The Tennessee Highway Patrol released body camera footage of its 2022 encounter with Kilmar Abrego-Garcia, where state troopers suspected he was involved in human trafficking.
Garcia, 29, is a Salvadorian who illegally entered the United States in 2011 and in 2019 was issued a deportation order. Two previous judges concluded that Abrego-Garcia was likely affiliated with MS-13. He was deported in March and sent to the Terrorist Confinement Center (CECOT) in El Salvador. The Tennessee Highway Patrol pulled over Abrego-Garcia on November 30, 2022.
Body camera video, obtained by Fox News Digital through a public records request, shows Tennessee Highway Patrol troopers pulling over Abrego-Garcia, who had eight other individuals in his car, for what was initially a speeding violation. All people in the car are male.
“How many rows have you got in here? Four seats? Four rows of seats?” a state trooper can be heard saying. “Did y’all put an extra one in? Huh? Did yall put another one in no? They come like this I’ve never seen one with that many seats in it.”
“He’s hauling these people for money,” one state trooper said.
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A source familiar with the situation told Fox News Digital that there was a conversation in the redacted portion of the video where state troopers discussed calling U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The troopers called ICE, which didn’t come to pick up Abrego-Garcia.
The source added that when state troopers entered Abrego-Garcia’s name into the National Crime Information Center, a warning appeared that showed he was suspected of being a gang member or terrorist.
In the video, a trooper said Abrego-Garcia was in possession of $1,400 in cash, saying it was probably his payment. A trooper also noted that Abrego-Garcia had an invalid Maryland driver’s license.
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State troopers who pulled over Abrego-Garcia said they suspected he was involved in human trafficking, according to body camera video. A state trooper can be heard saying “This is a good stop.”
During the traffic stop, Abrego-Garcia was heard changing his story several times. Abrego-Garcia first said he was headed back to his residence in Maryland, then said he was going to a different town for work. He said the group of individuals were initially driving from St. Louis, Missouri.
Court records filed in Prince George’s County, Maryland, reveal that Abrego-Garcia has a history of being a “violent” wife beater.
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In a 2021 court filing, Jennifer Vasquez, Abrego-Garcia’s wife, wrote: “At this point, I am afraid to be close to him. I have multiple photos/videos of how violent he can be and all the bruises he [has] left me.”
U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis previously ordered the U.S. government to “facilitate” Abrego-Garcia’s return to the United States.
Vance breaks down why Trump official was removed then got ‘promotion’ just hours later
Vice President JD Vance said Mike Waltz has the trust of both himself and President Donald Trump after the now-removed national security advisor was nominated Thursday to become the next U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
“I think you could make a good argument that it’s a promotion,” Vance said in an exclusive interview on “Special Report” from the Nucor Steel Berkeley plant in South Carolina. “We brought Mike on to do some serious reforms at the National Security Council. He has done that.”
The former Ohio senator said the White House believes Waltz will better serve the administration as UN ambassador, a Senate-confirmed position.
Waltz’s exit comes nearly four months after he resigned from his Florida congressional seat to take the NSA role at the White House. The Army veteran faced growing scrutiny after he created a group chat on the encrypted messaging app Signal in late March, where top national security officials discussed pending attacks against the Houthis in Yemen.
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Waltz inadvertently added The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg to the “Houthi PC small group” on Signal, where Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared sensitive information about the timing of U.S. military strikes in Yemen.
Hegseth, a former “Fox & Friends Weekend” co-host, maintains the information he shared was not classified.
Democrats have expressed disbelief that information relating to targets and strikes would not have been classified given its sensitive nature. The Pentagon’s acting inspector general is investigating Hegseth’s use of Signal.
Vance told Fox News chief political anchor Bret Baier that Waltz’s ousting was not a result of “Signalgate,” which he called a “nothingburger.” He argued the former Florida congressman is simply being moved to another administration position because Trump believes Waltz would do a “better job in a different role.”
The vice president was also added to the Signal group chat along with DNI Tulsi Gabbard, CIA director John Ratcliffe and other senior members of the Trump administration.
In the chat, Vance expressed his disagreement with the strikes, arguing that such action could be seen as “inconsistent” with Trump’s foreign policy messaging when it comes to European allies stepping up to the plate for their own defense. He viewed the strikes as “bailing” Europe out.
“I am not sure the president is aware how inconsistent this is with his message on Europe right now. There’s a further risk that we see a moderate to severe spike in oil prices. I am willing to support the consensus of the team and keep these concerns to myself. But there is a strong argument for delaying this a month, doing the messaging work on why this matters, seeing where the economy is, etc,” the vice president wrote in Signal.
