Friday, October 2, 2020

Florida man arrested after allegedly hitting deputy in face with a Bible

A Florida man was arrested last Tuesday after he allegedly threw a Bible at a sheriff’s deputy, according to reports. Authorities were called to a residence in Summerfield, which is northwest of Orlando, on September 22, after a neighbor reported a break-in at his home. Deputies said when they arrived, they found the 39-year-old man dressed in his underwear, shouting something to the effect, “I condemn you.” They said he threw a Bible that hit a deputy in the face. He was tased and taken into custody following a brief struggle. The arrest report said the suspect defecated on himself at the scene. A deputy wrote in the report that the suspect was asked why he broke into the home, and he replied, “Because God told me to.” Authorities said there was damage to a door at the neighbor’s residence, and a window had been broken. The alleged victim’s wife said $50 worth of clothing was stolen. She also told deputies that the suspect had a “drug problem,” the arrest report said. He was transported to Marion County Jail following the incident, authorities said. He faces charges of burglary to an unoccupied dwelling, petit theft, criminal mischief – property damage, battery on an officer, and resisting an officer without violence. (Click Orlando)

Pastor did meth with parishioners, performed exorcism on 1-year-old

An Arkansas pastor admitted using meth with parishioners and performing an exorcism on an emaciated 1-year-old boy, police said. The pastor of the House of Refuge and Deliverance Ministries church in Mayflower, Arkansas was arrested at a gas station with meth and a pipe on September 22, according to court documents. Four days earlier, police in nearby Conway responded to the church for a welfare check and discovered a 21-month-old child with “multiple bruises from head to toe,” as well as the boy’s mother and the 49-year-old pastor. The boy’s mother claimed he “was possessed by a demon” before he was taken to a hospital, where he was admitted into an intensive care unit with a brain bleed and extreme malnourishment, police said. Investigators then went to the pastor’s home on September 22 to ask him about the case, but he wasn’t there. Officers later spotted his white Dodge truck at a gas station where police say about 4 grams of meth in a small baggie was found inside his vehicle along with a pipe and more meth on the truck’s passenger side, where he had been sitting. The pastor denied knowing the pipe and drugs were in the truck, but admitted to using meth “in the past,” as well as inside the church several times,  including with the child’s mother and other parishioners, the affidavit shows. He also admitted trying to “exorcise the demon” in the boy, but refused to explain what that entailed, police said. Officers also found a bag of suspected meth during a search of the church, as well as a shotgun at the pastor’s home, court documents show. As an ex-felon, he had been barred from possessing handguns. The pastor has been charged with possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a gun by a convicted felon, but was released from custody after posting a $7,500 bond. He is due back in court on October 13th, court documents show. (The Cabin)

Man pranks friend on first date by calling restaurant, ordering ‘will you marry me’ dessert to the table

This dinner came with a side of awkward when a man’s close friend decided to have some fun at his expense. A 38-year-old was meeting a woman for a romantic first date at a steak restaurant. He apparently told his friend about the date, in which prompted his buddy to call the restaurant pretending to be the man who was going to meet the woman. He called the restaurant and told the staff he was planning on proposing to the woman.  “The manager said ‘we’ll bring out the cake and a bottle of prosecco and dim the lights,’” friend said. H even paid another friend of his to go to the restaurant and film the event. The restaurant staff reportedly brought out a candle, bottle of prosecco and a piece of cheesecake on a plate with the words “Will you marry me?” written in chocolate. The woman was shocked and insisted, “this isn’t our ours, 100% it’s not ours,” he said. Though the pair realized the joke, the woman reportedly did not enjoy the prank. “It was $180 for the prank but it was worth it,” the friend said, noting he had to pay for the proposal plate and his friend’s dinner. (Fox News)

