Department of Homeland Security revokes Harvard’s foreign student visa program
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is eliminating the student visa program at Harvard University due to “pro-terrorist conduct” at campus protests, Fox News Digital has learned.
It’s a severe consequence for what DHS claims is Harvard’s refusal to comply with its requests for behavioral records of student visa holders.
“This administration is holding Harvard accountable for fostering violence, antisemitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party on its campus,” said DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. “It is a privilege, not a right, for universities to enroll foreign students and benefit from their higher tuition payments to help pad their multibillion-dollar endowments. Harvard had plenty of opportunity to do the right thing. It refused. They have lost their Student and Exchange Visitor Program certification as a result of their failure to adhere to the law. Let this serve as a warning to all universities and academic institutions across the country.”
Harvard may no longer enroll foreign students in the 2025-2026 school year, and existing foreign students must transfer or lose their legal status to reside in the U.S. before the next academic year begins.
RUBIO FIRES BACK AFTER DEM SENATOR SAYS HE REGRETS VOTING FOR HIM OVER VISA REVOCATIONS
“As a result of your brazen refusal to comply with multiple requests to provide the Department of Homeland Security pertinent information while perpetuating an unsafe campus environment that is hostile to Jewish students, promotes pro-Hamas rhetoric, and employs racist ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ policies, you have lost this privilege,” Noem wrote in a letter to Maureen Martin, the university’s director of immigration services.
Noem offered Harvard 72 hours to provide the information requested for an opportunity to regain its visa program for the next school year.
She called the move the “direct result of Harvard’s epic failure to comply with simple reporting requirements.”
Harvard, meanwhile, asserted the termination was “unlawful.”
“The government’s action is unlawful. We are fully committed to maintaining Harvard’s ability to host our international students and scholars, who hail from more than 140 countries and enrich the University – and this nation – immeasurably. We are working quickly to provide guidance and support to members of our community. This retaliatory action threatens serious harm to the Harvard community and our country, and undermines Harvard’s academic and research mission,” university spokesperson Jason Newton told Fox News Digital.
READ THE LETTER BELOW. APP USERS: CLICK HERE
The records requested include any footage of protest activity involving students on visas and the disciplinary records of all students on visas in the last five years.
Noem said last month she had requested records related to visa-holding students enrolled in the university and Harvard’s counsel did not provide adequate information to meet the demand. After the DHS general counsel asked again for the information, Harvard provided an “insufficient, incomplete and unacceptable response,” she said.
“Consequences must follow to send a clear signal to Harvard and all universities that want to enjoy the privilege of enrolling foreign students, that the Trump administration will enforce the law and root out the evils of antisemitism in society and campuses,” said Noem.
Requested records also include footage or documentation of illegal, dangerous or violent activity by student visa holders, any records of threats or the deprivation of rights of other students or university personnel.
Harvard could not immediately be reached for comment.
Last month, Harvard announced it would allow foreign students to accept admission to both Harvard and a foreign university as backup amid the Trump administration’s threats to move to block Harvard’s authorization to host them. Typically, students must accept enrollment at Harvard by May 1 and can’t commit to another university.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION BEGINS NEW WAVE OF INTERNATIONAL STUDENT VISA REVOCATIONS: ‘NO ONE HAS A RIGHT TO A VISA’
At least a dozen Harvard students have had their authorization to study in the U.S. revoked over campus protest activity.
The Trump administration has already frozen close to $3 billion in federal funding to the university, largely dedicated to research, and launched investigations across the departments of Justice, Education and Health and Human Services. They claim that Harvard has failed to address campus antisemitism and eradicate Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) in its policies.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Congress this week that the State Department had probably revoked “thousands” of student visas by this point and would “proudly” revoke more.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“We’re going to continue to revoke the visas of people who are here as guests and are disrupting our higher education facilities,” he said Tuesday. “A visa is a privilege, not a right.”
The crackdown on university policies comes after a wave of pro-Gaza student protests and encampments swept schools across the nation since the beginning of Israel’s offensive campaign to eradicate Hamas after the Oct. 7 attacks to pressure university administrations to divest from Israel.
