The Bills' 2019 training camp has officially reached a business week old. Buffalo's was the fifth day of their schedule on Tuesday and things boiled over more than ever (for this offseason, anyway). On the sidelines, there was good and bad to update. Mitch Morse was watching practice for the second-straight day and reports indicate no one is sure why. Monitor him moving forward, the Bills practice again on Wednesday morning. But NYUP.com also reports that Tyler Kroft, who is out with a broken foot, was seen for the first time without a walking boot on. Good progress. With that, here's three more takeaways from Day 5 of Bills camp: Kyle in the house Former defensive tackle, retiree, and now team legend Kyle Williams, who retired this offseason, was at the team's practice. He was spotted in the ways you'd most like to see, chatting up with his replacement, first-round pick Ed Oliver. The crowd on-hand loved to see that, too. The Rochester D&C reported the crowd was chanting "we miss you, Kyle." during the practice. "I love football, I love the Buffalo Bills. To be invited back to kind of share what I know to try and help our guys out? It's a blessing and I'm happy to be here," Williams told reporters. Oliver appreciated it whatever tips Williams gave him. "I just wanted to know everything," Oliver said. Oliver indicated that Williams was in the classroom with players off the field as well. Fight on field The first big-time fight from training camp is in the books. After a day or two of little shoves, there was a punch thrown by wide receiver Ray-Ray McCloud. According to The Athletic , Dean Marlowe was put on his behind by offensive lineman Jon Feliciano during a screen play. Moments later, McCloud saw the wrath of Marlowe. A hit he laid even knocked off McCloud's helmet and when he got up, he threw a punch at Marlowe. As you imagine by now, pads were on and hitting was live, leading to the incident. But WKBW caught the two hashing things out after practice on camera: After practice Ray-Ray McCloud and Dean Marlowe had a quick chat. The two were involved in a brief altercation after Marlowe hit McCloud running across the field. After the hit, McCloud got up and threw a punch #Bills @WKBW pic.twitter.com/BKT2sIj65N - Matthew Bové (@Matt_Bove) July 30, 2019 Buffalo Bills running back LeSean McCoy. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes) Shady sighting In terms of on-field stuff, one thing was new. LeSean McCoy reportedly looked pretty good during red zone drills. In fact, McCoy and the run game did so well that offensive coordinator Brian Daboll let out some praise, according to the team's website. "Those are some good (expletive) runs, men," Daboll said. Reported earlier in camp, McCoy has also found himself a beneficiary in the pass game early in camp as well. Helping assist McCoy in making some defenders miss was some sloppy, rainy weather. Regardless, if he is going to be the No. 1 running back any good practices, no matter the weather, is a good sign after his year last season. MORE: Jayson Tatum and others defend LeBron James for celebrating at Bronny's AAU game Dee Ford, Dre Greenlaw leave 49ers practice early with injuries The Dallas Cowboys Should Trade Ezekiel Elliott Observations from Lions training camp, Day 5: Jahlani Tavai makes play of the day Tom Brady disobeys Bill Belichick at practice, and suffers the consequences


Initially, it seemed the Thunder's need for shooters might have an impact on Oklahoma City's approach to the 2019 NBA Draft. Cam Johnson was thought to be a good candidate to land in OKC given his age, how he projects, the Thunder's standing in the draft, and the fact he was one of the best shooters in the draft- if not the best. But Johnson went at No. 11 to the Minnesota Timberwolves (who traded the pick to Phoenix, making him a Sun). Regardless of whether or not Johnson's earlier than expected selection impacted the Thunder's approach, Oklahoma City moved down in the draft, trading away No. 21 to the Grizzlies for a second-round pick in 2024 and No. 23 in the 2019 draft - which turned into Darius Bazley. The curious pick warranted an explanation. But Thunder general manager Sam Presti couldn't comment on the move when he spoke to reporters in Oklahoma City after the draft, because the entire trade needed to be "consummated," as he put it. Despite being admittedly vague, Presti was able to provide some insight on the Thunder's yearly approach to picking out their new rookie(s): I think the way we've always approached the draft is we're always looking to create value for the organization and then get the most value from the opportunities we have to pick. Presti continued: I think we've also shown at different points in time to try to take a long view and give yourself the opportunity to have the most success. But every one of these is different. We try to just go off [of] the board and take the next player that's there. Presti isn't the only front office official across the NBA to lean on this explanation to illustrate their line of thinking. But Presti also made sure to note the players left at Oklahoma City's spot in this year's draft generally turn into bench players, at best. If you look at the history of the draft, in the 20's there's a 40 percent chance or so that you can get a bench player in those areas, most of the time, let alone someone that you're gonna draft that's gonna come in and play major minutes on a team like ours. Even after Presti's comments, knowing more about Bazely makes like there's a chance the Thunder found someone who can become more than a role player in time. But this pick does not come without risk. MORE: NBA Free Agency 2019: The top players LaVar Ball offers explanation for his inappropriate remark to ESPN's Molly Qerim D'Angelo Russell open to Lakers return with Magic Johnson gone Report: Former player trades NFL for world of crystal healing Report: Celtics interested in signing French center Vincent Poirier


Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser Al-Khelaifi has been charged with corruption for his part in Qatar's bids for the world athletics championships in 2017 and 2019. The charges were administered by a French judge as part of an investigation into bribery claims relating to both the unsuccessful bid for the 2017 championships - which were ultimately held in London - and the successful one for the tournament this year. The payments in question totalled £2.8m, and according to reports from AFP news agency , were allegedly provided by Oryx Qatar Sports Investment, a firm Al-Khelaifi owns alongside his brother Khalid, and given to a firm run by the son of the ex-president of the world athletics governing body (the IAAF), Lamine Diack. Diack was charged in relation to the case in March, which was when the investigation into the PSG boss began, while a warrant is out for the arrest of Lamine's son, Papa Massata Diack. Al-Khelaifi was initially brought in to the case voluntarily, after he agreed to appear before a judicial inquiry investigating the case in March. However, so far the 45-year-old has vehemently denied any wrongdoing, with his lawyer, Francis Szpiner, citing the allegations as "totally inaccurate". Speaking to Le Parisien, as quoted by Goal , Szpiner proclaimed: "Nasser Al-Khelaifi's name does not appear on any of the documents in the file. "It should be noted that Nasser Al-Khelaifi's initial hearing was only the result of a regrettable confusion by the investigating magistrate. Nasser Al-Khelaifi has never been operationally involved in Doha's bid for the World Athletics Championships." #BREAKING PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi charged with corruption over Qatar world athletics championships: source pic.twitter.com/FR1BDvRgTL   AFP news agency (@AFP) May 23, 2019 As per BBC News , he later continued: "Nasser Al-Khelaifi was neither a shareholder, nor a director of Oryx in 2011. He did not intervene either directly or indirectly in the candidature of Doha." It is understood that he will be contesting the charge, though it must be stated that the word used in French court which translates to 'charged' - 'mis en examine' - does not automatically trigger a trial, and merely means that the prosecutors 'strongly expect wrongdoing'.


PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland   For most, Harry Diamond is simply identified as Rory McIlroy's caddie. Some might take it a bit deeper and point out the two were best friends growing up in Northern Ireland and that Diamond was the best man at McIlroy's wedding. But as McIlroy explained Wednesday at Royal Portrush, site of this week's Open Championship, Diamond was an accomplished amateur whose experience could be particularly helpful this week. "I think that's one of the things people don't realize, Harry has played more rounds of golf on this golf course than I have, and definitely more competitive rounds," said McIlroy, who shot a course-record 61 as a 16-year-old in the North of Ireland Amateur held at Portrush in 2005. "He's just as comfortable on this golf course as I am. So that is a big help this week." Full-field tee times from the 148th Open Championship Full coverage of the 148th Open Championship Diamond was beaten in the North of Ireland finals in 2011 and won the West of Ireland Amateur the next year. Although McIlroy has played his share of rounds on the Dunluce Links, the first coming as a 10-year-old, he admitted that he will be relying on Diamond this week on a course that's changed quite a bit in the last 10 years, including two new holes for this year's Open. "With Harry's experience around here, not that I don't let him have any say any other week, but I think with his experience around here, my ear will be a little sharper to what he has to say," McIlroy said.


As any self-respecting Parisian will assert, true style is wholly individual and not to be influenced by trends or others' tastes. It's a tenet embodied by this year's list of the best hotels in Paris   each one distinctive in its personality. From boutique hotels to grande dames, the properties that T+L readers chose as the best hotels in Paris are examples of the city's distinctive style at its best. Every year for our World's Best Awards survey, T+L asks readers to weigh in on travel experiences around the globe   to share their opinions on the top hotels, resorts, cities, islands, cruise ships, spas, airlines, and more. Hotels were rated on their facilities, location, service, food, and overall value. Properties were classified as city or resort based on their locations and amenities. Related : The World's Best Awards 2019 This year's No. 4 spot went to Hôtel Esprit Saint Germain, a 28-room boutique hotel on the Left Bank that is thoroughly modern in its design (think: leopard-print carpeting and leather headboards) and unfailingly pampering (complimentary drinks are served hearthside in the fireplace lounge at any time, and bathrooms are outfitted with Diptyque products). Writes one reader, "I was in love with this hotel the second I walked in. Excellent service, and charm dripping from the ceilings." Prince de Galles, a Luxury Collection Hotel, which appears at No. 10, is hardly a newcomer on the Paris hotel scene: it opened in 1929, and while it completed a three-year, $100 million renovation in 2013, it has retained the Art Deco refinement that drew the likes of Winston Churchill and Marlene Dietrich. Located steps from the Champs-Élysées, the hotel's elegantly appointed 115 rooms and 44 suites prompted one reader to write, "Superb hotel, rooms, and service." Two of the Paris properties are esteemed enough to have also made the Top 100 Hotels in the World list (Le Meurice and this year's winner), both for the second year in a row. Read on to see who took top honors. 10. Prince de Galles, a Luxury Collection Hotel Score: 92.00 More information: marriott.com 9. Shangri-La Hotel Score: 92.38 More information: shangri-la.com 8. Ritz Paris Score: 92.61 More information: ritzparis.com 7. Hôtel Plaza Athénée Score: 93.13 More information: dorchestercollection.com 6. Mandarin Oriental Score: 93.22 More information: mandarinoriental.com 5. Hôtel de Crillon, A Rosewood Hotel Score: 93.22 More information: rosewoodhotels.com 4. Hôtel Esprit Saint Germain Score: 93.23 More information: hotel-esprit-saint-germain.com 3. The Peninsula Score: 94.74 More information: peninsula.com 2. Le Meurice Score: 95.44 More information: dorchestercollection.com 1. La Réserve Paris Hotel and Spa Score: 96.00 More information: lareserve-paris.com This exclusive haven   there are only 25 suites and 15 rooms   specializes in the sumptuous, from its décor (velvet and silk abound) to its service (each room comes with a dedicated butler). Guests can work off feasts at the Michelin two-starred restaurant Le Gabriel with a dip in the 50-foot pool if they feel so motivated, or just give in to hedonism with a massage in the spa. "The location is perfect," raves one reader of the property's proximity to the Champs-Élysées. "The staff was outstanding. Paris wouldn't be the same staying anywhere else." Another sums up the experience with: "Quite possibly the most spectacular hotel I have experienced in my life." See all of our readers' favorite hotels, cities, airlines, cruise lines, and more in the World's Best Awards for 2019 .


