted felon and car-theft suspect.

 During a news conference Thursday, Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar said authorities were looking for a female suspect in the area of Farm to Market 1518 and Schaefer Road after a vehicle was reported stolen just before 11 a.m. The suspect has been identified as 30-year-old Amanda Lene Jones. Officials said John Aguillon (27 service years), George Herrera (16 years), Jesse Arias (seven years) and reserve deputy Johnny Longoria (two years) were involved in the shooting.

 Salazar stated one of the deputies found the suspect in a closet who allegedly told him,"I have a weapon, I'm gonna shoot you." She fled on foot, while the officer pursued her into a wooded area. Salazar said the deputy lost sight of her, so the deputy called for backup. The suspect was found crossing a river, and officers pursued her in "water that was up to their chin."

 She was threatening harm to several witnesses, leading them to believe she was armed, Salazar said. Deputies later found the female suspect on a porch, after she had broken into a house. She has several felony warrants in her name, Salazar said.

 Salazar said the deputies fired at and killed the woman at the scene because she placed them "in direct fear of their lives." One of the rounds also went into the house, striking Kameron Prescott in the abdomen.

 Salazar held a news conference Friday afternoon, providing a chronological breakdown of the events which led up to the shooting and showing a map of the route taken while deputies pursued the suspect into the mobile home park. Salazar said witnesses at the mobile home park also reported seeing the suspect holding an object that may have been a weapon.

 Salazar said investigators learned the suspect had physically forced her way inside a home where an adult, a minor female, and 6-year-old Kameron Prescott were staying and made threats, including threatening to take the family's car.

 WATCH: Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar holds a news conference Friday afternoon to provide an update on the investigation.

 He stated that at some point, the suspect stepped out onto the porch of the home, where she was confronted by five deputies. Salazar said she again threatened to shoot the deputies, which he said was confirmed by the family inside the home. He said the deputies saw her holding something in her hand which they believed was a weapon.

 Salazar said investigators later found a dark "tubular" object with blood on it below the desk of the home and stated it's likely that she had the object in her hand before the shooting. He said four deputies fired shots. A fifth officer at the scene, a K9 officer, did not fire a weapon.

 Officials are still searching for a handgun, which they believe may be in a wooded area. He said they have two types of video, helicopter and body cam, but added that the helicopter did not capture the moment the suspect was pointing the object at the deputies. He said the body cam on one of the deputies captured good audio of the incident but because the officer is left-handed and the body cam was on his left shoulder, his firing arm was covering most of the camera.

 Salazar said the video also shows deputies administering first aid to Prescott right after the shooting.

  ||||| (CNN) Hours after Kameron Prescott's Christmas party at his Texas school, the 6-year-old boy was fatally shot when deputies opened fire on a suspected car thief, the local sheriff said.

 Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar called Kameron's death Thursday a "tragic accident." No weapon was found after four deputies fired, also killing the suspect, Amanda Lene Jones, 30, whom they believed was armed, Salazar said.

 A bullet pierced the wall of the mobile home where Kameron lived and lodged in his abdomen, Salazar told reporters.

 Deputies discovered the wounded boy inside the home, carried him out and administered first aid, Salazar said. He was pronounced dead at a hospital.

 "The deputies are, of course, understandably shaken up," the sheriff said. "Officer-involved shootings are traumatic enough. Add to this the death of an innocent 6-year-old, and it's that much more troubling."

 A dark-colored pipe with Jones' blood on it was found near her body, Salazar said. The deputies, as well as witnesses who encountered the woman that day, said she threatened to shoot them. Investigators were still searching for a weapon.

 The killing stunned the small community near San Antonio. First-grade teacher Shanda Ince told CNN affiliate KSAT she couldn't help but wonder how the tragedy might have been averted.

 "All I can think about right now is what could I have done differently," she said, "had it not been a half day."

 'A tragic accident'

 The deputies who opened fire --- identified as John Aguillon, George Herrera, Jesse Arias and Johnny Longoria, a reservist -- have been placed on administrative leave, the sheriff's office said. The local district attorney is investigating.