White House’s Leavitt has choice words for Dems, GOP defectors who voted against bill
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Thursday declared that the Democratic Party “has never been more radical and out of touch with the needs of the American people” after voting against President Donald Trump’s “one big, beautiful bill.”
Trump’s sweeping tax and spending cuts package was passed by the House of Representatives by a razor-thin 215-214 vote early this morning.
“Every single Democrat in the House of Representatives voted against all of these common-sense and massively popular policies. The Democrat Party has never been more radical and out of touch with the needs of the American people,” she said. “The one big, beautiful bill is the final missing piece toward ushering the Golden Age of America. The Senate should pass this as quickly as possible and send it to President Trump’s desk for a final signature.”
Leavitt hailed the legislation as “delivering the largest tax cut in American history for middle-class families, the working class and small businesses.”
The Trump administration and Republicans hope to reduce the national debt with the bill by cutting approximately $1.5 trillion in government spending. The U.S. government is over $36 trillion in debt and has spent $1.05 trillion more than it has collected in the 2025 fiscal year, according to the Treasury Department.
Leavitt also said it will “permanently secure the border by delivering the largest border security investment in history, funding at least 1 million annual removals of illegal aliens to carry out the largest deportation campaign ever, finishing the Trump border wall and giving pay raises and bonuses for our incredible ICE and Border Patrol agents.”
DEMOCRATS PREDICT TRUMP’S ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’ WILL COST MANY REPUBLICANS THEIR SEATS
Two House Republicans joined Democrats in voting against the bill — Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Rep. Warren Davidson of Ohio.
When asked by a reporter Thursday if Trump thinks both lawmakers should be primaried, Leavitt said, “I believe he does.”
WINNERS, LOSERS AND GRAB-BAGS FROM HOUSE GOP’S NARROW PASSAGE OF ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’
“And I don’t think he likes to see grandstanders in Congress. ‘What’s the alternative?’ I would ask those members of Congress. Did they want to see a tax hike? Did they want to see our country go bankrupt?” Leavitt continued.
“That’s the alternative by them trying to vote no. And the president believes the Republican Party needs to be unified. And the vast majority of Republicans clearly are, and are listening to the president. They are trusting in President Trump, as they should, because there’s a reason he’s sitting in this Oval Office. It’s because he’s the unequivocal leader of the Republican Party, not just a president for Republicans, but all Americans,” she added.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“The president’s approval rating is at an all-time high right now. That’s because he knows how to deliver, and Republicans like Thomas Massie and others should take note,” Leavitt also said.
Divided Supreme Court rules against Oklahoma religious charter school
An evenly divided Supreme Court on Thursday ruled against a religious school that sought public funding from the state of Oklahoma.
In a 4-4 vote, the justices upheld the Oklahoma State Supreme Court’s decision that for St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School in Oklahoma City to receive public funds would be unconstitutional. Justice Amy Coney Barrett had recused herself from the case.
The court issued a one-sentence ruling upholding the lower court’s decision, saying only: “The judgment is affirmed by an equally divided Court.”
Oklahoma has argued that providing state funds for a religious charter school violates the First Amendment.
TRUMP FACES ANOTHER DEPORTATION SETBACK WITH 4TH CIRCUIT APPEALS COURT
The Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board approved St. Isidore’s contract request in June 2023, making them eligible to receive public funds. The school agreed that it would be free and open to all students “as a traditional public school,” and would comply with local, state and federal education laws.
But St. Isidore also indicated that the school “fully embraces the teachings” of the Catholic Church and participates “in the evangelizing mission of the church.”
Its ability to receive state funding was later blocked by the Oklahoma Supreme Court, which ruled that using the funds for a religious school was in violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond sued to block the approval of the school’s state charter, calling it an “unlawful sponsorship” of a sectarian institution, and “a serious threat to the religious liberty of all four-million Oklahomans.”
That argument was appealed to the Supreme Court, which agreed to hear the case in October.
In more than two hours of wide-ranging oral arguments last month, justices appeared split along ideological lines over whether to allow St. Isidore to become the first religious charter school in the U.S.
