Delaware
Former Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith sued by investor over wind farm project
NFL career rushing leader Emmitt Smith is being sued by a Native American investment company over claims that the former Dallas Cowboys running back and his business partners misappropriated a $2.5 million loan that was supposed to fund a wind farm project in Texas.
Kituwah LLC claimed in a lawsuit filed this week in Delaware that 4 13 Solutions used the money to repay an investor from previous dealings with Smith’s company. Kituwah seeks to invest in business opportunities for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.
Kituwah’s attorneys said Smith and the Pro Football Hall of Famer’s longtime business partner, David Mosley, misrepresented their efforts to secure a U.S. Department of Energy loan that would have triggered repayment to Kituwah.
Kituwah claims the loan has accrued about $600,000 in interest and is asking a jury to determine damages. A message sent to 4 13 Solutions wasn’t immediately returned. There was no information on an attorney for Smith or his company in the filing.
According to the lawsuit, Darrel Wilson of Wilson Holdings of North America LLC told Kituwah that he accepted a $2.5 million payment from Smith’s company and said he didn’t know what triggered the payment. Kituwah’s attorneys said it was, “Essentially, like a ponzi scheme.”
Kituwah claims Wilson Holdings was supposed to be repaid only after the wind farm project between Austin and San Antonio, called Project Exodus, secured permanent financing.
“Smith and Mosley knew this was improper,” the lawsuit said. “Instead of telling the truth, they represented to Kituwah that 4 13 Solutions had used the money to acquire Project Exodus as promised, but that the acquisition had been held up for one reason or another.”
The lawsuit claims Smith and his partners never met the requirements for securing government funding and repeatedly made excuses for why the project wasn’t proceeding or stopped responding to requests.
Kituwah said it delivered the funds on Sept. 1, 2023, with the expectation of being paid back within months. The lawsuit said 4 13 Solutions promised the wind farm would be operational by December 2024, but Kituwah had seen no evidence the project even existed just a month before that date.
Kituwah said Smith and his partners claimed the wind farm project was valued at $396 million and would generate nearly $14 million in net income in its first year.
The 57-year-old Smith spent the first 13 of his 15 seasons with the Cowboys, won three championships and was the MVP of Super Bowl 28. He broke Walter Payton’s rushing record in 2002 and finished with 18,355 yards.
Illinois
Sky owner Michael Alter calls Enes Kanter Freedom lawsuit ‘meritless and frivolous’
CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago Sky owner Michael Alter says a lawsuit filed by former NBA center Enes Kanter Freedom is “meritless and frivolous.”
Freedom is alleging that his First Amendment rights were violated when he was ejected from the Sky’s WNBA game against the Indiana Fever on Aug. 23. He is seeking damages and the removal of his ban when it comes to attending games at Wintrust Arena.
The lawsuit, filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Illinois, names Chicago Women’s Basketball Operations, LLC, which runs the Sky, the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority, the corporation that owns the arena, and the city of Chicago as defendants.
“Freedom was removed for his conduct, not his speech,” Alter said Friday in a statement released by the Sky. “We look forward to the truth prevailing in court.”
The 6-foot-10, 250-pound Freedom was removed from the game after he was confronted by Sky guard Natasha Cloud late in the third quarter.
Freedom was sitting along the baseline wearing a black shirt that read “WOMAN noun. adult human female.”
The Fever called for a timeout after Cloud scored inside with 1:22 left in the period. Cloud then did a chest bump with teammate Aicha Coulibaly before turning around and walking in Freedom’s direction.
Cloud, 34, started yelling and pointing at Freedom, 34, as she approached him. A standing Freedom held his arms out and stepped onto the court as security and a handful of Sky players moved in between the two.
Freedom stopped near the basket to plead his case to security as he was escorted from the court area. He spun around while holding his shirt out and encouraged the crowd to respond as he walked toward the front lobby.
He had a conversation with a group of police officers before departing the arena.
“The Defendants combined and conspired, and acted jointly to execute their conspiracy, to discriminate against Plaintiff based on Plaintiff’s verbal and demonstrable expression of viewpoint and gender identity when they wrongfully ejected Plaintiff from a recent WNBA game,” Freedom’s lawsuit reads. “Defendants compounded and exacerbated Plaintiff’s injuries when they subsequently banned Plaintiff indefinitely from attendance.”
Alter announced on Aug. 25 that Freedom was banned from Sky games at Wintrust Arena until he is “able to prove to us to our satisfaction that he is able to abide by our rules without being a potential threat.”
In Friday’s statement, Alter said Freedom’s assertion that he was removed because of his speech was false.
“As his own complaint acknowledges, he wore the shirt in question for multiple hours without any contact with security,” Alter said. “Security removed Freedom only after he violated fan code of conduct by rising from his seat, gesturing at a player, and stepping toward the court.”