 "Preliminarily, I can tell you it appears as if policies were complied with," Salazar said of the shooting. "Right now, what I'm dealing with is a tragic accident that led to the death of this young man."

 Parts of the shooting were captured by a body camera worn by one deputy, Salazar said. But the view was obstructed when the deputy raised his rifle to fire.

 "I'll be honest with you," Salazar said, "it's pretty heartbreaking video for us to see."

 'Kameron was a ball of energy'

 Maria Morales, a counselor at Wiederstein Elementary School, described the slain boy as a kind soul.

 "Kameron was a ball of energy, happy, smart and could strike up a conversation with anyone," she said. "He also had a great sense of humor and caring heart. He'll be truly missed."

 Ince called Kameron "the kindest-hearted little boy that I have ever had the pleasure of teaching."

 "He loved to make everyone laugh," she said in a statement. "He will be missed by all of his classmates and everyone at Wiederstein."

 Suspect described as 'desperate, maybe on drugs'

 The incident began Thursday morning when a deputy responding to a report of a stolen vehicle spotted Jones with what he thought was a weapon, Salazar said.

 Jones, on several occasions, "physically threatened him with that weapon and verbalized to him that she intended to shoot him with that weapon," the sheriff said.

 The suspect managed to get away, and deputies did not see her again until a couple of hours later, when she turned up at the mobile home park where Kameron lived, Salazar said.

 She forced her way into Kameron's home, threatened to shoot members of his family and said she was taking their vehicle, the sheriff said, adding that Jones had no apparent ties to the boy or his relatives.

 When Jones left the home, the deputies were outside, waiting. Salazar said witnesses heard the woman threaten to shoot the law enforcement officers.

 "Those deputies all report in their statements that she was holding an object in her hand they believed it to be a weapon at the time," Salazar said.

 'He loved everybody'

 Jones' criminal history included at least 13 arrests on charges ranging from drug possession to burglary, KSAT reported.

 Rhonda Campbell, who also lives in the Pecan Grove Mobile Home Park, told KSAT that Jones' had kicked in her door that morning. She described Jones as "desperate, maybe on drugs."

 "She was standing right here, demanding my car keys," Campbell told the station. "Well, it took me almost 30 years to get my dream car. She wasn't about to get it."

 Ince, Kameron's teacher, said she wondered what she could have done differently that morning.

 "Kameron had the biggest heart of any boy I have ever come across," she told KSAT. "He cared about everybody. He loved everybody. Not one day would go by where he would not hug me and tell me he loved me before he left." ||||| SCHERTZ, Texas - Wiederstein Elementary School in the Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City Independent School District is mourning a first-grader who was killed in a deputy-involved shooting.

 Kameron Prescott was killed Thursday by what appeared to be a stray bullet at his family's home, at the Pecan Grove Mobile Home Park on FM 78.

 According to Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar, four deputies fired shots outside the home when a woman who they believed was armed with a gun appeared to be reaching for the weapon.

 The school district's website on Friday reported Kameron's death.

 "Kameron was the kindest-hearted little boy that I have ever had the pleasure of teaching," said Shanda Ince, Kameron’s first-grade teacher. “He loved to make everyone laugh. He will be missed by all of his classmates and everyone at Wiederstein.”

 School counselor Maria Morales said Kameron was "a kind soul."

 “Kameron was a ball of energy, happy, smart and could strike up a conversation with anyone,” she said. “He also had a great sense of humor and caring heart. He’ll be truly missed by his classmates, teachers and the Wiederstein staff.”

 "The Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City Independent School District extends its deepest condolences to Kameron’s family, friends, teachers and classmates. We pause to give thanks for his life that ended all too soon, and may we find ways to honor his memory," the article read.

 The district said that a fund has been established to assist Kameron’s family with expenses.

