NYPD officer lands $175K settlement over 'courtesy cards' that help drivers get out of traffic stops
A New York City police officer has reached a $175,000 settlement with the city in his lawsuit that illuminated the use of the “courtesy cards” that officers dole out to friends and relatives to get out of traffic stops and other minor infractions. The deal brings an end to a lawsuit brought last year by Officer Mathew Bianchi that claimed he was punished by his superiors for failing to honor the cards, though the settlement itself makes no substantive changes to how the cards are used by NYPD officers. The Staten Island-based officer said he was ousted from his job in the traffic unit and moved to a night patrol shift after he issued a ticket to a friend of the NYPD’s highest-ranking uniformed officer.
Dr. Ruth Westheimer, pioneering sex therapist, has died
Dr. Ruth Westheimer, the diminutive sex therapist who became a pop icon, media star and best-selling author through her frank talk about once-taboo bedroom topics, has died. She was 96. Westheimer never advocated risky sexual behavior. Instead, she encouraged an open dialogue on previously closeted issues that affected her audience of millions. Her one recurring theme was there was nothing to be ashamed of. Westheimer’s giggly, German-accented voice, coupled with her 4-foot-7 frame, made her an unlikely looking — and sounding — outlet for “sexual literacy.” The contradiction was one of the keys to her success. She died Friday at her home in New York City, surrounded by family.
Angry birds fight drones on patrol for sharks and swimmers on NYC beaches
A new initiative to monitor swimmers and sharks on New York City beaches with surveillance drones is bringing a backlash from shorebirds. City officials say the drones had been repeatedly swarmed by birds that have forced pilots to ground the devices on several occasions since the program launched in May. The city is now avoiding known nesting areas, but the attacks have not stopped. Wildlife experts cautioned the drones could provoke a stress response in the birds forcing them to abandon their nests. Attacks have mostly been carried out by American oystercatchers. The beach is also home to piping plovers, a federally designated endangered species.
Angry birds fight drones on patrol for sharks and swimmers on NYC beaches
A new initiative to monitor swimmers and sharks on New York City beaches with surveillance drones is bringing a backlash from shorebirds. City officials say the drones had been repeatedly swarmed by birds that have forced pilots to ground the devices on several occasions since the program launched in May. The city is now avoiding known nesting areas, but the attacks have not stopped. Wildlife experts cautioned the drones could provoke a stress response in the birds forcing them to abandon their nests. Attacks have mostly been carried out by American oystercatchers. The beach is also home to piping plovers, a federally designated endangered species.
NFL is liable for $4,707,259,944.64 in 'Sunday Ticket' case
The damages a federal jury has ordered the NFL to pay for violating antitrust laws in distributing out-of-market Sunday afternoon games on a premium subscription service is $4,707,259,944.64. The figure from the June 27 judgement against the NFL was listed on the verdict form, which was posted on the case docket Tuesday. The lawsuit covered 2.4 million residential subscribers and 48,000 businesses in the United States who paid for the package on DirecTV of out-of-market games from the 2011 through 2022 seasons. The lawsuit claimed the league broke antitrust laws by selling its package of Sunday games at an inflated price. The subscribers also say the league restricted competition by offering “Sunday Ticket” only on a satellite provider.
Lawsuit against Meta asks if Facebook users have right to control their feeds using external tools
Do social media users have the right to control what they see — or don’t see — on their feeds? A lawsuit filed against Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc. is arguing that a federal law often used to shield internet companies from liability also allows people to use external tools to take control of their feed — even if that means shutting it off entirely. The Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University filed a lawsuit Wednesday against Meta Platforms on behalf of an Amherst professor who wants to release a tool to let users unfollow all the content fed to them by Facebook’s algorithm.
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