Pennsylvania’s highest court threw out Bill Cosby’s sexual assault conviction and released him from prison Wednesday in a stunning reversal of fortune for the comedian once known as “America’s Dad,” ruling that the prosecutor who brought the case was bound by his predecessor’s agreement not to charge Cosby.Cosby, 83, flashed the V-for-victory sign to a helicopter overhead as he trudged into his suburban Philadelphia home after serving nearly three years of a three- to 10-year sentence for drugging and violating Temple University sports administrator Andrea Constand in 2004.The former “Cosby Show” star — the first celebrity tried and convicted in the #MeToo era — had no immediate comment.Cosby was arrested in 2015, when a district attorney armed with newly unsealed evidence — the comic’s damaging deposition in a lawsuit filed by Constand — brought charges against him just days before the 12-year statute of limitations was about to run out.But the Pennsylvania Supreme Court said Wednesday that District Attorney Kevin Steele, who made the decision to arrest Cosby, was obligated to stand by his predecessor’s promise not to charge Cosby, though there was no evidence that promise was ever put in writing.Justice David Wecht, writing for a split court, said …

The freshest faces among South Korean influencers are no longer the usual, 20-something celebrities. Instead, entertainment and social media are focusing on a new generation: the elder generation.   Older women were once invisible in South Korean entertainment as the industry stuck to rigidly conservative traditional female roles and cast them only as devoted mothers.   But older women are front and center in recent advertising and entertainment series.   A pioneer in the trend is Oscar winner Youn Yuh-jung, the 74-year-old “Minari” actor who promotes Oriental Brewery beer and the Zig Zag shopping app in two recent ad campaigns.   The beer video highlights the novelty of its spokesperson, who says: “For someone like me to be on a beer ad, the world has gotten so much better.” With a Cass beer in her hand, Youn says she makes friends by being her authentic self and alludes to the beer helping people to dissipate their social awkwardness. South Korean producer Kim Sehee said Youn’s Oscar win earlier this year inspired his entertainment series, “Wassup K-Grandma.” He said South Korean young people have a new interest in their elders, birthing a new word “harmaenial” — a portmanteau of the South …

Solstice Yoga returned to New York City’s Times Square in 2021, after being suspended last year because of the pandemic. The all-day event brought together over 2,000 enthusiasts with their yoga mats to the very heart of Times Square. Evgeny Maslov filed this story narrated by Anna Rice.Camera: Michael Eckels …

Pennsylvania’s highest court overturned  Bill Cosby’s sex assault conviction Wednesday after finding an agreement with a previous prosecutor prevented him from being charged in the case. Cosby has served more than two years of a three- to 10-year sentence at a state prison near Philadelphia. He had vowed to serve all 10 years rather than acknowledge any remorse over the 2004 encounter with accuser Andrea Constand. He was charged in late 2015, when a prosecutor armed with newly unsealed evidence — Cosby’s damaging deposition from her lawsuit — arrested him days before the 12-year statute of limitations expired. The court said that District Attorney Kevin Steele, who made the decision to arrest Cosby, was obligated to stand by his predecessor’s promise not to charge Cosby when he later gave potentially incriminating testimony in Constand’s civil suit. There was no evidence that promise was ever put in writing. Justice David Wecht, writing for a split court, said Cosby had relied on the former prosecutor’s decision not to charge him when he later gave potentially incriminating testimony in the Constand’s civil suit. They said that overturning the conviction, and barring any further prosecution, “is the only remedy that comports with society’s reasonable …

A former CIA operative known for his exploits everywhere from Miami to Nicaragua to Afghanistan has a book deal. Enrique “Ric” Prado’s “Black Ops: The Life of a CIA Shadow Warrior” will come out next March.  “A lot has been said about the CIA over the years,” Prado said in a statement Wednesday. “And a lot of it has been (expletive). I wrote ‘Black Ops’ to clear the name of my agency. I know the untold sacrifices that have been made for this country by devoted men and women who have served anonymously, as quiet heroes. I’m eager to share those stories now.” His book, subject to government review, was announced by St. Martin’s Press, a division of Macmillan.  Prado spent 24 years in the CIA before retiring in 2004. His assignments ranged from fighting with the Contras in Nicaragua in the 1980s — even after Congress had cut off U.S. support for the Contras — as they tried to overthrow the Sandinista government, to helping lead the hunt for Osama bin Laden, to overseeing SEAL Team Six missions into Afghanistan. Investigative reports in The Nation and a book by reporter Evan Wright have alleged that Prado has ties to organized crime …