 Monetary donations can be made at the two Schertz Bank & Trust branches in Schertz, or by mail to:

 Kameron Prescott Memorial Fund

 c/o Schertz Bank & Trust

 P.O. Box 800

 Schertz, Texas 78154

 Copyright 2017 by KSAT - All rights reserved. |||||


Here is a news article: Ardent Donald Trump supporter, Scott Baio, was allegedly physically attacked by the wife of a Red Hot Chili Peppers band member for supporting the president-elect. The actor filed a police report claiming Nancy Mack, who is married to Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer, Chad Smith, went off on him for supporting Trump at a function with their elementary school kids, TMZ reports.

 Scott Baio Claims Physical Attack by Chili Pepper’s Wife Over Trump https://t.co/qEzmWyX5NN — TMZ (@TMZ) December 15, 2016

 Authorities say Scott Baio was at an event with his daughter on Saturday in Thousand Oaks, California, when Mack confronted him and allegedly began chiding and cursing him. Mack’s husband has been vocal about being anti-Donald Trump, citing him as a racist. Baio is one of Trump’s strongest celebrity supporters in Hollywood.

 According to the report, Scott Baio told police that he asked Nancy Mack to keep it down because kids were present, but she didn’t back down. The wife of the Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer demanded to know how he could support a man who said, “Grab ’em by the pu**y.”

 Baio says she repeatedly screamed, “Grab ’em by the pu**y.”

 Scott asked Nancy to stop, but she continued screaming the comment. He said at that point, Mack began attacked him physically by grabbing him under his arms, shaking, and pushing him.

 Sources close to Nancy Mack claim she was mimicking how Donald Trump hugs women and meant no actual harm against Scott Baio.

 The Ventura County Sheriff’s Department is reportedly investigating the incident. Mack is listed as a battery suspect.

 Scott Baio has taken a lot of heat for being a Donald Trump supporter, but he’s dished a lot of it back to critics. Throughout the campaign, people were on Twitter issuing threats and he was one of the rare celebrities who voiced his support for the Republican president-elect. He spoke at the 2016 Republican National Convention, saying in his speech that Hillary Clinton wanted the presidency only for herself, not for the American people.

 ‘Let’s not just make America great again Let’s make America.. America again’~ Scott Baio pic.twitter.com/CHa0yMkB7L — Tennessee GOP (@TEN_GOP) December 10, 2016

 Chad Smith, on the other hand, has ripped into anyone supporting the president-elect. An interview he gave to Virgin Radio was transcribed by Alternative Nation, in which he called Trump supporters “uneducated whites” who vote for a “sexual predator.”

 “The people in America are white, uneducated, and they’re sick of Washington politics, and they think in their uneducated minds that any change is better than continuing with the same kind of politicians we have,” Smith said.

 When Smith referenced the comments Trump made about feeling entitled to grab women by the genitals because of his fame, he said Trump could kill someone and his supporters would still vote for him.

 “What’s scariest about it is that people who support him don’t care,” continued the Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer. “He could probably come out in the next month and say he murdered somebody, and they’d still vote for him. It’s insane, it’s insanity. It’s disgusting, it’s a bummer.”

 To most everyone’s surprise, Donald Trump won the U.S. presidency on November 8. A number of celebrities claimed they’d leave the country if Trump won, but are staying put. Among those who vowed to move if Trump won were Chelsea Handler, Rosie O’Donnell, Amy Schumer, Cher, Jon Stewart, and Bryan Cranston.

 Scott Baio is accustomed to dealing with anti-Trump protesters, but this the first time someone has gotten physical with him over his support of the president-elect. More celebrities in Hollywood align themselves with the political views of the Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer and his wife.

 [Featured Image by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images] ||||| When half the entertainment industry lives in the same city, you're bound to hear about odd and occasionally antagonistic celebrity combinations from time to time. Today's example: Nancy Mack, wife of Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith , is being accused of physically assaulting actor Scott Baio .

 Their alleged confrontation, per TMZ , took place at an event hosted by the elementary school attended by children of both families. According to Baio, it stemmed from a political disagreement rooted in his outspoken support of Donald Trump's presidential campaign.