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Vance told Baier that he believes the Signal chat reflected well on him because it shows his willingness to engage in conversation with other administration officials about how best to implement the president’s agenda.
“I think that’s what a good national security team should do,” he explained.
The U.S. has been striking Houthi targets in Yemen for more than 40 days straight. US Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement earlier this week that since the start of Operation Rough Rider, it has struck over 800 targets.
The strikes have killed hundreds of Houthi fighters and numerous leaders, including senior missile and UAV officials, according to CENTCOM.
Vance said the Houthis see the consequences of firing on American ships in international waters and disrupting global trade.
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“I think that the president has made it very clear that one of his core national security priorities is that if you load stuff onto a ship and you send it to the United States, we wanna make sure that it shows up without the sailors getting killed, without the ship being destroyed,” he added. “And that is an objective that we’re going to pursue forcefully, if we have to.”
Graduates go wild for Trump’s pledge to protect female athletes at commencement
President Donald Trump stirred the hearts of the University of Alabama graduates when he reaffirmed his promise to “keep men out of women’s sports.”
During a commencement speech at the university’s graduation ceremony on Thursday night, Trump gave a shoutout to the school’s SEC champion women’s track and field team before igniting a raucous applause by “vowing to defend women’s sports.”
“As long as I’m president, we will always protect women’s sports. Men will not play in women’s sports,” Trump said before the crowd erupted in cheers for its loudest and longest applause of the night.
“No way. They say it’s an 80-20 issue. No, it’s a 97-3 issue, I think,” Trump said. “No, men will not be playing in women’s sports. I said that, and I classified it with a very powerful executive order, as you know. It’s done.”
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Later in the speech, Trump circled back to the subject, mocking Democrats for allowing trans athletes in women’s sports and trans athletes themselves in a lengthy rant.
During this section of the speech, Trump also discussed the Paris Olympics women’s boxing competitions, which included two gold medalists who were previously disqualified from international competitions for failing gender eligibility tests. However, neither boxer, Algeria’s Imane Khelif and Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting, identifies as transgender.
“They had a great champion, a female boxer, and after one punch she walked back to the corner and said, ‘I can’t get hit like that, I’ve never been hit like that before,” Trump said.
At one point, Trump did a physical impersonation of a female weight lifter and a trans weight lifter, and reenacted a scenario where the female loses a competition to a trans opponent.
Then Trump took aim at transgender swimmers, telling the story of a swimmer who he joked was “windburned” by a trans opponent.
“One young lady, she was going to set the record, she fought all her life to set the record,” Trump said. “Then she looks to the right, and she sees the same thing, but there’s a person next to her who’s a giant … that was a person that transitioned, and he had the wingspan of Wilt ‘the Stilt’ Chamberlain.”
Trump made similar references to the weightlifting and swimmer scenarios in June 2023 while speaking at the North Carolina Republican Party Convention in Greensboro.
On Thursday, Trump also referenced female volleyball players who have been affected by trans inclusion.
“You look at all the volleyball players who have been hurt so badly, that are hit at levels that they’ve never seen before,” Trump said.
One former University of Alabama women’s volleyball player, Brooke Slusser, was thrust into a situation where she had to share a locker room and bedroom with a trans athlete when she transferred from the university to San Jose State University in 2023. In a lawsuit, Slusser alleges she was made to share those spaces with trans teammate Blaire Fleming without being told Fleming was a biological male.
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Slusser has since left San Jose State University and returned home to Texas after facing alleged backlash and harassment in the aftermath of filing her lawsuit.
Trump signed the Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports executive order on Feb. 5. One day later, the NCAA revised its gender eligibility policy to restrict participation in the women’s category to only biological females. However, the new policy has also come under criticism by some women’s sports activists for not going far enough.
Alabama has had a state law in place since 2021 to prevent trans athletes in girls’ sports. In 2023, it was extended to include college students. Unlike other laws addressing the issue, Alabama’s law also bars athletes assigned as female at birth from participating in the boys’ category unless there is no comparable girls’ opportunity (such as football).
Trans inclusion in women’s and girls’ sports emerged as a hot-button issue in Trump’s 2024 election victory as most Americans came to take the Republican’s side on the topic.
A national exit poll conducted by the Concerned Women for America legislative action committee found that 70% of moderate voters saw the issue of “Donald Trump’s opposition to transgender boys and men playing girls’ and women’s sports and of transgender boys and men using girls’ and women’s bathrooms” as important to them.
Six percent said it was the most important issue of all, while 44% said it was “very important.”