The justices focused on two questions during the oral arguments: First was whether charter schools should be treated as public schools, which are considered extensions of the state and therefore subject to the Establishment Cause and its ban establishing or endorsing a religion; or if the school should be considered a private entity or contractor, which was the argument made by St. Isidore.
The second question was whether Oklahoma’s actions violated the Free Exercise Clause of the Constitution, by placing what the school argues is an undue burden on its religious mission.
100 DAYS OF INJUNCTIONS, TRIALS AND ‘TEFLON DON’: TRUMP SECOND TERM MEETS ITS BIGGEST TESTS IN COURT
The decision comes as the Supreme Court’s conservative majority has, in recent years, ruled in favor of allowing taxpayer funds to be allocated to some religious organizations to provide “non-sectarian services” such as adoption services or food banks.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
In this case, the justices debated what limits on curriculum supervision and control would be placed on the religious charter school, if its contract with the state was allowed to move forward.
Justices Kentanji Brown Jackson, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan pressed attorneys for the school on how they would treat students with different religious backgrounds who might opt to attend.
There is no indication of how each justice ultimately voted.
Democrats spending millions in search for ‘next Joe Rogan’ after election defeat
Democrats are spending top dollar to “find the next Joe Rogan” on the left after their 2024 election defeat, according to a new report published Tuesday.
Liberal strategists are pushing the party’s megadonors to spend tens of millions of dollars to develop “an army of left-leaning online influencers” to help the party “compete culturally” with President Donald Trump, according to The New York Times.
“The quiet effort amounts to an audacious — skeptics might say desperate — bet that Democrats can buy more cultural relevance online, despite the fact that casually right-leaning touchstones like Mr. Rogan’s podcast were not built by political donors and did not rise overnight,” the Times reported.
ROGAN MOCKS LEFT FOR WANTING TO CREATE THEIR OWN PODCAST NETWORK, SAYS THEY’LL JUST ‘CANCEL’ EACH OTHER
According to the report, a group of liberal operatives met in Washington after the election and decided to come up with a for-profit media company called AND Media, or “Achieve Narrative Dominance,” to financially support social media influencers.
The company aims to raise $45 million over the next four years and has already raised $7 million, according to the report. Their business plan, shared with the Times, says the company will directly fund influencers and help produce their content. They will make a creator talent agency and make deals with “four flagship creators.”
Another effort in the works is called Project Bullhorn, which will also gather donations to support liberal content creators. The project, which aims to raise $35 million in its first year, was pitched to donors at a meeting this month, where Senator Cory Booker, D-N.J., was reportedly in attendance.
DEMOCRATS REEXAMINE THEIR SOCIAL MEDIA GAME AFTER LOSING TO TRUMP: NOT ‘DIRECT’ OR ‘AUTHENTIC’
Other projects seeking major donor funding include Channel Zero, a company which will provide administrative support to influencers with large followings, and Double Tap Democracy, which will collaborate with 2,000 apolitical influencers with smaller followings, the Times reported.
The report comes as Democrats face a messaging and identity crisis in the election aftermath, with polls showing the party’s favorability sinking to record lows this year. According to a Fox News national poll conducted in April, the favorability rating for the Democratic Party dropped to 41%.
Trump dominated the podcast scene during the 2024 campaign, reaching millions of listeners in his interviews with popular influencers and comedians like Joe Rogan, Andrew Schulz and Theo Von.
Some media outlets have reported that his online presence was instrumental in winning the election, particularly for younger male voters, who supported Trump at 53%, compared to former Vice President Kamala Harris’ 45%, according to a Fox News Voter Survey last November.
ROGAN MOCKS DEMS FOR SAYING ‘WE NEED OUR OWN JOE ROGAN’ WHEN ‘THEY HAD ME, I WAS ON THEIR SIDE!’ IN THE PAST
Last November, Rogan mocked Democrats for calling for a new version of him to help their party.
“This is one thing that keeps coming up like, ‘We need our own Joe Rogan’ right? But they had me, I was on their side!” Rogan said on his November 26 podcast.
