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Algorized Named to Fast Company’s Fourth Annual List of the Next Big Things in TechWASHINGTON — When Elon Musk first suggested a new effort to cut the size of government, Donald Trump didn’t seem to take it seriously. His eventual name for the idea sounded like a joke, too. It would be called the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, a reference to an online meme featuring a surprised-looking dog from Japan. But now that Trump has won the election, Musk’s fantasy is becoming reality, with the potential to spark a constitutional clash over the balance of power in Washington. Trump put Musk, the world’s richest man, and Vivek Ramaswamy, an entrepreneur and former Republican presidential candidate, in charge of the new department, which is really an outside advisory committee that will work with people inside the government to reduce spending and regulations. Last week, Musk and Ramaswamy said they would encourage Trump to make cuts by refusing to spend money allocated by Congress, a process known as impounding. The proposal goes against a 1974 law intended to prevent future presidents from following in the footsteps of Richard Nixon, who held back funding that he didn’t like. “We are prepared for the onslaught from entrenched interests in Washington,” Musk and Ramaswamy wrote in an opinion piece in The Wall Street Journal. “We expect to prevail. Now is the moment for decisive action.” Trump has already suggested taking such a big step, saying last year that he would “use the president’s long-recognized impoundment power to squeeze the bloated federal bureaucracy for massive savings.” It would be a dramatic attempt to expand his powers, when he already will have the benefit of a sympathetic Republican-controlled Congress and a conservative-majority U.S. Supreme Court, and it could swiftly become one of the most closely watched legal fights of his second administration. “He might get away with it,” said William Galston, a senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution, a Washington-based think tank. “Congress’ power of the purse will turn into an advisory opinion.” Right now, plans for the Department of Government Efficiency are still coming into focus. The nascent organization has put out a call for “super high-IQ small-government revolutionaries willing to work 80+ hours per week on unglamorous cost-cutting.” Applicants are encouraged to submit their resumes through X, the social media company that Musk owns. In the Wall Street Journal, Musk and Ramaswamy provided the most detailed look yet at how they would operate and where they could cut. Some are longtime Republican targets, such as $535 million for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Other plans are more ambitious and could reshape the federal government. The two wrote that they would “identify the minimum number of employees required at an agency for it to perform its constitutionally permissible and statutorily mandated functions,” leading to “mass head-count reductions across the federal bureaucracy.” Civil service protections wouldn’t apply, they argue, because they wouldn’t be targeting specific people for political purposes. Some employees could choose “voluntary severance payments to facilitate a graceful exit.” But others would be encouraged to quit by mandating that they show up at the office five days a week, ending pandemic-era flexibility about remote work. The requirement “would result in a wave of voluntary terminations that we welcome.” Everett Kelley, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, said such cutbacks would harm services for Americans who rely on the federal government, and he suggested that Musk and Ramaswamy were in over their heads. “I don’t think they’re even remotely qualified to perform those duties,” he said. “That’s my main concern.” Kelley said his union, which represents 750,000 employees for the federal government and the city of Washington, D.C., was ready to fight attempts to slash the workforce. “We’ve been here, we’ve heard this kind of rhetoric before,” he said. “And we are prepared.” There was no mention in the Wall Street Journal of Musk’s previously stated goal of cutting $2 trillion from the budget, which is nearly a third of total annual spending. Nor did they write about “Schedule F,” a potential plan to reclassify federal employees to make them easier to fire. Ramaswamy once described the idea as the “mass deportation of federal bureaucrats out of Washington, D.C.” However, Musk and Ramaswamy said they would reduce regulations that they describe as excessive. They wrote that their department “will