The issue inspired a national counterculture movement against Democrat policies that keep trans athletes in women’s sports, heavily influenced by young college-educated women. Biden’s 35-point lead over Trump among young women in the 2020 presidential election cycle shrank to a 24-point margin for Trump’s 2024 opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, per an NBC News exit poll.
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A New York Times/Ipsos survey found the vast majority of Americans, including a majority of Democrats, don’t think transgender athletes should be permitted to compete in women’s sports.
Of the 2,128 people who participated, 79% said biological males who identify as women should not be allowed to participate in women’s sports. Of the 1,025 people who identified as Democrats or leaning Democrat, 67% said transgender athletes should not be allowed to compete with women.
Nearly 70% of Americans say biological men should not be permitted to compete in women’s sports, according to a Gallup poll last year.
In June 2024, a survey conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago asked respondents whether transgender athletes of both sexes should be permitted to participate in sports leagues that correspond to their preferred gender identity instead of their biological sex. In that survey, 65% answered that it should never or rarely be allowed. When those polled were asked specifically about adult transgender female athletes competing in women’s sports, 69% opposed it.
Americans forced to obtain new required license are putting their foot down
WASHINGTON – As many Americans across the nation are rushing to obtain their REAL ID license, some are choosing to opt out – by either using their valid passport as their preferred form of ID for travel or waiting until their current driver’s license expires and then renewing it.
The REAL ID requirement takes effect on May 7, when Americans must have a new form of identification in order to fly domestically.
The costs of obtaining the identification vary from state to state. Costs also vary according to whether travelers are obtaining a first-time REAL ID or looking to renew their existing license.
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Other forms of identification that will be accepted in lieu of a REAL ID include a valid U.S. passport or passport card; DHS trusted traveler cards such as Global Entry; Department of Defense IDs; permanent resident cards; and border crossing cards.
With the deadline looming, Fox News Digital spoke this week with travelers and asked those who do not have or do not plan to get a REAL ID any time soon why they made that decision.
At the Ronald Reagan National Airport (DCA) in Washington, D.C., Lisa from Oregon said that it was a “financial decision” at this time.
Lisa (no last name shared) said she had not yet gotten a REAL ID to date “because it was an extra cost, and I knew that I would rather put that money toward the passport.”
She said that at a later date, she may decide to get a REAL ID.
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“When I’m traveling later, I’ll have to bring my passport and I may not want to do that for stateside travel,” she said.
Other forms of identification that will be accepted in lieu of a REAL ID include a valid U.S. passport or passport card; DHS trusted traveler cards such as Global Entry; Department of Defense IDs; permanent resident cards; and border crossing cards.
Some states offer a reduced price for the REAL ID, such as California.
The Golden State’s DMV website says, “In certain circumstances, the fee may be waived or reduced.”
It adds, “You may be eligible to pay a reduced application fee for an original or renewal ID card if you meet income requirements for selected governmental or nonprofit assistance programs.”
It also notes that a “homeless person” may be eligible for a no-fee ID card.
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And “to qualify for a no-fee senior citizen ID card, you must be at least 62 years old,” according to California’s DMV.
Kelsey from Bloomington, Illinois, said she’d just arrived in D.C. She does not have a REAL ID, she said.
“I do not have a real ID yet because I have not made it to the DMV and our trip ends before May 7th, so I didn’t feel an urgency to do so,” she said.
She said that since she already has a passport, she feels it makes more financial sense to use it at this time.
“My ID expires in November, so I plan on doing it all at once when I have to get one anyway,” she said.
“I didn’t feel an urgency to do so.”
A man named Nick, who is also from Bloomington, Illinois, told Fox News Digital, “I travel with my passport, so I normally don’t even use my ID.”
“I would love to look into [REAL ID] more. I don’t know enough about it,” he said when asked if he will get one.
At DCA’s south security checkpoint this week, a countdown was displayed on a monitor reminding travelers of the deadline.
Paper handouts were also given to travelers urging them to get the new identification.
Victoria of Phoenix, Arizona, said she does not have a REAL ID.
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“I just don’t travel enough,” she said.
She has a passport and said that if it would save her more time at the airport, she would get one.
When asked if she knows anyone who does not have a passport or a REAL ID, she said her parents don’t.
She said she wants her parents to get the REAL ID so that “they can travel and enjoy retirement.”
She does not believe they are looking at making a DMV appointment as of right now.
“The DMVs are always pretty packed.”
Lesley from California commented that she has a REAL ID — but shared that a colleague who did not have the document had to rush to get one for a work trip.
“She didn’t have the REAL ID, so she had to go and see them [the DMV] and get the REAL ID, and it was about like a two-to-four-hour wait … It was in California.”