Solstice Yoga returned to New York City’s Times Square in 2021, after being suspended last year because of the pandemic. The all-day event brought together over two thousand enthusiasts with their yoga mats to the very heart of Times Square. Evgeny Maslov filed this story narrated by Anna Rice.Camera: Michael Eckels …

They were once so close.Princes William and Harry grew up together, supported each other after their mother’s untimely death and worked side by side as they began their royal duties — two brothers seemingly bonded for life by blood, tradition and tragedy.But those links are now painfully strained as William sits in London defending the royal family from allegations of racism and insensitivity made by Harry and his wife, Meghan, from their new home in Southern California.Royal watchers will be looking closely for any signs of a truce — or deepening rift — on Thursday when William and Harry unveil a statue of their mother, Princess Diana, on what would have been her 60th birthday. The event in the Sunken Garden at London’s Kensington Palace will be their second public meeting since Harry and Meghan stepped away from royal duties over a year ago.A display to mark the 20th anniversary of the death of Britain’s Diana, Princess of Wales, a recreation of the desk where Princess Diana worked in her Sitting room at Kensington Palace, on display at Buckingham Palace in London, July 20, 2017.People shouldn’t expect a quick resolution of the conflict because the two men are fighting over …

A new, smaller version of the Statue of Liberty arrived Wednesday at Ellis Island in New York Harbor, a gift to the United States from France, 135 years after that nation presented the original Lady Liberty to the U.S.   The nearly-three-meter version of the statue arrived in New York after a nine-day journey across the Atlantic Ocean. The bronze statue is on loan for 10 years to the French embassy in Washington from the French National Conservatory of Arts and Crafts (CNAM). For the past decade it stood at the entrance to the National Museum of Arts and Crafts (the Musée des Arts et Métiers) in Paris. The French news agency reports the replica was created from a 3-D scan of the original plaster model from 1878 used by sculptor Auguste Bartholdi to build “La Liberté enlightening the world” offered by France to the United States in honor of its centennial in 1886.   During a ceremony in Paris earlier in June, as the replica was being packed up to be shipped, CNAM administrator Olivier Faron said the smaller statue is meant to reaffirm the friendship between France and the United States.   At the same ceremony, the interim …

Cuban screenwriter Delia  Fiallo, widely seen as “the mother of the telenovela” and the writer behind international hits like the soap opera “Crystal,” died Tuesday in Miami at the age of 96, her daughter-in-law confirmed to AFP. A pioneer of the wildly popular romantic soap operas in Latin America, Fiallo , whose career began in the middle of the last century, told AFP in an interview in 2018 that she wanted to be remembered “as a person who loved a lot and who was very loved.”Her daughter-in-law, Odalis Baez, confirmed her death. Adored by her fans, Fiallo left her mark on U.S. Hispanic popular culture in the second half of the 20th century. She started her career in Cuba in 1950 with radio soap operas before writing her first television screenplay in 1957. She then worked with Venezuelan television stations after leaving Communist Cuba for Miami in 1966, scripting popular shows like “Lucecita” in 1967, or global hits like “Esmeralda,” “Leonela,” “Cristal” and “Kassandra.”In all, she wrote more than 40 works for radio and television during her long career.The cause of her death was not immediately made public. …

Tennis great Serena Williams limped out of Wimbledon in tears on Tuesday after her latest bid for a record-equaling 24th Grand Slam singles crown ended in injury. The American sixth seed and seven-time Wimbledon winner was clearly in pain on a slippery Centre Court and sought treatment while 3-2 up in her first-round match against unseeded Belarusian Aliaksandra Sasnovich. Williams returned after a lengthy break, but the distress was evident. She grimaced and wiped away tears before preparing to serve at 3-3 after Sasnovich had pulled back from 3-1 down. Serena Williams, right, retires from the match against Aliaksandra Sasnovich in first round women’s singles on Centre Court at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, June 29, 2021. (Peter Van den Berg-USA Today Sports)The 39-year-old, who had started the match with strapping on her right thigh, then let out a shriek and sank kneeling to the grass sobbing, before being helped off the court. “I was heartbroken to have to withdraw today after injuring my right leg,” Williams wrote on Instagram. “My love and gratitude are with the fans and the team who make being on center court so meaningful. Feeling the extraordinary warmth and support of the crowd today when I walked on — and …

