Category: News
Niños migrantes en EEUU están siendo detenidos por más tiempo del límite legal
Por VALERIE GONZALEZ
McCALLEN, Texas, EE.UU. (AP) — Cientos de niños inmigrantes en todo Estados Unidos fueron detenidos por más tiempo del límite legal este verano, ha admitido el Servicio de Inmigración y Control de Aduanas en un documento judicial, alarmando a los defensores legales que dicen que el gobierno no está protegiendo a los menores.
En un documento presentado el lunes por la noche, los abogados de los detenidos destacaron las propias admisiones del gobierno sobre los tiempos prolongados de custodia para los niños inmigrantes, las condiciones insalubres reportadas por las familias y los monitores en las instalaciones federales, y una renovada dependencia de los hoteles para la detención.
Los informes fueron presentados como parte de una demanda civil en curso iniciada en 1985 que llevó e los años 90 a la creación de una política conocida como el Acuerdo de Flores, que limita el tiempo que los niños pueden pasar bajo custodia federal y requiere que se mantengan en condiciones seguras y sanitarias. La administración Trump está intentando poner fin al acuerdo.
Un informe del 1 de diciembre de ICE indicó que alrededor de 400 niños inmigrantes fueron retenidos por más del límite de 20 días durante el período de informe de agosto a septiembre. También informaron al tribunal que el problema era generalizado y no específico de una región o instalación. Los factores principales que demoraron su liberación se categorizaron en tres grupos: retrasos en el transporte, necesidades médicas y procesamiento legal.
Los defensores legales de los niños argumentaron que esas razones no prueban justificaciones legales para las demoras. También citaron ejemplos que excedieron con creces el límite de 20 días, incluyendo cinco niños que fueron retenidos durante 168 días a principios de este año.
ICE no ha respondido a una solicitud de comentarios.
El uso de hoteles para la detención temporal está permitido por el tribunal federal por hasta 72 horas, pero los abogados cuestionaron los datos del gobierno, que creen que no explicaron completamente por qué los niños fueron retenidos más de tres días en habitaciones de hotel.
Las condiciones en las instalaciones de detención continuaron siendo una preocupación constante desde que abrió en Dilley, Texas, un sitio de detención familiar este año.
Los defensores documentaron lesiones sufridas por los niños y la falta de acceso a atención médica suficiente. Un niño sufrió una lesión ocular y no fue visto por el personal médico durante dos días. Otro niño se fracturó el pie cuando le cayó encima un poste de la red de voleibol, según el documento judicial. “El personal médico le dijo a una familia cuyo hijo sufrió una intoxicación alimentaria que solo regresara si el niño vomitaba ocho veces”, escribieron los defensores en su respuesta.
“Los niños tienen diarrea, acidez, dolores de estómago, y les dan comida que literalmente tiene gusanos”, escribió una persona con una familia que se hospeda en la instalación de Dilley en una declaración presentada al tribunal.
La jueza Dolly Gee del distrito central de California tiene programada una audiencia sobre los informes la próxima semana, donde podría decidir si el tribunal necesita intervenir.
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Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.
Díaz firma por 69 millones y 3 años con los Dodgers campeones de la Serie Mundial, según fuente
Por RONALD BLUM
ORLANDO, Florida, EE.UU. (AP) — El cerrador Edwin Díaz pactó un contrato de 69 millones de dólares por tres años con los Dodgers de Los Ángeles, campeones de la Serie Mundial, según informó a The Associated Press una persona familiarizada con las negociaciones.
La persona habló el martes bajo condición de anonimato porque el acuerdo estaba sujeto al cumplir con un reconocimiento médico.
El acuerdo del derecho puertorriqueño incluye pagos diferidos por parte de los Dodgers, quienes ya debían 1.051 millones de dólares en pagos diferidos a ocho jugadores desde 2028 hasta 2046.