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She added, “The DMVs there are always pretty packed.”
While the DMVs in some states have added special Saturday hours or extended weekday hours to accommodate REAL ID requests, many motor vehicle bureaus are not open on weekends.
Parents outraged after seeing how son’s killer is living: ‘How is this justice?’
A grieving family says Colorado law let a texting driver off easy and failed their son, who was killed while crossing the street.
In August 2023, the lives of the Stratton family were forever changed when their 10-year-old son, Oliver, or “Ollie,” was struck and killed by a woman who was texting while driving.
“She was texting while driving on that day that she killed our son,” Clarissa Stratton told Fox News Digital.
“One text message nearly every 22 seconds for over a half hour on repeat,” she said.
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In August 2023, he took his bike to ride around the neighborhood. His parents said he was two-thirds done crossing the street when a car barreled into him.
He later died in the hospital.
The driver who killed Oliver was Amy Weiss, a local middle school teacher. It was later revealed that the 54-year-old had been texting nearly every 22 seconds in the half hour leading up to the crash.
On March 7, 2025, she was sentenced for careless driving resulting in death and tampering with evidence. She received the maximum penalty allowed under Colorado law: one year, served concurrently with a 364-day sentence.
“In Colorado, because this was charged as a traffic misdemeanor, they classify texting and driving as careless behavior instead of reckless, even though it is a purposeful choice,” Clarissa said. “They put it in the same category as being distracted by the sun.”
“People are sentenced to more for stealing,” she said.
Weiss was granted work release, meaning she serves her time at a facility but can leave for work, church or appointments. She also, according to the Strattons, successfully petitioned the court to attend her daughter’s out-of-state graduation.
“Every important moment of my child’s life is over. And the judge didn’t want her to miss her daughter’s graduation,” she said.
Photos of the Larimer County women’s residential facility reveal the lifestyle provided to inmates who are granted an alternative sentence option.
The devastated parents said the Colorado legal system seemed more focused on accommodating the perpetrator than honoring the gravity of their son’s death.
“When you’ve been convicted of such a minor charge, it opens the door for these flexible sentencing accommodations in lieu of actual jail time,” they said. “The judge didn’t want her to miss out on her daughter’s graduation. How is this justice? It just isn’t.”
In the wake of Oliver’s death, the Strattons have become vocal advocates for legal reform. They testified before the Colorado Senate Judiciary Committee in support of a bill to elevate careless driving resulting in death from a misdemeanor to a felony.
Though lobbying efforts led to that provision being removed, the family remains determined.
“Texting and driving is the new drinking and driving,” Clarissa said. “We have to stop pretending like nothing can be done.”
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The parents said that they would continue to fight for other children in Oliver’s honor.
Their fight led them to start Oliver’s Bike Parade, a nonprofit that strives to make streets safe for everyone through community education, legislative advocacy, and remembering victims like Ollie.
Oliver was the Strattons’ third child in the close-knit family of six.
Clarissa said her son was “smart, funny, kind, energetic, enthusiastic, and really, really silly.”
“Ollie was nice to everyone, even those who were mean to him… they don’t make them quite like Ollie Kane.”
His father, Rod, told Fox News Digital that stories from his memorial service illustrated his kindness. One boy, he said, recalled how the 10-year-old noticed he had stopped participating in recess races because he always lost foot races.
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Ollie offered to practice running with him every day “so he could improve,” Rod said.
“Ollie left a lasting impact on everyone who knew him,” Clarissa said.
Fox News Digital has reached out to the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office for comment.
Prince William can’t strip sister-in-law’s royal title, but using it may come at a price: experts
Prince William is said to be strategizing about how he can strip his younger brother and sister-in-law of their royal titles.
Kinsey Schofield, host of the To Di For Daily podcast, claimed to Fox News Digital she was the first to share this report before it was picked up by multiple outlets. Fox News Digital reached out to Kensington Palace, which handles the office of the Prince of Wales, for comment. The claim hasn’t been verified by the palace.
“I knew Prince William wanted to strip them of their titles weeks ago,” Schofield claimed to Fox News Digital.
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“Prince William does not run from confrontation in the way that his father does… Prince William believes that Harry and Meghan are exploiting their proximity to the royal family despite doing everything in their power to jeopardize the monarchy’s future. There is anger surrounding Harry and Meghan, making the last few years of Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth’s lives a living hell.”
“The reality is, [the Duke and Duchess of Sussex] are currently making the last years of King Charles’ life a living hell,” Schofield claimed. “Prince William, along with the public, is going to be less forgiving this time around… This desperation we sense is Meghan, [in particular], knowing that Prince William is on the horizon, and he will not put up with her.”