Officials in Greece say they have recovered two priceless paintings — one by Pablo Picasso and another by Dutch artist Piet Mondrian — stolen from the National Gallery in Athens in 2012.During a news briefing in Athens Tuesday, a spokesman said police acted on a tip and arrested a 49-year-old handyman who confessed to the crime. Police had originally believed the burglary had been the work of two people.The official offered details to reporters of how the man had plotted to steal the two paintings — Picasso’s 1939 “Woman’s Head” and Mondrian’s 1905 “Stammer Mill with Summer House.”He said the thief broke into the museum in the early morning hours, and, to mislead the guard on duty, had activated the alarm in one part of the gallery while he broke into another.He added the thief had originally hidden the paintings in his home but later wrapped them and hid them in a ravine in the town of Keratea, about 20 kilometers from Athens. They were recovered there Monday in good condition.Speaking at the same news conference, Greek Culture Minister Lina Mendoni said it was a day full of joy and emotion. She explained the Picasso painting is of special value …

Most people wouldn’t volunteer to walk through a minefield. Princess Diana did it twice. On Jan. 15, 1997, Diana walked gingerly down a narrow path cleared through an Angolan minefield, wearing a protective visor and flak jacket emblazoned with the name of The HALO Trust, a group devoted to removing mines from former war zones. When she realized some of the photographers accompanying her didn’t get the shot, she turned around and did it again. Later, she met with a group of landmine victims. A young girl who had lost her left leg perched on the princess’s lap. The images of that day appeared in newspapers and on TV sets around the globe, focusing international attention on the then-languishing campaign to rid the world of devices that lurk underground for decades after conflicts end. Today, a treaty banning landmines has 164 signatories. Those touched by the life of the preschool teacher turned princess remembered her ahead of what would have been her 60th birthday on Thursday, recalling the complicated royal rebel who left an enduring imprint on the House of Windsor. Diana had the “emotional intelligence that allowed her to see that bigger picture … but also to bring it …

The African wild dog, or African painted dog, is one of the world’s most endangered mammals, with fewer than 7,000 remaining, mostly because of human-wildlife conflict. In Zimbabwe, the Painted Dog Conservation group finds and removes thousands of snares every year that can kill or injure the dogs, and turns them into crafts to raise funds for their protection. Columbus Mavhunga reports from Hwange, Zimbabwe.     …

The African wild dog, or African painted dog, is one of the world’s most endangered mammals, with fewer than 7,000 remaining, mostly because of human-wildlife conflict.Situated near Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe’s biggest wildlife sanctuary, the Painted Dog Conservation’s anti-poaching unit removes and collects more than 3,000 snares a year set up by poachers.      David Kuvawoga, operations manager at Painted Dog Conservation, says that saves a number of animal lives, especially the endangered painted dogs.    “Poachers themselves do not target painted dogs, they target prey for painted dogs, which is mainly kudu and impala. But when they set the snares, they set in tracks where kudus and impala move, and painted dogs who are looking for food move in the same tracks as they track food,”  he said.   The anti-poaching unit is mainly made up of people from nearby villages who value wildlife, such as 27-year-old Belinda Ncube.    “Anti-poaching is important. I now know the importance of wildlife through anti-poaching. And we are saving animals, those animals which help us to get employed. Like now, I am employed. It’s also helping us to get tourists,” she said.   July Mhlanga, 53, is one of the artists benefiting from the snares collected from …

Asked to sum up her friendship with training partner and four-time Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles, Jordan Chiles doesn’t mince words: “She’s my ride-or-die.” With the Olympic trials wrapped up on Sunday, the 20-year-old is one of five Olympic newcomers set to compete for the highly decorated U.S. gymnastics team in Tokyo this summer, with 2016 veteran Biles, 24, one of the most decorated competitors in the history of the sport, leading the way. Chiles, who ranked third overall during the two-day competition at St. Louis, Missouri, nearly quit the sport in 2018 and said she credits Biles with helping her to this point in her career. FILE – Simone Biles, left, and Jordan Chiles look over a rotation schedule during practice for the senior women’s competition at the 2019 U.S. Gymnastics Championships, in Kansas City, Mo., Aug. 11, 2019.”I thank her 24/7 and it’s something that I wish a lot of people had that same experience,” said Chiles. “She will forever be my partner in crime.” Sunisa Lee, 18, who came in second behind Biles in the all-around at the nationals and finished with a higher score on the second night, and 18-year-old Grace McCallum rounded out the four-person team. MyKayla Skinner, 24, who …

