Actress Anne Heche taken off life support after crash

LOS ANGELES - Hollywood actor Anne Heche has been taken off life support, two days after she was declared legally dead from brain injuries sustained in a car crash in Los Angeles, her spokeswoman said.

Heche, known for 1990s movies "Donnie Brasco" and "Six Days, Seven Nights" as well as a relationship with talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, had been comatose since driving her car into a building on August 5.

Her body had been kept on life support until Sunday while organ donor options were explored, in accordance with her wishes, spokeswoman Holly Baird said.

"Anne Heche has been peacefully taken off life support," Baird told AFP Monday, without saying if organ recipients were found.

The violent car collision involving Heche earlier this month destroyed much of a two-story house in the Mar Vista neighborhood of Los Angeles. Dozens of firefighters battled the ensuing blaze for more than an hour.

Preliminary tests of Heche's blood came back positive for narcotics, prompting a felony DUI probe, but Los Angeles police said investigations and efforts to file charges would cease after she was declared legally dead.

Celebrity media outlet TMZ, citing unnamed police sources, said Heche had tested positive for cocaine and fentanyl, with the latter sometimes used for pain relief in clinical settings.

Agence France-Presse

Toyota to recall 3.4 million vehicles worldwide, air bags may not deploy in crashes

WASHINGTON - Toyota Motor Corp said Tuesday it would recall 3.4 million vehicles worldwide because of an electronic defect that could result in air bags not deploying in crashes.

The recall, which includes 2.9 million US vehicles, covers 2011-2019 Corolla, 2011-2013 Matrix, 2012-2018 Avalon and 2013-2018 Avalon Hybrid vehicles and is tied to a report of one fatal crash.

The vehicles may have an electronic control unit that does not have adequate protection against electrical noise that can occur in crashes, which could lead to incomplete or non-deployment of the air bags. It could also impede the operation of seat-belt pretensioners.

In April, the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) expanded a probe into 12.3 million potentially defective air bags covering a number of automakers, including the vehicles Toyota is recalling.

NHTSA said in April it had identified two frontal crash events, including one fatal crash "involving Toyota products where (electrical overstress) is suspected as the likely cause" of air bags not deploying. Both involved newer Corolla cars.

NHTSA said the air bags under investigation were installed in more than 12 million vehicles from 2010 through 2019 sold by Toyota, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV, Honda Motor Co , Hyundai Motor Co, Kia Motors Corp and Mitsubishi.

They were equipped with an air bag control unit initially produced by TRW Automotive Holdings Corp, which is now owned by ZF Friedrichshafen.

In total, NHTSA said as many as 8 deaths could be tied to the issue.

Hyundai, Kia and Fiat Chrysler previously issued recalls for more than 2.5 million vehicles with the TRW air bag control units in question that might not deploy in crashes.

When it recalled nearly 2 million vehicles for air bag non-deployments in 2016, Fiat Chrysler said it had reports of three deaths and five injuries that might be related to the defect.

Hyundai and Kia ultimately recalled more than 1 million vehicles for air bag non-deployment concerns in 2018. Hyundai and Kia in 2018 said they had reports of four deaths and six injuries in North America tied to the issue.

Toyota dealers will install a noise filter between the air bag control module and its wire harness if needed.

Toyota declined to say how many deaths or injuries have been tied to the defect. Toyota will notify vehicle owners of the recall by mid-March.

Agence France-Presse

Fil-Am college student dies of injuries from car accident

A Filipino-American college student died from his injuries two days after a car driven by an impaired driver crashed into their vehicle.

What started out to be a fun Sunday night out for 20-year-old Filipino-American Michael Sot and his friends turned tragic. 

Sot, a sophomore math major at the College of New Jersey, was the designated driver that night.

The impaired driver, 22-year-old David Lamar, crossed into the oncoming lane and struck Sot’s vehicle. 

Lamar was charged with vehicular homicide, as well as seven counts of second-degree assault by auto in connection with the 2 a.m. crash near the college campus. 

College officials said Sot had six passengers. Four of them are students who sustained injuries. 

On Tuesday night, hundreds of students held a vigil honoring Sot, saying he always wanted to do things right and keep people around him safe. It was no surprise to them that he offered to be the designated driver on the night of the crash.

In the last three days alone, a GoFundMe account set-up by a campus fraternity for the Fil-Am victim and his passengers has raised over $100,000. 

