New Hampshire
Man sentenced to 40 years to life for killing mother after argument over video game
MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — A New Hampshire man has been sentenced to 40 years to life in prison for fatally stabbing his mother after the two had argued about the volume on the video games he was playing.
Thomas Humphrey, 47, was sentenced Tuesday after pleading guilty to second-degree murder and arson in the November death of Linda Tufts, 70, inside their Goffstown home.
“The brutality of this crime simply makes it too dangerous not to impose a very lengthy state prison sentence,” Judge William Delker said.
A prosecutor said Humphrey, who lived in the basement, stabbed Tufts multiple times and then lit her body on fire. The prosecutor said the two had recently argued about how loud he was playing video games on the PlayStation she had just given him for his birthday, WMUR-TV reported.
Police said they found Humphrey at the bottom of the basement stairs with self-inflicted wounds, holding a knife.
New York
Ex-prosecutor settles lawsuit against Netflix over Central Park Five miniseries
NEW YORK (AP) — Former Manhattan prosecutor Linda Fairstein and Netflix announced Tuesday they’ve settled the defamation lawsuit she filed four years ago over her portrayal in the streaming service’s miniseries about the five Black and Latino teenagers known as the now-exonerated Central Park Five.
Fairstein had argued that the 2019 four-part series “When They See Us” defamed her by portraying her as a “racist, unethical villain” and attributed actions, responsibilities and viewpoints that were not hers.
The case was expected to go to trial later this month. Fairstein said in a statement that “the decision to conclude this fight was not an easy one,” expressing confidence she would have presented a “compelling case to the jury.” While Fairstein will not receive any money as part of the settlement, Netflix has agreed to donate $1 million to the Innocence Project, a nonprofit that works to exonerate people who’ve been wrongly convicted.
Viewers of the series will also now see a disclaimer that states, “While the motion picture is inspired by actual events and persons, certain characters, incidents, locations, dialogue, and names are fictionalized for the purposes of dramatization.”
“This is what this case was all about — not about ‘winning’ or about any financial restitution, but about my reputation and that of my colleagues,” she said in a statement. “It was about setting the historical record straight that the villainous caricature invented by the defendants and portrayed on screen was not me.”
Fairstein was the top Manhattan sex crimes prosecutor in 1989 when the five teenagers were charged with a vicious attack on a jogger in Central Park. The convictions were overturned in 2002 after convicted murderer and serial rapist Matias Reyes confessed to committing the crime alone. DNA linked him to it.
Fairstein, who became a best-selling crime author after retiring from the Manhattan district attorney’s office, observed the boys’ interrogation but didn’t personally try the case.
She was dropped by her publisher and resigned from several boards she served on after “When They See Us,” which dramatizes the events surrounding the trial, debuted.
Ava DuVernay, who directed and co-wrote the series, and Attica Locke, a writer and producer of the series, were named as defendants in the defamation lawsuit.
DuVernay said in a statement posted on the social media platform X that she still believes that Fairstein was responsible for the investigation and prosecution of the five teens.
“As the head of the Manhattan Sex Crimes unit, Linda Fairstein was in the precinct for over 35 hours straight while the boys were interrogated as adults, often without parents present,” she said, claiming that Fairstein knew what was happening in the interrogation rooms.
DuVernay accused Fairstein of not being willing to face a jury of her peers.
“I hope that one day Linda Fairstein can come to terms with the part she played in this miscarriage of justice and finally accept responsibility” she said.
Iowa
State agrees to pay $3.5M to family of student who drowned in rowing accident
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa officials agreed Tuesday to pay $3.5 million in a settlement agreement with the family of an Iowa State University student who drowned after a school crew club boat capsized in cold, rough waters.
The State Appeal Board approved the terms of the agreement between Iowa State and the parents of Yaakov Ben-David more than three years after the 20-year-old sophomore’s death.
The family of a second student who drowned, 19-year-old freshman Derek Nanni, agreed to a $2 million settlement in August 2021, the Iowa Department of Management’s records show.
The rowers went out March 28, 2021, on Little Wall Lake in Hamilton County, Iowa, about 15 miles (24 kilometers) north of the Ames campus. It was Ben-David and Nanni’s first practice on the water after practices on land, according to court filings.
The wrongful death lawsuit filed by Ben-David’s parents alleged that Iowa State was negligent with the Crew Club, a recognized student organization. They claimed, with support from an independent investigation, that the rowers launched the boat in dangerous conditions, dressed in insufficient apparel, and attempted to swim to shore after it capsized because of inadequate training, safety standards or supervision.
