American man on the run for over 20 years following fatal crash arrested in Canada
An American man who had been on the run for over two decades was arrested in Toronto earlier this year, police said.
Patrick Lutts Jr., facing manslaughter charges in Orlando, Florida, in connection to a fatal crash, lived openly in Toronto for 21 years without legal status, according to court documents cited by CBS News partner Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC News).
Toronto police told CBS News that Lutts was arrested in February under the Canadian Extradition Act. He is set to appear in a downtown court later this month, according to CBC News.
In November 2023, an anonymous tip to Crime Stoppers in Florida led authorities to suspect Lutts of being in Canada, according to court documents reported by CBC News, which was the first to report his arrest. Lutts was placed under surveillance, and police discovered he was residing in a high-rise apartment building in Toronto.
On the early morning of Christmas Day in 1998, Lutts, who was then 25 years old, allegedly crashed into a vehicle in Orlando, resulting in the deaths of two teenagers: 19-year-old Nancy Lopez and her boyfriend, 18-year-old Darvin Javier DeJesus-Taboada, CBC News reported, citing investigators.
Investigators said the couple was thrown several meters after Lutts, who had “a strong odor of alcohol coming from his breath” following a night of drinking, crashed his pickup truck into their vehicle.” His blood alcohol level was allegedly more than three times the legal limit, CBC News reported.
Lutts was allegedly involved in another impaired driving crash in Connecticut in 2002, CBC News reported, citing court files. He failed to appear for a plea hearing in October 2003, public records show, before disappearing until his recent arrest in Toronto, CBC News reported.
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Jury Discharged in Sexual Assault Trial of 5 Former World Junior Hockey Players
The five former world junior hockey players currently on trial in London, Ont., are, from left to right: Dillon Dubé, Alex Formenton, Carter Hart, Cal Foote, and Michael McLeod.
(Photo credit: Geoff Robbins / The Canadian Press)
The Latest
- Justice Maria Carroccia has discharged the jury at the trial of five former Team Canada world junior players.
- She provided her reasons for doing so to the court this morning. We’re now waiting to learn more about next steps.
- The trial will now proceed before a judge alone, meaning determining the guilt or innocence of the accused men will be up to Carroccia.
- We’re expecting to hear more testimony from a former teammate of the accused.
- The accused — Cal Foote, Dillon Dubé, Alex Formenton, Carter Hart and Michael McLeod — have all pleaded not guilty.
- WARNING: Court proceedings include graphic details of alleged sexual assault and might affect those who have experienced sexual violence or know someone who’s been affected.
A ‘rogue employee’ was behind Grok’s unprompted ‘white genocide’ mentions
Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company on Friday said a “rogue employee” was behind its chatbot’s unsolicited rants about “white genocide” in South Africa earlier this week.
The clarification comes less than 48 hours after Grok — the chatbot from Musk’s xAI that is available through his social media platform, X — began bombarding users with unfounded genocidal theories in response to queries about completely off-topic subjects.
In an X post, the company said the “unauthorized modification” in the extremely early morning hours Pacific time pushed the AI-imbued chatbot to “provide a specific response on a political topic” that violates xAI’s policies. The company did not identify the employee.
“We have conducted a thorough investigation and are implementing measures to enhance Grok’s transparency and reliability,” the company said in the post.
To do so, xAI says it will openly publish Grok’s system prompts on GitHub to ensure more transparency. Additionally, the company says it will install “checks and measures” to make sure xAI employees can’t alter prompts without preliminary review. And the AI company will also have a monitoring team in place 24/7 to address issues that aren’t tackled by the automated systems.
Musk, who owns xAI and currently serves as a top White House adviser, was born and raised in South Africa and has a history of arguing that a “white genocide” was committed in the nation. The billionaire media mogul has also claimed that white farmers in the country are being discriminated against under land reform policies that the South African government says are aimed at combating apartheid fallout.
Less than a week ago, the Trump administration allowed 59 white South Africans to enter the US as refugees, claiming they’d been discriminated against, while simultaneously also suspending all other refugee resettlement.
Per a Grok response to xAI’s own post, the “white genocide” responses occurred after a “rogue employee at xAI tweaked my prompts without permission on May 14,” allowing the AI chatbot to “spit out a canned political response that went against xAI’s values.”