Meghan, a former American actress, was given the title of Duchess of Sussex by Queen Elizabeth II on her 2018 wedding day to Harry. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped back as senior royals in 2020 and moved to California, citing unbearable intrusions from the British press and lack of support from the palace.
Since their move, which has been coined “Megxit” by the press, the couple have aired their grievances in interviews, documentaries as well as Harry’s 2023 memoir, “Spare.”
People magazine reported that while they’re no longer working royals, they still retain their “His/Her Royal Highness” titles, but they cannot use them in public or for commercial purposes. According to the outlet, Meghan’s royal styling recently drew attention after a personalized note bearing her “HRH” title surfaced more than a year after she used it on a gift to a friend.
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The outlet noted that while Meghan, 43, and Harry, 40, don’t use their HRH titles for “public or commercial ventures,” their formal titles stand. The outlet pointed out that the note in question was “part of a private, personal gift – not a business move.”
Still, Schofield claimed that Meghan’s use of her HRH title doesn’t sit well with William.
“Meghan’s use of the Sussex title, but even more the HRH title, is a violation of the Sandringham Agreement [before the couple’s exit],” said Schofield. “Something Harry and Meghan were viciously bitter about to begin with.”
British royal expert Hilary Fordwich told Fox News Digital that the removal of a royal title requires legislative action through an act of Parliament. This means that William alone cannot strip the couple of their titles once he becomes king. However, she claimed that the 42-year-old is adamant on sending a clear message to the couple.
“King Charles is tolerant and lenient, as they are both his sons,” she explained. “He has, until very recently, always hoped for some sort of reconciliation. He grew up surrounded by a loyal family and siblings. [But] Prince William has felt personally betrayed by the one person who shared his childhood experiences [publicly].”
“Former courtiers have always said that William is bent on stripping Harry and Meghan of their HRH titles due to their blatant breach of both the agreement with his grandmother and royal protocol,” Fordwich claimed. “He has been sickened by his brother leveraging his royal status for personal gain, mainly by revealing intimate childhood experiences they shared.”
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William could possibly get some backup to make that goal a reality. People magazine pointed out that in recent years there have been discussions about introducing legislation that would grant either the monarch or a parliamentary committee the power to remove royal titles.
In 2022, a “Removal of Titles Bill” was introduced, the outlet reported. It aims to give the monarch power to remove titles “on their own initiative or following a recommendation of a joint committee of Parliament.” However, it has not been enacted into law.
In 2023, Bob Seely, who at the time was a conservative member of Parliament, had promised to introduce a bill that would strip Harry and Meghan of their royal titles.
“I’m not a republican and support the monarchy, but after the latest installment of the couple’s feud with the rest of the royal family, I believe that Parliament and the Privy Council should consider a nuclear option,” Seely wrote in The Mail on Sunday. “The Duke and Duchess can be Mr. and Mrs. like the rest of us.”
“My aim is simple: if someone doesn’t want to be royal, that is a decision we respect – but they should not keep the titles and privileges if they trash an institution that plays an important part in our nation’s life.”
Seely didn’t immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment at the time. Parliament’s website currently notes that Seely is “no longer a Member, but was most recently the Conservative MP [Member of Parliament] for Isle of Wight, and left the Commons on 30 May 2024.”
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Fordwich said that William would likely get plenty of support for wanting Harry and Meghan to lose their titles.
“Given public polling over the years, the public shares his sentiments,” said Fordwich.
“He wishes to uphold traditional values, norms and the integrity of the monarch. He views Meghan Markle commercializing the HRH title as disrespectful to his beloved grandmother. They were granted by Queen Elizabeth II as hereditary titles. While Parliament hasn’t passed any laws in this regard, they have already discussed creating new legislation allowing their titles to be revoked more easily, in step with public sentiment.”
Master Graham Zellick, a professor of public law and tribunal judge, noted that the HRH style would be the easiest title for a monarch to remove.
“At present, the Sussexes (like Prince Andrew, Duke of York) have agreed not to use the appellation while they have abandoned royal duties, but it is clear that it could be withdrawn by the King, a decision that would not be amenable to judicial review,” wrote Zellick.
“In any case, removal of the honorific on the basis of giving up the role of a working member of the royal family and living abroad could hardly be faulted.”
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The Duke and Duchess of Sussex reside in California with their two young children.
A common killer bug is endangering Americans, doctors warn
Five years after the worldwide hyperfocus on COVID-19 began, some are concerned about the next pandemic — whether it could be caused by influenza, bird flu or another pathogen.