A Lakeland man was arrested after a boy with autism died after he was drugged and sexually assaulted, officials said. According to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Alain Luis Forget, 58, of Lakeland is being charged with lewd and lascivious battery on a child less than 16 and two counts of delivery of a controlled substance to a minor. On December 27, 2017, officials said that Forget took the 15-year-old boy to a home in Hamilton County with the permission of his grandmother. Two days later, the child was found unresponsive and Forget called an ambulance. The child was pronounced dead at the hospital. In January 2018, officials said that an autopsy revealed the victim had morphine and Xanax in his system. The medical examiner determined the child died from pneumonia and drug toxicity. Officials conducted interviews with the victim's family members and others who were familiar with Forget. Agents believe Forget gave the child drugs and sexually battered him prior to his death. During the interviews, FDLE officials said that additional sexual abuse allegations were made against Forget. Forget was arrested Tuesday and booked into the Lake County Jail. Officials believe there could be additional victims. Forget has residences in Lakeland and Sorrento. Anyone with information on Forget should contact the FDLE at 1-800-226-5630. READ MORE: Boy with autism dies after being drugged, sexually abused in Central Florida CHECK OUT WESH: Stay in the know with the latest Orlando news, weather and sports. Get the top stories and all the scores from the team at WESH.


A look at the vast range of luxury car choices in America. Luxury for All The concept of a luxury car means different things to different people, and often it depends not only on the features or price point, but also on personal perspective and perception. The driver of a 15-year-old econobox might think any new car is a luxury, while someone used to piloting a $100,000 Mercedes might be slightly harder to please. Let s consider what a luxury sedan might look like for those within just about any new-car budget. Keep in mind that vehicles listed here are within ranges   final prices could be slightly higher or lower than the range shown. $20,000 Range 2019 Volkswagen Jetta SEL   $24,695 All new for the 2019 model year, the Volkswagen Jetta is built on a completely new platform and features a sleek coupelike design that provides a sporty look. Redesigned headlights with signature LED running lights are nicely integrated into the wide grille, giving the car a premium look. Even though Volkswagen is clearly not a luxury brand, the Jetta SEL comes well equipped with plenty of features often associated with up-market cars, such as a power sunroof, heated front seats, rain-sensing wipers, and an 8-inch color display. The SEL also gets customizable ambient lighting in a choice of 10 colors as well as Volkswagen s Digital Cockpit display. Forward collision warning with autonomous emergency braking is also standard. Other options: Buick Regal Ford Fusion Hyundai Elantra Kia Optima Research the VW Jetta on MSN Autos | Find a VW Jetta near you $40,000 Range 2019 Mercedes-Benz C300   $41,400 The best-selling passenger car in the Mercedes-Benz lineup, the C-Class moves into its fourth generation for 2019 with updated styling, more power and new features. Looking like a proper Mercedes with standard LED headlights and taillights and freshened front-end styling, the C-Class is available in a number of trim levels with varying levels of power. The base-level C300 comes well equipped with a 7-inch display, a power sunroof, active brake assist, a rearview camera, keyless start and a new multi-function leather-wrapped steering wheel that includes Touch Control Buttons that respond to swiping motions. Power comes from a turbocharged 2.0-liter produces 255 horsepower teamed with a 9G-TRONIC 9-speed automatic transmission. The C-Class is available with Mercedes 4MATIC all-wheel drive for an additional $2,000. Other options: Acura TLX Alfa Romeo Giulia Audi A4 BMW 3 Series Genesis G80 Infiniti Q50 Jaguar XE Kia Stinger Lexus ES Volvo S60 Research the Mercedes-Benz C-Class on MSN Autos | Find a Mercedes-Benz C-Class near you $60,000 Range 2019 Acura RLX Sport Hybrid   $61,900 The flagship sedan of the Acura lineup, the RLX luxury sport sedan was restyled last year, adopting the Acura diamond pentagon grille as well as the brand s new design direction dubbed Precision Crafted Performance. The big sedan is the most powerful model in the Acura lineup after the NSX supercar, powered by a direct-injection 3.5-liter V6 engine with a 3-motor hybrid system and Super Handling All-Wheel Drive with electric torque vectoring. Total system output is a plentiful 377 horsepower and 341 lb-ft of torque while still delivering 28 mpg combined. As the top-level Acura, the RLX comes well equipped with premium leather-trimmed sport seats, heated and cooled seats, heated rear seats, tri-zone electric climate control, a Krell premium audio system and the Acurawatch suite of advanced safety technology. Other options: Audi A6 BMW 5 Series Cadillac CTS Genesis G90 Infiniti Q70 Kia K900 Lexus GS Lincoln Continental Mercedes-Benz E-Class Volvo S90 Research the Acura RLX on MSN Autos | Find an Acura RLX near you $80,000 Range 2019 Audi A8   $83,800 The A8 resides at the top of the Audi sedan lineup and is completely new for the 2019 model year. Now in its fourth generation, the A8 introduces a modern look for the Audi brand with stylish high-tech headlights that flank the latest version of Audi s signature Singleframe grille. At the rear are new LED taillights, enhanced by a lighting strip that stretches the width of the car. Passengers will find an ultra-luxurious interior that features the latest high-tech displays and features. The multi-screen display consists of a 10.3-inch upper screen with smartphonelike functionality with haptic touch functionality, while the lower 8.6-inch screen can be used to adjust HVAC, seating and up to 32 programmable shortcuts. In front of the driver is the latest version of the Audi virtual cockpit that contains a 12.3-inch high-definition screen that can be configured to suit the driver. Other options: Cadillac CTS-V BMW 7 Series Cadillac CT6 Genesis G90 Jaguar XJ Lexus LS Maserati Ghibli Tesla Model S Research the Audi A8 on MSN Autos | Find an Audi A8 near you $100,000 Range Maserati Quattroporte S   $105,600 Once this luxury list hits the $100,000 mark, most folks might assume that whatever gets highlighted would be rather exclusive. This isn t necessarily true, but if exclusivity is important, we suggest the Maserati Quattroporte. The flagship of the Maserati line, the Quattroporte is handmade in Modena, Italy, and features an elegant interior with fine Italian leather and real wood trim. In addition to the traditional niceties, the coachbuilder has embraced technology with a Maserati Touch Control screen, adjustable pedals, a rearview camera and an optional 15-speaker Bowers & Wilkins audio system, as well as a WLAN-based Wi-Fi system. Best of all, under the hood lurks a Ferrari-built V8 engine that emits a sound so amazing even those who aren t looking will know something special is motoring by. Other options: BMW M5 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG Mercedes-Benz S-Class Porsche Panamera Research the Maserati Quattroporte on MSN Autos | Find a Maserati Quattroporte near you $120,000 Range BMW Alpina B6 Gran Coupe   $124,400 The BMW ALPINA B6 xDrive Gran Coupe is not only one of the most exclusive BMWs you can buy, it is one of the fastest cars sold by the German automaker, possessing the ability to rocket to 60 mph in a mere 3.6 seconds on its way to an electronically-limited top speed a bit shy of 200 mph. This impressive performance is made possible by a twin-turbocharged 4.4-liter V8 engine producing 600 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque. Power gets sent to BMW s xDrive intelligent all-wheel-drive system via an ALPINA-tuned 8-Speed Sport automatic transmission. A nice added touch is a full stainless steel exhaust system with ALPINA trademark elliptical twin tailpipes. The B6 Gran Coupe body is manufactured in the BMW 6 Series factory and then hand finished by ALPINA with powertrain components and interior equipment at the ALPINA factory in Buchloe, Germany. Other options: Jaguar XJR BMW M6 Gran Coupe Tesla Model S Audi S8 $140,000 Range Mercedes-AMG GT 63 4 Door   $136,500 As the high-performance tuning group associated with Mercedes Benz, AMG has produced two standalone sports cars: the SLS AMG and the current AMG GT coupe/roadster. However, the brand had never produced a 4-door sports car   until now. The all-new AMG GT 4-Door has styling cues that clearly link it to its 2-door sibling. Up front are slim multibeam LED headlights that flank the AMG  shark nose  grille and feed into the low and long sculpted hood. At the rear are LED taillights and quad exhaust pipes   a must for any AMG model. Passengers will enjoy the luxurious surroundings inside, but the driver will be most excited by the hand-built biturbo 4.0-liter V8 engine that generates a plentiful 577 horsepower and 553 lb-ft of torque. The four-seat GT 63 will sprint to 60 mph in only 3.3 seconds with a top speed of 193 mph. Other options: BMW Alpina B7 Maserati Quattroporte GTS Mercedes-Benz S-Class Porsche Panamera Turbo Research the Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door on MSN Autos $160,000 Range BMW 7 Series M760i XDrive   $156,700 The 7 Series is the flagship of the BMW family, and this M760i xDrive sits at the pinnacle of the 7 Series lineup. The big sedan combines the utmost in luxury with impressive performance to create the ultimate high-performance sport sedan. Rear-seat passengers enjoy big, comfortable seats that recline, massage, heat and cool while they experience the high-end video entertainment system. As inviting as the rear seat might be, the driver s seat is the one to choose. With a TwinPower Turbo V12 engine producing 601 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque, this big sedan can reach 60 mph in 3.7 seconds, boasting a top speed limited to 155 mph. Full-time all-wheel drive and legendary BMW handling make this a luxury-performance sedan for any season. Other options: Mercedes-Maybach S560 Porsche Panamera Turbo Research the BMW 7 Series on MSN Autos | Find a BMW 7 Series near you $180,000 Range Porsche Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid Sport Turismo   $190,200 Porsche made some major changes to the Panamera lineup last year, adding the stylish Sport Turismo bodystyle as well as a line of more powerful hybrid powertrains. The Turbo S E-Hybrid is now the ultimate example of Porsche 4-door performance. Under the hood lurks a powerful twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8 engine teamed with an electric motor to produce a total of 680 horsepower and 626 lb-ft of torque   enough grunt to move this big luxury sedan to 60 mph in 3.2 seconds with a top speed exceeding 190 mph. Although the driver s perch would be the hot seat in this car, rear-seat passengers will enjoy the view through a panoramic sunroof from their individual bucket seats with leather trim and available massage functions. And with the available rear entertainment system, passengers can enjoy their favorite racing movie on the way to the track. Other options: Bentley Flying Spur Jaguar XE SV Project 8 Research the Porsche Panamera on MSN Autos | Find a Porsche Panamera near you $200,000 Range Mercedes-Maybach S650   $199,900 While the Mercedes-Benz S-Class is approaching the pinnacle of luxury, the Maybach takes things to another level, especially for rear-seat passengers. Those lucky passengers will enjoy seats that are both heated and cooled, can recline up to 43 degrees, and offer six massage programs. Ultra-soft Nappa leather and hand-finished wood can be found throughout the cabin, including a wood- and leather-trimmed steering wheel. The feature list is much too long to list, but highlights include 4-zone climate control, 64 color/3-zone LED ambient lighting, heated armrests and a Burmester 3-D Surround Sound audio system. Other options: Bentley Flying Spur V8 S Research the Mercedes-Benz S-Class on MSN Autos | Find a Mercedes-Benz S-Class near you $225,000 Range Mercedes-AMG S65   $232,550 Residing at the top of the Mercedes luxury-car lineup is the very expensive and very rare AMG S65. This car is as much about luxury and performance as it is about exclusivity and prestige. While the S65 twin-turbo V12 badge on the side is worth the price of admission, fortunate owners do get plenty of car for the price. As the badge indicates, the S65 boasts a hand-built 6.0-liter V12 engine that delivers a smooth 621 horsepower and 738 lb-ft of torque. Teamed with that powerful V12 are large high-performance composite brakes, AMG active sport suspension, AMG sport exhaust, dynamic cornering assist and Magic Body Control. Inside, passengers enjoy soft Nappa leather trim, heated and cooled front and rear seats with massage, a cabin fragrance system and an executive right-rear seat with power-operated footrest. Other options: Bentley Flying Spur W12 $250,000 Range Bentley Flying Spur W12 S AWD   $244,600 Bentley has been building cars since the 1920s, becoming one of the most widely recognized luxury brands in the world. The W12 S is the flagship of the Flying Spur line, providing an excellent combination of luxury and extreme performance. With its massive 6.0-liter twin-turbo V12 engine under the long hood putting out 626 horsepower and 605 lb-ft of torque, this is the first 4-door Bentley to have a top speed of more than 200 mph. Facilitating these incredible performance stats are a new suspension, optional carbon-ceramic brakes and all-wheel drive. As much fun as the W12 S would be to drive, the back seat is not such a bad place. Rear seats get swathed in premium-quality soft leather with 14-way adjustments as well as heat and ventilation. Almost 10 square meters of sustainably sourced natural wood is used per car in mirror-polished veneers for the fascia panels, consoles, waist rails and picnic tables. Other options: Aston Martin Rapide AMR Research the Bentley Flying Spur on MSN Autos | Find a Bentley Flying Spur near you $300,000 Range Rolls-Royce Wraith   $315,700 No other brand exemplifies luxury better than Rolls-Royce, and the Wraith embodies a unique offering from the legendary British marque. Rather than mimicking the stately sedans usually associated with Rolls, the Wraith is a fastback with sleek lines and the most powerful engine the marque has ever offered. Although Rolls-Royces have always been advertised as having  adequate  power, the 624 horses produced by the Wraith s V12 are clearly more than adequate. Rear-hinged coach doors allow easy entry and exit, and upon ingress occupants will be surrounded by the softest leather and Canadel Paneling. A unique feature to Rolls-Royce is the Starlight Headliner   1,340 fiber-optic lamps hand-woven into the roof lining to give the impression of a glittering, starry night sky. Other options: Bentley Mulsanne Rolls-Royce Ghost $350,000 Range Bentley Mulsanne Speed   $335,600 The Mulsanne Speed is a perfect example of the classic large and powerful Bentley. The car weighs almost 3 tons and stretches more than 18 feet long, but with a 6.75-liter twin-turbo V8 producing 530 horsepower and a whopping 811 lb-ft of torque, it easily reaches 60 mph in under 5 seconds while boasting a top speed of 190 mph. The Mulsanne Speed s driver-adjustable air suspension can focus on comfort or stiffness to optimize performance and handling. The lavish interior features diamond-quilted leather on seats and door panels, a leather headliner, piano-black veneer with handcrafted carbon-fiber inlays, and an embroidered Bentley emblem on each seat. A 60 GB onboard hard drive stores music for the driver and films for rear-seat passengers to view on 8-inch screens. A frosted glass bottle cooler   replete with crystal champagne flutes   can be installed in the rear armrest, and power-operated tables can be fitted to the rear of the front seats. Other options: Rolls-Royce Dawn Research the Bentley Mulsanne on MSN Autos | Find a Bentley Mulsanne near you $400,000-plus Range Rolls-Royce Phantom   $450,000 If there is a bar against which all luxury cars are judged, the Rolls-Royce Phantom is well above it. The legendary British marque has introduced an all-new eighth-generation Phantom that is completely new from the ground up. In addition to the added stiffness of a new aluminum spaceframe, the Phantom features Rolls-Royce's "Magic Carpet Ride," which can adjust the air suspension continuously for the smoothest motive experience. The system uses a camera to assess road conditions and adjusts the Phantom's setup proactively to accommodate rough road surfaces. The elegant rear seat is accessed through larger rear-hinged doors that can be softly closed with the push of a button. The gamut of standard features is too long to list here, but it includes the latest in advanced safety technology, the highest-quality materials and just about any level of customization a customer could desire. Other options: A nice house