Read more on Balitang America.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

US safety agency criticizes Tesla crash data release

WASHINGTON - The US National Transportation Safety Board said on Sunday it was "unhappy" that electric car maker Tesla Inc made public information about the crash of its Model X vehicle on Autopilot that killed the driver last month.

The agency "needs the cooperation of Tesla to decode the data the vehicle recorded," NTSB spokesman Chris O'Neil said in a statement.

"In each of our investigations involving a Tesla vehicle, Tesla has been extremely cooperative on assisting with the vehicle data."

"However, the NTSB is unhappy with the release of investigative information by Tesla," he added.

A Tesla spokesperson declined to comment.

The board's reaction to Tesla was first reported by the Washington Post Sunday evening.

O'Neil was responding to Tesla's announcement on Friday that the Tesla Model X involved in the crash had activated its Autopilot system moments before the March 23 mishap.

The driver, 38, died at a nearby hospital shortly after the vehicle hit a concrete highway divider near Mountain View, California. The mishap involved 2 other vehicles.

"The NTSB is looking into all aspects of this crash including the driver's previous concerns about the autopilot," said O'Neil.

"We will work to determine the probable cause of the crash and our next update of information about our investigation will likely be when we publish a preliminary report, which generally occurs within a few weeks of completion of field work."

Last week, the company said that a search of its service records did not "find anything suggesting that the customer ever complained to Tesla about the performance of Autopilot. There was a concern raised once about navigation not working correctly, but Autopilot's performance is unrelated to navigation."

In its announcement on Friday, the company said that shortly before the crash, the vehicle's "Autopilot was engaged with the adaptive cruise control follow-distance set to minimum."

Autopilot allows drivers to take their hands off the wheel for extended periods under certain conditions. Tesla requires users to agree to keep their hands on the wheel at all times before they can use Autopilot. Users, however, routinely brag they can use the system to drive hands-free.

In its Friday statement, Tesla also said vehicle logs from the accident showed no action had been taken by the driver right before the crash and that he had received earlier warnings to put his hands on the wheel.

The statement did not say why the Autopilot system apparently did not detect the concrete divider.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

2 children killed after car crashes in to Australian classroom

SYDNEY - Two eight-year-old boys were killed and another three children badly hurt after a car crashed into a classroom in Sydney on Tuesday, Australian police said.

A sports utility vehicle smashed through the wooden wall of the school in Sydney's west, where 24 primary-age children were in class with their teacher, police said in a statement.

Five children were rushed to hospital, including the two deceased boys. Three girls, two aged eight and another aged nine, were in a serious or stable condition in hospital. Another 16 children and their teacher were treated for minor injuries.

Local TV images showed the car punched through the wall and stopped completely inside the classroom, which is adorned with children's drawings and pictures.

"Obviously it was a scene of carnage," New South Wales state Ambulance Superintendent Stephanie Radnidge told reporters outside the school.

New South Wales Police Acting Assistant Commissioner Stuart Smith said police were "not looking at this as an intentional act, it is a crash investigation."

Police said the driver was a 52-year-old woman who was not hurt but was taken to hospital for blood and urine tests as part of the crash investigation.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

ISIS claims responsibility for Barcelona van attack that left several dead

BARCELONA -- A van ploughed into crowds in the heart of Barcelona on Thursday and Spanish media reported at least 13 people were killed.

Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, the group's Amaq news agency said.

"The perpetrators of the Barcelona attack are soldiers of the Islamic State and carried out the operation in response to calls for targeting coalition states," the agency said, referring to a United States-led coalition against the Sunni militant group.

Regional authorities said one death had been confirmed so far, with 32 injured, 10 seriously. But radio station Cadena Ser cited police sources as saying the death toll was much higher.

According to a report by Agence France-Presse quoting a regional minister, 13 were dead and 50 were hurt.

Police said they said were searching for the driver of the van who, according to local media, fled the scene on foot.

Spanish newspaper El Periodico said two armed men were holed up in a bar in Barcelona's city center, and reported gunfire in the area, though it did not cite the source of the information.

It was not immediately clear whether the incidents were connected.

A source familiar with the initial US government assessment said the incident appeared to be terrorism, and a White House spokeswoman said President Donald Trump was being kept abreast of the situation.
Trump said the US stood ready to help Spanish authorities after what he called a "terror attack" in Barcelona.

Media reports said the van had zigzagged at speed down the famous Las Ramblas avenue, a magnet for tourists.

"I heard screams and a bit of a crash and then I just saw the crowd parting and this van going full pelt down the middle of the Ramblas and I immediately knew that it was a terrorist attack or something like that," eyewitness Tom Gueller told the BBC.