At the time of the accident, the county sheriff said wind speeds were around 20-25 mph (32-40 kph), and the air temperatures around 37 degrees Fahrenheit (3 degrees Celsius) meant the water would have been cold enough for hypothermia to set in within minutes.
Three other crew members were rescued and survived.
The terms of the settlement stipulate that the Ben-Davids acknowledge the payment is not an admission of liability or wrongdoing and that the state and university “expressly deny any such liability or wrongdoing,” according to court filings.
The Ben-Davids agreed not to bring another lawsuit related to the accident.
California
Former protege sues The-Dream, accusing music producer of sexual assault
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A former protege of The-Dream, a Grammy-winning writer and producer on some of the biggest hits by Beyoncé and Rihanna, among others, filed a lawsuit Tuesday accusing him of sexual assault and other abuse.
Chanaaz Mangroe, who performed under the stage name Channii Monroe, alleges in her lawsuit that The-Dream, whose legal name is Terius Gesteelde-Diamant, lured her into “an abusive, violent, and manipulative relationship filled with physical assaults, violent sexual encounters, and horrific psychological manipulation” after she left her native Netherlands for the U.S. with hopes of making it big as a singer.
Gesteelde-Diamant, an eight-time Grammy winner who was a writer and producer on huge hits including Beyoncé’s “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It),” Justin Bieber’s “Baby” and Rihanna’s “Umbrella,” has denied the allegations.
Mangroe, 33, says a representative of Gesteelde-Diamant reached out to her on social media in 2014 and asked her to send samples of her music, and that the producer flew her to Atlanta early the next year promising to help her career.
According to the lawsuit, Gesteelde-Diamant began recording with her and “told her that he would make her the next Beyoncé and Rihanna,” but that she would have to share intimate and embarrassing details with him and allow him complete control over her. Though he was married, Mangroe says he told her they would become a famous couple who won 10 Grammys together.
Mangroe alleges that over the course of more than a year, Gesteelde-Diamant pressured her and forced her to use drugs and alcohol excessively, had sex with her that was violent beyond her consent, raped her at times, and kept her locked in a room for long stretches. She says he was violently controlling, forcing her to diet and exercise, and allowed her little contact with others.
Representatives of Gesteelde-Diamant did not immediately reply to an email seeking comment. But he told the The New York Times in a statement that the allegations “are untrue and defamatory.”
“I oppose all forms of harassment and have always strived to help people realize their career goals,” the statement said. “As someone committed to making a positive impact on my fellow artists and the world at large, I am deeply offended and saddened by these accusations.”
Mangroe alleges in her suit that rather than helping her career, Gesteelde-Diamant upended it by forcing her to be dropped from a record deal she had signed. She says the trauma caused her severe anxiety and depression, along with financial losses from the harm done to her career. The lawsuit, which was filed in Los Angeles federal court, seeks damages to be determined at trial.
“What Dream did to me made it impossible to live the life I envisioned for myself and pursue my goals as a singer and songwriter,” Mangroe said in a statement. “Ultimately, my silence has become too painful, and I realized that I need to tell my story to heal.”
The Associated Press doesn’t typically name people who say they have been sexually abused unless they come forward publicly, as Mangroe has.
New Jersey
Ex-husband of ‘Real Housewives’ star convicted of hiring mobster to assault boyfriend
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — The ex-husband of a “Real Housewives of New Jersey” cast member was convicted Tuesday on charges he hired a reputed mobster to assault the woman’s boyfriend in exchange for a free, lavish wedding reception.
A federal jury found Thomas Manzo of Franklin Lakes guilty of conspiracy, falsifying and concealing documents, and committing a violent crime in aid of racketeering activity. The ex-husband of “Real Housewives” cast member Dina Manzo faces up to 46 years in prison when he’s sentenced Oct. 15.
Federal prosecutors have said Thomas Manzo, 59, hired John Perna — whom they described as a soldier in the Lucchese Crime Family — to commit the July 2015 attack. Perna’s wedding reception was held the following month at a restaurant in Paterson partly owned by Manzo, prosecutors said.
Perna pleaded guilty in December 2020 to committing a violent crime in aid of racketeering activity and received a 2 1/2-year sentence. He was freed last August. Dina Manzo’s boyfriend is now her husband.