Long Beach is due to experience light rainfall this coming week, according to drone-powered weather forecasting service Saildrone . Tomorrow's forecast calls for 0.54 inches of rain, while the chance of rain will stick below 41 percent throughout the remainder of the week. The coming days will also bring mild temperatures, due to last through Friday. Temperatures will turn warmer on Saturday, with a high of 71 degrees. Skies will be cloudy today and clear on Friday. Winds will remain light through the week, with the highest speeds tomorrow at only 12 mph. This story was created automatically using Saildrone's local weather forecast data, then reviewed by an editor. We also incorporate historic weather data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.


JJ Arcega-Whiteside and Alshon Jeffery have a lot in common besides there prowess for making football-related plays look like a highlight from an NBA game. The former Stanford star grew up watching and idolizing a fellow South Carolina native Alshon Jeffery and told Les Bowen of the Philadelphia Inquirer that he looks forward to "learning" from the former Gamecocks All American. "I'm looking forward to it. He's from South Carolina, I grew up watching him. He's been very dominant in the league," Arcega-Whiteside said. "Being able to look at him, up close and personal, on the field, and watch how he does things, emulate those things, is going to be great for me, as a player and a person. "We've been in contact … . I know for sure that he's going to lead me in the right direction." The two are similar in their build, as the Eagles list Arcega-Whiteside at 6-2, 225 while Jeffery, is listed at 6-3, 218. Depending on how things go for Jeffery statistically this season, Alshon could essentially be mentoring the guy brought in to take his place. Alshon Jeffery is slated to make $15,975,000 in 2020 according to Over The Cap and with Carson Wentz slated to make $23 million next season and Arcega-Whiteside on the second year of his rookie deal, a changing of the guard could be coming. Ironically, the Eagles will utilize Arcega-Whiteside heavily in their red zone offense, similar to how the Chicago Bears utilized Jeffery his rookie year. MORE: Toronto Raptors coach Nick Nurse gets crushed for calling costly time out late in Game 5 Watch as jury convicts former NFL player Kellen Winslow Jr. of raping homeless woman Amendola and Stafford building strong chemistry this offseason 3 under-the-radar Steelers to break out in 2019 A brief history of the NBA's most recent achilles tears


Another big name is changing teams in the NBA and altering the Western Conference landscape. Longtime Memphis Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley is on his way to the Utah Jazz in exchange for Kyle Korver, Jae Crowder, Grayson Allen, the No. 23 pick in Thursday's draft and a future first round pick, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski . While this makes the Jazz more of a threat in the Western Conference to the Lakers, the trade has one player that could be a potential Lakers target in Korver. Korver, who played with LeBron James for nearly two seasons in Cleveland thrived alongside him, has a partially guaranteed contract for the 2019-20 season. So, the Grizzlies can waive him while not having to pay Korver his full salary. Perhaps the biggest thing standing in the way of Korver potentially joining the Lakers is where he is in his career arc. At 38 years old and turning 39 before next year's playoffs, Korver may decide to pack it up. However, not having won an NBA championship and the opportunity to join a contender might be enough to have him hold off retirement for one more year. MORE: Four potential Kawhi Leonard landing spots in free agency Suspended NASCAR driver still found a way to race this weekend Rams trading Tyler Higbee to Patriots would make sense for both teams Heading into training camp: Lions top-8 OL appear locked in Fierce, fiesty WR competition for Cowboys behind Top 3 roster locks