The WNBA has been the subject of recent debates on whether transgender women — people assigned male at birth who transition to align with their gender identity — should be allowed to participate in the league. There has never been such a player in the WNBA.
Although the league’s collective bargaining agreement says the WNBA is restricted to women, it contains no more specific language about gender identity or sex assigned at birth.
Freedom and Royce White, another former NBA player, have declared for the WNBA draft, saying they identify as women. But a person familiar with the decision told the AP that they are not eligible. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the situation.
“You don’t have to agree with my speech but you don’t get to silence me for it,” Freedom posted on social media on Thursday. “I will not be intimidated. I will not be silenced. I will continue to stand for women and defend free speech.”
Arizona
Judge clears a lawsuit against Kyrsten Sinema under North Carolina’s ‘homewrecker’ law
PHOENIX (AP) — Former U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema can be sued under North Carolina’s homewrecker law over her relationship with a member of her security detail, a judge ruled Friday.
Sinema has acknowledged having a romantic relationship with Matthew Ammel but argued that she can’t be sued in North Carolina because she has no connection to the state.
U.S. District Judge David A. Bragdon rejected that argument, saying nine text messages she sent Ammel while he was in the state give North Carolina jurisdiction over her. He found it implausible that she was unaware of Ammel’s whereabouts when she texted him.
Sinema’s lawyer, Steven Epstein, did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
The lawsuit, filed by Ammel’s ex-wife, seeks financial damages from Sinema, who represented Arizona in the U.S. House and later the Senate for one term that ended early last year. North Carolina is one of a handful of states that allow jilted spouses to sue for “alienation of affection” to seek compensation from a third party responsible for the breakup of their marriage.
Matthew and Heather Ammel had “a good and loving marriage” with “genuine love and affection” before Sinema interfered, pursuing Matthew Ammel despite knowing he was married, Heather Ammel alleges in her lawsuit.
Matthew Ammel joined Sinema’s security team after he retired from the Army in 2022 and accompanied her on domestic and foreign travel, according to Heather Ammel’s complaint.
In early 2024, Heather Ammel discovered “romantic and lascivious” messages her husband had exchanged with Sinema over the Signal messaging app. That summer, he stopped wearing his wedding ring and Sinema gave him a job as a national security fellow in her Senate office while he continued to work for her campaign as a bodyguard, the lawsuit alleges.
Sinema described their sexual encounters during a deposition in July. She said the relationship turned sexual on May 27, 2024, during a trip to Napa, California. She said they later had sexual encounters in New York, Washington, Colorado and Arizona, but never North Carolina.
Matthew and Heather Ammel separated on Nov. 1, 2024.
Illinois
Mom charged with killing toddler was closely following Lindsay Clancy trial, officials say
An Illinois woman charged with killing her 2-year-old son had been closely following the murder trial of Massachusetts mother Lindsay Clancy and was texting friends about the case just hours before her son was found dead, prosecutors said.
Corie Walsh, 40, was charged with three counts of first-degree murder after her son, Barrett, was found dead in the basement of the family’s suburban Chicago home on Sept. 1, according to court records obtained by NBC Chicago.
Prosecutors said Walsh had become “very invested” in Clancy’s nationally watched trial and was discussing it with friends until about 12:30 p.m. that day. A neighbor found Barrett less than four hours later.
Walsh was found elsewhere in the home with injuries authorities said were self-inflicted. Prosecutors said she later told investigators that she killed her son because she believed he was the “devil” and the “anti-Christ.” Her attorney, Andrea Lyon, told reporters Walsh was experiencing a psychotic episode and called the boy’s death a tragedy for the entire family.
Police were called to Walsh’s home in Frankfort, about 35 miles (56.33 kilometers) southwest of Chicago, shortly before 4 p.m. after a neighbor discovered Barrett in the basement, according to prosecutors’ petition seeking to keep Walsh jailed before trial.
The neighbor found the boy and began CPR while calling 911, prosecutors said. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. An autopsy determined that he died from asphyxia caused by ligature compression of the neck.
Police searching the house found Walsh fully dressed in a bathtub containing bloody water, prosecutors said. She had cuts to her wrists and thighs and was taken to a hospital with injuries authorities described as not life-threatening.
The disclosure that Walsh had been following Clancy’s trial came days after a Massachusetts judge declared a mistrial in that case when jurors said they could not reach a unanimous verdict.
Clancy, a former labor and delivery nurse, was accused of killing her three young children in 2023. Her lawyers argued that she was legally insane and suffering from postpartum psychosis. Prosecutors maintained that Clancy understood what she was doing and knew it was wrong.
Authorities in Illinois have not alleged that Clancy’s trial played a role in the killing of Walsh’s son, and no evidence made public so far establishes a connection beyond her discussion of the case.
Frankfort Police and prosecutors in Will County did not respond to calls for comment on Monday.