"It wasn't slowing down at all. It was just going straight through the middle of the crowds in the middle of the Ramblas."

Mobile phone footage posted on Twitter showed several bodies strewn along the Ramblas, some motionless. Paramedics and bystanders bent over them, treating them and trying to comfort those still conscious.

Around them, the boulevard was deserted, covered in rubbish and abandoned objects including hats, flip-flops, bags and a pram.

"We saw a white van collide with people. We saw people going flying because of the collision, we also saw three cyclists go flying," Ellen Vercamm, on holiday in Barcelona, told El Pais newspaper.


TOURIST DRAW

Emergency services said people should not go to the area around Barcelona's Placa Catalunya, one of the city's main squares at the top of the Ramblas, and requested the closure of nearby train and metro stations.

Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said he was in contact with authorities, and the priority was to attend to the injured.

The incident took place at the height of the tourist season in Barcelona, which is one of Europe's top travel destinations with at least 11 million visitors a year.

Vehicles have been used to ram into crowds in a series of militant attacks across Europe since July 2016, killing well over 100 people in Nice, Berlin, London and Stockholm.

Witness Ethan Spibey told Britain's Sky News: "All of sudden it was real chaos. People just started running screaming, there were loud bangs. People just started running into shops, there was a kind of mini-stampede where we were, down one of the alleyways."

He said he had taken refuge with dozens of other people in a nearby church.

"They've locked the doors because I'm not sure whether the person who may have done it has actually been caught, so they've locked the doors and told people just to wait in here."

Authorities in Vic, a small town outside Barcelona, said a van had been found there in connection with the attack. Spanish media had earlier reported that a second van had been hired as a getaway vehicle.

Barcelona is the capital of the wealthy northeastern region of Catalonia, which plans to hold a popular vote on Oct. 1 on whether it should secede from Spain. It is in dispute with the central government, which says the vote cannot go ahead because it is unconstitutional.

If Spanish media reports of at least 13 killed are confirmed, it would be the deadliest in Spain since March 2004, when Islamist militants placed bombs on commuter trains in Madrid, killing 191 people and wounding more than 1,800. (Reporting by Madrid newsroom, writing by Mark Trevelyan; Editing by Alison Williams and Nick Tattersall) -- With a report from Agence France-Presse

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Venus Williams involved in car crash that led to fatality

Former world number one tennis player Venus Williams was involved in a two-car crash on June 9 at a Florida intersection that resulted in the death of a male passenger in the other vehicle, her attorney said on Thursday.

Williams's attorney Malcolm Cunningham denied the player was at fault in the accident after media outlets, citing a police report, said she had run a red light.

"Ms. Williams entered the intersection on a green light," Cunningham said in a statement about the accident, which happened near Williams' home in Palm Beach Gardens.

"The police report estimates that Ms. Williams was traveling at 5 miles per hour when Mrs. Barson crashed into her. Authorities did not issue Ms. Williams with any citations or traffic violations," he said.

He expressed condolences to the man's family and said he had no reason to believe the accident would impact 37-year-old Williams' plans to compete in Wimbledon, which begins next week in England.

"This is an unfortunate accident and Venus expresses her deepest condolences to the family who lost a loved one."

"I don't have any information that indicates she is not playing Wimbledon," he said.

TMZ Sports, which first reported on the accident, said the police report claims Williams was at fault and identifies the deceased as 78-year-old Jerome Barson, who died 14 days after the accident from his injuries.

The Palm Beach County medical examiner's website shows that a Jerome Barson died on June 22.

An attorney for the Barson family did not return a call for comment.

Williams is currently ranked number 11 in the world and seeded 10th at the Wimbledon, which she has won five times.

(Additional reporting by Bernie Woodall in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; editing by Ian Ransom)

source: news.abs-cbn.com

'Beautiful Mind' mathematician John Nash killed in car crash

NEW YORK, United States - Nobel Prize-winning US mathematician John Nash, who inspired the film "A Beautiful Mind," was killed with his wife in a New Jersey car crash.

Nash, 86, and his 82-year-old wife Alicia were riding in a taxi on Saturday when the accident took place, State Police Sergeant Gregory Williams told AFP.

"The taxi passengers were ejected," Williams said, adding that they were both killed.

The Princeton University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) mathematician is best known for his contribution to game theory -- the study of decision-making -- which won him the Nobel economics prize in 1994.