Krispy Kreme offering free Halloween doughnut to anyone who shows up in costume

Krispy Kreme announced that anyone who visits a participating location on Oct. 31 while wearing a Halloween costume will be entitled to a free doughnut of their choice. It’s not an entirely new promotion for Krispy Kreme, they’ve offered the same deal in the past, but this year, the chain is throwing in another sweet promotion, completely new for 2020: “Sweet or Treat Saturdays.” During “Sweet or Treat Saturdays” between October 10 and Halloween, customers who purchase a dozen doughnuts can buy an additional dozen for just $1, “to give to family, friends or neighbors” in the spirit of the socially-distanced season. (Business Wire)

California ‘Lady Ninja,’ 67, takes down suspect at senior complex

A 67-year-old woman, who trained in jujitsu for decades and prefers the name “Lady Ninja” due to her martial arts experience over the years, took down a home intruder and protected her elderly neighbors at a senior apartment complex in Fontana, California earlier this week. Standing at less than 5 feet tall, she left the 59-year-old suspect yelling in pain after she defended an 81-year-old wheelchair-using friend and neighbor. Weighing just 100 pounds, she didn’t want to kill the 5-foot-10 and 170 pounds suspect, so she switched positions and held him down. Police arrived on the scene and took the suspect into custody. The man lived in the complex and sometimes did handyman work for residents. Authorities added that while saving a friend in danger was a courageous act, it’s recommended that people call 911 instead of taking on situations by themselves because an attacker could be armed. (KCAL)

Facebook to ban QAnon, militarized social movement ads ahead of election

Facebook announced Wednesday it is banning ads that “praise, support or represent” QAnon and any militarized social movements on the platform. Members of groups that have been restricted and follow pages that have been restricted “will see content from these Groups and Pages further down in their News Feed,” the company said. Facebook is ramping up efforts to combat fake stories on its platform ahead of the November presidential election, including banning ads trying to delegitimize the election results. A few weeks ago, it announced it would ban political ads in the last week of the campaign to clamp down on disinformation, which ran rampant in the 2016 election and was taken advantage of by Russian operators. Facebook said it is aware that QAnon is also using hashtags like #savethechildren to recruit and organize, alluding to the conspiracy theory that supposes most liberal leaders are Satan-worshipping sex traffickers. In August, Facebook removed hundreds of pages and groups linked to QAnon. (CNBC)

Possible Changes Coming To Presidential Debate

The commission that organizes presidential debates says additional tools will be put in place to maintain order for the remaining debates. One key change it plans to implement: Cutting off the microphones of President Trump and Joe Biden if they break the rules, according to a source familiar with the commission’s deliberations. The plans have not been finalized and the commission is still considering how it would carry out the plan. The Commission on Presidential Debates is responding to this past Tuesday’s face-off between President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden. At the top of the list is controlling the two candidates’ microphones and their ability to interrupt one another and the moderator. The campaigns will be informed of the rules, but the source said the rules will not be subject to negotiation. (CBS News)

2,000-year-old ritual bath discovered in Israel

A 2,000-year-old mikveh, or ritual bath, has been discovered in Israel’s Galilee region. The mikveh is part of an ancient Jewish farmstead discovered in Lower Galilee during an excavation by the Israel Antiquities Authority. The Israel Antiquities Authority said that the existence of the ritual bath “unequivocally indicates” that the residents of the ancient farm were Jewish and led a religious and traditional way of life. “Ritual baths have been used in daily life by Jews since the Second Temple period and until today,” they said. The site was uncovered prior to the construction of a highway interchange. Workers from the village Kfar Manda, local students and volunteers, including residents of the nearby Kibbutz Hannaton, participated in the excavation. (Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

Drunken Texas man charged after letting 13-year-old stepdaughter drive him for ice cream

A Texas man was charged after designating his 13-year-old stepdaughter to drive him for ice cream while he was drunk. The 42-year-old man from Lubbock, Texas was indicted on a felony charge of endangering a child and criminal negligence. The man was in the passenger seat of an SUV when he and the girl were pulled over after failing to yield to a police vehicle. The report said the police car had nearly crashed into the SUV the girl was driving. When police approached the vehicle and asked the driver for a license, she said she didn’t have one before informing the officer that she was only 13 years old. The man appeared so intoxicated that he struggled to get his driver’s license out of his wallet, according to the report. He was booked into the Lubbock County Detention Center, while the teen’s sister picked her up at the scene and drove her home. (Fort Worth Star-Telegram)