 Mack, who's been equally public in her disdain for Trump, is accused of confronting Baio at the function by "berating and cursing" him, specifically by referencing the archival recording that made headlines during the election after it surfaced and revealed Trump discussing the many ways in which women make themselves available to male celebrities. Baio reportedly claims he asked Mack to calm down in the interest of the children present; TMZ 's sources say she was "undeterred," and continued to loudly repeat Trump's taped claim that he could "grab" women "by the p----."

 Baio apparently told police the argument turned physical when Mack grabbed, shook, and pushed him — an accusation Mack has reportedly refuted by saying "she was merely trying to show Baio how Trump hugs women."

 The Ventura County Sheriff's Department is said to be investigating the incident and eyeing Mack as a battery suspect. While both parties are known for their active social media presences, neither Baio nor Mack have commented publicly as of this writing. |||||
A summary of this is?

– It sounds like a bunch of random words strung together, but it's a real news article: Scott Baio claims that during an elementary school function in Thousand Oaks, Calif., Saturday, the wife of the Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer started cussing him out and then physically attacked him. Baio, aka Charles in Charge and/or Chachi, filed a police report over the incident, and the Ventura County Sheriff's Department is investigating, TMZ reports. Baio is a Donald Trump supporter; Nancy Mack is not, and she allegedly wanted to know how Baio could vote for someone who would talk about grabbing women "by the pussy." Baio says he asked her to stop screaming because kids, including his daughter and a child or children of Mack's, were around, but she kept doing so, using curse words and repeating the above-mentioned "pussy" comment. He says she then grabbed him underneath his arms, shook him, and pushed him. But sources close to Mack say any such movements were simply an attempt to illustrate, for Baio's education, how Trump hugs women. The Inquisitr notes that Mack's husband, Chad Smith, has publicly denounced Trump, saying his backers are "uneducated whites" who voted a "sexual predator" into office.


Summarize this article:

President Obama today issued a new Executive Order (E.O.) under the national emergency with respect to Ukraine that finds that the actions and policies of the Russian government with respect to Ukraine -– including through the deployment of Russian military forces in the Crimea region of Ukraine –- undermine democratic processes and institutions in Ukraine; threaten its peace, security, stability, sovereignty, and territorial integrity; and contribute to the misappropriation of its assets.

 This new authority expands upon E.O. 13660, which the President signed less than two weeks ago, by authorizing the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, to impose sanctions on named officials of the Russian government, any individual or entity that operates in the Russian arms industry, and any designated individual or entity that acts on behalf of, or that provides material or other support to, any senior Russian government official. We have fashioned these sanctions to impose costs on named individuals who wield influence in the Russian government and those responsible for the deteriorating situation in Ukraine. We stand ready to use these authorities in a direct and targeted fashion as events warrant.

 In response to the Russian government’s actions contributing to the crisis in Ukraine, this new E.O. lists seven Russian government officials who are being designated for sanctions. These individuals are Vladislav Surkov, Sergey Glazyev, Leonid Slutsky, Andrei Klishas, Valentina Matviyenko, Dmitry Rogozin, and Yelena Mizulina.

 The United States also will seek to hold accountable individuals who use their resources or influence to support or act on behalf of senior Russian government officials. We recognize that the Russian leadership derives significant support from, and takes action through, individuals who do not themselves serve in any official capacity. Our current focus is to identify these individuals and target their personal assets, but not companies that they may manage on behalf of the Russian state.

 In addition to the new E.O., the Treasury Department today has imposed sanctions on four other individuals under E.O. 13660, issued on March 6, for their actions or policies that threaten the peace, security, stability, sovereignty, or territorial integrity of Ukraine and in undermining the Government of Ukraine. They are Crimea-based separatist leaders Sergey Aksyonov and Vladimir Konstantinov; former Ukrainian presidential chief of staff Viktor Medvedchuk; and former President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych.