Jacksonville Jaguars running back Leonard Fournette has been known to be one of the league's most powerful and punishing rushers when healthy, but an underrated part of his game has been his ability as a receiver. That's something his new offensive coordinator, John DeFilippo, has taken note of and will look to utilize more in 2019. "I think he's caught numerous balls each day of practice and that's a role that that position needs to play," DeFilippo said this week . "There's pass plays that are an extension to our run game. If you throw a guy a wide route it's basically like tossing the football and trying to circle the defense, so that's going to be, I don't want to say a huge piece of our offense, but it's definitely going to be a piece for us." It would be wise for the Jags to use Fournette's ability as a receiver because it could catch some teams by surprise. After all, he only has 58 receptions for 487 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns to his name, which leaves room for improvement. With both of their most notable pass catchers at the tailback position gone in T.J. Yeldon and Corey Grant, there is a chance for Fournette to have a good season catching the ball out of the backfield. Of course, he'll have to stay healthy to do so, but if he does topping his career-high of 302 receiving yards and a touchdown is very achievable. MORE: This Patrick Mahomes throw from Chiefs practice can't be real Early reviews of first-round picks and other prized picks from the 2019 NFL Draft class Tracy Sprinkle: What the Browns are getting in the new DT WATCH: David Montgomery trucks Bears defenders at training camp Five potential Jeremy Lin landing spots in free agency


The Audi TT Mk1 (1998-2006) was revolutionary in style and exhilarating to drive, but you must choose with care to avoid pitfalls and financial headaches. Here's how to bag the best How much to pay • Project $1000-3000 • Good $4000-7000 • Concours $8000+ Overview Practicality ★★★ Running costs ★★★ Spares ★★★ DIY friendly ★★★ Investment ★★ Desirability ★★★ As one of the main trendsetters from the 1990s, the original Audi TT still looks modern in contemporary traffic. It was first seen in 1995 as a VW Group California studio design concept, and when it started production during 1998 in Gyor, Hungary, the world instantly fell in love with its curvy looks and punchy drivetrain. Despite being slurred by association with orange estate agents and hairdressers with attitude, the German 2+2 Coupé and Roadster set the 'boutique' auto scene before the new Mini and its ilk even graced the stage. The TT shared its platform with its Audi A3 stablemate, as well as its New Beetle and Golf Mk4 cousins from Volkswagen. This offered balanced and responsive steering aided by minimal overhangs. The Quattro four-wheel-drive system and selection of engines only added to the sure-footed appeal of a mechanical package that complemented the design. Audi's Quattro set-up was standard on the 225bhp model, and available as an option for lesser-spec versions. Early concerns over stability at motorway speeds would see a timely recall to add a rear spoiler, ESP stability system and revised suspension. Towards the end of production, the latecomer 150bhp and 180bhp 'budget model' engines were upped to 163bhp and 190bhp respectively. For 2005, the TT Quattro Sport lost 75kg of weight by replacing the rear seats with a strengthened strut brace. Meanwhile, the 1.8T's four-cylinder engine was beefed up to 240bhp, while the interior received Recaro bucket seats and Alcantara trim. Looking for sheer driving pleasure? The TT Quattro Sport is the one to seek out. If you're simply happy with retro looks on a budget, any base model will provide enough charm to leave you smiling from ear to ear. Your Motorious 1998-2006 Audi TT Mk1 inspection checklist Engine The TT's transversely mounted engines were shared with other models across the VW Group, so reliability and parts supply should remain unrivalled and largely accessible to any Mk1 owner. Differences included a larger turbo and additional intercooler on the most attractive proposition from the range, the 225bhp 1.8T. As with any turbocharged engine, check the service history for work carried out. While test driving the car, look for smoke and power loss under acceleration. Motors are generally strong, but do examine the engine bay for gasket oil leaks. Misfires and hesitancy on acceleration may be due to a common issue with ignition coil failure on the 1.8T engines. If these problems persist, the MAF sensor will be in need of replacement. The timing belt, tensioner and water pump should have been replaced at around 60,000 miles. Audi recommends 80,000 miles for the change, but failures have been recorded earlier than this interval. Timing chains on the 3.2 V6 have been known to stretch and disrupt timing. Replacement can be very expensive. It's worth noting that many 180bhp models have been interfered with to squeeze out more horsepower. Uprated engine systems and chip-tuned motors can soon wear down the turbo, leading to pricey garage bills. Gearbox The VW-sourced transmissions should give confidence in terms of reliability. Manual gearboxes are tough, and clutches can survive up to 100,000 miles. The complications of the six-speed DSG system on the 3.2 can cause mischief, but the issues are not widespread. However, the age of any vehicle may contribute to unforeseen wear. The DSG 'box allowed for quick gear selection by means of a second clutch; it would pre-select for instant changing. When TV's Top Gear drove a car equipped with this, it declared: 'It works!' and gave it the thumbs-up. However, do check that the DSG is smooth. It may just need a software update if not. The DSG must have new transmission fluid and a filter every 40,000 miles or three years. DSG heat exchangers have been known to fail. These heat up transmission fluid to align with engine temperature. If any joints fail, coolant could get into the transmission. Although the TT's transmission options are generally reliable, some owners have found that the rivets that attach the gear selector forks to the shafts can break. Such breakage might mean a new gearbox. On any of the Quattro models, the Haldex transfer box requires a service every 20,000 miles. Suspension and brakes When looking at any used model from the first year of manufacture, ensure that the car had the factory recall and the subsequent fitment of the rear spoiler, ESP stability control and revised suspension. All of the above were fitted on all future TT Mk1 models following the recall. Where fitted, the Quattro system should add confidence to the TT's suspension and handling, especially in poor conditions. Concerns with the anti-roll bar are commonly reported. Plastic collars can fracture, allowing water ingress and problematic movement in the mounts. Check that replacement metal sleeves have been fitted, or add them to your shopping list. Audi TTs are heavy, and the suspension can suffer significant wear when driven hard, so check carefully and listen for play and knocks and bangs, particularly from wishbones. On very early models the rear swivel joints have been known to seize and break. They may have been changed as part of an Audi recall, or they can be replaced with redesigned rubber versions. A visual inspection of condition should also be made. The TT's single-piston, VW-sourced brakes aren't especially fierce and can be boosted. Improved pads and aftermarket upgrades are plentiful. The stock front brakes can wear quickly, so check the discs and pads. Bodywork Panel fit on the Audi TT should be excellent, so any widening gaps may well point to previous accident repairs. Wear and scuffs inside the door shuts also suggest damage and rehung doors. This may indicate that the door cards have been removed at some point, too, again perhaps due to repair work. Roof rails on the Coupé were notorious for corrosion. You may find rust and bubbling paint, apparently due to a manufacturing issue. Check the sills and lower body for problems, too. Rust on the inner wings behind the front wheels is common, while the shape of the rear quarters makes them prone to parking damage, acquired due to the tail end being a blind-spot. Factor in alloy-wheel damage as part of your purchase deal. The plastic headlight covers are very prone to scratches and clouding. These can be brought back to an acceptable level through use of a plastic-restoration product. The Roadster's soft-top is known to wear across the folds, so it is important to check the condition, as a new fabric roof will be expensive. Interior The TT's interior is a late-1990s design classic. There is a lot of head and legroom, and comfortable front seats. Ensure the seat wear and mileage correlate. Most TTs came with a leather interior, and bolsters will most likely be worn and need treating on high-mileage cars. Heated seats were common, so check that all the elements operate correctly. If re-wired poorly, this can be a fire risk. A 'baseball-glove' interior was a rare but stunning option   trim can therefore be difficult to source. The Coupé was a 2+2, however don't expect the rear seat to be used too often by a human; it is more for occasional seating or as an impromptu parcel shelf. Check for damage to this rear compartment, as heavy items can tear the leather. Gauges have been known to fail and read erratically. Check for the correct readings, as serious cash can be required to address this problem. On the convertible Roadsters, thoroughly check the roof operation and the interior for damp, especially the rear carpets. If there's a musty smell, walk away. Drainage channels within the roof mechanism cavity can easily block, causing excessive wet problems. Meanwhile, items left on the parcel shelf can cause the rear window to be damaged when the top is electrically lowered. On non-Quattro models, the rear boot space is larger due to the lack of Quattro drivetrain. History 1995: The Audi TT Concept is unveiled in Frankfurt. 1998: TT production model makes its appearance and sales begin in Europe ahead of the UK. 1999: Right-hand-drive sales begin, and 'stability' recall starts later in the year. 2003: Cut-price 150bhp TT Roadster available. 250bhp 3.2-litre V6 tops engines available from autumn. 2005: The performance-orientated 240bhp 1.8 turbo TT Sport Quattro Coupé is announced, with first UK deliveries in May. 2005: The four-cylinder Coupé and Roadster gets a power upgrade. Power for TT Coupé and TT Coupé Quattro rises from 180bhp to 190bhp. The TT Roadster 150bhp gets 163bhp. The TT Roadster Quattro 180bhp rises to 190bhp. Production of TT Coupé and Roadster 225bhp models ceases, and the 240bhp TT Coupé Quattro Sport becomes the performance range-topper. TT Coupé and Roadster 3.2 V6 Quattro models remain unchanged. Motorious says… The TT Mk1 may not be the most respected sports car of its generation, but for enjoyable daily commuting or a country-lane speed run, it offers confidence and reliability even in the harshest of weather conditions. The well proven Quattro four-wheel-drive system, although mainly an option, provides steadfast road manners that remain impressive even compared with more modern rivals. As a purchase, the 225bhp variant is the most secure investment, with extra power yet similar running costs in terms of insurance and economy. There are thousands to choose from, with twice as many TTs built as its Porsche Boxster rival. This means prices have been kept low, subdued by a flooded market. The only exception is the limited (800) number of Quattro Sport models. Watch out for UK road tax; an '06-plate car may be subject to the higher VED band. Picture courtesy of Audi UK