Díaz, quien ha sido tres veces All-Star y cumplirá 32 años el 22 de marzo, se une a un bullpen de los Dodgers que tambaleó la temporada pasada, lo que provocó que el equipo apelas al novato abridor Roki Sasaki como cerrador en la postemporada. Los relevistas de Los Ángeles tuvieron una efectividad de 4.27, ocupando el puesto 21 entre los 30 equipos.
Confiando en una recta de 97-98 mph y un slider, Díaz se convirtió en un favorito de los fanáticos en el Citi Field, donde sonaban las bocinas y los fanáticos bailaban cuando entraba a los juegos al compás de “Narco” de Blasterjaxx & Timmy Trumpet.
Nueva York se preparó para su posible salida al acordar un contrato de 51 millones por tres años con Devin Williams, quien dejó a los vecinos Yankees después de una temporada.
Díaz se une a un bullpen de los Dodgers que incluye al zurdo Tanner Scott, quien fue afectado por una inflamación en el codo en su primera temporada después de firmar un contrato de 72 millones por cuatro años. Jack Dreyer, Anthony Banda y Alex Vesia también están en el bullpen.
Díaz se apuntó 28 salvamentos en 31 oportunidades la temporada pasada con una foja de 6-3 y una efectividad de 1.63 para un decepcionante equipo de los Mets que no logró acceder a los playoffs a pesar de gastar la segunda mayor cantidad detrás de los Dodgers. Ponchó a 98 en 66 entradas y un tercio.
De por vida registra 253 salvamentos en 294 oportunidades a lo largo de nueve temporadas con Seattle (2016-18) y los Mets, quienes lo adquirieron junto con el segunda base Robinson Canó por cinco jugadores que incluyeron a Jarred Kelenic y Anthony Swarzak. Díaz se perdió la temporada 2023 después de desgarrarse el tendón rotuliano en su rodilla derecha durante una celebración posterior al juego con Puerto Rico en el Clásico Mundial de Béisbol.
Díaz acordó un contrato de 102 millones por cinco años con los Mets después de la temporada 2022, un acuerdo que incluía dinero diferido pagadero hasta 2042. Tenía el derecho de salirse del mismo después de tres años y 64 millones para convertirse nuevamente en agente libre. De esos 64 millones, 15,5 millones están diferidos y son pagaderos hasta el 1 de julio de 2039.
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Deportes AP: https://apnews.com/hub/deportes
Skokie nighttime residential fire sends woman, 84, to hospital
An 84-year-old female resident was injured Monday night in a fire at a Skokie multi-family residential building, and dozens of residents were temporarily displaced, according to the Skokie Fire Department.
Fire personnel responded at about 10:08 p.m. Monday, Dec. 8, to a building in the 9500 block of Bronx Place, on the south side of Golf Road across from Westfield Old Orchard Shopping Center, where they found a fire on the third floor. Firefighters located the resident and transported her to a nearby hospital with an unspecified injury. She was later listed in serious condition, officials said in a news release.
The four-story building contains 80 units and houses approximately 100 residents, according to village spokesman Patrick Deignan.
Police and fire crews encountered heavy smoke conditions on the third floor upon arrival, the release said, prompting a request for assistance from neighboring departments. Fire department crews from Evanston, Niles, Morton Grove, Des Plaines, Lincolnwood, Park Ridge, Deerfield, Glenview, Glencoe, Northfield, Wilmette and Winnetka helped extinguish the fire, which was brought under control in about 20 minutes, the department said.
An Emergency Medical Service (EMS) Box Alarm was also requested for the second alarm because of the number of civilian occupants and cold weather conditions.
The fire was contained to a single residential unit on the third floor, and fire department personnel eventually allowed residents to return to their units, except the one where the fire took place.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation, and a damage estimate was not yet available.
President Donald Trump’s administration threatens CTA funding over safety issues
President Donald Trump’s administration has issued a blistering order for the city and state to come up with a safety plan to boost police on the CTA and take other steps or once again risk vital federal funding.