The Democrats’ influencer strategy was criticized by Fox News’ “The Five” co-host Harold Ford Jr. on Wednesday.
“Democrats, you can go out asking for money from donors saying we’re going to create. This is not an AI machine,” he said on “The Five.” “You’ve got to figure out people who actually know what people are talking about, who know the feelings of people, and don’t judge them because a year ago they said something that offended you. Or an hour ago, said something that offended you. Sit and listen to people. That’s why Joe Rogan is such a powerful, powerful figure… and why Donald Trump has been so successful as well.”
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Joe Rogan did not return a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Harrison Fields told Fox News Digital, “Joe Rogan was a Democrat until the Democrat Party abandoned him. There’s no need to develop the next Rogan; overpaid strategists should focus on de-radicalizing their party and abandoning its extreme agenda if they hope to revive their struggling party.”
Buc-ee’s heads northward with expansion to new states in summer 2025
The world’s largest convenience store and gas station, Buc-ee’s, is growing its already massive following with several new locations set to open this summer.
The beloved Texas-based chain — known for its exceptionally clean restrooms, house-made food and beaver-branded merchandise — is set to open three new travel centers, including its very first locations in Virginia and Mississippi, Buc-ee’s confirmed to FOX Business.
Buc-ee’s grand openings are scheduled for the following:
- Harrison County, Mississippi – June 9
- Rockingham County, Virginia – June 30
- Brunswick, Georgia – July 1
BUC-EE’S OPENS LARGEST STORE SPANNING 75,000 SQUARE FEET WITH 120 GAS PUMPS
The Virginia center in Rockingham County, about 2.5 hours west of Washington, D.C., by car, will become Buc-ee’s most northeast location in the U.S., opening the brand to a new customer base previously unfamiliar with its massive convenience stores.
“Thank you Buc-ee’s for choosing Rockingham County for your first Virginia location that is slated to open in mid-2025,” the county said in a social media post in early 2024.
BUC-EE’S SUES MISSOURI-BASED TRAVEL STOP CALLED BARC-EE’S FOR TRADEMARK INFRINGEMENT
The center will span 74,000 square feet, roughly 1.5 times the size of a football field, according to Rockingham County. It will also include over 120 fueling stations, 600 parking spaces and 20 electric vehicle charging stations.
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin previously welcomed the new location when the project began in early 2024.
“Virginia is proud to welcome @bucees to the Commonwealth!” Youngkin said in a post on X. “Today’s groundbreaking represents 200 jobs and an investment of more than 60 million dollars in Rockingham County. I look forward to stopping by for some Beaver Nuggets soon!”
BUC-EE’S SUES SMALLER GAS STATION CHAIN FOR COPYRIGHT, ARGUING CARTOON DOG LOGO IS TOO SIMILAR TO ITS BEAVER
Local reports said the Buc-ee’s center in Mississippi will also expand 74,000 square feet, employ 200 residents and include 100 gas pumps and 20 electrical vehicle charging stations.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESS
Brunswick’s new center will become the Peach State’s third Buc-ee’s. It will be located five hours southeast of Atlanta.
Biden officials hid myocarditis risks linked to COVID vaccines: report
U.S. health officials knew about the risks of myocarditis from COVID-19 vaccines but downplayed the concern and delayed informing the public about the risks of taking the jab — that is according to a new Senate report released by Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., on Wednesday.
Johnson, chairman of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, has been investigating the safety and efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccines. Earlier this year, he subpoenaed the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for records relating to COVID-19 vaccine safety data and communications about the pandemic.
SEN. RON JOHNSON: THE COVID COVER-UPS HAVE TO END
The interim report, spanning 55 pages, obtained and reviewed by Fox News Digital, revealed that Biden administration officials “withheld crucial health information from the Subcommittee and the public.”
Since 2021, Johnson has sent more than 70 oversight letters, which he says were “either completely ignored or inadequately addressed.”
The report highlights the records Johnson has obtained pursuant to the subpoena from the new, Trump administration-led health agency. Specifically, the report focuses on HHS’ awareness of and response to cases of myocarditis — a type of heart inflammation — following COVID-19 vaccination.