work with legal experts embedded in government agencies, aided by advanced technology,” to review regulations that run counter to two recent Supreme Court decisions that were intended to limit federal rulemaking authority. Musk and Ramaswamy said Trump could “immediately pause the enforcement of those regulations and initiate the process for review and rescission.” Chris Edwards, an expert on budget issues at the Cato Institute, said many Republicans have promised to reduce the size and role of government over the years, often to little effect. Sometimes it feels like every budget item and tax provision, no matter how obscure, has people dedicated to its preservation, turning attempts at cuts into political battles of attrition. “Presidents always seem to have higher priorities,” he said. “A lot of it falls to the wayside.” Although DOGE is scheduled to finish its work by July 4, 2026, Edwards said Musk and Ramaswamy should move faster to capitalize on momentum from Trump’s election victory. “Will it just collect dust on a shelf, or will it be put into effect?” Edwards said. “That all depends on Trump and where he is at that point in time.” Ramaswamy said in an online video that they’re planning regular “Dogecasts” to keep the public updated on their work, which he described as “a once-in-a-generation project” to eliminate “waste, fraud and abuse.” “However bad you think it is, it’s probably worse,” he said. House Republicans are expected to put Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Trump ally from Georgia, in charge of a subcommittee to work with DOGE, according to two people with knowledge of the plans who were not authorized to discuss them publicly. Greene and Rep. James Comer, the Kentucky Republican who chairs the House Oversight Committee, have already met with Ramaswamy, the two people said. Musk brought up the idea for DOGE while broadcasting a conversation with Trump on X during the campaign. “I think we need a government efficiency commission to say like, ‘Hey, where are we spending money that’s sensible. Where is it not sensible?’” Musk said. Musk returned to the topic twice, volunteering his services by saying “I’d be happy to help out on such a commission.” “I’d love it,” Trump replied, describing Musk as “the greatest cutter.” Musk has his own incentives to push this initiative forward. His companies, including SpaceX and Tesla, have billions of dollars in government contracts and face oversight from government regulators. After spending an estimated $200 million to support Trump’s candidacy, he’s poised to have expansive influence over the next administration. Trump even went to Texas last week to watch SpaceX test its largest rocket. DOGE will have an ally in Sen. Rand Paul, a Kentucky Republican who has railed against federal spending for years. He recently told Fox News that he sent “2,000 pages of waste that can be cut” to Musk and Ramaswamy. “I’m all in and will do anything I can to help them,” Paul said. Get local news delivered to your inbox!Datamine Production Sector Overview

Trump offers support for dockworkers union by saying ports shouldn't install more automated systemsManchester United teammates Rasmus Hojlund and Amad Diallo exchanged words after the final whistle of a 2-1 victory on Thursday. And manager Ruben Amorin has no problem with it. “For me, it’s a very, very good sign,” Amorin said after his team beat Viktoria Plzen to stay unbeaten in the Europa League. Hojlund scored two goals and hoped for a centering pass from Diallo to go for a hat trick in the final minutes. The Denmark striker didn't get the pass, though. Viktoria had been pushing forward looking for an equalizer, which created space for United counters. On another break shortly afterward, Hojlund opted to keep the ball. The pair then had a heated post-game exchange. “We need to feel something,” Amorin said. “If we need to fight each other, it's like a family. When you don't care, you don't do nothing. When you care — you fight with your brother, with your mother, your father.” AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccerNEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock indexes rose to more records Wednesday after tech companies talked up how much of a boost they’re getting from the artificial-intelligence boom. The S&P 500 climbed 0.6% to add to what’s set to be one of its best years of the millennium. It’s the 56th time the index has hit an all-time high this year after climbing in 11 of the last 12 days . The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 308 points, or 0.7%, while the Nasdaq composite added 1.3% to its own record. Salesforce helped pull the market