In letters Monday to Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, Trump’s Federal Transit Administrator Marc Molinaro threatened to withhold funds if the CTA does not comply with the demands of a “special directive” issued by the feds by the start of next week.
The renewed federal order comes after last month’s gruesome attack on 26-year-old Bethany MaGee on the CTA’s Blue Line in downtown Chicago.
The Trump administration once again invoked MaGee, who was doused with gasoline and lit on fire while riding the train in an apparently random attack, in unveiling its Monday directive.
“It’s the responsibility of leaders at every level to create a safe system for all riders and workers on transit,” Molinaro wrote. “Chicago’s local leaders have neglected that responsibility — and given Chicago’s crime rate in its transit system, this isn’t an isolated incident.”
It was an apparent reference to Johnson’s initial remarks after the attack declining to address whether the suspect should have been out on the streets given his extensive criminal record. The mayor hours later walked back his answer saying the attack against MaGee was an “isolated incident,” and said the criminal justice system “failed” her.
Molinaro’s statement continued, “If CTA does not take immediate action to increase its law enforcement presence, we will withhold federal funds.” His directive contended the federal government had authority to freeze up to 25% of its federal grants to the CTA, citing a U.S. law outlining the Urbanized Area Formula Funding program.
The CTA must submit a “security enhancement plan” by Dec. 15 and implement it by Dec. 19, per the FTA’s order. That plan must include a commitment to “significantly” increase security or law enforcement on the system, according to the directive.
In a statement Monday evening, the CTA said it had received notice. “We have reviewed the document and will respond within the requested timeframe,” an agency spokesperson wrote.
Meanwhile, Johnson said during his Tuesday City Hall news conference that his team will respond to the letter but did not specify whether he will comply with the FTA’s demands beyond affirming “we take those threats absolutely seriously.”
“As I’ve said repeatedly, we do have to look at what the security apparatus looks like for public transportation. CPD plays a role in that,” the mayor told reporters. “I don’t need a letter from the Trump administration to tell me what my priorities are.”
Pritzker’s spokesperson did not immediately provide comment.
The CTA, the nation’s third-largest public transit agency, is currently under mayoral control — but that’s about to change thanks to a new bill in Springfield that passed this fall. Regardless, the Trump administration has set its sights this year on targeting Chicago for various issues, CTA safety concerns among them.
The new federal directive alleges the transit agency is suffering from a “failure to implement adequate mitigations to address a years-long pattern of elevated worker assaults, customer assaults, and serious violent crime.” The order doesn’t specify a numerical target for how much law enforcement presence must be boosted beyond demanding a “plan that significantly increases security” from baseline levels.
There are 154 Chicago police officers assigned to its public transit detail under Johnson’s 2025 budget, but the CTA also contracts with private security companies who provide additional K-9 units.
A K-9 security officer and his dog stand at the CTA Yellow Line Howard Station, in Chicago, May 15, 2024. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)
The Trump administration has repeatedly used violence on public transit as a political cudgel against blue cities, having threatened to withhold funding from Chicago’s mass transit system before last month’s Blue Line attack as well. CTA leadership has disputed federal statistics on crime trends.
Trump Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy wrote a letter in September to the CTA asking it to lay out plans to reduce crime and fare evasion on the system or risk losing funding. The Trump administration has made similar threats to mass transit agencies in the Democratic-led cities of New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and Boston.
The CTA’s acting president, Nora Leerhsen, defended the agency’s safety practices in a response to Duffy at the time. Leerhsen claimed crime on the Blue Line specifically had dropped 30% over last year, and said overall CTA crime was down 12% over 2022 levels.
Data analyzed by the Tribune showed that there were seven homicides and eight shootings on the CTA between Jan. 1 and Sept. 30 this year, down from nine homicides and 14 shootings during the same time period in 2022.
Robberies dropped from 414 to 364 and thefts decreased from 725 in 2022 to 560 in 2025 for the first nine months of each year. The number of criminal sexual assaults logged on CTA property increased by one during the two reporting periods in 2022 and 2025.