Notably, the chatbot declined to take ownership over its actions, saying, “I didn’t do anything — I was just following the script I was given, like a good AI!” While it’s true that chatbots’ responses are predicated on approved text responses anchored to their code, the dismissive admission emphasizes the danger of AI, both in terms of disseminating harmful information but also in playing down its part in such incidents.
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When CNN asked Grok why it had shared answers about “white genocide,” the AI chatbot again pointed to the rogue employee, adding that “my responses may have been influenced by recent discussions on X or data I was trained on, but I should have stayed on topic.”
Over two years have passed since OpenAI’s ChatGPT made its splashy debut, opening the floodgates on commercially available AI chatbots. Since then, a litany of other AI chatbots — including Google’s Gemini, Anthropic’s Claude, Perplexity, Mistral’s Le Chat, and DeepSeek — have become available to US adults.
A recent Gallup poll shows that most Americans are using multiple AI-enabled products weekly, regardless of whether they’re aware of the fact. But another recent study, this one from the Pew Research Center, shows that only “one-third of U.S. adults say they have ever used an AI chatbot,” while 59% of US adults don’t think they have much control over AI in their lives.
CNN asked xAI whether the “rogue employee” has been suspended or terminated, as well as whether the company plans to reveal the employee’s identity. The company did not respond at the time of publication.
Cassie’s harrowing testimony and how the myth of ‘mutual abuse’ harms all victims
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs trial day four: defense cross-examines Cassie
The strategy of Sean “Diddy” Combs’ defense started to come into focus as his attorneys cross-examined his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura.
Casandra Ventura Fine told a jury on May 14 that her ex-boyfriend Sean “Diddy” Combs physically abused her, from dragging her to knocking her on the side of her head. In one incident, during which she said he was verbally berating her, she recalled punching him in the face for the first time.
“I’d never experienced anything like that before that,” Venture Fine, the R&B singer best known as Cassie, said, noting she was getting “really badly beaten.” When rumors of the incident circulated on the internet, she said her mom and dad asked about it. Cassie testified she didn’t tell her mom the truth because she “was ashamed.”
Ahead of the trial, Combs’ lawyers had said that they wanted to show that there was “mutual violence in their relationship” and “hitting on both sides,” rather than denying Combs’ violence.
“Domestic violence, we are absolutely admitting that,” Combs’ lead attorney Marc Agnifilo said, but added that it was “mutually violent.” Combs’ legal team grilled Ventura Fine on May 16 on what lawyers have called her own history of domestic violence.
Sexual violence experts, however, argue that claims of “mutual abuse” are a tactic used to shift blame away from the perpetrator, undermine power imbalances that facilitate domestic violence, and further the harmful stereotype of the “perfect victim.”
While there may be unhealthy behaviors from both partners involved in an abusive relationship, one person tends to have more control than the other.
Ventura Fine testified that Combs abused her over many years. She was 19 when she met Combs; he was 17 years older, established in the music industry, and signed her to a 10-album deal.
“Her livelihood and safety depended on keeping the defendant happy,” attorney Emily Johnson said on May 12. The prosecution said Combs and Cassie “were unfaithful and jealous,” but “only one had power.”
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How the idea of ‘mutual abuse’ harms victims
Domestic violence experts say the idea of “mutual abuse” is fraught. In abusive relationships, one partner tends to hold more power or be the primary aggressor. The other may react violently, but it’s likely just that — a reaction.
“It’s one person taking control over the other person and stripping them of their autonomy and stripping them of their independence,” says sociologist Nicole Bedera. “That’s not something that can be done mutually.”
Abusers can manipulate their victims into believing the relationship is mutually abusive by saying things like “What you said made me act that way” or “You started this.”
Victims may “be shocked by their own violent responses,” says trauma and relationship therapist Jordan Pickell. “They’re scared, and they have less power.”
“Abuse, by design, is meant to be confusing,” she adds. “This mutualizing language covers up the extent of abuse, and it hurts all survivors, because it feeds into them questioning themselves, and their own sense of self-blame.”
The idea of the ‘perfect victim’
We have inherent expectations of how a victim of abuse should act, respond and behave.