An unprecedented number of unaccompanied migrant children are at risk of spending the rest of their childhoods in federal custody, CBS News learned in an exclusive interview with the head of the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), the agency that cares for these children. The federal government is required to pursue "prompt and continuous efforts toward family reunification" of unaccompanied migrant children , according to a landmark court settlement, but for thousands of kids in ORR care, that reunion may never happen. "Unfortunately, I have well over 4,000 of those children in my care at this time at the Office of Refugee Resettlement," the director, Jonathan Hayes, told CBS News in June. "So conceivably someone could come into our care at 15 years old and not have an identifiable sponsor in the United States and remain with us for a few years." On their 18th birthdays, many of the children will be taken from ORR's youth holding facilities, referred to as shelters, to adult detention centers operated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The number of children in this group has risen sharply in recent years, an "alarming" and "deeply concerning" trend, according to three former agency officials who spoke with CBS News. Children in ORR custody are labeled internally as belonging to one of four groups: Category One children have an identified parent or legal guardian   referred to as a sponsor   in the U.S.; Category Two kids may end up with a relative; Category Three children have potential sponsors who identify as distant family or close family friends. The children who may be stuck in federal custody   Category Four   have no identifiable sponsor, according to the government. As of June, Category Four children represented roughly one-third of all kids in ORR care, a far greater portion than in past years, according to former ORR Director Bob Carey, who served during the last two years of the Obama administration. "It's deeply concerning. It's a significant increase from what we saw during the Obama administration. I think the numbers were really small, I would think under 10 percent," said Carey, who is now a policy adviser at the nonprofit Exodus Institute. A February 2016 report by the Government Accountability Office called the use of Category Four designations " rare. " Another former ORR official, who asked not to be named, called the sudden change troubling. "Having a third of kids be CAT 4, there's something that's strange about that," the former ORR official said. "That's alarming to me, particularly because the system was never designed for long-term care." A landmark 1997 court settlement known as the Flores Agreement requires the federal government to try to unite unaccompanied migrant children with relatives as quickly as possible. However, those efforts may be harder to fulfill than in previous years, according to Mark Greenberg, former Acting Assistant Secretary of the Administration for Children and Families, which oversees ORR. Greenberg said potential sponsors may be too afraid to come forward, a view shared by Carey and the other former ORR official. All three said they've long feared that the Trump administration's immigration policy changes would have a "chilling effect" on potential sponsors. They cited the "zero tolerance" initiative that separated children from parents and a now-scrapped 2018 rule mandating that all members of a sponsors' household be fingerprinted, as well as talk of raids by ICE . Agency statistics show in fiscal year 2018 there was a dramatic drop in the percentage of children released from ORR care compared to previous years. Separated from his father, then labeled Category Four Texas attorney Ricardo de Anda represents a 9-year-old former Category Four boy who was separated from his father in May 2018 as a result of "zero tolerance." They fled Guatemala after the father, an Evangelical Christian, had been "brutally attacked and tortured by members of (the 18th Street Gang) because of ... preaching against a life of crime," according to a federal court complaint filed by de Anda. The father was sent back to Guatemala and is in hiding, but has had maintained contact with U.S. attorneys. With no other family in the U.S., the boy was classified as Category Four. During the next nine months he would be moved to four different ORR facilities, breaking his leg along the way, according to de Anda. De Anda located a family who wanted to take the boy in, and introduced the boy's parents to them through a series of video conferences and phone calls. The father signed forms at the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala agreeing to designate the family as the boy's sponsor. ORR rejected the request, according to court documents. "Per policy, we are not able to reunify any child with people that are not known by the family," the agency wrote to de Anda. That policy is known as the "pre-existing relationship" rule. The boy sued and was allowed to go live with the sponsor family. ORR did not respond to questions about the boy's case. De Anda thinks more kids should get the opportunity afforded his client. He says the government should get rid of the Category Four classification altogether. "The reason children are stacking up in in these detention camps is because ORR does not allow qualified American families to take these children in," de Anda said. "I know for a fact, just from my practice, how many Americans are willing to open their doors to take these children in. But the door is absolutely closed to them. And as a result these children are stacking up and they're languishing." For many kids in long-term ORR care, life can be particularly unstable, said attorney Neha Desai, Director of Immigration at the nonprofit National Center for Youth Law. "A couple of kids I can think of off the top of my head have been in our custody literally for years, bouncing up and down (between various facilities)," Desai said. She said kids are often beholden to the case workers tasked with vetting their sponsors. "A case worker that is actively and creatively exploring options for a youth may be able to pursue a potential sponsor that another less zealous case manager may have never identified in the first place," Desai said. Some Category Four children end up in ORR's foster care system, but the majority remain in ORR's network of nearly 170 shelters, some of which have been the subject of withering widespread criticism. The largest such shelter, in Homestead, Florida, was criticized in May by some of its own child residents in the form of testimonials filed in court. Children there described fear and anxiety over punishment for breaking seemingly small rules   showering too long, or hugging a sibling in violation of a no-touching policy. An Amnesty International report released July 17 found at least 97 Category Four children in Homestead. The facility's director said that for children without sponsors, the preference is for them to be "repatriated," or deported, rather than risk that they remain in a non-relative's home where trafficking could be a risk. "Amnesty International is alarmed by this rationale, which could result in children being unlawfully returned to harm in the countries that they fled," the report's authors wrote. Keeping count As attorneys, advocates and former ORR officials track similar cases, they question how the system could be both seemingly overflowing with unplaceable kids, while also apparently becoming more efficient by the day. Agency statistics show the average length of care for migrant children dropping from a high of 93 days in November 2018 to as low as 45 days in June. "I'm not sure how those numbers are being calculated, because it doesn't really make sense if some children are not being released to sponsors and they're staying in our care," Carey said. He and others said they want the agency to release statistics that differentiate between the average length of care for children who have been released, and the average length of care for all children currently in ORR custody. ORR did not reply to questions seeking average statistics that differentiate between the average length of care for children who are released, and the average length of care for the agency's entire population, including those who remain in custody. ORR statistics show the overall population of unaccompanied migrant children has decreased from more than 13,000 in June to 10,100 as of Tuesday, amid an annual summertime decrease in immigration across the southern border. It is not clear if the number of children labeled Category Four has also decreased during that time. "They could be indefinitely in our custody which is not a healthy situation for children, not knowing what their future is, not having access to recreation, education, being separated from their family members. And these children are for the most part already traumatized," Carey said.


The Ravens have agreed to sign linebacker Pernell McPhee , according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. Former Ravens' LB Pernell McPhee, who left to go play in Chicago and Washington, is returning to Baltimore on a one-year deal, per league source. McPhee has 31 career sacks and six forced fumbles, and Ravens looking for some more.   Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) May 16, 2019 The 30-year-old (31 in December) hasn't put up big numbers in a couple of years, but the Ravens believe that he's still a capable disruptor. McPhee was a 2011 fifth-round pick of the Ravens and was an oft-featured sub before moving on to the Bears in free agency. He entered and went out with a bang in Baltimore   McPhee notched six sacks as a rookie and tallied a career-high 7.5 sacks in 2014, his contract year. McPhee parlayed that success into a five-year deal, $38.8M deal with Chicago, but injuries cost him 12 regular-season games over a three-year stretch. Still, McPhee managed 14 sacks for the Bears. The Ravens also met with Rams free agent Matt Longacre , but the McPhee signing may check the box for veteran edge rushers.


Read on for the most recent top news you may have missed in Baltimore. Ex-cop found guilty of 2nd-degree assault, misconduct for beating captured on viral video A judge, however, acquitted the former Baltimore officer of the most serious charge, first-degree assault. Read the full story on Baltimore Sun . New developer fees aim to cover cost of schools, roads, but revenue is likely years away Baltimore County developers must pay new fees starting next year to help cover the costs of schools and roads, but the County Council added many exemptions. Read the full story on Baltimore Sun . Feds say Baltimore rapper who billed himself as self-made music sensation was a fraud Chad Arrington was granted release Friday to the custody of his mother. Arrington faces federal charges related to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Read the full story on Baltimore Sun . Baltimore Police commissioner takes part in anti-violence walk after deadly weekend Baltimore Police Commissioner Michael Harrison was among dozens who took to the streets Monday night for an anti-violence walk through parts of the city that are no stranger to shootings. Read the full story on CBS Baltimore . Baltimore Police looking for tips in murder of community leader and ex-basketball player Police are still looking for the person who murdered 34-year-old Gerald Brown a standout former basketball player and comedian from Baltimore. Read the full story on CBS Baltimore . This story was created automatically using data about news stories on social media from CrowdTangle , then reviewed by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.