higher after delivering stronger revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected, though its profit fell just short. CEO Mark Benioff highlighted the company’s artificial-intelligence offering for customers, saying “the rise of autonomous AI agents is revolutionizing global labor, reshaping how industries operate and scale.” The stock price of the company, which helps businesses manage their customers, jumped 11%. Marvell Technology leaped even more after delivering better results than expected, up 23.2%. CEO Matt Murphy said the semiconductor supplier is seeing strong demand from AI and gave a forecast for profit in the upcoming quarter that topped analysts’ expectations. All the optimistic talk helped Nvidia , the company whose chips are powering much of the move into AI, rally 3.5%. It was the strongest force pushing upward on the S&P 500 by far. They helped offset an 8.9% drop for Foot Locker, which reported profit and revenue that fell short of analysts’ expectations. CEO Mary Dillon said the company is taking a more cautious view, and it cut its forecasts for sales and profit this year. Dillon pointed to how keen customers are for discounts and how soft demand has been outside of Thanksgiving week and other key selling periods. Retailers overall have offered mixed signals about how resilient U.S. shoppers can remain. Their spending has been one of the main reasons the U.S. economy has avoided a recession that earlier seemed inevitable after the Federal Reserve hiked interest rates to crush inflation. But shoppers are now contending with still-high prices and a slowing job market . This week’s highlight for Wall Street will be Friday’s jobs report from the U.S. government, which will show how many people employers hired and fired last month. A narrower report released Wednesday morning suggested employers in the private sector increased their payrolls by less last month than economists expected. Hiring in manufacturing was the weakest since the spring, according to Nela Richardson, chief economist at ADP. The report strengthened traders’ expectations that the Fed will cut its main interest rate again when it meets in two weeks. The Fed began easing its main interest rate from a two-decade high in September, hoping to offer more support for the job market. The central bank had appeared set to continue cutting rates into next year, but the election of Donald Trump has scrambled Wall Street’s expectations somewhat. Trump’s preference for higher tariffs and other policies could lead to higher inflation , which could alter the Fed’s plans . Fed Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday that the central bank can afford to cut rates cautiously because inflation has slowed from its peak two years ago and the economy remains sturdy. A separate report on Wednesday said health care, finance and other businesses in the U.S. services sector are continuing to grow, but not by as much as before and not by as much as economists expected. One respondent from the construction industry told the survey from the Institute for Supply Management that the Fed’s rate cuts haven't pulled down mortgage rates as much as hoped. Plus, “the unknown effect of tariffs clouds the future.” In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.18% from 4.23% late Tuesday. On Wall Street, Campbell’s sank 6.2% for one of the S&P 500’s sharper losses despite increasing its dividend and reporting a stronger profit than analysts expected. Its revenue fell short of Wall Street’s expectations, and the National Football League’s Washington Commanders hired Campbell’s CEO Mark Clouse as its team president. Gains for airline stocks helped offset that drop after JetBlue Airways said it saw stronger bookings for travel in November and December following the presidential election. It also said it’s benefiting from lower fuel prices, as well as lower costs due to improved on-time performance. JetBlue jumped 8.3%, while Southwest Airlines climbed 3.5%. All told, the S&P 500 rose 36.61 points to 6,086.49. The Dow climbed 308.51 to 45,014.04, and the Nasdaq composite rallied 254.21 to 19,735.12. In stock markets abroad, South Korea’s Kospi sank 1.4% following a night full of drama in Seoul. President Yoon Suk Yeol was facing possible impeachment after he suddenly declared martial law on Tuesday night, prompting troops to surround the parliament. He revoked the martial law declaration six hours later. In the crypto market , bitcoin climbed near $99,000 after Trump said he would nominate Paul Atkins , a cryptocurrency advocate, to chair the Securities and Exchange Commission. AP Writers Matt Ott and Zimo Zhong contributed.

