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Today’s top stories
Police arrested 26-year-old Luigi Mangione yesterday and charged him with murder for the slaying of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Thompson was gunned down in New York City last week. After he was killed, NYPD obtained a surveillance photo showing part of the suspect’s face, which was showcased nationwide. Police took Mangione into custody after he was recognized at a Pennsylvania McDonald’s and reported to authorities.
In this handout photo released by the Altoona Police Department, Luigi Mangione is seen in a holding cell after being taken into custody on Dec. 9, 2024, in Altoona, Pa.
Altoona Police Department/Getty Images
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Altoona Police Department/Getty Images
- 🎧 Mangione was allegedly carrying an illegal firearm, false documents and other evidence linking him to Thompson’s death, NPR’s Brian Mann tells Up First. The motive behind targeting Thompson so deliberately is unclear at the moment. NYPD’s Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenney said Mangione was carrying a three-page handwritten document that may detail some of his alleged motives.
- ➡️ Mangione came from an affluent family and was well-educated. He was valedictorian at the private Gilman School in Baltimore and then attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he studied computer science and artificial intelligence. Here’s what else we know about him.
- ➡️ Read more about what comes next in the case.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu takes the witness stand today in his corruption trial. It’s the first time in the country’s history that a sitting prime minister is testifying as a defendant in court. Netanyahu is facing charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust in three separate cases. He will testify three days a week for six hours a day for many weeks.
- 🎧 Netanyahu is testifying in an underground fortified courtroom for security reasons as the country is in the middle of a war, says NPR’s Daniel Estrin, who is one floor above him in Tel Aviv. Police started investigating Netanyahu in 2016, and in a press conference last night, Netanyahu said he’s been waiting eight years for this day to be able to present the truth. Netanyahu is accused of using his influence to help media figures’ business interests. In exchange, he allegedly received tens of thousands of dollars worth of champagne and cigars. In the two other cases, he’s accused of allegedly helping media moguls with their business interests in order to work out deals for flattering news coverage in their outlets. Netanyahu has denied these allegations.
Jay-Z is reportedly taking legal action against an attorney after being accused in a civil lawsuit filed Sunday of raping a 13-year-old girl with Sean “Diddy” Combs at an MTV Video Music Awards afterparty in 2000. The rapper is the latest celebrity to be linked to allegations against Combs. The lawsuit is one of more than a dozen filed by Texas attorney Tony Buzbee against Combs.
- 🎧 Jay-Z is not facing any criminal charges as this is part of a civil suit against Combs, NPR’s Isabella Gomez Sarmiento says. Jay-Z issued a statement to NPR saying the claims are completely false. He publicly called Buzbee an “ambulance chaser in a cheap suit” and said he was attempting to blackmail him to extort settlement money. Jay-Z has filed a motion to dismiss the anonymous lawsuit or to have the plaintiff’s identity disclosed. Buzbee has insinuated that other celebrities may have been involved in the Combs’ alleged crimes and may be named in future lawsuits.
Today’s listen
Dolly Parton performs on stage at ACL Live during Blockchain Creative Labs’ Dollyverse event at SXSW during the 2022 SXSW Conference and Festivals in Austin, Texas.
Michael Loccisano/Getty Images for SXSW
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Michael Loccisano/Getty Images for SXSW
Dolly Parton performs on stage at ACL Live during Blockchain Creative Labs’ Dollyverse event at SXSW during the 2022 SXSW Conference and Festivals in Austin, Texas.
Michael Loccisano/Getty Images for SXSW
Dolly Parton truly does it all. One mission stands out among her long list of accomplishments: her commitment to promoting children’s literacy. She also loves Christmas and her French bulldog, Billy the Kid. She has combined these interests in her new children’s book, Dolly Parton’s Billy the Kid Comes Home For Christmas, in which her canine sidekick must decide between fame and family during the holiday season. Parton joins Morning Edition to talk about the book, her love for the holiday and more. Listen to what she had to say here.
Deep dive
A recall notice citing listeria contamination risks is posted next to Boar’s Head meats in a Safeway store in San Rafael, Calif., in July, as the deli meat company expanded its recall of ready-to-eat meat and poultry products.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
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Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Several high-profile food recalls have occurred this year. On that list: A deadly listeria outbreak among Boar’s Head deli meat and an investigation into cucumbers contaminated with salmonella. Even before the Boar’s Head recall, a Gallup poll found Americans’ confidence in the government’s ability to ensure a safe food supply had sunk to a record low.
- 🥒 Food recalls fell sharply during the COVID-19 pandemic, but they are now rising. The Food and Drug Administration says 1,908 products were recalled in the fiscal year that ended in September — the highest since 2019.
- 🥒 Day-to-day food handling habits can help to limit the risk of foodborne illness, says Linda Harris, a food scientist at the University of California, Davis.
- 🥒 Rinsing fresh, raw vegetables and fruit under running water can help remove microorganisms from the surface.
- 🥒 The CDC says in the U.S., 31 pathogens — bacteria, viruses and parasites — have been commonly linked to foodborne hospitalizations and deaths. The three bacteria that cause the most hospitalizations and deaths each year are salmonella, listeria monocytogenes and E. coli.
Read how the government traces outbreaks and get more tips on handling food safely.
3 things to know before you go
American poet Yolanda Cornelia ‘Nikki’ Giovanni leans on her desk beside a typewriter, in front of a wall decorated with photos, 1973. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
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Getty Images/Hulton Archive
- Renowned poet and Black arts movement icon Nikki Giovanni died yesterday at the age of 81, following her third cancer diagnosis, according to a statement from friend and author Renée Watson.
- A new national monument in Pennsylvania will tell the story of the hundreds of boarding schools where tens of thousands of American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian children were sent for assimilation.
- Six years ago, Clara Temple was in first grade, trying to order lunch from the cafeteria for the first time. She didn’t know her student ID number to enter into the keypad. She panicked and felt embarrassed; however, a cafeteria worker, her unsung hero, swooped in and rescued her.
This newsletter was edited by Suzanne Nuyen.
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