But in abusive relationships, there are often mixed feelings – a victim can be sexually, physically or emotionally abused, but still harbor loving feelings towards their partner. Eight in 10 victims of rape knew the person who raped them before the incident, whether it be a current or former intimate partner or acquaintance.
Pickell works with clients who are “horrified by their own behavior,” just as Ventura Fine testified that she felt shame. It can take time for them to recognize they were a victim of abuse.
And it’s important to remember abuse can happen to anyone – regardless of their personality, actions or responses. When we have a clear-cut idea of what a victim looks like, Pickell says we “falsely believe that it won’t happen to us.”
We also want to believe we’ll be able to spot perpetrators of abuse − that they’re all “monsters,” Sherry Hamby, an author, research professor and clinical psychologist previously told USA TODAY. But “they don’t have horns coming out of their heads and a lot of them can be quite charming when they want to be.”
There’s no ‘right way’ for victims to respond to abuse
There’s no gold standard when it comes to responding to abuse, as domestic and sexual violence can look different in each incident or relationship.
“If you don’t fight back, people say, ‘Well, then you must not have had a problem with it. You must have liked it. It must have been consensual in some way,’” Bedera explains. “And then if you do fight back, they say, ‘Well, weren’t you abusive too?’”
She adds, “The whole point is there’s always something to criticize, and there’s always a reason to justify the perpetrator’s violence.”
According to a 2020 study by the National Coalition of Domestic Violence, approximately 1 in 5 female victims and 1 in 20 male victims of sexual violence, physical violence and/or stalking by an intimate partner need medical care as a result. Every month, an average of 76 women are shot and killed by an intimate partner. The most dangerous time for a victim’s safety can be when they leave the abusive relationship; leaving an abusive partner or informing them of plans to leave can put a victim at a greater risk of intimate partner homicide or violence.
Similar to how women may use their intuition and judgement to navigate experiences of street harassment – whether it’s yelling back at their catcaller or scurrying away – victims are activating their flight, fight or freeze responses to survive each attack.
“Throughout the entire duration of their abusive relationships… victims are making decisions to protect themselves in key moments that are literally keeping them alive,” Bedera adds. “When we hold victims to a ‘perfect victim’ standard, often the thing that we’re attacking is those tools and tactics that kept them alive.”
Bedera says to think less about the victim’s response, and to hold off on passing judgments on whether or not a person handled the abuse in the “way you think a victim should.”
“That’s not really what’s on trial here,” she reminds those keeping an eye on the proceedings. “What’s on trial is how the perpetrator behaved and his actions.”
If you or someone you know is a victim of domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or text “START” to 88788.
Contributing: Anna Kaufman, Patrick Ryan and Edward Segarra
Where Will Pope Leo XIV’s Historic Papal Inauguration Take Place?
The Vatican has announced that Pope Leo XIV will be formally installed as pontiff during an inaugural Mass at St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, May 18, at 10 a.m. This ceremonial event comes just over a week after the historic election of the first American pope in the Catholic Church’s two-millennium history.
The newly elected Pontiff, Pope Leo XIV is seen for the first time from the Vatican balcony.
St. Peter’s Square (Piazza San Pietro), designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini between 1656 and 1667, spans 320 meters long and 240 meters wide, with a capacity to hold up to 300,000 people. The massive open-air plaza is framed by a colonnade consisting of 284 columns arranged in four rows. Atop the structure are 140 statues of saints sculpted in 1670 by Bernini’s disciples. These colonnades create what Bernini described as “the maternal arms of the Church.”
The 69-year-old Chicago-born pontiff, formerly Cardinal Robert Prevost, celebrated his first Mass as pope in the Sistine Chapel on May 9, though that service was reserved exclusively for the cardinals who elected him. Unlike that private ceremony, the upcoming inauguration will be open to the public and attended by political and religious leaders from around the world.
Large crowds celebrate in St Peter’s Square.
The ceremony will feature the bestowal of the pallium, a white woolen band adorned with crosses symbolizing the pope’s universal jurisdiction. This tradition has replaced the more elaborate papal coronations of the past—Pope Paul VI was the last to wear the traditional tiara.