His life story formed the basis of the Oscar-winning 2001 film "A Beautiful Mind" in which actor Russell Crowe played the genius, who struggled with mental illness.

"Stunned... my heart goes out to John & Alicia & family. An amazing partnership. Beautiful minds, beautiful hearts," Crowe said on Twitter.

Ron Howard, who won the Oscar for best director for the film, tweeted that "it was an honor telling part of their story."

Nash's life took a sharp turn in early 1959 when he began suffering from "mental disturbances" that caused him to resign his faculty position at MIT.

The schizophrenic delusions would end up affecting not only his career but also his marriage to Alicia, whom he wed in 1957.

The couple divorced in the early 1960s, but remained in contact and remarried decades later in 2001. By the time Nash received his Nobel Prize, his delusions had decreased.

"I am still making the effort and it is conceivable that with the gap period of about 25 years of partially deluded thinking providing a sort of vacation, my situation may be atypical," Nash said in an autobiographical description, written at the time of his Nobel Prize award in 1994.

"It did happen that when I had been long enough hospitalized that I would finally renounce my delusional hypothesis and revert to thinking of myself as a human of more conventional circumstances and return to mathematical research."

Earlier this month, Nash and mathematician Louis Nirenberg received Norway's prestigious Abel Prize for their contributions to the theory of nonlinear partial differential equations (PDEs) and its applications to geometric analysis.

Nash's 'achievements inspired generations'

"John's remarkable achievements inspired generations of mathematicians, economists and scientists who were influenced by his brilliant, groundbreaking work in game theory," Princeton president Christopher Eisgruber said in a statement Sunday.

Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis tweeted that "reading your work was inspirational. Meeting you, and spending time together, was an unearned bonus. Farewell John Nash Jr."

Nash was born in Bluefield, West Virginia on June 13, 1928 to John, an electrical engineer, and his wife, Virginia, a former school teacher.

He went on to study mathematics at what is now Carnegie Mellon University and received a graduate degree from Princeton, where he said he first became interested in game theory.

Nash and his wife were involved in the deadly crash at 4:30 pm (2030 GMT) on the New Jersey Turnpike near the township of Monroe, after the taxi the couple was riding in attempted to pass another vehicle, lost control and struck a guard rail and another car.

US media reported that Nash and his wife were possibly not wearing seatbelts at the time.

The taxi driver was airlifted to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

A passenger in the other car was taken to the hospital with neck and back pain, said Williams, the police sergeant.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Cards' rising star Taveras killed in car crash

LOS ANGELES - St. Louis Cardinals rookie fielder Oscar Taveras died in an automobile crash in his native Dominican Republic, the Major League Baseball club announced Sunday night. He was 22.

Dominican police said the highly-touted prospect was driving in a car with a female, believed to be his girlfriend, when he lost control of the vehicle, killing himself and the passenger.

"We are all stunned and deeply saddened by the tragic loss of one of the youngest members of the Cardinals family," Cardinals chairman Bill DeWitt said.

"Oscar was an amazing talent with a bright future who was taken from us well before his time. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends tonight."

Police spokesman Jacobo Mateo Moquete tweeted that Taveras was traveling between Cabarete and Sosua in Puerto Plata. He said Taveras and the woman were both killed instantly.

"I simply can't believe it," Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak said. "I first met Oscar when he was 16 years old and will forever remember him as a wonderful young man who was a gifted athlete with an infectious love for life who lived every day to the fullest."

In 80 games this season, Taveras batted .239 with three home runs and 22 RBI.

Two weeks ago, he hit a home run in the Cardinals' 5-4 win over San Francisco in game two of the National League Championship Series.

His last appearance came in game five on October 16, when he grounded out as a pinch-hitter in the top of the ninth inning. He stayed in the contest to play left field.

Teammates and players expressed shock on social media. "Absolute tragedy," Cardinals teammate Matt Carpenter tweeted.

MLB commissioner Bud Selig issued a statement Sunday night and offered the league's condolences. He said the current World Series was being played with "heavy hearts... in the memory of these two young people."

"Oscar, a young member of the baseball family, was full of promise and at the dawn of a wonderful career in our game, evident in his game-tying home run against the Giants exactly two weeks ago."

Details about funeral arrangements are expected to be released later.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Ex-NBA player Blaylock face charges for car crash

Former NBA player Mookie Blaylock was indicted by a grand jury on 14 charges, including first-degree vehicular homicide, stemming from a car crash last year in Atlanta.