Former Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith sued by investor over wind farm project
NFL career rushing leader Emmitt Smith is being sued by a Native American investment company over claims that the former Dallas Cowboys running back and his business partners misappropriated a $2.5 million loan that was supposed to fund a wind farm project in Texas.
Kituwah LLC claimed in a lawsuit filed this week in Delaware that 4 13 Solutions used the money to repay an investor from previous dealings with Smith’s company. Kituwah seeks to invest in business opportunities for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.
Kituwah’s attorneys said Smith and the Pro Football Hall of Famer’s longtime business partner, David Mosley, misrepresented their efforts to secure a U.S. Department of Energy loan that would have triggered repayment to Kituwah.
Kituwah claims the loan has accrued about $600,000 in interest and is asking a jury to determine damages. A message sent to 4 13 Solutions wasn’t immediately returned. There was no information on an attorney for Smith or his company in the filing.
According to the lawsuit, Darrel Wilson of Wilson Holdings of North America LLC told Kituwah that he accepted a $2.5 million payment from Smith’s company and said he didn’t know what triggered the payment. Kituwah’s attorneys said it was, “Essentially, like a ponzi scheme.”
Kituwah claims Wilson Holdings was supposed to be repaid only after the wind farm project between Austin and San Antonio, called Project Exodus, secured permanent financing.
“Smith and Mosley knew this was improper,” the lawsuit said. “Instead of telling the truth, they represented to Kituwah that 4 13 Solutions had used the money to acquire Project Exodus as promised, but that the acquisition had been held up for one reason or another.”
The lawsuit claims Smith and his partners never met the requirements for securing government funding and repeatedly made excuses for why the project wasn’t proceeding or stopped responding to requests.
Kituwah said it delivered the funds on Sept. 1, 2023, with the expectation of being paid back within months. The lawsuit said 4 13 Solutions promised the wind farm would be operational by December 2024, but Kituwah had seen no evidence the project even existed just a month before that date.
Kituwah said Smith and his partners claimed the wind farm project was valued at $396 million and would generate nearly $14 million in net income in its first year.
The 57-year-old Smith spent the first 13 of his 15 seasons with the Cowboys, won three championships and was the MVP of Super Bowl 28. He broke Walter Payton’s rushing record in 2002 and finished with 18,355 yards.
Illinois
Sky owner Michael Alter calls Enes Kanter Freedom lawsuit ‘meritless and frivolous’
CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago Sky owner Michael Alter says a lawsuit filed by former NBA center Enes Kanter Freedom is “meritless and frivolous.”
Freedom is alleging that his First Amendment rights were violated when he was ejected from the Sky’s WNBA game against the Indiana Fever on Aug. 23. He is seeking damages and the removal of his ban when it comes to attending games at Wintrust Arena.
The lawsuit, filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Illinois, names Chicago Women’s Basketball Operations, LLC, which runs the Sky, the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority, the corporation that owns the arena, and the city of Chicago as defendants.
“Freedom was removed for his conduct, not his speech,” Alter said Friday in a statement released by the Sky. “We look forward to the truth prevailing in court.”
The 6-foot-10, 250-pound Freedom was removed from the game after he was confronted by Sky guard Natasha Cloud late in the third quarter.
Freedom was sitting along the baseline wearing a black shirt that read “WOMAN noun. adult human female.”
The Fever called for a timeout after Cloud scored inside with 1:22 left in the period. Cloud then did a chest bump with teammate Aicha Coulibaly before turning around and walking in Freedom’s direction.
Cloud, 34, started yelling and pointing at Freedom, 34, as she approached him. A standing Freedom held his arms out and stepped onto the court as security and a handful of Sky players moved in between the two.
Freedom stopped near the basket to plead his case to security as he was escorted from the court area. He spun around while holding his shirt out and encouraged the crowd to respond as he walked toward the front lobby.
He had a conversation with a group of police officers before departing the arena.
“The Defendants combined and conspired, and acted jointly to execute their conspiracy, to discriminate against Plaintiff based on Plaintiff’s verbal and demonstrable expression of viewpoint and gender identity when they wrongfully ejected Plaintiff from a recent WNBA game,” Freedom’s lawsuit reads. “Defendants compounded and exacerbated Plaintiff’s injuries when they subsequently banned Plaintiff indefinitely from attendance.”
Alter announced on Aug. 25 that Freedom was banned from Sky games at Wintrust Arena until he is “able to prove to us to our satisfaction that he is able to abide by our rules without being a potential threat.”
In Friday’s statement, Alter said Freedom’s assertion that he was removed because of his speech was false.
“As his own complaint acknowledges, he wore the shirt in question for multiple hours without any contact with security,” Alter said. “Security removed Freedom only after he violated fan code of conduct by rising from his seat, gesturing at a player, and stepping toward the court.”