For the second consecutive year, the lingering pandemic consigned New York’s annual Pride march Sunday to the virtual world, even as its alter-ego, the Queer Liberation March, took its edgier message through the streets of Manhattan.The NYC Pride march, the city’s marquee LGBTQ+ event now in its 51st year, became a made-for-TV production as a cautionary measure to prevent coronavirus infections, which have dropped sharply as the number of vaccinated people has grown.Only a small number of guests were invited to the three-block area where the group’s floats and musical acts paraded for the cameras, but organizer Sue Doster said “something in the millions” of viewers were expected to tune in.Guests included Brandon Wolf, a survivor of the June 2016 mass shooting at the Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, who has since become an advocate for LGBTQ rights legislation.“Six days after the shooting, we had a funeral service for my best friend and I made a promise to him that day that I would never stop fighting for a world that he would be proud of,” he told ABC, which aired the event.“We’ve made incredible progress in equality across the country, but trans people are under attack,” he …

A large, newly restored area of the Colosseum, which used to be the underground backstage of the ancient Roman amphitheater, is now accessible to the public for the first time. Visitors can use a newly constructed wooden walkway to admire the tunnels and chambers under the arena that were used by wild animals and human performers before they joined the action in front of large audiences.A team of more than 80 experts, including archaeologists, engineers and restorers, worked on the Colosseum’s hypogeum for two years. The project was the second phase in a major restoration of the iconic landmark that began in September 2013. Funding was provided by Diego Della Valle’s Tod’s fashion group. At the time, Della Valle pledged 25 million euros for the ambitious and complicated feat.Diego Della Valle, who funded the works at the Colosseum. (Sabina Castelfranco/VOA)Speaking at the opening of the hypogeum, Della Valle expressed satisfaction at what has been achieved so far for a monument that “the whole world loves.” He also praised the decision that allowed the public and private sectors to come together “for a good cause.”Alfonsina Russo, director of the archaeological park of the Colosseum, said “a monument within a monument has …

Dr. Rania Awaad was attending a virtual religion program this Ramadan when discussion turned to an unexpected question: Is it religiously acceptable to say a prayer for someone who died by suicide?Suicide is a complex and delicate topic that Awaad, as director of the Muslim Mental Health & Islamic Psychology Lab at Stanford University, knows much about — but one she says isn’t discussed nearly enough in U.S. Muslim communities. When it is, she said, it’s often poorly understood and shrouded in misconceptions.Awaad and other mental health professionals are trying to change that, working alongside some faith leaders and activists to bring nuance and compassion to such conversations, raise awareness in Muslim communities about suicide prevention and mental health and provide religiously and culturally sensitive guidance.The effort took on new urgency in the aftermath of an apparent murder-suicide that left six family members dead in Allen, Texas, in April, sending shock waves through Muslim communities in the area and beyond. Investigators believe two brothers made a pact to kill their parents, sister and grandmother before taking their own lives.The incident sparked a flurry of activity in Muslim spaces, from public discussions on mental health and trainings on suicide response to …

Zhang Zhizhen qualified for Wimbledon on Thursday to become the first Chinese man in the Open era to play in the Grand Slam tournament.The 24-year-old defeated Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo 6-0, 6-3, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (6) in the final round of qualifying to make the main draw.Ranked 178th in the world, Shanghai native Zhang is the only Chinese man in the world top 250.He is also only the fourth Chinese man to play singles in the main draw of a Grand Slam since 1968, after Wu Di at the Australian Open in 2013, 2014 and 2016; Zhang Ze at the Australian Open in 2014 and 2015, and Li Zhe at the 2019 Australian Open.Until Thursday, Zhang had tried and failed to qualify for this year’s Australian Open and French Open.”My full name is too hard for people to say, so I just tell them to say whatever they want to call me and I will respond,” he said recently when explaining his nickname of “ZZZ.””Then it became ‘ZZZ’ because there are three Z’s in my name. It is much easier for people outside of China to say. And it sounds cool. Triple-Z. I also like to sleep, so ‘ZZZ’ is perfect,” …