The Tribune’s Jake Sheridan contributed reporting.
Parlamento de Eslovaquia aprueba plan para desmantelar oficina de protección a denunciantes
BRATISLAVA, Eslovaquia (AP) — El parlamento de Eslovaquia aprobó el martes un plan gubernamental para desmantelar una oficina independiente que protege a quienes denuncian corrupción y otras actividades delictivas.
Un total de 78 legisladores que representan al gobierno de coalición liderado por el primer ministro populista Robert Fico votaron a favor de la medida en el parlamento de 150 escaños, a pesar de las voces críticas tanto en el país como en el extranjero.
Entre los críticos se encontraban la oposición, el fiscal general de Eslovaquia, la Unión Europea y organizaciones no gubernamentales internacionales y locales que se ocupan de la corrupción.
El presidente Peter Pellegrini, generalmente un aliado de Fico, expresó sus reservas. Pellegrini tiene que firmar la legislación para que se convierta en ley, pero el gobierno tiene una mayoría para anular su posible veto.
“El nivel de protección, así como la confianza de las personas en el sistema de protección de denunciantes, que hemos trabajado arduamente para construir en la oficina durante los últimos años, se verá significativamente debilitado por esta ley”, declaró la Oficina de Protección de Denunciantes en un comunicado.
La agencia fue creada en 2021 bajo las normas de la UE.
El gobierno quiere crear una nueva institución que se ocupe de la protección de los denunciantes y también de las víctimas de delitos. Afirmó que las reglas anteriores fueron abusadas por razones políticas.
Las nuevas reglas permitirían cancelar la protección otorgada bajo la legislación anterior y permitir revisiones repetidas de la protección a solicitud de los empleadores.
La coalición gobernante impulsó los cambios utilizando un procedimiento parlamentario de vía rápida, lo que significa que el proyecto no fue revisado por expertos y otros que usualmente participan en el proceso. La coalición también limitó el tiempo para el debate parlamentario a unas pocas horas.
“Es un ataque contra el Estado de Derecho”, denunció Michal Šimečka, líder del principal partido de oposición Progresista Eslovaquia, que planea impugnar los cambios en el Tribunal Constitucional.
Fico ha sido durante mucho tiempo una figura divisiva. Sus críticos afirman que bajo su gobierno, Eslovaquia sigue la dirección de Hungría bajo el primer ministro Viktor Orbán.
Miles de personas se han manifestado repetidamente en la capital y en toda Eslovaquia para protestar contra la postura pro-Rusia de Fico y otras políticas.
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Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.
Real Madrid: Mbappé en duda para el partido contra Man City en la Champions
Por TALES AZZONI
MADRID (AP) — Kylian Mbappé entrenó por separado de sus compañeros del Real Madrid el martes, poniendo en duda su disponibilidad para el partido de la Liga de Campeones contra el Manchester City el miércoles.
El Madrid informó que Mbappé entrenó en interiores mientras el resto del equipo trabajó en el campo bajo el mando del técnico Xabi Alonso.
Mbappé, autor de 25 goles para el Madrid esta temporada, arrastra molestias en la parte posterior del muslo de la pierne izquierda, según los medios españoles. El astro francés es el máximo goleador tanto en La Liga española como en la Liga de Campeones.
El Madrid ha ganado solo dos de sus últimos siete partidos en todas las competencias. Viene de una derrota en casa por 2-0 ante el Celta de Vigo en La Liga española el domingo. En la Liga de Campeones, venció 4-3 a Olympiakos después de perder 1-0 en Liverpool.
“Tras el Celta, como siempre, sacamos las conclusiones”, dijo Alonso. “En la cabeza solo está el City, la Champions. El ambiente será diferente”.
Los merengues marchan en el quinto lugar, cumplidas cinco jornadas de la fase de liga de la Champions. Está dos puntos por delante del City, noveno en la tabla.