Lawyers for a voting machine company that’s suing Fox News want to question founder Rupert Murdoch about his contentious efforts to change his family trust, the attorneys told a court Monday. Read this article for free: Already have an account? To continue reading, please subscribe: * Lawyers for a voting machine company that’s suing Fox News want to question founder Rupert Murdoch about his contentious efforts to change his family trust, the attorneys told a court Monday. Read unlimited articles for free today: Already have an account? Lawyers for a voting machine company that’s suing Fox News want to question founder Rupert Murdoch about his contentious efforts to change his family trust, the attorneys told a court Monday. Election-tech company Smartmatic’s $2.7 billion defamation suit regards Fox’s reporting on 2020 voting fraud claims. But Smartmatic’s attorneys suggest the separate succession fight over Murdoch’s media empire might shed light on any Fox Corp. involvement in editorial matters. It’s an important, if technical, question as Smartmatic seeks to hold the deep-pocketed Fox parent company responsible for statements that the news network aired. Fox contends that there’s no such liability and that it was engaging in journalism, not defamation, when it broadcast election-fraud allegations made by then-President Donald Trump ‘s attorneys. Rupert Murdoch may already have given a deposition — out-of-court questioning under oath — in the defamation suit. Such records aren’t public at this stage, but plans for his deposition were briefly mentioned at a 2022 hearing. Smartmatic now is seeking to talk to Murdoch about his efforts to rewrite his plans for his businesses after his death. The matter is playing out behind closed doors and in sealed files in a Nevada probate court. The New York Times has reported that Rupert Murdoch wants to keep his eldest son, Lachlan, in charge of the conglomerate’s newspapers and television networks in order to ensure a continued conservative editorial outlook. Smartmatic wants to get the 93-year-old patriarch on record while the probate matter plays out, company attorney Edward Wipper told a judge Monday. Fox News lawyer K. Winn Allen said the probate case “has nothing at all to do with” Smartmatic’s claims and is “not appropriate” fodder for the suit. Fox Corp. declined to comment after court. Fox News’ lawyers, meanwhile, want Smartmatic to provide records about a U.S. federal criminal case against people, including Smartmatic co-founder Roger Piñate, accused of scheming to bribe a Filipino election official. Piñate has pleaded not guilty. Smartmatic isn’t charged in the criminal case, and Smartmatic attorneys have said the matter was irrelevant to the defamation suit. Fox lost prior bids for a court order to get the information, but a hearing on the network’s renewed request is set next week. It’s unclear how soon Judge David B. Cohen will decide on that request or on Smartmatic’s bid to dig into the Murdoch family trust case. Both requests are part of pretrial information-gathering, and no trial date has been set. Smartmatic says it was a small player, working only with California’s heavily Democratic Los Angeles County, in the 2020 U.S. presidential election. In subsequent Fox News appearances, Trump lawyers Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell portrayed Smartmatic as part of a multi-state scheme to steal the vote from the Republican. Federal and state election officials, exhaustive reviews in battleground states and Trump’s own attorney general found no widespread fraud that could have changed the outcome of the 2020 election. Nor did they uncover any credible evidence that the vote was tainted. Dozens of courts, including by judges whom Trump had appointed, rejected his fraud claims. Fox News ultimately aired an interview with an election technology expert who refuted the allegations against Smartmatic — an interview done after the company demanded a retraction. The network is countersuing Smartmatic, claiming it violated a New York law against baseless suits aimed at squelching reporting or criticism on public issues. The New York defamation suit is one of several stemming from conservative-oriented news outlets’ reports on Trump’s 2020 vote-rigging claims. Smartmatic recently settled with One America News Network and Newsmax. Fox News settled for $787 million last year with Dominion Voting Systems, another election-technology company that sued over conspiracy theories blaming its election equipment for Trump’s 2020 loss. Advertisement

