Las Vegas · Tucker Carlson · E. Jean Carroll
It's already time for the April budget sweep
the true crime that's worth your time
It seems pretty clear that Love & Death is set to dominate true crime watchlists this weekend. I’m sure there’s other stuff out there, but this second take on the Candy Montgomery story is pulling the dominant buzz, including Sarah’s review from yesterday and today’s Patreon-walled episode of the Sarah-co-hosted Extra Hot Great podcast (which I am already looking forward to listening to at the gym).
Good thing, too, because I have a lot to get through in today’s April budget doc sweep. So please do share what you’re watching in the comments, and know that you’re about to get plenty to read, too. — EB
Jonathan Majors' alleged victim granted temporary protection order [CBS]
"This is standard in cases such as this, and we consented because Mr. Majors wants nothing to do with the woman who assaulted him," Majors’ attorney said, a comment Jezebel characterized as “straight from the Johnny Depp playbook.” Variety reported last week that “multiple alleged abuse victims of Majors have come forward following his March arrest and are cooperating with the Manhattan district attorney’s office.”
No prison yet for Elizabeth Holmes following last-ditch appeal [CNBC]
The Theranos co-founder was supposed to report to federal prison yesterday, but that didn’t happen: late Tuesday, her defense team filed an appeal with the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in SF, which means she’s allowed to remain free on bail. Her continued freedom depends on that appeals court’s decision; that same court turned co-founder Sunny Balwani’s similar attempt down earlier this year, and he’s since been incarcerated.
Trump accuser E. Jean Carroll testifies, ‘He raped me whether I screamed or not!’ [Washington Post]
Carroll, the longtime advice columnist for Elle Magazine who testified — per The Daily Beast — that the mag dropped her after she accused the former president of rape (this came up first in 2020; Elle denied her claims then but I still canceled by subscription anyway because I’m like that), faced questions like why she didn’t scream during the alleged assault.
The Post is doing a solid play-by-play page of coverage of the civil case, which is infuriating and triggering by turns. One thing that won’t be there to piss you off is the alleged rapist, who thus far has not appeared in the courtroom but “hasn’t ruled out testifying,” the AP reports.
Two Arrested for Operating Illegal Overseas Police Station of the Chinese Government in Manhattan [DOJ]
Another one for the “expect an adaptation” files: Per this Department of Justice press release, “Harry” Lu Jianwang, 61, of the Bronx, and Chen Jinping, 59, of Manhattan were arrested earlier this month for allegedly “opening and operating an illegal overseas police station, located in lower Manhattan, New York, for a provincial branch of the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) of the People’s Republic of China (PRC).” It’s an incredibly bizarre story, if the release is accurate, and more than a little creepy.
Before Tucker Carlson was ousted from Fox, his father triggered an S.F. libel scandal [SF Chronicle]
I hooked y’all up with the “gift link” for this fun deep dive into the libel case against San Franciscan Dick Carlson (Tucker’s dad), who co-wrote a story for Look magazine headlined “The Web That Links San Francisco’s Mayor Joe Alioto and the Mafia.” Alioto denied the claims in the piece, and sued Look and the authors for $12.5 million. History, she is inclined to repeat!
Instagram influencer Katie Sorensen guilty of false kidnapping report [KTVU]
Remember the “mom influencer” who said a couple of Latinx folks who were shopping at a NorCal Michael’s store (why is it always a Michael’s?) were trying to steal her kids? Sorensen was found guilty of making false claims this week, and was “taken from the courtroom in handcuffs and could face as much as six months in jail, according to District Attorney Carla Rodriguez. Her bail was set at $100,000.”
SF Cop Who Got Revenge for His Mother Investigated by Internal Affairs [SF Standard]
We’ve mentioned SFPD Sgt. Adam Plantinga here before, as he’s the author of two books on policing including 400 Things Cops Know. One thing he didn’t appear to know is that it’s a bad idea to brag about keeping tabs on a man who “malign[ed] my mother,” running wanted checks on the person and eventually arresting him “for alleged possession of drug paraphernalia and an out-of-county warrant for attempted grand theft.” Now he’s “under investigation for misconduct,” part of an investigation that “will take one year to conclude.”
The covert mission to solve a Mexican journo's murder [New Yorker]
A cohort of reporters came together to investigate the 2021 slaying of Miroslava Breach Velducea after police didn’t, leading to the eventual arrest and conviction of the former mayor of the Chihuahua city of Chínipas for his role in the crime. I’ll bet you dinner that we’ll see a dramatic adaptation of this — a la Spotlight — very soon.
Belgian Collector Sues Son Over Fatal Shooting of His Wife [Hyperallergic]
This is a very handy bit of aggregation, as the majority of reporting on this case has been only in the Belgian press (in French, German or Flemish). It’s a great and twisty story that I’d happily watch a doc about: Allegedly unhappy about how his inheritance would be meted out, Nicolas Ullens shot six rounds into a a car containing “art collector and billionaire sugar giant heir Guy Ullens” and “his second wife and Nicolas’s stepmother, 70-year-old collector and philanthropist Myriam Ullens.”
Guy was injured, Myriam was killed, and Nicolas’s sister, Brigitte, defended his actions to a local paper, saying Myriam made sure the family “had been ravaged for years.” Wild stuff, and I want more.
13 Women Accuse Gérard Depardieu of Sexually Inappropriate Behavior [The Hollywood Reporter]
I say this with respect for the alleged victims, and for all victims of workplace harassment and assault, but if there’s one guy I’m not surprised to hear claims like this about, it’s this 74-year-old actor French actor — who admitted in a 1978 interview that “he first participated in a rape at age nine, explaining that ‘it was absolutely normal in those circumstances. That was part of my childhood.’”
Murder and Loathing in Las Vegas [Esquire]
Speaking of journalists investigating their colleague’s death, Zoë Bernard is behind this great longread on the murder of reporter and true crime author Jeff German. You already know most of the details from coverage in the daily, but the deft repackaging and additional insight here makes this well worth your time.
Hellhounds on His Trail: Mack McCormick’s Long, Tortured Quest to Find the Real Robert Johnson [Texas Monthly]
One last longread before I send you off for April, and to your weekend: a book about legendary Delta Blues artist Robert Johnson ended up revealing more about the author, with reporter Michael Hall uncovering claims of swindling and troubling suggestions of false reporting and full-cloth fabulism.
And that’s April! When we see you again, it’ll be May, my “birthday month” (as I describe it to my husband’s endless contempt). Keep your eye out for some special content and a birthday-related subscription sale. Until then, we hope your weekend is lovely and filled only with the kind of crime you want in your life. — EB
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