Blaylock, 47, is accused of causing a May 31, 2013 head-on crash that killed a mother of five and injured her husband. If convicted, the former Atlanta Hawks star could face up to 33 years in prison, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
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The NBA announced Thursday that it is moving forward in the process to force suspended Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling to sell the team.

The 10-member Advisory-Finance Committee met through a conference call and unanimously voted to pursue the ouster of Sterling as quickly as possible. The committee will meet again next week.
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Searching for a head coach for the third time in three years, the Los Angeles Lakers predictably include some big names on their wish list.

According to multiple reports, UConn's Kevin Ollie and Kentucky coach John Calipari are on the Lakers' short list. San Diego native Steve Kerr, considered a frontrunner for the New York Knicks' job, could also hear from the Lakers. And there are rumblings that the Lakers requested permission from the Chicago Bulls to speak with Tom Thibodeau.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Robin Thicke Crashes His Porsche, Gets Ride Home from Cops

Talk about things that go bump in the night ... how about Robin Thicke's black convertible Porsche?

The musician and Duets judge, 35, said he was leaving the Chateau Marmont on Hollywood's Sunset Boulevard on Tuesday night when another car cut him off – and sent him smack into a parked Volkswagen, police tell TMZ.

Reportedly, no one was injured, but the Porsche was totaled, according to photographs from the scene. The VW also was towed away.

TMZ says law enforcement does not believe alcohol or drugs were involved, and one officer even gave Thicke a lift home.

Thicke's camp did not have comment on the incident.

source: people.com

Lindsay Lohan escapes injury after major car crash

LOS ANGELES - Actress Lindsay Lohan escaped injury in a major car crash on Friday after her Porsche collided with an dump truck on a Southern California highway.

Police said Lohan was driving her black Porsche with an unidentified male passenger on the Pacific Coast Highway in Santa Monica on her way to the set of her latest movie project, and collided with a dump truck.

The actress and her passenger were taken to the hospital as a precaution, and released shortly after. Neither Lohan nor the driver of the truck were under the influence of drugs or alcohol, police said.

"Lindsay was involved in an automobile accident today on her way to the set....She is fine and was released less than two hours later and is already headed back to the set to resume work. Fortunately, no one was seriously injured in the accident," Lohan's publicist, Steve Honig, said in a statement.

Celebrity news website TMZ posted pictures of Lohan's Porsche following the incident, showing a crushed front and smashed windows.

Lohan, 26, is forging ahead with a comeback after a string of legal and personal troubles since 2007, including stints in jail, rehab and court. She was released in March from almost five years of formal probation stemming from a 2007 drunken driving and cocaine possession arrest.

The actress is currently playing late screen legend Elizabeth Taylor for a Lifetime TV movie "Liz & Dick," based on Taylor's love affair with actor Richard Burton.

source: interaksyon.com

US columnist, author Jeffrey Zaslow dies in car crash

DETROIT -- Jeffrey Zaslow, co-author of the best-seller "The Last Lecture" and award-winning Wall Street Journal columnist, was killed on Friday in a car crash in Michigan, the newspaper said.

Zaslow, 53, who was married to Detroit news anchor Sherry Margolis, had been in Petoskey, Michigan, on Thursday night for a book promotion and was driving back toward the Detroit area when the crash happened.

"Jeff's writing, for the Journal and in his books, has been a source of inspiration for many people around the world, and his journalistic life has been a source of inspiration for all journalists," Journal editor Robert Thomson said in a message to staff on Friday.

Antrim County Sheriff Daniel Bean released few details of the accident, reporting that a passenger car had lost control on a snow-covered road and slid into the path of a tractor-trailer, and that the car's driver died on impact.

Zaslow collaborated with former US Representative Gabrielle Giffords and her husband last year on a memoir about her path to recovery from a gunshot wound to the head suffered when a man opened fire at a constituent event in Tucson, Arizona, in January 2011, killing six people and wounding 12.

He also co-authored a book, "Highest Duty," with US Airways Captain Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger, who landed an airliner in the Hudson River after its engines were knocked out on takeoff with all passengers and crew rescued.

But Zaslow may be remembered most for "The Last Lecture," a New York Times best-seller that grew out of Carnegie Mellon computer science professor Randy Pausch's speech on death and living as he faced terminal cancer in 2007.

Zaslow, who is survived by his wife and three daughters, was promoting his latest book on Thursday night, "The Magic Room: A Story About the Love We Wish for Our Daughters."

source: interaksyon.com