Alex Ovechkin will miss the next 4-6 weeks with a fractured left fibula, the Washington Capitals . The Capitals captain and current NHL leading goal scorer suffered the injury during Monday night's win over the Utah Hockey Club. Ovechkin had a leg-to-leg collision with Utah forward Jack McBain and fell to the ice immediately. He tested the leg out with a brief skate minutes later, but later exited the game and did not return. Alex Ovechkin to the dressing room after this sequence 😩 — Brady Trettenero (@BradyTrett) The Capitals, who are second in the Eastern Conference with 28 points, will be without Ovechkin for the longest period of his career since he entered the NHL in 2005-06. The 39-year-old has only missed 35 games due to injury and other absences were due to suspensions and being in Covid protocol. Ovechkin's previous longest stretch of missed games was six due to an upper-body injury in November 2009. “Everyone’s bummed out,” said Capitals forward Tom Wilson, a teammate of Ovechkin's since 2013. “We were sitting there saying: ‘This is weird. Like, it’s unbelievable that he’s actually hurt.’ It’s one of those things where like, he’s going to miss games? I’ve been around a long time, and it’s new to me.” Ovechkin has had a red-hot start to the season and had scored five goals in his previous two games before the injury. His 15 goals this season puts him at 868 for his career, 26 behind the NHL record of 894 held by Wayne Gretzky. Many had believed Ovechkin could catch The Great One sometime during the 2025-26 season, but his play early on was changing minds to believe the record could be broken season. Now Ovechkin's pursuit for history will have to wait.Five Below stock surges on raised guidance, new CEODem Rep. Goldman: If Trump Attempts to Jail 'Political Enemies,' That's 'Banana Republic Stuff'SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Once-promising seasons hit new lows for the Chicago Bears and San Francisco 49ers last week. Another sent the Bears to their sixth straight loss and led to the firing of coach Matt Eberflus. The 49ers suffered their and to go from Super Bowl contenders to outside the playoff picture in a matter of weeks. The two reeling teams will try to get back on track on Sunday when the Bears (4-8) visit the 49ers (5-7) in Chicago’s first game under . “I told them a minute ago after practice there is no confidence loss at all as far as what I think about them,” Brown said Wednesday. “I don’t care what anybody else thinks about them. I think we have a very talented football team. It’s about just putting the work in every single day to give us an opportunity to win.” The Bears are hoping to get an emotional boost from the first in-season firing of a head coach in franchise history. Over the last 10 seasons, teams with interim coaches are 13-11 in their first game with the new coach. Those teams had a .284 winning percentage at the time they fired their coaches. “I wouldn’t say a new voice was needed. I would say there was change that was needed,” rookie quarterback Caleb Williams said, pointing to a need for more accountability and better communication. The Niners came into the season as the favorites to get back to the Super Bowl from the NFC after losing the title game to Kansas City last season. But a series of key injuries, bad losses and spotty play have left them in last place in the NFC West with only slim hopes of even reaching the postseason. San Francisco lost and 35-10 to Buffalo in back-to-back weeks and lost star running back Christian McCaffrey to a knee injury last week that will sideline him for at least the rest of the regular season. The Niners already lost key players Brandon Aiyuk and Javon Hargrave to season-ending injuries and are preparing to be without stars Nick Bosa and Trent Williams for a third straight week. “It’s just been a rocky mountain for real with the injuries and other stuff we’ve had to go through this season,” receiver Deebo Samuel said. “Our record don’t show how really good we are as a team. We’re still believing in this locker room.” Chaotic education Williams described Eberflus’ firing as “interesting” and “tough” and vowed to “roll with the punches” while insisting the chaos and turnover of the past few weeks could help him handle similar situations in the future. Just 12 games into his NFL career, the prized quarterback is on his second head coach and third offensive coordinator, though Brown will continue to call plays. How