 Today’s actions send a strong message to the Russian government that there are consequences for their actions that violate the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, including their actions supporting the illegal referendum for Crimean separation. The United States, together with international partners, will continue to stand by the Ukrainian government to ensure that costs are imposed on Crimean separatists and their Russian backers. Today’s actions also serve as notice to Russia that unless it abides by its international obligations and returns its military forces to their original bases and respects Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, the United States is prepared to take additional steps to impose further political and economic costs. ||||| WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama says new U.S. sanctions imposed on Russian officials make it clear "that there are consequences for their actions" in Crimea and he's warning that the U.S. stands ready to impose further sanctions if necessary.

 The president stressed that the government has the authority to go after officials in the Russian arms sector and those who support Russian cronies if the government doesn't pursue a diplomatic solution to the crisis in Ukraine.

 Obama on Monday froze the U.S. assets of seven Russian officials for their support of Crimea's vote to secede from Ukraine in the most comprehensive sanctions against Russia since the end of the Cold War. The Treasury Department also is imposing sanctions on four Ukrainians involved in the separatist effort. ||||| CLOSE President Obama announced sanctions against several high-level Russian officials following Crimea's referendum to split from Ukraine. VPC

 Pro-Russian Crimeans wave Russian flags as they gather to celebrate in Simferopol's Lenin Square on March 16, 2014 after exit polls showed that about 93 percent of voters in Ukraine's Crimea region supported union with Russia. Crimeans voted overwhelmingly to join former political master Russia as tensions soared in the east of the splintered ex-Soviet nation amid the worst East-West crisis since the Cold War. (Photo: DIMITAR DILKOFF AFP/Getty Images)

 WASHINGTON — President Obama announced Monday that he is leveling new sanctions against seven Russian officials the White House says have contributed to the crisis in Ukraine.

 Obama announced the sanctions one day after the Crimean region of Ukraine voted overwhelmingly to join Russia in a referendum that the U.S. and western allies vowed not to recognize.

 In comments at the White House to formally announce the sanctions, Obama said he believes there is still a diplomatic solution to end the crisis. At the same time, he warned that if Russia continues to interfere with Ukraine's sovereignty he stands ready to push for even tougher sanctions.

 "We are imposing sanctions on specific individuals for undermining the sovereignty, territorial integrity and government of Ukraine," Obama said."We are making it clear that there are consequences for their actions."

 The high-level government officials named by the White House are: Vladislav Surkov, Sergey Glazyev, Leonid Slutsky, Andrei Klishas, Valentina Matviyenko, Dmitry Rogozin, and Yelena Mizulina.

 Surkov and Glazyev are presidential advisers to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The five others hold various positions in the Russian parliament and Russian government.

 The punitive measure -- which will almost certainly heighten tensions between U.S. and Russia -- does not target Putin directly.

 The sanctions focus on the individual personal assets, but not companies that the officials may manage on behalf of the Russian state. Any assets that the individuals have in U.S. jurisdiction have been frozen and Americans are prohibited from doing business with them.

 In addition, the Treasury Department announced it is imposing sanctions against former Ukraine President Viktor Yanukovych, former Ukrainian presidential chief of staff Viktor Medvedchuk as well as Crimea-based separatist leaders Sergey Aksyonov and Vladimir Konstantinov. Those officials were being targeted under an executive order that Obama signed earlier this month.

 "The United States also will seek to hold accountable individuals who use their resources or influence to support or act on behalf of senior Russian government officials," the White House said in a statement. "We recognize that the Russian leadership derives significant support from, and takes action through, individuals who do not themselves serve in any official capacity.

 Republican lawmakers offered a mix reaction to Obama's announcement.

 "Putin has engineered this confrontation," said Rep. Ed Royce, R-Calif., chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. We should show him and his accomplices that they will pay a heavy price if they don't respect Ukraine's sovereignty. The stronger card that needs to be played is breaking Putin's energy grip on Ukraine and eastern Europe."

 Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., who has criticized Obama's handling of the Ukraine crisis, took to Twitter to slam Obama again.

 "Incredibly Pres Obama's stmt didn't mention military assistance to #Ukraine, a sovereign nation that's been invaded by #Russia," McCain wrote.

