A New Hampshire town and a bakery owner are headed for trial in a First Amendment dispute
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New York Post
28 minutes ago
- New York Post
Cat mom accuses Blue Angels of terrorizing her dying 14-year-old cat with ‘sonic barrage' practices: ‘It terrified her so much'
A Seattle cat mom accused the US Navy's Blue Angels of robbing her elderly cat of a peaceful death after their annual practices for a summer fair flyover caused a frequent 'sonic barrage' that would terrify the feline she loved like 'a daughter,' according to a lawsuit. Lauren Ann Lombardi's 14-year-old cat Layla died on Aug. 11, 2024 following a battle with heart disease that was only worsened by the Blue Angels' frequent overhead flying, she alleged in a federal civil complaint filed this week. 5 Lauren Lombardi sued the Blue Angels, alleging it violated her First Amendment right by blocking her on Instagram after she complained the crew's flyovers were terrorizing her cat Layla. Ever Loved 'I just wanted to share what happened to her. I wanted people to know, and I wanted there to be some sort of accountability for that. That's the main thing I wanted to get across was Layla's story,' Lombardi told The Post. The lawsuit hinges on the Blue Angels' alleged blockage of her Instagram account, which she claims violated her First Amendment rights. Every year, the Blue Angels participate in the Boeing Seafair Air Show in Seattle during the summer Seafair Festival. The flight squadron practices and performs over Lake Washington, which is just a few miles away from Lombardi's home. The noise from the flyovers would last for several minutes up to three times a day, she said. 'It's like what I imagine being in a war zone sounds like. It's very terrifying, it actually shook our house when they would go by,' Lombardi said. The cat mom lobbed her first tirade at the air squad in August 2023, her first summer living in the area after moving from the East Coast. 5 Layla, Lombardi's 14-year-old cat, passed away in August 2024. U.S. District Court Western District Of Washington At Seattle 'Stop with your F—king bulls–t you are terrorizing my cat and all the other animals and wildlife. Nobody gives a f–k about your stupid little planes,' Lombardi wrote to the squadron via Instagram. By then, the show had already started. The Blue Angels' Instagram account allegedly blocked Lombardi shortly after. She tried to reach out to call them 'cowards' in a direct message two days later, but it was apparently never delivered 'due to the blocking,' according to the lawsuit. 5 The Blue Angels perform every year at the Boeing Seafair Air Show in Seattle. AP 'I wasn't even expecting to get a response, I was just really angry. I know my messages weren't very nice, but I was just overcome with rage because it terrified her so much,' Lombardi said of Layla. 'The Blue Angels are really cool. Obviously, it's really impressive, but the harm is real greater than the good, and I just want people to know so they can form their own opinions. By them blocking me, it prevented me from being able to communicate that to people who otherwise wouldn't know how harmful it is.' Lombardi claimed that the squad's 'sonic barrage' sent an already-feeble Layla with mere weeks left to live into a panic again the following year. To try and calm her frail feline, Lombardi barricaded all points of sound entry in the house and even used her hands to block the elderly cat's ears. 5 Lombardi said she treated Layla like her own 'daughter.' U.S. District Court Western District Of Washington At Seattle The dedicated cat mom was 'traumatized' by Layla's tragic passing and retired early to ensure her honorary 'daughter' was comfortable during her final months, she said. 'She was everything to me. Pet doesn't even sound right to me, I refer to her as my daughter,' she said. A week after the 2024 fair, Layla was humanely euthanized. She spent the bulk of her final days hiding under furniture around the house, according to the complaint. Lombardi noted that she 'respects and supports' the US military, but still asserted that her feline's sundowning was 'pockmarked by debilitating terror brought on by the actions of the United States Government,' according to the complaint. She doesn't blame the armed forces for Layla's death — though the lawsuit is riddled with complaints about the cat's torment. Instead, she's looking for the Blue Angels to unblock her Instagram account and repay her expenses, including 'reasonable attorneys' fees,' according to the complaint. 5 The Blue Angels are a flight demonstration squadron for the US Navy. AP The lawsuit itself was penned by attorney Nacim Bouchtia, Lombardi's husband and Layla's human father, according to the cat's obituary. Lombardi also seeks to require a refresher course for the Blue Angels on the 'fundamental importance of the First Amendment which the brave men and women of the U.S. Navy are sworn to protect,' according to the complaint. Her two new cat children, Ozzy and Ziggy, named after the late rockstars Ozzy Osbourne and David Bowie, will be experiencing the Blue Angels' practice for the first time in just a few days. In Lombardi's ideal world, the air show would be nixed and replaced with something like a laser light show, but she acknowledged that eliminating the seven-decade tradition would be unrealistic. The Post reached out to the United States Navy for comment. A representative for the Blue Angels could not be reached directly.
