Her Ladyship, Chief Justice Mabel Agyemang’s contract extended until 2026
His Excellency the Governor Nigel Dakin has accepted the Judicial Service Commission’s (JSC) recommendation to extend Her Ladyship, Chief Justice Mabel Agyemang’s contract until March 2026.
The Governor said he was very pleased to accept the JSC’s recommendation, given the zeal exhibited by the Chief Justice, and the changes she has made to better the judicial system of the Turks and Caicos Islands.
As part of her successes, she helped lead the way with virtual trials during the COVID 19 pandemic, established A mediation centre and associated rules.
There is now a restorative justice programme, and a new judicial and legal education institute, and civil procedure rules that will help to modernise the courts.
Just last week a contract was signed by the Chief Justice to deliver electronic filing and the Chief Justice’s website provides new resources, which includes practice directions.
She also chairs the monthly criminal justice stakeholder group that allows all those who lead in the justice sector to come together to solve shared challenges.
Her biggest task and one which she would like to see through completion was after the death of Judge Paul Harrison, her Ladyship chose to take on the most complex trial in TCIs history - the SIPT investigation.
Antigua & Barbuda prepares for election
Antigua and Barbuda’s Electoral Commission has confirmed that 53 candidates have successfully submitted their bids to be on the ballot for this month’s general election.
The ruling Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party (ABLP) has candidates for all 16 electoral districts in Antigua and the one in Barbuda.
The United Progressive Party (UPP) and the recently established Democratic National Alliance (DNA) have submitted candidates only for the 16 seats in Antigua.
The Barbuda People’s Movement (BPM) has only submitted one candidate.
Three independent candidates will also contest the election.
Elections in Antigua and Barbuda are set to take place on January 18th, 2023.
Hugh Jackman denies steroid use, explains he has six months to bulk up for Deadpool 3
In a chat with the titular host of Who's Talking to Chris Wallace? on HBO, Hugh Jackman shed some light on his next appearance as Wolverine, this time in 2024's Deadpool 3.
The Tony-winning actor had vowed to hang up the claws after 2017's Oscar-nominated Logan, but thanks to the actor's bestie Ryan Reynolds joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe with the threequel — and the multiverse — Jackman will be able to pick the claws up for a 10th time.
But first, he's gotta pick up some weights to once again bulk up as the adamantium-skeletoned X-Man.
The actor, now 54, explained to Wallace: "I've learned you can't rush it. I've learned that it takes time … So, we have six months from when I finish [The Music Man on Broadway] to when I started filming. And I'm not doing any other work. I'm going to be with my family and train. That’s going to be my job for six months."
The star also denied rumors that his comic book physique could be found in a bottle. Jackman laughed and shook his head when asked about rumors he took steroids to bulk up. "No, I love my job. And I love Wolverine. I got to be careful what I say here, but I had been told anecdotally what the side effects are of that. And I was like, 'I don't love it that much.'"
Instead, Jackman has to once again rely on some fine feathered friends, as he did in the past. "I tell you, I've eaten more chickens — I'm so sorry to all the vegans and vegetarians and to the chickens of the world. Literally, the karma is not good for me. If the deity has anything related to chickens, I'm in trouble."
Logan Paul apologises for CryptoZoo project failure
YouTuber Logan Paul has apologised to fans who lost money after investing in his cryptocurrency game, CryptoZoo.
The 27-year-old encouraged people to buy cryptocurrency collectables for what he called a "really fun game that makes you money".
But more than a year after its launch, no game has materialised and Paul has apparently abandoned the project.
Now, in response to another YouTuber's investigation into the business, Paul says he wants to "make this right".
CryptoZoo was launched in 2021 after first being discussed on Paul's podcast Impaulsive.
Paul, who has more than 23 million YouTube subscribers, said he had spent "probably about one million" dollars on developing CryptoZoo, and had a "massive team behind the project".
The CryptoZoo website says it is "undergoing upgrades".
