In the news
■ Austin Harrouff, a 25-year-old former Florida State University student, will face a judge who will decide whether he goes to prison or to a mental hospital for killing a couple in their garage and chewing on one victim’s face.
■ Dub Crochet, 70, of Bellaire, Texas, was released from the hospital after 453 days recovering from covid-19 and complications related to the coronavirus, including pneumonia, collapsed lungs and kidney failure, to celebrate the holidays at home for the first time in more than a year.
■ Eric Cabrera and Thomas Mannion were forced to retire from the New York Police Department after the agency discovered they falsified records and lied about investigating cases, including domestic violence, identity theft and drug complaints, documents state.
■ Amanda Ramirez, a South Florida woman, is the lead plaintiff in a suit against Kraft Heinz Co., claiming that their packaging for Velveeta mac and cheese is misleading due to its only accounting for microwave time and not additional preparation time.
■ Ashish Jha, President Joe Biden’s response coordinator for the covid pandemic, said on ABC’s “This Week” that he would recommend that [Chinese health officials] pursue the strategy making sure everybody gets vaccinated, particularly their elderly,” noting that the zero-covid policy “is going to be very difficult to sustain.”
■ Mr. T, a man fired by a Paris-based consulting firm, is entitled to “freedom of expression” and was wrongfully dismissed from his job for refusing to take part in seminars and weekend social events that involved “humiliating and intrusive practices,” France’s Court of Cassation ruled.
■ Louis De Ceglie, a deputy police chief in the Bronx borough of New York City, said during a news briefing that a 3-year-old boy and an 11-month-old boy, found with several stab wounds to the neck and torso, “succumbed to their injuries” while being transported to a hospital.
■ Azam Khan Swati, a senator of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, was arrested by federal police and charged with libel for comments critical of top military officials, Tehreek-e-Insaf officials said.
■ Gavin Newsom, Democratic governor of California, said he’s “all in” with President Joe Biden’s reelection bid and won’t challenge the Commander in Chief if he decides to run, Politico reported.