 The White House announcement came after the European Union announced on Monday travel bans and asset freezes on 21 people for their involvement in the Ukraine crisis. The EU is not expected to announce the individuals who are being cited until Tuesday, but Obama administration officials believe there is some overlap in the U.S. and EU lists.

 Crimeans voted overwhelmingly to secede from Ukraine and join Russia during Sunday's hastily arranged referendum.

 Putin is expected to speak on the Crimea situation in a special address to the Russian parliament on Tuesday.

 Obama spoke by phone on Sunday with Putin and reiterated that the United States would not accept the results of the referendum. He again called on Putin to support a diplomatic solution to the crisis, while underscoring that one cannot be reached if Russian troops continue to be deployed in Crimea.

 Vice President Biden will visit Poland and Lithuania next week, where he is to huddle with leaders in the region on the Ukraine crisis. Obama will travel to the Netherlands next week to take part in the biennial Nuclear Security Summit, but the situation in Ukraine will be the main focus on the sidelines of the summit.

 "If Russia continues to interfere in Ukraine, we stand ready to impose further sanctions," Obama said.

 White House spokesman Jay Carney declined to say what further steps would be taken if Russia refuses to change course, or whether Obama was considering targeting Putin directly.

 Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1iUT3g1 |||||

– The White House has responded to Crimea's secession vote by expanding its sanctions to target several Russian officials, people providing "material support" to them, and players in the arms industry, President Obama announced today. In brief remarks, Obama characterized yesterday's referendum as illegal, and said the sanctions would show "that there are consequences for their actions," according to the AP. "I believe there's still a path to resolve this situation diplomatically," Obama said. But "we're going to stand firm in our unwavering support for Ukraine." The White House named seven specific Russian officials that administration sources described as "key ideologists" and "architects" of Russia's invasion, USA Today reports, along with several other individuals, including the prime minister of Crimea and speaker of the Crimean parliament. Moscow, meanwhile, indicated that it would annex Crimea in short order, the Wall Street Journal reports. "We will take care of our part quickly, quickly and responsibly," the speaker of the Duma said. Vladimir Putin will address Russia's parliament on the matter tomorrow.


Article:

CLOSE Some northern parts of the country might see ripples of color in the sky for a few days. Video provided by Newsy Newslook

 The Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights illuminate the night sky on August 23, 2016, in Sweden. The sky spectacle could pay a visit to the U.S. on Sunday night, July 16, 2017. (Photo: JONATHAN NACKSTRAND, AFP/Getty Images)

 Thanks to a geomagnetic storm from the sun, skywatchers across most of Canada and the northern U.S. should get a special treat Sunday night into Monday morning: A visit from the aurora borealis, aka the Northern Lights.

 The sky spectacle should be visible in states such as Montana, the Dakotas, Minnesota, Wisconsin, northern Illinois, Michigan, northern New York State and much of New England, according to NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center.

 Folks in cities such as Minneapolis, Chicago, Detroit, Buffalo, Syracuse, Albany and Boston all have a fair chance of seeing the aurora.

 Area of solar activity (sunspots) we posted on earlier this week emitted a strong solar flare last night. Minor radio impacts Asia/Pacific. pic.twitter.com/H3QwGArCHw — NWS Eastern Region (@NWSEastern) July 14, 2017

 The event is courtesy of a solar flare, which erupted out of a sunspot late Thursday into early Friday. The flare blasted out X-rays, which caused a minor radio blackout over parts of Asia, the Weather Network reported.

 The flare also released a wave of charged particles, known as a coronal mass ejection, which take a couple of days to reach Earth.

 Charged particles (coronal mass ejection) from the solar flare will reach the earth Sun. Auroras possible Sun night New England-Great Lakes pic.twitter.com/Nq03C2gFN8 — NWS Eastern Region (@NWSEastern) July 14, 2017

 The aurora forms when those particles flowing from the sun get caught up in the Earth's magnetic field. The particles interact with molecules of atmospheric gases to cause the famed glowing red and green colors of the aurora.

 The lights are visible in both the far northern and southern parts of the world. The southern lights are known as aurora australis.