In a now-deleted description, it was described as "an autonomous ecosystem that allows ZooKeepers to buy, sell, and trade exotic animals and hybrids. CryptoZoo incorporates cryptocurrency and Non Fungible Tokens (NFTs) into a simple, fun game with familiar mechanics".
The project sold images of cartoon eggs as NFTs, with the promise that collectors would be able to hatch them into randomly chosen animal images.
Collectors would then be able to "breed" their animal images to create new species and win coins in a linked cryptocurrency called $ZOO.
In a since-removed project roadmap, many games were promised in 2022 that would incorporate the animal NFT images but no playable features were delivered.
It is not known how many investors CryptoZoo has, but the project's Discord server has about 500 members.
However, after selling millions of dollars worth of NFTs and crypto coins, Paul stopped talking about CrytpoZoo and seemingly abandoned the project.
Paul's team has not responded to the BBC's request for comment.
Source-BBC
WEATHER FOR THE TCI
GENERAL SITUATION
LOW LEVEL CONVERGENCE ALONG A WEAK DISSIPATING FRONTAL BOUNDARY ACROSS THE CENTRAL BAHAMAS WILL PROMOTE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE CENTRAL AND NORTHWEST BAHAMAS…MEANWHILE, A SURFACE TROUGH ACROSS HISPANIOLA WILL ALSO SUPPORT SOME SHOWERS ACROSS THE SOUTHERN BAHAMAS THROUGH TONIGHT…
SPECIAL WARNINGS
BEACHGOERS AND SWIMMERS SHOULD REMAIN VIGILANT DUE TO THE SLIGHT RISK OF RIP CURRENTS ALONG EAST COAST AND ATLANTIC BEACHES…
BAHAMAS
WEATHER: VARIABLY CLOUDY AND HUMID WITH WIDELY SCATTERED SHOWERS AND A FEW ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS TODAY THROUGH TONIGHT…
ADVISORY: GUSTY WINDS AND HIGHER SEAS CAN BE EXPECTED IN SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS…
WINDS: SOUTHEAST TO SOUTH AT 10 TO 15 KNOTS SHIFTING NORTHWESTERLY IN THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS BY AFTERNOON HOURS…
SEAS: 2 TO 4 FEET OVER THE OCEAN BUILDING UP TO 6 FEET ALONG ATLANTIC EXPOSED SHORELINES IN EASTERLY SWELLS…
TURKS & CAICOS
WEATHER: PARTLY SUNNY AND WARM WITH THE CHANCE OF A FEW ISOLATED SHOWERS… VARIABLY CLOUDY TONIGHT WITH A PASSING SHOWER OR TWO POSSIBLE…
WINDS: EAST TO SOUTHEAST AT 10 TO 15 KNOTS…
SEAS: 2 TO 4 FEET OVER THE OCEAN BUILDING UP TO 6 FEET ALONG ATLANTIC EXPOSED SHORELINES IN EASTERLY SWELLS…
HIGH-TEMPERATURE TODAY: 81°F 27°C
LOW-TEMPERATURE TONIGHT: 70°F 21°C
SUNRISE: 6:56 AM MOONSET: 8:59 AM HIGH TIDE:9:12AM & 9:31 PM
SUNSET: 5:37 PM MOONRISE: 8:04 PM LOW TIDE: 3:42 PM & 3:29 AM TUE
Indian police have arrested an unruly Airline passenger
Indian police have arrested an unruly airline passenger following a complaint by a woman aboard an Air India flight from New York that he urinated on her in business class.
Shankar Mishra was picked up by police in the southern city of Bengaluru and brought to the Indian capital on Saturday.
The Times of India newspaper cited Mishra as saying that he was drunk and could not believe what he had done.
A New Delhi court sent him to prison for 14 days as police investigate the complaint accusing Mishra of outraging the modesty of a woman during the New York to New Delhi flight. If convicted, he faces up to three years in prison.
Mishra’s job as a Mumbai-based executive has been terminated by his employer Wells Fargo & Company, an American multinational financial services firm.
Drug Bust in Portland Jamaica involving Women and Minors
A police team from the Portland division in Jamaica seized approximately 600 pounds of compressed marijuana during an operation in the parish on Saturday, January 7th.
