Colorado
Police: Dentist killed wife by lacing shakes with poison
DENVER (AP) — Police believe a Colorado dentist laced his wife’s pre-workout protein shakes with arsenic and cyanide, eventually killing his spouse so he could be with a woman he was having an affair with, according to court documents.
James Craig, 45, was arrested on suspicion of first-degree murder Sunday, shortly after his wife died after being taken off life support during her third trip to the hospital this month. According to court records, he is being represented by the public defender’s office, which does not comment on cases.
Craig is scheduled to appear in court Thursday to learn whether prosecutors have decided to file charges against him.
As Angela Craig languished in the hospital, with doctors unable to figure out what was wrong with her, police in the Denver suburb of Aurora allege her husband was meeting with a fellow dentist who flew in for visits with him. Police began investigating Craig after his dental practice partner and friend, Ryan Redfearn, told a nurse that Craig had ordered potassium cyanide even though they did not need it for their work, according to an arrest warrant laying out evidence gathered by investigators.
After allegedly Googling questions like, “Is Arsenic Detectable in Autopsy?” investigators believe Craig put arsenic in one of the protein shakes he routinely made for his wife for their workouts on March 6 and then, after she survived, he ordered a rush shipment of potassium cyanide that he told the supplier was needed for a surgery. Craig had asked an office manager not to open that package but another employee did, leading to its discovery and eventual disclosure to authorities, the document said.
The delivery of a third substance he is accused of ordering, Oleandrin, was intercepted by authorities after they began investigating him, the document said. Oleandrin is a poisonous substance found in leaves of the oleander plant.
Craig told Redfearn that he ordered the potassium cyanide for his wife and told a social worker that she had been suicidal and depressed since he asked for a divorce in December even though neither of the couple’s children said anything about suicide attempts, according to the arrest affidavit.
Redfearn also told investigators that Craig was on the verge of bankruptcy and had been having problems in his marriage, according to the document. Angela Craig’s sister, Toni Kofoed, told police that Craig had drugged his wife about five years ago with an unknown drug because he said he planned to kill himself and did not want her to be able to save him.
Kofoed believes that incident is what Craig referenced in a series of texts between Angela and James Craig about her symptoms after she first fell ill on March 6. According to the arrest affidavit, James Craig wrote: “Given our history I know that must be triggering. Just for the record, I didn’t drug you. I am super worried though.”
Last week, two days before Angela was declared brain dead, the woman police say he was having an affair with wrote Craig an email expressing sympathy about what he was going through, according to the document. However, she said she did not think it was right for her to mix in with those who had gathered to mourn Angela because she did not want to “conceal what I feel for you.”
California
Kidnappers who snatched baby are sentenced
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Two people who kidnapped a 3-month-old baby from his San Francisco Bay Area home last year were sentenced Monday to prison.
Yesenia Ramirez was sentenced to 13 years and four months in prison. Jose Portillo received five years.
The two pleaded no contest last August to kidnapping Brandon Cuellar on April 25, 2022.
Prosecutors said Ramirez met the boy’s family through church and plotted to kidnap the child after lying to her boyfriend — telling him that she had given birth to their baby and was going to bring him home from the hospital.
Ramirez took the baby’s grandmother shopping and arranged for Portillo to enter the family’s San Jose apartment while they were out. This gave Portillo time to take the child while Ramirez helped the woman unload groceries from the car, prosecutors said.
Video showed Portillo walking away with the baby in a carrier covered with a white blanket.
The boy’s mother was at work at the time.
After an intense search, the baby was found the next day at Portillo’s home a few miles from the apartment.
“This incident is a parents’ worst nightmare. We are fortunate it resulted in a positive outcome,” San Jose Police Chief Anthony Mata said at the time.
Prosecutors said the two had tried to kidnap the boy several times before, and once tried to cut the brakes on the mother’s car.
At Monday’s hearing, Ramirez cried as she delivered a lengthy apology that eventually was cut short by Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Nona Klippen, KRON-TV reported.
“I’m sorry for this baby, his mother, father, and all of his loved ones that I have hurt. I am sorry for others that I have manipulated, traumatized, due to my crimes and my actions,” Ramirez said.
Utah
Gwyneth Paltrow to stand trial for ski crash
PARK CITY, Utah (AP) — Gwyneth Paltrow was scheduled to stand trial on Tuesday in a lawsuit filed by a retired optometrist who said that the actress-turned-lifestyle influencer violently crashed into him in 2016 while skiing in Utah at one of the most upscale ski resorts in the United States.
Terry Sanderson, 76, said Paltrow was cruising down the slopes so recklessly that they collided, leaving him on the ground as she and her entourage continued their descent down Deer Valley Resort, a skiers-only mountain known for its groomed runs, après-ski champagne yurts and posh clientele.