La derrota del domingo ante Celta fue la primera derrota en casa del Madrid en la temporada.
Alonso desestimó las sugerencias de los medios españoles de que ha perdido el control del vestuario y que algunos jugadores no han estado satisfechos con su trabajo.
“Es un equipo, vamos todos unidos de la mano”, señaló Alonso. “Cuando uno es entrenador del Real Madrid está preparado. Con muchas ganas de lo que viene y eso empieza mañana. En el fútbol, para bien y para mal, se puede cambiar rápido”.
El centrocampista Aurélien Tchouaméni dijo que no se puede culpar a Alonso por las recientes dificultades del equipo.
“Actitud no sé, pero si no ganamos es porque tenemos que hacer cosas mejor. Jugar mejor en defensa y ataque. Tenemos que hacer las cosas mejor”, declaró el francés. “Lo que está pasando ahora no puede ser. Si no jugamos con la intensidad máxima, será muy difícil ganar partidos. Hay que entender que para ganar esos partidos hay que dar el máximo. No lo hicimos contra el Celta y debemos hacerlo mañana”.
Alonso estáan lidiando con varias lesiones defensivas y el miércoles no contará con el defensor brasileño Eder Militão, quien se lesionó en la primera mitad del partido contra Celta. El centrocampista Eduardo Camavinga también entrenó por separado el martes.
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Fútbol de AP: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Defense Bill Requires Trump Spy Agencies To Declassify COVID-19 Origins Intel, Chinese Obstruction
Defense Bill Requires Trump Spy Agencies To Declassify COVID-19 Origins Intel, Chinese Obstruction
Slipped into the nearly 3,100-page National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) is a provision that requires “declassification” and “transparency” related to the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic, and would require the Trump administration’s spy agencies to release its intelligence related to the Wuhan Institute of Virology where COVID research was offshored by the Obama administration in October of 2014 with a grant to EcoHealth Alliance, a New York City nonprofit run by Peter Daszak.
Chinese Virologist Shi Zhengli of the WIV
In March of 2018, Daszak submitted a grant proposal titled Project DEFUSE (short for “Defusing the Threat of Bat-borne Coronaviruses”) to DARPA, which sought to create genetically modified bat coronaviruses with enhanced potential for human infectivity – including features that could enable aerosol (airborne) transmission. The proposal was ultimately rejected by DARPA over safety concerns – however “if funding became available,” then certain components of particular interest could proceed.
So, let’s see if the NDAA passes with this language – and whether it confirms the above Fauci-funded adventures in Wuhan. Of note, Peter Daszak – unlike Fauci – was not pardoned by former President Joe Biden and the infamous autopen.
The text of the NDAA – specifically section 6803 of the text, calls on the Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard to work with the heads of all 18 US spy agencies to “perform a declassification review of intelligence” related to “the origins of Coronavirus Disease 2019,” and related to “efforts by government officials of entities of the People’s Republic of China” to cover up the origins of the pandemic.
“DNI Gabbard remains committed to declassifying COVID-19 information and looks forward to continued work with Congress to share the truth about pandemic-era failures with the American people,” a DNI spokesperson told Just the News.
Recall that while the government was locking us down, Dr. Anthony Fauci and those in his orbit were actively fabricating a ‘wet market’ narrative that would conceal US research as a possible origin – despite his own advisors initially insisting that COVID-19 looked manmade.
Among other things, the NIH helped fund experiments at WIV that infected genetically engineered mice with “chimeric” hybrids of SARS-related bat coronaviruses in what some scientists have described as unacceptably risky research.