Man sentenced to 40 years to life for killing mother after argument over video game
MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — A New Hampshire man has been sentenced to 40 years to life in prison for fatally stabbing his mother after the two had argued about the volume on the video games he was playing.
Thomas Humphrey, 47, was sentenced Tuesday after pleading guilty to second-degree murder and arson in the November death of Linda Tufts, 70, inside their Goffstown home.
“The brutality of this crime simply makes it too dangerous not to impose a very lengthy state prison sentence,” Judge William Delker said.
A prosecutor said Humphrey, who lived in the basement, stabbed Tufts multiple times and then lit her body on fire. The prosecutor said the two had recently argued about how loud he was playing video games on the PlayStation she had just given him for his birthday, WMUR-TV reported.
Police said they found Humphrey at the bottom of the basement stairs with self-inflicted wounds, holding a knife.
New York
Ex-prosecutor settles lawsuit against Netflix over Central Park Five miniseries
NEW YORK (AP) — Former Manhattan prosecutor Linda Fairstein and Netflix announced Tuesday they’ve settled the defamation lawsuit she filed four years ago over her portrayal in the streaming service’s miniseries about the five Black and Latino teenagers known as the now-exonerated Central Park Five.
Fairstein had argued that the 2019 four-part series “When They See Us” defamed her by portraying her as a “racist, unethical villain” and attributed actions, responsibilities and viewpoints that were not hers.
The case was expected to go to trial later this month. Fairstein said in a statement that “the decision to conclude this fight was not an easy one,” expressing confidence she would have presented a “compelling case to the jury.” While Fairstein will not receive any money as part of the settlement, Netflix has agreed to donate $1 million to the Innocence Project, a nonprofit that works to exonerate people who’ve been wrongly convicted.
Viewers of the series will also now see a disclaimer that states, “While the motion picture is inspired by actual events and persons, certain characters, incidents, locations, dialogue, and names are fictionalized for the purposes of dramatization.”
“This is what this case was all about — not about ‘winning’ or about any financial restitution, but about my reputation and that of my colleagues,” she said in a statement. “It was about setting the historical record straight that the villainous caricature invented by the defendants and portrayed on screen was not me.”
Fairstein was the top Manhattan sex crimes prosecutor in 1989 when the five teenagers were charged with a vicious attack on a jogger in Central Park. The convictions were overturned in 2002 after convicted murderer and serial rapist Matias Reyes confessed to committing the crime alone. DNA linked him to it.
Fairstein, who became a best-selling crime author after retiring from the Manhattan district attorney’s office, observed the boys’ interrogation but didn’t personally try the case.
She was dropped by her publisher and resigned from several boards she served on after “When They See Us,” which dramatizes the events surrounding the trial, debuted.
Ava DuVernay, who directed and co-wrote the series, and Attica Locke, a writer and producer of the series, were named as defendants in the defamation lawsuit.
DuVernay said in a statement posted on the social media platform X that she still believes that Fairstein was responsible for the investigation and prosecution of the five teens.
“As the head of the Manhattan Sex Crimes unit, Linda Fairstein was in the precinct for over 35 hours straight while the boys were interrogated as adults, often without parents present,” she said, claiming that Fairstein knew what was happening in the interrogation rooms.
DuVernay accused Fairstein of not being willing to face a jury of her peers.
“I hope that one day Linda Fairstein can come to terms with the part she played in this miscarriage of justice and finally accept responsibility” she said.
Iowa
State agrees to pay $3.5M to family of student who drowned in rowing accident
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa officials agreed Tuesday to pay $3.5 million in a settlement agreement with the family of an Iowa State University student who drowned after a school crew club boat capsized in cold, rough waters.
The State Appeal Board approved the terms of the agreement between Iowa State and the parents of Yaakov Ben-David more than three years after the 20-year-old sophomore’s death.
The family of a second student who drowned, 19-year-old freshman Derek Nanni, agreed to a $2 million settlement in August 2021, the Iowa Department of Management’s records show.
The rowers went out March 28, 2021, on Little Wall Lake in Hamilton County, Iowa, about 15 miles (24 kilometers) north of the Ames campus. It was Ben-David and Nanni’s first practice on the water after practices on land, according to court filings.
The wrongful death lawsuit filed by Ben-David’s parents alleged that Iowa State was negligent with the Crew Club, a recognized student organization. They claimed, with support from an independent investigation, that the rowers launched the boat in dangerous conditions, dressed in insufficient apparel, and attempted to swim to shore after it capsized because of inadequate training, safety standards or supervision.