“Gwyneth Paltrow skied out of control,” Sanderson’s attorneys claim in the lawsuit, “knocking him down hard, knocking him out, and causing a brain injury, four broken ribs and other serious injuries. Paltrow got up, turned and skied away, leaving Sanderson stunned, lying in the snow, seriously injured.”
In a case that has lasted years since the 2016 incident, Sanderson is suing Paltrow for $300,000 — claiming that the accident in Park City was a result of negligence, and left him with physical injuries and emotional distress.
At ski resorts, the skier who is downhill has the right of way, so a central question in the case is who was further down the beginner’s run when the collision transpired. Both Paltrow and Sanderson claim in court filings that they were further downhill when the other rammed into them.
Sanderson also accused Deer Valley and its employees of engaging in a “cover up” by not providing complete information on incident reports and not following resort safety policies.
After his initial lawsuit seeking $3.1 million was dropped, Sanderson amended the complaint and he is now seeking $300,000. Paltrow — the Oscar-winning actress known for her roles in “Shakespeare in Love” and Marvel’s “Iron Man” movies — filed a counterclaim in response, seeking attorney fees and $1 in damages.
Paltrow has countered that he was actually the culprit in the collision, is overstating his injuries, and trying to exploit her celebrity and wealth. In addition to her acting career, she is also the founder and CEO of the high-end wellness company, goop.
In court filings, her attorneys deny Sanderson’s claims and allege that he was the one who crashed into her — a collision in which she sustained a “full body blow.” Her counterclaim alleges that members of Paltrow’s group checked on Sanderson, who assured them he was fine. It casts doubt on his motive and claims of injury, noting that before the incident, he had 15 documented medical conditions.
“He demanded Ms. Paltrow pay him millions. If she did not pay, she would face negative publicity resulting from his allegations,” her attorneys wrote in a 2019 court filing.
The trial in Park City is slated to last longer than a week.
Texas
Judge pauses Biden waterway protections in Texas, Idaho
GALVESTON, Texas (AP) — A federal judge paused the Biden administration’s waterway protections in Texas and Idaho as Republicans across the country challenge the environmental regulations as vague and argue the rules would create economic burdens.
The preliminary injunction by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Vincent Brown of Texas surrounds a rule finalized in December that defines which “waters of the United States” — often called “WOTUS” — qualify for protection under the Clean Water Act. The decision was signed Sunday and affects only Texas and Idaho.
Roughly half of all U.S. states are taking part in lawsuits challenging the rule. Earlier this month, the U.S. House also voted to overturn the protections under a measure that Biden said he would veto if it reaches his desk.
“The unlawful rule would have saddled Texans across the state with crushing new regulations, slowing our state’s economic development and limiting our job growth,” Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said in a statement.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said in a statement that it was reviewing the court’s decision and its options. The rule went into effect elsewhere across the country Monday.
The change repeals a Trump-era rule and expands some water pollution protections to thousands of small streams, wetlands and other waterways.
“Our goal is to protect public health, the environment, and downstream communities while supporting economic opportunity, agriculture, and industries that depend on clean water,” the EPA said in a statement.
Republicans have targeted the regulation in Congress and in court, where at least five federal lawsuits are challenging the EPA rule. The Supreme Court is considering a related case by an Idaho couple who have been blocked for more than 15 years from building a home near a lake after the EPA determined part of the property was a wetlands that could not be disturbed without a permit.
A decision in the case, known as Sackett v. EPA, is expected this year.
California
City pays $750K after police accused of painting swastika
TORRANCE, Calif. (AP) — The Southern California city of Torrance has paid a man $750,000 after two police officers were accused of spray-painting a swastika inside his car three years ago.
The investigation into that incident led to the discovery of a trove of racist and homophobic text exchanges among police officers in Torrance, home to about 143,000 people south of Los Angeles. The resulting scandal prompted LA County prosecutors to toss dozens of felony cases.
The payout settles a federal lawsuit filed by Kiley Swaine, who discovered the swastika on his car’s back seat after he and two other men were arrested on suspicion of mail theft in Jan. 2020, the Los Angeles Times reported Monday. Swaine was later cleared of the mail theft charges.
Two Torrance police officers allegedly spray-painted the swastika, as well as a happy face, on Swain’s car seats before having the vehicle towed away, said Swaine’s attorney, Jerry Steering.
The officers, who have left the force, each pleaded not guilty and are awaiting trial on conspiracy and vandalism charges.
An investigation by the Times in 2021 found that officers of the Torrance Police Department traded hateful comments via text messages about people of color, particularly Black people, as well as Jews and members of the LGBTQ community.
Other messages spoke about using violence against suspects and lying to investigators about a police shooting.