does he keep the faith that his career is in good hands with this organization? “The first part is understanding I can’t control,” Williams said. “Even if I understand or don’t understand, that doesn’t matter. I have to roll with the punches like I said before. I don’t control everything.” Guerendo’s chance With McCaffrey and Jordan Mason injured, the Niners running game will turn to . The fourth-round pick has 42 carries for 246 yards and two TDs this season and will be making his second start in either college or the pros. Coach Kyle Shanahan said the progress Guerendo has made since training camp makes him ready for his new role as he sees him running with more “urgency.” “I think it takes guys some time,” Shanahan said. “You start to get a feel for it the more, if you’ve got the right stuff, the more you get reps, the more you can adjust to it. How hard you’ve got to hit stuff, how quick those holes close, how when there is a hole how you have to hit it full-speed and can’t hesitate at all or it closes like that. We’ve seen that stuff get better in practice and we’ve seen it carry over into games.” Stop the run San Francisco’s usually stout run defense has been anything but that this season. The Niners have struggled to slow down the opposition on the ground all year with the problem getting worse recently. The 49ers allowed 389 yards rushing the past two weeks. “It’s been so frustrating because I know what is supposed to look like,” linebacker Fred Warner said. “That’s not it.” Stopping the run also continues to be a sore spot for Chicago. The Bears rank 25th overall against the run and 29th in yards allowed per rush after another difficult outing last week. They gave up 194 yards, including 144 in the first half as the Lions grabbed a 16-0 lead. Losing veteran defensive tackle Andrew Billings to a torn pectoral muscle last month did not help. He was injured in a Week 9 loss at Arizona and is expected to miss the remainder of the season after having surgery. ___ AP Sports Writer Andrew Seligman contributed to this report. ___ AP NFL:

Mixed challenges as Fiji hockey prepares for Pacific Cup

CHANDLER, Ariz. — The man convicted of murdering his aunt five years ago in Maricopa County was sentenced Thursday to 13 years in prison. Ares Adle was found guilty of second-degree murder earlier this year after he went on trial for the death of his aunt, 42-year-old Tonya Harper. The victim was stabbed to death at a Sun Lakes home during a family reunion in 2019. Prosecutors said the knife allegedly used to kill Harper was found hidden in Adle's closet. The defendant was only 14 at the time of the murder. During Thursday's court hearing, Adle made an emotional statement to the judge about his actions. "I never wanted to hurt anyone in the family," the defendant said. "I just made a mistake and I couldn't control it." The defendant was facing up to 25 years in prison but the judge determined the case's mitigating factors outweighed the aggravating ones. Judge Jeffrey Rueter said a problem with the state's case was the notion that Adle's violent act was methodically planned. When in actuality, the only explanation is that the crime appeared to be an impulsive act committed by a teenage boy with possible mental health issues, the judge said. Rueter added any length of sentence given to Adle is not meant to disrespect Harper or the value of her life. RELATED: Navajo woman disappeared in 2019. Her killer was sentenced to life in prison. RELATED: Phoenix woman had been involved in human smuggling since she was 16. Now she's going to prison. Watch 12News for free You can now watch 12News content anytime, anywhere thanks to the 12+ app! The free 12+ app from 12News lets users stream live events — including daily newscasts like "Today in AZ" and "12 News" and our daily lifestyle program, "Arizona Midday"—on Roku, Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV . 12+ showcases live video throughout the day for breaking news, local news, weather and even an occasional moment of Zen showcasing breathtaking sights from across Arizona. Users can also watch on-demand videos of top stories, local politics, I-Team investigations, Arizona-specific features and vintage videos from the 12News archives. Roku : Add the channel from the Roku store or by searching for "12 News KPNX." Amazon Fire TV : Search for "12 News KPNX" to find the free 12+ app to add to your account , or have the 12+ app delivered directly to your Amazon Fire TV through Amazon.com or the Amazon app.