At the time of the accident, the county sheriff said wind speeds were around 20-25 mph (32-40 kph), and the air temperatures around 37 degrees Fahrenheit (3 degrees Celsius) meant the water would have been cold enough for hypothermia to set in within minutes.
Three other crew members were rescued and survived.
The terms of the settlement stipulate that the Ben-Davids acknowledge the payment is not an admission of liability or wrongdoing and that the state and university “expressly deny any such liability or wrongdoing,” according to court filings.
The Ben-Davids agreed not to bring another lawsuit related to the accident.
California
Former protege sues The-Dream, accusing music producer of sexual assault
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A former protege of The-Dream, a Grammy-winning writer and producer on some of the biggest hits by Beyoncé and Rihanna, among others, filed a lawsuit Tuesday accusing him of sexual assault and other abuse.
Chanaaz Mangroe, who performed under the stage name Channii Monroe, alleges in her lawsuit that The-Dream, whose legal name is Terius Gesteelde-Diamant, lured her into “an abusive, violent, and manipulative relationship filled with physical assaults, violent sexual encounters, and horrific psychological manipulation” after she left her native Netherlands for the U.S. with hopes of making it big as a singer.
Gesteelde-Diamant, an eight-time Grammy winner who was a writer and producer on huge hits including Beyoncé’s “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It),” Justin Bieber’s “Baby” and Rihanna’s “Umbrella,” has denied the allegations.
Mangroe, 33, says a representative of Gesteelde-Diamant reached out to her on social media in 2014 and asked her to send samples of her music, and that the producer flew her to Atlanta early the next year promising to help her career.
According to the lawsuit, Gesteelde-Diamant began recording with her and “told her that he would make her the next Beyoncé and Rihanna,” but that she would have to share intimate and embarrassing details with him and allow him complete control over her. Though he was married, Mangroe says he told her they would become a famous couple who won 10 Grammys together.
Mangroe alleges that over the course of more than a year, Gesteelde-Diamant pressured her and forced her to use drugs and alcohol excessively, had sex with her that was violent beyond her consent, raped her at times, and kept her locked in a room for long stretches. She says he was violently controlling, forcing her to diet and exercise, and allowed her little contact with others.
Representatives of Gesteelde-Diamant did not immediately reply to an email seeking comment. But he told the The New York Times in a statement that the allegations “are untrue and defamatory.”
“I oppose all forms of harassment and have always strived to help people realize their career goals,” the statement said. “As someone committed to making a positive impact on my fellow artists and the world at large, I am deeply offended and saddened by these accusations.”
Mangroe alleges in her suit that rather than helping her career, Gesteelde-Diamant upended it by forcing her to be dropped from a record deal she had signed. She says the trauma caused her severe anxiety and depression, along with financial losses from the harm done to her career. The lawsuit, which was filed in Los Angeles federal court, seeks damages to be determined at trial.
“What Dream did to me made it impossible to live the life I envisioned for myself and pursue my goals as a singer and songwriter,” Mangroe said in a statement. “Ultimately, my silence has become too painful, and I realized that I need to tell my story to heal.”
The Associated Press doesn’t typically name people who say they have been sexually abused unless they come forward publicly, as Mangroe has.
New Jersey
Ex-husband of ‘Real Housewives’ star convicted of hiring mobster to assault boyfriend
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — The ex-husband of a “Real Housewives of New Jersey” cast member was convicted Tuesday on charges he hired a reputed mobster to assault the woman’s boyfriend in exchange for a free, lavish wedding reception.
A federal jury found Thomas Manzo of Franklin Lakes guilty of conspiracy, falsifying and concealing documents, and committing a violent crime in aid of racketeering activity. The ex-husband of “Real Housewives” cast member Dina Manzo faces up to 46 years in prison when he’s sentenced Oct. 15.
Federal prosecutors have said Thomas Manzo, 59, hired John Perna — whom they described as a soldier in the Lucchese Crime Family — to commit the July 2015 attack. Perna’s wedding reception was held the following month at a restaurant in Paterson partly owned by Manzo, prosecutors said.
Perna pleaded guilty in December 2020 to committing a violent crime in aid of racketeering activity and received a 2 1/2-year sentence. He was freed last August. Dina Manzo’s boyfriend is now her husband.