 NOAA has issued a geomagnetic storm watch for the event and expects a "moderate" storm, a 2 out of 5 on its severity scale.

 Sunday night, the aurora borealis should be visible almost as far south as the yellow line on this map. (Photo: NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center)

 Read or Share this story: https://usat.ly/2v10lqK ||||| OUT OF THIS WORLD | What's Up In Space - a weekly look at the biggest news coming down to Earth from space

 Bright solar flare brings promise of auroras across Canada

 Find Your Forecast Search for a location

 Scott Sutherland

 Meteorologist/Science Writer

 Sunday, July 16, 2017, 2:16 PM - A bright solar flare has exploded on the Sun, throwing out an immense cloud of solar particles into space. With part of this cloud having reached us Sunday morning, aurora watchers are anticipating a great show on Sunday night!

 This story has been updated.

 The Sun has continued its quiet progress towards solar minimum - the point in its 11 year cycle where it exhibits the lowest levels of sunspot activity - but on the way there, it can still produce a few surprises.

 On Thursday night (early Friday morning, UTC), the larger of two sunspots currently visible on the Earthward side of the Sun blasted out a bright M2-class solar flare.

 Three views of sunspot AR2665, from around 5:00 UTC Friday, July 14, 2017, during the peak of the solar flare. The top frame shows the sunspot itself, while the bottom frames show off the coronal loops surrounding the sunspot (in gold, on the left) and the intense release of energy (in green, on the right). Credit: NASA/SDO/Scott Sutherland

 At the same time as the solar flare was blasting out X-rays, which caused a minor radio blackout over parts of Asia, it also released a massive cloud of solar particles - what's known as a coronal mass ejection.

 This coronal mass ejection is mostly aimed ahead of Earth's orbital path, and thus the vast majority of it will miss us. As the cloud expands out into space, however, one end of it is projected to sweep past Earth.

 Even as this swath of solar particles washes past us, much of it will simply be diverted around the planet, due to the protective effects of Earth's magnetic field. A significant portion of them, though, will become snagged within the field lines, and then funneled down into the upper atmosphere near the planet's poles, to produce bright auroras.

 RELATED: What is Light Pollution and how does it affect Canadians?

 Currently, NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center is reporting that the Earth-directed portion of the coronal mass ejection arrived earlier than expected. By their observations, we were already seeing G2 (moderate) geomagnetic storm levels as of mid-morning Sunday, and these are expected to persist throughout the afternoon.

 This evening, storm levels are predicted to diminish slightly - to G1 (minor) geomagnetic storm levels - and then jump back up to G2 storm strength between 8 p.m. to 2 a.m. EDT. Afterwards, activity is expected to ramp down to sub-storm levels by Monday morning.

 Based on all of this activity, auroras are expected to stretch down over most of Canada and the northern United States tonight, and likely visible as far south as between the Kp=5 (green) and Kp=7 (yellow) lines on the map below.

 There is also a chance, during all of this G2 geomagnetic storm activity, that levels could briefly jump as high as G3 (strong), which would push visibility down over the Kp=7 line.

 Remember that it takes reasonably clear and dark skies to see the auroras, far from the light pollution cast by urban environments. Auroras are also notorious for being random and flighty. Sometimes they can appear faint, only to be seen with long-exposure photography, while other times they can be bright and vibrant to the naked eye, and they can appear and disappear quite suddenly.

 If you plan on getting out to watch, choose your location carefully and be safe. In most regions of the country, simply getting outside of your local community is typically good enough. For those living in southwestern Ontario and the GTA, areas north of Stratford, Guelph and Orangeville tend to be good for viewing, as are those areas to the east of Lake Simcoe and north of Peterborough (the shores of Georgian Bay usually provide excellent viewing!).

 Provincial parks are an excellent resource for skywatching, even if you have to stick to the parking lot at night.

 As always with these events, give your eyes some time to adjust to the dark - 30-40 minutes typically - or you will likely miss out on it. Avoid all bright sources of light - streetlights, car headlights, cellphone screens & camera flashes, etc - during that time, then look up and to the north to potentially see the auroras.