After 13 years of near silence in the conservatorship that controls her life and money, Britney Spears passionately told a judge Wednesday that she wants to end the “abusive” case that has made her feel demoralized and enslaved.Speaking in open court for the first time in the case, Spears condemned her father and others who control the conservatorship, which she said has compelled her to take birth control and other medications against her will and has prevented her from getting married or having another child.”This conservatorship is doing me way more harm than good,” the 39-year-old Spears said. “I deserve to have a life.”She spoke rapidly and sprinkled profanity into the written speech that lasted more than 20 minutes as her parents, fans and journalists listed to an audio livestream. Many of the details Spears revealed have been carefully guarded by the court for years.Spears told Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Brenda Penny that “I want to end this conservatorship without being evaluated.”Penny thanked the pop star for her “courageous” words but made no rulings. A long legal process is likely before any decision is made on terminating the conservatorship.Spears said she wants to marry her boyfriend Sam Asghari and …

With the Olympics in Tokyo now just a month away, Somalia is set to send its first female taekwondo athlete to the games in Japan.   No athlete representing Somalia has ever a won a medal at the Olympics, but 20-year-old Munirah Warsame is working hard to be the first when she competes at the summer games.   The taekwondo athlete was born in Britain after her parents fled violence in Somalia.   Warsame says flying the flag of her home country in Japan will be a proud moment.   “Feelings of representing my country in the Olympics for the first time is unreal as I have dreamed about this my whole life since literally the age of six when I first started Taekwondo. And also it is such an exciting experience; I foresaw it representing my home country for my first at the Olympics and, inshallah (God willing), I will do myself and my country proud,” Warsame said.   According to the Somali Olympics committee, at least six athletes will represent the country in Tokyo in three categories: taekwondo, boxing, and track and field.   Taekwondo coach Dudley Ricardo says his team is very well prepared despite its financial …

In the most anticipated hearing in the case in years, Britney Spears is expected to address a judge overseeing the conservatorship that has controlled the pop star’s money and affairs since 2008. If Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Brenda Penny does not make a last-minute decision. Wednesday to seal the proceedings, Spears’ words will be heard in open court for the first time in the 13-year conservatorship. The hearing has been eagerly awaited by the fans in the so-called #FreeBritney movement, who feel she is being controlled unfairly against her will and are likely to gather outside the courthouse in large numbers. Spears, who is scheduled to take part remotely, asked for the hearing so she could address the court directly. Her court-appointed attorney, Samuel Ingham III, made the request at an April 28 hearing. He gave no indication of what the 39-year-old pop star wants to say. But in recent court filings, Spears has sought a greater say over who runs the conservatorship, and has asked that her father, who had extensive power over her life and money for most of its existence, be removed. Spears said through Ingham that she fears her father James Spears, and would not …

Japanese soccer player Kumi Yokoyama said they are transgender — a revelation praised in the U.S. where they play in the National Women’s Soccer League but an identity not legally recognized in Japan. The 27-year-old forward for the Washington Spirit said they felt more comfortable with their own gender identity while living in the United States, where teammates and friends are more open to gender and sexual diversity.   “I’m coming out now,” Yokoyama said in a video talk on former teammate Yuki Nagasato’s YouTube channel. “In the future, I want to quit soccer and live as a man.” Yokoyama’s revelation was praised by President Joe Biden.   “To Carl Nassib and Kumi Yokoyama – two prominent, inspiring athletes who came out this week: I’m so proud of your courage. Because of you, countless kids around the world are seeing themselves in a new light today,” Biden tweeted.To Carl Nassib and Kumi Yokoyama – two prominent, inspiring athletes who came out this week: I’m so proud of your courage. Because of you, countless kids around the world are seeing themselves in a new light today.— President Biden (@POTUS) June 23, 2021Nassib  is the first active NFL player to come out …

Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Carl Nassib on Monday became the first active NFL player to come out as gay.   Nassib, who is entering his sixth NFL season and second with the Raiders, announced the news on Instagram, saying he wasn’t doing it for the attention but because he felt representation and visibility were important. “I just wanted to take a quick moment to say that I’m gay,” Nassib said in his video message from his home in West Chester, Pennsylvania. “I’ve been meaning to do this for a while now, but I finally feel comfortable enough to get it off my chest. “I really have the best life. I got the best family, friends and job a guy can ask for. I’m a pretty private person, so I hope you guys know that I’m really not doing this for attention. I just think that representation and visibility are so important.” Nassib added in a written message that followed the video that he “agonized over this moment for the last 15 years” and only recently decided to go public with his sexuality after receiving the support of family and friends. “I am also incredibly thankful for the NFL, my …