SCIENTISTS FIND CLUES ON WHY COVID VACCINE CAUSES CHRONIC HEALTH PROBLEMS IN SOME
Johnson’s report says the 2,473 pages of records he obtained “contain evidence of the Biden administration’s efforts to downplay and delay warning the public about the risks of myocarditis associated with the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines.”
The report points to records from May 2021, in which health officials at HHS discussed whether to issue a formal warning about myocarditis.
According to the report, the formal warning about myocarditis was initially going to be distributed nationwide as a Health Alert Network message, which, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), is CDC’s “primary method of sharing cleared information about urgent public health incidents with public information officers; federal, state, territorial, tribal, and local public health practitioners; clinicians; and public health laboratories.”
However, Johnson’s report said that health officials at CDC and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) “ultimately decided against issuing a formal HAN and, instead, posted ‘clinical considerations’ on CDC’s website about myocarditis.”
“Based on the subpoenaed records the Subcommittee has received to date, as well as public FOIA documents, this interim report will highlight records and present a timeline showing U.S. health officials knew about the risk of myocarditis; those officials downplayed the health concern; and U.S. health agencies delayed informing the public about the risk of the adverse event,” it said.
FLASHBACK: GOP SENATORS INVOKE STATUTE TO FORCE HHS ANSWERS ON COVID ORIGINS: ‘FULL-FLEDGED COVER-UP’
The report also highlights the Israeli Ministry of Health notifying officials at the CDC in February 2021 of “large reports of myocarditis, particularly in young people, following the administration of the Pfizer vaccine.”
The report also highlights documents showing CDC officials discussing “safety signals” for myocarditis with mRNA vaccines in April 2021 based on Defense Department and Israeli data, but “still not taking immediate steps to warn the public.”
Documents obtained by Johnson also show CDC officials communicating with Moderna and Pfizer representatives about the risks.
Johnson also obtained “draft meeting notes from late May 2021 exchanged between U.S. public health officials which included the question: ‘Is VAERS signaling for myopericarditis now?,’ and the answer: ‘For the age groups 16-17 years and 18-24 years, yes.’”
“VAERS” is an acronym for the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System.
FLASHBACK: SEN. RON JOHNSON CONFRONTS HHS SECRETARY ABOUT REDACTED FAUCI EMAILS ON COVID-19 ORIGINS
“Rather than provide the public and health care providers with immediate and transparent information regarding the risk of myocarditis following mRNA COVID-19 vaccination, the Biden administration waited until late June 2021 to announce changes to the labels for the Moderna and Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines based on the ‘suggested increased risks’ of myocarditis and pericarditis,” the report states. “Even though CDC and FDA officials were well aware of the risk of myocarditis following COVID-19 vaccination, the Biden administration opted to withhold issuing a formal warning to the public for months about the safety concerns, jeopardizing the health of young Americans.”
The report added that the Biden administration’s decision “to downplay the COVID-19 vaccine health risks and delay warning the public about cardiac-related adverse events associated with the mRNA vaccines jeopardized the public’s health.”
According to the report, as of April 25, VAERS reported 38,607 deaths and more than 1.6 million “adverse events worldwide associated with the administration of COVID-19 injections.”
Of the more than 38,000 deaths, the report said 25% occurred on Day 0, 1, or 2 following injection, compared to “2,663 deaths reported to VAERS associated with the flu vaccine over a period of 35 years.”
“No other reports of adverse events associated with any other drug or vaccine even come close to these statistics,” the report states. “And yet, those who oversaw the development and distribution of the COVID-19 vaccines continue to insist it is safe and effective, without providing the data to prove their claims.”
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Johnson’s report demands that the “full extent” of the Biden administration’s “failure to immediately warn the public about all COVID-19 vaccine adverse events must be completely exposed.”
“The American people fund the federal health departments and agencies with their hardearned tax dollars,” the report states. “The information developed by these departments and agencies belong to the American people, and should be made fully and transparently available.”
The report states that as “the roadblocks are removed and more documents that have been hidden and withheld for years become available, the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations will provide transparency and let the American public see what is their right to see.”
