Latest news with #Boston.com
Daily Mirror
5 days ago
- Daily Mirror
Flight attendant jailed after teenage girl finds phone taped to plane toilet
Estes Carter Thompson III has been jailed for 18 years by a Boston court after a 14-year-old girl discovered a phone crudely taped to the underside of the American Airlines plane toilet seat A pervert has been jailed after taping his phone to the lid of an airplane toilet to film young girls. American Airlines attendant Estes Carter Thompson III pleaded guilty earlier this year after he was found to have recorded five underage girls over nine months working with the airline. He was also found with a collection of AI-generated images of child sexual abuse. As he was sent down for 18-and-a-half years on Wednesday, the 37-year-old apologised, branding his actions "selfish, perverse and wrong". District judge Julia Kobick said his filming of the children had stolen their innocence, calling his behaviour "appalling". In a sentencing memorandum seen by federal prosecutors said he had been 'recording videos of the children's bodies in one of their most private moments, and then storing, editing, and revisiting those videos, all for his own sexual gratification." He 'robbed five young girls of their innocence and belief in the goodness of the world and the people they would encounter in it, instead leaving them with fear, mistrust, insecurity, and sadness,' prosecutors said. In September 2023, he was finally rumbled after escorting a 14-year-old to the toilet. While doing so, he asked to enter before her so he could wash his hands - and told her the toilet seat was not working. The girl inspected the underside of the seat and found an iPhone hidden crudely under some red stickers which said "seat broken". With her own phone, the girl took photos of the hidden device and showed them to her parents when she got back to her seat. Thompson was confronted by the girl's father, leading him to hide in the bathroom for the rest of the flight. While hiding in the cubicle, he deleted all of the data from his phone. But police trawled his iCloud data and found additional recordings of four other girls aged seven, nine, 11 and 14. He also had a video of an unaccompanied nine-year-old sleeping in her seat. In his suitcase, they discovered more red stickers like those found on the toilet seat. In March, he pleaded guilty to attempted sexual exploitation of children and possession of child pornography depicting a prepubescent minor. He is being sent to FMC Butner in North Carolina, where he is expected to undergo sex offender treatment. After his initial sentence, he will have to serve a further five under supervised release. American Airlines immediately sacked Thompson. However, a civil lawsuit has been launched against the company by one of the victims' families. Texas-based law firm Lewis & Llewellyn, which is representing the family, said Thompson's ability to exploit his position was "deeply troubling", adding: 'American Airlines owes these families — and the public — answers and meaningful reforms to ensure this can never happen again."
Axios
07-07-2025
- Business
- Axios
BU lays off 120 amid federal spending cuts
Boston University plans to lay off 120 people and slash 120 more vacant jobs to reduce spending. Why it matters: The college is the latest Boston-area institution shedding jobs, citing federal spending cuts. State of play: BU reduced its budget 5% for fiscal 2026, which includes layoffs, reported Monday. The layoffs represent 1% of total employees. In addition to the 240 job cuts, 20 positions will undergo a change in schedule. BU didn't say how that relates to the spending cuts. What they're saying: BU President Melissa Gilliam wrote in a letter to students that amid the federal funding cuts, "uncertainty remains about the full extent of potential challenges to our core mission of teaching, learning, and research." Gilliam also cited factors such as rising inflation, declining graduate enrollment and the need to adapt to new technologies. The layoffs come shortly after the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard recently laid off 75 workers, the Boston Business Journal reported.
Boston Globe
16-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
‘Going forward, any children in our taproom or beer garden must be SEATED.' Norton brewery takes stand against unruly kids.
The brewery said 'we put off implementing this as long as we could but posting the previous policy did almost nothing as we very often still had children simply running through the space, climbing on furniture, and almost every Monday morning, the landscaping rocks in our beer garden are thrown all over the place.' Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up The previous policy had asked parents to keep children 'within reach at all times.' Advertisement Bog Iron Brewing is over their children, according to 'Look, we love your kids, but sometimes they can be, well … kids. This is your gentle reminder that when you bring yours to the taproom, our staff and our games are not meant to be their babysitters,' the brewery wrote. 'We ask that you supervise and be near your kids at all times and do not allow them to run around the taproom or yell loudly. Our staff shouldn't need to search the entire taproom to figure out where someone's parent is.' Advertisement The Rhode Island brewery also asked families to treat their arcade games and shuffleboard table 'kindly and with respect.' 'While it can be tempting, we ask that you or your kids don't slam arcade and pinball buttons or aggressively hurl shuffleboard pucks across the table,' the post said. 'These games are meant for all patrons, NOT just your children. Please be sure they share and allow others to get a turn (without bothering them.)' Notch Brewing, a Massachusetts-based brewery with 'Our Salem & Brighton tap room policy of 21+ after 6PM on the weekends will now be extended to seven days a week, and this policy includes toddlers and babies,' the brewery wrote on The issue of children running rampant isn't just limited to breweries, of course. In March, Charlie Redd, the owner of Dragon Pizza in Somerville, sparked a social media furor by recounting how he Advertisement 'To all our guests with children: Anyone who has visited our restaurant knows we are a pizza shop that loves kids,' Redd said it was the only time a family had been asked to leave his restaurant. 'It makes us very sad, but we refuse to allow entitled lazy parents to damage our reputation and the overall dining experience for all our guests,' he wrote. 'Respect restaurants. Bring your family to them. Raise your family in them. We are your community too.' Brian Shurtleff, the owner of Bog Iron Brewing, views his establishment, which has a full kitchen, no differently than a restaurant that serves alcohol, and noted that the 'large majority' of families who visit don't pose any problems. 'This is a policy that we shouldn't have to tell people. This should be common knowledge,' Shurtleff said in a phone interview. 'The fact that it's not ... is frustrating.' The new policy was put in place because of a small number of families letting their kids run around, he said. 'We're certainly not unique in any way,' he said. 'This isn't a playground.' The brewery's Facebook post received more than 790 reactions and 180 comments, generally supporting the decision. 'Parents should be parenting or spring for babysitter,' one person wrote. Advertisement 'Children should not be in a taproom,' another declared. 'Adults can still run screaming through the beer garden, though, right?' another quipped. Emily Sweeney can be reached at