Users of the dating app Tinder are up in arms. This past Monday, the program's developers launched a premium version, Tinder Plus , and while it includes some brand-new features, it also requires users to upgrade to keep some of the functionality they used to get with the free app. Even more aggravating, the pricing scheme is blatantly ageist: under-30-year-olds pay $9.99 a month, everyone else pays $19.99. But to fully understand the controversy, you need to understand a bit about Tinder and how it works. 1) What is Tinder? Tinder is an app for iOS (iPhone, iPod Touches, iPads, etc.) and Android devices meant to make it easy to meet new people. The app is designed to emulate how meeting people in real life works, cofounder Sean Rad told Fast Company 's Mark Wilson, by making user profiles more image-focused than text-focused and placing people's faces front and center. "What we do on Tinder is no different than what we already do," Rad said. "You see somebody. You start with their face. If you find a connection, you continue to understand, 'what are our common interests, our social groups?'" While often referred to as a "hookup app," Tinder's developers deny that's its intended purpose, saying that their own research indicates that only six percent of users see it as such. Indeed, a 2013 survey by marketing firm SessionM found that less than 20 percent of Tinder users state that they use the app primarily because they're "looking for a quick hookup," an answer beaten by "I'm just curious," "it's entertaining," and "looking for a relationship" (of course, the app has grown and changed a lot since 2013). Users build profiles by importing photos and interests from their Facebook accounts, and tell the app the genders, age range, and geographic radius they want to get matches from, and then the app starts producing matches fitting the search criteria. Matches with whom you share Facebook friends or interests show up earlier. At any given moment, the main page of Tinder will show a potential match, whose images, interests, mutual friends, and description one can browse. Each match appears looking initially like the picture below on the left, from which one can pull up profile details, which display like the screen on the right: Users have two options when presented with a potential match: swipe right on the phone/tablet's touch screen (or, alternately, press the button with a heart on it) to signal interest in meeting the match; or swipe left (or press the button with a red X on it) if not interested. If both users swipe right / click the heart, then Tinder opens up a chat thread for the two of them. 2) How many people use Tinder? The company told the Los Angeles Times' Paresh Dave in November that it had 30 million users ; the number has likely grown significantly since then. In January, TechCrunch's Jordan Crook reported that Tinder makes 21 million matches and processes 1.5 billion swipes every day . As of January 11, it had made 5 billion matches. For context, the company hit the 1 billion matches mark in March 2014, 500 million matches in December 2013, and 1 million in January 2013. In a little over two years, the match total has grown 5,000-fold. Tinder is not just a US phenomenon; according to parent company IAC, about two thirds of Tinder users are overseas . As of January 2014 (an eternity ago in Tinder-time), about 1.2 million people in the Netherlands alone were using the app   7 percent of the whole Dutch population. 3) What kinds of people use Tinder? 52 percent of Tinder users are between 18 and 24 , and 33 percent are between 25 and 34. Tinder cofounder Justin Mateen has said that in the early days of the app, over 90 percent of users were between 18 and 24 , so it's been getting older over time. That 18-24 figure includes many college students, and a number of observers have argued that Tinder is noticeably changing the dynamics of college dating at a number of campuses. There does appear to be a major gender imbalance among people using location-based dating apps, however. A report from the market research firm GlobalWebIndex found that 62 percent of users of apps like Tinder are male. 4) What are problems that people have had with Tinder? Probably the funniest problem Tinder's run into is that it's become so popular with celebrities that they've had to implement verification for notable users , so that, say, Lindsay Lohan (a confirmed Tinder user ) doesn't have to convince matches that she is, in fact, Lindsay Lohan. As with most social networking sites of any scale, Tinder has been embraced by marketers, perhaps most prevalently nude webcam performers and other sex workers trying to drum up business. Even mainstream brands have taken to using Tinder, with Mindy Lahiri and Danny Castellano from FOX's The Mindy Project showing up on people's accounts in January 2014 as part of a "strategic partnership" between the show and Tinder. Disturbingly, scam artists seem to have taken a liking to the platform. But by far Tinder's biggest problems to date have had to do with cybersecurity. One vulnerability, present for about two months in 2013, allowed hackers to triangulate a Tinder user's location to within 100 feet. That summer, a similar vulnerability , which left user data such as Facebook IDs and most recent locations open for hackers to claim, emerged. A third hack allowed users to engineer matches with users who rejected them, and then see those users's emails. Tinder claims all problems have been dealt with, but three security problems in one year is kind of a lot. 5) Is Tinder like the straight version of Grindr? Not really, no. If you log onto Grindr, you get an array of user pics for guys geographically near to you. Their distance is expressed in terms of feet rather than miles. You can message anyone, regardless of whether they display interest in you or not. This system works, more or less, when you're not dealing with big societal power differentials between the genders you're matching. But when matching men and women, the potential for an app to become a serious safety risk for women is pretty high. On Tinder, Jezebel's Kate Dries notes , "The fact that the only people who can message you are people you want to get messages from is especially appealing, given how dating sites like OkCupid let anyone contact you, upping the creep factor." The Tinder approach (which is hardly new, and existed in some form before the internet through forums like speed dating) allows women to control who is allowed to message them, providing some protection against wackos lurking on the app. Dating apps designed for heterosexuals also have to deal with the "message onslaught" problem, as Ann Friedman noted for New York magazine. Women tend to get messaged much more frequently than men on online dating services, and if their inboxes are so full as to be actually unmanageable, the service becomes worthless. Being able to control who sends you messages means Tinder evades that problem. 6) This has to have produced some awesome Tumblrs, right? Has it ever! The most famous of these is probably Humanitarians of Tinder , which collects images of Tinder users whose photos portray them interacting with poor residents of developing countries, presumably in an attempt to show off their own empathy for the less fortunate. But my personal favorite is Adam Langlois's Hello Let's Date , where he manages to turn Tinder into a platform for dark, vaguely surrealist jokes, mostly at his own expense. It's so good, you guys: 7) What's the deal with Tinder Plus? Tinder Plus, rolled out on March 2 , offers two big features not previously present in Tinder. The first, called Passport, lets you match with people in a different geographic location. That lets people match in their own cities while traveling and makes it possible to romantically pre-game vacations by lining up matches ahead of time: The second is an "undo" function, letting you un-like or un-reject the last profile you saw. But arguably the biggest feature of Plus is one that used to be normal in the free version: unlimited likes. Now, in the free version, there's a like cap (about 100, AdWeek's Garett Sloane reports) and upon reaching it users have to wait 12 hours until they can like again. The discriminatory pricing has also garnered criticism. In the US, Tinder Plus is $9.99 a month for under 30-year-olds, and $19.99 for 30-and-aboves. The disparity is even more striking in the UK, where the cutoff is 28 and the rates are £3.99 ($6) and £14.99 ($23) a month , respectively. The company claims the price gap is just good business. "Lots of products offer differentiated price tiers by age, like Spotify does for students, for example," Tinder spokeswoman Rosette Pambakian told NPR's Sam Sanders. "Tinder is no different; during our testing we've learned, not surprisingly, that younger users are just as excited about Tinder Plus but are more budget constrained and need a lower price to pull the trigger ." But it could also alienate the growing number of older Tinder users. BuzzFeed's Doree Shafrir wrote a eloquent piece on why the app is particularly useful for people over 30 . "As we age, the pool of eligible people shrinks, and with it so do the number of opportunities to meet people in the ways people met people in their twenties (well, before Tinder existed): through friends, at parties, at bars, at work, in grad school, wherever," she writes. "There's something really comforting to know that, in fact, there are actually tons of people out there who are age-appropriate and are looking for the same thing you are." 8) Wasn't there some kind of sexual harassment problem at the company? Yes. In late June/early July 2014, Whitney Wolfe, a former vice president at Tinder, sued the company for sexual harassment and discrimination . The specific allegations were horrifying: She says that Mateen, whom she dated, called her a "desperate loser" who "jumps from relationship to relationship," a "joke," a "gold digger," a "disease," a "whore," and a "slut" who needed to be "watched" if she were to keep her job. Text messages Wolfe submitted to the court show Mateen disparaging "middle age Muslim pigs" and depicting IAC Chairman Barry Diller "as a penis." Tinder CEO Rad, Wolfe says, dismissed her pleas for help as "dramatic" and told her that if she and Mateen couldn't get along, she would be fired. After Mateen called her a whore at a company event, Wolfe claims she told Rad she was willing to resign in exchange for a severance package and vested stock. He declined and fired her instead . Wolfe was, according to Bloomberg's Nick Summers, essential to Tinder's founding . She criss-crossed the nation visiting chapters of her sororities and holding meetings at which all the girls present installed the app. She did the same for the brother fraternity on campus   but after going to the sorority first, so there were already girls on the app for the guys to check out. The whole plan was her idea. "Tinder had fewer than 5,000 users before Wolfe made her trip, [Tinder developer Joe] Munoz says," Summers writes. "When she returned, there were some 15,000." That kind of early growth is essential for a social app's success. As journalist Clive Thompson put it, Wolfe "created the critical mass that made Tinder explode." But according to Wolfe, Mateen took away her status as a cofounder because " having a young female co-founder 'makes the company seem like a joke' and 'devalues' the company." The suit was settled out of court in September without Rad or anyone at Tinder admitting guilt . Wolfe reportedly received just over $1 million. 9) Was there any fallout from the lawsuit? Yes. In November, Tinder CEO and founder Sean Rad announced he was stepping down from the company because of pressure from IAC, Tinder's largest stakeholder. But his resignation was contingent on finding a replacement, and as recently as this past Monday he was being referred to in media reports as the CEO . Wolfe is also getting her revenge by releasing her own dating app, known as Bumble . The key advantage of Bumble over Tinder is that, after an opposite-sex match is made, the woman is required to make the first move; men aren't allowed to message unless their match messages first . This is meant to temper the tendency of dating platforms to devolve into means by which men can harass women.