States where people are using cash to buy homes instead of taking out mortgages
While many people take out a mortgage to buy a home, some homebuyers use cash to make their purchases.
The share of homes bought with all cash varies from state to state, with some states standing out as seeing the largest percentages, according to a recently released analysis by New American Funding.
Putting in all-cash offers on a house can “help buyers stand out in multiple-offer situations” as well as lead to a quicker closing, according to the mortgage lender.
LOOKING TO PURCHASE A HOME AND LIVE IN THESE AREAS? THEY REQUIRE THE HIGHEST INCOME
New American Funding said it analyzed data about 2024 home sales from ATTOM to craft its list, “Top 10 States for All-Cash Home Sales.”
According to the company, here are the top 10 states with the highest percentage of homes bought with all-cash.
West Virginia: 41.1%
New York: 40.4%
Delaware: 38.9%
Georgia: 37.5%
Alabama: 36.7%
South Carolina: 35.2%
North Carolina: 34.3%
Louisiana: 34.1%
Maine: 33.4%
Ohio: 31.5%
Last year, homebuyers nationwide used all-cash to buy homes in more than a quarter of home transactions, New American Funding reported, citing ATTOM.
HOUSING GETTING MORE AFFORDABLE FOR MIDDLE-INCOME EARNERS BUT SUPPLY ISSUES REMAIN
The median sale price of a home hit $438,466 as of April, according to a separate report from Redfin.
It represented a 1.8% increase from March and a 1.4% increase from April of last year, it found.
In April, more than 1.9 million homes were on the market on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to Redfin.
AMERICA’S HOUSING CRISIS: REALTOR.COM CEO SAYS THERE IS A WAY TO SOLVE IT
Orthopedic surgeon dies during Grand Canyon hike, remembered as ‘amazing man’
The National Park Service recently identified a hiker who died in the Grand Canyon last week as a beloved 74-year-old Washington state doctor.
Grand Canyon Regional Communications Center staff received a report on May 15 of an unresponsive hiker on the North Kaibab Trail, about half a mile below the North Kaibab Trailhead.
Dr. Dennis Smith, of Olympia, Washington, was attempting a rim-to-rim hike from the South Rim to the North Rim when authorities and friends said he collapsed on the trail.
HIKER, 33, DIES AFTER HIKING ARIZONA MOUNTAINS IN EXTREME HEAT, 4 OTHERS RESCUED
Though there is limited cell phone service in the canyon, the incident happened close enough to the top that they were able to call for a park service helicopter. Medics restarted his heart, but it later stopped again, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
His cause of death is under investigation by the Coconino County Medical Examiner’s Office, according to the park service.
AMERICAN DOCTOR, CANCER SURVIVOR RUNS 7 MARATHONS ON 7 CONTINENTS IN 7 DAYS
Fellow doctor, Tom Helpenstell, who worked with Smith for more than 30 years, told Fox News Digital the pair ran across the canyon when it was hotter, and he believes it was a “freak” accident.
“I think it was 100 degrees or close to it, but he’s really good about hydrating,” Helpenstell said. “He’s always drinking fluids. … He’s way too smart to be pushing beyond his limits. I think this was just a freak thing.”
After doing a short stint in the Navy, Smith, a former family practice doctor, became an orthopedic surgeon. He then started his own practice, Olympia Orthopaedic Associates, where he met Helpenstell in 1994.
“We worked together in the same office and assisted each other every Tuesday in surgeries for 30 years,” Helpenstell said. “He and I have run across the Grand Canyon three times, doing Ultra Trail-type running. Probably two years ago, he decided not to do running [anymore], so he was hiking with a group out of Tucson, Arizona, where he spends the winters.”
23-YEAR-OLD HIKER FOUND AFTER SURVIVING FOR 2 WEEKS IN AUSTRALIAN MOUNTAIN RANGE
Before deciding not to keep running, the pair ran up Mount Whitney together, completed full Iron Man competitions and Olympic-distance triathlons together, and climbed Mount Rainier.