Los Angeles Times
13-06-2025
- Sport
- Los Angeles Times
A White Sox cap at the Vatican? Pope Leo XIV is ‘like any other guy in Chicago on the South Side'
Pope Leo XIV is a huge Chicago White Sox fan. It's a good thing too — otherwise the event being thrown in his honor at the team's home stadium this weekend might be a little awkward. While the White Sox play the Rangers in Texas on Saturday afternoon, the Archdiocese of Chicago will be at Rate Field celebrating the new leader of the Catholic Church — who was born and raised on the city's South Side — with a Mass by Chicago Archbishop Blase J. Cupich and other festivities. While the man once known as Robert Prevost won't be there in person, he will appear in what event organizers describe as 'a video message from Pope Leo XIV to the young people of the world.' Leo will also be represented in mural form. The White Sox unveiled a graphic installation featuring his likeness on a concourse wall before a May 19 game against the Seattle Mariners, less than two weeks after Leo was selected as the first U.S.-born pope. He replaced Pope Francis, who died on April 21 at age 88. The graphic was installed next to Section 140, where Leo sat in Row 19, Seat 2 for Game 1 of the 2005 World Series between the White Sox and Houston Astros. As remarkable as it might sound, there is footage from Fox's national broadcast of that Oct. 22, that shows the man then-known as Father Bob in the stands at the stadium then-known as U.S. Cellular Field. Hosting a World Series game for the first time since 1959, the White Sox led by two runs with one out in the top of the ninth inning. Chicago closer Bobby Jenks had just thrown a 95-mph fastball past Houston's Adam Everett for an 0-1 count and was preparing for his next pitch. That's when the camera panned to a nervous-looking Father Bob, who appears to be wearing a team jacket over a team jersey. Viewers never got to see the future pope's reaction to what happens next, but he must have been ecstatic as Jenks strikes out Everett in two more pitches for a 5-3 Chicago win. The White Sox would go on to sweep the Astros for their first World Series win since 1917. 'That was his thing. He liked to get out and go to a game once in a while,' Louis Prevost told the Chicago Tribune of his brother, the future pope. 'Eat a hot dog. Have some pizza. Like any other guy in Chicago on the South Side.' His favorite team may have fallen on harder times since then — the White Sox are an American League-worst 23-45 and 20.5 games behind the first-place Detroit Tigers in the Central Division — but Leo is still willing to put his fandom on display for the world to see. On Wednesday, he wore a White Sox hat along with his traditional papal cassock while blessing newly married couples in St. Peter's Square outside the Vatican. Kelly and Gary DeStefano, who live in Haverhill, Mass., and are Boston Red Sox fans, gave him the hat. Kelly DeStefano told they were just trying to get the new pope's attention. 'I just wanted to make sure everyone at home knew that we did not turn on our team,' she told 'It was all in joke and good fun.' It worked, with reporting that Leo gave the couple a good-natured ribbing once he found out where they are from. 'You're going to get in trouble for this,' he told them, in a video of the meeting. 'Don't tell anyone in Massachusetts,' Kelly DeStefano replied. While Leo might be a little too busy to attend a game anytime soon, White Sox executive vice president, chief revenue and marketing officer Brooks Boyer said last month that the pope is welcome to return to Rate Field whenever he wants. 'He has an open invite to throw out a first pitch,' Boyer said. 'Heck, maybe we'll let him get an at-bat.'
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Yahoo
Turtleboy Sr. Editor Aidan Kearney Found 'Not Guilty'
Aidan Kearney, the blogger also known as @DoctorTurtleboy, was found not guilty of violating a restraining order, he shared on X. The verdict was given in a bench trial in front of Judge Michael J. Pomarole, which Kearney said he agreed to have instead of a jury trial. Mark Bederow, a New York City defense attorney who represents Kearney, shared more details in his own post on X. "Aidan Kearney @DoctorTurtleboy has been found NOT GUILTY in connection with an alleged violation of a restraining order in favor of Lindsey Gaetani. Another great job by co-counsel Tim Bradl," Bederow wrote. However, Kearney is still facing other charges. Bederow noted that he has "3 more to go in Superior Court." In the course of reporting on the Karen Read trial for the murder of a Boston Police officer, Kearney was accused of violating a restraining order when Kearney's ex-girlfriend showed up to the Karen Read trial hearing, which Kearney was attending. According to his attorney Tim Bradl, Kearney 'followed police directions and left the Courthouse to a location approved by the police, and took all good faith effort to comply with the order.' Bradl wrote in a court filing, reported on by 'It is clear from the affidavits that the complainant engineered the entire encounter and had to resort to lying to police when Mr. Kearney acted appropriately and did not violate the order.' Bradl continued, writing, 'She showed up to the Karen Read Court proceedings for the first time, and used the order to flush Mr. Kearney out of the Courtroom.' Today's acquittal is only the the first step for Kearney, who faces several felony charges in Superior Court. Kearney has faced legal battles before. His speech on his blog was famously defended by the ACLU in 2019 in a separate case. Turtleboy Sr. Editor Aidan Kearney Found 'Not Guilty' first appeared on Men's Journal on Jun 12, 2025