Under the new regime of general manager Chris Ballard, the Indianapolis Colts have quickly shed the label of being the bad drafting team they were under Ryan Grigson. In the latter's final draft as general manager in 2016, the Colts found an early starter in center Ryan Kelly, but the rest of the group has mostly been labeled as poor picks for the most part. In a re-grade of the 2016 draft by Dane Brugler of The Athletic, the Colts received a "C-" grade for the haul. While Kelly was listed as the best pick from the draft, fellow offensive lineman Joe Haeg was listed as the best value. Best value: Joe Haeg Of the four offensive linemen the Colts drafted in the 2016 class, Haeg has played the most games (39) and started (35) just as many as Kelly. While he is better suited as a backup, his versatility to play tackle or guard makes him an ideal candidate to be a team's sixth offensive lineman. The biggest miss of the draft is pretty obvious. In the second round, the Colts decided to take T.J. Green out of Clemson, who tested well but was still considered raw both as a cornerback and safety prospect. Biggest miss: T.J. Green Green didn't have the tape of a second-round pick, but his athletic traits (4.34 40-yard dash) and upside inflated his value on the Colts' draft board. He started seven games in 2017 but was released prior to the 2018 season and chose to walk away from football shortly after the Seahawks signed him. Finally, Stephen Holder of The Athletic gave his thoughts on what type of impact the 2016 class has had. Beat writer's take: The Colts didn't net much from this draft when you consider their second-round pick (safety T.J. Green) was cut last year and is out of the league. Only first-rounder Ryan Kelly became a full-time starter and just three of the eight picks remain on the roster. Kelly, Le'Raven Clark and Joe Haeg are still in Indianapolis, but Clark's status is a bit tenuous depending on training-camp competition. This draft was centered on fixing the Colts' offensive line woes. They meant well, but it wasn't until the 2018 draft that the Colts truly solidified the unit. The Colts have since rid the roster of Grigson's selections. Only a handful of players remain from the group that was here when Ballard took over. The Colts have had some solid draft classes since Ballard took over as general manager in 2017, and the hope is it continues as to avoid a group like 2016 where only a few wind up making an impact. MORE: According to a new report, the Lakers are an even bigger mess than we thought Draymond Green to LeBron James' 14-Year-Old Son: "I'm at Your F--king Neck This Summer" Ahead of Finals, Stephen Curry defends Kevin Durant against critics Jimmy Butler would reportedly like playing with LeBron James NBA Free Agency 2019: The top players


ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (CBSNewYork)   A trip to the beach ended in tragedy for a family in Atlantic City. Police said the father died while saving his 11-year-old son from drowning. It happened shortly after 9:30 a.m. Monday at a beach off New Jersey Avenue. The boy made it back to shore, but a former police officer saw the dad struggling in the water. He grabbed his boogie board and tried to help. "I saw something floating and I said to myself, 'please, let that be a log or something,'" he said. "It was just very traumatic to see that it was the back of him." First responders performed CPR, but the father died at the hospital. Atlantic City Beach Patrol was off-duty at the time.


He said, who said? The saga of Mike D'Antoni's contract negotiations continues to grow, but still remains a matter of hearsay. Last Friday, the day after the Houston Rockets and D'Antoni ended extension talks, the head coach's manager, Warren LeGarie, stated that all wasn't as it seems, hoping to "clear up some inaccuracies." According to the manager, the reported $5 million extension offered to D'Antoni was really $2.5 million with contingencies - ones that included him not getting the other $2.5 million if the Rockets didn't make the playoffs, or if he was fired in the middle of the season. A few days after the statement was made, Rockets management finally responded. Accord to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle , Rockets GM Daryl Morey said that the offer "never would have paid him less than the $5 million base salary." Instead, the $2.5 million that the agent was referring to was what D'Antoni would have been paid in 2020-2021 if he wasn't brought back after the upcoming season. So in the event that the head coach was fired before the '20-'21 season, he would make $2.5 million from the Rockets plus any salary if he would receive if he decided to coach another team that year. While the back and forth between the representation and Rockets management isn't as bitter or toxic as others would like to make it seem, it's still becoming a very unfortunate part, and possibly bitter end, to a great run in the franchise's history. It could also be an omen of things to come in the upcoming season. With trade rumors swirling on top of public comments about contract disputes, the team's staff and front office have a lot to work on if they look to have another successful season. This isn't the way anyone wanted the Rockets' offseason to start, especially given that free agency hasn't even begun yet, but it's what it has become.


According to a report by Joe Person at the Athletic , the Panthers will have two of their all-time great players doing radio color commentary this season. Former quarterback Jake Delhomme will do 10 games, while left tackle Jordan Gross will call four. "Former quarterback Jake Delhomme has agreed to call 10 of the Panthers' regular-season games this year and ex-offensive lineman Jordan Gross will work four, according to sources with knowledge of the situation." Person's original report about Carolina's interest in replacing Eugene Robinson with Delhomme stated that he doesn't want to commit to a full 16-game schedule, hence only 10 games. Delhomme played for the Panthers from 2003-2009, making one Pro Bowl team and leading the franchise to its first Super Bowl appearance. Gross played 167 games for Carolina from 2003-2013, making three Pro Bowls and one All-Pro team. Who will do the color commentary for the other two games has yet to be determined. MORE: Five potential Chris Paul trade destinations A hard foul ball struck a small child in Houston. If players had their way, it wouldn't have happened. Roundup: NFL Owners Want 18-Game Season Again, Alex Trebek Cancer Near Remission, Israel Redoing Election Report: The Celtics are no longer the favorites to sign Kyrie Irving ESPN graders not big fans of the Browns offseason moves


Going to Disney was the Burkhalters' dream vacation. But they said their dream turned into a nightmare when Hester Burkhalter, 69, was arrested at the gates of Magic Kingdom for carrying CBD oil in her purse. "Talk about all the questions that the eight and 10-year-old son and daughter had while Mickey Mouse was arresting grandma," attorney Ben Crump said. At a press conference Tuesday outside the Orange County Courthouse, Crump announced plans to sue Disney Corporation and Orange County Sheriff's Office on Burkhalter's behalf. The lawsuit has not yet been filed, but Crump said he sent a notice to the Sheriff's Office and county government indicating he intends to sue, alleging is based on the illegal detainment, false imprisonment, defamation of character, intentional infliction of emotional distress and violation of Burkhalter's civil rights. The Sheriff's Office released a statement Tuesday saying "the Orange County Sheriff's Office has not been served with a lawsuit. However, since there could be pending litigation, we cannot comment broadly, except to say that this was a lawful arrest under Florida statute and no one's civil rights were violated." Disney has not released a statement, and could not be reached for comment after multiple emails and phone calls. Burkhalter, a 69-year-old grandmother, was arrested at Magic Kingdom April 15 for carrying cannabidiol oil   more commonly known as CBD   in her purse. CBD is the non-psychoactive compound found in cannabis that is often used for pain and anxiety relief. Burkhalter said she was prescribed the oil by her doctor back home in North Carolina for pain relief from her arthritis. CBD production and use has been on the rise since President Donald Trump signed the 2018 Farm Bill, legalizing hemp   cannabis with less than 0.3% THC, the intoxicating compound found in marijuana   at the federal level in December. Since then, CBD dispensaries have been popping up across Florida and the country. It's sold in store fronts and smoke shops. Soho Juice Company in Winter Park will mix it into smoothies and people even use it for their pets to help ease anxiety. "Today in Orlando, we were able to go into the store and buy CBD," Crump said. "It's all over Orlando. It's all over Florida." A study published by investment bank Cowen & Co in February found that 7% of 2,500 people polled reported using CBD, and the study predicted that the industry will be worth $16 billion by 2025. So, if CBD is so commonplace, why was Burkhalter arrested? Hemp and CBD, while legal at the federal level and a growing industry, is not technically legal in Florida, said Jeffrey Sharkey, president and co-founder of the Florida Hemp Industries Association. The Florida Legislature passed a bill in 2017 that legalized an industrial hemp research project, but failed to remove the product from the state controlled substances list, Sharkey said. So, when the Farm Bill passed in December, hemp and CBD became federally legal, but remained illegal in Florida. He said the majority of CBD enforcement has been lenient because of the in-between legal state and cases like Burkhalter's are rare. Two weeks ago, the Legislature passed Senate Bill 1020, which will remove hemp and hemp-derived products, including CBD, from the controlled substance list, making it legal in Florida. The bill is waiting for approval from Governor Ron DeSantis. If signed, it will go into effect July 1. "Unfortunately, that's a little too late," said Jennifer Synnamon, the attorney for Burkhalter's criminal case. Burkhalter placed her purse on the security table to be checked when a Disney security officer found the small container labeled "select CBD." The security officer then called an off-duty OCSO deputy, who tested the substance for THC. It tested positive and Burkhalter was placed under arrest. She was trespassed from Disney and arrested for possession of hashish   a felony charge mostly used for vape pens with concentrated THC oil. Crump and Burkhalter said at the press conference that the field test used can't distinguish between CBD and THC oil, and the only way to indicate the difference is a lab test. Burkhalter said she wasn't worried about carrying the CBD because she went through security at both Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios the day before with no problem. "I didn't even think about it," Burkhalter said. Burkhalter said she was in jail for about 12 hours after her arrest. However, even after her release, she couldn't go back to Disney property to pick up her stuff. She said she waited in a McDonald's at 2:30 a.m. while her husband collected their belongings. On April 26, prosecutors filed notice in Orange County Circuit Court indicating they did not intend to pursue charges against Burkhalter, closing the criminal case against her, records show. Crump , a civil rights attorney known for representing the family of Trayvon Martin after his 2012 killing in Sanford, among other high-profile cases, said Disney can avoid the lawsuit if it's willing to sit down with Burkhalter and her family to make things right. "Where's your decency? Where's your common sense?" Crump said. "Is this how you are going to treat people when they come to the happiest place on Earth?"