The WNBA has been the subject of recent debates on whether transgender women — people assigned male at birth who transition to align with their gender identity — should be allowed to participate in the league. There has never been such a player in the WNBA.
Although the league’s collective bargaining agreement says the WNBA is restricted to women, it contains no more specific language about gender identity or sex assigned at birth.
Freedom and Royce White, another former NBA player, have declared for the WNBA draft, saying they identify as women. But a person familiar with the decision told the AP that they are not eligible. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the situation.
“You don’t have to agree with my speech but you don’t get to silence me for it,” Freedom posted on social media on Thursday. “I will not be intimidated. I will not be silenced. I will continue to stand for women and defend free speech.”
Arizona
Judge clears a lawsuit against Kyrsten Sinema under North Carolina’s ‘homewrecker’ law
PHOENIX (AP) — Former U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema can be sued under North Carolina’s homewrecker law over her relationship with a member of her security detail, a judge ruled Friday.
Sinema has acknowledged having a romantic relationship with Matthew Ammel but argued that she can’t be sued in North Carolina because she has no connection to the state.
U.S. District Judge David A. Bragdon rejected that argument, saying nine text messages she sent Ammel while he was in the state give North Carolina jurisdiction over her. He found it implausible that she was unaware of Ammel’s whereabouts when she texted him.
Sinema’s lawyer, Steven Epstein, did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
The lawsuit, filed by Ammel’s ex-wife, seeks financial damages from Sinema, who represented Arizona in the U.S. House and later the Senate for one term that ended early last year. North Carolina is one of a handful of states that allow jilted spouses to sue for “alienation of affection” to seek compensation from a third party responsible for the breakup of their marriage.
Matthew and Heather Ammel had “a good and loving marriage” with “genuine love and affection” before Sinema interfered, pursuing Matthew Ammel despite knowing he was married, Heather Ammel alleges in her lawsuit.
Matthew Ammel joined Sinema’s security team after he retired from the Army in 2022 and accompanied her on domestic and foreign travel, according to Heather Ammel’s complaint.
In early 2024, Heather Ammel discovered “romantic and lascivious” messages her husband had exchanged with Sinema over the Signal messaging app. That summer, he stopped wearing his wedding ring and Sinema gave him a job as a national security fellow in her Senate office while he continued to work for her campaign as a bodyguard, the lawsuit alleges.
Sinema described their sexual encounters during a deposition in July. She said the relationship turned sexual on May 27, 2024, during a trip to Napa, California. She said they later had sexual encounters in New York, Washington, Colorado and Arizona, but never North Carolina.
Matthew and Heather Ammel separated on Nov. 1, 2024.
Illinois
Mom charged with killing toddler was closely following Lindsay Clancy trial, officials say
An Illinois woman charged with killing her 2-year-old son had been closely following the murder trial of Massachusetts mother Lindsay Clancy and was texting friends about the case just hours before her son was found dead, prosecutors said.
Corie Walsh, 40, was charged with three counts of first-degree murder after her son, Barrett, was found dead in the basement of the family’s suburban Chicago home on Sept. 1, according to court records obtained by NBC Chicago.
Prosecutors said Walsh had become “very invested” in Clancy’s nationally watched trial and was discussing it with friends until about 12:30 p.m. that day. A neighbor found Barrett less than four hours later.
Walsh was found elsewhere in the home with injuries authorities said were self-inflicted. Prosecutors said she later told investigators that she killed her son because she believed he was the “devil” and the “anti-Christ.” Her attorney, Andrea Lyon, told reporters Walsh was experiencing a psychotic episode and called the boy’s death a tragedy for the entire family.
Police were called to Walsh’s home in Frankfort, about 35 miles (56.33 kilometers) southwest of Chicago, shortly before 4 p.m. after a neighbor discovered Barrett in the basement, according to prosecutors’ petition seeking to keep Walsh jailed before trial.
The neighbor found the boy and began CPR while calling 911, prosecutors said. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. An autopsy determined that he died from asphyxia caused by ligature compression of the neck.
Police searching the house found Walsh fully dressed in a bathtub containing bloody water, prosecutors said. She had cuts to her wrists and thighs and was taken to a hospital with injuries authorities described as not life-threatening.
The disclosure that Walsh had been following Clancy’s trial came days after a Massachusetts judge declared a mistrial in that case when jurors said they could not reach a unanimous verdict.
Clancy, a former labor and delivery nurse, was accused of killing her three young children in 2023. Her lawyers argued that she was legally insane and suffering from postpartum psychosis. Prosecutors maintained that Clancy understood what she was doing and knew it was wrong.
Authorities in Illinois have not alleged that Clancy’s trial played a role in the killing of Walsh’s son, and no evidence made public so far establishes a connection beyond her discussion of the case.
Frankfort Police and prosecutors in Will County did not respond to calls for comment on Monday.