Thirteen people, including six women and two minors, were taken into custody in relation to the seizure.
Reports state that around 9am, law enforcement officials were in the area when they signalled for the driver of an Isuzu motor truck carrying 12 passengers to stop.
The driver complied and the vehicle was searched under the Dangerous Drugs Act.
During the search, 600 pounds of compressed marijuana was found in the vehicle.
All persons in the vehicle, including the driver were subsequently taken into custody. Their identities are being withheld pending further investigation by the police.
The illicit drug has an estimated street value of $3.3 million dollars.
Goodyear's New Tire Is Made From Soybean
While most experts agree that EVs are more environmentally friendly than internal combustion vehicles, the quest for greening transportation goes beyond what's under the hood. For Goodyear, it literally starts where the rubber meets the road. Tires are obviously a very important component of any vehicle, but let's face it, they contain materials and are made with processes that are fairly toxic to the environment.
Considering there are at least two tires for every road-going vehicle in the world today, making those round rubber things more sustainable could go a long way in cleaning up this blue marble we're all living on.
Goodyear's contribution looks like it might be promisingly close to reality. At CES 2023, the company revealed a tire in which 90 percent of its components are materials that come from sustainable sources. Goodyear says there are 17 sustainable ingredients that include things like recycled polyester and plant-based components like soybean oil, rice husk waste, and "bio-renewable" pine tree resin. It also uses steel with "high recycled content" and "ISCC certified mass balance polymers from bio- and bio-circular feedstock."
It all sounds pretty impressive but you may be thinking that this is just a blue-sky concept and won't go much further. However, Goodyear is taking this fairly seriously. The demonstration tire it brought to CES has been put through—and passed—regulatory testing and Goodyear's internal testing.
That doesn't mean it is going to be on the road tomorrow, as Goodyear admits it still needs to work with its suppliers to figure out a way to scale up to mass production. The company also has another tire made from 70 percent sustainable materials in the works, and already launched a website for customers who are interested in purchasing it. Goodyear says it wants to develop a 100-percent sustainable tire by the end of the decade. Considering that, we may see the 70 percent tire (or this 90-percenter) on the road sooner than we think.
In the meantime, if you already own an EV like the Hyundai Ioniq 5 then you may want to check out our EV Tires Learning Center to help you figure out the best way to go when buying rubber for your vehicle. Of course, sustainable tires will be available more broadly, not just for EVs.
Source-Motor Trend
Damar Hamlin moves from Cincinnati to Buffalo hospital
Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin has been discharged from a Cincinnati hospital one week after suffering a cardiac arrest during an NFL game.
He will continue his recovery at a hospital in Buffalo, doctors said.
The 24-year-old, who had to be resuscitated on the pitch, was released from University of Cincinnati Medical Center on Monday.
"He is doing well and this is the beginning of the next stage of his recovery," said Dr William Knight.
Hamlin collapsed during a match at Cincinnati Bengals after making a tackle on wide receiver Tee Higgins, and received more than 30 minutes of medical attention on the field before being moved to an intensive care unit in the city.
He spent two days on a ventilator but doctors said he was up walking the unit by Friday and Hamlin thanked the Cincinnati medical staff in a social media post on Monday, after moving to Buffalo General Hospital.
"Grateful for the awesome care I received at UCMC," Hamlin wrote on Twitter. "Happy to be back in Buffalo. The docs and nurses at Buffalo General have already made me feel at home!"
The American football community rallied in support of Hamlin, raising millions of dollars for charity in his name before making tributes at NFL matches when play resumed at the weekend.
He added on Twitter: "Headed home to Buffalo today with a lot of love on my heart. Watching the world come together around me on Sunday was truly an amazing feeling. The same love you all have shown me is the same love that I plan to put back into the world n more. Bigger than football!"
The most poignant show of support for Hamlin came in the Bills' return to action on Sunday, when they beat the New England Patriots at home to clinch second seed in the AFC for the play-offs.
Source-BBC