Too easily overlooked are non-influenza, non-COVID viruses and bacteria that are burgeoning and spreading unchecked — both in the U.S. and around the world. While they may not cause the next pandemic, they do cause a lot of illness and death.
One such bacteria is Streptococcus Group A, an old enemy that colonizes the throat and tonsils of close to 20% of U.S. children, according to Dr. Joshua Osowicki, team leader and senior research fellow at the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute in Melbourne, Australia.
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This problematic bacterial strain is easily treated with penicillin drugs when it causes a clinical infection, Osowicki told Fox News Digital in an on-camera interview. (See the video at the top of this article.)
But the problem, he said, is that because the bacteria may be harbored, the diagnosis isn’t always found early enough.
Scarlet fever and rheumatic fever/rheumatic heart disease can result from recurrent or untreated strep — and they are on the increase again in areas without adequate medical care, including parts of the U.S.
“Rheumatic heart disease is a chronic, non-infectious illness that occurs after untreated group-based streptococcal infections — and almost certainly after multiple untreated, group-based streptoococcus infections,” Osowicki said.
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His research reveals that the prevalence of a life-threatening invasive version of strep Group A — which can include deep-rooted skin infections, sepsis, meningitis and deadly pneumonia — is on the rise around the world.
The aggressive skin infections, which are associated with intravenous drug use, can lead to the need for repeated surgeries, along with antibiotics.
In the U.S., there have been more than double the annual incidents of invasive Group A strep in 10 states, affecting about 35 million Americans between 2013 and 2022, with 21,000 cases and about 2,000 deaths, according to Osowicki.
“In many ways, it’s a pandemic in plain sight,” he said of Group A strep, adding that close to a billion people likely experience symptomatic disease from the bacteria each year.
“It actually does its damage in severe, life-threatening cases before the patient receives antibiotics.”
The important thing with group A strep, according to the doctor, is that antibiotic resistance isn’t the primary issue.
“Group A strep is reliably killed by penicillin — and has been since 1941 when penicillin was introduced,” Osowicki noted.
“The point is that it actually does its damage in severe, life-threatening cases before the patient receives antibiotics. There’s this period where it is too hard to diagnose and treatment comes too late.”
In those cases, he said, the patients need ICUs, surgery and “the most intensive treatment we have to offer.”
Among patients over the age of 65 or so, a quarter of them will die with this form of the disease, according to Osowicki.
Need for a vaccine
There is not currently a vaccine for Group A strep.
While the more common form of strep throat and minor skin infections are “less scary,” Osowicki warned of the dangers of overlooking the more invasive version of the disease.
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“We look away sometimes from the life-threatening infections that we struggle to prevent, diagnose and treat, (until) these become the front-page sepsis cases that you see in the newspaper many weeks of the year,” he said.
“They’re headline-catching cases. They’re the cases like Rory Staunton in New York, whose tragic death (in 2012 from sepsis) really triggered the state census mandates across the U.S.”
The need for an effective vaccine is clear — both for invasive strep and the more common variety. Osowicki and others in his group are working hard on developing them.
“The current thrust of my research is all vaccine-related,” he shared. “We do what are called human challenge trials, where we deliberately infect healthy adult volunteers with group A strep, painting it on their tonsils. And we do that in a very careful way, in an inpatient environment.”
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The researchers also provide early antibiotic treatments and collect throat swabs, blood and saliva to study how the human-only pathogen works and to explore ways to stop it.
“The ultimate goal is that it becomes a really high-powered platform to establish the efficacy of vaccines,” said Osowicki.
There are many vaccine candidates in various stages of development, from the protein-adjuvant kind (like Shingrix or the Novavax COVID vaccine) to the MRNA platform and various other kinds, the researcher said.
“We’re working with every vaccine company that has a group-based streptococcal vaccine candidate in development,” he said.
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There are up to 10 different group-based strep vaccines in development, ranging from entirely pre-clinical vaccines that have never seen a person to vaccines that have been tested in phase 1 trials, Osowicki noted.
He said he is concerned about vaccine skepticism, particularly after the COVID pandemic, which can keep people from trusting the emerging science.
Still, the researcher is excited about the future of the strep A vaccine and others, though he expects it could take at least five to 10 years before a worthy candidate reaches doctors’ offices.
The new vaccine will be geared toward adults with skin infections, as well as the many millions of children who are at risk of both mild and severe disease.
The goal, Osowicki said, is to “create a vaccine that the world wants, that the world accepts, that the world says is safe, and that will help our children.”
Legendary coach’s girlfriend stirs controversy and builds wealth — but who is she?
Jordon Hudson has gone from the cheer section to the front office. Many football fans are wondering why and how.