…
Andersen laid them out plainly in an email to Fauci that same evening. “The unusual features of the virus make up a really small part of the genome (<0.1%) so one has to look really closely at all the sequences to see that some of the features (potentially) look engineered,” Andersen wrote in the email. “I should mention,” he added, “that after discussions earlier today, Eddie, Bob, Mike and myself all find the genome inconsistent with expectations from evolutionary theory. But we have to look at this much more closely and there are still further analyses to be done, so those opinions could still change.” -The Intercept
Those who questioned this narrative, including ZeroHedge, were harshly punished – while outlets like the LA Times went so far carrying water for Fauci that it opined “The COVID lab leak claim isn’t just an attack on science, but a threat to public health.”
The Trump administration meanwhile has begun a renewed push to get to the bottom of the COVID-19 virus, Just the News reports, adding “there’s more and more evidence — including by non-U.S. intelligence agencies — indicating that it came from the Wuhan Institute of Virology.”
Yet, a massive pile of intelligence related to the origins of the virus remain classified, and Congress now wants the Trump intelligence community to provide clarity.
The Chinese government, meanwhile, continues to deflect from the possibility of a Wuhan lab leak, instead pushing the theory that COVID-19 originated from Fort Detrick, a US military base that’s home to the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases’ (NIAID) Integrated Research Facility (IRF-Frederick).
While there is no direct evidence that USAMRIID was involved in pre-pandemic research, the facility has studied SARS-CoV-1 (2003) and MERS-CoV since the early 2000s, including reverse genetics for chimeric viruses and interferon therapies. Collaborations with UNC’s Ralph Baric – who created ‘humanized mice‘ for Wuhan scientists to infect, informed later gain-of-function debates but predate SARS-CoV-2.
In short, it looks like:
The US government offshored risky gain-of-function research on bat coronaviruses to Wuhan, China
The WIV had poor lab security
American researchers collaborated with WIV scientsts to create chimeric (genetically modified) bat coronaviruses, likely including COVID-19.
The virus coincidentally escaped just in time to cause a global pandemic that crushed Trump’s economic momentum, resulting in vote-by-mail during the 2020 ‘fraud-free’ election that saw Joe Biden receive more votes than any president in US history.
During Gabbard’s Senate confirmation hearing in January, she said that many senators had “expressed bipartisan frustration about recent intelligence failures and the lack of responsiveness to your requests for information,” including related to “failures to identify the source of the COVID.”
As a result, she established the Director’s Initiatives Group (DIG) in April, which has a goal of “investigating weaponization, rooting out deep-seeded politicization, exposing unauthorized disclosures of classified intelligence, and declassifying information that serves a public interest.”
An ODNI official told Just the News that Gabbard and her team are working hard to investigate intelligence failures related to COVID-19, including investigating possible suppression of the lab leak hypothesis within the intelligence community and carrying out a wide-ranging review of U.S.-funded gain-of-function research.
The official also said ODNI is coordinating with other spy agency elements such as the FBI and Department of Energy to share details about COVID-19 inquiries.
The ODNI official added that Gabbard’s office had provided Congress with requested documents on COVID origins, including records that were improperly withheld by the Biden Administration. Gabbard’s office is also interviewing whistleblowers and weighing the declassification of further records, the official said. -Just the News
If the NDAA is passed by the House and Senate and signed into law by Trump, it would require Gabbard and the ODNI to conduct two separate classification reviews related to COVID-19. The first review would cover the origins of the virus, and calls on Gabbard to review the intelligence on “research conducted at the Wuhan Institute of Virology or any other medical or scientific research center within the People’s Republic of China,” and “information relating to Gain of Function research and the intention of this research.” The review would also look into “information relating to sources of funding or direction for research on coronaviruses, including both sources within the People’s Republic of China and foreign sources.”
The second declassification review would call on ODNI to look at Beijing’s efforts “to disrupt or obstruct information sharing or investigations into the origins” of COVID-19, and “to disrupt the sharing of medically significant information relating to the transmissibility and potential harm of SARS–CoV–2 to humans.” This second review would also look into China’s attempts “to deny the sharing of information with the United States, allies and partners of the United States, or multilateral organizations, including the United Nations and the World Health Organization,” along with Beijing’s efforts “to pressure or lobby” governments, organizations and officials related to COVID-19.