 Sources: NOAA | spaceweather.com | teaser image courtesy Team Tanner

 Watch Below: Theresa and Darlene Tanner relate their experiences with the Northern Lights and how they take such amazing photographs

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What is a summary?

– Look up into the skies Sunday night and you might just get to see the aurora borealis, otherwise known as the Northern Lights. Scientists at the NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center say that aurora lights, which are usually only seen in the extreme north and south of the globe, should be visible over much of Canada and the northern United States late Sunday and early Monday, USA Today reports. That includes northern New York state, much of New England, Illinois, Wisconsin, and the Dakotas. The Weather Network, which has a map showing viewing areas, reports that the event was caused by a solar flare that exploded on the sun Thursday night. That flare released a cloud of solar particles, a process known as a coronal mass ejection. When those particles reach the Earth's atmosphere, they interact with atmospheric gases, creating the famed colors of the aurora. At the same time the flare was releasing that cloud of particles, it also emitted X-rays that caused a small radio blackout in Asia. At about 10am Eastern Standard Time Sunday, the National Weather Service announced on Twitter that "Geomagnetic storm conditions" had begun. According to its latest forecast, the best viewing will come between sunset and 2am, "clouds permitting."


Article:
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. - Country music legend, and Oildale native, Merle Haggard has passed away on his birthday. He was 79 years old.

 A life-long friend of Haggard confirmed the news to 23ABC and added that country music icon passed away Wednesday morning at his home just after 9 am, surrounded by family.

 OBIT: Country legend Merle Haggard dies at 79 of pneumonia

 Haggard's manager, Frank Mull, told the Associated Press that the country icon died in Palo Cedro, California, of pneumonia.

 Ben Haggard, Merle's son posted a statement shortly after his death.

 A week ago dad told us he was gonna pass on his birthday, and he wasn't wrong. A hour ago he took his last breath... Posted by Ben Haggard on Wednesday, April 6, 2016

 Social media reacts to the death of Merle Haggard:

 Haggard was hospitalized for a second time recently for double pneumonia, and had to cancel his most recent tour with Willie Nelson.

 The singer-songwriter was one of the pioneers of the Bakersfield sound.

 Haggard was also involved in the Outlaw Country movement.

 23ABC's last interview with Haggard was back in July 2015, when the historic boxcar that was on his family's property in Oildale was moved to the Kern County Museum to be restored.

 RELATED:

 In addition to 40 #1 hits, Haggard won just about every music award.

 Last month, Haggard's hit "Mama Tried" was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry.

 Haggard was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1994, he is in the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame. ||||| Merle Haggard Dead On 79th Birthday

 Merle Haggard Dies On 79th Birthday

 Exclusive Details

 Country music legend Merle Haggard has died after battling double pneumonia ... according to his manager.

 Haggard was diagnosed with pneumonia last year and spent 11 days at the Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage early this year. He died at home near Redding, CA on Wednesday morning.

 He'd been battling back from the illness and even scheduled a string of concert dates with his pal Willie Nelson. They released an album, "Django and Jimmie" last year.

 But last week Haggard canceled his shows for the month of April due to his continuing efforts to recover. His manager tells us Merle was weary from battling pneumonia for so long ... and had even predicted to friends he would die on his birthday.

 He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1994.

 Merle turned 79 today.

 11:00 AM PT -- Willie Nelson tells TMZ, "He was my brother, my friend. I will miss him." |||||Summary:

– The music world has lost an icon: Merle Haggard died Wednesday on his 79th birthday, reports TMZ. He'd been fighting double pneumonia since last year. Haggard was elected into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1994, and as ABC23 notes, he "won just about every music award" over a career that gave him 40 No. 1 hits. Perhaps his biggest, "Mama Tried" from 1968, was added to the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry earlier this year. Haggard was a big part of the "outlaw" country movement with the likes of Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, and Waylon Jennings. The Tennessean has a full tribute to the "working man's poet."