The 24-year-old model has become one of the most notorious figures in football in recent weeks. Her romantic relationship, and now business relationship, with legendary former New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick has America asking a lot of questions.
While Americans can’t take their eyes off the May-December romance, the former cheerleader is building wealth, and football and media power, gaining a position of authority in Belichick’s sphere as current UNC Tar Heels head coach and a cultural icon.
And even though she’s only 24, Hudson’s story is generations in the making.
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Hudson’s family business went bankrupt when she was a child
Hudson was born in Maine in March 2001. She would grow up as one of the many New England children to witness Belichick leading the Patriots’ dynasty alongside Tom Brady.
But Hudson’s family dealt with a difficult transition during this period.
Her parents, Lee and Heath Hudson, previously ran a family-owned fishing business, Frenchmans Bay Fisheries. But after the area they used to fish, Taunton Bay, was closed off to fishing by the state in 2000, their business eventually went bankrupt years later.
Her family’s struggles were even chronicled in a local magazine at the time. A 2007 Salt Magazine article written by writer Kelsey Abbott, archived by Salt Story Archive, documented the experience of the Hudson family struggling to get by as their business faltered after.
“[Hudson’s mother Lee Hudson] worries about how she will pay back her debts and whether her car and the refrigerated Frenchmans Bay Fisheries truck will be repossessed. She worries about feeding her three daughters—Jenna, Becca and Jordon,” the article reads.
The article even included a description of a five-year-old Jordon in the Hudson family home.
“Jordon, her youngest child, sleeps face down on the plush blue sofa, her pigtails flung out like Pippi Longstocking’s braids,” it read. “Cartoon Network blares in the background and a war zone of toys surround the sleeping child.”
The article goes on to document how the family’s ship suffered damage, their struggles to afford repairs, their failed attempt to lobby state and local legislatures to ease up on regulations that impeded the fishing industry, and eventually the closure of their business.
“For now, Lee is working in a daycare center and Heath is working as a handyman,” the article read.
Years later, the family moved to Provincetown, Massachusetts, where Lee currently manages the Toys of Eros sex shop. The mother has worked at the store since 2017, as previously seen on her LinkedIn page, which has since been deleted.
Her high school reputation was polarizing, according to former classmates
Hudson attended Nauset Regional High School in Eastham, Massachusetts, from 2015-19. There, she was a standout cheerleader.
Some of her classmates have claimed that she was in a relationship with an older man during that period in her life as well, but only by a few years, according to the New York Post.
One of those classmates even suggested Hudson exhibited a “controlling” nature while in that relationship.
“She would get mad at him for something stupid and berate him and control him about something or get mad at him over random things,” the classmate told the outlet. “It was very tumultuous. Everyone knew their business. It was very dramatic.”
However, another one of her classmates said, “I would see her in the halls, and she was always very nice to me, nice to everyone that I know. We would exchange conversations in passing, and she was really cool and nice,” he said. “Nobody from high school is saying anything negative about her.”
BILL BELICHICK’S GIRLFRIEND SHUTS DOWN RELATIONSHIP QUESTION: ‘WE’RE NOT TALKING ABOUT THIS’
Another man more than twice her age claims to have dated Hudson
Before dating Belichick, 65-year-old Joshua L. Zuckerman claims he was in a relationship with Hudson.
In June 2024, Zuckerman told TMZ that he met Hudson “several years ago, and after bonding over psychology, philosophy and nature, they became romantic.”
“We regularly discuss business and shared interest in psychology, philosophy and, most important, our love of nature,” Zuckerman said.
“She is wise beyond her years, much more than any 20-something I’ve ever met in my life.”
Since beginning her relationship with Belichick, Hudson has reportedly built a multimillion-dollar real estate portfolio
Belichick and Hudson reportedly began dating at some point in 2023, but they met two years before that in February 2021 on a flight from the Boston area to Florida.
And in the last 18 months, she has built an investment property portfolio worth $8 million, according to Realtor.com.
Hudson purchased three multifamily dwellings at the end of 2023, per mortgage documents seen by Realtor.com. They were all purchased through separate LLCs, but with Hudson’s name listed as the “borrower” for each.
The properties include a $2.2 million Dorchester townhouse, a $2.3 million nearby townhouse conversion and a $3 million multifamily house in Boston’s Roxbury Crossing neighborhood.
Hudson also listed a fourth property on the mortgage documents for those purchases. That property was a two-bedroom cottage in Harwich, Massachusetts, which she purchased for $610,000 in October 2023.
Hudson has gained authority in Belichick’s football and media operations
With Belichick set to lead UNC’s football program in 2025, Hudson has been a visible and involved presence in the program’s operations.