Packers wide receiver Romeo Doubs leaves game because of concussionThe first contract Jackie Robinson signed with Brooklyn Dodgers President Branch Rickey on Oct. 23, 1945, was an agreement to play for the Montreal Royals, the Dodgers' top farm club. The deal included a $3,500 signing bonus and $600 per month for the 1946 season. Less than two years later, on April 11, 1947, Robinson signed his first major league contract with Rickey and National League President Ford Frick. He was paid $5,000 for the season. What happened next is well-documented and celebrated annually. Five days after signing, Robinson made history as the first Black player to compete in Major League Baseball, breaking the color barrier. The Dodgers' second baseman was named Rookie of the Year and, two years later, National League Most Valuable Player. He batted .313 over 11 seasons, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1962 and had his No. 42 retired across baseball in 1997. But what became of the contracts? Sports memorabilia can fetch millions today, and experts say Robinson’s original contracts could surpass the value of Shohei Ohtani’s 50/50 home run ball, Freddie Freeman’s World Series Game 1 walk-off grand slam ball or any high-end Babe Ruth artifacts auctioned for seven figures. After decades of uncertainty, Robinson’s contracts from 1945 and 1947 are safely under lock and key. They have been held by the U.S. Marshals Service since 2019 as part of an investment fraud investigation and prosecution. Mykalai Kontilai, a broadcast executive who in 2013 launched a sports memorabilia business called Collector’s Coffee by acquiring and showcasing the Robinson contracts, pleaded guilty last month to one count of mail fraud. He was sentenced last week to 51 months in prison and ordered to pay $6.1 million in restitution to investors he swindled. Those investors, referred to as “the Holders” in court documents, provided Kontilai with loans using the Robinson contracts as collateral. Kontilai raised more than $23 million before defaulting on the loans. Kontilai, 55, obstructed the investigation by forging documents sent to the Securities and Exchange Commission and lying under oath to the SEC. While under investigation but prior to being charged, he fled to Russia, unsuccessfully seeking asylum as a whistleblower of American corruption. He was arrested on an Interpol Red Notice in Germany in 2023 and extradited to the U.S. in May. Kontilai was found guilty of misappropriating funds, reportedly buying a Cadillac, paying for private school tuition and covering rent on luxury homes across the country, all while misleading investigators and failing to pay taxes on the scheme's proceeds. “Collectors Coffee and Kontilai, its CEO, repeatedly lied to investors to raise money for the company - money which Kontilai routinely stole to fund his lavish lifestyle,” Gurbir S. Grewal, director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement, said in a statement last year. “Investors should be able to trust those to whom they give their hard-earned money and not worry that those people will lie, cheat and steal.” The Robinson contracts remain in limbo. A resolution may be near, with the philanthropic Jackie Robinson Foundation and the Holders likely sharing the proceeds. “I hope they could do that,” said David Kohler, president of high-end sports memorabilia house SCP Auctions in Orange County. “The proceeds would go to pay back people who were scammed. That seems like the right thing to do.” Kohler estimated what the contracts might fetch at auction and identified a potential buyer. “I’d say they’d probably go for $5 million and up at auction,” he said. “They reach beyond the game of baseball. They are important 20th-century American artifacts central to the civil rights movement. “I sometimes wonder, when it comes to historical items, why don’t the teams buy them? They’d be worth more to their team than to collectors.” Indeed, the Dodgers attempted to claim the contracts, asserting in a January 2019 letter to Collector’s Coffee that “(t)he property is owned by the Dodgers and is not property of (Collector’s Coffee, Inc.).” Later that year, however, the Dodgers relinquished their ownership claim to the Jackie Robinson Foundation. According to court filings, a potential settlement would grant the Jackie Robinson Foundation the 1947 Dodgers contract, while the Holders would receive the 1945 Montreal Royals contract. The Holders would also get an undisclosed portion of the value of the 1947 contract. The SEC would receive a small share. Kohler noted the Dodgers contract is more valuable than the Royals contract. When the distribution is approved, it could conclude the extraordinary journey of the contracts from Rickey’s desk in the 1940s to potential auctions the Holders hope will cover their losses. Before sports memorabilia became a million-dollar business, Rickey and Dodgers owner Walter O’Malley provided the contracts to the James A. Kelly Institute for Local Historical Studies in Brooklyn for a 1952 exhibition. The contracts remained in the institute’s basement for decades alongside nearly 4 million other documents chronicling Brooklyn’s history. The New York Daily News in 1974 