“He’s super active, super fit,” Helpenstell said. “This was not even a run, this was a hike. I don’t want to downplay it. Grand Canyon’s a big day, for sure, but this was completely out of the blue.”
In addition to Smith’s athletic feats, Helpenstell said he was highly respected in his community for his work in general orthopedics, where he did trauma, hip and knee replacements.
“He would jump in and take care of anyone at any time. Really, really great,” Helpenstell said. “Within the surgeon community, we’re the carpenters. … Even when he retired from his regular work [in 2021], he stayed on and took call for us and stayed up at night doing cases. He kept his hand in it, until just about a year and a half or two ago. He was an amazing man.”
“He read like crazy,” Helpenstell said. “He was like an encyclopedia. We would always joke, we don’t need Google, we have Dennis. He was really into health and nutrition, and what diets are the right ones to take, and what supplements. I mean, the guy was crazy about staying healthy. He had switched to playing pickleball because he thought it would make his brain learn new things, which would keep him from getting Alzheimer’s or anything like that. He was more focused than anyone I know about staying healthy and living long, which makes this hard.”
Smith leaves behind his wife, Evelyn, who would have celebrated their 50th anniversary on Sunday, and four children.
He also leaves behind numerous grandchildren who he enjoyed hiking and running with.
DOCTOR AND CANCER SURVIVOR GEARS UP TO RUN 7 MARATHONS ON 7 CONTINENTS IN 7 DAYS
The NPS urged all visitors to Grand Canyon National Park, particularly those planning to hike or backpack in the inner canyon, to prepare for extreme heat.
Park rangers strongly advise against hiking in the inner canyon during the hottest part of the day, between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Hikers and backpackers attempting rigorous distances, such as rim to rim, through the inner canyon, are encouraged to be self-reliant to prevent emergency situations for themselves and responders.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“Be aware that efforts to assist hikers may be delayed due to limited staff, the number of rescue calls, and employee safety requirements,” according to the park service.
Former NOPD chief slams Sheriff Hutson’s ‘checkered past’ after recent jailbreak
Former New Orleans Police Department Superintendent Ronal Serpas is criticizing what he described as New Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson’s “checkered past” after 10 inmates escaped a parish jail last week.
Since the inmates escaped from a hole behind a toilet in a jail cell the morning of May 16, authorities have recaptured five and arrested one correctional officer in the jailbreak.
“Sheriff Hutson has had a very checkered past in the last 15 years in the city of New Orleans, with multiple complaints of administrative failures as the [former] independent police monitor, multiple complaints as the sheriff and the consent decree management and multiple complaints of ethical violations that have resulted in findings by the Louisiana Ethics Board,” Serpas told Fox News Digital.
TWO MORE ARRESTED FOR ALLEGEDLY AIDING NEW ORLEANS JAILBREAK FUGITIVES
“It’s no surprise to the people of New Orleans that incompetence is key to her leadership style, and the people deserve so much better.”
The escaped inmates, some of whom are charged with violent offenses, including murder, were being held in a minimum-custody site at the Orleans Parish prison. The jail is only at 60% staffing, and at the time of the escape, four supervisors and 36 staff members were monitoring 1,400 inmates, authorities said.
Hutson did not immediately respond to inquiries from Fox News Digital, but she did announce a temporary suspension of her re-election campaign in a statement Wednesday morning.
“As I said today, I take full accountability for the breach that occurred under my leadership,” Hutson said in a statement. “I am grateful to the community, our law enforcement partners and city and state leaders for helping us to secure the Orleans Justice Center and capture the remaining escapees.
“We’ve taken immediate action, including suspensions, an arrest and full cooperation with the attorney general’s investigation.”
LOUISIANA ATTORNEY GENERAL EXPECTS MORE ARRESTS IN NEW ORLEANS JAIL ESCAPE INVESTIGATION
She added there is “a long road ahead” of her “to be fully satisfied that the [Orleans Justice Center] and my deputies have the proper resources to perform their duties to the fullest extent the people of New Orleans deserve.”
“I cannot spend a moment putting politics over your needs.”
