Justin Rohrlich

ReutersA family aboard a Boeing 777 jetliner that suddenly dropped from the sky after takeoff and almost crashed is suing United Airlines over the harrowing incident they say nearly killed three generations of kin in one fell swoop.“This litigation arises out of the near death of eleven members of the Maltz family on United Airlines Flight 1722 on December 18, 2022, due to the negligence of United Airlines, Inc. and its flight crew,” according to a lawsuit filed April 24 in Chicago federal court and obtained by The Daily Beast. “As described below, the Boeing 777 aircraft came within seconds of crashing into the Pacific Ocean nearly resulting in the deaths of the entire… Maltz family, and subjecting them to extreme terror and emotional distress during the aircraft’s precipitous dive and near miss with the ocean.”California residents Scott and Susan Maltz, along with their three adult children, their son- and daughter-in-law, and their four grandchildren, blame United for turning their “idyllic family vacation… into a nightmare,” the suit states.Read more at The Daily Beast.

Giorgio Viera/AFP via GettyAfter weeks of bellyaching and carrying on about how he would “not be allowed” to take a day off from his criminal hush-money trial to attend his 18-year-old son Barron’s high school graduation, Donald Trump will, in fact, be permitted to go, Judge Juan Merchan said Tuesday. Following the first day of proceedings earlier this month, Trump lambasted Merchan, ranting, “[I]t looks like the judge will not let me go to the graduation of my son.” Moments later, he expressed displeasure because the trial made it so “that I can’t go to my son’s graduation.” The former president also took to Truth Social to slam Merchan well in advance of any ruling, writing: “Who will explain for me, to my wonderful son, Barron, who is a GREAT Student at a fantastic School, that his Dad will likely not be allowed to attend his Graduation Ceremony, something that we have been talking about for years, because a seriously Conflicted and Corrupt New York State Judge wants me in Criminal Court on a bogus ‘Biden Case’ which, according to virtually all Legal Scholars and Pundits, has no merit, and should NEVER have been brought.” Read more at The Daily Beast.

Photo Illustration by Luis G. Rendon/The Daily Beast/Getty Images/Courtesy of Keren SitaAn Airbnb guest alleges her “attractiveness” became too much to bear for her spiteful host, whom she claims essentially pushed her out the door over fears her publishing-exec-cum-alpaca-farmer husband would fall for her during her stay.In an eye-popping federal lawsuit obtained by The Daily Beast, 23-year-old Keren Sita, an aspiring law student who was crowned 2017’s Miss Black Vermont, says Marcia Meinerth, 77, couldn’t handle having a “young hot Black girl” in the house, and made things increasingly miserable for her until she finally packed up and went elsewhere.“The intensifying animosity” was solely “based on superficial attributes,” according to Sita’s complaint. Meinerth “appeared to project her frustrations and insecurities onto me… leading to tensions in our interactions,” the complaint states. “She treated me like I was going to steal her unattractive and old husband.”Read more at The Daily Beast.

Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty ImagesAs the first week of testimony in Donald Trump’s criminal trial wrapped up Friday, former tabloid king David Pecker was on the defensive.Trump defense attorney Emil Bove already faced a tongue-lashing on Thursday from the judge—New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan—over the way Bove was “misleading” the jury as he cross-examined Pecker about the hush-money payments that went to Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election.But Bove picked up right where he left off on Friday, asking Pecker detailed questions about specific aspects of Pecker’s previous testimony, looking for any inconsistencies in the publishing magnate’s recollections to plant a seed of reasonable doubt in jurors’ minds.Read more at The Daily Beast.

Nordin Catic/GettyMaking a deal with a porn star who said she slept with Donald Trump was a step too far even for tabloid king David Pecker, he testified on Thursday. The American Media Inc. (AMI) chief told jurors he had grave concerns that buying her story in a “catch-and-kill” scheme to protect the future president could potentially sully the National Enquirer’s reputation.Pecker was out to dinner with his wife when then-Enquirer Editor-in-Chief Dylan Howard contacted him and said two of his “best sources” had gotten in touch and said an adult film actress named Stormy Daniels was “trying to sell a story that she had a sexual relationship with Donald Trump.”Read more at The Daily Beast.