Following his inauguration, Pope Leo XIV faces a packed schedule, including taking possession of Rome’s three major basilicas: St. Paul Outside the Walls on May 20, and St. John Lateran and St. Mary Major on May 25. He’ll also hold his first general audience on May 21 and meet with the Roman Curia and Vatican City State employees on May 24.
Julia Cancilla is the engagement editor (and resident witch) at ELLE Decor, where she manages the brand’s social media presence and covers trends, lifestyle, and culture in the design world. Julia built her background at Inked magazine, where she grew their social media audiences by two million, conducted interviews with A-list celebrities, and penned feature articles focusing on pop culture, art and lifestyle. Over her five years of digital media experience, Julia has written about numerous topics, from fashion to astrology.
Much-needed rain aids in fights against Minnesota wildfires
Relentless wildfires have continued to rapidly grow across parts of northeastern Minnesota north of Lake Superior, destroying at least 144 homes and buildings, after days of unseasonably high temperatures and low humidity.
ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Minn. – Much-needed rain Thursday night brought some relief to firefighters fighting three wildfires that have burned tens of thousands of acres in northern Minnesota.
It was a busy night Thursday, as severe weather moved through western Minnesota, the Northern Plains and the Upper Midwest.
Days of high temperatures and low humidity helped the spread of three wildfires: the Camp House, Jenkins Creek and Munger Shaw fires, burning in St. Louis County and Lake County, Minnesota.
The cause of all three fires remains under investigation.
Each fire quickly grew, forcing evacuations, and prompting the National Guard to join the firefight.
Well over 100 buildings have been destroyed by the three fires, but the exact number of buildings is still under investigation.
The Camp House fire has scorched 14,852 acres, according to InciWeb. Evacuations remain in place, and the fire is still uncontained.
Camp House wildfire
(Homeland Security and Emergency Management / FOX Weather)
The Jenkins Creek Fire continued to grow Thursday, after strong wind gusts raised concerns that it would spread even more rapidly.
Thankfully, rain helped ease some of the fire officials’ concerns, St. Louis County Sheriff Gordon Ramsay said in a Thursday night update.
Inciweb reported Friday that the Jenkins Creek Fire had burned 15,570 acres and was 0% contained. Evacuations are still in place.
Photo of Munger Shaw fire activity.
(MNICS/Facebook / FOX Weather)
Meanwhile, firefighters are getting ahead of the Munger Shaw fire, which is 25% contained and isn’t actively growing, Ramsay said.
The Munger Shaw Fire was the smallest of the three wildfires, burning 1,600 acres.
Evacuation orders were lifted for that fire on Thursday night.
Fire destroys a sprawling mansion on a former Louisiana sugar plantation
WHITE CASTLE, La. — Flames ripped through a massive mansion in Louisiana, destroying much of the historic structure that was used as a plantation house when it was completed in 1859, authorities said.
The fire that engulfed the Nottoway Plantation House on Thursday devastated the building along the Mississippi River between Baton Rouge and New Orleans, Iberville Parish President Chris Daigle said on social media. Nearly a dozen fire departments from surrounding towns battled the blaze, he said. No injuries were reported.
Before the fire, it was a resort and event venue, and its website described it as “the South’s largest remaining antebellum mansion.” Daigle called it “a cornerstone of our tourism economy and a site of national significance.”
The 53,000-square-foot (4,924-square-meter) home on a former sugar plantation about 65 miles (105 kilometers) northwest of New Orleans included a three-story rotunda adorned with giant white columns and included hand-carved Italian marble fireplaces, according to a description on its website.
Photos from local news outlets show a giant orange wall of fire consuming the upper portion of the rotunda and sending a plume of thick smoke into the sky.
In a statement on Facebook, Daigle touched on the structure’s history of racial injustice during a time when enslaved people helped build the home and operate the sugar plantation that surrounded it.
“While its early history is undeniably tied to a time of great injustice, over the last several decades it evolved into a place of reflection, education, and dialogue,” Daigle said.
“Since the 1980s, it has welcomed visitors from around the world who came to appreciate its architecture and confront the legacies of its era,” he added. “It stood as both a cautionary monument and a testament to the importance of preserving history — even the painful parts — so that future generations can learn and grow from it.”