Since the university hired Belichick in December, Hudson has served in an unofficial role on the football program, which includes being copied on all emails sent to Belichick, per multiple reports.
Meanwhile, a report by The Athletic suggests Hudson also played a role in preventing UNC from being featured in an offseason special of HBO’s popular “Hard Knocks” series.
“Jordon Hudson, Belichick’s girlfriend, played an instrumental role in stopping the production, related to her request to be heavily involved in the project, according to multiple industry sources briefed on the negotiations,” the report read.
Hudson recently exclaimed a now-infamous line during Belichick’s “CBS News Sunday Morning” interview. When interviewer Tony Dokoupil asked Belichick how he and Hudson met, she interjected, “We’re not talking about this.”
Belichick later released a statement through UNC addressing the incident, accusing CBS of trying to create a “false narrative.” The coach said he “clearly communicated” to his publicist, Simon & Schuster, that any promotional interviews would be “solely” on his upcoming book, “The Art of Winning – Lessons from My Life in Football,” but the network didn’t honor that request.
“I was surprised when unrelated topics were introduced and I repeatedly expressed to the reporter, Tony Dokoupil, and the producers that I preferred to keep the conversation centered on the book,” the statement read.
“After [this] occurred several times, Jordon, with whom I share both a personal and professional relationship, stepped in to reiterate that point to help refocus the discussion. She was not deflecting any specific question or topic but simply doing her job to ensure the interview stayed on track.”
CBS responded with its own statement.
“When we agreed to speak with Mr. Belichick, it was for a wide-ranging interview,” a CBS News spokesperson said in a statement on X. “There were no preconditions or limitations to this conversation. This was confirmed repeatedly with his publisher before the interview took place and after it was completed.”
The controversy has thrust their relationship into the bullseye of national attention in recent days, with many criticisms of their relationship and her role in his professional endeavors facing widespread scrutiny.
She praised President Trump for helping Maine fishers, like her family once was
Hudson praised President Donald Trump’s administration for renegotiating Maine Sea Grant funding.
In early March, she spoke during the 50th Maine Fisherman’s Forum in Rockport Saturday and talked about how the cut to grant funding affected fisherman.
“The news came like a tsunami to the Forum on Saturday that the federal funding program ‘Maine Sea Grant’ was abruptly cut. This program has been a pillar of support for marine research, sustainability, and economic growth for more than 50 years. The forum floors filled with tears and fears as if everyone were drowning, and we were,” Hudson wrote in an Instagram post.
“The decision only amplified the uncertainty, anxiety and existential fears that already plague the fisherman of Maine.”
Hudson then pleaded in another post with Trump and the White House to reinstate the Maine Sea Grant after the program was “abruptly” cut.
Trump’s administration adhered to her pleas, agreeing to reinstate the funding, so Hudson took to social media to extend her gratitude to the Trump administration and Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine.
“It is with a full, full heart that I share this most wonderful news with you all,” Hudson wrote in her caption of her post that included her next to Collins.
Hudson will try to win a beauty pageant in her home state of Maine, and will face an uncommon opponent
Hudson will be competing in the Miss Maine USA Beauty Pageant later this month after finishing as the first runner-up in last year’s contest.
She acknowledged her family’s failed fishing business in the state in her announcement on April 9.
“As the daughter of displaced fishermen, I care to use my voice to protect the fleeting tradition and heritage of Maine fishing families, to prevent others from going through the same plight as what mine had to go through,” Hudson wrote on Instagram.
But one of the competitors looking to take the tiara from Hudson will not even be a biological female.
That contestant is trans model Isabelle St. Cyr.
St. Cyr will be the first openly trans contestant in the pageant’s history after previously winning the local Miss Monson USA pageant in the Maine town of Monson.
“When I started cheerleading I had all the odds stacked against me. So much pushback, so many people telling me it wasn’t a space for me. But I fought for what I loved and I ended up being a very successful cheerleader, winning state and national titles and inspiring people to join even if they hadn’t been doing it their whole life,” St. Cyr wrote in a Facebook post on March 25.
“I sense a similar trajectory in my ongoing journey with pageants. I believe I have everything it takes to be Miss Maine USA and I know that no amount of experience can match a true passion and drive to accomplish something.”
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Just as Maine state law is what originally hampered her family’s fishing business more than two decades ago, in recent years, especially this year, the state legislature has vigorously defended the inclusion of trans individuals in women’s sports and spaces.
The Maine Human Rights Act was amended four years ago to add gender identity as a protected class, so now Hudson will face off against a biological male as she seeks the Miss Maine tiara.
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