Hal Tearse, a financial adviser, left RBC Wealth Management last month for the Minnetonka office of Milwaukee-based Baird. Tearse, 67, who was at RBC and a predecessor firm for more than two decades, and his daughter, Nicole Wright, 34, managed considerable client assets of about $125 million. Tearse also was one of the more productive advisers at RBC Wealth, a unit of one of Canada's largest financial conglomerates. However, there have been management changes. And Tearse, long known as outspoken, wasn't winning new friends at RBC management, including his resistance to "cross-sell" banking products to his brokerage clients. "I had a good run at RBC, and it was just time to move on," Tearse said last week. "I'm looking forward to doing business with my [old and new] clients and helping Baird grow their business." Tearse and Wright chose Milwaukee-based Baird because they wanted a full-service securities firm, not a financial conglomerate. RBC is not dissimilar to financial services behemoths such as JPMorgan Chase or Citigroup. The industry increasingly has consolidated into huge financial supermarkets, from banking to brokerage, asset management and insurance. Baird in 2004 was spun out of Milwaukee's Northwestern Mutual Insurance as an independent, employee-owned company. It has proved that a focused securities firm can grow and provide consistently good performance. Baird is a regional firm, with operating income of $244 million on revenue of $1.8 billion last year. It has a national span, particularly in its investment research and banking businesses. It also has an expanding private client-wealth management business centered in Milwaukee, Chicago, Seattle, Denver, Louisville and the Twin Cities. Baird, with about 1,300 licensed financial advisers, has doubled its ranks in the Twin Cities to 58 advisers over the last five years. Karen Heintz, Baird's Twin Cities market director, is a veteran of Piper Jaffray, which sold its retail business years ago, and Dain Rauscher, the Minneapolis-based regional securities firm that sold to RBC of Canada in 2000. She said Baird has opportunities for veteran brokers looking for a change or new recruits. Baird only pays a bonus of up to trailing 12 months fees and commissions to induce a broker to sign up. These bonuses usually are in the form of a no-interest loan and many financial firms will pay two to three times past-year production, which can get a financial adviser in trouble, particularly if the market goes south and production declines. "We do deal structures that are logical and fair," Heintz said. "We're not a place for everyone." Meanwhile, the value of Baird's employee-owned stock has risen by nearly 200% over the past decade, thanks to profitable growth. Also, Baird has been ranked one of America's 100 best companies to work for since 2002 by Fortune. It's lauded for its two-year training program for fledgling advisers. And women make up about a third of its financial advisers, double the industry average. Cassidy Burns, who started in the securities industry at Piper in 1993 and later moved to Riverbridge Partners, a money-management and financial-advisory firm, joined Baird's Edina office to form a partnership with her brother, Dobbin McCrea, who joined from Morgan Stanley. "We were drawn to Baird's values of honesty, integrity and concern for clients," Burns said. "The support for women advisers also was a draw. When I got to Baird, the first call I received was from Chairman Paul Purcell welcoming me." Burns and her brother left Piper, where they started in 1993, after Piper sold its retail business to UBS Securities in 2006. They didn't want to be part of a huge Wall Street-based operation. And UBS had regulatory-related issues. Burns said she wanted to team in a joint practice with McCrea and because she thought she would prosper in the Baird culture. To spearhead its Twin Cities expansion, Baird last year hired John Taft, the 10-year CEO of RBC Wealth Management. He had retired in 2016. Taft, 64, who is vice chairman of Baird, also is a Piper veteran. He helped RBC expand its wealth-management business in the United States to 2,000 financial advisers. A deft recruiter, he also has deepened Baird's local philanthropic and community ties. "We've got a balanced business model, … a strong balance sheet and we're not afraid to invest wisely," Taft said. "This firm trains and treats its employees better than any firm I've worked for." He predicted Baird will double its brokerage force again in the Twin Cities over five years. Neal St. Anthony has been a Star Tribune business columnist and reporter since 1984. He can be contacted at nstanthony@startribune.com.     ©2019 the Star Tribune (Minneapolis) Visit the Star Tribune (Minneapolis) at www.startribune.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.


Dak Prescott pulled a Jerry Jones and pretended he didn't hear the question about whether the Cowboys quarterback would table contract talks if he doesn't have a new deal by the season opener. "One more time," Prescott said before pausing. "What did Jerry do yesterday? I didn't hear you." Prescott wanted no part of questions about his contract, but like inquiries about Ezekiel Elliott 's absence, Prescott knew it was coming. He tried to avoid them like he tries to avoid a blitz: Get rid of the ball quickly. "I'm not here to talk about my contract and that stuff," Prescott said Saturday. "Talks, I'm sure, at this point are continuously happening. For me, it's to come out here and focus on this, not be distracted by any of that stuff, any of that conversation, just focus on being better, just being the best player I can be and making sure everyone around me is as well." Prescott and Amari Cooper are in the final year of their deals. Elliott has a fifth-year option for 2020. Executive vice president Stephen Jones said Friday that all three have "solid" offers on the table. Elliott is the only one of the three holding out of training camp. "We've talked. Quick communications," Prescott said when asked if he had talked to Elliott. "But that's all business. That's for him to handle. For my job right now, it's just come out here and make sure this team is getting better. I'm making sure I'm getting myself better and everyone out here. That's my main focus is being the best team we can be with everyone here. We know he will take care of himself." Prescott, a fourth-round pick in 2016, is entering the final year of his rookie deal scheduled to make $2.025 million in base salary. That ties him with Colts backup Jacoby Brissett for the 38th-highest paid quarterback in the league this season, according to overthecap.com. Prescott surely would receive the franchise tag in the offseason, barring a long-term deal, but Cowboys owner Jerry Jones always has expressed optimism at getting Prescott signed long term. Prescott said he doesn't get "distracted" by the talk about contract talks. "It will happen when it happens," Prescott said. "I know I'll be better by the time the regular season starts. As I said, that's my focus."


DENVER -- A deputy with the Denver Sheriff Department will serve a 33-day suspension after punching an inmate and lying about it. Thomas Trujillo is seen on video confronting an inmate in August 2018 and punching him inside of a cell. The confrontation occurred after the two got into an argument. Investigators say Trujillo left out important details in his force report, including failing to admit he punched an inmate. Trujillo's suspension is set to begin Monday.     ©2019 KDVR-TV, Denver Visit KDVR-TV, Denver at www.kdvr.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.


California's crusade to turn its electricity grid green is running into an increasingly serious obstacle: PG&E Corp.'s bankruptcy. The utility last week won a key court ruling when a bankruptcy judge said federal regulators can't stop PG&E from unraveling billions of dollars worth of pricey contracts to buy electricity from solar and wind farms and other renewable energy sources. Although PG&E said it hasn't decided whether to walk away from those deals, it fought for the legal right to do so. Green-energy advocates say PG&E's efforts are casting a cloud over their entire industry and will make it harder to borrow money for future projects, whether it's PG&E or some other utility buying the power. That, in turn, would imperil California's plans   mandated by the Legislature   to phase out fossil fuels in electricity generation in the coming years. "Our state is talking about getting to 100 percent clean energy," said Jan Smutny-Jones of the Independent Energy Producers Association, an advocacy group based in Sacramento. "Who in the world is going to be investing in new battery technologies and other things that people say are needed? We have to have a stable environment." A fight with state leaders   already irate with PG&E over its safety record and other issues   could be in the offing. The California Public Utilities Commission's general counsel, Arocles Aguilar, told lawmakers in March that her agency has the authority to prevent PG&E from walking away from its green-energy contracts. Asked about last week's court ruling, Gov. Gavin Newsom spokesman Nathan Click said: "Our office is closely monitoring and will not allow bankruptcy to interfere with the state's renewable energy goals." But can the state force PG&E to keep its energy contracts? Probably not, says one expert. The Public Utilities Commission probably would fare no better than federal regulators who tried to block PG&E from unwinding its power deals, said Jared Ellias, a bankruptcy expert at the UC Hastings College of Law in San Francisco. "The PUC can't block PG&E from tearing up those contracts," Ellias said. Already, California utilities get 34 percent of their power from renewables, making the state a leader in turning the grid green. But California wants to go much further in the fight against climate change. The Legislature last year enacted SB 100, which says utilities must be 50 percent green by 2026 and 60 percent by 2030. The crisis arose when PG&E filed for bankruptcy in January under the weight of an estimated $30 billion in liabilities from the wine country fires of 2017 and last November's Camp Fire, the deadliest in California history. Generally speaking, a company that goes bankrupt has the right to cancel existing contracts, if the judge believes cancellation is a reasonable business decision. Traditionally, utilities don't build their own renewable plants but buy the power on contract from others. California's ambitious clean-energy targets have prompted solar and wind companies from all over the country to build facilities in the state. PG&E entered bankruptcy with more than $40 billion worth of contracts on the books, and has been hinting that it might want to dump some of them. In particular, the price of solar electricity has plummeted in recent years, and PG&E's lawyers complained in court papers that the utility is now paying "above-market rates" for much of its electricity. At the same time, the utility said it has plenty of power in its portfolio and could easily live without some of the contracts. Wall Street analysts from Credit Suisse, Standard & Poor's and others have estimated that PG&E could save more than $2 billion by shedding some of the deals made years ago. The savings could be used "to satisfy wildfire-related claims and recover wildfire prevention costs while minimizing consumer energy rate increases," Moody's Investors Service said in an April report. Green-energy advocates insist the savings wouldn't actually free up cash for wildfire victims. That's because the solar and wind companies that lose their contracts would become creditors of PG&E, just like fire victims, lenders and others. "It dilutes the amount of money available to the wildfire victims," Smutny-Jones said. Shannon Eddy, director of a trade group called the Large Scale Solar Association, added: "We are in uncharted territory here .... This is not the time to be (canceling) any of these contracts." PG&E's hints have given the green-energy industry the jitters. Fitch Ratings downgraded the credit rating of Topaz Solar Farm in San Luis Obispo County   a subsidiary of financier Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate and one of the largest solar projects in the world   to junk-bond status. That makes it much harder to finance new facilities. The Topaz farm sells all of its power, enough to light up more than 400,000 homes, to PG&E. It made its deal with PG&E in 2008, when solar power was about five times more expensive than it is now, according to Moody's. Another renewable developer that does business with PG&E, Clearway Energy Inc. of Princeton, N.J., reduced its quarterly shareholder dividend in February, saying the bankruptcy "has heightened the risk" to Clearway. Just as PG&E was about to file for bankruptcy, the feds stepped in. At the urging of two renewable companies that sell to PG&E   NextEra Energy of Florida and Exelon Corp. of Chicago   the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission declared that it had "concurrent jurisdiction" with the Bankruptcy Court over PG&E's contracts. PG&E fought back, filing papers in Bankruptcy Court demanding the right to sever any contracts. Last week Bankruptcy Judge Dennis Montali sided with the utility, bluntly telling the feds to mind their own business. The agency was trying "to exercise power it wholly lacks," the judge wrote. The utility released a statement saying it's "pleased with the court's decision" but adding that it hasn't decided what to do about its renewable contracts. It also said it shares California's commitment to battling climate change. "We appreciate the concerns from stakeholders across the state concerning the impact that (the) Chapter 11 filing could have on the state's clean energy progress," PG&E added.     ©2019 The Sacramento Bee (Sacramento, Calif.) Visit The Sacramento Bee (Sacramento, Calif.) at www.sacbee.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.