Trump suggests McDonald’s french fries are responsible for his keeping his hair from falling out

President Trump took a very brief break from tweeting about Tuesday night’s debate to comment on a 2018 study that suggested a chemical found in McDonald’s fries could prevent hair loss. “No wonder I didn’t lose my hair!” wrote Trump, who retweeted an article about the study first shared by former White House press secretary Ari Fleischer in 2018. Fleisher, for the record, had originally joked that the chemical “doesn’t work.” (President Trump Twitter)

UPDATE: First patient cured of HIV dies of cancer

The first patient cured of HIV, Timothy Ray Brown, also known as “Berlin patient”, has died of cancer after a five-month battle with leukemia. He was diagnosed with HIV in 1995. In 2006, he also developed leukemia while living in Germany. The stem cell donor performed a blood stem cell transplant using a donor with a rare gene mutation that provides natural resistance to HIV. The stem cell donor said that resistance transferred to Timothy, who went on to see long-term remission from HIV. Though traces of infection were found in Timothy’s tissue several years later, the donor said they were remnants of the disease that couldn’t replicate or cause a recurrence. (Forbes)

Alcohol consumption has surged during coronavirus pandemic, especially ‘heavy drinking’ among women

A report suggested that “heavy drinking” among women has surged 41% as the coronavirus crisis continues. The RAND Corporation released a study highlighting changes in alcohol consumption among adults in the U.S. amid the ongoing outbreak, as compared to 2019. In a survey of 1,540 adults on the “nationally representative” RAND American Life Panel, participants were asked to compare their drinking habits from spring 2019 (late April to early June) with those this spring (late May to mid-June). According to the findings, overall alcohol consumption shot up 19% among adults ages 30 to 59; drinking also rose 17% among women and 10% among non-Hispanic white adults. What’s more, “heavy drinking”, as defined by four or more drinks within a few hours, jumped 41% among the ladies from a year prior. Moving forward, the authors suggested that further research could explore whether or not alcohol consumption continues to rise among American adults as the pandemic continues, and if psychological and physical well-being are affected as a result. (Fox News)

Woman forced to forfeit lotto prize after USPS loses ticket

A woman says she was forced to forfeit her lotto prize after the US Postal Service lost her winning ticket in the mail. The woman in Hernando County, Florida said she was thrilled to discover earlier this summer that she snagged $1,000 in the state’s Second Chance Lottery game. But at the time, she couldn’t claim her winnings at any of the local lottery offices since they were closed due to the pandemic. She followed the state lottery’s instructions and went to the post office to send in her ticket via certified mail. She said the ticket, however, never made it to the lottery office in the one-week time frame required to claim the prize. Her tracking information last showed the ticket in transit on August 12th at a Tallahassee post office. She’s frustrated because she could’ve left her ticket in a dropbox at a local lottery office, but she believed that certified mail was the safer and more efficient option. Six weeks later, the winning ticket is still unaccounted for. The USPS apologized to her and said it’s working with the state lottery to help her cash out her prize. The Florida Lottery said it’s not responsible for mistakes made by the postal service, though it will make an exception for her and pay out her prize if the package shows up postmarked by the original deadline. (WFLA)

Friday Comes Back With:

• Body Language Day (First Friday in October)
• Custodial Worker’s Recognition Day
• Diversity Day (First Friday in October)
• Fried Scallops Day
• Guardian Angels Day
• International Day of Non-violence
• Kids Music Day (First Friday in October)
• Lee’s National Denim Day (First Friday in October)
• Manufacturing Day (First Friday in October)
• Name Your Car Day
• Peanuts (Cartoon) Day
• Phileas Fogg’s Wager Day
• Produce Misting Day
• Sukkot (at Sundown)
• World Farm Animals Day
• World Smile Day (First Friday in October)