New York Post
an hour ago
- New York Post
Doctor who tried saving ‘The Cosby Show' actor Malcolm-Jamal Warner speaks out for the first time
A doctor who was one of the bystanders who pulled Malcolm-Jamal Warner out of the water at Playa Cocles in Costa Rica recalled that the 'sea was rough' as he broke his silence over the 'The Cosby Show' star's tragic death. After Warner's accidental drowning, Playa Grande lifeguards confirmed they were 'not present' on the beach at the time of the incident due to a lack of 'resources.' 'I was about 200 meters from the incident, at Playa Grande, spending the day on vacation with my partner,' the doctor told Us Weekly, asking the outlet not to be named. Advertisement 4 A doctor who was one of the bystanders who pulled Malcolm-Jamal Warner out of the water at Playa Cocles in Costa Rica has spoken out for the first time. Simon Dannhauer – 'There were very few people on the beach, and the sea was rough.' After he heard some commotion and several cries for help, the doctor quickly rushed over to see the chaotic scene that unfolded in front of him. Advertisement 'I ran to the area and entered the sea with my surfboard, heading into the rip current toward the person being pointed at by some beachgoers,' he told the outlet. 'After a few minutes, I saw a shadow, dove down and pulled the person out.' Once the doctor managed to get to the shore, he noticed another bystander — who had helped rescue the actor — lying on the sand whilst struggling to catch his breath. 4 'The Cosby Show' star died at age 54 following an apparent drowning. Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP '[He was] just someone who tried to help during the emergency, without any rescue equipment,' the doctor added. Advertisement Following Warner's accidental drowning, lifeguards explained that Playa Grande is well known by 'local surfers' and is one of their 'most challenging beaches.' 'We deeply regret the passing of Malcolm-Jamal Warner at Playa Grande. He was swept away by a strong rip current and died by drowning,' Costa Rica's volunteer lifeguard association, Caribbean Guard, wrote on Facebook Monday. 4 Warner drowned while swimming near Cocles after allegedly being caught by a high current. malcolmjamalwar/Instagram 'It all happened very quickly, and although there were people on the beach who entered the water to rescue him, they did not arrive in time. He was pulled from underwater without vital signs, and despite CPR maneuvers being performed on the beach, resuscitation was unsuccessful.' Advertisement The statement added that there are signs placed along the beach in both Spanish and English 'warning of the danger of death due to drowning.' While lifeguards had previously patrolled the area 'over the past few years,' they were not present at the time of Warner's death. Start your day with all you need to know Morning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more. Thanks for signing up! Enter your email address Please provide a valid email address. By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Never miss a story. Check out more newsletters 'Due to recent aquatic incidents in Playa Negra, we had redirected resources there and to Chiquita, another iconic beach known for its strong currents,' the statement added. Warner drowned while swimming near Cocles after allegedly being caught by a high current on Sunday, between 2 and 2:30 p.m. local time. He was 54 years old. Costa Rica's national police told The Post that Warner was pulled from the water by people in the area and taken to shore, where they desperately attempted to save his life. 4 Warner was propelled to fame after landing the role of Theo Huxtable, the son of Bill Cosby's Cliff Huxtable, in 'The Cosby Show' from 1984 to 1992. NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images Advertisement The actor's body was taken to a morgue in San Joaquín de Flores for an autopsy. His cause of death is listed as asphyxiation by 'submersion,' according to officials. A second person who was caught in the same rip current that drowned the actor remains in a critical condition.
an hour ago
Female HR exec caught on Coldplay cam resigns after embrace with CEO went viral
The female executive who was caught on camera embracing the CEO of her company at a Coldplay concert in a moment that went viral has resigned, according to news reports. Multiple news outlets reported that Kristin Cabot, the executive in charge of human resources at tech company Astronomer, has resigned. Her departure follows the resignation of CEO Andy Byron, who quit after the company said he was being put on leave pending an investigation. The episode resulted in endless memes, parody videos and screenshots of the pair's shocked faces filling social media feeds Cabot and Byron were caught by surprise when singer Chris Martin asked the cameras to scan the crowd for his 'Jumbotron Song' during the concert last week at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. They were shown cuddling and smiling, but when they saw themselves on the big screen, Cabot's jaw dropped, her hands flew to her face and she spun away from the camera while Byron ducked out of the frame. 'Either they're having an affair or they're just very shy,' Martin joked in video that spread quickly around the internet. When the video first spread online it wasn't immediately clear who they were, but online sleuths rapidly figured out their identities. The company has previously confirmed the identities of the couple in a statement to the AP. Both of their profiles have been now removed from Astronomer's website and a November press release announcing her hiring has also been deleted. Astronomer was a previously obscure tech company based in New York. It provides big companies with a platform that helps them organize their data.