“As such, I am temporarily suspending my re-election campaign. I cannot spend a moment putting politics over your needs,” she said. “Now is the time to focus on security, accountability, and public safety. I look forward to continuing to collaborate with other agencies and community organizations to hear your valuable input and make necessary changes.”
FIFTH ESCAPED INMATE FROM NEW ORLEANS JAIL RECAPTURED AFTER DAYS ON THE RUN
Serpas noted there was historically low voter turnout for the sheriff election in December 2021, when less than 60,000 votes were cast, representing just 27% of New Orleans Parish registered voters. It was similar to that year’s mayoral race, at 28% turnout.
Hutson faced ethics charges over nepotism and other complaints in September 2024 and whistleblower lawsuits from former administrators between 2023 and 2024, FOX 8 New Orleans reported.
LOUISIANA JAIL WORKER ARRESTED FOR ALLEGEDLY HELPING 10 INMATES ESCAPE ORLEANS PARISH FACILITY
When asked his thoughts on the arrest of a jail employee, 33-year-old Sterling Williams, who is accused of helping the inmates escape, Serpas, now a criminology and justice professor at Loyola University in New Orleans, said “the question” for him is how Hutson did not see “red flags on an appointment.”
Two others, Cortnie Harris, 32, and Corvanntay Baptiste, 38, have also been accused of aiding the escape.
“There is no question that it’s difficult to hire people to work in the jail environment,” Serpas said. “There is no question that there are many examples across the country of jail employees violating their oath and office. It’s a thing that sheriffs just know what to look out for. And here we have another example of this particular sheriff… not knowing how to actually lead or be ethical in that leadership.”
LOUISIANA GOVERNOR BLASTS ‘PROGRESSIVE PROMISES’ AFTER NEW ORLEANS JAIL ESCAPE
Hutson has also received criticism for declining jail conditions at the Orleans Justice Center, including drug smuggling, inmate violence and inadequate mental health care. Federal monitors have noted major gaps in safety and supervision in biannual reports on the Orleans Parish jail.
FOX 8 found that Hutson’s office has regressed in four jail safety and supervision categories since the last sheriff’s administration, while the remainder are the same as the previous administration.
Monitors “witnessed the most unsupervised jail units in recent memory once Sheriff Susan Hutson took over,” the report states, according to FOX 8.
Hutson proposed a tax increase to generate $11.7 million annually for the sheriff’s office, but 91% of voters rejected the measure.
Between 2022 and 2024, the sheriff’s office lost 17 employees, and Hutson expressed a need for 150 additional deputies to manage a 500-person increase in inmates since she took office.
To reestablish trust with the public after the jailbreak, the sheriff’s office must first apprehend all 10 escapees, Serpas said.
“The public expects the local, state and federal agencies will work together, which we have clear evidence of,” the former superintendent said. “I think the next jury that is out, if you will, is there is an upcoming sheriff’s election. And in New Orleans, my hometown… in Sheriff Hutson’s race, when she won, 25% of voters went to the poll. We need people to go to the poll and challenge the candidates.”
Anyone found aiding an escapee will be charged as an accomplice, according to New Orleans authorities. The FBI is offering rewards of up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest of the escaped inmates. Crime Stoppers is also offering a $2,000 reward per inmate.
The five men who remain on the run are:
- Lenton J. Vanburen Jr., 26, faces charges of illegal carrying of weapons, possession of a firearm or weapon by a felon, obstruction of justice and introducing contraband in prison.
- Jermaine Donald, 42, faces charges of second-degree murder, aggravated battery, possession of a firearm or weapon by a felon and obstruction of justice.
- Antoine Massey, 32, faces charges of domestic abuse involving strangulation, theft of a motor vehicle and a parole violation.
- Derrick Groves, 27, faces three counts of attempted second-degree murder, two counts of second-degree murder and battery of a correctional facility employee.
- Leo O. Tate Sr., 31, faces charges of simple burglary of an inhabited dwelling, possession of a firearm or weapon by a felon, illegal carrying of a weapon, motor vehicle theft and multiple drug counts.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
A violent offender warrant squad is searching for the escapees along with the FBI and U.S. Marshals. More than 200 law enforcement officers are assisting with the search.