Oklahoma State Bureau of InvestigationA fifth suspect has been arrested in connection with the deaths of two women who went missing last month and were later found buried in a rural Oklahoma cattle pasture.The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation announced it picked up 31-year-old Paul Grice on Wednesday, who was booked into the Texas County Jail on two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of kidnapping, and one count of conspiracy to commit murder in the first degree. He and four others are accused of killing 27-year-old Veronica Butler and 39-year-old Jilian Kelley, who disappeared on March 30.The two were driving to pick up Butler’s two kids for a weekly visit amid an intense custody battle between Butler and the youngsters’ grandmother, 54-year-old Tifany Machel Adams, when they were ambushed and murdered, according to police.Read more at The Daily Beast.

Photo Illustration by Luis G. Rendon/The Daily Beast/Getty ImagesA corporate restructuring attorney at a high-powered New York City law firm is suing his ex-boyfriend for allegedly dognapping his beloved miniature poodle and holding her hostage at an apartment in Midtown Manhattan, plunging him into a grievous state of emotional distress.In a six-figure civil lawsuit obtained by The Daily Beast, Akin Gump associate Taylor Leighton says he wants back his pet—who is named for onetime child actress Raven-Symoné and a member of The Real Housewives of New York City cast—plus more than $200,000 in damages.“Raven is more than a dog to me,” Leighton wrote in an affidavit submitted alongside a complaint filed Tuesday in New York State Supreme Court. “I consider her to be my child. As an illustration to this Court of my love for Raven, I planned an extravagant first birthday party for her in the apartment. I spent several days planning and decorating, including blowing up hundreds of balloons and placing decals on the wall to give Raven a special day. Defendant, of course, participated in the festivities but it was me who took the lead on all planning and implementation.”Read more at The Daily Beast.

The Daily Beast/Marin County SheriffThe child of billionaire businessman Stewart Butterfield is missing, and authorities believe the teen may have run away to San Francisco’s seedy Tenderloin district.According to the Marin County Sheriff’s Office, Mint Butterfield, 16, was last seen around 10 p.m. Sunday night in Bolinas, a coastal community of roughly 1,500 people. They were reported missing early the next morning by their mother, entrepreneur Caterina Fake.“Mint has brown/reddish curly hair and their eyebrows are pierced,” Deputy Jose Suarez posted to neighborhood networking site NextDoor. “They were last seen wearing a black sweatshirt, flannel pajama pants, and black boots. They possibly had a gray suitcase with them. Mint is approximately 5’0” tall and 100 lbs.”Read more at The Daily Beast.

Victor J. Blue-Pool/Getty ImagesDonald Trump just can’t help himself.New York State Supreme Court Judge Juan Merchan handed down a gag order last month—which he expanded last week—barring the former president from badmouthing or threatening jurors, potential witnesses, attorneys, court staff, or their family members, due to Trump’s penchant for making “threatening, inflammatory, [or] denigrating” statements about those who dare cross him.Still, the 45th commander-in-chief—now facing 34 felony charges for falsifying business records related to, among other things, a $130,000 payoff to porn star Stormy Daniels to shut her up in the days leading to the 2016 presidential election about a one-night stand she says they had—was unable to hold back on Monday.Read more at The Daily Beast.

Jane Rosenberg/ReutersFormer National Enquirer boss David Pecker may have once modeled his management style on Donald Trump, but on Monday, he locked his gaze firmly away from the former president as he testified against him in Manhattan Criminal Court.Trump, on the other hand, stared a hole right through his old pal during his time on the stand, which ended abruptly in less than 30 minutes due to a juror’s dental emergency.The 72-year-old publishing magnate on Monday became the first-ever witness to appear in a criminal trial over alleged crimes involving a former U.S. president. He told the jury, in response to questioning by the defense, that he was there thanks to a subpoena requiring him to appear. Prosecutors say Pecker, who is not formally charged with any wrongdoing, was part of a conspiracy cooked up by Trump and his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, to deep-six any unflattering news about the then-presidential candidate so as not to harm his chances of winning the 2016 election that put him in the Oval Office.Read more at The Daily Beast.