Five people have been charged in connection with the death of Friends star Matthew Perry. US authorities are bracing for a highly contagious and severe strain of Mpox. A cozy crowd of 92,000 fans (including this writer!!) attended Taylor Swift’s European leg of the Eras Tour in London last night after previous shows had to be canceled due to a suspected terrorist attack.
🙋🏼‍♀️ I am Nicole Fallert, Author of the Daily Briefing. Missed the Olympic Games in Paris? We have “Emily in Paris.”
A famous actor, doctors with bad intentions and a “ketamine queen”
Investigators outlined a series of events and actors that led to Matthew Perry’s death and charged five people on Thursday who ultimately led to the end of the “Friends” star’s life.
Officials from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration said the five defendants “played a key role in (Perry’s) death by improperly prescribing, selling or injecting the drug ketamine.”
- The day Perry died: The actor’s live-in assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, injected Perry with ketamine, as he had done several times before, but without the required medical authorization to perform the injections.
- Where did the drugs come from? Doctor Salvador Plasencia and Jasveen Sangha, dubbed the “Ketamine Queen” of North Hollywood in the Justice Department press release, face 18 counts for allegedly “distributing ketamine during the final weeks of Perry’s life.”
- “Perry’s journey began with unscrupulous doctors who abused their positions of trust”: Plasencia is said to have sold the drug even though she knew that Perry’s ketamine addiction was “getting out of control.”
Is the US prepared for MPOX?
American authorities are preparing after Mpox was declared a global health emergency on Thursday. The Mpox virus circulating in Congo and a dozen other African countries, and now Sweden, is a different strain than the one that has been circulating in the United States since a global outbreak began in 2022. This strain is considered more contagious and the symptoms are more severe.
Other news you should know now
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When will the war end?
Israel has achieved most of its objectives against Hamas in Gaza, but it is unlikely to eliminate the militant movement by continuing fighting that has cost an estimated 40,000 lives, current and former U.S. officials say. As U.S. arms sales continue, some officials wonder whether Israel’s military has hit a wall in Gaza. Read more
Black women are in charge at this year’s DNC
It was only a few weeks ago that Vice President Kamala Harris became the Democratic Party’s likely presidential candidate. For the first time, Next week, a woman of color will officially become the presidential nominee of a major political party. And black women will play most of the key roles in running the Democratic National Convention – the party’s most important showcase. Black women have consistently delivered big victories to the Democrats for years. Now they are at the head of the DNC.
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Are you eating cereal while reading this? It might contain rocket fuel.
Ernesto was upgraded to a Category 2 hurricane
Ernesto strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane late Thursday as it headed toward Bermuda, threatening heavy winds and heavy rains over the weekend after hundreds of thousands were left without power in Puerto Rico. The storm is moving at 14 mph (22.5 kph) and is expected to begin dumping heavy rains on Bermuda on Friday before moving near or over the island on Saturday. Read more
Photo of the day: Taylor Swift returns to the Eras stage
Police wearing “Swiftie” friendship bracelets kept order at London’s Wembley Stadium on Thursday night as Taylor Swift returned to the stage for the final stop of the European leg of the Eras Tour after a suspected terrorist attack was foiled in Vienna. Security was tight as 92,000 fans danced and celebrated the pop star’s musical eras. And the screams were deafening when Ed Sheeran made a surprise appearance.
Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer for USA TODAY. Sign up for the email newsletter here. Want to send Nicole a message? Email her at [email protected].