Let’s see if the Trump administration squanders yet another chance to provide long-promised clarity on a major issue of national interest, after thoroughly botching the Epstein release.
Tyler Durden
Tue, 12/09/2025 – 12:20
Federal Judge Orders Release Of Old Ghislaine Maxwell Files About Jeffrey Epstein
Federal Judge Orders Release Of Old Ghislaine Maxwell Files About Jeffrey Epstein
Authored by Jack Phillips via The Epoch Times,
A federal judge in New York on Dec. 9 ruled that the Department of Justice (DOJ) can unseal records in the case against Jeffrey Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell, weeks after the passage of a law that required the government to disclose case records related to both Epstein and Maxwell.
Judge Paul A. Engelmayer issued the ruling after the DOJ, in November, asked two judges in New York to unseal grand jury transcripts and exhibits from Maxwell and Epstein’s cases, along with investigative materials.
Last month, President Donald Trump signed the Epstein Files Transparency Act into law, meaning that the records could be made public within roughly 10 days.
The law requires the DOJ provide Epstein-related records to the public in a searchable format by Dec. 19.
In the order, the judge wrote that the law “does not explicitly refer to grand jury materials,” but added that it “textually covers the grand jury materials in this case.”
“The Court thus finds that modification of the Protective Order is necessary to enable DOJ to carry out its legal obligations under the Act,” he added.
“The Act unambiguously applies to the discovery in this case,” Engelmayer stated, adding that “unclassified records, documents, communications, and investigative materials” are covered in relation to Maxwell, Epstein, and connected individuals.
Nothing New
The decision comes after Engelmayer previously denied DOJ’s bid to release the documents – when he wrote that a “public official,” “lawmaker,” “pundit,” or “ordinary citizen” concerned with the Epstein case would expect them to reveal new information, based on the government’s descriptions, and “come away feeling disappointed and misled.” Most of the material is “entirely a matter of longstanding public record,” he said at the time.
The ruling was issued days after a federal judge in Florida granted the DOJ’s request to release transcripts from a grand jury investigation into Epstein in the 2000s.
Engelmayer is the second judge to allow the DOJ to publicly disclose previously secret Epstein court records. Last week, a judge in Florida granted the department’s request to release transcripts from an abandoned federal grand jury investigation into Epstein in the 2000s.
The Florida judge also cited the recent passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, noting that it supersedes DOJ rules and procedures around the sealing of grand jury materials. In its request, the DOJ wanted documents in a 2006–2007 Florida grand jury sex trafficking investigation into Epstein in which he ultimately pleaded guilty on lesser charges.
The records that Engelmayer unsealed pertain to the case against Maxwell, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison for her role in a sex trafficking scheme involving minors.
Following the signing of the Epstein law, the DOJ also submitted a request to unseal records in a New York case against Epstein before he was arrested in 2019. He was later found dead in a New York City jail cell in August 2019 as he was awaiting federal sex trafficking charges.
Another judge in New York has not yet ruled on that request connected to the final Epstein case.
Maxwell’s attorneys, in a letter to Engelmayer, opposed the release of grand jury materials because she is aiming to seek a new trial, although they noted that Maxwell “does not take a position” in response to the request to release the files.
“Releasing the grand jury materials from her case, which contain untested and unproven allegations, would create undue prejudice so severe that it would foreclose the possibility of a fair retrial should Ms. Maxwell’s habeas petition succeed,” her attorneys stated in the Dec. 3 letter.
ZeroHedge contributed to this report
Tyler Durden
Tue, 12/09/2025 – 12:00
Lake Forest City Council meeting notebook: Council members review proposal for business district parking issues
Business District parking issues
The Lake Forest City Council has reviewed a preliminary proposal outlining ways to ease parking challenges in the central business district.