reported the institute's move to St. Francis College in Brooklyn Heights, noting the historical documents included the “bill of sale for Coney Island in 1654” and Robinson’s original contracts. A 1979 Daily News story also mentioned the contracts, yet the Dodgers made no effort to claim them. The institute’s director, St. Francis professor Arthur J. Konop, left a letter with a key to a safe deposit box before his death in 2009, stating, “My kids will know what to do with this.” Three years later, Konop’s wife and son sold the contracts to Gotta Have It Collectibles for $750,000. Odette Konop signed a letter warranting title, stating, “My husband possessed these contracts in a safe deposit box at our home for over 45 years. ... He cared for them and protected them over half his life until his passing.” Gotta Have It sold the contracts a year later for $2 million to Kontilai, who used them as collateral for $6 million in loans. Kontilai used the contracts to bolster his memorabilia business, hosting events in Philadelphia’s Constitution Center and New York’s Times Square. He enlisted expert Seth Kaller, who valued the contracts at $36 million, before spending investors' money. When the SEC began investigating in 2017, Kontilai forged documents, lied under oath and obstructed the case. After three years, he was indicted in Nevada on 18 counts, including securities fraud, wire fraud, money laundering and failure to file tax returns. He faced additional charges in Colorado, but those were dropped when he pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud. The Jackie Robinson Foundation, established in 1973 by Robinson’s widow Rachel Robinson, may soon gain partial ownership of the contracts. The nonprofit administers scholarship and leadership programs for college students and was central to creating the Jackie Robinson Museum, which opened in 2022 in New York City. “Even if you come in with the idea to see the baseball story and learn more about that, you have to walk through that room that talks about his commitment to economic opportunity and civil rights and social justice,” Della Britton, president and CEO of the Jackie Robinson Foundation, told The Times in 2022. In one museum room, Robinson’s life roles are displayed in large capital letters: SOLDIER, CAMPAIGNER, PUBLIC SERVANT, ACTIVIST, FUNDRAISER, ORGANIZER, PROTESTER, ENTREPRENEUR, CITIZEN and more. Also displayed are framed copies of the contracts from 1945 and 1947. The originals, however, remain under federal custody until a court approves their new ownership and an auction determines their monetary value.

Man used Jackie Robinson contracts to steal millions from investors, fled to Russia

Trump offers support for dockworkers union by saying ports shouldn't install more automated systems

NoneCHANDLER, Ariz. — The man convicted of murdering his aunt five years ago in Maricopa County was sentenced Thursday to 13 years in prison. Ares Adle was found guilty of second-degree murder earlier this year after he went on trial for the death of his aunt, 42-year-old Tonya Harper. The victim was stabbed to death at a Sun Lakes home during a family reunion in 2019. Prosecutors said the knife allegedly used to kill Harper was found hidden in Adle's closet. The defendant was only 14 at the time of the murder. During Thursday's court hearing, Adle made an emotional statement to the judge about his actions. "I never wanted to hurt anyone in the family," the defendant said. "I just made a mistake and I couldn't control it." The defendant was facing up to 25 years in prison but the judge determined the case's mitigating factors outweighed the aggravating ones. Judge Jeffrey Rueter said a problem with the state's case was the notion that Adle's violent act was methodically planned. When in actuality, the only explanation is that the crime appeared to be an impulsive act committed by a teenage boy with possible mental health issues, the judge said. Rueter added any length of sentence given to Adle is not meant to disrespect Harper or the value of her life. RELATED: Navajo woman disappeared in 2019. Her killer was sentenced to life in prison. RELATED: Phoenix woman had been involved in human smuggling since she was 16. Now she's going to prison. Watch 12News for free You can now watch 12News content anytime, anywhere thanks to the 12+ app! The free 12+ app from 12News lets users stream live events — including daily newscasts like "Today in AZ" and "12 News" and our daily lifestyle program, "Arizona Midday"—on Roku, Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV . 12+ showcases live video throughout the day for breaking news, local news, weather and even an occasional moment of Zen showcasing breathtaking sights from across Arizona. Users can also watch on-demand videos of top stories, local politics, I-Team investigations, Arizona-specific features and vintage videos from the 12News archives. Roku : Add the channel from the Roku store or by searching for "12 News KPNX." Amazon Fire TV : Search for "12 News KPNX" to find the free 12+ app to add to your account , or have the 12+ app delivered directly to your Amazon Fire TV through Amazon.com or the Amazon app.

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