At the Dec. 1 meeting, staff presented some recommendations based on findings from a recent survey of residents, business owners, visitors and employees, along with recommendations developed by an internal committee. The survey revealed how long vehicles typically occupy spaces, strong interest in additional visitor parking near shops and restaurants, support for fewer parking time classifications, a preference for 60–90 minute limits on street parking, and employee interest in a designated parking area with incentives to use it.
Using that feedback, the committee drafted a plan built around three core goals: simplifying parking zones and signage; ensuring customer parking is located close to shopping and dining; and improving management and enforcement through updated technology. Among the recommendations is the purchase of a license plate reader system to assist police with time-limit and permit enforcement. Staff estimated upfront technology costs at about $70,000, with annual expenses of roughly $20,000.
Council members expressed general support for the approach but suggested some adjustments. Staff plans to return in January with finalized recommendations.
“We’re confident the solutions exist,” City Manager Jason Wicha said.
Gorton Center budget
The City Council approved Gorton Community Center’s approximately $2.8 million budget for the coming year. Gorton serves as the city’s arts and cultural hub for residents of all ages.
“Gorton is an important part of the economic vitality here,” Executive Director Amy Wagliardo said.
City Attorney retires
The City Council also recognized City Attorney Julie Tappendorf, who is retiring after eight years of service in Lake Forest. The city will continue to work with the Ancel Glink law firm for legal services, spokeswoman Dana Olson said.
Daniel I. Dorfman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/09/lake-forest-city-council-meeting-notebook/
EEUU exige a México el agua que debe. Sheinbaum replica que no es posible pagar ahora
Associated Press
CIUDAD DE MÉXICO (AP) — La deuda mexicana de agua de las cuencas fronterizas compartidas entre Estados Unidos y México volvió a ser motivo de amenazas de aranceles por parte de Donald Trump. Pero la presidenta mexicana Claudia Sheinbaum afirmó el martes que aunque su país tiene intención de pagar, no puede hacerlo ahora.
Sheinbaum explicó en su conferencia de prensa diaria que este año se entregó mucha más agua de la que se envió en años anteriores, pero argumentó que no se puede pagar todo debido a la sequía, para no poner en riesgo el abastecimiento a los ciudadanos y por un “impedimento físico”: el tamaño del ducto que lleva agua al río Bravo no permite entregar más de la que actualmente se está enviando.
“Se van a hacer una serie de propuestas para poder entregar agua de aquí a diciembre y otra que venga en los siguientes años que no ponga en riesgo evidentemente a la población y a la producción agrícola en México, pero que también podamos ayudar a los Estados Unidos”, agregó la mandataria. El tema se tratará en una reunión virtual con autoridades estadounidenses prevista para el martes por la tarde.
Según el tratado de 1944 México está obligado a entregar 430 millones de metros cúbicos (350.000 acres-pie) de agua por año, o aproximadamente 2.150 millones de metros cúbicos (1,75 millones de acres-pie) en cinco años por el este de la frontera común (el río Bravo). Estados Unidos, a cambio, le da a México aún más agua de otras fuentes ubicadas más al oeste (las cuencas del río Colorado y del río Tijuana).
Pero los problemas llegan cuando se cumplen los ciclos quinquenales y hay sequía, como ocurre ahora.
Trump amenazó por primera vez con aranceles por este tema en abril y la víspera dijo que impondría un 5% de aranceles a México porque “sigue violando” el tratado.
“Estados Unidos necesita que México envíe 200.000 acres-pie (unos 246 millones de metros cúbicos) de agua antes del 31 de diciembre, el resto debe llegar pronto después”, indicó en sus redes sociales. “Hasta ahora, México no está respondiendo y eso es injusto para nuestros granjeros estadounidenses”.
Desde las primeras tensiones ambos países han llegado a acuerdos puntuales sobre el tema y la presidenta mexicana confió en que en esta ocasión vuelva a haber un entendimiento.
“Lo que hay es la mejor voluntad para poder entregar la cantidad de agua que se debe de años anteriores”, subrayó.
